Sermon Tone Analysis

Thus far has the Lord helped us

Take heart, for I believe God

!!! 16-10-05am Anniversary Service

!!! Announcements

!!! Bible presented

!!!

Call to worship

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

(Deuteronomy 6:4-5)

!!! Blessing

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.

(Galatians 1:3-4)

!!! Doxology      /“I will give thanks to Thee” (Scripture in Song) (Screen)/

I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples.

For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.

(Psalm 57:9-11)

!!! Prayer of Adoration, Thanksgiving, The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father and our God,

You are God and we praise you; you are the Lord and we acclaim you; You are the eternal Father; all creation worships you.

To you all angels, all the powers of heaven, Cherubim and seraphim sing in endless praise, “Holy, holy, holy Lord God of power and might; heaven and earth are full of your glory.

The glorious company of the apostles praise you; the noble fellowship of prophets praise you; the white-robed army of martyrs praise you.

Throughout the whole world the holy church acclaims you, the Father, of infinite majesty; your true and only Son worthy of all worship; and the Holy Spirit, the comforter.

You Christ are the King of glory, You are the everlasting Son of the Father.

When you became man to set us free You did not abhor the virgin’s womb.

You overcame the sting of death and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.

You are seated at God’s right hand in glory; we believe you will come to be our judge.

Come then, Lord, and help your people, bought with the price of your own blood and bring us with the saints to glory everlasting.

God of all mercies, you have made summer and winter, sunshine and rain, seed time and harvest.

You have made day and night, heat and cold, for work and rest.

Each of these cycles of life serves our welfare and speaks to us of your tender care and your fatherly goodness.

Your mercy and grace are seen: in family who love us; in friends who support us; in laws that defend us; in homes that shelter us; in food that nourishes us; in clothing that warms us; in the measure of good health you give to us; in soundness of mind and clarity of thought; in keenness of senses, intellect, affections, and will.

However, all of these your blessings cannot begin to compare with the vast extent of your wisdom and grace that planned and accomplished our redemption through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Saviour.

We worship you for the fact that you came to our rescue in one who is mighty, willing and able--who is able to save completely.

We thank you most sincerely that you saw our need of your saving grace and acted so decisively.

We thank you from the bottom of our hearts that Jesus willingly shed his blood for us and that through confession of sin, his blood now washes us clean of every guilty stain.

We thank you that through faith in Jesus, we have now passed from death to life and that there is now no condemnation for us.

We worship you for the fact that you freely justify the guilty: to those who deserve death, you give eternal life and to those who deserve Hell, you grant the blessings of your Heavenly kingdom through faith in your Son, Jesus, who taught his disciples to pray, saying: “Our Father …”

!!! Hymn No 70:                               /“Praise my soul, the King of heaven”/

Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name.

Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.

(Psalm 103:1-2)

!!! Scripture Reading                     /Acts 27:13-26/

!!! Prayer of Confession of sin

Dear Lord, gracious Father in heaven,

We bow in the presence of your holiness and majesty, acknowledging our trespasses.

We are like the people of Israel in the time of Isaiah; our sins are hiding your face from us.

Our iniquities have separated us from our God.

And yet, your arm is not too short to save, nor is your ear to dull to hear.

Within a space of less than a year, You have revealed your holiness and majesty to us in what you have done in extraordinary natural events.

We confess that You are in control of the universe.

This planet is in your hands.

Nothing happens outside of your plan and purpose.

Hundreds of people died in one sweep of the ocean when You allowed a mighty tidal wave to rise, touching many nations.

For a moment the world came to a halt.

Some repented, but by and large there was no acknowledgement of You.

Forgive us, Father.

Nations engaged in war and hundreds die daily because of war.

Men and women of our own country, and even our city are taken away from their families and are exposed to danger and death every day.

And yet, we try to explain events in terms of political vantage points and not in terms of your eternal decree.

Forgive us, Father.

In our own land we hear talk of terrorist threats more frequently.

We respond by updating safety measures, but we do not seek your face.

Forgive us, Father.

You have sent over this vast and outstretched land the worst drought in human memory.

Water restrictions are now reality in most of our big cities.

Farmers have to leave their land and live stock because of this drought.

And still, we do not seek your face for mercy or amend our ways in your sight.

Sin abounds in our land as we actually glorify evil but oppress what is good in your sight.

Forgive us, Father.

Once again You lifted your hand against us be sending one sea storm after the other.

Helplessly and hopelessly we had to look on as one city after the other was devastated by raging waters.

Hundreds died in mudslides and landslides.

Thousands of people were forced to leave their homes, losing every bit of possession they had.

Oil prices reached record levels and we scrambled for solutions.

But still, we do not repent of our sinful ways to seeking You and worship You above all other gods.

Forgive us, Father.

And then, O Lord, far away from the boundaries of the sea You shook the earth and thousands of people died in landslides and collapsed buildings.

Deceases spread and people are calling for help from all over the globe.

And once again, instead of falling on our knees in remorse before You, we blame You for being unfair and unloving.

Forgive us, Father.

Through all the catastrophes You revealed to us your power and You showed us your majesty.

We know that there are certain things mankind cannot stand up against; there are forces we can do nothing about.

It only stresses the fact that we cannot put our hope on anything of this world.

Military power cannot save; economic success cannot save; the best measures to prevent these things to happen cannot bring security.

Salvation does not lie in riches, or investments, or more oil, or in tsunami warning systems or buildings designed to withstand earthquakes; salvation does not come from stable governments with strong military power.

Salvation comes from You in Jesus Christ.

Father, we confess our foolishness and sin.

Teach us the wisdom of your Word; teach us that the beginning of all wisdom is to love and fear You and to love your Word.

Save us from our foolishness and rebellion.

Help us to bow before the authority and majesty of your Son, lest He smash us to pieces like a clay pot.

Purify us through the work of your Holy Spirit.

In the Name of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, we pray.

Amen.

!!! Forgiveness

The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins, declares the Lord.

As for me, this is my covenant with them, says the Lord.

My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of their descendants from this time on and forever,” says the Lord.

(Isaiah 59:20-21)

!!! Hymn No 383:                            /“The Lord made man” (Tune 494)/