Sunday Worship Bulletin - Fourth Church

Bulletins are posted on the day prior.

Sunday, November 2
9:30 a.m. Worship Service

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PRELUDE

Song of Peace
Jean Langlais
Prelude on an Anthem
J. Langlais

INTROIT
Blessed Is God
Eric DeLamarter

DOXOLOGY
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; praise God, all creatures here below; praise God above, ye heavenly host; Creator, Christ, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

CALL TO WORSHIP

One: I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name for ever and ever.
All: One generation shall laud your works to another and shall declare your mighty acts.
One: The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
All: The Lord is good to all, and God’s compassion is over all.

HYMN
“For All the Saints”

For all the saints who from their labors rest, who thee by faith before the world confessed, thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest. Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might; thou, Lord, their captain in the well-fought fight; thou, in the darkness drear, their one true light. Alleluia! Alleluia!

O blest communion, fellowship divine! We feebly struggle; they in glory shine; yet all are one in thee, for all are thine. Alleluia! Alleluia!

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long, steals on the ear the distant triumph song, and hearts are brave again, and arms are strong. Alleluia! Alleluia!

From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast, through gates of pearl streams in the countless host, singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Alleluia! Alleluia!

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

God of all, whose saints witness to your tender power at all times, we confess that we feebly struggle to follow their example. We remain in thrall to the blunt power of wealth and influence, force and coercion. We entrust ourselves to that which we can see and weigh, and not to you, who promises to attend us and support us through long struggles. Forgive us. Give us more faith, we pray, that we may follow you in the way of the saints who in glory shine. Amen.

DECLARATION OF PARDON
One: Friends, believe the good news.
All: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.

SHARING THE PEACE OF CHRIST
Leader: The peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
People: And also with you.

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TIME WITH CHILDREN

WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Requiem Aeternam from Requiem
John Rutter
Grant them rest eternal, Lord our God, we pray to thee, and light perpetual shine on them for ever. Kyrie eleison. Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.

FIRST LESSON
Psalm 149
Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the faithful. Let Israel be glad in its Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King. Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre. For the Lord takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory. Let the faithful exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their couches. Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands, to execute vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, to bind their kings with fetters and their nobles with chains of iron, to execute on them the judgment decreed. This is glory for all his faithful ones. Praise the Lord!

Pie Jesu from Requiem
J. Rutter
Blessed Jesu, Lord, I pray in thy mercy grant them rest. Lord our God, we pray thee, grant them everlasting rest.

SECOND LESSON
Second Scripture Reading
Ephesians 1:11–23
In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Sanctus from Requiem
J. Rutter
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and majesty. Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of our God: Hosanna in the highest.

CALL TO OFFERING

Agnus Dei from Requiem
J. Rutter
Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, in thy mercy grant them rest. Man that is born of a woman hath but a short time to live and is full of misery. He cometh up and is cut down like a flower; he fleeth as it were a shadow. In the midst of life we are in death; of whom may we seek for succor? I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live, and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.

OFFERTORY RESPONSE

A grateful heart is what I bring, a song of praise, my offering. Among the saints I lift my voice: in you, O God, I will rejoice.

INVITATION

PRAYER OF GREAT THANKSGIVING
Leader: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
People: We will lift them up to the Lord.
Leader: Let us give thanks to God.
People: It is right to give our thanks and praise.

PRAYER

THE LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

THE COMMUNION

The Lord Is My Shepherd from Requiem
J. Rutter
The Lord is my shepherd: therefore can I lack nothing. He shall feed me in a green pasture and lead me forth beside the waters of comfort. He shall convert my soul and bring me forth in the paths of righteousness, for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff comfort me. Thou shalt prepare a table before me against them that trouble me; thou has anointed my head with oil, and my cup shall be full. But thy loving-kindness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

LITANTY FOR ALL SAINTS’ SUNDAY
One: God of the ages, as we celebrate those whose baptism is new and those whose baptism is complete, we praise you for all your servants who have done justice, loved mercy, and walked humbly with you. For all the saints who have gone before us,
All: we give you thanks, O God, for our ancestors in the faith.
One: For all the saints who have been beloved to us,
All: we give you thanks for our loved ones who have entered your Church Triumphant.
One: For all the saints who have left us too soon,
All: O God, we mourn their death, and they remain in our hearts.
One: For all the saints who are still shining lights in this world,
All: may we learn from their ways and follow you.
One: For those we have known and loved, who by their faithful obedience and steadfast hope have shown the same mind that was in Christ Jesus, and especially for those members of Fourth Presbyterian Church who have, since last All Saints’ Day, finished their race and are now at rest with you . . . [names] . . . we give you thanks, O God, and for these your servants,
All: we praise you.

Lux Aeterna from Requiem
J. Rutter
I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, for they rest from their labors: even so saith the Spirit. Light eternal shine upon them, Lord, we pray; with saints and angels ever dwelling, for thy mercy’s sake, may they rest in peace.

LITANY (continued)
All: Keep us grateful for their witness and, like them, eager to follow in the way of Christ. Then, at the last, bring us with them to share in the inheritance of the saints in light; through Jesus Christ, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Hymn
“Our God, Our Help in Ages Past”

Our God, our help in ages past, our hope for years to come, our shelter from the stormy blast, and our eternal home:

Beneath the shadow of thy throne thy saints have dwelt secure; sufficient is thine arm alone, and our defense is sure.

Before the hills in order stood, or earth received its frame, from everlasting thou art God, to endless years the same.

A thousand ages in thy sight are like an evening gone, short as the watch that ends the night before the rising sun.

Time, like an ever rolling stream, bears all our years away; they fly forgotten, as a dream dies at the opening day.

Our God, our help in ages past, our hope for years to come, be thou our guard while life shall last, and our eternal home.

CHARGE AND BENEDICTION

POSTLUDE
Prelude in C Minor
Johann Sebastian Bach

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