Lent | 3rd Sunday 20 Mar 2022
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening:
Heavenly Father, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts
are restless until they rest in you: Look with compassion upon
the heartfelt desires of your servants, and purify our disordered
affections, that we may behold your eternal glory in the face of
Christ Jesus; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
“I tell you again that unless you repent,
you will perish, too.”
(Luke 13: 5)
__________
Great Is Thy Faithfulness Worship Ministries of Berean
Berean Baptist Church of Grand Rapids, Michigan
__________
OT Reading: Exodus 3:1-15 (NLT)
Moses and the Burning Bush
3:1 One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a bush. Moses stared in amazement. Though the bush was engulfed in flames, it didn’t burn up. “This is amazing,” Moses said to himself. “Why isn’t that bush burning up? I must go see it.”
When the Lord saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God called to him from the middle of the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
“Here I am!” Moses replied.
“Do not come any closer,” the Lord warned. “Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God.
Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live. Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt.”
But Moses protested to God, “Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?”
God answered, “I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain.”
But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”
God replied to Moses, “I am who i am. Say this to the people of Israel: I am has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.
This is my eternal name,
my name to remember for all generations.
__________
Psalms: Psalm 103 – (Bless the Lord) The Prestonwood Choir
Prestonwood Baptist Church
__________
NT Reading: 1 Cor 10:12-13 (NLT)
10:12 If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.
__________
Be Strong In the Lord
Alexandra Saluna
__________
Gospel Reading: Luke 13:1-9 (NLT)
A Call to Repentance
13:1 About this time Jesus was informed that Pilate had murdered some people from Galilee as they were offering sacrifices at the Temple. “Do you think those Galileans were worse sinners than all the other people from Galilee?” Jesus asked. “Is that why they suffered? Not at all! 
And you will perish, too, unless you repent of your sins and turn to God. And what about the eighteen people who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? No, and I tell you again that unless you repent, you will perish, too.”
Parable of the Barren Fig Tree
Then Jesus told this story: “A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if there was any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. Finally, he said to his gardener, ‘I’ve waited three years, and there hasn’t been a single fig! Cut it down. It’s just taking up space in the garden.’
“The gardener answered, ‘Sir, give it one more chance. Leave it another year, and I’ll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. If we get figs next year, fine. If not, then you can cut it down.’”
__________
Repentance Song by Jermaine Edwards
Presbyterian Church of West Middlesex
__________
Heavenly Father: we pray for the peace of the whole world, and for the well-being and unity of the your people; Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayers…
+ For all the clergy and people who selflessly serve you in congregations throughout the world, especially in difficult circumstances.
+ For all those who proclaim the Gospel at home and abroad; and for all who teach and disciple others, especially under duress.
+ For our brothers and sisters in Christ who are persecuted for their faith, especially women and children and the elderly.
+ For our nation, for those in authority, and for all in public service; may we all live, govern and serve as unto you.
+ For all those who are in trouble, sorrow, need, sickness, or any other adversity, especially in the Ukraine.
+ For all those who have departed this life in the certain hope of the resurrection, and those who mourn their loss.
Heavenly Father, grant these our prayers for the sake of Jesus Christ, our only Mediator and Advocate, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Closing: faith and worship | John Birch
The peace of God be in your heart
The grace of God be in your words
The love of God be in your hands
The joy of God be in your soul
and in the song that your life sings.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Peanut Gallery 