Welcome
Let us come into God’s presence with comfort and joy despite our felt dispersion. We have the privilege and responsibility to worship the one true God. We are truly his people and we are united by our shared faith and mutual covenant. Take your time with this liturgy. Follow the prompts as you lead and participate in household worship.
Call to Worship
Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
forever.
New City Catechism
Please read aloud these three questions and answers
Should those who have faith in Christ seek their salvation through their own works, or anywhere else?
No, they should not, as everything necessary to salvation is found in Christ. To seek salvation through good works is a denial that Christ is the only Redeemer and Savior.
Since we are redeemed by grace alone, through Christ alone, must we still do good works and obey God’s Word?
Yes, because Christ, having redeemed us by his blood, also renews us by his Spirit; so that our lives may show love and gratitude to God; so that we may be assured of our faith by the fruits; and so that by our godly behavior others may be won to Christ.
Since we are redeemed by grace alone, through faith alone, where does this faith come from?
All the gifts we receive from Christ we receive through the Holy Spirit, including faith itself.
Prayer
Pray along as one member of your household prays this prayer aloud.
Heavenly Father,
According to your great mercy, you have caused us who believe to be born again to a living hope. You have blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing. You comfort us in our afflictions so that we may be able to comfort others who are afflicted. Please comfort us this morning as among other trials we are grieving the loss of gathering together. Cause this season to make us particularly grateful for the means of grace still available to us and to mourn with those who do not yet know peace that comes from being reconciled to you.
Christ Jesus,
Your divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. In you we have redemption and the forgiveness of sin. Lord, we desire to be kept from being ineffective or unfruitful in our knowledge of you. Therefore, we are making efforts this very morning to supplement our faith with virtue, our virtue with knowledge, our knowledge with self-control, our self-control with godliness, our godliness with brotherly affection, and our brotherly affection with agape love. Help us, we ask, in your name.
Holy Spirit,
You are the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it. We so look forward to the day when we do acquire possession of our inheritance and we cease to see through a glass dimly, as our faith is turned to sight. We praise you for the cloud of witnesses that surround us and the many saints who have gone before us. We are striving by your almighty power to lay aside every weight and sin which clings to us - help us, Holy Spirit, to look to Jesus, who is the founder and perfecter of our faith. You have promised to help us in our weakness and to intercede for us with groanings too deep for words. We thank you.
God, you have commanded us to love you with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our might. Help us, we ask, this morning, to keep this great commandment. And help us also to keep the one that is like it: that we might love our neighbor as ourselves.
Amen.
Tithes & Offerings
We are still taking offerings online. If you prefer to write a check you can mail it to our church address. While we are not meeting in person, we need your generosity in order to fulfill our financial obligations. Contributions to FBCC go towards our weekly needs, serving our neighbors, and supporting SBC missionaries across the world.
Additionally, we know this is a time of economic hardship for many. David Bracewell chairs our Benevolence committee, which exists to help members of the church and our community who are in need. If you are in need of assistance, please don’t hesitate to email him or the church office at admin@fbccatl.com
Scripture Reading
Today’s passage is Romans 5:18-6:4, please read it before continuing to today’s sermon.
Sermon
Closing Song
Benediction
Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise Him, all creatures here below
Praise Him above the Heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost
Amen
Resources
During this time when we are apart, one of the things that we miss out on is singing together. While we will have songs built into our "worship at home" service each week, I wanted to share a couple of other ways that you can listen to/sing along with the songs we are accustomed to singing throughout the week.
I have created YouTube and Spotify playlists with each of our songs. May God bless you as you continue to sing throughout the week
It is our hope that, while we are apart, you will continue to invest in your walk with God. Each week, we will provide some ideas for some passages of scripture to study along with a devotional. This week, you can visit https://www.desiringgod.org/solid-joys each day to read a short devotional that will hopefully nourish your soul.