Long Branch Baptist Church
Halfway, Virginia; est. 1786
Sunday, December 10th, 2006
Enter to Worship
Prelude David Witt
Meditation
Invocation
*Opening Hymn #90
“Good Christian Men, Rejoice!”
Welcome & Announcements
Morning Prayer [See Insert]
*Hymn #84
“Child in the Manger”
*Advent Litany [See Right]
*Hymn #82 [Chorus / 1st verse only / Chorus]
“Go tell it on the Mountain”
Offertory Mr. Witt
*Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow / Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise him above, ye heavenly host / Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.
*Scripture
Sermon
“To Give Light”
Invitation Hymn #83
“Hark, the Herald Angels Sing”
*Benediction
*Congregational Response
May the grace of Christ of Savior / And the Father’s boundless love
With the Holy Spirit’s favor / Rest upon us from above. Amen.
* Congregation, please stand.
Depart To Serve
Advent Litany
Light and peace to you through our Lord Jesus Christ!
Grace and peace be unto you!
Why do we light this candle?
We come together in the hope of His salvation. Just as the candle hopes in a greater light to come, so too we know our Eternal Hope is at hand.
He is our Hope, he is the author of our hope. In him our fathers trusted, and they were not pushed to shame.
We boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.
V The Candle of Hope is Lit
The Lord delivered this to us through the prophets:
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness— on them light has shined. You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest. The yoke of their burden has been lifted; the rod of the oppressor is broken.
For a child has been born for us, unto us a son is given; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
All praise to Him who gives us this glorious hope. This hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit He has given.
Morning Prayer
Our King and Savior draws nigh: Come, let us adore him.
Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious and gracious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal. Judge us not too harshly, we pray, but forgive us these our sins.
V Pray for forgiveness of your sin
Emmanuel, Forgive us in your gracious majesty we ask.
Lord, we thank you for your forgiveness. We thank you for your deliverance. You have protected us, cared for us, and given us comfort. You have graciously supplied more than we ask or imagine. And, yet Lord, you have commanded us to ask. So we raise up to your protection those whom we love. Comfort those of us who grieve. Heal those of us who are sick. Sustain those of us who must persevere. Look most kindly upon on us we ask: especially for Warren, Cory, Susan, Irene, Nannie Griffith’s family, Lori, Martha, Cindy, Burton, Lee, Mark and these too:
V Pray for your neighbors
Emmanuel, Be with us in your gracious majesty we ask.
Lord, at this time when we celebrate the arrival of the Kingdom through your glorious Son, we ask your blessings on our present kingdom. Grant us good rulers who would seek to do your will. Keep us free to be your church. Guide and grow this church, we pray, that your kingdom would advance. Lord, we humbly ask that we could be a part of that kingdom. Watch over us as we pray.
V Pray for your country and church
Emmanuel, Guide us in your gracious majesty we ask.
Be with us even as we return the prayer you once to taught us, saying. Our Father …
Announcements
We are ending a little early today in the hopes you will join with Middleburg Church for their message in music (Christmas Cantata) called “Celebrate the Child”
Thank you for being with us as we celebrate the birth our king.
Scripture Reading
68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.
69 He has raised up a mighty savior for us
in the house of his servant David,
70 as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71 that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
72 Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
and has remembered his holy covenant,
73 the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
before him all our days.
76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people
by the forgiveness of their sins.
78 By the tender mercy of our God,
the dawn from on high will break upon us,
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Luke 1:68-79
Title: To Give Light
Text: Luke 1.68 - 79
MP: We need Salvation now
FCF:
SO: To explain what salvation is, why we need it, and how to find it.
Intro:
Story of Squanto (The Pilgrim’s Savior)
Zechariah
facing his own extinction
facing his nations oppressions
Gets this boy
o Gives Knowledge (salvation thru forgiveness)
o Gives Light (hope in the darkness of death)
o Gives Guidance (towards true peace)
We all need a Savior
If nothing else, from ourselves (Any sin you can think of is a death (e.g. Internet porn))
We need to know that we hope. We see what the hopeless do
We need daily guidance toward the light
When we have Jesus this song comes naturally
Squanto’s deathbed conversion – Yesha means salvation (iah = Jehovah the LORD) You can have that too.
BreakPoint Commentaries
Politics & Government
’God’s Instrument’
11/4/2005
The Story of Squanto
Most of us know the story of the first Thanksgiving -- at least, we know the Pilgrim version. But how many of us know the Indian viewpoint?
No, I’m not talking about some revisionist, politically correct version of history. I’m talking about the amazing story of the way God used an Indian named Squanto as a special instrument of His providence.
Historical accounts of Squanto’s life vary, but historians believe that around 1608 -- more than a decade before the Pilgrims arrived -- a group of English traders sailed to what is today Plymouth, Massachusetts. When the trusting Wampanoag Indians came out to trade, the traders took them prisoner, transported them to Spain, and sold them into slavery. It was an unimaginable horror.
But God had an amazing plan for one of the captured Indians -- a boy named Squanto.
Squanto was bought by a well-meaning Spanish monk, who treated him well and taught him the Christian faith. Squanto eventually made his way to England and worked in the stables of a man named John Slaney. Slaney sympathized with Squanto’s desire to return home, and he promised to put the Indian on the first vessel bound for America.
It wasn’t until 1618 -- ten years after Squanto was first kidnapped -- that a ship was found. Finally, after a decade of exile and heartbreak, Squanto was on his way home.
But when he arrived in Massachusetts, more heartbreak awaited him. An epidemic had wiped out Squanto’s entire village.
We can only imagine what must have gone through Squanto’s mind: Why had God allowed him to return home, against all odds, only to find his loved ones dead?
A year later, the answer came. A shipload of English families arrived and settled on the very land once occupied by Squanto’s people. Squanto went to meet them, greeting the startled Pilgrims in English.
According to the diary of Pilgrim Governor William Bradford, Squanto "became a special instrument sent of God for [our] good . . . He showed [us] how to plant [our] corn, where to take fish and to procure other commodities . . . and was also [our] pilot to bring [us] to unknown places for [our] profit, and never left [us] till he died."
When Squanto lay dying of a fever, Bradford wrote that their Indian friend "desir[ed] the Governor to pray for him, that he might go to the Englishmen’s God in heaven." Squanto bequeathed his possessions to the Pilgrims "as remembrances of his love."
Who but God could so miraculously convert a lonely Indian and then use him to save a struggling band of Englishmen? It is reminiscent of the biblical story of Joseph, who was also sold into slavery -- and whom God, likewise, used as a special instrument for good.
Squanto’s life story is remarkable, and we ought to make sure our children and grandchildren learn about it. Sadly, most books about Squanto omit references to his Christian faith. But I’m delighted to say that Eric Metaxas has written a wonderful children’s book called Squanto: The Miracle of Thanksgiving. I highly recommend it. It will teach your kids about the "special instrument sent of God" who changed the course of American history.
For further reading and information:
Today’s BreakPoint offer: BreakPoint’s Thanksgiving Book Package includes Barbara Rainey’s book, Thanksgiving: A Time to Remember, which includes a worship CD, Radical Gratitude by Ellen Vaughn, and Squanto: The Miracle of Thanksgiving, a children’s book by Eric Metaxas -- all for a donation of $50 to BreakPoint. Call 1-877-322-5527 to order.
"Giving thanks like they used to in Plymouth, Williamsburg," USA Today, 20 October 2005. (Special events in Plymouth, Mass., and Williamsburg, Va.)
BreakPoint Commentary No. 051103, "’Having Undertaken for the Glory of God’: The Mayflower Compact."
Read portions of Governor William Bradford’s journal.
Stanley M. Aronson, M.D., "Thanks for small beginnings," Providence Journal, 1 November 2005.
The First Thanksgiving Proclamation, 20 July 1676.
Read President Abraham Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Proclamation.
Anne Morse, "Understanding the Pilgrims," Boundless, 22 November 2001 .
Elesha Coffman, "Eat, Drink, and Relax," Christian History Newsletter, 16 November 2001 .
"The American Puritans," Christian History, issue 41, Winter 1994.
See the History Channel’s information on "The History of Thanksgiving."
enediction:
Rom 15:13
May the God of hope
fill you with
all joy
and peace in believing,
so that
you may abound in hope
by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Listen to me, my people,
and give heed to me, my nation;
for a teaching will go out from me,
and my justice for a light to the peoples.
5 I will bring near my deliverance swiftly,
my salvation has gone out
and my arms will rule the peoples;
the coastlands wait for me,
and for my strong arm they hope.
6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;
for the heavens will vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and those who live on it will die like gnats;a
but my salvation will be forever,
and my deliverance will never be ended.
wec boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.
and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope. Today I declare to you that I shall you restore you double. I set you prisoners free!
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
On that day the Lord their God will save them for they are the flock of his people; for like the jewels of a crown they shall shine on his land.
Oh, what goodness and beauty are his!
All praise to our God, the revealer of mysteries, the healer of the nations. He has gone to prepare a place for us. If it were not so, he would not have told us!
