The Rev. Dr. Albert Potgieter, Pastor Elizabeth Frank, Music Director Reuven Aristigueta, Tenor THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION Prelude: Mosso Moderato, Peter Thielen - Steven Frank, organ WE APPROACH OUR GOD Welcome and Announcements Call to Worship L: The Bread of Life has come among us. P: What is this Bread of Life? L: It is none other than Jesus Christ, God’s beloved Son! P: We hunger for the true bread that will nourish our souls. L: Come, then, to Christ who feeds us with his very life! P: We come, needing sustenance and nurturing. Amen. Hymn of Praise: Alleluia! Sing to Jesus, Hyfrydol Alleluia! Sing to Jesus; his the sceptre, his the throne! Alleluia! His the triumph, his the victory alone. Hark! the songs of peaceful Zion thunder like a mighty flood; Jesus out of ev’ry nation hath redeemed us by his blood. Alleluia! Bread of angels, thou on earth our food, our stay. Alleluia! Here the sinful flee to thee from day to day. Intercessor, friend of sinners, earth’s Redeemer, plead for me, where the songs of all the sinless sweep across the crystal sea. Alleluia! King eternal, thee the Lord of lords we own. Alleluia! Born of Mary, earth thy footstool, heav’n thy throne. Thou within the veil hast entered, robed in flesh, our Great Priest -thou on earth both priest and victim in the eucharistic feast. Call to Confession: 1 John 1:8-9 (NLT) L: If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth. P: But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. Prayer of Confession Gracious Lord, we are filled with a mixture of feelings today. Some of us are rejoicing in the wonderful time of rest and relaxation; while others continue to seek relief from the burdens and worries that they bear. All of us stand in need of your refreshing and nourishing love and forgiveness. In the daily grind of life, we are so often taught to climb the ladder of success by stepping on each other, focusing only on our own wants and needs. We chase after all those false idols that cannot ever sustain us and bring us peace. Forgive our foolishness, Lord. Forgive us when we stray from the paths of righteousness and peace. It is your Son Jesus Christ who leads us in the ways of happiness and peace, sustaining us with his life-giving bread. Nurture us again, Lord, with this Bread of Life, that we may truly focus on the ministries and mission you have set before us. For we ask this in Jesus’ Name. Amen. Words of Assurance L: Know that Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life! Come to him and feed on his love for you. Find healing in his presence. Know that this is given freely for you, out of his great love. P: We find healing in his presence. Thanks be to God for his loving mercies and faithfulness. Amen! The Law of God: —from Mark 12:30-31 (NCV) “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. And' love your neighbor as yourself. There are no commands more important than these." Passing the Peace Extend the sign of God’s peace to one another. WE LISTEN TO GOD’S WORD Children’s Sermon - Pastor Albert Hymn of Preparation: Bread of the World, in Mercy Broken, Eucharistic Hymn Bread of the world in mercy broken, Wine of the soul, in mercy shed, By Whom the words of life were spoken, And in whose death our sins are dead: Look on the heart by sorrow broken, Look on the tears by sinners shed; And be Thy feast to us the token That by Thy grace our souls are fed. Amen. Scripture Reading: John 6:24-35 24 So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26 Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” 28 Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” 30 So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32 Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is that which[a] comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” 35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. Message: The Bread of Life WE RESPOND TO GOD'S WORD Celebration of the Lord’s Supper L: Beloved in the Lord Jesus, the meal which we are about to celebrate is a feast of remembrance, communion, and hope. P: We come to remember that Jesus was sent into the world to assume our flesh and blood, to become God with us, that we might be redeemed. L: We come to have communion with this same Christ who has promised to be with us even to the end of the world. P: We come in hope, believing that this bread and this cup are a pledge and a foretaste of a new heaven and a new earth, where we shall behold God. L: Jesus said, I was hungry and you gave me food; P: I was thirsty and you gave me drink. L: Here is the bread of life given for us; P: let all who hunger come and eat. L: Here is the fruit of the vine, poured out for us; P: let all who thirst come and drink. L: The Lord be with you. P: And also with you. L: Lift up your hearts! P: We lift them up to the Lord. L: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. P: It is right to give our thanks and praise! L: Holy and right it is to give you thanks and praise at all times and in all places, O God our Creator. Source of all life and goodness, You created heaven with all its hosts and the earth with all its plenty and preserve us by your providence. P: When we disobeyed, you sent Jesus to deliver us from sin and death and free us to joyful obedience. L: With your whole church on earth and with all the company of heaven we proclaim your glory. Most righteous God, we remember in this meal the perfect sacrifice offered once on the cross by our Lord Jesus Christ for the sin of the whole world. P: United with Christ in his suffering, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, trusting in the power of God to triumph over evil, we wait in joyful hope for the fullness of God’s reign. L: Send your Holy Spirit upon us, we pray, that the bread which we break and the cup which we bless may be to us the communion of the body and blood of Christ. Grant that, being joined together in him, we may attain to the unity of the faith and grow up in all things into Christ our Lord. P: And as this grain has been gathered from many fields into one loaf, and these grapes from many hills into one cup, grant, O Lord, that your whole Church may soon be gathered from the ends of the earth into your kingdom. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! Thanksgiving Since the Lord has now fed us at his Table, let us praise God’s holy name with heartfelt thanksgiving. Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far he removes our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him, who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all, and will also give us all things with him. Therefore shall my mouth and heart show forth the praise of the Lord, from this time forth forevermore. Amen. Time of Offering and Thanksgiving Your offering may be placed in the plate near the entrance door or sent to the church via check in the mail to: CCD, 39-50 Douglaston Parkway, Douglaston, NY 11363 Or digitally through Tithe.ly: https://tithe.ly/give?c=1332203 Offertory Music: Adagio, Franciszek Walczyński - Steven Frank, organ Prayer of Dedication/Offering The Prayers - Concluding with The Lord’s Prayer in unison: 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 power, and the glory, forever. Amen. Closing Hymn: Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts, Quebec Jesus, Thou Joy of loving hearts, Thou Fount of life, Thou Light of men, from the best bliss that earth imparts; we turn unfilled to Thee again. We taste Thee, O Thou living Bread, and long to feast upon Thee still; we drink of Thee, the Foun¬tainhead, and thirst our souls from Thee to fill. O Jesus, ever with us stay, make all our moments calm and bright; chase the dark night of sin away, shed o’er the world Thy holy light. Blessing