The Tenth Sunday after Pentecost
REFLECTIONS
I imagine that the first question the priest and Levite asked was: 'If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?' But by the very nature of his concern, the good Samaritan reversed the question: 'If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?
— Martin Luther King Jr.,
Strength to Love
To be truly good means more than not robbing people . . . To be truly good means more than being righteously religious . . . To be truly good means being a good neighbor. . . . And to be a good neighbor means recognizing that there are ultimately no strangers. . . . Everybody is my neighbor! . . . Everybody is my brother! . . . There are no isolated monads wounded on the other side of the street! . . . We're all connected.
— Brian D. McLaren,
A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey
So what Jesus did when he deemed the Samaritan "good" was radical and risky; it stunned his Jewish listeners. He was asking them to dream of a different kind of kingdom. He was inviting them to consider the possibility that a person might add up to more than the sum of her political, racial, cultural, and economic identities. He was calling them to put aside the history they knew, and the prejudices they nursed. He was asking them to leave room for divine and world-altering surprises.
— Debi Thomas,
Journey with Jesus
COLLECT
God of Moses, who rained down bread on Israel’s wandering people: lead us to the food that never leaves us craving, addicted to consuming, but fills our whole humanity with life enough for all; through Jesus Christ, the bread of heaven. Amen.
PRELUDE
GREETING
Rev. Fred Harrell (he/him/his), Worship Leader
Minister: The Lord be with you.
ALL: And also with you.
PREPARATION
CALL TO WORSHIP
from Psalm 146
Let us praise the Lord from the depths of our hearts.
Let us sing praise to God as long as we live.
Blessed are those whose hope is in the Lord their God,
the maker of the earth, the skies, the sea and everything in them.
The Lord remains faithful forever.
God upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free, the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those that are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the stranger and sustains the fatherless and the widow
but God frustrates the ways of the wicked.
The Lord reigns forever. Let us praise the Lord!
PRAYER OF ADORATION
PRAISE
SONGS
Hear the Sound
David Leonard · Leslie Jorden · Matt Maher · 2012
Holy
Jason Ingram · Jonas Myrin · Matt Redman · 2011
RENEWAL
CALL TO CONFESSION
1 John 1:5-7, NRSV
This is the message we have heard from God and proclaim to you, that God is light and in God there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with God while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as God is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses us from all sin.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Loving God,
our sins are too heavy to carry, too real to hide, and too deep to undo.
Forgive what our lips tremble to name,
and our hearts can no longer bear.
Set us free from a past that we cannot change;
open to us a future in which we can be changed;
and grant us grace to grow more and more in your likeness and image;
through Jesus Christ, the light of the world. Amen.
SILENT CONFESSION
WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT
I John 1:8-9, NRSV
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins
and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
In Christ, we are forgiven.
Thanks be to God!
PASSING THE PEACE
The peace of Christ be with you all.
And also with you.
SONG
We Will Find Our Peace
David Gungor & John Arndt · 2011
BLESSING OUR CHILDREN & YOUTH
Leader: People of God, what is our prayer for our children and youth?
People: May the Lord be with you.
Children: And also with you.
Leader: May the Lord bless you and keep you;
may the Lord grow you strong in Divine grace,
may the Lord fill you with the love of Christ.
All: Thanks be to God!
SONG OF Assurance
All the Poor and Powerless
Leslie Jordan & David Leonard · 2010
COMMITMENT
WORDS OF WELCOME
SCRIPTURE
Luke 10: 25-37, NRSV
Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
Reader: The Word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God.
SERMON
Jennifer Fisher (she/her/hers)
The Good Samaritan
OFFERING OURSELVES & OUR GIFTS
The offering is a way for Christians to support the mission and ministry of the church. Christians offer a sacrificial portion of their resources–time, talents, possessions–as an act of faith and gratitude in response to God’s grace. While many at City Church make their regular contributions through online giving and automated bill pay, offerings are a part of our worship service as an opportunity for the regular, proportionate and generous giving of the resources God has given us.
OFFERING PRAYER
Generous God, we give you thanks for all the gifts, great and small, that have been poured out upon your Church. Accept and use our offerings for your glory in San Francisco and throughout the world, through Christ our Lord we pray. Amen.
MUSICAL OFFERING
All Belong Here
Leonora Rand & Hannah Rand · 2017
COMMUNION
INVITATION TO THE LORDS TABLE
CONFESSION OF FAITH: APOSTLES CREED
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts!
We lift them up to the Lord!
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
SONG
Sanctus
by Karl Digerness
Together we proclaim the mystery of the faith:
Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.
WORDS OF INSTITUTION
Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us;
Therefore let us keep the feast.
DISTRIBUTION OF THE BREAD & CUP
The Gifts of God for the People of God
COMMUNION PRAYER
God of our pilgrimage,
you have led us to the living water:
refresh and sustain us
as we go forward on our journey,
in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
Sarah Dahl (she/her/hers)
THE LORD'S PRAYER
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial, and deliver us from evil.For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen.
SONG
Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners
J. Wilbur Chapman, 1910 · Rowland Hugh Pritchard, 1855
BENEDICTION
May the love of the Lord Jesus draw you to himself;
May the power of the Lord Jesus strengthen you in his service;
May the joy of the Lord Jesus fill your souls;
And may the blessing of God Almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be upon you and remain with you always.
Amen.
DISMISSAL
Let us go forth to serve the world as those who love our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Thanks be to God!
POSTLUDE
MUSICIANS
Jeff Marrs, drums
Jason Muscat, bass
Adam Shulman, piano
Ramon Fermin, electric guitar
Minna Choi, vocal
Keith Watts, vocal/guitar