4th Sunday before

ADVENT

INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY CENTRE Kuala Lumpur

3 November 2013

Welcome

Guide me, O thou great Redeemer,pilgrim though this barren land;I am weak, but thou art mighty;hold me with thy powerful hand;Bread of heaven,feed me now and evermore.

Open now the crystal fountain,whence the healing stream doth flow;let the fiery cloudy pillarlead me all my journey through;strong Deliverer,be thou still my Strength and Shield.

When I tread the verge of Jordan,bid my anxious fears subside;bear me through the swelling current,land me safe on Canaan's side;songs of praises,I will ever give to thee.

PastorGrace, mercy and peace from God

our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

ResponseAnd also with you.

Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of Your Holy Spirit that we may perfectly love You, and worthily magnify Your holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.

   Heavenly Father, whose blessed Son was revealed that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us the sons of God and heirs of eternal life: grant that we, having this hope, may purify ourselves even as he is pure; that when he shall appear in power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Let us confess our sins to Almighty God

In silence, we bring before God our faults and failures

and seek his forgiveness

Almighty and most merciful God, our Maker and Judge, we have sinned against you in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We repent and are sorry for all our sins. Forgive us. Strengthen us to love and obey you through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.  

The Lord enrich you with His graceand nourish you with His blessings:

The Lord defend all in trouble and keep you from all evil;

The Lord accept your prayersand forgive each one, through Jesus Christ the Lord.

Amen.

Be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to the Lord.

Ephesians 5:18-20

Sing unto God.

(Psalm 68:4)

Your love is amazing, steady and unchangingYour love is a mountain, firm beneath my

feetYour love is a mystery, how You gently lift meWhen I am surrounded, Your love carries me

Hallelujah, HallelujahHallelujah, Your love makes me singHallelujah, HallelujahHallelujah, Your love makes me sing

Your love is surprising, I can feel it risingAll the joy that's growing deep inside of meEvery time I see You, all Your goodness

shines throughAnd I can feel this God song, rising up in me

Hallelujah, HallelujahHallelujah, Your love makes me singHallelujah, HallelujahHallelujah, Your love makes me sing

Thank you for the cross LordThank you for the price You paidBearing all my sin and shameIn love You came and gave amazing grace

Thank you for this love LordThank you for the nail pierced handsWashed me in Your cleansing flowNow all I know Your forgiveness and embrace

Worthy is the LambSeated on the throneCrown You now with many crownYou reign victoriousHigh and lifted upJesus Son of GodThe Darling of Heaven crucifiedWorthy is the LambWorthy is the Lamb

Lord I come to YouLet my heart be changed, renewed

Flowing from the graceThat I found in You.

And Lord I've come to knowThe weaknesses I see in me

Will be stripped awayBy the power of Your love.

Hold me closeLet Your love surround me

Bring me nearDraw me to Your side.

And as I waitI'll rise up like the eagleAnd I will soar with YouYour Spirit leads me on

In the power of Your love.

Lord unveil my eyesLet me see You face to faceThe knowledge of Your love

As You live in me.

And Lord renew my mindAs Your will unfolds in my eyes

In living every dayby the power of Your love.

Hold me closeLet Your love surround me

Bring me nearDraw me to Your side.

And as I waitI'll rise up like the eagleAnd I will soar with YouYour Spirit leads me on

In the power of Your love.

Christ is our peace. We gather in His name and share His peace.

The peace of the Lord be with you.

ResponseAnd also with you

Paul, Silas and Timothy: To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: 2 Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 4 Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. 5 All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not

know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10 on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you. 11 With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith.12 We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Reader: This is the word of the Lord.Response: Thanks be to God.

Luke 19: 1-10

 Reader:      This is the gospel of Christ. Response: Praise to Christ our Lord.

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. 3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. 5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” 8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

MessageDeaconess Yit Ching LiDiocese of West Malaysia

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. 

GOD

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 Church universal, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Let us pray for the Church and the nations, and let us thank God for His goodness.

God our gracious heavenly Father,we thank you for leading and guiding us.Continue to pour Your Holy Spirit upon our hearts andbless this mission and ministry of the InternationalCommunity Centre.Assist us to faithfully and sincerely share the gospel andwitness your saving love to people around us.Give us grace to humble ourselves and serve others like Jesus who was the Servant of all. We ask this in Jesus’ gracious name. Amen.

What a friend we have in Jesus,All our sins and griefs to bear!What a privilege to carryEverything to God in prayer!Oh, what peace we often forfeit,Oh, what needless pain we bear,All because we do not carryEverything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations?Is there trouble anywhere?We should never be discouraged—Take it to the Lord in prayer.Can we find a friend so faithful,Who will all our sorrows share?Jesus knows our every weakness;Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Yours, Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the splendour, and the majesty; for everything in heaven and on earth is yours. All things come from you, and of your own do we give you.

Pastor: The Lord is here!All: His Spirit is with us.

Pastor: Lift up your hearts.All: We lift them to the Lord.

Pastor: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

All: It is right to give thanks and praise.

Beloved, on the night our Lord Jesus Christ was betrayed, He took bread and gave thanks. He broke it and gave it to His disciples saying: ‘Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.'

In the same way after supper, He took the cup and gave thanks; He gave it to them, saying: Drink this, all of you; this is My blood of the new covenant which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.

Christ has died. 

Christ is risen. 

Christ will come again. 

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.Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are Yours now and forever. Amen.

We do not presume to come to your table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in your manifold and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table, but you are the same Lord, whose nature is always to have mercy: Grant us therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood, that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his body, and our souls washed through his most precious blood, and that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen.

Draw near with faith. Receive the body of our Lord Jesus

Christ which He gave for you, and His blood which He shed for you. Eat and drink in remembrance that

Christ suffered and died for you, and feed on Him in your hearts by faith with thanksgiving.

do this in

remembrance of Me.

The body of Christ ……The blood of Christ …..

Almighty God, we thank you for feeding us with the body and blood of your Son Jesus Christ. Through Him, we offer you our souls and bodies to be a living sacrifice. Send us out in the power of your Spirit to live and work to your praise and glory. Amen.

BENEDICTION

Christ give us grace to grow in holiness, to deny ourselves, take up the cross, and follow him;

And the blessing of God almighty,Father, Son and Holy Spirit

be with each one now and always.

Amen.  

WELCOME! Please stay on for coffee fellowship after theservice.

BIRTHDAY (OCTOBER) 11th Nov PY Choong11th Nov Peter Soars22nd Nov Jonathan Choong

WEDDING ANNIVERSARY 5th Nov Peter & Jun e Soars

NEXT SUNDAY Officiant Ven. Eddie OngMessage Dss Ruth Ong2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17 Ms SheilaLuke 20: 27-38 Ms KarenIntercession Ven. Eddie OngUshers Ms Sandra SoarsCoffee Time Mrs June Soars

NOTICES

 

ICC CHURCH ACCOUNT ‘International Community Centre ’

(Maybank:512334308663) 

• CONGRATULATIONS to Yit Ching Li, MADE DEACONESS on 1 November 2013. The Service took place at St Katherine’s Church, Kajang. We thank her for preaching at this Morning’s service.

• BIBLE STUDY (English) - Hebrews. 14th November 2013 @ 10.00am at ICC

• ARCHDEACONRY CHILDREN’S CAMP – 18th – 21st November 2013 at St Paul’s Church PJ. Time: 10am to 4pm daily.

• CHRISTMAS CONCERT – 8 December 2013 @ 6.30pm at Luther Auditorium PJ.

 

CHURCH ACCOUNT:

‘International Community Centre’ (Maybank:512334308663

The Lord be with you

Response

And also with you.

Let us bless the Lord.

Response

Thanks be to God.

12 Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. 2 Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3 Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the LORDand his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these things, I will make it right.”4 “You have not cheated or oppressed us,” they replied. “You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”5 Samuel said to them, “The LORD is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”“He is witness,” they said.6 Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the LORD who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors up out of Egypt. 7 Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the LORD as to all the righteous acts performed by the LORD for you and your ancestors.8 “After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the LORD for help, and the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.9 “But they forgot the LORD their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. 10 They cried out to the LORD and said, ‘We have sinned; we have forsaken the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths.But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.’ 11 Then the LORD sent Jerub-Baal,[a]Barak,[b] Jephthah and Samuel,[c] and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around you, so that you lived in safety.12 “But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we want a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was your king. 13 Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the LORD has set a king over you. 14 If you fear the LORD and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow theLORD your God—good!  15 But if you do not obey the LORD, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your ancestors.16 “Now then, stand still and see this great thing the LORD is about to do before your eyes!  17 Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the LORD to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the LORD when you asked for a king.”18 Then Samuel called on the LORD, and that same day the LORD sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the LORD and of Samuel.19 The people all said to Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.”20 “Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. 21 Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22 For the sake of his great name the LORD will not reject his people, because the LORD was pleased to make you his own. 23 As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24 But be sure to fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you.25 Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will perish.”