Sunday Jan. 26, 2025
Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)
Verse 1
Amazing grace how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now I'm found
Was blind but now I see
Verse 2
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed
Chorus 1
My chains are gone I've been set free
My God my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love amazing grace
Verse 3
The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures
Verse 4
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God who called me here below
Will be forever mine
Will be forever mine
You are forever mine
Call to Worship
Daniel 2:19-23
19 Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night, and Daniel blessed the God of heaven.*
20 Daniel said:
“Blessed be the name of God from age to age,
for wisdom and power are his.*
21 He changes times and seasons,
deposes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding.*
22 He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what is in the darkness,
and light dwells with him.*
23 To you, O God of my ancestors,
I give thanks and praise,
for you have given me wisdom and power
and have now revealed to me what we asked of you,
for you have revealed to us what the king ordered.”
Songs
Be Thou My Vision
Verse 1
Be Thou my vision O Lord of my heart
Naught be all else to me save that Thou art
Thou my best thought by day or by night
Waking or sleeping Thy presence my light
Verse 2
Be Thou my wisdom and Thou my true word
I ever with Thee and Thou with me Lord
Thou my great Father I Thy true son
Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one
Verse 3
Riches I heed not nor man's empty praise
Thou mine inheritance now and always
Thou and Thou only first in my heart
High King of heaven my treasure Thou art
Verse 4
Be my compassion my love for the poor
Break my distraction so I can't ignore
The least of Your children the ones You adore
For by them Jesus I worship You Lord
Misc 2
(Ending)
For by them Jesus I worship You Lord
Oceans:
Verse 1
You call me out upon the waters
The great unknown where feet may fail
And there I find You in the mystery
In oceans deep my faith will stand
Chorus 1
And I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves
When oceans rise
My soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours and You are mine
Verse 2
Your grace abounds in deepest waters
Your sov'reign hand will be my guide
Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me
You've never failed and You won't start now
(Bridge)
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Saviour
Chorus 2
I will call upon Your name
Keep my eyes above the waves
My soul will rest in Your embrace
I am Yours and You are mine
Here as in Heaven
Verse 1
The atmosphere is changing now
For the Spirit of the Lord is here
The evidence is all around
That the Spirit of the Lord is here
Chorus 1
Overflow in this place
Fill our hearts with your love
Your love surrounds us
You're the reason we came to encounter your love
Your love surrounds us
Bridge
Spirit of God fall fresh on us
We need your presence
Your kingdom come your will be done
Here as in heaven
Verse 2
A miracle can happen now
For the Spirit of the Lord is here
The evidence is all around
That the Spirit of the Lord is here
Teaching: Faith in Exile: Daniel 1
Daniel 2
2 In the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed such dreams that his spirit was troubled and his sleep left him.* 2 So the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be summoned to tell the king his dreams. When they came in and stood before the king,* 3 he said to them, “I have had such a dream that my spirit is troubled by the desire to understand it.”* 4 The Chaldeans said to the king (in Aramaic),b “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will reveal the interpretation.”* 5 The king answered the Chaldeans, “This is a public decree: if you do not tell me both the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins.* 6 But if you do tell me the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. Therefore tell me the dream and its interpretation.”* 7 They answered a second time, “Let the king first tell his servants the dream, then we can give its interpretation.”* 8 The king answered, “I know with certainty that you are trying to gain time because you see the decree from me is firm: 9 if you do not tell me the dream, there is but one verdict for you. You have agreed to speak lying and misleading words to me until things take a turn. Therefore, tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can give me its interpretation.”* 10 The Chaldeans answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can reveal what the king demands! In fact, no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or Chaldean. 11 The thing that the king is asking is too difficult, and no one can reveal it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with mortals.”*
12 Because of this the king flew into a violent rage and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. 13 The decree was issued, and the wise men were about to be executed, and they looked for Daniel and his companions, to execute them. 14 Then Daniel responded with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the king’s chief executioner, who had gone out to execute the wise men of Babylon;* 15 he asked Arioch, the royal official, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel.* 16 So Daniel went in and requested that the king give him time and he would tell the king the interpretation.
God Reveals Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
17 Then Daniel went to his home and informed his companions, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, of the matter 18 and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.* 19 Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night, and Daniel blessed the God of heaven.*
20 Daniel said:
“Blessed be the name of God from age to age,
for wisdom and power are his.*
21 He changes times and seasons,
deposes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding.*
22 He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what is in the darkness,
and light dwells with him.*
23 To you, O God of my ancestors,
I give thanks and praise,
for you have given me wisdom and power
and have now revealed to me what we asked of you,
for you have revealed to us what the king ordered.”
Daniel Interprets the Dream
24 Therefore Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will give the king the interpretation.”
25 Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king and said to him: “I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who can tell the king the interpretation.”* 26 The king said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to tell me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?” 27 Daniel answered the king, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or diviners can show to the king the mystery that the king is asking, 28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has disclosed to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen at the end of days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed were these:* 29 To you, O king, as you lay in bed, came thoughts of what would be hereafter, and the revealer of mysteries disclosed to you what is to be.* 30 But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me because of any wisdom that I have more than any other living being, but in order that the interpretation may be known to the king and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.*
31 “You were looking, O king, and there appeared a great statue. That statue was huge, its brilliance extraordinary; it was standing before you, and its appearance was frightening.* 32 The head of that statue was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its midsection and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34 As you looked on, a stone was cut out, not by human hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and broke them in pieces.* 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were all broken in pieces and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors, and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.*
36 “That was the dream; now we will tell the king its interpretation. 37 You, O king, the king of kings—to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, the might, and the glory,* 38 into whose hand he has given human beings wherever they live, the wild animals of the field, and the birds of the air and whom he has established as ruler over them all—you are the head of gold.* 39 After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over the whole earth.* 40 And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron; just as iron crushes and smashes everything,c it shall crush and shatter all these.* 41 As you saw the feet and toes partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the strength of iron shall be in it, as you saw the iron mixed with the clay.* 42 As the toes of the feet were part iron and part clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 As you saw the iron mixed with clay, so will they mix with one another in marriage,d but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay. 44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall this kingdom be left to another people. It shall crush all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever,* 45 just as you saw that a stone was cut from the mountain not by hands and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. The great God has informed the king what shall be hereafter. The dream is certain and its interpretation trustworthy.”*
Daniel and His Friends Promoted
46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, worshiped Daniel, and commanded that a grain offering and incense be offered to him.* 47 The king said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery!”* 48 Then the king promoted Daniel, gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.* 49 Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king’s court.*
Communion:
Head up to the front to take communion.
Return to your seat and reflect on the following questions:
In what areas of life are you needing God’s hope today?
Benediction:
As we live as exiles in the world,
may we work for the welfare of our city,
lifting all things to God in prayer.
While we may encounter trials and tribulations,
let us remember who we belong to and where our faith lies.
Living lives allegiant to Jesus,
obedient to his ways,
and hopeful for his renewal of all things.
“Now to him who is able to keep you from falling
and to make you stand without blemish
in the presence of his glory with rejoicing,
to the only God our Savior,
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
be glory, majesty, power, and authority,
before all time and now and forever. Amen.” (Jude 1:24-25)