REDEEMER UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
March 12, 2023
Third Sunday in Lent
Processional In the Cross of Christ I Glory
Invocation: Good morning and welcome!
As we enter into this holy sanctuary, into this consecrated space of hope, we put aside all doubts, giving them to God as we come to engage in praise, worship, and thanksgiving.
Call to Worship
L: Welcome pilgrims on the way to the cross.
P: We are learning to follow Jesus.
L: The way is long, and we are thirsty.
P: We seek the living waters of Jesus.
L: We feel the weight of scarcity warring with hopeful whispers of abundance.
P: We need the living waters of Jesus.
L: We wonder if God will provide us with what we need, here and now.
P: As God gives us the living waters of Jesus, so God calls us to quench the thirst and meet the needs of our neighbors.
L: Pilgrims on the way, come let us worship God!
P: We come to worship God as we learn to live inside out! Amen.
Words of Welcome and Parish News:
*Gathering Hymn Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior 275 UMH
Silent meditation and prayer:
Prayer Focus: Talk with Jesus
The Lord’s Prayer
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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
Scripture Reading: John 4: 5-15
5So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. 7A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) 10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” 13Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” 15The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”
Choir Anthem Lenten Meditation
The Message “Are You Thirsty?” Rev. Marshall Murphy Jr.
Have you ever experienced a thirst due to possible activities? The health community says you should stay hydrated because the body responds to input of liquid. You may have heard that you need so many ounces of water per day. I’m reminded as a child getting a drink of water from a water hose. Today we look at this passage from John of the a woman getting ready to draw water from a well. Sometimes we overlook this element that exist from God. But, now we see how in some instances that water for some in this world is out of reach, locally we see that many can’t drink the water that runs through a plumbing system in local cities.
This month recognizes Women’s History Month. Many women are the constant rock in families, marriages, and being caregivers. Here on this day a woman is going to draw water from a well and she has an encounter with Jesus. It’s amazing how women have been treated in society for many years considering that God chose the Mary for the Incarnation. Historically, how did the treatment of women take on a subservient role in society? We look in today’s culture how some women are doing the same jobs as men and receive less pay. There are many people who feel that women can’t be pastors in a church! But, Jesus makes it clear her gender does not determine if she is able to have the water for eternal life.
Offertory Prayer
God, our provider, in Christ you give us a spring of pure water that overflows to eternal life. Your love and hope fill our hearts, so we want to worship you in Spirit and truth. Open our eyes to see the places in this neighborhood where our church’s ministries could reach new people.
Offertory Music The Kingdom of God
*Doxology: UMH 95
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.
*Unison Prayer of Dedication:
Direct our gifts and offerings for your purposes, so that our community will become like a field ripe for harvest. We ask this through Christ, our risen Lord. Amen.
* Closing Hymn: Nothing but the Blood of Jesus 362 UMH
Sending Forth As you leave today, may you be blessed with thirst that produces compassion, with living waters that restore your soul, and with a heart flowing with the healing waters that our parched world desperately needs. Amen.
Recessional Sing My Tongue, The Glorious Battle (14 Century Plainsong)
(Please remain seated to meditate and reflect on the music)