A Liturgy Based on Exodus 3:1–15
The Book of Exodus tells the incredible story of God's work to deliver the Israelites from bondage and to shape them into his people, a people through whom he would bless the world. It testifies to the work that God does for his people and in turn, God's good plan for our work. Each post of this 5 week series looks at familiar stories with an emphasis on praising God for what he has done! This week’s liturgy is prepared for the 14th Sunday After Pentecost.
Call to Worship
Reader 1: The God who hears you, welcomes you this morning.
Reader 1 pours water into the baptismal font.
Reader 2: The God who sees you, greets you today.
Reader 2 lights the Christ candle.
Reader 3: The God who knows your sufferings, embraces you always.
Reader 3 opens the Word of God and places it on the pulpit or communion table.
People of God: Let us praise the Great I AM!
Confession and Assurance
Reader 1: Almighty God, you hear all who cry out for justice, yet we struggle to listen and to respond. We fill our lives with so much noise that we miss the voices of the oppressed. We speak so loudly about our own opinions or experiences that we fail to hear the voices of those in pain.
People of God: Lord, give us ears to hear.
Reader 2: Almighty God, you see all who long for dignity and peace, yet we often turn our faces away. We close our eyes to the homeless, the addicted, and the lonely. We are blind to the abused and abandoned.
People of God: Lord, give us eyes to see.
Reader 3: Almighty God, you know those who suffer by name, yet we choose to be ignorant of them. We ignore their stories and strivings for better lives. We pretend as if our consumerism and comfortableness matter more than ending the suffering of those who labor around the world for our goods and our convenience.
People of God: Lord, give us hearts to know.
Reader 1: While we stand on holy ground in the presence of the Almighty God, we are like Isaiah crying out, “Woe is me!” But the Lord embraces us and says, “your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for”! So like Isaiah, may we say:
People of God: “Here I am! Send me!” (Isaiah 6:1-8)
Sermon Notes
The Work of the Lord: Send Us Out - Exodus 3:1-15
The work of God is to deliver the oppressed laborer. God created work to be done for his glory and to be good. But our sin has turned work into slavery and exploitation. As God invited Moses to speak God’s demands to the powerful on behalf of those who suffered, so too are we sent out. And as God went with Moses, God goes with us today.
Suggested Songs
"Send Us Out" Talbot
"Called Me Higher" All Sons & Daughters
"Speak O Lord" Getty & Townend, LUYH 755
"Just As I Am, Without One Plea” Elliott, LUYH 627, GtG 442, SSS 500
"Be Still, For the Presence of the Lord” Evans, LUYH 532