Prelude
Welcome
Call to Worship
Leader: Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.”
People: And we will love our neighbors as ourselves.
Leader: God calls us to honor one another, to protect life, to practice faithfulness, and to speak truth.
People: God calls us to seek the good of our neighbors.
Leader: We belong to God, and through God, we belong to one another.
People: Teach us, O God, to walk in the way of love.
Leader: Come, let us worship the God who sets us free and teaches us how to live.
People: Let us worship God together.
Prayer of Confession
Gracious God, you have shown us that love is more than a feeling. Love shapes how we speak, how we act, how we treat what belongs to others, and how we see the people around us.
Yet we confess that we have not always loved our neighbors as ourselves. We have spoken when we should have listened and remained silent when we should have spoken. We have allowed jealousy, resentment, and selfishness to shape our hearts. We have sometimes treated other people as obstacles, competitors, or strangers rather than as neighbors whom you have called us to love.
Forgive us, O God. Free us from the things that separate us from one another, and teach us again the way of love, that our lives might reflect your grace in our homes, our church, our community, and our world. Amen.
Words of Assurance
Leader: Hear the good news: The God who gave the commandments is the God who first said, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt.” God’s grace comes before our obedience. God does not abandon us when we fail, but forgives us, restores us, and continues teaching us the way of love.
People: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven and set free. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Passing of the Peace
First Reading:
Exodus 20:12–17
Sermon:
Love Your Neighbor by Pastor Kevin Rutledge
Tithes and Offerings
Offertory Response
Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow UMH 95
Offertory Prayer
Generous God, you have blessed us so that we might be a blessing to others. Receive these gifts and use them to bring hope where there is discouragement, help where there is need, and love where there is division.
And as we offer these gifts, offer our lives as well. Teach us to see the people around us as neighbors, and give us the courage to love them not only with our words, but through the way we live. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
Pastoral Prayer and Lord's Prayer
The Great Thanksgiving
Communion
Announcements
Benediction
Said Each Week as A Communal Prayer:
Send to us all the people who feel unwanted and unloved in other places, and if they can't come to us, send us to them.
Postlude