Sunday Morning Worship Guide and Bulletin
May 12, 2024
WELCOME TO CHRIST CENTRAL CHURCH!
Whatever your spiritual disposition - skeptic, seeker or follower - we are glad you are with us! We desire to have all of our hearts strengthened by the grace of Christ through today's worship service. We pray that we will leave eager to share that grace with the people around us throughout the coming week.
Our Mission
Freeing people to enjoy God, hear his truth, grow in diverse community and engage the world with a renewed dignity that comes from Christ.
Our Vision
Christ Central Church seeks to be a racially diverse church community. We strive to be a church that is Biblically authentic and true in its worship of God. We desire to communicate and grow spiritually from the message of the gospel as it is read, preached, shared and taught faithfully, clearly and relevantly. We long to be a community filled with loving and encouraging relationships. We seek to spread the good news in word, thought and deed as a community of individuals and families that are faithful to serve, trust, share, grow and spread the redeeming love of Jesus everywhere, in everything and with all people.
Sunday Morning Children's Ministry
Children meet every Sunday except for 5th Sundays. 5th Sundays are family worship and all children will remain in the worship service. If you have any questions, email our Executive Director Derrick Crawford.
Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month
May is AAPI Heritage Month. Asian Americans come from a multitude of different ethnic, national, and linguistic backgrounds. During this month, we remember those who have come before us and paved the way for us to live as Asian Americans in the United States.
The Order of Worship
*You are invited to stand as you are able.
Welcome To Christ Central Church
THIS THURSDAY! LAST ONE!
Sisters,
Join us for intentional soul time connections!
This gathering has a long tradition with Christ Central's Women's Ministry. This is an informal gathering - come as you are! Drop by anytime! Feel free to invite neighbors and coworkers - we are a friendly table!
WHEN: May 16th at 6:30pm
WHERE: The Loyalist Market is a wine and cheese restaurant located at 435 N Trade Street #102, Matthews NC 28105.
[Gatherings at the North location have been paused. Click HERE for more information.]
NOTE: The restaurant owner has requested final reservations numbers by Tuesday morning at 11am and the largest table seats only 14. So register HERE NOW! After that deadline, click HERE to be on the waitlist.
Please don't hesitate to reach out to LeVan McLain with any questions.
Each year, in the month of May, we joyfully celebrate our graduates! Whether you're graduating from high school, college, graduate school, or trade school, we want to honor your achievements in an upcoming service. Please CLICK HERE and take a moment to fill out our Google form if you graduated in December of 2023 or if you are graduating this spring. Your participation will help us gather more information about you and your graduation. Thank you!
Spring Officer Nomination
The session of Christ Central Church is asking the congregation to nominate the next set of officers. Please CLICK HERE for more information on the nomination process. Please CLICK HERE to nominate whom you believe God is calling to serve the church. Any questions, please email office@christcentralchurch.com.
Two Week Sunday School Study Starting TODAY and NEXT SUNDAY!
Are you looking forward to the summer break? Do you have plans to catch up on rest and sleep, or do you intend to travel, go on vacations, and take it easy? As we plan our summer, Pastor Josh will guide us through a two-week topical study on rest and the rhythms of summer. This study is designed to explore a Biblical overview of God's intent for rest and offer suggestions for summer rhythms. It will be co-ed, and we will meet in M3 on May 12th and May 19th. Youth and children will continue to have their own respective meetings during the Sunday School Hour. For questions, please email Pastor Josh.
Sisters,
A number of us have expressed an interest in reading and discussing the book Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez. Let's do it!
Please go ahead and REGISTER HERE so we can know of your interest. Instead of setting a specific date, we will send a Doodle poll to set a date when most can attend.
Books are available in the church lobby for $10 ($16 on Amazon) while supplies last. It's also available as an audiobook and eBook on Charlotte library's Hoopla app.
There will be an option to pay for the book when you register. Don't let the cost of the book hinder your participation - reach out to HERE and one will be provided.
Questions? Contact LeVan McLain.
Community Groups
Our Community Groups provide a warm and welcoming environment where members come together in each other's homes within their local neighborhoods. If you're interested in joining one of these groups, please CLICK HERE access a list of all available Community Groups. For assistance in connecting with the Community Group that aligns with your interests and location, please reach out to Pastor Josh via email.
Interested in becoming a member at CCC?
CLICK HERE if you are interested in being part of our next New Members Class. The current cohort is live. But you can still join. Please email Pastor Josh if you have any questions.
Around Town
Looking to do a little shopping and not sure where to start? Kelsey Park (deaconess) owns a small business called AlterNarrative that sources handmade products from around the world. You can shop online at AlterNarrativeco.com. She offers free local delivery!
*Meet & Greet
Another In The Fire
*Song of Praise & Worship
Good Good Father
Celebration of a Creed
The Korean Methodist Church
(This is the Doctrinal Statement from Discipline of the Korean Methodist Church written in 1931.)
LEADER:
We believe in one God, Maker and Ruler of all things,
CONGREGATION:
Father of all men; the source of all goodness and beauty, all truth and love.
LEADER:
We believe in Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh,
CONGREGATION:
Our Teacher, Example, and Redeemer, the Savior of the world.
LEADER:
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
CONGREGATION:
God present with us for guidance, for comfort, and for strength.
LEADER:
We believe in the forgiveness of sins,
CONGREGATION:
In the life of love and prayer, and in grace equal to every need.
LEADER:
We believe in the church
CONGREGATION:
As the fellowship for worship and for service of all who are united to the living Lord.
ALL TOGETHER:
We believe in the final triumph of righteousness, and in the life everlasting.
Amen
Tithes & Offering - CLICK HERE to give online
*Song of Preparation
Cornerstone
*Scripture Reading
Zechariah 12:1-5, 14:1-5, 20-21 NLT
This message concerning the fate of Israel came from the Lord: “This message is from the Lord, who stretched out the heavens, laid the foundations of the earth, and formed the human spirit. 2 I will make Jerusalem like an intoxicating drink that makes the nearby nations stagger when they send their armies to besiege Jerusalem and Judah. 3 On that day I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock. All the nations will gather against it to try to move it, but they will only hurt themselves.
4 “On that day,” says the Lord, “I will cause every horse to panic and every rider to lose his nerve. I will watch over the people of Judah, but I will blind all the horses of their enemies. 5 And the clans of Judah will say to themselves, ‘The people of Jerusalem have found strength in the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, their God.’
Chapter 14
Watch, for the day of the Lord is coming when your possessions will be plundered right in front of you! 2 I will gather all the nations to fight against Jerusalem. The city will be taken, the houses looted, and the women raped. Half the population will be taken into captivity, and the rest will be left among the ruins of the city.
3 Then the Lord will go out to fight against those nations, as he has fought in times past. 4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem. And the Mount of Olives will split apart, making a wide valley running from east to west. Half the mountain will move toward the north and half toward the south. 5 You will flee through this valley, for it will reach across to Azal. Yes, you will flee as you did from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all his holy ones with him.
20 On that day even the harness bells of the horses will be inscribed with these words: Holy to the lord. And the cooking pots in the Temple of the Lord will be as sacred as the basins used beside the altar. 21 In fact, every cooking pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. All who come to worship will be free to use any of these pots to boil their sacrifices. And on that day there will no longer be traders in the Temple of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
Leader: This is the word of the Lord.
Congregation: Thanks be to God.
Tom Nakashima, Sanctuary at Western Sunset, 1992
Sermon
12: Prophets: Zechariah: Yearning
Rev. Josh Kim
Sermon Points
The King on a Donkey
The King & I (Us)
Confession
Prayer of Confession
Adopted from Psalm 13:1–6 (NIV):
LEADER:
1 How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
CONGREGATION:
2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?
LEADER:
3 Look on me and answer, LORD my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
CONGREGATION:
4 and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.
LEADER:
5 But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
CONGREGATION:
6 I will sing the LORD’s praise,
for he has been good to me.
Silent Reflection
Zephaniah 3:17 (ESV):
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
Prayer for Those Searching for Truth
God, you claim that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Grant that I might be undaunted by the cost of following you as I consider the reasons for doing so. If what you claim is true, please guide me, teach me and open to me the reality of who you are. Give me an understanding of you that is coherent, convincing, and that leads to the life that you promise.
*Song of Response
Communion