Sunday Service from Hillside Circuit for February 9th 2025:
Lectionary Theme: Called and equipped to witness
Occasion: 5th Sunday after Epiphany
Lectionary readings:
Psalm 138
Isaiah 6: 1-13
1 Corinthians 15: 1-11
Luke 5: 1-11
[Click or tap on a Bible reference above to jump down the page to the Bible reading to read it for yourself (and/or to listen to it) and then click or tap on Back to top to come back here.]
Songs:
Here are the songs for Sunday morning service. Click or tap on a song to open it in YouTube.
We believe in God the Father.
What gift of grace.
Hide me now.
Master, speak.
Immortal, invisible.
Saviour from sin.
Now unto Him.
You can listen and join in with prayers from the English Methodist Service Book. They can be found at the Prayers for worship webpage.
Children’s Address:
Sermon:
Bible readings:
Psalm 138
1 With all my heart I praise you, LORD.
In the presence of angels I sing your praises.
2 I worship at your holy temple
and praise you for your love and your faithfulness.
You were true to your word
and made yourself more famous than ever before.
3 When I asked for your help,
you answered my prayer and gave me courage.
4 All kings on this earth have heard your promises, LORD,
and they will praise you.
5 You are so famous that they will sing
about the things you have done.
6 Though you are above us all,
you care for humble people,
and you keep a close watch on everyone who is proud.
7 I am surrounded by trouble,
but you protect me against my angry enemies.
With your own powerful arm you keep me safe.
8 You, LORD, will always treat me with kindness.
Your love never fails.
You have made us what we are. Don’t give up on us now!
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Isaiah 6
1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I had a vision of the LORD. He was on his throne high above, and his robe filled the temple. 2 Flaming creatures with six wings each were flying over him. They covered their faces with two of their wings and their bodies with two more. They used the other two wings for flying, 3 as they shouted,
“Holy, holy, holy, LORD All-Powerful!
The earth is filled with your glory.”
4 As they shouted, the doorposts of the temple shook, and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 Then I cried out, “I’m doomed! Everything I say is sinful, and so are the words of everyone around me. Yet I have seen the King, the LORD All-Powerful.”
6 One of the flaming creatures flew over to me with a burning coal that it had taken from the altar with a pair of metal tongs. 7 It touched my lips with the hot coal and said, “This has touched your lips. Your sins are forgiven, and you are no longer guilty.”
8 After this, I heard the LORD ask, “Is there anyone I can send? Will someone go for us?”
“I’ll go,” I answered. “Send me!”
9 Then the LORD told me to go and speak this message to the people:
“You will listen and listen, but never understand.
You will look and look, but never see.”
The LORD also said,
10 “Make these people stubborn! Make them stop up their ears, cover their eyes, and fail to understand.
Don’t let them turn to me and be healed.”
11 Then I asked the LORD, “How long will this last?”
The LORD answered:
Until their towns are destroyed and their houses are deserted, until their fields are empty, 12 and I have sent them far away, leaving their land in ruins.
13 If only a tenth of the people are left, even they will be destroyed. But just as stumps remain after trees have been cut down, some of my chosen ones will be left.
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1 Corinthians 15
1 My friends, I want you to remember the message that I preached and that you believed and trusted. 2 You will be saved by this message, if you hold firmly to it. But if you don’t, your faith was all for nothing.
3 I told you the most important part of the message exactly as it was told to me. That part is:
Christ died for our sins, as the Scriptures say.
4 He was buried, and three days later
he was raised to life, as the Scriptures say.
5 Christ appeared to Peter, then to the twelve.
6 After this, he appeared
to more than five hundred other followers.
Most of them are still alive, but some have died.
7 He also appeared to James,
and then to all of the apostles.
8 Finally, he appeared to me, even though I am like someone who was born at the wrong time.
9 I am the least important of all the apostles. In fact, I caused so much trouble for God’s church that I don’t even deserve to be called an apostle. 10 But God was kind! He made me what I am, and his wonderful kindness wasn’t wasted. I worked much harder than any of the other apostles, although it was really God’s kindness at work and not me. 11 But it doesn’t matter if I preached or if they preached. All of you believed the message just the same.
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Luke 5
1 Jesus was standing on the shore of Lake Gennesaret, teaching the people as they crowded around him to hear God’s message. 2 Near the shore he saw two boats left there by some fishermen who had gone to wash their nets. 3 Jesus got into the boat that belonged to Simon and asked him to row it out a little way from the shore. Then Jesus sat down in the boat to teach the crowd.
4 When Jesus had finished speaking, he told Simon, “Row the boat out into the deep water and let your nets down to catch some fish.”
5 “Master,” Simon answered, “we have worked hard all night long and have not caught a thing. But if you tell me to, I will let the nets down.” 6 They did it and caught so many fish that their nets began ripping apart. 7 Then they signaled for their partners in the other boat to come and help them. The men came, and together they filled the two boats so full that they both began to sink.
8 When Simon Peter saw this happen, he knelt down in front of Jesus and said, “Lord, don’t come near me! I am a sinner.” 9 Peter and everyone with him were completely surprised at all the fish they had caught. 10 His partners James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were surprised too.
Jesus told Simon, “Don’t be afraid! From now on you will bring in people instead of fish.” 11 The men pulled their boats up on the shore. Then they left everything and went with Jesus.
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[Did you miss last week’s Sunday Services? They can now be found at Worship Archive – February 2nd 2025.]
Methodist Church: Hillside Circuit 
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