From Genesis to Malachi, Jesus is present in the Old Testament. Clearly God the Father wanted the world of the Old Testament to know that His Son was coming some day to save this world. Neatly woven into the words, metaphors songs and sonnets of Old Testament scripture is the story of the coming Savior, Jesus Christ.
The goal of this service is to discover the character and mission of Christ as they unfold in the reading of the scriptures. We read them today as a congregation. We read them out loud for both the young and old to hear and understand.
Together let us open our minds to this worship experience today and discover the Christ of the Old Testament. 
1. First sin and first grace: A Call and Invitation to Grace
“And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike[b] your head, and you will strike his heel.” Genesis 3:15
In Genesis 3, sin enters the world for the first time in history. The first sin is committed and immediately the grace of God is seen. God speaks His word of judgment on the serpent that tempted Adam and Eve to disobey God’s law. God lets Satan know that while he has scored a significant victory in leading this first couple to fall into sin, there will come a day when Adam will have a descendant who will do battle with evil and win. This recorded conversation between God and Satan is the first glimpse of grace that mankind ever heard.
What you hear in this verse is that the evil one will not ultimately win the battle of good and evil. Jesus, the Son of God is coming to earth someday to bring pardon, forgiveness and grace to those in sin.
Response – video “I’ll Take It”
Reader: Let us stand today and celebrate this first word of grace in the Bible:
“And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike[b] your head, and you will strike his heel.” Genesis 3:15 
2. A Messiah from the Sticks: The Call to an Inverted Lifestyle
“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.” Micah 5:2
This prophetic passage points to the Savior of the world, the Christ, coming from a place of no consequence. This points to the law of inversion that permeates the New Testament and its’ teaching. The New Testament teaches things like the first will be last the greatest among you will be least.
In Matthew 23:11-12, Jesus taught that: “The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, an whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” In our world the weak our weak and the last are last, the exalted are exalted but in God’s kingdom things are inverted. The weak are strong, the last are first and the humble are exalted.
Response – responsive reading – Brian “You say…”
Reader: Today let us celebrate and remember the humble beginnings of our Lord. Let us not look down on others who appear to be weak or unlike us.
“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.” Micah 5:2 
3. A Virgin is going to have a Baby: A Call to Worship
“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14
Today we lift our voices in praise and adoration to this promised son who came and lived among us on this earth. He died and rose again that we might live as He intended for us to live. Today let us worship Him with singing and rejoice in His holiness!
Response – offerings & song – band “Here I Am to Worship”, “O Come Let Us”
Reader: Let us read together and remember that we worship the Son of God with our lives. “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14 
4. A Messenger will come: A Call to Prepare the Way
“See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come in his temple, the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will some, says the Lord Almighty.” Malachi 3:1
This scripture tells of John the Baptist who would come to announce the coming Messiah. John pointed people to Jesus. Every follower of Christ is called to point others to Jesus. We do this through our words, actions and lifestyle. We do this through events like Trunk or Treat where we truly showed love to our neighborhood. Everything about that felt like Jesus.
The writer of the book of Acts quoted some of Jesus last words to His followers as being: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8
Response – song – band “Prepare the Way”
Reader: Let us read together and remember our call to prepare the way of our Lord so that our relatives, neighbors, friends and even strangers may come to know Him.
“See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come in his temple, the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will some, says the Lord Almighty.” Malachi 3:1 
5. Our Shepherd: A Call to Unity
“The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it. ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Ephraims’s stick, belonging to Joseph and all the house of Israel associated with him.’ Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand.” Ezekiel 37:15-17
God has always longed for His people to walk in unity toward each other. Of all the people in the world Christ followers should be the most unified. Churches should be a place of unity and safety.
This is a time to seek healing for broken relationships. Just as Jesus was to bring Israel and Judah back together and just as these two sticks are bound together you and I are to be bound to others. Now is the time to ask God for help in healing a broken relationship. Our Good Shepherd Jesus has the power to put broken things together.
Prayer: Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.
Grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen. (St. Francis)
Response – music video “They’ll Know We Are Christians”
Reader: Let us submit our lives to unifying and healing power of Christ as we read these verses.
“The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it. ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Ephraim’s stick, belonging to Joseph and all the house of Israel associated with him.’ Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand.” Ezekiel 37:15-17 
6. The Stump of Jessie: A Call to New Life
“Out of the stump of David’s family[a] will grow a shoot—yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.” Isaiah 11:1-2
In the Near East there are very few trees and the ones that grew are highly valued. A tree was a sign of life, water and shade. When a thriving tree was cut down it left an impression.
Isaiah uses this imagery to paint a picture of King David’s kingdom. David was Jessie’s son. Israel was a thriving kingdom when governed by David. Now it had been cut down and divided in two. Jesus is here portrayed as a new growth from this old beloved stump. He would come someday to bring new life.
Response – personal testimony - Jennifer
Reader: Let us celebrate the coming of our Christ who brings all men and women the chance to experience new life.
“Out of the stump of David’s family[a] will grow a shoot—yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.” Isaiah 11:1-2 
7. The Coming Holy Spirit: A Call to Purity
“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me,
for the LORD has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted
and to proclaim that captives will be released
and prisoners will be freed.[a]
He has sent me to tell those who mourn
that the time of the LORD’s favor has come...” Isaiah 61:1-2
In this scripture Isaiah some seven hundred years before Christ’s coming to earth sees him more clearly than any other prophet. A king was always identified by being anointed. The terms Meshach (Messiah) in Hebrew and Christos (Christ) in Greek simply mean “the anointed one.”
The text is simply saying that the Christ will be anointed not with symbolic oil but with the Holy Spirit. This promise was also given to us by Christ when He was preparing to leave this earth. We are anointed with the Holy Spirit’s presence and He lives in us to promote purity and holiness of life and lifestyle.
Response – song – band “Nothing But the Blood”
Reader: Today we read and remember to ask God to purify us through His Holy Spirit. Let us read together:
“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me,
for the LORD has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted
and to proclaim that captives will be released
and prisoners will be freed.[a]
He has sent me to tell those who mourn
that the time of the LORD’s favor has come...” Isaiah 61:1-2 
8. One Jesus, Many Names: The Call to Hope
“For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor,[d] Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 His government and its peace
will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies
will make this happen!” Isaiah 9:6-7
Response – spoken word “In the Beginning”
Reader: Let us remember together the eternal hope promised in Jesus Christ.
“For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor,[d] Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 His government and its peace
will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies
will make this happen!” Isaiah 9:6-7 
9. Nothing to Look At: A Call to Rejection
“My servant grew up in the LORD’s presence like a tender green shoot,
like a root in dry ground.
There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.” Isaiah 53:2-3
Today we are calling you to participate in the remembrance of the life and death of our Lord. He was rejected and yet He took the rejection so that we might follow him more carefully.
Let us prepare our hearts and minds for communion by pausing silently for a few moments of introspection.
Forgive us, O Lord, For lives unadjusted to the order of Thy love, and for the familiarity of Thy counsel.
Forgive us also: For living too seldom cognizant of Thy Word. For hearts too seldom in rhythm with Your compassion; For hands too seldom content with their portion. For attitudes too seldom shaped by Your love. Cleanse us, we pray and align us with Your will and Spirit. We pray this in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen 
10. Coming to Suffer For Us: A Call to Communion
Before partaking in communion let us read a continuation of Isaiah vision of the coming Christ. He saw Him and the picture must have almost too much to bear. Let us remember as we read that these words were fulfilled in the death and crucifixion of our Lord.
“Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows[a] that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the LORD laid on him
the sins of us all.” Isaiah 53:4-6
We now invite you to the table the Lord has prepared for us. He instructs and invites us to come.
Response: Amazing Grace 
11. Coming on the Clouds: A Call to Final Faith
Tevis will lead this final section:
As we prepare our hearts to move back out into the world we are called to serve let us remember with gladness that our Savior is coming again someday. The prophet Daniel saw this return in the Old Testament. Let us read these words with faith and gladness:
“As my vision continued that night, I saw someone like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient One and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, honor, and sovereignty over all the nations of the world, so that people of every race and nation and language would obey him. His rule is eternal—it will never end. His kingdom will never be destroyed.” Daniel 7:13-14
The Apostle’s Creed has been spoken by millions for many generations. Let us today share our faith by corporately reading it together.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Response: Love Divine
Wes: Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen. -- A Prayer of St. Chrysostom