Called to Praise

 

⭻Prepare your heart and body for Worship

 

Greeting & Announcements
 

• We have ‘In-Person’ & ‘Online Worship’ on Sunday, March 16, 2025, at 10am.

 

• You can join our Online Worship via YouTube or Facebook. Type “Little Falls United Methodist Church” in the search window on YouTube or Facebook. Please use the link below to join in Online Worship. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lfumc

 

• Prayer Concerns & Joys – If you would like to share your concerns and joys with the congregation, please email Pastor Jin (jkim@littlefallsumc.org) or complete the online form, www.littlefallsumc.org/prayer.

 

• Altar Flowers – Thank you, Renee Niccollai for providing Altar Flowers in memory of Richard Royer (father) and in celebration (Son) John’s birthday. If you would like to offer the altar flowers, please contact Janet (973) 896-8936 or ladyteddy@aol.com. 

 

• Fellowship Time after Worship – Let us enjoy a good fellowship time every Sunday after Worship. Please help us with hosting the coffee hour. The Sign-up board is on the table in the Narthex. Please contact Cheryle or Kathy F. if you have any questions about the coffee hour.

 

• 2025 Lenten Worship Series – The 2025 Lenten Worship Series, ‘New Life Through Jesus’ Cross’ will begin on March 9, 2025 and continue to April 13, 2025. Through the worship series, we will consider what Jesus has done for us through the cross.

 

March 16 - New Life with Victory

March 23 - New Life with a New Direction

March 30 - New Life with Freedom from the Law

April 6 - New Life with the Promise

April 13 (Palm Sunday) - New Life with A New Family

 

• 2025 Lenten Study – The 2025 Lenten study, “The Third Day” will be held during Lenten season at 7 pm on Wednesday from March 12 to April 16 for six-weeks. Sign up at the table in the Narthex.

 

• Treasured Memories –The next meeting will be held at 7 pm on Wednesday, March 12, 2025. “Treasured Memories” is a grief group for those who have lost their loved ones. The ongoing meeting gathers every 2nd Wednesday of the month in Lee Lounge at 7 pm. Contact Allison for details (973) 800-4152. 

 

• Taco Night Fundraiser – We will have a Taco Night Fundraiser on Saturday, March 29, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. You can eat in or take out. The price is $15 per person and $8 for a kid (10 and under). Join us and invite your family and friends. Let us have a wonderful fellowship at the Taco Night!

 

• Young Adult & Family Gathering – We will have a Young Adult and Family Gathering on Sunday, March 23, 2025, from Noon to 1:30pm.

 

• Walk by Faith –We will post the church flyers on the doors of our neighbors at 10 am, on March 22, 2025! Please join us and let us share the Good News with others and invite them to the church for a faith journey.

 

• Evangelism Class – Join us the next Evangelism Class session at 7 pm on March 27, 2025, Thursday! Come and join us. All are Welcome! Let us learn from the class and have a conversation for our church ministry!

 

• Ladies Tea & Auction - Saturday, April 26, 2025, 12:00pm* Enjoy a luncheon of quiche, broccoli salad, spring mix salad, assorted breads, homemade desserts, and of course TEA! An entertaining live auction of gift baskets & prizes will be held during the event! All proceeds raised help the UMW support mission projects! Tickets: $25. For tickets, contact Marilyn at (973) 256-4205 or MDowning925@gmail.com Doors open at 11:30am Check or cash only

 

• Online Donation – Online donation is available now. Please visit the church website and click ‘Donation.’ The link is https://www.littlefallsumc.org/donation.  Your financial support and generosity are greatly appreciated and essential for our church ministry and mission. Please consider sending your tithes and offerings to Little Falls UMC (139 Main St. Little Falls, NJ 07424). You can send your offerings and tithes to the church every week. Or you can send offerings and tithes for a month with a check. Thanks again for your generosity!

 

• Shoprite Gift Card – To purchase a Shoprite gift card, contact Pete (973) 595-5765 or detroit50@aol.com.

 

• EASTER BASKET COLLECTION - The UMW is collecting goodies to fill 50 Easter baskets to donate to the children at OASIS! A sign-up sheet is located in the narthex or contact Melissa AT MELISSADOWNING82@GMAIL.COM. Deadline for donations is March 30th 2025. Monetary donations also accepted.

 

• LFUMC FOOD PANTRY ITEMS NEEDED - Many families depend on the Food Pantry on a regular basis. The Pantry needs the following non-perishable items; canned vegetables, peanut butter, jelly, adult/children’s cereal, pasta & sauce, instant potatoes/rice, tuna, chicken, sardines, fruit, apple sauce, juice, and granola bars.

 

• SOCKS FOR SOULS - Do your feet get cold? Please help Unity Circle to provide new or gently used socks to the homeless. There is a constant need. Please drop off your socks in the large white sock in the Narthex. 

 

• Ongoing Collection - UMW collects postmarked stamps, can pull tabs, and the front of greeting cards (No Hallmark). Items are donated to different charities and organizations.

 

†Call to Worship

Leader: Leader: Come, all who seek freedom and renewal! The Lord Jesus Christ has the power to break every chain.

All: We come to worship the One who sets us free from sin and evil!

Leader: Once we were bound by sin, but through Christ, we are made new.

All: In His victory, we find new life and strength to stand against darkness!

Leader: Let us lift our voices and hearts in praise, for in Christ, we have new life through victory!

All: We rejoice in His power and grace! We come to worship our victorious Savior!

 

†Praise Song                      Thank You Jesus for the Blood (Bryan McCleey and 4 others)

 

1. I was a wretch, I remember who I was
I was lost, I was blind, I was running out of time
Sin separated, the breach was far too wide
But from the far side of the chasm
You held me in Your sight

 

2. So You made a way, across the great divide
Left behind, Heaven's throne, to build it here inside
And there at the cross You paid the debt I owe
Broke my chains, freed my soul, for the first time I had hope 

 

[Chorus]

Thank You Jesus, for the blood applied
Thank You Jesus, it has washed me white
Thank You Jesus, You have saved my life
Brought me from the darkness into glorious life

 

3. You took my place, laid inside my tomb of sin
You were buried for three days but then You walked right out again
And now death has no sting and life has no end
For I have been transformed by the blood of the Lamb

 

[Bridge]

There is nothing stronger
Than the wonder working power of the blood, the blood
That calls us sons and daughters
We are ransomed by our Father through the blood, the blood
 

[Ending]

Glory to His name
Glory to His name
There to my heart was the blood applied
Glory to His name

 

Children’s Time               Lost Things (Luke 15:3-24)

 

Hymn of Prayer                           Sweet Hour of Prayer                          UMH 496

 

1. Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!  
that calls me from a world of care,  
and bids me at my Father's throne  
make all my wants and wishes known.  
In seasons of distress and grief,  
my soul has often found relief,  
and oft escaped the tempter's snare  
by thy return, sweet hour of prayer!  

 

2. Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!  
the joys I feel, the bliss I share  
of those whose anxious spirits burn  
with strong desires for thy return!  
With such I hasten to the place  
where God my Savior shows his face,  
and gladly take my station there,  
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!  

 

3. Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!  
thy wings shall my petition bear  
to him whose truth and faithfulness  
engage the waiting soul to bless.  
And since he bids me seek his face,  
believe his word, and trust his grace,  
I'll cast on him my every care,  
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!

 

Pausing for Silent Prayer and Confession

 

Prayers of the People (Response: God, in Your Mercy, hear our prayers.)

Loving and Gracious God, We thank You for the gift of new life through Jesus Christ. You are our strength in times of joy and our comfort in times of struggle. Today, we lift up our praises for the blessings You have given us and bring before You the burdens of our hearts. For those who are sick, bring healing. For those grieving, bring peace. For those struggling with addiction, fear, or oppression, bring freedom and victory. Guide us to be Your hands and feet, standing for truth and sharing Your love. May we walk in the power of Christ’s victory, trusting in Your grace each day. We pray in the name of Jesus, our Savior. Amen.

 

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

 

Called to the Word

Prayer for Illumination   

 

Leader: Lord, open our hearts and minds by the power of your Holy Spirit, that, as the Scriptures are read and your Word proclaimed, we may hear with joy what you say to us today. 

All: Amen

 

NT Lesson                                       Romans 6:1-7

 

6 What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may increase? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.

5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, so we might no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For whoever has died is freed from sin.

 

This ends the New Testament Lesson. 
Let us turn to the Gospel Lesson. Please stand, if able.

 

†Gospel Lesson                                         Mark 5:1-20

5 They came to the other side of the sea, to the region of the Gerasenes. 2 And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man from the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. 3 He lived among the tombs, and no one could restrain him any more, even with a chain, 4 for he had often been restrained with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he broke in pieces, and no one had the strength to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always howling and bruising himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and bowed down before him, 7 and he shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.” 8 For he had said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” 9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” 10 He begged him earnestly not to send them out of the region. 11 Now there on the hillside a great herd of swine was feeding, 12 and the unclean spirits begged him, “Send us into the swine; let us enter them.” 13 So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine, and the herd, numbering about two thousand, stampeded down the steep bank into the sea and were drowned in the sea.

14 The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came to see what it was that had happened. 15 They came to Jesus and saw the man possessed by demons sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion, and they became frightened. 16 Those who had seen what had happened to the man possessed by demons and to the swine reported it. 17 Then they began to beg Jesus to leave their neighborhood. 18 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. 19 But Jesus refused and said to him, “Go home to your own people, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and what mercy he has shown you.” 20 And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone was amazed.

 

This is the word of God for the people of God. 

All: Thanks be to God.

 

Message                               New Life with Victory              Rev. Jin Kook Kim

 

Good morning, Church Family! I hope you had a blessed day in God’s love and grace last week. We started the Lenten worship series, New Life through Jesus’s Cross, last Sunday. I hope this worship series helps us to see what Jesus has done for us on the cross and how it is relevant to us, exploring Jesus’ ministry that shows the prefiguration of the blessings that Jesus gives us. Last Sunday, we considered ‘New Life with Salvation.’ Jesus gives us new life with salvation through his death on the cross. As we see the story of a paralyzed man,  the salvation that Jesus gives us is holistic. We are saved physically and spiritually as Jesus forgave the paralyzed man’s sin and let him have a new life by healing him. Jesus paid our wages of sin instead of us and saved us from sin and death. Remember, Jesus’ forgiveness and salvation are ongoing and perpetual, occurring continually in our lives.  Jesus gives us new life every day because forgiveness and salvation happen every day in our lives. Let us be grateful and enjoy our new life. Also, let us serve people to have a new life in Christ.

 

Today, I want us to consider ‘New Life with Victory.' What Jesus gives us through his death on the cross is not only a new life with forgiveness of sins and salvation but also a new life with victory over sin and evil, which means Jesus gives us victory over sin through his cross and he gives us the strength to resist sin and evil and win against sin and evil. As we considered last Sunday, no one was free from sin and the wages of sin. No one could defeat sins by themselves. Look at the story of Adam and Eve. They ate the fruit that God banned, and that was the first sin that is written in the Bible. The story points out that all people are exposed to sin at any time and any place, and that people easily commit sin by not following God’s will. In John 8:34, Jesus says, “Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin.” Paul also says in Romans 6:17, “We were slaves of sin.” The words, ‘slaves of sin,’ point out that we were captured by sin, so we were to continue to commit sin and we could not get out of the ruling of sin by our power. However, Jesus Christ saves us from the slavery of sin through his death on the cross and gives us strength to resist sin and evil so that we don’t choose sin again. Jesus gives victory and makes us win the victory over sin and evil every day.

 

What would it be like to be slaves of sin and have a new life with victory? We can see what it would be like in Jesus’ ministry. In today’s scripture, Jesus met a man with an unclean spirit. Due to the unclean spirit, he lived among the tombs, and he was always howling and bruising himself with stones. Due to the unclean spirit, he couldn’t control himself and his life at all, and he hurt himself. The features of slaves of sin would be like this. We were enslaved by sin so we couldn’t control ourselves and our lives, and we kept committing sin, and we hurt ourselves with sin and the wages of sin. However, we have good news. Jesus defeated our sins through his death on the cross and let us be free from the slavery of sin and have a new life in God. It is like Jesus healed the man who was possessed by an unclean spirit, so he had a new life. After Jesus cast out the unclean spirit, he clothed and was in his right mind.  Now, he was not moved or forced by the unclean spirit. Now, he could control himself and his life. Now, he had victory over the unclean spirit through Jesus defeating the unclean spirit. Jesus gives us victory over sin and evil by defeating sin and evil through his death on the cross. Now, we are no longer slaves of sin, but free through the victory that Jesus makes and gives us.

 

We just considered an example of what it would be like to have victory over the slavery of sin through the Bible. Then, what would it be like to have a victory from the slavery of sin that we can see these days? Years ago, I watched a video clip. In the video, people come up to the altar, holding papers. And on each paper, there is a word.  The word is about what Jesus has saved them from. The words are addiction, depression, oppression, broken relationships, illnesses such as cancer, fatal accidents, abuse, trauma, etc. That is their testimony. They were captured by those situations and they couldn’t handle their lives. The situation kept hurting them physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, but they couldn’t get out of the slavery of each situation, and they couldn’t help themselves although they tried. However, Jesus came to their lives and saved them from their life matters. They couldn’t win the victory by themselves, but Jesus defeated all and gave them victory over each situation that they couldn’t get out of.

 

Church family, what captured us or what matter has captured us and keeps hurting us? What matters in your life do you want to overcome or defeat? What victory do you want to win in your life? The good news is here. Jesus gives us victory by defeating our life matters. We win victory over whatever captures us and hurts us through Jesus’ victory on the cross. This is what Jesus has done for us on the cross.

 

Victory over sin and evil is not all that Jesus gives us through his cross. Jesus gives us strength and power to resist sin and evil and win the victory over sin and evil in our lives. Jesus not only gives us fish to eat but also teaches us how to fish. Do you remember the story of Jesus’ temptation? Satan came to Jesus and tempted him to sin against God, offering power, wealth, and authority in the world. However, Jesus defeated Satan and won victory over sin.  Jesus has given us the power and strength to defeat sin and win victory over sin. We choose not to sin but goodness, not evil but righteousness because Jesus gives us the power and strength. We resist sin and evil in our lives for the same reason. We call it sanctifying grace, which God leads us to grow in faith and choose the right things through God’s grace.

 

We, as Christians and Methodists, have resisted sin and evil in the world to transform the world into the kingdom of God, which means we have worked on making a better world. The Methodist church led social movements such as the fight against alcohol abuse, believing it led to poverty, domestic violence, and moral decay, the fight for women’s rights and leadership, and the fight against domestic violence and family welfare. Still, we as a big church are working on the movements to help and protect the lower and the needy for social justice.

 

As a church, we together are resisting sin and evil through church ministry such as food pantries for food justice, item donations for helping non-profit organizations such as OASIS and CUMAC for those who need help and protection for their lives, socks for souls and homeless care packages to help the homeless, and fundraising events to help people. These are examples of ways we are practicing resisting sin and evil and winning victory over sin and evil.

 

Church family, let us remember that Jesus gives us victory over sin and evil, and victory over our life matters whatever they are. Jesus gives us victory through Jesus’ death on the cross. We are not slaves of sin but children of God who win against sin and evil. We are free from slavery of sin and evil and sin and evil do not rule us because of Jesus Christ. Let us remember that Jesus gives us the power and strength to resist sin and evil and win victory over sin and evil. We are called to practice the justice of God and transform the world into the kingdom of God where God’s justice rules. Let us keep working on our ministry in private and as a church family. Amen.

 

Called to Share

Response to Our Generous God 

 

 †Doxology                 Praise God, From Whom All Blessings Flow                   UMH 95

 

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;

Praise Him, all creatures here below;

Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!

 

†Prayer of Dedication

All: Generous and Loving God, All that we have is a gift from You. You have given us new life through Christ, victory over sin, and the strength to walk in Your ways. As we bring our tithes and offerings today, we do so with grateful hearts, recognizing that all we have belongs to You. Bless these gifts, Lord, that they may be used to spread Your love, bring hope to the weary, and do justice in the world. Multiply them for Your glory and guide us to be faithful stewards of all You have entrusted to us. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

 

Called to the World

 

†Closing Hymn                            Victory in Jesus                                       UMH 370

 

1. I heard an old, old story,

how a Savior came from glory,

how he gave his life on Calvary

to save a wretch like me;

I heard about his groaning,

of his precious blood's atoning,

then I repented of my sins

and won the victory.

 

[Refrain]

O victory in Jesus,

my Savior forever!

He sought me and bought me

with his redeeming blood;

he loved me ere I knew him,

and all my love is due him;

he plunged me to victory

beneath the cleansing flood.

 

2. I heard about his healing.

of his cleansing power revealing,

how he made the lame to walk again

and caused the blind to see;

and then I cried “Dear Jesus,

come and heal my broken spirit,”

and somehow Jesus came and brought

to me the victory. [Refrain]

 

3. I heard about a mansion

he has built for me in glory,

and I heard about the streets of gold

beyond the crystal sea;

about the angels singing

and the old redemption story,

and some sweet day I'll sing up there

the song of victory. [Refrain]

 

†Benediction                                                                                                         Rev. Jin Kook Kim

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you.  Amen.