Identity: Guest Preacher Rev. Rachel Helgeson

Sunday, August 23, 2026
10:30 AM 11:30 AM 10:30 11:30

Union Presbyterian Church 200 E Main St Endicott, NY, 13760 United States (map)

Google Calendar ICS

Jesus is in the midst of a conversation with his disciples, and the question of who is actually is arises. The disciples tell him, some say he’s John the Baptist, risen from the dead; others, the prophet Elijah, or maybe Jeremiah. Finally, Jesus asks, But who do you say that I am? What follows is a turning point in the gospel.

This Sunday we welcome the Rev. Rachel Helgeson, the Manager of Spiritual Care at UHS hospital system. She is currently completing her final unit of CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) towards Board Certified Chaplaincy. Rachel can sometimes be seen singing, teaching, or speaking publicly at various organizations throughout the Southern Tier region, including serving as the vice-moderator of the Presbytery of Susquehanna Valley. When she's not on the sidelines cheering her children in their various activities, she can be found quietly reading a book, binging her favorite show, or floating in a kayak on the water.

You are invited to join us for worship this Sunday in our beautiful sanctuary at 200 East Main Street in Endicott. Or. if you wish, you can join our livestream from home or travel by clicking on the YouTube video below. You are always welcome!

Identity

Isaiah 51:1-6; Matthew 16:13-20

Union Presbyterian Church

August 23, 2026

Sharing the Light of Christ, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Liturgist: Becky Conklin Preacher: Rev. Rachel Helgeson

Welcome

This is the day that the Lord has made!

Let us rejoice and be glad in it! ~Psalm 118:24

Announcements Becky Conklin

Prelude Chris Bartlette

“My Faith Looks Up to Thee,” Lloyd Larson

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Call to Worship Becky Conklin

Beloved: Welcome!

Welcome to this place of love and grace,

Welcome to this place of hope and perseverance

We are invited by God to be a part of the beloved community,

We are invited by the divine to share in the good news:

We are welcome! We are loved!

In gratitude for the one who welcomes and loves us, let us worship God!

* Hymn # 450

“Be Thou My Vision,” David Evans

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that thou art;
Thou my best thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

Be thou my wisdom, and thou my true Word;
I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord;
Thou my soul’s shelter, and thou my high tower;
Raise thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor vain, empty praise;
Thou, mine inheritance, now and always;
Thou and thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my treasure thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach heaven’s joys, O bright heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my vision, O Ruler of all.

* Call to Confession  

We live fractured lives, and God does not seek to fault or punish our brokenness, but to reconcile and restore us. Trusting in God's grace and mercy, let us individually seek reconciliation with the divine in silence and then collectively together as a community of faith.

* Collective Confession

Merciful God, we confess that we have lived fractured lives. We recognize that we have not loved you with our whole heart; nor have we loved our neighbors as ourselves. Open our eyes to your mercy and grace as we continue to relearn to love ourselves, to love you, and to love our neighbors. Help us to reconcile our past, knowing you forgive us and teaching us to forgive ourselves so that we may delight in your creation and walk in the light of Christ who knows us and loves us. Amen.

* Assurance of Forgiveness

Friends, hear the good news. In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Amen.

* Sharing of the Peace

May the peace of our loving God be with you.

And also with you.

Let us offer one another a sign of God’s peace.

Prayer for Illumination (Unison)

Speak to us, Lord.

Speak to us in the waiting, the watching, the hoping, the longing, the sorrow, the sighing, the rejoicing.

Speak to us and let us be receptive to your still small voice in the Word proclaimed. Amen.

Scripture Isaiah 51:1-6

Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,
    you who seek the Lord.
Look to the rock from which you were hewn
    and to the quarry from which you were dug.
Look to Abraham your father
    and to Sarah, who bore you,
for he was but one when I called him,
    but I blessed him and made him many.
For the Lord will comfort Zion;
    he will comfort all her waste places
and will make her wilderness like Eden,
    her desert like the garden of the Lord;
joy and gladness will be found in her,
    thanksgiving and the voice of song.

Listen to me, my people,
    and give heed to me, my nation,
for a teaching will go out from me
    and my justice for a light to the peoples.
I will bring near my deliverance swiftly;
    my salvation has gone out,
    and my arms will rule the peoples;
the coastlands wait for me,
    and for my arm they hope.
Lift up your eyes to the heavens
    and look at the earth beneath,
for the heavens will vanish like smoke,
    the earth will wear out like a garment,
    and those who live on it will die like gnats,
but my salvation will be forever,
    and my deliverance will never be ended.

Time for Young Disciples Rev. Rachel Helgeson

Music: “Freedom is Coming” (Hymn #359)

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Anthem Summer Choir

“O Jesus, You Were Born to Be,” Carolyn Winfrey Gillette

Used by permission.

O Jesus, you were born to be
God's gift to save humanity;
And one great day we're moving toward,
All life will bow and call you Lord!

You taught the people every day
As Rabbi, Teacher of the Way;
O Master, may we learn from you
To love both God and neighbor, too.

You are the Bread that satisfies,
The Light that guides us through our lives,
The Gate that leads us safely home,
The Shepherd calling to your own.

O Son of God and Son of Man,
You trusted and obeyed God's plan;
The poor, the sick and those in need
Cried, "Son of David, set us free!"

You are Messiah, you are Christ,
Anointed One, God's sacrifice.
In you, God's mercy is revealed:
We're saved from sin, forgiven, healed.

O Jesus, you're the living Way,
The Resurrection, God's new Day.
You give us hope and make us new;
How wondrous is our life in you!

Scripture Matthew 16:13-20

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist but others Elijah and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

Response Holy Wisdom, Holy Word:

Thanks be to God!

Sermon “Identity”

* Affirmation of Faith (Apostles’ Creed) (p. 17, “Glory to God”)

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,

born of the Virgin Mary,

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,

he is seated at the right hand of the Father,

and he will come 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.

* Hymn # 306

“Blest Be the Tie That Binds”

(Public Domain)

Blest be the tie that binds
Our hearts in Christian love.
The fellowship of kindred minds
Is like to that above.

Before our Father's throne
We pour our ardent prayers.
Our fears, our hopes, our aims are one,
Our comforts and our cares.

We share our mutual woes;
Our mutual burdens bear.
And often for each other flows
The sympathizing tear.

When we are called to part,
It gives us inward pain;
But we shall still be joined in heart,
And hope to meet again.

From sorrow, toil, and pain,
And sin we shall be free;
And perfect love and friendship reign
Through all eternity.

Prayers of the People

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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

Prayer Response # 414 “Be Still and Know That I Am God,” John L. Bell

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

(Sing twice:)

Be still and know that I am God.

Call for Offering     

* Doxology # 675 (verse 4) “All Praise to Thee, My God, This Night”

(Public Domain)

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,

Praise God, all creatures here below:

Praise God above, ye heavenly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

* Prayer of Dedication (Unison)

Gracious and Holy God,

accept what we offer today,

our financial donations,

our faltering steps,

our brokenness,

our leftovers,

our hope,

our risking,

our lives.

Bless and transform all that we offer

In Christ's name we pray. Amen.

* Hymn # 14

“For the Beauty of the Earth”

(Public Domain)

For the beauty of the earth,
For the glory of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the wonder of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flower,
Sun and moon, and stars of light:

Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the joy of ear and eye,
For the heart and mind’s delight,
For the mystic harmony
Linking sense to sound and sight:

Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth, and friends above,
For all gentle thoughts and mild:

Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For thyself, best gift divine
To the world so freely given;
For that great, great love of thine,
Peace on earth and joy in heaven:

Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.

* Benediction

Postlude Chris Bartlette

“All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name," John Turner

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Where an * is indicated, please rise in body and/or in spirit.

The Call to Worship is adapted from Rev. Beth Merril Neel's blog, Hold Fast to What is Good.

Worship With Us

Identity: Guest Preacher Rev. Rachel Helgeson