Sunday Service Marsden Rd Uniting Church May 12

We were welcomed and the notices given. Helen suggested that for the following Sunday, Pentecost Sunday, members of the congregation might wear red, the colour of celebration.

Call to Worship

"In the beginning

God
In the end
God
Moment by moment
Hour by hour
Day by day
Year by year
God is among us
God is within us
First and Last, Alpha and Omega
God is God and God loves us"

Hymn TIS 133 "O worship the King, all glorious above" By the time we had sung this, there was nothing left to say, so why do we think God is not to be trusted with the tiller of our lives. Why do we keep such a strong grip on things?

Precious Memories by Richard Lyon Morgan. Taken from a prayer called "Fire in the Soul", these thoughts were about our memories and how we benefit from this store of the good things that have happened in our life. They also questioned the worth of the speedy and brief communications of today, asking whether relationships can grow from these.

Hymn MP 936 (Kendrick and Steve Thompson, 1993, Make Way) A hymn, a prayer, asking to learn to do things God's way. In His style, to His rhythms, with His enlightenment, with His power, in His strength. In obedience. Seems like a formula for success.

Call to Confession  "God's love is steadfast, and God's faithfulness endures from age to age. Our love falters, and our faithfulness waxes and wanes from day to day.

Let us confess our sin and our need for God."

Prayer of Confession Helen prayed for us, thanking God for bringing us life through His love: confessing our need for God's power; confessing our lack of judgement; confessing that we live lives that do not lead to peace.

She then prayed: "Forgive us"

Words of Assurance Yours sins are forgiven. Thanks be to God.

Scripture Reading  John 17: 20 - 26  A prayer by Jesus that we, who have been given to Him, will be one with each other and together, be in Him. That seems to imply that we shouldn't be flogging our own agenda but looking after each other in the way that Jesus would and making our plans together according to the way He has directed. In turn, that would imply that we should pray for direction and wait upon God's voice.

Reflection Helen began by drawing our attention to the gradual development, through historical time, of our concept of Jesus. Firstly she pointed out that the Synoptic gospels directed us to Jesus the Lamb who died. As those gospels unfolded, the realization dawned that the man was the Son of God.

But not John. "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God" and later: "And the Word became flesh and lived among us".

For the first 100 years of Christianity, Jesus was divine and the struggle was with how He could be human at the same time. This struggle threatened the existence of the church, so the Council of Chalcedon was convened in AD 451 to settle the matter. Various groups proposed different concepts of Jesus but they were all rejected, with the decision that Jesus was and is fully divine and fully human. But does it really matter? Helen went on to show how it did.

In the reading, Jesus prays, "As you Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us."

Jesus was praying for His disciples and us, here in 2013.

This means that, since Jesus is God and Jesus is In me, I have direct access to God.

That applies to each one of us and therefore, we are united by God within.

Helen then spoke of how this had made a difference in the last 18 months of her life where she had run into a brick wall, with no way over, under or around it. The consequences of not being able to find a way through were too dark to think about. So she dug deep - where she found God. God who has suffered and hears and understands ours cries. It is that God onto whom we have to cling, waiting for a miracle to unfold. Waiting for a new life, a new beginning. Peace within.

Together: "Jesus, name above all names, beautiful Saviour, glorious Lord; Emmanuel, God is with us, blessed Redeemer, living Word."

Prayer "Lord Jesus, show us the Father, reveal to us the ways of God. We have experienced you as 'God with us,' the full revelation of God, God radiantly with us, God too close for comfort."

Hymn TIS 140 "Firmly I believe and truly" The only one, the one from whom our strength comes, the only one we adore,

Freewill Offering  "Lord, everything we have comes from you...May it be that these gifts that have sustained and enriched us now sustain and enrich others. Amen"

Time for quiet Reflection God help us, we can be so hopeless! Let your voice soak into our heads so that we cannot escape its intent because sometimes we are no better than little children.

followed by

Prayer for Others and The Lord's Prayer Helen began by drawing our attention to the "Headlines" of the past weeks, which were, for all of us, a source of "How could such a thing happen?". Kidnappings; a bomb blowing off most of a boy's hands; bleach thrown by ADULT women; 1000 dead from clothing factory collapse - have we bought these clothes cheaply? A couple missing from a cruise ship; kids not able to study because of lack of sleep; drought; scandals concerning collusion between church and police. The list went on and was added to by similar concerns of the congregation. It seems the world has gone mad. For these and more matters, Helen prayed, and then for the needs of those close to the congregation.

Hymn TIS 231 "At the name of Jesus" Every knee shall bow. Every name confess Him.

Every heart enthrone Him. Worshipped, trusted, adored. King of Glory now. That would be a different world because it would be a different us.

Blessing  "This day, may we know ourselves loved and valued.

 

                   This day, may we notice the beauty around us, in things great and small.

                 This day may we not miss the messages of joy, of peace, and of hope that the Lord sends us."

If we take this message on, the world changes.

Hymn of Departure TIS 755

"You shall go out with joy and be led forth in peace, and the mountains and the hills shall break forth in singing.

There'll be shouts of joy, and the trees of the field shall clap, shall clap their hands,

and the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and you'll go out with joy.  YES!!!