Responsive Call to Worship Psalm
104:31-33
May the glory of the Lord endure forever,
May the Lord rejoice in his works.
Who looks on the earth and it trembles,
Who touches the mountains and they smoke.
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have
life.
Hymn TiS 133 “O
worship the king, all glorious above.”
When Sir Robert Grant wrote this hymn in
1833, he created a crescendo of praise worthy of the Psalms 104 & 18 on
which it was based. “O worship the King all-glorious above, O
gratefully sing his power and his love: our shield and defender, the
Ancient of Days, pavilioned in splendor and girded with praise.” Sir
Robert was educated in Law at Cambridge Inverness
Prayers of Praise and Thanksgiving: We praised the Spirit of God which is active in
creation, the Spirit of Love; the Spirit of Jesus and the Spirit of life and
rejoiced in the presence and power of God and all that He brings to our
lives. We revelled in Your love which is; “Older than the
mountains or the distant stars, new every morning: Presence of Grace.”
Prayers of Confession & Words of
Assurance: Jan
prayed for mercy for us: “If we have followed other spirits, rather than the
Spirit of Jesus, if we have refused to give full reign to the Holy Spirit in
our deed and words – So that we may be filled with the loving fruits of the
Holy Spirit.” We were assured of God’s forgiveness; and
said; “Thanks be to God.”
Announcements: We were reminded that next
Saturday those who are able will gather in the Church Hall to make lamingtons to
raise money for Frontier Services. We also learned that Max who has
attended Marsden
Road
Offering / Prayer: Phil and Nerida were our stewards this morning as we
were invited to share our gifts which were dedicated for God’s work. Amen.
Children’s Message During the talk with the
children, Jan showed pictures depicting symbols of Pentecost – a dove, the
flame, the wind and a wild goose which is the symbol for the Iona Community in Scotland
Hymn TiS 711 “Come,
O Holy Spirit, come (Wa wa wa Emimimo)”
This little hymn with a Nigerian translation gave us all the opportunity
to imagine the awe of “speaking in tongues” or listening to it in the Yoruba
Language and understanding every word.
Bible Reading
Acts
2:1-21 (page 837)
Jan read to us the announcement of the coming of the Holy Spirit and the
instruction to the disciples to bear witness to “The Spirit of truth
that issues from the Father.” This is followed by a detailed
explanation of what will happen when Jesus goes from the sight of the disciples
and ends by telling of the way their grief will be turned to joy.
To very good effect, Jan and Warwick dramatized the Bible Reading from
Acts 2: 1-21
Reflection: “Receive
the power - the difference the Holy Spirit makes.”
It was interesting to hear from Jan about some of the traditions of the
Jewish Festival of Pentecost which has now also become a Christian
Festival. I found it interesting that; “The Jews were all
gathered in Jerusalem, to celebrate Pentecost or Shavuot, the end of the barley
harvest, 50 days after the offering of the barley sheaf, the first fruits at
the beginning of Passover.”
Perhaps I have always
been too overwhelmed by the drama of the wind and fire and the speaking in
tongues, to take in any of the history of the events or even to follow all the
quite specific instructions given to the disciples and the followers of Jesus
about what was to happen after he ascended into heaven. Yet I have
always loved the drama and theatre of Pentecost celebrations.
I found Jan’s description of the events reasonable while still conveying
the essential drama.
“The wind and fire of Pentecost were symbols of the presence and power
of God, the tongues of fire enabled them to speak in other languages which they
had not previously known. God’s Spirit filled the believers and
their praise and thanks to God was heard by many Jews from other countries, who
wondered what was going on. There was a sense of excitement, energy
and expectation for everyone as the Holy Spirit came upon them with power and
broke through in a new way, which caused other people to understand their
message. This gave the opportunity to share with the crowd a message
about Jesus, and that God’s prophet Joel had foretold that those who call on
Jesus’ name would be saved.”
“… The outcome is that old barriers are broken down, communication is
restored, human life is transformed and the whole earth is renewed.”
Jan went on to talk about some historical events where the work of the
Holy Spirit was evident; sometimes over many decades and in ways that; “Are
an expression of the movement of the Spirit of God in addressing the gospel, to
changing times and circumstances, in order that people will have the
opportunity to live whole and God filled lives in a safe and healthy community.”
Jan urged us to understand, appreciate and use our own personal
Spiritual gifts in all areas of our lives. Yes we can do
this! We may never speak in tongues but if we strive to show love
and understanding; the language of a smile or a hug, or the gift of our time or
our money can express the gift of the Holy Spirit within us to share God’s Love
for everyone.
Hymn TiS 398 “Come
down O love divine”
How fortunate we are that the hymns of Italian born Bianco da Siena, who
entered the Order of Jesuits in 1367 and died in Venice Italy
“Come down, O Love divine, seek thou this soul of mine, and visit it
with thine own ardor glowing; O Comforter, draw near, within my heart
appear, and kindle it, thy holy flame bestowing.”
Prayers of the People: Today our prayers were led by Ruth and as she prayed to the
God of Peace for all the children around the world who have never lived in
peace - I remembered an image on TV this week that showed a tiny child on his
father’s shoulder waving a gun at the sky. Thanks Ruth we certainly
need that prayer and also the ones that followed for the leaders of the world
to use their power and influence for peace and for the good of all of
humanity. Ruth prayed for all the people for whom life is a
struggle; mentioning in particular the farmers who fight drought and the towns
people who rely on the success of the harvest to sell their goods and services;
and we thought of the ongoing challenges for the people living in the
devastation of Nepal
Then we shared in the well loved words of the Lord’s Prayer.
Hymn TiS 411 “Filled
with the Spirit’s power, with one accord”
It is the last verse of this hymn which should inspire us to leave this
building today to:
“Widen our love, good Spirit, to embrace the people of all lands and
every race.
Like wind and fire, with life among us move, till we are known as
Christ's and Christians prove.”
John Raphael
Peacey, 1896-1971 seems to have only been published and “discovered” 20 years
after his death, although he has been called, “A significant British
hymnwriter” by the Hope Publishing Company.
Blessing Jan sent us to our Congregational Meeting and our homes with the
Blessing of the Holy Spirit, the Love of God and the gift of Peace. Amen.
Blessing Song TiS 779: “May
the feet of God walk with you.”
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