Welcome Warwick welcomed us
all, explaining that the service would be a little different because Jan is on
sick leave.
Call to worship
I will bind you to myself forever with
integrity and justice,
with tenderness and love.
I will bind you to myself with faithfulness
and you will come to know me.
I will say: You are my people.
And we will answer: You are our God.
For once you were outside mercy,
but now you have given us mercy. (Adapted
from Isaiah 43)
Hymn TIS 227 ‘May Jesus Christ be
praised’ A song of pure
praise, written by someone who doesn't need any special reason to raise their
voice to God or to spread the word about praising God. They are clearly
experiencing the joy of knowing God's presence
Prayers of Praise and Thanksgiving
Warwick gave thanks for God's great
generosity to us, and spoke of our wish to offer something special back. We
feel so unworthy but realise that as God serves us, we are being taught to
serve others. He then acknowledged the breadth of God's generosity, realizing
we are never without God's gifts.
Prayer of Confession/Words of
Assurance
Warwick confessed for us, that we
often resent the generosity of others to Him and His work. Sometimes we think
our gatherings should be simple so as not to distract us from their central
purpose. He then prayed for us, that each of us will grow so as to be able to
welcome the different ways of others and appreciate their contribution to God's
work.
He then assured us that "We are
held in love and grace now, Yes, we are forgiven!"
Offering
Warwick thanked God for his goodness to us;
for his generosity that extends beyond anything we can imagine or deserve and
then asked for blessing upon our gifts and ourselves as givers. Amen.
Hymn TIS 468 ‘We are your people,
spirit of grace’ This hymns speaks of
the wonder of God's grace changing us into people who can be his hands and
voice. It speaks of the richness and diversity of our church and how that same
richness and diversity can serve God in so many ways.
Bible Readings Colin
read to us, firstly from Philippians 3:4b-14. where Paul chides the
Philippians for trying to outclass each other. He points out that according to
the law he is blameless and so that if anyone could claim special status it is
him. But he doesn't. He counts it worth no more than rubbish because he knows
that it's God's grace that we have to rely on, not our own efforts. He also
makes the point that trying to attain perfection is not for this world
John 12:1-8 Here is the story of
Lazarus' sister, Mary's generosity to Jesus. It is recorded that Judas resented
the generosity, saying the money could have been better spent on the poor. (A
personal note here: it is said that Judas was stealing the money. If he was,
why did they leave the money with him? I suspect this has been added to cement
his reputation as a baddie.) Jesus steps in, making the point that there are
times when generosity is the right thing.
Sermon Because
Jan was unexpectedly unable to be present it was decided that a sermon recorded
for Project ReConnect would be used. Coincidentally that sermon was recorded by
me, so it was an odd experience for me to sit and watch and listen to myself.
The first question to be considered was why
we attend church. People attend for different reasons, some sincere, some
insincere. The Philippians had begun and grown as a church for all the right
reasons but were then sidetracked by considerations they had learnt from
secular society, such as who was the most important and who should have the
most say. Sound familiar? Paul affirmed the Philippians because he knew they
were committed at their core but pointed out that although he had every right
as someone who kept the law 100%, to claim superiority, he didn't because only
God's grace was of any effect.
He then went onto the furphy, that it's
possible to attain perfection this life. It's not.
Then I ended the sermon: So friends, keep in
mind, it is God's grace that raises up each one of us. It is his love that we
should be showing to each other and to the world and it upon his spirit we
should be relying for guidance in our way forward. Amen.
Hymn TIS 665 “Jesus Christ is
waiting” A clear message of where we can find Jesus today so as
to shower our gifts upon him.
Musical interlude A time,
while Andrew played, for the congregation to variously contemplate their
individual concerns.
Prayers of Intercession Ruth led
us: Dear Lord we pray for Jan: we pray for her healing. Ruth acknowledged God's
willingness to listen to our prayers and concerns and prayed that he would make
us open to hear his voice and the voice of those who need our love and prayers.
Ruth prayed for the healing of those injured in mind and body. She prayed
especially for children who have never known peace. She gave thanks for all the
things we take for granted and prayed for God's help for those that have none
of them. She prayed for those who suffer because of the weakness of someone
else or themselves. Lord, please help us to pray with honesty and to wait for
your answer with trust and patience.
Hymn TIS 687 “God gives us a
future” We bounced into this hymn, reflecting the confidence we
can have in God's support for us as we seek to do his will, following the path
he has set us,
Blessing The Grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the fellowship and vitality of
the Holy Spirit be with us all now and forever. Amen.
Blessing Song Hymn TIS 779 ‘May the feet of God
walk with you”
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