Monday, 10 September 2018

Sunday Service Marsden Road Uniting Church 9th September 2018

The Gathering of God’s People:  
From river to ocean, from campfire to hearth, 
May the First People who have cared for this Land be blessed.

From breath to song, from step to dance, 
May those who follow Your Song lines guide us on the journey of living honourable in this place.  

From greeting to Amen, from silence to chorus,


Call to Worship   (Abingdon Worship Annual 2015 and Billabong)

It is here in the sanctuary of our God that we learn to fulfil the royal law of God’s Word: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” May our praise and worship this day, remind us of God’s love, forgiveness, and healing grace.

(From Psalm 125)  
Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion,
they are like Mount Zion which is immovable, abiding for ever. 

Jerusalem has mountains surrounding it, 
and the LORD God surrounds God’s people even now, and for all time. 

God of the unexpected moment, you have gathered us by your Spirit to serve us and renew us, and surround us.  
Break in on our world like hearing to the deaf, sight to the blind, speech to the dumb; come in your unexpected hour.  

Bring form to our chaos, light to our darkness, and life to our hearts. 
Fill us with your expectant Spirit: and so transform our gathering to your glory, and perfect our worship for your praise.



Hymn  TiS 567                       “God of all power and truth and grace”

Charles Wesley (1907 – 1888) was a leader of the Methodist movement in England and wrote an amazing number of hymns, totalling more than 6,000.   Although not the most rousing hymn to sing, the words are really worth sitting quietly and thinking about when you have a moment.


Opening Prayer: “Creating, loving, and healing God, we gather together this day, coming from different places and situations in life. In faith, we fall before you in praise and worship, desiring to be fed with your love and healed with your grace. Fill us with wonder, O God, that we may proclaim your good news for all to hear. Open up our ears, our mouths, and our hearts this day. In Christ Jesus’ name, we pray.”  Amen.


After The Prayers of Confession was the Declaration of Forgiveness:

“Mercy overrules judgment, love hatred, and God’s embrace reaches out to all people, spanning all of the mountains and chasms that confront us. Be at peace with yourselves and with others, knowing that God’s mercy endures forever.”  Thanks be to God!




We were invited to Pass the Peace:   “Creating us all as equals, and calling us to be generous in our faith, the Lord invites us to offer gestures of welcome as we share the peace of Christ.”


Children’s Message:  
John challenged the children to listen to the clues and guess who he was describing as he “unfolded” the remarkable story of Mother Teresa.  When the clues were finished and she had been identified by one of the children, John talked of Mother Teresa as a 20th C example/picture of this week's gospel reading. 


Offering & Dedication:

Hymn TiS 587                    “Fold to your heart your Sister and your Brother”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mG21apd_vWw This hymn was written by John Greenleaf Whittier (1807 – 1892) who was an American Quaker.  He was a successful poet and hard working advocate of the abolition of slavery in the United States.  Many of his poems were turned into hymns and much of his writing was in support of the abolition of slavery.

Bible Reading:          Read by Wendy    James 2:1-10, (11-13), 14-17       Mark 7:24-37

The reading from James is important and carefully weighs up our attitudes to the law. And how we think and how we act – and what attitudes do we display by our actions.  But this is all clearly summed up in the last verse; “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”  Good food for thought!


The reading from Mark’s Gospel finds Jesus trying to go unnoticed as he healed people – in the modern era with instant communication this seems rather a hopeless wish and of course people always want to share good news.


Reflection:                 “Where you are?”   (James 2:1-10, (11-13), 14-17)

John began with a quote from Mark Twain who said that it was the things in the Bible that he did understand that disturbed him – not those he did not understand.  John noted that this passage from the letter of James is such a passage; “The first half of our lesson from James is a direct blast against playing favourites on the side of the rich.  In fact, the passage declares God’s bias toward the poor! ‘Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?’”

“There is no prosperity gospel to be found here! The degree of poverty is emphasized by the adjective “dirty”. This passage calls to mind the parable about Lazarus and the rich man. Our temptation is to point knowingly at others who are perceived to be rich by our standards of measurement. This passage from James is directed at us! “

John uses Pogo, a comic strip character’s quote; “We have met the enemy and he is us” to introduce several references of importance, like “kingdom”, “royal law” and the way “faithfulness should be lived out in our actions.“  John also reminds us that; “James takes us immediately to a quote from Leviticus, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ Our attention is being called to how Jesus summed up the totality of the Torah or Old Testament Law. This was the central teaching of Jesus.

John then spoke about the importance that those who love God should therefore love their neighbour and pointed out this is not intended as a platitude, “love one another”. He reminded us; that this means “That our walk and our talk are to be one.”

“Think about it. We are watching the news, a scene of violence flashes across the screen, and just for an instant we find ourselves hating the perpetrator. If that is the case, according to James, we have committed a sin and “are convicted by the law as transgressors.” The emphasis is on the whole Law. We have to keep every little bit and nuance. How good is good enough? We have to always, perfectly, in every particular seek to love our neighbour. The passage hammers the point home in an indisputable fashion.”  


John said, ”As hard as I’ve tried, there are many times when I have been judgmental. How about you? Are you good enough? Have you once, just once in your life, harboured a secret hatred or discriminated against someone because of economic status or race or nationality or something else?”


“In other words, have you led a sinless existence? With Jesus, word and deed were one. He lived with perfect integrity. So ,let it be with us, James is reminding us. We are urged to let what we profess we believe and how we act mirror each other— “so speak and so act.”


John introduced us to a Rich Mullins song.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2caOygnx2kk


Hymn TiS 608:           Where cross the crowded ways of life”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYuzL3wvcU8 This hymn was written by Frank Mason North (1850 – 1935)
Prayers of the People:  John led the prayers of Intercession today and we shared in saying the Lord’s Prayer.:

Hymn TiS 627:           “Praise and thanksgiving Father we offer”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMb1cu-WqJg  This hymn was written by Albert Frederick Bayly (1901 – 1984)

Benediction:   
Now as you have received, so may you give away. Keep God's words close to your heart. Teach them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind God's truths as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and may they be written on the doorposts of your homes, your gates, and your lives. Amen.



Hymn: TiS 779         " May the feet of God walk with you"   (Aubrey Podlich  b. 1946)

May the feet of God walk with you, and His hand hold you tight.
May the eye of God rest on you, and His ear hear your cry.
May the smile of God be for you, and His breath give you life.
May the child of God grow in you, and His love bring you home.

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