Sunday Service Marsden Road Uniting Church 28 October 2018

Acknowledgement of First Peoples

 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 Songlines guide us on the journey of living honourably in this place.

From greeting to Amen, from silence to chorus,

Call to Worship (Abingdon Worship Annual 2012 and 2018)

God who restores, who heals, who makes us whole, open our eyes to your work around us. Be in our praying, in our singing, in our proclamation, and in our silence. Open our eyes to see your kingdom coming into the world.

 Jesus has come to town. Jesus, son of David, have mercy on us!

He invites us to join him on his journey. Jesus, son of David, have mercy on us!

Come and be healed and see with new eyes. Hallelujah! Thanks be to God!

 

And then we sang of our reliance on God. Or, at least, how our highest calling is reliance on God. Why do we think we know better so often?

Hymn TIS 112: “Through all the changing scenes of life”

Opening Prayer

 Triune God, through Jesus Christ, our great and eternal High Priest, we give you praise and consecrate ourselves to follow you. As we worship you and celebrate your glorious resurrection, open our eyes so that we may see – open the eyes of our mind to learning and understanding; open the eyes of our heart, to your love and compassion; open the eyes of our soul, to see our spiritual selves during our time of worship. Amen.

Consecrating ourselves to God is not something to be done flippantly or without deep thought. It means that we turn aside from our own wishes and wants to seek God’s will in all things. It isn't a once-only event. We are called on daily to hand ourselves over to God’s plan for us and The Kingdom.

And to ensure that this continues to be so, and knowing how often we do stray from that commitment and consecration, we need to open ourselves and our failings to God and seek forgiveness.

Prayer of Confession

 Mystical, transcendent God, there is so much of life we simply do not know.

In our arrogance we utter what we do not understand.

Rescue us, O Lord, from our afflictions.

Rescue us, O God from our self-inflicted wounds. Have mercy on us, Son of David, Son of God, and save us by your unending grace. Amen.

 Declaration of Forgiveness

 Cry out to Christ, our great High Priest, for he has saved us. Our faith has made us well, brought us forgiveness and granted us peace. Thanks be to God.

Hymn TIS 547.  “Be thou my vision.” Keeping in track. Asking for the true path.

READINGS: Job 42:1-6, 10-17 : Mark 10: 46-52

Job says to a God: ‘I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.  3 “Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge? Therefore, I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. 

A good lesson here for all of us. We don't have the knowledge and wisdom we need to do God’s will in God’s kingdom. We need to ask for guidance.

The lesson from Mark leans in the same direction:

Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. 47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ 48 Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ 49 Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ 50 So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.51 Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ 52 Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.

Remember, when we read the Bible we are looking for God’s voice and God’s message to us. I think it's clear here: The blind man asked to see and Jesus gave him sight. Usually, it's not physical sight we need, its spiritual sight. It works the same way.

Rev. John shared this with us:

“But when I share, through honest and open prayer, my frivolous or grave or noble or childlike wants with a gentle and loving God, God will use even these to increase my faithfulness, to uncover my hidden wounds, and to affirm my created goodness. Maybe, even, God is doing the wanting in me and through me; and my calling is to discover what the wanting is teaching me about who God is and who I am.”

John also told us of seeking guidance from a friend rather than turning to God. Talking to the friend was a way of avoiding God because he was afraid he would get it all wrong before God. I think this is a common experience. We hide our lack of knowledge and understanding from God, or so we think, but who better to turn to when we are in need?

Hymn TIS 223  “How sweet the name of a Jesus sounds in a believer’s ear.” The very hymn to hear and sing at the point to settle our troubled hearts and minds.

Laurel brought us the Prayers of the People. She brought before us and our Lord current concerns. God invites us to say what our needs are. Even if we have looked past our real needs, God will see our true needs. And so it is with confidence we were able to join Laurel in her prayers for those suffering in different ways.

Hymn TIS 160 “Father all-loving and ruling in majesty.” God is not one to fear. God is in charge and will hold us in the palm of his hand.

 

Benediction

 

Go as the church, as Jesus' entourage, following where he leads. Everywhere he goes he leaves healing and hope in his wake. Go, and listen, and learn, and love. And may the blessing of God Almighty, Creator, Redeemer and Giver of Life be with you and remain with you always, Amen

 

 

Sunday Service Marsden Road Uniting Church 21 October 2018

 Today’s service was led by Wendy Pearce, who welcomed Heather Pinto from Eastwood Christian Community Aid who had come to speak to the  Congregation about the work of CCA.

Acknowledgment of First People

Leader: We acknowledge the Burramattagal people, the first inhabitants of this place, part of God's good creation. We honour them for their custodianship of the land, on which we gather today.

People: You set humanity at the heart of your creation, O God; charging us with stewardship of all you have made. We give thanks for those who have heeded your call.

The Gathering of the People of God.

Call to Worship

In the midst of a world where people hunger and thirst . . .

come worship a God who feeds the hungry.

In the midst of a world where people are abused and oppressed . . .

come worship a God who calls for compassion and justice.

In the midst of a world filled with wars and rumor of war . . .

come worship a God who desires nothing less than peace for the world.

In the midst of a world of spiritual emptiness . . .

come worship a God who gives life meaning.

Come worship a God whose grace and love know no end.

Invocation

With what shall we come before the Holy One,

and bow ourselves before God on high?

God has shown us what is good.

What does the Holy One require of us,

but to do justice,

and to love kindness,

and to walk humbly with our God?

 

The Prayers, hymns and other parts of this service were directed to the theme of serving others and the address given by Heather showed us how we can do this through CCA. As a congregation I see our greatest strength is in our service to others but we are humans and from time to time, we grasp our time, money, energy and possessions to ourselves, turning from the path of service to a path of selfishness.

And so after a prayer and hymn acknowledging and praising God’s goodness and greatness, we confessed to God our lapse from the way we are supposed to follow.

Prayer of Confession

All:

Eternal God, our judge and redeemer, we confess that we have tried to hide from you, for we have done wrong. We have lived for ourselves and apart from you.

We have turned from our neighbors and refused to bear the burdens of others.

We have ignored the pain of the world and passed by the hungry, the poor, and the oppressed. In your great mercy, forgive our sins and free us from selfishness,

that we may choose your will and obey your commandments;

through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen

We then turned to God for assurance of forgiveness.

Prayer of Assurance

—from A Wee Worship Book, pp. 19-20 © 1999, by WGRG The Iona Community (Scotland). Used by permission of GIA Publications, Inc

Leader: Among the poor, among the proud, among the persecuted, among the privileged,  Christ is coming to make all things new: That the kingdom might come, that the world might believe, that the powerful might stumble, that the hidden might be seen: Christ is coming to make all things new. Within us, without us, behind us, before us, in this place, in every place, for this time, for all time. Christ is coming to make all things new. Our sins are forgiven! Thanks be to God.

Offering and Prayer

Generous God, we give you thanks for all the gifts that you give to us – the gifts of life and love, the gifts of your grace coming to us in Jesus Christ. Accept and bless these gifts and our lives as we offer them as our grateful response. Amen

 

The Service of the Word.

Bible readings  Glen Henderson

Isaiah 58 This reading admonishes the people for seeking glory for showy religious behaviours but they are set back on their heels and told that serving the poorest and the lowliest is true service to God.

Luke 10: 25-37 This exchange took place hundreds of years after the utterance of the words in Isaiah but the young man still hasn't understood, like so many in every age. Maybe because showy temple/church actions are easier than true service.

Address

Heather Pinto outlined the various types of help given to people in our district who are having a tough time and added that counselling was given so the that people who needed help have a better chance of making independent decisions for themselves, thereby giving them the gift of dignity along with the gifts of material
things.

The Lectionary reading theme for October has been “All are Welcome” and the questions posed are:

What does a welcoming Christian Community look like?

What are you prepared to give up to follow Jesus?

What is your experience in the ministry of serving others?

When in need of healing, what do you do? How is your faith?

The questions prepare us for being the people who can heal ourselves and then be fit to serve others. We can give people water from an empty bucket.

 

The service was closed in prayer for others…another type of service…and the singing of hymns

The last two hymns were : Hymn TIS 650 “Brother, sister let me serve you”. and

Hymn TIS 658 “I, the Lord of sea and sky” which tied it all together.

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

Sunday Service Marsden Road Uniting Church 14 October 2018

 

 

MARSDEN ROAD UNITING CHURCH SUNDAY 14th October.

Gathering God’s People

 

Today I was unable to attend this service, so for the first section, I have given you the direct words of the service so you can be blessed as were those who were present on the day.

 

 Acknowledgement of First Peoples

 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 2018)

“Still I’m not annihilated by darkness; [God] has hidden deep darkness from me.”

 In times of trouble, in times of joy ...we call upon the name of God.

With steadfast faith, with wavering doubt ... we call upon the name of God.

Basking in God’s presence, aching in God’s absence ... we call upon the name of God.

 Hymn TIS 727: In the presence of your people

Opening Prayer

 Holy One, we call upon your name this day. When you seem most absent, we yearn to hear your voice. When you seem most present, we long to follow your teachings. Be with us now. Strengthen and guide us, that we may trust your call and follow your lead. In doubt, in trust, but most of all in hope, we pray. Amen.

 Prayer of Confession

 Mysterious One, we cry out in our times of need—

for hope in times of despair, for faith in times of doubt, for comfort in times of grief, for grace in times of sin, and for love in times of loneliness. Answer our cry.

Be our refuge and our help. Restore our lives.

Revive our hope. Return us to the path of discipleship, where we may walk with you anew in confidence and joy.

In the name of Christ, our rock and our redeemer, we pray. Amen.

Declaration of Forgiveness

Draw near to Christ, who is our mercy and our grace, for in Christ, we are restored and made whole. In the name of Christ, we are forgiven and reconciled to God.

Thanks be to God!

 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.

Peace be with you! And also with you

Hymn TIS 589: Jesus calls us! O’er the tumult

                  

 

 

The Service of the Word. I have deleted much to concentrate of the following part of the service.

Hebrews 4:12-16

 12 Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart…16 Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Mark 10:17-31

17 As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ 22 When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions…

Preaching of the Word

Ask a Simple Question - Mark 10:17-31

A summary of some of Rev. John’s words to the congregation:

Haven’t you ever wished that you could get this one shot? That you could cut through the crowd all around Jesus, go right up to him and ask the one question you’ve always wanted to ask? I can’t count the number of times someone has found out that I am a minister and then blurted out,

“Can I ask you a question? What does the Bible say about . . .?” The character in this passage asks a simple enough question, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”…

 One problem with this story is that we don’t quite know what to do with Jesus’ answer!… 

If we interpret the passage in this concrete way, however, Jesus’ instructions to the man don’t quite fit with the rest of the passage or with what we know about God’s grace. Surely, we do not pay our way into the kingdom of God, into the Resurrection. Whatever eternal life is about, it is not a financial transaction. Eternal life is a gift from God. Interpreting this passage as a simple pay-as-you-go deal makes God into an extortionist, not a loving parent. We have to keep looking to understand what Jesus means here.

 Perhaps Jesus is pushing us to see that we cannot earn our way into the dominion of God no matter what we do. … This passage is about more than our internal attitude toward money. Jesus really does call us to give, to share, to sacrifice.

My own view of this is that Jesus simply wanted the young man to offer all that he was and had to God. All we are and have is a gift from God and our part is to relinquish our grasp on whatever that is so that God can make use of it in the building of the kingdom.

 Benediction

 Go now in hope. Go now in love. And may the peace that passes all understanding guide you along the way. And may the blessing of God Almighty, Creator, Redeemer and Giver of Life be with you and remain with you always.

Hymn TIS  779: May the feet of God walk with you

 

Sunday Service Marsden Road Uniting Church 30 September 2018

 

Today we were led in our worship by Howard Clark, from UnitingWorld, who had come to raise our awareness of the work of Uniting World and how we could play a part in that work.

 

While doing that we also became aware of our place among the world’s people and our responsibility to others. Further, Howard’s presentation led us to be aware of the possibilities for service and a change in perspective which could emerge when we listen to the words of Jesus.

 

Howard began with an acknowledgement of the traditional carers of the land upon which we were worshipping. Europeans came to Australia to civilize the people who were living here as well as exploit any resources. The first resource Australia provided was to be a long way from England and so an excellent gaol.

 

When we consider both of those intentions in the light of the gospel, the inhumanity of each is appalling. As the scripture which inspired Hymn TIS 686 says, “For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.” God paused after creation and saw “that it was good”. All people are God’s creation. All people are God’s children. We are charged with giving comfort to all God’s children.

 

But the intention of the European’s move to Australia was to isolate the prisoners and to kill any hope they may have had of returning to family. That was so cruel.

They may have thought they were from a superior culture or as Christians, (even if they weren't exhibiting much Christianity) were superior and therefore had the right to squash 60000 years of culture of  the Aboriginal people. What were they thinking? Did they imagine the Aboriginal people were cut off from God?

 

God speaks to all souls in creation. How people interpret the voice they hear is different from place to place and not always an accurate representation of God’s voice and message. However nobody has a monopoly on truth. Great caution should be shown.

 

Certainly the congregation today showed their knowledge of their relationship with God as they sang Hymn TIS 100, “All Creatures of our God and King, lift up your voice and sing”. And sing we did…with gusto!… Reflecting our enthusiasm for and knowledge of the life-giving grip of our God upon us - and our gratitude for that new life.

 

These themes were played out in the stories told and films shown about the lives of two couples. One couple live in Indonesia and the other in Western Papua. Both lived in utterly deprived circumstances. However, because they received assistance from Uniting World, each has been able to create a life where they have shelter and a sustainable source of food and income.  Without outside help this wouldn't be possible. The help is available because there are people in places such as Marsden Road Uniting Church who recognise God in their neighbours and therefore their obligation to provide them with shelter, food, clothing and water among other things as though they were giving those things directly to God.

 

The result not only brings hope to the people who receive help but the changes it brings in their lives inspires and uplifts the people who provide it. A hymn such as TIS 111 “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of Creation, O my soul praise him for he is your health and salvation.” expresses this.

 

All concerned recognise the source of the goodness resulting from one group of people obeying God’s will, recognizing God in other people and acting towards those others as though those were actually God. The all-pervading goodness uplifts everyone.

 

The result of doing good to bring hope to others leads to hope for all concerned, as we recognise God in each other.

 

And so we can sing with generous hearts, Hymn TIS 779:

“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.”

 

 

Sunday Service Marsden Road Uniting Church 23 September 2018

Gathering God’s People

 Acknowledgement of First Peoples

 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 honourably in this place.

From greeting to Amen, from silence to chorus,

Call to Worship (Abingdon Worship Annual 2018)

Blessed are those who meditate on God’s ways, for they are like trees planted by streams of living water, bearing fruit in due season. Happy are those who draw near and grow strong in the Lord.

Draw near to God and grow strong in God’s presence. Seek God’s wisdom and know joy as God draws near.

Live as trees planted by living waters, and Christ will give you peace.

Rest in the shade of the Tree of Life, and Christ will lead you home.

Draw near to God, and God will draw near to you.

 

Hymn TIS 107:  “Sing praise and thanksgiving”

 

Opening Prayer

 Source of wisdom and understanding, plant us by your streams of living water, that we may bear the fruit of peace and mercy in the seasons of our lives; …Place your wisdom and understanding within us, that we may be far more precious than jewels to those in need of your healing love. Amen.

Prayer of Confession

 We live in a world, O God, that looks for wisdom and understanding in all the wrong places.

You teach us that charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, yet we strive for these things above the virtues of industry, mercy, gentleness, and service…

Declaration of Forgiveness

When we draw near to God, God draws near to us. God blesses us with humility, gentleness, mercy, wisdom, and understanding. Draw near to God and touch the inexhaustible love of God.

Thanks be to God!

The Peace

When we make peace, we sow the seeds of justice by our peaceful acts. Let us sow the peace of Christ this morning, as we share signs of our commitment to justice and mercy.

Peace be with you!

And also with you

 

 

A Word with the Children/Young People

Rev. John told the story of children walking along the street, holding their precious toys. One girl was cuddling her China doll which was knocked from her hands. The result was predictable…the doll smashed, breaking the child’s heart with it. But her friend remained with her, sharing tears of grief. We can rarely mend problems god other people but we can grieve with them. Letting them know that we share their pain and are reaching out to support them.

Invitation to the Offering

 With the wife from Proverbs, who is far more precious than jewels, let us open our hands to the poor and our hearts to the needy. Let us sow peace in our world through the gifts and offerings we collect this day.

 

 Hymn TIS 650:  “Brother sister, let me serve you.”

                  

The Service of the Word

James 3:13 - 4:3

 13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.  

Mark 9:30-37

  35 He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.’ 36 Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, 37 ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’

 

Preaching of the Word

Can Goodness and Wisdom Coexist? –

Here, I have selected just one of the many points Rev. John covered today and drawn his words on that subject together..

James in his letter tries to show the natural link between goodness and wisdom. The combining of wisdom and goodness is not something we want to restrict. We have a contrast of two kinds of wisdom: heavenly/godly wisdom with earthly/evil wisdom. Like the early church people, we want to know how to gain heavenly/godly wisdom.

This distinction between goodness and wisdom is one that has never occurred to me but when we attached “worldly” to “wisdom” all becomes clear. But the “wisdom” of the Bible’s Sophia fits the bill. That wisdom is God’s wisdom, wisdom coming from God. That sort of wisdom goes hand in hand with goodness and the holy action that follows.

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Hymn TIS 609: “May the mind of Christ my Saviour” Amen to that. Isn't that the point of listening for God’s voice?

 

 

 

Music to lead us to prayer: This is a time for each of us to draw near to our God. A time of quiet to absorb the words we have heard in the readings and the sermon or to contemplate our own concerns and bring them before God.

 

Hymn TIS  256: “From heaven you came, helpless babe”. And yet we are so unwilling to become helpless before our Lord and be guided by God’s will. We try so hard to find our own solutions.

 

Benediction

 Having drawn near to the God of love, we go forth to bear fruit in due season. Having drawn near to the Spirit of wisdom, we go forth with humility and understanding. Having drawn near to the Presence of mercy and grace, we go forth as children of compassion and peace. Go with God.

 

Hymn TIS 780: May light come into your eyes