Mountain Top Experiences

https://youtu.be/DR7Kz9UrESc

Welcome and Announcements

Hello Everyone! Thanks for joining us for worship today.

Opening Prayer
God of grace and glory,
to this worried world, you reveal your presence
in radiant glory and in gentle whispers,
on mountain tops and in shadowed valleys,
in classrooms and hospital beds,
in homes and churches,
in the quiet of nature and on busy streets.

Yours is the presence that pushes past our fear to calm us;
yours is the love that transforms our doubt with reassurance.

We come to dwell in your goodness
and offer you the praise you deserve.

God of mercy and forgiveness,
we confess that many things keep us from trusting fully in your love.
We are often distracted by our own desires and disappointments.
We cling to anger and resentment.
We fear for the future rather than seek signs of hope.

Hear us as we pause to confess the sins, of the past week

Gracious God assure our hearts with the words of Paul
in his second letter to Corinth (2 Cor 4:6)
For it is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”
who has shone in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

We thank you that in Christ, we are forgiven.
Continue to shine your love upon us so that your glory may be seen in us,
and give us courage to follow Jesus wherever he leads,

Accept the worship we offer you now in Christ’s name. Amen.

Prayer for Understanding
Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear, and eyes to see
what we need to know to follow you faithfully this week.
Guide our meditations and applications of your Word to us that day.
In Christ, the Living Word we pray. Amen.

Scripture: Mark 9:2-9 Jesus is transfigured upon the mountain top before Peter, James and John.

Sermon: Mountain Top Experiences

This story of Jesus’ Transfiguration has puzzled me ever since I read it. Most of the sermons I have either preached or heard on today’s gospel reading of the Transfiguration of Jesus ignore the experience of James, John and Peter who witnessed this unexplainable event.

When I have preached on the Transfiguration before I have quickly passed over the wonder of the experience and have gone on to stress how we are called to come down off the mountain to live and serve in the valley below.

And yet, I find that too many Christian undervalue or ignore their own mountain top experiences with God in worship or at a retreat setting or some other important spiritual experience.

I wonder if we devalue our own experiences because we tend to be skeptical of people who claim they have had heavenly encounters, or a profound vision, or Christian who claim to have heard the voice of God speaking to them.

A friend once told me that an angel once spoke to her in an elevator at a very dark time in her life. . I didn’t know quite how to respond to her. My first inclination was to deny her experience, but after listening to her share I came to see how her experience was extremely meaningful and helpful to her.

We Christians with our Presbyterian bias, tend to focus more on practical side of faith, the living in the valleys, feeding the poor, sharing the gospel, loving our neighbor than rushing to find a new spiritual experience.

But sometimes we focus too much on the practical and we don’t leave room for a mystical and experiential side to our Christian faith. You know the kinds of faith that yearns to see God, to experience God’s power in our lives, to be touched by the Spirit’s healing, comforting, convicting and strengthening.

Our faith in God is about seeing visions of a new heaven and a new earth, every bit as much as it is about seeking justice and helping the poor.

Our faith is about entertaining angels, every bit as much as it is about seeking to comfort the afflicted and to heal the sick.

It is about being refreshed by God, as much as it is about refreshing others in God’s name.

Richard Fairchild, a United Church Minister in Golden, BC, tells the story of a little boy, around the turn of the century, lived far back out in the country. He had reached the age of 12 and had never, in all his life, seen a circus.

You can imagine his excitement when a poster went up at school that on the next Saturday that a travelling circus was coming to a nearby town. He ran home with the glad news, and then came the question “Dad, Mom, can I go?”

The family was poor, but the father sensed how important this was to the boy, so he said, “If you do your chores ahead of time, I’ll see to it that you have the money to go.”

That Saturday morning the chores were done and the boy stood ready in best clothes by the breakfast table. His father reached down into his overalls and pulled out a dollar bill the most money the boy had ever had at one time and gave it to him. After the usual cautions about being careful, the boy was sent on his way.

The boy was so excited that his feet barely touched the ground all the way to the town. When he got there, he noticed people were lining the streets and he worked his way through the crowd until he could see what was going on. There in the distance approached the spectacle of a circus parade. It was the grandest thing that the boy had ever seen. There were exotic animals in cages and bands and jugglers, acrobats, and all that goes to make up a great circus.

After everything had passed by where he was standing, a circus clown, with floppy shoes and baggy pants and brightly painted face, came by bringing up the rear. As the clown passed by where he was standing, the boy reached into his pocket and got out that precious dollar bill. After handing the money to the clown, the boy then turned around and went home.

My heart always breaks when I share this story. It reminds me so the people who I have known who have had a taste of the joys and wonders of knowing Jesus, and who never take their relationship with Jesus any further.

How many people met Jesus in various situations and who never took the relationship any deeper? Like the 10 lepers who are healed, and which only returns to say thank you for the healing. How sad for them.

The issue for those of us who have embraced a faith that is more intellectual than mystical, is that sometimes we close the door to those rare and special moments, the special touches, those faith changing mountain top experiences that only God can give us.

One such experience for me was when I was university. I attended a huge mission convention known as URBANA sponsored by Inter Varsity Christian Fellowship. I had scrimped and saved every penny I had to attend with some friends of mine. I remember a few things about what the speakers shared and tidbits from the workshops. The thing I remember most was the singing

There were five thousand spiritually hungry university students crowded in the University of Illinois gymnasium singing our hearts out and as loud as we could.

I remember singing “O for a thousand tongues to sing . . .” I had never heard that many Christians singing that hymn before in one place. And I thought to myself that we were literally fulfilling the desire of the author of hymn that a thousand tongues sing our great redeemer’s praise. This is a glimpse of the multitudes singing before the Lamb’s Throne that I had read in the Book of Revelation. I remember sensing God’s amazing presence in the midst of our worship and fellowship.

That service of worship was certainly a turning point in my understanding of what worship could be. I experienced what participating in 1,000 plus voice choir felt like. Perhaps it was as much a turning as was the disciple’s experience of Jesus on the mountain of Transfiguration or as much as Elisha’s and Moses’ mountain top experiences with God .

I can’t explain to you what a holy moment is; nor can I tell you just how special and sacred events come to pass, nor can I even promise you that you will have such a moment if you only do this or that. But I can tell that these moments are real and that they come to us most often when we open ourselves to God.

As an older preacher put it, “You can’t have a mountain top experience, if you don’t climb the mountain.”

Peter, James, and John were obeying Jesus when they witnessed his transfiguration; they had climbed the mountain with him as he went to pray.

The sacred experiences that are recounted in the bible are ones that were remembered and shared because they shaped the faith of those who witnessed and experienced them.

We should never be afraid or ashamed to tell our stories of our encounters with God that shaped our faith.

Some catch sight of God in the beauty around them, some glimpse God during a close encounter with death, some meet God in a special way during a period of suffering, others while they are praying at special gatherings, others in a simple act of breaking bread and drinking wine, some in an act of service or encouragement, and some while riding on an elevator.

Don’t throw away those strange and mysterious experiences that have happened in your lives. They have a vital role to play in our faith.
Don’t let go of those things that you do not understand or cannot explain. Rather meditate on them, delight in them, and use them as a source of strength for your time of service in the valleys below.

I trust that we won’t be like that twelve-year-old boy, who saw the circus parade and went home happy that he thought he had experienced the circus in its fullness. We have so much more to learn and experience from God in the mundane and ordinary as well as the profound and mysterious.

In those profound moments, when our eyes are opened a bit wider, when our ears are more sensitive to the Spirit is when we catch a glimpse our Lord Jesus in his glory. Those are the moments we cherish and reflect upon them and share with others , just as Peter, James and John did.

We join them in sharing what we have seen and heard to inspire and encourage others in their faith as their stories encourage us.

To the God of all grace,
who calls you to share God’s eternal glory
in union with Christ,
be the power forever! Amen. (1 Peter 5:10, 11)

Closing Prayer

God of life, God of love:
You created us and set us in relationship with each other—
in families and neighbourhoods, communities and countries, cultures and nations.
We give you thanks for all the supportive relationships
which bring meaning and encouragement to our lives,
and have meant so much in times of isolation.
Help us contribute what we can to sustain the wellbeing of our community
for all who call it home.
God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.

God of our faith & our future,
there are so many pressures on homes and families today.
Draw near to those who are struggling in economic difficulty
and those burdened by the challenges to health and happiness this winter.
Work with parents and children, married partners, and next-door neighbours
who face conflict their relationships
to create solutions that express mutual respect and resolve tension.
Help our congregation support families, whatever their size or situation,
as well as people living on their own, to know your love.
God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.

God of mercy and forgiveness,
You call us to live together in peace and unity.
We pray for our neighbourhoods and our nation.
Where people are divided and bitterness turns into resentment,
show us how to work for reconciliation.
As the pandemic stretches on,
we pray for all those whose skill and dedication is needed
to support our common life.
Wherever we can, may we offer words of encouragement and appreciation
so others know much they matter to you and to us all.
God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.

Today we give thanks for our church family
and for the years of worship and witness offered here.
So much has changed for us over these past few months
and we pray you will bless our leaders
who have to think carefully and creatively so congregational life continues.

We remember those of our number in need of your special attention today…
(Hold a silence)

Guide us all with your wisdom and insight
so we find ways to reach out to each other in support and friendship.
Open our eyes to opportunities to reach out beyond our own fellowship
as agents of your healing and hope
for we offer ourselves to you in Jesus’ name in whose name we pray.
Amen.

Charge / Benediction (Nu 6:24–26, The Message)

GOD bless you and keep you,
GOD smile on you and gift you,
GOD look you full in the face and make you prosper.

Have great week. Stay safe!
Be a blessing to someone this week!

Have great week. Stay safe!
Be a blessing to someone this week!

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Prayer Partnership

Sunday, February 14 (Transfiguration Sunday) We pray for the gift of love in our lives—love that is patient, kind, faithful and unconditional.

Monday, February 15 (Family Day) We pray for families of all shapes, sizes and configurations, that they may be filled with love and joy.

Tuesday, February 16 (Shrove Tuesday) We give thanks to God for seasons of feasting and fasting, and we pray for all who have chosen a discipline to follow in the season of Lent.

Wednesday, February 17 (Ash Wednesday) Loving God, you hate nothing you have made, and you forgive our sins. You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until it rests in you. Help us to return to you and to your way, and create in us new hearts so that we might love you more dearly and follow you more nearly.

Thursday, February 18 We give thanks and pray for schools and teachers who are working to provide the best educational tools to engage and teach children both at home virtually and in the classroom.

Friday, February 19 We pray for those leading worship and study groups in this Lenten season.

Saturday, February 20 (World Day for Social Justice) We pray for the peacemakers and justice seekers who are working to reflect God’s vision of justice in the world, where the dignity and well-being of all are protected.

From Served to Servants

Welcome and Announcements

Hello Everyone! Thanks for joining us for worship today.

Opening Prayer
Creator God, Source of all life,
in you all creatures are connected
and all creation redeemed and made new.
Day by day you make yourself known to your people.
In the beauty of the heavens we see your glory.
In the bounty of the earth we know your generosity.
In strength for our bodies and minds we experience your energy.
Delighting in all that we have seen, known, and heard,
we worship you, one God, Creator, Christ, and Spirit.

Holy One, along with our praise, we offer you our confession.
we know and confess that we have fallen short of your desires and intentions for us.
We know and confess that we are slow to repent of our sins against you and others
We know at times we forget what we once knew of your love.
We know that we are consumed by worry and we forget to trust you.
Although we know you made us for a purpose, we choose our own ways.
Discouragement seeps into our hearts in the cold of winter
and we do not serve you with eagerness.
We do not see the needs of others
and we not come alongside to offer the support that is needed and wanted
We fail to speak out against injustice in our community.
In your mercy forgive us and heal us.

Renew our energy for your purposes.
Raise us up on wings of faith.
May we walk by your light and not grow weary.
May we run and not faint.

Gracious God,
We know that in confessing our sins we open the door
To the forgiveness you offer us in Christ our Savior
And to the renewing and transforming work of your Spirit.
Enable us to be at peace with you
and ever growing in our love for you and others.
Accept the worship we offer you now in Christ’s name. Amen.

Prayer for Understanding
O God send your Spirit to move in us and among us. Focus our attention as we listen, so that we may absorb your Word more deeply, come to know you better, and serve you with greater purpose. Amen.

Scripture

John 13:1-17, 34-35 The Master give his students a lesson in humility

Sermon: From Served to Servants

On the night of his last meal with his disciples and after a series of previous discussions about who is the greatest in the kingdom, Jesus took the opportunity to reinforce the importance of being servants with his disciples. In doing so, he gave them another picture of why he had come to earth and that was to show the full extent of God’s love for us.

We are told in the gospel of John, that Jesus got up the table, removed his outer clothes, and took a basin of water and towel and began to wash his disciple’s feet.

We know from studying First Century Jewish customs that it was the common in Palestine that before people went to a feast like Passover that people would bathe themselves. When they came to the home of their host, they did not need to be bathed again. They simply needed their feet washed.
The washing of the feet was the ceremony, which preceded the entry into the house where they were to be guests. This was done obviously because the roads were dusty and cluttered with all kinds of garbage including animal and human waste. In order to keep their homes clean, a servant of the house would greet you at the door and clean your feet.

It was characteristically and universally known at the time as the “Washing of entry into the house.” On that Thursday night, no disciple offered or bothered to perform that important service of hospitality. So Jesus took the opportunity to do what the disciples refused to do on the night of their big dinner.

Jesus went from disciple to disciple, including Judas who would later betray him and washed their feet.

This must have been an unexpected sight to see their master doing the work of a household servant. No head of the household would ever do such a nasty and unpleasant task as to wash their guest’s feet.

How many of us would do that for our guests?

Things were going well with his demonstration of his love for them until came he came to wash the feet of the outspoken Peter. Peter obviously hasn’t got the point and refuses to let Jesus wash his feet as he believes it is in unbecoming to his master. Jesus essentially tells Peter,

“it is not the bathing of your body that you require, that you can do for yourself. What you need is the washing which marks your entry into the household of faith.”

Jesus also responds to Peter’s refusal by saying that if he doesn’t allow him to wash his feet he will “have no share in him ( or anything in common with Jesus).” It is as if Jesus says, “Peter are you going to be too proud to let me do this for you? If you are, then you will lose everything.”

The early church connected Jesus’ act of love in washing the disciples’ feet with the Sacrament of Baptism. They understood Jesus’ service as “the washing of entry” into the household of faith.

The one who comes to Christ cannot be too proud to accept Christ’s sacrificial service for them on the cross. And the one who accepts Christ’s act of service will naturally demonstrate their acceptance of it by being a servant to others as Jesus was his disciples and others.

William Barclay in his commentary on John shares this story of an English Captain to illustrate the meaning of Jesus’ act for us and how we are to follow it.

“In a book the Beloved Captain written by Donald Hankey, there is a passage, which describes how the beloved captain cared for his men after a routine march. “we all knew instinctively that he was our superior – a man of finer fibre than ourselves, a `toff’ in his own right.

I suppose that was why he could be so humble without loss of dignity. For he was humble, too, if that is the right word and I think it is. No trouble of ours was too small for him to attend to.

When we started route marches, for instance, and our feet were blistered and sore as they often were at first, you would have thought that they were his own feet from the trouble he took. . .

Nevertheless, there was in our eyes something almost religious about this care for our feet. It seemed to have a touch of the Christ about it, and we loved and honoured him the more.”

The strange thing is that it is the man who stoops like that – like Christ – whom men in the end honour as a king, and the memory of whom they will not willingly let die.” (Barclay, John, vol. 2, pp 162-163)

At the end of washing his disciple’s feet, Jesus asked his disciples if they understood what he had just done. He asks the question to make sure that they see the connection between what he has just done and what he wanted his disciples to do.

Jesus asked his disciples with their newly cleaned feet air now air drying by the table,

“Do you know what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.

For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. (John 13:12b-17)

Do you understand what Jesus is getting at here? We have no excuses for not doing what Jesus tells us to do for we have the story in John to read and reread to reflect upon as many times as we want.

We know how this act of service fits in with Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension.

We have interpreters of Jesus’s service like the Apostle Paul in Philippians 2:1-11.

Paul lays that out pretty clearly in Philippians 2:1-11.
Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, (Phil 2:4-5ff)

And we are told at the end of his final Supper Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment…

I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35)

We are told to go give the world a picture of Jesus through our service to others. People will argue about words, but words put into action as Jesus demonstrated are a powerful combination. It is vivid image of what it means to follow Christ.

On one of my past holidays to California with my wife and in-laws, my sister Sally gave us a wonderful picture of a servant.

When we arrived at the John Wayne Airport in Southern California and were getting our baggage, I heard a familiar “Hey Claydoh.” I turned around and it was my youngest sister, who some of you have met at my daughter’s wedding 2 years ago. We had not expected to see my sister for a week as we were heading north to explore Northern California. She drove the 20 minutes to airport to greet us and welcome me home. She brought food, some lunch stuff that we might need, along with a cooler with an ice pack. She also brought maps and travel books with her for us.

This was our entry into Southern California, and for me a wonderful welcome home. It was unexpected and wonderful gift of service to us.

Those who know deeply the service Christ has sacrificially offered to them will be caring servants to others.

I want to commend one our members who went out their way to serve and help one our members in their time of need this past week on the day in snowed. The act of service speaks volumes about how well this person understands how Christ has served them.

I know we are getting a bit squirrely with having lived with the pandemic for a year now. We are anxious about our future. We are angry and frustrated in different ways. We don’t always know what to do with the excess and diverse emotions and energy we have these days.

I hear in this passage a powerful reminder and encouragement from Jesus to put our energy into the serving and loving our neighbors as did a year ago at the beginning of the pandemic. Our actions of service and love speak volumes about faith and loyalty to Christ.

May we glorify and honor our Lord in our daily acts of service and encouragement to those to whom God sends us to serve. Amen.

Closing Prayer

Holy and loving God,
we thank you for the story of Christ’s life among us,
a pattern for the way we live.
We give you thanks for moments of quiet and contemplation that restore us,
and help us perceive your Spirit at work in the world and in our own lives.

Teach us to trust in your strength,
so that we can live with confidence and courage
even amid stress and anxiety.
These days of pandemic are still difficult
and we need to know you are near in our lonely times.
Meet us in that place of deep stillness within us all.

In the quiet of this moment we hand over to you
all those things stirring within us today:

Anything that has been distracting or hurtful…(Hold a silence)

Anything that makes us worry or brings sleepless nights…(Hold a silence)

Our hopes and dreams for the future…(Hold a silence)

and for the lives of those we love…(Hold a silence)

We hold before you the needs and hopes of those we know who need your presence, especially remembering those facing grief and loss…
(Hold a silence)
We pray for wisdom for the leaders of our world…(Hold a silence)

We pray that peace and prosperity will begin to flourish in places facing war, famine, and disaster, and we pray for the work of Presbyterian World Service & Development serving in these situations…
(Hold a silence)

We pray that those who manage the world economy find honest, just and generous ways to respond to the challenges caused by the pandemic…
(Hold a silence)

We pray that the dignity of each creature be honoured and the earth itself be treasured…
(Hold a silence)

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayers we that we offer you in Christ’s powerful and loving name. Amen.

THE BLESSING (Phil. 1:9-10)
May your love abound more and more,
with knowledge and all understanding,
so that you may approve what is excellent,
and be pure and blameless
for the day of Christ,
filled with the fruits of righteousness
which come through Jesus Christ,
to the glory of and praise of God.

Have great week. Stay safe!
Be a blessing to someone this week!
Take care! 

Prayer Partnership

Sunday, February 7 (PWS&D Sunday) We give thanks for congregations and individuals who continue to generously support the work Presbyterian World Service & Development is doing to bring abundant life for all.

Monday, February 8 We pray for The Presbyterian Church in Canada’s staff as they work to carry out the decisions of the General Assembly and support the church’s mission in the world.

Tuesday, February 9 We pray for those doing interim or transitional ministry, and for the congregations they are serving, that God will work with them to bring healing, new hope and renewed vision.

Wednesday, February 10 We pray for Sylvia Haddad, Director of the Joint Christian Committee for Social Service, as she supports Palestinian and Syrian refugees in Lebanon.

Thursday, February 11 We pray for those offering congregational and mission outreach programs and for those who receive food and clothing from them. May they all experience the love of Christ through these caring initiatives.

Friday, February 12 Today is the anniversary of the publication of the PCC’s letter of repentance for how it has treated LGBTQI people. We pray for those harmed by homophobia and ask for God’s guidance in becoming a more inclusive and whole church.

Saturday, February 13 We pray for Captain Gavin Robertson, who serves as a reserve force military chaplain in Trail, B.C., and for his ministry of presence with the diverse communities that are part of the Canadian Armed Forces.

United through Encouragement

Welcome and Announcements

Thanks for joining us for worship today.

Opening Prayer

God of God and Endurance, God of Comfort and Strength,
We draw near to you because you first came to us in Christ.
We thank you that you gather us together
From the many places we live,
reaching across human boundaries that often divide us from each other.
We thank for the strength you have given us
to face the challenges of the past week.
We thank your you for the comfort we have received from you
and have passed on to others in their time of need.
We thank you for our calling to unite our voices in praise to you
this day and every day that people might join us in this great endeavor.

God who just and merciful,
We confess and acknowledge those times this past week,
When we have hoarded your gifts of strength and comfort
And have not shared with them with others.
Forgive us when we did not follow the example of Christ
Who looked not to his own interests,
always to interests and well-being of others.
Forgive our judgments of others without dealing with our own failings and sins.

Lord in your mercy hear our silent confesses. . .

Gracious God, assure our spirits with Paul’s words to the Romans… (Rom 3:23-24 (CEV)
All of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.
But God treats us much better than we deserve,
and because of Christ Jesus, he freely accepts us
and sets us free from our sins.

Accept the worship we offer you gratefully in Christ’s name. Amen.

Prayer for Understanding
Loving God,
love through us, as we worship your holy name.
Love through us, as we listen for your holy word.
Love through us, as we live your teachings
and offer your love to our world.
In your majestic name, we pray. Amen.

Scripture
Romans 15:1-6 A reminder for the strong to support the struggling members of the congregation.

Sermon: Unified through Encouragement

The church has never been immune from controversy. The first major controversy to hit the church focused on whether or not to include Gentiles or individuals outside of the Jewish faith into the life, leadership, and witness of the church.

When Paul writes to the church at Rome, controversies arise over whether or not Christians can eat meat offered to the Romans gods and which days of the week are more significant than others. While these controversies seem unusual or tame for us today, consider controversies within the church around mask wearing and following provincial and local safety orders for public worship. Christians are equally passionate and divided around these issues as Christians in Paul’s day were about going to or refraining from having a meal at the local Roman Temple.

The teachings of Paul around how we support one another when we disagree around current issues is one I want to explore with you today.

We’ve explored over the past number of weeks our calling as Christians too encourage one another out of love for one another. As good neighbors we are to come alongside others and offer them the support, help, comfort, and motivation that we have received from God’s gracious hands.

Paul In Romans 14:1, urges us to accept the weaker or struggling believers without quarreling over debatable matters. Paul also commands us not to judge or despise others for how they exercise of their faith, be it weak or strong (14:3, 13). He also gives commands not to destroy or tear others down based on what they do or do not do (14:17, 20). God has accepted them, which is the only criterion for us to accept them as well (14:3).

Paul lays out lofty goals for how we are to come alongside to encourage and love another in response to God’s mercy and grace in this time too.

Paul then begins chapter 15 with a rather shocking statement that goes against goes against our society’s current trend to focus on rights over responsibilities. Paul says that that we who are strong in our faith have an obligation to support those who are struggling in their faith.

Paul never defines or identifies who the stronger Christians are and who are the weaker Christians. He leaves the definition of who is strong and who is weak vague to help us see that we all fall into either category.

An important word for me is that word “obligation.” This carries with it the idea that the strong OWE it to the struggling to support them and to move beyond what is convenient for them. Paul has stated earlier in Rom 13:8,
“Owe no one anything, except to love one another;”

Think for a moment someone who helped you out with a gift or gifts that you could never fully repay. Have you ever had someone tell you after they’ve given you a gift to pay it forward to the next person in need?

Paul was on the receiving ends many times of others who celebrated God’s gifts to them forward to him. Paul has reminded us in Romans in great detail how much mercy and grace God has shown to us in Christ. We celebrate the gifts of God forward when we do what is in the best interests of our neighbor.

My wife and I spent part of our Christmas Eve this year at the Tom Baker Cancer clinic. She was having one of her radiation treatments. And while we were waiting for her turn we heard many of radiation technicians talk about how they were purposefully choosing to spend their 4 day Christmas break alone and not with their families. It wasn’t because they couldn’t under the current COVID-19 rules and restrictions, but they do so for those who were at risk. It was a huge sacrifice to give us “in person” time with family and friends for others.

I thought to myself, how incredibly Christ-like were their choices. These strong caring individuals were not insisting upon their personal rights, not insisting on what was pleasing them, not insisting on what was convenient for them to do, but suspending what they wanted for the good of others. I was deeply humbled and moved by their choices as I hope you are.

I know that obligations can sometimes be a burden especially when we feel like we have to do them. We are obligated to do many things at home in our marriages, as parents, at work, as citizens of the places where we live. Many of these responsibilities are difficult to do but that doesn’t stop us from doing them because we see the greater good and what they accomplished and so we do them.

In verse 3, “Paul says for Christ did not please himself, but as it is written ‘the reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.’”

This simple quote from the Psalm 69, a Psalm of David, which is a prayer for deliverance from persecution. It invokes for a picture of what Christ endured for us in his life, suffering and death. The one who came alongside of us in our time of need, was met with opposition, insults of the cruelest kind, belittled by those who he came to save. Jesus does not do what was personally pleasing or convenient for himself, but choose to put the needs of others before himself.

When we reflect upon what Christ did for us, how can we not be moved and motivated to celebrate God’s gift of encouragement to us by supporting those who we know who are struggling.

Paul also reminds us that the Scriptures were written to help every generations to experience God’s strength in whatever circumstances they faced and words that keep them moving forward at any given moment.

In February of last year, my wife and I were in California visiting my younger sister and her husband. My youngest sister has become the keeper of family photos and documents. One night she brought out my Grandpa’ Kuhn’s diaries from his military service in World War 1. These diaries were ones he had written when he was on assignment looking after President Wilson’s luggage on his trip to Paris at the end of the war. It was interesting and a joy to read his observations of Paris, of the conditions he served under, of his struggles and boredom of his work, and of the deep love he had for my grandmother.

As we read his diaries, he often mentioned passages from the Bible he had read that had helped that particular day. It was another wonderful glimpse into a man who I love dearly, whose encouragement led me to become minister.

How amazing it is that my grandfather found strength and support from Scriptures just as Paul did when we wrote to the church at Rome to do the same thing. The Scriptures are gift and source of strength to us to face the challenges we have today as in generations past.
What parts of the Scripture have you leaned on over the course of the past year that helped you? What parts are currently helping you to endure patiently? Which parts are encouraging you to reach out to help others? What parts are helping you remain hopeful in the face of the challenges where you live? I would invite you if you wish, to share these with me by way of emails to stpaulsbanff@telus.net

Our passage ends with a prayer for the church at Rome. God is identified as first, the source of patient endurance, who enables us to endure hardship, with the strength God offers. And secondly as the God who encourages us to work together to come along side each other to support each other as Christ did with us.

When I read this prayer, I picture a choir of many voices, of diverse backgrounds, ages, genders, and ethnicity. I picture a choir with voices some strong, some struggling, some experienced, some new, blending their voices together to sing a song that praises God. I hear a song that lifts the spirits of all who bend their ear into hear it and who embrace the words of encouragement being sung.

I see the choir director with his nail pierced hands conducting the huge choir one moment and reaching to invite others to join it the next.

It is a picture of the church that is needed in our day as much at it was in in Paul’s.

The words of Paul are a much needed reminder to us to stay the course of supporting and coming along side others in their times of need. I know that we all are struggling with Covid-19 fatigue. I know we all we struggle emotionally, physically, and spiritually with the challenges this time presents.

But thankfully, the God of Endurance and Encouragement provides us with moments when we strong so that we come along side those who are not to build others up.

Bless you for all your unselfish words and actions of encouragement that have supported others this week.
May we our lives continue to glorify God as we encourage others.
AMEN.

Closing Prayer
Holy God, Lord of heaven and earth,
in you we live and move and have our being.
Your energy fills the cosmos and enlivens every cell of our bodies.
You are around us, within us and beyond us.

Thank you for the simple pleasures of each day,
and for the strength to meet the challenges that arise.
When it feels like we have come to the end of our own resources,
replenish us with the energy of your Spirit
so that we know you are there for us and with us.

In these strange times of isolation and distancing,
we are grateful for prayer in its many forms,
for the intimate ways we can find communion with you:
in word and in silence, in music and movement,
in the Spirit’s breath within us.

We pray for all who struggling to make ends meet.
That you would help us to provide for those who we can assist
With our time, talent, and treasure.

We pray for all who need you healing touch upon
Their minds, bodies, and spirits
We name the people we are concerned about in silence. . . .

Bring healing and comfort to them through our medical health professionals
And Through our efforts to pass on the comfort, strength, and encouragement
We have received from you.
Keep us ever dependent upon you and ever aware of those who you want us to help.

We offer our prayers today and throughout the week in the powerful name of Jesus.
Amen.

Benediction (2 Thess. 2:16)

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself
and God our Father,
who loved us and through grace
has given us eternal comfort and good hope,
comfort your hearts
and strengthen them
in every good work and word.

Have great week. Stay safe!
Be a blessing to someone this week!

Prayer Partnership
Sunday, January 31 We celebrate in prayer that vulnerable families in Nicaragua are being empowered through PWS&D-supported programs to help with their babies’ growth, and the overall health of their families.

Monday, February 1 We pray that God nurtures and grows our practice of hospitality so that we might offer our time to those in need of friendship and compassion more easily and often.

Tuesday, February 2 We give thanks and pray for all frontline workers who support and serve under difficult circumstances.

Wednesday, February 3 We pray for the Near East School of Theology (NEST) in Beirut, Lebanon, and for Dr. George Sabra, President of NEST, as the school continues its recovery efforts after the explosion in Beirut’s port in August.

Thursday, February 4 We pray for church secretaries and custodians and all those who support the worship and mission of the church in ways that are too often overlooked.

Friday, February 5 We pray for all those affected by COVID-19, including international partners of Presbyterian World Service & Development who continue to respond.

Saturday, February 6 We give thanks for the people in our lives who have mentored and nurtured us in Christian faith and discipline.

Barnabas: Son of Encouragement

Welcome
Thanks for joining us for our online worship.

Opening Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, you have called us together as your people.
You have called us your friends and invited us to follow you.
And so your church has grown from scattered homes in ancient times—to a worldwide community,
embracing men and women, old and young,
from many nations and cultures.
In our worship today,
inspire us to wonder at the miracle of your church.
Help us see the privilege we share
to be part of your people across the ages and across the continents.
It is your love that keeps drawing us to you and to each other,
and so we offer our wonder and praise with millions of people
who also gather in your name this day.

God of all the ages,
we gather in worship week by week,
hoping to encounter your presence.
But we confess it’s not easy to hear your voice.
Sometimes we get distracted by what’s happening around us.
Sometimes we get confused by conflicting views
of what you expect from us.
Sometimes we feel challenged and resist a new word from you.
We confess it is hard to turn our lives around
when we think we already know where we’re going.

Lord, have mercy upon us.
Remind us that when we confess our sins to you,
You are faithful and just and will forgive our sins
And help us to move forward in faith.
Accept the worship we offer you now in Christ’s name. Amen.

Sermon: Barnabas, Son of Encouragement

Today I want to continue to look at the theme of encouragement by looking at a leader of the early church named Joseph, who is given the renamed or nicknamed Barnabas, which means “Son of Encouragement.”

Barnabas is one of the overlooked examples of faith in the New Testament. We have much to learn about how to encourage other through his example.

I hope by looking at his example you will be both affirmed and challenged in your efforts to encourage others.

In Acts 4, we catch our first glimpse of Barnabas as “an encourager.”

“There was a Levite, a native of Cyprus, Joseph, to whom the apostles gave the name Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”). He sold a field that belonged to him, then brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.” (Ac 4:36–37)

What stands out here about Barnabas is that he gave freely of his time, talent, and treasure to the life and witness of the church. His depth of faith, expressed in his generosity towards others, brought him to the attention of the 12 Apostles.

Have you known someone who was always willing to help you out when you need them? When you ask for help, their answer is always “Yes, tell me what I can do.”

These faithful individuals will bring to bear whatever resources they have to help you be it large or small. In many ways, Barnabas is a living breathing example of what a “Good Neighbor” looks like as Jesus defined good neighbor in his parable of the Good Samaritan.

Encouragers like Barnabas give without condition and see all that God has given them is a gift to be shared in Christ’s service.

Once when I became very ill with a sudden disease and I was taken to the hospital, a friend phoned Kathy and asked what she could do. She heard my children arguing in the background and perceptively asked if she could look one or both of them. Since my son often played with her son, Kathy asked our friend to look after our son for the day.

It was as wonderful gift to Kathy on a day where she was concerned about me. Our friend brought what resources she had to help Kathy difficult day.

Thank God for people who have responded to and helped.

How freely do your offer your help when you are asked?

Are you continually looking for ways to help and come along side those in need in your life? .

The Second quality of encouragement that we see in Barnabas is his willingness to take risks in coming along side to offer encouragement in the name of Christ.

In Acts chapter 9, we read the story of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, a zealous young man who sought to destroy the church in faithfulness to his Jewish faith. Saul, as we know would later be known as Paul. Hear this familiar story from Acts 9:26-30.

When he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, brought him to the apostles, and described for them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had spoken boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. He spoke and argued with the Hellenists; but they were attempting to kill him. When the believers learned of it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

At first, the early church wanted nothing to do with Paul because of the way he attacked the church before coming to know and follow Christ. What Paul needed was an advocate, a helper and a counselor. God sent Barnabas to come along Paul, for Barnabas saw in Paul the gifts and skills that would help the church’s mission.

Barnabas spent time getting to know Paul. And through his conversations with him, he discovered a man whose heart and very being had been transformed by Christ.

This story echoes the Old Testament story of how God tells Samuel, the priest, to go anoint a young shepherd boy named David to be the new King of Israel. God tells Samuel, who is suspicious of God’s choice of David as king, the …

“LORD does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” (1 Sam 16:7)

God gave Barnabas the eyes to see that He was going to use Paul despite his infamous past, to proclaim the good news of Christ to both Jews and Gentiles living in the Roman Empire.

And so Barnabas took a risk by putting his own good reputation on the line in convincing an extremely suspicious church leadership in Jerusalem to accept and embrace Paul as one of their own.

Barnabas’ example of standing up for another in the face of opposition is reflected in the relationship of two athletes: one an Afro-American and the other was a German.

At the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, Jesse Owens, an African American runner and long jumper received some wise counsel and encouragement from an expected source.

Jesse Owens who has previously set a world record in the long jump, was having great difficulty with his take off.

His fellow competitor from Germany named Luz Long offered Owens some advice that helped him to qualify and then win the long jump. Luz Long took a huge personal risk given the fact he offered aid Owens a black man in front of largely white German crowd.

In the finals, Owens set an Olympic record and earned the second of four gold medals. The first person to congratulate him was Luz Long, which he did in full view of Adolf Hitler. Owens never again saw Long, who was killed in World War II. “You could melt down all the medals and cups I have,” Owens later wrote, “and there wouldn’t be enough platting on the 24-carat friendship I felt for Luz Long.”

God puts people into our lives and puts us into people’s lives who need someone to stand beside them when they feel that others are against them.

Our words and actions of solidarity, advocacy, and counsel are what are needed to help us and others grow in their faith and to take on new responsibilities.

Encouragers like Barnabas teach us to look past what is seen from the outside to understand and see people as God sees them. God invites us to help out bring out the best in people and to encourage people to use their hidden talents and gifts for the sake of God’s glory and for the sake of the church.

The last quality of Barnabas as an encourager is that he was open to the work of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Encourager. We see this in the passage from Acts 11:19-26.

“Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that took place over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, and they spoke the word to no one except Jews. But among them were some men of Cyprus and Cyrene who, on coming to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists also, proclaiming the Lord Jesus. The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number became believers and turned to the Lord. News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast devotion; for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were brought to the Lord. Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for an entire year they met with the church and taught a great many people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called “Christians.”

When the word came to the Jerusalem church about how non-Jewish believers were coming to faith in the town of Antioch, the early church was suspicious of what was going on.

The church turned to their trusted encourager named Barnabas to go and investigate the situation. Like many in Antioch, he too had emigrated from Cyprus. Barnabas was the perfect person for the task and the church has learned to trust him.

Barnabas saw this as an opportunity to not only serve the church, but also as a way to encourage his new friend and colleague Paul. He knew that Paul’s gifts and background would be a great asset for this important task.

What strikes me about Barnabas in discerning what was going on in Antioch was didn’t see threats, but saw opportunities for the church. The fact that many were coming to faith and were strengthened in their faith was an indication Barnabas and Paul that the Holy Spirit was active.

I see in Barnabas’ actions an encouragement to us to discern and celebrate where God is moving in these challenging times of ours. Encouraging others to see opportunities in these times is an important role we have to play with one another. It is easy to feel threaten, and much harder to see and embrace the opportunities.

For many of us, the learning curve has been huge in learning how to connect with others and do busines on line.

Faith leaders of all strips have learned how to record and live stream their worship services. This has often been done with the help of younger members, colleagues and friends. I thank God for all who have patiently mentored me in how to use the new technologies. My Thanks go Chris, Kevin, Keith, and Brian my techno Barnabas’!

Barnabas and Paul stayed with the church for a year encouraging them and teaching them more about Christ. It was in this church, that Luke says the followers of Christ became known as Christians or “little Christs.”

May we continue to Rejoice and Be
Sons and Daughters of Encouragement
In example of Christ’s servant named Barnabas
To the glory of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit Amen.

Closing Prayer

God of all times and situations,
We bear on our hearts concerns for many around us,
people we know and situations we care about,
where suffering exerts its power and challenges seem overwhelming.
Hear us in this time of silence as we open our hearts and their needs to you:

(Keep silence for a count of 30 seconds.)

Bind up the broken hearted, O God.
Bring justice for the vulnerable.
Send your Spirit of healing and hope to embrace those who need you.
We dare to ask all this because we trust in the name of Jesus, your Son,
In whose name we pray, Amen.


Charge / Benediction (Rom 15:5)

We go into this new week
Reminded of our calling to be Encouragers
Who give generously to others,
who take risks to help and stand by others,
and to encourage others to see what God is doing in our midst.

May the God of steadfastness and encouragement
Grant you to live in such harmony with one another,
In accordance with Jesus Christ,
So that together you may with one voice
Glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Have great week. Stay safe!
Be a blessing to someone this week!


Prayer Partnership

Sunday, January 24 We pray that, with the support of food baskets provided by PWS&D partners, the many Syrians facing food insecurity due to ongoing conflict will find the sustenance they need.

Monday, January 25 We pray for children, and that their parents and guardians demonstrate the kind of love we have been shown by God.

Tuesday, January 26 We give thanks for the beauty of God’s creation, and pray that we cherish the earth and treat it wisely.

Wednesday, January 27 We pray for vacant congregations; may they find ministers who will help them faithfully live out Christ’s calling.

Thursday, January 28 We pray and give thanks for Phulu Rai, manager at the New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Center in Nepal, and the staff, for their dedication as they care for residents.

Friday, January 29 We pray for healthcare workers who put their own health and life at risk every day to bring healing and comfort to those who suffer.

Saturday, January 30 We pray for the staff and volunteers serving in the Presbyterian Church Archives as they preserve the church’s historical records.

Reflections on Wednesday’s Tragic Events (click here)

Welcome

Thanks for joining us for our online worship for January 10, 2021

Call to Worship
Speaking words of love, God creates us, calls to us, and claims us as God’s own.
Speaking words of love,
we too can create, call, and claim God’s beauty and glory in the world.
Let us worship God!

Opening Prayers
Majestic Jesus,
we come into presence humbly and yet confident of your love and friendship.
We worship you as the King and Head of the Church.
We acknowledge and surrender ourselves
to your lordship over all the kingdoms of this earth.
All glory, honor and praise belong to you from all of your creation.

Righteous God,
We confess first and foremost in your holy and loving presence,
that you are God and we are not.
You have crowned Jesus Christ as Lord of all.
But sadly confess that we have not bowed before him,
and are slow to acknowledge his rule.
Too often we give into the values and attitudes of the powers of this world,
and we fail to be guided and directed by your values of love, justice, and sacrifice.
Like our ancient spiritual ancestors Adam and Eve,
we cling to our deep seated desire to determine what is right, true, and worth treasuring for ourselves.

Lord in your mercy,
forgive us our foolishness and our betrayals of your authority and love.

Remind us as we bow before your throne of grace and truth,
that Christ the King came to bring truth into our confusion,
peace into turmoil, and joy into our sorrow.
And the truth is that in Christ’s Kingdom,
there is no condemnation for those who put their trust in Christ.
Help us to believe in the God News and be at peace you and with one another.
This we ask in the name of Christ our Lord,
whose name we pray. Amen.

Hymn: “Rejoice the Lord is King” Emu Music

Prayer for Understanding

O Lord, as you have given us the gift of your Son and the gift of your life giving Word. So now O Lord, we give you the gift our attention and openness to be led by your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Scripture
Ecclesiastes 8:1-9
Psalm 146
John 18:33-38
John19:16-22

Sermon: Reflections on Wednesday’s Tragic Events

This past Wednesday, we witnessed the tragic, horrible, and once thought impossible events in Washington, D. C. where individuals loyal to the current President of the United States broke into Capital building to stop and disrupt the lawful process of counting the votes of the Electoral College to officially make Joe Biden the President Elect of the USA. It was a sad day for democracies around the world who joined in denouncing the persons and events that led up to it and violence that ensued.

I am heartbroken for the land of my birth, upbringing, the nation that helped to shape my values and ideals along with my family and my Christian faith. I am grieved and lament that so many have bought into lies and misinformation spread those in authority.

The way I am currently making sense of it is to return to the wisdom of the Preacher of Ecclesiastes. Our passage today focuses on “How do you live with kings” or in our case politicians “who frustrate us and drive us crazy?” Every generation has had to wrestle with this issue.

In Israel’s and Judah’s history of having kingly rule, only 24% can be said to have ruled wisely, followed God’s ways, and whose rule benefited the people of God under their care. The rest of the kings, or 76% of the kings were scoundrels, who ignored God’s ways and who brought harm to God’s people under their care and rule. These kings also gave the prophets much to speak out against just as our current leaders give our comedians much to comment on as well as to lament about as Stephen Colbert so eloquently and insightfully did on Wednesday night on his TV show.

It is any wonder that the Preacher, who has surely reflected upon the leaders of God’s people in his day and over Israel’s history, looked the current ruler of Israel and asks the question in verse Eccl. 8:1 …
“Who is like the wise man?
And who knows the interpretation of a thing?
Wisdom makes one’s face shine,
and the hardness of one’s countenance is changed.”

The Preacher asks the question because he doesn’t see the current king as having any wisdom, vision, or much character. And hence the introduction to his observations and reflections on how to live with a frustrating and power-hungry king in Eccl. 8:2-9

So what is frustrating the Preacher about the current king or political leader or political climate that he and his congregation are facing?

First, the Preacher knows that he, along with the rest of the God’s people, are supposed to obey the king because they agreed or vowed to do so when the king was installed as king. It was their sacred duty to follow that king as God’s chosen leader.

Well that is fine when the king serves and rules as he is supposed to under God’s guidance. But what happens when the king is a power-hungry, arrogant, foolish, and perhaps even wicked king as the current king of the Preacher’s time seems to be?

I get a strong sense that the Preacher is trying to do his best to obey the king along with his people, but it is frustrated because the king is a royal jerk.

As Christians we know that we too are supposed to obey our civil authorities and pay our taxes as Paul reminds us in Romans 13:1-7. But we also know how hard and frustrating it can be to follow political leaders and their policies when we strongly disagree with them and see them harming others in our society.

The second thing that frustrates the Preacher about the current king is found in Eccl. 8:3-4.
“Do not be terrified; go from his presence, do not delay when the matter is unpleasant, for he does whatever he pleases. For the word of the king is powerful, and who can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’”

The Preacher has resigned himself to the fact the current king is going to do whatever he pleases. The king knows he can do whatever he pleases, because no one is going question anything he says or does.

Are things any really different in our world today? No! How many current world leaders could be characterized by the observations of the Preacher? Wednesday was tragic reminder of following a leader who only follows his own wisdom and who condemns anyone who opposes him.

Thankfully in our free societies we have a free press, the freedom of speech, to dissent, and the freedom of assembly. We have access to our political leaders and we get to choose our political leaders. However, nowhere is there a Biblical injunction to support the acts of an unruly mob that we witnessed on Wednesday. I gasped when I saw a sign on the steps of the capital that read “Jesus / Trump.” The personal, moral, ethical differences between the words and actions of these two men is staggering and immense.

But the sad and frustrating part of democracy is that it doesn’t guarantee that our leaders will listen to the voice of the electorate. Well, perhaps only at election time and even that is no longer a given as we have seen lately.

The Preacher is frustrated by the king for these reasons and for two more reasons. The Preacher is frustrated by the current king’s lack of vision for the future and lack of listening to wise advisors.

In Eccl. 8:7, the Preacher says…
“Indeed, they (the king) do not know what is to be, for who can tell them how it will be?”

The king doesn’t know what the future holds because he refuses to listen to wise people who have a sense of the what the future holds. A king’s foolishness and arrogance are again seen in the leader’s inability to listen and follow anyone else’s opinion other than their own. They do not listen to wise voices who can map out the consequences of their actions and how they will affect placed under their care by God.

I know it is difficult to predict the future, but if you incite people to violence as leaders have done throughout history, you can safely predict that some will respond in kind and be violent. On the other hand, if a leader encourages his people to work for something good that positively affects people’s lives, you can also safely predict that some will respond to that kind of positive encouragement.

Can you hear the frustration the closing remarks of the Preacher’s in Eccl. 8:9,
“All this I observed, applying my mind to all that is done under the sun, while one person exercises authority over another to the other’s hurt.”

The frustration of the Preacher comes in knowing that God has told the people what he expects from the kings of Israel and Judah and the actual reality of the leadership that is experienced.

God told the leaders of Micah’s day that what is required of all of us is “To do justice, to love God’s unfailing -merciful-all inclusive-graciousness, and to walk humbly with God. (Micah 6:8)

I suspect our frustration with our political leaders is similar to that of the Preachers. We know things can be better and must be better.

So what is the Preacher’s response to his frustration and what advice does he have for the people of his day?

In Eccl. 8:5, the Preacher implies the wise will learn how and when to make the best of the situation.

The Bible is full of examples in both Old and New Testaments of people who acted wisely at the right time taking advantage of the opportunities God gave them.

The obvious Old Testament example is Esther, who used her influence with King Ahasuerus to save her people from harm. She knew the time and way to affect positive change.

Or in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul, when he was arrested in Jerusalem for causing a disturbance, used his Roman citizenship to get himself to Rome to preach the Gospel at Rome’s expense. This shows that Paul also knew the time and way around the political system of his day.

In the last US Federal election close to 160,000,000 Americans took advantage of the opportunity to vote for the candidates of their choice. Many became involved because of wanting to vote out incumbent leaders who did not share their values. Many helped to register new voters despite the obstacles of a pandemic to do so. It was the right time to get involved in a positive way.

In the Gospels, we are told that at the right time and in the right way, God chose to enter our world to establish His kingdom on earth. The Kingdom that God establishes through his Son, stands in contrast to all human kingdoms where citizens are frustrated by their leaders in different ways.

In the Kingdom of God, we do not fear the authority of Jesus as King, for he uses his authority to love, to heal, to restore, to help, to save, to serve, to unite, to forgive for the sake of others. This is the high standard we and our leaders must strive for.

Jesus was open to all people and welcomed all people to him including those who were rejected by the political and religious leaders of his day.

Jesus chose to follow his Father’s guidance and direction at every step of the way. He chose to do what was pleasing to his Father in Heaven and what was good for those around him. He informed his disciples what he was doing and why. He expressed his Lordship in humility when he washed his disciple’s feet. He demonstrates the greatness of his kingship in his sacrifice on the cross.

The powerlessness of human leaders that the Preacher speaks of in Eccl. 8:8 points us to the person and work of Christ and the kind of authority that he has as King.
“No one has power over the wind to restrain the wind, or power over the day of death; there is no discharge from the battle, nor does wickedness deliver those who practice it.”

Jesus proved his power over creation including the wind when he told the wind to stop blowing on one particularly dangerous boat crossing on the Sea of Galilee. The disciples stood in awe that Jesus could do that. (Mark 4:35-41)

We are told in the Gospels and by Jesus himself that He chooses the time of his death and not the Jewish leadership or Pilate. Jesus has control over his death.

When Jesus announced “It is finished” he also releases us from our battle of having to prove ourselves to God. In his work we rest.

And on the cross, Jesus as our King defeated the powers of wickedness and delivered us from the power of the evil one and his associates. Jesus offered us God’s forgiveness and the assurance of eternal life.

I love this important contrast between Jesus and all earthly rulers. It is huge. It is significant. And it is noteworthy.

Jesus is the kind of king, who once we get to know him, we want to follow and obey him. He drew us and others to himself in positive non-manipulative ways.

And what is even more amazing is Jesus our King has given us a glimpse of what to is to be so that we can live our lives in the assurance that He is ultimately in control of our world. That is a hope that we have to hold on, to act upon, and to give witness to with every breath we have in this life.

May we take comfort in knowing that even though we suffer under foolish leaders in our time, our Eternal King continues to rule and govern this world with his truth and grace.

May we continue to pray for our leaders both wise and foolish in their role asking that the Holy Spirit keep them humbly listening to wise voices that both confirm and challenge their thinking and leadership, so they govern justly, compassionately, and humbly as respect God’s ways.

And may we be wise enough to take advantage of the opportunities God gives to us to raise our voices in both affirmation and protest, and to seek and work for the peace and welfare of our towns, province and nation (Jer. 29:7).

These things we do faithfully and practically in response to Christ our King, to whom all glory, honor and praise be given now and always.

Amen!

Hymn: “For the healing of the nations” Sung by Kristen Young

Moment for Mission – PCCWeb Presence for Congregations and Ministries

A website extends the ministry and mission of a congregation beyond church walls, giving members the ability to make the most of their church experience and allowing visitors the opportunity to learn more about a congregation. A great church website should share details about your congregation’s ministry, highlight news and events, offer online worship services, and let people know about upcoming activities, mission projects and fundraisers. Your gifts to Presbyterians Sharing equip congregations and groups of the PCC with simple and easily maintained websites through PCCWeb—a free web hosting and technical support service provided by the Communications Office.

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Intercession

We thank you Sovereign God…
• that Christ defeated the powers of sin and death, conflict and destruction, bringing into being new order, new peace, and eternal hope.
• that you have established Christ forever, and given him universal power and authority.
• that the salvation of Christ’s kingdom is cosmic and all-inclusive, that we may live as devoted subjects, accessing his power for life.

We offer our words of thanks for God’s blessings to us this week.

We pray …
• for those who yet say, “We have no king, but Caesar,” that they come to know the Lordship of Jesus Christ over their lives.
• for those who lack confidence in Christ’s supreme, saving power, and who fear death and the powers of this world.
• for the protection and strengthening of those easily influenced by strong, evil powers still rampant in this world.
• that ours be lives of thanksgiving knowing we are numbered among the citizens of Christ’s kingdom, safe under his reign.
• that our words and ways convey our certainty that Christ is the victorious Lord over all.
• that the church exemplifies Christ’s new kingdom of peace, love, freedom, and joy.

As the pandemic still haunts lives and nations, we pray for
• those struggling with COVID-19 and its lingering effects,
• those who are offering medical, psychological, spiritual, grief support, continue to strengthen them and watch over their families,
• those who are ill and those who need your healing touch upon their bodies, minds, emotions, relationships, and spirits.
• those whose emotions are raw from fear or isolation,
• those exhausted by caring for others and serving the public day by day, rescue them from the temptation to give up and walk away,
• for all churches as they continue to lead worship, teach, care for their members, and reach out to their communities,
• Give each one the hope and courage they need to face this new year, .

We pray for the United States as it recovers and moves forward after the tragic events of Wednesday
• That an orderly, violence free transition of power may take place on January 20,
• That those who planned, incited and carried out the violence and unlawful acts on Wednesday will be brought to justice.
• That you would protect and guide President elect Biden, and Vice President elect Kamala Harris, the new congress as they seek to govern a nation that is divided.
• That the divided nation may be healed and set on the road toward reconciliation, toward justice for all, and where all have an equal voice in shaping the destiny of the nation with your divine guidance and assistance.

We offer the concerns on our hearts to you now…

We offer you these prayers in the name of Jesus Christ,
using the words he taught us to pray…

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name, your kingdom come,
your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory
are yours now and forever. Amen..

Hymn: Jesus shall reign

Charge and Benediction (Rom 15:5)

We go into this new week
To be servants, reconcilers, witnesses of our King Jesus.

May the God of steadfastness and encouragement
Grant you to live in such harmony with one another,
In accordance with Jesus Christ,
So that together you may with one voice
Glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.

* * * * * * *

Prayer Partnership

Sunday, January 10 We thank God for technical tools for worshipping and building community online, and for the people in our churches with the skills to help us use them well.

Monday, January 11 We give thanks for Presbyterian World Service & Development programs that bring sanitation aid to countries recovering from flooding.

Tuesday, January 12 We pray for leaders of Canadian churches gathering in the coming days, hosted by the Canadian Council of Churches, to support one another and share the experience of their important and challenging ministries.

Wednesday, January 13 We pray for the work of Cornerstone, an outreach ministry of the Presbytery of Niagara, and its minister, the Rev. Nicole Reid.

Thursday, January 14 We pray for members of the International Affairs Committee as they prepare the committee’s report to the 2021 General Assembly.

Friday, January 15 We pray for wisdom and love for congregations supporting family members, friends and neighbours who wrestle with addiction.

Saturday, January 16 We pray for those who live and work in prisons, as well as for those who volunteer and work to bring God’s Word of love and grace to these facilities.

Moving into a New Year (click here)

Welcome

Hello Everyone,
Thanks for joining us for St. Paul’s online worship
for January 3, 2021, the first Sunday of the Year.
I trust you had a good Christmas.

Call to Worship

This is the day of new beginnings.
Today, God dwells with us.
Today, all things are made new.

Opening Prayer

God of majesty and mystery,
we come to you this day in wonder.
As the year opens before us, we wonder what it holds in store.
We wonder where you will lead us,
how you will call us to follow in the days ahead.
Your purposes are beyond our comprehension, O God,
but your presence is always with us.
So we offer you our trust for the days ahead,
as we seek to follow in the footsteps of Christ, our newborn King.

God of light and life,
you have come to us in Christ Jesus to open a path to new life.
Yet once the New Year has begun,
we long for things to get back to normal, especially this year.
We confess that our resolutions for change often don’t last long.
Old habits draw us back to familiar ways.
It is so hard for us to make a new beginning, O God,
even with the best of intentions.
Forgive us, O God, and renew our determination
to know you more clearly,
love you more dearly,
and follow you more nearly, day by day.

Remind us as St. Paul’s does that
If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation.
Everything old has passed away; See, everything has become new!

Enable us to make a new start as we gather for worship
on this first Sunday of the New Year.
All praise, glory and honor be to You.
Amen.

Hymn: Crown Him with many crowns

Prayer for Understanding

Almighty and Eternal God, you make all things new in Christ. Guide and direct our progress toward a deeper faith and broader witness in you in 2021 as we ponder and apply your Words of Life to our lives. In Christ we pray. Amen.

Scripture Texts for New Year’s Day
Ecclesiastes 3: 1-15
Psalm 139:1-3, Psalm 139:23-24
Revelation 21:1-6a

Message: Moving into a New Year

Happy New Year Everyone, I think we are all ready for a new year and ready to move beyond the crazy roller year we call 2020.

Before barge into 2021, which sounds so good to say, I want us to pause and reflect on the year past. I think there is a lot of wisdom in doing this. I would hate for the important moments, the important lessons learned, and important pushes of the Holy Spirit to be left behind.

I read once of a family that greets the new year by gathering together before midnight around the fireplace with the family calendar. They go month by month looking at the events of the past year remembering the joys and the sorrows. They laugh, celebrate, and remember the birthdays and the accomplishments.

They also remember the painful and sorrowful times which in discussing them make them a little easier to accept. After each month has been reviewed and prayers have been said, the month is thrown into the fire. Month by month they remember God’s faithfulness to them in joy and in sorrow.

They close their year by taking a new calendar and hanging it on the wall. They again pray together and ask God to guide them as they begin a new year. Their review of the past year renews their hope for the coming year.

That to me sounds something that the Preacher of Ecclesiastes would have approved of doing.

One could review 2020 by going each month through the 14 pairs of moments that Preacher lists for us.

For example, when I read the Preacher’s list of paired positive and negative moments, one cannot, but respond emotionally to “A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.” (Eccl. 3.5b). This has been one of the hardest parts for so many of us during this pandemic. One of things that I hear people looking forward to when we are safely able to do so is to hug people who they have not touched in so many months. We have missed the physical connection with each other.

It would be interesting to have a person close to you to do the same and then compare your responses.
The Preacher’s poetic reflections on the moments of our lives are concluded with the Preacher’s affirmation that God is ultimately in control of our times and God in God’s own way makes the times fit into God’s plans for us.

John in his Revelation affirms that Jesus is the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the One who is bringing about God’s plans for our world. Jesus is the One who makes all things new.

Even a difficult year like 2020 taught us the things that we have needed to learn about relationship with God, ourselves, each other, and our world.

David in Psalm 139 affirms God’s complete knowledge of him, which moves David to ask God to search out his thoughts, emotions, motives, to learn what he needs to let go of and what he needs to embrace to be faithful to God.

400 years ago, a Roman Catholic Priest named Ignatius of Loyola crafted a way of prayer that helped his fellow priests to reflect back upon their day and their life in terms of how one experienced God. He developed a prayer called, The Daily Examen. It is both a challenging and comforting way to trace the movement of God in one’s life. I share it with you today as we reflect upon the year past and look forward to a new year.

The Prayer begins by focusing on God with a Centering Prayer like this:

God, I come into your presence.
Father, I long for more of you.
Jesus, I place you at the center.
Holy Spirit, come and fill this time of remembering, reflecting, reviewing and rejoicing with your presence.

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts.
See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Help me to be fully present here, to your word, to one another, and to the world you love. Amen.

The Prayer then moves to Thanksgiving

What am I especially grateful for in the past year?
• The gift of another day…
• The love and support I have received…
• The courage I found in the midst of a difficult year…
• An event or events that took place this year that were meaningful
• Something I learned about myself, my faith, my relationships …
• Something I learned I could live without and something I learned I could not live without

The Prayer then moves Review the year.

• When did I feel joy in being faithful to God this year?
• What troubled me this year? When did I feel anxiety? Fear? Loss?
• What has challenged me year? Which challenges did I face, resolve, overcome? Which ones did I shy away from?
• Where and when did I feel close to God? When did I feel furthest away from God?
• Where did I grow in my faith? Where did I grow in my witness to Christ? When didn’t grow in my faith and witness? What was the difference between those responses?
• Looking back, do see where God was active in your life when you didn’t know it at the time?

In faithfulness to Christ we Look Ahead to Respond to the Spirit moving within us.

• In light of my review, what is my response to the God of my life?
• As I look ahead, what comes to mind? Where do I feel God moving, disturbing, pushing me as I start 2021?
• What is one aspect of faithfulness to Christ and I want to see made stronger in 2021?
• What is one thing I read and reflect upon to deepen my faith and witness?
• What is one area of my witness to Christ that I want to grow in?
• What is one good thing I want to see happen in 2021 and how will help to make it happen?
• Who is one person I need to connect with and support in concrete ways in 2021?
• Imagine what challenges and blessings might await you in the coming year.
• Think of important relationships, major (and minor) decisions to be made,
o skills to learn,
o habits to build,
o healing to seek,
o good work to accomplish.

Make a simple list of highlights—matters that you expect to take prominence in your life in the new year.

Bring them to God now, and ask for the graces you will need to move into the new year.

Spend some time of submitting your life to God in the new year in a spirit of humility, honesty and a desire to honor God as all faithful followers of Christ are asked to do.

More information about the Prayer of Examen can be found online.

Our God who knows our past, present and future invites us to spend time courageously and faithfully reflecting with Him about year the gone by as we move into a new year.
May we honor God at the beginning of this new year by doing that.
To Father Son and Spirit, be all glory, honor and praise. Amen.

Let us come before God in prayer, shall we pray.

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Intercession

God of all time and space, as we gather in prayer,
we recognize that our lives are but small details
in the vast expanse of your universe.
So we thank you for attending to the details of our lives.
We thank you for the year just past,
for walking through the hard days and uncertainties with us,
and for the gifts of encouragement and friendship that cheered us.
We give thanks for accomplishments in ministry and mission,
for generosity offered to those in need,
and for new possibilities explored in online worship, education and outreach.
As your spirit guides us into the future,
Our hearts kneel before you, O God;
Receive our humble prayers.

The year just ending has held so many sorrows and challenges for so many.
We remember dear ones who have died
and pray for those who look ahead in loneliness or sadness…

We pray for those who have faced challenges in health,
in their families or at work…

Support each one who needs you close by.
Our hearts kneel before you, O God;
Receive our humble prayers.

God of light and love,
As we face the year ahead, we are aware that much around us is still uncertain.
We seek your strength and guidance in each challenge we will face.
Draw near to each one who must confront illness, loss or changing circumstances.

Guide those for whom new opportunities appear and choices must be made…
Our hearts kneel before you, O God;
Receive our humble prayers.

God of community and commitment,
We pray for wisdom and courage in the year ahead.
Strengthen us as a congregation to be a committed witness to your love.
Help us reach out to our community in creative ways,
and make us effective citizens in these challenging times.
Guide leaders in our nation and in nations around the world
so that justice and peace may prevail,
resources to meet health and hunger needs be shared,
and understanding and respect grow among divided peoples.

Receive our humble prayers and encourage us onward
in the name of Jesus our Christ who taught us to pray, saying…

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen.

Hymn: One more step along the world I go

Benediction (Eccl 3 & Rev 21)

Go forth, rejoicing that our God is with us
in all times and places,
and in all the seasons of our lives.

Go forth into the new year,
trusting in God’s promises.
And may God, the Alpha and the Omega,
be with you always.