Greeting                                      Ephesians 3:1 (NIV)
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”                                                  
Call to Worship*         
Blessed be God! Praise to the Father of Lord Jesus Christ!
In Christ we are blessed, in Christ we are chosen
In Christ we belong in the family, adopted
to live in the praise of his glorious grace!
In Christ the great mystery of God is revealed;
In Christ we are called to be blameless and free,
to live in the praise of his glorious grace!
Blessed be God! Praise to the Father of Lord Jesus Christ!
*http://www.conversations.net.nz/ephesians-worship-resources.html
             
Moment of Silence                                  welcoming Christ into our midst
 
“There’s a Song in the Air”                                 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95qWl8LP-fk                                             
 
Scripture                                       
John 1:10-14(NIV)       Ephesians 1:3-14 (NRSV)
This is the Word of God for the People of God.
Thanks be to God. Amen.       
 
Morning Message                     Living the Celebration
Introduction
So, we spent Advent getting ready for the Company that would come: the Christ child born in Bethlehem and laid in a manger.
And now we celebrate that company, the Christ who came to earth to dwell among men.
​
As John said best in John 1, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

And it might seem odd that we now abruptly jump to the book of Ephesians, but really Paul’s writing here is a celebration of the Word becoming flesh: of Jesus who would live and then die on the cross, rise on the third day, and give all men, women, and children, the opportunity to become children of God.
Here in Ephesians 1, Paul celebrates, practically gushes, the blessings we have as followers of Christ, as God’s children.
AND, he reminds us that we are supposed to live out that celebration in our lives every single day.

There are plenty of Bible passages that need to be savored; to be read slowly, lingering on every word for every ounce of meaning and depth.
This is not one of those texts.
The beginning of Ephesians is designed to be read quickly, without taking a breath.

Paul wants you to get caught up in the emotion and the spirit of the words.
This is a passage that is meant to be felt more than understood.
It is to be poured out over the readers and listeners, like a fountain of sparkling water that bubbles and foams and lightens the heart.
When Paul wrote these words, it was done without hesitation or pause.
In Greek, this whole text is one sentence.

Clause after clause pours out as though ideas and thoughts and emotions were weaving together almost on their own.
It’s as if to stop them would be like trying to contain a waterfall, at the top, to keep any from flowing out over the edge.
I imagine the scribe working with Paul had trouble keeping up, because I don’t imagine he stopped to take a breath.
And when these words were written to the Ephesian church, they brought with them great hope and joy.

Joy that must be experienced before it can be believed.
This does not mean that there isn’t anything worth wrestling with intellectually in these verses.
There is plenty of depth here.
And time should be spent digging deep into the themes and promises and hopes tucked away behind the lines and phrases.
It’s just that you can’t move toward understanding, full understanding, until you enter into the spirit.
This passage is like a song that has to be sung before it can be examined, before it can really be understood.
And this morning, we’re going to focus on two specific themes: “blessing” and “believe.”

Blessing
It is first a song of blessing. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us . . .” (verse 3)
This is praise to the source of blessing.
It is an acknowledgement of the blessings that have poured down over us.
By “us” we mean the church, the chosen, the children of God.
Many commentators point out that this text is like the Jewish berakah, which is the formal language of blessing of God, that is common in Jewish worship and prayer.
So, Paul presents us with liturgy, an act of worship, as we read these verses.
Not only that, but there is a table of contents here for the rest of the letter to the Ephesians—topics that he will return to later are all here in summary form.
Ideas like the mystery revealed, the gift of the Holy Spirit, the will of God, are all touched on in this prelude of grace.
The exceptional thing about this text is that it is wholly God-directed, God-inspired, and God-drenched.
Yet, it also manages to invite us to explore the blessing placed within us.
It celebrates the God who is at work in us and around us.
We were blessed, chosen, destined for adoption, redeemed, forgiven, lavished with grace, taught the mystery, given an inheritance, so that we might live for the praise of God.

It is about living a life of praise, of celebration, for what God has and is doing in us.
And it is worth dwelling on a few things in this amazing list of blessings.
You can choose which ones speak to you most deeply, as you seek to live the celebration of Emanuel, God with us.
But consider theis first.

First the mystery: verse 9, “He has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure”
Paul speaks of the mystery seven times in this short letter.
It is obviously central to the thinking in the letter.
In fact, it is a mystery that is no longer a mystery. 
In the Greek, mystery (musterion) has a number of meanings, but for Paul it refers to the supreme redemptive revelation of God through the gospel of Christ.

Paul presents it to us as a gift, as the knowledge that will lead us through this life, that God is working through Christ to gather all things together unto Himself.

Now let’s dwell on that for a moment.  Gathering all things.  Verses 9 and 10, “He has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. 
Gather up all things in heaven and on earth: We cannot imagine that gathering up, can we?

Especially when it comes to people: all political parties gathered up, all races gathered up, broken families gathered up, gathered up nicely in peace and in joy, united in Christ.
Even among Christians we struggle to see any of us gathering well, even our own denomination.
Yet, here we read that in the fullness of time, God will gather all things up.
We can’t, but God can because with Him all things are possible.
And He will.

Gathering has the meaning of unifying, making one under a single leadership, God in this case.
Scripture supports this: In 2 Corinthians, Paul tells us that we have been given the ministry of reconciliation.
So, along with this passage, we now know that we are working God’s purposes, we are living out God’s will, when we ourselves are in the business of reconciliation, making one, uniting.
It’s not a mystery because we don’t understand it.
Or that it waits to be revealed.
It is musterion because it is the source of all that we do, the knowledge that drives us.
Above all else, we know that it is our calling and our joy to bind together, to bring together things of heaven and things of earth.
Or as Jesus puts it, to love God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength,
 and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Blessing.


Believe
The second word we will spend some time reflecting on is “believe.” 
Paul concludes our text by saying, “remember how this worked?”
Remember how you came to faith?
You heard the word of truth, the gospel of salvation and you believed in him, and were sealed by the Holy Spirit. You believed in him.
Verses 11-13, “In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory.  In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit.”
The danger here is this: Too often, we reduce this word “believe” to the barest minimum of meaning.
You made an intellectual decision regarding the idea of Christ.
You agreed with an argument.
You accepted a fact or a truth.
You made the decision to believe that Jesus really did live, then die, then rise from the dead.
And you believe because you believe this you will go to heaven when you die.
And while all these things are true, and I believe them too, this is not the full meaning of the word “believe.”
We believe a lot of things in life.
Like that the Steelers are the best football team ever, or that country music is superior to rock and roll.

But the belief in Jesus Christ is something much deeper than that.
There is a weight to this word that many of us have lost.
What Paul argues here is that when you heard this Gospel, when I brought you this story, this person Jesus, and handed him to you like a gift from above, you changed everything about who and what you are.
You put your life in His hands.
You secured your future to his grace.
You wrapped yourself around him like he was now the air that you breathe and the bread that sustains you.
We cannot be satisfied with an intellectual nod of the head to some cliché belief about salvation.
True belief in Christ is more than head knowledge.  It is also heart knowledge that can be seen in how we live our lives, how we treat other people, how we embrace unity and forgiveness.

Conclusion
And so, we conclude our Advent/Christmas series with this idea once again that we are called to live our faith, not just accept it.
Not just think about it, but to live it fully and wholeheartedly.
Christ has come, and we are now called to open our doors (and hearts) to the wider community because we are called to gather all things together in God as a precursor to the gathering that will be done someday when Christ returns.
We live each day in celebration of that mystery, that hope.
Company has come. Jesus is with us.
My hope for you this year is that you make an unrivaled effort to carry on the spirit of Christmas this whole new year of 2021.
Not with decorations or carols or gifts or cookies.
But by remembering the hope that the arrival of the Christ child brought to the world that first Christmas night.
By living out the celebration of his arrival in your own life.
In the way you love, by being a peacemaker, and by living generously.
May this year be the year in which we all join the great choir of angels by bringing the Good News to all, and singing “Peace on earth.  Goodwill toward men.”
Amen.
 
Response to the Word                              Wesley Covenant Prayer                UMH 607
I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee or brought low for thee.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.
                                          
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
 
“It Came Upon a Midnight Clear”                     Blue Hymnal 218
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj1w-a-SbDI
 
Benediction*                              
The Word has become flesh and dwelt among us.
Let Christ’s light shine in the darkest corner of your life.
Let Christ’s love shine in the darkest corners of our world.
God is with us. Alleluia. Amen.
*Ruth Duck, Bread for the Journey, Pilgrim Press, 1981, p.26.
 

Greeting                                   James 1:17
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”                                         
 
Call to Worship for Harvest Home          (inspired by Psalm 100, Deut. 26:9-10)
Shouts of joy!
Songs of praise!
Sounds of hope and love!
These are moments of thanksgiving –
thanks giving to our God!
 
Adonai is our God. Our creator.
We are God’s people, led by God’s love.
These are moments of thanksgiving –
thanks giving to our God!
 
Enter God’s house thanks giving.
Enter God’s house full of praise!
These are moments of thanksgiving –
thanks giving to our God!
God’s love is never ending.
God is good! Alleluia!
 
On this day of the harvest –
we bring our gifts to you, God.
You have brought us into this place
and shared with us this land,
a land flowing with milk and honey,
a land flowing with good things,
Bless this thanksgiving, offered now to you!
In Christ’s name, we ask it. May it be so.
 
~ written by Richard Bott, and posted on Sharing Liturgy. http://liturgy.richardbott.com/
 
 
                      
 
Scripture                      Matthew 25:31-46 (NLT)
31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
                       
This is the Word of God for the People of God.
Thanks be to God. Amen.       
 
Morning Message                         Seeing Christ
Main Point: Genesis 1:27, “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”

      In his own image.  What would our world be like if we saw every human being as one made in God’s image? What would life be like if we looked at someone, and instead of seeing a demographic, a statistic, or an inconvenience, we saw Jesus Christ?  Let’s begin a prayer for God’s message today.
In our Gospel lesson today, Jesus tells of a coming day where the King will separate the people, like a farmer separates the sheep from the goats.
It is said that farmers who keep both sheep and goats do have reason to separate them at times.  While they can mingle together throughout the day, at night time they need separated.  Sheep, because of their wool, can withstand the cooler night temperatures.  Goats cannot, so they have to be herded together to keep warm.

Sheep and goats are used a number of times as illustrations in Scripture.
And, of course, sheep are used as a metaphor for Christians.  Jesus’ followers who know the voice of their Good Shepherd.  And the Good Shepherd who knows his followers by name.

This passage foretells of a final judgement: Not a parable, but actual prophecy from Jesus Christ.  When Christ returns someday, all nations will gather in his presence, and he himself will separate the righteous from the unrighteous.  Notice that while the nations are all gathered, he does not separate by nation, but by individuals, implying that people from all over the world will be part of God’s Kingdom.  Individuals will not be judged by race, ethnicity, or any other category.  They will be sorted out by their righteousness alone.
The sheep representing the righteous will be placed at the right hand of Christ, the goats, representing the unrighteous, will go to his left.
The fate of the unrighteous is made clear in verse 41, “Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.”
Verses 42-43 continue saying, “For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink.  I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

And the people on Christ’s left are obviously shocked at this charge: “When?  When did we see you and not help you, Lord?’  Jesus replies, “When you didn’t help the least of my brother and sisters, you didn’t help me.”
The charge against those who are castaway, separated from God for eternity, centered on one thing: their indifferent attitude toward Jesus (and His people).
If you read all of chapter 25, you’ll find the parable of the ten bridesmaids, the parable of the talents, and now this scene of judgement after Christ’s return.  One point has been emphasized: the price of indifference is too high to pay.  Doing nothing with what God has given you is not acceptable nor is it excusable.

For the unrighteous on the left, their indifference sealed their doom.
The lesson for us is clear: We cannot afford to be indifferent towards Jesus and His return.  We cannot afford to be indifferent towards the Holy Spirit who makes us ready for the return of Jesus.  We cannot afford to be indifferent towards the resources that God gives us.  We cannot afford to be indifferent towards the needy people all around us.  And we cannot afford to be indifferent towards lost humanity that will stand in judgment.
R. T. France said this: “The ‘guilt’ of the cursed arises not so much from doing wrong things as from failure to do right…to do nothing is seen as the road to condemnation.”

And then there’s the folks to Jesus’ right: the sheep who know him by name.  To them, Jesus says, “Come you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world.”

I was hungry and you fed me.  I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink.  I was in prison and you visited me.  And so on and so on and so on……
And the curious thing is this, something I never noticed before: the righteous asked Jesus the very same question that the unrighteous asked:  When? 
When did we see you and help you, Lord?  And Jesus said, “When you helped the least of my brothers and sisters, you were helping me.”

These are the people who DID see those who were struggling: the cold, the tired, the hungry, the imprisoned, the thirsty.  They saw them and they gave their time, their money, and their resources to help them through their struggles to get them to the other side.  They gave of themselves willingly and generously because they saw the reality of the world around them.

And they didn’t cringe or back away because they were uncomfortable or afraid.  They trusted their Shepherd Jesus to guide them.  They responded to the voice of the Holy Spirit who dwelled in them.  And they pushed through whatever challenged them to help someone else.
And they didn’t even realize that the poor of the world represented Jesus.  They, too, missed that connection.

And notice that Christ didn’t say, “You righteous folks go to my right because you spotted me all over the place, in every man, woman, and child.”
No, the righteous are not commended for spying Jesus in the poor, the hungry, the prisoners.   Because they didn’t.  They just treated all such folks with love.  As God had first loved them, they, in turn, chose to love others.  “Love God and love your neighbor as you love yourself” in action.
And their reward was an eternity in the presence of God Himself, in the home their Savior had prepared for them.
For those who know Christ, that is our hope, too.  And my question to you today is this: what are you thankful for?  How has God blessed you?  Are you thankful for your very life? The life that God breathed into you?  If you are it will be apparent in how you live that life.

Brene’ Brown is a researcher, author, and professor who has done a lot of research on the connection between joy and gratitude.  She says this: "To become fully human means learning to turn my gratitude for being alive into some concrete common good.  It means growing gentler toward human weakness.  It means practicing forgiveness of my and everyone else's hourly failures to live up to divine standards.  It means learning to forget myself on a regular basis in order to attend to the other selves in my vicinity.  It means living so that "I'm only human" does not become an excuse for anything.  It means receiving the human condition as blessing and not curse, in all its achingly frail and redemptive reality."

Sounds a lot like “Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and love your neighbor as you love yourself” if you ask me.

Conclusion
Created in God’s own image: What would our world be like if we saw every human being as one made in God’s image?  What would life be like if we looked at someone, and instead of seeing a demographic, a statistic, or an inconvenience, we saw Jesus Christ?  The mark of a true disciple is the love we show for others, Christ-like love.

Henri Nouwen has said this about the disciplined life of a follower of Jesus, “Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from being filled up. Discipline means that somewhere you're not occupied, and certainly not preoccupied. In the spiritual life, discipline means to create that space in which something can happen that you hadn't planned or counted on.”

Creating a space in which the unexpected can happen.  The elderly man next door who could use help getting groceries: Is there space in your life to help him?  The disabled woman down the street who could use some help cleaning up his yard: Is there space for her?  For the person you never met who frequents the food bank because they can’t afford groceries for their family: Is there room in your budget to help that person?  The person who cuts in front of you at the grocery store: Is there room in your heart to not respond in anger, but to say a prayer for that person instead?

Do you see these people as burdens, or as people God created in his own image?
In John 13:34, Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”
Is there space in your life to pray with someone, pray for someone, share the Good News of Jesus Christ with someone?
We cannot afford to be indifferent towards the resources that God gives us.  We cannot afford to be indifferent towards the needy people all around us.  And we cannot afford to be indifferent towards lost humanity that will stand in judgment someday.
We simply don’t have time.  Judgment day will come and those who don’t know the Lord as their Savior will be condemned into darkness, separation from God, and eternal suffering.
Are you willing to share the very thing you say you are most thankful for? That6 is forgiveness and salvation by faith in Jesus through God’s unlimited grace.
If we take Matthew 25 seriously, and more-or-less at face value, then we cannot help but be reminded of the famous line from St. Francis of Assisi: “Preach the gospel at all times and, if necessary, use words.”  
We know that we are saved by grace, and not by what we do.
But grace opens our eyes to see things that maybe we would miss otherwise.  
Grace opens our hearts to see everyone as people made in the image of God, people Jesus died for just like he did for you and me.
And Grace lets us know that if one day we ask the question, “Lord, when did we see you?”  Jesus’ answer will quite probably be, “When not?” Amen.
           
Prayer of Confession During Harvest
Lord God, as we celebrate your goodness so we confront our own sin,
our greed and insensitivity,
our failure to appreciate what we have
and the opportunities you have given,
our readiness to complain,
our unwillingness to praise.
Father, forgive and renew us.
 
Food taken for granted,
work unappreciated and poorly rewarded;
self-centered blindness to other’s needs.
Deliberate deafness to the cries of the hungry,
coldness of heart to those deprived of affection,
Father, forgive and renew us.
 
A landscape threatened and an economy at risk;
a countryside disheartened,
its communities uncertain and confused,
its isolation and exclusion ignored.
Father, forgive and renew us.
 
May our sins be forgiven,
our blindness, deafness and coldness of heart be healed.
May your renewing spirit rest on us
and fill our nation with your love and hope.
In Jesus’ name. 
Amen
~ posted in Resources for the Celebration of Harvest Festival,” from the Farming Community Network.  http://fcn.ehclients.com/assets/Resources_for_the_Celebration_of_Harvest_Festival.pdf
 
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.       
 
“Come Ye Thankful People, Come”        Mormon Tabernacle Choir
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msOzJ6DY7EA
 
Benediction Prayer
Risen Lord of the harvest,
as the wild flower scatters its seeds far and wide,
so may your people scatter the seed of hope in the soils of despair,
bringing to growth those good things that are your gift and promise.
And may the blessing of God Almighty,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
rest on us and on all our work and worship done in his name. Amen.
~ Christopher Burkett, Harvest for the World, 2002.  Posted at http://www.mothersunion.org/
                            
                        

Sunday Worship, November 1, 2020
 
Greeting                               Matthew 22:37b-38 (NRSV)
Jesus said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment.  And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”
 
Moment of Silence                            welcoming Christ into our midst
 
Call to Worship                  (inspired by Gen. 22: 1-14; Micah 6:8; Deut. 6:5)
What does the Lord require of you?
To do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with our God.
What does God command of us?
To love God with all our heart,
and all our soul,
and all our mind,
and all our strength,
and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
God does not call us to ease or to comfort.
But to presence, and abundance,
and grace in our struggle.
Let us worship the God who believes in us,
and trusts in us, and abides with us.
Let us worship the God who will ask much of us,
but will be beside us every step of the way. 
~ written by Eliza Buchakjian-Tweedy, Pastor at First Church Congregational, Rochester, NH.  She blogs at http://sermonizing.wordpress.com/
 
Scripture              Matthew 22:34-46           Galatians 5:13-26
This is the Word of God for the People of God.
Thanks be to God. Amen.       
 
Morning Message             Simple Truths
Swiss-born Karl Barth, who died at the age of 86 in 1968, is considered by many to be one of the most important theologians of the twentieth century.
He is one of the greatest thinkers in the history of Christianity.
He breathed new life into Protestant theology during the grim realities of the 20th century.

And he was considered the intellectual leader of the German Confessing Church, which was the Protestant group that resisted Hitler’s Third Reich.
Barth’s writings are extensive and have been translated into practically every language imaginable.
Point being, Barth was not only a Christian, he was a respected, intellectual giant.

He knew all the big words, the words that young men in seminaries love to challenge each other with on a regular basis.
 But here’s the thing, Barth was smart enough to know that some truths are very simple.

Simple enough that even a child can understand.
One day Karl Barth was challenged by someone who asked him what he thought was the most profound of all theological truths.  
Instead of giving some wordy, academic answer using ten-dollar words, Barth simply said, “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
The person asking the question found Barth’s answer rather charming, but he was also taken back by it.

I mean, what do you say to that?  As a Christian, there’s no debating it.
Barth went on to say, “The greatest truth is the one you already know, the one all Christians know, the one a three-year old can sing about.”
“Jesus loves me.  This I know.”

In Matthew 22:34-46, Jesus was being challenged by the Pharisees.
The Pharisees approached him with this question, “Which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”
Keep in mind that Jewish Law had more than 600 commandments.
And they wanted Jesus to narrow it down to one.
Verse 35 tells us the Pharisees were trying to trick Jesus.
And maybe their question concerning the greatest commandment seems pretty simple, to us anyway.

First, we tend to think of “the Law” not as 600+, but as the Ten Commandments; how hard can this be?  You got a one in ten chance here.
Second, we are Christians, we are Methodists, we are Wesleyans, and we have heard the greatest commandment hundreds and hundreds of times in our life: “You must love the Lord your God, and love your neighbor as yourself.”
We’ve heard it, and said it, so much that sadly, it’s become a bit cliché.
So cliché that we neglect to see how profound, and yet simple, Jesus’ answer really is.

And we certainly miss how clever his reply was.
Because in this case, Jesus was cleverly insulting the Pharisees by quoting what is known to all Jews as the Shema.
In Jewish circles the single most famous verse is the so-called Shema from Deuteronomy 6.  

“Shema” is the Hebrew word for “hear” or “listen” and it comes from Deuteronomy 6:4-5, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”  
The Shema was traditionally recited by every Jewish child and adult at the start of each day and at the conclusion of each day.
In other words, there was no single verse that the average Jew knew better than this one.
So, when Jesus responds to the Pharisees’ trick question by quoting a portion of the Shema, he was throwing back in their faces something they themselves took to be exceedingly basic, something that was second-nature to even the youngest Jewish child.

By quoting the Jewish Shema, Jesus was demonstrating to everyone there that the Pharisees were not really interested in seeing if he could answer their question since even the youngest person there already knew the answer.  
Like the question posed to Karl Barth, this was not a difficult question.  
Like Barth, Jesus took it back to basics.  He kept it simple.
It was like asking Albert Einstein, “Do you know what 2+2 is?”  

And in this case Jesus makes it clear that just asking that question makes them look like the foolish ones.
Because even the youngest child within earshot could answer it.
Love God with all your heart, soul and mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.

If you do these things, all other commandments will automatically fall into place in your life.
It is interesting to me that no matter how often we hear these words, no matter how second-nature they become, we still find ourselves asking the question, “Who is my neighbor?” as if we are looking for a way out of this commandment.

Having too many neighbors, after all, could be a burden.
If we had too many, we may have to sacrifice too much in order to care for them.

It’s the very same question the expert in the law asked Jesus in Luke 10.
Jesus answered with the parable of the Good Samaritan.
The moral of that story was pretty clear: You are not supposed to ask who your neighbor is; instead, you are to be a neighbor to everyone you meet.
So, while Jesus’ simple answer shut down the Pharisees that day, the simple truth of his message still stood.
And it still stands today.

And regardless of how many times we hear it or say it, no matter how we try to make it work so that it fits better into our lives, so that it eases us of our responsibilities, Jesus was still teaching a fundamental Christian truth.
It’s the truth that says if we first truly love God with everything we have, then we will love people as He loves people.
 And we will see all people as being made in God’s image, and as individuals Christ came to save.

And the evidence of this belief will be seen in the way we live our lives.
Can we do this on our own? 
No!  God forbid we even try.
We are saved by faith through God’s grace, and we are sanctified in the same manner.

Galatians 5:22-25, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.  Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”
We cannot attain any of this on our own.
But with God’s help, we will!

Matthew 22:37-39 is not a suggestion, it’s is a commandment of God.
It is THE commandment.

Upon which all other commandments hang.
At the end of Matthew 22, in verse 42, Jesus asked the Pharisees this question, “What do you think of the Messiah?”
This is a question we all must answer, and our very lives and eternal security hinge on the answer.
If you believe Jesus, the Messiah is the fully human, fully divine Son of God…
If you believe he shed his blood and died on the cross as atonement for your sin…
​
And if you confess him as Lord and Savior, Scripture says that you will be saved, and born again into new life.
And as God daily works his cleansing power in you, you will grow every day into a more Christ-like human being, and your deepest desire will be to please him in everything you do.
As you grow through the power of the Holy Spirit, God will show you who you really are: a beloved child of God; a sinner saved by the grace of a God who loved you first.  Amen.
 
Prayer of Confession                                Book of Worship 476
O holy and merciful God,
            we confess that we have not always taken upon ourselves the                                    yoke of obedience,
            nor have we been willing to seek and to do your perfect will.
We have not loved you
            with all our heart and mind and soul and strength,
neither have we loved our neighbors as ourselves.
You have called to us in the need of our sisters and brother,
            And we have passed unheeding on our way,
In the pride of our hearts, and our unwillingness to repent,
            We have turned away from the cross of Christ.
            And have grieved your Holy Spirit.
 
Silent confession
 
Words of Assurance                     Book of Worship 476
Church, may almighty God, who caused light to shine out in darkness,
            Shine in our hearts, cleansing us from all our sins,
            And restoring us to the light of the knowledge of God’s glory,
            In the face of Jesus Christ, our Savior.  Amen.
  
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
 
“More Love to Thee, O Christ”                          sung by Fernando Ortega
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl1nL6M7ogc
 
Benediction                             1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 (NLT)
“And may the Lord make your love for one another, and for all people, grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows. 13 May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father, when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen.”  Peace be with you this day.            
                       
 

​Sunday Worship, September 27, 2020
Greeting                   Psalm 32:11
“Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.”          
           
Opening Prayer     
Creator God, you are righteous and merciful; your works are mighty.  As we gather for worship, clear our minds of distractions.  May our thoughts be centered on you. May your word be etched on our hearts; so that our lives may testify to our Savior Jesus Christ. In His name.  Amen.
 
Call to Worship                              Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16
Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
    incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable;
    I will utter dark sayings from of old,
things that we have heard and known,
    that our ancestors have told us.
We will not hide them from their children;
    we will tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
    and the wonders that he has done.
In the sight of their ancestors he worked marvels
    in the land of Egypt, in the fields of Zoan.
He divided the sea and let them pass through it,
    and made the waters stand like a heap.
In the daytime he led them with a cloud,
    and all night long with a fiery light.
He split rocks open in the wilderness,
    and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.
He made streams come out of the rock,
    and caused waters to flow down like rivers.
 
Scripture                  Exodus 17:1-7 .            
Morning Message             A Lasting Legacy        
Key Point: Where God leads, God will provide.
Questions:  How does the world see us, and what will we be remembered for?
Is the Lord among us, or not? (Verse 7)
In Exodus 17:1-7, the issue is water: “The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin, traveling from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink” (verse 1).
The first thing to note is that they began this journey under God’s leadership (“as the Lord commanded”).  We can assume this refers to the pillar of cloud and fire which guided the Israelites on the various legs of their journey thus far.  God’s very presence was with them, leading them, not only in the form of verbal promises, but visually and tangibly.
In addition to God’s visual presence, the Israelites also had the daily reminder of God’s caring provision in the form of manna, which arrived wherever they were, six days a week.  Signs of divine activity were everywhere.
And yet, with dry, thirsty mouths, the Israelites lash out against Moses: “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?” (verse 3).
The decision to blame Moses points to the central problem in this story.  Israel had still not learned a crucial lesson: where God leads, God provides.
God had secured victory over the Egyptians.  He had enriched Israel with the wealth of their former captors.  He made a dry path through the Red Sea  And God provided regular supplies on their journey through the desert. (Manna, quail, water, protection, his presence 24/7)
If the wilderness stories teach us anything, it is that God provides in every situation.
And still, the Israelites quarrel, complain, and accuse Moses, their divinely appointed leader, for their current situation.
Not once does anyone offer a solution or idea.  No one suggests they pray for mercy from the God who had been with them all along.  In fact, in accusing Moses, they were, in a sense, acting like God wasn’t even there.  Instead of crying out for mercy to God, they questioned his existence, “Is the Lord among us, or not?’
How quickly we, as humans, forget what God has already done.  How sad, that although God did miraculously provide water that day, the Israelites are remembered NOT for their celebration of the miracle, but for their complaining and quarreling.
That would become their legacy.  The naming of this place as Massah (testing) and Meribah (quarreling) would be forever reminders of their lack of faith.
So, the Lord answers by giving them a sign (Moses’ staff), saying, “Yes, I am with
you in this place, too.”
Since the Israelites seemed to be suffering from selective memory, God gave them a visible sign of his power and might, of what he had already done on their behalf.
Verse 5 & 6, “The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.  I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.”
In response to Israel’s arguing and complaining, God doesn’t just send rain, He stages a dramatic miracle using Moses’ staff. 
The inclusion of Moses’ staff is a significant detail.
The story begins in Exodus 4, when God turns this ordinary shepherd’s staff into a sign of his divine power by transforming it into a snake.  The staff was designed to convince the Israelites that the God of their ancestors had heard their cries and had sent a deliverer.   But it also did something for Moses, who had expressed concern that nobody would believe his story.  God’s promise was attached to this concrete thing—this “sacrament”, this reminder of God’s grace—that gave confidence in God to both Moses and the Israelites.
Even more significantly, however, is the fact that Moses’ staff was used in Exodus 7 to turn the life-giving Nile into a deadly river of blood.   According to Ex. 7:21, the bloodied Nile produced such a horrendous odor that “the Egyptians could not drink its water”.
In Exodus 17, the Israelites needed a similar miracle, but in reverse.   Under pressure to satisfy Israel’s thirst, Moses is told to “strike the rock” at Horeb in the same way that he struck the Nile.   Water came forth and the people were able to drink.
The crisis is averted by divine generosity.  God’s love prevails despite the people’s lack of faith.  Because where God leads, he will provide.
Today, this story is a timely reminder, especially for congregations experiencing disruption, transition, or adversity.   Which is all churches to some degree, thanks to COVID-19.  Because this story has the ability to make us look at ourselves as a church, and reveal how we, too, often struggle to believe that where God leads, God provides.
Like the Israelites, the Church, too, often forgets that God has been there all along.
That God has always provided a way through difficult times, that He most certainly is among, and ahead of, and behind, His children.  God’s people too often fail to remember all that God has already done and begin to quarrel and accuse, instead of seeking God’s face.  We forget the “shepherd staffs” in our own lives and church history.
And unfortunately, many local churches throughout history are remembered for their infighting and divisions.  Sadly, these become their lasting legacy.  These are the things they are most remembered for.  Sadly, every community has its own churches that are modern-day Massahs and Meribahs.
What will we be remembered for?
Bethel Church, let’s be remembered as people who loved God with all our hearts, minds, and strength.  Let’s be remembered as people who loved our neighbors as we love ourselves.  Let’s be remembered as people who rejoiced in all things, people who found the good in difficult situations.
Let’s be thought of as people who refused to quarrel and make accusations against leadership and each other; and instead sought solutions and new ways of doing things.  People who chose to trust God and did not dwell on what has been taken away, who did not forever mourn what can no longer be done.
Let’s be a church who rejoices in what we have been given and embrace these things, using what we’ve been given for God’s glory.
Bethel United Methodist Church: In the Bible the place called Bethel is mentioned 70 times, all in the Old Testament.  Bethel was a place where God could be encountered.  A place where people worshipped and offered sacrifice to the Lord.  A place of promise and hope and transformation.
Let’s move forward into the future not only as people who attend a church named Bethel, but as true Bethel people.
Church, may we be people who seek God every day, and because we seek him, encounter Him daily.  May we be people who worship him in every area of our lives, in our very living and breathing and doing.  May we be generous people who give of ourselves fully and sacrificially, to God, to each other, to our neighbors and community.  May we be seen as God’s people who always trust Him to provide our every need.
In the original Hebrew, Bethel means “house of God.”  A house of God is an earthly, physical place that is seen as the dwelling place of God.  As earth-bound humans, we often need something solid and physical to remind us of God’s presence.
Let’s also remember that in Scripture, Bethel was a place of new beginnings, a starting point really.
So as true Bethel people, may our legacy also be that we are a church who knows that God cannot really be contained in a physical building or location.  That God truly is among us wherever we are.  That He is with us whatever way we gather to worship.  And that where God leads, he most certainly will provide.   Amen.
 
Pastoral Prayer
Merciful God, like the Israelites in the wilderness,
we too have known Your love, and experienced Your care and provision.
You invite us to extend that love to the world around us--
to care for others as deeply as we care for ourselves.
And so we bring the needs of our world before You now.
We pray for the many who do not have enough: enough food to eat, or shelter to keep warm; enough employment, or money to pay their bills; enough medicine or medical care.
We also pray for those who have more than enough, but who still struggle to find meaning and purpose in life; who indulge in dangerous, addictive things to dull their pain or loneliness.
We pray for your blessing and healing on those mentioned here today.  And in these next few silent moments we pray for those on our hearts.  (Silent prayer)
God, your grace reaches out to all of us.
You call us to live as citizens of heaven, working together with one heart and mind.
Strengthen us to live in a manner worthy of the Good News we have received,
offering our lives in service of Your kingdom, where the last are first, and the first are last, and there is grace enough for all.
Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
In the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, Amen.

~ Christine Longhurst, re:Worship
 
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive
us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
 
Benediction                         based on Numbers 6:24-26
The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
Amen.
Go in peace!