PIONEER
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Worship
via Blog 7th Sunday after Pentecost July
11, 2021
“Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus”
“There Shall Be Showers of Blessing”
WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Welcome to Pioneer’s blog worship service.
Though we are accessing this remotely and unable to look each other in the eye,
we are still the Pioneer faith community, gathered as children of God to
worship, to be spiritually fed, and to be equipped to go out to serve in
Christ’s name—though we do it differently during this pandemic.
Pioneer offers worship in several modes:
a)
The
blog.
b)
The
blog service mailed through US Postal service.
c)
Sermons
only, mailed to those who so request.
d)
Zoom
services at 10:00 Sunday mornings.
e)
Live
worship with masks and social distancing has plenty of room for additional
worshipers.
-
Hot
dog feed following worship
-
Next
Sunday Prayer Shawl Ministry meets at 1:00 p.m.
Now allow yourself a brief time of silence
as you open your hearts and feel God’s presence with you, right where you are.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BAPTISM: Friends, remember your baptism … and be thankful.
CALL TO WORSHIP
God is with us wherever we go;
Let us together recognize God’s presence
here.
God
is the Creator of our lives
And
does not abandon us on life’s pilgrimage.
God relates to us as a Parent,
Loving, chastening, and disciplining.
We
have known the steadfast love of God
When
we are faithful and when we stray.
We live in covenant with God,
Who is our rock and our salvation.
We
hear God calling us to covenant renewal,
Offering
us strength to overcome our weaknesses.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
Ruler of all worlds, whose glory surrounds
our unseeing eyes, our muffled hearing and our dulled emotions, come to awaken
us to the mystery of your will. Speak to us a word of truth that reveals our
deceit and leads us away from falsehood. Touch us with healing grace that
allows us to admit our woundedness and accept the comfort you offer. Let your
Spirit move among us so we may recognize your presence in one another and in
our own lives. May our response to you be faithful and our praise be genuine.
Amen.
OPENING
HYMN: “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace” LU#109
CALL TO CONFESSION
God has chosen us to be holy and blameless
in love before our Creator. In our hearts, we know we do not measure up to that
high calling. We have built many barriers in our lives against true communion
with God and honest community with one another. In our Prayer of Confession, we
seek help to remove those barriers.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
God of all hope and blessing, hear us as we
turn to you with all our hearts. We have not been faithful to your word of
love. We have hurt others and held grudges. We have been jealous and deceitful
and ungrateful. We have turned from your Word and resisted the Holy Spirit. O
God, we plead for your forgiveness and healing that we might respond with joy
to the spiritual blessings you offer. (continue with personal prayers………..) Amen.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation.
The old life has gone; the new life has
begun.
Friends, believe the Good News!
In Jesus Christ we are forgiven and
restored to new life!
PASSING THE PEACE
May the peace of Christ be with you.
And also with you.
Let us extend the peace of Christ in heart
and prayer to one another.
GLORY
BE TO THE FATHER
SCRIPTURE 1: Ephesians
1:3-14
Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every
spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before
the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.
He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the
purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely
bestowed on us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the
forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace which he
lavished upon us. For
he has made known to
us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose
which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all
things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In him, according to the
purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his
will, we who first hoped in Christ have been destined and appointed to live for
the praise of his glory. In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the
gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the
promised Holy Spirit, which is the guarantee of our inheritance until we
acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
SCRIPTURE 2: Psalm 85
Lord, you were favorable to your land; you restored the
fortunes of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of your people; you pardoned all
their sin. You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your hot anger. Restore
us again, O God of our salvation, and put away your indignation toward us. Will
you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
Will you not revive us again, so that your people may rejoice in you? Show us
your steadfast love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation. Let me hear what God
the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his faithful, to
those who turn to him in their hearts. Surely his salvation is at hand for
those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land. Steadfast love and
faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other.
Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down
from the sky. The Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its
increase. Righteousness will go before him, and will make a path for his steps.
SERMON “The Magic of Four” Rev.
Jean Hurst
Did
you pick up on them as you heard the passage read? The magic four are right
there: love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace. These four elements don’t
stand independently in the perspective of the psalmist. They’re connected.
They’re interrelated. In fact, they’re basically in relationship, something
that seems to be true of most of God’s creation.
Steadfast love and faithfulness meet.
Faithfulness springs up from the ground. Righteousness looks down from the sky
and the two meet. The gap is closed. And righteousness and peace kiss each
other. Is this fanciful poetry in the abstract or can we find some very
practical truths here?
Last Sunday we talked about God’s grace.
It is sometimes defined as God’s favor. This psalm is a prayer for God’s favor
to be restored. It seems they had it but they lost it. They’ve fallen on bad
fortune and fallen out of favor with God, because that fits with how they
interpreted the events of their lives. If life is hard, if things aren’t going
their way, if the drought comes, if the crops fails, if the enemy invades that
means that God is ticked off at them for something.
Usually
that something is that they have sinned; they have failed to live into God’s
expectations. So they perceive this turn of events as God’s anger. Even if God
didn’t specifically bring those things down on them, God has turned away from
them, left them to their own devices. Usually people don’t do so well when they
are left to their own devices. They seem to keep doing what doesn’t work and
digging themselves in deeper and deeper.
Sound
familiar? We seem to have some of those same cycles in our lives. Things are
great for a while and then they go south. We’re quick to blame God for
abandoning us rather than taking a closer look at how we’re living our lives.
Perhaps it’s human nature. If we look at the preceding verses, we find that
life in Israel used to be really good. The people were forgiven. God was happy
with them and restored their fortunes. Note that the forgiveness and restored
fortunes indicate a prior downturn of the cycle. Then more recently things were
going great but then it went south. As seems also to be human nature, they then
turn to God and start pleading.
Restore
us; put away your displeasure toward us. Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you carry your anger through all generations? Revive us again; show us
your unfailing love; grant us your salvation. The writer of the psalm speaks on
behalf of Israel: I will listen to what the Lord will say.
Down
through history; same pattern; same repetitive behavior. Things go well and
we’re happy. We get complacent in how we live our lives, become careless in the
decisions we make; let our relationship with God slip to the side; and fail to
live the life we’re called to live. And then by virtue of our own poor
decisions and actions, we’re in trouble or we’re unhappy. What do we do? We
call on God to bail us out, just like the Israelites did.
It’s
interesting that the psalmist doesn’t even put the words into God’s mouth. The
people know very well what it is that God wants. It’s also interesting how
translators choose to phrase things. The NIV says God promises peace to his
people—but let them not return to their folly. The RSV, which we use, and the
NRSV sanitize it, saying peace for those who turn to him in their hearts. But
that’s not what it says in the Hebrew. It offers two translations. Which do you
think fits? God’s peace is given to those who do not return to their stupidity
or to those who do not return to their confidence? The Hebrew translation
offers both of those.
Both
make sense, don’t you think? And yes, ‘folly’ works, too. And so does ‘to those
who turn to him in their hearts’. In a way, they are all connected—just like
the four magic words: love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace; but first,
stupidity, folly and confidence.
When
we keep doing what doesn’t work, what gets us in trouble, what keeps us from
having what we yearn for, what goes against what God calls us to and desires
for us, wouldn’t you call that stupidity or folly? It’s like that definition of
insanity where you keep doing the same thing but expecting different results.
Perhaps
that’s where the alternate word choice to stupidity comes in—confidence.
Confidence is usually a positive thing, applauded and encouraged. But sometimes
we can be confident of our choices and our ways and yet be very, very wrong.
Sometimes that confidence translates to arrogance or self-serving or personal
gain at another’s expense. Sometimes that confidence says I’m fine on my own
and I don’t need God. And sometimes we cling to God’s promises as if they were
gifts due to us that require nothing on our parts. Where is our accountability
in the midst of all that confidence?
It
reminds me of war. Doesn’t each side feel they are in the right? And doesn’t
each side fully believe that God is on their side. And doesn’t each side pray
for victory? If my memory of history serves me correctly, that is exactly what
Abraham Lincoln and Robert E. Lee did in the civil war, each believing that
they were right in their perspective so God would, of course, be on their side.
We do the same thing. Yet God’s peace is given to those who do not return to
their confidence.
So
what does it take? It takes the magic
four-- love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace. This psalm uses the term
steadfast love. It’s a way of loving often attributed to God. It is a loyal,
unwavering, unconditional love, faithful love, a loving kindness love, a
gracious love. That sounds like the love that Jesus taught us, the love Jesus
commanded. It can also mean mutual and reciprocal rights and obligations in a
committed relationship.
For
all the ways that we get ourselves in a pinch, for all the ways we hurt each
other and fracture relationships, don’t you think much of that pain could be
avoided if we loved with a steadfast love? It would work with strangers, with
enemies, and with close relationships in families and friendships. How can we
go wrong in a relationship that is governed by faithfulness, kindness, and
grace?
And
faithfulness isn’t such a difficult thing. We often sing of God’s faithfulness.
Faithfulness is being true to your word or commitments, to what you have
pledged to do or to what you say you believe despite whatever extenuating
circumstances or excuses we might come up with.
Righteousness
is a bit trickier because humans have distorted and abused the concept. Jesus
said that unless we exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees we
would never enter the kingdom of heaven. That’s about self-righteousness and
self-serving righteousness. It’s a righteousness that claims we’re better than
someone else. It’s a righteousness without mercy or grace or love. Instead,
think of righteousness as doing what is right in God’s eyes. A righteousness
that is akin to obedience and justice and mercy and love.
The
last of the magic four is peace. We go back to the Hebrew again. Peace is not
as simple as the absence of violence, though many of us would settle for that
in today’s violent world. Remember Pax
Romana—Roman Peace, in place from 27 years before Jesus to 180 years after.
It was enforced by violent oppression.
In
Hebrew, the word is shalom and it
means a different kind of peace from Rome’s artificial one. Shalom means
wholeness, completeness, soundness, welfare. That means that peace, in that
context, is not just for one person or a select group, but for all. You could
ask, what is in the best interest of an entire community? Or what would ensure
the welfare, the wellbeing of all involved?
When
we look for and hope for God’s righteousness and peace, are we looking only
from our own individual perspective, from our national perspective, or from a
world perspective? Do we feel God’s blessings should only be for us? What do we
do with the reality that other countries, groups, or entities are also praying
and hoping for God’s righteousness and peace for their own realities?
You
see, our perspective is generally self-focused. We want the good for ourselves
and those we care about. God’s perspective is so much bigger. God wants the
good for everyone, for all God’s children. The writer of the psalms passage
knew that. That’s why he wrote about those four impactful items: love,
faithfulness, righteousness, and peace. Those four things encompass what God
desires for all God’s children.
Any
one of them is a valuable attribute that we should put to work in our lives.
Put them all together and you get something so much bigger. You get synergy—the
whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Working together these four things
change who we are as a people and how we relate to one another. Used together,
we live into what God desires for us. Those four together changes the world …
if people would just live by them.
Imagine
in your own relationships what a difference it would make. If you love
unconditionally and kindly, if your words, actions and attitudes are governed
by being faithful to what you believe and who you say you are, if you live out
that relationship in a way that is right in the eyes of God, and if you seek
what is in the best interest of the other person and what brings them
wholeness, what would that relationship be like? Think about your marriage or
your relationship with your parents or kids or siblings. Think about your
relationships with colleagues or neighbors. Think even about those you don’t
like and with whom you don’t want any kind of interaction. What kind of
difference would it make?
The
people of Israel live with the hope that they could once again gain God’s favor
and blessings. They knew their own history. They knew they were accountable for
how they had lived in opposition to God’s expectation. And they had unwavering
faith in the mercy of God.
That is our hope as well. God is faithful,
full of mercy, full of grace, wanting shalom for our lives. We are created in
God’s image. Can we strive for the same? Can we want that more than we want to
be right, to feel superior to others, to have our needs and wants met at the
expense of others, to accumulate more and wield more power? The answer is there
is the magic four: live lovingly, live faithfully, live right in God’s eyes,
and seek what is best for others. If we do that, we will live with God’s
blessings. Amen.
HYMN: “Today
We Are Called to Be Disciples” Glory #757
PRAYERS OF THE
PEOPLE AND THE LORD’S PRAYER
Lord, draw near. As Christ has taught
us to pray for others, so in his name we lift up the needs of the church, this
world, our own lives. We lift up the people of the world, tender God, those who
need your shalom: those who have lost homes and livelihood and loved ones to
war; those who lead the nations and have the power to make war or peace; those
who try to reign by terror; the children of the world and for their future.
We pray for shalom for our community
and our families: those who have been brought to our attention through a
meeting or conversation; those in whose family, marriage, or close relationship
there is stress or brokenness; those who need to forget the God they do not
believe in and meet the God who believes in them; those of our faith community
who need your healing touch and loving presence: Joe Hendry … Sandy Cargill … Larry
Koskela … Linda and Bill Kaesemeyer … Lari Higgins … Somer Bauer … Tasha
Sizemore … Beverly Patterson … Lois White …
Margaret Dunbar … Darlene … Trisha … Dave … Jacob … George and Joyce …
Jennifer … Chuck … Virginia …Courtney … Ethel. (Additional prayers …………)
We pray for shalom for ourselves: for
times when our lives are I turmoil, times when we need inner peace; for those
times when we feel we don’t even have a mustard seed’s worth of faith; for
those times we seek to know you in a deeper way; for guidance of your Spirit to
do what we can to bring shalom to our world.
Lord, we believe that you hear our
prayers and will be faithful to your promise as you act in our lives. We offer
now, O God, the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples:
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 debts as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the
kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
CALL TO OFFERING
The earth belongs to God, and all that is
in it. The world is God’s creation, and so are we. All that we have is from the
gifts of God, meant as a blessing for all to share. In these moments, we
recognize our responsibility to manage these resources for the redemption of
all God’s people. Let us give with care.
DOXOLOGY
PRAYER OF DEDICATION
With joy, we dedicate this offering, acknowledging our
covenant responsibility to share your word and love all your people. In
gratitude for the gospel of salvation, we pledge our first loyalty and highest
faithfulness as disciples of Jesus Christ. Bless this offering and us in the
giving. Amen.
CLOSING HYMN: “Song of Hope” Glory
#765
CHARGE AND BENEDICTION
You are called to be peacemakers.
Peace happens in little ways as well as big, close to home as well as across
the world. Your challenge this week is to be that channel of peace.
As you do the grace of the Lord Jesus
Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit is with you now
and always. Amen.
CHORAL RESPONSE
May the Lord, Mighty God, bless and keep you forever.
Grant you peace, perfect peace, courage in every endeavor. Lift up your eyes
and see his face and his grace forever. May the Lord, Mighty God, bless and
keep you forever.
~~~~~~~~~~
LOOKING
AHEAD
July 11 following worship hot dog feed
July 18 1:00 p.m. Prayer Shawl Ministry
July 20 10:30 a.m. Women’s Spirituality
July 22 8:30 a.m. Men’s Prayer Group
July 27 noon PPW lunch meeting
PRAYER
CARE:
Joe Hendry (hip
surgery), Sandy Cargill (radiation), Larry Koskela (stomach and joint issues),
Linda and Bill Kaesemeyer (Bill’s heart/breathing issues), Lari Higgins (breast
cancer), Somer Bauer (breast cancer), Tasha Sizemore (Crohn’s), Lois White
(lymphoma), John Matthews (cancer), Jacob Cunningham, Trisha Cagley (health
problems), Dave Clark (kidney cancer), Virginia DesIlets (age 99!), Margaret
Dunbar (aging issues), George and Joyce Sahlberg (health issues), Jennifer
Schirm (Parkinson’s), Chuck VanHise (leg/walking rehab), Darlene Wingfield (pulmonary
fibrosis, breast cancer), and Courtney Ziegler (Huntington’s).
LECTIONARY
FOR 7/18/21
Jeremiah 23:1-6; Psalm 23; Ephesians 2:11-22; March
6:30-34 53-56
No comments:
Post a Comment