ministers-messages

JOHN – the Baptist – ANSWERED THEM, “I BAPTIZE YOU WITH WATER. BUT ONE MORE POWERFUL THAN I WILL COME, THE THONGS OF WHOSE SANDALS I AM NOT WORTHY TO UNTIE. HE WILL BAPTIZE YOU WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND WITH FIRE.   (Luke 3: 15).

WELCOME TO OUR SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN (CH-46) THIS IS THE DAY OF LIGHT: let there be light today; O Dayspring, rise upon our night, and chase its gloom away.

This is the day of prayer: let earth to heaven draw near; lift up our hearts to seek Thee there, come down to meet us here.

This is the first of days: send forth Thy quickening breath, and wake dead souls to love and praise, O Vanquisher of death!

LET US PRAY:

ALMIGHTY LORD GOD, we have come to worship You – to declare Your faithfulness, to acknowledge Your majesty and to marvel at Your love. We come to listen – to the message of the Scripture, to the words of Christ, and to the inner prompting of Your Holy Spirit. We come to receive – hungry to hear You, thirsting to know You better, and longing to be filled. We are here to pray – for ourselves, our world and one another. Sovereign Lord God, accept this time of worship, and help us through it to draw nearer to You. Open our hearts to the love of Christ, our lives to the cleansing flames of Your Spirit, our minds to all that You are and continue to do, and so may we worship You not just in these few moments that we have set aside, but in every moment of our lives, to the glory of Your name, through Jesus Christ our Lord.        AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – EXODUS 3: 1-14.

NOW MOSES WAS TENDING THE FLOCK OF JETHRO HIS FATHER-IN-LAW, THE PRIEST OF MIDIAN, AND HE LED THE FLOCK TO THE FAR SIDE OF THE DESERT AND CAME TO HOREB, THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD. THERE THE ANGEL OF THE LORD APPEARED TO HIM IN FLAMES OF FIRE FROM WITHIN A BUSH. MOSES SAW THAT THOUGH THE BUSH WAS ON FIRE IT DID NOT BURN UP. SO MOSES THOUGHT, “I WILL GO OVER AND SEE THIS STRANGE SIGHT – WHY THE BUSH DOES NOT BURN UP.” WHEN THE LORD SAW THAT HE HAD GONE OVER TO LOOK, GOD CALLED TO HIM FROM WITHIN THE BUSH, “MOSES! MOSES!” AND MOSES SAID, “HERE I AM.” “DO NOT COME ANY CLOSER,” GOD SAID. “TAKE OF YOUR SANDALS, FOR THE PLACE WHERE YOU ARE STANDING IS HOLY GROUND.” THEN HE SAID, “I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHER, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, THE GOD OF ISAAC AND THE GOD OF JACOB.” AT THIS, MOSES HID HIS FACE, BECAUSE HE WAS AFRAID TO LOOK AT GOD. THE LORD SAID, “I HAVE INDEED SEEN THE MISERY OF MY PEOPLE IN EGYPT. I HAVE HEARD THEM CRYING OUT BECAUSE OF THEIR SLAVE DRIVERS, AND I AM CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SUFFERING. SO I HAVE COME DOWN TO RESCUE THEM FROM THE HAND OF THE EGYPTIANS AND TO BRING THEM UP OUT OF THAT LAND INTO A GOOD AND SPACIOUS LAND, A LAND FLOWING WITH MILK AND HONEY – THE HOME OF THE CANAANITES, HITTITES, AMORITES, PERIZZITES, HIVITES AND JEBUSITES. AND NOW THE CRY OF THE ISRAELITES HAS REACHED ME, AND I HAVE SEEN THE WAY THE EGYPTIANS ARE OPPRESSING THEM. SO NOW, GO. I AM SENDING YOU TO PHARAOH TO BRING MY PEOPLE THE ISRAELITES OUT OF EGYPT.” BUT MOSES SAID TO GOD, “WHO AM I, THAT I SHOULD GO TO PHARAOH AND BRING THE ISRAELITES OUT OF EGYPT?” AND GOD SAID, “I WILL BE WITH YOU. AND THIS WILL BE THE SIGN TO YOU THAT IT IS I WHO HAVE SENT YOU: WHEN YOU HAVE BROUGHT THE PEOPLE OUT OF EGYPT, YOU WILL WORSHIP GOD ON THIS MOUNTAIN.” MOSES SAID TO GOD, “SUPPOSE I GO TO THE ISRAELITES AND SAY TO THEM, ‘THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS HAS SENT ME TO YOU,’ AND THEY ASK ME, ‘WHAT IS HIS NAME?’ THEN WHAT SHALL I TELL THEM?” GOD SAID TO MOSES, “I AM WHO I AM. THIS IS WHAT YOU ARE TO SAY TO THE ISRAELITES: ‘I AM HAS SENT ME TO YOU.’ ”

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – BOOK OF ACTS 7: 30- 34.

AFTER FORTY YEARS HAD PASSED, AN ANGEL APPEARED TO MOSES IN THE FLAMES OF A BURNING BUSH IN THE DESERT NEAR MOUNT SINAI. WHEN HE SAW THIS, HE WAS AMAZED AT THE SIGHT. AS HE WENT OVER TO LOOK MORE CLOSELY, HE HEARD THE LORD’S VOICE: ‘I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, ISAAC AND JACOB… NOW COME, I WILL SEND YOU BACK TO EGYPT… MOSES TREMBLED WITH FEAR AND DID NOT DARE TO LOOK  …

During the past few weeks, we have had lessons of faith through the lives of the early patriarchs in the Book of Genesis. Noah, Abraham, and Jacob were all guided by the same principle, – Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for (Hebrews 11: 1-2). In this way Abraham, his son Isaac and grandson Jacob became examples of faith that was gifted to them by God, to enable them to cope with the humanly unpredictable Future. In Abraham’s great-grandson, Joseph’s time, the people of Israel were saved from famine by going to Egypt to survive. In the 400 years that followed, the Israelites increased abundantly, and the land was filled with them. To  oppress them, the Pharaohs made them slaves, and ordered the midwives to kill all male Hebrew babies. When MOSES was born, his mother hid him in a basket in the bullrushes of the Nile, where he was discovered by Pharaoh’s daughter, who raised up him in the palace. Growing up, Moses sympathized with his people, and when he saw an Egyptian mistreating some of the Israelites, he killed the Egyptian, and fled to Midian to escape punishment.  He married Zipporah, the daughter of a Midian-priest, who bore him a son named Gershom.        God heard the cry of the Israelites, and remembering His Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, planning an Exodus for them from Egypt… When God has a big job to get done, He does not pick the greatest person to do it. He simply chooses one available to Him. God chose Moses because He knew that Moses was able to be used, and spoke to him in a very unique way: from a BURNING BUSH.

1. MOSES, THE SHEPHERD, BECAME THE REPRESENTATIVE OF GOD. There is no indication that Moses was seeking the mountain of God. As a shepherd, he was searching for good grazing ground for his father-in-law’s sheep when he saw a Burning Bush that was not consumed. It was pure curiosity or concern of a spreading bush-fire that brought him to God. When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”(verse 4). The human conversation and the Divine presence in the Salvation-Act is a clear reference to Jesus, as both the Godly and the Human are to act for the right outcome of SALVATION. God spoke here as a human; He entered the human world to correct the plight of His people, and He required human action on His behalf. But God had to come down to bring them up. The promise of God was the same OLD COVENANT: – a good land flowing with milk and honey (v. 8).  But with a mission for Moses: – So now go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt (v. 10). Moses’s objection of – Who am I ?! – was false. He had the best education, he knew Pharaoh’s court, spoke the language, but he refused to be known as the son of the Pharaoh’s Daughter, rather a part of God’s people. So God assured him, – I will be with You. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain (v. 12). The mountain of God is involved in both the Old- and the New – Covenant: the second time the sign will be THE BLOOD OF CHRIST, Whose last promise was also that, – I WILL BE WITH YOU…

2. THE BURNING BUSH REPRESENTED GOD, THE “I AM WHO I AM”. It is from this answer that we get God’s Name. In Hebrew, it is four letters – YHWH. The name is cryptic, and perhaps intentionally so. It means that our God is INSCRUTABLE, INDEFINABLE, and WHOLLY DIFFERENT. (The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, Abingdon Press, 2007). Pious Jews even nowadays substitute THE NAME for YHWH when pronounced. God announced to Moses that this name – YHWH or YAHWEH – will be His name forever. The IMMORTAL, INVISIBLE GOD, ONLY WISE, who has revealed Himself in His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who was, and is, and shall be for ever and ever. The God who knows the future since He is not bound by time,  who doesn’t depend on anything or anybody, and so He can speak and have it done perpetually, without reason to doubt it. The God who came in Jesus to seek and save even the lost, – IF -, they believe in Him.  As it is defined in the The Epistle to the Hebrews, – Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Like worry, faith is also orientated towards the Future. Through faith we trust God within the future we are facing. Moses’ worries were gone as God – The Great I AM – identified Himself as the God of Moses’ ancestors, the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This had to be meaningful enough to the Israelites, who revered these names. They knew of God’s dealing with these patriarchs in the past, and within their tragic present in Egypt they continued to believe that God is able to turn their future bright again.

3. THE CONTINUING SIGN OF THE BURNING BUSH IN THE CHURCH. The Pre-Reformed Church already discovered the significance of the Burning Bush, suggesting it as a type or prophetic picture of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, who – just as the bush burned but remained whole – gave birth to the Son of God as a virgin. But it was in 1583, that a group of Huguenots decided to use the Burning Bush as an emblem of the Reformation. It was to signify their resistance in the fire of persecution that peaked eleven years earlier with the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, when thousands of Reformed Protestants were murdered in Paris and in its surroundings by the Catholic king. In fact they were using John Calvin’s Commentary on the Book of Acts, where – in Chapter 7 – Calvin observed that the Burning Bush constitutes an appropriate image of the Reformed Church, that was continually subject to the fire of persecution, yet – in keeping with Christ’s Promise (Matthew 16: 18) – it is ever alive. As Reformed Presbyterianism spread throughout the world – especially via Scottish emigrants and missionaries – it typically carried with it some version embraced by our Scottish Kirk. Today, the Burning Bush figures on the official crests of many Presbyterian churches worldwide. There is no record indicating that any General Assembly of the Church of Scotland ever gave approval to the use of the Burning Bush–emblem, but as early as 1691 it appeared on the front page of an Act of the General Assembly, as it is seen today, even above the door of our church. Its Latin inscription:- NEC TAMEN CONSUMEBATUR, in English means: YET IT WAS NOT CONSUMED.  

Indeed, THE GREAT I AM continues to reveal Himself to us, as He did to Moses long ago. God, who cares for us, loves us, and protects us  all, who believe in Him, through Jesus Christ our Lord.   AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

LIVING AND LOVING GOD, we thank You that You are constantly at work, striving to fulfil Your purpose – not just the course of history, not only the destiny of nations, but equally the life of each one of us, that You have created precious in Your sight and very important. We thank You for the way You have moved in so many lives across the years. Especially today we remember how You encountered Moses – the way You have met him, confronting him with Your presence and will, challenging him through Your call, and leading him to accomplish great things for You and for Your people. We thank You that You can change anyone, however impossible that may seem – that the hardest of hearts and most godless lives can be overcome by Your power, love and grace, moved to turn away from their past life and commit themselves wholeheartedly to Christ. Loving God, we lose sight sometimes of Your transforming power, easily becoming cynical, disillusioned and world-weary, frustrated by our repeated failure to serve You better. Yet whether or not we see it, You are still present, still striving to fulfil Your purpose, and still able to surprise us by the way You change what seems unchangeable. You have done great things for us, and we offer You our praise and thanksgiving. We pray for those who are sick or terminally ill through Coronavirus, cancer, or any other deadly disease, and for those who look after them, skilfully, lovingly, or prayerfully. Give comfort to those who mourn loved-ones. We pray for  those caught up in circumstances which seem to be beyond their control, and who feel unable to cope with the problems of life. Encounter them, Lord, and give them strength, healing, guidance and Salvation. We pray for the world with all its troubles and beauties; for Your Christian Church Universal in all its denominations, for our Church of Scotland in all its presbyteries and parishes. Be with all the members and adherents of our congregation, bless our loved-ones wherever they are, and hear our prayers for those whom we now name quietly in our hearts … through Jesus Christ our Lord.    AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH-32) – IMMORTAL, INVISIBLE, GOD only wise, in light inaccessible hid from our eyes, most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days, Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light, nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might; Thy justice like mountains high soaring above Thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all, life Thou givest – to both great and small; in all life Thou livest, the true life of all; we blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree, and wither and perish – but naught changeth Thee.

Great Father of Glory, pure Father of Light, Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight; all laud we would render: O help us to see ‘tis only the splendour of light hideth Thee.

MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU; THE LORD MAKE HIS FACE SHINE UPON YOU AND BE GRACIOUS TO YOU; THE LORD TURN HIS FACE TOWARDS  YOU AND GIVE YOU PEACE (Numbers 6: 24-26) THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.              AMEN.

Sandor, your Minister.

COME AND SEE THE WORKS OF THE LORD, WHO SAYS, “BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD; I WILL BE EXALTED AMONG THE NATIONS, I WILL BE EXALTED IN THE EARTH.” THE LORD ALMIGHTY IS WITH US; THE GOD OF JACOB IS OUR FORTRESS (Psalm 46: 8, 10-11).

WELCOME TO OUR SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN (CH-324) – BLEST IS THE MAN, O GOD, that stays himself on Thee; who wait for Thy salvation , Lord, shall Thy salvation see.

When we in darkness walk, nor feel the heavenly flame, then is the time to trust our God, and rest upon His Name.

Soon shall our doubts and fears subside at His control; His loving-kindness shall break through the midnight of the soul.

Wait till the shadows flee; wait thy appointed hour; wait till the Bridegroom of thy soul reveals His love with power.

LET US PRAY

LORD GOD ALMIGHTY, we come into Your presence reminded of Your greatness, Your holiness and Your love; conscious that we come into the presence of One vastly greater than ourselves; the creator of life and sustainer of the universe, of everything that is and has been and shall be. For all the ways You have guided us, and all the ways You continue to lead, we thank You. For the times we have found help through Your presence, the days when You have seen us through problems and difficulties, and the moments when You have been there to watch over us, we give You our praise. Come to us now, and direct our footsteps by Your Word so that we may live and work for Your glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – GENESIS 32: 22-31.

THAT NIGHT JACOB GOT UP AND TOOK HIS TWO WIVES, HIS TWO MAIDSERVANTS AND HIS ELEVEN SONS AND CROSSED THE FORD OF THE JABBOK. AFTER HE HAD SENT THEM ACROSS THE STREAM, HE SENT OVER ALL HIS POSSESSIONS. SO JACOB WAS LEFT ALONE, AND A MAN WRESTLED WITH HIM TILL DAYBREAK. WHEN THE MAN SAW THAT HE COULD NOT OVERPOWER HIM, HE TOUCHED THE SOCKET OF JACOB’S HIP SO THAT HIS HIP WAS WRENCHED AS HE WRESTLED WITH THE MAN. THEN THE MAN SAID, “LET ME GO, FOR IT IS DAYBREAK.” BUT JACOB REPLIED, “I WILL NOT LET YOU GO UNLESS YOU BLESS ME.” THE MAN ASKED HIM, “WHAT IS YOUR NAME?” “JACOB,” HE ANSWERED. THEN THE MAN SAID, “YOUR NAME WILL NO LONGER BE JACOB, BUT ISRAEL, BECAUSE YOU HAVE STRUGGLED WITH GOD AND WITH MEN AND HAVE OVERCOME.” JACOB SAID, “PLEASE TELL ME YOUR NAME.” BUT HE REPLIED, “WHY DO YOU ASK MY NAME?” THEN HE BLESSED HIM THERE. SO JACOB CALLED THE PLACE PENIEL, SAYING, “IT IS BECAUSE I SAW GOD FACE TO FACE, AND YET MY LIFE WAS SPARED.” THE SUN ROSE ABOVE HIM AS HE PASSED PENIEL, AND HE WAS LIMPING BECAUSE OF HIS HIP.

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – ROMANS 11: 26-27.

… ALL ISRAEL WILL BE SAVED, AS IT IS WRITTEN: “THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION; HE WILL TURN GODLESSNESS AWAY FROM JACOB. AND THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS.”

Most Christians gain greater clarity of their faith from time spent alone with God. Sometimes these lessons of faith come in struggles – struggling with problems of life, and struggling with the presence of God in times of need and trouble. It is like wrestling with God, when the only spiritual attitude remains to hang on, like Jacob did at the ford of the river Jabbok, in this strange but fascinating biblical story. The outcome of his wrestling with God finally brought blessing to Jacob, and will bring God’s blessing to all who are willing to face the godly encounter, the challenge of their faith whenever it arrives.

A FAR FROM PERFECT FAMILY OF ISAAC, SPARED SON OF ABRAHAM   The story has its roots in the relationship between Esau and Jacob, twin sons of Isaac and Rebekah. Esau, the first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob … Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob – says the Bible (Genesis 25: 25, 28). As the elder son, Esau enjoyed the privileges of the first born – the birth right and the blessing, but later, taking his birth right casually, Esau sold it to Jacob for a bowl of lentil stew. On an other occasion, Jacob deceived elderly Isaac into believing that he was Esau, and giving Esau’s blessing to Jacob. When Esau discovered the trick he swore to kill Jacob, who fled in time to save his life. On that first night of his run Jacob took one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and said, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying … and Jacob called that place Bethel, which means House of God (Genesis 28: 11-13, 19). Then Jacob made a vow that if he would return safely to his father’s house, the Lord will be my God and this stone  that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s House (verse 22). This was Jacob’s first encounter with God; and the wrestling at the ford, as he was coming back into his father’s territories, the second.

JACOB WAS LEFT ALONE IN THAT SECOND NIGHT-TIME ENCOUNTER                                                                                     After a long time, deceiving his uncle and father-in-law, Jacob had to flee again. He decided to return to his country and relatives, namely to Esau, ready to face Esau and his past. That night – when he reached the boundaries of his homeland – Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak … then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.” Then He blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” (Genesis 32 22-30). It is a strange story of Jacob wrestling with God, but also it is a living picture, a foreshadow of the MANHOOD OF GOD IN CHRIST. Or it could be a picture of God who was wrestling as a father with a son – unwilling to exert full strength lest he hurt his son. In such a case, the father might be unable to prevail decisively against his son, because the father was unwilling to employ his full strength in that wrestling, having other plans. The whole event is covered in mystery: an event in the darkness, an event without any adequate description, but in the hiddenness of this story a godly reality emerges: God is accessible, and blessedness receivable. Three times during the encounter they spoke to each other. The MAN asked Jacob to let Him go, but Jacob refused to do so unless he received a blessing, then they asked for each other’s name. Three times there was a dialogue between them. The conversation in the story reminds us that in the midst of our struggles, we can talk with God, and He will talk to us. We are not really alone in our troubles; God is there with us, and we can communicate with Him at any time through prayer- as I like repeating so often, God is just a prayer away! Interestingly, Jacob did not always get the answer he wanted; and so it is with us when we pray and ask questions of God we do not get the answers we aim to receive. But the important thing is the dialogue- that the communication continues. In a Hungarian proverb, when a child kept on asking some simple questions, the mother wanted to silence him, but the father replied, – Let him ask questions, for this is how he can learn! While the talking/praying continues with God, the relationship remains intact. When we stop talking to God and when we stop listening to His Word, it is then that the relationship disappears, and we are truly left in the darkness. So let us keep talking and listening to God, no matter how breathless we are, no matter how tiring the wrestling has become. Keep praying and listening to God. KEEP THE RELATIONSHIP ALIVE! At the end God had the final Word and the final action: He blessed Jacob there, as His blessings are always available to all those who believe in the promise of our Lord Jesus Christ.

THE OUTCOME OF THE WRESTLING-RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. The last we see of Jacob in this story is as he names the place Peniel, to represent his face-to-face encounter with God, and then limping away to be reminded of his new name, ISRAEL, which means, that he had struggled with God and with man and had overcome. The Jewish linguistic etymology gives an even more powerful translation to the word, as GOD STRUGGLES or GOD RULES. That is, Jacob did not only wrestle with God, but God wrestled with Jacob. God gave Jacob/Israel the blessing that Jacob had sought for such a long time. He obtained his father’s blessing by deceit, but God gave His blessing fully aware of Jacob’s identity and character, and changed his name. Shortly after this Jacob met up with his brother Esau in a surprisingly  friendly encounter. That time Jacob said, Please accept the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have all I need – and Esau accepted Jacob’s gift (Genesis 33: 11). In this sentence the Hebrew word translated “present” is in fact the same word that means “Blessing”, and being used in this very context when Jacob stole from Esau in the incident with their old and blind father Isaac. There is no escape from sins of the past, but only being forgiven by God and inheriting a New Name through the face-to-face encounter with Him. Jacob’s place of defeat became his place of victory. His hour of defeat became his hour of victory. So very often we look at our defeats as the end of the world. They can be for some, but never for a Christian, who through Jesus Christ INHERITED the Birth-right and the Blessing of our heavenly Father. This is our CHRISTIAN FAITH.

Sometimes lessons of our faith come when we are wrestling with God. Sometimes lessons of our faith come when we are prevailing. God allowed Jacob to prevail because he had to learn that he needed God’s blessing more than he wanted his brother’s – or his father’s – blessing. Sometimes lessons of faith come in defeat. Jacob saw God face-to-face at the cost of his limp which became a blessing itself. Sometimes God allow us to be wounded in our struggles to experience his blessing. It may be that things God allows, or does in our lives, appear to be a limp – a hurt, a trauma or even a frustration – but may turn into a blessing from Him later on.

Certainly, we all experience times when we feel as if we are wrestling with God. Many of us are marked by spiritual scars and wounds, but we should always remember the GROWTH OF FAITH God offers us in that process. So whenever we may be in the struggle – whether wrestling in darkness, asking questions of God, or walking away from struggle and carrying a limp as a result – there is a promise that comes to every one of us from this story. We may know afresh the transforming and healing Love of God, which is SALVATION through Jesus Christ our Lord.                                        AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

LORD GOD, OUR LOVING HEAVENLY FATHER, we thank You that we can worship You, speak with You, learn from You, so that we may be equipped to serve You better. Help us to recognise the variety of gifts You have given us, the many different skills and abilities represented here, and help us to understand how these can be used most effectively, both here and in the wider world. Help us to be opened to You and to one another, to love You through loving one another, to serve You through serving one another. May the sincerity and warmth of our congregation be a living testimony to the transforming power of Christ, and may it spread over into all our daily relationships. Help us to recognise the wider family of which we are a part, the other churches of our town and country, churches in other lands, and the Church Universal. Open our minds to all that we can give and receive, to everything we can learn from those who have gone before us, and to our own responsibilities as part of the great company of Your people. Be with our world; with all those who wrestle with the problems of everyday life, personal problems, or troubles like Coronavirus that affects  the whole present humanity. We remember Jacob today, a trickster and a cheat as he experienced a life changing moment at the ford of Jabbok. One touch of Your hand, one word from Your mouth, and life was never the same again for him. Touch us, speak to us, and let us speak with You, Lord, that our lives may be changed forever for the better. We pray for those for whom events in the world at large seem to deny Your love – those confronted with human and natural disasters, saddened by the loss of loved-ones, crushed by sickness, suffering and disease, and perplexed by the apparent victory in so many places of evil over good. Be with them and give them comfort, healing, support and above all, faith. Meet with those who find it hard to meet with You, and bless all those whom we now name quietly in our hearts … through Jesus Christ our Lord.                     AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH-689) – NEARER, MY GOD, TO THEE, nearer to Thee! Ev’n though it be a cross that raiseth me, still all my song would be, nearer my God to Thee, nearer to Thee!  Nearer to Thee!

Though, like a wanderer, the sun gone down, darkness be over me, my rest a stone, yet in my dreams I’d be nearer, my God to Thee, nearer to Thee! Nearer to Thee!

There let the way appear steps unto heaven, all that Thou send’st to me in mercy given, angels to beckon me nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! Nearer to Thee!

Then, with my waking thoughts bright with Thy praise, out of my stony griefs Bethel I’ll raise, so by my woes to be nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! Nearer to Thee!

Or if on joyful wing cleaving the sky, sun, moon, and stars forgot, upwards I fly, still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! Nearer to Thee!

MAY THE GRACE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND THE LOVE OF GOD, AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT BE WITH YOU ALL      (2 Corinthians 13: 14)

AMEN.

Sandor, your Minister.

PRAISE THE LORD, O MY SOUL; ALL MY INMOST BEING, PRAISE HIS HOLY NAME. PRAISE THE LORD, O MY SOUL, AND FORGET NOT ALL HIS BENEFITS – WHO FORGIVES ALL YOUR SINS AND HEALS ALL YOUR DISEASES, WHO REDEEMS YOUR LIFE FROM THE PIT AND CROWNS YOU WITH LOVE AND COMPASSION… (Psalm 103)

WELCOME TO OUR SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN (CH-497): – GOD OF MERCY, GOD OF GRACE, show the brightness of Thy face; shine upon us, Saviour, shine, fill Thy Church with light divine, and Thy saving health extend unto earth’s remotest end.

Let the people praise Thee, Lord; be by all that live adored; let the nations shout and sing glory to their Saviour King, at Thy feet their tribute pay, and Thy holy will obey.

Let the people praise Thee, Lord; earth shall then her fruits afford, God to man his blessing give, man to God devoted live – all below and all above, one in joy and light and love.

LET US PRAY:

GRACIOUS LORD GOD, we thank You for this time and place set apart for these moments when we can enjoy Your presence and fellowship with one another. Help us to use this time You have given us to hear Your Word, discern Your will, and grow closer to You, so that we may return to our daily lives renewed in hope and vision, strengthened in our faith, and equipped to offer thanksgiving not just with our lips but through everything we are and do, to the glory of Your name. For all the ways You touch our lives, we thank You from our hearts, through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – GENESIS 22: 1-14.

SOME TIME LATER GOD TESTED ABRAHAM. HE SAID TO HIM, “ABRAHAM!” “HERE I AM,” HE REPLIED. THEN GOD SAID, “TAKE YOUR SON, YOUR ONLY SON, ISAAC, WHOM YOU LOVE, AND GO TO THE REGION OF MORIAH. SACRIFICE HIM THERE AS A BURNT OFFERING ON ONE OF THE MOUNTAINS I WILL TELL YOU ABOUT.” EARLY THE NEXT MORNING ABRAHAM GOT UP AND SADDLED HIS DONKEY. HE TOOK WITH HIM TWO OF HIS SERVANTS AND HIS SON ISAAC. WHEN HE HAD CUT ENOUGH WOOD FOR THE BURNT OFFERING, HE SET OUT FOR THE PLACE GOD HAD TOLD HIM ABOUT. ON THE THIRD DAY ABRAHAM LOOKED UP AND SAW THE PLACE IN THE DISTANCE. HE SAID TO HIS SERVANTS, “STAY HERE WITH THE DONKEY WHILE I AND THE BOY GO OVER THERE. WE WILL WORSHIP AND THEN WE WILL COME BACK TO YOU.” ABRAHAM TOOK THE WOOD FOR THE BURNT OFFERING AND PLACED IT ON HIS SON ISAAC, AND HE HIMSELF CARRIED THE FIRE AND THE KNIFE. AS THE TWO OF THEM WENT ON TOGETHER, ISAAC SPOKE UP AND SAID TO HIS FATHER ABRAHAM, “FATHER?” “YES, MY SON?” ABRAHAM REPLIED. “THE FIRE AND THE WOOD ARE HERE,” ISAAC SAID, “BUT WHERE IS THE LAMB FOR THE BURNT OFFERING?” ABRAHAM ANSWERED, “GOD HIMSELF WILL PROVIDE THE LAMB FOR THE BURNT OFFERING, MY SON.” AND THE TWO OF THEM WENT ON TOGETHER. WHEN THEY REACHED THE PLACE GOD HAD TOLD HIM ABOUT, ABRAHAM BUILT AN ALTAR THERE AND ARRANGED THE WOOD ON IT. HE BOUND HIS SON ISAAC AND LAID HIM ON THE ALTAR, ON TOP OF THE WOOD.

THEN HE REACHED OUT HIS HAND AND TOOK THE KNIFE TO SLAY HIS SON. BUT THE ANGEL OF THE LORD CALLED OUT TO HIM FROM HEAVEN, “ABRAHAM! ABRAHAM!” “HERE I AM,” HE REPLIED. “DO NOT LAY A HAND ON THE BOY,” HE SAID. “DO NOT DO ANYTHING TO HIM. NOW I KNOW THAT YOU FEAR GOD, BECAUSE YOU HAVE NOT WITHHELD FROM ME YOUR SON, YOUR ONLY SON.” ABRAHAM LOOKED UP AND THERE IN A THICKET HE SAW A RAM CAUGHT BY ITS HORNS. HE WENT OVER AND TOOK THE RAM AND SACRIFICED IT AS A BURNT OFFERING INSTEAD OF HIS SON. SO ABRAHAM CALLED THAT PLACE THE LORD WILL PROVIDE. AND TO THIS DAY IT IS SAID, “ON THE MOUNTAIN OF THE LORD IT WILL BE PROVIDED.”

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – HEBREWS 11: 1-3; 17-19.

NOW FAITH IS BEING SURE OF WHAT WE HOPE FOR AND CERTAIN OF WHAT WE DO NOT SEE. THIS IS WHAT THE ANCIENTS WERE COMMENDED FOR. BY FAITH WE UNDERSTAND THAT THE UNIVERSE WAS FORMED AT GOD’S COMMAND, SO THAT WHAT IS SEEN WAS NOT MADE OUT OF WHAT WAS VISIBLE…BY FAITH ABRAHAM, WHEN GOD TESTED HIM, OFFERED ISAAC AS A SACRIFICE. HE WHO HAD RECEIVED THE PROMISES WAS ABOUT TO SACRIFICE HIS ONE AND ONLY SON, EVEN THOUGH GOD HAD SAID TO HIM, “IT IS THROUGH ISAAC THAT YOUR OFFSPRING WILL BE RECKONED.” ABRAHAM REASONED THAT GOD COULD RAISE THE DEAD, AND FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING, HE DID RECEIVE ISAAC BACK FROM DEATH.

Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness (Romans 4: 3). The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness – for us who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification (Romans 4: 23-25). This is Apostle Paul’s summary on Abraham’s testing, with clear reference to Jesus’ Sacrifice, that offers to all believers the required JUSTIFICATION THROUGH FAITH to not perish but have eternal life from God Almighty, our Heavenly Father. FAITH IS A LIVING SACRIFICE: – By faith Abraham, when God tested Him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice … Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death (Hebrews 11: 17, 19). The Summit of Faith is, when God tests us, to surrender to Him what it is most precious to us, and we have to count on Jesus to keep His promises. Promises of God abound in the Bible; let me share with you my favourite biblical verse that always keeps me going, including during this pandemic,- …Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God… Do not be afraid, for I am with you… (Isaiah 43: 1, 2, 5).                                      The testing of Abraham is not about human sacrifice; in fact, it is the opposite. Being called to sacrifice his one and only son, Abraham had been stopped, because God wanted a living sacrifice of Abraham’s faith, as Psalm 51: 17 says,- The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. Mount Moriah was the very place where later the Jerusalem Temple was built. Today there stands the Dome of the Rock, built over the altar on which Abraham was to offer Isaac as a sacrifice, and from where Moslems believe Mohammed and his horse ascended to heaven. It is still a very religious and historic site for pilgrimages.

ABRAHAM BELIEVED IN GOD.  Abraham  was known for his obedience to God, who called him to leave his family and homeland and journey to a land that God would later give to his descendants. He just stayed in the land when he got there, believing that one day God would fulfil His promise. There are two things we must believe about God: – that He exists, and that He rewards those who seek Him. But believing is not enough. The Bible says, – You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that – and shudder (James 2: 19). Abraham did not pass all the tests that God gave him. Venturing to Egypt, he failed the test of faith that God would preserve him. But then, he believed God’s promise to give him and his barren wife a son when he was 100 and Sarah was 90 years old. We can imagine how lovingly Abraham and Sarah nurtured their precious son with the best food they had, and with the most comfortable environment they could provide. Isaac was their precious and miraculous son, who was their great hope and their future. But now the very God who had given Abraham this son was about to tell him to do the unbelievable : – to sacrifice him as a burnt offering to the Lord. The command is made up of three simple verbs: – Take. Go, Sacrifice him. It seemed so contrary to all that God had spoken before to Abraham. We can imagine the great shock that Abraham might have felt when he heard it. He most probably had spent the whole night without any sleep. But finally at daybreak, Abraham took his son with him up to Mount Moriah. He built an altar and laid Isaac on it. But at the last moment, just before the knife was used, the Lord sent an angel to stop him. Abraham’s FAITH had been proven and his son saved.

WHY DOES GOD TEST THE FAITH OF HIS PEOPLE?   I do not believe that God tests our faith that He might know how genuine and personal it is, but to show us how real or shallow it can be. As our faith is tested we discover that God is faithful in one situation after another, and this will cause our faith to increase.

ABRAHAM, GOD’S MAN OF FAITH.  There are a few things about FAITH that we can learn from Abraham.            1. – We must learn that the reason we need to have faith in God In any difficulty is OUR INCOMPLETE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD’S PLAN. There are many things God has chosen not to reveal to us, yet. He wants us simply to trust Him. I love this biblical verse: – For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways – declares the Lord (Isaiah 55: 8). In every crisis we face, we must believe that God has a good purpose for whatever He does, and for whatever He allows to happen in our lives. We ought to realize that the trials we face have a divine purpose. They are not always by chance or accident, but by God’s plan. We must be aware that there are things to be accomplished that we do not know about. For Christians, where knowledge ends, FAITH in the Lord must begin.          2. – FAITH OBEDIENTLY SUBMITS TO THE WILL OF GOD. Abraham obviously loved Isaac very much, but to him obedience to God’s will became even more important than loving his son. Faith, like aim for success, makes us willing to give up, or offer up, what is required from us, even  things that seem to be most precious to us. This is how to become a Living Sacrifice. Our faith must be a FAITH that makes God fully the Lord of our lives. God must be made Lord of all, or He will not be lord at all. To achieve it, we need to focus on His power and providing. God’s requirements are not designed to deprive or destroy us, but to bring blessings to those who believe.             3.- FAITH DEPENDS ON GOD’S POWER AND PROVISION.        Although we do not know all that Abraham felt and thought as he was ready to sacrifice Isaac, we have a reference in the text that showed his faith in a Loving God, as he said to his servants, – We will worship and then we will come back to you (Genesis 22: 5). If we suffer any loss, we must believe that God will either sufficiently provide and return whatever we have lost – as he did for Job – or that God will provide us with sufficient grace and strength to bear the loss – as He did for Paul. We must know by faith: – The Lord will provide!             4. – FAITH BENEFITS BY BEING PROVEN AND REFINED IN CRISIS.    Do not lay a hand on the boy,- God said. Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son (Genesis 22: 12). This verse reveals the hidden purpose of God for the strange command He had given to Abraham: – to prove Abraham’s love and devotion to God. It was God’s plan that Abraham’s FAITH should be fully revealed and refined, not for God to see, but for Abraham and all his descendants – including Isaac and all believers down to this day – to learn from, and live by it. This event not only revealed and refined Abraham’s faith, but also  Isaac’s faith, exercised in a humble, passive manner. Nearly two thousand years later our Lord Jesus Christ demonstrated the same kind of humble obedience when He went to the Cross at Calvary, and in this way, Isaac became a graceful foreshadow of Christ, who yielded Himself as a Living Sacrifice for our sins and provision for our eternal life – promised by His Father, our Father.

We can’t really tell what our next trial, after Coronavirus, will be or when it will happen, but we now know what we should do when it comes. Let us, then, ask God to help us in the same way as He helped Abraham, whenever our FAITH will be tested again.   AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

LIVING AND LOVING GOD, we thank You today for the Message of Hope that lies at the heart of the Gospel, the assurance that, whatever may seem to deny it, Your love and salvation will emerge victorious. We thank You for Your Word of Hope that runs through the Bible – Your promise, as You tested Abraham’s faith, that through his offspring all the world would be blessed. We thank You for Your Son born from the line of Abraham, as Your promised Deliverer, born in Bethlehem; for Your Power seen in the Resurrection of Christ, and given to us through Your Spirit as the gift of FAITH. We thank You for what that means for us today – that we can live each moment with confidence, and look forward with anticipation, whatever our circumstances may be, whatever times of testing may befall us. So we come in FAITH to offer You our prayers for others. We pray for those suffering the consequences of Coronavirus– livelihoods overturned, families shattered, economies destroyed, millions killed, and even more carrying the scars of the infection. Bring Your support to the lonely and the poor, healing to the sick, and comfort to the bereaved. In our homes and our families, our schools and care-homes, our country and our world, may Your loving care bring hope and healing. Bless Your Church here and everywhere, and hear our prayers for all those whom we now  quietly name before You, through Jesus Christ our Lord.    AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER, WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (81): – MY FAITH LOOKS UP TO THEE, Thou Lamb of Calvary, Saviour Divine; now hear me while I pray; take all my guilt away; O let me from this day be wholly Thine.

May Thy rich grace impart strength to my fainting heart, my zeal inspire; as Thou hast died for me, O may my love to Thee pure, warm, and changeless be, a living fire.

While life’s dark maze I tread, and griefs around me spread, be Thou my Guide; bid darkness turn to day, wipe sorrow’s tears away, nor let me ever stray from Thee aside.

When ends life’s transient dream, when death’s cold, sullen stream shall o’er me roll, Blest Saviour, then, in love, fear and distrust remove; O bear me safe above, a ransomed soul.

MAY THE GRACE OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND THE LOVE OF GOD, AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT BE WITH YOU ALL. (2 Corinthians 13: 14).

Sandor, your Minister.

BY FAITH NOAH, WHEN WARNED ABOUT THINGS NOT YET SEEN, IN HOLY FEAR BUILT AN ARK TO SAVE HIS FAMILY. BY HIS FAITH HE CONDEMNED THE WORLD AND BECAME HEIR OF THE RIGHTEOUSNESS THAT COMES BY FAITH.                                           (Hebrews 11: 7)

WELCOME TO OUR SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN (CH-25)- ONLY ON GOD DO THOU, MY SOUL, still patiently attend; my expectation and my hope on Him alone depend.

He only my salvation is, and my strong rock is He; He only is my sure defence: I shall not moved be.

Ye people, place your confidence in Him continually; before Him pour ye out your heart; God is our refuge high.

To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, The God whom we adore, be glory, as it was, and is, and shall be evermore. Amen.

LET US PRAY:

ETERNAL AND EVERLASTING GOD, You came to us in Jesus Christ, sharing our humanity. You come to us each day through Your Holy Spirit, sharing in our every experience, so now we come to You, to share together in fellowship with You and one another. We come to seek Your forgiveness, Your strength, Your guidance and Your will. We come to read Your Word, to listen to Your message, and to discern Your purpose. We come offering our discipleship, our gifts, talents and abilities, committing all once more to Your service. Come to us now in this time of worship – renew our commitment and vision, our faith and our love. Open our eyes to Your presence: open our lives to Your grace and power. For we ask it through Jesus Christ our Saviour and Lord.  AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – GENESIS 6-9 / SELECTED.

NOAH WAS A RIGHTEOUS MAN, BLAMELESS AMONG THE PEOPLE OF HIS TIME, AND HE WALKED WITH GOD. NOW THE EARTH WAS CORRUPT IN GOD’S SIGHT AND WAS FULL OF VIOLENCE… THE LORD SAID TO NOAH, „GO INTO THE ARK, YOU AND YOUR WHOLE FAMILY AND … EVERY KIND OF LIVING CREATURE THROUGHOUT THE EARTH. I WILL SEND RAIN ON EARTH FOR FORTY DAYS AND FORTY NIGHTS, AND I WILL WIPE FROM THE FACE OF THE EARTH EVERY LIVING CREATURE I HAVE MADE… THE WATERS FLOODED THE EARTH FOR A HUNDRED AND FIFTY DAYS. THEN GOD SAID TO NOAH, “COME OUT OF THE ARK, YOU AND YOUR WIFE AND YOUR SONS AND THEIR WIVES. BRING OUT EVERY KIND OF LIVING CREATURE – SO THEY CAN MULTIPLY ON THE EARTH AND BE FRUITFUL AND INCREASE IN NUMBER UPON IT….AND NEVER AGAIN WILL I DESTROY ALL LIVING CREATURES, AS I HAVE DONE…I HAVE SET MY RAINBOW IN THE CLOUDS, AND IT WILL BE THE SIGN OF THE COVENANT BETWEEN ME AND THE EARTH”.

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – MATTHEW 7: 24-27.

“THEREFORE EVERYONE WHO HEARS THESE WORDS OF MINE AND PUTS THEM INTO PRACTICE IS LIKE A WISE MAN WHO BUILT HIS HOUSE ON THE ROCK. THE RAIN CAME DOWN, THE STREAMS ROSE, AND THE WINDS BLEW AND BEAT AGAINST THE HOUSE; YET IT DID NOT FALL, BECAUSE IT HAD ITS FOUNDATION ON THE ROCK. BUT EVERYONE WHO HEARS THESE WORDS OF MINE AND DOES NOT PUT THEM INTO PRACTICE IS LIKE A FOOLISH MAN WHO BUILT HIS HOUSE ON SAND. THE RAIN CAME DOWN, THE STREAMS ROSE, AND THE WINDS BLEW AND BEAT AGAINST THAT HOUSE, AND IT FELL WITH A GREAT CRASH” -Jesus said.

NOAH is a well known person from the Old Testament. The Bible characterises him (Genesis 6: 9) as one who was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God. People usually remember Noah for building an ark on a dry land, without having any water around, and getting into it with his family and all kinds of living creatures only because God told him to do so. The Epistle to the Hebrews remembers Noah for his Faith in action, demonstrated by heeding God’s warnings: – By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family, by his faith he condemned the world and became heir of righteousness that comes by faith (Hebrews 11: 7). You do not need to be a child to resent warnings in life only because somebody warns us about something, and we tend to resent that too. Now, God always knows more than we do, and God always knows the proper course of action to take. This morning we will look at Noah’s faith by heeding God’s warnings, and at Jesus’ answer to how we should live by His Words, in the story of The wise and foolish builders.

HEEDING GOD’S WARNINGS BEGINS WITH TRUSTING IN GOD.               Not all warnings that other people give us in life are accurate or well-intended. We need to use wisdom and common sense to evaluate their warnings. If we know that they have good knowledge and are trully motivated for our welfare, then we will trust the warning. The same is with God’s warnings. Believing that God knows everything, and that He is always on our side, then His warnings are always meant for our good, never for our harm, and all the warnings from the Bible should be treated with Trust and Faith, not with doubts.     Responding in holy fear meant that Noah took God’s warning seriously. The flood was not yet seen because it was still in the future. But just because it was in the future did not made it less real for Noah. He believed that if God said it was going to happen, then it was definitely going to happen. Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see (Hebrews 11: 1). Noah took God’s warning seriously. He had a deep conviction, or certainty, about the unseen realities based on the Word of God. That is the true Biblical Faith. Treating God with reverence, awe and respect is because God is The Giver of Life, and He is The taker of Life. Noah knew this and believed what seemed highly improbable but absolutely possible. Heeding God’s warnings must always begin with the right and faithful attitude towards God.

HOLY REVERENCE AND FEAR WAS THE ACTING FORCE IN NOAH.         Faith was the living principle for Noah, and Fear was the moving power. He so believed that fear came upon him, and that fear made him act exactly as God instructed him. Noah had not a despairing fear that can paralyze people, but became a witness of true obedience. Actually, the Ark was God’s idea, not Noah’s idea. After God told Noah He was going to destroy the world, God gave him detailed instructions on how to build the Ark. He told him what kind of wood to use, giving him precise dimensions of the Ark, and on how to bring the animals into it. And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him (Genesis 7: 5). Noah followed all of God’s instructions exactly because he treated God with reverence. To build the Ark must have cost Noah a great deal of money and labour. He could not get anybody to work at his “absurd task” of building a vessel on dry land as they would be laughed at.  And any workmen would be surely demanding extra pay. Noah was content to put all his capital into the building project despite being mocked by the men of that generation. He rather went out and preached to them; but many would not hear him, for they thought he was mad. It is admirable his going into the Ark and coming out again when called to do so. His fear was finally transformed into worship as the first thing he did was to build an altar to the Lord, and so prove that he was at home with God. Noah’s world did not avoid God’s condemnation, but Noah’s faith was vindicated and life on earth was blessed through him.

NOAH’S OBEDIENT FAITH BROUGHT HIM GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS.          I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of my covenant between me and the earth, – said the Lord (Genesis 9: 13). A visible sign for Noah that all that happened had been done through God’s love for His Creation, through an established Covenant. The last thing Noah earned by his faith was his Righteousness. God declared him righteous; not by his works, but by his Faith. He believed God, and found grace in the eyes of the Lord. By faith he was adopted and became Heir of righteousness that comes by faith.

DOING WHAT WE HEAR FORM JESUS’ WORDS. Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5, 6, 7) involves three major themes: (1) – Message about the good news of the Kingdom of God, (2) – Righteousness as a matter of heart, and (3) – the practicality of the human faith in God. In the final section of His Sermon Jesus drew all these themes to a close with a powerful, brief, but compelling story about two builders and their houses, two different kinds of house – one that lasts, and one that does not. Laying these two builders and their houses out next to each other, He encourages His past and present audience to have a personal reflection on life. We all want to build something beautiful, meaningful, productive, valuable and lasting in our lives. We all want to leave a legacy; something that will endure. But for how long will it last? Christians should always plan things in the context of ETERNITY.

THE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TWO BUILDERS AND THE HOUSES.  Each reference involves a builder and his house, and Jesus uses many identical phrases to describe both. The Lord is telling a story with universal implications. There are no exceptions to what He says about either builder in the story: both of them heard “these words of mine,” both built houses, and both houses were tested. Jesus is using almost identical language to describe the testing, and the idea here is that we will all encounter storms in life – Covid-19 Pandemic included – and the trials of life will reveal our faith or lack of faith.

THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO BUILDERS AND THE HOUSES. The main difference between the two builders was that one of them put Jesus’ words into practice, and the other one did not. In fact the contrast in Jesus’ story is not between hearing and not hearing, but between hearing and doing. Reading the Bible, going to church, listening to the sermons – these are all good, but what will the practical result be in those lives? The other difference is the: – wise man / foolish man, with devastating consequences. The Bible says about the Wisdom’s Call: – whoever finds me finds life and receives favour from the Lord, but whoever fails to find me harms himself; all who hate me love death (Proverbs 8: 35-36). The foundation is the most important part of the house. One built his house on the rock, the other built it on the sand. As a strong foundation is needed for a house, we all need strong foundations for our lives. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ, – says Paul in 1 Corinthians 3: 11. Only Jesus and His Word are a solid foundation on which to build our lives. All other ground is sinking sand. Or – When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever (Prov. 10: 25).

In many ways Noah’s Ark serves as a type of foreshadowed Christ and His teachings. Christ Jesus is our Ark now: big enough for the whole world, strong enough to withstand the shocks of life, the running waters of death. There is safety here in the Son of God, sent to be for us all the shelter, the salvation, that we so desperately need; Christ our Ark is the safe passage into the New World God has planned for all who believe in Him. (Peter Lewis,- Jesus our Ark of Salvation).  AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

LOVING HEAVENLY FATHER, we thank You that You are a God who daily teaches us more about Yourself, who has always  more to reveal of Your love. We thank You for the many ways we can hear Your voice – through the Scriptures, the world around us, and the people we meet; through prayer and reflection; through the experiences of life, and our daily walk with You. Help us to be open to everything You would say, ready to receive Your instructions and to accept Your guidance. Save us from closing our ears to what we do not want to hear; from becoming so fixed in our ways and opinions that we become spiritually deaf; from limiting Your Word or denying Your call through our unwillingness to listen. Help us to recognise prayer as Your gift to us, rather than ours to You, and so may we learn from it more of Your purpose, and more about You. Strengthen our faith, deepen our fellowship, direct our witness. Help us to grow inwardly, finding our Spiritual Ark in Jesus, and outwardly, reaching out to You, and to all around us. When we cannot see any answers to our own needs or those of others, when life seems like sinking sand, and we are drowning in our stormy problems, be our Rock and Salvation through Jesus Christ. When we see only problems that seem beyond us, when we do not know what to pray for, teach us to leave all things in Your hands. We pray for the sick and suffering, the poor and hungry, the oppressed and exploited, the lonely and unloved, the aged and infirm, the frightened and anxious, the sorrowful and the bereaved, the helpless and the hopeless. There is so much need around us, in our neighbourhood, our town, our country, and our world – so many people crying out for help. Reach out to them in Your love. Give us the will, the commitment and the love, offering something of ourselves to others, as You offered Your all to us. Be with Your Christian Church Universal in all its branches, and with our Church of Scotland in all its presbyteries and parishes. Bless us all here in our congregation, and hear our prayers for all those whom we now name quietly in our hearts … through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.    AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER, WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH-411): – MY HOPE IS BUILT ON NOTHING LESS than Jesus’ blood and righteousness; I dare not trust my sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ Name. CHORUS: – On Christ, the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness seems to veil His face, I rest on His unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. CHORUS – On Christ, the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.

His oath, His covenant, and blood, support me in the whelming flood; when all around my soul gives way, He then is all my hope and stay: CHORUS – On Christ, the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.

MAY THE GRACE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND THE LOVE OF GOD, AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT BE WITH YOU ALL.   (2 Corinthians 13: 14)

Sandor, your Minister.

IF THE SPIRIT OF HIM, – OUR GOD ALMIGHTY – WHO RAISED JESUS FROM THE DEAD IS LIVING IN YOU, HE WHO RAISED CHRIST FROM THE DEAD WILL ALSO GIVE LIFE TO YOUR MORTAL BODIES THROUGH HIS SPIRIT, WHO LIVES IN YOU.                      (Romans 8: 11)

WELCOME TO OUR TRINITY SUNDAY WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN (660): – UNTO GOD BE PRAISE AND HONOUR; to the Father, to the Son, to the mighty Spirit, glory – ever Three and ever One: power and glory in the highest while eternal ages run. Amen.

LET US PRAY:

ALMIGHTY CREATOR, GOD OF LOVE, we rejoice today that You made us and care for each one of us, that we matter so much to You, that You want to share with us Your gift of life and lead us into a living and loving relationship with You. GOD OF GRACE, we bless You for expressing Your love through Jesus Christ, through His birth, His ministry, His death, His resurrection and His glorious exaltation. GOD OF POWER, we thank You for continuing to bless us each day through Your Holy Spirit, nurturing our faith, renewing our vision, guiding our footsteps and equipping us to serve Your Holy Name.   FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT, RECEIVE OUR PRAISE.  GOD OF ALL, THREE IN ONE AND ONE IN THREE, we praise You that You have called us Your children, Your friends, Your people, and that You are always with us, whatever we may face. Receive our worship, offered to You in awe and wonder, in joy and thanksgiving. Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Holy Trinity, One, Eternal God.    AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – PSALM 51: 10-12; 15-17.

CREATE IN ME A PURE HEART, O GOD, AND RENEW A STEADFAST SPIRIT WITHIN ME. DO NOT CAST ME FROM YOUR PRESENCE OR TAKE YOUR HOLY SPIRIT FROM ME. RESTORE TO ME THE JOY OF YOUR SALVATION AND GRANT ME A WILLING SPIRIT, TO SUSTAIN ME … O LORD, OPEN MY LIPS, AND MY MOUTH WILL DECLARE YOUR PRAISE. YOU DO NOT DELIGHT IN SACRIFICE, OR I WOULD BRING IT; YOU DO NOT TAKE PLEASURE IN BURNT OFFERINGS. THE SACRIFICES OF GOD ARE A BROKEN SPIRIT; A BROKEN AND CONTRITE HEART, O GOD, YOU WILL NOT DESPISE.

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – ROMANS 11: 33 –  12: 2.

OH, THE DEPTH OF THE RICHES OF THE WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE OF GOD! HOW UNSEARCHABLE HIS JUDGMENTS, AND HIS PATHS BEYOND TRACING OUT! WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD? OR WHO HAS BEEN HIS COUNSELLOR? WHO HAS EVER GIVEN TO GOD, THAT GOD SHOULD REPAY HIM? FOR FROM HIM AND THROUGH HIM AND TO HIM ARE ALL THINGS. TO HIM BE THE GLORY FOREVER! AMEN. THEREFORE, I URGE YOU, BROTHERS (AND SISTERS) IN VIEW OF GOD’S MERCY, TO OFFER YOUR BODIES AS LIVING SACRIFICES, HOLY AND PLEASING TO GOD – THIS IS YOUR SPIRITUAL ACT OF WORSHIP. DO NOT CONFORM ANY LONGER TO THE PATTERN OF THIS WORLD, BUT BE TRANSFORMED BY THE RENEWING OF YOUR MIND. THEN YOU WILL BE ABLE TO TEST AND APPROVE WHAT GOD’S WILL IS – HIS GOOD, PLEASING AND PERFECT WILL.

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”(Matthew 3: 16-17).  Today it is TRINITY SUNDAY, – the Sunday after Pentecost.  The word TRINITY is not in the Bible.  Theologians sometimes speak of the TRI-UNITY of God, or a TRIUNE GOD, most relevantly expressed in the above quotation from the Gospel of Matthew.  We believe that the One Living and True God (Deuteronomy 6:4) is the Creator of heaven and earth; who is eternal, almighty, unchangeable, indefinitely powerful, wise, just and holy. We believe that the One God eternally exists in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and that these three are One God, co-equal and co-eternal, having precisely the same nature and attributes, and worthy of precisely the same worship, confidence, and obedience, – as defined in an Ecumenical Statement of the World Council of Churches. The Early Christian Church struggled for centuries over this doctrine. So called Ecumenical Synods have discussed the matter, first broken down into six separate statements to make it easier to understand, then concluded that: – GOD IS ONE IN ESSENCE AND THREE IN PERSON. When we say this we mean that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God, but they are not three gods but only One God. The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, the Spirit is not the Father, but each is God individually and yet they are together THE ONE TRUE GOD OF THE BIBLE. “Faith must be regulated by dogmas. The Trinity is a doctrine that all Christians believe, but no one fully understands the mysteries of our Almighty God,” – said the Professor of Dogmatics during my Divinity-studies, and since, being a Christian and serving as a minister of the Word, I accept this mystery. In 1774 a certain Ignaz Franz wrote a hymn of praise to the Trinity. Its verse three says:

– Holy Father, Holy Son, Holy Spirit, Three we name You; While in essence only One, undivided God we claim You. Then, adoring, bend the knee, and confess the mystery.

Indeed it is a mystery; bending our knees before our great God, – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, – let us offer ourselves as LIVING SACRIFICES, in view of God’s mercy, as our spiritual act of worship (Romans 12: 1) today. This is God’s message on this TRINITY SUNDAY.

RESTORE TO ME THE JOY OF YOUR SALVATION AND GRANT ME A WILLING SPIRIT, TO SUSTAIN ME, asked the writer of Psalm 51(v.12) Out of the depth of His riches and wisdom, with His unsearchable judgements (Romans 11: 33), God has given His Son to save us from our sin. The only thing we must give up to receive His Salvation is that which is going to ruin us if we don’t. Therefore, God approaches us on the basis of His Grace and Mercy, so that through the power of His Holy Spirit He might bestow upon us the Richest Gift that one can ever experience: – Forgiveness of Sin and Life Eternal. If we are willing to give Him the place that belongs to Him, we can begin to know God in His ESSENCE, and to realise what it really means to live life at the highest value and in its richest quality. Our TRIUNE GOD has provided for us a TRINITARIAN SALVATION: – When we were lost in sin, our God acted in every Person of His being to save us. The Father gave the Son, the Son offered Himself on the Cross, and the Holy Spirit brings us through Jesus back to God. We were so lost that it took every member of the GODHEAD, – as the Bible often calls Him, – to save us. In faithful response to it, Paul urges us to offer ourselves as Living Sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God (Romans 12: 1).

A LIVING CHRISTIAN SACRIFICE IS ALIVE, HOLY, COMPLETE, VOLUNTARY, AND JOYFULLY SATISFYING.  Some people look upon God as being tyrannical and unconcerned about the welfare of human beings. They unjustly blame Him for all tragedies and catastrophes when they are challenged to sacrifice themselves faithfully into the service of God. In its verbal form TO SACRIFICE is to make sacred. As a noun it can mean anything consecrated and offered to God or to a divinity, a destruction or surrender of something desirable in favour of a devotional act, or a painful loss of profit in order to satisfy the demands of a mysterious religion. If we would realize that sacrifice does not always involve suffering, we might be able to make a more positive response to the challenge of full dedication of all that we are to the will of God. Worldly success is built also on sacrifice. For instance, have you ever thought, that a  young man who would be successful in playing football must make certain sacrifices in his life to discipline himself and put the game before his personal hobbies, pastimes and safety at times. He who makes no sacrifices will never be a top and effective football player.  Successful home and family life is built on sacrifices that are made by each member of the family for the well-being of the whole group. Obtaining a high degree in education requires patient dedication; without sacrifice there is no success in any area of life. A number of things could be said concerning the nature of a Living Sacrifice: – In the Old Testament we read of the animals that were offered as burnt sacrifices. These sacrifices involved death, so that which was offered as a sacrifice was indeed a victim. – We think of Jesus as being one who sacrificed Himself, and this involved death for Him. Jesus deliberately chose to die so that He might glorify God and save people at the same time. This was the highest goal for Him. It brought greater joy than escaping the Cross ever could have brought, as He then sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12: 2).  – Jesus was willing to become a dead sacrifice so that through His Resurrection, those who believe in Him might inherit life for evermore. Our message for today does not challenge us to die for our faith. It invites us to live for our God in complete dedication to His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, empowered by His Holy Spirit forever. This is the clear pattern of the Holy Trinity, One, Eternal God ! – Many of us are afraid of the word HOLY. We need not be. It means, DIFFERENT, to be separated, or dedicated to God. It defines Faith in Action. Jesus’ parable about the Good Samaritan illustrates what it means to be a holy living sacrifice to God. He was available to render ministries of mercy to an unfortunate victim in time of need. The challenge of our text is of a dedication into the service of God.- It challenges us to co-operate with God’s good purpose for us in every area of life, through all three Persons of the Godhead. It calls for something more than Sunday-morning-religion. It invites us to an acceptance of a full awareness of the stewardship nature of life towards the Holy Trinity, One, Eternal God.– There is no appeal to fear as a motive for surrender in this text, but rather it is an invitation to volunteers who on the basis of gratitude are not conformed any longer to the pattern of this world, but transformed by the renewing of their mind. – Our Saviour God is the Good Shepherd who LEADS His sheep. He is not a driver who compels us to go where we do not wish to go. Only those who have enough gratitude to motivate them to surrender, will respond to this gracious invitation. Christian joy makes a life worth living and a living sacrifice worthy and possible.– Our God will be fully satisfied with us and our service if we fully dedicate ourselves to His will.– We will experience an inward satisfaction and joy that will prove invaluable if we will make a full response and give ourselves unreservedly and unconditionally into the service of our loving God.  – God will continue to reveal to us from day to day His WAY OF LIFE through Jesus Christ, empowering us with His Holy Spirit.

The Holy Trinity, One, Eternal God so loved us that He spared not His Son but gave Him up for us. We cannot outgive God. The more we give of ourselves, the more we shall receive from Him, through the power of His Holy Spirit.                           

AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

HOLY TRINITY, ONE, ETERNAL GOD, Your purpose is for all, for You are the Lord of heaven and earth, the Creator, and Ruler over the history of mankind. You are always at work, always involved in our lives, calling, guiding, speaking and responding. Everyone is important to You, no matter who they are, each having a place in Your plan. So, then, we pray for all in our Covid-19 infested world who feel they are without help, comfort or healing. For all who search for meaning to their lives, a sense of direction, a goal to strive for. May they find the Way, the Truth and the Life. Son of God, Your love is for all, for You lived and died for others, reaching out to both rich and poor, righteous and unrighteous; nobody is outside Your care, no one beyond Your grace. So, we pray for all in our world today who long for healing, love and comfort. For those in hospitals, orphanages and those who face the trauma of bereavement. May they discover in You the love that will not let them go, and the unique source of  Resurrection and life. May they find the Faithful Friend who will be with them till the end of the age, in whose name they can always access God, their refuge and their strength. Spirit of God, Your peace is for all, for You are at work in every heart, seen or unseen, recognized or unrecognised, striving to break down barriers which keep us from one another, from ourselves and from You. We pray, then, for all in our world who hunger for peace – all who are tormented by fear, torn by doubt, troubled by anxieties, or tortured by guilt. May they find peace in body, mind and spirit. Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, bless Your Church and all Your children here and everywhere. Be with our loved-ones as we bring You our world, thankful that it is also Your world, precious to You and shaped ultimately by Your will. Remake, redeem, renew it through Your sovereign power. May all people everywhere come to know Your purpose and become living sacrifices to enjoy the new life You so yearn to give us, to the glory of Your name.          AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER, WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH-659): – ALL PRAISE AND THANKS TO GOD, The Father now be given, The Son, and Him who reigns with them in highest heaven, – The One, Eternal God, whom earth, and heaven adore; for thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.  Amen.

THE LORD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU; THE LORD MAKE HIS FACE SHINE UPON YOU AND BE GRACIOUS TO YOU; THE LORD TURN HIS FACE TOWARDS YOU AND GIVE YOU PEACE. (Numbers 6: 24-26)  MAY THE GRACE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND THE LOVE OF GOD, AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT BE WITH YOU ALL. (2 Corinthians 13: 14)           AMEN.

Sandor, your Minister.

GOD IS SPIRIT, AND HIS WORSHIPERS MUST WORSHIP IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH.            (John 4: 24)

WELCOME TO OUR PENTECOST COMMUNION WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN: – SPIRIT OF GOD, unseen as the wind, gentle as is the dove: teach us the truth and help us believe, show us the Saviour’s love. (=CHORUS)

You spoke to us, long, long ago, gave us the written Word: we read it still, needing its truth, through it God’s voice is heard: + CHORUS …

Without Your help we fail our Lord, we cannot live his way: we need Your power, we need Your strength, following Christ each day: +CHORUS …                (Tune: The Skye Boat Song)

LET US PRAY:

ALMIGHTY AND LOVING GOD, we gather today as those joined by Your Holy Spirit. We come remembering Your ancient promise to send Your Spirit upon all people, young and old, male and female, Jew or Gentile. We come remembering that first Pentecost when Your Spirit was given to the apostles, renewing their faith and transforming their lives. We come, reminded of the constant work of Your Spirit, inspiring, guiding, challenging and refining us. Almighty God, Spirit of Truth, come as You promised and reveal to us more of the way of Christ. Come and fill us with deeper faith and greater love. Give us Your Word and inspire us with new vision and purpose, and breathe Your power into our lives. Almighty and loving God, open our hearts and minds and souls to Your Spirit,  and so equip us to live as Your people, not just today but every day, our lives reflecting Your glory and proclaiming Your love. Move within us, we pray, to the glory of Your name, and for the blessedness of Your Church, here and everywhere, through Jesus Christ our Lord.     AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – PSALM 139: 7-10.

WHERE CAN I GO FROM YOUR SPIRIT? WHERE CAN I FLEE FROM YOUR PRESENCE? IF I GO UP TO THE HEAVENS, YOU ARE THERE; IF I MAKE MY BED IN THE DEPTHS, YOU ARE THERE. IF I RISE ON THE WINGS OF THE DAWN, IF I SETTLE ON THE FAR SIDE OF THE SEA, EVEN THERE YOUR HAND WILL GUIDE ME, YOUR RIGHT HAND WILL HOLD ME FAST.

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – JOHN 3: 1-8.

NOW THERE WAS A MAN OF THE PHARISEES NAMED NICODEMUS, A MEMBER OF THE JEWISH RULING COUNCIL. HE CAME TO JESUS AT NIGHT AND SAID, “RABBI, WE KNOW YOU ARE A TEACHER WHO HAS COME FROM GOD. FOR NO- ONE COULD PERFORM THE MIRACULOUS SIGNS YOU ARE DOING IF GOD WERE NOT WITH HIM.” IN REPLY JESUS DECLARED, “I TELL YOU THE TRUTH, NO-ONE CAN SEE THE KINGDOM OF GOD UNLESS HE IS BORN AGAIN.” “HOW CAN A MAN BE BORN WHEN HE IS OLD?” NICODEMUS ASKED. “SURELY HE CANNOT ENTER A SECOND TIME INTO HIS MOTHER’S WOMB TO BE BORN!” JESUS ANSWERED, “I TELL YOU THE TRUTH, NO-ONE CAN ENTER THE KINGDOM OF GOD UNLESS HE IS BORN OF WATER AND THE SPIRIT. FLESH GIVES BIRTH TO FLESH, BUT SPIRIT GIVES BIRTH TO SPIRIT. YOU SHOULD NOT BE SURPRISED AT MY SAYING, – YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN. THE WIND BLOWS WHEREVER IT PLEASES. YOU HEAR ITS SOUND, BUT YOU CANNOT TELL WHERE IT COMES FROM OR WHERE IT IS GOING. SO IT IS WITH EVERYONE BORN OF THE SPIRIT.”

The circumstances of Pentecost are both significant and symbolic. Pentecost means “The Fiftieth”, and another name for it was “The Feast of the Weeks”. It was so called because it fell on the fiftieth day, a week of weeks (7) after Passover. At least as many people came to the Feast of Pentecost as came to the Passover. That explains the list of countries mentioned in the Book of Acts; never was there a more international crowd in Jerusalem than at the time of Pentecost. The Feast itself was significant for two reasons: it had a historical significance, commemorating the Giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai. At the same time, it had an agricultural importance: at Passover, part of the first crop of barley was offered to God as a prescribed sacrifice, meanwhile at Pentecost two loaves of barley bread were offered as a Sacrificial Gratitude for the safe gathering in of the harvest. This included God’s real Harvest of the Souls. Please keep this in mind, as we turn our attention to Jesus and the Spiritual Harvest of a Pharisee called Nicodemus.

NICODEMUS WANTED TO MEET PRIVATELY WITH JESUS. Nicodemus belonged to the Jewish religious elite. His name means “Winning People.” He was rich, intelligent, thoughtful, and eager to sustain the religious and national pride of his people. But Nicodemus came to Jesus, not really alone. He came representing His colleagues in the Pharisee religious establishment. He expressed in fact their concern. They were closely watching Jesus. They wondered, were intrigued, and were troubled by what they saw and heard. They represented the Jewish orthodoxy in their religious practices. They perceived Jesus as a challenging and dangerous figure with apparent blasphemous behaviour. We cannot exclude the possibility that Nicodemus might have come to Jesus well intentioned, wanting to help Him to change his rhetoric about the Kingdom of God, to tell Him that the situation around Him was becoming dangerous and that the accusation of blasphemy might result in capital punishment. But, as Psalm 139 defines these kind of situations, he was unable to go or flee from the presence of the Spirit. Pentecost is the revealed way of how God works through the power of His Holy Spirit in the lives of people who access Jesus day or night, at any time.

FAITH BEGINS WITH A GUIDED APPROACH BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. Nicodemus initiated the conversation with Jesus. He approached Him respectfully, in a susceptible way, – Rabbi, we know You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs You are doing if God were not with Him. From his whole human and religious experience this affirmation denotes true receptivity, taking him far beyond the pragmatic practice of his Law-regulated religiosity. But Jesus’ answer was not what he expected: – No one can see the Kingdom of God unless he/she is born again. Nicodemus was stunned and confused. He expected a “first-hand” description of Jehovah whom he humbly worshipped; but instead, Jesus was talking about REBIRTH. He wanted a debate on the truth behind the Invisible God whom he so devotedly worshipped, but the Lord spoke rather about a deep change to his own identity. The crucial religious questions facing us have little to do with ecclesiastical legalism or “virtual reality”. These matters are but symptoms of a more crucial question: – WHO AND WHAT DEFINES MY LIFE?

Once, a childhood-friend of mine, confessed to me that he was deeply interested in Christianity, and if I could “prove” to him that God exists, he would be ready to take up full church-membership. Sadly, my answer must have been very disappointing for him because he never ever spoke to me again on this matter. My answer was, and will always be, to everyone like him, – I cannot intellectually  prove the existence of God, but there is a SPIRITUAL PROOF possible: BELIEVE first, and God Himself will give you all the proofs you need or ask for. The key question to the “Nicodemus-es” is this, – Where do you find yourself rooted, and identified, and how are you in in mind, heart, and spirit when you treat, serve and love others?   (My friend is a medical GP doctor, and a highly esteemed person in his community).

I think that one of the major problems of our 21 century’s society is the weakened SPIRITUALITY of many of the people. Everything seems knowledgeable, approachable, answerable; people are tempted to believe that everything has an “intellectual” reason and understanding. We need to realize that the composition of our lives contains both the physical and the spiritual, and that the spiritual dimension is our coordinator. With, or without God in it. Curiosity is not enough for our sinful nature to regain the “Lost Paradise.” Jesus says that there is only one way back to God, and that is to be born from above. The Bible says that Faith is a Gift of God. Jesus’ answer is clear, we have to be born by the Spirit. Re-created in the pattern of the first Creation, where the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. This process is called SALVATION through FAITH in Jesus Christ. Paul describes it in detail: – If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Spirit says,” Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10: 9-13).

THE BATTLE IS ALWAYS BETWEEN THE “FLESH” AND THE SPIRIT.  This is why the Holy Spirit had to have a visible and spiritual impact on the apostles, enabling them to give the Word of God with power.  FAITH is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see (Hebrews 11: 1). As a ruler of the Jews, Nicodemus embodied a belief that had gone astray. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! (Hebrews 9: 13-14). Nicodemus came from a religious system which installed a belief that it is possible to do things for God, to please Him, so with meticulous law-keeping and sufficient correct sacrifices God’s attitude could be changed. In fact, Jesus was pointing to the conflict between what man can do for God to achieve salvation , and what God has done for us to be saved. To turn around this fatal conceit, Jesus described here the nature of REPENTANCE. The way how Jesus and John the Baptist used it (Matthew 3: 12), Repentance is a radical spiritual action, as John simplified it: – Stop sinning! But this is one of the most impossible requests possible for humans to surrender the self and give up the idea that there is an innate goodness within that recommends us to God. We need the Power of God (His Spirit), and Jesus’ Atoning Sacrifice (The Lord’s Supper) to be able to apply for forgiveness and Salvation through God’s Grace. Jesus uses several images in His teachings to describe this to His disciples. He talked about a “wide gate and a broad road” that leads to destruction, and a “small gate and narrow road,“ that leads to life, and only a few find it (Matthew 7: 13-14). The requirement for discipleship, – if anyone would come – to follow Jesus, is to deny oneself, take up His Cross, and follow Him (Matthew 16: 24). In the process of Spiritual Salvation, we must remember that the cross was the instrument of death, and in this instance death itself. So when we remember – in the Holy Communion – the Death of the Lord, we prove our readiness to be Saved through His Death.

Jesus Christ is the Son of God, our Saviour, and whosoever believes in Him will not perish but will have eternal life. Today is the Day of the coming of the Spirit of God. We are here  to worship the Lord, to meet with Christ, to give thanks for all the benefits of being called the children of God. How desperate are we to receive the assurance of God, the AMEN? – IT IS TRUE AND SURE, THAT GOD WILL MUCH MORE ANSWER OUR PRAYERS THAN WE EVER THINK OR IMAGINE. May be, the Spirit of God is just trying to prompt us, to receive it, through Communion with Jesus Christ our Saviour and Lord. Think, and pray about it, right now, before you take the elements.    AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

HOLY SPIRIT OF OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, we welcome You again – opening our minds to Your presence, our hearts to Your love, and our lives to Your purpose. Breathe upon us, fill and encourage us, and send us out in the service of Christ. For Your presence at work within us and in Your world we praise You. You are always moving, daily seeking to lead us into the truth, constantly striving to break through the walls we erect against You. You can deepen our faith, enrich our experience, strengthen our commitment, and enlarge our vision, yet time and again, we allow a lack of expectation to frustrate Your purpose. Come gently as a dove, as we pray for all who long for peace, and all who have lost sight of what peace really means. We think of those who have contracted Coronavirus, and are unable to believe that they will be healed. For those who’ve lost confidence in science, vaccines, doctors, and even in Your healing power. We pray for those who mourn loved ones and have developed a prejudice towards everything, and those who still have a positive attitude towards containing this Pandemic. We pray for the poor and the hungry, the homeless end the refugee, the sick and the unemployed, the downtrodden and the oppressed – these and so many others, who yearn for a new beginning, and opportunity to start afresh. May their prayers be answered, and their hopes realised. You changed the lives of the Apostles and of countless people throughout history, just as You are changing our lives today, each renewed through Your sovereign power. Change and help our world in all its need, so that it may enjoy hope and peace, healing and harmony, that all may come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Be with Your Christian Church Universal, with our Church of Scotland in this time of our General Assembly, and the presbyteries and parishes. Bless everyone in our congregation, our loved ones wherever they are, and hear our prayers for all those whom we now name in our hearts … through Jesus Christ our Lord.        AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER, WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH-334): – HOLY SPIRIT, EVER LIVING as the Church’s very life; Holy Spirit, ever striving through her in a ceaseless strife; Holy Spirit ever forming in the Church the mind of Christ; Thee we praise with endless worship for Thy fruit and gifts unpriced.

Holy Spirit, ever working through the Church’s ministry; Quick’ning, strength’ning, and absolving, setting captive sinners free; Holy Spirit, ever binding age to age, and soul to soul, in a fellowship unending Thee we worship and extol.

JUST AS YOU RECEIVED CHRIST JESUS AS LORD, CONTINUE TO LIVE IN HIM, ROOTED AND BUILT UP IN HIM, STRENGTHENED IN THE FAITH AS YOU WERE TAUGHT, AND OVERFLOWING WITH THANKFULNESS.       (Colossians 2: 6-7)                         AMEN.

Sandor, your Minister. 

SUDDENLY TWO MEN DRESSED IN WHITE  STOOD BESIDE THEM. “MEN OF GALILEE,” THEY SAID, “WHY DO YOU STAND HERE LOOKING INTO THE SKY? THIS SAME JESUS, WHO HAS BEEN TAKEN FROM YOU INTO HEAVEN, WILL COME BACK IN THE SAME WAY YOU HAVE SEEN HIM GO INTO HEAVEN.”            (Acts 1: 10-11)

WELCOME TO OUR ASCENSION-SUNDAY WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN (CH-32) – IMMORTAL, INVISIBLE, GOD ONLY WISE, in light inaccessible hid from our eyes, most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days, Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light, nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might; Thy justice like mountains high soaring above Thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all, life Thou givest – to both great and small; in all life Thou livest, the true life of all; we blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree, and wither and perish – but naught changeth Thee.

Great Father of Glory, pure Father of Light, Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight; all laud we would render: O help us to see ‘Tis only the splendour of light hideth Thee.

LET US PRAY:

LORD JESUS CHRIST, we worship You today as the Lord of lords and King of kings. We bring You our praise this morning, and we dedicate our lives faithfully to Your service. We acknowledge You as sovereign over life, the Lord of Creation, through whom all things were made, and in whom we live and move and have our being. We acknowledge You as sovereign over death, the Risen Lord who triumphed over the grave, the resurrection and the life. We acknowledge You as sovereign overall, Lord of space and time, ruler of the ends of the earth, enthroned in splendour at the right hand of the Father. Blessing and honour and glory and might are Yours, O Lord, this day and for evermore!              AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – DANIEL 7: 9-10, 13-14, 22.

AS I LOOKED, THRONES WERE SET IN PLACE, AND THE ANCIENT OF DAYS TOOK HIS SEAT. HIS CLOTHING WAS AS WHITE AS SNOW; THE HAIR OF HIS HEAD WAS WHITE LIKE WOOL. HIS THRONE WAS FLAMING WITH FIRE, AND ITS WHEELS WERE ALL ABLAZE. A RIVER OF FIRE WAS FLOWING, COMING OUT FROM BEFORE HIM. THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS ATTENDED HIM; TEN THOUSAND TIMES TEN THOUSAND STOOD BEFORE HIM. THE COURT WAS SEATED, AND THE BOOKS WERE OPENED … IN MY VISION AT NIGHT I LOOKED, AND THERE BEFORE ME WAS ONE LIKE A SON OF MAN, COMING WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN. HE APPROACHED THE ANCIENT OF DAYS AND WAS LED INTO HIS PRESENCE. HE WAS GIVEN AUTHORITY, GLORY AND SOVEREIGN POWER; ALL PEOPLES, NATIONS AND MEN OF EVERY LANGUAGE WORSHIPPED HIM. HIS DOMINION IS AN EVERLASTING DOMINION THAT WILL NOT PASS AWAY, AND HIS KINGDOM IS ONE THAT WILL NEVER BE DESTROYED … UNTIL THE ANCIENT OF DAYS CAME AND PRONOUNCED JUDGMENT IN FAVOUR OF THE SAINTS OF THE MOST HIGH, AND THE TIME CAME WHEN THEY POSSESSED THE KINGDOM.

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – LUKE 24: 50-53.

WHEN HE (JESUS) HAD LED THEM OUT TO THE VICINITY OF BETHANY, HE LIFTED UP HIS HANDS AND BLESSED THEM. WHILE HE WAS BLESSING THEM, HE LEFT THEM AND WAS TAKEN UP INTO HEAVEN. THEN THEY WORSHIPED HIM AND RETURNED TO JERUSALEM WITH GREAT JOY. AND THEY STAYED CONTINUALLY AT THE TEMPLE, PRAISING GOD.

The Resurrection brought a radical change into Jesus’ relationship with His disciples. After all the fear and disappointment caused by the Crucifixion of their beloved Master the disciples became totally devoted to their call as they met the Risen Lord. Jesus used the following forty days to finalize their preparedness for the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them … (Matthew 28: 19-20). The number forty is a very important biblical number if we think of the 40 years of the Exodus from Egypt, or Jesus’ testing in the desert for 40 days. Combined with the 40 days following Jesus’ Resurrection, this number reveals a biblical time of preparation, testing, trial or probation in the life of God’s people. After the significant 40 days, the Risen Christ was taken up before their very eyes (Acts 1: 9) into Heaven, and leaving His people with a firm promise, that surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28: 20) and you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be my witnesses … (Acts 1: 8). From its early times, the Christian Church needed a concise statement on the importance of Ascension Day, as it wasn’t observed with the same veneration as Christmas, Easter or Pentecost. In fact, through Jesus’ Ascension, these three are being interconnected as God’s Act of Salvation through Jesus Christ.

HOW DOES CHRIST’S ASCENSION BENEFIT US?  A Protestant church-doctrine from Reformation-times firmly states: – First, He is our Advocate in heaven before His Father. Second, we have our flesh in heaven as a sure pledge that He, our head, will also take us, His members, up to Himself. Third, He sends us His Spirit as a counter pledge, by whose power we seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God, and not the things that are on earth. (Heidelberg Catechism, Q.49.- 1563). Regarded as a separate church-doctrine the Ascension of Christ is significant for several reasons. It represents the culmination of the earthly ministry of Jesus. His death and Resurrection could not have their full effect until he ascended to the presence of the Father, to whom He presented His finished work of Atonement (Hebrews 4: 14-15). This is the moment when the manhood of Jesus is taken up to God and glorified, as the final assurance of our eternal salvation. The human body of Christ is now no longer present within a time and space framework but belongs to the Son of God in eternity. It can be interpreted also as the glorification of man through the Resurrection of Christ. Jesus’ entry into His kingly office at God’s right hand is a reminder that His work on our behalf continues in the present. Jesus’ victorious triumph assures us of His mediation, and is particularly important for our understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit. The heavenly session reminds us that Christ’s work is at once efficacious and complete, since the One who now sits on the Throne of God is the Lamb who was slain on the Cross of Calvary. (Book of Revelation 22: 1-3). Finally, in Jesus Christ’s mission there had to be a moment when returned back to the Glory that was His. Nowadays we do not regard HEAVEN as some place beyond the sky, but as a state of timeless blessedness where God is. He is waiting there until His enemies are subdued, and will return in a final act into the world to establish God’s Kingdom as He promised (1 Corinthians 15:24-26).      (According to the New Dictionary of Theology, 1988, page 47.)

ASCENSION IS A STRONG REMINDER OF JESUS’ RESURRECTION.        Resurrection is the theological key to the understanding of the LOVE, GRACE and POWER OF GOD. If God can do that, then God can do anything. For the earliest followers, the fact that Jesus was risen from the dead was all the reality and proof they needed to validate the Power of God. Jesus reminded His followers that when the SPIRIT OF GOD will be upon them, they will bear witness to the whole world about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour. In the closing verses of his Gospel Luke says: – While He (Jesus) was blessing them, He left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshipped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. What a change! Despite His Ascension, or maybe because of it, the disciples were quite sure that Jesus had not gone away from among them but remained with them forever. The essential teaching of Christianity is that History is not a mass of chance-events which are going nowhere. God has a reason for everything, and for every activity under heaven (Ecclesiastes 3: 1). We are bound to believe that there is some divine far-off event to which the whole creation moves and that, when fulfilment comes, Jesus Christ will be Judge and Lord of all. According to His teaching, Jesus’ Second Coming is not a matter for speculation and satisfying of human curiosity, but a call to be ready in all circumstances as Christlike People for that day, whenever it comes. This is how we need to deal with all the mysteries of the Bible, hidden to us like Jesus’ Ascension; Heaven being where God is, above His Creation.

THE ANCIENT OF DAYS. The Ancient of Days is the most mysterious description of God in the Bible. It occurs only three times, and all three are found in Chapter 7 of the Book of Daniel, as he had a dream and visions of God “passed through his mind”. I hope that  I do not confuse you more with the biblical references about Heaven where Jesus ascended to be with God after forty days from His Resurrection. Every Christian has, at least once, had an imaginary picture of what God looks like, of where God is, and to where Jesus was ascended. 1. – Ancient of Days first appears in Daniel 7: 9. There an Ancient, or venerable Person sits on a flaming throne with wheels of fire, His hair and clothing white as snow. The flaming throne is symbolic of judgement, while the white hair and the title Ancient indicate that God existed before time began. We read in Genesis 1 that God created time, days and nights, so God existed before the beginning of time. He is from everlasting to everlasting (Psalm 90: 2), and the first and the last (Isaiah 44: 6, and Revelation 1: 17). As for the thousands of beings standing before God the Father, this image is repeated in the vision of John (Revelation 5: 11). 2. – In Daniel 7: 13-14 the being like the Son of Man is Jesus Christ, and the Ancient of Days is once again God the Father. The Son of Man, Jesus, appears before God the Father to present to Him an Everlasting Dominion. Paul spoke of this future act when he wrote, – Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power (1 Corinthians 15: 24). The Everlasting Dominion is the Church. 3. – Some assume that the Ancient of Days in Daniel 7: 21-22 must be a reference to Jesus Christ, since Jesus is prophesied to return to earth to establish the Kingdom of God (Matthew 24: 30). Christ most definitely will return to earth for this purpose, but we must also remember that only God the Father will determine the day and hour for Jesus’ return to the earth as the “authorised representative” of God the Father (Mark 13: 32). The Holy Spirit – the Power of God – will be with Christ when He – will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him (Hebrews 9: 28). Recognizing Christ as the Representative of God, we can see that the Ancient of Days is God the Father, who has supreme authority and power, both in heaven and earth, for ever and ever.

Ascension Day gives certainty in the future for those who believe in Jesus Christ, through the Bible that explains itself.  AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

GRACIOUS LORD, we remember today how Your apostles stood gazing into heaven, troubled and confused, struggling to make sense of their experience. Instead of worshipping You as King of kings and Lord of lords, and putting You in the context of the whole Salvation, their horizons were too narrow, their sight set too low, and their expectations too limited. Forgive us that all too often we make the same mistake as the apostles – we expect You to fit in with our own expectations, we assume we know all there is to know about You, we settle for a comfortable picture of You that offers much and asks little; and when that way of thinking is challenged or threatened, we are puzzled, suddenly overcome by a multitude of questions and doubts. Help us to glimpse the wonder of Your Ascension and the untold possibilities of all You can do, and to be captured by a new vision of Your almighty Kingdom. Ancient of Days, we thank You for showing us that Jesus was greater than we had begun to imagine – not bound by space and time, nor tied down to one particular place, nor restricted to one particular people, but ascended to Your side and One with You for all eternity. We thank You that no one is outside Your love, whoever they may be and whatever they may have done; You value all, and respond to all. We pray for Her Majesty our Queen, the Royal family, the Government of our land. Guide them in their decisions and give them a proper sense of the responsibility entrusted to them. Be with all the leaders of the nations in these hard times of Coronavirus Pandemic, bless those who work to contain the virus. We pray for all who are not well: heal those who are sick, protect the vulnerable, and comfort those who mourn. Bless Your Christian Church Universal in all its branches, our Church of Scotland’s presbyteries and parishes, and especially bless the forthcoming General Assembly in its decision-making. Be with our congregation, with all our sisters and brothers in this Island, and hear our quiet prayers for our loved-ones and all whom we name in our hearts …through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER, WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH-305) – SING WE TRIUMPHANT HYMNS OF PRAISE, new hymns to heaven exulting raise: Christ, by a road before untrod, ascendeth to the throne of God.

O grant that we may thither tend, and with unwearied hearts ascend toward Thy kingdom’s throne, where Thou, our great high priest, art seated now.

Be Thou our joy and strong defence, who art our future recompense: so shall the light that springs from Thee be ours through all eternity.

O Risen Christ, ascended Lord, all praise to Thee let earth accord, who art, while endless ages run, with Father and with Spirit One. Amen.

TO THE ETERNAL, IMMORTAL, INVISIBLE, THE ONLY GOD, BE HONOUR AND GLORY FOR EVER AND EVER!      AMEN.

(1 Timothy 1: 17)

Sandor, your Minister.

JESUS SAID, – PEACE I LEAVE WITH YOU; MY PEACE I GIVE YOU. I DO NOT GIVE TO YOU AS THE WORLD GIVES. DO NOT LET YOUR HEARTS BE TROUBLED AND DO NOT BE AFRAID.             (John 14: 27)

WELCOME TO OUR SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP.

OPENING HYMN (CH-15) – WE LOVE THE PLACE, O GOD, wherein Thine honour dwells; the joy of Thine abode all earthly joy excels.

It is the house of prayer, wherein Thy servants meet; and Thou, O Lord, art there, Thy chosen flock to greet.

We love the Word of Life, the Word that tells of peace, of comfort in the strife, and joys that never cease.

Lord Jesus, give us grace, on earth to love Thee more, in heaven to see Thy face, and with Thy saints adore.

LET US PRAY:

LOVING GOD, we come to praise You for the knowledge that You are always with us in all the changes and chances of our lives. We thank You that You are a God we can depend on in all the many uncertainties we face, always loving, always merciful and always faithful. Help us to let go of the fears and anxieties that weigh us down, that hold us back, that destroy our confidence and undermine our happiness, that alienate us from one another and prevent us living life to the full. Give us Your Word, the peace Jesus promised to all who follow Him, the knowledge that we need neither be troubled nor afraid, for You are with us, watching over us now and always. For the knowledge that You are always with us, we praise You, through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.  AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – PSALM 4: 6-8.

MANY ARE ASKING, “WHO CAN SHOW US ANY GOOD?” LET THE LIGHT OF YOUR FACE SHINE UPON US, O LORD. YOU HAVE FILLED MY HEART WITH GREATER JOY THEN WHEN THEIR GRAIN AND NEW WINE ABOUND. I WILL LIE DOWN AND SLEEP IN PEACE, FOR YOU ALONE, O LORD, MAKE ME DWELL IN SAFETY.

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – PHILIPPIANS 4: 1-9.

THEREFORE, MY BROTHERS (AND SISTERS), YOU WHOM I LOVE AND LONG FOR, MY JOY AND CROWN, THAT IS HOW YOU SHOULD STAND FIRM IN THE LORD, DEAR FRIENDS!       I PLEAD WITH EUODIA AND I PLEAD WITH SYNTYCHE TO AGREE WITH EACH OTHER IN THE LORD. YES, AND I ASK YOU, LOYAL YOKE-FELLOW, HELP THESE WOMEN WHO HAVE CONTENDED AT MY SIDE IN THE CAUSE OF THE GOSPEL, ALONG WITH CLEMENT AND THE REST OF MY FELLOW WORKERS, WHOSE NAMES ARE IN THE BOOK OF LIFE. REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS. I WILL SAY IT AGAIN: REJOICE! LET YOUR GENTLENESS BE EVIDENT TO ALL. THE LORD IS NEAR. DO NOT BE ANXIOUS ABOUT ANYTHING, BUT IN EVERYTHING, BY PRAYER AND PETITION, WITH THANKSGIVING, PRESENT YOUR REQUESTS TO GOD. AND THE PEACE OF GOD, WHICH TRANSCENDS ALL UNDERSTANDING, WILL GUARD YOUR HEARTS AND YOUR MINDS IN CHRIST JESUS. FINALLY, BROTHERS (AND SISTERS), WHATEVER IS TRUE, WHATEVER IS NOBLE, WHATEVER IS RIGHT, WHATEVER IS PURE, WHATEVER IS LOVELY, WHATEVER IS ADMIRABLE – IF ANYTHING IS EXCELLENT OR PRAISEWORTHY – THINK ABOUT SUCH THINGS. WHATEVER YOU HAVE LEARNED OR RECEIVED OR HEARD FROM ME, OR SEEN IN ME – PUT IT INTO PRACTICE. AND THE GOD OF PEACE WILL BE WITH YOU.

The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. We should be grateful to  Apostle Paul for giving us this gem of scriptural assurance. From a prison cell, in the midst of circumstances beyond his control that would determine his fate, Paul wrote to a beloved yet troubled congregation this word of hope. His central message is that whatever the circumstances of life may be, there is available for us God’s all sufficient grace. Souls can always be relaxed for those who carry not only Christ’s name but also Christ’s attitude; and there is PEACE, the kind that goes beyond what we ever can imagine.

CIRCUMSTANCES AND … CIRCUMSTANCES.  – There is obvious drama behind the names mentioned at the beginning of the passage. Euodia and Syntyche were women in whose homes two of the house congregations of Philippi met; and the two women had quarrelled. It is significant that, when there was a quarrel at Philippi, Paul mobilized the whole church to mend it. A quarrelling church is no church at all. No one can be at peace with God and at conflict with others. Clement goes down in church history as the peacemaker of Philippi and an example of true discipleship.  – On the 8/9 May 1945, millions of people rejoiced to the news that after nearly six years, the War in Europe was finally over. Nazi Germany signed an unconditional surrender to the Allies, and the Second World War finally came to an end. But for how long did that peace last? Documents show that in the following decades even more people were killed in Europe than during the war; in prison-camps, “peaceful” border rearrangements, uprisings and revolutions, spy-missions and everyday communist- persecutions and interrogations. Was that peace-treaty, a real peace for everybody?  – We live in a different world today than ever before. Instead of a “real” war, an Invisible Enemy, called CORONAVIRUS, kills millions of people all over the world. Is there, in a world like this, a place for peace and rest for our souls? Indeed there is. Thanks be to God.

GOD’S WORD OF PEACE IS AT HAND FOR THE BELIEVERS. Surveys suggest  that the aims of all people include a desire for peace: world peace, national peace, the ending of crime and lawlessness, and personal peacefulness. The prophets of old declared it. Isaiah saw a day when the lion would lay down with the lamb, when we would beat our spears into ploughs, a world in which we would learn of war no more. That day has not yet come. Our Saviour Jesus came to fulfil the Old Testament promise as The Prince of Peace. At His birth, the angels sang about it: Peace on earth and goodwill towards men. Then, as a legacy of His atoning death and resurrection, Jesus gave the final promise: – Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. This is what Paul refers to in our passage. He describes PEACE in military terms. God, he said, will “garrison” us. God will GUARD our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. We never fight the battles of life alone. God is with us. He is forever our Emmanuel – our PEACE which transcends all understanding.

WORRY IS NOT ALLOWED TO DOMINATE A PEACEFUL LIFE.  Do not be anxious about anything. Here Paul warned us against unhealthy, damaging, destructive worry. The word anxiety in Greek actually means “to be pulled apart.” It describes a warfare in the soul, that gives no rest. Worry that kills is what Paul taught against. Now, not all worries are bad. Some amount of tension, as a driving force, may well be healthy. Some tension, some worry, may help to encourage us in facing the tasks that lie before us. But many of us are chronic worriers.  If we don’t have something to worry about, well .. we are quick to invent it: – there is a Black Hole out there in the Universe, and I am afraid I’ll be the next to be pulled into it. Or there is a hole in the ozone layer. Indeed, there is – but I think it is right above my house. Please, don’t laugh. I myself heard people saying this; it just proves that human inventiveness is unlimited when it comes to worries. But there is a practical concern here. Worry doesn’t do anyone any good. In fact, all that worry does is to take away energy that could be used for creative and positive solutions to the things that trouble us. Excessive worry is damaging.

PRAYER IS THE ALTERNATIVE TO WORRY.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition present your requests to God. What world-view would we rather have – the frantic chaos of life out of control, or the calm acknowledgment that this is God’s world, and we are a part of it? Prayer is the positive alternative to a world out of control. It seems to me that there are at least two modern views of inadequate prayer. The first is the kind that makes God a slot-machine, and prayers into coins, as if we we should just “name it and claim it.” Then there are those who say, – “There is nothing in it. I can get along quite well without God and without prayer.” Indeed, you can “get along” without God and prayer – if you are satisfied just to get along.

HOW CAN WE DEFINE PRAYER?  Is it the bowed head in public worship? Indeed, but more. Is it the occasional routine of prayer at meetings or at tables, before bedtime or any of our private moments? Indeed, but more. Prayer is all of life lifted to God – the developing togetherness and intimacy with the Father – for we believe that all of life belongs to God. Prayer is the greatest work of the heart. Prayer, then, is an exercise of believing people. Believing that God is approachable, interested, and involved in life with us. Prayer is the alternative to worry. Instead of wringing our hands desperately, we can use them at the great work of prayer. In a troubled world like this there really is hope – as long as there still  are devoted Christians who not only declare faith in God, but are whole-heartedly involved in prayer: – faithfulness put into practice. And the God of peace will be with you, as Paul ends our passage.

WE ARE CALLED TO A LIFE OF PEACE.  PEACE means to think about such things: – whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, – and then put these things into practice. A life of peace means not only the ending of hostilities or pandemic, but a peace located amid life’s turmoil. We believe in, proclaim, bear witness to a living Christ, who is with us in everything and always, just as He said, – Till the very end of the age. I admire FISH that are able to live under the pressure of tons of water. They have thin skin, but have pressure inside them equal and opposite to the pressure outside. They are able to live and swim freely where we would be easily killed and destroyed in seconds. That is what peace is like. Peace inside the human heart is equal and opposite of all the stresses and pressures crushing us from the outside world. One of Charles Wesley’s hymns so beautifully says, – I rest beneath the Almighty’s shade, My griefs expire, my troubles cease; Thou, Lord, on whom my soul is stayed, Wilt keep me still in perfect peace. (How do Thy mercies close me round,- Evening hymn). SHALOM is the Hebrew equivalent of Peace. It is used also as a greeting that declares the Peace of God and a significant level of well-being that comes as lives are lived according to the will of God, both to the world around, and within the soul. Shalom in this way means Harmony with God, His world and me. In the New Testament the word PEACE describes a restored relation. Because of our sin, we are alienated from God. Yet in Christ Jesus, this wrong relationship is set right. We are reconciled to God and forgiven. GOD HAS MADE PEACE WITH US THROUGH THE BLOOD OF THE CROSS. Jesus used this word by saying,- Go in peace and sin no more.         AMEN.

LET US PRAY:

LIVING AND LOVING GOD, there is so much despair in our world, and for many there seems little reason to hope. Reach out, we pray, to all those whose belief in the future has been destroyed, and grant new dreams where the old have died, rekindled purpose where confidence has been undermined, support when there seems to be nothing left to hold on to, and hope that soon Your peace will anchor again their faith in You. We pray for all those who are weighed down by the stresses and strains of daily life – those who long for peace of mind, who seek rest for their souls but cannot find it. We pray for those burdened by worry, unable to throw off their anxieties, held captive by a multitude of secret fears. We pray for those who cannot let go, those who find it impossible to relax, always fretting over this or that. We pray for those who have lost time for You, allowing the pressures and demands of each day to shut You out, putting off any prayer or thought of You. Help us to receive the freedom You offer, the freedom that comes from knowing You hold all things in Your hands and that nothing can finally separate us from Your love. We thank You that whoever we are, wherever we are, or whatever we may go through, You are with us, constantly by our side, and leading us forward through Jesus into new experiences of Your Love and peace. Strengthen our faith, deepen our fellowship; help us to grow inwardly and outwardly, reaching out to You, to one another, and to all around, showing Your peace that transcends all understanding. When we do not hear You speak help us to remember all those times You have spoken unmistakably to us, and let those moments sustain and direct us to find rest for our souls. May Your anchor hold the Christian Church here and everywhere, to always seek Your will and follow faithfully Your guidance. Be with our congregation and with our loved-ones, and hear our quiet prayers for all whom we now quietly name in our hearts … through Jesus Christ our Prince of Peace and Lord.   AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER, WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH- 412): – WILL YOUR ANCHOR HOLD in the storms of life, when the clouds unfold their wings of strife? When the strong tides lift, and the cables strain, will your anchor drift, or firm remain? CHORUS: – We have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll; fastened to the Rock which cannot move, grounded firm and deep in the Saviour’s love!

Will your anchor hold in the straits of fear, when the breakers roar and the reef is near? When the surges rave, and the wild winds blow, shall the angry waves then your bark o’erflow? CHORUS …     

Will your anchor hold in the floods of death, when the waters cold chill your latest breath? On the rising tide you can never fail, while your anchor holds within the veil:   CHORUS …

Will your eyes behold through the morning light the city of gold and the harbour bright? Will your anchor safe by the heavenly shore, when life’s storms are past for evermore?  CHORUS … 

MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU; THE LORD MAKE HIS FACE SHINE UPON YOU AND BE GRACIOUS TO YOU; THE LORD TURN HIS FACE TOWARDS YOU AND GIVE YOU PEACE.    (The Book of Numbers 6: 24-26)

Sandor, your Minister.                                                                                                                 

JESUS SAID, – “LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND. THIS IS THE FIRST AND GREATEST COMMANDMENT. AND THE SECOND IS LIKE IT: – LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOUR AS YOURSELF. ALL THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS HANG ON THESE TWO COMMANDMENTS.” (Matthew 22: 37-40)

WELCOME TO OUR SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP

OPENING HYMN (CH-93) – LOVING SHEPHERD OF THY SHEEP, keep me, Lord, in safety keep; nothing can Thy power withstand; none can pluck me from Thy hand.

Loving Shepherd, Thou didst give Thine own life that I might live; may I love Thee day by day, gladly Thy sweet will obey.

Loving Shepherd, ever near, teach me still Thy voice to hear; suffer not my feet to stray from the straight and narrow way.

Where Thou leadest may I go, walking in Thy steps below; then, before Thy Father’s throne, Jesus, claim me for Thine own.

LET US PRAY:

LOVING GOD, once more You have blessed us, leading us through another week, forgiving our many mistakes and failings, blessing us in a multitude of ways; so now, once more, we come to worship You. We come to thank You for Your goodness, Your guidance, Your love and Your mercy. We come to praise You and pray, to read and listen, to think and learn, to give and receive. As we worship You today, draw us closer to Yourself, closer to Christ, and closer to one another, so that the faith we profess and love You give may be seen in our lives always; through Jesus Christ.   AMEN.

OLD TESTAMENT READING: – PROVERBS 25: 21-22.  IF YOUR ENEMY IS HUNGRY, GIVE HIM FOOD TO EAT; IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM WATER TO DRINK. IN DOING THIS, YOU WILL HEAP BURNING COALS ON HIS HEAD, AND THE LORD WILL REWARD YOU.

NEW TESTAMENT READING: – ROMANS 12: 9-21.  LOVE MUST BE SINCERE. HATE WHAT IS EVIL; CLING TO WHAT IS GOOD. BE DEVOTED TO ONE ANOTHER IN BROTHERLY LOVE. HONOUR ONE ANOTHER ABOVE YOURSELVES. NEVER BE LACKING IN ZEAL, BUT KEEP YOUR SPIRITUAL FERVOUR, SERVING THE LORD. BE JOYFUL IN HOPE, PATIENT IN AFFLICTION, FAITHFUL IN PRAYER. SHARE WITH GOD’S PEOPLE WHO ARE IN NEED. PRACTICE HOSPITALITY. BLESS THOSE WHO PERSECUTE YOU; BLESS AND DO NOT CURSE. REJOICE WITH THOSE WHO REJOICE; MOURN WITH THOSE WHO MOURN. LIVE IN HARMONY WITH ONE ANOTHER. DO NOT BE PROUD, BUT BE WILLING TO ASSOCIATE WITH PEOPLE OF LOW POSITION. DO NOT BE CONCEITED. DO NOT REPAY ANYONE EVIL FOR EVIL. BE CAREFUL TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT IN THE EYES OF EVERYBODY. IF IT IS POSSIBLE, AS FAR AS IT DEPENDS ON YOU, LIVE AT PEACE WITH EVERYONE. DO NOT TAKE REVENGE, MY FRIENDS, BUT LEAVE ROOM FOR GOD’S WRATH, FOR IT IS WRITTEN: “IT IS MINE TO AVENGE; I WILL REPAY” SAYS THE LORD. ON THE CONTRARY: “IF YOUR ENEMY IS HUNGRY, FEED HIM; IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM SOMETHING TO DRINK. IN DOING THIS, YOU WILL HEAP BURNING COALS ON HIS HEAD.” DO NOT BE OVERCOME BY EVIL, BUT OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD.

Some people have no idea what healthy relational attitudes look like. They grew up having been surrounded by unhealthy attitudes for so long that they have come to think that their attitude is the normal one. These are those who are easily offended, angry, unforgiving, upset and self-centred. Please don’t take it wrong if any of these remarks can be found in your attitudes. To adopt Jesus’ loving- forgiving lifestyle may appear to be difficult to most of Christians. One of the best statements of healthy relationship-attitudes is found in Paul’s Epistle to the Romans. Faced with tensions in their church, the believers were challenged to follow Christ’s command, and live in mutual love with one another. Some people in Rome were simply hard to be loved at that time. Or still are, even here and now?

A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP-ATTITUDE BEGINS IN REALITY. That is where our text begins. Look at the words used by Paul: – evil, affliction, revenge, enemy. We are often tempted to idealize the way human relationships are presumed to work. Everyone is supposed to understand the other, to be nice, to get along, and to agree. When that doesn’t happen, we become hurt, angry, or disappointed. A healthy attitude recognizes that people don’t always agree with us, we don’t easily get along. The reality is that some people will never behave the way we want them to behave, and that we may never have the kind of relationship with them that we would like to have. Reality is that some of life’s relationships are wonderful and some are not. It is hard to understand the background of all the different and difficult behaviours. Former spouses often won’t be civilized to one another, even long after the divorce was settled. Business partners will argue about every tiny detail – out of simple mistrust. Some siblings can’t sit next to each other without arguing on old issues – and they can be nine or ninety. A healthy attitude realizes that we cannot force good behaviour on other people – and we are not responsible for doing so. We are, however, responsible for ourselves.

TO REALITY, WE ADD LOVE.  Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honour one another above yourselves (Romans 12: 9-10). The teaching here is about love being lived out – through genuine love in daily life, authentic Christianity is properly revealed. The word used here, SINCERE, means WITHOUT WAX, in Greek. In ancient times, a potter could unscrupulously hide cracks and imperfections in his jars and bowls by filling them with wax. It could be done so effectively that unless someone looked carefully at the vessel, holding it up to the sun, one would never discover the imperfection. People could buy the vessel and never know it was faulty until it was placed on the fire to cook a meal – when the wax would suddenly melt, and the crack would be discovered. Thus the call for love to be sincere and genuine. A forgery, a cover-up, something fraudulent just isn’t good enough. Sincere love doesn’t change when relationships heat up. Under the heat of fire, a good relationship is proving to be even stronger.To this Paul adds the powerful imperatives, – Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Here is the healthy advice. Look for the good in every relationship – for the whole of a person is always more than the hurt that comes out at you. Love never requires us to approve the inappropriate, but it does call us to know the difference between good and evil – and to hold to the good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Brotherly love calls us to commit to others as to a family member. It happens each time one person reaches out in a Christian act of love and compassion to others – a cup of water here, a gentle, encouraging, or comforting word spoken there, a hand to help, or even an invitation to church. And so, we prove that we are sisters and brothers in Christ, members of the household of faith, hope, and love; Christ is our elder brother, and God is our Father. Honour one another above yourselves. This is the most practical advice of all. In a loving relationship, we cannot focus on how the other person treats us; we focus on our own responsibility to treat others well. Trying to honour someone else who doesn’t deserve it, is the best initiative to have a better relationship; and above all else, that also feels good.

BE JOYFUL IN HOPE, PATIENT IN AFFLICTION, FAITHFUL IN PRAYER. We are to rejoice in hope. Christians must be essentially optimists. Because God is our Father we have to be always certain that “the best is yet to come.” Just because we know that Grace is sufficient for all things and that our strength is made perfect in weakness, – through these two confessions of Paul, – we know that no task is too much for us. There are no hopeless situations in life for those who believe; there are only people who have felt hopeless about themselves. There can never be any such thing as a hopeless Christian. To be patient in afflictions requires faithful courage. When King Nebuchadnezzar cast Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego into the furnace, he was amazed to see a fourth person walking with them in the middle of the fire, and the fourth had the appearance of a God. (Daniel 3: 25). We can survive anything, if meeting it with Christ. Prayer is one of the greatest privileges God has given to us in Christ Jesus. Prayer is the means of God’s Grace. We are assured by Jesus that God listens to our prayers and answering them far more certainly than we can ever desire or imagine (Romans 8). It is said that an African woman, after hearing for the first time a Christian missionary praying, remarked to her neighbour, “There! I have told you that there ought to be a God like that.” Somewhere in every man there is the capacity for faithful prayer, both for oneself and for others, when love inspires the afflicted heart, and the soul becomes receptive to find help even from the invisible reality of godliness. Holman Hunt’s famous painting, titled The Light of the World, depicts Christ standing with a lamp in hand at a weed-covered door. It had not been opened for a long time. He stands knocking, seeking entry. Those who look closely will see that there is no handle to the door. The door must be opened from the inside. Entry into the human heart, even by the light-bearing Son of God, comes only through  faithful personal prayer.

TO LOVE, WE MUST ADD FORGIVENESS. As far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge …Do not be overcome by evil, overcome evil with good (Romans 12: 20-21). Forgiveness means that we have chosen to trust God to handle what we can’t. It means that we are willing to move on even though we have been treated poorly. It doesn’t mean we are wrong. It doesn’t mean we are weak. We just refuse to be a revengeful human. – If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. The same godly advice can be read in the Book of Proverbs 25: 21-22. This has to be one of the strangest quotes in the Bible. It tells us that we have a choice in our attitude about getting even. Just forgive others and let God worry about revenge if it is needed. It includes a figure of speech about the burning coal on his head. It means that the person might end up feeling embarrassed and guilty because we were so nice when he or she has been so wrong, and this might help the person to be changed for the better. The Christian paradox set up by Jesus when He said, – Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven (Matthew 5: 44-45) is made even more personally active here,– Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

THEN WE TAKE THE INITIATIVE. Never be locking in zeal… Take the first step. Be Christ to the other person. Let us live out Christ in in all our daily experiences. Look at these words from the text: – JOYFUL, SHARING, HOSPITALITY, BLESSINGS, HARMONY, HUMILITY, PEACEFULNESS. These are the tools to develop healthy Christian attitudes in our human relationships.           Amen.

LET US PRAY:

LIVING AND LOVING LORD, as we come to You, we remember how Your concern through Jesus’ ministry was not for Yourself but for others, – the vulnerable, the distressed, the sick, the mourning, the rejected, and the oppressed. You came as the man for others. Come again to our world today. We thank You for the chance of victory of love over hatred through faith in the Risen Christ. Hear now our prayer for the world You gave Your life for – a world so tensioned by enmity and division, and so desperately in need of Your healing love. Coronavirus Pandemic has been here with us for more than a year now, and we need Your healing power to finally be able to contain it. We pray for those whose personal relationships have degenerated into hatred, and for society at large where hatred is present under a variety of forms – prejudice, greed, selfishness, intolerance, ignorance – so much that denies, divides and destroys. We pray for countries and people tested by inner tensions, torn apart by religious extremism, by military dictatorship, racial hatred, civil war, and abuses of human rights – lives destroyed, families broken, communities shattered, nations decimated. And all these, as if the still rising death-toll from Coronavirus was not enough. Gracious Lord, help us and all people to recognize the folly of our ways – to understand that violence only breeds more violence, vengeance more vengeance, bitterness more bitterness and hatred more hatred. Give us the faith and the courage to try another way, the way You have revealed so powerfully through Your life, Your death, Your Resurrection and above all through Your undying love. Bless Your Christian Church here and everywhere, and answer all the prayers raised to You in Jesus’ name. Be with all the members and adherents of our congregation, and with our sisters and brothers of other denominations and religions in India, here in Skye, and all over the world. Protect and support our loved-ones wherever they are, and hear our prayers for those whom we now name quietly in our hearts … through Jesus Christ our Lord.  AMEN.

THE LORD’S PRAYER: – OUR FATHER, WHO ART IN HEAVEN …

CLOSING HYMN (CH-437) – LOVE DIVINE ALL LOVES EXCELLING, joy of heaven, to earth come down, fix in us Thy humble dwelling, all Thy faithful mercies crown. Jesus, Thou art all compassion, pure, unbounded love Thou art; visit us with Thy salvation, enter every trembling heart.

Come, Almighty to deliver; let us all Thy life receive; suddenly return, and never, never more Thy temples leave. Thee we would be always blessing, serve Thee as Thy hosts above, pray, and praise Thee, without ceasing, glory in Thy perfect love.

Finish then Thy new creation: pure and spotless let us be; let us see Thy great salvation, perfectly restored in Thee. Changed from glory into glory, till in heaven we take our place, till we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise.

BE JOYFUL ALWAYS; PRAY CONTINUALLY; … TEST EVERYTHING. HOLD ON TO THE GOOD. AVOID EVERY KIND OF EVIL. MAY GOD HIMSELF, THE GOD OF PEACE, SANCTIFY YOU THROUGH AND THROUGH. MAY YOUR WHOLE SPIRIT, SOUL AND BODY BE KEPT BLAMELESS AT THE COMING OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST. THE ONE WHO CALLS YOU IS FAITHFUL AND HE WILL DO IT. THE GRACE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST BE WITH YOU (1Thessalonians 5: 16-17, 21-24, 28).

AMEN.

Sandor, your Minister.