The Celebration of the Gospel
August 11 , 2019 — 9th Sunday after Pentecost
Do not be afraid, little flock,
for it is your Abba God’s good pleasure to give you the whole empire.
—Luke 12.32
_______ We Gather as the Body of Christ_______
GREETING
PRELUDE – The Faithful – James Southbridge [Charlotte Russell, Guest organist]
[As we listen to the music we quiet our minds and bodies,
listen for our hearts’ deepest desires,
and become present to the Holy One who is lovingly present for us.]
* CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader: Eternal God, you set all Creation before us.
All: In wonder we praise you.
Loving Christ, you save us, heal us, lead us and encourage us.
In awe we thank you.
Holy Spirit, you fill us with your beauty and power.
In gratitude we worship you.
We open our hearts to you. Transform us by your grace. Amen.
* SONG – Children of the Heavenly Father – Blue hymnal # 141
___________ We Attend to the Word___________
THE WORD IN SONG – Karen & Sebastian Quist
PRAYER
God of abundant grace, you spread out Creation like a feast before us. You pour out your love like rain upon us. You stir in our souls like the molten earth beneath our continents. Help us to receive. Help us to trust. Help us now to listen for your Word, and be renewed in your Spirit. Amen.
HEBREW BIBLE – Isaiah 1.10-20
[God says: I don’t want your hypocritical religious words and actions. Do good, seek justice, rescue the oppressed and advocate for those who are powerless.]
Hear the word of the Holy One,
you people, and the powers that rule you!
Why should I care about your religious ceremonies?
I have had enough of them, says God.
They have become a burden to me,
I am weary of bearing them,
for your hands are full of blood.
Here is how to wash yourselves,
to make yourselves presentable to me:
remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes.
Cease to do evil, learn to do good;
seek justice, rescue the oppressed,
defend the orphan, plead for the widow.
If you are willing and obedient,
you shall eat the good of the land;
but if you refuse and rebel,
your own violence will devour you.
The mouth of the Holy One has spoken.
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* PSALTER – Psalm 107.1-9
[A celebration of God’s steadfast love. God has gathered and cared for us when we were homeless and hungry exiles.]
O give thanks to the Holy One, for God is good;
for God’s steadfast love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
those God redeemed from trouble
and gathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
Some wandered in desert wastes,
finding no way to an inhabited town;
hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.
Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and God delivered them from their distress;
God led them by a straight way,
until they reached an inhabited town.
Let them thank the Lord for God‘s steadfast love,
for God‘s wonderful works to humankind.
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NEW TESTAMENT – Hebrews 11.1-3, 8-16
[Faith is the assurance that God is working even where we can’t see. The writer gives Old Testament examples of people who trusted God though they saw no proof of God’s promise beforehand.]
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old—and Sarah herself was barren—because he trusted the One who had promised would be faithful. Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, “as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.”
All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and trusted them. They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth, for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, God has prepared a city for them.
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GOSPEL – Luke 12.29-40
[Jesus tells us to let go of our possessions, trust we have been given all we need—even God’s entire empire of grace— and trust God. Be ready to serve God, and assist the poor.]
Jesus said: Do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Abba God knows that you need them. Instead, strive for God’s commonwealth, and these things will be given to you as well.
Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Abba God’s good pleasure to give you the whole empire. Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for them as soon as they come and knock. Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves. “But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the new Human is coming at an unexpected hour.”
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SERMON – Everything you need
SONG – Nothing Can Trouble – Black hymnal # 2054
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Pastor: The grace of God is with you.
Congregation: And also with you.
Trusting in God’s tender mercy, we open ourselves in honesty to God.
God of love, help us to see ourselves with the eyes of love,
to see what is in us that is loving,
and what is not loving.
God, we recall when we have been in harmony with you, or with life, and we give thanks. [silent prayer…]
We recall when we have been out of harmony, and we seek your grace. [silent prayer…]
God of mercy, in Christ you have shown us your grace.
Forgive us, heal us, and perfect your love in us.
SILENT PRAYER … THE WORD OF GRACE
RESPONSE – Thank You, Lord – Blue hymnal #84
THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
THE PRAYER OF JESUS
SHARING THE PEACE OF CHRIST
______We Are Sent in Ministry to the World_____
OFFERING OUR GIFTS – How Blessed to Know the Lord Is My Shepherd – Robert J. Powell
* OFFERING SONG – I’m Gonna Live So God Can Use Me – Black hymnal #2153
* PRAYER
Gracious God, we give you our lives, symbolized in these gifts. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. You have given us all we need to face our challenges, to live with courage and beauty, and to work for justice and healing for the sake of the wholeness of all Creation. Send us now to do your will, by the power of your Spirit, in the name of Christ. Amen.
THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH IN THE WORLD
* SONG – Sent Out In Jesus’ Name – Black hymnal #2184
* THE BLESSING AND SENDING FORTH
RESPONSE We stand and sing to our neighbors:
May the grace and peace of Christ be with you my friends.
Go and share the love of God, love that never ends.
POSTLUDE – A Psalm of Trust – David Paxton