Sunday School, July 23, 2017 7 Pentecost, A proper 11

Sunday School, July 23, 2017    7 Pentecost, A proper 11

  

Theme:

A story about God’s patience with the free conditions of the world

Does sun shine only on Americans or does it shine on people of other countries?  Does the sun shine only on me when I am good or does it continue to shine when I do something wrong?

Does the sun shine only on plants that are useful or does the sun shine to make weeds grow as well?

God has made this world in a way so that everything and everyone has the sunshine of freedom.  This means that some good things can happen and some bad things can happen.

If there was not freedom for bad things to happen or for people to make bad choices, then life would be like a big machine.  A machine does not do good or bad, a machine does what it is programmed to do.

The parable of the wheat and the weeds  told by Jesus is a story about how God is patient with the freedom that allows both good and bad things to happen.

Weeds and wheat grow so closely together that when a gardener tries to remove the weed, the wheat is pulled up as well and the good wheat dies.  So the gardener waits until it is time to harvest and the garden separates the good wheat from the weeds at harvest.

Sometimes we want the world to be a world where only good things can happen and we want to be people who automatically do good things. 

We grow as human beings by being free and by learning to make good choices.  We don’t want to be punished with a death penalty when we make a mistake.  Why?  Because we know that we need more time to learn to get better and make good choices.  We want God and other people to be patient with us as we continually learn to make good choices.

Sometimes we might be impatient about the badness we see in the world or we might be impatient about our own faults and weakness.  We need to know that God is patient and God always allows us more time to get better.

Let us be thankful for a patient God.  Let us be thankful for people who are patient with us.  And let us learn to be patient with others as we wait for all to make better choices.

Let us be patient with the freedom that is in life.  Let us be glad that we are not machines and appreciate that our choices really mean something special.

Prayer:  Thank you God for being patient.  Thank you God for freedom.  Thank you God for being patient with me while I learn to make good free choices.  Help me to be patient with the freedom in this world even as we learn to make good choices.  Amen.

Sermon:

  Have you ever planted a garden?  Have you ever planted some seeds in the ground?

  If you plant pumpkin seeds or tomato seeds or spinach seeds, there is always some extra plants that grow too.

  So if I plant some flower seeds, and I get some extra plants, that should be a nice surprise, shouldn’t it?

  But those extra plants are not nice surprises….why?   What are those surprise plants called?

  They are called weeds.

  Weeds are plants that grow every where.  They grow even when you didn’t when you don’t plant them.  They grow in places where you don’t want them to grow.

  And sometimes they are a big problem.  They grow so close to the plants that you want to live, if you try to pull the weeds, the plant comes out of the ground too.

   Jesus told a story about weeds and wheat.  A farmer wants wheat to grow so that it can be made into flour to make bread.

  But the farmer does not want weeds to grow in the wheat.

   But when the weeds start growing in the wheat, one of the farm workers wanted to pull out weeds.  But the farmer said, “Don’t pull the weeds, because if you pull the weeds, the wheat will be pulled out with it.  Waiting until the wheat is fully grown and when it is cut, the weeds will be cut too…and then the weeds will be separated from the wheat.

  What does this story mean?  This story is about God’s patience.  Sometimes, when we see something that we don’t like, we want to correct it and make it right.

  If you’re doing something wrong in front of lots of people.  Sometimes your Mom or Dad won’t correct you until you get home alone, because they don’t want to embarrass you or make you feel badly in front of people.  They have the patience to wait because you will learn better if you are not embarrassed.

  So God is patient with our world.  Some times we wish God would get rid of all the people who are acting badly, but God is patient.  Why?  God knows that even bad people can get better and they can say they are sorry.  So God is patient and waits and waits to give us many chances to make good choices.

  So today, let us remember that God is patient and God is always waiting for us to become better.  Amen.

St. John the Divine Episcopal Church

17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Family Service with Holy Eucharist

July 23, 2017: The Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs: Jacob’s Ladder, He’s Got The Whole World, Spirit of the Living God, The King of Glory

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

People: And Blessed be God’s kingdom, now and forever.  Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.

And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.

Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Song:  Jacob’s Ladder  (Christian Children’s Songbook,  # 130)

We are climbing Jacob’s ladder; We are climbing Jacob’s ladder;  We are climbing Jacob’s ladder; Soldiers of the cross.

If you love Him, why not serve Him?  If you love Him, why not serve Him; If you love Him, why not serve Him; Soldiers of the cross.

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, you know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking: Have compassion on our weakness, and mercifully give us those things which for our unworthiness we dare not, and for our blindness we cannot ask; through the worthiness of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Litany of Praise: Alleluia (chanted)

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Alleluia

O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Alleluia

O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Alleluia

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Alleluia

A reading from the Book of Genesis

Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 139

LORD, you have searched me out and known me; * you know my sitting down and my rising up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.

You trace my journeys and my resting-places * and are acquainted with all my ways.

Indeed, there is not a word on my lips, * but you, O LORD, know it altogether.

You press upon me behind and before * and lay your hand upon me.

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God! (chanted)

Litanist:

For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!

For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.

   Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Jesus put before the crowd another parable: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, `Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?' He answered, `An enemy has done this.' The slaves said to him, `Then do you want us to go and gather them?' But he replied, `No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.'"  Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." He answered, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!"

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon – Father Phil

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.

Since God is so great and we are so small,

We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.

We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.

We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.

And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy. (chanted)

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.

For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.

For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.

For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.

For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.

For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Liturgist:         The Peace of the Lord be always with you.

People:            And also with you.

Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

Offertory Song: He’s Got the Whole World(Christian Children’s Songbook, #90)

He’s got the whole world, in his hands.  He’s got the whole wide world, in his hands.  He’s got the whole world, in his hands.  He’s got the whole world in his hands.

He’s got the little tiny babies…

He’s got the boys and the girls….

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of God.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is a celebration of our birth into the family of God.

A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.

The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.

It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

(All may gather  around the altar)

Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;

You have made us in your image

And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:

Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.

And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph

And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.

Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat

  the bread and drink the wine, we can  know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as  

  this food and drink  that becomes a part of us.

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Bless and sanctify us so that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory

 is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)

Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant:       Alleluia.  Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia!

Words of Administration

Communion Song: Spirit of the Living God  (Renew!  # 90)

Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.  Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.  Break me, melt me, mold me, fill me. Spirit of the living God.  Fall afresh on me.

Spirit of the living God, move among us all; Spirit of the living God, move among us all.  Humble, caring, selfless, sharing.  Spirit of the living God, fill our lives with love.

The God of Jacob is our God.  The God of Jacob is our God.  The God of Jacob is our God.

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;

We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.

And His Presence has been known to us.

We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers

    and sisters in Christ.

Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the

     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,

As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song: The King of Glory  (Renew! # 267)

Refrain: The King of glory comes, the nation rejoices.  Open the gates before him, lift up your voices.

Who is the king of glory; how shall we call him?  He is Emmanuel, the promised of ages.  Refrain

In all of Galilee, in city or village, he goes among his people, curing their illness.  Refrain

Sing then of David’s son, our savior and brother; in all of Galilee was never another.  Refrain

Dismissal:   

Liturgist:    Let us go forth in the Name of Christ.

People:      Thanks be to God!