Sunday School, August 2, 2020 9 Pentecost, A Proper 13

Sunday School, August 2, 2020 9 Pentecost, A Proper 13

Themes:

The most famous wrestler in the Bible?  Jacob.  Jacob, when he was going home and when he was afraid of meeting his brother whom he had run from in fear many years ago, wrestled one night with an angel.  The angel was a better wrestler, but Jacob was good at just hanging on.  He would not let the angel go until the angel blessed him.  And Jacob was successful at holding on for his blessing.  And what did Jacob receive as a blessing?  He received a new name.  What was that name?  Israel, which means the one who wrestles with God and is successful.  Jacob the wrestler became Israel, the father of the sons who would be the head of the tribes of Israel.

When we are afraid, we sometimes need to use our prayer as a way of holding on to God for a blessing so that we can receive from God a plan for our lives.  We don't have to be given a new name, but we can receive new important work to do in our lives.

The Gospel:  When Jesus saw a multitude, he told his disciples and helpers:  "You feed them."  This means that if we are followers of Jesus, we need to make sure that all people receive the best medicine in the world.  What is the best medicine in the world?  Enough food to eat.

We are like doctors when we make sure that all people of the world have enough food, which is the most basic medicine of life.

We come to church to receive bread at communion.  We need to remember that the bread of communion is not just for a special religious meal; it is also to remind us that everyone needs enough food.  And we need to hear Jesus say to us: "You feed them."

Sermon:

   One time upon a time there was a bus trip that had to travel on a road that went through the desert.

   And there were sixty people traveling on the bus.  And there was not place to stop and get gas and not restaurants in the desert, because no one lived there.  There was only one bus that came on the road every two days.

  Well, on this particular the bus broke down.  The bus had engine trouble, and here they were stalled in the desert with no place to go for food and shelter.  And there was no bus coming for more than a day.  And the cell phones would not work.

  So the people got off the bus…and they were worried about having enough food and water for the babies and the older people.

  So the bus driver announced that everyone would have to be calm.  Find some shade and help each other.

  Some people were very worried and they complained about being hungry and thirsty.

  The bus driver said, “Let see how much snack food everyone has brought.  Let see how much food we can gather together for a meal.  And many people complained that there was not enough food.  But the driver said, “Let us meet under that one big tree by the side of road in about an hour and see what kind of meal we can put together.

  The driver also open the storage area under the bus where all of the suitcases were, so people could get into their suitcases.

  And in an hour, they all gathered for their meal.  And it was surprising to see how much food people had brought.  All kinds of chips and drinks.  Lots of bottles of water.  And when the suitcases were opened, some people brought canned hams and boxes of fruit and nuts that they were taking to their families.  And when all of the food was shared, the driver was amazed.  He said, “We have plenty of food to last us until the next bus arrives to rescue us.”

   And so the people, who at first thought that they had nothing, when everyone shared, they found out that they had more than enough to go around.

  When Jesus was teaching a large crowd followed him far from the city.  And it was time to eat.  And his disciples did not think that there was enough food outside of the city to feed this large crowd.  But someone donated five loaves of bread and two fish.  And Jesus took this bread and blessed it.  And he thanked the little boy who shared his lunch.

  And after he prayed, suddenly there was enough food to go around.  It could be that when this little boy shared his lunch, everyone else decided they could share their lunches too, and so there was more than enough food to go around.

  And what we need to learn is that when we all share together, we will find that we have enough to go around.

  Jesus came to teach us to share with one another, so that all might have enough to eat.  And that is a good lesson for us to learn.  Amen.

Intergenerational Family Service with Holy Eucharist

August 2, 2020: The Tenth Sunday after Pentecost 

 

Gathering Songs: 

 

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: 

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Let your continual mercy, O Lord, cleanse and defend your Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without your help, protect and govern it always by your goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and 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

The same night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maids, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. He took them and sent them across the stream, and likewise everything that he had. Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob's hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, "Let me go, for the day is breaking." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go, unless you bless me." So he said to him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Jacob." Then the man said, "You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed." Then Jacob asked him, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And there he blessed him. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved." The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

 

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 17

 

I call upon you, O God, for you will answer me; * incline your ear to me and hear my words. 

Show me your marvelous loving-kindness, * O Savior of those who take refuge at your right hand

from those who rise up against them.

 

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 withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves." Jesus said to them, "They need not go away; you give them something to eat." They replied, "We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish." And he said, "Bring them here to me." Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

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: 

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 heaven.”

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.

 

(Children may gather around the altar)

The Celebrant now praises God for the salvation of the world through Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

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.

 

The Prayer continues with these words

 

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.

 

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, 

(Children rejoin their parents and take up their instruments)

 

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:  Something in the Way God Loves  (song sheet)

 

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: O Lord, You Are My God   (song sheet)

Dismissal:    

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

People:      Thanks be to God!  

 

 

Use Your Words

8 Pentecost, Cycle A Proper 12, July 26, 2020
1 Kings 3:5-12 Psalm 119:129-136
Romans 8:26-39   Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

 

Teachers and parents tell their toddlers and preschoolers to "use your words."  This is a diversion technique because kids from sheer instinct use their body language words to hit, bite, scream and show all manner of frustrated chaos.  "Calm down, use your words."   But we know that just using words should not give license to use our words in terrible ways.  We have lots of public figure using their words all of the time, and some in  badly ways meant to hurt other people.

 

One could say that the coming of the Torah, the law to humanity was God's way of saying to humanity, "Use your words; you cannot just live from impulse to impulse.  You need to have some words that provide the best recommended behaviors to bring order and impulse control.  You need the language of the law to train your body language to do the very best deeds for living."

 

And just because humanity was given the good words of the law, it did not mean successful behaviors prevailed in the lives of God's people.  They forgot and needed continually to be reminded to "Use their words, God's words in good and right behaviors."

 

What do we call using good words in political governance?  When Solomon became king of Israel, he asked God for good judgment and wisdom in governing the people and discerning between good and evil.  Certainly this is still what all political leadership needs; wisdom to serve people with profound discernment.  If Israel was supposed to be the kingdom of heaven on earth under their kings, we know that it failed.

 

In the time of Jesus, One might say that the words of the law, the Torah, were not that successful in the world at large.  In actual practice, they became the way in which an oppressed and occupied nation kept their separate identity.  They became the words which kept Jews living throughout the world of the Roman Empire, maintain a very separate identity.  How could God's best words be shared and given to the entire world, if they were locked within a very small community of people to keep them as separate like perhaps the Amish are in our country today?

 

God's word came into a different kind of mission in Jesus Christ.  The written words of God of the Torah in their practice were not successful enough to enough people to satisfy a more universal mission.

 

John's Gospel proclaims that Word was in the beginning of human life as we know it.  And the Word was with God and the Word was God.  And the Word did not just become writing.  The Word became flesh in the person of Jesus.  And Jesus spoke words and he said that his words were spirit and life.

 

And many of his words came in parables and metaphors about the kingdom of heaven, the nuance of the realm of heaven that can be known in our human and earthly experience.

 

What do earthly kings and presidents want to do?  They want to make a big flashy show.  They want popularity; they seek popularity for their own legitimacy.  What did Jesus say?  God's heavenly kingdom is accumulatively subtle; it like a tiny mustard seed, insignificant alone and unplanted, but when planted it slowly takes over the landscape.  The kingdom of heaven is the accumulation of each deed of faith and kindness which grows to become a knowable presence of God's uncanny love and goodness.  Don't worry about the big show of your faith; do the small deeds, one by one, kindness upon kindness and know that the survival of this world actually happens because it is supported by the hidden scaffold of all of the deeds of kindness done by people who don't do things for show or politics or money or power.  Believe in the profound preserving effect of this hidden and subtle kingdom of kindness.  

 

Leaven or yeast is small and tiny but with a little time it can double, triple and quadruple the size of dough.  Why can we still smell the wonderful aroma of fresh yeasty bread out of the oven in the midst of the woes of this world of war, fighting, injustice and pandemic?  Because the aroma of the kingdom of heaven calls out the winsome normalcy of health, of life, liberty, happiness and kindness.  The suffering of the world seems so severe because the aroma of the kingdom of heaven is so wonderful.  And we as people need to follow the wonderful aroma of the kingdom of God.

 

The kingdom of heaven involves having the wisdom to sort out lives in retrospective.  We haul in the net of the occasions of our experience and we sort out meaning and value.  We retain what is worthy and we discard what is not even as we have to give up some bad things that we've loved too much in our bad habits.  The kingdom of heaven is the promise of the ultimate success of justice and clarity about our human experience.

 

The kingdom of heaven is like having delicious insider information.  Like finding a gold mine in a garage sale because the seller does not really know what value of what just seems to be ordinary.  The kingdom of heaven is akin to finding supreme value in the middle of what seems to be so natural and ordinary.  It is to find the deep groaning and sighing Holy Spirit within oneself co-existing with our lives surviving everything that can possibly happen to us, and experience the seeming impossible, the experience of feeling loved by Christ through the presence of God's Spirit.

 

Further the kingdom of heaven is the discovery of the gift of finding something so important that it is worth living and dying for.  For me the value of the Word as God, is the supreme value discovered because it will accompany everything that I ever will do, be, know, speak and write.  A person who knows the kingdom of heaven is the person who has discovered the telling value of one's life, the image of God upon one's life.

 

And to sum it up, Jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven is knowing how to "use our words best," by being good scribes.  What is a scribe?  A scribe is a writer.  Writing is the expression of facility in using words in the very best way, not just being literate and able to scribble characters upon the page.  A scribe of the kingdom is one who has learned to use one's words best.  And how does one do that?  Each person seeking to be this scribe of the kingdom of heaven, is one who strives to find one's unique voice, to live, speak, write, and behave the wonderful kind values of the kingdom of God, and do it as it can only be done through each person's unique gifts.

 

In the Hebrew tradition of the Torah, the Torah was regarded to be a living word tradition, because the Torah travelled through time and had to be interpreted again and again to new situations.  The work of interpretation as scribes of the kingdom of heaven is to bring forth the treasures of the kingdom to the people in our lives.  Christ, as the living Word of God, commissions you and me to be scribes, becoming totally literate in the kingdom of heaven.

 

You and I have been given the Risen Christ as the Word who is God within us.  We are to be scribes of the kingdom of heaven, learning to use our best words, in saying, teaching and doing the kind deeds of God's love and justice and kindness to all.

 

May God give us the grace to be wise scribes of the kingdom of heaven as we do the work of interpreting all of the words of our lives so that we can bring forth the goodness of what is both old and new.  And you know what?  Love, justice and kindness are always old and they are always new.  So let these be our best use of our words.  Amen.

Use Your Words

8 Pentecost, Cycle A Proper 12, July 26, 2020

1 Kings 3:5-12 Psalm 119:129-136
Romans 8:26-39   Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

Lectionary Link

Teachers and parents tell their toddlers and preschoolers to "use your words."  This is a diversion technique because kids from sheer instinct use their body language words to hit, bite, scream and show all manner of frustrated chaos.  "Calm down, use your words."   But we know that just using words should not give license to use our words in terrible ways.  We have lots of public figure using their words all of the time, and some in  badly ways meant to hurt other people.

One could say that the coming of the Torah, the law to humanity was God's way of saying to humanity, "Use your words; you cannot just live from impulse to impulse.  You need to have some words that provide the best recommended behaviors to bring order and impulse control.  You need the language of the law to train your body language to do the very best deeds for living."

And just because humanity was given the good words of the law, it did not mean successful behaviors prevailed in the lives of God's people.  They forgot and needed continually to be reminded to "Use their words, God's words in good and right behaviors."

What do we call using good words in political governance?  When Solomon became king of Israel, he asked God for good judgment and wisdom in governing the people and discerning between good and evil.  Certainly this is still what all political leadership needs; wisdom to serve people with profound discernment.  If Israel was supposed to be the kingdom of heaven on earth under their kings, we know that it failed.

In the time of Jesus, One might say that the words of the law, the Torah, were not that successful in the world at large.  In actual practice, they became the way in which an oppressed and occupied nation kept their separate identity.  They became the words which kept Jews living throughout the world of the Roman Empire, maintain a very separate identity.  How could God's best words be shared and given to the entire world, if they were locked within a very small community of people to keep them as separate like perhaps the Amish are in our country today?

God's word came into a different kind of mission in Jesus Christ.  The written words of God of the Torah in their practice were not successful enough to enough people to satisfy a more universal mission.

John's Gospel proclaims that Word was in the beginning of human life as we know it.  And the Word was with God and the Word was God.  And the Word did not just become writing.  The Word became flesh in the person of Jesus.  And Jesus spoke words and he said that his words were spirit and life.

And many of his words came in parables and metaphors about the kingdom of heaven, the nuance of the realm of heaven that can be known in our human and earthly experience.

What do earthly kings and presidents want to do?  They want to make a big flashy show.  They want popularity; they seek popularity for their own legitimacy.  What did Jesus say?  God's heavenly kingdom is accumulatively subtle; it like a tiny mustard seed, insignificant alone and unplanted, but when planted it slowly takes over the landscape.  The kingdom of heaven is the accumulation of each deed of faith and kindness which grows to become a knowable presence of God's uncanny love and goodness.  Don't worry about the big show of your faith; do the small deeds, one by one, kindness upon kindness and know that the survival of this world actually happens because it is supported by the hidden scaffold of all of the deeds of kindness done by people who don't do things for show or politics or money or power.  Believe in the profound preserving effect of this hidden and subtle kingdom of kindness.  

Leaven or yeast is small and tiny but with a little time it can double, triple and quadruple the size of dough.  Why can we still smell the wonderful aroma of fresh yeasty bread out of the oven in the midst of the woes of this world of war, fighting, injustice and pandemic?  Because the aroma of the kingdom of heaven calls out the winsome normalcy of health, of life, liberty, happiness and kindness.  The suffering of the world seems so severe because the aroma of the kingdom of heaven is so wonderful.  And we as people need to follow the wonderful aroma of the kingdom of God.

The kingdom of heaven involves having the wisdom to sort out lives in retrospective.  We haul in the net of the occasions of our experience and we sort out meaning and value.  We retain what is worthy and we discard what is not even as we have to give up some bad things that we've loved too much in our bad habits.  The kingdom of heaven is the promise of the ultimate success of justice and clarity about our human experience.

The kingdom of heaven is like having delicious insider information.  Like finding a gold mine in a garage sale because the seller does not really know what value of what just seems to be ordinary.  The kingdom of heaven is akin to finding supreme value in the middle of what seems to be so natural and ordinary.  It is to find the deep groaning and sighing Holy Spirit within oneself co-existing with our lives surviving everything that can possibly happen to us, and experience the seeming impossible, the experience of feeling loved by Christ through the presence of God's Spirit.

Further the kingdom of heaven is the discovery of the gift of finding something so important that it is worth living and dying for.  For me the value of the Word as God, is the supreme value discovered because it will accompany everything that I ever will do, be, know, speak and write.  A person who knows the kingdom of heaven is the person who has discovered the telling value of one's life, the image of God upon one's life.

And to sum it up, Jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven is knowing how to "use our words best," by being good scribes.  What is a scribe?  A scribe is a writer.  Writing is the expression of facility in using words in the very best way, not just being literate and able to scribble characters upon the page.  A scribe of the kingdom is one who has learned to use one's words best.  And how does one do that?  Each person seeking to be this scribe of the kingdom of heaven, is one who strives to find one's unique voice, to live, speak, write, and behave the wonderful kind values of the kingdom of God, and do it as it can only be done through each person's unique gifts.

In the Hebrew tradition of the Torah, the Torah was regarded to be a living word tradition, because the Torah travelled through time and had to be interpreted again and again to new situations.  The work of interpretation as scribes of the kingdom of heaven is to bring forth the treasures of the kingdom to the people in our lives.  Christ, as the living Word of God, commissions you and me to be scribes, becoming totally literate in the kingdom of heaven.

You and I have been given the Risen Christ as the Word who is God within us.  We are to be scribes of the kingdom of heaven, learning to use our best words, in saying, teaching and doing the kind deeds of God's love and justice and kindness to all.

May God give us the grace to be wise scribes of the kingdom of heaven as we do the work of interpreting all of the words of our lives so that we can bring forth the goodness of what is both old and new.  And you know what?  Love, justice and kindness are always old and they are always new.  So let these be our best use of our words.  Amen.

Sunday School, July 26, 2020 8 Pentecost, A proper 12

Sunday School, July 26, 2020   8 Pentecost, A proper 12

Theme:

Citizen in the Kingdom of heaven

How does one know that one is an American citizen?  When a baby is born, does a baby know if he or she is an American citizen?  No, but as a baby grows up, a baby is taught what it means to be an American citizen.

What are signs of living in the American Nation?  Government, Flag, National Anthem, A President, a Congress, a voting democracy, a land with borders, a history of origin and many other things.

Jesus said that there is a citizenship which is bigger than being an American citizen, or a citizen of Israel or a citizen of the Caesar’s Roman Empire.

Jesus preached about the kingdom or nation of heaven.  Where is the land for the nation of God?  The entire earth.  Who are the people of the nation of God?  All people, because every person is made in God’s image even if they don’t recognize it.  What are the signs of the kingdom of heaven?  Hidden and silent success.  Just as a tiny mustard seed grows to become a tree, so the small deeds of love and faith grow to support and sustain this world.  The kingdom heaven grows in a hidden way, just like when yeast is added to dough and makes the dough rise.  The kingdom of God is like a jeweler who finds the very best pearl and sells everything to purchase the very best pearls.  When people understand that they are children of God, they give up the importance of everything else to fully explore what is means to be in God’s kingdom.  We know the kingdom of heaven when we know how to sort out what is good and bad in our lives, just like the fishers sort out the catch in their net.  They sort out what to keep and what to throw away.  The kingdom of heaven is known when we can take the old but good things written in the past and make them good once again in our lives now.  In the Bible we read about love, faith and justice in ancient times; it inspires us to speak, write and live what love, faith and justice means in our time and in our world.

Thank God today for knowing that we live in the kingdom heaven. 

Sermon

  We all like super heroes don’t we?   And we like important and famous people…. Right.  We like to be the people who get lots of attention for doing better than anyone else.  We like to get the best grades, we like to run the fastest, we like to hit the baseball the longest distance, and we like to win games.

  And sometimes it makes us think that only winners are important in life.  Only heroes are important in life.   Only the people who get the most attention in life are important.

  And when we think like this, we sometimes get sad because sometimes we don’t feel very important, because we’re always comparing ourselves with someone whom we think is better or more popular than we are.

  Jesus came and told stories about the kingdom of heaven.  Now everyone thought that the kingdom of the Caesar was the most important kingdom.  The people in Israel thought that the kingdom of David was most important, and they wanted another strong king like David to come and be their heroes.

  But Jesus came and told us about the kingdom of heaven.

  Since God created us, this world belongs to God and this world is God’s kingdom.  But many people did not recognize it.  They thought that this world was the kingdom of the Caesar, the Emperor of Rome.  We think that this world is the government of the United States, because that’s where we live.

  Jesus taught us to see this world as the kingdom of heaven, and he taught us that the small things are very important.

  The mustard seed was such a tiny seed you could barely see it with your eyes.  But the wind blew the seed everywhere and it would grow and take over the entire countryside.

  Why does bread dough puff up before it is put in the oven?  Because of Yeast.  Yeast is something that looks like a tiny amount of powder but when you put it bread dough, it makes it grow very big.

   Jesus said the kingdom of heaven is about doing all of the little things, because when you add up all of the little acts of kindness in this world, they preserve and keep our world going.

  So let’s remember, it is all of the little things in life that we do that are important.  Working at home, being kind to each person you meet, helping your friends, do your home work for school…although they don’t seem important,  Jesus reminds us that it the little things that add up and when they all are added up, we can see how they save our world.

  So let us not forget the importance of the little things that we do in our lives. If you understand the importance of small deeds of kindness, then you understand the kingdom of heaven.  Amen.

Intergenerational Family Service with Holy Eucharist

July 26, 2020: The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs: Seek Ye First, If You’re Happy, Let the Hungry Come to Me, Oh When the Saints

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:  Seek Ye First (Blue Hymnal, # 711)

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and its righteousness.  And all these things will be added unto you.  Allelu, alleluia.  Refrain: Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, allelu, alleluia.

Ask and it shall be given unto you, seek and ye shall find.  Knock and the door will be opened unto you, Allelu, alleluia.  Refrain

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and 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 Letter of Paul to the Romans

We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 105

Give thanks to the LORD and call upon his Name; * make known his deeds among the peoples.

Sing to him, sing praises to him, * and speak of all his marvelous works.

Birthdays:    Drew Giba, Laura Gibson, Heather Oliver, Luis Cardenas

Anniversaries:  Chris and Mary Lyngstad

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 crowds another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches."

He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened."   "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.  "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.  "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. "Have you understood all this?" They answered, "Yes." And he said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old."

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: If You’re Happy (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 124)

If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.  If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.  If you’re happy and you know, then your face should surely show it.  If you’re happy and you know, clap your hands.

If you’re happy and you know it, make a high five….

If you’re happy and you know it, make a low five….

If you’re happy and you know it, shout Amen!…..

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 heaven.”

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: Let the Hungry Come to Me (Renew!  # 220)

Let the hungry come to me, let the poor be fed.  Let the thirsty come and drin, share my wine and bread.  Though you have no money, come to me and eat. Drink the cup I offer, feed on finest wheat.

I myself and living bread; feed on me and live.  In this cup my blood for you; drink the wine I give.  All who eat my body, all who drink my blood, shall have joy forever, share the life of God.

Here among you shall I dwell; making all things new.   You shall be my very own, I, your God with you.  Bless’d are you invited to my wedding feast.  You shall live forever, all your joys increased.

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: When the Saints (Christian Children’s Songbook,  # 248)

Oh when the saints, go marching in.  Oh when the saints go marching in.  Lord, I want to be in that number, when the saints go marching in.

When the boys go marching in…..

When the girls go marching in…

Dismissal:   

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

People:      Thanks be to God! 

Balancing Cosmic Patience With Particular Impatience

7 Pentecost, Cycle A Proper 11, July 19, 2020
Genesis 28:10-19a,  Psalm 139: 1-11, 22-23
Romans 8:12-25 Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Lectionary Link

A basic technique of Jesus for teaching and communication was the parable.  A parable is a story which provides wisdom insights about life and certainly Jesus was one we might designate as a wisdom teacher.

Wisdom is not what we call science; wisdom has more to do with the ordering our inner lives of feelings and values and motivations to propel what we do and say in our lives.

One of the basic themes of the parables of Jesus was the kingdom of heaven or kingdom of God.  First why does Matthew's Gospel use "kingdom of heaven" and not "kingdom of God?"  One theory is that the reading audience of Matthew were predominately from a Jewish background and since in respect for the name of God, the word heaven was put in the place of God's holy unpronounceable name. 

Jesus came to teach us the wisdom of God, the wisdom of heaven while we very much live in the realm or kingdom of this world.  The wisdom of heaven which can be derived from being born from above, involves someone who was conversant in the heavenly realm, the inner spiritual realm, and who communicated this to us in the earthly realm.

We've read today the story of the dream of Jacob about a ladder from heaven on which angels traveled up and down.

In the Gospel John, Jesus said to Nathaniel that he would see the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.  Jesus, then is Jacob's ladder, in that he connects the invisible abode of the divine with the earthly landing on the bottom rung.  Angels are messengers, symbolic of the messages which come through Jesus as the connecting ladder of the heavenly with the earthly.

St. Paul noted that the world is subjected to futility.  Futility might be described as thwarted hope, unrealized aspirations for things which seem so appropriate and right.

Jesus told the parable of the weeds and the wheat to give us insights about the experience of futility due to the conditions of freedom which prevail in the passage of time.

Jesus indicates that the human situation is like the life of a frustrated, challenged and yet hopeful farmer or gardener.  We plant and we hope for optimal outcomes, but in the conditions of freedom allow pests and weeds to challenge the success of our hopeful dreams.

And what is required of us as earthly gardeners?  Patience.  In the impatience of rage we wish that we could just go "Rambo" on our enemies, all of the weeds which challenge the full success of our lives.

We wish the field of freedom could be instantly rid of all evil by pulling up all of the weeds of evil.  But to rid the field of all of the weeds, we are reminded that such weeds in field of freedom are intertwined with all that is good.  And so we must be patient to tolerate the conditions until the time of harvest when what is good can survive and nurture future life.  That which is unworthy is separated and not allowed to be perpetuated.

As gardeners of living, we have to be patient for the cycles in the passing of time for things to come to pass.

The entire council of God or Christ are not revealed in the parable of the weeds and wheat.  Only the passive side of patience.  Yes, like gardeners we have to be patient.  Most of the biblical writings were written by people very unlike those of us who are white in America.  Biblical writings were written by people without political power; people who were oppressed and suppressed.  So, they needed insights about being patient.  If the Jews and early Christians thought that they could attack the weeds of evil of their Roman overlords, they knew that all of their good would be lost as well.  They had to abide in patience.

What the parable does not give to us is the responsibility that people with power, privilege and wealth have to prevent the injustice and oppression, and evil in our world.

Just think about slaves in America for many years.  Just think about indigenous peoples in America for many years.  Were they and are they supposed to just be patient waiting for the harvest when their oppressors are sorted out sent to the dust bin of history?

We certainly should not use this parable of Jesus to tolerate the delay of justice for all people, if we have the power to bring it to full practice and to right the wrongs of the evil of our past.

If we are people in futility today, faced with some evil, over which we have no control, let us have the patience of a good gardener to wait for things to pass.

But us not regard ourselves as helpless gardeners,as passive ones who can do nothing about the presence of injustice that is in our ability to weed out.

All of us live under the cosmic futility of time, aging and death; and for this cosmic futility we need the cosmic patience of endurance.

But let us not accept cosmic futility as an excuse for not working in our own garden patches to rid this world of the oppression of injustice and all inhumanity to everyone in our world.

The patience of God does not give us the excuse to delay justice in the garden of this world.  We will not appreciate the anger of Jesus, if we are happy to delay justice for many to a future heaven.

May God give us today the cosmic patience for our cosmic futility in knowing time, aging and death; but may God give us the impatient, anger of Jesus to bring righteous justice to everyone whom we can now.  Amen.