Sunday School, August 14, 2016 13 Pentecost C proper 15
Sunday School theme:
Jesus said, “Why do you not know how to interpret the
present time?”
Jesus wants us to learn how to interpret what is happening
in life in a way that we can make the very best decision.
Another easier word to use for interpret is the word “read.”
If you see smoke in the air, how do you read this? You see smoke and you think, there must be a
fire somewhere close which is causing the smoke.
If you see lots of dark clouds, what do you read? You think there are clouds and so there could
be some rain.
We learn how to read “natural” signs in life. One thing is associated with or causes
another thing to happen.
We also have to learn to read our human lives in the ways in
which we live with each other.
Like: if people do not do good things to others or say good
things to other people, what will happen?
Anger and not friendship.
We need to learn how to read our human relationship to learn
how to learn how to perform our very best behaviors for living in peace and
kindness.
Sometimes we might wonder why other people are treating us
in ways that we do not like. And we must
read and study our own behaviors. Are we
doing things that might make people respond to us in ways in which we don’t
like?
We have to learn how to read other people’s behaviors and
our own behaviors so that we can help each other live the very best lives of
love and kindness.
If we see a big fire, we have been trained to call 911 and
call for the fire department.
Jesus said that we need to learn to read everything that we
do in our lives so that we can live healthy, loving and safe lives.
Jesus taught us that reading is not just about looking at
words on a page; reading is also about reading the events of our lives and
making the right choices to do the right things.
Sermon:
This week many of
you will go to school. How many of you
will be going to school?
How many of you know
how to read? How many of you want to
learn how to read?
I think most every
one, even little babies know how to read.
Why? Because in life we have to
learn how to read more than words. We
have to learn how to read the things that happen in life.
Let me test your
reading ability. If you see some very
dark clouds in the sky, what do you read?
What do you predict?
If you see smoke in
the air, what you read? You say, “There must be a fire.”
Even a baby can
read? When a baby keeps dropping a spoon
from the high chair and he knows that mom or dad is going to keep picking it
up? How does he know that? He already understands gravity and he
understands how he can get mom and dad to do things for him. So even a baby knows how to read the things
that are happening in life.
If I hit my hand
hard against this chair, what will happen?
It will hurt my hand? How do you
know this?
How do we come to
know things?
We read. We interpret.
We learn.
To read the things
that happen to us means that we are learning more than written words in our
life. How do we learn? We learn by trying and making some mistakes
and having some success.
The better that we
are at learning, the more successful we will be in our lives.
Jesus encouraged his
disciple to learn how to read the things that were happening in their
lives. That means learning what is
happening right now and making the best decision in our lives.
Are you too young to
read the events of your life?
No, many important
things are happening for you, so it is very important that you learn.
What you learn now
will help you for the rest of your lives.
What should you
learn now?
1-Learn the
commandments. Learn the rules. If you
learn the rules then you can avoid lots of mistakes.
2-Make friends who
are going to help you and friends that you will help. Your family can help you and you can help
your family. Your church can help you
and you can help your church. It’s
important in good times and difficult times to have the support of your family
and church.
3-Trust in God. God has lived before us and God lives after
us and it is only God who is great enough to take care of our lives forever.
As young people let
us learn to understand what is happening in our lives now, and learn how to
make the right decision, for our own success, to please and help our friends
and family, but most of all, to please God.
Amen.
St. John the Divine Episcopal Church
17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037
Family Service with Holy Eucharist
August 14, 2016: The Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost
Gathering Songs: O Come, Let Us Adore Him; Hosanna; Wait for the Lord; 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: O Come, Let Us Adore Him, (Renew!, # 1)
1-O come, let us adore him; O come, let us adore him; O
come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord.
2-We’ll give him all the glory. We’ll give him all the glory. We’ll give him all the glory, Christ the
Lord.
3-For he alone is worthy.
For he alone is worthy. For he
alone is worthy. Christ the Lord
Liturgist: The
Lord be with you.
People: And
also with you.
Liturgist: Let us
pray
Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a
sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive
thankfully the fruits of his redeeming work, and to follow daily in the blessed
steps of his most holy life; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Liturgy Leader: In our prayers we first praise God, chanting
the praise word: Alleluia
Litany of Praise: Alleluia
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 to the Hebrews
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of
witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so
closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us,
looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of
the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and
has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.
Liturgist: The Word of the Lord
People: Thanks be to God
Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 80
Let your hand be upon the man of your right hand, * the son
of man you have made so strong for yourself.
And so will we never turn away from you; * give us life,
that we may call upon your Name.
Restore us, O LORD God of hosts; * show the light of your
countenance, and we shall be saved.
.
Liturgist: Before we
offer our thanksgiving, is there anything special you are thankful about today?
As we thank God, let us chant, “Thanks be to God.”
Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God!
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 Luke
People: Glory
to you, Lord Christ.
Jesus also said to the crowds, "When you see a cloud
rising in the west, you immediately say, `It is going to rain'; and so it
happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, `There will be
scorching heat'; and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the
appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the
present time?"
Liturgist: The
Gospel of the Lord.
People: Praise
to you, Lord Christ.
Sermon:
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.
Liturgist: As we offer our prayers for people in need, let
us chant: “Christ, have mercy.”
Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy.
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.
Youth 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: My
Jesus, I Love Thee, (Renew! # 275)
My Jesus I love thee, I know thou art mine. For thee all the follies of sin I
resign. My gracious redeemer, my savior
art thou. If ever I loved thee, my Jesus
tis now.
I love thee because thou has first loved me. And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s
tree; I love thee for wearing the thorn
on thy brow, if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, ‘tis now.
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 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)
Liturgist continues:
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, when we will bring you the gifts of bread
and wine. We will ask you to 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 by your Holy Spirit 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,
(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: Christ
our Passover is sacrificed for us.
People: Therefore
let us keep the feast.
Words of Administration
Communion Song: Let All That Is Within Me, (Renew! # 269)
1-Let all that is within cry holy. Let all that is within me cry holy. Holy, holy, holy is the Lamb that was slain.
2-Glory 3-Jesus
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: Lord, Bid Your Servant Go In Peace, (Renew! #
295)
1-Lord bid your servant go in peace; your word is now
fulfilled. These eyes have seen
salvation’s dawn, this child so long foretold.
2-This is the Savior of the world, the Gentiles’ promised
light, God’s glory dwelling in our midst, the joy of Israel.
Dismissal:
Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ.
People: Thanks be to God!
