Isn’t it amazing
ST ANDREW’S CHURCH
AUGUST 13 2023
LIGHTING OF THE CHRIST CANDLE
ANNOUNCEMENTS
CALL TO WORSHIP
Give thanks to the Lord!
We will tell the world what God has done.
Let us bring praise to the name of our Maker.
We will honour God’s name with shouts of joy!
Be mindful of all that God provides for us.
Let us give thanks for all the wonders God has made!
HYMN 434 For the beauty of the earth
PRAYER of INVOCATION
Surprising and mysterious God, you come to us when we least expect it, calling us out of our routines and plans, inviting us to follow Christ into new opportunities. We praise you for the many ways you come to us. In moments of fear, you speak with words of reassurance. In moments of doubt, you reach out your hand to hold. In moments of turmoil, you bring calm to the storm. You are faithful to us through everything life can bring. And so we place our trust in you this day and every day, and honour you as our Redeemer and Saviour, in the name of Christ, our Lord and friend. Hear us as we confess together …
UNISON PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Merciful and patient God,
we confess that we still experience fear and doubt,
even though you reach out to us with saving grace.
You call us to live with courage and perseverance,
yet we can give up too easily and opt for the safer route.
You encourage us to be bold in our struggles for justice,
yet we remain silent in the face of unfairness.
Forgive us all the times we let you down.
Renew our lives through your mercy and grace.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
Rest assured, God offers forgiveness and saving grace to everyone. Accept these gifts for yourselves and offer forgiveness to others in the name of Christ our Lord.
THE PEACE
May the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, now and always. Let us share a sign of peace
HYMN 393 I’m not ashamed to own my Lord
SCRIPTURE READINGS
Psalm 85:8-13;
Romans 10:5-15
SERMON - Isn’t it amazing
God of wisdom, as we gather to hear your Word, calm our spirits and still our minds so that we can receive your message with clarity and respond in faithfulness.
Nobody is certain of who founded the Christian movement in Rome and developed the earliest churches within the city. Many scholars believe the earliest Roman Christians were Jewish inhabitants of Rome who were exposed to Christianity while visiting Jerusalem -- perhaps even during the Day of Pentecost when the church was first established (Acts 2:1-12).
Christianity had become a major presence in the city of Rome by the late 40s A.D. Like most Christians in the ancient world, the Roman Christians were not collected into a single congregation. Instead, small groups of Christ-followers gathered regularly in house churches to worship, fellowship, and study the Scriptures together..
The earliest Christian converts in Rome were likely of Jewish origin. The early Roman churches were dominated and led by Jewish disciples of Jesus. As many as 50,000 Jews lived in Rome during Paul's day. Many of these also became Christians and joined the church. Both of these were among the groups of Christians Paul addressed in the opening of his Epistle to the Romans:
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God .... To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
(Romans 1:1,7)
The people of Rome were tolerant of most religious expressions. However, that tolerance was largely limited to religions that were polytheistic .The Roman authorities didn't care who you worshiped as long as you included the emperor and didn't create problems with other religious systems.
That was a problem for both Christians and Jews during the middle of the first century. Both Christians and Jews were fiercely monotheistic; they proclaimed the unpopular doctrine that there is only one God -- and by extension, they refused to worship the emperor or acknowledge him as any kind of deity. For these reasons, Christians and Jews began to experience intense persecution.
Christians began to experience greater persecution under the rule of Emperor Nero -- The apostle Paul wrote the Book of Romans during the early reign of Nero, when Christian persecution was just beginning. In addition to persecution from outside sources, clashes between Christians of Jewish origin and Christians who were Gentiles became more prevalent
When the emperor Claudius expelled all Jews from the city of Rome, however, only the Gentile Christians remained. Therefore, the church grew and expanded as a largely Gentile community from 49 to 54 A.D.
When Claudius perished and Jews were allowed back in Rome, the returning Jewish Christians came home to find a church that was much different from the one they had left. This resulted in disagreements about how to incorporate the Old Testament law into following Christ, including rituals such as circumcision. For these reasons, much of Paul's letter to the Romans includes instructions for Jewish and Gentile Christians on how to live in harmony and properly worship God as a new culture -- a new church. (Hold up the bible)
This is an awesome story book The Bible - banned, burned, beloved-- more widely read, more frequently attacked than any other book in history. Generations of intellectuals have attempted to discredit it; dictators of every age have outlawed it and executed those who read it. Yet soldiers carry it into battle believing it more powerful than their weapons. Fragments of it smuggled into prison cells have transformed ruthless killers into gentle saints. Pieced-together scraps of Scripture have converted whole villages of Pagans. Nothing has affected the rise and fall of civilization, the character of cultures, the structure of governments, and the lives of the inhabitants of this planet as profoundly as the words of the Bible. Faith is implanted in us through this life-producing, powerful Word.
But Paul did not have the Bible It did not exist in his life time .That's not to say he did not have the word of God The Jewish tradition was totally based on scriptures some included in which we now call “The Old Testament .
Born a Jew and raised to become a rabbi , Paul was totally indoctrinated and became insanely angry with the newly spreading cult of followers of Jesus .While he live during the same time of Jesus life, there is no indication he ever met Jesus personally. Thus he began to persecute the folks who were beginning to be known as Christians
Wow ! Isn’t it amazing how God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit work ! In one brief vision of Jesus himself, Paul was converted and convinced by the Messiah and spent the rest of his life sharing the greatest story ever told
But that’s not to say Paul is the most easily understood story teller . Christ gave us the gospel but others wrote down his words and thoughts shared during his three years of ministry . Paul travelled extensively in his many years of ministry establishing the church all over. Still the apostle did not write for scholars, as some have surmised. He wrote for common people. Not content with personal contact, Paul profusely wrote many letters to congregations and individuals to reinforce what he said – to share the gospel as deeply as possible. We know many letters have been lost . However many became the writings which had great influence in determining Christian doctrine and in time became included in this holy book Paul is not always the easily understood author but has had tremendous influence on the establishment and continuation of the Christian life of generations before and yet to come
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In this mornings reading Paul expands and explains his claim in 10:4 that “Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.” . For Paul, “righteousness” is the proper expression of belief/faith in the God that has called humanity to God’s self. We can see the text flowing around four key elements of righteousness: that which comes through Mosaic law (verse 5), righteousness that comes by faith ( 6-9), righteousness for everyone (10-11), and the means by which righteousness is communicated ( 14-15) “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” - that is, the word of faith that we proclaim; because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
The word of faith that is proclaimed “by righteousness” is not found either above or below in a specific location —but in one’s heart and one’s confession. So there is no external, mystical place for which the believer must reach, rather it is an internal connection with one’s faith that drives one’s actions. One of the richest realities of the gospel is that we are saved by grace through faith. Faith is implanted in us by the Word of God and through worship – acknowledging God’s worth and being in His presence. It involves giving thanks to God, bringing offerings to Him, singing praises to Him, recalling His wonderful interventions in our lives, and proclaiming His offer of salvation.
Paul traces the failure of the Israelites in Romans 9 to the pride of self-righteousness ( v. 3) and unbelief (cf. 9:32-33; 10:4). The root of both is a failure to hear the word of God, Again I share . Paul declares that “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes” (10:4).
We focus on the joint-love command, to love God and neighbor as ourselves. We are absolutely convinced that we are “Saved by grace through faith” without legalism. We believe that salvation is for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord However, we cannot share if we have not believed.
Just before He ascended into heaven Jesus made it clear that we are to be His witnesses. Witnessing is different than evangelizing. Evangelizing is presenting the Gospel story in such a way as to call for a commitment to Jesus. Witnessing is telling the story of our relationship to Jesus, sharing what we have witnessed in our own lives. It is to tell our story of God’s action in our lives. Jesus, in fact, sent the Holy Spirit to help us witness. Isn’t it interesting that we can speak about our job, our families, our hobbies, or our favorite ball teams yet find it difficult to speak about our relationship to Jesus? We fail to trust that the Holy Spirit will enable and empower us so we stay silent; we fail to witness, to share our story. For some around us, the gospel will be the greatest story never heard – because they did not hear it from us.
Think about the magnitude of this. God could have chosen to spread his Word in a myriad of ways. But as the primary way He’s chosen people – He’s chosen us. God has already been actively sending out messengers throughout history He chose people to write the Scriptures; He’s chosen people as translators; He’s chosen preachers and teachers. He has invited us to share in the blessings of proclaiming His Word. Through His Word and worship He shares His heart with us so that we, too, will be pained at all the dead life around us – heart-broken over the unsaved. He wants us to be sensitive to the unsaved we encounter every day. For many of them the gospel is the greatest story never heard. Logically one cannot put faith in something about which one has no knowledge. The Word of God and worship leads to salvation . Paul’s heart was pained because his fellow Jews were not yet Christians. They desperately needed to hear the gospel. So Paul is pleading for all Christians to proclaim it. “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” AMEN
HYMN 574 With the Lord as my guide
OFFERING
Thankful for the good gifts God gives us in Christ and in creation, let us present the fruit of our living for the work of God in the church and the world.
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
OFFERTORY PRAYER
Faithful God, bless the gifts we bring to you today. Use them and us to plant seeds of faith, hope and love in the world so that your goodness will flourish and your name be honoured for Christ’s sake. Amen.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
Astonishing God, you can always surprise us. You come to us in unforeseen circumstances and in unexpected people. We give you thanks for help offered by a stranger, kindness in an anxious moment, good news that changed expected outcomes, relief in the midst of ongoing crises and signs of hope when things seemed bleak.
We pray for all the people who faced the totally immediate and devastating forest fires which destroyed the city of Lahaina in Maui Hawaii this past Tuesday . For the tourists who faced challenges leaving and getting home We pray especially for the residents who lost everything they owned – homes, business and most all fro the many family and friends who died in the fire - Comfort them , bring the assistance needed - the finding of home in a new and likely unfamiliar city and town and as they plan for rebuilding and renewing their lives in the place they love .We give thanks for all who responded and continue to respond to overcome the many uncertainties in the disaster and in the weeks and months ahead Keep all in safety and give them peace
We also lift to you all the people who are impacted by the ongoing devastating wildfires here in BC and across Canada . The losses are beyond belief for many folks - the ongoing work for the thousands at the faces of all these fires is wearing and mentally, emotionally and physically exhausting We give you thanks that you are with them - upholding them in your strength and grace
We pray for all who face upheaval and uncertainty, whatever the cause.
Fill our hearts with compassion and understanding for the fearful.
Steadying God, Reach out to all in the storms of life.
God of peace, you reassure us. You remind us not to be afraid when troubles arise. We pray for those who struggle with illness or grief, anxiety or depression. We remember those who feel worthless or ashamed, whatever the reason. ……..
May they know your peace and strength. Equip us to reach out in every way we can to embody your love in our words and actions.
Lord you always hear our prayer – both here and in the places where prayer rises up we pray today for ………………..
God of hope, you challenge us and invite us to stand for truth and work for justice.We pray for all those people crying out for fair treatment, working against racism and discrimination, telling painful stories of their lives. Open our hearts with understanding and motivate us to act for change. We pray for those who resist the stories of injustice and defend inequality. Open their minds to the truths they deny, and show them new possibilities for relationships that bridge divides. Send your Spirit to work in our communities to create mutual respect and new ways to live as neighbours.
We pray for ministers and church workers who are taking much needed vacations. Bless Ena and her family as they spend this month together May they all be refreshed and re-energized. we pray for PWS&D partners who dedicate their lives to helping those in need in the most difficult circumstances. We pray for wisdom, courage and resources for them to continue their good work.
Faithful God, we place our trust in you and your purposes. Answer our prayers according to your wisdom and will, for we offer them humbly in the name of Jesus who taught us to pray together:
THE LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father, who art in heaven hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
HYMN 761 Who’s going to tell the story
Online: We've a story to tell to the nations
BENEDICTION
Whether the week ahead brings storms or calm for you, take heart. God is with us. Do not be afraid. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him May our Lord Jesus uphold you in love and grace and may the Holy Spirit encourage you with strength and wisdom this day and always .
CLOSING SONG
Lead me Lord, lead me in your righteousness
Make your way plan before my face
For it is you and you God only
Who makes me dwell in safety.