Sept 15,  2024

Lighting the Christ Candle

Welcome and Announcements

Call to Worship
O Jesus, Exalted Prince of Heaven
your glories are everlasting
Through you all things were created,
and by your redeeming work, all thing are made new,
You lack nothing, yet you continue to reach out to bring us in
Your heart has room to love us, even when we did not know you
Yet you call us, and calling us you choose to live among us, you delight in us
displaying the richness of your grace, and your great strength.  For this we give you praise, and worship your Holy Name.

Hymn:  350 To God be the glory

Prayer of Adoration
O God, whose love fills our lives.  You are with us eternally, causing us to rejoice that we are created in your image.

We praise you for the gift of Jesus, who came to suffer for us, who came to redeem us and save us.  We praise you that he came to love us, and restore in us the eternal presence of your love and grace.

Be our guide as we think on your goodness this day.
Be the light in our awareness of your presence.
Be the teacher in all that we do or say this day.
Be the voice in our prayers.

Be among us and keep us open to the wisdom of your grace.  Hear now, our confession before you:

Prayer of Confession:
Open our eyes to understand how we have turned our ideas into idols and confused the Gospel of Jesus into the broken aspects of our own culture, which we revere.
Be among us with your grace when our time is short, our energy is lacking, and opportunities are missed.  Show us how you are lovingly at work among us, so that we may move beyond doubt and trust in Jesus who came to live among us, and bring to fruition our faithful service.  Amen

Assurance of Pardon

We have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God.
May we understand the grace and forgiveness bestowed upon us by God, that others may find the Kingdom within us and among us.

In Jesus Christ we  are forgiven.

Passing the Peace

Hymn:  358  There is a redeemer

Scripture:

Responsive Psalm 116 p 955
Isaiah 50: 4-9  p 1141
Mark 8: 27-38  p 1566

Sermon:  Jesus came to suffer

Jesus came to suffer. Sometimes it seems like this is a message that we can’t hear often enough.  Jesus came to suffer.

We hear it every year during Lent, as we walk with Jesus to the cross.  And then it keeps coming up as we work our way through the Gospels later in the year.

Jesus came to suffer.  Jesus came to suffer for us.

It is hard to hear.  It strikes us at our sense of worth, and sometimes our false humility stands in our way.  It is as if we have a sense of pride in how we are too sinful to have Jesus die for us.

But the truth is, that we are so valuable to God that no matter what we have done, Jesus willingly chose to die, in order to redeem us.

During Lent we focus on the reluctance of the disciples to follow Jesus on the journey to the cross.  They want a warrior king, who will overthrow Rome and establish a descendant of David on the throne.  But a king who will die to save his people is unheard of.  Or is it?

We began our readings today in Isaiah.  The prophet spoke often about the coming Messiah, but here, he speaks with absolute authority about what the Messiah would come to do.

In fact, he speaks with such authority that he speaks in the voice of the Messiah, reminding us that the Messiah would speak to a weary people to encourage them.

We all know that when we are in difficult times, that someone who walks alongside us and encourages us to keep going is a powerful friend indeed.  When they are willing to share our journey, even though they don’t have to, it is a great gift.

The Messiah, however goes beyond sharing the journey.  The Messiah takes on the journey as his own.  Walks ahead.  Clears the path.  Faces the danger so we don’t have to.

Who would do that for us?

Probably no one we know.  Each of us knows the pain and trauma of our own journey through life.  It is as much as we can handle and we can’t take on more, even if we want to.

So here we are seeing a description of a King who does what no human would be able to do.  Encourage us, by walking in the pain of our journey so we don’t have to.

Not just the pain of my journey.  The pain of your journey as well.  The pain of the journey of everyone here this morning.  The pain of the journey of everyone in the world.

I keep coming back to the realization that this is a sign that God’s love for us shows just how valuable we are to him and for his kingdom.

In human terms it is like going into a room and being chosen by the dog, or cat, or child who decides that we are the only person they really want to be with.  We like how that feels.

Speaking as the Messiah, Isaiah goes on to say, “I followed orders, stood there and took it while they beat me, held steady while they pulled out my beard, Didn’t dodge their insults, faced them as they spit in my face.  And the Master, God, stays right there and helps me, so I’m not disgraced.”  Is.  50: 6-7 MSG

Jesus came to suffer.  Jesus came to suffer for you and for me.

When he took upon himself our sins, and frankly our disgrace, he also took upon himself the exaltation of God.  He was not disgraced by taking our journey.  Best of all, we are not disgraced by the events of our journey; Jesus removed all that from us.

We all have things that we are ashamed of having done.  We all doubt our self-worth.  We all wonder how we can overcome our past.

The answer to all those questions is in the comforting knowledge that Jesus came to suffer for us.  We should not underestimate the freedom that comes with that gift.

Shifferdekker writes that the words of Isaiah show us the power of the servant-teacher.  These words sustain the weary because the Lord God has placed these words in the mouth of the Messiah.

Jesus comes to speak God’s words.  He comes to live our lives.  He comes to bring about God’s will.  He comes to suffer and to die.

Brewton writes that God sustains the people because the Messiah gives his back to those who hit him, his cheeks to those who pluck out his beard.  He did not hide from the disgrace because God turned that disgrace into victory.

It is good for us to be reminded that Isaiah is speaking of the Messiah; but is also writing to encourage those who are in exile.  That message is a constant in Isaiah.

People in exile are being encouraged.  People living as aliens and being treated as unwanted and undesirable intruders are being assured that they are loved and wanted by God.  They are being assured that the message of the Messiah promises that they will once again have freedom to live as God’s people and to worship him as he should be worshipped.

The servant who comes to suffer for the people is a powerful symbol of the courage and hope that comes in the midst of suffering.

Throughout the message that the prophet brings, we are reminded that the Messiah comes for Jacob or Israel; but also that the Messiah is Israel.

Israel has by this time ceased to be the alternate name for Jacob, but a term used to demonstrate the inclusivity of all of God’s people—all of the children of Abraham.  And that includes us, who have been adopted as children of Abraham.

What comes to and through Israel, comes to and through us.  We are God’s people.  We are the ones for whom the Messiah came to suffer.  We are the ones purchased because we are and always have been the beloved of God.

More than that, we are the ones whose privilege it is to stand in the shoes of the Messiah and to walk the path he has prepared.  We take on the mantle of the blameless servant whose faithfulness to God is beyond reproach.  We may struggle in our faithful living; but when God looks at us, he sees the faithfulness of Jesus, who came to suffer and to die for us.

Brewton also points out that all of Israel are encouraged to identify with the Messiah.  The servant is all the people who are struggling to maintain their identity as God’s own people.

I wonder if this is what is behind the clear frustration of Jesus, when Peter and the others try to prevent him from walking the path of the suffering servant.  It isn’t just about Jesus fulfilling God’s will; it is also about the disciples missing the freedom and joy of being those whom Jesus redeemed through suffering and death.

It is no wonder that Jesus rebuked Peter, saying,  “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”  Mark 8: 33 NIV

When we live in the selfishness of only our own desires, then we are removing ourselves from what God desires for us.  Being separated from God is a dangerous road to travel.  Jesus is offering to walk that road for sake of the disciples, and they are trying to prevent him from giving them the gift of God.  More than that, they are trying to prevent him from giving the gift of God to all Israel.

Clearly their lack of understanding needed to be addressed with a rebuke.  They needed to clear their vision and see the gift of the Messiah as God intended it to be.

The suffering of Jesus cleared the path for all of us.  The path that he cleared was the path of sin and death; and he gave us the path of the favorite child of God—unlimited grace and eternal life.

After that Jesus spoke to the disciples saying that it was time for them to take up their own cross.  This is a powerful calling that extends through them and includes us.

We are called to walk the path of the suffering servant, now cleared of all obstacles.  This frees us to take on the mantle of bringing all people to the gift of unlimited grace and eternal life.

On the path of the suffering servant we share what we know of relaxing into the peace of God.  We share what we know of living in the joy of the love of God.  We share the good news that everyone is the most loved child that God has ever had.

The best thing about this path of the suffering-servant is that it has been cleared of our own sin.  There is nothing that we have done or could do, that will cause God to say we are no longer of the great value bestowed on us in Jesus.

We rejoice in the good news of the suffering of Jesus, because it is a gift to every one of God’s favorite children.

Glory be to God.  Amen.

Hymn:  352 And can it be that I should gain

Offering and Doxology 830

Offertory Prayer

All that we do is in your holy name, O God.  Even as we share the riches of our labors, may we continue to honor your name in all that we do.  Bless these gifts given freely, that your justice and mercy may prevail in a weak and weary world. Amen.

Gathering Prayer Requests
Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession

Lord, you know how great our needs are. In these difficult times when jobs are threatened, homes are being lost, families are experiencing great stress, come and bring your healing love to us. Help us to place our trust in you.

Remind us again of how you transform lives, not just with healing, but with a spirit of hope and compassion. Keep us hopeful. Teach us not to give up when things are going wrong. Give us faith that can move mountains. Give us hearts that are ready to be of service to others in all times and in all places.

As we worship you, we come to lift up people and situations which concern us and we ask for your hand of healing, remind us that that same healing hand rests on us also.

JOYS

CONCERNS

WORLD

Ukraine/Russia
Israel/Palestine… safety of aid workers

Enable us to be people of compassion and trust; for we ask these things in Jesus’ Name.

We continue to pray, saying as Jesus taught us, 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 and 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, for ever.  Amen

Hymn:  467 Praise my soul the God who crowns you

Benediction

Feel the power of Christ’s healing love restoring you. Go in peace, offering help and hope to others. And may the peace of God always be with you. AMEN.

Blessing Song:  Go now in peace

Go now in peace. Never be afraid.
God will go with you each hour of every day.
Go now in faith, steadfast, strong and true.
Know He will guide you in all you do.
Go now in love, and show you believe.
Reach out to others so all the world can see.
God will be there watching from above.
Go now in peace, in faith, and in love.
Public Domain

3 Fold Amen