Judged Impartially
April 23, 2023 Easter 3
Lighting the Christ Candle
Welcome and Announcements
Called to Worship:
God shows no partiality. No one is given special advantage.
Everyone who respects him and who does what is right is acceptable to him.
You know the message God sent to all through the people of Israel.
It is a message of peace by Jesus Christ, who has been made Lord of all
Today we gather in his name.
Today we bless God for the salvation that he freely offers us in Jesus Christ.
Hymn: 257 The strife is o’er, the battle done
Prayer of Adoration
Living and faithful Spirit, the God in whom we live and move and have our being, the God who is made known in Christ Jesus, bless us one and all as we wait on you this day.
Increase within us that holy longing for closeness which can open our lives to fuller delight and to a deeper commitment.
May our hymns and prayers, our searching thoughts, and our hearing of the Scriptures, be a source of grace and mercy. Reveal yourself to us, that we may know you more deeply.
As we seek that deeper knowledge we open ourselves before you, bringing our prayers of confession…
Unison Prayer of Confession:
We’re afraid to take a truthful look at ourselves,
yet you see us as we really are.
Even when we won’t listen to you,
you hear us when we call your name.
We keep the light of your word hidden to ourselves,
though you gave it to share with the world.
May we know and serve the One
who calls us to see, hear, and speak.
Open our hearts, Lord that we may receive your grace.
Assurance of Pardon
In this place we find God's word, God's way, God’s judgement, God's love, God's forgiveness.
God says to us: you are forgiven and I claim you as my own, redeemed in Jesus and without blemish or defect.
Glory be to God.
The Peace
The peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you
Hymn: 683 I know not why such wondrous grace
Scripture Lessons:
Psalm 116: 1-4, 12-19
1 Peter 1: 17-23
Sermon: Judged impartially
When you watch courtroom dramas you see that either the defense attorney or the prosecutor or both are seeking to appear before a judge who is sympathetic with their viewpoint on the matter at hand. Most of us would agree that we would prefer to appear before a judge who would be inclined to rule in our favor, or at the very least be impartial.
The people that Peter is writing to know what it is like to live in a community where those who are against, you are also the ones who are judging you. It never comes out well for the peoplel of Christ living in a foreign land.
No matter where we go, we are all subject to judgement from those around us, yet Peter says that God is impartial. In this passage we are reminded that the only judge that matters is God, whom Peter claims is that impartial judge who will judge fairly.
The good news is that the judgement of God is always filled with grace. That grace acknowledges, yes you are a sinner and that you have sinned. For that reason, you are worthy of condemnation.
If it was not for the grace that tempers the judgement, this could be a cause of great despair. So, Peter hastens to remind us that we are all judged as the redeemed in Christ. He writes in verse 19 that God sees us as he sees Christ, without blemish or defect and that therefore our life, faith and hope are in God.
The commentator Jones challenges us to consider that even within the church we cast judgement on one another. This seemed to be the case in the church to whom Peter wrote, where in addition to the problems associated with being outsiders living in a foreign land, there were problems with everyone integrating into the congregation. Some were previously Jews, some previously from other religions and each of them came to faith in Christ with their old cultural and religious perspectives informing their viewpoint.
For any of us who have ever changed denominations or changed congregations we know what that means.
Every congregation, even in the denomination we know, does things differently.
When we are new to that congregation we can feel a bit uncomfortable as we navigate through the liturgy.
When to stand.
When to sit.
What are the words to that Doxology at the offering.
Is the Lord’s Prayer going to be about debtors or trespassers, or sinners?
And we know the others notice as we stumble our way through worship. And then there are the judgements we bring because they don’t do things that we have grown to know and love where we came from.
And if we are uncomfortable, imagine what happens when someone who has never known Christ or been to worship before must feel. We can be a pretty strange lot to integrate into.
So when we read this account from Peter and or even think about the ways Paul taught those congregations struggling with the variety of perspectives in their growing pains, we can sympathize.
Do you eat meat or not?
What about meat previously offered to idols?
Must you convert to Judaism before you can be baptized?
Or do you just baptize everyone who proclaims Jesus?
One of the strengths in the Reformed tradition, in my understanding, is that we acknowledge that we all live under the grace of Jesus.
My favorite sayings about the disparity in the church that can cause judgement are:
- In all things Christ crucified, all the rest are just details.
- When we get to heaven, we will discover that we have all gotten it wrong.
None of us has cornered the market on the truth in Christ, we are all on the journey of discovery and discernment, where we learn to trust that God is in charge and that God will direct.
Peter calls the congregation to consider that no matter where they live or how they were feeling they must live out and embrace their common commitment of seeing what a priceless gift from God they have been given. He calls on everyone to embrace their role in the kingdom.
How we welcome and love one another is the way we embrace and live out the love and grace that God has given us. We are not all in the same place in the journey, and our paths may take us to different places. And its all good.
We are reminded that faith is not stagnant. When we are reborn in Christ it is the beginning of our journey of growth in faith—not the end point.
I hope that when we realize that we are all pilgrims on a journey, and all people who struggle with putting faith into action, we will treat one another with a greater gentleness and kindness.
We won’t always be successful and we will never be perfect, but we will all grow.
And above all we can all be grateful that no matter what the only judge who matters is God.
We can encourage. We can teach. We can help others discern their path. We can suggest practices that help others to see God in a new way or live in a new way…. But we are not called to pronounce judgement. Only God can do that.
We know that we are sinners and that we have sinned. For that reason, we are worthy of condemnation. But with God, judgment is filled with grace and he says to us, go, and sin no more. More than that he says to us, you are forgiven and I claim you as my own, redeemed in Jesus and without blemish or defect.
Grace is the gift of judgement.
Grace makes each of us members of a new family.
Grace gives us Christ’s lifeblood.
Grace has set us free from everything that has kept us in bondage.
This letter from Peter reminds us that our faith is rooted in Christ, who was known before the foundations of the world was laid, and who calls us to a new thing. That new thing is the unfolding journey of our growth in grace, in love and in mercy.
The commentator Jones asks the question, “What could be more honourable that being a child of God?”
We are born into a family and raised up in God, and as in every family we begin as babies and we learn along the way to crawl, and walk and run. We increase in wisdom and understanding. We learn how to be more and more like God, and what it is like to be in his family.
Peter tells us that journey will mean that we will grow the genuine love of God in our hearts. More than that, we will embrace that love and become that love. Jones writes that love will be demonstrated by, “throwing ourselves enthusiastically and persistently into the hard work of active love for our neighbours.”
Peter reminds us that that God’s love within us is a holy love. Holy love recognizes that being loved, honoured and welcomed by God, frees us to love honour and welcome others.
The congregation is called to be a place where outcasts become family. That means a lot. It also won’t be easy.
I have a friend who adopted a badly damaged and confused 7 year old. He tested her love daily. He made her life miserable at times. But she persisted in loving him.
That is what God does for us. He takes our brokenness, floods it with grace, gives us the gifts of equality with Christ, and then continues to love us and affirm our place in the family in spite of how much we test that love.
In the family of God, no one is an outsider. Everyone is welcomed. In the family of God everyone has a sure and lasting home filled with grace and mercy.
And we are the grateful recipients of that Grace. The beloved child without blemish or spot.
May that grace rest lightly upon you all the days of your life.
Amen.
Hymn: 467 Praise my soul, the God who crowns you (starts 37 seconds into the video)
Offering
Doxology
Offertory Prayer
God of grace and mercy, we give these offerings in gratitude,
rejoicing in the abundance of your gifts to us.
We give these offerings in faith, trusting that you will provide for our needs.
We give these offerings in hope, knowing you can use them to spread your love in this world.
And with these offerings, we give ourselves;
May we live with generous hearts, with open hands as we spread your love in this world.. Amen
Gathering Prayer Requests
Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer
Dear Lord our God, we are thankful that you are constantly at work in our lives.
You are…
a help in times of difficulty
a strength in times of weakness
a guide when we feel lost and alone
We know that through Your Son, Jesus Christ, You have the power…
to transform lives
to mend broken relationships
to bring strength to the weary
and hope to the broken hearted.
So we bring our worries and our burdens, our hopes and dreams,
before your throne of grace, knowing that you are the Lord of our lives and the hope of the world.
JOYS
PEOPLE IN NEED OF YOUR MERCY
YOUR HURTING WORLD
Today we pray for world leaders that they may always seek the peace and security of our world:
We pray for countries laid waste by war and conflict and dictatorship,
remembering especially, the plight of people in the Ukraine
Sudan
Columbia…..
We pray for the police and the emergency services, as they seek the peace and security of our nation; keep them safe as they work on our behalf.
We pray for those who are judges in the legal system. May they be impartial, and give consideration to what is best for those who appear before them, and the society they may have wronged.
We pray for the world-wide Church, for all those in mission work, locally and around the world. Those whose task it is to feed the hungry, and we ask your blessing upon our Hope Garden as we begin to prepare and plant. May the harvest be abundant.
Lord we pray for all the congregations here in Salmon Arm, and ask your blessing upon Grace as they gather for worship. May your Spirit fill them with love and purpose.
We give thanks for our own church and its people,
and gladly acknowledge all the gifts you have given us.
Grant us your help and guidance and support.
those who still mourn the loss of someone dear to their heart.
And we pray for ourselves—
that we might know the gentle authority of Jesus
in all parts of our lives—
leading us, guiding us, encouraging and directing us,
now and always. Remembering his guidance, we pray as he has taught us saying, 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 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: 258 Thine be the glory
Charge and Benediction
Go forth into the world, and love it as God has loved you. Be for others the source of grace and mercy that points to God’s presence among them. And may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit be with you forevermore. Amen
Sung Blessing
252 He is Lord