St Andrew’s Salmon Arm

OCTOBER  31, 2021   REFORMATION SUNDAY

 

LIGHTING OF THE CHRIST CANDLE

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Thank you Rev. Shirley Cochrane for leading us in worship today. St. Andrew’s welcomes you to this Reformation Sunday service and prays it will be a blessing to your souls.
We thank the Lord for Rev. Ena van Zoeren’s surgery date of November 17th and pray that it will go well.

 

CALL TO WORSHIP

Bless the Lord at all times;

God’s praise will always be on our lips.

Make great the name of God;

We will lift up God’s holy name together.

For the Lord is our God, the Lord alone.

We will love the Lord with heart, mind, strength and soul,

and praise God now and always.

 

HYMN      384  Oh Breath of life

 

O Breath of life, come sweeping through us,
Revive Your church with life and power.
O Breath of life, come, cleanse, renew us,
And fit Your church to meet this hour.

 

O Wind of God, come bend us, break us,
Till humbly we confess our need;
Then in Your tenderness remake us,
Revive, restore, for this we plead.

 

O Breath of love, come breathe within us
Renewing thought and will and heart;
Come, Love of Christ, afresh to win us
Revive Your church in every part.

 

O Tongues of fire come rest upon us

So may we speak your word aright ;

Kindle the flame of love  among us

Equip you church  to spread the light.

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PRAYER of ADORATION

 

God of goodness and purpose, in you we live and move and have our being. You are the Fountain of Life, and you refresh us. You are the Light of the world, and you show us the way. You are the Spirit of life, and you move in us each new day.

So, we join our voices with the angels and archangels, with the saints and disciples of every time and place, to worship you as Creator, Healer, and Source of our hope and our joy. Praise be to you, God most holy, ever Three and ever One,  world without end. Hear us again  as we confess to you

 

UNISON PRAYER OF CONFESSION

God of goodness and mercy, we confess that we have been indifferent to your will, staying silent when we should have spoken up for justice.

We have heard your call to put our faith into action,

but fear holds us back.

There is work to be done in Jesus’ name, but we often seek an easier way. Forgive us, O God, and give us courage and commitment

to serve as your saints in this time and this place,

whatever the challenges may be.

 

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance,  that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Know that you are forgiven by God’s great mercy,  and have the grace to forgive each other, just as you have been forgiven.

 

 

 

THE PEACE

 

HYMN      494   Lord be thy word   —-     NEW                                                             (Play video and use the words below)

 

Lord, be thy word my rule;

in it may I rejoice,
thy glory be my aim,

thy holy will, my choice,

2. Thy promises my hope, t

thy providence my guard,
thine arm my strong support,

thyself my great reward.

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SCRIPTURE READINGS

 

Psalm 119: 1 – 8

 

Blessed are those whose ways are blameless,

who walk according to the law of the Lord.
2 Blessed are those who keep his statutes
and seek him with all their heart—
3 they do no wrong
but follow his ways.
4 You have laid down precepts
that are to be fully obeyed.
5 Oh, that my ways were steadfast
in obeying your decrees!
6 Then I would not be put to shame
when I consider all your commands.
7 I will praise you with an upright heart
as I learn your righteous laws.
8 I will obey your decrees;
do not utterly forsake me.

 

Hebrews 9:11–14

 

11 But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. 12 He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. 13 The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. 14 How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

 

SERMON

 

Oh gosh! there are rare multi themed Sundays yet today is one of them. In many protestant churches there is the commemoration of the Reformation.  Many denominations celebrate All saints Day and this year –  well – for all the other folks  – it’s Hallowe’en .

 

Perhaps Luke 10:19-20.  should be the reading for the day; Jesus spoke to his disciples saying “ I have given you authority to  trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome  all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you .However do not rejoice  that the spirits submit to you  but rejoice that your names are written in heaven

 

We begin with the Letter to the Hebrews. Chapter 9 begins with a comparison of the earthly and heavenly spaces where cultic worship takes place.

 

It goes on with the affirmation that God’s messiah, Jesus Christ, has become God’s High Priest. No other book in the New Testament explicitly calls Jesus a priest, let alone a High Priest. The key lies in the fact that only Jesus serves where God actually dwells (. 9:24).

 

Jesus’ priesthood becomes the primary vehicle for explaining the meaning of his death and resurrection. Priests were powerful figures in Israel and in other Greco-Roman societies, exercising both spiritual and political power over the people. Proclamation that Jesus is High Priest boldly asserts his position of power.

 

Because he offers the perfect, ever-sufficient sacrifice, he secures two different results for those who stand under his priestly ministry. Whereas the old system performed the vital reconciliation of the relationship between God and his people, described as atonement, Jesus’ sacrifice also enacts redemption. This redemption lasts forever; it is eternal, it can enable them – and us – to reach the heavenly city of God (12:22-24). . Now, with the cleansing of their hearts and minds, they can minister to God with the sacrifices of praise, good works, and fellowship (13:15-16).

The image of Jesus offering himself before the very throne of God in heaven — so unusual, so unsettling, so profound — would have created a deep sense of thanksgiving that this sacrifice achieved what others had not: permanent and thorough change in the relationship between God and humanity

Jesus’ sacrifice cleanses the external and internal so that we can offer our whole selves to God, just like he did. It is not really about what we do; but it is about surrender.  How awesome that we may serve the living God!

 

Renewal.  Reformation.  Restoration.  Reawakening.  Revival.  Recommitment.   From time to time, scripture reminds us that the Spirit of God stirs the people to re-creation Throughout the Old testament instances of renewal and reformation, demonstrated the same pattern .

 

By the 16th century the stance of the Christian church had become very tangled  in theology, politics and economics  We don’t have time to go into detail  but we can believe it was a very sorry State and in many areas fallen far from scripture. Reformation Sunday calls to liturgical memory the significance of October 31st.

 

The Reformation is the commemoration of how one monk—who was really a professor at a backwater university in Saxony—changed the world with nothing other than words. With the Word, the Spirit moved to awaken the church, through a powerful reengagement with the Word of God itself.

 

Martin Luther posted the 95 Theses on the Castle Church in Wittenberg on this day in 1517. He contested the business of indulgences as sanctioned by Pope Leo X and the Catholic Church These payments to the church offered forgiveness of sin – sold and purchased often to the financial detriment and hardship of the oppressed and marginalized.  It was the poor who had the most “skin” to lose in this ecclesial business.  To finance St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, the Catholic Church peddled peace in purgatory, enticing folks to forsake their present homes for a future heavenly realm. Here was exploitation of social status for spiritual gain through capital means.

Needless to say the controversy was drawing clergy participants from wider circles and addressing broader and weightier theological issues, the most important of which was the question of the authority of the church and the pope.

Sadly, the Reformation was a very violent period in Europe, Even family members were often pitted against one another in the wars of religion. Each side, both Catholics and Protestants, were often absolutely certain that they were in the right and that the other side was doing the devil’s work.

 

What we commemorate annually on Reformation Day is not just Marin Luther, and his supporting theologians nor Protestant Reformation. We celebrate the Holy Spirit, who in the midst of a time of a famine of the Word of God, showered down grace from heaven. We celebrate the Spirit who broke through centuries of dying and dead human tradition, to resurrect, renew, and recreate the church.

Another of todays themes is All Saints Day   Over the centuries various denominations have named particular women and men  who  have been, through their faith and life, been considered as  Holy -enough to dedicate them to  the status of veneration – given  deep respect and reverence.

Many cultures over the millenniums’ have honoured their ancestry with a “Day of the Dead “……  taking part in rituals which play a big part in the honour and celebration.  So, who are the saints?

One day a man was walking through a beautiful church building with his 4-year-old son. As they walked, the young boy looked around. He stopped and was curious about the stained-glass windows that looked so beautiful with their bright colors. As he looked at the windows, he asked, “Who are all the people in the windows, daddy?”

“They are Saints,” said the father. “What are Saints daddy?” the kid asked.

The father was stuck. How was he going to explain who saints were to a four-year-old boy?

As the boy was still looking up at the windows and the father was still wondering how he would explain who saints are, the little boy suddenly shouted out, ” Daddy! I know who saints are. They are the people that the light shines through.”

Quite often we think of saints who perhaps are only the very, very well-known people from the past such as Saint Francis or Mother Teresa. People no longer living among us who have been recognized as having committed miracles or great devoted contributions to the church and Christian life

But in the Bible, a saint is simply a follower of Jesus Christ

All the words in both Greek and Hebrew that are used in the Bible and are translated into the word “saint” all have the same definition. According to the Bible a saint is someone who is sacred, holy, pure, blameless, dedicated. . A person through whom the light of Jesus shines

Of course, the word “holy” doesn’t mean “perfect”… …it means “set apart.”……”set apart to serve God.” A saint may fall into sin, lose their temper, hurt another by word or deed, but a saint asks God for forgiveness, accepts that forgiveness and asks God for the strength to grow in love. And still…God calls us saints!!!

Philip Yancey in his book, The Jesus I Never Knew, tells us that there are Christians from a certain part of Africa who never say of their dead that they have “lost” that person like we may say, “I lost my wife last spring.” That’s seeing death from our perspective. These African folks view death from God’s perspective. Instead, they announce with joy that their loved ones “have arrived” in Heaven.  They’re not lost at all. They know exactly where they are. They are in Heaven with God. “Do not grieve like those who have no hope.”

The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago, mostly in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1.

This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, the Irish celebrated Samhain, a time believed when the doorways to the Otherworld opened enough for the souls of the dead, and other beings, to come into our world.  To protect themselves people would light bonfires, wear masks and costumes to prevent recognition by demons and ward off ghosts and placate them with food offerings left on the doorstep. This evening was known as All Hallows Eve

By 43 A.D., the Roman Empire had conquered the majority of Celtic territory. In the course of the 400 years that they ruled the Celtic lands, two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration of Samhain.

In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints. Interestingly All Saints Day incorporated some of the Celtic traditions of Samhain.

By 1000 A.D., the church made November 2 All Souls’ Day, a day to honor the dead. It’s widely believed today that the church was attempting to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, church-sanctioned holiday.

Halloween although not a holiday, falls on October 31 because the ancient Gaelic festival of Samhain, considered the earliest known root of Halloween, occurred on this day, It also has many connections to the Christian holidays of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day. These holidays came into existence centuries after the Bible was written, Halloween as we know it today became popular in the 1930s in North America and consequently spread to many other countries

The word “Halloween” comes from All Hallows’ Eve and means “hallowed evening.” In many countries with a Roman Catholic heritage All Saints Day and All Souls Day have long been holidays in which people take the day off work, go to cemeteries with candles and flowers, and give presents to children, usually sweets and toys.

It also has created some particular stances in some denominations because of the perceived association with evil.  The first Halloween I was in Wanham no village children came to the manse for treats. However, a lot kids from the Hutterite colonies came a knocking. Later I asked someone in the congregation why. The explanation was a former Presbyterian minister was clear in letting folks know Halloween is a celebration of evil and we do not participate in it. Why the Hutterites who have a stern theological statement on many biblical issues allow their children out was never explained.

Halloween, for some, is a time to reckon with the darker side of life—whether that means facing inner demons, braving a frightening future decision, or trying something fun and exciting that scares you a little bit. Ultimately, exploring internal or external darkness is a great way to better appreciate the light and happiness on the other side.

On that note, there’s no place that understands the dark, the evil—and even the demonic—better than the Bible. Scripture is full of stories where good and evil are pitted against each other, as well as Bible verses that offer wisdom about facing darkness, deception, and fear in your own life.

While the Bible doesn’t mention Halloween specifically, it does, of course, have lots to say about the forces of evil.  I quote a couple:

John 3:19-20 “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.”

 

Romans 13:12 “The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.”

 

And may I say again to you wonderful saints gathered here today “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you but rejoice that your names are written in heaven   AMEN

 

 

HYMN      758   Christs is the world

 

Christ’s is the world in which we move;

Christ’s are the folk we’re summoned to love;

Christ’s is the voice which calls us to care,

and Christ is the one who meets us here.

To the lost Christ shows his face,

            to the unloved he gives his embrace,

            to those who cry in pain or disgrace

            Christ makes, with his friends, a touching place.

 

Feel for the people we must avoid –

strange or bereaved or never employed.

Feel for the women and feel for the men

who fear that their living is all in vain.

      To the lost Christ shows his face,

            to the unloved he gives his embrace,

            to those who cry in pain or disgrace

            Christ makes, with his friends, a touching place.

 

Feel for the parents who’ve lost their child,

feel for the women whom men have defiled,

feel for the baby for whom there’s no breast,

and feel for the weary who find no rest.

To the lost Christ shows his face,

            to the unloved he gives his embrace,

            to those who cry in pain or disgrace

            Christ makes, with his friends, a touching place.

 

Feel for the lives by life confused,

riddled with doubt, in loving abused;

feel for the lonely heart, conscious of sin,

which longs to be pure but fears to begin.

To the lost Christ shows his face,

            to the unloved he gives his embrace,

            to those who cry in pain or disgrace

            Christ makes, with his friends, a touching place.

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OFFERING

On this Sunday, we give thanks for the lives of saints throughout the centuries who have shown in many ways what it costs to follow Jesus. Our offering is one way in which we share in the costs of serving him in this generation. May the example of others, who shared their faith in Christ so that we may believe, inspire our generosity today.

 

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

God of all generations, past, present and future, we offer our gifts in gratitude for the inheritance of faithfulness we have received as followers of Jesus. Bless these gifts so that today’s ministries may flourish and provide an inheritance for those who come after us, as you guide them into a future only you can see.  In Jesus name  AMEN

 

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

Enduring God, On this Reformation Sunday, we thank you today for your faithfulness to us and to the tradition that has shaped us as disciples of Jesus. Thank you for your living Word which continues to reveal him, and for the gift of your Spirit to help us interpret your wisdom  in the midst of challenging times.

 

Eternal God, On this Sunday marking the faithfulness of all your saints,

we give you thanks for people in our lives and across the ages who have shown us your loving kindness through their witness to Christ in so many different situations.  Inspire us by their examples and show us how we, too, can live out our faith and share it with family friends and strangers . We thank you  for knitting us into one common fellowship; for the people who have gone ahead of us in the faith and who loved us, formed our faith and served God with joy and grace.

 

Loving God, You keep calling us to care for those in need and show hospitality to strangers in our midst. Thank you for your persistent love which continues to comfort and challenge us all. Open our hearts and eyes so that we can see how to offer that love to others in the midst of challenging times.

 

Wise and patient God, In the midst of distractions, help us focus on your presence with us. In the midst of confusing voices, make your Word plain. In the midst of competing desires, show us the path to follow

for the sake of Jesus, our friend, teacher and guide,

 

Living God, You bring new life to the discouraged and those facing danger and death. Thank you for signs of hope which break into pressures of the pandemic and its consequences for so many, As we go about our community, we remember and appreciate  the  people engaged in the local businesses , the entrepreneurs, the well established and those in the small business journies. We ask for your deep blessings upon them.

 

Creating God, we praise you for the beauty of this world and the rhythms of nature which sustain us. Give us courage to act on behalf of your creation where it is stressed or broken, and nurture our commitment to act as your stewards within creation  Grant wisdom and guidance to all the delegates who are gathering in Glasgow Scotland this week as they face all the issues of Climate Change

 

Wise God, we humbly ask  you hear as lay before you the people and places on our hearts this day:

…………………….

Now we join our voices with the followers of Jesus in every time and place in the words he taught us all:

 

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      315  A mighty fortress is our God

 

1 A mighty fortress is our God,
a bulwark never failing;
our helper sure, amid the flood
of mortal ills prevailing.
For still our ancient foe
does seek to work us woe;
with  craft and power great,
and armed with cruel hate,
on earth has not an equal.

 

2 Did we in our own strength confide,
our striving would be losing,
were not the Savior on our side,
the One of God’s own choosing.
Who is this Savior who ?
Christ Jesus, living ttrue
Lord Sabaoth by name,
from age to age the same;
already wins the battle.

 

3 And though this world, with evil filled,
should threaten to undo us,
we will not fear, for God has willed
his truth to triumph through us.
The powers of death and hell

Our God shall surely quell
their rage we can endure,
for look ! their doom is sure;
one little word will fell them.

 

4 That Word above all earthly powers
no thanks to them – abiding;;
ensures that all God’s gifts are ours
through Christ in us residing.
whose summons rings above

all goods , all earthly love

Earth’s powers waste away

God’s word endures always,

Whose reign will last forever

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BENEDICTION

 

As you leave the quiet of this holy place, and  head into another amazing week  may the amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, the extravagant love of God ,and  the intimate friendship of the Holy Spirit, be with all of you.

Amen

 

CLOSING SONG

May the peace of Christ go with you

And also with you

May the peace of Christ go with you

In all you do    (X2)

ONLINE: Take oh take me as I am