Seen and Called
January 14, 2024, Epiphany 2
Lighting the Christ Candle
Welcome and Announcements
Call to Worship
Something made the hairs stand up on our necks. Was it you, O God?
Was it you that we heard whispering in the dark?
Was it you that we heard calling our names?
Was it you that we felt in the stirring of our own hearts?
Was it you that called again and again?
Come, O God. Come to search us. Come to know us again.
Come, O God, so that we can hear you calling our names.
Hymn: 704 Teach us God to wonder
Prayer of Adoration
Loving God, you know us better than we know ourselves.
Our prayers are in your heart even before they are on our lips.
And yet we must utter our prayers.
We must proclaim our praise of you and all your wondrous creation.
Your love surrounds us and you have promised to be with us always.
You know our hearts’ desire to serve you.
We pray that you will keep us true to that desire.
And so we make our confession to you, trusting you in your mercy to hear us…..
Prayer of Confession:
You speak in unexpected places, and with unexpected voices, God.
And we aren’t always sure how to listen.
We aren’t always sure who to listen to.
We aren’t always sure if we’re really hearing you.
In our uncertainty, we stop listening. We miss your word, and we don’t heed your calling.
Be blunt with us, please. Be clear.
Give us the challenge of loving you, of loving the other, of loving ourselves.
And help us to live it out! Because you are God who loves us all, even when we don’t know where to turn. In Jesus’ name we ask it. Amen!
Assurance of Pardon
The God who has made us will never desert us.
The God of creation is creating still, making us new.
The God whose love gave us the gift of Jesus Christ
is the same God whose love forgives and sustains us.
Amen.
Passing the Peace
Hymn: 645 Follow me the Master said
Scripture:
1 Samuel 3: 1-10 page 423
John 1: 43-51 page 1647
Sermon: Seen and Called
There was once a young boy, who during the Children’s story about God calling Samuel, crawled under the communion table and snuggled into the blanket and pillow that the minister had put there to illustrate the story.
That action, itself was perhaps the most important part of the story. Tyler, like Samuel, was comfortable in the Sanctuary.
It had been about 7 years since Samuel had been left in the care of Eli and given in service to God as a thank offering by his mother. In those 7 years he had slept near the altar and the Ark of the Covenant. This was his place and he was comfortable.
There in the Temple he helped Eli and the other priests with the daily activities. He knew what to do, and the Temple felt like home; but in all that time Eli had not taught Samuel to know God. That failure was just a small part of the problems in the priesthood that God was about to address through Samuel.
Do we recognize the irony of this account. God was about to call a boy who did know him to be a prophet to his elders and teachers.
Apparently, God does not consider our lack of knowledge as a barrier to the calling he has in mind for our lives. The call of God always goes to those whom God chooses.
In the dark of the night, in an empty Temple, filled with shadows and strange nighttime noises, God calls, “Samuel, Samuel”. Samuel hears but as he does not yet know God he goes running to Eli to ask him what he needs. Eli responded, “I did not call you, go back and lie down.”
So Samuel went back to his bed by the altar. A second time God called into the darkness, “Samuel, Samuel” and Samuel got up and ran to Eli. And again a third time. By this time Eli recognized what was happening and instructed Samuel to simply respond, “speak Lord for your servant is listening”.
This calling story reminds us that God sees something in individuals and often calls us them regardless of their “apparent” suitability. We note that when God calls someone, he is persistent in his efforts. He keeps calling until the person responds. As always it seems that the only requirement God has is a teachable heart and a willing attitude.
That is what happens with Samuel.
He announces to God that he is listening, and God reveals to Samuel his plan for the renewal of the priesthood which begins with the punishment for Eli and his sons.
No one said that God’s calling would be easy.
Today we also read the account of the calling of Philip and Nathanael. Jesus sees Philip and says, “Follow me.” Not only does Philip do so, but almost immediately he finds Nathanael and says to him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
When we compare the stories of calling Samuel and Nathnael, we see a real contrast. Samuel was untaught with an open heart. Nathanael was well versed in the Scriptures, but was a skeptic, maybe even a cynic at heart.
His question immediately was, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
Philip responds in the time tested way of those who witness for Jesus, simply saying, “Come and see.”
We see that God never calls once. The call is repeated again for Nathanael. And he does “go and see;” but that is certainly not a commitment on his part to take up his calling. That commitment takes a little more revelation on the part of Jesus.
Upon seeing him, Jesus immediately calls him out as someone who is honest and true. He sees in Nathanael the qualities of a good disciple.
Nathanael is not so sure. “When did you see me, Nathanael asks. When you were sitting under the fig tree was the answer. Immediately his eyes are opened to the truths he had already learned and Nathanael proclaimed to see and know Jesus as the Christ.
But after that proclamation he almost disappears from the Biblical story. AS we trace the journey of Jesus Nathanael rarely appears. Scholars seem to suggest that he was always among the followers, working in the background and on the sidelines. They point out that Nathanael appears at other, notable, times in the life of Jesus, such as at the resurrection.
Whereas Samuel went on to be a great prophet, Nathanael goes on to be a worker well out of the spotlight.
That is good news for us. WE don’t have to follow the footsteps of those whom we see around us. We are called to our own pathway of service.
These two accounts teach us that God can use all of us, in the way that we are able to provide him with witness, and truth telling and caring and support.
Maybe we are called to do many things,
maybe we are called to care for the leaders,
maybe we are called to work silently in the background, maybe we are called to be prayer warriors from home.
The truth that all of us are called is clearly born out in Scripture, regardless of what that calling may be.
Today we have see that those with open hearts are called. Those with cynical hearts are called. Those with truthful hearts are called.
But so are many others.
Moses could not speak well, and he was called with Aaron to speak for him.
David was the youngest son and a shepherd, and he was called to be King.
Jonah disagreed with God and ran away, and God arranged for him to arrive at the correct destination.
Paul actively tried to kill members of the followers of Christ, and God blinded him in order to help him to see the truth.
And each of these went on to do spectacular work in the areas in which they were called.
But there were others who were also called. We may never know their stories, but without their contribution the Kingdom would not have moved forward.
Like the boy who shared his lunch.
Like the man who loaned his donkey.
Like those who prepared the feast for the Last Supper.
You and I, we are also called. God sees our full potential and he calls us to be uniquely ourselves, using the gifts that he has given us.
We may be called to preach,
to teach, to pray,
to witness,
to convert our friends,
to pray for the strength of the church,
to feed the hungry
or to simply be a doorkeeper and a servant at the table.
We are all called and all of us are called to work together for the glory of God and the full revelation of Jesus in the world.
God has seen us. God is calling us. The question is, “are we listening.”
Amen
Hymn: 650 He leadth me
Offering and Doxology 830
Offertory Prayer
May our calling as your servants be witnessed through the living of our lives.
In this world: kingdom living.
In our mouths: kingdom praises.
In our hearts: kingdom goals.
In our hands: kingdom gifts.
In our hearts: kingdom generosity.
May our lives and our offerings be a sign of your calling at work in us. May all that we do and bring, bring your kingdom into the hearts and lives of those who need you this day. Amen.
Gathering Prayer Requests
Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession
O God, giver of all good gifts, you have given us life. You have bestowed upon us your love and that love includes your plans for each of us.
Help us to listen to the rhythm of each day, day by day,
so that we are not overwhelmed with thoughts of the future.
Yet guide us into that future so that we know who and whose we are.
We seek that future for all your people, every where. So today we thank you for the blessings and opportunities that fill our lives, as we bring you our prayers for your world and your people.
JOYS
CONCERNS
You have heard us, and so we too shall listen to hear you. We shall listen to the voices of those witnesses who have lived before us. We shall listen to those who are here to give us guidance and encouragement, for it is clear that whatever plans you have for us, we will never journey alone.
We know that what you want is a relationship. So when we answer you,
may our response be to love of all creatures on your good earth.
Let us serve with the gifts you give us and the grace that Jesus gives us. Hear us again, as we pray as Jesus 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 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: 651 Guide me O thou Great Redeemer
Benediction:
And now, sisters and brothers,
go from this place knowing that the God who made you
also sustains you.
The God who calls you also goes with you.
The God who loved you before you were born
still loves you today, and into all the tomorrows
May you know grace, peace and mercy from God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Amen
Blessing Song: Lead me Jesus 646 BP Sing twice
Lead me Jesus I will follow,
down the dusty pathway
all along the sea
Teach me Jesus to be loving
your disciple I will be
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