Service Sunday September 29, 2024

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All are Welcome!

Watch a video recording of the whole service using YouTube below.

The Gathering

Welcome and Announcements.
Focusing Moment.

Acknowledgement of Land

As we gather today for worship, we remember with gratitude that this traditional territory is cared for by the Michi Saagiig Peoples, “those who lived at the mouth of the rivers, where the waters flow out,” who are part of the Anishinabek Nation.

The Creator, in infinite wisdom places the land and waters at the very centre of the lives, language, culture, and spirituality of Indigenous Peoples. We acknowledge their stewardship and commit to join with them to care for the land and the waters.

Call to Worship:

One: This is the day that God has made.

ALL: Let us give thanks to God for this day.

One: We are gathered in and among Creation that God has entrusted to us.

ALL: Let us give thanks to God for this created world.

One: Let us use this day wisely and care for God’s created world.

ALL: As we worship, we ask God to empower us to be responsible stewards of Creation and all that is in it.

Written by Catherine Tovell, Kilworth U.C., London, Ont.

Gathering, Pentecost 2024, p.27. Used with permission.

Hymn: “Joyful, Joyful We Adore You” VU #232

1 Joyful, joyful we adore you,

God of glory, life and love;

hearts unfold like flowers before you,

opening to the sun above.

Melt the clouds of sin and sadness,

drive the gloom of doubt away;

giver of immortal gladness,

fill us with the light of day.

2 All your works with joy surround you,

earth and heaven reflect your rays,

stars and angels sing around you,

centre of unbroken praise.

Field and forest, vale and mountain,

flowery meadow, flashing sea,

chanting bird and flowing fountain,

sound their praise eternally.

3 You are giving and forgiving,

ever blessing, ever blest,

wellspring of the joy of living,

ocean depth of happy rest!

Source of grace and fount of blessing,

let your light upon us shine;

teach us how to love each other,

lift us to the joy divine.

4 Mortals join the mighty chorus

which the morning stars began;

God's own love is reigning o'er us,

joining people hand in hand.

Ever singing, march we onward,

victors in the midst of strife;

joyful music leads us sunward

in the triumph song of life.

OPENING PRAYER & PRAYER FOR HEALING: (Spoken In Unison)

Holy One, Child of Life, Great Spirit, we meet you in the company of ancestors and the oft-unnoticed presence of people praying throughout the country, connected by a longing for peace and healing.

Find our hearts open and ready for reconciliation as we face the injustices of the past and long for the joy of a future of peace and healing.

Help us to attend well to the stories we need to receive. Awaken our hearts with the stories of residential school survivors and their kin.

Together, we weep for the children, then and now:

for braids, beads, new moccasins, and the orange shirt taken away leaving only broken hearts; for parents whose hearts were torn from them when their children were taken; for children whose tongues were silenced when they lost their languages and names. Awaken our spirit, O God. Help us to hold the stories faithfully, so that they may transform us and become part of us.

May our prayers be translated into compassion and may our “Amen” be this truth. Amen.

Copyright

Wendy MacLean, 2023. Gathering Pentecost 2, Year A

MINISTRY OF MUSIC:

LEARNING TOGETHER:

HYMN: “Walk With Me” VU #649

Refrain Walk with me, I will walk with you

and build the land that God has planned

where love shines through.

1 When Moses heard the call of God

he said, 'Lord, don't send me.'

But God told Moses, 'You're the one

to set my people free.' Refrain

2 Now Peter was a most unlikely

man to lead the flock;

but Jesus knew his holiness

and he became the Rock. Refrain

3 Young Mary Magdalene was sure

her life could be much more,

and by her faith she dared to let

God's love unlock the door. Refrain

4 And when you share your faith with me

and work for life made new,

the witness of your faithfulness

calls me to walk with you. Refrain

THE WORD

Scripture: Mark 9: 38 - 50

Leader: Hear and listen to what the Spirit is saying to the church.

ALL: Thanks be to God.

MESSAGE

“Road Builders Or Road Blockers”

Listen to an audio recording of the message below or read it at the bottom of this page.

**OUR RESPONSE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE and THE LORD’S PRAYER: (sung VU #960**)

Hymn: “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah” VU #651

1 Guide me, O thou great Jehovah, pilgrim through this barren land.

I am weak, but thou art mighty, hold me with thy powerful hand.

Bread of heaven, bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more,

feed me till I want no more.

2 Open now the crystal fountain, whence the healing stream doth flow;

let the fire and cloudy pillar lead me all my journey through.

Strong deliverer, strong deliverer, be thou still my strength and shield,

be thou still my strength and shield.

3 When I tread the verge of Jordan, bid my anxious fears subside;

death of death, and hell's destruction, land me safe on Canaan's side:

songs of praises, songs of praises I will ever give to thee,

I will ever give to thee.

YOUR GENEROSITY MATTERS

PRESENTATION OF OUR OFFERINGS

OFFERTORY PRAYER:

In Unison:

Gracious God, we thank you for the blessing that these gifts will enact in the world. There will be the blessings of worship, of community in Christ, of caring for others, and of ministries empowered. For the blessing of your presence, we give you thanks. Please use these gifts that we pass on to the church, and through the church to others, that all of us may be blessed with the knowledge of your love and care in word and in deed. Amen

Written by Allan Warren, while at Appleby U.C., Burlington, Ont.

Gathering, Pentecost 2, 2024, p.41. Used with permission.

SUNG BLESSING: MV #150 v 4

Spirit God: be our breath, be our song.

Blow through us, bringing strength to move on.

Through change, through challenge, we’ll greet the new dawn…

Spirit God, be our song. ©

Sending Forth:

One: Sometimes we go out as if we had all the answers; we cry out as if the world has done us wrong. Then God’s wisdom calls us to pause and reflect. We are called to go out in humility and service. We are called to go out as God’s people in faith and trust. We are called to go out as God’s generous and faithful people. May God go with us, this day and always.

ALL: Amen!

Written by Beth W Johnson, Bridging Waters P.C., Nipawin, Sask..

Gathering, Pentecost 2, 2024, p.43. Used with permission.

A Time of Fellowship

Sermon 29 September 2024

“Road Builders Or Road Blockers”

Mark 9: 38 - 50

Gracious God, be with us today in this place, in the Scriptures and in our words.

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts praise your Holy name. Amen.

Jesus’ Disciples were at it again.

In the previous passage they were arguing about who was the greatest of them.

They were trying to decide how the positions of power would be divided up when the Kingdom Jesus spoke of finally came… when they heard a report that surprised them.

Someone else was moving in on their territory.

Someone else was casting out demons in Jesus’ name.

This could be disastrous for the disciples’ power base.

What were they to do?

They went to Jesus and told him of this exorcist who was obviously unauthorized in his activity.

How dare he, someone who was not one of Jesus 12 chosen disciples use his name?

Matthew had even drawn up some papers for Jesus to sign.

He said, “Jesus, you will sign these papers then I can get them notarized and registered by the end of the day and your name will be a registered trademark protected by law.

Then the next time he uses your name we can nail him for copyright infringement!”

But Jesus could see the real issue.

He said, “Now don’t be so defensive.

He’s not hurting anything.

He cast out a demon.

If he is casting out demons he must be on our side.

If he’s not an enemy, he’s an ally.”

Jesus had dealt with the immediate issue: the outsider using his name.

Jesus could see a deeper issue underneath this event.

Jesus could see that the disciples were beginning to draw circles that defined who was in and who was out of the kingdom.

The problem was that these circles had nothing to do with trying to bring people into the Kingdom.

Sometimes it is important to draw a circle so that people can be told that they are outside of God’s will and that they need to change.

When we proclaim that certain lifestyles and activities are sinful or wrong, we give people the opportunity to step away from those lifestyles and into God’s plan for their lives.

But this man was doing nothing wrong.

He was doing something right.

He was casting out evil.

Certainly casting out evil is in God’s will.

If the disciples had wanted to draw this man in they would have gone to him.

They would have asked him if he wanted to meet this Jesus and become his disciple like they were.

But they didn’t go to him to invite him.

They went to Jesus to condemn him.

They had drawn a self centered, self serving circle not to draw people closer to Jesus and God’s will, but to keep Jesus all to themselves.

So Jesus said, “If any of you place a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone had been hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea.”(Mark 9:42)

Strong words and Jesus backed them up with stronger words.

“If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better to live maimed then to go to Hell whole.”

He then went on to say the same for the foot or the eye.

Finally, Jesus concluded by describing hell as a place of worms and fire.

Certainly, amputation seems a better fate than an eternity of worms and fire.

Jesus was using these strong words to warn the Disciples.

They were supposed to be building roads that would lead people to the Kingdom of God.

They were heavenly highway builders, but they were not doing their job.

Instead of building roads they were setting up roadblocks.

Instead of making a way for this exorcist, who believed in Jesus, to come to Jesus; they wanted to stop him.

Jesus says that if they block the way of one of those little people who believe in Jesus they were in big trouble.

They were in so much trouble that it would be better that they be drowned in the sea.

At least they would have a painless death.

For Jesus told them even amputation is better than eternity in Hell!

I think Jesus’ disciples learned their lesson.

They learned to be road builders instead of road blockers.

They learned to lead people to Jesus instead of stopping them.

They learned to make a way for Samaritans and women of ill repute, Ethiopian Eunuchs and tax collectors, and eventually even Greeks and Romans.

They heeded Jesus’ warning about placing stumbling blocks in the way of God’s little ones.

But have we?

Too often we use God’s call to holiness as a way to keep people away from Jesus instead of as a way to lead them to him.

The problem is that sometimes Christians use God’s call to holiness to keep people out of the church.

They say by their actions or their inaction if not by their words,

“You’re a sinner, you can’t come in here.”

And instead of making a way for them to come to Christ and be delivered from bondage, we place a roadblock in their way.

Oh there are many other ways that Christians do this.

There are many kinds of roadblocks.

Sometimes Christians question the genuineness of another church because they pray in a different way or they worship in a different way or they came to Jesus in a different way.

I remember a young man once asked me to tell him how I came to Christ.

I told him I was raised in the church and grew up believing in Jesus.

When I was 10, I made a personal commitment to follow the WAY of Jesus as a Christian.

And at 16 I was baptized and confirmed as a member of Richmond United Church.

He then proceeded to tell me that I was headed for Hell because I had come to Christ the wrong way, along with the whole United Church of Canada.

We didn’t see eye to eye on that statement!

But we do the same when we ridicule those who shout or speak in tongues in worship or when we suggest that emotional life-change conversion experiences are only surface deep.

We Christians need to stop building roadblocks based on our limited understanding of God’s will and church practice.

Instead, we need to build roads of cooperation.

Instead of judging others who believe in Jesus but act differently, we must reach out to our sisters and brothers.

Just remember what Jesus said,

“If he’s not an enemy, he’s an ally.”

If evil is cast out by his use of Jesus’ name, then we’re all on the same side.

And if we hinder his growth in Christ, then we are the ones bound for Hell not him.

Are we road builders or road blockers?

That is a difficult question to answer.

I suspect we have all done a little of both.

In our attempts to point the way to Jesus, we have sometimes constructed roadblocks.

This is a serious question.

Jesus said it was a question of Heaven or Hell.

I think sometimes the church, in an attempt to be “relevant”, fails to proclaim the central truths of the Christian faith.

And sometimes in an attempt to proclaim the central truths we fail to demonstrate their relevance to people in their lives.

Sometimes I wonder if the biggest roadblock we place in the way of other people is our own spiritual immaturity.

Those who look up to us are sometimes limited by our own lack of Christian growth.

They look to us and think… “If that is all there is to the Christian faith, why bother?”

That is why the example of Jesus is so important.

In Him we have the perfect example of God’s will.

Perhaps we all need to seek a closer walk with Jesus lest our lack of faith hinder the growth of others.

Thanks be to God. Amen.