WE GATHER IN GOD’S PRESENCE:

Lighting the Candle:

Jesus said, ‘I am the light of the world.

Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness

but will have the light of life.’ –

Greeting:

The Lord be with you AND ALSO WITH YOU

Call to Worship (from the Romans 8 reading)

Come, gather to worship the God

WHO HAS GATHERED US INTO GOD’S FAMILY

Come, sing praise to the God

WHO IS RESCUING US, AND CREATION,

FROM ALL THAT BRINGS DECAY AND DEATH

Come, pray to the God

WHO KNOWS OUR NEEDS

BEFORE WE TRULY KNOW THEM OURSELVES

Come, learn from the God

WHO LOVES US

WITH UNLIMITED AND NEVER ENDING LOVE

Come, gather to worship the God

WHO HAS NAMED US AS GOD’S OWN!

We Sing TIS 210 O FOR A THOUSAND TONGUES TO SING 6vv

Prayer

We worship you, O holy God,

who reaches out to us

through Jesus Christ

and embraces us in welcome

endowing us with the gifted Holy Spirit!

We come acknowledging

that no matter how much we offer

as a genuine effort

in time and concentration,

we always receive more than we give!

Accept our deep appreciation

for having revealed yourself to us

through the good news of your salvation!

Continue to mould us into the way of Christ

that our lives may bring glory to your name,

and benefit to your kingdom,

the kingdom for which we pray

as we say:   

The Lord’s Prayer 
Our Father in heaven, 
Hallowed be your name, 
Your kingdom come, 
Your will be done on earth as in heaven.  

Give us this day our daily bread. 
Forgive us our sins,  
as we forgive those who sin against us. 
Save us in the time of trial  

and deliver us from evil. 
For the kingdom, 
the power and the glory are yours,  
now and for ever. 
Amen. 

Welcome

WE LISTEN FOR A WORD FROM GOD

Prayer for Illumination

HOLY AND MERCIFUL GOD,

THROUGH YOUR HOLY SPIRIT

INSTRUCT US

THAT WE MIGHT RIGHTLY UNDERSTAND

THE WORD OF TRUTH

AND FIND OURSELVES AS PEOPLE

WHO REFLECT THE LIVING WORD,

JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD,   AMEN

Scripture 

ROMANS 8:14-39

14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ 16 it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.18 I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; 20 for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 

22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labour pains until now; 23 and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. 27 And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

28 We know that in all things God works for good[1] for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.

31 What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? 32 He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? 33 Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written,

‘For your sake we are being killed all day long;
    we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.’

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Reader: this is the Word of the Lord

Response: WE HEED AND REJOICE, O GOD!

MATTHEW 16

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ 14 And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ 15 He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ 16 Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ 17 And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’ 20 Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

Reader: this is the gospel of our Lord

Response: PRAISE BE TO YOU, LORD JESUS CHRIST!

Prayer of Confession:

Most compassionate God,

we come overwhelmed by the revelation of your love for us!

We confess with embarrassment

how often we loose sight

of your concern and care towards us… [pause]

Lord have mercy: LORD HAVE MERCY

Most generous God,

we come overwhelmed by the incredible strength

of commitment and purpose you grant us

through Christ Jesus!

We confess to our discomfort

in how often we ignore or even disbelieve

your promises to us… [pause]

Christ have mercy: CHRIST HAVE MERCY

Most intimate God,

we come overwhelmed by the enormity

of everything you are doing with us!

We confess to our shame

how little attention we give your indwelling Spirit

who opens us up to you,

and you to us… [pause]

Lord have mercy: LORD HAVE MERCY

The Promise of Reconciliation

Hear the good news of God,

the power of God for the life abundant

for all who trusts God:

If God is for us, who is against us? 

He who did not withhold his own Son,

but gave him up for all of us,

will he not with him also give us everything else? 

In Christ all is forgiven us,

through the Holy Spirit all is transformed!

therefore we exclaim with grateful hearts

THANKS BE TO GOD

Passing the Peace.. as we raise our hands in blessing to those unseen…
The peace of the Risen Lord be with you all 

AND ALSO WITH YOU.

We Sing: Surely Goodness and Mercy

Contemporary Word

THE REBIRTH OF CREATION

We know that the whole creation

has been groaning in labour pains until now; 

in hope that the creation itself

will be set free from its bondage to decay

and will obtain the freedom

of the glory of the children of God;

and not only the creation,

but we ourselves (8:21,22)

What do you know about viruses?

Peter Pollard is an Associate Professor at the Australian Rivers Institute, Griffith University. He gives the following information:

The word “virus” strikes terror into the hearts of most people.

It conjures up images of influenza, HIV, Yellow Fever, or Ebola.

Of course we worry about these viruses—

they bring us disease and sometimes an excruciatingly painful death.

But the 21 viral types that wreak havoc with the human body

represent an insignificant fraction of the 100 million viral types on earth. Most viruses are actually vital to our very existence.

No-one seems to stick up for the good guys

that keep ecosystems diverse and balanced…

The sheer number of these good viruses is astonishing.

Their concentration in a productive lake or river

is often 100 million per millilitre –

that’s more than four times the population of Australia

squeezed into a ¼ of a teaspoon of water.[2]

Viruses are not living organisms.

They are simply bits of genetic material (DNA or RNA) covered in protein, that behave like parasites.

They attach to their target cell (the host),

inject their genetic material,

and replicate themselves using the host cells’ metabolic pathways,

Then the new viruses break out of the cell — the cell explodes (lyses), releasing hundreds of viruses.

Viruses are very picky about who they will infect.

Each viral type has evolved to infect only one host species.

Viruses that infect bacteria dominate our world.

A virus that infects one species of bacteria won’t infect another bacterial species, and definitely can’t infect you.

We (humans) have our own suite of a couple of dozen viral types that cause us disease and death.

It’s the combination of high bacterial growth and viral infection

that keeps ecosystems functioning.

…viruses are a critical part of inorganic nutrient recycling.

So while they are tiny and seem insignificant,

viruses actually play an essential global role

in the recycling of nutrients through food webs.

We are only just now beginning to appreciate the extent

of their positive impact on our survival.

One thing is for sure, viruses are our smallest unsung heroes.[3]

Something so incredibly tiny, yet in unimaginable numbers: 100 million

so powerfully essential for life,

yet it harbours a minuscule number, 21,

which can be harbingers of death for the human person! 

Of course, there is much within nature

which is both a blessing and a curse!

Take water, essential for life, yet also cause of much death!

Another phenomenon within nature which only receives bad press,

so to speak, is the earthquake, (going from one extreme, to the other!)

Geologist Peter Ward and astronomer Donald Brownlee,

both of the University of Washington, argue in their book, Rare Earth,

that if the earth’s tectonic plates ceased to move,

mass extinction of life on earth would eventually ensue.[4]  

They indicate that tectonic plate movement maintains the balance

between earth (mountains) and sea;

acts as a global thermostat by recycling chemicals crucial to maintaining a uniformly balanced level of carbon dioxide;

and maintains the earth’s magnetic field,

which protects us from cosmic rays that would be fatal for life.

In other words, earthquakes which can bring massive devastation,

and loss of human life if we live within reach,

primarily serve to preserve global life!

When we see the power of volcanoes as in the recent eruptions in Hawaii,

and the resultant destruction of whole communities,

houses, fields, infrastructure…

as we witness their unpredictability as in the New Zealand tourist attraction,

and the deaths such an eruption caused,

is it appropriate to ask questions of God

about God’s care and love for us?

When homes built on cliffs begin to collapse due to erosion

caused by changing weather patterns

creating previously unforeseen tide surges,

is it appropriate to ask God, ‘why me?’

The mysteries of God’s creation continue be revealed to us over time

through diligent scientific efforts.

More frequently these remind us of our need for caution lest,

overconfident in our human capacity to control and tame nature,

we place ourselves in danger…

John Lennox however, dares to ask the question,

granted that viruses are essential to life,

could God not have made a world without viral pathogens?

why do there have to pathogens that wreak havoc?[5]

(remembering that pathogens are the bad guys when it comes to viruses).

He suggests this brings a whole class of similar questions:

could God not make

fire that does not burn?

electricity that was not dangerous?

an organic world without predation?

I for one, am not persuaded that even these three

are similar questions to each other,

but I agree that his final question

could be seen as similar to the virus question.

His final question is simply,

could God not have made people who do no wrong?

and then, as an aside, he makes the telling point

that we humans will kill more people than the Corona virus this year.

So far in Romans we have read that of course,

God could have made people who do no wrong,

in fact, God did…

but such ‘no wrong doing’, God wanted to be by choice,

not some robotic determinism… or computerlike programming;

God offers us choices…

offers life in doing right,

warns of the ensuing death in doing wrong;

the bottom-line reality is that Paul reminds us

that no one, (except for one, Jesus Christ),

choses only to do what is right!

Through the initial disobedience of Adam,

reinforced by all the subsequent disobedience

of everyone,

the creation was subjected to futility (8.20)

‘futility’ ματαιότης “emptiness, vanity, fruitlessness”^[6]

echoes the state of humanity as described by Paul:

for though they knew God, they did not honor him as God

or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking,

and their senseless minds were darkened. (1:21)

We are a people infected by sin as we learned,

persons of a mixture of good and evil.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn was the Russian dissident

sent to the Gulag Archipelago,

where he experienced the worst and the best of human nature;

he expressed it this way: 

If only it were all so simple!

If only there were evil people

somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds,

and it were necessary only

to separate them from the rest of us

and destroy them.

But the line dividing good and evil

cuts through the heart of every human being.

And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?

During the life of any heart this line keeps changing place;

sometimes it is squeezed one way by exuberant evil

and sometimes it shifts

to allow enough space for good to flourish.

One and the same human being is,

at various ages, under various circumstances,

a totally different human being.

At times he is close to being a devil,

at times to sainthood.

But his name doesn’t change,

and to that name we ascribe the whole lot, good and evil[7].

Humanity’s slide into corrupted minds and behaviour

is echoed in turn by the corruption within creation,

its decay from which it hopes to be freed:

that the creation itself will be set free

from its bondage to decay (8:21)

Through Paul we now know

that instead of asking such questions as:

Why could God not…

We must really ask ourselves, why do we not…?

I suppose we could wish to sidestep responsibility,

and point the finger right back to the original disobedient couple…

why could they not have…

though we know the truth of for all have sinned…

Paul has reassured us that we need not remain effected by sin;

through our baptism the process of regeneration and

transformation is taking place,

So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin

and alive to God in Christ Jesus (6:11).

Paul urges us to face the future with a newfound responsibility

with our new status as children of God,

a future with hope, or a hope for the future…

and weboast in our hope of sharing the glory of God (5:2)

a glory which one early church theologian defined as

‘human nature truly alive!’ (Irenaeus)

‘in hope’ Paulthunders,

that creation also will be freed from decay (8:20)

and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God;

the hope that creation will share in our glory as a redeemed,

reconciled, regenerated (the meaning of the birth pains imagery)

and transformed humanity…

in hope to expand on Irenaeus,

that we will live within a ‘creation truly alive’…

Paul postulates a clear connection between human action

and creation’s wellbeing.

He laid the groundwork for this in chapter five,

with his reference to Adam’s disobedience,

and the resultant consequence for humanity.

Here he connects that human disobedience

with the futility within creation,

²⁰ for the creation was subjected to futility,

not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it (8.20)

referring here to the curse placed on creation

because of human disobedience; (Genesis 3:17,18).

Now, celebrating the effects of the reconciliation

between God and humanity,

Paul alerts us to the reversal, if you like,

of that curse… 

Just as we humans enjoy reconciliation with God,

having received the Spirit of God,

groaning with anticipation,

awaiting the final rebirth of all that is,

so creation groans with labour pains for that time!

Our groaning is creation’s groaning,

is even the Spirit’s groaning!

that very Spirit intercedeswith sighs too deep for words.

The word translated as sighs,

is in fact the noun form, groan, of the verb to groan…

In the same way, too,

 the Spirit comes alongside and helps us in our weakness.

We don’t know what to pray for as we ought to;

but that same Spirit pleads on our behalf,

with groanings too deep for words^[8].

That is how N.T. Wright translates the text.

He elaborates on this whole section with:

God always wanted to rule his world through human beings.

That is part of what it means to be made in God’s image.

It was gloriously fulfilled in the human being Jesus;

and the way creation will at last become

what it was always meant to be

will be through the wise, rescuing, restorative rule of renewed,

resurrected human beings.

All those indwelt by the Spirit are, like Jesus, to be image-bearers,

‘shaped according to the model of the image of his son’, (8:29).

So what does this mean in practice?

It means that, when the world is going through great convulsions,

the followers of Jesus are called to be

people of prayer at the place where the world is in pain

even if, especially if, we know not what to say…

We don’t know what to pray for as we ought to;

but that same Spirit pleads on our behalf,

Paul puts it like this, in a three-stage movement:

first, the groaning of the world;

second, the groaning of the Church, the people of God;

third, the groaning of the Spirit—within the Church within the world.

   At those very moments when we find ourselves weeping with grief

at the death of a friend or family member,

or numbed by the number of deaths in overseas countries,  

or at the impossibility of having a proper funeral,

or at the loss of paid work,

or the risk of loosing house,

or at the horror of millions of the world’s poorest being at risk,

or simply because being locked down is inherently depressing—

at those moments,

when any words we try to say

come out as sobs or tears,

we have to remind ourselves

that this is how God the Spirit is present.

at the heart of the agony of creation.^[9]

Our destiny is not merely to finish up in heaven,

but through the obedience of faith,

through offering ourselves totally

as instruments for the recalibration of creation,

to thus, with God, bring heaven present here on earth[10].

AMEN

WE RESPOND TO GOD’S WORD

We Sing 674 INSPIRED BY LOVE AND ANGER  6VV

Offering

setting aside our gifts to support the local and wider work of the church

and bless our gifts in an act of praise…

We Share Our Community Life 

Prayers of the People- from Assembly Website

Rev Thresi Mauboy Wohangara, Northern Synod

Lord Almighty, our Rabbi
While we live in the midst of uncertainty

because of the heavy struggles

we face during this CoVID-19 pandemic,
You come and greet us in Your way.
Many prayers have been offered to You

– together and individually.

The Churches of God all over the world

have put aside their differences

to unite and call your name.
Lord hear us LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER

O God, have mercy upon us according to your loyal love.
Erase our transgressions according to Your great grace!
Do not cast us away from you,

and do not take your Holy spirit from us!
We do not have the power

to avoid what happens,

and no power to obey,

except with the help of God the Most High

and the Most Great!

Lord hear us LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER

Oh Saviour do not let us get lost.

Guide us through this period of struggle.
For all governments in the world,

give them the heart to understand

when creating policies related to the economy,

to security, and to the health and welfare of their peoples.

Lord hear us LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER

God also help the doctors

and medical workers who are temporarily working hard

to help all those who are sick.

Instil in their hearts the heart of a compassionate servant

who is ready to serve and give help to those in need.
Give them health and strength,

and protect them and their families.

Lord hear us LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER

Finally, grant the grace to all of us

to respect and obey all appeals

made by the government

while faithfully and truly trusting in the Lord God,

whom we worship.

Lord hear us LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER

Let us trust that

God is present as a helper

and redeemer of His people.
He is always within reach.
He is never far away.
He is close.
He is with us.
He cares.
He heals.
He restores.
He redeems.

Let it be thy will, forever.

Lord hear us

LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER

AMEN

WE GO TO SERVE GOD

We Sing  TIS 657 GOD OF FREEDOM, GOD OF JUSTICE  3vv

Sending Out

Go as a people:

   whose eyes have been opened

to Jesus as Messiah,

the Son of the Living God!

   whose ears have recognized the call of God

and the good news

of our gifted transformation

into the grace filled life!

   Whose hearts resonate

with the groaning of creation and the Spirit

as we live lives

which contribute to the recalibration

of ourselves and creation!

Blessing

The blessing of the God

who secures our well being

beyond any suffering we might endure;

The blessing of the Christ

who secures us in the love of God

come what may;

The blessing of the Spirit

who groans with creation and ourselves

securing the rebirth of all,

be with us, now

and in the rebirthed creation to come

AMEN, AMEN, AMEN

---

[1] Other ancient authorities read 

God makes all things work together for good, or We know that all things work together for good

[2] Peter Pollard   https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/11/are-viruses-actually-vital-for-our-existence/

accessed 18/08/2020

[3] You can read the full article at the web address provided, or contact me, and I can send an email version.

[4] Ward, Peter & Brownlee, Donald  (2000) Rare Earth  Springer,

quoted in Lennox, John C. (2020) Where is God in a Coronavirus World?  p. 34 The Good Book Company.

[5] ibid p.35

^[6] Jewett, R., & Kotansky, R. D. (2006). Romans: A commentary. (E. J. Epp, Ed.) (p. 513). Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.

[7] Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr. The Gulag Archipelago (Vintage Classics) (p. 113). Random House. Kindle Edition.

^[8] Wright, N. T. (2020). God and the Pandemic: A Christian Reflection on the Coronavirus and Its Aftermath (pp. 42–43). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Reflective.

^[9] ibid. p.45.

[10] next Sunday 30^th August,  is my quarterly Sunday’s leave; September 6^th we will look at Romans 8: 28-39.