Service for Sunday 30thMay 2021 – Geoffrey Webber

Servicing the Bald Hills and nearby Communities

Service for Sunday 30thMay 2021 – Geoffrey Webber

Welcome: –

Call to Worship: – 

(from Job 12: 7 to 10 & 13)  

Then Job answered,

“Go and ask the animals and they will teach you,

Go and ask the birds of the air to inform you,

Or the plants of the Earth and they will tell you,

And the fish of the Seas will declare to you,

All of them know that they have been made by the hand of God.

It is God who directs the lives of His creatures,

It is by the breath of God that people are given life.

God is the source of wisdom and power,

God is the source of insight and understanding.

Comment on Job:

Job states that the very things that God has created, the animals, birds, plants, and fish that we see around us, readily declare to all who seek to understand and to be informed, that it is God who alone possesses all wisdom and insight and understanding, and who ultimately exercises the power to rule over and to control what He has created.  Job asserts that it is God alone who gives life to what He has created, to animals, birds, plants, fish, and to people.

And Job’s reference to the breath of God giving life to people alludes to the passage in Genesis 2: 7 where we are told that not only did God give physical life to people, but He also breathed life into our souls, being made in His image.  It is to God, then, that we offer our worship and adoration; as our Creator, as our ‘life-giving’ Spirit and as the Lord of all.

(Henry Morris in Remarkable Record of Job p24&25, Francis Andersen in Job p161&162, Stanley Heavenor in Job in New Bible Commentary p429, footnote in Harper Study Bible Revised Standard Version p731)

Prayer of Praise  

(from Leading Intercessions p24, Opening Prayers p44, Invocations p31, Prayers for the Seasons Year A p107, The book of Common Worship p308) 

Almighty God, we see Your greatness in the Creation around us, on Earth and in the Universe around and beyond us.  We see Your matchless intelligence in its design, in the boundaries of time and space, in the balance of the various parts and processes, and in the complexity of living things.  We thank you for your provision for us, for sunshine and rain, for growth and fruitfulness of crops and produce, for meeting our daily needs.

    Almighty God, we are in awe of Your great power that brings about the redemption of the World.  We are in awe of the great sacrifice of your Son, a sacrifice made for each of us even while we were still sinners and undeserving of Your consideration.  You came to set us free from the darkness of ignorance and superstition.  You have released us from our old ways that did not promise us peace, but instead delivered us up to bondage to false hopes.  We praise You for Your promise of harmony, in a World that generates hostility and rewards hate.  We praise You that we can share in this gracious gift that only You can give, but which the World seeks to deny and to ignore.

    Almighty God, we hold onto Your promise that You will abide with us at all times and in all places.  We thank You for your Holy Spirit who intercedes for us, and who reminds us of Your Words of instruction and comfort.  We thank you for your Holy Spirit who leads us into what is righteous and holy.  We thank you for your Holy Spirit who guides us as we pray, and through whose power we can cry out to you as our Heavenly Father.

    Almighty God, we thank You for Your patience with us in times when we wander off the path of life.  We praise You that You have not cast us aside as worthless or without hope, but, with love, have gently led us back to a right relationship with You and to close fellowship with You.  Almighty God, for all of Your goodness towards us we offer our heartfelt praise, now and always.  Amen.

Hymn

“O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness”  TiS454  AHB382

[there is an introduction]

Verse 1 of 5

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness,

Bow down before him, his glory proclaim;

With gold of obedience and incense of lowliness

Bring, and adore him, the Lord is his name.

Verse 2 of 5

Low at his feet lay they burden of carefulness,

High on his heart he will bear it for thee,

Comfort thy sorrows, and answer thy prayerfulness,

Guiding thy steps as may best for thee be.

Verse 3 of 5

Fear not to enter his courts in the slenderness

Of the poor wealth thou wouldst reckon is thine;

Trust in its beauty and love in its tenderness,

These are the offerings to lay on his shrine.

Verse 4 of 5

These, though we bring them in trembling and fearfulness,

He will accept for the name that is dear,

Mornings of joy give for evenings of tearfulness,

Trust for our trembling, and hope for our fear.

Verse 5 of 5

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness

Bow down before him, his glory proclaim,

With gold of obedience and incense of lowliness

Kneel and adore him, the Lord is his name.

John Monsell

Prayer of Confession  

(from Moira Laidlaw Year A Easter 6 & Prayers for the Seasons Year A Easter 6 p106)  

Merciful God, forgive our incomplete obedience to your commandments, our half-hearted love of your counsel, and our resistance to your instruction. 

Merciful God, restore and renew our willingness to follow your will with the Spirit of truth.

Merciful God, forgive us when our worship reveals that Jesus Christ is not at the centre at the times when we meet you.  Retrieve our wandering minds and fix them on the wonder and the holiness of the Divine clothed in Human flesh. 

Merciful God, inspire and renew our worship with the Spirit of truth. 

Merciful God, forgive us when we worship idols of our own making; gods fashioned for our own selfish ends. 

Merciful God, bless and renew our lives with the Spirit of truth. 

Merciful God, forgive us when we ignore the pain and the hopelessness of so many people in our community and in our World, and so deny Christ’s commandment to love one another in suffering, self-giving ways. 

Merciful God, inflame and renew our love with the Spirit of truth. 

Merciful God, forgive us when our desire to maintain our standard of living contributes to the poverty of life experienced by others and to the growing environmental problems throughout this World you have bestowed to us. 

Merciful God, encourage and renew our sense of justice with the Spirit of truth. 

God of grace and mercy, we bring all before you that does not reflect a love for you, that does not meet your standards for us, and that is not an expression of love for another. 

Please forgive our sins and wipe away all that separates us from fellowship with you.  In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, we pray.  Amen.

Assurance of Forgiveness 

The Prophet Isaiah experienced God mercy and grace when he was told, “your guilt is gone, and your sins are forgiven”.  (Isaiah 6: 7)  We, too, in the same manner, come into the presence of God, confessing our sins, proclaiming our unrighteousness and relying on God’s mercy.  We, too, receive the same assurance, that God has listened to our prayer, that God has forgiven us and that God has cleansed us in His sight.

Thanks be to God.

Prayer for illumination  (from Holy Communion Two in Uniting Church Worship Services p21)  

O Lord, our God, you have given your Word to us that it may be a lamp for our feet and a light for our path.  Grant us grace to receive your truth in faith and love, so that we may be obedient to your Will and live always for your glory, through Jesus Christ our Saviour.  Amen.

Bible Readings

Job 19:

25  For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that He will rise up to speak on my behalf so as to vindicate me.  26  Though my flesh will decay, yet, afterwards, in my physical body I will see God.  27  I will see Him with my own eyes, and He will not be a stranger to me.

[Revised Standard Version, Today’s English Version, New English Bible]

Romans 8:

1  There is no condemnation now for those who live in union with Christ Jesus.  2  For the law of the Spirit, which brings us life in union with Christ Jesus, has set me free from the law of sin and death.

5  Those who live as their Human nature tells them to, have their minds controlled by what Human nature wants.  Those who live as the Spirit tells them to, have their minds controlled by what the spirit wants.  6  To be controlled by Human nature results in death; to be controlled by the Spirit results in life and peace.  7  And so a person becomes an enemy of God when they are controlled by their Human nature; for they do not obey God’s Law, and in fact cannot obey it.  8  Those who obey their Human nature cannot please God.

9  But you do not live as your Human nature tells you to; instead, you live as the Spirit tells you to, if, in fact, God’s spirit lives in you.  Whoever does not have the spirt of Christ does not belong to him.  10  But if Christ lives in you, the Spirit is life for you because you have been put right with God, even  though your bodies are going to die because of sin.  11  If the Spirit of God, who raised Christ from death, lives in you, then He who raised Christ from death will also give life to your mortal bodies by the presence of His Spirit in you.

Galatians 5:

16  What I say is this: let the Spirit direct your lives, and you will not satisfy the desires of the Human nature.  17  For what our Human nature wants is opposed to what the Spirit wants, and what the Spirit wants is opposed to what our Human nature wants.  Thes3 two are enemies, and this means that you cannot do what you want to do.  18  If the spirit leads you, then you are not subject to the Law.

19  What Human nature does is quite plain.  It shows itself in immoral, filthy, and indecent actions;  20  in worship of idols and witchcraft.  People become enemies and they fight; they become jealous, angry, and ambitious.  They separate into parties and groups;  21  they are envious, they get involved in drinking bouts, carousing and the like.  I warn you now as I have before: those who do these things will not possess the Kingdom of God.

22  But the Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  23  humility, and self-control.  There is no law against such things as these.  24  And those who belong to Christ Jesus have put to death their Human nature with all its passions and desires.  25  The Spirit has given us life; he must also control our lives.  26  We must not be proud or irritate one another or be jealous of one another.

[Today’s English Version]

This is the Word of God.

Praise to you Almighty God.

John 3:

5  “I am telling you the truth,” Jesus replied to Nicodemus, “that no-one can enter the Kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the spirit.  6  a person is born physically of Human parents, but they are born spiritually of the Spirit.  7  Do not be surprised because I tell you that you must be born again from above.”

14  As Moses lifted up the bronze snake in the wilderness  [Numbers 21: 9]  , so must the Son of Man be lifted up,  15  so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.  16  For God so loved the World that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life.  17  For God sent the Son into the World, not to condemn the World, but that the World might be saved through him. 

18  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been judged, because they have not believed in God’s only Son.  19  Herein lies the test: the Light has come into the World, and people prefer darkness to light because their deeds are evil.  20  For everyone who does evil hates the Light, lest their deeds are exposed.  21  But those who do what is true come to the Light, so that it may be clearly seen that God is in all that they do.

[Revised Standard Version, Today’s English Version, New English Bible]

This is the Gospel of our Lord.

Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ.

Passing the Peace

Whether we gather in person in our Church building or whether we gather in spirit in our homes, we remain one body, one people of God, one in fellowship and one in worship.  With that in mind, let us uplift our hands and greet those both here and those who cannot be here: The peace of the Lord be always with you.

And also with you.

For the Young at Heart

Screen 1

Super Blood Moon – Wednesday 26th May 2021

  Most of Australia has been treated to clear weather to view a rare super blood moon.  Australians enjoyed front row seats to the spectacular phenomenon that took place last Wednesday night.  A super blood moon is when a total lunar eclipse (or blood moon) happens at the same time as the ‘super’ moon – when the moon is in a very close orbit of the Earth.

  Australian National University astrophysicist, Brad Tucker, says the shadow creates an amazing orange-red glow that looks a bit like sunrise or sunset, with the phenomenon happening every five years or so.  “It doesn’t happen that often to get this combination … so it was definitely a special sight,” Dr Tucker told Australian Associated Press.

Rare super blood moon seen (msn.com)

Screen 2

  Here is a photograph taken at North Lakes through my son’s telescope.

Screen 3

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.timeanddate.com%2Feclipse%2Fblood-moon.html&psig=AOvVaw1CKru3oV2Nyrfwl1YLZFBp&ust=1622199016472000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCJiWjY7Y6fACFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

  Here is an explanation as to why the moon appeared red.

Screen 4

Total Lunar Eclipse on 26 May 2021 – Where and When to See (timeanddate.com)

  Note that the length of the phases of the Lunar Eclipse can be calculated down to minutes and seconds.

Screen 5

  So much so that the dates for the next four total Lunar Eclipses have been determined, as well as from where they can be viewed on Earth.

Screen 6

The Sun will be darkened, and the Moon will turn red as blood before the great and terrible Day of the Lord comes.”  Joel 2: 31

  There is a prophesy in the Old Testament Book of Joel that reads as if it is centred on a Solar Eclipse, a “darkened Sun”, and a Lunar Eclipse, a “blood red moon”.

  In 2013/2014 two American preachers, John Hagee and Mark Biltz, sought to argue that a series of Lunar Eclipses that took place around April 2014, was “the beginning of the End times”.  They based their understanding upon this verse, Joel 2:31, and a passage in John’s book, The Revelation chapter 6, commencing at verse 12 which reads:

“And I saw the Lamb break open the sixth seal.  There was a violent earthquake, and the Sun became black like coarse black cloth, and the moon turned completely red like blood.”

  Just this week, there was an account on a website stating that a ‘televangelist’ by the name of Paul Bagley, made the same claim based upon the occurrence of this week’s Lunar Eclipse.

Blood Moon prophecy: Biblical preacher claims doomsday on the horizon – IBTimes India

Screen 7

“the great and terrible Day of the Lord comes”  Joel 2: 31

“the terrible day of the anger of the One who sits on the throne and of the Lamb”  Rev 6: 17

  So, we do need to clarify an understanding for ourselves about whether the Lunar Eclipse that has just occurred is indeed a cosmic sign of God’s imminent divine intervention in World Affairs and the History of Humanity.

  Lunar Eclipses, though not an everyday occurrence, are not a rare occurrence.  Although they are a spectacular sight, they are not an extraordinary sight, in the correct sense of the term of something that is not ordinary.

  We saw in Screen 3 the explanation for the “blood red” colour.

  We saw in Screen 4 that the length of time for the phases of the recent eclipse were calculated to the minute and second.

  We saw in Screen 5 that the date and time and coverage of future eclipses can be easily determined.

Screen 8

A regular natural occurrence

An understandable occurrence

A spectacular display of God’s creativity

  So, our understanding of Lunar Eclipses are:

that they are a regular natural cosmic occurrence,

that they are an occurrence that can be understood and explained through the Laws of Astrophysics, and

that they are a spectacular display of God’s creativity.

  My conjecture is that when God will use “signs in the sky” to foretell the imminent coming of the “Day of the Lord”, He would cause signs to appear that are unexpected, uncalculated, unforetold, and unexplainable, unlike a Solar Eclipse or a Lunar Eclipse.  I could be incorrect in my understanding, but I feel that in that way God would clearly be demonstrating His absolute authority over Heaven and Earth.  

  In the meantime, we must heed the warning given to us so often, of the dangers of reading Bible passages in isolation to their context and not in association with parallel passages, of the dangers of going beyond the teachings of the Apostles as recorded for us in the New Testament, in association with the leading of the Spirit.  (refer to John 15: 26).  (Michael Wilcock in The Message of Luke p213) 

Hymn

“Spirit of truth, essential God”  TiS426  AHB332

[sung to the tune St Petersburg – there is no introduction]

Verse 1 of 3

Spirit of Truth, essential God,

Who did your ancient saints inspire,

Shed in their hearts your love abroad,

And touch their hallowed lips with fire,

To you that through all ages live

Our worship without end we give.

Verse 2 of 3

Still we believe, Almighty Lord,

Whose presence fills both Earth and Heaven,

The meaning of the written Word

Is by your inspiration given;

You only do yourself explain,

The secret mind of God make plain.

Verse 3 of 3

Come then, divine Interpreter,

The Scriptures to our hearts apply;

And, taught by you, we God revere

And in three Persons magnify;

In each the triune God adore,

Who was, and is, for evermore.

Charles Wesley

Sermon

  There is more to explore with regard to Joel’s mention of a “Blood moon”.

Screen 1

“this is what the Prophet Joel talked about”  Acts 2: 16

Luke’s recording of Peter’s preaching to the crowd, making reference to Joel 2: 28 to 32.

“God is the same Lord of all … as the Scripture says, “Everyone who calls out to the Lord for help will be saved.  Romans 10: 12 & 13

Paul’s preaching to the Church in Rome, making reference to Joel 2: 28 to 32

  In last week’s reading from Acts 2: 14 -21, regarding the events that took place on the Day of Pentecost, we read Peter declaring to the crowd that what had taken place with regard to God’s outpouring of His Spirit to ‘all who believe”, was “what the Prophet Joel talked about”, and he then quoted from the passage Joel 2: 28 to 32, that included verse 31 regarding the “blood moon”.  

  Paul, in his letter to the Church in Rome, makes this bold statement, “there is no difference between Jews and Gentiles; God is the same Lord of all and richly blesses all who call to Him.  As the Scripture says, “Everyone who calls out to the Lord for help will be saved.”  (Romans 10: 12 & 13)  Here, Paul also quotes from Joel 2: 32.

  So, both Peter and Paul, in their preaching, are stating explicitly that the prophesy of Joel, recorded in the passage Joel 2: 28 to 32, including the verse relating to the “Blood Moon”, was fulfilled in the outpouring of the Holy Spirt that took place on the Day of Pentecost and which continues today.

  However!  And don’t we hate the word “however”, because it means that things aren’t all ‘cut and dried’, that there may be something else to consider.

Screen 2

“the Sun will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine … then the Son of Man will appear”  Matthew 24: 29 & 30, Mark 13: 24 & 26, Luke 21: 25 & 27

  Jesus made some statements to his Disciple concerning the Sun and the Moon in relation to the time when “the Son of Man will appear”.  His statements in Matthew 24: 29 & 30, Mark 13: 24 & 26, and Luke 21: 25 & 27, do refer to a time in the future, and not to the Day of Pentecost.  John’s prophesy in Revelation 6: 12 regarding a blood-red moon also has no relationship to the Day of Pentecost.  So, could God, at some point in the future, use something like a solar eclipse or lunar eclipse as a sign indicating the imminent “Day of the Lord”?  Of course He could.  Jesus spoke of God using signs in the sky.  But he also declared that “No one knows when that day or hour will come, .. only the Father knows.”  Mark 13: 32  In the same way that only God knows when the Day of the Lord will come, so too, only God know how this day will come.

  Paul warns that “the Day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night”  (1 Thessalonians 5: 2)  , that is, suddenly, unexpectantly, with not forewarning.  Peter uses the identical imagery when he states, “But the Day of the lord will come like a thief.”  (2 Peter 3: 10)  .

  How then should we approach this subject?  Should we be concerned?  Do we need to do something to prepare ourselves, or to protect ourselves, or to preserve ourselves?

Screen 3

It is God who directs the lives of His creatures,

It is by the breath of God that people are given life.

God is the source of wisdom and power,

God is the source of insight and understanding.

Job 12: 10 & 13

  Firstly, we must rest on the assurance that “God is in control”.  We read that in today’s call to worship from Job 12, where the emphasis is “It is God who is, who directs, who does”.  What cause for concern is there if we put our trust in God?  Alan Catchpoole, in his book “The Wisdom that founded the Earth”, writes that “An appreciation of God’s Word and of His Creation should lead us to a recognition of God’s sovereign right to govern His creatures, and should lead us to a voluntary and whole-hearted willingness to listen to and to respond with obedience to God’s authoritative Word.”  [Alan Catchpoole in The Wisdom that founded the Earth p68 and p206

  Secondly, we must rest on the assurance that God’s love for us cannot be removed from us.  Paul stated as such to the Church in Rome when he wrote, “there is nothing in all Creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.”  (Romans 8: 39)  .  What cause for concern is there if we put our trust in God’s love?

  Thirdly, in the Lord’s Prayer, do we not pray to God saying:

“may your Kingdom come, may your will be done”  (Matthew 6: 10, Luke 11: 2)  ? 

  If we pray that the Will of God will prevail and that He will come and establish His Kingdom, should we not welcome it if it does come in our lifetime?  Why should we pray for it if we do not also eagerly look forward to it coming?

Screen 4

For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that He will rise up to speak on my behalf so as to vindicate me.  Though my flesh will decay, yet, afterwards, in my physical body I will see God.  I will see Him with my own eyes, and He will not be a stranger to me.”

Job 19: 25 – 27

  This short statement by Job incorporates such a positive outlook to life, yet the context of Job’s state of affairs at the time was anything but a rosy one.  Job had lost his family, his livestock, his possessions, his income, his home, his social position, his social status, his dignity, and his health.  He was rejected by those around him, including his wife, and was being judged by three acquaintances, Zophar, Eliphaz and Bildad, as having led such a sinful life that his current circumstances surely reflected God’s judgement upon him.

  Job, confused as to why such a tragic change of circumstances had come upon him, yet knowing in his heart that he had remained faithful to God, was led to make this confident declaration.  It highlights three priorities for us in the way that we should be living our lives.

  Job declares:

“I know that my Redeemer lives, and that he will rise up to speak on my behalf so as to vindicate me.”  Job 19: 25

  Job is confident that God Himself will rise up and silence those who are judging him, by declaring Job innocent and blameless of sin, vindicating him of all of the charges that had been laid upon him.

  John declares the same of Jesus:

“For God did not send His son into the World to be its judge, but to be its Saviour.”  (John 3: 17) 

  Paul declares the identical message:

“But if Christ lives in you, the Spirit is life for you because you have been put right with God.”  (Romans 8: 10) 

  Our first priority in life is holding on to the promise that our Redeemer lives, that we have been put right with God, who vindicates us of all charges of the presence of sin in our lives.

  Job declares:

“Though my flesh will decay, yet, afterwards, in my physical body I will see God.  I will see Him with my own eyes”  (Job 19: 26 & 27) 

Job is confident that, although his physical body will age, that he is mortal and that one day he will die and his body will decay, yet, he will rise physically and see God face to face, on the “Day of the Lord”, when God will come and gather His People unto Himself.  

  John declares the same:

“For God loved the World so much that He gave His only son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life.”  (John 3: 16) 

  Paul declares the identical message:

“For the law of the Spirit, which brings life in union with Christ Jesus, has set me free from the law of sin and death.”  (Romans 8: 2) 

  Our second priority in life is to hold on to the promise that God’s Spirit gives our spirit new life now because we live in union with Christ Jesus.  But, more than this, we have the promise of participation in the coming Kingdom of God, eternal life in union with God and with one another, when the Day of the Lord comes.

  Job declares of God:

“He will not be a stranger to me.”  (Job 19: 27) 

  Job is writing of a close relationship with God, where God does not treat him as a stranger, but welcomes Job as a friend.

  John writes of people who consciously choose “to come to the Light” so that “the light may show that what they do in life was done in obedience to God”.  (John 3: 21) 

  Paul writes of those “who live as God’s spirit tells them to, having their minds controlled by what the Spirit wants.”, for in this way they please God and do not become enemies of God”  (Romans 8: 6 to 8, Galatians 5: 16) 

Our third priority in life is to acknowledge that, as the Spirit of God has given us life, so he must take control of our lives.  (Galatians 5: 25)  It must be evident to ourselves and to others, that God is in all that we do.  For Paul writes:

“the Spirit produces love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self-control.”  (Galatians 5: 22)  It is upon these values that we base our relationships with others and our interactions with others.

  We are to pay attention to ‘the here and now’ and to put our trust in God to look after ‘the what might be’.  We are to pay attention to our need to be reconciled with God, being put right with God.  We are to pay attention to our need to be reconciled with each other, friends, neighbours, and strangers, reconciling our differences and reconciling the impact of our wrongs.

  What ever happens in our lives, whether it is in our own small corner of the world, whether it is on a National scale, whether it is on an International scale, or whether it is on a Cosmic scale, let us take confidence in these words of Paul:

“In view of all this, what can we say?  If God is for us who can be against us?”  (Romans 8: 31) 

  Job showed a simple yet well-founded trust in the grace and mercy of God, and upon this trust he found joy and peace in life.  May we do the same.  Amen.

Hymn

“I know that my Redeemer lives”  TiS376  AHB  MHB

[This is a YouTube recording of the hymn tune Church Triumphant – there is an introduction]

Verse 1 of 4

I know that my Redeemer lives,

What joy the blest assurance gives.

He lives, he lives, who once was dead;

He lives, my everlasting Head.

Verse 2 of 4

He lives, to bless me with his love,

He lives, to plead for me above,

He lives, my hungry soul to feed,

He lives, to help in time of need.

Verse 3 of 4

He lives, and grants me daily breath,

He lives, and I shall conquer death,

He lives, my mansion to prepare,

He lives, to lead me safely there.

Verse 4 of 4

He lives, all glory to his name,

He lives, my Saviour, still the same,

What joy the blest assurance gives,

I know that my Redeemer lives.

Samuel Medley

Offering

Offering Prayer    

“For the life that you have given”  TiS774  [to be sung to the tune ‘Austria’ – refer to TiS772]

[disregard the words – only the one verse is needed]

For the life that you have given,

For the love in Christ made known,

With these fruits of time and labour,

With these gifts that are your own:

Here we offer, Lord, our praises;

Heart and mind and strength we bring;

Give us grace to love and serve you,

Living what we pray and sing.

Ralph Vaughan Williams

Prayers for Others

Let us come before God with our cares and our concerns.

Almighty God, we pray for the Church, that we may recognize your love, presence, and action in their lives and empower us to faithful service.

We pray for the grace of understanding, that we may be more aware of our dignity as your daughters and sons and, in union with the Spirit, confidently call you “ABBA” as we experience your love and care each day.

We pray for a spirit of gratitude, that we may recognize all the great things that you have done for us and with grateful hearts share our blessings with those around us.

We pray for missionaries, home and abroad, that they may know your presence and strength as they share the Good News and as they work among the community of people that they serve.

We pray for those who are isolated from their family and neighbours, that they may experience welcome and acceptance as they encounter the Christian community.

We pray for greater stewardship of earth’s resources, that we may be good stewards of your Creation and strive to protect it for future generations.

We pray for all who feel alone and abandoned, that your Holy Spirit will give them insight into the events in their life so that they may recognize how you is always with them.

We pray for all who have experienced abuse, injustice, or prejudice, that you will heal their pain and give them strength to live life fully.

We pray for an end to the Covid-19 pandemic, that you will defeat the coronavirus, heal those who are sick, and give strength to all working against it, particularly in India, and Southeast Asia, and South America.

We pray for the gift of peace, that you will open new pathways for dialogue in the Middle East so that all may live in peace and each family may live in safety.

Copyright © 2021. Joe Milner. All rights reserved.<br> Permission is hereby granted to reproduce for personal or parish use. – https://liturgy.slu.edu/

God of all creation, as we journey together with others in this Great Southern Land, we pray for healing, forgiveness and unity, a creating of a path of good will, with a focus on justice and compassion for all.

Jesus, through the power of your love, give us the courage, wisdom and strength to share our gifts and talents in working to alleviate the suffering of those in need.  In peace and understanding we seek to be reconciled with each other, especially those whom we have hurt in the past.

Creator Spirit, we come together in prayer and thanksgiving for the many blessings we have received.  Wash over us and give us strength to walk together into the future as one.

(written by a small group of Aboriginal Elder women and Reconciliation Church staff members in 2014)

Journeying together – a Prayer for Reconciliation — Catholic Religious Australia

  Lord God, bring us together as one, reconciled with you and reconciled with each other.  You made us in your likeness, you gave us your Son, Jesus Christ, who has given us forgiveness from sin.  Lord God, bring us together as one.

  Throughout Australia, we are different in lifestyle and culture, but we are given new life in Jesus Christ, together as your body, your Church, your people.  Lord God, bring us together as one, reconciled of our differences, healed of our hurts, forgiven for our wrongs, sharing you with others as you have called us to do.  In Jesus Christ, let us be together as one. 
(By Bishop Arthur Malcolm in A Prayer Book for Australia p.203)

Week of Prayer for Reconciliation and National Reconciliation Week (anglicanfocus.org.au)

  As we gather, Loving God, as your people in this Nation, we reflect upon our History.  We celebrate the good of our Past, of those who sought to work together to make things better, of those who were striving for a better Australia for all peoples.

  We lament the bad of our past, the policies and practices towards groups of people that produced suffering, oppression, trauma, hatred, and discrimination.  We confess the lack of compassion and the prejudices still prevalent in many people’s actions and reactions towards peoples of a different colour, race, culture or creed.

  We ask that you Spirit will inspire us to work together for reconciliation between peoples.  We ask that your Spirt will inspire all people to work together for the common good and to participate in your work of love.  May we walk together as your Church and follow you as Lord and Saviour, so that all may see the works of our hands and therefore seek to know of your grace and peace. 

(adapted from a prayer by Rev Jon Humphris)Uniting Church Synod of South Australia (kinstacdn.com)

Loving God, we bring these prayers to you, trusting in your compassion and care.  To your glory we pray.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil,

For the Kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,

Now and forever.  Amen.

Hymn

“God gives us a future”  TiS687 

[This is a YouTube recording of the tune Camberwell.  It is for 3 verses, but it is for another hymn so ignore the words – there is an introduction]

Verse 1 of 3

God gives us a future,

Daring us to go

Into dreams and dangers

On a path unknown.

We will face tomorrow

In the spirit’s power,

We will let God change us

For new life starts now.

Verse 2 of 3

We must leave behind us

Sins of yesterday,

For God’s new beginning

Is a better way.

Fear and doubt and habit

Must not hold us back:

God gives hope and insight,

And the strength we lack.

Verse 3 of 3

Holy Spirit, teach us

How to read the signs,

How to meet the challenge

Of our troubled times.

Love us into action,

Stir us into prayer,

Till we choose God’s life, and

Find our future there.

Elizabeth Smith

Benediction    

Go into the World, knowing that you are always loved by God.  Go into the World, feeling the presence of Jesus with you at all times.  Go into the World, inspired and comforted by the Holy Spirit in all parts of your life.  And may the blessing of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, rest upon you and remain with you always.  Amen.

Benediction Song

“For from Him, and through Him”  Scripture in Song volume 1 number 15

For from Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things,

To God be the glory for ever, Amen.

For from Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things,

To God be the glory for ever, Amen.

Ena Thompson