WE GATHER IN GOD’S PRESENCE:
Lighting the Candle (Isaiah 9:2, John 12:46):
The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.
Jesus said: 46 I have come as light into the world,
so that everyone who believes in me
should not remain in the darkness.
Let us be mindful of each other as we engage in worship,
those who worship at home
and those who worship in the chapel:
Greeting:
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all!
AND ALSO WITH YOU!
We Focus on God Psalm 147:1-11
Praise the Lord!
How good it is to sing praises to our God;
FOR HE IS GRACIOUS,
AND A SONG OF PRAISE IS FITTING.
2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 HE HEALS THE BROKEN-HEARTED,
AND BINDS UP THEIR WOUNDS.
4 He determines the number of the stars;
he gives to all of them their names.
5 GREAT IS OUR LORD,
AND ABUNDANT IN POWER;
HIS UNDERSTANDING
IS BEYOND MEASURE.
6 The Lord lifts up the downtrodden;
he casts the wicked to the ground.
7 SING TO THE LORD WITH THANKSGIVING;
MAKE MELODY TO OUR GOD ON THE LYRE.
8 He covers the heavens with clouds,
prepares rain for the earth,
MAKES GRASS GROW ON THE HILLS.
9 He gives to the animals their food,
and to the young ravens when they cry.
10 HIS DELIGHT IS NOT IN THE STRENGTH OF THE HORSE,
nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
11 BUT THE LORD TAKES PLEASURE
IN THOSE WHO FEAR HIM,
IN THOSE WHO HOPE
IN HIS STEADFAST LOVE.
We Sing: TiS 92 (Psalm 147) Sing to God with Joy and Gladness 4vv
Sing to God, with joy and gladness,
hymns and psalms of gratitude;
with the voice of praise discover
that to worship God is good.
- God unites his scattered people,
gathers those who wandered far,
heals the hurt and broken spirits,
tending every wound and scar. Sing to God … - Such is God’s great power and wisdom
none can calculate or tell;
keen is God to ground the wicked
and with humble folk to dwell. Sing to God … - God, with clouds, the sky has curtained
thus ensuring rain shall fall;
earth, responding, grows to order
food for creatures great and small. Sing to God … - God’s discernment never favours
strength or speed to lift or move;
God delights in those who fear him,
trusting in his steadfast love. Sing to God …
Paraphrase by John L. Bell 1949–Words and music from Psalms of Patience, Protest and Praise by permission Wild Goose Publications
Prayer:
Gracious God,
we gather intentionally in your presence as your people
to receive from you what you offer:
a binding up of our wounds,
physical, mental and spiritual;
a healing of broken hearts
because of what life has brought us,
because of how others treat us,
even because of how we think you do not care;
we gather intentionally to receive from you
that abundant understanding which lifts us up
assured of being your beloved;
that soaring spirit which has us rise like eagles,
which energizes us in our service to you…
so we gather intentionally to sing your praise
and to keep on hoping for what you offer…
therefore we pray as our Lord taught us to pray:
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
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
Isaiah 40:25-31
To whom then will you compare me,
or who is my equal? says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high and see:
Who created these?
He who brings out their host and numbers them,
calling them all by name;
because he is great in strength,
mighty in power,
not one is missing.
27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
and speak, O Israel,
‘My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my right is disregarded by my God’?
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
30 Even youths will faint and be weary,
and the young will fall exhausted;
31 but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.
1 Corinthians 9:16-23
19 For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) so that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I might by any means save some. 23 I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.
In this is the Word of the Lord WE HEAR AND REJOICE, O LORD
Mark 1:29-39
29 Straightway theyleft the synagogue; they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30 Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. 31 He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
32 That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. 33 And the whole city was gathered around the door. 34 And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.
35 In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. 36 And Simon and his companions hunted for him. 37 When they found him, they said to him, ‘Everyone is searching for you.’ 38 He answered, ‘Let us go on to the neighbouring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.’ 39 And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.
This is the Gospel of our Lord PRAISE TO YOU LORD JESUS CHRIST
Prayer of Confession
Gracious God,
we come confessing our deviation from the straight Way,
the way made known through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Lord have mercy, LORD HAVE MERCY
Lord Jesus Christ,
we come confessing our reluctance
to straighten that which is crooked,
to make right that which is wrong
thus ceasing to truly follow you.
Christ have mercy CHRIST HAVE MERCY
Spirit of God,
we come confessing our weariness in doing good,
our sense of powerlessness if we think too much about
all that needs to be done
Spirit have mercy SPIRIT HAVE MERCY
Declaration of Reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:19-21)
…in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself,
not counting their trespasses against them,
and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.
20 So we are ambassadors for Christ,
since God is making his appeal through us;
we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
For those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint,
so we say with joy in our 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 TIS 447 LORD YOUR ALMIGHTY WORD 4vv
Thou Whose Almighty Word [with lyrics for congregations] – YouTube
Contemporary Word
The Basis of Union,
the document which in written form
expresses the passion of those who formed
the Uniting Church In Australia,
includes the following in describing what it means to be Church…:
The Church lives between the time of Christ’s death and resurrection
and the final consummation of all things
which Christ will bring;
the Church is a pilgrim people,
always on the way towards a promised goal;
here the Church does not have a continuing city
but seeks one to come.
On the way Christ feeds the Church with Word and Sacraments,
and it has the gift of the Spirit in order that it may not lose the way.[1]
and:
The Uniting Church affirms
that it belongs to the people of God on the way
to the promised end.[2]
Those who determined that self-descriptive of being Church
echoed the earliest designation of those who declared themselves
to be followers of Jesus: (Acts 9:2)
Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder
against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest,
2 and asked for letters from him to the synagogues at Damascus,
so that if he found any belonging to the Way,
both men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
Most of us would think straight away of Jesus’ own words
as given us by John: (John 14:6)
I am the way, the truth and the life…
no one comes to the Father, but by me…
and rightly so!
We have another written witness
to the importance of seeing the Way
as a description of being disciples of Jesus,
a people on the way…
This witness is the author of the Gospel of Mark.
The current lectionary year, Year B,
focuses on Mark’s Gospel… with a secondary focus on John…
Listen to the first paragraph…
The beginning of the good news about Jesus
The Messiah (Christ), Son of God…
Just as it stands written in Isaiah the prophet:
“Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
Who will prepare your way,
One bellowing in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the Lord’s way,
And make his paths straight’…
Like any modern journalist,
Mark introduces his key thoughts
in a brief opening paragraph…
What follows is about:
Jesus the Messiah and the Son of God…
This Jesus is the One who prepares the way of the Lord
And invites others, including us,
To prepare the Lord’s way
And to make his paths straight…
Just as Isaiah said…[3]
This last point I realise,
may surprise the thoughtful ones among you…
For we all automatically assume
that those words attributed to Isaiah
refer to John the Baptiser who appears next,
preaching in the wilderness…
Within Mark, this is correct in a secondary sense…
John foreshadows the life and death of Jesus…
What happens to John happens to Jesus…
But the prime Messenger of God
is Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God..
(Now it is important not to jump from Mark to one of the other Gospels;
They were determined to make sure people realised
Jesus was the messenger of God par excellence
by prefacing their material with the birth stories,
e.g. Matthew and Luke
And identifying Jesus with the pre-existent Word e.g. John.
This then allowed them to have the quotation focus on John…
But this morning we need
to remain focussed on the text as in Mark!)
A scriptural quotation such as which follows the opening line
Always refers back to what precedes it…
Another example of this in Mark’s gospel
may be found in Mark 7.5-7,
5 The Pharisees and the scribes asked Him,
“Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands?”
6 And He said to them,
“Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:
‘This people honours Me with their lips,
But their heart is far away from Me.
7 ‘But in vain do they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’
This is also clearly indicated how Matthew, Luke and John
use the Isaiah quote…
The Isaiah quote in each gospel occurs
after the naming of John the Baptiser,
and refers back to him…
Here the people would hear the opening line narrated to them,
The only name they would have heard was the name of Jesus Christ…
And then the scriptural attestation of what was claimed…
the so called Isaiah reference,
I am using so called because it includes a line from Malachi and Exodus
as well as Isaiah…
Some folk wonder if Mark did not know his bible…
Some make excuses,
suggesting that seeing most folk could not read and write,
at best 10% of the population in the settled urban areas,
it is only reasonable for folk to mix things up a bit from memory…
What we know now is that Mark used a familiar, for his time,
method for reminding people of what were important values, expectations…
The use of familiar and valued phrases
would trigger a range of associations…
For example, if I mention to you the phrase ‘for God so loved the world’,
There is no need for me, in one sense, to narrate the rest,
which goes how??
Yes, ‘that he gave his only begotten Son…etc.’
We know what follows..
Also, we might quickly recall the context,
Jesus having a conversation with Nicodemus,
And its details…
Just so when Mark uses these key phrases
from Exodus 23.20 and Malachi 3.1
and sandwiches them within the Isaiah 40.3 text,
people would recollect their context…
The Exodus text is part of Israel’s foundational Covenant
between God and God’s people,
spelling out God’s commitment to the people and their obligations,
all within the context of the Exodus journey to the promised land,
a journey on which the angel of the LORD
would guide the way through the wilderness;
the Malachi text decries the failure of the people
to stick to their Exodus 20 obligations,
yet has in mind the promised comfort of God
expressed in the Isaiah 40 text.
The Isaiah text speaks of a new Exodus,
a return to Jerusalem
which necessitated a journey through the wilderness…
guided along a way prepared by God.
The symbolism of this Isaianic vision of a new Exodus
inspired hope in many people of Jesus’ time…
they hoped that God, as promised through Isaiah,
would restore Jerusalem and the nation
to its special status and glory…
Within this hope they associated
many collective memories and aspirations
of whom they were as God’s people
and their obligations,
And also God’s faithfulness as opposed to their faithlessness…
Yet God’s persistently calls to them to be God’s faithful servant…
This forms the background to John’s preaching,
As the translators of the Common English Bible put it:
4 John was in the wilderness calling for people to be baptized
to show that they were changing their hearts and lives
and hoped God to forgive their sins.
All these understandings and expectations
Mark now foists onto Jesus in these opening lines…
at the same time giving the hearer a guide as to what to expect…
So, for example, there would be no surprise
to hear of Jesus coming from Nazareth in Galilee
to the wilderness around the Jordan…
In a similar fashion,
Mark’s use of ‘make straight the Way of the Lord”
would alert the early hearer
to listen for reminders of this concept..
Yes, hearer, rather than reader!
Remember at best only 10% of the urban population
were literate in some way.
According to the writings of Church leaders
who go back to the 1st century,
Mark wrote his Gospel drawing upon his personal association
with the Apostle Peter as he followed Peter’s preaching mission,
probably in Italy.
However, it needs to be remembered
that the Gospel was formulated in a Judean rural society where,
the evidence from that time, suggests only 3% of people could read.
Thus the Gospel was intended to be presented orally
by someone to others, probably in a single sitting…
In English, this is approaching three hours.
In order to maintain attention,
the telling of the story had to be dramatic
and to repeat things sometimes
so people could stay with the story.
It’s hard to know whether we are hearing Mark’s story-telling technique, or maybe even Peter’s.[4]
For about 15 years I practiced the art of Biblical story telling.
I would learn the text chosen for my sermon,
to tell it whilst attempting to include some dramatic nuances.
As I did with Romans here last year,
often I would preach continuously through a book.
Hence I learned to ‘tell’ complete books from as brief as Jonah,
to as lengthy as Revelation…
and in between these fall books the length of Mark.
I am not suggesting that Mark as we now have it,
and as I learned it,
was what the earliest listeners heard!
Nevertheless they heard the earliest versions of these stories
crafted over time into the Gospel as we have it now.
Not too much time though, not centuries,
maybe not even decades, merely one…
The evidence within Mark
definitely points to a repetition of vocabulary
and crafted sequence and structure,
reminiscent of aiding memory and oral presentation
of its various components and even the whole.
Mark’s Gospel is extremely sophisticated
and yields up a level of complexity
that is sometimes mind-boggling…[5]
writes one scholar after decades of research.
He came to this conclusion, even though he began with the thought:
Among the four Gospels, Mark is the most inelegant in terms of style. Starting off with an abrupt beginning (Mk 1:1–3)
and coming to a close with an even more abrupt ending (Mk 16:8), Mark’s Gospel hurtles forward to its climax.
This effect is enhanced by the evangelist’s fondness
for the repetitive use of “and [kai] … and [kai] …”
Scholars argue this use of ‘and’ connects each story with the other
in a temporal, spatial and/or theological sequence,
particularly when combined with ‘straightway’.
This hurried sense is also achieved, especially early on in the book,
through the repeated use of “straightway,
(more often translated as immediately)” (euthys),
a repetition that only the most woodenly literal English translations
dare to reproduce[6].
Which brings us to the Gospel text of this morning.
It begins with these two words,
kai euthys (and straight away, straightway)
translated in various, non-repetitive ways by translators
and their editors, intent on producing a readable work.
Nevertheless, in my preparation of the text for telling,
I have used the translation ‘and straightway, straight away’
for wherever this phrase occurred…
and this is how the distributed Gospel text for this morning begins…
The word translated “straight away”
occurs over 40 times in this short Gospel.
It’s as if something so powerful is happening, so fast,
that we are struggling to catch up with it.
However, the Greek phrase, even translated into English,
repeats a key opening thought,
‘Look, I am sending my messenger before you.
He will prepare your way, a voice shouting in the wilderness:
“Prepare the way for the Lord;
make his paths straight.”[7]
So the use of ‘straight away’
(rather than the more often used ‘immediately’)
serves to remind one constantly
of the paths to be made straight,
as well as giving that sense of immediacy.
Similarly, ‘the way’ is a crucial theme in Mark,
who focuses on the way of the cross,
as we will see when we get to Lent…
Suffice it to say here that Blind Bartimaeus,
whom Jesus healed of his blindness
so that he recovered his sight,
began to follow Jesus on the way!
Straight away he regained his sight
and began following Him on the way… (Mark 10.52).
Thus concludes what may a scholar believes to be
the first major section of Mark before Jesus’ final week.
It concludes how it started, with a decision to follow Jesus!
(Check 1:16-20)
6 As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” 18 Straightway they left their nets and followed Him. 19 Going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. 20 Straightway He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him.
We remind ourselves we are a people on the way,
called by our Lord to make straight the way!
So let’s straight away
work at getting our part of the world straight.
WE RESPOND TO GOD’S WORD
and all the people said THANKS BE TO GOD
We Sing TIS638 O CHRIST, THE HEALER, WE HAVE COME 5vv
We Share Our Community Life
News and Notices
Prayers of the People
Oh God, Lord of the nations,
we pray as your global people this morning,
conscious of faraway leaders impacting on our well-being and security.
Grant, we ask you, a curb on any belligerence,
and an increase in a search for peace.
Lord hear us LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
O Lord Jesus, who went about healing,
we pray as your global people this morning
placing our trust in the new variety of vaccines
to combat the corona virus pandemic.
Grant, we ask you, your blessing on those
who seek a means to lessen the suffering through an antidote,
that success may be their lot!
Lord hear us LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
Oh Spirit of God, Holy Comforter,,
we pray as your global people this morning,
desperate for your comfort, like a refreshing breeze,
to be upon the millions of people infected with the virus,
and those who love them…
Grant we ask you, your peace to sustain and overwhelm them.
Lord hear us, LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
Lord of the church,
we pray for those within our community
who deal with illness and the variety of sufferings life brings on us..
we name in your presence the following:
— aloud or in the silence of your hearts—
Grant we ask you, strength and courage to them
to deal with each day as it comes..
Christ hear us CHRIST HEAR OUR PRAYER
THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION
We Bring Our offering to God
setting aside our gifts to support the local and wider work of the church
and bless our gifts in an act of praise… (we sing)
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,
Praise God, all creatures here below,
Praise God above, you heavenly host,
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
Great Prayer Of Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you… And also with you.
Lift up your hearts…. We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to God.
It is right to give God our thanks and praise.
It is right that we give you our thanks and praise, O God,
origin of the beginning of all that is,
creator of heaven and earth.
You brought our world into being
and formed man and woman in your image,
breathing into them the breath of life.
We do indeed give you our thanks and praise, O God,
with all our heart and soul and mind and strength,
for you keep faith forever with all peoples.
In Jesus Christ you became one of us,
that we might grasp something
of your unsearchable understandings
as he proclaimed your message of Good News
and freed people from whatever possessed them.
Almighty LORD,
Grant we join with the whole company on earth and in heaven
singing the hymn of unending praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of grace and truth,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
God of wonder and might,
who does not faint or grow weary;
29 Who gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
31 who grants those who wait for the Lord
a renewal their of their strength,
so they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
shall run and not be weary,
so they shall walk and not faint.
Grant your Holy Spirit, that we might discover
what it means to be of you and in you,
and that this bread and wine
may be for us the very presence of your Son, Jesus Christ.
The Words of Institution
Holy are you O God, and blessed is your Son, Jesus Christ
who revealed your mercy and grace so powerfully,
especially on that night,
when on the night he was betrayed, took bread,
24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said,
“This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying,
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood;
do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup,
you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Great is the mystery of faith.
CHRIST HAS DIED;
CHRIST IS RISEN;
CHRIST WILL COME AGAIN.
The Present Christ (Rev.3:21)
it is Jesus who invites himself to sup with us here,
joining us if we but say the word:
Here I am! Jesus said, I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,
I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
COME, LORD JESUS
The Distribution of the Bread
My body, broken for you, Jesus said.
Do this for the remembrance of me…
The Distribution of the Cup
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood; Jesus said
do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me
Prayer following communion
Generous and welcoming God,
in Jesus Christ you desire to embrace all.
Grant us of your own generous Spirit
that we might speak words of invitation
and practice actions of welcome
in a Spirit of hospitality to bring all within your embrace.
May they and we enjoy feasting at your table,
revelling in your gracious gift of abundant life,
to the praise and glory of your name. AMEN
WE GO OUT TO SERVE GOD
We Sing : TIS 531 SENT FORTH BY GOD’S BLESSING 2vv
Sending Out
Go as a people open to the wonders of creation,
recognising grace given signposts to the LORD;
Go as a people open to the Word,
the Word who became flesh,
offering to enlighten and enliven our lives!
Go as a people alerting one and all
that there is no mystery to God anymore…
God is Immanuel, with us, not against us!
Blessing
May the Christ inhabit you, the Father uphold you,
and the Spirit sustain you, now and forever
[1] Basis of Union 1992 paragraph 3 my emphasis
[2] Basis of Union 1992 paragraph 18 my emphasis
[3] Watts, Rikki E. 2000 Isaiah’s New Exodus in Mark (Revised Edition) Grand Rapids: Baker Book House
much of what follows is based on the reading of this book, and filtered through my thinking.
Pao, David W. 2000 Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus traces this motif in the book of Acts…
[4] Wire, Antoinette Clark, 2011 The Case for Mark Composed in Performance Eugene: Wipf and Stock
again, what follows is based on my reading of this book, building on much earlier reading in Narrative Theology.
[5] Perrin, N. (2013). Mark, Gospel Of. In J. B. Green, J. K. Brown, & N. Perrin (Eds.), Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, Second Edition (pp. 556–558). Downers Grove, IL; Nottingham, England: IVP Academic; IVP.
[6] Perrin, N. (2013). Mark, Gospel Of. In J. B. Green, J. K. Brown, & N. Perrin (Eds.), Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, Second Edition (pp. 556–558). Downers Grove, IL; Nottingham, England: IVP Academic; IVP.
[7] A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed
the connection between the Greek word, euthus, and the word “straight”. According to the BDAG Lexicon, one of the meanings of the word is “1. pert. to being in a straight or direct line, straight…
Service for Sunday 23rd August 2020 – Rev Louis van Laar: 
Prayers for Christmas Day, 25th December 2021, conducted by Mr Geoffrey Webber 
Service for Sunday 21st November 2021, conducted by Mr Geoffrey Webber 
Service for Sunday 11th April 2021 – Geoffrey Webber 
