Welcome: –

Call to Worship: –   

On the road back to Fairbanks from Chena Hot Springs

Saturday 1^st June 2024 at 11.00pm

This isn’t the best of photographs, but it was the best I could do from where I was sitting in the car.  We had booked an evening tour from Fairbanks to Chena Hot Springs, to enjoy a dip in, you guessed it, the Chena Hot Springs, and to visit their “ice cave”, which was full of ice carvings and flowers encased in ice.  We were returning to Fairbanks, when, at 11 pm, we came across a bloke whose pickup truck was stopped by the side of the road.

  You will notice two things.  Firstly, although it was 11 o’clock at night, it wasn’t dark.  Twight in Alaska in Summer is amazing; it is so bright.  You can take photos until early in the morning.  Secondly, you can just make out the crumpled bonnet of his pickup truck.  He had just collided with a moose, and was waiting for the tow truck to take him back to Fairbanks, and the Highway Patrol to deal with the moose.

  The driver of our car reckons that this other bloke must have been speeding.  It wasn’t dark, and it was a two-lane highway, with vegetation cleared on both sides of the road, so our driver reasoned that this other bloke was blasé about his driving.  He must have been driving too fast and didn’t allow himself enough time to slow down so as to avoid the moose when it suddenly and unexpectantly came into view.  Such are the tribulations with travelling on the roads in Alaska.

  Moses writes in the book of Numbers:

“Be sure, your sins will find you out.”  (Numbers 32: 23)  , meaning that, sooner or later, your errors and misconduct in life will come back to haunt you; as this bloke found out.

  But we needn’t feel smug, because the same lesson applies to us.  But there is something much more important to consider.  Paul writes to the Church in Galatia saying:

“Do not deceive yourselves; no one makes a fool of God.  A person reaps what they sow.”  (Galatians 6: 7) 

  And this raises the question:

‘What is our attitude when we come before God in a worship service?’

  Do we come with a clear conscience, knowing that we have confessed our sins and shortcomings before Him, not attempting to hide anything?  Have we confessed our errors to those who we have hurt, seeking their forgiveness?  Have we brought to God those who have hurt us, seeking to forgive them?  Have we come with an open heart and an open mind, ready to offer our sincere worship and praise to God?

  If we are not sincere when we come to worship, we may fool those around us, but we cannot fool God, as the Apostle Paul stresses to us, who looks at our heart and can read our mind.  Attending worship isn’t just something noted on Today’s ‘To do’ list, it is a time when we acknowledge our indebtedness to God for His lovingkindness and grace towards us as individuals, and for us to prepare ourselves for His service in the coming week.

  With that in mind, let us humble ourselves as we come before Almighty God, who has promised to be with us now as we gather to worship Him.

Prayer of Praise  

(based on Psalm 138: 1 to 8) 

I thank you, LORD, with all my heart; I praise you my God.

I worship you and give thanks because of your constant love and faithfulness, because you have shown that you are supreme of all there is in Heaven and upon Earth.

You answered me when I called to you; with your strength you strengthened me.

All the kings in the World will praise you, LORD, because they have heard your promises.

They will sing about what you have done and about your great glory.

Even though you are so high above, you care for the lowly, and the proud cannot hide from you.

When I am surrounded by troubles, you keep me safe.  You save me by your power.

LORD, you will do everything you have promised, your love is eternal.  Amen.

You are invited to listen to, or join in singing the Hymn ‘Love divine, all loves excelling’ 

(TiS217  AHB148  MHB431)

Verse 1 of 4

Love divine, all loves excelling,

joy of Heaven, to Earth come down,

fix in us Thy humble dwelling,

all Thy faithful mercies crown.

Jesus, Thou art all compassion,

pure, unbounded love Thou art;

visit us with Thy salvation,

enter every trembling heart.

Verse 2 of 4

Breathe, O, breathe Thy loving Spirit

into every troubled breast;

let us all in Thee inherit,

let us find Thy promised rest;

take away the love of sinning,

Alpha and Omega be;

end of faith, as its beginning,

set our hearts at liberty.

Verse 3 of 4

Come, Almighty to deliver,

let us all Thy life receive;

suddenly return, and never,

never more Thy temples leave:

Thee we would be always blessing,

serve Thee as Thy hosts above,

pray, and praise Thee without ceasing,

glory in Thy perfect love.

Verse 4 of 4

Finish, then, Thy new creation:

pure and spotless let us be;

let us see Thy great salvation,

perfectly restored in Thee:

changed from glory into glory,

till in Heaven we take our place,

till we cast our crowns before Thee,

lost in wonder, love, and praise.

Charles Wesley

Prayer of Confession   

Merciful God, we come before you repentant of our failings and our wantonness in departing from your chosen way for us.

Forgive us for when we fail to respond to your call with faith.

Forgive us for when we are shackled by our narrow understandings of discipleship and our clouded sense of purpose.

Forgive us for when we are frightened of the future or pull back from the demand of your calling.

Forgive us when we fail to sense your presence in our past, to acknowledge your grace in the present moment, and to trust you for our future.

You have shown us that your Love is patient; yet, Lord, we are known more for our quick-temperedness: Lord, have mercy.

You have shown that your Love is kind; yet, Lord, we are known more for our indifference towards others: Lord, have mercy.

You have shown us that your Love is not envious; yet, Lord, we are known more for our petty jealousies: Lord, have mercy.

You have shown us that your Love is not arrogant; yet, Lord, we are known more for our opinionated views: Lord, have mercy.

You have shown us that your Love does not insist on getting its own way; yet, Lord, we are known more for our false sense of our own importance: Lord, have mercy.

You have shown us that your Love is not irritable; yet, Lord, we are known more for our resentful behaviour: Lord, have mercy.

May you show us mercy, Almighty God, forgiving our sins and leading us to a life that lasts.  To your glory and honour we pray.  Amen.

Assurance of Forgiveness 

(from Hebrews 2: 14 & 17) 

The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews tells us that it was through the death of Jesus that people’s sins would be forgiven.  Let us put our faith in this truth and put our trust in the assurance that, having confessed our sins before God, He has listened to our prayers and has forgiven us.

Thanks be to God.

Prayer of illumination 

Almighty, gracious Father, for as much as our whole salvation depends upon our true understanding of your holy Word, grant to all of us that our hearts, being freed from worldly affairs, may hear and comprehend your holy Word with all diligence and faith, that we may rightly understand your gracious will, cherish it, and live by it with all earnestness, to your praise and honour, through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

(Prayer of Martin Bucer: 1538)

Bible Readings

Isaiah 6:

1  In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord.  He was sitting on his throne, high and exalted, and His robe filled the whole Temple.  2  Around Him flaming creatures were standing, each of which had six wings.  Each creature covered its face with two wings, and its body with two, and used the other two for flying. 

3  They were calling out to each other:

”Holy, holy, holy!  The LORD Almighty is holy!  His glory fills the World.”

4  The sound of their voices made the foundation of the Temple shake, and the Temple itself was filled with smoke.

5  I said, “There is no hope for me!  I am doomed because every word that passes my lips is sinful, and I live among a people whose every word is sinful.  And yet, with my own eyes I have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.”

6  Then one of the creatures flew down to me, carrying a burning coal that they had taken from the alter with a pair of tongs.  7  They touched my lips with the burning coal and said, “This has touched your lips, and now your guilt is gone, and your sins are forgiven.”

8  Then I heard the Lord say, “Whom shall I send?  Who will be our messenger?”  I answered, “I will go!  Send me!”

1 Corinthians 15:

1  And now my fellow believers, I must remind you of the Gospel that I preached to you; the Gospel which you received, on which you have taken your stand, and which is now bringing you salvation.  2  Do you still hold fast to the Gospel as I preached it to you?  If not, your conversion was in vain.

3  I passed on to you what I received, which is of the greatest importance: that Christ died for our sins, as written in the Scriptures  (Isaiah 53: 10)  ;  4  that he was buried and that he was raised to life three days later, as written in the Scriptures  (Isaiah 53: 12)  ;  5  that he appeared to Peter and then to all twelve Apostles.  6  Then he appeared to more than five hundred of his followers at once, most of whom are still alive, although some have died.  7  Then he appeared to James, and afterward to all the Apostles.  8  Last of all he appeared also to me.

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

This is the Word of God.

Praise to you Almighty God.

Luke 5:

1  One day, Jesus was standing on the shore of Lake Gennesaret, while the people pushed their way up to him to listen to the word of God.  2  He saw two boats pulled up on the beach; the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets.  3  Jesus got into one of the boats – it belonged to Simon – and asked him to push off a little from the shore.  Jesus sat in the boat and taught the crowd.

4  When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Push the boat out further to the deep water, and you and your partners let your down your nets for a catch.”

5  “Master,” Simon answered, “we worked hard all night long and caught nothing.  But if you say so, I will let down the nets.”  6  They let them down and caught such a large number of fish that the nets were about to break.  7  So they motioned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them.  They came and filled both boats so full of fish that the boats were about to sink.  8  When Simon Peter saw what had happened, he fell on his knees before Jesus and said, “Go away from me, Lord!  I am a sinful man!”

9  He and the others with him were all amazed at the large number of fish they had caught.  10  The same was true of Simon’s partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee.  Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.”  11  They pulled the boats up on the beach, left everything, and followed Jesus.

[Today’s English Version]

This is the Gospel of our Lord.

Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ.

You are invited to listen to, or join in singing the Hymn ‘Blest are the pure in heart’

(TiS448  AHB376  MHB571)

John Keble

Sermon

Walking across the Capilano Suspension Bridge at North Vancouver

Monday 6^th May 2024 at 11.55am

  Here we have an intrepid explorer commencing her walk along the 140 metre long Capilano Suspension Bridge, which goes across the Capilano Canyon, and crosses over the Capilano River 70 metres below.  It is situated in North Vancouver, British Columbia.  And, yes, the bridge does sway, noticeably.

  Notice that the people in the photograph are walking on the right-hand side in the direction in which they are going, unlike in Australia, where, consciously or unconsciously, we learn to walk on the left-hand side in the direction of travel, as we do when we are driving a car.  It took a conscious effort to walk on the right-hand side when we were walking anywhere in Canada and Alaska.

  But, getting back to the bridge.  There are three ways to walk across the Capilano Suspension Bridge.  The nervous walker grips the wire with both hands and shuffles across the bridge, consciously keeping both feet on the surface at all times and maintaining four points of contact, just in case.  The average walker walks carefully across the bridge, with one hand on the wire, gripping and ungripping the wire as they progress across the bridge.  The confident walker, or the ‘fool’, depending on your approach to crossing the bridge, strides confidently across the bridge with their right hand hovering over the wire, ready to grip the wire when they need to stop behind a nervous walker or when some careless person up ahead does something to increase the normal sway of the bridge.  They talk about getting “sea-legs” which enable you to confidently walk around a cruise ship.  I wonder if there is something similar here, getting “bridge-legs” which enable you to confidently walk across this bridge.

  But whatever manner you utilise to cross the bridge, everyone who does so follows three stages.

  Now, not everyone who visits the site crosses the bridge.  Some prefer the non-moving floor of the café or the solid ground of the lookout before the bridge, where there is no swaying, except in an earthquake, which we were told can occur in this part of Canada. 

  Those who cross the bridge hear a call in ‘the back of their mind’ to walk across the bridge.

  Upon hearing the call to cross the bridge, they commit themselves to take that first step.

  Upon taking that first step and each subsequent step, they are placing their confidence in those who made the bridge and who regularly maintain the bridge.  And the concrete foundations to which the wires are attached were large, strong enough we were told to withstand a moderate earthquake.

  When you consider the Prophets of the Old Testament and the Apostles of the New Testament, they all followed these same three stages.

 

 In John 1: 35 to 42, we read of the initial meeting of Jesus with Andrew and his brother Simon, which took place soon after the baptism of Jesus near the River Jordan in the north-eastern corner of Judah, where John the Baptist was baptising those who responded to his call for repentance.  In Luke 4: 38, we gain the understanding that Jesus was living in the home of Simon and Andrew in Capernaum in Galilee, at a point in time soon after his rejection at Nazareth  (Luke 4: 28 to 31)  .  So, Simon and Andrew were well acquainted with Jesus before he called them to be his Disciples.  Presumably so too were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s ‘business partners’ as we read in Luke 5: 10.

  There is an understanding that the “wife of Zebedee” in Matthew 27: 56 is the Salome who is mentioned in Mark 16: 1, who is the “sister of Mary the mother of Jesus”, mentioned in John 19: 25.  Upon this understanding we see that Jesus was a cousin of James and John, the sons of Zebedee  (Luke 5: 10)  and had been acquainted with James and John for many years, before his meeting with Andrew and Simon and before his time spent living at Capernaum.

  So, when Jesus called Simon and Andrew, and James and John, to leave behind their homes and all that was familiar, to become “fishers of men”, their meeting was not a spontaneous one between unknown persons as it is sometimes conceived.  Jesus knew them and had lived with them.  They knew Jesus and had heard the “news about Jesus that had spread throughout the territory of Galilee”  (Luke 4: 14)  .

  What was it about these four fishermen that may have led Jesus to consider their worth to be his Disciples?  Was it their learning and education?  They may have been literate, but the vocation of fishing did not require a high level of formal education.  As well, Galileans were seen by the learned and genteel people of Jerusalem as, at best, ‘country hicks’, judging by the reaction of the crowd who had gathered around the Apostles on the Day of Pentecost:

“These people who are talking like this are Galileans!  How is it then, that all of us hear them speaking in our own native languages?”  (Acts 2: 7 & 8) 

  Was it because they were so successful at catching fish?  No, for on the day in question, Simon readily acknowledged that they had spent the previous evening out in the lake and had not caught anything.  (Luke 5: 5) 

  Was it a special goodness about them?  They may have been hard working, and Simon and Andrew at least had responded to the call of John the Baptist to repent and to return to a true and honest worship of God.  (John 1: 40 to 42)  But what was Simon’s reaction to Jesus when Jesus demonstrated his Divinity by being able to ordain, in the vastness and the depth of the lake, the exact location where Simon and his partners would be able to catch such a vast number of fish that it risked overloading two fishing boats and to break their nets? 

  Simon fell on his knees, as a sign of submission to someone greater that he, and said, “Go away from me, Lord.  I am a sinful man.”  (Luke 5: 8) 

  This is not the reaction of someone who considers that he is of such a high calibre that he could offer something valuable and worthwhile that would contribute to the success of any venture upon which Jesus would consider embarking.  Jesus did not call these four fishermen on the basis of what they could give to him.  Jesus called them on the basis of what they could be for God and on what God could make them into.

  John Carroll, in his commentary of Luke’s Gospel, writes,

“Though well aware of his own unworthiness, Simon, joined by his business partners James and john, models an appropriate response to Jesus’ call to the realm of God, leaving everything to follow him.”  (John Carroll in Luke  A Commentary p123)  Simon Peter and Andrew and James and John made a commitment to follow the call of Jesus and placed their confidence in Jesus to guide them, protect them, and provide for them.

  Luke, in compiling his Gospel, highlights that the attention of Jesus is focussed on the sinners, the social and religious outcasts and outsiders, but who are the “objects of God’s grace”  (Luke 5: 32)  , and who “respond to Jesus with openness”.  In contrast, the learned and respected and self-righteous religious teachers and leaders “view Jesus with suspicion and hostility”  (Luke 5: 21)  , reject his teaching, oppose his authority, deny his Messiahship, and scheme his demise.  (Joel Green in The Gospel of Luke p228) 

But what of our call to follow God?  In writing to the young Church in Corinth, the Apostle Paul seeks to confirm the foundations upon which their faith is based:

“that Christ died for our sins”  (1 Corinthians 15: 3b)  ,

“that he was buried”  (1 Corinthians 15: 4a)  , and

“that he was raised to life three days later”  (1 Corinthians 15: 4b)  .

  Paul cites numerous firsthand witnesses to these three foundational events.  Paul uses terminology that “must mean a literal appearance” of Jesus upon his being raised to life three days later.  (Craig Keener in 1 Corinthians in The IVP Bible Background Commentary on the New Testament p484 & 485) 

  Paul states categorically in 1 Corinthians 15: 2 :

‘This is the message that was given to me by those firsthand witnesses who were there.’

‘This is the message that I faithfully preached to you.’

‘This is the message by which the Holy Spirit spoke to your hearts and convinced you of the truth of what I preached to you.’

‘This is the message by which you are saved.’

  Paul is telling the church at Corinth, using the words of Norman Hillyer, “to deny the resurrection of the dead is to evacuate the Gospel of all its worth”.  (Norman Hillyer in 1 Corinthians in the New Bible Commentary p1070) 

  And he is earnest in his plea:

“You are saved by the Gospel if you hold firmly to it – unless it was for nothing that you believed.”  (1 Corinthians 15: 2) 

  Paul is stating that any other teaching does not come from God, is not validated by Scripture nor by historical events nor by firsthand witnesses to these historical events, and does not lead you to life in and through Jesus Christ.  The truth of Paul’s teaching is no less valid today.

  Alan Catchpoole writes:

“A religion that postulates some divine force within and belonging to Human beings, which has the ability to set them free and give them power, independence and self-determination, is most popular.  There have been numerous attempts to structure such a religion and even to ‘convert’ biblical leaching to conform to such an idea.  We see this as evidence that true Christianity which requires people to recognise themselves as a dependant creature who must respond to God in faith and obedience does not appeal to the sons and daughters of Adam.”  (Alan Catchpoole in The Wisdom that founded the Earth p193) 

  The essence of Paul ‘s teaching, which is reflected in these words of Alan Catchpoole, is that God disregards the calibre of a person who seeks to follow Him, God seeks only after the faithful response of a person to what God has already accomplished for them.  Alan Catchpoole writes:

“The righteous life and sacrificial death of Christ are the essential prerequisites upon which God establishes an eternal and saving agreement with His people.  This is all the gift of His grace.  Christian salvation must be understood in these terms.”  (Alan Catchpoole in The Wisdom that founded the Earth p195) 

  The Psalmist writes, praising God:

“How happy are those who trust in you!”  (Psalm 84: 12) 

  May we not relinquish our faith and trust in God.  May we, like the Psalmist, find our blessing and happiness in knowing God as our everlasting Lord and Saviour.  May we like Isaiah and the Disciples and the Apostle Paul, heed the call from God, commit our whole life to His service, and confidently trust Him to guide us, protect us, and provide for us.  Amen.

You are invited to listen to, or join in singing the hymn ‘God of Concrete, God of Steel’  (Hymns and Songs number 23)

[This YouTube clip is for another hymn but is used here for the tune.  The words are printed below:]

Verse 1 of 4

God of concrete, God of steel,

God of piston and of wheel,

God of pylon, God of steam,

God of girder and of beam,

God of atom, God of mine,

All the world of power is thine!

Verse 2 of 4

Lord of cable, Lord of rail,

Lord of motorway and mail,

Lord of rocket, Lord of flight,

Lord of soaring satellite,

Lord of lightnings livid line,

All the world of speed is thine!

Verse 3 of 4

Lord of science, Lord of art,

God of map and graph and chart,

Lord of physics and research,

Word of Bible, Faith of Church,

Lord of sequence and design,

All the world of truth is thine!

Verse 4 of 4

God whose glory fills the Earth,

Gave the Universe its birth,

Loosed the Christ with Easter’s might,

Saves the World from evil’s blight,

Claims us all by grace divine,

All the world of love is thine!

Richard Jones

Offering

Offering Prayer 

Almighty God, as we bring these gifts, we remember that all that we have belongs to you and is given by you.  We remember that it is not in holding onto your gifts that gives fulfillment but that it is found in using them to bring about your Kingdom and your will on Earth.  Please bless these offerings for your service.  May they be used to bring your light to the World and relief to those in need.  To your glory we pray.  Amen.  

Prayers for Others

Almighty God, our prayer today is that our world will know your healing touch and your forgiving heart.

That those who have been hurt by insincere actions and damning words will hear your healing voice.

That those whose lives are filled with dark thoughts, or unimaginable fears, will know your peace.

Walk beside those who are close to giving up hope and where life seems to have no point; where people struggle to make ends meet.

And may all who weep and mourn, or feel abandoned and unloved turn towards your voice, move towards your arms and hear the whisper of your presence in the long hours of night.

Inspire us and encourage us to bend down low; to embrace those for whom society has no time or patience.

Raise our eyes upwards to see the struggling patient and the exhausted care giver.

And where young and old stumble and fall, may we be there to offer support, that all will know your love that transcends all others.  Through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.

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.

You are invited to listen to, or join in singing the hymn ‘Christ liveth in me’

(Alexander’s Hymns No.3 number 208)

James McGranahan

Benediction 

(from Prayers for the Seasons of God’s People Year C p48) 

We hear the voice of God calling each of us to be his mouthpiece.  May we be willing to put aside all of our other priorities in order to follow God wherever He may lead and guide us, in His service.  And may the blessing of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, rest upon you and remain with you always.  Amen.

You are invited to listen to, or join in singing the Benediction Song ‘By gracious powers so wonderfully sheltered’

(TiS617) 

[This hymn is being sung to the tune Finlandia – only the one verse to be sung. The words are printed below]

Verse 1 of 1

By gracious powers so wonderfully sheltered,

and confidently waiting come what may,

we know that God is with us night and morning

and never fails to greet us each new day.

We shall remember all the days we live through,

all of our life before our God we lay.

Dietrich Bonhoffer

translated by Frederick Pratt Green