Twenty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
What follows is a worship service which, I pray, you can participate in at a time(s) that are convenient to you. This 'service' will take about forty five (45) minutes.
I pray that you will feel called to ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE in this service.
The text that is in regular typeface (that is what you are reading at the moment) is to be read quietly, while the text that is in bold face (like you are reading right now) is meant to be read aloud.
Opening Hymn:
Let us continue by watching, and please do feel free to sing or read aloud the lyrics, as we commence our praise and thanksgiving.
When you are ready - click the "play" button on the video window, below:
A Call To Worship:
We meet in the name of God,
Creator of the universe,
source of true humanity,
mother and father of all. Amen.
An Assurance of Forgiveness:
(click the 'play' button below to listen)
The Sentence For Today (let us say aloud):
Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but stands fast for ever.
The Special Prayer For Today (let us pray aloud):
Grant us, O Lord, to trust in you with all our hearts; for, as you always resist the proud who confide in their own strength, so you never forsake those who make their boast of your mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Our first reading for today:
(click the 'play' button below to listen)
Our second reading for today:
(click the 'play' button below to listen)
Gradual Hymn:
Let us continue by watching, and please do feel free to sing or read aloud the lyrics, as we raise out voices in praise and thanksgiving.
When you are ready - click the "play" button on the video window, below:
A reading from the holy gospel according to Saint Mark.
Listen to David speak to this gospel
or, if you prefer, you can read the sermon, below:
Sermon for Ordinary 23, Sunday, 8th Sept 2024
MAY the words of my mouth and the meditations in our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer. <Amen>
This is a true story - a mother moved to a new town with her adult son who suffers from Cerebral Palsy and is confined to a wheelchair. After visiting services at several churches, she found one that ‘seemed to fit’ her and her son, and she had a meeting the pastor about whether she could join. As the meeting came to a close, she asked a final question. “When do you think you could baptise my son, and when will he be able to start taking communion?” The pastor stared back at her and said,“Ma’am, I will not baptise your son, nor will I offer him communion. He can’t understand what they mean and honestly, there would be no point.” <PAUSE>
Jesus entered the house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet, a woman, whose daughter had an unclean spirit, heard that Jesus had entered the town and she went to bow at his feet.
Up to this point Jesus, as a Jew, had been ministering to the Jews. He had read to them from the Torah, he had proclaimed God’s reign like one of the prophets from old, and he was fulfilling His mission to his own people. HOWEVER, this woman who came to beg at Jesus’ feet was not Jewish, she was a gentile from Syrophoenicia (the area of modern Lebanon, coastal Syria, the northern part of Galilee).
The woman was prostrate on the floor begging the Lord to cast out the demon from her daughter. And Jesus said, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” She answered Him, “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”
Now, imagine that mother with a disabled son asking for him to be given communion, and you can get a sense of what was taking place in front of Jesus.
The unnamed Syrophoenician woman was driven by something more than proper etiquette and expectation; she was so desperately afraid for her daughter’s life that she was willing to beg at the feet of Jesus, a man from a completely different culture and way of life.
Yet, Jesus’ response to the woman is one that many of us would rather overlook. We don’t hear Jesus immediately proclaim the grand scope of God’s kingdom; Jesus doesn’t reach out with his hands to offer a blessing. Instead he calls the woman a dog, and tells her that His mission is for the Jews alone.
The Syrophoenician woman, with no worth or status, does not go quietly into the night, she holds her ground and pushes the point back.
When I read this story I imagine a wry smile stretching across Jesus’ face, a smile of recognition that this woman understands the way God’s upside-down kingdom is supposed to work, she believes in God’s goodness, she yearns for the kind of love that goes beyond all borders of culture and race … and if you recall what I said last week … the kind of faith and love that goes beyond human-made traditions.So in response to her declaration, Jesus proclaims her great faith, blesses her daughter, and rids her of the demon. <PAUSE>
But the story is not over yet.
Jesus continues on His way, and people brought him a deaf man with a speech impediment. The deaf man was brought into a private place away from the crowds and Jesus used the power within him to open the man’s ears and release his tongue. In response Jesus ordered the people to tell no one what he had done, but the more he ordered the more zealously they proclaimed it.
THIS WAS RADICAL STUFF !!
You see, during the time of Jesus, people who were blind, people who were deaf, and even women had little or no status at all. They were consistently removed from populated areas of life and\or were largely ignored.
In those days people were afraid of anything that was different from the status quo … the norm … Jesus embraced it.
The story of the Syrophoenician woman and the deaf man are intricately linked because they demonstrate Jesus’ willingness to upset the expectations of the world and WELCOME EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE INTO GOD’S LOVE.
Jesus’ actions in the two stories from Mark 7 are worth our deep consideration and emulation. Jesus shows how a “worthless”, unnamed gentile woman and an ignoble deaf man are actually vital and worthy people in the kingdom of God.
You see - it’s all about COFFEE - C.O.F.F.E.E. - Christ Offers Forgiveness For Everyone Everywhere. Perhaps we should remember this every time we lift a cup :) <PAUSE>
This gospel calls us to reopen our eyes and ears to the fact that there are no barriers between God and humankind. Nothing can ever separate us to from God’s love in Jesus Christ, not race, class, gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, or physical condition ..… and if there are no barriers between God and God’s people, then there should be no divisions between us.
We are reminded that EVERYONE has a place in God’s Kingdom - yes, it’s about C.O.F.F.E.E.
I runga e te Ingoa o te Atua, te Matua, te Tama me te Wairua Tapu. <AMINE>
In the name of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit <AMEN>
Pause and Reflect
Just take a moment now to pause. Bow your head, close your eyes.
Allow these words of Holy Scripture and this interpretation of them today to speak to you.
An Affirmation of Our Faith
Let us affirm our faith by saying aloud, and together, "The Apostles Creed":
... and now let us pray for the Church, the World, and Ourselves, giving thanks for God's goodness.
Let us pray aloud, and together:
Heavenly Father, mindful of the words of the prophet Isaiah to “be strong and do not fear”, we gather our thoughts and prayers with hope and humbly call on You to help us in our needs.
Give your wisdom and heavenly grace to all those who seek to live The Life of The Risen Christ and that, by their service, faith may abound and your kingdom increase.
(LONGER pause for silent, personal reflection)
In response to the call today “Lord, in Your mercy” Our response is, “hear our prayer!”
(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer
Creator God, Your Son entered creation that all might be made new. Look in mercy on our broken world and speak to all people that they may hear the message of peace. Guide and guard those who speak out for justice and mercy and face the wrath of undemocratic leaders and governments.
We pray for all Heads of State, regional and local councils - sharpen their consciences and give them courage to make wise decisions, making wrongs right and meeting the needs of all who suffer.
(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer
Lord God, we pray for family and colleagues, friends and lovers, for neighbours and strangers, for those with whom we break bread at home, at work, and in our community. We pray particularly for those among our friends and families who do not know you, or whose faith has been shaken or fallen away.
(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer
Loving God, Isaiah also foretells the time when Jesus came to open the eyes of the blind and unstop deaf ears and cast out evil spirits. We especially pray for any we know who are blind or deaf and for the specialist care which they receive to help them live a normal life. Thank you too for Guide dogs for the Blind and for Hearing dogs for the Deaf and for those who train them to be so helpful.
We especially raise before You now all those who have asked for our prayers from around the world … those we know in New Zealand, in Singapore, in Argentina, in France, in Australia, in the US, in Canada, in Austria, in Ukraine, in China and any others we now name aloud, or in the silence of our hearts, and those who are known only by You.
(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer
Loving Lord God, we pray for those kept fresh in our memory and for those long forgotten; for all who shared our homes, our places of work and our community life; for all who helped to shape our lives. We pray too for the recently departed asking that they all find rest in your Heavenly Kingdom as we commend them to your keeping for ever.
May all the faithful departed now rest in peace as they most surely have risen in glory.
(Short Silence) Lord, in Your Mercy: Hear our prayer
In a moment of silence we pray for ourselves, our families, friends, for all whom we love and for our personal ministries. Make the things that we choose to do worthy of the life, death, and rising again of Your Son.
(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer
Almighty God, as we move into another week, deliver our eyes from tears and our feet from stumbling and walk with us on our journey of faith as we carry the cross of Christ into the world.
(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer
Forth in the peace of Christ we go; Christ to the world with joy we bring; Christ in our minds, Christ on our lips, Christ in our hearts, the world’s true King.
Merciful father: accept these prayers for the sake of Your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN.
Remembering that we are confident to pray this day, and every day, because Jesus Christ continues to teach us:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as 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 for ever. Amen.
Let us conclude our prayers by praying together and aloud:
God of mercy,
you have given us grace to pray with one heart and one voice,
and have promised to hear the prayers
of two or three who agree in your name,
fulfil now, we pray,
the prayers and longings of your people
as may be best for us and for your kingdom.
Grant us in this world to know your truth,
and in the world to come to see your glory. Amen.
The Blessing
May The Risen Lord Christ turn His face towards each and every one of you.
May He cause His light to shine upon you, and
may He grant you His peace, and
The blessing of Almighty God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
be with you and all of those whom you love,
on this day and forever more.
A Closing Hymn:
Let us conclude our worship today by watching, and please do feel free to sing or read aloud the lyrics, as we unite in another hymn our praise and thanksgiving.
When you are ready - click the "play" button on the video window, below:
The Dismissal
Go now, go out into the world
to love and serve The Lord.
Go in peace.
AMEN, we go in the name of Christ.