JESUS IS THE ANSWER

A complete Order of Service (including sermon), Tara Cornerstone Church, Tara, ON.

Welcome & call to worship

Dear friends and Holy seekers of Cornerstone, whom God loves,
come to receive your goodly heritage.
Here among your gathered family
take refuge in the Divine.
We come to know the presence of a loving God
We are here to be shown the path of life
Let us bless the One who gives us counsel.
Let us together celebrate the ways of the Holy Spirit; amen.

*Hymn:  Let us sing to his praise...

Prayer of Approach & Confession:

God of grace,
you created our minds;
help us to grow in wisdom.
You created our hearts;
help us to expand our love for you.
You created our voices;
encourage us to sing your praises forever.
Fill us to overflowing with your Holy Spirit,
so we may worship you in spirit and in truth,

God of compassion,
we struggle to live life in ways
that fulfill the fruits of the Spirit,
but often find ourselves constrained
by very human weaknesses.
You invite us into the fullness of life
by loving you and loving each other.
Yet we distance ourselves
because we sometimes doubt you
and fear those
we might have to call ‘neighbour.’
We prefer to remain in the dark and unaware.
Forgive us, God.
Allow the Spirit of Christ to cleanse us
from every unworthy thought, word and deed,
and to rouse us to be intentional and joy-filled disciples;...*

*We repeat now the prayer from your Holy Word that taught us to say:

"Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name;
Thy kingdom come:
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil,
For thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory forever.
Amen."

*Hymn:

Children's time: I wanted to tell you a little about a party that I was at recently...and it was for my granddaughter.  A banner across the front entrance read ”Congrats Grad!”  What kind of party do you think it was?  Right, a graduation! 

And it was a great fun party but it was really celebrating more than a single event -- Becky's graduation itself -- but also, all that had come before in her life and all that lay ahead.  See, you can only get to a college graduation by staying in school and working really hard, so it’s fun to celebrate all the work that was put into it. 

Even more, though, a college graduation celebrates (as I say) all the possibilities that are to come!  Graduating from college is a great fun time, too, with all the other kids' parties and gifts, and singing and dancing.  It is kind of hard to leave all that fun and games behind. 

In our Gospel story today Jesus takes Peter, John and James to an amazing event.  We call the Transfiguration.  Peter, John and James see Jesus talking with Moses and Elijah.  They see their friend teaching in a dazzling new way, and they don’t want to leave that place or that moment, because they are enjoying it so much. 

They want to stay right there, they even offer to build houses to live in so they never have to leave.  But they can’t stay there.  Just like kids attending a graduation party, they had to move on from the fun, they had to go back to their lives, back to the ministry that they were part of with Jesus.

So, kind of like a graduation, Jesus transfiguration marks a moment of change.  Jesus is claimed by God and is ready to start the next part of his life.  Peter, John and James see Jesus in a new way, and as much as they want to stay in that moment they have to move on, but they move on with a new way of understanding, and a new excitement about the things to come. 

Ministry of Music:

Prayer for Illumination: God of wisdom, help us to hear, understand and respond to your guidance to us in scripture and in word; amen

Scripture Lessons:

*Hymn:

THE SERMON

Just for background purposes for our Gospel Lesson this morning, Galatia was in the modern-day Turkey...Paul preached the gospel to the people there and founded a church as well.
   However some false teachers crept into the church and started telling the
   primarily-Gentile Christians that they needed to obey certain parts of the
   Old Testament law if they wanted to be real Christians.

Paul is clear that this is a serious matter and writes his letter (portions of which we heard read this morning) to warn his followers and to call them back to the true gospel of grace and freedom.

In chapter 5, Paul tells them not to go back to being slaves again by submitting to the law for justification. And he addresses one wrong view of the grace he’s described – that we might use freedom as an excuse for sinning.  He outlines how to live by the Spirit instead.

The letter ends with an explanation that the false teachers are only pushing circumcision to avoid persecution. Being Jewish was allowed by the Romans so if they could make Christianity look more Jewish they’d be safe, as well as having the Jewish authorities like them. The big theme is that the gospel of grace through faith in Jesus is our only hope, and Christian living looks like Spirit empowered faith in loving action, rather than rampant sin or legalistic slavery.

That is a good stage-setter and lead-in to our scripture lesson from Luke 9, verses 51-62.

When you have several jobs to accomplish, do you do the easy ones first, or do you try to tackle the hard ones and get them out of the way while you have maximum energy? I have seen demonstrations, and probably you have, too, involving big rocks, small stones and sand that need to fit into a jar.
   If you put the sand in first, there isn’t room for the big rocks and the pebbles.
   But, if you start with the rocks, then put in the pebbles, then the sand, it all fits.
   Moral of the object lesson?:
Start with the major issues facing you. If you don’t tackle the big problems first,
you may never get on top of them.

As a person who would rather avoid conflict than face it head on, I have a much easier time doing the things I enjoy first, and hoping (usually erroneously), that by the time I get to them, the bigger problems will go away, or at least not loom so large. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and hoping you’ll get different results!

But how many of us keep doing what we’ve always done, and hope against hope that it will turn out differently this time!

Jesus has been preaching and teaching in the Galilean countryside where he is much sought-after and well loved. He is a popular preacher, an engaging teacher, and an effective healer. Folks flock to hear him everywhere he goes. But Jesus knows that he has been called to a more difficult task. God intends that he go to Jerusalem, to the capital city, and there witness to the love of God.

Jerusalem is the power center of the country. Jesus feels he is being called to speak the truth of power: to expose the pretense and corruption of the government officials, to challenge those in authority and remind them that God is ultimately in control of their country and their individual lives, to remind them that beyond the laws of the land are the moral laws of the universe that were established by God.

Rather than stay in the relative comfort of the countryside, Luke tells us that Jesus “sets his face” to go to Jerusalem. There he will face the strongest challenges to his way of life head on. Jesus is dealing with the big rocks first.

On his way to Jerusalem, Jesus encounters rejection. That Jesus encounters opposition is no big surprise at this point in Luke’s Gospel. While he was a popular preacher, Jesus’ sermons appear to have preached away more people than he has won. His sermons make them uncomfortable.
   In Nazareth, after just one sermon, they wanted to take him out and kill him! 
      People are offended by his teaching.

So when these Samaritans oppose him, it’s no surprise. It’s also no surprise that some of his disciples step up and ask Jesus to bring down fire and punish these people. It is not surprising because the disciples have had it with this rejection and opposition. The disciples have left everything, after all, and now people are rejecting the Jesus whom they have given their best energy to follow.

Jesus will have none of this spirit of condemnation, however. Instead, he reminds the disciples that the road he has chosen is difficult. Then he once again asks them if they have the faith, the fortitude and the courage to follow where he leads.

One might think that Jesus, whose movement had not been very successful...the Jesus who has been rejected in so many places, might lower the bar a bit and be willing to take people at whatever level they are willing to commit themselves. In the church, we try to find a balance between making the Gospel sound attractive, and explaining that commitment involves making sacrifices.

I firmly believe that Jesus is the answer to all the questions and challenges that we face as modern people. But Jesus does not provide easy answers to the challenging questions of life.

A few years ago a man named Dean Kelly wrote one of the first books that studied and diagnosed mainline Protestant church decline in North America.  One of Kelly’s most controversial conclusions was that churches that demand more of their members grow, and churches that demand less decline.
   Do we really think we can come to a deeper faith without taking seriously the
   demands of the Gospel? In a society where money is the measure of many 
   things, do we really believe we can grow spiritually without making a 
   significant commitment to God of our financial resources?

Jesus has set his face to go to Jerusalem. He has chosen the hard road, the difficult path, and he bids us to follow him on the way. The disciples are with him, on the move toward Jerusalem. As they journey along, preaching and teaching and healing, others join them who also want to follow Jesus. It is not any accident that the earliest Christians were called followers of “the Way.”
   On “the Way,” we learn something about what it means to follow Jesus.

The first person Jesus and the disciples meet, promises to follow Jesus wherever he goes. What is Jesus’ response? He doesn’t say “no,” but he does not sugarcoat or soft-pedal the demands of discipleship either. Jesus warns this would-be disciple that the road will not be comfortable and certainly not glamorous.

Jesus points out that he has nowhere to lay his head. It is significant that in Luke’s Gospel Jesus is never described as being “at home.” In Luke, it is
more important for Jesus and his disciples to be on their way, on the way of doing God’s work.

The comforts of home are secondary.

A second person appears, and Jesus also invites this person to follow.  The man makes a reasonable request: first to go and bury his father.  Surely Jesus would want us to take care of our families at the time of their greatest need, wouldn't he?

Jesus’ response, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God,” may sound harsh and uncaring.  But I have heard it explained that the man who wanted to go bury his father really meant,
“Wait until after I settle my father’s estate.”

You see, according to the commentaries, his father was still alive. He would not be ready to follow Jesus until his father was deceased. He would not be able to follow Jesus until after he had handled his father‘s legal affairs and gotten his share of the estate.

“Let those who are spiritually dead worry about these material things,” says Jesus in essence.  Just as home and comfort must be secondary to followers of the Christian way of life, so are family duties. There are no delays or deferments when it comes to following Jesus. Discipleship is now!

Now we have to be careful not to get too literal here. Jesus is not saying that parents and family responsibilities are not important. He is saying that whole-hearted discipleship means putting God first, putting God’s work and God’s call above other relationships.

We all know too well the temptation to put off discipleship. We can find many good reasons to delay making a deeper commitment to Christ and the church.
   Wait until I finish high school, the young person says.
   Wait until I finish college.
   Wait until I settle down and get married.
   Wait until we have children.
   Wait until the kids are in school.
   Wait until the kids are out of the house.
   Wait until we get the school bills paid off.
   Wait until I retire.

Is there ever a good time to make a deeper and fuller commitment to Christ? Yes! Today is the day. The time is now! There will never be a better time than right here, right now.

A third person comes along and responds to Jesus’ call positively, but has a seemingly reasonable request: she wants to say farewell to her family. Again, we must not take Jesus’ words too literally, but get the sense of what he is saying.
   “Don’t look back,” says Jesus in essence. “Once you’ve made a commitment to
   follow me, you need to get on with it."

Remember in Genesis where God told Lot to take his wife and family and flee the city? They were instructed not to look back (Genesis 19:17). Lot’s wife turned and looked back, and the Bible tells us she was turned into a pillar of salt (19:26). You may dismiss this story as a fairy tale, or you may grasp the deeper meaning that when we look back and focus on the past, we become immobilized, paralyzed, unable to move ahead and follow where God is leading us.

These verses in Luke are firm and clear. We can’t bend them. I wish we could! I wish we could fudge a little because life is full of so many demands and conflicting loyalties. Most often we find ourselves choosing not between good and evil but between good and good.

We face many choices, options and directions. We are much more comfortable with trying to multitask and please everybody than we are with saying “no.” At least I am! But Jesus tells us that there are choices to be made between following him and doing what is comfortable, convenient and acceptable.

His call is the same now as it was then: follow me and be prepared for discomfort, sacrifice and hard choices.  Sometimes it gives us a helpful perspective to look back and review where we have been or from whence we came.

But this morning God is calling us to look forward, and to ask the question, “What does He want us to do this day, this week, this year? Where is God leading us as individuals and as a congregation?

Let us not look back! Let us look forward to what God is calling us to do, and who God is calling us to be...Even in our senior years. Every day grows more exciting. Every day God challenges us, just a little more.

Prayer:  God of grace, help us not to look back as we heed your call to follow you. May our own comfort, family, and possessions be of less importance than living as your disciples. Make us fit for your kingdom, Lord. Gather and empower your whole church to serve you and our neighbors with generous hearts and willing hands. To you be all glory and honor. Amen.

Hymn of Response

Prayers of the People:

God of love, we are so grateful for the gift of Jesus and his willingness to go to Jerusalem on our behalf.  Peace comes to us because we know that we are loved and forgiven people, and we are grateful for your generosity. 

We, who lose patience with ourselves, as well as others, are blessed by the infinite nature of your presence within and among us.  Teach us to be gentle in our words and disciplined in our actions.  May we grow in wisdom and spiritual maturity.

God of all time, we live in an age of great change, and we are not always comfortable in it.  As the needs of our culture change, we want to be able to serve your kingdom in ways that are most relevant and helpful for our context and in our 21st century.  Help us to let go of traditions that are no longer significant and discern the needs of your people today. 

Where there are empty or aching hearts, may we help to fill them with the warmth of your love.  Where there is injustice, show us how we can speak out, take action, and make a difference in individual lives. 

God, you know what heartaches each of us is carrying this day; we think of those both known and unknown to us who are suffering, whether physically, mentally or spiritually.  Restore health and wellbeing to each of them, and may they sense your calming presence. 

As disciples of Jesus, we want to be intentional servants to the world around us; guide our decision-making in all we do.  May we be intentional about exercising the fruit of the Spirit with which you have gifted us.  We pray for all of this in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ; amen.

Invitation and Offering:

Offertory Prayer...

*Hymn:

Commissioning & Benediction:

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness and self-control; the Spirit has blessed us with these gifts.  So go forth into this new week looking for opportunities to allow the Spirit of God to work through you, knowing that the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, which daily refreshes us, and the love of God, which allows us to love all others and the companionship of the Holy Spirit, which enables us to build community with each other, make you passionate about serving in God’s kingdom; amen.