A Place at the Table

Prayer of the Day

Almighty and ever-living God, increase in us your gift of faith, that, forsaking what lies behind and reaching out to what lies ahead, we may follow the way of your commandments and receive the crown of everlasting joy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.Amen.

Job 23:1-9, 16-17

¹Job answered [his friend:]
 ²“Today also my complaint is bitter;
  [God’s] hand is heavy despite my groaning.
 ³Oh, that I knew where I might find him,
  that I might come even to his dwelling!
 ⁴I would lay my case before him,
  and fill my mouth with arguments.
 ⁵I would learn what he would answer me,
  and understand what he would say to me.
 ⁶Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power?
  No; but he would give heed to me.
 ⁷There an upright person could reason with him,
  and I should be acquitted forever by my judge.

 ⁸“If I go forward, he is not there;
  or backward, I cannot perceive him;
 ⁹on the left he hides, and I cannot behold him;
  I turn to the right, but I cannot see him.
 ¹⁶God has made my heart faint;
  the Almighty has terrified me;
 ¹⁷If only I could vanish in darkness,
  and thick darkness would cover my face!”

Psalm 22:1-15

 ¹My God, my God, why have you for- ^| saken me?
  Why so far from saving me, so far from the words ^| of my groaning?
 ²My God, I cry out by day, but you ^| do not answer;
  by night, but I ^| find no rest.
 ³Yet you are the ^| Holy One,
  enthroned on the prais- ^| es of Israel.
 ⁴Our ancestors put their ^| trust in you,
  they trusted, and you ^| rescued them. 
 ⁵They cried out to you and ^| were delivered;
  they trusted in you and were not ^| put to shame.
 ⁶But as for me, I am a worm ^| and not human,
  scorned by all and despised ^| by the people.
 ⁷All who see me laugh ^| me to scorn;
  they curl their lips; they ^| shake their heads.
 ⁸“Trust in the Lord; let the ^| Lord deliver;
  let God rescue him if God so de- ^| lights in him.” 
 ⁹Yet you are the one who drew me forth ^| from the womb,
  and kept me safe on my ^| mother’s breast.
 ¹⁰I have been entrusted to you ever since ^| I was born;
  you were my God when I was still in my ^| mother’s womb.
 ¹¹Be not far from me, for trou- ^| ble is near,
  and there is no ^| one to help.
 ¹²Many young bulls en- ^| circle me;
  strong bulls of Ba- ^| shan surround me. 
 ¹³They open wide their ^| jaws at me,
  like a slashing and ^| roaring lion.
 ¹⁴I am poured out like water; all my bones are ^| out of joint;
  my heart within my breast is ^| melting wax.
 ¹⁵My strength is dried up like a potsherd; my tongue sticks to the roof ^| of my mouth;
  and you have laid me in the ^| dust of death.

Hebrews 4:12-16

¹²Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. ¹³And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account.

  ¹⁴Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. ¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Mark 10:17-31

¹⁷As [Jesus] was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁸Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. ¹⁹You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’ ” ²⁰He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” ²¹Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” ²²When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
  ²³Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” ²⁴And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” ²⁶They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”
  ²⁸Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” ²⁹Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, ³⁰who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. ³¹But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”

Sermon – Pr Meggan Manlove

Following Jesus is radical. It is counter cultural. His message is sometimes downright shocking. It does not get any more radical than this morning’s gospel text. Convenient as it might be, this teaching is not just for the Jeff Bezoses of the world. It is not even just for the rich. This scripture passage, which I fully admit is uncomfortable to sit with, is for all of us who are trying to be disciples, followers of Jesus. 

The passage is full of interesting and important details, which illumine the scene and give us clues about discipleship. Let’s start with the rich man himself. First, we know that he is a deeply religious man. He has kept all of the commandments. Yet he knows that there is something more. There is something about this man Jesus. He is the way to abundant life. Jesus will guide the man he supposes. The rich man wants to become a true disciple. So the man runs when he sees Jesus.

As he reaches Jesus, he kneels down. We have seen this posture before. Picture other instances when people knelt at Jesus’ feet. A leper came to Jesus, kneeled and begged for healing. Jairus, the leader of the synagogue, fell at Jesus’ feet and begged Jesus to heal his little daughter. And now here comes yet another man who believes that Jesus can give life. This man is breathing fine and does not need any physical healing. Still, he comes and kneels at Jesus’ feet and asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“You know the commandments,” Jesus says. He lists them for the man. “Teacher,” the man says, “I have kept all these since my youth.” This man knows he is still lacking. 

The gospels more often show rather than tell us about Jesus’ love. We see Jesus’ love again and again through his actions. But here, we read specifically, “Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, ‘You lack one thing.” Jesus’ instruction is paired with his love, even when the teaching will be difficult to hear. Keep in mind Jesus’ love for the rich man in this moment.

Jesus’ precise instructions are also significant. Jesus does not tell the rich man to burn the possessions and walk away. Instead, Jesus tells the rich man to sell the possessions and give the money to the poor. He instructs him to redistribute his wealth among the poor. Jesus calls for more than a change in the man’s bottom line. He calls for a relinquishment of his possessions for the sake of those people who are poor. What could the results of such actions be? Jesus is telling the rich man to change his relationship with the poor. At its heart, this entire passage is all about relationships.

The man is “shocked.” He cannot do what Jesus has told him. It is so radical. The costs are too great–financial, social, and political. And so the man who had run to Jesus, wanting to be a disciple, turns and walks the other way. The man goes away grieving. 

Jesus’ disciples have watched this whole encounter. After the rich man leaves, Jesus then looks at the disciples and says, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

It is impossible for us to hear Jesus’ words as his first disciples did. In their time and place people viewed the wealthy as blessed by God. Put another way, they believed God blessed people with wealth and riches. And so, if the rich, who have seemingly been given their by God, cannot enter the kingdom of God, then who can? The disciples ask one another, as we might, “Then who can be saved?” 

This last part of our passage sometimes gets overlooked. The disciples have already renounced much of their lives, security, and identity to follow Jesus. Peter does not boast but speaks out of panic. “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” Jesus explains that he does not call people to severe simplicity. He calls people into a new community with an alternative richness. Again, Jesus points to changed relationships.

Listen to the two lists Jesus gives. “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age–houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields with persecutions–and in the age to come eternal life.” 

The lists are not identical. Fathers is missing from the second list. At the very least, this is a nod to the fact that the kingdom of God is led by Jesus’ Father, the creator of the universe. This loving father has invited us all into a relationship of adoption–to be children of God. This new family might include all or part of the family you were born into, but it will certainly including new family members. It is expansive and as radical as Jesus’ vision of the reign of God.

You might be wondering [Don Juel], “Is the call to follow Jesus a call to abandon the world?  Is there no way to follow Jesus and also live in the world in such a way that one can be involved with such ordinary and essential matters as property and possessions?”

Yes, there is a way, “Jesus’ response heads off any notion that discipleship requires … abandonment of the world.  It also affords a glimpse of community life among Jesus’ followers…To those who have suffered the losses attendant upon following him, Jesus promises, not simply rewards in the life to come, but concrete rewards in this life: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands.”  

The early Christians were not impoverished.  For the homeless there will be homes; for those who have abandoned families there will be new families.  New social units will take the place of the old.  Jesus’ words sketch a vision of a real community of believers prepared to live in this time.  Implementing the ideal is hardly ever easy.  In the end it is life giving.  The potential for community is immense.  There is strength and new life when everyone has enough.

The man whom Jesus loves cannot free himself to follow Jesus. His possessions hold him fast. His survival depends upon being freed to spend himself on his neighbor—and that means spending his money. He is unable to get himself free.  Jesus tells his disciples, “With God all things are possible.” Our own captivity might look different. It might be wealth, or the desire for wealth. We might be captive to something else, like individual freedoms or complete security or a vision of a career. 

Rather than condemning the rich man’s “sin,” Jesus confronts the man with his weakness, his captivity to possessions that prevents him from living into the full life of the reign of God. Jesus here names the “power” that holds the man captive and invites the man to step into freedom.

Although we are freed once and for all in the waters of baptism, the truth is that we struggle with captivity daily. It’s one reason we confess our sins together each week and gather at the table to receive forgiveness and new life. And, importantly, we confess not alone, but communally. And we share the bread and wine together.  

In today’s passage, Jesus promises that those who have spent themselves and suffered for the sake of the gospel will not have to wait until the age to come for full life. He promises new family, fields, homes, and friends, “a hundred-fold in this age.” God does not intend that we live solitary, empty lives. Discipleship involves discovering a new family.  

Hard as it is to swallow, I am grateful for Jesus’ vision. Before my mom and my vacation to Oregon last week I will admit to being quite weary. My heart was broken from so many things–big and small, local and global. But what was worse was that my imagination was cloudy. I was having trouble imagining, visioning. The beauty of Crater Lake, the Umpqua River, the Central Oregon Coast helped a lot to restore my imagination. 

But the beauty of the natural world is not enough. Fortunately, scripture is full of visions and dreams of what the world could look like, of what we need to watch for, of how to catch a glimpse of the reign of God breaking into the here and now. One interpretation of scripture that I’ve leaned into off and on the past year is the song “Beautiful City” from the musical Godspell. I assume that composer Stephen Schwartz had, as his inspiration, the passage from Revelation 21, in which we see the holy city.

The second verse goes, “We may not reach the ending. But we can start. Slowly but truly mending. Brick by brick. Heart by heart. Now, maybe now. We start learning how. We can build a beautiful city. Yes we can, yes, we can. We can build a beautiful city. Not a city of angels. But we can build a city of man.”

Prayers of Intercession

Made children and heirs of God’s promise, we pray for the church, the world, and all in need.

A brief silence.Uniting God, you call forth different gifts in those who follow you. Encourage us to welcome the diverse benefits and blessings of the whole church in teaching, preaching, prophecy, healing, and more. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Nurturing God, you bring forth crops from the soil and bounty from the trees. Increase the produce of the land and bless all who toil in fields and orchards. Provide for good working conditions and keep them safe. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Empowering God, you offer compassion for those who are overlooked or forgotten. Open the hearts of local, national, and world leaders to show such compassion and love for their neighbors. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Sheltering God, in Jesus you travelled among us without a place to lay your head. Provide safe places to sleep and rest for those who have no place to live. Sustain ministries that offer food, clothing, and peace of mind (local ministries may be named). Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Renewing God, you bring life out of death. Help us part with those things that are no longer beneficial to us and open our hearts to see where new life is budding in this congregation. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Here other intercessions may be offered.Eternal God, we thank you for the lives of those who have died (especially). Make us confident in your promise of salvation and support us in our own journey of faith. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Receive these prayers, O God, and those in our hearts known only to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord.Amen.

Prayer of the Day

O God, our teacher and guide, you draw us to yourself and welcome us as beloved children. Help us to lay aside all envy and selfish ambition, that we may walk in your ways of wisdom and understanding as servants of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.Amen.

Psalm 54

 ¹Save me, O God, ^| by your name;
  in your might, de- ^| fend my cause.
 ²Hear my ^| prayer, O God;
  give ear to the words ^| of my mouth.
 ³For strangers have risen up against me, and the ruthless have ^| sought my life,
  those who have no re- ^| gard for God.
 ⁴Behold, God ^| is my helper;
  it is the Lord who sus- ^| tains my life. R
 ⁵Render evil to those who ^| spy on me;
  in your faithful- ^| ness, destroy them.
 ⁶I will offer you a ^| freewill sacrifice
  and praise your name, O Lord, for ^| it is good.
 ⁷For you have rescued me from ^| every trouble,
  and my eye looks down ^| on my enemies

James 3:13–4:3, 7-8a

¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. ¹⁴But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. ¹⁵Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. ¹⁶For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. ¹⁷But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. ¹⁸And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.^4:

  ¹Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? ²You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you do not ask. ³You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures. ⁷Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ^8aDraw near to God, and he will draw near to you.

Mark 9:30-37

³⁰[Jesus and the disciples went on] and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it;³¹for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.” ³²But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.
  ³³Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” ³⁴But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. ³⁵He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷“Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

Sermon – Pastor Meggan Manlove

Have you ever said to someone, “I don’t think we’re on the same page”? It’s a description of a frustrating conversation. There seem to be similar words and concepts but also a clear disconnect. Finally, you pause, and you realize you are talking about two completely different things. It happens in our passage from Mark’s gospel today. 

Simon Peter had a moment of brilliance earlier. Jesus asked his disciples “Who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” He was on the same page as Jesus. And Peter’s conclusion was logical. Peter had been up on the Mountain of Transfiguration and been blinded by a radiant Jesus. Jesus had healed countless people. Jesus seemed like a savior, the Messiah. So, topping off these great moments was Peter’s confession.

On the other hand, there have been disturbing moments. Jesus speaks several times about his future suffering and death. Peter rebukes him for these unpleasant predictions. And Jesus scolds Peter for this rebuke. They are still talking about Jesus, the Messiah, but Peter’s idea of what a Messiah is, how he acts, is not in sync with Jesus. Jesus says, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands and be killed.” Jesus and the disciples are not on the same page.

Then, as they enter the town of Capernaum, Jesus turns and asks the disciples what they were arguing about. They must have been embarrassed. Their awkward silence is palpable. One writer [Eugene Peterson] calls the silence “deafening.” We have all been in that position.  

Imagine—some kids make a raucous in the basement. A parent calls down the stairs, “What’s going on down there?” The response is “Nothing, nothing!” The disciples have been discussing who among them is the greatest. Jesus has been talking about his death and they are talking about who is the greatest. Who would not be embarrassed? Of course, Jesus, like a parent, already knew what was going on.

We should not think ourselves superior to the disciples. We would probably feel similarly uncomfortable in their place. This is not an exercise in attacking their flawed ideas about discipleship. We could easily become distracted by judging ourselves greater than the disciples—more faithful, more aware, more on the same page as Jesus. Today’s stories are about how we, so many years later and with the full narrative of Jesus in mind, might follow Jesus today, in Canyon County, Idaho.

After interrupting the argument about who is the greatest, Jesus sits down like a teacher. We know this is not casual conversation. He is going to say something crucial. Jesus often uses more than words to teach his lessons. This case is not different. This time his illustration is a little child. We have several stumbling blocks to go over before we can truly understand this illustration.  

A child in our culture is deeply valued and put first in our priorities. At least we would like to think so, in spite of the number of children in poverty. We coo over babies. We cheer on kids when they sing and play. And youthfulness is glorified just about everywhere.

And artists through the ages have not helped us. Can you pull up in your memory a painting over an altar or in a church narthex portraying children? They were often, at least in the last century portrayed as pure and angelic. More importantly, there seem to be lacking in nothing. It is easy for us to sentimentalize Jesus’ action of picking up a small child and telling his followers to do likewise. It is a sweet scene—Jesus tenderly cuddles a child and appeals to the soft hearts under the tough exterior of these big rough disciples.

But that is not what is going on here. Instead of a sweet moment, the disciples are experiencing a radical up-ending of the way they think things should be.  In the time of Jesus, a child was lowest on the priority list. Children had no status. They were subject to the authority of their father. Often, they were expendable. And so Jesus gesture here is potent. 

The child that Jesus reaches out to is similar to many of the children in Charles Dickens’ novels. This does not include Tiny Tim, the star of the famous story “A Christmas Carol.” When I hear Jesus tell his disciples, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me,” I imagine characters like Jo from the great novel “Bleak House.” 

Dickens writes that “Jo lives in a ruinous place, known to the like of him by the name of Tom-all-Alone’s.  It is a black, dilapidated street avoided by all decent people, where the crazy houses were seized upon when their decay was far advanced by some bold vagrants who, after establishing their own possession, took to letting them out in lodgings…It must be a strange state to be like Jo!…To be hustled, and jostled, and moved on, and really to feel that it would appear to be perfectly true that I have no business, here, or there, or anywhere, and yet to be perplexed by the consideration that I am here somehow, too, and everybody overlooked me until I became the creature that I am!”  

Jo and other child characters in Dickens’ works are often referred to as urchins, small raggedly children who do their best to survive in an adult world. The root of the word comes from the Latin for hedgehog, a rather prickly unkempt-looking animal. The good news is that there are people who not only look out for Jo but who bring him into their home.

Jesus’ disciples are not there yet. This is a radical up-ending of the way they think things should be. This is not what they hope life will be like when Jesus comes into their idea of glory. They want to find their way to the top. They want to claim greatness. And he tells them to lay claim to the last and lowest place and people. When they welcome a child, they welcome him. They even welcome the one who sent him. Picture the urchin child Jo again.  

Jesus’ command makes no sense to the disciples. Welcome someone who does not have the power or ability or place to welcome them in turn? No expectation of reciprocity? No return on our investment. (There really is very little in the Jesus story that commends pure unchecked capitalism.) First, our teacher keeps talking about suffering and dying instead of victory and glory. Now we must welcome and even value small, insignificant, powerless people, the least among us?

Every generation of Christians in every geographic context gets to translate “the least among us” for our time and place. What does that look like in 2021 Canyon County? We might consider the Afghan refugees who will be coming to our state and many others. But we might also think of veterans who return and returned after unpopular wars and were shunned, with no consideration for their sacrifice or how their minds were harmed by what they experienced. Despite the progress made in understanding all sorts of mental illnesses, too many people are still ashamed to seek treatment. We think since it’s in our head, we should be able to to fix it ourselves, though no one has the same expectations for fixing a broken leg or a heart condition. We understand drug and alcohol addictions much better now than we did 100 years ago, but often people suffering from addiction are still viewed as the least among us. Who would you add the list today? Who are we being beckoned to welcome? What are the hurdles? 

One of the greatest mysteries in Mark is Jesus’ relationship with his disciples.  The conversations in Mark chapter 9 are part of a pattern. The disciples have moments of insight, but they often misunderstand Jesus, or they don’t like what he has to say.  The mystery is this—they all keep at it. The disciples keep following Jesus and he keeps teaching. The truth is no one can ever really get it.  

But the disciples are tenacious even when they don’t have a clue what Jesus is talking about. They don’t have it all clear in their heads.  But they know there is something about this Jesus. It is impossible to do anything but stay and listen to him. They keep talking with him, even when they get it wrong.

That is no small thing. We don’t like to hang out in settings where we are told over and over that we’re not getting it. But the disciples stayed. We will probably never get the paradoxes of the Christian story. Strength comes in weakness. Glory is found in the death on a rugged cross. Welcoming urchin children is like welcoming Jesus. We don’t have to understand in order to stay. Full comprehension is not required to hear the words of forgiveness or to share in the Lord’s Supper.  We stay as the disciples stayed, because we know that Jesus is the only place worth being. In him there is love and abundant life for the world.     

Prayers of Intercession (Sundays and Seasons)

Made children and heirs of God’s promise, we pray for the church, the world, and all in need.

A brief silence.God of community, we pray for the church around the world. Unite us in our love for you. Help us overcome our divisions, that we are encouraged to work together for your sake. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of creation, we pray for this hurting earth. Awaken in us a new desire to care for this world and empower us to support agencies, organizations, and individual efforts to heal our environment. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of cooperation, we pray for nations of the world embroiled in conflict (especially). Inspire leaders to listen to each other and work towards peaceful solutions to disagreements. Protect the vulnerable, especially children, who cannot find safety in their home or country. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of comfort, we pray for all who live with mental or physical illness. Help them find appropriate care. Bring healing and wholeness when the path forward seems bleak. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of compassion, we pray for the young people of this congregation. Renew in us your call to welcome the children in our midst. As they grow, strengthen their faith and our commitment to them. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Here other intercessions may be offered.God of consolation, we give you thanks for our loved ones who have died and pray for all who grieve today (especially). Shine your grace on all your saints. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Receive these prayers, O God, and those in our hearts known only to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord.Amen.

Prayer of the Day

O God, through suffering and rejection you bring forth our salvation, and by the glory of the cross you transform our lives. Grant that for the sake of the gospel we may turn from the lure of evil, take up our cross, and follow your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.Amen.

Psalm 19

 ¹The heavens declare the glo- ^| ry of God,
  and the sky proclaims its ^| maker’s handiwork.
 ²One day tells its tale ^| to another,
  and one night imparts knowledge ^| to another.
 ³Although they have no ^| words or language,
  and their voices ^| are not heard,
 ⁴their sound has gone out into all lands, and their message to the ends ^| of the world,
  where God has pitched a tent ^| for the sun.
 ⁵It comes forth like a bridegroom out ^| of his chamber;
  it rejoices like a champion to ^| run its course.
 ⁶It goes forth from the uttermost edge of the heavens and runs about to the end of ^| it again;
  nothing is hidden from its ^| burning heat. 
 ⁷The teaching of the Lord is perfect and re- ^| vives the soul;
  the testimony of the Lord is sure and gives wisdom to ^| the simple.
 ⁸The statutes of the Lord are just and re- ^| joice the heart;
  the commandment of the Lord is clear and gives light ^| to the eyes.
 ⁹The fear of the Lord is clean and en- ^| dures forever;
  the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous ^| altogether.
 ¹⁰More to be desired are they than gold, more than ^| much fine gold,
  sweeter far than honey, than honey ^| in the comb. 
 ¹¹By them also is your ser- ^| vant enlightened,
  and in keeping them there is ^| great reward.
 ¹²Who can detect one’s ^| own offenses?
  Cleanse me from my ^| secret faults.
 ¹³Above all, keep your servant from presumptuous sins; let them not get dominion ^| over me;
  then shall I be whole and sound, and innocent of a ^| great offense.
 ¹⁴Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable ^| in your sight,
  O Lord, my strength and ^| my redeemer. 

James 3:1-12

¹Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. ²For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. ³If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. ⁴Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. ⁵So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. 
  How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! ⁶And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. ⁷For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, ⁸but no one can tame the tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison. ⁹With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. ¹⁰From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. ¹¹Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? ¹²Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.

Mark 8:27-38

²⁷Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” ²⁸And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” ²⁹He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” ³⁰And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.

  ³¹Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. ³²He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ³³But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
  ³⁴He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. ³⁵For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. ³⁶For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? ³⁷Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? ³⁸Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Sermon – Pr Meggan Manlove

I’m not sure exactly how many times in the four Gospels Jesus tells other people to follow him, but it is more than 20. The whole question of “Who is willing to follow Jesus Christ and how does one do it?” are the defining questions of Christianity.

Jesus talks about “losing yourself for his sake” and “denying yourself.” If we take those words seriously, what will our lives look like? How will we spend our money? How will we use our money? How will we vote? What are we like on the school playground, in the classroom, in the workplace? 

What does it mean to follow Jesus in your life, and in these times? These questions come to a head in today’s reading from Mark. Jesus asks, “Who do you say that I am?” The disciple Peter gets all excited to profess that Jesus is indeed the Messiah.  

Peter soon learns that this also means Jesus must undergo great suffering, deep rejection, and ultimately death. The instant Peter learns this, he backs away. He critiques Jesus. He rebukes Jesus. The glamour of following Jesus is suddenly gone for Peter. It no longer seems like a life that he is sure he wants to undertake.  

But there is so much more to this interaction between Jesus and Peter. Jewish thinking had never before entertained the idea that the Messiah must suffer and die. Absolutely no one thought a Messiah would be crucified. This was ludicrous, they believed. If anything, the Messiah was supposed to inflict suffering, not live with it as a personal reality. And what good would a dead Messiah be anyway?

If Peter was nervous about his life in Jesus Christ imposing a certain degree of suffering and self-denial upon him, he was not alone. Most of us would choose a religion and come to believe important things deeply because we feel they are good for us. Suffering does not sound good! If you were to offer me a scathed life versus an unscathed life, I would go for the unscathed variety. 

Who would welcome the idea of suffering if there were other options available? But this is where we must suddenly get very honest about the Christian life. Christianity is not about solving problems and making life easier. If anything, following Jesus is going to complicate your life.

The late Quaker philosopher Elton Trueblood understood this complicating nature of the Christian way.  “In many areas,” he wrote, “the gospel, instead of taking away peoples’ burdens, actually adds to them.”  On a number of occasions, Trueblood told the story of John Woolman, a successful Quaker merchant in the 18^th century who lived a wonderfully nice life until God convicted him one day of the offense of holding slaves.  

After that, John Woolman gave up his prosperous business.  He used his money to try and free slaves and even started wearing undyed suits to avoid relying on dye that slave labor produced.  Elton Trueblood said, “Occasionally we talk of our Christianity as something that solves problems, and there is a sense in which it does.  Long before it does so, however, it increases both the number and the intensity of problems.”

Accepting this assessment of Christianity is one of the hardest things in the world. Maybe this is why Jesus had to repeat these words, these words we hear in today’s reading: “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake and the Gospel, will save it.”  This is an idea that is just hard to believe. It runs counter to what we want to believe. So, Jesus is left to repeat it, hoping to get it inside of our thick heads and our pleasure-minded hearts.

Few of us sitting here will have John Woolman’s story. This being the kick-off to the programmatic year, it seems fitting to lift up some of the ways we are trying, emphasis trying, to follow Jesus. In a culture that often answers pain and grief with empty platitudes or telling us to move one, we are going to tell the truth about how hard this year has been and the weariness that so many are feeling. This will begin with our Remember and Grieve Together event September 29. 

We will continue reckoning collectively with racism–a reckoning still needed in this country and in the larger church. We are going to keep relationships center–relationships with God, with our own souls, and with the marginalized. We will continue to partner with Trinity New Hope affordable housing, finding ways to tell our story to everyone plagued with “Not in My Backyard” whenever new affordable housing developments are proposed. Our leadership does not know where this will lead, and we will keep reviewing, listening, and discerning. People might join us, and that will be great. But let’s be clear, Jesus never said, “grow the church.” Jesus said, “follow me.”

Following Jesus asks for a life that in one way or another has the cross deeply embedded in it. There is sacrifice expected. We give up our lives.  Playing it safe is no longer acceptable. Death stops being a reality to be feared. The first half of Mark’s Gospel account is about “how to live.” Jesus gives instructions of one kind or another on how we might best fashion our lives. And then, at this pivotal point right in the center of the story, Jesus makes a shift. He begins to show us “how do die.” Now that we have been given life, he demonstrates how to give it up or how to give it away. 

We can try to safe-deposit-box our lives all we want.  We can try and be very very cautious about whom we even let into our lives.  But this is not commendable living.  According to Jesus, this is dangerous living.  We will lose our soul if we’re not careful. Living a life that really matters in the name of Jesus will not allow for clutching or hoarding or playing it safe. It asks instead for a less possessive way—a way that treats life more like a precious gift to be shared than a commodity to be stored up.

When Jesus asked his disciples that day, “Who do people say that I am?” they had no trouble answering that question. It was a nice question to which they could give objective answers. But then Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?” Suddenly, their confidence and investment in him, and all that he was, was being tested. This was a much more difficult question to answer.  They had to answer it with their lives not just with their brains.

“Who do you say that I am?” The minute we hear this question rattling around in our heads, we have a choice. We can hold back and talk about this Jesus person whose sayings and deeds are written down in a precious ancient book. Or we can decide to open up the fullness of our lives by using the language of love.  

 In what ways do we pretend that Jesus did not really mean to follow him fully? In what ways do we try to be our own messiahs and save ourselves? On what do we stake our lives? In what do we ultimately place our trust? Our bank accounts? Achievements? Prestige? Politicians? Jesus locks every one of these escape hatches. One scholar noted that “doctrinal confusion is not the Christian’s fundamental problem. Instead, it is disobedience: our refusal to accept Christ’s authority over our lives.”

We are privileged to know everyday folks who have so internalized this quality of discipleship. We know people who in the critical moment, they know what to do, they know how to follow Jesus. Most of us may never master such integral calculus of charity. But failure in that does not need to be the enemy of our aspiration. We know the way to follow Jesus. Thanks be to God that other disciples, gathered here, walk it with us. Jesus remains in the lead.

Prayers of Intercession

Made children and heirs of God’s promise, we pray for the church, the world, and all in need.

A brief silence.Revealing God, you have made yourself known through bread and wine, water and word. Continue to nurture your church, that it is a place where your presence is experienced and shared. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Creating God, you brought life into being and called it good. Bring new creation to lands devastated by tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, fires, and other disasters (recent destructive events may be named here). Restore forests and curb overflowing waters. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Protecting God, you desire all people to live in peace and safety. Provide for all who are in danger. Strengthen first responders to help meet to the complex needs of others. Provide care and compassion as they face trauma themselves. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Transforming God, you announce release to the captives and freedom to the oppressed. Break chains of discrimination and injustice. Amplify voices that go unheard and inspire us to advocate for the those who are overlooked. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Forming God, you gather this community together. Shape our communal life, that in our prayer, praise, and worship, we honor you and encourage one another. Keep our disagreements civil and increase our joy in working together. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Most merciful God, as we remember 9/11, bring comfort to those who mourn, relief to those who witness devastation, healing to those still suffering physical pain or emotional trauma, and reconciliation to a world in need of peace. Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Redeeming God, you accompany your people through every stage of life. We give you thanks for the saints who now rest in your embrace (especially). Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Receive these prayers, O God, and those in our hearts known only to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord.Amen.

Prayer of the Day

Holy God, your word feeds your people with life that is eternal. Direct our choices and preserve us in your truth, that, renouncing what is false and evil, we may live in you, through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.Amen.

1 Kings 8:[1, 6, 10-11] 22-30, 41-43

[¹Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the ancestral houses of the Israelites, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion. ⁶Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. ¹⁰And when the priests came out of the holy place, a cloud filled the house of the Lord, ¹¹so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.] 
  ²²Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands to heaven.²³He said, “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and steadfast love for your servants who walk before you with all their heart, ²⁴the covenant that you kept for your servant my father David as you declared to him; you promised with your mouth and have this day fulfilled with your hand. ²⁵Therefore, O Lord, God of Israel, keep for your servant my father David that which you promised him, saying, ‘There shall never fail you a successor before me to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your children look to their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me.’ ²⁶Therefore, O God of Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you promised to your servant my father David.
  ²⁷“But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built! ²⁸Regard your servant’s prayer and his plea, O Lord my God, heeding the cry and the prayer that your servant prays to you today; ²⁹that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you said, ‘My name shall be there,’ that you may heed the prayer that your servant prays toward this place. ³⁰Hear the plea of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place; O hear in heaven your dwelling place; heed and forgive.
  ⁴¹“Likewise when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a distant land because of your name ⁴²—for they shall hear of your great name, your mighty hand, and your outstretched arm—when a foreigner comes and prays toward this house, ⁴³then hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and so that they may know that your name has been invoked on this house that I have built.”

Psalm 84

 ¹How dear to me ^| is your dwelling,
  O ^| Lord of hosts!
 ²My soul has a desire and longing for the courts ^| of the Lord;
  my heart and my flesh rejoice in the ^| living God.
 ³Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest where she may ^| lay her young,
  by the side of your altars, O Lord of hosts, my king ^| and my God.
 ⁴Happy are they who dwell ^| in your house!
  They will always be ^| praising you. 
 ⁵Happy are the people whose strength ^| is in you,
  whose hearts are set on the ^| pilgrims’ way.
 ⁶Those who go through the balsam valley will find it a ^| place of springs,
  for the early rains have covered it with ^| pools of water.
 ⁷They will climb from ^| height to height,
  and the God of gods will be ^| seen in Zion.
 ⁸Lord God of hosts, ^| hear my prayer;
  give ear, O ^| God of Jacob. 
 ⁹Behold our defend- ^| er, O God;
  and look upon the face of ^| your anointed.
 ¹⁰For one day in your courts is better than a ^| thousand elsewhere.
  I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents ^| of the wicked.
 ¹¹For the Lord God is both sun and shield, bestowing ^| grace and glory;
  no good thing will the Lord withhold from those who walk ^| with integrity.
 ¹²O ^| Lord of hosts,
  happy are they who put their ^| trust in you!

Ephesians 6:10-20

¹⁰Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. ¹¹Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹²For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. ¹⁴Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. ¹⁵As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. ¹⁶With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
  ¹⁸Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. ¹⁹Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.

John 6:56-69

[Jesus said,] ⁵⁶“Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. ⁵⁷Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. ⁵⁸This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.” ⁵⁹He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.
  ⁶⁰When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” ⁶¹But Jesus, being aware that his disciples were complaining about it, said to them, “Does this offend you? ⁶²Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? ⁶³It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. ⁶⁴But among you there are some who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the first who were the ones that did not believe, and who was the one that would betray him. ⁶⁵And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father.”
  ⁶⁶Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. ⁶⁷So Jesus asked the twelve, “Do you also wish to go away?” ⁶⁸Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. ⁶⁹We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”

Sermon – Pastor Meggan Manlove

First Kings continues the story where 2 Samuel left off. Chapters 1-2 complete the presentation of the reign of David and the succession of Solomon. Chapters 3-11 depict Solomon’s glorious reign, highlighted by the construction of the temple.

Up to the time of King David, the presence of God had been represented by the Ark of the Covenant. It had been a movable tent structure. David successfully moved the Ark to Jerusalem, where his son and successor Solomon built the magnificent Temple now housing the Ark of the Covenant.

In previous chapters it was highlighted that Solomon and the rest of the Israelites were worshipping at Canaanite worship centers. This was not ideal because people might end up worshipping Canaanite gods rather than their own God. So, Solomon in building the Temple has removed, or tried to remove, that confusion inherent in worshipping at Canaanite centers. Israel now has its own worship center at a place that the Israelite God seems to have approved. 

After completion of the building of the Temple, Solomon leads the people in a dedication ceremony. The selected portions of this long chapter focus on some significant words in one of Solomon’ sprayers. Solomon is acutely aware that God who transcends creation cannot be contained in a building no matter how magnificent the building is. He prays, “But will God indeed dwell on earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built!”

This statement gets to the heart of so much of what we and many other congregations have wrestled with this year, right? We know that God cannot be contained in a building. With the Sawtooths, Whiteclouds and Lost River Ranges all within a few hours’ drive, we might relate better than most to the biblical stories where people encounter God on a mountain. 

Furthermore, this year we encouraged you all to make home altars. Some of you already had nooks in your homes with Bibles, a candle to light, perhaps some devotional books. But last year everyone was encouraged to use whatever suitable props you could find to make a space holy. Does the glory of the natural world and the possibility of creating holy spaces in the home then mean we citizens of the 21^st century do not need church buildings? Yes and no.

The Temple did not take the place of God, neither is it equivalent to God. It is not to be worshipped, but God is worshipped there. This is a place where individuals and the community will find divine forgiveness. In the portion that is skipped, Solomon highlights certain occasions for prayer that include; reconciliation between neighbors, national defeat in battle, drought, famine and various plagues; war, including when a foreigner comes to pray. Anything sound familiar?

The inclusion of foreigners at the Temple is an interesting one because of the exclusive nature of Israel pronounced in the Old Testament and also because of the non-coercive nature of the inclusion. What I mean is that it is not a militant conversion of non-Israelites but an openness that welcomes foreigners in a sacred space.

Solomon’s prayer deals with some of the mystery and the paradox involved in thinking about God’s presence with us. It starts from something that is presented as objective reality: a cloud filled the house. A cloud is a common symbol of God’s presence. It is a useful symbol because it is both a sign of God’s being present but also a practical means of protecting people from the overwhelming, blinding, electrifying effect of being in in God’s presence. 

Other books in the Old Testament talk about a column of cloud accompanying the people on their journey from Egypt, about God being in a cloud or thundercloud at Mount Sinai and speaking to the people from there. That same cloud is present in the temple in such a way as to signify that God’s presence continues to accompany the people. 

We do not know how literally the story means us to take this picture. Perhaps we are to picture the priests withdrawing from the temple because they knew God was coming there, so that speaking of the cloud is a metaphor. Of this we can be sure, God certainly became present there. From here on out, Israel could know they could come to the temple court and offer their sacrifice there and know they did so before the God who was present in the sanctuary. 

Talking about the temple as a place where God will live could imply that the Israelites had unsophisticated ideas about God. However, Solomon himself later makes explicit his awareness that the idea of God’s dwelling in a house on earth is silly. Nor did the Israelites naively think that God lived in the sky. The entirety of the heavens could not contain God, Solomon comments. 

Instead of trying to figure out exactly what the temple meant to the ancient Israelites, this passage’s greatest gift may be an invitation to keep reflecting on sacred or holy spaces in our own lives, especially but not only this sanctuary.

Our leadership pondered about sacred spaces when people voiced their appreciation for seeing our sanctuary during pre-recorded or live streaming worship last year. This led to us offering times when people could come sit in the sanctuary in silence—a weekday morning and a Sunday afternoon. No one signed up. Interesting.

The yearning for the building made me just a bit nervous. Some of us have belonged to churches with different architecture, histories, and degrees of attachment to buildings. I whole-heartedly agreed with the sentiment expressed all over my social media feed, “Buildings are closed. But church is open.” 

For weeks I could not get Jay Beech’s The Church Song out of my head, “The church is not a building where people go to pray; it’s not made out of sticks and stones, it’s not made out of clay….The church, it is the people living out there lives, called, enlightened, sanctified for the work of Jesus Christ.”

Most of us know whole congregations or individuals who make idols of buildings. Besides breaking the first two of the Ten Commandments, idolizing a building is simply not healthy for our relationships with God or the life of faith. 

I thought about sacred spaces once more while cleaning up after the second Sunday worship our congregation held on our lawn. We also held an evening Lament service and an evening Pet Blessing service. In addition, several teams had meetings on the lawn. I reflected that the lawn has become a sacred space for me in 2020 and it is because I have so consistently spent time there with other bodies hearing scripture read, praying, and discerning. 

What of this space? Is the presence of God evident in our worship space? How? Is the purpose of the space clear to all who enter it? Is the nature of the God worshiped in the space evident? Put another way, what would a newcomer guess about the god we worship by looking around the sanctuary? How welcoming is our space of worship to those who feel lost, to those we consider as outsiders? Can the prayers of those who do not think, act or pray like “us” feel validated and heard? What is important in our spaces? Is it the space itself or the presence of God in it? Who or what is worshipped; God or the space itself?

Today, I am thankful the larger church has consistently had people and events to remind us that God is certainly in the everyday, which includes our homes, our workplaces, our schools, our gardens, and lawns. The ordinary can be and is sacred. 

At the same time, we are always going to need sacred places to gather with others—homes, sanctuaries, and pilgrimage sites. Instead of an either/or answer, this continues to be a time for both/and. It is a time to remember that the ordinary can be sacred space andwe should gather with other bodies in spaces (natural or built with human hands) that hold beauty or history or awe.

Prayers of Intercession (Sundays and Seasons)

The prayers are prepared locally for each occasion. The following examples may be adapted or used as appropriate.

Made children and heirs of God’s promise, we pray for the church, the world, and all in need.

A brief silence.God of courage, bless all leaders of your church. Make them ready to proclaim the gospel of peace and strengthen them to preach your loving word. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of creation, bless fields and orchards. Protect the land from drought and bring life-giving rain to support growth. Instruct your people in wise treatment of the world you have provided for all your creatures. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of community, bless all who seek justice between nations and peoples. Give guidance to bridge-builders, heal divisions, and inspire cooperation in times of crisis, disaster, and war. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of compassion, bless all who are in any need. Accompany all who are lonely and feeling abandoned and remind them of your abiding presence. Accompany all who are persecuted and exploited and open us to their cries. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

God of change, bless our transitions. Guide all who are embarking on new stages in life such as a new job, new school, or new community (especially). Sustain enduring friendships and kindle new relationships and interests. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Here other intercessions may be offered.God of comfort, bless all who mourn the deaths of their beloved ones. We give you thanks for the saints who have gone before us (especially). Renew our confidence in your promise of resurrection and life in the world to come. Lord, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Receive these prayers, O God, and those in our hearts known only to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord.Amen.

Prayer of the Day

Almighty God, in choosing the virgin Mary to be the mother of your Son, you made known your gracious regard for the poor, the lowly, and the despised. Grant us grace to receive your word in humility, and so to be made one with your Son, Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.Amen.

Isaiah 61:7-11

 ⁷Because [the] shame [of God’s people] was double,
  and dishonor was proclaimed as their lot,
 therefore they shall possess a double portion;
  everlasting joy shall be theirs.

 ⁸For I the Lord love justice,
  I hate robbery and wrongdoing;
 I will faithfully give them their recompense,
  and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
 ⁹Their descendants shall be known among the nations,
  and their offspring among the peoples;
 all who see them shall acknowledge
  that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.
 ¹⁰I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
  my whole being shall exult in my God;
 for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
  he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
 as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
  and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
 ¹¹For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
  and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
 so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
  to spring up before all the nations.

Psalm 34:1-9

 ¹I will bless the Lord^| at all times;
  the praise of God shall ever be ^| in my mouth.
 ²I will glory ^| in the Lord;
  let the lowly hear ^| and rejoice.
 ³Proclaim with me the greatness ^| of the Lord;
  let us exalt God’s ^| name together.
 ⁴I sought the Lord, who ^| answered me
  and delivered me from ^| all my terrors. 
 ⁵Look upon the Lord^| and be radiant,
  and let not your faces ^| be ashamed.
 ⁶I called in my affliction, and ^| the Lord heard me
  and saved me from ^| all my troubles.
 ⁷The angel of the Lord encamps around those who ^| fear the Lord
  and de- ^| livers them.
 ⁸Taste and see that the ^| Lord is good;
  happy are they who take ref- ^| uge in God!
 ⁹Fear the Lord, you saints ^| of the Lord,
  for those who fear the ^| Lord lack nothing. 

Galatians 4:4-7

⁴When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ⁵in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. ⁶And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” ⁷So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.

Luke 1:46-55

⁴⁶Mary said, 
 “My soul magnifies the Lord,
  ⁴⁷and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
 ⁴⁸for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.
  Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
 ⁴⁹for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
  and holy is his name.
 ⁵⁰His mercy is for those who fear him
  from generation to generation.
 ⁵¹He has shown strength with his arm;
  he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
 ⁵²He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
  and lifted up the lowly;
 ⁵³he has filled the hungry with good things,
  and sent the rich away empty.
 ⁵⁴He has helped his servant Israel,
  in remembrance of his mercy,
 ⁵⁵according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
  to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”

Sermon – Pastor Meggan Manlove

The other day I ran across a magnifying ruler in my desk–something I picked up at a vendor table several years ago. It read, “Attorney General says, ‘read the fine print and be consumer smart.” The further I get into my 40s the more appreciative I am for such magnifying tools. They have a way of both magnifying and illuminating what was blurry or almost hidden. 

The glad song Mary sings functions in a similar way. It illumines. The song makes it possible to understand something that was there all the time but was difficult to see without an aid.  

That Luke created or preserved traditions regarding Mary was inspired, considering how infrequently she otherwise appears in the New Testament.  The gospel writer Mark skips the birth of Jesus altogether, and Mark’s Jesus seems indifferent to his mother when she shows up with his brothers.  

As for Matthew, his Mary is mute. Not a word leaves her lips. She is present, but silent as the night in a certain beloved carol. For his part, the Apostle Paul thinks it worth remarking that God’s Son was “born of a woman,” but he never bothers to mention her name. But Luke remembers her name, and his Mary does not keep silence in our churches. Luke’s Mary has something, and someone, to sing about.

In Mary’s song, which we call the Magnificat for all that she magnifies, she tells of her Savior who has “looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.”  Lowliness.  The Greek behind our English word is not talking simply about humility, but about poverty. Mary is poor — dirt poor. She is poor and pregnant and unmarried. She is in a mess. But she sings! Why? Because Luke knows — from the vantage of the end of the narrative– that this lowly one, this wretched one, this woman, God raises up. Mary, despised and rejected by the world, is favored by God and will bring the Messiah to birth. And so, she sings.

What is more, Mary sings not just a solo aria about her own destiny. She sings a freedom song on behalf of all the faithful poor in the land. She sings a song of freedom for all who, in their poverty and their wretchedness, still believe that God will make a way where there is no way, that God will continue to be faithful.

Like John the Baptist, Mary prophesies deliverance. She prophesies about a way that is coming in the wilderness of injustice. She sings of a God who “has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts”; who “has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly”; who “has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.” She exults in the God of Abraham; she exalts the God of Jesus Christ. Here at the beginning, Mary rejoices in God’s vision — for her, and for a world turned upside down.

A day celebrating Mary, Mother of our Lord might better be celebrated as Mary, Bearer of God. It is a slight shift, but an important one. Let me first talk about the various ways the church has thought about Mary. To do that, we have to cover, of all topics, original sin. 

There are at least two different traditions about the nature of original sin. In our Lutheran heritage, we have experienced both, particularly in the words we have used in confession at the beginning of worship. Some of you might remember the old red hymnal (the SBH). Using them we confessed, “We are by nature sinful and unclean.” But now we say, “We are captive to sin and cannot free ourselves.”

Martin Luther would be more comfortable with the words we use today. If we are by nature sinful and unclean, then Mary needs to be superhuman in order to be the mother of our Lord. She found favor with God because she was a better person than we are. Indeed, she was not by nature sinful and unclean.

This idea led the Roman Catholic Church to affirm the doctrines like the Immaculate Conception (Mary was also immaculately conceived) and the Assumption of Mary (Mary did not di but was assumed into heaven). On the other hand, if we are captive to sin, it is only by grace that Mary can say, “Let it be.” Mary’s trust in God’s promise of a son, who would free us from the power of death and the devil, empowered her to become a bearer of God. With the words “Let it be,” Mary became a new Eve and a bearer of a new creation, which begins in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

What then of the Incarnation? The Word became flesh. God comes and lives with us. Mary the Mother of our Lord, up on a pedestal, has a position that can no longer be filled because the Son of God has been born. The job has been completed. The only thing we can do with her is put her on a pedestal and honor her. 

However, Mary the Bearer of God is someone a bit different. Mary the Bearer of God becomes the first of what we all can be, how God enters our world and speaks a word of grace and mercy, forgiveness and peace, life and hope. In our own baptism into Jesus Christ, our old, captive self is drowned, and a new self rises out of the water. The new self joins Mary as a bearer of God in this new creation.

A God who becomes one of requires a new set of eyes. Instead of raising Mary on a pedestal as one who is special and near to God, Mary the Bearer of God reveals the truth that God comes down to us, all of us. An Orthodox scholar [Nicholas Zernov] put it this way, “In all the mysteries of his condescension, God approaches man from below; and man must be ready to stoop to meet him.”

Consider how this is revealed in Mary’s song. She sees herself as a lowly servant. The proud are scattered. The powerful are brought down, and the lowly are lifted up. The hungry are filled, and the rich are sent away empty. As a bearer of God, Mary rejoices in salvation, the freedom from captivity to death and the devil. As a bearer of God, Mary brings our eyes down to see God hidden in the least and lowest, the unlikely and unexpected, even in a piece of bread and a sip of wine. As a bearer of God, Mary teaches us to stoop down and reminds us that there are all kinds of job openings in the God-bearing business.

The problems of the world are overwhelming. They always have been but this latest chapter has taken everything to a new level, at least for me. We have to learn to live with this virus and love our neighbor and show kindness daily and try to make the systems we live in more just and merciful. The reign of God which Mary prophecies so clearly is still breaking in. But how can we mere mortals be part of something so big?

And yet God has always chosen the most unlikely to be God bearers. Mary Bearer of God is only one among many of the unusual and unlikely. We also are among them: imperfect David, not so good with public speaking Moses, foreigner Ruth, seeking power disciples James and John, denier Peter, and the list goes on. Some of the people who have heeded God’s call have had big stages and others are faithful in small circles and local contexts and neighborhoods. All of them echoed Mary’s, “Let it be” and then the Holy Spirit empowered them.

As you come to the Lord’s Table, you too are graced and empowered by God. Like the ordinary people God has called throughout the ages, God uses the very ordinary to strengthen and nourish. We do not understand the mechanics of the meal, but we trust that God keeps promises–that God is present and grants forgiveness and new life in ordinary bread and wine, along with the words, “given for you.” As you receive Christ’s body and blood through bread and wine, Jesus enters you to forgive your sin and makes you a new creation. As we gather together into this holy communion, you also become a bearer of God. 

Prayers of Intercession (Sundays and Seasons)

Rooted in Christ and sustained by the Spirit, we offer our prayers for the church, the world, and all of creation.

A brief silence.You have revealed your love for people overlooked and cast aside, sending your son to be born among the humble and poor. Send your church to proclaim good news to those who feel abandoned, despised, or rejected and make our congregations places of genuine welcome and hospitality. God, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

All creation longs for healing and restoration. Thwart the destruction of plant and animal habitats and amplify the voices of those who advocate for wise stewardship of the earth’s resources. God, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

We remember your promise to our ancestors and look to you for justice. Expose pride, greed, and exploitation wherever it is found and raise up humble leaders who act on behalf of those who are poor, oppressed, or in other need. God, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Your Spirit lives in our hearts and makes us heirs of salvation. Rescue us from shame and dishonor. Lift up the lowly, fill the hungry with good things, and have mercy on those who turn to you for help (especially). God, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Mary’s song of praise and amazement echoes through this assembly. Attend to those in this congregation expecting a child and console those struggling to conceive. Come to the aid of those enduring a difficult pregnancy and those who have experienced a miscarriage. God, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

Here other intercessions may be offered.We give thanks for the saints who have found refuge in you, O God (especially Mary, mother of Jesus). As you have delivered them from all their afflictions, so save us from all our earthly troubles until that day when we sing your praise together in heaven. God, in your mercy,hear our prayer.

We lift these and all our prayers to you, O God, confident in the promise of your saving love; through Jesus Christ our Lord.Amen.