Author: feefsmall

This week’s session is now available to access by clicking here.

What is the point in praying? It is important to ask this question because a major survey produced by one of our respected polling organisations Com Res, published last weekend, found that one in twenty people in the United Kingdom had prayed to God for the very first time in their lives during this corona virus pandemic.

Is there an overall purpose behind the activity that the majority of the world population engages in at some time in their lives? After all committed Christians (and people of other faiths) hopefully are engaged in it on a daily basis! Prayer is one of the most difficult things we will ever do, yet it is also one of the most natural activities a child of God can ever take part in.

It is acknowledged that Jesus spent significant amounts of time engaged in prayer and had extended times for it at the key points of His ministry. Over the history of the Christian Church the major figures all testified to its importance in their own lives and numerous quotations have been cited over the years from their writings.

What is the reason for all this activity and what have they (and we) been praying for? The answer in general terms should be contained in the two petitions contained in Matthew 6 verse 10, that these things may be done on earth as it is in heaven. In this message we will look at the first of these two petitions –Your kingdom come…The Bible draws our attention to two main things on this subject:

1.The plan for God’s kingdom Some of us like to be organised and plan out our lives days, weeks, months or even a year or more ahead of time. Other people by contrast are happy to go with the flow and let things drift. What does the Bible indicate are God’s plans for humanity? 

In Genesis 1:26-30, right at the beginning of the history, it states that we are created in the image of God with responsibility for the planet. We have a privileged position to rule over other creatures, but we also have the greatest responsibility for taking care of our world.

How well are we caring for the planet? Any report that was remotely truthful would suggest we have caused a lot of damage to the environment by our lifestyle choices as a species. For example, in the twenty-first century billions are spent on armaments, yet to our shame an alarming proportion of the world’s population don’t have access to clean drinking water or adequate toilet facilities, is this acceptable? I hope not! The pollution of our oceans with all kind of waste especially various forms of plastic products is truly shocking.

It has been a wake-up call seeing the regeneration of rivers and the incredible improvements in air quality in parts of Asia after lock down was introduced. How will we contribute to keeping it that way when restrictions on our activities are lifted? These are big questions,

God also planned for human beings to be in a relationship with Him and to enjoy fellowship with Him. In Genesis chapters eleven to twelve we see a focus by God on calling one man Abraham and his family to promote God’s good news to the world. 

God had made it plain that His rule and principles would be proclaimed by this man and His descendants and out of His family would come Jesus Christ, who would usher in His kingdom. Yet this blessing would not be only for Israel but for the nations, indeed all peoples of the earth would share in this blessing as they acknowledged His lordship.

The rule of this descendant of David would last forever. From the 120 people present in Jerusalem on the day the Christian Church began, the good news is that there are people in every country of the world who seek to live for Him, approximately 2.3 billion people. God’s kingdom is growing, as Jesus predicted it would, from small beginnings. Have you put your faith and trust in God through Jesus? God invites you personally to be a part of what He is doing in the world? What is your response?

2. The prayers for God’s kingdom  

What should I be praying for? Where do I begin to pray for a very needy world? It begins first of all with a personalresponse to God to say: ‘God, I am sorry I have been living for me and what I want, rather than thinking about You and what you desire.  I want to play my part in bringing in Your kingdom, of changing this world into more of the way it should be.

We can feel inadequate to make any difference at all, but Jesus reminded us in the parable of the mustard seed (Matthew 13:32-33) that it begins in a small way and will grow incredibly large. Our calling is to change the world one situation or one person at a time. But what is most important, said Jesus, is getting our priorities right about what is most important.

In the Sermon on the Mount, He gave this challenge to those present: But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well(Matthew 6:34); the prayer Jesus taught His disciples was an incredible challenge to change their and our thinking to conform to what God wants to happen in the world. May Your kingdom come…on earth as it is in heaven.  May this be our prayer today and in coming days.

Our song for reflection today is: ‘Great is the darkness that covers the earth’

Brian Talbot

Has anyone attempted to visit Her Majesty the Queen when in residence at Buckingham Palace or the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street in London without prior permission to do so?

The answer from us all is likely to be ‘no’, of course not! No-one could do that without being stopped and questioned by the police, and with good reason given the number of terrorist attacks in London in recent years.

But even without the relatively recent security upgrades there was absolutely no chance of visiting either of these two people. There had to be a very good reason for you to be in their presence. However, even assuming you got through the police security cordon and stood in their presence you might wonder what on earth you would talk about with them. 

But don’t waste time worrying about that! A much more serious and important question concerns how we speak to God in prayer; 

Jesus said: ‘This then, is how you should pray: ‘“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name… What does it mean to ‘hallow’ or ‘to honour’ God’s name?  A name then stood for the whole character of the person. Therefore, the name of God stands for the nature, character and personality of God.

David in Psalm 9:10 wrote: Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.That is, the people who know what God is like, through His revelation to us in the Bible, will trust Him.

David in Psalm 20:7 declared: Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. The same principle is in evidence in the New Testament. In John 17:6 in the New International Version we read these words in Jesus’ prayer to His Father in heaven. I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to me and they have obeyed Your word. However, a more literal translation of the words of Jesus, records Jesus as saying: I have revealed Your name to those whom You gave Me… Your Name is simply an expression signifying God Himself.

 So what is Jesus saying to His followers?

1. Don’t misuse His name The standard Old Testament statement on this subject came at the time of the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses. Exodus 20:7 declared: You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name. 

Be careful how you use God’s name in your conversations. Orthodox Jews when reading the Old Testament in synagogue services, I understand, when they come across the divine name in the text say ‘Adonai’ (Lord) so as not to use God’s name.

This reverence for the name of the Lord is good, as long as it is matched in daily living with respect to God’s ways, though sadly we have all fallen short of the standards we proclaim.

Time and again the Psalmists remind us of the name of the Lord and associate it with His character and issue a call for reverence in the light of what He has done. Psalm 111:9 would sum up the Jewish approach to God’s name. He provided redemption for His people; He ordained His covenant forever— holy and awesome is His name. Something to think about: Do you misuse His name? Do you refer to God in your speech as an exclamation mark filling in between things you wanted to say? Or are you careful with your choice of words?

2. Do honour His name! Jesus in His earthly life was primarily concerned with honouring His Father’s name. In John’s Gospel chapter twelve Jesus showed His deepest concern for the honour of His Father’s name at a Passover Festival in Jerusalem.

He had been speaking about His forthcoming death and was overwhelmed with emotion. He cried out: Father, glorify Your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” When the veil is drawn back and we can see the heart of Jesus in His prayer life in John 17. His supreme concern was the name and honour of the Father. 

In John 17:6 He said I have revealed Your name to those whom You gave Me… was His firm and truthful assessment of the way He had lived His life on earth. What would you and I have to say to the Father about how we have honoured His name in our generation, amongst the people with whom we regularly mix? The Covid-19 virus crisis has been a reality check about the way human beings were using and misusing our planet. God has entrusted care of this world to us. But if other creatures on earth could speak, how would they view our track record as human beings? In summary, what do you and I need to learn most about honouring God’s name today? Take time to reflect quietly on what this might mean for you personally    

Our song for reflection is: Restore O Lord the honour of Your name!    

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOoGwT6rVyI

Brian Talbot

As we come to the middle of another week in this corona virus pandemic it is time for reflection and prayer on what is happening in the world, in our local communities as well as in our church families and within our circles of family and friends.  

There are always issues for which we need to pray for one another, but also things that encourage us. One of these is a collaborative effort by a selection of worship leaders and singers from a varied network of Christian churches in the United Kingdom that have produced a song based on the Aaronic blessing from Numbers 6:22-27: 

²² The Lord said to Moses, ²³ ‘Tell Aaron and his sons, “This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: ²⁴ ‘“‘The Lord bless you and keep you;²⁵ the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you;²⁶ the Lord turn His face towards you and give you peace.’” ²⁷ ‘So they will put My name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.’Take a few minutes to play this song and let its message minister into your life and circumstances today.

It’s called #TheBlessing

Let us look very briefly at this passage of Scripture and reflect on its message for us today.

This is how you are to bless the Israelites…. In the secular Western world people hope or aspire to success or fame or material prosperity, but in ancient Israel there was a desire deep within them to have the favour of God on their lives articulated through the recital of a blessing on them.

This form of words in Numbers 6:24-26, many scholars believe, was already fixed as a familiar blessing used in the Israelite community before it was written down as part of the text of Numbers chapter six. The framework of the blessing is in the plural, but the actual words of the benediction itself are in the singular The Lord bless you… The blessing was for the community of God’s people collectively, but like the gift of God’s unmerited favour in salvation through Jesus Christ, it was received individually and personally. Where does seeking God’s favour and blessing rank in your priorities in life? 

The context is clearly the community of faith. ²⁷ ‘So they will put My name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.’  The blessing of God is experienced as His people seek together to worship Him, live out His values in daily life and serve others in His name collectively. It is my hope and prayer that the rediscovered emphasis on community and ‘togetherness’ we have experienced in recent weeks will continue once this virus crisis fades into history.

The people of God must prioritise gathering together for worship and fellowship, as well as going out for witness and service in the wider community. Solitary Christianity is not an expression of the faith envisaged by Jesus or the Early Church. Belonging to and actively participating in the life of a local church is something Jesus envisaged as He is building His Church.

 There are three sections to the actual blessing recited over the Israelites:

First: The Lord bless you… what kind of blessings were these first recipients hoping for? Undoubtedly this declaration includes aspirations to be loved and to love, which for some might include the gift of marriage and the blessing of children; for many of them it would certainly include the gift of close friendships; there would certainly be a hope for the joy of a place to call home and the provision of the necessary food and other essential supplies required each new day. 

The Lord keep you; If blessing was about provisions, this declaration was about divine protection. For example, Exodus 23:20 where God said to the nation of Israel through Moses: See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. It is the same word used by Joshua, the second leader of the nation of Israel after Moses, at the end of his life in Joshua 24:17. He has spoken of the miracle of the Exodus from Egypt, but goes on to speak of so much more from God: He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we travelled. Our God is the One we have confidence in to provide all our needs.

Second: the Lord make His face shine on you…It was a plea for God’s divine pleasure to be revealed through answered prayer for His servants. Let Your face shine on Your servant;
save me in Your unfailing love (Psalm 31:16). Remember Moses who led the Israelites out of Egypt and who spent a long time in God’s nearer presence receiving the Ten Commandments. Exodus 34:29b: His face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. The declaration is a call for divine approval on the recipient…. and be gracious to you; grace is given to the undeserving.

Exodus 34:6b-7a contains some precious words about the character of the One who gave Moses the Ten Commandments: ‘The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, ⁷ maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. So soon after this gift of the Ten Commandments the Israelites fell into sin and needed a call to repentance to restore them to God’s favour.

Do you actively desire God’s favour on your life? If you are serious about it then it will affect your behavioural choices. Or do you need God’s grace and forgiveness? If this is a genuine desire to say sorry to God for something, then He sees our heart and forgives us, because of Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross in our place around 2,000 years ago.

Thirdly: The Lord turn His face towards you and give you peace [Shalom]. When someone looks you in the eyes you know you have their full attention at that moment in time. Here the call is for God to do that towards us as individuals! What is the culmination gift of this entire blessing? It is Shalom. It is much more than the absence of conflict. It includes the gift of contentment and for a sense of purpose and fulfilment in my life. Do you need to seek God’s shalom for your life today?

Listen to ‘The Blessing’ song again before we come to prayer.

Prayer Time for Wednesday 6 May 2020

• What blessings in particular do you want to thank God for today? Take some time to praise God for who He is and then thank Him for the things we can be grateful for in our lives.
  
• Pray for the many vulnerable countries, that they would receive the financial and humanitarian aid they need to prevent virus spread and meet people’s basic needs. And that aid may be distributed fairly within countries so that minority Christian and other faith communities don’t miss out on essential supplies in countries like Pakistan and India, for example.  
  
• Continue to pray for the Government in Scotland and in the wider UK and for their clinical and scientific advisers, may they have the wisdom they need to make the right decisions at the right time. 
  
• Pray for the physical, emotional and mental health of the staff and residents in Care Homes. Pray that supplies of the right equipment would get through to meet their needs. Pray for residents as they may struggle with the need to stay in their rooms and not having visitors. Please especially remember those who live and work in the Care Homes that our church led services in – Ferry House, Orchar, Elder Lea Manor, Ballumbie Court, Moyness and Balcarres. Pray also for our neighbour, Lochleven Care Home. 
  
• Please continue to remember the NHS workers, whatever their role, as each one plays their part to ensure that we can access care when it’s needed. Pray for those who you know by name and ask God to sustain them.
  
•  Pray for teachers, especially those known to you. Ask for God’s help for them as they adapt to new ways of teaching and for help with the frustrations that can bring. Pray that those working in school hubs would be able to work in safe ways and wouldn’t be put at unnecessary risk. 
  
• Pray for parents who are trying to support their children with school work at home, particularly while trying to do their own work too. Pray for patience and understanding. Remember children and young people who have additional support needs and are now struggling with a big change to their routines and a reduction in their usual support services.
  
•  Remember those with ongoing health issues in our church family just now, pray for the NHS to resume its usual services as soon as possible to attend to those waiting for operations, treatment plans, tests and check-ups.
  
• Pray for those recently bereaved that they may experience more of God’s love and comfort at this time.
  
• Pray for ourselves, ask God to help us to seek Him first in everything that we do and to always make time each day to read His word and spend time in His presence.

After an amazing response to our last Messy Church at Home, we will have another online session on Saturday 9 May 2020. The material will be released by 10am. 🎉

All of us have relationships with other people that require us to relate to them in different ways in particular contexts. A woman may be a teacher, a mother, a wife, a daughter, a church member, a friend, amongst other things; or a man might be a footballer, a father, a member of a school Parent Council, a husband, a son, a church member amongst his various roles. I have quickly picked up these examples which are far from exhaustive for both genders.

In fact many of usmight have at least as many roles as the two examples selected here. This is quite normal and expected and we adapt ourselves quite easily, most of the time, to the different roles we play in particular social contexts. Part of growing up is adjusting to the roles we play and this is something that young children can find hard to accept at times.

As Christians we too can find it difficult on occasions to know how best to relate to our heavenly Father. The disciples of Jesus struggled to pray in a meaningful way and on at least one occasion asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. Do you have any particular struggles in prayer at the present time?

One thing that was a pressing problem then and now is this: how do we relate to the Creator of heaven and earth? The One who brought the Universe into being by His spoken word and who upholds it by that same power?

We are creatures made out of the elements of the dust of the earth, living in one small part of one planet in one galaxy and even there we are only one of approximately 7.8 billion individuals alive at the present time! How does Jesus want us to relate to Almighty God? The answer He gave shocked His contemporaries as they held a view that God and people were distant from one another and that no-one should dare to attempt to come close to God. This was presumptuous and disrespectful, argued the Pharisees. Yet how does Jesus advise His followers to address God in heaven?  This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven… (Matthew 6:9a).

What does it mean to call God ‘Father’?

(a)It is a special relationship This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven… (Matthew 6:9a).

This is a unique privilege available to children of God. We by God’s undeserved favour have a right to come directly into the presence of our Father in heaven. The writer of the epistle to the Hebrews exhorts us in this way: Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

We can take this for granted because we know that as Christians we can come directly into His presence. Paul put it this way in Romans 5:1-2: Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ²through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 

Can you remember a time when you entered His family by putting your faith and trust in God through Jesus? Or could today be the day you take that step of faith?

(b) It was a sacred relationship In Galatians 4:6 Paul wrote: ⁶Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”  

In his letter to the Church in Rome he wrote: ¹⁵For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15);What an extraordinary privilege we have been granted. Abba (a respectful form of Daddy) was the first word spoken by a Jewish child and is an incredibly intimate form of address. We stand on holy ground and should seek to grasp a glimpse of how remarkable this is. How amazing that mere creatures can address their Creator with such tender affection and extraordinary devotion. As a Christian have you retained some sense of this incredible privilege?

(c) It was a social relationship This is how you [plural] should pray: Our Father… our faith although personal is in communion with fellow believers reflecting in pale imitation the communion between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In Western culture we have since the eighteenth century ‘enlightenment’ emphasized the individual and their rights at the expense of the place of the individual in community and their responsibilities to other people.

We have a lot to learn, for example, from Asian or African cultures where there has been retained a much greater respect for elders in the family and other people in the extended family and in other social contexts. Here Jesus assumes His followers are part of a local gathering of His people who worship God together, pray together, share their faith together and serve their community together in an organisation called the local church.

The New Testament assumes each follower of Jesus is committed to a local community of believers – are you? In lock down our contacts are limited to virtual fellowship on line, but we look forward to the day when we can meet together once more to give praise and honour to our Father in heaven.

Our song for reflection today is: ‘Father God I wonder’

Brian Talbot

A quick random search online reveals that there are numerous books seeking to assist people with the most basic skills in particular subjects; for example, Diane Selkirk wrote The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Sailing (2013); there were so many books on computing in the For Dummies series I couldn’t decide which one to choose by way of illustration in this message! 

The idea behind all these kinds of books is to make their subject accessible to ordinary people who were struggling to find a way to get started. 

The first disciples of Jesus found praying difficult and asked Jesus to teach them how to pray (Luke11:1). But as with everything else there are ways not to pray which Jesus highlighted in the famous Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:5-8: 

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. ⁶ But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. ⁷ And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. ⁸ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

What possible features of prayer should we avoid?

1.You must pray in busy public places (Matthew 6:5-6) And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. ⁶ But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 

Holding a placard on the street corner near a busy junction highlighting the fact you are praying is not likely to get you high approval ratings with passers-by in twenty-first century Britain.

You might make someone laugh, but at you not with you. However, having your prayer time in a prominent public place where plenty of people passed by was the way 2,000 years ago in Israel to gain the approval of the masses and to be seen as a holy person. But that was the point Jesus said!

Praying like that to impress other people might achieve its goal, but God might leave you to get on with it as it was of no interest to Him. By contrast, Jesus emphasised, for your regular pattern of prayer find a private place where it is a matter between you and God.

When God sees we are deadly serious about engaging with Him in prayer, then He is present and listening to the cries of our heart. There is a place for corporate prayer when God’s people gather together on-line or in more conventional times in one physical space, but in our personal prayer life try and find that place where no-one or no things gets in the way of you spending time alone with God in prayer.  

2. You must pray for as long as possible (Matthew 6:7-8)⁷ And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. ⁸ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Paul wrote: Pray continually (I Thessalonians 5:17).

Is it about the survival of the spiritually fittest praying till we drop? Or prayer marathons for Jesus – how many times have you lasted twenty-four hours without a break! There are times for persistent prayer and issues over which we will keep praying until we see God’s answer. However, under normal circumstances in our daily prayers Jesus advocated precise clear shorter prayers from our hearts. Let Him know precisely what you need like a young child bringing a request to their parent and trusting Him to answer. What are you going to ask for specifically today?

Our song for reflection today is: What a friend we have in Jesus 

Brian Talbot

At this unique and challenging time in the United Kingdom over 65 churches and movements, representing hundreds of others, have come together online to sing a blessing over our land.

Many of the churches included in this song have assisted with supplying over 400,000 meals to the most vulnerable and isolated in our nation since COVID-19 lockdown began.

This alongside phone calls to the isolated, pharmacy delivery drops and hot meals to the NHS frontline hospital staff. Our buildings may be closed but the church is very much alive!

Original Song “The Blessing” by Cody Carnes, Kari Jobe and Elevation Worship. Written by Chris Brown, Cody Carnes, Kari Jobe and Steven Furtick Audio produced by Trevor Michael Video edited by Level Creative

Intimations

• Morning worship online has moved to start at 10am and JAM at 11:15am on the Zoom platform.
  
• You may want to use some of the Engage Worship resources for daily worship during this week.
  
• The Messy Church At Home information will be available from next Saturday.
  
• Sunday Evening Prayer Livestream – We will be continuing the Prayer Livestream at 7.00pm, celebrating the theme of Resurrection Hope with live prayer and news from churches around the country. This will be another significant time of national prayer for us. Click here to access.
  
• Jam Kids Focus – Join us every Sunday from 9.30am for the next 5 five weeks for our Navigate Family series. This series will give you an opportunity to explore the Bible together as a family and find out about what it means to be a follower of Jesus today.
  
  Join Park Ranger Chris, Field Instructor Phil and Head Ranger Bill as they take you on a journey through Blue Rock National Park, learning some cool survival skills, doing some fun challenges and discovering truths in Bible. Plus lots more.

• There is also an activity sheet to download and print after watching the video.
  
• JAM young adults Ignite Live have a separate programme at 11:15am on the Zoom platform –parents of teenagers can get a link code by contacting Gary Torbet on garytorbet@btinternet.com

Call to Worship

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his; 
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures for ever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Psalm 100

We are grateful to Helen Rice for selecting the songs for worship for this service

Our opening song of praise and worship is: Light of the world

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eI302Av7vSI

Our second song of praise and worship is a new version of a familiar song: Great is thy Faithfulness (Beginning to end)

Opening Prayer

Heavenly Father, once more at the start of another week we come with joy into Your holy presence conscious of the honour that is ours of being able to call the Creator and Sustainer of the universe our Father. Yet that privilege is ours because of the Lord Jesus who died in our place on the cross so that we might have eternal life in its fullness both by faith here on earth and then beyond this life by sight

Thank you for all the blessing you give to us of family and friends.  Thank you for the provision of our daily needs and for the physical, mental and emotional strength to come through another week at this difficult time.  We come to ask for Your forgiveness of our sins and the fresh enabling power of the Holy Spirit to help us live in a way that pleases You in the coming week. Speak we pray to us as we sing Your praises, read Your Word and reflect upon it later. We bring all our prayers in Jesus’ name, Amen.  

Let us say together the words Jesus taught His disciples when He said:

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.      
For Yours is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever Amen.

All Age Talk – Helen Rice

I wondered if you have or if you ever had a special Teddy, security blanket or comforter? No need to be embarrassed (I cuddled my beautiful pink teddy, Marie, every night until I was 14 years old!)

Apparently scientific studies have shown that more than half of all children become attached to a Teddy Bear, a favourite blanket, or some other object that helps to comfort them whenever they are worried, afraid, unwell or upset.  A Teddy Bear or a security blanket can give great comfort especially at bedtime or when unwell, and it can give security and confidence when a child is separated from their parents or when they feel unsure.

Jesus understood that we all need help. When he was here on earth, he was a source of help and comfort to his disciples. When he was preparing to return to heaven, he knew that there would be times when disciples would need help and comfort and that he would not be there to give it to them.

In John 14 verse 16 He tells the disciples that he would ask his Father to send them another helper who would stay with them forever. That is exactly what he did. Jesus asked God the Father, and he sent the Holy Spirit. When we ask Jesus to come into our heart and we accept Him as our Saviour God’s Holy Spirit is with us ALWAYS.  He is there to help us, comfort us and to guide us to step out and live for God.

I don’t know about you, but I am glad that Jesus asked God to send His Holy Spirit to be with us always. Your Teddy like mine might become old and worn out or you might lose it, or you might outgrow the need for it…. But Jesus gave his promise that the Holy Spirit would be with us forever and however old we are we Never outgrow the need for the comfort, help and guidance of God’s Holy Spirit.

So whatever challenges we face, if we are fearful or scared, if we are worried and finding life difficult, if we lack confidence or we are in need of strength, if we are unsure of how to handle a situation, uncertain of what to say or do or what to pray, if we are struggling during lockdown …if we need comfort, guidance or wisdom God’s Holy Spirit is there to help us.

Father God, we thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to be our comfort, our help and our guide. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Our next song is another song that may be new to some participants in this service ‘Confidence’ by Sanctus-real

Prayers for others

As the current Covid-19 crisis continues to unfold before our eyes and shakes the world, we pray for those on the frontline of this situation. We are deeply conscious of the debt we owe to so many who daily risk their health and their lives to provide medical and social care and ensure that essential services are maintained across our land.

We thank God for the consistent  dedicated work that has ensured that our NHS has not been overwhelmed with demand during this crisis to date and sincerely pray this may continue to be the case. We pray for those whose medical procedures or surgeries have been delayed in recent weeks that soon they may be able to receive the assistance they require.

We pray for strength, wisdom and resilience. We give thanks that our God is unshakeable and ‘an ever-present help in time of need’.

We pray for children and young people who may be getting frustrated at the restrictions and fed up in the current situation. We pray for patience for parents, wisdom and creativity in finding things to do!  We pray for our teachers and other educators as they seek to support their students continue their education through various forms of on-line learning.

We pray for our family of churches in the Baptist Union of Scotland:

We pray for the pastoral ministry Accreditation Conference taking place tomorrow, as candidates finish their three year accreditation journey in various forms of church and chaplaincy ministries with a final interview as they reflect on what they have experienced and learned as they prepare for Christian service in the years to come. We pray that despite being online, that these meetings will result in wise discernment and be helpful to both the candidates and panel of experienced church leaders.

We remember:

Rebekah Sharp-Bastekin (Chaplain, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow) – with increasing pressures on NHS staff to do more with less, spiritual care is being drawn on more and more as we seek to support staff under a great deal of pressure. It’s a great privilege but please pray for NHS staff in all disciplines. Please pray for team dynamics after a number of years of staff shortages and lack of leadership. Pray for our new Lead Chaplain as she leads our team into a new chapter. I continue to feel filled with and guided by the Holy Spirit in the care that I offer to staff, patients and their families or visitors.

Dalbeattie Baptist Church:  We thank God for helping them to continue as a small but united, caring and inclusive fellowship with a desire to impact their town for Jesus. We pray for Christians in the area to feel led to join them to strengthen their witness and enable them to reach out in a way that is not possible with their limited resources.  

Dalkeith BC – At Dalkeith Baptist Church, we praise God for new folks joining with them in worship, and for the steady increase in the number of children they see regularly, which is greatly encouraging. We pray that the Lord would bless them as they seek to reach out to their local community, and as they continue to develop a culture of invitation among their fellowship.

Dedridge BC – We give thanks for Dedridge Baptist Church in Livingston as they worship God and serve their community at the heart of Livingston. We pray for good opportunities for them to share hope in Jesus during this time of national crisis.

We also pray for BMS World Mission at this time as they seek to continue to minister across the world during the current pandemic. We thank you for Helen and Wit in Thailand and Christine in Paris our link missionaries as they serve God in the locations He has placed them. We give thanks for the safe repatriation to the UK for some mission personnel in virus hot-spots and pray for those who continue to serve abroad at this time. We pray for protection and peace as well as opportunities to share Jesus with others.

We pray in our local context  

For other churches in our local area that God will help each one continue their work and witness at this time. We thank you to for the ongoing work of the food banks in our city and the stability of numbers needing assistance in the past week in our local area.

We especially remember those who live and work in the Care Homes that our church led services in – Ferry House, Orchar, Elder Lea Manor, Ballumbie Court, Moyness and Balcarres. We pray also for our neighbour, Lochleven Care Home. We  are very thankful that Hannah was able to lead a small Sunday church service for those who wished to join in at her workplace, where their spirits were lifted through singing, praying and counting their blessings together.

We come now to pray for particular people on our hearts at this time. These include: Jan and Jim F with Jim’s ongoing health challenges; Jean, John H’s mother in Orchar, who has contracted the covid virus; also for Shona H as she adjusts to retirement from paid employment later this week.

Also Ali T’s mum Norah who was taken to hospital after a fall and for her dad Frank at home. And we also bring our own requests to you now.  Thank you Lord for hearing our prayers as we bring them in the wonderful name of Your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ, Amen

Our next song of worship is: ‘Beauty for brokenness’

Bible Reading

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.’

¹⁴ Jesus replied, ‘Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?’ ¹⁵ Then he said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.’

¹⁶ And he told them this parable: ‘The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. ¹⁷ He thought to himself, “What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.”

¹⁸ ‘Then he said, “This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. ¹⁹ And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’”

²⁰ ‘But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?”

²¹ ‘This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich towards God.’

Luke 12: 13-21

Before we come to listen to God’s Word let us sing: ‘May the mind of Christ my Saviour’  

The Message

Introduction

On the day I was writing this message, one of the stories on the BBC News website was of a Royal Navy submarine commander relieved of his command and assigned to other duties (BBC News Website Coronavirus: Royal Navy submarine lockdown party captain sacked 28April 2020). The reason given was that he had gone ahead with a lockdown party at the submarine base after it had returned for repairs to the base, contrary to the advice of senior officers on shore and other officers on board the submarine.

All of us make mistakes and regret choices that we make so pointing the finger at others when they get things wrong is unwise, because the day comes for us all when we need to apologise for our own mistakes. It is bad enough when a friend or family members questions our decision-making on a subject of some importance, but where do we even begin to reflect when God is the one making that call? This was the issue in this story told by Jesus.

The context of this passage was a dispute between two adult children of a man who had died. The standard accepted model of a shared inheritance of that day saw the eldest brother gaining the largest share of the assets, but he also had the responsibility of caring for his mother if still alive and any other siblings who were children and therefore in need of support. Any other adult children of the deceased man shared equally a lesser share of the total estate.

Culturally it is very different to anything we would do here in the United Kingdom, but the motivation behind it is to ensure the most vulnerable family members were provided for in a social context where there was no state assistance for people in need. The contrast is absolute when compared to our current situation with the covid-19 virus.

Our governments in the United Kingdom are providing grants and support to seek to ensure everyone has a roof over their heads and food on the table for the duration of this crisis, and unprecedented support for some businesses with financial aid and other forms of assistance to ensure that as many jobs as possible are still there for people to return to when the worst of this crisis is over.

Sadly in many countries in the two-thirds world there is very little practical assistance provided, in part because their governments have far less resources to use to alleviate the hardship caused by this virus. At the heart of this story, and the teaching of Jesus in response to this occasion, there is a concern to address the financial and other security fears many people have concerning how they will provide for their needs in the future.

For us today the Covid-19 virus crisis is a deep concern to many people as we have no idea how this situation will turn out in the near future and beyond. Jesus, in this passage of Luke chapter twelve, provides a parable for their and our consideration in our own social contexts.

 Let us turn to Luke’s account of the context in which Jesus told this powerful story, recorded in Luke 12:13-21:

Someone in the crowd said to Him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.’ ¹⁴Jesus replied, ‘Man, who appointed Me a judge or an arbiter between you?’ ¹⁵ Then He said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.’ ¹⁶ And He told them this parable: ‘The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 

¹⁷ He thought to himself, “What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.” ¹⁸ ‘Then he said, “This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. ¹⁹ And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’” ²⁰ ‘But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” ²¹ ‘This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich towards God.’ 

(a)Living for self (Luke 12:17-19) ‘Mirror, mirror on the wall who is the fairest of them all’ are the famous words of the wicked stepmother of Snow White in the early nineteenth century story written by the Brothers Grimm. The wicked stepmother in the story apparently was obsessed with being the most beautiful woman in the land and her talking mirror told her that this was true.

However, a crisis begins when one day the mirror gives a different answer and suggested to her that her now grown-up stepdaughter Snow White is the most beautiful woman in the land. Many children in European countries will have grown up hearing or reading a version of the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. It is almost certainly based on some real historical circumstances with two possible candidates for Snow White.

One possibility is that it is Margarete von Waldeck, a German countess born to Philip IV in 1533. Her father owned copper mines that used child labour. The unhealthy working conditions seriously affected their health and resulted for many in severely stunted growth which combined with serious malnutrition would have raised serious human rights ‘alarm bells’ today.

The alternative and I think stronger candidate is Maria Sophia von Erthal, born on 15 June, 1729 in Lohr am Main, Bavaria. She was the daughter of eighteenth-century landowner, Prince Philipp Christoph von Erthal and his wife, Baroness von Bettendorff. After the death of the Baroness, Prince Philipp went onto marry Claudia Elisabeth Maria von Venningen, Countess of Reichenstein, who was said to dislike her stepchildren.  The castle where they lived, now a museum, was home to a ‘talking mirror’, an acoustical toy that could speak (now housed in the Spessart Museum).

The mirror, constructed in 1720 by the Mirror Manufacturer of the Electorate of Mainz in Lohr, had been in the house during the time that Maria’s stepmother lived there. The dwarfs in Maria’s story are also linked to a mining town, Bieber, located just west of Lohr and set among seven mountains. The smallest tunnels could only be accessed by very short miners, who often wore bright hoods, as the dwarfs have frequently been depicted over the years. The point of this illustration is that the step-mother was exclusively thinking of herself and not of others, certainly not her step-daughter. This was the big problem with the man in Jesus’ story.

In this story the central character was a rich man whose perspective on life was largely centred on himself. He would have been delighted with the opinions of the famous Scottish economist from Kirkcaldy, Fife, Adam Smith (1723-1790) who argued that a businessman who does what is best for himself and gets rich, the benefits of his success will filter down to others who will gain from his prosperity.

In an age of the phenomenon of billionaires dominating world wealth and access to power, it certainly looks like Adam Smith’s model of free market economics was too optimistic in its assessment of human nature. There are too many people like this man who used his great profits to extend his business increasingly which must have meant taking over the strips of land of others in order to accommodate the greater yields of grain his land produced.

He was stockpiling food at such a rate there was no space left. How did he see this problem? As an excuse to stop stockpiling? No! he planned an extension of his premises to enable him to stockpile more! I know it is a story, but there are plenty of people who in the real world never have enough money or things of some kinds, no matter how wealthy they are. How tragic that he didn’t have a good accountability partner or friend who could challenge his choices.

But this happens for real as we have seen in the earlier stages of the Covid-19 virus crisis. It seems crazy just a few weeks ago that some people were purchasing vast quantities of toilet paper causing shortages for others. Once restrictions were put in place things calmed down and supplies steadily reappeared on supermarket shelves once again.

It raises the question of motivation why we react in the way we do to such times as these. Why sometimes we may be tempted as Christians to join in the stockpiling and why on other occasions we are not. However, Jesus’ point is clear contradicting Adam Smith; thinking primarily of self instead of others is quite likely to be bad for everyone. How good are you at thinking about the needs of others as well as yourself?  Ask yourself this question: Has there been a time when you had to challenge yourself because of faulty thinking about my wants rather than prioritising my needs?

(b) The appraisal of Jesus (Luke 12:15, 20-21) Then He said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.’…²⁰ ‘But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” ²¹ ‘This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich towards God.’ 

In our culture people can be rated by the fashionable clothes they are wearing (or not!); by the type of car they drive or size of home they live in; at school pupils may see their status depending on the possession of the latest style mobile phone, their expensive footwear or whatever is the ‘must have’  thing at that time. It can also happen to us all subconsciously in that we assess the worth of other people by the ‘things’ they possess.

Jesus offers a strong challenge to that way of thinking. Then He said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.’… (Luke 12:15) it must be a tough time in the fashion industry just now –not many people will dress up to work from home or to stay at home! Party wear or accessories are not going to be needed for some time. More seriously, if this crisis continues it will potentially reshape quite significantly many aspects of our lives. We have all been forced to stop and think about the way we have been living. What has stood out most for you? This is a good question to reflect on later.

What did God say to this man in the story here? ‘But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” (Luke 12:20).

For him his stockpiling was the equivalent of a large pension and food security in later years of his life. It was a much more considered strategy than panic buying of good in a shop. But no matter how big his stockpile it was never enough. He always needed to have more. Was he in charge over these ‘things’ or were they in some emotional way in charge of him?

In what or whom do you find your security? If it is our good looks then the mirror on the wall will eventually disappoint us –unless our eyesight starts to dim before the wrinkles and grey hairs become too many to bother about! If it is wealth or possessions then one day we will leave it all behind.

We are familiar with these words from attending funeral services: We brought nothing into the world and we cannot take anything out of the world. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord (I Timothy 6:7; Job 1:21). The man in the story had never considered that he was not in ultimate control of his life – His life was in God’s hands.

What did Jesus then say by way of application to His first hearers and to us today? Luke 12:21 states: This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich towards God.’  What place does God have in your thinking and priorities? Where does He figure in your hopes and aspirations? To what extent do His values influence and shape yours and mine?  These are deep questions with no easy answers. However, we must give them serious thought if we intend to be wise women and men in the sight of God, Amen

Our closing song is ‘Build Your kingdom Here’

Closing Prayer

Thank you Lord Jesus for the privilege of serving in Your name in the communities in which You have placed us. Help us to practise the values that shaped Your life and ministry so that others may seem something of Your amazing love and grace through us this week. For Jesus’ sake, Amen

Benediction:  The Grace

May the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God
and the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with us all evermore, Amen

Remember tonight the national online prayer service at 7pm.

It is good to ask questions because they can open up opportunities to find answers on topics that can be of great importance to us. The teaching methods of rabbis in Jesus’ day with their disciples included a significant proportion of discussions on key subjects by way of asking questions and seeking to discern an appropriate biblical answer.

In this passage today the unexpected question put to Jesus is recorded in Luke 17:20: Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come… The standard teaching on this subject in Jewish synagogues at that time focussed on a military strongman who would lead the nation to evict the occupying Roman forces and establish a godly Jewish nation under his rule. This figure was viewed as the Messiah sent in God’s name. The questioners wanted a checklist of things to tick off to indicate how close they might be to that event. It is similar to Christians seeking to try to work out how close we are to Jesus’ second coming. What did Jesus say in response to their question?

1.Beware of false predictions (Luke 17:20-24) ²⁰ Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, ‘The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, ²¹ nor will people say, “Here it is,” or “There it is,” because the kingdom of God is in your midst.’ ²² Then He said to His disciples, ‘The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. 

²³ People will tell you, “There He is!” or “Here He is!” Do not go running off after them. ²⁴ For the Son of Man in His day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. 

There have been a number of scientists with their different models claiming to suggest how the Covid-19 virus pandemic will go in our country. Some of them may be right and accurate in their predictions, but no-one knows for certain.

Yet it doesn’t stop some of the headlines in newspapers and other on-line sources that offer a level of clarity in interpretation of the data that goes beyond the evidence. Of course we want certainty of what will happen in coming months, but no-one knows for certain.

In the same way, there are plenty of people who make claims that they know when Jesus is coming back, and a few individuals have even claimed to be Jesus come back to earth! What does He say here? Ignore them! Quite a few cults or new religions began by people making claims about Jesus’ return. God hasnot given us sufficient information to make such a prediction.

In Mark 13:32 Jesus specifically said that only God the Father knows the date of His return. It will be when no-one is expecting it. We must ask God to help us handle the uncertainty of life today. Will this new way of living here make people in richer countries more sensitive to the fact that hundreds of millions of people have only ever lived with this kind of economic uncertainty in the two-thirds world?

2. A clear pointer (Luke 17:25) But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. The events of the first Easter were still in the future when Jesus spoke these worlds. It was a prophetic prediction that came true. There were many Old Testament prophecies referencing the birth, life death and resurrection of Jesus hundreds of years earlier. God keeps His word. He is trustworthy. How trustworthy are you and I when we make promises?

3. Alarming Indifference (Luke 17:26-30 ‘Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. ²⁷ People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. ²⁸ ‘It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. ²⁹ But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulphur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. ³⁰ ‘It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. 

‘Business as usual’ is what is conveyed here. Even when there were warning signs they were ignored. No matter how strong the challenge to them, they were living life as before, they had no interest in what God was trying to communicate. This pattern was not new, the exact same thing happened in the time of the ‘natural disasters centuries earlier in the times of Noah and Lot.

There are plenty of questions that arise from this observation. These include: How open am I to God speaking into my life? Or if I am not giving God first place in my life, what will it take for me to stop what I am doing and listen to Him and then be willing to take action? 

4. Additional Pointers (Luke 17:31-37)³¹ On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. ³² Remember Lot’s wife!  ³³ Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. 

³⁴ I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. ³⁵ Two women will be grinding corn together; one will be taken and the other left.’  ³⁷ ‘Where, Lord?’ they asked. He replied, ‘Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.’ 

These verses are a warning and a challenge to complacency. We must not put off committing our life to follow Jesus because we think we have plenty of years ‘to do our own thing’ first. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow let alone a few weeks, months or years.

As Christians these verses are a challenge to avoid drifting through life giving God a place but not ‘the place’ at the centre of our lives. These words from Jesus were far from a timetable for His second coming. Instead they should make us think and question as to what is most important in our lives,most of all if He came back unexpectedly tonight or tomorrow would you be ready? The only way we can be ready is if we have already put our faith and trust in Him. Don’t delay taking that step today if you havn’t done it before. The person who by faith accepts Jesus as Lord and Saviour will be welcomed into God’s family for ever, the moment they truly seek it in prayer. I hope that is true today for us all.

Our song for reflection today is: ‘All my days I will sing this song of gladness’    

Brian Talbot