How do we express our confidence in God? It inevitably involves a child-like trust that He will take care of us and provide for our needs and lead and direct us in the right paths for our lives.
However, taking steps of faith can be very dangerous, but we are in a secure place when we are in the hands of our great God.
An illustration of remarkable faith and trust was seen in Zurich Zoo in 2010. A hippo had a problem. It needed its teeth cleaned. Who would carry out this task? When it is considered that hippos are one of the most aggressive creatures in the world and have a bite that can cut a small boat in half; and what is more weigh up to three tonnes and are the third largest land mammal in the world; in addition, despite their cuddly figure they can outrun a human over short distances on land.
Which dentist would wish to take on such a patient? The answer was unexpected? Jill Sonsteby, a photographer from Florida, was privileged for fifteen minutes to watch a zebra appear to be staring into the jaws of death when it came nose to nose with the open-mouthed hippopotamus.
Yet the hippo had no intention of eating it for lunch –it was very happy to get its teeth cleaned. It was standard practice for Jewish prayers of that era to end with a doxology that is words of praise to God at the end of the prayer before the Amen. Different ones were used by rabbis and it is possible that Jesus used a variety of them both in His private and public prayers.
The familiar ending of the prayer Jesus taught His first disciples was found in the earliest Christian service manual ‘The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles’ from the late first century AD.
In Matthew 6:13b the concluding part of this prayer states: for Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. What was Jesus, and His followers who use this form of prayer, saying in these words? There are a few very simple things here, first:
(a)A commitment to the will of God For Yours in the kingdom The kingdom of course refers not to a geographical location, instead it is concerned with the rule of God; it is about His control over His world and by implication over our lives even over our prayers!
We cannot pray for God to rule over and in someone else’s life without the implied assumption that we are equally desirous of God doing the same in our own lives! He has to be Lord of our lives first if we are honestly to expect Him to intervene in other people’s lives, in response to our earnest petitions in prayer. Does He have first place in your life today?
(b) Confidence in the power of God For Yours is the power Psalm 62:11 (NKJV) states: God has spoken once, Twice I have heard this: that power belongs to God. We need to repeat these words in our hearts.
Ultimate power does not lie in London or Edinburgh, or Brussels or Washington DC, but with God. God can grant us the strength to do the work He has entrusted to us. Yet we must never forget where the power comes from, as Jesus reminded His first disciples prior to the Day of Pentecost in Acts 1:8:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. It is not if but when; it is not possible but certain; it is not rationed but given in full measure by our wonderful God. Do you have full confidence in God that your needs and those of your family and friends can be met by Him today?
(c) Concerned for the glory of God For yours is the glory, for ever Amen It is all about You and Your glory. John the apostle in his visions in the book of Revelation was blessed to see glimpses of the eternal future that God has in store at the end of the age.
John saw the heavenly beings praising the Lamb (Jesus) and the One on the Throne (God the Father) because what they had purposed had come to pass. In a loud voice they sang: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!”
13Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea and all that is in them, singing: “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honour and glory and power, for ever and ever!” (Revelation 5:12-13).
Here on earth we can give praise and glory to God rejoicing in what He has done, what He is doing and what He is going to do in the future. Will you start this new day planning to glorify God in all that you will do today? I hope we can all do that, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Our song for reflection is Robin Mark’s well known: ‘All for Jesus’
Life can be confusing at times with all the choices that we may have to make. Take a look at these road signs! I cannot remember where I first saw these signs but I am glad they are not near where I live! We need clarity on the public highway from the signage.
If I was to ask –have you ever been tempted? This would be a foolish question because everyone would give the answer ‘yes’!
Anyone who said ‘no’ had either misunderstood the question or deliberately giving the wrong answer. It is a universal human experience, a part of daily life that we cannot escape from our earliest years to our final ones.
This is the third petition Jesus invited His followers to use to gain assistance from God. Matthew 6:11 was concerned with our physical needs –give us this day our daily bread;
Matthew 6:12 was concerned with our spiritual needs –forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors. Here Matthew 6:13 is concerned with our moral needs. We need His help because without it we would fail time and again. These words are for disciples of Jesus who have made mistakes but who want to do better; to please Him more in our daily lives.
This is a humbling petition because it implies that I am naturally weak, that I need help. The tragedy in both secular life and in spiritual matters many people can make much bigger mistakes than needed to be the case because they were unwilling to admit that they needed assistance.
Stop for a moment and ask yourself: when did I last pray these words about a specific situation? What was it I was asking God to do? What difference did it make?
Anyone involved in living in the real world will need to come to God time and again and offer this plea: God keep me out of the pathway of serious temptation to dishonour You. Help me to make the right choices for myself or for my family; or in my workplace or in my local church, or wherever it may be.
The English-language wording here: Lead us not into temptation is slightly ambiguous, because someone might think that without our plea to God that He might let us go in the wrong direction in our lives.
This is not what Jesus intended us to understand here. Jesus is actually asking us to pray: ‘please direct me in the opposite direction, out of any place where I could be tempted to dishonour God’. Effectively, God please help me to stay alert in my thinking, words and actions to make the best choices for my life and for the other people impacted by my decisions.
Now life at times can be very hard, but with God’s help we can make good choices and in particular avoid making many of the more serious potential mistakes. Paul, in the New Testament gives us this assurance:
13No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it (I Corinthians 10:13).
This is a verse from the Bible worth memorising. Whatever you are going through just now and whatever we may experience in the future this is God’s guarantee to us –what a blessing!
Our song for reflection is: ‘Though trials will come’ by Graham Kendrick
We will all be so aware of the amazing support and generosity our wonderful, hardworking NHS staff have quite rightly been receiving.
As a church we would now like to also show the same support and generosity to local care home staff who are also working so hard.
We have a care home right across the road from our Panmurefield premises and as a church we also visit other care homes in Broughty Ferry and surrounding areas.
We would like to ask everyone if they would be willing to support us in this.
We are looking for donations of chocolates, biscuits, cake bars, toiletries and any other non perishable gifts you think the staff working in the care homes would appreciate at this time.
These can be placed in a donation box at 5 Crathes Way Broughty Ferry DD5 3BY and we will then package them up and deliver them to the staff.
Please feel free to share this post for others who may wish to help too.
Thank you 😊🌈
Ps we are hoping to get other drop off places soon and will keep you posted.
Once more we have reached the middle of another week with a chance to reflect on our circumstances in the light of God’s Word with an opportunity to spend some time praying for our world, other people and for ourselves. I invite you to take some time for prayer today.
However, first to reflect briefly on one of the most difficult tasks Jesus asked His followers to undertake. It is at one level very simple, but at another level, possibly one of the hardest things you may ever have to do. What is it Jesus invites us to do?
Matthew 6: 12, 14-15 The problem of forgiveness …forgive us our debts
One of the saddest categories of people in the world covers those who cannot handle the issue of forgiveness. In some cases it is a problem of receiving it; with other people it is a problem of offering it. John Stott, the distinguished Anglican minister in the second half of the twentieth century, once reported in one of his books [reference unknown] the words of the head of a large mental hospital, who in the 1970s told Stott: ‘I could dismiss half of my patients tomorrow if they could be assured of forgiveness.’
Lives can also be deeply damaged by an unwillingness to offer forgiveness to someone who is genuinely sorry for their past misconduct. Sometimes this can result in even greater emotional damage than the original crime, injury or problem. The longer a problem is left unresolved the harder it is to get it resolved.
However, it is not just in the secular world that forgiveness is a major issue; it can be just as serious a difficulty in the church. Christians claim to be followers of Jesus Christ with the implication that He sets the standards for the conduct of those who claim His name. Yet the hurtful words and thoughtless actions that can be experienced sometimes in Christian circles are unworthy of people who have pledged their allegiance to Him.
We have a responsibility, as far as it is up to us, to seek to bring resolution to relational problems and get them put behind us so that we are not damaged further by them. A friendship may never be restored or a family tie may never be the same again, but a wound can be healed rather than an emotional sore being left to fester for years to come. Anyone who finds this subject an easy one has little idea of its difficulties. Although sometimes it is the easiest thing in the world to acknowledge a fault, on other occasions it can be the hardest thing we have ever contemplated. What does Jesus say about this important subject?
1. Our responsibilityAnd forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors (Matthew 6:12) The key word here is ‘as’. Many people feel powerless at the present time having to be at home wanting to do so much more for their community or city, but for a variety of reasons are unable to assist in the search for a vaccine or undertake much smaller local tasks for which they have volunteered. Jesus in this verse gave an enormous challenge to us all.
We want God to forgive us when we make mistakes or do something more seriously wrong? The problem of forgiveness here is that it is conditional. God promises to forgive us when we ask, if we are also willing to do the same with other people. Is there any situation you need to address today? Or any person you need to speak to?
2. Our blessingFor if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you (Matthew 6:14) The key word here is ‘if’. It is not taken for granted because it can be deeply challenging to address some issues. But the reward for doing so is out of this world! To the person who seeks to address their own failings and forgive other people when they confess theirs, God says: I forgive you all your sins as well! Do you need to offer forgiveness to someone today? Do you need to receive it in your heart to be liberated from the pain of past failures or sins? This is a blessing we cannot afford to miss out on!
3. Our tragedyBut if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins (Matthew 6:15) If the reward of forgiving others is amazing, the failure to do so has alarming consequences. God is very clear here. Our relationship with Him can only function as is should if our hearts are right with Him and with other people. God at great cost to Himself sent Jesus to die in our place on the cross and take the punishment for our sins 2,000 years ago. In return, He calls us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus in both our faith and practice. Can He count on you living for Him today?
Our song for reflection today is: ‘How deep the Father’s love for us’
Pointers for our Prayers
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 those countries in Asia that have had a new rise in Covid-19 infections that they may quickly get them under control.
Continue to pray for the Government in Scotland and in the wider UK and for their clinical and scientific advisers, that they may work together effectively at this time
Pray for our NHS and Social Care Staff as they continue to serve so willingly the many people under their care. We pray that they and all other workers in our country may be able to carry out their duties as safely as possible.
Pray for those ill with the Covid-19 virus, that they may soon regain their health and strength. We pray also for people with other health conditions that they may also have access to the medical care they require at this time. We continue to remember Jim and Jan F; we pray for Ali T’s parents, Jude R’s grandma and Isdale A’s dad; we also pray for others waiting for hospital appointments to address their health issues at this time.
Pray for teachers and pupils, and lecturers and students, at different levels of education especially those known to you. That they may be able to work adequately online. Help them to overcome the challenges of technology and the difficulties of communicating effectively through online learning.
We pray for the emotional and mental health of our nation, especially those of whatever age who are particularly struggling to cope with the lock down and the inability to meet with their families or friends.
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.
Pray for those recently bereaved that they may experience more of God’s love and comfort at this time, in particular we especially remember Betty and Scott R, Betty W, Eloise P, Elizabeth F and their families.
Pray for those with planned house moves including Betty M and John and Pat A that they make know God’s peace about it in these unsettling times.
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.
Pray in advance for the online meetings and activities throughout this week and the service next Sunday
God had asked the Israelites to trust Him to provide free food for them in the desert when they came out of Egypt under the leadership of Moses more than three thousand years ago. The reality was that a group of over two million people could not have survived naturally in that arid environment as there would have been insufficient resources to go round. However, would the Israelites accept the deal God put to them? How willing are we to trust God to provide for our needs? If we are honest most of us have some times when we do really well in placing our faith in God regarding our daily needs, but at other times, and not necessarily in tougher times, we really struggle.
Living by faith is easy to proclaim, but because of our sinful humanity little (or big!) doubts can creep in and cause us problems. Exodus 16:16-27 gives the details of what happened with the Israelites following their exit from Egypt under the leadership of Moses:
16 This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Each one is to gather as much as he needs. Take an omer [an ancient unit of measurement equal to one person’s daily food needs] for each person you have in your tent.’ “17 The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little. 18 And when they measured it by the omer, he who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little. Each one gathered as much as he needed.
19 Then Moses said to them, “No one is to keep any of it until morning.”20However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell. So Moses was angry with them.21 Each morning everyone gathered as much as he needed, and when the sun grew hot, it melted away.
22 On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much—two omers for each person—and the leaders of the community came and reported this to Moses. 23 He said to them, “This is what the Lord commanded: ‘Tomorrow is to be a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.’ “24 So they saved it until morning, as Moses commanded, and it did not stink or get maggots in it.
25 “Eat it today,” Moses said, “because today is a Sabbath to the Lord. You will not find any of it on the ground today. 26 Six days you are to gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any.”27Nevertheless, some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather it, but they found none.
There are two examples here of a lack of trust. First of all in verse twenty there were people who did not dare eat all the food in their tent in case there was none tomorrow, despite the assurances they had received from God through Moses. What is this example saying to us? The first group of people were extremely risk averse. They didn’t want to exercise trust in Moses and by implication in God, to provide for their needs in this very different time.
Stepping outside their comfort zone was to be avoided at all costs. Well we could as individuals and as a church take the same approach in the current Covid-19 virus crisis and do very little indeed. Or, by contrast, we could entrust ourselves to God and say what can we do, while obeying the public health guidelines for social distancing and limited interaction in the physical world?
In our communities it is inspiring that so many individuals have taken this latter attitude and offered to help in any way to serve other people. Think of Captain Tom Moore aged 99, for example, who walked on his zimmer on laps of his garden to raise money for the NHS. If anyone was entitled to ‘put his feet up’ and rest surely he qualified. He aimed to raise £1,000 but it is over £23 million pounds.
It is also remarkable how many businesses and charities and indeed churches within an incredibly short space of time set up online meetings and activities to continue their work. Within our own congregation, I am extremely grateful to those who have creatively in different ways helped us rise to the challenges we face and for those who gave many hours to set up our meetings and services on the zoom video conference platform.
Then there were a second group of Israelites in Exodus 16:27 who did not collect twice as much on the Friday, as God had suggested because He would not send any on the Saturday. These people were unwise in a different way. They were unwilling to plan for the future. They expected God to do for them miraculously what they could easily have done for themselves.
Sometimes there is no substitute for sheer hard work and putting in some long hours. Anyone who has achieved significant success in starting a business or honing a musical or sporting gift, for example, will have spent years of effort to prepare for future success. Gary Player, one of the greatest golfers of all time, once remarked that the more he practised the luckier he became in professional golf tournaments.
We are genuinely in unprecedented times and seeing ways forward will take steps of faith for churches and businesses as well as individuals and families. Church buildings are closed, but churches are alive. Four times as many people have participated in a Christian worship service (on-line) since the covid-19 crisis began than attended in person in the months before it.
The majority of churches through their members are in contact with more unchurched people in their communities than ever before. Neighbourhood conversations have flourished at a safe distance! Our lives will be demonstrably different for the foreseeable future, of that there is no doubt. However, let us seize the opportunities to build friendships, care for those in need and develop forms of Christian service and ministry that will in the future be significantly better than what we left behind.
Our church Bible verse for the year is Ephesians 3:20-21: Now unto Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.. What are you and I praying for and what are you seeking to do to help make this a reality to the glory of God here in the place where God has placed us? I hope when we are finally back together as a church in one physical place that we will have so many stories to tell of amazing things that have happened… What might your story be? Amen.
Our song for reflection today is ‘Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death’
The approach Jesus directed His first disciples to use in prayer is centred first of all on God the Father, who He is and how we should approach Him. It then turns to highlight the primary purpose of praying for the child of God. It is to ask Him to prompt us to desire the things that He most wants to happen on earth. It is half-way through the model for prayer before it turns to us and our requests.
Matthew 6:11 states: Give us this day our daily bread. Notice it is ‘we’ and ‘us’ not ‘me’. It is community-centred praying at its best. If our prayers to God are primarily centred on me and what I want then this model for prayer commended by Jesus is a radical challenge to it. Do I or you need to stop and consider how closely aligned are our priorities in prayer with those of God as revealed to us by Jesus?
I have the privilege of working in the local food bank at the present time. It is not something I had ever planned to do, but when needs arise in a community as has happened in the last couple of months there are many individuals who want to make a difference. It is so encouraging that across our city of Dundee there have been many people able and willing to contribute in a variety of capacities.
In the early days of our work after the Covid-19 virus related lock down began there were some difficulties in obtaining certain food items. It was not often that bread was raised as one of the sought after items, as there appeared to be a regular supply of bread products in the shops. So what is the point of this petition then and now, is it really just about obtaining ‘bread’?
There are probably only a few people in the UK who could not afford a loaf of bread each day. So why should we pray this petition? It is a daily recognition that God is interested in even the small things going on in our lives. It is also an acknowledgement that the ultimate source of our ‘daily bread’ comes from God. James 1:17 reminds us: Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father. Or as Paul puts it in I Corinthians 4:7-8a: For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not? 8Already you have all you want…
In context, Paul’s words were spoken to some comparatively wealthy people in his day who did not appreciate how fortunate they were to have such blessings. They needed to be more sensitive to the needs of others who were struggling to afford even such basic necessities of life. In our materialistic culture with the constant advertising of new products that has the intention of enticing us to purchase things we will never need and in all honesty don’t really want. It is so easy to lose a sense of perspective. Jesus wants us to come to a state of contentment with the provision of our needs and to inculcate a sense of gratitude for that provision.
As Paul put it in I Timothy 6:6: But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7For we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it. 8But if we have food and clothingand shelter, we will be content with that. To honour this aspect of prayer that Jesus has commended to us is to ask God to enable us to be freed from the materialistic spirit that saturates our culture and from which Christians have not been immune.
The challenge that Jesus is giving us here is to ask our Father in heaven to help us discern between our needs and our wants and to cultivate a spirit of gratitude when the former are met and to move towards the place where we do not miss some of the things that we might want.
Our song for reflection today is: ‘All I once held dear’
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.
A worksheet to accompany the video is also available here.
Another option for children is the Virtual Sunday School sessions which give an activity idea too.
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
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.
Call to Worship
The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters. 3Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? 4 The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. 5 They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Saviour.
Psalm 24
We are grateful to Gary Torbet for selecting the songs for worship for this service. Our opening song of praise and worship is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smrq6hc-vcU
Build MyLife
We continue to worship the Lord in our second song of praise and worship:
Lord Reign in Me
Opening prayer
Heavenly Father, once more we gather together to worship You on another Sunday at the start of this new week. We confess that it is difficult to distinguish between the days in this season of lock down, but we are thankful that each new day is a blessing we gratefully receive from Your hand.
We admit that it is so easy to focus on what we cannot do and to dwell on things that have had to be cancelled or family members and friends that we cannot meet at this time, rather than the good gifts of food and health and shelter and for some of us the opportunity to work.
We are so thankful for the good community spirit that prevails in our land as we seek to stand together through this difficult time. We come with humble gratitude for the dedicated service of NHS and Social Care staff who have helped save the lives of so many and continue to support many others in need.
Lord we thank You that You did not complain in the years spent on earth carrying out Your ministry about the tough times that were experienced, but as Hebrews 12:2 reminds us: Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
We pray that by Your Holy Spirit that we may be equipped and empowered to live for You in the coming days, Speak once more to us as we sing Your praises, read Your Holy Scriptures and listen to it being explained, to the glory of Your wonderful 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 – Fergus R
As we all grow up physically, this means we are not babies anymore and we have grown up. We also grow up mentally, making wiser decisions through having more experiences. At the same time as we grow physically and mentally, we also need to grow spiritually. This involves having a relationship with Christ as it says in 2 Peter 3:18 ’’But grow in the grace and knowledge of our lord and saviour Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and forever! Amen’’. To grow in Christ we need to talk to God and to do this we can pray to him.
Think of people that you are friends with, how did you become friends? Did you just stand there and talk to them and not give them an opportunity to talk back to you? Or did you create a good friendship and have a two-way conversation where you both got to know one another?
It’s the same when we talk to Christ, we need to pray, listen and live in him and we get to grow in him. In John 10:27-28 it says “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out my hand’’. This shows us that when we listen to Christ Jesus then we grow in him and we receive the greatest gift of all, eternal life!
So, my challenge to you all this week is to not just pray but to create a time for God to speak to us. And if you feel God speaking to you then I encourage you to listen to him, maybe go somewhere quiet or somewhere you can relax and just focus your attention on to God.
Let God rule your week and let him decide how we should spend our time wisely.
Thank you Lord for the opportunity to pray for other people as well as ourselves, While many of us are using the internet as a means to stay in touch with people, we pray today for families who cannot afford the internet and who also don’t have a TV in their house.
We give thanks for the food banks and other community agencies who are supporting people in this situation at this time. We praise You for the excellent working relationship between the agencies involved in this work in our city and pray that this may continue along with the many individuals who so willingly offer to serve those in need in our midst at this time.
We are conscious that at a time when many people are doing their very best to live their lives appropriately that in some homes and families strained relationships are causing tensions that we trust can be reduced in the coming days.
We particularly pray for those who sadly are experiencing domestic abuse in our nation, for whom staying at home is not a safe option at this time. We also pray for agencies working to help victims during this very challenging time. We remember too those who are supporting the vulnerable children and young people in our country in social services and schools.
We continue to remember day by day our health service and social care workers, together with other workers engaged in providing essential services in our country. We remember in particular those known to us…. Strengthen them and their colleagues at this difficult time.
For others in education seeking to support younger people through their education, grant wisdom particularly as they assess the work of pupils in crucial examination years. We pray that each one may know your peace during this time of uncertainty.
We pray for our Governments conscious at this time of review of lock down regulations that there is a need to speak as far as possible with one voice of clarity. Grant each one wisdom in the making of decisions that may have such serious implications for some people’s lives in the coming weeks.
In our Baptist Union of churches in Scotland we pray for:
The Continuing Ministry Development workshops taking place online this week. We pray for those leading the workshops (‘Leading an Evangelistic Course’ and in ‘Transformations, Generations and Innovations’) and those connecting in with the training sessions. In particular for:
David Vogan (Chaplain, Nethenvale and The Retreat, MHA Auchlochan) – We pray today for David Vogan as he seeks to support, strengthen and provide spiritual comfort, via phone, to residents and staff as much as he is able to during this Covid-19 crisis.
Dennistoun BC – We thank God for how He has provided for them in multiple ways. Bridges are being built through their outreach ministries and opportunities to share and talk about Jesus are becoming more frequent. God is opening a door for them to reach another areas of the city and we continue to pray that He would grant them all they need to do this in His power and for His glory.
Denny BC – We give thanks for people coming to faith and for the continued attendance by non-Christians as well as the increase in our community involvement. We pray for plans for more structured corporate missional activity over the coming year through courses like Christianity Explored, and for the redevelopment of our leadership structure.
Dingwall BC – We praise God for good relationships with our local community, through school chaplaincy and groups who have been using our building. Also, that some young families have joined us over the past few years. However, we value prayer for God’s provision of leaders for the next generation at DBC.
We also pray:
For other churches in our local area that God will help each one continue their work and witness at this time.
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 pray that you would give strength to exhausted staff as they seek to cover for absent colleagues and to support the many residents who have been unwell. We especially pray for the families of staff and patients who have died in recent days both in hospitals, residential care homes and in their own homes.
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 Ali T’s mum Norah in hospital and for her dad Frank at home. Thank you Lord for hearing our prayers as we bring them in the wonderful name of Your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ, Amen
Bible reading
17 In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good. 18 In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it. 19 No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God’s approval.
20 So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, 21 for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk. 22 Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? Certainly not in this matter!
23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: the Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. 30 That is why many among you are weak and ill, and a number of you have fallen asleep. 31 But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment. 32 Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world.
33 So then, my brothers and sisters, when you gather to eat, you should all eat together. 34 Anyone who is hungry should eat something at home, so that when you meet together it may not result in judgment. And when I come I will give further instructions.
I Corinthians 11:17-34
Before we come to listen to God’s Word let us sing: ‘Jesus shall take the highest honour’
The Message
Introduction
In the first decade of the twenty-first century in England there was a profoundly sad event, the death of a young child. However, the nature of this death was the reason for the national attention. The date was the child’s birthday aged one or two. The parents had decided that the child was too young for a party and put the child to bed on that evening, having invited adult friends to celebrate the occasion downstairs.
It was a winter’s evening and all the guests had heavy winter coats that were laid down on a bed, the child’s bed. Somehow I’ve forgotten the details but the medical report of the cause of death I believe suggested that the child had been smothered by the coats. The point of that celebration had been missed and would indelibly be fixed on the minds of every adult at that event, not least the grieving parents.
The apostle Paul in writing about public worship in Corinth in general and in this passage the Lord’s Supper in particular suggests that they too had been missing the point of the celebration.
1. The problems at Corinth (I Corinthians 11:17-22)
The apostle Paul is in Ephesus in another country Turkey, and receives a visit from some of Chloe’s household (I Corinthians 1:11) to report their serious concerns about the behaviour of certain members of the congregation in Corinth. They could not text, phone, email, tweet or even write their concerns in a letter that could be posted to the recipient, as all those forms of communication were unavailable to members of the public. Only Governments had access to a basic postal system.
In recent weeks police forces in various countries in the Western world have had to deal with numerous phone calls from people reporting their neighbours for breaking the lock down regulations. In some authorities apparently a majority of calls to the police have been to report this kind of offence. Clearly this family were so deeply distressed by what was going on in their church that they took some weeks off to undertake an arduous journey at their own expense to deliver this message. What was it that caused such a problem?
Corinth was a city like Edinburgh until relatively recently with a very wealthy elite few together with a majority of poorer people. There was little social interaction between the two. Meetings at this church had become a scandal. As well as members of Chloe’s family, Paul had also been visited by Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus (I Corinthians 16:17) men of high Christian integrity who may also have confirmed the difficulties that the church was experiencing.
The other problems listed in the first letter to the Church at Corinth were bad enough but to behave as they did at the agape meal and communion was as bad as anything Paul had ever come across. The wealthy minority who provided all the food and drinks, as the slaves and very poor would have had nothing to bring, were eating to excess and getting drunk having started before the arrival of the poorest members who may have eaten nothing that day and to add to their misery got almost nothing at church as well. What kind of witness was that?
Paul has already stated what is happening in communion in I Cor.10:16: Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation[fellowship /sharing] in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? How true was this of Corinth church? It was the exact opposite!
In fact in I Corinthians 12:19 Paul expresses serious reservations about whether some of the most serious offenders have ever truly trusted the Lord as their Saviour at all because there was no evidence of Christ-like character in the way they treated other people. What were the future implications for the church if their behaviour continued?
Quite bluntly Paul says if you cannot behave in a Christian manner then you had better stop the pretence of such folly and close down altogether! Every church should ask the question – how do people outside our congregation view us? The result might be quite a shock in some cases. We might also individually ask a friend who to offer their thoughts about how we are practising our faith!
2. The Preparation for the Lord’s Supper (I Corinthians 11:27-34)
Paul here indicates to us that it is to our spiritual profit to prepare to come to worship services, especially when coming to the Lord’s Table.
(a) How can I or we do that? (i) Pray for People taking part in the services I would want to encourage you to pray for the people taking part in our worship services, not just for me or whoever is preaching, though I would desire that, but for all who are taking part in some aspect of Christian ministry at a worship service, that at the present time also includes those operating the zoom platform for our online service. To start to do that will ensure we recognise just how many people offer their gifts and time as an offering of worship to the Lord. Paul here indicates to us that it is to our spiritual profit to prepare to come to worship services, especially when coming to the Lord’s Table.
(ii) Pray for other people and for yourself as you come to church that God may minister into each person’s life what He wants us to hear. It may be a word of encouragement, or a word of rebuke; a word of challenge or a word commending patience, or of some actions to take or words to speak to another person;
It may be confirmation of guidance from God, or step along the way on an issue about which God has been speaking to you, a conviction over the need to repent of some sin or a call to get involved in a form of ministry in the church or even a call to mission overseas.
(b) What does Paul suggest here? (v28) In this specific context it is about coming to the Lord’s Table but the principle is applicable to other parts of worship services as well. 28A person ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
Paul speaks here of self- examination. Is there some sin I need to confess to the Lord in thought word or deed? If nothing specific comes to mind then a general silent prayer of confession of sin.
In Psalm 24:4 David speaks about how we should enter God’s presence in worship. He refers to the person who has clean hands and a pure heart. Right with God but also right with other people in our conduct; the early Christian manual for worship, The Didache (c.100AD) in its guidelines on attendance at the Lord’s Supper stated: ‘Let none who have a quarrel with his fellow join in your meeting until they are reconciled, lest your sacrifice be defiled’.
This teaching is based on Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:23-24: Therefore if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift –these words of Jesus were a general principle not simply restricted to the Lord’s Table. The key issue is our attitude of heart as we come to His table as His invited guests.
(c) What are the Consequences of failing to act? (vs 27, 29-34) 27Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord 29For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30That is why many among you are weak and sick and a number of you have fallen asleep. 31But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment.
Before I comment on the consequences here of wrongful participation.
(i) What does Paul mean by an unworthy manner or unworthily (v27)? These are words spoken to Christians. This passage is not a criticism of someone who in good faith took communion when offered it in the past prior to coming to Christ. These words are addressed to believers in the Lord Jesus. What does it say to us as Christians?
First of all we are required to come with reverence to receive the bread and wine. The elements are bread and wine, but it is what these natural elements represent in symbolic form as we receive then by faith as visible tokens of our Lord’s sacrificial love for us.
Secondly we have a time of quiet at the start of communion in order to allow each of us to pray and prepare our hearts in order that we may partake of the bread and wine. None of us are good enough to be invited on merit. However Jesus was good enough and just as God accepted His sacrifice for us on the cross, in like manner He welcomes us to His table as His honoured guests.
(ii) What are the Consequences of failing to do what God says? (vs 29-30)? 29For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30That is why many among you are weak and sick and a number of you have fallen asleep.
Paul says that some of the Corinthian Church had become unwell as a result of their sin and in the most serious cases God has shortened the earthly life of some believers there for the same reason so that they will stop bringing shame and dishonour to His name. This passage is a challenge to live a life of integrity. On what areas of my life do I need to work on at the present time?
3. The Purpose of the Lord’s Supper (I Corinthians 11:23-26)
(a) Thanksgiving Episcopalians call Communion ‘The Eucharist’, that is the Greek word for thanksgiving, giving thanks to God with a grateful heart for what the Lord has done for us on the cross. We must always have the element of thankfulness in our prayers as we come to His table.
(b) Fellowship Communion is not a solitary act rather it is a sacred communal gathering of a local church sometimes with other Christians also joining in this act of worship. I Corinthians 10:16 draws attention to this aspect of the observance of the Lord’s Supper. The same word in Greek also means ‘communion’, ‘participation’ and union in Christ. It is a family celebration. The Bible knows nothing of ‘solo’ Christianity outside a community of faith in a local church.
(c) Memorial Jesus said: do this in remembrance of Me. This was a parallel to the reminder God gave to the Jewish people concerning their festival of Passover in Exodus 12:14: This day shall be to you as a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations (NKJV). There are many things we need to remember in our lives but this act of Jesus 2,000 years ago tops the list of essential items!
(d) Obediencedo this what we are doing today is not simply a regular and good habit like cleaning our teeth, it is a command of the King of Kings we are required to obey. The Bible does not specify how often each year a local congregation should hold communion services or the form they should take, only that we do it with a reasonable degree of regularity, which in the majority of Scottish Baptist congregations is most Sundays.
(e) Evangelistic When we reflect how much it mattered to God to ensure you and I can have salvation then it must matter to us. This in turn reminds us of our need to share the good news of Jesus with other people. Are you praying for named people in your private prayers to come to Christ? I hope so! God may choose to use you as the human instrument used to answer your prayer.
(f) Eschatological (this word refers to the end of the world when Jesus returns) we hold communion services for a limited period of time: until He comes. Each week it is once more, but also once less until the return of Jesus. In heaven we will be with Jesus Himself no more need there for symbols to remind us of Him –then we will see Him in all His resplendent glory.
(g) God’s Purposebefore theyeat (v28). God does not put this passage in the Scriptures to keep us from His table; on the contrary He wants us to benefit more from it by recognising more and more its wonderful significance for us as His children. May we each be able with great joy to come now to His table for His glorious name’s sake, Amen
Our song before we come to communion is: In Christ Alone
The Lord’s Supper
Jesus invites all Christian who have committed their lives to follow Him to participate in this act of worship. The apostle Paul wrote these words of Scripture in I Corinthians 11:23-26 to guide our observance of Communion.
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: the Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’25 In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.
Prayer: Choose your own words of prayer to give thanks for the bread and wine that represent the costly gift of His body and blood for us.
Take the bread: Jesus said: ‘This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.
Take the wine: Jesus said: This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’
Prayer: Thank you Lord Jesus for the privilege of participating in this special act to remember Your costly sacrifice in our place. Help us in this coming week to live our lives in a way honouring to You, for the glory of Your wonderful and holy Name, Amen
Our closing song is Behold our God
Closing Prayer
Thank you Lord for the amazing privilege of knowing Your investment in our lives that demonstrates so clearly how much You love and care for us. As we come to the close of this service we prepare to enter another week with Your strength confident that You will go with us into every situation we experience. Thank you Lord for all You have done for us, in Jesus’ name we pray, 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
For us as adults this is a big issue with which most of us struggle at one time or other in our lives. Of course most of the time things that happen are okay and we ‘go with the flow’, but there are a number of other times maybe disappointments over how a career has progressed (or not as the case may be); or a serious illness in the family circle; or a marital breakdown or the infidelity of a spouse or the death of a child or a whole series of possible things that can arise which can give us major problems to address.
Some people appear to rise above their problems and grow stronger in their faith as a result –others often with what appears on the outside to be lesser challenges can falter and fail and backslide or at least lose their passion for the Lord for a time. I doubt if there is anyone reading these words that has not had at least one situation in life in which you have struggled to reconcile events in life with your confidence in the providential care of God?
We may never have shared the issues with anyone apart from the Lord, but they are there in the background of our lives. Yet in all life’s ups and downs Jesus invites us as His followers to come to our Father in prayer and to say Your will be done in earth as it is in heaven with complete sincerity and trust in His provision for our needs and His guidance for our lives.
Jesus has set the context in which we utter these words. He has first reminded us of the nature of the person to whom we come –Our Father in heaven. He has then shared with us the passion of His heart, and He desires it to be ours as well, that at the top of our list of practical concerns in life is the honouring of His name hallowed by Your name. Following on from His top priority Jesus sought to enlarge the vision of His followers to see not only their own concerns and those of others around them but to pray from a much bigger perspective in our prayers by sensing what God is doing in the world and seeking to follow Him.
To pray Your kingdom come…on earth as it is in heaven is to recognise that we are part of something so much greater than we could ever imagine; that our small contribution may be much more significant in eternal terms than we had ever realised; As ambassadors for the King of Kings we have a part to play in the realisation of what human beings and the rest of this world were created for! This is the context in which we are called to pray Your will be done (in my life as in the rest of this world) on earth as it is in heaven.
However, let us remember and never forget:
1. The power of prayer Prayer does change things. The Bible is full of extraordinary answers to prayer. It is good to remind ourselves of that fact. In Genesis 24, for example there is the account of Eliezer, the chief servant of Abraham, being given the responsibility of finding a wife for his master’s son Isaac. His brief is very specific. The young lady in question must not be from the Canaanite people who live in that country, instead he is required to go to Syria to find Abraham’s relatives and from that family network choose a bride for Isaac.
He has never met the family before and although he may have been given some names of people to ask for he only knows that they live in the vicinity of the town of Aram Naharaim in north-west Mesopotamia. Eliezer’s prayer was simple, and it is recorded in Genesis 24:42-52. In summary, he said: God bring the woman who will marry Isaac to meet me at the spring of water on the edge of this town. Let me know she is the one because she offers not only to get me a refreshing drink of water but will offer to attend to the needs of my camels as well! In exceptional circumstances there can be extraordinary supernatural intervention. This is to remind us that nothing is impossible with God. Do you need to receive that encouragement today?
It is not an alternative to using all appropriate means at our disposal to attempt to reduce the difficulties we face. Some medical and social care staff in our hospitals and residential care homes at the present time may be praying for divine protection as they carry out their duties, for example, but this would be in addition to, not instead of, using the best personal protective equipment available as well. In that scenario, the rest of us will be praying that they do indeed get the best logistical support possible in such a critical time as this.
However, there is another side to the picture:
2. The Paradox in Prayer Why do we need to pray? If God is sovereign and His will is done in the world, where do our prayers fit in to all this? If prayer isn’t trying to ‘make’ God change His mind, like a little child trying to wear down a parent! What exactly are we doing? There are many paradoxes in the Christian life and in the Scriptures. For example, God is sovereign yet we are responsible. Jesus is human, but equally divine. God is one yet also in three persons, Father Son and Holy Spirit. The biblical authors were responsible for their books yet equally God the Holy Spirit inspired them to convey God’s truth without error.
However, just as an earthly judge allows representations re mitigating circumstances prior to passing sentence on a guilty defendant, so our heavenly Father takes into account the prayers of His people when He is taking action on the earth. Genesis 18:16-33 records the extraordinary account of God inviting Abraham to offer prayer with respect to the forthcoming judgement on Sodom and Gomorrah. Genesis 18:17: Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? The remainder of the chapter records the interchanges of Abraham in prayer with God. Yes, you did read those words correctly, that your prayers might be taken into account by God to the degree that they have a bearing on the outcome of that difficult problem. Now that is incredible!
But we cannot presume that we know exactly what God’s will is with respect to things we pray for. We pray because Almighty God has invited us to do so and have to trust Him with respect to the outcome in response to our petitions to Him. However, never forget that it is not just great Christian men and women whose prayers are heard. Every believer has the right to bring our petitions to Him, although we cannot assume a particular outcome on the vast majority of occasions, yet in our best moments what we want is that: Your will [is] done on earth as it is in heaven.
Our song for reflection today is: ‘Behold our God’
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’
