We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the first Sunday of Lent. Please stay for refreshments after the Yetholm service.
Call to Worship We are beginning our journey through Lent. God is with us on the way. We come to find light in the shadows and strength in our weakness. We remember God’s faithfulness. We seek God’s mercy and truth step by step, day by day. We trust in God’s steadfast love, so we worship with grateful hearts! Hymn 93 – Let us with a gladsome mind Prayer of Adoration and Confession Good and gracious God, Creator of earth and sky, Maker of rainbows and raindrops, we praise you for the beauty of the world us, and for the hope of life with you now and always. We praise you for your faithfulness and loving kindness throughout all generations, for your promise of grace, for your compassion and redemption revealed to us in Christ Jesus. Receive our prayers and praises this day and teach us how to live by your love. Wise and Merciful God, you made a covenant with us in faithfulness, but we confess we are not always so faithful to you. We grow tired and restless when things don’t go our way. We lose patience with others. We lack compassion for our neighbours in need, and forget to express love for those closest to us. Forgive us. Make us prisms of your love, making rainbows of your light, creating beauty and deepening hope wherever we go. Jesus says, ‘Do not be afraid. I love you. You are forgiven. Go sin no more’ Lord’s Prayer Readings – Genesis 9:8–17 (Pg 10) Mark 1: 9-15 (pg 1002) Hymn 337 – Forty days and forty nights Weekly Prayer Heavenly Father, help us to see this time of Lent as an opportunity to develop our discipleship and discipline and as your Son Jesus showed us how to reject temptation, fill us with grace to be faithful to his example in this Lenten season and the years ahead. Amen Sermon Satan had a problem. The Good news of Jesus was just too popular, and people were being changed by the message and the truth it contained. They were paying less attention to Satan. Now I think there was something of the Presbyterian in Satan, for what did he do, but call a meeting. He called all his demons and presented the problem to them. ‘How do we stop people listening to the good news Jesus offers. What lie can we tell them to confuse them. I will give you 48 hours to come up with a plan’, he said. So 48 hours later they reconvened, and Satan asked them what they had come up with. One demon immediately said, We can tell the people that there is no such thing as right, then no-one will be inspired to do anything good or beautiful, for nothing is right. But Satan wasn’t convinced. But then a shy demon raised his hand and said, ‘Let us just tell humans that there is no hurry’. Satan clapped his hands and said, ‘Perfect. We will tell them that there is no hurry.’ And we humans have been listening to that lie ever since. There is plenty of time to change, to do what Jesus is asking of me. But there is no hurry. I will be more serious about prayer, I will volunteer, I will up my giving - but there is always tomorrow. We keep procrastinating, and we are all very good at it. But this is the 1st Sunday of Lent, and Mark’s Gospel tells us that there is a hurry. Whereas Matthew and Luke go into a lot of detail about the temptations, Mark is terse and leaves a lot to the imagination, but in these few verses Jesus goes from baptism to temptation to ministry. It leaves you out of breath. There is a Greek phrase he uses, kai euthys, which means ‘and immediately, and Mark uses this phrase 49 times. There is a real sense of urgency. There is no procrastination in Mark. We start at the Jordan River, where Jesus has come to be baptised by John. Like at the Transfiguration last week, there is a voice from heaven, affirming ‘You are my beloved son. With you I am well pleased’. What special words. It is what every child longs to hear – that they are loved, that they are special, that they are valued, that they belong. Sometimes we can be shy of telling our children or the people around us that they are special. Valentine’s day last week maybe saw an increase in people sending cards or flowers to loved ones, but we should be doing it all the time. As children of God, we need to know that we are loved by God and by our brothers and sisters in the faith. Dripping wet still from being immersed in the Jordan, Jesus is ‘immediately’ driven by the Spirit to the wilderness. No time to revel in the words spoken at baptism, but Jesus rather finds himself in the wilderness for 40 days, biblical shorthand for a very long time. The season of Lent lasts 40 days to represent this time in the desert. We remember how the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years; it was a place of trial and danger. They were tempted to complain about the boring manna from heaven; to worship the Golden calf; to ignore Moses’ leadership, and they fell straight into these temptations. The desert is a dangerous place, but Jesus spent time struggling no doubt with who he was and the way he had to go, but although the temptation to go back to the carpenter shop in Nazareth and a normal life must have been strong, he resisted it. Mark’s story about the temptations is so short, but it ends with a lovely phrase that wild animals were with him, and angels ministered to him. There is a picture by Stanley Spencer of Jesus in the wilderness playing with a scorpion. Did the dangerous animals become tame like the lions in Daniel’s den? Our Old Testament reading was the culmination of the Flood story, when the animals went two by two into the ark and seemed not to fight. But the reading was of the gift of the rainbow, God’s love letter in the sky. It was a sign that God would not destroy the earth again – though we do a jolly good job ourselves. Jesus’ time in the wilderness gave him the strength to go ‘immediately’ to Galilee to offer a new start for all humanity. Satan’s lie was to say that there was no hurry, but Jesus gives the message of God’s love, and we are called to respond, not to shove it into a safe place called ‘tomorrow’. As we begin this season of Lent, let us know ourselves beloved children of God, but let us show it by acting out the Gospel here and now. Hymn 557 – O love that wilt not let me go Prayers of Dedication God of courage and compassion, we bring our gifts to you in Jesus’ name. This year the world badly needs both his courage and compassion. Bless our gifts so that they bring hope to others in these challenging times. Amen. Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession As we enter this holy season, Lord God, we give you thanks for your promise of new life that sustains us, encouraging us when in the trials and tribulations of life. We come with our thanks for all the good things; for the beauty of the natural world, glimpsed in mountains and sunsets, and in the abundance of snowdrops and the stirring of spring bulbs; for the warmth of human love, whenever we find it and whoever we are stirred to love; for the thrill of discovery and curiosity, of new things learned and gifts we can share; for the pleasures of life, known in laughter and company, in good food and the tiredness of a fulfilling day. For all that merits our heartfelt thanks, we express now our gratitude and joy. In sorrow, we recognise that life is not always joy, and that many; human beings, creatures and all things, may suffer injury, hurt, and pain. We pray for all those who do not ever see much beauty; those in prison, or working in buildings with little light, people deep in depression or those abused by others. We pray for those who live in the pain of grief, or who have suffered such a trauma that they are afraid, for all whose days feel beyond their control. We pray for those for whom hunger is physical and painful, those made poor by ruthless economies or cruel wars, all enslaved to hard and relentless labour. God of the garden and the desert, of all pain and every joy, be with each of us in the wild places and send your angels to bless us. Give us grace and courage too, to accompany those in any kind of wilderness and to offer blessings where we can. We offer these prayers, in the name of Jesus Christ, your beloved Son, Amen. Hymn 519 – Love divine Benediction As we begin our journey through the season of Lent, May God’s loving kindness comfort you, God’s justice inspire you, And Jesus walk beside you in humility and hope.
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We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the last Sunday of Epiphany. Please stay for refreshments after the Yetholm service.
Call to Worship God said, “Let light shine in the darkness!” Lord, shine your light into our lives. We see God’s glory in the face of Christ. The light of Christ is with us day by day. Let us follow the light of Christ together. Let us worship God with thanks and praise. Hymn 132 – Immortal invisible Prayer of Adoration and Confession God of grace and glory, you reveal your presence to this worried world in radiant glory and gentle whispers, on mountain tops and in shadowed valleys, in homes and churches, in the quiet of nature and on busy streets. Yours is the presence that pushes past our fear to calm us; yours is the love that transforms our doubt with reassurance. We have come to dwell in your goodness this day and to offer the praise you deserve, grateful for all the ways we meet you. God of patience and purpose, we confess we don’t expect you to surprise us. We think we know what you expect of us and so we’re reluctant to consider a new challenge or a new opportunity to serve you. Forgive us when we are set in our ways. Work in us by your Spirit to keep us open to new encounters with you in the world as it changes so you will always find us faithful. On this Transfiguration Sunday, help us to see you in all your glory, the Word made flesh and may this glory, through the Holy Spirit, transform our lives. In a world filled with hate, and injustice, inspire us to build the tabernacles of justice, peace and love, until the earth is full of your glory, as the waters cover the seas. Lord’s Prayer Readings – 2 Kings 2: 1-12 (Pg 369) Mark 9: 2 - 9 (pg 1012) Hymn 34/35 – O send thy light forth Weekly Prayer Almighty God, at the Transfiguration you showed Jesus in a new state of glory and gave His disciples a glimpse of what they would see in his risen life. As we worship together week by week help us to see Jesus only, giving us a foretaste of your heavenly kingdom. Amen Reflection The road zigzagged up the mountain. It was really quite scary, but at the top the views were breathtaking and inside the church there was a real sense of peace. It was the church of the transfiguration, and many scholars think it was the mountain that Jesus and the disciples climbed. It was once covered in oak trees, but these were cut down by the Ottomans to build the railway to Mecca, the one that Lawrence of Arabia and his friends kept trying to sabotage. Th pilgrims who came in droves before the Gaza conflict would get off their buses at the bottom and be driven up by Kamikaze Bedouins negotiating all the bends, but some would hike up as Jesus and the disciples had done. It was quite a climb for Jesus and the three disciples, and a lot had been happening. Jesus had been ministering to the villages in the North and had asked who people said he was. Now, what he was interested in was who the disciples said he was, and Peter had said that he was the Messiah, and had gone straight to the top of the class. But then when Jesus explained how the Messiah had to suffer and even die, it was so outside their picture of the messiah that Peter objected, and Jesus had rebuked him saying, ‘Get thee behind me Satan’. That rebuke must have still been ringing in Peter’s mind as they climbed up the mountain. But it would have been a relief to get away from the constant demands of the villagers, even from the other disciples, to go somewhere quiet just to clear his head. Little did the disciples realise what was in store for them. When they reached the top of the mountain, Jesus seemed to be transformed. Light radiated from him and his robe became a dazzling white. What’s more, there were two figures appearing beside him, two powerhouses – Moses and Elijah. Moses who had led the Israelites out of oppression in Egypt, had given them the Law and formed them into a community. Elijah who was a faithful prophet battling against the worship of Baal, who, as we read earlier, was taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire, having passed on his mantle to his apprentice Elisha. What was happening here? It was God’s affirmation of Jesus. There is even a voice from heaven saying’ this is my Son. Listen to him’. And it was a blessing on Jesus and the way he had chosen to go, for from this mountain he would turn his face towards Jerusalem and, yes, to the cross of Calvary. Jesus needed the affirmation, and the disciples needed to have this experience. Of course, it was too overwhelming, and Peter blabbers on about building shelters. Often commentators condemn him for wanting to prolong the experience, stay up the mountain forever. But the Jewish festival of Tabernacles was a time when they remembered how they stayed in shelters during their time in the wilderness – nothing was permanent. But it was also a festival when people anticipated the end times, and maybe seeing Moses and Elijah with Jesus made Peter think that a new age was being ushered in. But then the experience passes, and Moses and Elijah disappear, and Jesus beckons the disciples to start to descend the mountain. It is all so strange and other-worldly. But what can it mean for us today. I think there is the openness of Jesus to reveal his divinity, that he was the son of God, to the disciples. He had told them in words, but this experience hammered home the point. This week King Charles revealed that he had cancer, and we wish him a full recovery. We can often try to keep things hidden, we bottle things up, but maybe it is healthier to be open. Though I am also conscious that Jesus told the disciples on the way back down to keep what they had seen to themselves. It also tells us the importance of our encounters with God, the times when we feel a closeness to God. It can be on the mountaintop; it can be at thin places like a beautiful old church Linton or a place like Holy Island, in can be in worship here in Yetholm/ Morebattle; it can be a piece of music or picture that can uplift us or a beautiful scene; family gathered around us; it can also be that we encounter God in the valley, in the pain, and indeed Jesus and the disciples did go down the mountain to heal, to affirm, to transform. Down to the mundane nature of everyday life, down to the nitty-gritty, down to the squabbling, disbelieving disciples, down to the jealousies and rivalries that colour our relationships, down to the pain which is part and parcel of our world, down to the Valley, for that is where we find God as well, almost more so than on the mountaintops. That is where we as followers of Jesus must find ourselves too. I pray that we can have our mountaintop experiences, for we need them to sustain us in our journey, especially as during Lent we walk with Jesus the Way of the Cross. Hymn 448 – Lord the light of your love Prayers of Dedication Generous God, bless all that is given in this church: the time, the love, the talents, the laughter, the ability to share with friend and stranger, the welcome to the lost and lonely, the light of love shining here, the treasures given and found, that, at the end, we may be transformed. Amen. Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession God of all life and each life: You created us to live in relationship with each other - with friends and families, in communities and cultures, in neighborhoods and nations. We give you thanks for all the supportive relationships which bring meaning and encouragement to our lives, and help in times of trouble. Help us contribute what we can to sustain the wellbeing of our community for all who call it home. God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer. God of our faith and our future, there are so many pressures on homes and families today. Draw near to those who are in economic difficulty, anxious about bills, and those burdened by the challenges to health and happiness this winter. Work with parents and children and neighbours who face conflict their relationships; offer them solutions that express mutual respect and resolve tension. God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer. God of mercy and forgiveness, You call us to live together in peace and unity. We pray for our neighbourhoods and our nation. Where people are divided and bitterness turns into resentment, show us how to work for reconciliation. Wherever there is conflict and daily danger in the world, raise up peacemakers and negotiators to bring violence to an end. And give courage and protection to all who fear what tomorrow could bring. God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer. Today we give thanks for our church family and the years of worship and witness offered here. Bless our leaders and our volunteers and renew their creativity and commitment to enliven our congregation in its mission. We remember those of our number in need of your special attention today. We think of those who are sick. We remember King Charles and the Royal family at this time and also everyone with cancer or with other medical issues. For those waiting for operations and for those recovering. Silence Open our eyes to opportunities to reach out beyond our own fellowship as agents of your healing and hope. Hymn 458 – At the name of Jesus Benediction As we journey between the mountaintops and the plains of life, may the transforming power of God inspire you. May the challenging and comforting grace of Jesus guide you and may the companionship of the Holy Spirit walk with you. Go knowing the love of God within you, today and every day We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Linton (11.15) on the fifth Sunday of Epiphany.
Call to Worship Come to this time of worship We bring our hearts and our minds. Come with your joys and your wounds. We bring them all before God. Come, trust that God will raise you up. We sing praise to the Lord of Creation. Hymn 184 – Sing to the Lord a joyful song Prayer of Adoration and Confession O Lord our God, Creator and Ruler of the universe, you are great beyond all things. You are clothed in honour and majesty, wrapped in light as a garment. You stretch out the heavens like a tent, you set the beams of your chambers on the waters, you make the clouds your chariot, you ride on the wings of the wind, you make the winds your messengers, fire and flame your ministers. You gave us your son Jesus Christ as Saviour and Messiah and the Holy Spirit as our Helper and Comforter. We give you glory, honour and praise now and forever. Draw us into a moment of quiet now as we remember our frailty. We acknowledge what has been difficult in our lives. The things that we have done, the significant things that we have left undone. The wrong paths taken, or the opportunities missed. Help us to bring it all to you in a moment of quiet…… Forgive us our wrongs and create in us new hearts and new minds. Grant us enlarged visions to see your image in everyone we encounter regardless of their background, race and ethnicity. God’s love is there new every morning. Let us know ourselves a forgiven, accepted and loved. Lord’s Prayer Readings – Isaiah 40:21-31 (Pg 724) Mark 1: 29-39 (pg 1003) Hymn 162 – The God of Abraham praise Weekly Prayer Ever Living God, our Creator and Redeemer, you love us and know us better than we know ourselves. With a word you created all things and so we ask you to renew our strength as we trust in you. We pray for all those who need your touch today, remembering that your touch has still its ancient power to heal. Amen Reflection It brings in all back. The Covid Inquiry, that is. It brings back all the uncertainty, the anxiety, the fear. Except a few years on, we see the crisis from a different angle, as the various politicians and scientists and medics tell it from their point of view. It seems another world to when we were clapping every Thursday and glued to television or radio when the First Minister spoke. And if some were winging it, weren’t we all. Trying to make sense amidst the uncertainty. The Israelites in Babylon were winging it, as they tried to make sense of their own chaotic situation. Jerusalem had fallen to Nebuchadnezzar’s armies; the Temple ransacked and destroyed, the city walls torn down, the great and the good taken into exile to Babylon. They had to adjust to a new culture, a new set of values, as their own religion didn’t fit any more. And they sat by the rivers of Babylon, and they wept remembering Zion. Where was God now? Why wasn’t God doing something? Fortunately, they had Isaiah the prophet to keep them grounded. ‘Do you not know, haven’t you seen?’ Isaiah asks them. God is the eternal one, who sees the wider picture. ‘Do you not know, haven’t you seen?’ Just because we are impatient, it doesn’t mean that God has stopped working. God is in it for the long haul. For the Israelites, they had to learn to wait on the Lord and trust in the Lord. So must we too. Like the Israelites we can be impatient and want God to keep to our timeline and grow discouraged when he doesn’t. But Isaiah gives a wonderful picture of even when the youth growing weary, those who wait on the Lord, those who put their trust in God, will renew their strength and rise up with eagles’ wings. They will walk and not faint, not grow weary. They are being held by God. Sometimes I see birds of prey, which I call hawks or eagles, but probably are something else, and they don’t get from place to place by continually flapping their wings, but rather seem to catch the breeze and are lifted up in it. So wait for the Lord and can be lifted by the Spirit and held in the palm of God’s hand. The disciples had to learn this as well. Jesus had become a sensation in Capernaum. He had cast out evil spirits, which we looked at last week, and this week we read what happened next. There were several little scenes. Firstly, Jesus goes to the house of Simon Peter and finds his wife’s mother sick. Jesus heals her, and immediately she gets up and starts to make dinner. The word used is related to diakonia, service, and Simon’s mother-in-law is seen to embody service. But then the scene changes to the threshold of the house. The sabbath is finishing, and people are beginning to gather looking for Jesus. He has become the talk of the town, he has become a sensation. People have brought loved ones for healing; they have brought themselves for healing. Eventually they go home and Jesus must have caught some sleep, but the scene changes again, and he has risen early and gone to a private place to pray, to fill the batteries, but also reflect on what had happened. Matt Perry, the actor who died last year, was a star in Friends. At one time he was writing another show with a friend. They needed a break. I’ll go for a walk, the friend said, to clear my head. Do you want to come?’ Matt Perry said, That’s precisely what I can’t do’. If he went for a walk, immediately people would recognise him and want to talk or watch. It was getting like that for Jesus. The disciples didn’t know where he was; they were hunting for him, and when they found him, they said. ‘Come back to Capernaum. Everyone is talking about you. They are queuing up to see you’. He could have spent his whole life in Capernaum, healing people. Set up a clinic and capitalise on his success, and people would have travelled from far and wide. But that wasn’t why he had come. It is like the temptation to turn rocks into bread. So good, but there was more to do. There was the message of wholeness and salvation to preach. And so they moved on to preach in other places. The disciples had to learn to see the wider picture. With the Covid Inquiry we need to see the wider picture. With the state of our world we need to see the wider picture and work for a world where the kingdom values of peace and hope and justice and God’s shalom flourish. We have to learn to wait on the Lord. Hymn 705 – It is God who holds the nations Prayers of Dedication Jesus touched so many lives in so many different ways. We ask that these gifts will touch many lives, too, with your healing and hope in these difficult days. Amen Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession Holy and loving God, we thank you for the story of Christ’s life among us, a pattern for the way we live. We give you thanks for moments of quiet and contemplation that restore us. Teach us to trust in your strength, so that we can live with confidence and courage even in the midst of stress and anxiety. God of love, you give power to the faint and strength to the powerless. Many of us can feel exhausted, caring for children and grandchildren, responding to demands of work or family life or dealing with a sense of isolation or anxiety. Renew us, we pray. We pray for all church leaders. Encourage and strengthen them in their work, and give us all fresh vision for the future of church and renew our Imagination, creativity and wisdom. God of love, you restore what is broken and you bring together what has been split apart. Today we continue to pray for the Middle East and Ukraine and Yemen. We ask for peace in a dangerous and fragile situation. We pray for Northern Ireland as we hope the power-sharing agreement begins to operate again. God of all creation, you restore the face of the earth : stir us up to action to protect our planet. May our feet tread lightly on the earth and our actions and priorities bring healing to our battered world. God of love, you heal the broken hearted and you gather in all who are lost. We pray for all who are mourning the loss of family members or friends. We place before you all who are suffering in mind or body… asking for peace, and for your healing presence in their need. Send your blessing on all who are afraid or alone or hungry, on those whose lives are being destroyed by abuse or violence and on all for whom home is not a safe place. Amen Hymn 517 – Fight the good fight Benediction May your strength be renewed this day, so that you may run into the world to live the gospel and never be weary. And the blessing of God Almighty, Our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, be with you and those you love, this day and always. Amen. We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the fourth Sunday of Epiphany. Please stay for refreshments after the Yetholm service.
Call to Worship As Christians living in a broken world, we are aware of the need for healing in our own lives, in the lives of others, and in our world. Christ offers us that healing, wholeness, and transformation. So come and praise the God who makes us whole. Come and hear his life-giving word. As we gather to worship in God's name: may the Lord be with us. Hymn 198 – Let us build a house Prayer of Adoration and Confession Loving God, you are the wisdom behind all mystery, the glory hidden in all that makes us wonder, the strength in all that nourishes. With eyes open and spirits alert, we experience your glory around us. Scattered throughout the earth, smoldering deep inside us and radiating in acts of love, sparks of your glory reside. We feel joy each time we encounter you. So we gather to express our praise and gratitude for all the good we have experienced, knowing it all comes from your hand, for you are Creator, Christ and Spirit, Ever Three and Ever One. Healing and forgiving God, we confess to you before this congregation, the times we have failed to recognise you in those whom we meet. We confess to you the times we have walked away from those who need your healing presence. We confess to you the times we have hurt and failed others. Be gracious, be merciful and heal us. Hear the good news: Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation. The old life has gone. New life has begun. Thanks be to God that we can make a new start, forgiven and set free. Lord’s Prayer Readings – Deuteronomy 18:15-20 Mark 1:21- 28 Hymn 36 – God is our refuge and our strength Weekly Prayer Lord God, we thank you that you have raised up Jesus who us our Prophet, Priest and King. We ask that in all we do, we may we walk more closely with you at our side, safe in the knowledge that your Fatherly love and care knows no bounds. Amen Reflection A new hotel was being built just up the coast from Tiberias. Right on the Sea of Galilee, it would be a brilliant position, especially for pilgrim groups. Work was going steadily; they had earmarked the opening for the following year. Then as they dug the foundations for the restaurant, they discovered ancient remains. Not a body, but walls. The archaeologists were brought in, and work on the hotel would stop for several years, for what they had uncovered were the remains of an ancient synagogue. AND from the time of Jesus. I was there at the time, and it was fascinating to watch as they excavated the whole area and exciting to visit knowing Jesus could have preached at that very spot. It was at Magdala, where Mary Magdalene came from, and they even found a stone slab where the scrolls of Scripture would be read from. In the Gospels we don’t have any record of Jesus preaching at Magdala, but I am sure he would have; but today we read of him preaching at Capernaum, several miles along the Lake. There are ruins of a synagogue there, but from a later time than Jesus. But let’s go back 2000 years. For the worshippers, it was just any other Sabbath; they went along, expecting to pray and hear Scriptures read and someone expounding them. But they would also meet friends, chat about the price of fish or who was new in the area. They didn’t expect anything out of the ordinary to happen. Little did they know!. But that particular Sabbath, someone got up, the carpenter chappie who sometimes helped mend the fishing boats, and he began to read the Scripture and speak about it. Immediately there was silence, no fidgeting, for he spoke with such weightiness, with such power. He seemed to speak to their very hearts, and everything seemed so clear. In fact they wanted to hear more. Two things happened in Capernaum. Firstly, the young man interpreting the Scriptures spoke with such authority. They couldn’t daydream or let their minds drift to what’s for dinner. He was offering something new; the Scripture came alive when he spoke. But the other thing that happened was that there was a commotion at the back. A man in the congregation started to shout out. Well, people just didn’t know where to look. How embarrassing. But the man seemed overcome; it was an evil spirit that seemed to speak from within him, challenging Jesus. ‘Why have you come? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are – Jesus of Nazareth, the holy one from God’. The evil Spirit recognised Jesus, but Jesus confronted the spirit and did indeed drive it out of the man. What do you think of this story? It seems alien to us here in 21st Century Scotland. It is surely something which happened in 1st Century Palestine. There are no evil spirits here. Apart from in horror movies. We can readily believe in angels watching over us, but what about evil spirits? But in some parts of the world this is very real. In Africa I remember in my first church there someone convulsing in the church and people praying over her. The students I taught at the Theological College were positively eager to cast out demons. While I would regularly be asked to bless houses and cars. There was an awareness of evil and evil spirits. There was an awareness of evil and having to confront it. But then there is evil still round us. We look at the news and get depressed. But where we see the killing of civilians and children, that’s evil. Where we see targeted destruction of homes and hospitals and shipping, that’s evil. Where there is rape and humiliation, where people are smuggled into this country to be exploited and abused, their freedom taken away, that’s evil. Where young people are introduced to drugs and become addicted, that’s evil. Someone said that "The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing." God invites all of us to work together in overcoming evil, in its many forms: disease, injustice, oppression, greed, war, etc., by following Jesus, doing what we can each day, loving our neighbour as ourselves and working with others to care for those most disadvantaged, to promote wellbeing and justice in the world. As Paul says in Romans, "Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good". There is so much seeking to undermine us; let us put our trust in the one who spoke with authority and liberates and heals the broken. Let us challenge the evils in our society in the small ways we can and speak ever of God’s love. Hymn 718 – We cannot measure how you heal Prayers of Dedication Generous God, giver of life and full of grace and mercy, we come humbly before you and present our offerings. Take and use them for the building of your kingdom, may they enable your word to be spread far and wide for everyone to hear. Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession Holy God, Lord of heaven and earth, Your energy fills the cosmos. You are around us, within us, and beyond us. Thank you for the simple pleasures of each day, and for the strength to meet the challenges that arise. When it feels like we have come to the end of our own resources, replenish us with the energy of your Spirit so that we know you are there for us. In these uncertain times, we are grateful for prayer in its many forms which lead us to be at one with you - through word and silence, music and movement, feeling the Spirit’s breath within us. Draw close to us whenever we need you, and renew our spirits to continue serving you as best we can. We pray for those with power, shaping the lives of nations, changing the world as they make their choices. Grant them wisdom, touch their hearts with gentleness, fire their imaginations with generosity, reveal to them your will. Some in power are wielding power to kill and destroy. We pray for those in Israel and those in Gaza and the West Bank. We pray for those in Ukraine and those in Russia. We pray for those in Yemen and on the Red Sea. We pray for the prophetic words and actions of those willing to seek and build peace with justice. Some in power are wielding power to hide and abuse. We pray for those caught up in the Post Office scandal. We pray for those fearful as jobs are lost and money dries up. We pray for those trapped in poverty and exploitation. We pray for the prophetic words and actions of those who turn compassion into food for the hungry, shelter for the homeless, justice for the ignored. Some in power are wielding power to care and to mend. Some devote themselves to looking after others and healing the wounds of your world. We pray for those giving care in hospital, hospice or home. We pray for those seeking healing and hope wherever they may be. We pray for our own circle of family and friends. Heal, bless, lead and encourage them. We pray for neighbours and strangers in our community who face struggles and sorrows we can’t even imagine. Remind us that we belong to each other and to you and help us respond to one another with compassion and kindness. Finally, in silence, we bring to you the cares and hopes on our minds today. [Silence] Hymn MP 617 - Stand up, stand up for Jesus Benediction Recessional Hymn 786 – May the God of peace We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the third Sunday of Epiphany. Please stay for refreshments after the Yetholm service. The services today will be led by Arthur and Kathleen Bates, as Colin is on Interim Moderator duties at Makerstoun.
Call to Worship (Psalm 62: 5 -8) Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honour depend on God[c]; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. Hymn 489 - Come Down O Love Divine. Prayers of Adoration, Confession/ Lord’s Prayer. Bible Readings: Jonah 3: 1-5 + 10 (Pg 928) Mark 1: 14 – 20 (Pg 1002) Hymn 166 – Lord of all hopefulness. Weekly Prayer Almighty God, today finds us in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity; help us to listen to your voice still calling us to unity in our diversity. Thank you that you are aways a God of the second chance. Help us to keep our commitment to always follow you with our whole heart and trust in you. Amen Sermon Hymn 402 -Take up the cross the Saviour said. Prayers of dedication and intercession Hymn 644 - O Jesus, I have promised. Benediction Our united service is at 11am at Linton on Epiphany Sunday. Please stay for refreshments after the service. Please note that there are NO services at Yetholm or Morebattle this Sunday
Call to Worship Arise, shine: for your light has come! The glory of the Lord has risen upon us. Lift up your eyes and look around! We shall see and be radiant; our hearts shall rejoice. For the Lord will be our everlasting light and our glory! And so we worship God in humble expectation. Carol 327 – Brightest and Best Prayer of Adoration and Confession Since the beginning, O Ancient of Days, You have called people to follow. Inspiring humanity with moon and star, sun and rain, majestic mountain, fast flowing river, and with the very mystery of life itself, You have called people to be Your own. In the simplicity of Your manger, Lord Jesus, You drew people to Yourself; awe filled shepherds and exotic magi came to worship and to see in You the hopes and fulfilment of all their yearnings. Like a light in the gloom, O Holy Spirit, we see Your brilliance, feel our hearts warmed and gain a sense of direction and purpose. Forgive us, O Most High, when we fail to see you in Creation, and so exploit and misuse the abundance of life with which we share the planet. Help us to learn, soon, O God, how to live in harmony with nature. Forgive us Lord Jesus, when we seek fulfilment in other things and turn away from You. Teach us, quickly, O Christ that our restless hearts will only find their rest in You. Forgive us, Most Holy Spirit, when we look for warmth and purpose in strange places instead of in Your all-powerful love. Forgive us, and give us time to change! Hear good news: God’s love seeks us out at great cost. When we turn back to God we find that, like a father, God runs towards us with arms open wide in welcome. Like a mother, God surrounds us with fierce love. Like a rock upon which we stand, God gives us a secure foundation for life. So accept the forgiveness on offer, learn to forgive others, and find the strength to forgive yourself. Lord’s Prayer Readings – Isaiah 60: 1-6 (Pg 747) Matthew 2: 1-12 (pg 966) Carol – We three kings (MP 740) Weekly Prayer We are reminded that the Magi came from the East to worship your Son Jesus. Father, grant us the spirit of adoration so that through our worship we may reflect the glorious light of Christ which has come among us. Amen Reflection ‘We three kings of Orient are’. These figures from the East fascinate us coming from afar with their flowing robes and exotic gifts to stoop in the cold stable to worship the baby Jesus. We give them names, Caspar and Melchior and Bathasar, and have grown stories around them, even saying there was a 4th wise man, even saying that there were the three wise woman. But we don’t know their names, we don’t even know how many there were. If they were important, they would surely have travelled in a caravan with their servants. Yet for Matthew they were so important that he has them adoring the Christ child. Here is what the poet T.S Eliot wrote of their journey: ‘Journey off the Magi’ There is so much in the poem, but maybe suffice to say it captures something of their mystique, that they were from another culture and had to make an arduous journey, led by a star. Kings, priests, more likely astrologers who noticed something strange in the sky and felt compelled to follow it, believing something momentous was happening. So they left behind their comfort, their sherbet and summer palaces, for a quest, a puzzle, from which they would return changed, transformed. They were from the afar, and Matthew places them at the birth of Christ; Matthew who was sure to place Jesus in the genealogy tracing him back to figures of faith like Abraham, but who also has foreigners recognising his royalty and bathing in the light of the Christ child. The Gospel writer is saying that all are included, that the birth of Christ connects everyone. All people may claim Christ as king. It doesn’t matter how mysterious or plain or ordinary your background is. But these travellers were also human, fallible, made assumptions. But then the star that they followed seemed to come and go. To be seen brightly one night, then the next be covered in cloud. So they went to the capital city, Jerusalem, for where else would someone born to be king be found? And so they spoke with Herod and set in motion the events leading to the awful massacre of the infant boys in Bethlehem. But in the meantime, Herod instructed his scholars to research into where a Messiah would be born, and their answer was Bethlehem. Martin Luther, the great Reformer, when asked why the star didn’t lead them straight to Bethlehem, said that it was to teach us that we should follow scriptures and not our own ideas. The Magi were drawn to the baby, but what draws us to Christ? What leads us to seek his company? What brings us to worship on a regular basis? When we reflect on the wise men’s trek from afar, we realise that each of us has our own journey across life’s plains and deserts and hills to come face to face with our Lord. What is the star that leads us? For some it could be the Bible or it could be the words or a presence of a particular person who shared God’s love? Or it may be the life of selfless care as embodied in the Church. The Church can be many things. It needs to be a centre for worship and community service, a place we learn more about our faith and how to love. It needs to be a voice for justice and compassion in the world, but it also needs to be a welcoming place, where people are drawn to get to know Christ When the wise men did reach their destination and met the baby, they were transformed. Matthew says that they didn’t return to Jerusalem but left by a different way. Eliot in his poem tells powerfully of their unease with the old familiar ways. An encounter with Christ changes us if we are but open to Him. An encounter with Christ demands a reaction. The Magi fell down on their knees and worshipped. What about us? Later in the service we will have our covenant prayer which we may use to dedicate ourselves at the start of a new year to another year of service, and with the wise men adore the Christ. Carol 326 – As with gladness Epiphany opens with the story of the Magi offering gifts to the newborn king. Our gifts today and throughout the year honour Jesus as Lord of our lives and Saviour of the world. We may not bring gold, frankincense and myrrh, but all our gifts are welcome to keep the light of Christ shining into the world. Prayers of Dedication God of majesty and mystery, we bring our gifts to you, grateful that you are always with us. We do not know what the year ahead will hold, but your love shines like a star to guide us. Bless these gifts that they may keep the light of Christ shining through the church to embrace the world you love. Amen. Covenant Prayer I am no longer my own but yours. Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will; put me to doing, put me to suffering; let me be employed for you, or laid aside for you, exalted for you, or brought low for you; let me be full, let me be empty, let me have all things, let me have nothing: I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things to your pleasure and disposal. And now, glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you are mine and I am yours. So be it. And the covenant now made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven.' Prayers of Intercession God of the stars, we gaze at the heavens in awe, we see the moon and the planets, satellites orbiting the earth, twinkling light from millions of miles away, we wonder at how the ancients navigated by these lights, and saw meaning in their movement. We gaze and wonder if humanity is alone in the universe or if, in some far off corner, You’ve got other civilizations, other worlds that You care about. We pray today for all who study the stars, who seek to explore our solar system, and to increase our knowledge of the vast abyss of space. pause God of the stable, we gaze at the nativity scene and struggle to take it all in. God in the dirt; animals attending like courtiers, smelly shepherds and exotic magi. We wonder at the danger of it all, the cruelty of the tyrant Herod, the protection of Joseph, the trust of Mary. We pray today for all who are living in danger, refugees and asylum seekers, the poor and hungry, those on the edge of our societies to whom the wealth never seems to trickle down, those struggling to pay their rent, mortgage or power bills. pause God of the Scriptures, we gaze at the magi and wonder they trusted in ancient words and clear dreams. We are horrified that those who knew Your word turned to murder, whilst outsiders turned to worship. We thank You for the ways in which You speak to us, through ancient words and contemporary dreams, through the Church and deep in our own hearts. We pray today for those who search for You, in Scripture, stable and star, that You may be found and that we may be signposts pointing to You. Pause We remember in prayer this week the Leadership and church community of Bonnyrigg, praying for their shared youth worker Josh, for links with all the local churches so that they would be a bright light for Jesus in Bonnyrigg. God of star, stable and Scripture, we pray now for all those we love and worry about Amen Hymn 235 – God is working his purpose out Benediction May the light of God lead you, the light of Christ embrace you, and the light of the Holy Spirit enliven you So that you know both hope and peace this day and each coming day. We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the First Sunday after Christmas. Please stay for refreshments after the Yetholm service.
Call to Worship As we approach 2024 May the God of hope be with us. In our celebrations of Christmas May the God of joy be with us In our caring for the world May the God of peace be with us In our living of life in all its fullness May we know that God is with us Carol 313 – See in yonder manger low Prayer of Adoration and Confession God of grace and glory, we praise you from the heights and from the depths; from the courts of power and from the pathways of our lives. Your splendour shines from a manger, where the Light of the World was born for us. In fragile flesh, you are revealed to us face to face reaching out to claim our love. And so we gather with those who have glimpsed that love to rejoice that you have claimed us in Christ. We offer you our praise, Creator, Son, and Spirit; Source of life, Glorious light, and Wisdom of the ages. God of our lives, we know you are with us through thick and thin, in times of great joy and at moments of disappointment. As we think of the year past, Lord, we remember the times when we have not shown love through our thoughts, words and actions. We seek forgiveness. Lord, we remember the times when we have been hurt by the words and actions of others. Help us to forgive. Lord, we remember the times when we have been distracted from seeking after you. Lord, make yourself known to us, help us to see you in the midst of the noise and clamour of this world. Hear the good news of the Gospel: Jesus Christ is our light and our salvation. In him we are made new. Let us give thanks to God and be at peace with ourselves and with one another. Lord’s Prayer Readings – Isaiah 61:10-62:3 (Pg 748) Luke 2:22-40 (pg 1028) Carol 331 – Unto us a boy is born Weekly Prayer Lord our God, thank you for letting your light shine every day of every year. Thank you that we may always lift our eyes to you, whose right hand will bring true order to everything, even in difficult times. Give our hearts the strength to be faithful in this coming year and help us all to glorify your precious name. Amen Reflection The whirl of Christmas is over. At least all the waiting and anticipation has been realised, the family and friends have visited and maybe gone away again and maybe there is a sense of anticlimax – that’s it for another year. But it isn’t, as Christmas and the message of Christmas is till with us. I always love this poem: When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and the princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flocks, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry, To release the prisoner, To rebuild the nations, To bring peace among people, To make music in the heart. That is certainly the message from our first reading. In Isaiah’s time, some of the exiles had returned to Jerusalem. The excitement of the return had been tempered by the reality on the ground. There was so much to do; the opposition of those who remained to win over, the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem to begin; the routine work to accomplish, and they just had to get on with it. As we have to get on with clearing up dishes and clearing wrapping paper and making sure we have enough milk in the fridge for the New year. As we have to get on with the work of proclaiming the God who is with us through thick and thin. Christmas is still here, and this is the First Sunday of Christmas. Christmas week sees the feast of Stephen, marking Stephen’s martyrdom; it marks Holy Innocent’s day, remembering the slaughter of the children by Herod’s soldiers. But this year we focus rather appropriately on the dedication of Jesus in the Temple, appropriate on Hogmany, because we have the meeting of the old and the new. The new is represented by Mary and Joseph, bringing their new born child to be dedicated in accordance with Jewish practice. The first born was dedicated to the Lord. They sacrificed a pair of turtle doves, a sign of their poverty, as Leviticus stated that it should be a lamb. The whole of life lay ahead for the newborn, but first the baby was placed before God. And in the Temple they encountered firstly Simeon and then Anna. Anna was 84 and had been widowed most of her adult life, and while we are not told Simeon’s age, we get the impression that he too was an old man. Both would have seen much in their lives. Perhaps they had even witnessed the coming of the Romans to occupy Palestine. Anna as a widow would have relied on the charity of others, and both seemed to frequent the temple, praying, hoping, trusting. They both were people of faith and believed that the Messiah would come to bring change and usher in the Kingdom of God. Both, in turn, held Jesus in their arms and recognised him as the One, as the Messiah. Simeon utters what we now call the Nunc Dimittis, ‘Now, Lord, let your servant depart in peace…’ Maybe he was just going home happy, though we tend to interpret it as Simeon saying he can die in peace. They just have a tiny cameo in the Gospel story, but Anna and Simeon represent the old and the wisdom and life experiences that the elderly bring. I am always reminded of the group called the ‘Elders’, made up of Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter and others, who a decade or so ago tried to bring their wisdom and experience to situations of conflict. Simeon and Anna brought their wisdom and their faithfulness. But they also recognised something new was about to happen, and they were letting go of the old to pass on the baton to the new, to the couple and their baby. We meet here at the last day of 2023. We look back, and for some it has been a good year, with many memories to carry us on; for others we are maybe happy to see the back of it. But we stand at the threshold of 2024, and only God knows what kind of year it will be, but with Anna and with Simeon we can enter it with hope, with faithfulness and hopefully with a little wisdom, ready to face changes and make transitions in the knowledge that God journeys with us, the God who has been faithful in the past and beckons us on to a new tomorrow. And the work of Christmas goes on, ‘finding the lost, healing the broken… making music in the heart’. Hymn 237 – Look forward in faith Prayers of Dedication and Intercession Good and gracious God, your love overflows in goodness. As one year closes and another begins, help us trust your goodness. Bless these gifts so that they may provide others with the hope we know in Christ Jesus and the love you share with the world through him. God of love, as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, our Saviour, we are filled with thanks that he has shared human life and knows well both our joys and heartaches. We bring our prayers for the world you love, grateful that Jesus walks ahead of us into the year ahead. We pray for all children for they embody our future. Protect them from danger, strengthen their characters, and give them joy. Help them look to the future with hope and trust. God of the ages, Hear our prayer. We pray for the most aged among us, those whom Simeon and Anna bring to mind. Protect them in these days of rising costs and rising tensions and reassure them of their value to you and to the whole community. God of the ages, Hear our prayer. We pray for those whose hearts are filled with pain and fear and for those whose Christmas has been touched with loss or grief. (Keep a time of silence) Surround each one with your comforting embrace. God of the ages, Hear our prayer. We pray for those who cannot afford enough to eat, and for those who lack adequate shelter here and in desperate corners of the world. We pray for those who fear violence in their daily lives here and in so many regions of conflict. And we pray for those whose are anxious about the year ahead for whatever reason, (Keep a brief time of silence) Grant each one the courage and strength to face the days ahead. God of the ages, Hear our prayer. As this year draws to a close, we surrender to you, O God, the challenges it has held for us so that they will not remain as burdens. Remind us of the good things that have offered us encouragement and pleasure. (Keep a brief time of silence) Give us wisdom to navigate whatever the coming year brings. God of the ages, Hear our prayer. In the new year, grant our leaders the wisdom and generosity of spirit to collaborate on decisions they face for the wellbeing of society and of the earth itself. Inspire us all with the hope, joy and peace we find through trusting you. Amen Carol – Good King Wenceslas Benediction May the tenderness of God enfold you, the promise of the Christ uphold you, and the strength of the Spirit lead you on, to greet the year ahead, filled with grace and truth, and the blessing…. We welcome everyone to our united service at Yetholm (11am) on the Fourth Sunday of Advent.
Lighting of Advent Crown - Choir Call to Worship God comes to us in the cry of a child: Let every heart prepare a welcome. God comes to us in the whisper of a loving mother: Let every heart prepare an embrace. God comes to us, if we are ready or not: Let every heart prepare to receive the Christ. So we worship the God who has come, who is here and who will come again. Hymn 294 – Once in royal David’s city Prayer of Adoration and Confession God of mystery and mercy, you stir in our hearts and bring us joy. You stir in our minds and bring us wisdom. You stir in the world and bring hope for the future. You came as a little child, stirring up praise. So we come to adore you with the angels; to bow with the shepherds; to kneel in wonder with the magi; to ponder your mystery with Joseph; to love and cherish you with Mary; We come with humble hearts full of joy because you came to us first In Jesus, whom we hold on our hearts this night (day). God of grace and truth, In Christ you offer us the gift of yourself, but we are attracted to presents under the tree. You came to us in flesh and blood, but we fail to see you in the humans right beside us. You shine in the world, but we dwell on the darkness in the daily news.Forgive us. Renew our hope and our trust in you as you reach out to us from the manger. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light! Walk in the assurance of God’s grace and forgiveness. Be people of light and forgive one another. Lord’s Prayer Mickey Mouse Play Carol 303 – It came upon the midnight clear Readings – 1 Samuel 2:1-10 (Pg 272) Luke 1:26-38 (pg 1026) Hymn 312 – Away in a manger Weekly Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, we come to your cradle with joy and wonder! We adore you for your loving kindness; thank you, Jesus. Accept our hearts as our best loving gift and send us out at the end of our Advent journey filled with love, joy and peace ready to receive that promise afresh into our lives. Amen Reflection There are certain songs, which when we hear them, immediately take us to a certain place to a certain time. We associate them perhaps with certain people. An introduction is played and the memories come flooding in. Maybe to childhood or a holiday. The carol Starry Night takes me to Machanhill primary school in my first parish in the late 80s, which is when I first heard it, while with the events in Gaza, the music that comes to mind is bizarrely Pet Shop Boys, as I played their Greatest Hits at full blast as I drove down the motorway when I made a visit. Just now we are singing a lot of carols, and many of them we know by heart, they have become so much part of us. Mary as a girl would have known the songs of her faith. When women had something to say, they often put it in song. After the crossing of the Red Sea, Mirriam sand about victory against the odds. We read today about Hannah, and after unexpectedly giving birth, she sang of the God who overturned expectations, redressed the balance and gave the world a new perspective. Mary would perhaps have known these songs by heart, describing as they did a God she was still getting to know. But they would not have prepared her for the time an angel came knocking at her door. The beautiful story we read of the annunciation. Mary must have been terrified. Gabriel would have done his best, but he must have been an awesome sight to a teenager, as Mary was. Then Gabriel said such incredible things., about God, about her, about a baby who would save the world. He laid out God’s plan, and asked Mary if she wanted to be part of it. What do you say to an angel? Well, Mary proved mature beyond her years and asked how it was to be. ‘How is this to be?’ Now, you can say that with resignation or with sarcasm, but I think she says it with trust. Or maybe she is just buying time, as she weighs up the cost of what the angel is telling her.
Mary wisely went to visit her cousin Elizabeth, whom Gabriel had mentioned was also going to bear a child and, as she approaches, Elizabeth hugs her and blesses her. No questions, no condemnation, but a blessing that she is truly favoured by God. Mary then takes Hannah’s song and makes it her own. A song testifying to a God who looks with favour on the lowly , who has not forgotten them. And that is all in God’s plan that Mary was part of, for she would bear a baby who would also let this song re-echo even in his hardest moments, a child who would become the saviour of the world. Christmas can be fun with the trees and tinsel and our carols, but here is also the promise God comes to dwell amongst us; the hope of God who will set things right; the joy of God who has not forgotten us, and the love of God born at Christmas, who turns the world upside down. Hymn 316 – Love came down Prayers of Dedication and Intercession Generous and loving God, your gift to us in Christ Jesus still draws us to manger and opens our hearts with wonder. Bless our gifts in his name, so that they may draw others to your love, to find the blessing we have discovered in the One born for us. Amen. God of hope and healing, Because you came to us in love as the Christ Child in Bethlehem, we come to you with love and concern for the world. In this time of quiet and contemplation we remember: people and families living close to the edge of survival, worrying about where their next meal will come from, or where they will find shelter… As Mary and Joseph travelled to Bethlehem, so be with all who travel at this time to meet up with family or friends. May it be an enriching time. We pray for those who will spend Christmas alone, in hospital, or weighed down by grief… those who work tonight and tomorrow today while we celebrate or relax… those who have lost their sense of joy and wonder and turned to cynicism or despair; those who face the year ahead with fear and anxiety, those who celebrate the birth of a new life, a new love, or a new way of being… those whom we have loved and who loved us, who now dwell in the eternal joy of your presence... Amen Hymn 301 – Hark. The herald angels Benediction May the joy of the angels, the eagerness of the shepherds, the perseverance of the wise men, the obedience of Joseph and Mary, and the peace of the Christ-child be yours this Christmas; and the blessing of almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be with you now and always, Amen. We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15am) on the Third Sunday of Advent.
Hymn 284 – Hope is the candle (v3) Call to Worship God has called us To bring good news to the poor, to live with integrity God has called us To heal the broken-hearted, to bring justice to the hungry. The Spirit of God is within us We are the people of God Hymn 472 – Come thou long-expected Jesus Prayer of Adoration and Confession Loving God, we gather at this season of promise to worship you. We praise you for your love and your faithfulness, for you are the source of all hope and from you all joy springs. You are the one we expect, but your coming is always unexpected. You turn everything upside down and make all things new. Advent God of surprises, we worship you and wait for you to awaken our wonder and astound us with your arrival. Lord God, in this season of excitement and weariness, open our hearts to your presence, for we know you meet us and hold us; In and beyond the glitter, in and beyond the busyness and the rush. When we are tired and frayed, when we lose sight of what it is all about, when we put ourselves first and forget that you come to bring love, come close and restore us and forgive us we pray. Smooth down the mountains of our pride, and lift up the valleys of our doubts. Open a path in the wilderness of our lives that we might find our way to you again. Loving God, mend our broken hearts and help us to know ourselves forgiven and loved. In our thankfulness help us to wait and to watch for you, faithfully and truly all our days Lord’s Prayer Readings – Isaiah 61:1-4 (Pg 748) John 1:19-28 (pg 1063) Hymn 291 – When out of poverty is born Weekly Prayer Almighty God, your servant John the Baptist called people to change the way they lived and to prepare themselves for the coming of your son. Help us all to delight greatly in the God of our salvation, as our sovereign Lord makes righteousness and praise to spring up before all nations. Amen Sermon Who is the greatest singer of all time? I am sure we would all have different ideas. Who is the greatest prime minister of all time? Well, to preserve peace and harmony, we won’t go into that. Who is the greatest rugby player? Well, I was in a café recently and overheard two bearded gentlemen of a certain age discuss that very topic. Each made rather grandiose claims about their chosen player, each statement grander than the other. They had their facts to back up their arguments, but it amused me to see how they exaggerated their claims. John the Baptist does the opposite. When asked who he was, whether he was Elijah or even the Messiah, John immediately says no. He isn’t the Messiah; indeed, he wasn’t even worthy to tie the straps of his sandals. How wonderfully refreshing. These days, we are so used to people blowing their own trumpet, of so-called celebrities, who very few people have ever heard of, delighting in the fact that they are celebrities and invited onto every television show going to offer their views. John is zero-interested in that. While celebrities say that it is all about me; John on the other hand is saying that it is NOT about me. It is about the one who will come after him, the one for whom he is preparing the way. There are a number of mediaeval paintings which feature John, including one by Grunewald, who painted an altarpiece of the crucifixion. John was at the side of it (though of course he had died before Jesus) and he is pointing to Jesus. That is what John’s role was – to point to Jesus. He could have received all the adulation for himself – after all, people were flocking from all over Judaea and even Galilee to be baptised in the Jordan River. He could have thought that maybe he was the one. People like Andrew came and stayed and became followers. It could easily have gone to his head, BUT he pointed to Jesus; he pointed to the light. He insisted he was not himself the light, but rather pointed to the light. It is interesting that Andrew followed John, for he too did not glory in the fact that he was the first disciple and make a claim to be special, but stayed in the background, preferring to bring others to Jesus. John pointed to the Light. We need that light in our world today. There is climate change, and the COP conference that has just finished is being branded a Cop-out by many. There is anxiety as we approach Christmas with many struggling to buy basics let alone presents for their children. Then there are the wars – in Ukraine, in Israel and Palestine. At this time of Advent churches in the Middle East have wonderful nativity scenes with whole landscapes with a cave in the middle and Mary and Joseph and the baby. But a Lutheran church in Bethlehem has the Holy family in the midst of the rubble. And that is appropriate. For Christ should be in the midst of destroyed buildings in Gaza, Christ should be in the midst of kibbutz ravaged by terrorists. Christ should be born where there is suffering, for there he brings his light to shine and somehow redeems that situation. And that light, like the burning bush, can not be extinguished. As John the Baptist met people in the wilderness and pointed them to Christ, so Christ meets us in the wildernesses of our lives. There he seeks to bind up the broken hearted and bring hope to the prisoner and recovery of sight to the blind. In our reading from Isaiah, we read these words, familiar to us because Jesus quoted them as he preached his sermon in Nazareth. The Messiah would bring good news and would bring a crown rather than ashes, gladness instead of mourning, joy instead of despair. Today is called Gaudete Sunday which means rejoice, and we light the candle for joy. Despite the problems in our world, joy is there. The joy of a young baby brought to church for baptism who is accepted and loved and valued by God, included as part of the family. John the Baptist was an outsider, an oddity with his strange taste in clothing and his faddy cuisine, but he proved to be a model for what life lived in God’s service is all about. He pointed to one greater than himself, he pointed to Christ. He knew who he was and knew who he was not. That is quite smart. Hymn 319 – Of the father’s love begotten Prayers of Dedication and Intercession This Sunday, the Advent theme is Joy. Scripture and song remind us to rejoice in Lord. Let us think of our offering as an opportunity to spread joy in God’s world, even when the world seems uncertain. Rejoice in the Lord and give thankfully for Christ’s sake. God of justice and joy, we bring our gifts to you in gratitude for your unfailing goodness to us. Bless these gifts and use them to create justice and bring joy into the world in Jesus’ name. Come, Christ Jesus, be our guest, and enter our lives today with your blessing. We are lonely for you and the peace you bring. Draw near to us in friendship and faithfulness so that in this season which combines celebration in the face of uncertainty, we may know your presence… and sing with all your people: Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel. Come, Christ Jesus, be our guide, and show us the way to wisdom and gratitude. We are thankful for the kindness we know in friends and good neighbours, in warm houses and warm smiles, which hold off the darkness and fears for the future. Encourage us to reach out to those who need your embrace and ours… so that together we may sing of your presence: Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel. Come, Christ Jesus, be our hope and touch us with your healing and grace. We remember before you all those we know and those known to you alone who are living with loss or illness this season, those who face depression or discouragement, and all who will find it hard to be merry this year. Shine the light of your comfort into their lives… as we sing of the hope that dawns in your love: Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel. Come, Christ Jesus, be our king, and claim your rightful place in our hearts. Our world is struggling to find the justice and mercy you call for. Draw near to our leaders and all citizens working for peace and justice, and those striving to mediate or contain conflicts. Encourage honourable action and co-operation on all sides. Give hope to people under oppression and to those living with fear or hunger day by day. Hasten the day when the world’s peoples will live as neighbours reconciled in your truth and freedom. Hymn 286 – Tell out my soul Benediction We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15am) on the Second Sunday of Advent. Rev'd Ian Clark will lead our services today.
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