Jesus Begins His Ministry and Calls Some Disciples
Worship
Lectionary Worship Workbook
Series II, Cycle A Gospel Texts
Adoration And Praise
Invitation to the Celebration
Begin with words similar to these: "You are all sinners in the hands of an angry God. So repent, or go to hell. That's what the Bible says, and that's what you need to believe, or else...." How would you like to hear that every week? Or even, once a year? People throughout much of church history have heard precisely that. Jonathan Edwards had people groaning and sitting on the edge of their pews crying out, "God, have mercy on me!" as he preached his famous sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God!" Though the method of proclaiming repentance has changed in the contemporary church, the message still rings forth, "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven has come near."
Response
"Praise Ye (You) the Lord, the Almighty" (Joachim Neander, 1680). (Encourage people to stroll around the sanctuary as they sing.)
P: Who are you to have come here?
M: We are forgiven repenters.
P: What is it to be a forgiven repenter?
M: It is to acknowledge our brokenness, I-centeredness, rebellion, and to have received God's amazing forgiveness.
P: Why have you come?
M: We have come out of gratitude to offer our thanks to the One who receives us unconditionally, in order that we will more effectively witness to and for God.
All: Let's do just that! And all the people said ...
Prayer of Praise (printed)
Eternal and loving God, we praise you, whose name is love, whose nature is compassion, whose presence is joy, whose word is truth, whose spirit is goodness, whose holiness is beauty, whose will is peace, whose service is perfect freedom, and in knowledge of whom stands for the results of our repentance, life eternal with You (author unknown).
Confession And Forgiveness
The Act of Recognizing Our Humanity
Ask someone to read, from the rear of the sanctuary, and with much energy, the words of Paul. As he/she reads, ask the people to be aware of what they are thinking and feeling, and to ask, "What do these words have to do with me? Today? Now? Here in worship? Beyond worship?" From the Cotton Patch version (sexist language omitted): "There isn't a pure person anywhere. Nor one who is fully sensitive. Nor one who really sets his/her heart on God. All kicked over the traces and became worthless. There isn't one worth his/her salt, not a single, solitary one." No wonder Jesus called/calls us to repent! What a contrast with a Ladies' Home Journal poll taken years ago. Of those Americans polled, 95 percent admitted that they prayed. Only five percent felt the need for confession. Does that seem strange to you? If so, why? Write down your response. (Three minutes of silence.) Then, ask if anyone would take the risk of sharing his/her thoughts. If not, how about yours?
Response
"Jesus the Man" (Confession) (words and music by Dave Farley, from New Wine. See Appendix I for address).
The Act of Receiving New Life
To know that repentance means not "to be sorry again" or "feel guilty," but rather, "change your mind, change your way of thinking and living," then we will receive and live in the good news that we are put in a new relationship with God. Confession comes, not from the skimmed milk of our external goodness, but from the thick cream of our interior brokenness and alienation. God's presence empowers us to "change our minds." How do you see that happening this week? Write it down.
P: To be "in Christ" is to know that we are forgiven.
M: Christ, by offering us forgiveness, leads us to a new understanding of who we are and where our lives are headed.
P: I invite us to remember his way of freedom, hope, and responsibility, that is, our response to God's ability.
M: We rejoice in new life!
Listening And Proclaiming
Message with the Children of All Ages
In advance, ask a family, which is willing to take a big risk, to share an example of how it worked through a painful, broken experience between parents and children. Identify how the family members felt before and after the event. Use this example, in review, at the beginning of the proclamation.
Stewardship Challenge
1. Hand out stars to those who have not yet received one.
2. Ask two people, in advance, to share their experience about the message on their stars.
Charge to the Congregation
Repentance results in new, not perfect, activity. How will your life be different this week because you worshiped today? As you consider your "about-face" (one way to define repentance), what form and content will that about-face take? As you leave the sanctuary today? Go to school or work tomorrow? Play racquetball or tennis or whatever this week? As you relate to your family, neighbor, enemy from now on?
Meditation
A changed mind leads to changed behavior; a changed behavior leads to a changed mind. "It is easier to act your way into a new way of feeling, than to feel your way into a new way of acting" (author unknown).
Music Possibilities In Addition To Those Already Suggested
Music for Preparation: Medley of Epiphany hymns or "Fugue in C-major," Buxtehude.
Choral Introit: "Rejoice You Pure in Heart," stanza 1. Edward H. Plumptre, 1865; alt. refrain added, 1883.
Hymn of Praise: "Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies," Charles Wesley.
Response to the Newer Covenant: "Be Thou Not Still," Foltz.
Response to the Proclamation: "Dear Lord and Father of Mankind" (point out the sexist language), John Greenleaf Whittier, 1872. This hymn was part of a larger text in which Whittier revealed his dislike of outward ceremony and in which he emphasized the need for the quiet indwelling of Christ's presence in people's lives.
Offertory: "Our Father Who Art in Heaven," Bach; or "Praise Be to God in the Highest," Zachau.
Hymn of Commitment: "Christ Is the World's True Light," George Wallace Briggs, 1931; alt. 1972.
Choral Response to the Benediction: "Amen Chorus" from "Lilies of the Field."
Music for Dismissal: Medley of Epiphany hymns, or "Credo," Haydn.
Invitation to the Celebration
Begin with words similar to these: "You are all sinners in the hands of an angry God. So repent, or go to hell. That's what the Bible says, and that's what you need to believe, or else...." How would you like to hear that every week? Or even, once a year? People throughout much of church history have heard precisely that. Jonathan Edwards had people groaning and sitting on the edge of their pews crying out, "God, have mercy on me!" as he preached his famous sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God!" Though the method of proclaiming repentance has changed in the contemporary church, the message still rings forth, "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven has come near."
Response
"Praise Ye (You) the Lord, the Almighty" (Joachim Neander, 1680). (Encourage people to stroll around the sanctuary as they sing.)
P: Who are you to have come here?
M: We are forgiven repenters.
P: What is it to be a forgiven repenter?
M: It is to acknowledge our brokenness, I-centeredness, rebellion, and to have received God's amazing forgiveness.
P: Why have you come?
M: We have come out of gratitude to offer our thanks to the One who receives us unconditionally, in order that we will more effectively witness to and for God.
All: Let's do just that! And all the people said ...
Prayer of Praise (printed)
Eternal and loving God, we praise you, whose name is love, whose nature is compassion, whose presence is joy, whose word is truth, whose spirit is goodness, whose holiness is beauty, whose will is peace, whose service is perfect freedom, and in knowledge of whom stands for the results of our repentance, life eternal with You (author unknown).
Confession And Forgiveness
The Act of Recognizing Our Humanity
Ask someone to read, from the rear of the sanctuary, and with much energy, the words of Paul. As he/she reads, ask the people to be aware of what they are thinking and feeling, and to ask, "What do these words have to do with me? Today? Now? Here in worship? Beyond worship?" From the Cotton Patch version (sexist language omitted): "There isn't a pure person anywhere. Nor one who is fully sensitive. Nor one who really sets his/her heart on God. All kicked over the traces and became worthless. There isn't one worth his/her salt, not a single, solitary one." No wonder Jesus called/calls us to repent! What a contrast with a Ladies' Home Journal poll taken years ago. Of those Americans polled, 95 percent admitted that they prayed. Only five percent felt the need for confession. Does that seem strange to you? If so, why? Write down your response. (Three minutes of silence.) Then, ask if anyone would take the risk of sharing his/her thoughts. If not, how about yours?
Response
"Jesus the Man" (Confession) (words and music by Dave Farley, from New Wine. See Appendix I for address).
The Act of Receiving New Life
To know that repentance means not "to be sorry again" or "feel guilty," but rather, "change your mind, change your way of thinking and living," then we will receive and live in the good news that we are put in a new relationship with God. Confession comes, not from the skimmed milk of our external goodness, but from the thick cream of our interior brokenness and alienation. God's presence empowers us to "change our minds." How do you see that happening this week? Write it down.
P: To be "in Christ" is to know that we are forgiven.
M: Christ, by offering us forgiveness, leads us to a new understanding of who we are and where our lives are headed.
P: I invite us to remember his way of freedom, hope, and responsibility, that is, our response to God's ability.
M: We rejoice in new life!
Listening And Proclaiming
Message with the Children of All Ages
In advance, ask a family, which is willing to take a big risk, to share an example of how it worked through a painful, broken experience between parents and children. Identify how the family members felt before and after the event. Use this example, in review, at the beginning of the proclamation.
Stewardship Challenge
1. Hand out stars to those who have not yet received one.
2. Ask two people, in advance, to share their experience about the message on their stars.
Charge to the Congregation
Repentance results in new, not perfect, activity. How will your life be different this week because you worshiped today? As you consider your "about-face" (one way to define repentance), what form and content will that about-face take? As you leave the sanctuary today? Go to school or work tomorrow? Play racquetball or tennis or whatever this week? As you relate to your family, neighbor, enemy from now on?
Meditation
A changed mind leads to changed behavior; a changed behavior leads to a changed mind. "It is easier to act your way into a new way of feeling, than to feel your way into a new way of acting" (author unknown).
Music Possibilities In Addition To Those Already Suggested
Music for Preparation: Medley of Epiphany hymns or "Fugue in C-major," Buxtehude.
Choral Introit: "Rejoice You Pure in Heart," stanza 1. Edward H. Plumptre, 1865; alt. refrain added, 1883.
Hymn of Praise: "Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies," Charles Wesley.
Response to the Newer Covenant: "Be Thou Not Still," Foltz.
Response to the Proclamation: "Dear Lord and Father of Mankind" (point out the sexist language), John Greenleaf Whittier, 1872. This hymn was part of a larger text in which Whittier revealed his dislike of outward ceremony and in which he emphasized the need for the quiet indwelling of Christ's presence in people's lives.
Offertory: "Our Father Who Art in Heaven," Bach; or "Praise Be to God in the Highest," Zachau.
Hymn of Commitment: "Christ Is the World's True Light," George Wallace Briggs, 1931; alt. 1972.
Choral Response to the Benediction: "Amen Chorus" from "Lilies of the Field."
Music for Dismissal: Medley of Epiphany hymns, or "Credo," Haydn.
