Reflection: “We light this 5th advent candle, the candle of faithfulness, to draw attention to God’s trustworthiness. The Lord is all-powerful and able to do anything, yet He relies not upon His power or might to draw humanity to Himself, but rather shows them His goodness, His power put into purpose. He made a covenant, a holy agreement, with Noah and his descendants, and symbolized His goodness in a rainbow. Later, God sharpened His focus and extended a covenant to the people He would set free from slavery and call His own, Israel. Although God is Lord and Master over every people group on the planet, He took this nation Israel for His own to receive His law so that they would show Him and His ways to all. Sadly, Israel as a whole nation and with few exceptions, would neglect this great responsibility as God’s chosen people. Yet, while Israel and all of humanity show faithlessness and failure, God’s faithfulness is greater. He not only says to Israel through the prophet Isaiah that He will restore them, but that His new covenant will include not only Israel but all people who call upon His name. God’s goodness does not shut the gates and leave us out in the cold just because we may not come from a certain tribe, have a certain amount of wealth, or look a certain way. Rather, He looks into the heart of a man, the heart He created, to judge whether that person truly loves Him and desires to keep His ways. It is not a matter of race, rich, poor, any other way we tend to divide people that truly matters to God. Rather, He is looking and gathering those would love Him and keep His ways. God is faithful in His promises to humanity, and in the birth of Jesus Christ, God is saying to the world, “behold my promise is being kept to the fullest in My begotten Son”.

It is through this Son of God and in a relationship with Him, that Ezekiel’s words come true. God does not simply expect us to be good on our own strength. Instead, He gives us a new heart, a heart of flesh that would love Him. He imprints His ways into our lives so that instead of trying on our own gumption only to fail again and again, we would simply submit and let Jesus Christ have the control in our lives He has rightfully earned. God is trustworthy in every covenant, every agreement, every promise He has ever made, from Adam to Noah, from Abraham to His nation Israel, and the greatest proof of this is in His Son Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate this Christmas. It is the same Jesus placed in a manger, that seeks those who would place Him in the manger of their hearts and lives.

Prayer: Faithful and True God, thank you for never turning your back on us even when our wrongs made us deserve it. Grant us your hope, your peace, your love, and your joy, all based on your faithfulness to us because you love and cherish us and have proven that to all by sending your Son Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray, amen.

Reflection: “We light this fourth Advent candle, the candle of joy. We have been journeying through this season of Advent and looking at the Old Testament Scriptures that testify about the One who is to come. Imagine the eagerness with which they looked forward to a time when their mourning would be turned to dancing and their sadness transformed into joy. Although Isaiah’s verse seems out of place for an Advent reading as does not speak overtly about Christ, it paints a joy-filled picture of what is to come. Just like God’s written word goes out from His mouth to speak to men’s hearts, revealing both our sin and His righteousness, so God’s Living Word would do the same and so much more. It is this living Word that the Apostle John wrote about in the first chapter of his gospel when he said, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God….and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, moving into our neighborhood” This living Word, Jesus Christ, is the source of true joy. To those who thirst for the good things of life but never being satisfied, to those who hunger for bread but only find everything else wanting, this Living Water, this Bread of Life offers all that our hungry and thirsty lives truly need. Jesus Christ embodies God’s heart and His desire that all men should turn away from wickedness and sin and seek only Him. God is not hard to be found, but always makes the first move. The reason why we can even seek Him is because He has sought us first. Our source of joy comes from knowing that God loves us. Nehemiah knew this when he said, “the joy of the Lord is our strength”. If we are honest with ourselves, very few things of this world can give us lasting joy. Yes, family, friends, warm memories provide us with happiness in the moment, but the source of true and abiding joy is only to be found in God and in a relationship with Him.

However, we don’t need to wait for heaven to experience it. For Ezekiel writes of God’s promise that those who come to Him, He will do heart surgery, replacing a heart of stone with one of flesh. It is with that new heart that we experience God’s love and joy to its fullest, on earth just as it is in heaven. God’s purpose in sending this little Advent baby, Jesus Christ, is so that He would draw us to Him and that in doing so, we would have joy in Him. May we have the joy and peace radiating from our lives so that all who would see us, even the mountains and the trees, would break forth in song and clap their hands because they know that we are God’s people, redeemed and loved.

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father and the source of all joy, give us your joy this Christmas, even in times of heartache. Remind us that even in our hurts, You are faithful, even in times of sadness, that we can have joy because we have You. You provide for our needs and we love you because you first loved us, amen

“The past few weeks as we have journeyed through Advent, we have caught glimpses of God’s chosen one, His Son. We have heard Isaiah speak about how He will be a King like David, and yet His kingship will be like that of a Father lovingly ruling and protecting His children. We have listened intently as Micah gave us the location where this special one is to be born, and like His ancestor David, it will be Bethlehem. We remember as Jeremiah spoke about how this King would bring a new covenant, a new holy agreement between God and His people where He would write His laws not on tablets of stone but on our hearts so that we would know Him as intimately as He knows each of us.

 

And here in these two texts, we have an answer to the question of why would God even do any of this. Why would He continually remember His people, showing patience and kindness when they do not deserve it? Why does He still even today seek to draw men to Himself? Simply put, the answer is love. The Apostle John writes three words that are straightforward yet world-changing, “God is Love”. Although we often think of love as being a “soft” word, God’s love is more powerful than we can possibly imagine. For any of us who have had children we a close understanding. We love our children through their highs and lows, their ups and downs, and we rejoice with them when they are happy, and our hearts break when they suffer. We have a primal instinct to protect them from harm that drives us to lay down our lives unflinching. It is that love magnified that shows us God’s love for all of us. It is His love that refuses to surrender to evil. It is His love that changes us from seeking our own wants to now seeking to serve the needs of others.

 

God’s love is not simply words. When we look at the nativity, and especially when we look at the cross and empty tomb, we see God’s love. It is easy to love someone who is wonderful to us but much harder to love the unkind and those who we think do not deserve it. Yet this is what God has done and continues to do for us: love us when we are unloveable.

 

Prayer: Loving and merciful Father, thank you for a love that never quits, a love that gives us strength from day to day, a love that You did not just convey with words but with a Person, Your Son, Jesus Christ. We pray that just as You have loved us that we would show your love to others. Give us the strength not just to love with words but with actions. In Jesus Name, AMEN

“As we light the second candle of advent this season, we turn to the theme of peace. Peace is something that mostly everyone in the world wants, yet as we see everywhere, it appears that peace has eluded us and that we are only ever going to endure conflict, violence, and hate. We see this tension happening as close as individual family members with each other, neighborhoods torn apart by strife, and even nation-states marching to the drumbeats of battle. Peace seems like a word used only by the dreamers or the idealists among us. Yet, the Bible reassures us that peace is coming and has already arrived, yet that peace is not through an idea, a revolt, a political document, or social movement. Instead that true, relational peace, the peace that transcends all understanding has come in a Person. Isaiah looked forward to when this King of Peace would come, and the Bible affirms His peace would stretch all over the world. The One Isaiah looked forward to is the One we look back upon as we celebrate His birth on Christmas.

 

Not only did Isaiah tell us that this King of Peace is coming, but Micah puts this coming in actual historical terms. He pinpoints it down to a specific place, a most unlikely place, Bethlehem, “House of Bread” where one day the One who is called “the Bread of Life” will be born. We do not serve a God of peace who is aloof or only giving us nice words or ideas, but the Creator has taken on flesh and blood and has lived among us showing us the way of peace and giving us a foundation for that peace. The foundation is that we are all made in God’s image, broken by sin, but loved and cherished by Him and given the opportunity to have a life of peace with Him that starts now and continues forever. With this as our foundation, let us live lives that would display and spread that peace to all corners of the globe so that one day there will be peace on earth and goodwill to men.

 

It is Jesus’ birth, His example, His Death, and His resurrection that lay the foundation for true and complete peace; peace with God, peace with one another, peace with His creation, and peace within ourselves.

 

“Let us pray: “Dear God, bringer of the only long-lasting and real peace, just as you created the world in peace, we ask you would constantly shape and re-mold our hearts to be a people of peace. May we walk in your ways and live lives showing your shalom, your complete peace, through the power of the One who gave us peace with you through His death and resurrection, our Lord Jesus, in whose name we pray, AMEN

“We light this first candle of advent, the candle of hope, and as we begin our annual journey to the Nativity, let these Old Testament passages speak to us as never before. The original hearers of Isaiah and Jeremiah were facing hardships both as individuals and as a nation: invasion, captivity, and enslavement from other nations was a constant threat. As their world seemed hopeless, the people needed to hear God’s reassurance of hope. In Jeremiah, we find these verses as part of a larger letter sent to God’s people in captivity. Like a love letter stilling a troubled and worried heart, the proclamation is God’s merciful promise that even though they now find themselves with no temple, no home, and no country, His people still have Him, and He is their source of hope. God is saying to Israel, “fear not, they may take you away from your homeland, but they can never take you away from me. Live faithfully, even in exile, and soon, you will not only hear my words spoken, but just as my prophet Isaiah says, you will soon see my words of hope take on flesh and dwell among you. You will see that He is a King of Kings who rules with perfect justice, and that He will give you a hope and a future, that will finally end with absolute peace.”

 

These same words, although not originally written to us as Christians, still speak to us when we realize that we too live in exile, not away from another country, but away from our true home for which we were made. We look around our world, and we are tempted to believe that everything looks hopeless. War, poverty, immorality, and corruption seem to be the order of the day. Yet it all this bleakness, God has already sent the source of our hope and future, and this source is the One who speaks to us this Christmas and every Christmas. He is the root of Jesse. He is the One upon Whom God’s Spirit rests. He is the one who judges justly. So, as we come once again to a time where we celebrate the fact this King was born in a stable, let it stir in our hearts that God not only speaks the words of hope, but that His Son, who is our Living Hope, is coming again to take us out of our earthly exile to be with Him in His Kingdom, our true home.

 

Prayer: “Let us pray, Father of hope, who gives this precious gift in times of highest joy and deepest sorrow. In the midst of our broken and darkened world, grant to us your people a renewed sense of hope. When death plagues our lives, remind us of the hope that we have in your Son Jesus, the One who has conquered death and offers us the victory. May that hope resound in our hearts this Christmas and every year to come. AMEN

11/12/17-In Christ: Thinking Like a Christian

Below are the 4 major points of Christianity and all can be summed up in these categories

Creation

Fall

Redemption

Restoration

 

Creation (Genesis 1, 2)–God created all things, from all the stars, suns, and galaxies all the way down to the molecules, atoms, and quarks that consist them.

He made creation in peace and harmony-God simply spoke it into existence, and creation was ordered and tranquil.

God made man “in His image”-Both Adam and Eve were created to reflect God, to bear His image to the world, and to take responsibility to care for the creation God made.

What does it mean to be made in the Image of God?

Note: God had just made the animals.  Now he wanted to make an animal that was different.  One with a capacity to interact with the creation, and commune with Himself.

The Triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit)-all involved in the act of creation. This is important to remember. Because the three persons of the One Godhead were in a perfect loving relationship with one another, the gospel to mankind is the invitation to experience that loving relationship.

 

Fall–Long before John 3:16 was penned, God always loved the world

He created it

He was pleased with it.

Gen 1: 31-God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.

It was holy, pure, clean and beautiful, so much so, He could walk in it, and be visible

What happened to change all that, is what some theologians call “The Fall”.

Now when we look at the creation of Man, it’s important to understand what authority God gave him, and what exactly God said concerning him, and it’s important too to note the context-Genesis 1:25

The problem of Choice.

 .. Love, Loyalty, Obedience

This is where the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil comes in-Gen 2:15

Temptation – Satan Deceives Eve

Satan’s empty promise-Gen 3:1

Result – Separation-Gen. 3:6-11; Jude 12; Eph. 1:1-2

Something else happened at the Fall.  The transfer of the Kingdom–Adam lost his crown-Romans 6:16

Genesis 3; Rom. 5:12-21-Evil-A wrong relationship or a non-conformity between our will and God’s will, (what we want does not match up with what God wants), and we end up in a kingdom of death

–The good things and desires that God gave us end up becoming ultimate things-where we get our value, our sense of self, our morals, everything.

–Once our wills are alienated from God our bodies are sure to follow, this is why we suffer pain and death-These are the results of the Fall

The Fall cannot be a moral parable or fiction and here is why-If so, then its effects-suffering and death are not historical either because a non-historical first cause can’t lead to historical effects. (i.e. no Fall then there shouldn’t be any evil in the world but there is)

–If the Fall didn’t happen, Christ’s atoning death on the cross isn’t necessary and is pointless!!

–If Sin is non-historical (mythical/fiction) then it does not need a historical cure (cross) and the crucifixion of Jesus DID happen in history.

 

Solution-Redemption-

How do we re-align the will and have forgiveness? Grace through Jesus Christ who purifies us from sin and sanctifies our minds and wills.

–The cross stands at the center of history-Grace is the Heart of the Gospel-Forgiveness is the Heart of Grace

Nothing we can do to merit it; Nothing we can do can save ourselves-Eph. 2:8-10.

Every other faith and religion had a leader. A leader who would commonly say, “I am not divine, but I can point you to God and give you the rules He wants you to live by.” We have to earn our salvation through good works.

Jesus says otherwise. He is God and says “if you want to know what God is like, look at Me”. He lives the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died and saves us by sheer grace.

All we do after salvation is settled.  We no longer have to work to gain God’s favor.  Our work now is to obey Him, and to do His will, and His will is to reflect Christ to others-Romans 4:4-5

 

Result-Restoration–

Jesus’ death on the cross was the final death blow to sin and the kingdom of Satan, giving us a chance to have life in the Kingdom of God. It is this freedom and joy that ought to motivate us to live this kingdom out “on earth as it is in heaven”.

This event is not only a one-time historical occurrence, it is also our pattern for living. We too take part in Christ’s death every time we “die to self”, meaning we live like Jesus rather than conforming to the “old pattern” of how we used to live.

We also take part in His resurrection because we too have “new life” given to us to obey God. We don’t have to do it on our own strength.

All of creation itself is slowly being redeemed because Christ started His great work and continues it through us.

One of the most probing and thought-provoking ideas is to ask “what does the gospel say about…..” If our faith touches every aspect of our lives (and it does) and we believe it covers everything, both private and public (it certainly does), then we ought to always live our lives asking “what does the gospel say about….”

So what does the gospel say about the big national issues, like the recent tragic shootings or potential war with hostile countries? What does it say about politics? Our economy? Etc.

–What does it say about issues closer to home? Like how we spend our money and time? How do we raise our children? How do we interact with the world around us?

10/29/17-Eph. 4:1-16-In Christ: The Church: One, Equipped, and Ready

We are currently going through the book of Ephesians and looking at God’s desire for His church.

 

Right belief leads to right behavior, like a series of building blocks. What we believe about Christ affects what we believe about salvation which affects what we believe about church which in turn affects what morals and values and ethics we hold.

 

We spent the last few weeks focusing on grace (How God made the first move. He acts in love to us), then we asked, “What does grace require of me?” We saw “He (Jesus) became what we are” NOW this week we continue to see to “so we could become what He is”

 

This text is the how steps. And notice Paul addresses us as a body, not as a bunch of individuals.

 

Vs. 1-2-Paul is saying here that these traits display what it means to extend God’s grace. We have been shown grace by God & now must show grace to others.

 

This list is given in order to promote community. In the body of Christ, we must be humble, gentle, patient, and show tolerant love. Remember, all of us are works in progress 😉

 

Now comes the why (v. 3-11)-These here are not heady ideas, but a living reality. Our foundation for unity as a church is based on God Himself.

 

These verses show us the Trinity, 1 God in 3 Persons. First, look at the One here and the stressing on unity: “One Spirit, One Body, One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism, One God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all”

 

How many gods to we worship as Christians, not 3 but 1. 1 God the only true God. This emphasis on God’s oneness is meant to humble us. There is only one God, one gospel, one message of hope to the world, one truth as a foundation, one church.

 

That “one church” is not one denomination. Rather any who call upon the name of Jesus and believe that He has been raised from the dead constitute the one church, for it is built not on a denomination but on Jesus Christ Himself.

 

Vs. 6-”God is over all” (transcendent)-meaning He rules over all, and everything is under HIs control and His loving care. He is all-powerful

 

→ “God is through all”-(immanent)-meaning He is close to us, through us, and in us, constantly showing His active presence.

 

This is 1 God, but Paul mentions at the same time, 3 Persons: One Spirit (Holy Spirit), One Lord (Jesus Christ), and One God (Father). All these make up 1 God, 1 Being, yet they are different persons.

 

Paul writes that God is “of all, over all, through all, in all” AND also vs. 10-He says that Jesus Christ “His rule might fulfill the entire universe”

 

So, put it together, God fills all things and Christ fills all things. This is meant to show us that Jesus Christ is God and He is just as much God as the Father and Holy Spirit.

 

It is a unity with diversity, which is where we get our word “university” from. To believe the Gospel is to enter this unity with God and with other believers.

 

BUT, this unity does not mean we all lose who God made us to be, for that is where “diversity” comes in. We worship 1 God, yet Father is not the Son and the Son is not the Spirit, for they are different persons.

 

So, our unity is in Jesus, but we have a diversity of different gifts. I’ll explain below but first thing is first. What does vs. 7-10 mean? Christ is our General

 

The great part is that He has done all the work. He has fought the war and won! This section uses military parade language. Christ is the conqueror over sin and death, freed us from sin’s kingdom, and recruited us into His military.

 

And then He gave us the spoils of war, but these gifts are not silver and gold. They are the Holy Spirit, eternal life, and so much more. The Gospel is the celebration is Christ’s victory! All we are meant to do is not fight the war ourselves but declare to the world His victory and invite others to the party!

 

If you want to see an ideal model for the church, it comes from looking at the unity of 1 God and the diversity of 3 Persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).

 

As we turn to our final point, we now see the reasons Jesus gave us those gifts: The purpose is to build up the body, to live the truth in love, to push each other onward in our walks with God.

 

Last week, we saw the “endgame” and now we are going to see the path to get there, vs. 11-16. Each of us have different gifts, every one of us, (means you too 🙂

 

Gifts are given so that the living body of Jesus, the church (us gathered here) grows into maturity. We grow so that we will know and be secure in the truth.

 

The truth is Jesus Christ, we grow so that we would look like Him, do like Him, say like Him, think like Him.

 

This truth. Use it with you gifts. Let it be the power that empowers your gift. Don’t know what your gift is? Ask God, pray, ask one of us about it!

 

We all have a gift and with that gift comes a responsibility. We are all ministers and must use our God-given gifts, and don’t worry the Holy Spirit will help

 

Whatever you do, do it for Christ’s sake and for His kingdom. When we live the truth, not just individually in our lives, but as a body of Christ here, then the hurting will be healed, the lost will be instructed, the lonely will be loved.

 

This is how we show the world the gospel. It is by using our gifts in love toward one another.

 

Our Church is to be one, with all of us using our gifts, for God’s glory and for His truth. So be like Jesus in everything.

10/22/17-Eph. 3:14-21-In Christ: His Love In You

This prayer from Paul speaks to our hearts to draw us close, close to God for worship. And not only to worship but also to an endgame, a conclusion.

 

We looked at the statement, “He became what we are, so that we could become what He is”. The first half (“He became what we are”) fits nicely with the first half of Eph.

 

Today we start the second half of that saying (“so we could become what He is”). Being “in Christ” is the main point of the book of Ephesians. Being “permeated with His grace” is all throughout the book.

 

Grace is how “we become what He is”. V. 14-Paul is not only praying for the Christians in his day, but he is also praying for us as well!

 

v. 15-To understand the power behind these words, we must go back. In Genesis, it says that God made humans in His image. In this sense, God is a father to all people, not just in a creative sense, but a loving sense.

 

We see and know that we are broken by sin, YET God’s grace is constantly drawing humanity close to Him that we would accept His offer.

 

Humanity, in our brokenness, may have rejected God as their adopted Father, but Jesus the Son of God had a special relationship with Him that He now invites us believers to accept, and to show others that God is our true Father, the one who loves and cares for us.

 

To show that instead of belonging to that evil kingdom, that instead humanity was created for their true Kingdom, the Kingdom of God.

 

In Jesus Christ we see a new Adam. In Him, we see what humanity was designed to be. In Him we are a new people, with one Father whom we do recognize.

 

v. 16-17-Paul wants us to know Jesus personally, to not just know about Him but to know Him. Paul prays that we would know that power, and that power comes from accepting God’s grace, not our own moral effort or good works.

 

It comes from accepting the humble truth that are not, by nature, good or moral. It comes by saying to Jesus, “I give up! I need you, here to dwell in my heart, take over me”

 

That scares us. We want to have it both ways. We desire to be happy and joyful, but we still want to be in charge of our own lives, but we can’t have both. It is because we were made for Him.

 

If we were made for that purpose, we can’t hang on to our own way. We don’t want to surrender our will, but without doing that, we won’t experience true life.

 

That transaction of grace where we trade our sins for His grace won’t become real in our lives. Jesus says, “if you seek life, you will lose it, but if you lose your life (give it to me), you will find it”.

 

We will find true life, life as it was meant to be lived: full, joy-filled, grace-abounding.

 

Paul not only means grace as a one-time divine trade, but also grace as a daily reality. Grace is a way of life, and it must be daily lived out or else we won’t see lasting change in our lives because God will remain distant.

 

Grace not only guarantees our salvation, but it is the source of power to help us live righteous lives. It is that “new heart of flesh” that Jeremiah talks about.

 

When we accept His grace and surrender, Christ dwells in our hearts and He gives us an unlimited supply of grace. Don’t ever underestimate the power of grace to change you or anyone else! For Paul, grace is a reality that must be lived out.

 

God is our Father, the Holy Spirit gives us power, and Christ dwells in our hearts (notice the Trinity reference?)

 

v.17-19-Paul talks about being rooted in love, God’s love, and coming together as a body. Christianity is deeply personal, but not private, and we must living it out among each other.

 

Finally, Paul prays for us to be filled to the measure with the fullness of God. This is the purpose of a Christian: To be filled with Christ and look so much like Him in our lives that we others see us, they will see Jesus,

 

“Deification”-Means through being in Christ, and He in us, just as He became what we are (fully human), so we could become what He is (perfect).

 

Through Christ, we become by grace what God is by nature. We become like Him! This is our purpose, and it is the Father’s joy to give this to us.

 

If we believe this, then we will behave like it. A simple prayer goes, “Lord, more of you and less of me”. As we grow in Him, everything not godly will be gone, and everything touched by sin will not be touched by grace.

 

Through daily walking with Christ, grace interpenetrates us. We start to take on properties of God: holiness, love, justice, mercy, and peace.

 

God is our Father who created us and all humans. Paul wants us to know the purpose of that creation and its endgame, to know and live out God’s grace and love daily because Christ is in control of our lives, so that one day just as He became what we are, so we may become what He is!

10/15/17-Eph. 3:1-13-Responsive Reading

One: Lord, You have created us in Your Image, by your loving hands, and although we are broken by the sin we have chosen, You refuse to stop loving us.

 

All: You wrapped your strong, compassionate, and gentle arms of grace around us, and with Your nail-scarred hands, have dried our tears. We have all gone astray, thinking we knew better than You, but your great love brought us back and brought us home.

 

One: Dear King Jesus, You have seen our suffering, our alienation from You and from one another, and in your love, you have provided the way of grace, through your cross.

 

All: Rather than trusting in our own efforts, our titles, roles, and duties to attempt to stand on our own merit, may we instead always be reminded of Your grace and love that has provided a way. We stand confident, not on our own strength, but on the unchanging Rock of Christ.

 

One: Precious Savior, You care for each of us individually, for You have made us for You and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.

 

All: You look at each one of our hearts and the aches, pains, and troubles within. Yet, rather than see only these things and withdraw, You draw close to us, remove our hearts of stone and give us new hearts of flesh, of grace, and of desire to obey Your word.

 

One: Holy Spirit, You not only draw near to us, and in doing so, draw us as individuals close to You, You have also called us here together, as Conemaugh Brethren, to be the body of Christ, His presence in the world today.

 

All: As we depart from worship, we remember that as the church, we are the bride of Christ. Help us to remember our wedding vows to Him and keep us faithful.

 

One: You not only have called us together, but have done so in order that you would equip us with your grace. Make us administrators of grace, and may grace be a lifestyle for us.

 

All: May we be like your Son Jesus in that we embody your grace. May Your grace and truth touch and characterize everything we do, and turn us into a church community that does both well.

Psalm 23 Liturgy-Responsive Reading

One: Lord, our great Shepherd, we gather here in the midst of a time of great pain and heartache as a nation and as a church.

 

All: Remind us of your mercy that carries us like a shepherd carries his sheep in his loving arms.

 

One: It is said in your word, Lord, that you are a shepherd that not only protects but provides.

 

All: In You, we lack nothing. Grant us Your love, grace, compassion, truth, and during this time, hope to sustain us, so we can take one day at a time.

 

One: You are a shepherd who leads us and guides us.

 

All: Good Shepherd, lead us into green pastures of Your tranquility so that we may have rest in You. Guide us beside the still waters that remind us of your peace.

 

One: You are a shepherd who restores and renews.

 

All: Good Shepherd, even as we face violent and painful times in our lives individually and corporately, may we walk the path of righteousness and holiness. Plant our feet on solid ground not only that we would stand firm and true but that we would offer those around us the same firm foundation that is You, Jesus Christ.

 

One: You are a shepherd who do these compassionate acts solely because you are good.

 

All: Good Shepherd, may we be reminded always that you have saved us, cleansed us, and restored us from sin and death not because we have earned it, but because You are a good, good Father, that is simply who You are.

 

One: Lord, we come to you admitting that this week, our country and many of us individually have felt as though we have seen the valley of the shadow of death.

All: We have seen the pain and fear that violence has wrought that has brought a pause to our lives. Good Shepherd, teach us to be peacemakers so that You through us can teach the world what it means to live in wholeness in relation to You, one another, and self.

 

One: We have not only been exposed to pain in this way, but this week several of us lost loved ones that we cherished.

 

All: Even though we walk through death’s valley at different points in our life, remind us Good Shepherd that it is your hand that lead us and comfort us with your rod of instruction and your staff of gentleness. We do not stumble aimlessly as if we have no hope, for we have You, and You are stronger than death.

 

One: Dear Lord Jesus, after you arrived at your friend Lazarus’ grave, you reminded the sisters Martha and Mary both of your total humanity and perfect divinity. With one sister, you wept, while the other, you reminded her that standing before her was none less that the Resurrection and the Life.

 

All: Gracious Shepherd, we admit we need to hear both of these truths daily, both that you grieve with us and that you feel our pain, and yet you also overcame death and that those who put their trust in You, you promise the same eternal life.

 

One: So lead on Shepherd, to the banquet you yourself have prepared before us. Protect us from our enemies of despair and hopelessness, of cynicism and want, so that we would joyfully accept your invitation to join you at your feast of peace and hope.

 

All: And as we walk in our lives day by day to this great banquet, remind us that your goodness and your mercy pursue us and overtake our hurt. Remind us that we will dwell in your house forever like you dwell in our hearts now. Stir in us and plant our feet upon the conviction that death does not have the final word, Lord Jesus, you do. May our mourning be one day turned into dancing so that we as your church may proclaim to ourselves and others those same words that Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, that “death has been swallowed up in Christ’s victory, Oh death where is your victory, oh grave where is your sting?” Good shepherd lead on, through our heartache and through our pain into your presences where we may find good eternal life, amen.