Prelude- “Spirit Song” [by John Wimber] - Sarah Park
Welcome - Liz Meeker
Welcome to Mantua Center Christian Church -- a community seeking to have open minds, open hearts, and open arms.
- Whether online or in the house this morning, we want to welcome you to our service today. Please take a few moments and greet those seated near you.
- INVITATION FOR MISSION UPDATES:
Ministry Leaders and congregants are welcome to come forward to the mic, to give a mission update or share ways for people to get involved in missions and ministries.
Scripture - Psalm 145:8-9 Liz Meeker
8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is good to all,
and his compassion is over all that he has made.
*Response - Weave #495
Weave, weave, weave us together, Weave us together, in unity and love.
Weave, weave, weave us together, weave us together, together in love.
*Call to Worship - Liz Meeker
One: What does this worship service need?
All: Quiet where faith can grow, song that blossoms hope, scripture that remembers love, honest words to untangle a small length of knotty existence, gifts offering service of the heart.
One: Who shall come to this worship service?
All: All who are seeking the touch of God.
*Opening Hymn - Praise to the Lord, the Almighty #25, v.1-2
1 Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, who rules all creation.
O my soul, worship the wellspring of health and salvation.
All ye who hear,
now to God's temple draw near.
Join me in glad adoration.
2 Praise to the Lord, who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth,
who, as on wings of an eagle uplifted, sustaineth.
Hast thou not seen?
All that is needful hath been
granted in what God ordaineth?
Invitation to Generosity
Invitation - Liz Meeker
I recently heard this story: a man who appeared to be homeless arrived in a local (local to where, I am not sure) Starbucks. He carried only an empty gallon milk jug and asked if he could get it filled with water. The barista asked him what he needed it for and he replied, to drink. With that, she said sure, go on over to the soda dispenser and fill it to the top with water. Next, the barista asked if he was hungry. She then brought him a hot meal with a steamy, large cup of coffee.
The people in the restaurant were so touched, that several asked if they could pay for the man’s food. The Barista replied “thank you, but that isn’t necessary; we set aside money for the homeless in the area. Every time this man comes in, we feed him breakfast.”
My first thought was “so that’s why Starbucks is so expensive”! But, once I got my mercenary self out of the way; my thoughts settled on “this is exactly what it means when “Jesus commands us to love one another” And, care for those that can’t care for themselves. It doesn’t take a lot; maybe just water, a bagel and a hot cup of coffee!
Offertory - “Jesus, Rose of Sharon” [by C. H. Gabriel]
Response - “Give Thanks” #528
Give thanks with a grateful heart, give thanks to the Holy One,
give thanks because he’s given Jesus Christ his Son. Give Thanks!
Offering Prayer - Liz Meeker
Children’s Moment - Kathleen Lewarchick
Pastoral Prayer & The Lord’s Prayer - Liz Meeker
Lord, we are grateful to be gathered together today to worship your Holy Name. We offer our worship and adoration to you, for you are worthy to be praised. We lift our voices together to offer you all that you are due.
We remember all those that are sick, either in mind or body. We remember Barb Jackson and Eileen Kinter. We stand with those who are grieving and therefore remember the Siman family in the loss of Joan. Lord, we ask you to wrap all of the families who are hurting in your loving arms.
Thank you for bringing us together today to worship together as one body….
Holy Communion
Meditation - Sandi Kossick
Hymn - All Who Hunger, Gather Gladly” #419 v.1-2
1 All who hunger gather gladly; Holy manna is our bread.
Come from wilderness and wand’ring. Here in truth we will be fed.
You that yearn for days of fullness, all around us is our food.
Taste and see the grace eternal. Taste and see that God is good.
2 All who hunger, never strangers, seeker, be a welcome guest.
Come from restlessness and roaming. Here, in joy, we keep the feast.
We that once were lost and scattered in communion’s love have stood.
Taste and see the grace eternal. Taste and see that God is good.
Prayer - Beth Schabel
Words of Institution - Beth Schabel
Music - “Would you be free from your burden of sin?” [By L. E. Jones ] - Sarah Park
Special Music
“All for the Best” [From Godspell by Stephen Schwartz] - Jon Secaur & Jon Bozeka
Scripture - Micah 6:6-8 - Liz Meeker
With what shall I come before the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[a] with your God.
Sermon - “Mercy Equals Justice, or Does It?” - Liz Meeker
This chapter and verse are probably one of several personal favorites and I have given a message on this reading when I was a lay leader for the Western Reserve Emmaus weekend several years ago. By the way, this one is brand new…and completely different! It was swirling around in my head that I was interested in working on this chapter/verse when two things knocked me on the head to convince me “this was the message that I am supposed to be sharing with all of you”! Sometimes, I am slow!
First of all, all summer long, we have battled slightly with our Kids Weekend Meals families asking them to get coolers (which we would provide) on their front porch to protect the perishable items like meats, cheeses, fresh veggies or fruit. If no cooler, we will not leave these items. The reason for that is A) we don’t want to make anyone sick, and B) in a country where some mantra’s are, if something goes wrong, let’s sue somebody, KWM, just can’t afford that … so better safe than sorry! We had one customer who had given us some issues and when the driver delivered her food, her cooler was full of rotten food from the last delivery, two weeks ago! While sometimes, it is tough to be kind, I was just that! Sometimes, I think I deserve an award. First I asked her if she even wanted the perishable items, and then I explained that her food rotting unused becomes a justice issue. Wait, did I just say that? Yup, I did but was it true?
Secondly, most of you know I have had some pretty significant back issues. Well, on July 1st, we went to Blossom to hear the Cleveland Orchestra and choir perform “Beethoven’s Ode to Joy.” Afterwards, Paul and I decided to walk back to our car. A lady passed me halfway up what seemed like a monstrous hill and informed her friend (both of whom, I apparently was too slow for) that they did have trams for those who couldn’t walk. Where was the mercy/justice here? No mercy, unless you count the fact that I did not hit her with my walking stick!
Now, lets get to work! Mercy is defined as “compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone when it is within one’s power to punish or harm.” Seven signs of being merciful: 1) to feed the hungry, 2)to give drink to the thirsty, 3) to clothe the naked, 4)to give shelter to travelers, 5)to visit the sick, 6)to visit the imprisoned, and 7)to bury the dead.
Compassion leads you to have mercy, which is like forgiveness. ... This is a quality that has to do with compassion, forgiveness, and leniency. If convicted of a crime, you might plead for the judge's mercy, meaning a lesser punishment. When people say "May God have mercy on me!" they're asking for forgiveness. Forgiving someone or relieving a person's pain are both merciful acts. The word merciful also has religious connotations which come from the root word mercy, used since the 12th century to mean "God's forgiveness of his creatures' offenses." The origin is the Old French merci, "pity or thanks.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer counseled a couple on their wedding day, "Forgive each other every day from the bottom of your hearts." The daily practice of being merciful in your relationships keeps weeds from springing up and choking out the flowers in the garden of our relationships. The Urania Book (actually, now called the Urantia Book) teaches that mercy is a process, a profound spiritual exercise, the completion of justice, and a joyful experience of partnership with God. The Urania Book, first published in 1955, is spiritual book that presents the origins, history, and destiny of humanity. The teachings traverse concepts of the universe, life and teachings of Jesus from a Christian perspective, and personal spiritual growth.
Now for Justice. Justice is defined per the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “the maintenance or administration of what is just especially by the impartial adjustment of conflicting claims or the assignment of merited rewards or punishments.” Another is “the administration of law, especially: the establishment or determination of rights according to the rules of law or equity.” Some people choose this side of justice; the “you wronged me, now you have to pay”! The problem is the wronging of someone might be imagined depending on the color or perceived sexuality of the supposed perpetrator.
But in God’s perspective, these definitions are incomplete. How do we know? Because God reveals his perspective on justice throughout the entire Bible. Woven through the Pentateuch (Genesis through Deuteronomy), the Psalms, the Old Testament prophets, Jesus’ ministry in the Gospels, and the New Testament Epistles is the consistent message that justice is not only about retribution. In its fullness, God’s justice is about the flourishing of all people.
Justice is the ethical, philosophical idea that people are to be treated impartially, fairly, properly, and reasonably by the law and by arbiters of the law, that laws are to ensure that no harm befalls another, and that, where harm is alleged, a remedial action is taken - both the accuser and the accused receive a just result.
“Justice consists not in being neutral between right and wrong, but in finding out the right and upholding it, wherever found, against the wrong.” “The dead cannot cry out for justice. It is a duty of the living to do so for them.” “Never pray for justice, because you might get some.”
Now wait just a minute; does this sound like biblical justice, the part where God’s justice is about the “flourishing of all people”? Does it almost seem like Mercy and Justice are at cross purposes? I mean Mercy is the act of being forgiving and Justice is wanting everyone to get what they deserve or have coming.
Justice is the concept of fairness. Social justice is fairness as it manifests in society. That includes fairness in healthcare, employment, housing, and more. In a socially-just society, human rights are respected and discrimination is not allowed to flourish. What’s the origin of the phrase “social justice?” It was most likely first used in the 1780s and appears in Paper #7 of The Federalist Papers. As the Industrial Revolution wound down, American legal scholars applied the term to economics. Today, its use has expanded significantly and applies to all parts of society. It’s seen through the lens of traits like race, class, sexuality, and gender, food insecurity, homelessness, and proper medical care for all to name a few. This is the justice of which God envisioned as “the flourishing of all people.”
So, in closing, my stories at the start of this message are right. Yes, it was merciful of me to offer the women, who apparently didn’t like being held up, forgiveness and it is a justice issue to waste food that someone else could eat.
Both types of justice are certainly necessary; one justice acting as the sheriff in keeping law and order and the other, the quiet, unassuming helping hand that is there to make everyone’s life flourish.
And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and
to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” This verse doesn’t say that there is no need for Retributive justice; it does say that justice and mercy can go hand in hand to make us all equally loved, equally forgiven and equally provided for. A quote by Winston Churchill:
All the great things
Are simple, and many can be
Expressed in a single
Word: freedom, justice,
Honor, duty, mercy, hope
*Closing Hymn - “ I Would be True” #608, v. 1-2
1 I would be true, for there are those who trust me;
I would be pure, for there are those who care;
I would be strong, for there is much to suffer;
I would be brave, for there is much to dare;
I would be brave, for there is much to dare.
2 I would be friend of all--the foe, the friendless;
I would be giving, and forget the gift;
I would be humble, for I know my weakness;
I would look up, and laugh, and love, and lift;
I would look up, and laugh, and love, and lift.
Benediction - Liz Meeker
Postlude - “Standing on the Promises” [by R. K. Carter] - Sarah Park