Prelude - “O Worship the King All Glorious Above” [by J. M. Haydn] - Sarah Park
We are a community seeking to have open minds, open hearts, and open arms, building community in a fragmented world. Welcome to the Mantua Center Christian Church
Opening Scripture - Proverbs 31:8-9
8 Speak out for those who cannot speak, for the rights of all the destitute. 9 Speak out, judge fairly, defend the rights of the poor and needy.
*Response - Weave
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 - Ryan & Karly Lind
ONE: Whose story is this?
ALL: This story is God’s alone to tell
ONE: It hums in the rivers and the trees
ALL: It whispers in the skies and the seas. It calls to the people of all places. It speaks in our hearts, in our lives.
ONE: Why then should we speak of this story?
ALL: This story calls our name in Creation
ONE: This story claims our lives through the Cross. This story shapes our future through the Spirit
ALL: We are its telling in this time and this place. Let us worship the Lord!
~ written by Third Space
*Opening Hymn - "I Love to Tell the Story" #480
1 I love to tell the story of unseen things above,
of Jesus and his glory, of Jesus and his love.
I love to tell the story because I know 'tis true;
it satisfies my longings as nothing else can do.
[Refrain:]
I love to tell the story, 'twill be my theme in glory,
to tell the old, old story of Jesus and his love.
2 I love to tell the story 'tis pleasant to repeat
what seems, each time I tell it, more wonderfully sweet.
I love to tell the story, for some have never heard
the message of salvation from God's own holy word. [Refrain]
3 I love to tell the story, for those who know it best
seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.
And when, in scenes of glory, I sing the new, new song,
'twill be the old, old story that I have loved so long. [Refrain]
Invitation to Generosity
Invitation - Ryan & Karly Lind
Offertory - “All to Jesus I Surrender” [by W. S. Weeden ]
The Doxology #46
Praise God from whom all blessings flow; praise God, all creatures here below;
praise God above, ye heavenly host: Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
Offering Prayer - Ryan & Karly Lind
Children’s Moment - Rev. Chad Delaney
- The BIBLE yes that’s the book for me
Pastoral Prayer - Rev. Chad Delaney
O God, who always listens to us, who breathes new life into us, Give us Strength for our daily living. We are surrounded by a world of dry bones, a world of death and despair, a world where we lose hope in our structures, ourselves, and you. We pray for this world in need of your Word:
for all the people in it . . .
for those who lay down their lives . . .
for those who lead . . .
Silence
O God, who always listens to us, who breathes new life into us, Give us Strength for our daily living. We are surrounded by people with dried up lives, people unable to see your life past their tears. We pray for this world in need of your healing presence:
for those who are imprisoned or alone,
those ill or infirm, or grieving,
we especially pray for those in our congregation in this time grieving a loss, dealing with injury and illness, struggling with depression and anxiety, with fear and loneliness…
Silence
O God, who always listens to us, who breathes new life into us,
Give us renewed strength for our daily living. Call us to follow in the footsteps of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior. Help us to continue the ministry you have called us to and dream new dreams of ways we can serve and connect with our community and world. Inspire newness of life within us and give us hope and purpose for a better today and tomorrow. Loving God, Give us Strength for our daily living, In Jesus Name, Amen.
Communion
Meditation - Pam Baynes
Communion Hymn - "Jesus, Remember Me" #569 (sing 3x)
Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.
Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.
Prayer & Lord’s Prayer
Words of Institution - Rev. Chad Delaney
Music: “Come into My Heart, Blessed Jesus” [by H. D. Clarke]
Choir
"God is So Good" [by Douglas E. Wagner]
Scripture - Galatians 4:21-30
Prayer: Almighty God, in you are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Open our eyes that we may see the wonders of your Word; and give us grace that we may clearly understand and freely choose the way of your wisdom; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
21 Tell me, you who desire to be subject to the law, will you not listen to the law? 22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and the other by a free woman. 23One, the child of the slave, was born according to the flesh; the other, the child of the free woman, was born through the promise. 24Now this is an allegory: these women are two covenants. One woman, in fact, is Hagar, from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery. 25Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. 26But the other woman corresponds to the Jerusalem above; she is free, and she is our mother. 27For it is written,
‘Rejoice, you childless one, you who bear no children, burst into song and shout, you who endure no birth pangs; for the children of the desolate woman are more numerous than the children of the one who is married.’
28Now you, my friends, are children of the promise, like Isaac. 29But just as at that time the child who was born according to the flesh persecuted the child who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now also. 30But what does the scripture say? ‘Drive out the slave and her child; for the child of the slave will not share the inheritance with the child of the free woman.’ 31So then, friends, we are children, not of the slave but of the free woman.
Sermon - "More to the Story" - Rev. Chad Delaney
Recently, I heard a story about someone in my social network. Something happened that was controversial and there were some strong feelings about it. Turns out there were multiple interpretations of what happened. Multiple ways of looking at it and I was tempted to come to a conclusion about the situation and even some of the people involved. What is my interpretation of what happened? Could I judge this with any kind of certainty?
Stuff like this happens all the time in our world today. All the time we are put in situations where we have to try to interpret what is going on or what is really happening. Unfortunately, in reality most people don’t have a ton of time for a deep investigation. We can’t be Sherlock so we try to go with sources we trust or go with our gut. The fact is that there are always layers of interpretation when it comes to our lives and our world…and we might remember that our first instinct or what we THINK or hear might be true…may not be.
I couldn’t help but think about that reality as I read scripture this week. An interesting test case.
In our scripture today the Apostle Paul references two women -- Sarah and Hagar -- who had quite a bit of family adventure in the book of Genesis. Father Abraham was Sarah’s husband and Hagar was their bondservant or slave. Sarah believed herself too old to have a baby to pass on Abraham’s inheritance so--even though God promised a baby to Sarah--they took upon themselves to ask Hagar to bear them a son instead. Well, Hagar bore Ismael--Abraham’s first born son -- and mission accomplished! Except that the Promise of Abraham’s ancestry was actually made through Sarah and to her abundant surprise--had a child. Well, this is awkward. Eventually, Sarah was unhappy with Hagar and Ismael’s presence and banned them from the house and into the desert. Ultimately God’s Promise went through Isaac. Paul says the Law is known through Hagar, but interestingly God also made an ancestral promise to Hagar as well in Genesis 16:11-12.
Now, thousands of years later, the Apostle Paul is in the middle of a situation and writes about it in a letter to the Galatians. Familiar with the Torah he uses this ancient story of Sarah and Hagar as an allegory to address an issue in the early church. What issue was he addressing?
The conventional interpretation in history is that he was addressing the issue of Judaism vs. Christianity. Epic Religion Show-Down. Sarah is good and Hagar bad. Judaism--Law. Christianity--Promise. Ancient Christian interpreters -- Tertullian and Origen (anyone looking to name a baby?) -- and they both go in that direction. So people today will still use this text to explain why Christianity supercedes Judaism. It has had grave consequences of Anti-Semitism and Violence.
And unfortunately it is absurd to think Paul was addressing that issue. We seem to forget that Jesus was Jewish. Paul was Jewish. All the first Christians were Jewish. And it effects our interpretation. This writing from Paul was not pitting Judaism against Christianity, instead it is pitting Christian evangelism strategies against each other. Paul wrote the Galatians weighing in on a big debate…when you are trying to bring people to faith in Christ…should you tell to them get circumcised and follow the food laws….or not? Paul felt strongly that people who were uncircumsized were still part of God’s Promise, while plenty of other people didn’t, including Jesus’ own brother, James. This was an inhouse debate on strategy…not an epic religion showdown.
So here we are centuries later trying to interpret an allegorical interpretation of a particular story in the book of Genesis. Relevant to a certain time and place. Shared with you by a guy you hope might know a little about what he’s talking about, but who knows. Wouldn’t it be an act of generosity, self-control, humility, even love…to be careful in what conclusions we come to?
What we might be reminded of this week…Life is complicated and messy. There’s always more to the stories of our lives AND there’s always more to the story in scripture. What is the context? Time written? Another way to look at it? What bias do I have? How can I recognize it? What information don’t I have? Who’s perspective am I missing?
We would do well to take a healthy, humility and respect for the Bible today. It is not a weapon to be used to denigrate and destroy others. Political violence, religious violence, Anti-Semitism, Homophobia, racism have been and are currently being perpetuated because of Christians behaving badly when interpreting the bible. The fruits of the Spirit are … Hate and Violence are not one of them. Every story, every passage, every piece of wisdom is subject to context, interpretation, and we do well to listen to one another and stay humble.
AND…on a very practical and personal level, it is good to remain humble about coming to conclusions about stories we hear from others…whether news or social media or even friends and family. Sometimes we can hear a story or interpretation of a story from someone else that makes someone look bad or doesn’t speak well of them…do we believe it right away? Do we come to quick judgments of people? Do we ask questions and try to see it from another angle? Do we try to understand?
The scripture tells us…
- to be quick to listen and slow to speak.
- Do not judge, lest you be judged!
- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
We are wise to employ these with scripture and in our daily interactions in life.
To remember there is more to the story is an act of gentleness and self-control. Of nurturing patience and peace. Of kindness and faithfulness. May we live and love as welcomed children of the Promise in Jesus’ name. May it be so.
*Closing Hymn - "Open My Eyes" #586
1 Open my eyes, that I may see glimpses of truth thou hast for me;
place in my hands the wonderful key that shall unclasp and set me free.
Silently now I wait for thee, ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine!
2 Open my ears, that I may hear voices of truth thou sendest clear;
and while the wavenotes fall on my ear, everything false will disappear.
Silently now I wait for thee, ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my ears, illumine me, Spirit divine!
3 Open my mouth, and let me bear gladly the warm truth everywhere;
open my heart and let me prepare love with thy children thus to share.
Silently now I wait for thee, ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my heart, illumine me, Spirit divine!
Benediction - Rev. Chad Delaney
When you go out into this world to serve God’s mission,
remember that it is no longer you who live,
but Christ who lives in you.
May the grace of God which daily renews us,
and the love of Jesus that enables us to love all others,
and the community of the Holy Spirit that unites us into one body
enable and empower us to tell the story of our faith with
curiosity, humility, and love. Now and always. Amen.
Postlude - “Standing on the Promises” [by R. K. Carter] - Sarah Park