Discipleship Is Everything.

Matthew 4:12-23

January 26 MMXX

I.

Discipleship is everything.  

This has been my conviction since, as a teenager, I read Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s book, The Cost of Discipleship.  Nothing that I have learned or experienced in the many years since then has shaken this perspective for me.

  

Indeed, the bottom line for me in evaluating any faith practice or opinion is: “Does it help me follow Jesus?”  That is, does it assist me in turning my life around and actually living as Jesus shows us and commands us how to live?  Does it make me more compassionate, generous, humble, forgiving, peaceful, wise, and joyful?  Does it help me to give up my old self and live into the New Self, which is Christ in me?  Does it move me from ego to Essence? 

I am not going to claim that I have been wildly successful at this.  Too often my discipleship has been aspirational or even theoretical.  Too often I am simply a hypocrite, as I continue to do all kinds of things on a daily basis that cannot be construed as following Jesus, even if I set the bar really low.  The best I can suggest is that such failures at least keep me engaged with the humility that is a component of discipleship.

At the same time, I do at least think that everything we do as a church, everything we do as humans, is to be an expression of our discipleship of Jesus Christ.  Worship, prayer, meditation, sacraments, study, work, play, relationships, our political views and commitments… driving on the Parkway… everything.  

I am even of the opinion that there is both an urgency and a universalism to discipleship.  The urgency is that if humans don’t start following Jesus and his life of simplicity, humility, wonder, respect, gentleness, forgiveness — even his voluntary poverty — humanity is doomed.  The ability of the planet to sustain human life in the ways we have become accustomed to is being seriously threatened because people behave in ways that are the exact opposite of following Jesus.  We follow instead the lust, greed, and gluttony which are the dark engines of our economy, and they are killing us.  

And the universality is that following Jesus is something that everyone can do, no matter who you are or even what your religion is.  At the end of this gospel, the Lord, after his resurrection, tells his disciples what to go and do.  Does he say, “Go and get people to join this new religion I am starting called Christianity”?  Does he say, “Go and get people to make a verbal commitment to me as their personal Lord and Savior”?  Does he say, “Go and conquer the world in my name and force people to adhere to the moral rules of your particular nation”?  

No.  He says, “Go and make disciples of all nations.”  He talks about discipleship.  He says to teach people all that he has commanded them, which is to say, what he has said and done in the previous 28 chapters, centering on the Sermon on the Mount and fulfilled in his death and resurrection.

II

The first thing Jesus says here, the words that summarize his message and which will characterize his whole ministry, Jesus’ veritable “mission statement,” is: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven has come near.” 

Discipleship starts with repentance, which is a change in our way of thinking and acting in recognition of the nearness of what the Lord calls “the Kingdom of Heaven.”  The Kingdom of Heaven is always present within us and among us in our world, but it is usually invisible to us because our minds are clouded by the egocentricity of sin. 

In other words, we have to realize that there is something wrong with the world as we know it.  Jesus wants us to see that this world we think we know, the world we have always experienced, the world in which we have always existed, is just not right.  It is not true.  It is not the way it is supposed to be.  We are not the way we are supposed to be.

Therefore, step one of discipleship is to wake up, uncloud our mind, and see what is truly there before us.  We have to come to see, think, and act differently.  Repentance means awakening to the possibility that it doesn’t have to be this way, and becoming open to another way to see, think, and live called the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus’ whole ministry is to get us to see and participate in this reality.  He will proceed in the Sermon on the Mount in the next chapter to lay out the kind of values and behavior that prevail in this other Kingdom.  And in his subsequent ministry he will demonstrate, describe, embody, and finally enact this new and different way of living that is selfless, open, forgiving, accepting, sharing, and joyful, in union with God and all things.

If we live this way, according to his teachings and commandments, we will come to see and think differently.  So our job as disciples is repentance in the sense of living together according to this alternative values and practices.    

III.

The second characteristic of discipleship is what we call evangelism: communicating the good news to others.  Jesus is barely a free agent for 5 minutes before he starts adding people to his work.  Adding people is an essential part of discipleship. 

Jesus’ ministry requires followers.  He does not and apparently cannot do it alone.  Jesus is not a solitary itinerant preacher and healer; he gathers around him from day one a group of disciples.  Their presence is not incidental but essential.  Discipleship is a group activity.  His mission is from the outset about growing a community.

This community of those who follow him is itself open and welcoming.  Jesus is famous for his acceptance of all kinds of people, especially the rejects and the losers, the sick and the “sinners.”  Here he starts with four lowly workers, fishers hauling a meager living from the lake, and calls on them to follow him.

When he says these fishers will by following him come to “fish for people,” he means that those whom he gathers will in turn gather others.  Part of following him is sharing the good news of this other, wonderful, alternative Kingdom, this different reality, which is now available.

The metaphor of “fishing for people” means the disciples of Jesus are to help transition people from one world or environment to another.  Don’t forget that the Roman Emperor claimed ownership of all such bodies of water, and fishers had to “buy” whatever they caught from him in the form of a tax.  Thus there is another subtle layer of meaning here whereby people are bought and redeemed from the oppressive regime of the Emperor up into God’s shining natural light and goodness. 

Thus “fishing for people” means waking them up from a world of darkness to one of light.  They are led to see, think, and act differently.  They move from unconsciousness to awareness, from ignorance to knowledge, from blindness to sight.  This is what Jesus will do throughout his ministry of healing.  This is indeed the point to that ministry.  Through him people move from brokenness to wholeness, from disease to health, from death to life, from alienation to inclusion, from hunger to being filled.

IV.

Which brings us to the third characteristic of discipleship in this passage, which is healing.  Verse 23 says that “Jesus went throughout Galilee…  proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.”    

During his lifetime, of course, Jesus is known as a healer and exorcist.  In healing, the good news of the Kingdom gets literally embodied, that is, it is manifested in people’s physical bodies.  People become living metaphors for the Kingdom of Heaven, the alternative reality Jesus announces.

Jesus’ example is that healing is the key to evangelism, the proof of repentance, and the fruit of discipleship.  The gathering of disciples witnesses to the Kingdom by being a place — not of entertainment, not of providing social order, not of sentimental nostalgia, not even of comfort — but of healing.  It is a place where people come to find wholeness, integrity, communion, hope, and peace.  It is a place that projects the saving love of God into people’s lives and into the larger world.

Sometimes we find healing of our physical ailments.  But more often and more importantly we find healing for our deeper more comprehensive brokenness and alienation.  And such healing, when it is projected and radiated into the world, looks like justice.  Justice is what healing looks like when applied to a whole society.

V.

Discipleship is everything.  It means acquiring a new way of thinking and acting, welcoming others, and gathering in a community of healing.  Thus we follow Jesus by reflecting and expressing the different reality he announces: the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Jesus will say that discipleship means in effect dying and letting go of our old self, the self under the regime of darkness and violence, despair and death, so we can be reborn and emerge into a very different spiritual place, one of light and life, wholeness and communion, where we belong exclusively to God.  

By discipleship, we emerge into, and in a sense as, him, nourished by his Body and Blood, informed by his teachings and commandments, animated by his Spirit, who is God’s Spirit, the Spirit giving life to all that is.

+++++++    

The Sword and the Arrow.

Isaiah 49:1-7

January 19 MMXX

I.

This is the second of the “servant songs” of the prophet Isaiah.  He starts out with a sense of deep frustration that perhaps we can relate to.  He feels an acute discontinuity between the spiritual gifts he has been given by God, and his ability to express them in a productive and effective way.

He knows that God has made his mouth “like a sharp sword.”  That is, that his words are incisive and powerful, cutting through confusion and muddleheadedness, sharply expressive and precise, deeply convincing.  He feels like he can make the most powerful and airtight arguments, and draw people into the joy of trusting in the living God.

He feels like a “polished arrow” that gets right to the point, smacks deep into the bullseye of the target, touches directly the heart of his hearers.  He has been given the words of eternal life!  How can anyone not get it?  How can anyone not fall in love with the God who creates all this beauty and abundance, who delivers the people from slavery, and guides them with the Law?

And yet, the prophet is frustrated.  “I have labored in vain,” he says, shaking his head.  “I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity.”  His beautiful and powerful words have not worked.  The language that God gives him has remained obscure and hidden to others.  The straight arrows of his arguments stayed hidden secure in their quiver, the case where arrows are stored, undeployed.  

I can relate both personally and professionally to the prophet’s complaint.  I was raised in the church, of course, but I became a conscious and intentional Christian when I was about 18 or so.  Christ touched my heart and placed in there words and ideas and hopes and dreams and ambitions.  I imagined all kinds of things I was going to do and accomplish.

But I found over the ensuing years that the institutional quiver, the church, sometimes made it very hard to extract arrows from it.  There were the rules, of course, which at least in our Presbyterian corner of the Christian family, have historically tended to be very regulatory and constricting.  

We would for centuries make a new rule every time something bad happened, so that we were governed by our fear of worst-case-scenarios.  It meant a thicket of ecclesiastical legislation tied us down and hindered what was in our hearts getting expressed and having an effect on people.  I eventually became a Stated Clerk to help people navigate through or around this jungle so that mission could happen.

Then we frankly have to talk about ourselves and what in us is keeping the sword of the Word safely and ineffectively sheathed, and the arrows of the gospel locked in a dark quiver.  I have served in church after church where people wished it was 1956 again.  I’ve seen people squash good, effective ministries because they didn’t live up to some nostalgic fantasy.  I’ve seen ministers get fired over some sentimental trivia.  I’ve seen sessions cower from changing anything that might offend somebody.  I’ve sat in on presbytery Committee on Ministry meetings for 17 years!  I’ve seen some screwy stuff.

II.

Worse, is the fact that our larger culture grew estranged from the church and increasingly came to see us as intolerant, nasty, judgmental, hypocritical, self-righteous, loveless, joyless jerks.  With good reason, unfortunately.  Indeed, the Christian leaders who get the most attention in the media today are the ones most filled with hate, anger, and fear.  They want the right not to make cakes for people they don’t like.  They want to cut off people’s health care.  They want to exclude immigrants and persecute Gays and Muslims.  They carry guns.  The only people they profess to care about haven’t been born yet, and whom, when born, they are happy to abandon to abject poverty.  Not to mention the horrible child sex abuse scandals in some churches.

How does any of that win people for Christ?  “No cake for you!”  That’s evangelism?  That’s following Jesus whose whole ministry is about, in effect, free cake?  Free bread, free health care, free forgiveness?  Seriously? 

It is really hard to get Christ’s message of love and compassion across when as soon as you mention Jesus people’s guard goes up because they think you’re going to start yelling at them like their uncle did last Thanksgiving.  Who has that much eloquence to cut through all this baggage with the good news?  Who can extract arrows of love out of a quiver of hardened concrete, and then try to shoot them into hearts defended by high, stone walls?

So, in the face of the failure of his mission, the prophet is driven to reflect on and reaffirm his own faith.  “Surely my cause is with the Lord, and my reward with my God,” he admits.  In spite of how hard it is to get our message across, we still believe.  We still trust in God because of what we know that God has poured into our own hearts, and which we share in our life together.  

That’s what the prophet says that Jacob and Israel, the people of God, have to come back to.  The church has to clear away all the distractions and auxiliary motivations, all the baggage, and the superstructure; all the junk we have collected over the years.  It all has to go.  Because for too many of us, the extraneous stuff has become the point.  

We are obsessed with the decorations we have accrued that mainly point to and refer to us: our allegiances, our desires, our tastes, our hopes and dreams, our schemes and strategies, our pecking orders.  And we have too often forgotten about the only reason we are supposed to be here, which is to worship, serve, and receive the Word of the living God.  

Church is not supposed to be a comfortable cave reflecting our faces on every wall.  It is not a warm bath in sentimental memories where we are reassured that everything is going to be alright.  It is a crucible of transformation, like the tomb of Jesus, a chrysalis where our old ego-centric selves are broken down, and our true, original selves in God’s Image are allowed to emerge.  It is a refiner’s fire, says another prophet, burning off impurities so the real you can shine.  Only then do we discover that everything really is alright.

III.

The Lord finally says to Isaiah, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel.”  In other words, God says that just providing for yourselves is not enough.  Your mission, your calling, your life is not about you.  I have not called you to self-indulgence, but to bring my truth and goodness to the whole world.  “I will give you as a light to the nations,” says the Lord, “that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

Get the focus off yourselves!  Indeed, God says we are called not to fame, wealth, and power, not to comfort, convenience, and privilege.  But God says we will be “deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, and the slave of rulers.”  Just as the Lord Jesus reveals God’s love through his own suffering, so it is with God’s people.  As Jesus says explicitly in the Sermon on the Mount, following him is about humility, suffering, being unpopular, and rejecting all normal ideas about success.  The church is not about status but service, as is the Lord.

It is only because of this witness of compassionate service to the least of these, it is only when we identify with and even share in the marginalization and liabilities of those at the bottom of society, that we begin to relate to the God who self-empties to share our mortal life in Jesus.  The more we lose, the more we give up and renounce, the more we sacrifice, the more we offer of ourselves in humble service, even at our own risk… the more of a hearing we earn with people.  The more respect we receive.  The more people will realize that we are with them in their brokenness and pain.

That is when the sword of God’s Word begins to slice through our defenses to open up space for love in people’s hearts.  That is when the arrows of God’s love start penetrating through skin thick with scar tissue.  That is when people begin to see in us the living Presence of God.

It is completely counterintuitive.  But it is true.  Christianity has often grown the most where it made the greatest sacrifices.  Whether it was through the witness of martyrdom in the face of persecution, or the witness of solidarity with the sick, the poor, and the incarcerated, the people of God seem uncannily to emerge through suffering into peace and joy.

When we become infatuated with our own power and importance, sucking up to governments, forcing our values on people by law, defending and excusing the atrocities of the State or business interests, we fall away from Jesus and into apostasy.  We become anti-Christian parasites, living on scraps thrown from Empire’s table, until we go down into destruction.

Or we can jump off the gravy train to hell, and find ways of serving others.  These are, after all, Isaiah’s “servant songs,” and they look ahead to the One who came “not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many,” Jesus Christ, the true Servant of God, the Messiah of Israel.

IV.

God calls us to be “a light to the nations.”  We are to help people to see the truth of God’s love for the whole world.  We are to bring God’s salvation, God’s healing, God’s forgiveness, God’s abundance… to the whole world.  This never happens easily, given the depths of ego-centricity that afflicts most humans and societies.  But it doesn’t happen at all if we do not go and follow Jesus by sharing people’s pain and showing how, in Jesus Christ, not even death can stop the love of God which is always pouring into the world.

+++++++

Liturgies for the Sundays After Epiphany.2020

The Service for the Lord’s Day

Hope Presbyterian Churches

Tinton Falls & Lakewood

NJ

The Second Sunday After the Epiphany + January 19, 2020

The Third Sunday After the Epiphany + January 26, 2020

The Fourth Sunday After the Epiphany + February 2, 2020

The Fifth Sunday After the Epiphany + February 9, 2020 

The Sixth Sunday After the Epiphany + February 16, 2020

The Transfiguration of the Lord + February 23, 2020

Liturgical Colors:

1/19, 1/26, 2/2, 2/9, 2/16 - Green

2/23 - White

GATHERING

Gathering Music:

Welcome & Announcements 

Entrance Song: 

1/19, 1/26, 2/2, 2/9, 2/16  

“Of the Father’s Love Begotten” (verse 1) 309/108  

2/23

“We Are Standing on Holy Ground” —/406

Call to Worship 

The time is fulfilled!

The Kingdom of God has come near!

Repent, and believe the good news! Mark 1:15

It is time for the Lord to act. Psalm 119:126

*Opening Prayer

God of grace:

unto whom all hearts are open,

from whom no secrets are hidden,

cleanse the thoughts of our hearts 

by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit

that we may perfectly love you

and worthily magnify your holy name.

Amen.

*Prayer of the Day

1/19

Almighty God:

your Son our Savior Jesus Christ

is the Light of the world.

May your people,

illumined by your Word and Sacraments,

shine with the radiance of his glory,

that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed

to the ends of the earth;

for he lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever,

Amen.

1/26

Almighty God:

by grace alone you call us

and accept us in your service.

Strengthen us by your Spirit,

and make us worthy of your call;

through Jesus Christ our Lord,

for he lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever,

Amen.

2/2

Holy God:

you confound the world’s wisdom

by giving your Kingdom to the lowly

and pure in heart.

Give us such a hunger and thirst face

and perseverance in striving for peace,

that by our words and deeds

the world may see the promise of your Kingdom,

revealed in Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever,

Amen.

2/9

Faithful God:

you have appointed us as your witnesses,

to be light that shines in the world.

Let us not hide the bright hope you have given us,

but tell everyone your love,

revealed in Jesus Christ the Lord,

who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever,

Amen.

2/16

Almighty God:

you gave the Law to guide our lives.

May we never shrink from your commandments,

but, as we are taught by your Son Jesus,

fulfill the Law in perfect love;

through Christ our Lord and Savior,

who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever,

Amen.

2/23

O God:

in the Transfiguration of your Son

you confirmed the mysteries of the faith

by witness of Moses and Elijah;

and in the Voice from the could

you foreshadowed our adoption as your children.

Make us, the Christ, heirs of your glory,

and bring us to enjoy its fullness;

through Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever,

Amen.

Filling the Baptismal Font 

There is one body and one Spirit, 

just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 

one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, 

who is above all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:4-6

In baptism God claims us,

calls us by name,

and seals us 

to show that we belong,

not to the principalities and powers of this world,

not to different races and nations,

but to God.

God frees us from sin and death,

uniting us with Jesus Christ.

By water and the Holy Spirit

we are gathered into the church, the body of Christ,

and sent out into the world 

with the good news of Christ’s love, peace, and justice.

Remember your baptism, and be thankful!

*Hymn:

1/19 “O Sing a Song of Bethlehem” 308/159

1/26 “Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne” —-/198 Gray

2/2 “I Danced in the Morning” 302/157

2/9 “Fairest Lord Jesus” 306/630

2/16 “Jesus, Our Divine Companion" 305/—-

2/23 “Swiftly Pass the Clouds of Glory” 73/190 

Prayer for Wholeness 

1/19

O Hidden Light,

energy of the elements,

Sun behind all suns,

life of every living thing:

Shine upon and within us,

banishing the darkness of ignorance and fear,

sustaining the blessings of knowledge and insight,

bearing the truth of your love for us.

As you come into the world in Jesus Christ

whose life is the light for all,

shining in the darkness that cannot extinguish it:

May we also reflect your light

exposing injustices and lies,

purifying our discourse of violence and vulgarity,

illuminating a way for the weak, the humble, the lost, and the broken.

By your divine radiance

burn off all that separates us from you and each other.

Let our light shine before the whole world

bringing equality, joy, peace, and forgiveness to all. PfR

1/26

God of goodness and truth:

You show us the Way of Life in Jesus Christ,

and it is humility, simplicity, nonviolence, generosity, 

and compassion for all.

Yet we sink into a world of “fake news”

where truth is relative,

facts are not accepted,

and our common discourse 

is reduced to entertainment and propaganda.

We find comfort in self-serving lies

telling us what we want to hear.

We tolerate hate-speech, vulgarity, willful ignorance,

equivocation, and “spin.”

Free us from the cynicism and despair

that blinds us to the pain of others.

Keep before us the gentle face of Christ,

who is your Truth.

He offers your healing and wholeness,

your forgiveness and grace,

your reconciliation and justice,

and your peace to all.

May his life be ours. PfR

2/2

Creator God:

You bless the poor in Spirit;

empty us of all greed and avarice.

You bless the grieving;

empty us of corrosive nostalgia and denial.

You bless the humble;

empty us of self-righteous, blustering, arrogance.

You bless those who desire justice;

empty us of our falsehood that rationalizes inequality.

You bless the merciful;

empty us of our paranoia and vindictiveness.

You bless the pure in heart;

empty us of our self-importance. 

You bless the peacemakers;

empty us of our anger and violence.

You bless the persecuted;

empty us of our willingness to persecute others.

Let us be the light of the world

and salt of the Earth.

Let us shine before others

with good works

and glorify you, O God. PfR

2/9, 2/16

O God:

Isaiah prophesied that

“Truth stumbles in the public square

and uprightness cannot enter.”

We live in an age the consensus

about facts and truth

has broken down.

Science is often corrupted by money;

we believe what is convenient

and serves our desires.

Blaming scapegoats 

is easier than admitting 

that we were wrong.

Help us to remember

that you are the truth,

and the way, and the life.

You are the bearer of the consequences

of our selfishness.

May we live upright in Christ your Son,

following his Way of simplicity,

compassion, healing, and forgiveness.

Bind us to your truth, O God;

make us your witnesses. PfR

2/23

O Lord, Jesus Christ, Light of the World:

on the mountain God reveals your true nature.

What you are by nature, 

we are by your grace:

beings of holy light, 

sent into the world as witnesses 

to the truth of your love for the world.

Let us build no distracting surrogate institutions

that block or regulate your light.

But let us shine with confidence and joy,

even as we turn now to the cross,

where your life is given for the life of the world.

Your light shines in our darkness

exposing the falsehoods and fantasies of our existence.

Your light shines in our darkness

bringing the blessed shalom of your promised Kingdom,

redeeming us from violence and injustice,

and uniting us in hope. PfR

Assurance Prayer

O Holy God:

you come to dwell among us in Jesus Christ,

and within us by your Spirit. 

In truth and goodness,

all creation offers perpetual worship and praise to you. 

You have brought all things out of nothing into being. 

You have fashioned man and woman in your image and likeness, 

and adorned them with all the gifts of beauty and grace. 

You give Wisdom and understanding to those who ask,

and you save us by changing our hearts and our lives. 

You have enabled us to offer to you due worship and praise. 

Master, accept our prayers and visit us in your goodness. 

Forgive us when voluntarily or involuntarily 

we think and act contrary to your truth. 

Sanctify our souls and bodies, 

and grant that we may love and serve you 

in holiness all the days of our lives.

Amen.

*Gloria:  “Glory Be to the Father” 579/

*Procession of the Word

TF A child processes into the Sanctuary carrying a Bible, as the people sing or say the Gloria.

*The Peace

Christ is in the midst of us.

He is and ever shall be.

May the grace and peace of Christ our God be with all of you.

And also with you.

The people exchange words and signs of God’s peace.

*Spiritual: “Halle-, Halle-, Hallelujah”

TF (Our young disciples continue worship and learning downstairs.)

THE WORD

Prayer for Understanding

Enlighten our hearts and minds by your Word, O God.

Open our eyes to the truth of your saving love, 

revealed in Scripture,

Move our legs to walk in your way of peace.

Open our hands to do your work,

and our arms welcome others in your name.

For you are the enlightening of our souls and bodies, 

O Christ our God, 

and to you we give glory, now and forever.  

Amen. 

Hebrew Scriptures

1/19 Isaiah 49:1-7

1/26 Isaiah 9:1-4

2/2 Micah 6:1-8

2/9 Isaiah 58:1-12

2/16 Deuteronomy 30:15-20

2/23 Exodus 24:12-18

Psalm:

1/19

I waited patiently upon the LORD; 

    who stooped to me and heard my cry.

God lifted me out of the desolate pit, out of the mire and clay; 

    and set my feet upon a high cliff and made my footing sure.

God put a new song in my mouth,

    a song of praise to our God; *

Many shall see, and stand in awe,

    and put their trust in the LORD.

Happy are they who trust in the LORD! 

    they do not resort to evil spirits or turn to false gods.

Great things are they that you have done, O LORD my God!

how great your wonders and your plans for us! 

    there is none who can be compared with you.

Oh, that I could make them known and tell them! 

    but they are more than I can count.

In sacrifice and offering you take no pleasure 

    you have given me ears to hear you;

Burnt-offering and sin-offering you have not required, 

    and so I said, "Behold, I come.

In the roll of the book it is written concerning me: 

    'I love to do your will, O my God;

    your law is deep in my heart.'"

I proclaimed righteousness in the great congregation; 

    behold, I did not restrain my lips;

    and that, O LORD, you know.

Your righteousness have I not hidden in my heart;

I have spoken of your faithfulness and your deliverance; *

I have not concealed your love and faithfulness from the

     great congregation. Psalm 40:1-11

1/26

TF “God Is My Strong Salvation” Psalm 27:1, 4-9 179

LW

The Lord is my light and my salvation;

   whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life;

   of whom shall I be afraid? 

One thing I asked of the Lord,

   that will I seek after:

to live in the house of the Lord

   all the days of my life,

to behold the beauty of the Lord,

   and to inquire in his temple. 

For he will hide me in his shelter

   in the day of trouble;

he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;

   he will set me high on a rock. 

Now my head is lifted up

   above my enemies all around me,

and I will offer in his tent

   sacrifices with shouts of joy;

I will sing and make melody to the Lord. 

Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud,

   be gracious to me and answer me! 

‘Come,’ my heart says, ‘seek his face!’

   Your face, Lord, do I seek. 

Do not hide your face from me. 

Do not turn your servant away in anger,

   you who have been my help.

Do not cast me off, do not forsake me,

   O God of my salvation! Psalm 27:1, 4-9

2/2

O Lord, who may abide in your tent?

   Who may dwell on your holy hill? 

Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right,

   and speak the truth from their heart; 

who do not slander with their tongue,

   and do no evil to their friends,

   nor take up a reproach against their neighbors; 

in whose eyes the wicked are despised,

   but who honor those who fear the Lord;

who stand by their oath even to their hurt; 

who do not lend money at interest,

   and do not take a bribe against the innocent. 

Those who do these things shall never be moved. Psalm 15

2/9

Hallelujah!

Happy are they who fear the Lord 

    and have great delight in his commandments!

Their descendants will be mighty in the land; 

    the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Wealth and riches will be in their house, 

    and their righteousness will last for ever.

Light shines in the darkness for the upright; 

    the righteous are merciful and full of compassion.

It is good for them to be generous in lending 

    and to manage their affairs with justice.

For they will never be shaken; 

    the righteous will be kept in everlasting remembrance.

They will not be afraid of any evil rumors; 

    their heart is right;

    they put their trust in the Lord.

Their heart is established and will not shrink, 

    until they see their desire upon their enemies.

They have given freely to the poor, 

    and their righteousness stands fast for ever;

    they will hold up their head with honor.

The wicked will see it and be angry;

they will gnash their teeth and pine away; 

    the desires of the wicked will perish. Psalm 112:1-10

2/16

TF “Blest Are the Uncorrupt in Heart” Psalm 119:1-8 233

LW

Happy are those whose way is blameless,

   who walk in the law of the Lord. 

Happy are those who keep his decrees,

   who seek him with their whole heart, 

who also do no wrong,

   but walk in his ways. 

You have commanded your precepts

   to be kept diligently. 

O that my ways may be steadfast

   in keeping your statutes! 

Then I shall not be put to shame,

   having my eyes fixed on all your commandments. 

I will praise you with an upright heart,

   when I learn your righteous ordinances. 

I will observe your statutes;

   do not utterly forsake me. Psalm 119:1-8

2/23

Why do the nations conspire,

   and the peoples plot in vain? 

The kings of the earth set themselves,

   and the rulers take counsel together,

   against the Lord and his anointed, saying, 

“Let us burst their bonds asunder,

   and cast their cords from us.”

He who sits in the heavens laughs;

   the Lord has them in derision. 

Then he will speak to them in his wrath,

   and terrify them in his fury, saying, 

“I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.” 

I will tell of the decree of the Lord:

He said to me, “You are my son;

   today I have begotten you. 

Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,

   and the ends of the earth your possession. 

You shall break them with a rod of iron,

   and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” 

Now therefore, O kings, be wise;

   be warned, O rulers of the earth. 

Serve the Lord with fear,

   with trembling kiss his feet,

or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way;

   for his wrath is quickly kindled. 

Happy are all who take refuge in him. Psalm 2 

Gospel

1/19 John 1:29-42

1/26 Matthew 4:12-23

2/2 Matthew 5:1-12

2/9 Matthew 5:13-20   

2/16 Matthew 5:21-37

2/23 Matthew 17:1-9

Gospel Talk

(Note: on 2/2 the guest preacher at Lakewood will be Rev. John Nolan.

On 2/16 the guest preachers will be Elder Carl Fritsche in Tinton Falls and Rev. Lynne Manila in Lakewood.)

*Affirmation of Faith

1/19

What is your only comfort in life and in death?
That I am not my own, but belong— 

body and soul, in life and in death—

to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. 

He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, 

and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil.
He also watches over me in such a way
that not a hair can fall from my head 

without the will of my Father in heaven;
in fact, all things must work together for my salvation.

Because I belong to him,
Christ, by his Holy Spirit,
assures me of eternal life
and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready 

from now on to live for him. Heidelberg Catechism

1/26

Why is the Son of God called “Jesus,”

meaning “savior”?
Because he saves us from our sins, 

and because salvation should not be sought 

and cannot be found in anyone else.

Why is he called “Christ,” 

meaning “anointed”?
Because he has been ordained by God the Father 

and has been anointed with the Holy Spirit to be 

our chief prophet and teacher
who fully reveals to us
the secret counsel and will of God concerning our deliverance; 

our only high priest

who has delivered us by the one sacrifice of his body, 

and who continually pleads our cause with the Father; 

and our eternal king who governs us by his Word and Spirit, 

and who guards us and keeps us
in the freedom he has won for us. Heidelberg Catechism

2/2

The Apostles’ Creed “Traditional” p. 15/p. 35

2/9

Why is [Jesus] called God’s “only begotten Son” when we also are God’s children? 

Because Christ alone is the eternal, natural Son of God.  

We, however, are adopted children of God— 

adopted by grace through Christ.

Why do you call him “our Lord”? 

Because not with gold or silver, 

but with his precious blood— 

he has set us free from sin 

and from the tyranny of the devil, 

and has bought us, 

body and soul, 

to be his very own. Heidelberg Catechism

2/16

What is true faith? 

True faith is not only a sure knowledge 

by which I hold as true all that God has revealed to us in Scripture; 

it is also a wholehearted trust,
which the Holy Spirit creates in me by the gospel, 

that God has freely granted, 

not only to others but to me also, 

forgiveness of sins,
eternal righteousness,
and salvation. 

These are gifts of sheer grace, 

granted solely by Christ’s merit. Heidelberg Catechism

2/23

The Nicene Creed “Ecumenical” p. 15/p. 34

Prayers of God’s Creation and People

O Great Healer:

let your Spirit swing 

around us and through us,

over us, under us, and among us,

with healing in her wings,

making us whole

and restoring us to our created goodness.

O Deep Mystery:

Bless all of us here today, 

as we offer our worship and praise to you,

and for all those baptized into your Name of every time and place

who have sought to trust and follow you.

We pray especially for disciples chosen for leadership in your church….

And as we gather we also represent our whole community, especially: 

travelers… 

workers… 

the aged and infirm…

the grieving and abandoned…

the sick and the addicted…

the poor and the oppressed…  

the unemployed and the destitute…

prisoners…

the undocumented, migrants, and refugees…

indigenous peoples…

victims of war and violence… 

victims of natural disasters…

victims of domestic abuse…

and all who remember and care for the needy among us…. 

As you commanded, O Lord,

we pray for our enemies and those who wish us harm.

And we gather the voices of your entire creation

giving words to the manifold sounds of birds,

animals, insects, and creatures of the waters,

whom you made to praise and glorify you….

We gather as well with all those who have died in the hope of resurrection,

and are now at rest….

….Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.

In the communion of all the saints, 

we commend ourselves, one another, 

and our whole life to you, O Christ our God.

And to you we render glory

now and forever.

Amen.

THANKSGIVING

Offering   

The Earth is the Lords and the fullness thereof,

the world and all that dwell therein.            Psalm 24:1 

Offertory Music: “” 

*Doxology: “Praise God, From Whom All Blessings Flow” 592/606

Invitation to the Lord’s Table

This is the meal of paradise!

The foretaste of the blessings coming to us,

a sign of abundance and generosity,

forgiveness and deliverance. PfR 

This is the Lord’s table.

Our Savior invites those who trust in him

to share in the feast which he has prepared.

Communion Preface

We give you thanks, O God,

lifting up our hearts to you in gratitude,

for your love and justice,

your beauty and joy,

revealed and given to us in Jesus Christ.

Give us the vision 

of the commonwealth of peace he establishes. 

Let his resurrection life permeate all we are and do,

as you gather us in holy community.

In Christ we see who we truly are in your eyes:

blessed, holy, good, and precious,

made to be a blessing to

your whole creation. PfR

Sanctus

And so we lift up our hearts, O God,

joining with all your people

of every time and place

in the angels’ song of grateful praise.

Holy, holy, holy…. (St. Anne Sanctus)

Eucharistic Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer

God, our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer: 

You loved the world you made so much 

that you gave your only Son 

so that whoever trusts in him 

should not perish, but have eternal life.

You do not send him into the world for condemnation

but that the world might be saved in him.

For that purpose he sends your gift of the Holy Spirit,

who is everywhere and fills all things

with your life.

Gracious God, 

pour out your Holy Spirit upon us 

and upon these your gifts of bread and the cup, 

making the bread we break 

and the cup we bless 

the communion in the body and blood of Christ.      From 1 Corinthians 10:16

We are his Body.

We bear his Life.

His Light shines in us.

As he emptied himself to dwell among us,

may we empty ourselves of all 

that would separate us from you,

and let your life,

given for the life of the world,

pour through us in love.

O God,

like a mother who will not forget her nursing child,

you love us forever.

And so we are bold to pray in the words Jesus taught us,

saying: Our Father….

The Breaking of Bread

On the night when he was betrayed 

[by his friends and arrested by the authorities],

the Lord Jesus 

[celebrated the Passover meal with his disciples.

After supper he] 

took the bread. 

He blessed it, 

he broke it, 

and gave it to them, saying: 

“Take and eat; this is my body, broken for you.  

Do this in remembrance of me.”

The celebrant breaks the bread.

In the same way he took the cup.

And he said:

“This cup is the new covenant sealed in my blood,

shed for the forgiveness of sins.  

Whenever you drink it,

do this in remembrance of me.”

The celebrant fills the cup.

Every time we eat this bread 

and drink from this cup,

we proclaim the Lord’s triumph 

over the power of death,

until his return. 

With hearts trusting in an awesome God, 

come to the Table.  

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.

Receive the Body of Christ:

taste the fountain of immortality.

Alleluia!  Alleluia!  Alleluia! Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom

The Holy Communion of the People of God

The people come to the Table to share in Christ’s body and blood by intinction:

taking a piece of bread, dipping it into the cup, and eating it.

TF Those who wish to pray with the pastor before or after communion

may come come to the font.

May the Body and Blood of Christ our God bring you to everlasting life.

Communion Music: 

Closing Prayer

Gracious God,

we give you thanks

that in Jesus Christ,

who is your Word,

you have emptied yourself,

becoming flesh to dwell among us

full of grace and truth.

He brings good news to the poor,

proclaims release to the captives,

gives sight to the blind,

liberates the oppressed,

makes the lame walk,

welcomes sinners, 

and even raises the dead.

In giving his life for the life of the world

he sets us free from sin and death.

And he gives us your Holy Spirit

by whom he is present with us even now,

gathering us into one beloved community.

and sending us into the world

with the good news of your love. PfR

Amen.

*Hymn: 

1/19 “Spirit of God, Descend Upon My Heart” 326

1/26 “Lord, You Have Come to the Lakeshore” 377

2/2 “What Does the Lord Require” 405

2/9 “I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light” —-/377

2/16 TF “Lord, Make Us Servants of Your Peace” 374

LW “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace” 753

2/23 “Lord, the Light of Your Love Is Shining” —-/192

SENDING

*Charge 

2/2, 2/23

God spoke all these words, saying, I am the Lord your God.

You shall have no other gods before me.

You shall not make for yourself an idol....

You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God.

Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy.

Honor your father and your mother.

You shall not kill.

You shall not commit adultery.

You shall not steal.

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

You shall not covet... anything that belongs to your neighbor.         From Exodus 20:1-17

1/19, 1/26, 2/2, 2/9, 1/16

Go out into the world in peace;
have courage;
hold on to what is good;
return no one evil for evil;
strengthen the fainthearted;
support the weak, and help the suffering; honor all people; 

love and serve the Lord,
rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit. 

1 Corinthians 16:13; 2 Timothy 2:1; Ephesians 6:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:13–22; 1 Peter 2:17 

*Benediction

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,

the love of God,

and the communion of the Holy Spirit

be with you all. 2 Corinthians 13:13

*Choral Benediction: “Goodness Is Stronger than Evil” —-/750

*Dismissal

*Postlude:

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