A Christian Church, A Family of Faith

The Bass River Pastoral Charge

The Presbyterian Church in Canada

St. Mark’s, Bass River; St. James, Beersville; St. Andrew’s, Clairville & Zion, West Branch

Organists: Heather Morton, Marly Sutherland, Rodney Girvan, Dolly MacDonald, Shanece Wilson

Minister: Rev. Alexander [Sandy] D. Sutherland; B.A., B.Th. M.Div

Manse #: 506-785-4383 Cell #: 506-521-0705 Email: [email protected] Twitter: thebrpc

Bulletin Announcements:  Cathy Little @ Fillmore Trucking #785-1083

www.pccweb.ca/brpc

ORDER OF SERVICE

Ninth Sunday of Pentecost

August 7^th 2011

Welcome & Announcements

Mission Moment: Saskatoon Native Circle Ministry: Warmth, food and safety

TODAY August 7^th at 2:30pm – St. Mark’s Presbyterian Church, Bass River

August 28th at 2:30 pm – St. James’ Presbyterian Church, Beersville

 

Call to Worship As the deer pants for the water [NBoP 27]

Prayer of Approach & Confession & The Lord’s Prayer (NBoP 831; BoP 605)

Opening Praise: songs 76 Leaning on the everlasting arms

Responsive Reading  – Psalm 85 [BoP 645]

¹ LORD, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob.

² Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin.

Selah

³ Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger.

⁴ Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.

⁵ Wilt thou be angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations?

⁶ Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?

⁷ Show us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation.

⁸ I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.

⁹ Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land.

¹⁰ Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

¹¹ Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

¹² Yea, the LORD shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase.

¹³ Righteousness shall go before him; and shall set us in the way of his steps.

KJV

Children’s story – Wet feet

– Charles gets that sinking feeling after reading about Jesus walking on the water. Did God ask you to walk on water, or is God calling you to do some other important impossible thing?

 

Children’s Hymn: NBoP 347 How sweet the name of Jesus sounds

BoP 249

 

Scripture Readings:

OT – Genesis 37:1-11

¹And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. ²These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report. ³Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours. ⁴And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.

⁵And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. ⁶And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: ⁷For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. ⁸And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. ⁹And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. ¹⁰And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? ¹¹And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.

KJV

¹Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.

²This is the account of Jacob.

Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them.

³Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. ⁴When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.

⁵Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. ⁶He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: ⁷We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”

⁸His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.

⁹Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”

¹⁰When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” ¹¹His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.

NIV

Epistle – Romans 10:5-15

⁵For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them. ⁶But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above🙂 ⁷Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.) ⁸But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; ⁹That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. ¹⁰For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. ¹¹For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

¹²For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. ¹³For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. ¹⁴How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? ¹⁵And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

KJV

⁵Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: “The man who does these things will live by them.” ⁶But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) ⁷“or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). ⁸But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: ⁹That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. ¹¹As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” ¹²For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, ¹³for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

¹⁴How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? ¹⁵And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” NIV

Hymn of Illumination: NBoP 330 O God our help in ages past

BoP 87

Scripture Readings:

Gospel – Matthew 14:22-33

²²And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. ²³And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone. ²⁴But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. ²⁵And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. ²⁶And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. ²⁷But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. ²⁸And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. ²⁹And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. ³¹And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? ³²And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased. ³³Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.

KJV

²²Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. ²³After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, ²⁴but the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.

²⁵During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. ²⁶When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.

²⁷But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

²⁸“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

²⁹“Come,” he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

³¹Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

³²And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. ³³Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

NIV

Sermon: The feet for faith [audio version available]

I am always amazed in the bible at the miles that people put on in the bible’s stories. With Adam and Eve we don’t know how long the journey was from the garden to the land of toil, and Noah got around by boat, but when we get to Abraham, and Isaac and Jacob, and then all the sons of Jacob [the sons of Israel], we encounter these trekkers. They were all over the place. Makes me feel a little better about the forty thousand kilometers I putting on the car each year though.

In our Old Testament reading today we discover that Joseph made the hard journey as a slave taken into captivity in Egypt, but I am even more astonished by his brothers who made the journey Canaan to Egypt and back repeatedly. These were not only long journey, but made even more difficult by the wilderness deserts, and dangers like bandits poisonous creatures, quick sands and other hazards along those long roads.

The apostle Paul certainly had a real understanding of the great journey that God can call any one of us out into the world to serve. On foot, on mule, on horse, aboard ship, Paul made regular journeys back and forth around the northern Mediterranean Sea, and to this day no one is completely sure of just how many miles Paul offered God in his service.

Sandal makers must have really smiled when they saw people like the brothers of Joseph, or Paul coming through the marketplace. And following their example, many people have, over the centuries, followed in their steps in pilgrimage, to really understand people like the sons of Israel, the prophets, Paul and the other apostles. And while the Roman Catholic tradition still maintains some of its pilgrimage trails, most Christian denominations have set aside the arduous journeying as a part of our practice of faith.

Yet, for all the miles that the prophets, apostles and priest of old have traveled there is one journey that – to this day – has not been known to be repeated. In the gospels of Matthew and Mark particularly, Jesus goes from one place to another immediately, or straightaway as the King James Version reads. In the few verses we read from Matthew Jesus and the disciples move around Immediately three times.

We might be used to the idea of people getting around quickly given developed highways systems around much of the world, air transport, and simply the many forms of locomotion, but in the ancient society to get from one place to another so quickly must have seemed very impressive. Far beyond what we could imagine, especially for those who had traveled the pilgrim roads, these immediate journeys must have themselves appeared miraculous.

Yet in our reading today we are shown at least one of Jesus’ short cuts. It was not an uncommon thing, though it was certainly and advantage for Jesus and the apostles having friends around the sea of Galilee, where having friends who are fisherman to be able to charter a fishing boat for a shortcut across the Sea of Galilee. It is about twenty kilometers north to south and a bit over ten kilometers east to west, and so to be able to cut across that distance in a boat, rather than going around, made coming and going from Capernaum [in the north] much easier.

But Jesus did not need the boat. He was able to make that short cut without boat and sail. Jesus could walk on water.

This is just one of those things about Jesus that is hard to explain, especially to non-believers and even those coming new to Christian faith. Jesus walks on water. By all descriptions in the gospels he walks on water like you or I might walk through a field. Unlike the nation of Israel, that walked between the parted waters of first the Red Sea and then the river Jordan, Jesus strolls from the shore on top of the waves. And comes out to the boat his disciples were in. And he does this not in calm waters, but in the midst of strong wind and waves.

We can and should be astonished at this. Wonder is a part of faith. More than trying to read through this passage again and again to find clues on the method to the miracle, we are confront by the confounding nature of Jesus. It is not in the human nature to stand on top of water. If it was the process of taking a bath would be a frustrating experience. Jesus does what is not expected and gets out of the boat and walks across the waves, from the shore to where his disciples were out battling the wind and the waves.

Jesus walked on the water. You’ve all lived along the waters of our rivers, streams, near the ocean. Is anyone experienced in walking on the water? You have had no shortage of opportunities?

I can tell you that this is one pilgrimage trail that has lies beyond the Christian faithful. The road that Jesus took across the Sea of Galilee are steps that still lie beyond the believers of today, but to accept that Jesus walked across the waters has been a journey of faith that many have struggled with.

A month ago my son David was baptized in the Richiboucto river, and for those who were there you might have noticed that when Marly and I and my father walked out into the river we did not get up on top of it. Now my father and I are both quite experienced at walking waters, having walked up and down rivers and along lakes in Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, New Brunswick, and Ontario. And I know of more than a few fly-fisherman who would certainly love to have that skill of being able to walk on water. Alas, we are forced instead to either wear waders or be resolved to get wet.

But why did Jesus walk on the water. Was he trying to prove that he was greater than his disciples? He had just fed the five thousand from two fish and five loaves. What did he need to prove after that?

But the answer lies in what Jesus did before he reached the boat. If Jesus wanted to prove to the disciples that He alone was great, he would have walked across the water and just climbed into the boat, but instead he walks across those waters and then calls out to his disciples and invites Simon Peter to join him on the waves.

Peter asks to be called out onto the water by Jesus, and this is SO substantial.  Peter does not just jump out of the boat and run to Jesus he first test the situation. “Lord” says Peter, “If it is truly you than have me come out onto the waters with you.”

We need to heed this example that Peter sets. When we see something in the church, when we encounter someone on our journey of faith, when we sense a calling we need to speak to God in prayer and say, ”Lord, if it is you give me the ability to come out to you.”

We don’t offer that prayer enough, and it is usually because we are too busy looking at the impossible task and saying, “It is impossible.”

Fill all the church pews with people – that’s impossible. Is it?

Grow the Sunday Schools and Bible School  – That’s impossible. Is it? Is it really or are you just looking at the waves and the wind?

Have some faith. Trust in God, Trust in Jesus and feel the Spirit moving you across whatever the impossible rough waters are in front of.

Peter asked the Lord to call him out onto the waters, and Peter stood upon the waves. Peter’s faith faltered, but Jesus did not let him sink and drown.

You might not have the faith in yourself to put yourself out of your safety zone and step out onto the waves, but Jesus has opened his arms so that you do not have to have faith in your own feet, but you need only faith in him. And in Christ God will call you to far greater things than a stroll down the river. You may find yourself doing any number of impossible things, as Christ calls you, and God strengthens you. May God be praised. Amen

Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession

 

God’s Tithes and our gifts

Doxology (NBoP 830; BoP 603)

Offertory Prayer

 

Commissioning Hymn: NBoP 662 Those who wait on the Lord

 

Benediction

 

Dismissal: Holy Spirit on Us Fall [see back of bulletin]