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Woship Resources 2008-2009 — Year B: Be a Sanctuary of Christ's Peace
Return to Year B: 2008-2009
Resource Index
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Follow!
Third Sunday after the Epiphany (Ordinary Time)
Scriptures: Jonah 3:1–5, 10; Psalm 62:5–12; I
Corinthians 7:29–31; Mark 1:14–20/1:12–18 IV; II Nephi 13:16;
Doctrine and Covenants 163:2
Display a small fishing boat and net for the worship center.
Prelude
Welcome/Caring and Sharing
Call to Worship: II Nephi 13:16
*Hymn of Calling: “Jesus Calls Us O’er the Tumult” HS 371
OR “Your Cause Be Mine, Great Lord Divine” HS 420
*Invocation
*Response
Focus Moment: “Take my hand and say you’ll follow me.”
When Jesus first called for disciples, he was speaking to men who earned
a living by catching fish. But instead of using a pole and hook as we
usually do, they gathered as many fish as they could into a net. Jesus said
that their new life’s work would be to gather people instead of fish—not
into a net but into the kingdom of God. Just as the net brought in all kinds
of fish, they would gather all kinds of people—the educated and affluent
along with the “least, the last, the labeled, and the lost.” Today most of
us fish as recreation, not vocation. Perhaps we need new metaphors to help
us understand our calling. Can you think of some we might use?
To start the conversation, you might suggest that a biker would resonate
with the idea of a tandem bike; a quilter might imagine piecing together a
variety of fabrics; a musician might think of gathering different
instruments to form an orchestra.
Scripture Reading: Doctrine and Covenants 163:2
Hymn of Challenge: “Jesus Is Calling” HS 391
OR “What Does the Lord Require of You?” NS 52
Follow
Choose a very familiar hymn or camp song (e.g., “Where He Leads Me I Will
Follow”), so books aren’t needed. Plan ahead a “path” for the congregation
to “follow the leader.” As per the Focus Moment (“Take my hand and say
you’ll follow me”) have each one hold the hands of two people (forming a
line) and say “I will follow you.” Proceed to follow the leader on the
chosen path, singing the song, until they are back in their seats.
Message
Based on Mark 1:14–20
Prayer for Peace see
page 27
Disciples’ Generous Response: “Christian, love me more than these.”
Each Sunday, as part of the Disciples’ Generous Response, we ask you to
integrate the message of “share equally” between Local and World Ministries
Mission Tithes. Generosity stories are provided to keep the church in touch
with how contributions to Mission Tithes spread the peace of Jesus Christ.
Please use the stories, testimonies, and up-to-date contribution information
as part of your offertory ministry. Visit
www.CofChrist.org/generositystories to print a copy, or contact your
pastor, congregational financial officer, or worship coordinator for a copy.
Reflection
It is noteworthy that Peter, Andrew, James, and John all responded
without hesitation to the Master’s call. Suddenly they had a new set of
priorities. We, too, find ourselves prioritizing our use of time and
money because we think there is not enough of either to go around. We
need time for relaxing, socializing, surfing the net or the TV channels,
or maybe just a time-out. We need money for a much deserved vacation,
the day spa, a computer upgrade—the list goes on! Still we hear the
voice of Jesus, asking us to seek first the building of his kingdom and
to use our time and money accordingly. When we arrange our priorities,
we are not choosing between good and bad but between good and better.
May it be said of us that, like those first followers, our response was
immediate.
Blessing and Receiving of Tithes and Offerings
*Hymn of Commitment: “We Would See Jesus” HS 217
OR “Companions on the Journey’ NS 7
*Benediction
*Vocal response: “Dear Lord and God of Humankind” HS 115
Verse two might be sung by an unaccompanied soloist at the back of the
sanctuary.
OR Congregational Response: “Who Will Go Forth and Serve?” HS 499
*Postlude
Sermon Helps
Scriptures: Jonah 3:1–5, 10; Psalm 62:5–12; I Corinthians 7:29–31;
Mark 1:14–20/1:12–18 IV
Exploring the Scriptures
In our scripture for today, Jonah, after rebelling against God, finally
follows the divine instruction to go to Ninevah. There he finds the people have
repented and turned from their evil ways.
The words that Jesus speaks in Mark 1:15 can be thought of as Jesus’ “opening
statement,” because they are his first words in Mark, the oldest of the Gospels.
At the beginning of Mark, Jesus is already fully grown, has recently been
baptized, and has spent forty days in the wilderness preparing for his ministry.
He is ready to state his mission: he will proclaim the gospel and invite people
to follow him toward the kingdom of God.
Jesus spent his life sharing his vision of the peaceable kingdom, in parable
and picture story, and inviting people to move with him toward it. Frequently,
the people who followed him most closely—his disciples—did not understand what
he was talking about and did not know where they were going. Apparently, it was
not so important that Jesus’ followers be especially perceptive. What was more
necessary was that they went with him. Their most important quality was that
they leaped to follow him and then kept following him as the plot developed.
They learned what the peaceable kingdom was by walking toward it.
Jesus chooses to invite his followers, rather than to command them. The
kingdom of God is not a group of buildings. It is relationships among God and
God’s creation—including people, other living things, and the environment.
Building the kingdom of God, then, is a matter of how we see, hear, speak, and
act on the journey toward it. The kingdom of God comes to be in the following of
Jesus.
Note that the book of Mark begins by saying it is the “good news of Jesus
Christ,” while Jesus says he proclaims the “good news of God.” While we might
use the terms interchangeably, Jesus makes clear that everything he has is
received from God. Receiving from him is to receive from God, and following him
is to move toward God. Notice also that Doctrine and Covenants 163 fits very
closely with this text in Mark. (Especially note verses 2–4 and 11.)
Central Ideas
- The peaceable kingdom of God is built by following Jesus toward it.
- One needs no special skills to follow Jesus; faithfulness is all that’s
required.
- The Community of Christ is presently invited through the words of
Doctrine and Covenants 163 to follow Jesus. We are invited toward the same
end as the disciples were in Mark 1.
Questions for the Speaker
- How have you heard the interrupting call of Jesus to follow him?
- What images work best for you in understanding what Jesus means by “the
kingdom of God”?
- What passage in Doctrine and Covenants 163 makes you want to share
Christ’s vision of the peaceable kingdom?
- Can you imagine hearing the call in the way Peter, Andrew, James, and
John did? Can you imagine responding the way they did?
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