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Woship Resources 2007-2008 — Year A: Passionate for Peace
Return to Year A: 2007-2008
Resource Index
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Journey in Faith
Ordinary Time (Proper 5)
Scriptures:
Genesis 12:1–9/12:1–7 IV;
Psalm 33:1–12; Romans
4:13–25; Matthew
9:9–13, 18–26/10–14, 24–32 IV; II Nephi 5:112–114; Doctrine and Covenants 5:5b
Sharing Christ’s Peace
The restoring of persons to healthy or righteous
relationships with God, others, themselves, and the earth is at the heart of
the purpose of your journey as a people of faith.—Doctrine
and Covenants 163:2b
Prelude
Songs of Preparation
“Tenderly, Tenderly, Lead Thou Me On” HS
146
“I Know Not What the Future Hath” HS 126
Welcome
Call to Worship
“And he got up and followed him….”
Just like that!
Matthew stops everything—leaves his job.
Not a word to the boss. Customers lined up at his tax booth
—not the least unhappy to see him go.
“Follow me.” Two words from a stranger and off
he goes.
Senseless, really. A lucrative career down the drain.
He doesn’t ask, who,
what, where, or when.
He just runs to catch up.
Matthew—scampering after “the Son of Man.”
Two words: “Follow me.”
Would you
go?
Have you?
Just like that?
—“Just Like That” (based on Matthew 9:9–13) by Danny A. Belrose
*Hymn
“Companions on the Journey”
NS
7
OR “Jesus Is Calling”
HS 391
OR “Hark! The Voice of Jesus Calling” HS
381
*Invocation
*Response
Hymn
“Face to Face” NS
9
OR “Children of the Heavenly Father” HS 156
Focus Moment
On entering the sanctuary, worshipers will have been given a piece of
origami paper. Have someone skilled in this art guide the congregation
step-by-step in creating a paper crane. The instructor should not identify
what the finished product will be. Relate the exercise to the theme with
appropriate comments, encouraging the congregation to follow instructions,
to ask for help when needed, and to assist people around them. Let the
exercise reinforce the principle that even a simple journey or project can
be successful when we work together in faith.
Disciples’ Generous Response
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. Offertory 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/offertory
to print a copy, or
contact your pastor, congregational financial officer, or worship
coordinator for a copy.
Prayer
You have called us, O God, to journey in faith—to follow you into new
and challenging experiences. When our steps were hesitant, you gently
calmed our fears. When tempted to look back, you reminded us that you
blessed our yesterdays with promise. Each day along the path you have
poured out the blessings of your grace. Your generosity is without
measure. Your love never wanes. May we love as you love. May we share as
you share. May we live as you live—ever giving to others. Amen.
Receiving of Mission Tithes
*Hymn
“O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee” HS
462
OR “Creator of Sunrises”
HS 186
OR “Humble Yourself”
NS 17
Prayer
“And Abram journeyed on by stages…”
To where,
God, and why,
God? Why did he have to
leave the familiar?
Could you not have blessed him, just as easily, where he was—
safe and secure with the home fires burning?
What a strange conversation, God:
“Saddle-up, Abram, we’re going on a journey.”
“Where to, Lord?”
“I’ll tell you when we get there!”
No clear destination. No
Road Atlas. No
Mapquest.
“Oh, and by the way, take your family with you, Abram.”
How does one convince others to journey in faith, let alone, one’s self,
God?
Must faith live on the other side of reason? Must we journey into the
unknown?
Is faith learning to “let go” as well as “to hang on”?
“And Abram journeyed on by stages …”
Not all at once. Not without questions.
Not without hesitancy and occasional lingering doubts…but “by stages”!
Surely we can do that, God!
“So Abram went, as the Lord had told him…”
By stages—yes, we can
do that—one faithful step at a time, God! Amen.
—“By Stages” (based on Genesis 12:1–9 and Romans 4:13–25) by Danny A.
Belrose
Sermon
Based on Genesis 12:1–9/12:1–7 IV and/or Romans 4:13–25
*Hymn
“Take the Path of the Disciple” R-19
OR “Lord Jesus, of You I Will Sing” SP
31
OR “Bring Forth the Kingdom” SP
9
*Prayer for Peace and Benediction
*Response
*Postlude
Sermon Helps
Scriptures: Genesis
12:1–9/12:1–7 IV; Psalm 33:1–12; Romans 4:13–25; Matthew 9:9–13,
18–26/9:10–14, 24–32 IV; II Nephi 5:112–114; Doctrine and Covenants 5:5b
Exploring the Scriptures
If there is any figure in scripture who epitomizes ultimate and absolute
faith in God, it is Abraham. His faith was simple, almost naive. When God
called, the only response from Abraham was simply to act on that call. There was
no question. There was no drama.
Abraham’s journey south, while an actual journey, can also be seen
metaphorically as the journey each one of us embarks upon in life. As children
of God, we live our lives in faith—though sometimes we may feel our faith is
weak. Sometimes we may not put into action what we should, but we can always
depend on God’s steadfast love and sure promises. From Abraham’s experience we
learn that our life’s journey in faith means we can trust God to not only
promise the impossible, but also to fulfill those promises.
The key promise to Abraham is the promise from God that all nations would
find blessing through Abraham. Sometimes this is seen too narrowly: that Abraham
is the father of three of the world’s major religions (Judaism, Christianity,
and Islam). A careful reading of the passage in Genesis clearly states much more
than this. Verse 3 declares “in you all the families of the earth shall be
blessed.” In the view of the Jewish people, there were only two kinds of people
on the earth: themselves and the Gentiles. This view leads to only one possible
conclusion: Abraham is also the father of the Gentiles as well. The divine
blessing is not merely for the literal descendants of Abraham, but for all
humankind.
The covenant and promise that God made with Abraham preceded the covenant
with Israel that many centuries later was embodied in Torah (the Law). The
covenant of the Law was expressed in circumcision. How, then, could Abraham (and
others, including Enoch and Noah) have been counted as “righteous” before God,
since the Law had not yet been given? The apostle Paul saw that scripture
attested to the fact that this was so. This means that Abraham is not the
“father of the circumcised” as had been narrowly understood by the Jews of that
time, but rather the “father of the faithful.” As Paul explains in Romans, the
true children of Abraham are those who exhibit a similar faith.
No matter how absurd or irrational the promise, Abraham journeyed forth with
all his being. His trust and his faith became God-oriented action. The journey
on which we are called requires only those two things: absolute trust in a God
who fulfills all God’s promises and then acting on that faith.
Central Ideas
1. Believers are assured that their faith in God and God’s promises is a
well-placed faith. Abraham’s story, his response to God in all things, is an
example to all people. The Christian faith, our faith, when we emulate
Abraham, is a trust that is well-placed.
2. Life’s journey itself is a journey in faith. In true reality, the only
thing that we can depend on and the only thing that is absolute in life is
God’s promise that God will be there for us, will lift us up, and will
welcome us back into God’s loving arms.
Questions for the Speaker
1. What is the relationship between faith and salvation? Why is faith
such an important emphasis in the scriptures?
2. Why did Paul place such importance on explaining Abraham to the church
at Rome?
3. How does your individual journey reflect the journey of Abraham from
his home at Ur, southward through Canaan?
4. What evidence suggests God truly can be counted on to fulfill the
promises?
5. If Christians are not “under the Law,” how is it that they are able to
be in covenant with God and heirs of the blessings?
6. Last week we were challenged to “build with faith.” This week we are
commended to “journey in faith.” How are these two declarations similar?
different?
7. What journey is God calling you to embark upon?
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