Order, Words, & Voices
01.07.24, 2nd Sunday after Christmas Eve, Belovedness, Luke 3:1-22
Order
Pre Worship Music – Spotify – Open and Close
Songs Billy/Team
Lord I Lift Your Name on High
Amazing Love
Participatory Response and Prayer Cricklins
Songs Billy/Team
Great is Thy Faithfulness
Be the Center
Passage Luke 3:1-22 Pettys
Message Belovedness Rick
Music Be the Center Billy/Team
Community/Benediction Rick
Closing Peace Rick
Music Jesus, Name Above All Names Billy/Team
Post Worship Music – Spotify – Open and Close
Music (slides) Billy/Team
Lord I Lift Your Name on High
CCLI Song # 117947
Verse
Lord I lift Your name on high
Lord I love to sing Your praises
I’m so glad You’re in my life
I’m so glad You came to save us
Chorus
You came from heaven to earth
To show the way
From the earth to the cross
My debt to pay
From the cross to the grave
From the grave to the sky
Lord I lift Your name on high
Amazing Love
CCLI Song # 2456623
Verse
I’m forgiven
Because You were forsaken
I’m accepted
You were condemned
I’m alive and well
Your Spirit is within me
Because You died
And rose again
Chorus
Amazing love
How can it be
That You my King
Would die for me
Amazing love
I know it’s true
It’s my joy to honor You
In all I do I honor You
Ending
You are my King
You are my King
Jesus You are my King
Jesus You are my King
Participatory Response and Prayer (Slides) Cricklins
Leader: There are a million other places we could be right now, but we chose to be here. We need to be here. We need to hear, once more, that we are created in God’s image— fiercely loved and uniquely called.
Response: The pieces of life come together in the reminder that God delights in us.
Leader: We gather before our loving and claiming God who gives us a glimpse of how our Lord sees us. God restores to us the grace and the tenderness of seeing God’s love.
Response: God gives us this moment to recognize grace, love, and belonging.
Leader: We gather to lift up the silent prayers that we have held to ourselves.
We lift up the prayers that we carry for ourselves and the pleas we present before God for those known and those unknown.
Response: May we allow our loving God to draw near in those prayers.
Leader: May we live in an awareness that we are not the only ones who need God’s care and affirmation. May we be avenues of God’s light and compassion in our world, reflections of Jesus to our friends and strangers alike.
Response: May the lives we live show our world they are beloved.
Leader: May we look for God in the midst of this moment, may we affirm belovedness in one another. May we follow the beloved Jesus through the waters and into the world.
Response: May we walk the path and live the life of Christ our Savior.
Leader: Join me in the prayer of Jesus,
[Slides] Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, On Earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our trespasses, while we forgive those who trespass against us. And, lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Music (slides) Billy/Team
Great is Thy Faithfulness
CCLI Song # 18723
Chorus
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning
New mercies I see
All I have needed
Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness
Lord unto me
Verse 1
Great is Thy faithfulness
O God my Father
There is no shadow
Of turning with Thee
Thou changest not
Thy compassions they fail not
As Thou hast been
Thou forever wilt be
Verse 2
Summer and winter
And springtime and harvest
Sun moon and stars
In their courses above
Join with all nature
In manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness
Mercy and love
Verse 3
Pardon for sin
And a peace that endureth
Thy own dear presence
To cheer and to guide
Strength for today
And bright hope for tomorrow
Blessings all mine
With ten thousand beside
Be the Center
CCLI Song # 2650429
Verse 1
Jesus be the center
Be my source be my light
Jesus
Verse 2
Jesus be the center
Be my hope be my song
Jesus
Chorus
Be the fire in my heart
Be the wind in these sails
Be the reason that I live
Jesus Jesus
Verse 3
Jesus be my vision
Be my path be my guide
Jesus
Blank Page
Passage (Slides) Pettys
John, the now adult son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, went into all the Jordan region proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
Isaiah had prophesied about John centuries before, depicting him as coming out of the wilderness to prepare the people for Jesus’ arrival.
John said the words that Isaiah said John would say. Words that came to John from God.
“Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”
As the people responded to John’s words and came to him to be baptized, he called them a ‘brood of vipers,’ and asked them “Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?”
“Bear fruits worthy of repentance, don’t to say to yourselves, ‘We are not worried because we have Abraham as our ancestor’”
“For I tell you,” John continued, “God is able to raise up new children to Abraham from these stones you are standing on. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
The crowds asked him, “What should we do?” John replied, “If you have two coats, share with someone who has no coat, if you have food you must do the same.”
Tax collectors asked him, “What should we do?” John said to them, “Collect no more than what you are ordered to collect.”
Even soldiers asked John, “What should we do?” John said, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, instead, be satisfied with your wages.”
The people wondered if John might be the Messiah. John said, “I baptize you with water, but one who is more powerful than me is coming; I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandals.”
“He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
John proclaimed God’s truth to the people.
At Jesus’ insistence John baptized Jesus, after, as Jesus was praying, heaven opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove and a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:2b-18, 21-22 (abb/adapt)
Message Rick
?Opening – peers talking about children?
[Screen Share until noted to end screen share]
[Slide] Joy is the element of life that releases us to acknowledge our weary, happy, and content moments – sometimes in the same moment.
[Slide] Joy is rooted in the fact that we belong to God, and, that IN God, we are loved, accepted, affirmed, embraced – we ARE the beloved of God. We see this truth in God’s provision, direction, correction, sacrifice, and in the midst of God’s delight in Jesus, and therefore, in us.
[Slide] The Psalmist wrote, “The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and then calls them each by name.
[Slide] “Great is our Lord and mighty in power; HIS UNDERSTANDING HAS NO LIMIT, “
[Slide] listen to that again, his understanding has NO LIMIT.
[Slide] “God sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground. The Lord covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills. He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call.”
[Slide] “God’s pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor is his delight in the legs of the warrior; the Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.” (Psalm 142:2-11)
[Slide] “Forgetting God’s delight and joy in us stunts our ability to enjoy God’s love. Forgiveness—as beautiful and crucial as it is—is not enough.”
[Slide] Forgiveness must be understood to come from God’s love which, in turn, leads us back to God.
[Slide] When we see God’s love as a cold and forensic process we miss the delight God experiences in meeting the needs of the human condition – we miss most of the scriptures.
(Kelly Kapic, You’re Only Human)
[End Screen Share]
In the story of Jesus’ baptism, the heavens part open and the voice of God fully embraces Jesus. Some translations of Luke 3:22 the interpreters have God saying, “in you, I find happiness and delight.” In those words, we can conclude that we are also the source of God’s joy. When we trust our belovedness, we live and give fully—we are compelled and propelled to treat others with tenderness and care. When we trust our belovedness, we have endless reasons to rejoice. Belonging to God is the primary source of our joy. In turn, scripture tells us that we are the source of God’s joy. As we hear the words spoken to Jesus at his baptism, we internalize these words as they are also spoken to us.
“John’s audience was already familiar with two kinds of baptism: the baptism by which Gentile converts became Jews and so embarked on a whole new way of life; and the ritual washings that the Qumran community understood as cleansing them, but only if they turned from their sins and obeyed God. Both types called for changed behavior. John’s baptism of repentance does too. Repentance (metanoia) is not mere regret for past misdeeds. Metanoia means a change of mind and heart, the kind of inner transformation that bears visible results that others will see. John proclaims a baptism of repentance that leads to release from sins. Release (aphesis) is the same word that Jesus uses twice in Luke 4:18 to describe his mission: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me … to proclaim release to the captives and … to let the oppressed go free … ” This release, or forgiveness, that follows John’s baptism repentance does not undo past sins, but it does unbind people from them. It opens the way for a life lived in God’s service.” (Vicar Judith Jones)
However, Baptism for Jesus was not really either of the known types of Baptism – Jesus’ baptism was for a unique purpose and the beginning of a new stage of Jesus’ journey. As Jesus stepped into the baptismal waters, it was not for a change of heart, it was for a declaration and clarification of an already determined heart. This was a ‘Yes’ to the mission he had already said yes to, but now officially began. It was public, it was definite, it was immersion into Jesus’ intentional choice of sacrifice, now it was set in cement. It was the firing of the starting gun in Jesus’ journey to the cross. There would be no hiding now, he could not be anonymous or unseen. As Jesus came out of the waters, he would soon be face to face with the evil one. Satan’s game plan was to distract and destroy the approaching work of the Messiah.
Jesus, in this step into the waters, fulfilled all righteousness – enabling himself to be a perfect sacrifice for us.
But first, God spoke. We don’t know if this was a voice heard by everyone within hearing distance, or if this was a personal message to Jesus and Satan. I lean towards it being an affirmation to Jesus while being a less than subtle message, a challenge, to Satan – ‘This is done’.
To Jesus, God said, “You are my Son, you are Beloved; I am so pleased.”
To Satan, God said, “This my Son, he is Beloved; with him I am so pleased, I am completely satisfied, I am totally confident.”
[Screen Share]
And, as God speaks, he speaks out of three complimentary yet fully independent perspectives, three different relationship dynamics.
- [Slide] As a Parent, unconditional love without boundaries or stipulations. “This is my kid, pardon my bias and unabashed preference but he is the best, your kid is cute and wonderful but my kid is better.”
- [Slide] As a Cheerleader/Coach, the ability to work with your kid to help them achieve goals while beaming with pride at their effort and sweat, as well as their accomplishment. Human maturation process of Jesus just like us, he was not born already programmed – had to learn and grow like all of us – life struggle of becoming. Illustration – Wade’s daughter’s graduation.
- [Slide] As the Lord, “My Son, Jesus, is the perfect sacrifice for the mission he has just, in front of our eyes, stepped into. He is the flawless and perfect sacrifice and is now showing it to the world”
[Leave Slide Up and Screen Share on]
God looks at us as a parent, as cheerleader and coach, and as the Lord. We are beloved because we belong to God, our creator. We are his team, he is cheering and coaching us along on the journey of life, God delights in our efforts and accomplishment, as well as when we pick ourselves up from struggles and get back into the game. We are his chosen, chosen for the mission of showing God to the world through the heart and actions of our lives. God delights in us fully and is with us all along our path.
[Slide] Henri Nouwen writes: “Claiming your own belovedness always leads to a deep desire to love others. . . . It is remarkable how easy it is to love others, to speak good things to and about them, to call forth their beauty and truth, when you yourself are in touch with your own belovedness. The beloved one always loves.” (Henri Nowen, Life of the Beloved)
Music (Slides) Billy/Team
Be the Center
CCLI Song # 2650429
Verse 1
Jesus be the centre
Be my source be my light
Jesus
Verse 2
Jesus be the centre
Be my hope be my song
Jesus
Chorus
Be the fire in my heart
Be the wind in these sails
Be the reason that I live
Jesus Jesus
Verse 3
Jesus be my vision
Be my path be my guide
Jesus
Community (Slides) Rick
- [Slide] Next Sunday, 01.14.24], Becoming – Making Room, Mark 2:1-22.
- [Slide] Today is last day to add to weariness/joy trees.
- [Slide] ‘In-Between’ Bible Study Begins this Wednesday, January 10, Wednesdays at noon (Tuesdays during Lent). Wednesdays at noon
beginning January 10, evening sessions w/expressed interest. Location?
(Evening BS with interest expressed.) Covering passage in-between Sunday passages.
Benediction (Slides) Rick
As we leave this place, we will soon be reminded that the most difficult thing we can do is to trust our belovedness. May our belovedness be a protest, an act of resistance, a song of celebration.
Trust your belovedness in a world that is rarely satisfied. Speak your belovedness confidently as if it is your last name. Tattoo it to your heart.
When outside forces chip away at your sense of belovedness. Let that truth hum through your veins. Sing it so loud that it drowns out the weariness of the world, for the bravest thing we can ever do is trust that we belong to God who loves us.
(adapted from the writings of Rev. Sarah Speed)
Closing Peace (Slides) Rick
[Slide] Leader: May the belovedness of the Lord go with you.
[Slide] Response: And also with you.
[Slide] Leader: Go into this world remembering that you are loved as is the world into which you are about to step.
Music [Slides]
Jesus, Name Above All Names CCLI Song # 21291
Jesus name above all names
Beautiful Savior glorious Lord
Emmanuel God is with us
Blessed Redeemer living Word
Order, Words, & Voices 