September 8, 2024

Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost

RALLY DAY

10:00am

 

 

WELCOME

 

OPENING PRAYER

God our teacher, who helps us to understand the world around us, Thank you for the privilege of education. You have blessed our communities with teachers who take new skills and concepts and pass them along to each new class of young people.

 

God who came as a child to show us how to be fully human, to show us how to be children of God, You have given our children minds that grow and develop in unique ways, at unique speeds, and we are astounded by that miracle.

 

You speak to us through the words, actions, play, and feelings of children. You call us to listen to the Spirit speaking through our young siblings in Christ.

 

We celebrate the beginning of this school year and ask for your blessings upon the children, the educators, and the families who support them all.

 

But in this celebration of education and learning, we do not forget there are children and families and teachers who do not have the resources they need. When systems are unjust, the outcomes are unacceptable. Today we remember those who are beginning school this year: those who have what they need to learn and grow in safety, and those who lack supplies, teachers, safe buildings, and accommodations for all needs and abilities.

 

We come to worship together, to lift up our young people and all those who care for them and teach them. Open our hearts to what you are saying to us today.

 

PRELUDE

 

CALL TO WORSHIP

Calling all children of the Living God:

the gospel is good news for every age and every stage.

Let us worship together, the young and the old.

The good news is proclaimed in God’s words,

and also with crayons, silly songs, snacks, and rest time.

Let us worship together, every generation.

We come together with different abilities and disabilities,

learning in a rainbow of ways and styles.

Let us worship together, with our family of faith.
All are welcome in the arms of Christ who proclaimed, “Let the children come!”

Let us worship together, united in our eternal hope.

 

*HYMN No. 12                      “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”

1 Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.

2 Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might:
thy justice, like mountains high soaring above;
thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

3 To all, life thou givest, to both great and small.
In all life thou livest, the true life of all.
We blossom and flourish like leaves on the tree,
then wither and perish; but naught changeth thee.

4 Thou reignest in glory; thou dwellest in light.
Thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight.
All praise we would render; O help us to see
’tis only the splendor of light hideth thee!

*CALL TO CONFESSION

God knows us completely. God knows our hearts and discerns our thoughts. Let us then confess what we carry within us that does not honor God or God’s path of righteousness.

 

*PRAYER FOR CONFESSION

Holy God, although we honor you with our words and worship, our hearts are often far from you. We are quick to judge, quick to exclude, quick to put others down instead of building them up. Forgive us, God. Help us amend our ways. Help us embrace the inclusive love you graciously offer us and expect us to offer others. Amen.

 

*SILENT PRAYER FOR CONFESSION

 

*ASSURANCE OF PARDON

The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting. I declare to you, in the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven. May the God of mercy, who forgives you all your sins, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen.

 

*RESPONSE No. 1                “Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty!”          v.4

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall praise thy name, in earth and sky and sea.
Holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

 

*PASSING OF THE PEACE OF CHRIST

Since God has forgiven us in Christ, let us forgive one another.

May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

And also with you.

 

ANTHEM

 

CHILDREN’S MESSAGE

 

UNISON PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION

Please join me in the unison prayer…

Open us, Eternal God, to your Word read and proclaimed. Help us not to turn from your truth or avoid and distract ourselves from your message. Help us be receptive to the wisdom you offer in this worship moment.

 

SCRIPTURE              Mark 7:24-37

²⁴ From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre.^[a] He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, ²⁵ but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. ²⁶ Now the woman was a gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. ²⁷ He said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” ²⁸ But she answered him, “Sir,^[b] even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” ²⁹ Then he said to her, “For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.” ³⁰ And when she went home, she found the child lying on the bed and the demon gone.

 

³¹ Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went by way of Sidon toward the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. ³² They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. ³³ He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. ³⁴ Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” ³⁵ And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. ³⁶ Then Jesus^[c] ordered them to tell no one, but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. ³⁷ They were astounded beyond measure, saying, “He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.”

 

Pause…

 

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God!!

 

SERMON                   “Be Opened”

Our hearts have grown dull, and our ears are hard of hearing. So, what do we do?

What did Jesus do?

In the case of the deaf man, it was pretty simple, really. Jesus took him aside, put his fingers into his ears, spat and touched his tongue. Then he looked up to heaven, sighed, and said, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. Simple enough, right?

But what about for us? When our hearts are hardened, it is more challenging, isn’t it? How can Jesus open our hearts? What does an “Ephphatha” moment look like when it involves the heart? How does Jesus open our hearts, so that we can hear his good news, not just with our ears, but with our hearts?

 

I want to call these “Ephphatha Moments.” Ephphatha being the Aramaic word that Jesus used to open the deaf man’s ears. What does an “Ephphatha Moment” look like when it involves the heart?

Let’s think about some famous “Ephphatha” moments, when people’s hardened hearts were softened and opened, to get an idea of how Jesus accomplishes this.

We can start with perhaps the most famous “Ephphatha Moment” of them all, the conversion of Saul or Paul. Before his heart was opened, Paul was an angry Pharisee, breathing threats and murder against the first Christians. He was headed to Damascus to bring any Christians he found there bound to Jerusalem. And on his way, a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” A dramatic “Ephphatha moment” and conversion, to be sure, but sometimes that is how Jesus opens our hearts to the gospel.

St. Augustine is another who had a famous “Ephphatha Moment,” although his was a little different. Augustine’s conversion began with a visit to a famous orator, Ambrose. Ambrose was a bishop and a famous preacher, but Augustine was only interested in his skills as an orator. Augustine would later write that he “began to love [Ambrose], not at first as a teacher of the truth, for I had entirely despaired of finding that in the Church—but as a friendly man.” Think of how many people in your life have despaired of finding the truth in the church, but who desperately need a friend. This friend began to soften Augustine’s heart, and prepare him for his “Ephphatha moment.” As he later told the story, in his autobiography, Confessions, it happened one afternoon when he heard a child’s voice say “take up and read.” When he heard this, he looked around and saw a Bible nearby. He took it and read, converted right then to Christianity, and went on to become a priest, bishop, and theologian, who has influenced the church as much as anyone in history.

How about a more contemporary example? Thomas Merton is considered by some to be the Augustine of the twentieth century. He even wrote a famous autobiography detailing his conversion, just as Augustine did. But Merton’s conversion happened a little differently. He had graduated from college in New York City with a degree in English and was living the good life in New York. A friend of his introduced him to a Hindu monk who was visiting New York. Merton was taken by this monk, and felt drawn to explore his spiritual side. But this Hindu monk encouraged Merton not to study Hinduism, but to reconnect with his Christian roots.

“He did not generally put his words in the form of advice,” Merton recounts in his autobiography, The Seven Story Mountain, “but the one counsel he did give me is something that I will not easily forget: “There are many beautiful mystical books written by the Christians. You should read St. Augustine’s ‘Confessions,’ and ‘The Imitation of Christ.’”

Merton read these books, and began reading more about the Christian faith. He eventually converted, became a Roman Catholic, and then became a Trappist monk a few years later. At the monastery, his abbot ordered Merton to write, and he did, becoming one of the most important Christian writers of the twentieth century.

I could tell countless other stories, of course, of “Ephphatha moments,” of people converting to Christianity after having their hearts opened to the gospel, and after being able to hear the good news with the ears of their hearts.

But what about us? Most of us don’t have a famous conversion story like these. Most of us don’t have a dramatic “Ephphatha moment” like Paul or Augustine or Merton. In fact, most of us have been Christians for as long as we can remember.

But we still need “Ephphatha moments,” don’t we? We still need those moments in life that soften our hearts, and help them to hear again, as if for the first time, how very much we are loved by God. We need those moments, and God gives them to us in an incredible variety of ways. Moments when we remember, in our heart of hearts, that we are God’s beloved. That Jesus died for us. That we are forgiven, that we are loved, and that nothing in life will ever separate us from that love.

So, I invite you to think again of those times in your life when your heart was softened, and when your ears and your eyes were opened. It may have been in church, or when you were reading the Bible, but it may have been at other times. It may have been through a friend. It may have been through what others would call a coincidence. It may have been through a beautiful sunset, or an unexpected rainbow. It may have been at a concert, or experiencing the birth of a child, and on and on. We all have those moments when something happens that causes our hearts to soften, and when we find ourselves hearing again God’s loving voice in our heart of hearts.

Let’s call these “Ephphatha Moments,” and let’s look for them, and let’s ask for them, and let’s not miss them when they come.

 

One last point to make about Jesus healing the deaf man. When Jesus healed him by saying “Ephphatha,” he did not just open his ears. He also released his tongue. And this man began zealously proclaiming what Jesus had done.

When our hearts are opened to the gospel, our tongues are released, too. To proclaim the good news of God’s love in Jesus, the news that is far more important than any other news we will hear, this day, or this week, or ever.

So, let’s pray not just to have an “Ephphatha Moment,” but to be an “Ephphatha Moment” for someone else. Let’s pray for the opportunity to share our hope, to invite someone to church, to send them a timely text, or share a quote or a book or something that helps to have their heart opened again to God’s amazing grace, mercy, and love. So that they, too, can hear with the ears of their heart, and remember that they are loved by the God who is love.

 

Ephphatha. Be opened. May the ears of your hearts be opened, that they can be filled with God’s love. And may your tongues be released, to share this love with all. To the glory of God. Amen. 

 

 

Liturgy and Commentary provided by The PC(USA) Book of Common Worship, the Presbyterian Outlook, Allie Lee, Amanda Meisenheimer, Arianne Braithwaite Lehn, Christian Jennert, James Laurence, and Alex Evans.

 

*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH from the Barmen Declaration

As Jesus Christ is God’s assurance of the forgiveness of all our sins, so in the same way and with the same seriousness is he also God’s mighty claim upon our whole life. Through him befalls us joyful deliverance from the godless fetters of this world for a free, grateful service to God’s Creatures.

 

We reject the false doctrine, as though there were areas of our life in which we would not belong to Jesus Christ, but to other lords – areas in which we would not need justification or sanctification through him.

 

*HYMN No. 9                       “The Play of the Godhead”

1 The play of the Godhead,
the Trinity’s dance,
embraces the earth in a sacred romance:
with God the Creator,
and Christ the true Son,
entwined with the Spirit, a web daily spun
in spangles of mystery,
the great Three-in-One.

2 The warm mists of summer,
cool waters that flow,
turn crystal as ice when the wintry winds blow.
The taproot that nurtures,
the shoot growing free,
the life-giving fruit, full and ripe on the tree:
more mystic and wondrous,
the great One-in-Three.

3 In God’s gracious image
of co-equal parts,
we gather as dancers, uniting our hearts.
Men, women, and children,
and all living things,
we join in the round of bright nature that rings
with rapture and rhythm:
creation now sings!

 

THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE & THE LORD’S PRAYER

God of mercy,

The earth groans as our climate continues to warm and change. We are weary of disaster. We are tense with concern. We feel helpless as we watch each evening’s news. Hear us, O God, as we share ourselves, our prayers, our hopes with you. Bless us, O God, with a reverent sense of your presence as we lift these petitions to you today.

 

We pray for students newly returned to school. We pray for their curiosity, imagination and intellect to bloom. We pray that they persevere through every new challenge, that they take advantage of their education, that they work hard to develop their emerging skills. We pray also for parents and teachers navigating the transition out of summer and into this new academic year. Bless these, we pray, with your wisdom and grace.

 

We pray for our nation during this volatile election season. May our leaders be led by your wisdom; may they clearly discern your will and seek to follow it. May we not wage war with words and demeaning rhetoric, entrenching us into further divisiveness, but find ways to speak our truth in love, remembering that all are a part of the Beloved Community.

 

We pray for the suffering across our globe. We pray for peace in the Middle East and for the Ukrainian people to enjoy the freedom and dignity they deserve. We pray for all those who are forced to endure violence, destruction and abuse. Save us, God, from sectarian thinking that leads us to believe others’ problems are not our own. Remind us of our interdependence, that the suffering of some, is the suffering of us all.

 

Mighty and merciful God, we claim your promise of restoration for all who suffer. We glorify you for your constant presence, help and hope. May your world and all who live in it be renewed through the power of the risen Christ and those committed to being Christ’s hands and feet in a hurting world.

 

United as a family of faith and as the Body of Christ we lift these prayers up to you, God. Finally, hear us pray the prayer Christ taught us, saying, “Our Father…”

 

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 debts, as we have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.  For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

MINUTE FOR MISSION                 JOHNSONBURG                 Stacey Oehler

 

OFFERING OF TITHES & OFFERINGS

We have more to offer than we recognize or realize. God has given us abundant gifts. Let us faithfully respond to our generous God, by presenting our tithes and offerings.

 

OFFERTORY

 

*RESPONSE N0. 609                      “Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow”

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow.
Praise God, all creatures high and low.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise God, in Jesus fully known:
Creator, Word, and Spirit one.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

 

*PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING

Holy God, how often we take for granted all that we have. How often we fail to recognize how blessed we are. Take these gifts we give in response to your generosity and use them to further Christ’s mission and ministry in a hurting world. Amen.

 

*HYMN No. 847                   “Our Hope, Our Life”

1 Our hope, our life are in the Lord,
the God we honor and confess.
Why crave renown or opulence?
They fade, those things we now possess.

2 Some flaunt their gold; some trust its power,
but what they cherish will decay;
and still the ransom for a soul
remains a price too great to pay.

3 Though wealth or learning may be ours,
or fame that spreads throughout the land,
the shackles of mortality
prevent so much that we have planned.

4 Beyond this age of shame and sham
we glimpse a better destiny:
the Lord will lift us free from death
to dwell in praise eternally.

 

*BENEDICTION

Children, families, and all who love them,

go out into the beautiful world that God has made!
Go and play!
Go and learn!
Go and love others!
May you be filled with lovingkindness for yourself and everyone around you.

May the prayers of your faith community keep you safe, healthy, and full of joy. Amen.