Chatham Charge Worship Service January 31, 2021
We come together as a community of faith to praise and worship our Father Almighty, He is the one that calls us to worship. His Holy Spirit is calling us now. He welcomes us into His house to spend time together in fellowship with him and with one another.
*Call to Worship: Psalm 111:1 – 5 #832
L: Praise the Lord.
P: I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
L: Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who have pleasure in them.
P: Full of honor and majesty are the works of the Lord whose righteousness endures for ever,
L: Who has caused his wonderful works to be remembered, the Lord is gracious and merciful.
P: The Lord provides food for the faithful and is ever mindful of his covenant.
Opening Prayer:
Open our hearts and spirits this day to hear the great good news of your power and presence with all your people. Fill our hearts with rejoicing as the words are proclaimed in song and story. Enliven us and remind us that you are with us, through the pillar of fire, through the magnificent words of the prophets, through the ministry and love of Jesus Christ. AMEN.
*Hymn: All Creatures of Our God and King #62, v. 1, 4, 5
- All creatures of our God and King, lift up your voice and with the sing, O praise ye! Alleluia! O brother son with golden beam, O sister moon with silver gleam! O praise ye! oh praise ye! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
- Dear mother earth, who day by day and forest blessings on your way, Alleluia! Alleluia! The flowers and fruits that in thee grow, let them glory God’s glory also show! O praise ye! oh praise ye! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
- All ye of tender heart, forgiving others take your part, O praise ye! Alleluia! Ye who long pain and sorrow bear, praise God in on him cast your care! O praise ye! oh praise ye! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
First Scripture: Deuteronomy 18:15 – 20
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.”
The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name. But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, is to be put to death.”.
The Lord’s Prayer
Gloria Patri: UMH 70
*Prayer:
Before we turn to the Word of the Lord, let us turn to the Lord of the Word in prayer. Heavenly Father we ask that you send your Holy Spirit to come dwell with us at this time in order that he might open our ears to a new meaning of your Word, open our minds to a new understanding of your works, and open our hearts to greater love for you. Be with us Spirit, be our guide and our companion on this spiritual journey to a greater understanding of the God of this Word. Amen
Message Lesson: Mark 1:21 – 28
They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”
“Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee. The Words of God for the People of God!
The Message
With Authority
Mark 1:21 – 28
Can you think of, maybe remember someone that you that you considered and authority figure? Maybe someone that had the wisdom of the ages? Maybe it was your father or grandfather. Maybe it was your mother or grandmother. May be a teacher, or a doctor, or a pastor. Maybe it was someone on tv, maybe a newscaster, Walter Cronkite always seemed to be “in control of the situation and the facts. What he said always seemed to be authoritative, powerful, truthful and impactful!
But over the years we came to see those authoritative figures, those over the rest, bigger than the rest, were also human just like the rest. Flawed like the rest of us. Human like the rest. Ultimately mortal like the rest of us. The world has become so jaded and cynical, looking to tear down what we once revered and looked up to. Those that wielded servant enable authority over the world around them. Heroes in our eyes and heroes in minds, and for better or worse, heroes forever in our minds. Flawed, yes but still meaningful and purposeful for us, heroes.
The gospel of Mark is full of action. Matthew, Luke and John spend a lot of time on Jesus’ teaching, if they were a movie or TV show, they would be documentaries. But Mark loves to share the things that Jesus did, if it was a movie or TV show it would be an action thriller.
Today our hero in this action movie is Jesus Christ, who was recently baptized by John and is now imbued with the Holy Spirit. He is fresh from successfully confronting Satan in the wilderness, he is preaching the reign of God and echoing John the Baptist’s cry that the kingdom of God is near, everyone must repent, and now in the company of at least four followers, it’s time for Jesus’ public ministry to gather momentum. This miracle is the starting point.
Mark wants us to know, here at the outset of Jesus’ public ministry that Jesus has Arrived with Authority but that authority will be a contested authority. Jesus’ presence, words, and deeds threaten other forces, other people that claim authority over people’s lives. These other authorities have something to lose and are not going to give up control easily. Not the religious elite and certainly not Satan.
The scene of our first act is a Capernaum synagogue, a setting of prayer, teaching, worship, and community gathering. Capernaum was a fishing town located on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee. It was a fairly large city of about ten thousand people and lay along a major trade route.
Capernaum is pretty important in the gospels. Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and he grew up in Nazareth, but when he began his public ministry he left Nazareth and made Capernaum his home base instead.
The question posed in this scripture and in Mark’s Gospel centers around questions of Jesus’ authority. Why does he do what he does? For whom does he speak and act? Who has authorized his ministry?
As the saying goes, never underestimate the power of a good teacher. Well, I believe it is safe to say that there never was a teacher like Jesus Christ. Mark gives us a glimpse into Jesus’ teaching ministry here in this passage and the main word he wants us to focus on here is “authority”. The thing that marked Jesus’ teaching apart from everybody else’s was his undeniable authority over the scriptures.
Now, not just anyone could get up and start to teach in the synagogue. You had to be invited. There were regular rabbis and teachers, but there were also guest teachers from time to time.
Jesus had already begun his public preaching ministry and it was his custom to go to the synagogue each Sabbath, so it was not surprising that the chief priest of the synagogue might extend an invitation for him to teach.
After hearing him the people were amazed at Jesus’ teaching. We don’t know what they were expecting when they went to synagogue that morning, but whatever it was, they got something different. There was something about Jesus and his teaching that stood out to them, and they were amazed. They were amazed at his teaching because Jesus taught as one with authority, not as the teachers of the law.
They had been to synagogue before, they went every week. They had heard teachers before, probably some really good ones. But there was something about Jesus when he taught that their teachers lacked, his teaching came with authority over the Word.
You see my friends, Jesus was not simply teaching the Scriptures, but he was also proclaiming the nearness of God’s kingdom and calling people to a personal response. Jesus’ message was urgent: “The kingdom of God is near!” Jesus’ message was bold and demanding: “Repent and believe the good news!” The message that he delivered revealed a special personal authority to deliver this message.
Jesus was not only displaying authority in his teaching of the Word, but this passage also shows us Jesus’ authority over evil. Jesus is busy teaching in the synagogue, when all of a sudden, this man with an evil spirit cries out in the middle of his teaching.
The demon’s words are combative and confronting, intended to frighten a less powerful foe but not Jesus. The demon asks Jesus, “Have you come to destroy us?” And the answer is a definitive yes. Notice what else the demon says, “I know who you are — the Holy One of God!”
Jesus existed before all things and he created all things, which means he also created this fallen angel. The others there that day don’t yet know who the man is, but this demon knows! This demon knows Jesus all too well and knows that he has authority and power over evil.
Jesus drives out the evil spirit by saying sternly “Be quiet!” “Come out of him!” The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. Jesus doesn’t go through any elaborate exorcism ritual. He simply tells him, “Shut up, and get out.” That, my friends, proves Jesus’ authority over evil in our midst!
As we know, Jesus had a personal authority unlike anyone they had ever met. He was commissioned by God, sent from heaven, filled with the Holy Spirit, and specially anointed for his task. Jesus had a personal authority like no other, because his person was like no other.
He was and is, the eternal Son of God who had entered our world as a human being. He was not part God and part man. He was fully God and fully man, and so when he spoke, he spoke with the full authority of God.
In our lesson today and throughout his gospel Mark depicts Jesus as the one uniquely authorized, commissioned, or empowered to declare and institute the reign of God. Through Jesus, then, we glimpse characteristics of what his ministry on earth will be. It is an intrusive, breaking old boundaries kind of rule. It is about liberating people from the all powers that afflict them and keep all creation from flourishing. It is about articulating God’s intentions for the world, defying some traditions to do so, if need be.
During Epiphany we have devoted the season to celebrating and considering how Christ becomes visible and known to the world. We should all still be amazed by Jesus’ authority, by his teachings and his deeds’ potential to upend our assumptions about what’s possible.
Through his wielding of authority, we see souls set free from destructive tendencies and powers that we thought were beyond anyone’s control and that we thought were beyond our control!
Epiphany is not just about longing for and acknowledging past manifestations of Jesus’ greatness and the gospel’s power; it’s also about discovering what deserves our amazement in our current and longed-for experiences.
Hear the Good News my friends……..
In Matthew chapter 28 verse 18, Jesus said this:
“All authority is given unto me in heaven and in earth.”
The word “authority” denotes permission. It denotes privilege. It denotes power. It denotes rule, control, and influence. When someone has authority that means they have responsibility beyond all the others. They are able to determine things, to decide things, to render judgments, to wield certain rights and privileges.
Jesus arrived With Authority to give eternal life. He had the authority to teach whatever He wanted, to teach without any resource, without any precedent and to make it binding on men and determinative on their eternal destiny.
He Arrived with Authority to heal the sick, to raise the dead, to cast out demons, to forgive sin. He Arrived with Authority to designate the children of God, to give eternal life and to judge every person’s heart and soul.
Jesus was, always has been, always will be, God! He is with his Father, the creator of the universe. He did not become authoritative at his incarnation or at his exaltation at his baptism. Before the incarnation, God the Son existed, with all authority. Then as God the Man, he Arrived with Authority to enable him to change the world, to change mankind and to change us! Friends there is a hero; powerful, wise, caring, serving, compassionate and filled With Authority! Amen.
Hymn: He Leadeth Me #128, v. 1, 3, 4
- He leadeth me: O blessed thought! O words with heavenly comfort fraught! Whate’er I do, where’er I be, still ’tis God’s hand that leadeth me.
Refrain: He leadeth me, he leadeth me, by his own hand he leadeth me; his faithful follower I would be, for by his hand he leadeth me.
- Lord, I would place my hand in thine, nor ever murmur nor repine; content, whatever lot I see, since ’tis my God that leadeth me. [Refrain]
- And when my task on earth is done, when by thy grace the victory’s won, e’en death’s cold wave I will not flee, since God through Jordan leadeth me. [Refrain]
Prayers of the People
Pastoral Prayer:
What have we done, Lord? We want to praise you, so we splash your words on screens on a wall, with brightly colored and powerful images. We shout your praises, with hands held on high. We teach and preach your word.
But we don’t listen carefully for you. We are so busy trying to shout above the noise of the day, that we don’t take time to really listen and know you. The voices of the prophets spoke to people long ago who were too busy and anxious to hear. Their words streamed in the winds of time and have come to us. We need to pay attention to your message offered through them.
You are our God, the God of all creation, the God of power and love, whose mercy is offered to us. In Jesus’ time, he proclaimed the good news through words and actions, reaching out to those who were troubled, alienated, cast aside. He offered healing and hope to those others turned away.
Help us to learn that you alone can heal us and fix those areas in our lives that are wounded and twisted. Help us to understand that you alone can offer to us a new way of life through Jesus Christ.
Remind us again that as we have spoken the names of people and situations that concern us, praying for your healing touch, that the same touch is offered to us in Jesus’ name. Lord, we need to let go of our control issues and place our trust wholly in you. Now and forever. AMEN.
Hymn: Christ Whose Glory Fills the Skies #173
- Christ, whose glory fills the skies, Christ, the true, the only light, Sun of Righteousness, arise, triumph o’er the shades of night; Dayspring from on high, be near; Daystar, in my heart appear.
- Dark and cheerless is the morn unaccompanied by thee; joyless is the day’s return, till thy mercy’s beams I see; till they inward light impart, cheer my eyes and warm my heart.
- Visit then this soul of mine; pierce the gloom of sin and grief; fill me, Radiancy divine, scatter all my unbelief; more and more thyself display, shining to the perfect day.
Benediction
Jesus comes to us, offering healing and hope, speaking and acting with authority. Listen to him. Go into this world, confident in God’s love and healing power. Go in peace and may God’s love and peace always be with you. AMEN.