MORRIS-ROSENFELD ECUMENICAL SHARED MINISTRY
ORDER OF SERVICE FOR SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2024
THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Due to copyright limitations, we are unable to print the words to many of the songs. However, our musicians have chosen music to fit the scriptures. We invite you to look up the words in your worship book and ponder them. If you do not have a worship book, ponder the words of one of your favourite hymns and listen for God’s voice. Those who have the internet may find the songs on YouTube.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Jesus stands at the door knocking (Rev. 3:20). In total reality, he comes in the form of the beggar, of the dissolute human child in ragged clothes, asking for help. He confronts you in every person that you meet. As long as there are people, Christ will walk the earth as your neighbor, as the one through whom God calls you, speaks to you, makes demands on you. That is the great seriousness and great blessedness of the Advent message. Christ is standing at the door; he lives in the form of a human being among us.”
– Dietrich Bonhoeffer, God is in the Manger
Before we worship, we reflect…
It is tempting to think about wheat and chaff as good people (wheat) and bad people (chaff). But in the natural world wheat and chaff are part of one single grain; to separate the wheat from the chaff is to separate the inedible husk from the edible wheat. It is just as plausible to read separating the wheat from the chaff as separating the healthy, life-giving parts of ourselves from our unhealthy, death-dealing parts. Rather than separating good people from bad people, John’s proclamation could be about all of us receiving the winnowing of God’s life-giving grace, that we all might be nourishing wheat for the world.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT & PRAYER
We acknowledge we gather and worship on Treaty 1 Territory, the original lands of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Anishininew, Dakota, and Dene peoples, and on the homeland of the Red River Métis Nation.
Lord God, bring us together as one, reconciled with you and reconciled with each other. You made us in your likeness, you gave us your Son Jesus Christ. He has given us forgiveness from sin. Lord God, bring us together as one, different in culture, but given new life in Jesus Christ, together as your body, your Church, your people. Lord God, bring us together as one, reconciled, healed, forgiven, sharing you with others as you have called us to do. In Jesus Christ, let us be together as one. Amen.
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God, alive in the world, reviving creation, arriving soon.
Amen.
Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.
God of mercy,
we confess that we have sinned. We trust earthly powers and human authority alone. We grow fearful. We cling to false comforts.
God of might,
we confess that we have sinned. We have turned away from our neighbors. We have trusted false promises.
God in our midst,
we confess that we have sinned. We plead: come to us.
Bring your mercy to birth in us.
A righteous branch springs forth: it is Christ the Lord, our Savior, in whom we have forgiveness, life, and mercy. By the power of the Holy Spirit, receive the grace and forgiveness of God through ☩ Christ Jesus, whose day draws near.
Amen.
GATHERING SONG: Voices United 288 Great Is Thy Faithfulness
CENTERING PRAYER
God of good news, God of joy, your Spirit is always at work in our midst. Your nearness brings life and salvation. Help us join in the songs of our ancestors who have declared your mighty works through the generations. Let our praise arise with theirs as we rest in the joy of your arriving presence. Amen.
MISSION AND SERVICE – Giving Gifts with Vision
It’s almost Christmas, and time seems to really fly at this time of year. If you still have someone on your list, instead of searching “last-minute gift ideas,” why not try Gifts with Vision?
With Gifts with Vision, you can give meaningful gifts without the stress of packaging or last-minute mall dashes. Every gift helps transform lives across Canada and around the world. With gifts in categories such as addressing poverty and hunger, healing and reconciliation, and education, there is truly something for everyone.
Each Gift with Vision supports a unique Mission and Service project that wouldn’t be possible without your help.
So, this Christmas, skip the rush—Gifts with Vision is just a click away!
LIGHTING THE CANDLE OF JOY
No matter what troubles overwhelm us today, Isaiah reminds us that in all of our preparation and passionate pursuit of God’s coming kin-dom, we must not forget that God’s salvation has come and is coming. “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation”. With joy you will remember that God’s salvation is already present among us.
Faced with the troubles and the suffering of the world, we choose to live in joyful presence to God and one another. We will not turn away from the pain and the hurt in our world, and we will not stop rejoicing in God, whose salvation fills us to overflowing that God’s love might flow through us and flood our troubled world with hope, peace, and joy.
We light this candle of joy as a sign of our commitment to be present to ourselves, our friends, our families, and our neighbors that in sharing our vulnerable lives we might share in the glorious joy of God’s salvation together.
Light the third (pink) candle of the Advent wreath.
Advent Wreath: Verses 1 – 3, Voices United 1 O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
A NEW CREED
We are not alone; we live in God’s world.
We believe in God: who has created and is creating, who has come in Jesus, the Word made flesh,
to reconcile and make new, who works in us and others by the Spirit.
We trust in God.
We are called to be the Church: to celebrate God’s presence, to live with respect in Creation, to love and serve others, to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen, our judge and our hope.
In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. We are not alone.
Thanks be to God.
PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
God of hope, who never lets us go, draw near to us in these ancient words. By your Holy Spirit may we be filled, lifted up, and leveled as you prepare in our hearts the path of your coming. Amen.
READINGS AND PSALM
First Reading: Zephaniah 3:14-20
The prophet Zephaniah’s message is mostly one of judgment for sin. This reading, however, which comes from the conclusion of the book, prophesies joy for Judah and Jerusalem. Judgment has led to repentance, and God’s salvation is at hand.
14 Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away the judgments against you, he has turned away your enemies. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more.
16 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands grow weak.
17 The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness,
he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing 18 as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it. 19 I will deal with all your oppressors
at that time. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise
and renown in all the earth.
20 At that time I will bring you home, at the time when I gather you; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes, says the Lord.
Psalm: Isaiah 12:2-6
2 Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and my might, and has become my salvation.
3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
4 And you will say in that day: Give thanks to the Lord, call on God’s name; make known the deeds of the Lord among the nations; proclaim that this name is exalted.
5 Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth.
6 Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Second Reading: Philippians 4:4-7
Despite being in prison, Paul is remarkably upbeat as he writes this letter. Here, he urges his friends in Philippi to trust God with all their worries and concerns with the hope that they will experience God’s joy and peace.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Gospel: Luke 3:7-18
John the Baptist heralds the mighty one who is coming. John teaches that preparation for God’s reign is not a matter of identity but of bearing fruits of merciful justice, radical generosity, and vocational integrity.
7 John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 9 Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” 11 In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.” 12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” 13 He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”
15 As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 16 John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 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.”
18 So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.
HYMN: Voices United 9 People, Look East
SERMON
One of the members in my first parish asked me if I would counsel her granddaughter. This teen had gotten herself into some trouble with defiant behaviour. The grandmother figured I could steer the young woman in a healthier direction.
I replied that I would do the best I could, however, if there was no desire within the granddaughter to change her ways, I was doubtful of how helpful I would be. You can lead a horse to water – and all that.
I met with the teenager. I liked her and truly did not want her to head down a hurtful path in life. She was a great kid, albeit a misguided one. Our time together turned out to be productive. Oh, sure, she lied – I called her on it; she claimed ignorance – I called her on it. She said it was everyone else’s fault but hers – I called her on that too. Once she realized I was smarter than she thought, and that I refused to back down, we got down to emotions and what was really going on in her life. Now that I finally had the facts, I was able to offer suggestions to help her life improve.
In the end, I thanked the grandma for loving her granddaughter so much that she would risk her wrath to involve me.
As far as we know from the writer of Luke’s gospel, John the Baptizer was not asked to intervene by anyone’s grandma. John had gone around the area proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. His words obviously touched the hearts of many because they showed up to be baptized. They came, eager for something more than what they had. They believed and trusted John. So then, why does he call them a bunch of slimeballs?
It would appear that adults, as well as teenagers, lie – to themselves and others, claim ignorance or project blame, rather than owning their own. John calls them on it all! Trying to make your sin look less sinful than your neighbour’s is like swapping deck chairs on the Titanic – you’re both going down!
To better understand what has driven this crowd out into the wilderness to John, I quote Richard Swanson, biblical interpretation professor at Augustana University in Sioux Falls, SD, and director of the Provoking the Gospel Storytelling Project.
John’s practical advice also applies to tax gatherers. These people collected Roman tribute, the price of being a conquered people. Their neighbors looked on them as traitors, and for good reason: they collaborated with the enemy. John does not view them as enemies. Here, as is the case throughout Luke’s story, the storyteller finds observant Jews where you’d least expect to see them. John seems to imagine that these people, being observant Jews, must have been trapped into doing something they hated. “What should we do?” they asked. John’s advice is badly translated in the NRSV (and in almost all interpretation). The translators have begun with the assumption that the tax gatherers are thieves as well as traitors, and that they therefore ought no longer to collect more than was due. John assumes no such thing. He tells them to do what was called (starting in the 1930s labor movement) “working to rule.” “Only do what they tell you to do,” he says, knowing that this would make the vaunted Roman system of imperial domination grind to a halt. “Force them to write an employee manual so long that they run out of paper,” he says. “They believe that they are superior to you,” he says, “Act as if that were true.” “If they don’t tell you to bring the tribute in money boxes or cash bags,” says John, “Don’t. Turn in heaps of pennies. If people pay you in chickens or goats, turn in the livestock. Let the Romans figure out how to feed their tribute.”
Even the tax gatherers were enlisted to resist Roman domination. Soldiers, too. Everywhere you look in Luke’s story you see people who are waiting and praying for God to turn the world right-side-up. John tells them to start the turning.[1]
We are in an intimate relationship with God. Jesus comes and lives out that intimate relationship so that we better understand our responsibilities in that relationship. There is a working together in order to bring about the change God desires. This is our calling. In John’s day, as now, God relies on us to help get God’s work in the world accomplished.
I am at a point in life where I am trying to purge my belongings. To help me do that, my youngest daughter, Philana, brought me a lot of small boxes so I can start sorting and packing. A lot of boxes. So many boxes, in fact, that I have even less space to put stuff, until I start filling boxes.
I have discovered that John’s practical advice to the people of the first century is practical for the 21st century. Since my closets are full of boxes, I have been wearing a limited number of clothes that get washed and worn regularly, to the point where I haven’t missed my other clothes. Which means that those clothes can be donated to those who don’t have many clothes, or good quality clothes.
I have been trying to eat out of my freezer and pantry, rather than shopping for groceries every week. Other than a litre of milk every so often, for my morning coffee, and eggs, I have been living off what I already have. By the looks of things, I will be good to go for some time! This means I can start using the money I save on groceries for supporting ministries that are close to my heart.
John’s words to the soldiers resonate with those today whose goal in life is not power and wealth. ‘Be honest, have integrity and live within your means’ is good advice. Put another way, “live simply, so that others may simply live.” In order to prepare for the Messiah’s coming, John wanted a change in the hearts and minds of the crowd, a change that looked outward toward the neighbour, a mindset of sharing and having compassion. The people didn’t want to be slimeballs. They wanted to be God’s people, better people, a people whom the Messiah would embrace. I guess we are not so different from our first century kin.
As the birth of Christ draws closer, we throw ourselves into our preparations. Perhaps what we need in this moment is an exhortation from John. Perhaps we need a reminder that we are not perfect. This is not a condemnation. It is a fact. Perhaps we need an exhortation to stop trying for perfection. Rather, strive to hear God’s word and live out your faith. Shorten your ‘to do’ list and focus on the joy this Christmastide brings. When we welcome the Christ child with an open heart, everything else will fall in to place. We will not need to ask, “What shall we do?”, we will just do. Amen.
HYMN OF THE MONTH: Voices United 12 She Walked In The Summer
PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION
As we prepare for Emmanuel, God-with-us, let us pray for all people and places that long for God’s presence.
God who reforms, fill your church with courage to do your will. Empower your people in taking risks that bear fruit. Raise up leaders who will proclaim the good news. Lord, in your mercy,
receive our prayer.
God who creates, you hold in balance diverse ecosystems. Encourage efforts to protect wild lands from devastation. Care for animals and people in the path of destructive fires, storms, and other disasters. Lord, in your mercy,
receive our prayer.
God who leads, this world cries out for true justice. Guide legislatures, judges, and lawyers in actions steeped in love and restoration. Increase the desire to advocate for all who are confronted with discrimination and oppression based on race, gender, sexuality, class, or age. Lord, in your mercy,
receive our prayer.
God who embraces, help us notice the places where your people are hurting or sick. Show your compassion and remember your people in love. Lord, in your mercy,
receive our prayer.
God who abides, you dwell among the people of this congregation. Deepen our relationships with one another, and make us aware of the diverse talents and gifts present here. Lord, in your mercy,
receive our prayer.
God who consoles, we thank you for the time we have had with loved ones who have died. Comfort us with the promise of everlasting life in you. Lord, in your mercy,
receive our prayer.
Savior of the nations, come, and receive these prayers and the pleas of our hearts, in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.
THE LORD’S PRAYER
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; and forgive us our trespasses, as 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 and ever. Amen.
SENDING SONG: Voices United 28 Herald! Sound The Note Of Gladness
BENEDICTION
God of endings and beginnings, God in the darkness and the light, God, our hope for the journey, ☩ bless and keep you now and forever. Amen.