July 5th Virtual Worship
The Order of Worship
| Order | Notes |
|---|---|
| Prelude | Prelude in C Major Selby |
| The Bells Call Us to Worship | |
| Welcome and Call to Worship | |
| A Word About Today's Music Selections | |
| Hymn of Adoration | O for a Thousand Tongues |
| A Message to Children | |
| Response: Jesus Loves Me | |
| Pastoral Prayer & The Lord's Prayer | |
| Response: Hear Our Prayer O Lord | |
| Mission Moment | Janet Raker |
| Worship in Music | God Bless America |
| Doxology | |
| Scripture Reading Matthew 13: 24-30, 47-48 | |
| Hymn of Reflection | My Faith Looks Up to Thee |
| Sermon | Matthew Adds to the Story: Unique Stories, Unique Perspective |
| Communion Hymn | One Bread, One Body |
| Sacrament of The Lord's Supper | |
| Hymn of Parting | Rejoice, the Lord Is King |
| Commissioning and Benediction | |
| On Eagles' Wings | |
| Postlude | Stars and Stripes Forever Sousa, Arr. Biggs |
Music Ministry Team: Kristin Petty, Dwight Huntley, Matthew Leone, Rene Vazquez
Worship Team: Sarah Haas, Marc Hayden
Technology Team: Michael Kendall, Mark Raker, Jerry Weissinger
Key Notes from the reading & sermon:
Jesus put before them another parable: The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the workers of the householder came and said to him, ‘Did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The workers said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he replied, ‘No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad.
Earlier in this sermon series we noted that the historical context of Matthew’s community was one of persecution. It is characteristic of such a historical context to give assurance that the persecuted will be rewarded and the persecutors will be punished. Matthew’s perspective is revealed in the interpretations he gives to these parables; for the parable of wheat and weeds in verses 37-43 and for the parable of the catch of fish, verses 49-50.
Our historical context is different and so too our perspectives. Parables are rich in imagery that tease the mind into insight. Parables were not offered to make a single point. The timeless and timely wisdom of parables is the way they open us to listen to the “God who is still speaking”.
Questions for Reflection:
Pastor Marc spoke from his perspective and offered his insights teased from these parables. What is your perspective? What are your insights?
Does your perspective lead you to glean insights of inclusion or exclusion? How does your experience of Christ confirm or transform these insights?
How do you describe your historical context? What is the interplay between your context, perspectives and insights? How is God at work in all of that?
Both Audio as well as Video Recordings are available below.
Audio Recordings
Video Recordings
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