Sunday Service for 12 June 2022

12 June 2022, annual meeting
Gourock St. John’s Church of Scotland
Service prepared by the Rev. Teri Peterson
Manse: 632143 
Email: tpeterson (at) churchofscotland.org.uk

Prelude Music (sanctuary only)

Welcome

Call to Worship
One: God has called us together to worship and work

1: young and old, men and women, newcomer and lifelong member.

One: God has called us together to love and to serve

2: introverts and extroverts, leaders and followers.

Elder: God has called us together to teach and to learn

3: faithful and doubting, hopeful and despairing, wise and foolish.
One: God has called us together to praise and to pray

4: singer and speaker and hearer, healer and in need of healing.

All: God has called us together to be the church!
Teri: We gather in the presence of mystery,

1: grace known and unknown, promises fulfilled and still awaited.
One: The Spirit of truth fills this place,

2: empowering us to lead lives worthy of Christ’s calling.
One: In the triune God we live and move and have our being,

3: and so we come to worship, one by one, just as we are,
One: to be remade as the Body of Christ, together and whole,
4: making God’s justice and peace visible, even in our days.
All: Come, Body of Christ—
to see what God has done and see what God will do!

Hymn: Thrive (Casting Crowns)
Sanctuary Hymn 543: Christ Be Our Light

Prayer
If we say we have no sin, then our pretending separates us from truth…and for no reason, because God knows us better than we know ourselves. We have no need of pretence. Instead, when we are honest about our faults and failings, the Holy Spirit makes room in our hearts for new life to take root and bear fruit for God’s world. So let us pray together.

Glory to you, O God…you call us to live lives that honour you and follow your way, and you give us your word as a light to our path. We confess that we are often more concerned with whether people like us or not, or whether they want to join us in our plans, rather than reflecting your light. We admit that our main worry is whether there will be enough new people to keep doing the things we like to do, even after we’re gone. Forgive us for confusing church membership with following you. Forgive us for insisting that the only way to be faithful is our way. Forgive us for turning our light inward and sharing it only with our friends, rather than giving light to all in the house. Restore us to the right way, and give us the words and actions that reflect your glory without demanding any for ourselves. We ask in the name of Jesus the Christ, the light of the world. Amen.

Friends, if anyone is in Christ, the whole creation is made new — the old has gone, and the new has come! Trusting in the gracious mercy of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit, know that you are forgiven, and live as if you are forgiven, loved, and free. Thanks be to God. Amen.

(Sanctuary: Children’s Time)

Reading: Matthew 5.13-16
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything but is thrown out and trampled under foot.
“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. People do not light a lamp and put it under the bushel basket; rather, they put it on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

For the word of God in Scripture
For the word of God among us
For the word of God within us
Thanks be to God.

Sermon: Beacon of…

Over the past few years, the Kirk Session has been discussing and praying about what vision God is giving us to pursue here at St. John’s. We started talking about this before the pandemic began, and then obviously had to slow down and deal with some other things, but lately we have been talking about it more urgently again. One of the things we have been talking about this year is the image of a beacon — a common image for us here, of course! For a hundred years and more, sailors coming up the Clyde have said they know they’re home when they see the tower of St John’s. Our building here on top of the hill has dominated and created the skyline of Gourock for 150 years, standing as a witness to God’s presence here in the very centre of the community.

A beacon is a dual-use instrument. On the one hand, it draws us in, calls us or our attention to that location. And a church building definitely is that — it calls us to this particular place, gathers us here together under this tower. On the other hand, it can point the way to somewhere else, directing our attention to something we won’t want to miss, or warning us away from danger and toward a safer path.

Interestingly, when Jesus speaks to the crowds on the hillside or the seashore, and to his disciples as they walk along, he says nothing whatsoever about church buildings. Or about any kind of buildings! He speaks to them as people — it is people who make up the Body of Christ, the church. And he says to those who follow him, those who wear his name: you are the light of the world.

We are used to thinking of Jesus as the light of the world, and perhaps less used to thinking of ourselves as the light of the world. Not the building, but the Church, is meant to be a beacon that shines light. And in this tiny teaching, tucked in between the more famous sections of beatitudes and teachings on anger and loving your enemies, Jesus puts our priorities in order, when it comes to which style of beacon he expects us to be.

You are the salt of the earth — the saltiness of salt is for the purpose of bringing out other flavours. We don’t want to taste salt, we want salt to enhance the flavours around it. In a pre-refrigeration world, it was also a good preservative…so salt’s purpose was to surround and save things that might otherwise be lost.

You are the light of the world, and lights are for setting on a stand to give light to all in the house. Light illuminates other things, making it possible to see what is around, to read and write and play and walk and find and experience. We don’t look at the light, we look at what the light shines on.

Then Jesus says: in the same way, let your light shine before others.

In the same way — the way that salt is about the things around it, and light is about the things around it. You, Body of Christ, are made to give light to others. Not so they will look at us, but so that they will look at the kingdom of God that is coming on earth as it is in heaven. Not so that they will like us, but so that they will give glory to God. Not so that they come to us and focus on us or on this place, but so that they come to Christ who is the source of all light.

Jesus says that the church is like a city on a hill — in our case, literally! — and it cannot be hidden. It’s not that we want to pretend we aren’t here, or aren’t doing things. It’s about the purpose of the beacon: is it to call people to us, or to point the way to God?

Throughout history the Church has swung between these two things, but the last century or so has been intensely focused on trying to call people into the church building…forgetting that the point of being the Body of Christ together is to shine for others to see, not for our pride but for God’s love. Our beacons have been messages for insiders, a secret code that drew in some people and left others out. To be salt and light as Jesus says we are, though, is to also be a beacon that points elsewhere, that enhances the flavour and makes the truth of the world more visible, without actually being the centre of attention ourselves. It is, as Jesus teaches elsewhere in Matthew’s gospel, to serve rather than be served.

I have pushed the elders to think about what kind of beacon we think God is calling St. John’s to be. A beacon that draws people here to this hilltop location? A beacon that draws people into a community where they meet Jesus? A beacon that points people to look for where the Holy Spirit is moving in the world around? And if we think our calling is to balance the calling in and the sending out, what is the flavour we hope will be enhanced by our salt? What do we hope they will see when our light shines?

My own preference as a leader is not to say what I think because too often everyone just agrees with the minister even if it isn’t at all what they were thinking. So before I tell you what I think, I want to hear what you think. What sort of beacon is St John’s being called to be?
…
…

I have spent much of this year praying about the idea of being a beacon of blessing. Calling people into a community that experiences God’s blessing together, and sending people out to be a blessing to the community and world. In scripture, a blessing is never really for the one receiving it — it’s always a dual purpose, a gift and a responsibility. And God’s people have been, ever since the book of Genesis, blessed in order to be a blessing. I hope that as we continue to discern Christ’s call to us as a church community, we will be looking for ways to share God’s blessing with others, as well as experiencing it ourselves. And as we consider all that God has done in and through us in the past year, that we will look for what has been a blessing to us, and how we are using that to bless others. To be salt and light, as Jesus says we are.

May it be so. Amen.

Online hymn: The Church is Wherever God’s People Are Praising

Mission Focus: Annual Meeting of the Congregation (Sanctuary)

(Sanctuary Hymn: Together We Serve (words & tune by Dan Damon, tune: San Anselmo) )

(Sanctuary: Communion)

Prayer and Lord’s Prayer
Your word is a light to our feet and a lamp to guide our way, O God,
And we thank you for your grace that shines forth from it.
You have made us Christ’s body on earth, you have gifted us to fulfil your purpose, and you have set us free from self-centredness and greed so that we can serve your world.
We pray this day for the courage to let your light shine,
To make your love visible in the world around us.
We remember today those places where your abundant life is hard to see —
For people forced off their land,
those who struggle with drought or flood,
those who wonder where the clean water and next meal will come from.
We pray this day for those who are surrounded not by support but by violence,
those who live in fear, and those who work for justice.
We pray especially for your people in Ukraine, Afghanistan, Yemen, Ethiopia, Palestine, Myanmar, and so many places where it is difficult to see your love shining through the shadows.
May your peace founded on justice become a reality in your world, O God.
We pray this day for those who seek your healing,
for illness of body, mind, or spirit.
We ask your healing light to surround them, to encourage them to ask for help,
and to move in our hearts that we may be your healing presence.
And we pray this day for your church,
Praying for light, yet so often hiding it.
You have set us as a city on a hill, called us salt and light, and shown us how to live for your glory.
May we turn your love for us into love for others,
Turn your gifts to us into service to others,
Turn your word to us into action for the world you created and called good.
Make us a beacon of blessing, lighting the way to your kingdom come.
May we turn and follow you,
one body, loving, serving, and caring for the world.
Help us to let your light shine, Lord.
We pray these and all things in the name of the one who is the light of the world,
Jesus the Christ, who taught us to pray together…

Hymn: Salt and Light (Jami Smith)
(Sanctuary Hymn 237: Look Forward In Faith)

Sending
One: Look forward in faith, for God’s word will light the path.
All: God’s promise is trustworthy and true!
One: Look forward in hope, for God is always doing a new thing.
All: God’s steadfast love will lead the way.
One: Look forward in faith, for God’s glory will shine in the darkness.
All: God’s grace is alive, and draws us onward.
And as you go, may the Spirit of God go above you to watch over you. May the Spirit of God go beside you to be your companion. May the Spirit of God go before you to show you the way, and behind you to push you into places you might not go alone. And may the Spirit of God go within you to remind you that you are loved more deeply than you can possibly imagine. May the fire of God’s love burn brightly in you, and through you into the world. Go in peace. Amen.

Sung Benediction Response (John L Bell, tune Gourock St John’s)
Now may the Lord of all be blessed,
Now may Christ’s gospel be confessed,
Now may the Spirit when we meet
Bless sanctuary and street.

Postlude Music

Announcements

*Next Sunday, 19th June, we will join in the joint Gourock churches together service at the bandstand at Gourock Park at 11am. There will be no service in the St John’s building. If you need transport from the church building to the park, please let us know ASAP.

*On Friday 24 June at 7:30pm in the sanctuary, Philip will play a concert including music he wrote during lockdown, music with a Scottish flavour, and a variety of other pieces both fun and serious. Entry is by donation, which will be split between the church and aid to Ukraine.

* You are invited to join in reading the Bible in a year for 2022 — immersing ourselves in God’s word throughout the year. Click here to find a reading plan that’s five days a week (leaving a couple of days for catch up each week!). We get together to discuss each week on Wednesday at 7:30pm in the Sanctuary. Please enter via the front door on Bath street — if you can’t manage the stairs, let us know and someone will meet you at the St John’s Road door. All are welcome, no experience necessary! Feel free to invite a friend, too! Anyone who has ever wondered just what the Bible actually says and what it has to do with us is welcome.

All worship is online (or on the phone at 01475 270037, or in print) and we also meet in the sanctuary at 11am. Hand sanitiser is available at every entrance, and mask-wearing is optional. Masks are available at the door if you would like one. If you are able, please enter by the front door in Bath street, and only those who need step-free access should use the back door. If you feel unwell, please worship online, to protect both yourself and others in our community.

* Tonight we will gather for evening prayer on the Connect Facebook Page, led tonight by Teri. Log on at 6:58pm to join in.

* The Kirk now has online giving! If you have not already set up a standing order in order to facilitate your spiritual discipline of giving, or if you would like to make an extra gift to support the ministry St. John’s does in our parish, you can give online by clicking here. If you would like to set up a standing order, please contact Peter Bennett, our treasurer, or Teri and she can give you his details. You can also send your envelopes to the church or the manse by post and we will ensure they are received. Remember: no one is coming to your door to collect your envelopes, so please stay safe!

* Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Youtube, and to sign up for our email devotions! Midweek you can watch Wine and the Word on Youtube, pray with video devotions on Facebook, and consider a new angle on something with a devotional email. Feel free to share with your friends, too!

* The annual meeting of the congregation will take place during sanctuary worship today. You can find the annual finance report by clicking here. 

* The Kirk Session will meet after worship today, with a light lunch provided. Kirk Session meetings are always open for those who wish to observe and know what is happening in the leadership of the church. If you’d like to join the session as we look forward at what God has in store for us, please let us know by 6 June of any dietary needs so we can plan properly for lunch.

* Young Adults Bible Study is now meeting together many Sunday afternoons, sometimes in the manse and sometimes on Zoom. Contact Teri for information on how to join and for a copy of the book they are using.