Sunday Service for 3 April 2022, fifth Sunday in Lent

3 April 2022, fifth Sunday in Lent
Gourock St. John’s Church of Scotland
Service prepared by the Rev. Teri Peterson
Manse phone: 632143
Email: tpeterson (at) churchofscotland.org.uk

Prelude Music

Welcome

Call to Worship
1: We expect demonstrations of power
All: but Jesus gives us a different vision of authority.
2: We expect to have to fight
All: but Jesus shows us self-giving love.
3: We expect to be afraid
All: but Jesus is the Truth that sets us free.

Prayer with Hymn 776: Ukrainian Kyrie:
Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison

You are not the king we expect,
for you rule from love without the violence or coercion
upon which this world relies.
We confess that we have been seduced by the propaganda of the empire.
We have allowed our attention to be captured by power and status,
we have bought the lie that violence will bring us to safety,
we have given airtime to “truth” created to serve the few.

Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison

And we admit, O God, that we are afraid.
Scared of what others will think,
afraid of being seen as weak,
fearful for our own position and prosperity,
anxious about what allowing your word to be alive would mean
for our comfortable routines.
We confess that we have let fear drive us,
and we do not like where it has taken us.

Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison

Forgive us, Lord, and change our direction.
May the truth of your love overpower the inertia
upon which this world’s empires depend,
that we may turn again to your way of abundant Life.

Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison, Kyrie Eleison

Whether we are walking the halls of power
or standing just outside
You call just the same:
call us to heed the voice of Truth
cutting through the shadow of death.
You have defeated the one weapon the empire can wield,
so we can live in your kingdom instead.
Empower and encourage us
to work and worship in your way of Life.
We ask in the name of the One
who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, Jesus the Christ. Amen.

Music
Online: We Come To Hear Your Word (Resound Worship)
In person:

In person Children’s Time
(Listen to the word that God has spoken) — round

Reading: John 18.28-40 (NRSV)
Last week we heard about Jesus being questioned by the religious leaders, while Peter denied being his disciple. Today’s reading picks up just after the rooster has crowed, in the gospel according to John, chapter 18, beginning at verse 28. I am reading from the New Revised Standard Version.
~~~~

Then they took Jesus from Caiaphas to Pilate’s headquarters. It was early in the morning. They themselves did not enter the headquarters, so as to avoid ritual defilement and to be able to eat the Passover. So Pilate went out to them and said, ‘What accusation do you bring against this man?’ They answered, ‘If this man were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you.’ Pilate said to them, ‘Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law.’ The religious leaders replied, ‘We are not permitted to put anyone to death.’ (This was to fulfil what Jesus had said when he indicated the kind of death he was to die.)

Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ Jesus answered, ‘Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?’ Pilate replied, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?’ Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Judean leaders. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.’ Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’ Pilate asked him, ‘What is truth?’

After he had said this, he went out to the religious leaders again and told them, ‘I find no case against him. But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover. Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?’ They shouted in reply, ‘Not this man, but Barabbas!’ Now Barabbas was a bandit.

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.

(In person Hymn 399 vv. 1-4: My Song is Love Unknown)

Sermon: The Voice of Competing Expectations

What is truth?

It’s strange what a relevant-feeling question that is today. We have access to more information than ever before, right at our fingertips all the time. And that has come with a corresponding increase in our access to disinformation, misinformation, propaganda, and “alternative facts” too. It can be difficult to sort through what’s real and what’s fake news, and to know who to trust. Many people have simply decided that it’s all equal, and every perspective or opinion is equally good enough, there’s no longer a true or false, just a different angle.

And indeed often things look different from other perspectives, and there might be a lot of perfectly valid reasons we see things differently.

For instance, Pilate was the Roman governor whose job was to keep people in this faraway province in line. Remember was nearly Passover, a festival that celebrates God liberating the Israelite people from an oppressive empire, bringing the Israelites to freedom while also destroying the Egyptian army.

It was a time of year that was ripe for revolution, and inside himself Pilate knew his primary task was to keep the peace by whatever means necessary. He was, after all, a Roman official in Caesar’s government. Worse, he was given this assignment at the edge of the empire, ruling over a people who were seen as backwards and difficult, because he needed to prove himself, possibly after a disappointing performance in another role. His own self-interest was roaring loudly in his ears as he went out to listen to the local religious leaders and their expectations. He could not afford a mis-step here. He had a reputation to maintain as well as a job to do. When Jesus was brought in with people claiming he was calling himself a king, Pilate began to get nervous. A pretender to the throne is always dangerous, and even more so during Passover. From Pilate’s perspective, he had to figure out which side of this dispute between two factions of Jews was the right one to side with — which isn’t exactly the same as deciding which is right, but rather which was best for him.

On the other side of the door, Jerusalem’s religious leaders were demanding Pilate do something they themselves were unwilling to do. And they wanted him to do it now. You can tell how urgent they believed this problem to be, because they insisted it be dealt with before Passover began — it could not wait even eight more days until the festival was over. And yet they couldn’t even give Pilate a straight answer when asked what the charge against Jesus was! If it was a religious dispute, they clearly did have the authority to stone someone if they thought it was warranted — there are other examples of people being stoned in Jerusalem in the New Testament. So they couldn’t simply say that…but they hadn’t quite worked out what else to say either, in part because, according to John’s gospel, the reason they found Jesus so problematic is because he raised Lazarus from the dead. But you can’t just go to the Roman governor and say “this guy overcomes the power of death, you should kill him for us!”

As leaders of a religious institution, it threatened their power to have someone break the rules of the universe that way. And as people who were invested in retaining their power, then as now, they needed the empire to back them up…the empire relied primarily on the ability to strike fear into people, to manipulate their fear of death and to wield death as a weapon. It was the way they held the Pax Romana — the peace of the Roman Empire was based entirely on threatening to kill anyone who disrupted it, and on actually massacring all who had the audacity to challenge them.

The Roman Empire was also famous for its dependence on propaganda alongside their violence, and Pilate was responsible for ensuring people believed the messaging from the government. By the time Pilate and Jesus stood face to face, it’s possible Pilate himself was honestly no longer certain exactly what the truth was — that’s one of the dangers of lies, that the more we tell them, and the more we hear them, the more we begin to believe them. It’s why propaganda is effective: because it’s everywhere and it’s constant, and soon the sheer volume overwhelms everything else.

What is truth? Pilate may literally not know. And more to the point, for Pilate, as for many people concerned primarily about their own power, it did not matter. The truth was irrelevant to the problem at hand.

When we’re focused on how to maintain the status quo, keep or improve our position, make money, or to convince other people that we’re right, we are likely to miss other cues and clues, because we don’t want to see them. We get so narrowly invested in our perspective, we ignore that there might be more to the story. And truth requires context, not a narrow focus on one detail.

Jesus says that all who belong to the truth listen to his voice. He is the good shepherd, and all those other voices are thieves and bandits. Whatever other expectations we may have, or hear, his voice calls us to a particular way. His voice calls us to look from his perspective, and to care more about the values of God’s kingdom than the empires of this world.

Those values will look upside down to the people who don’t want to see the full picture or hear the whole story. Because the ways of the world work, or at least appear to work! Threats and violence and manipulation and fear and propaganda do keep people in line and that can sometimes look like “peace”…though all it really does is allow the few at the top to amass wealth and comfort at the expense of everyone else’s wellbeing and thriving. But the way of Jesus sets us free from the fear of death, because he can bring life. And when we are free from the fear of death as the worst and last thing, then it’s much harder to be controlled and manipulated by those who want us to be afraid or outraged so they can do as they please.

Pilate and the religious leaders understood that if people weren’t afraid of them, they wouldn’t be able to hold onto their power. Because their power, like many authorities and even businesses still today, was based on keeping people down…and in the kingdom of God, Jesus’ authority and power is based on setting people free through self-giving love. So the religious and political leaders were right to be concerned about him at Passover, the festival of liberation. Because the freedom that comes from knowing the empire’s greatest weapon is actually impotent in the face of God’s love and life…that freedom could change the world. It would change the way people make choices, the way they live, the way they interact with each other, the way they consume both media and physical stuff, the way they submit (or don’t!) to worldly authority, the way they spend their time and money and energy…it would change everything, if we knew the truth. We would no longer be beholden to the expectations of rulers who lord it over us, no longer bound by the expectations of the economic and political structures built to create inequality, no longer blinded by the expectations of hierarchy or status or fashion. What might we do, if we were free? How might we live and love and build and care and work and spend differently?

What is truth?

Then, as now, many could not recognise it. Because Truth is not merely a fact or a perspective, not a “what” at all. Jesus said “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” He is, in the flesh, the Truth. Truth is best known in a person, in all the complexity, relationships, stories, experiences, perspectives, learning and growing, deeds and teachings, the whole being of Jesus. You can’t see that in just one tiny narrow view, it’s a whole person, whole life experience, a perspective that takes in the big picture. To have a relationship with Truth, to belong to the Truth, to follow the way of Truth, is to recognise his voice and to follow his way, to look through the lens of his values and and to prioritise his expectations, to submit only to his authority. And the truth will set you free to live abundantly in the way of love.

May it be so. Amen.

Online hymn 509: Jesus Calls Us
(In person Hymn 399 vv. 5-7: My Song is Love Unknown)

Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
We give you thanks, O God, that you have shattered the power of death,
that you have set us free from the fear of the grave
and from the illusion that the way things are is the only way they can be.
We are grateful that you have shown us another way,
and given us a glimpse of your kingdom founded on truth and love.

We pray this day for those among us who are tasked with leadership,
that they may have the courage to listen to truth, and to speak truth
even when it is politically inconvenient.
We pray that those in positions of power in this world
might use that power for the good of all,
seeking justice and peace,
refusing to be drawn into false equivalency or to be led by fear.
We pray for ourselves, that we might use our voices to hold leaders to account,
to call for peace,
to insist on truthfulness,
to offer another way when violence seems the only option.

We call to mind and hold in your light
all who suffer due to our silence or complicity,
all who are desperate for peace,
who listen for sirens and explosions
and wonder where their children have gone
and who wait at borders
or stand wondering if they should board that small raft
or who have been pressed into a life they never imagined.
We see the pictures in our minds,
of camps, of hungry people, of destruction, of fearful eyes.
We pray for protection, for hope, for help, and for an end to conflict everywhere.
And, Lord, we are bold today to pray for the grace to keep our eyes open,
to look and not look away, to pay attention,
to remember.
Not only Ukraine, not only Syria, not only Yemen, not only Colombia, not only our own nation and neighbourhood…
the list is longer than we know,
so we beg you to keep our neighbours at the forefront of our minds,
that we may learn to truly love them, in your kingdom way.
We ask in the name of the Prince of Peace,
Jesus the Christ, who taught us to pray together…
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen.

(In Person Hymn 509: Jesus calls us! (Verses 1, 3, 4, 5))

Benediction
Friends go into your week focused on knowing the Truth, for when we know Christ, we will love him, and when we love him, we will serve him, whom to serve is perfect freedom.
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

* We are now nearly through the season of Lent, a season of preparing for Easter. During Lent we are invited to be particularly attentive to our spiritual practices, to remove things from our lives that are hindering our relationship with God, and to be diligent in pursuing faithful ways. This season is meant to get us ready to meet the risen Christ on the other side of the tomb, and to follow him wherever he will lead. The theme for worship during this Lenten season will be “Who’s Calling?” — thinking about how we incline our ear to the voice of Jesus through the cacophony of the world around us.

*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!). Watch this space for information about a Bible study as we go through the scriptures together!

* All worship is online (or on the phone at 01475 270037, or in print) and we also meet in person, subject to the usual protocols for distancing, hand hygiene, mask wearing. We can now welcome up to 85-100 people for worship with one-chair-between-households distancing. No booking is required. Masks are required at all times inside the building, including while singing. 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.

* Tonight we will gather for evening prayer on the Connect Facebook Page, led tonight by all four Connect Clergy. 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 Spring Church Notes are now available! You can read them by clicking here.

* The Lower Clyde Mission Group (of which St. John’s is a part) is hosting an Easter Trail on Saturday 16 April, on Tower Hill, from 2-3pm. All are welcome!

*Young Adults Bible Study is on Zoom most Sunday afternoons. Contact Teri for the link to join and for a copy of the book they are using.

*Mark your calendars for Holy Week and Easter worship:
10 April:
11am, Passion Sunday service in St. John’s
4pm, CONNECT Palm Sunday event at OGA, with a light dinner served

11 – 15 April: self-guided prayer stations available in the St John’s sanctuary, to experience the Holy Week story in different ways.

11-15 April:
7pm, Holy Week Services: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at OGA; Tuesday and Thursday at St. John’s

16 April:
2-3pm, Easter Trail on Tower Hill
8:30pm, Easter Eve service in St. John’s

17 April:
7am, Easter service on Tower Hill
8am, Easter breakfast with communion in St. John’s large hall
11am, Easter service in St John’s sanctuary