Sunday service for 26 April 2026, fourth Sunday of Easter

Sunday 26 April 2026, Fourth Sunday of Easter
Gourock St. John’s Church of Scotland
Service prepared by Rev. Teri Peterson
Manse phone: 632143
Email: TPeterson (at) churchofscotland.org.uk
Email Charlene, Parish Assistant: CMitchell (at) churchofscotland.org.uk

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Sanctuary Prelude Music (praise band)

Welcome

We Gather As God’s Family (As the Bible is brought in, we stand and sing)
A family gathered in love,
striving for justice and joy,
blessing the broken-hearted,
and sharing the hope of God’s kingdom.

Opening Responses
One: Come, you who think you have it all figured out
All: We come to make room for God to speak.
One: Come, you who have faithfully followed Jesus for a long time
All: We come to hear what new thing Jesus might call us to do.
One: Come, you who have been stopped in your tracks
All: We come to wait for the Lord.
One: Come, you who can only wonder what God will do next
All: We come to seek the One whose light still shines.

Sanctuary Hymn 416: Christ is Alive! (Tune: TRURO) (organ)

Easter Prayer
Risen One,
your light shines around us
and we hardly know where to look.
Your voice echoes
and we still strain to hear.
You are alive
and out in the world
not just in the places we keep you
but out on the road
and even out beyond our borders.
You call us by name
and set us about your work in the world.
When your call starts with a stop sign
and your word changes everything about our lives,
help us to recognise you
and to open our hearts to receive.
When your call comes through our everyday faith
and asks us to take it to the next level,
help us to recognise you
and to open our hearts to receive.
When your call sends us to situations we’d rather avoid
and gives us a part to play in your bigger picture,
help us to recognise you
and to open our hearts to receive.
Raise us up with you
to walk in new life that loves, blesses, and transforms the world.
Shine your light in us
and through us
that we may trust your grace
and follow your Way.
We ask in the name of our risen Lord Jesus the Christ.
Amen.

Online Hymn 416: Christ is Alive! (Tune: TRURO) (organ)

Sanctuary Children’s Time

Sanctuary Special Music: He put a New Song in my Heart by Michael Barrett (choir)

Scripture Reading: Acts 9.1-19a
For the next few weeks we will hear stories of the early church trying to work out how to follow Jesus after his resurrection. What did it mean to follow a risen Lord who was no longer physically present on earth? Today we hear about some of the opposition they encountered from within. I am reading from the book of Acts, chapter 9, beginning at verse 1.

Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” He asked, “Who are you, Lord?” The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. For three days he was without sight and neither ate nor drank.
Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” He answered, “Here I am, Lord.” The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul. At this moment he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem, and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who invoke your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptised, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

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: sliding doors
You know how sometimes we say things like “I wish I could just get a clear sign about what I’m supposed to do”….whether it’s about what to study, what job direction to take, whether to have a family, or to move house, or whatever big decisions might have been in front of us throughout our lives, often we wish it would just be obvious what to do.

Well….what about a flash of light so bright it literally blinds you and throws you to the ground?

Be careful what you wish for, when wishing for a sign!

Of course Saul wasn’t wishing for a sign. He was absolutely sure he was doing the right thing. He just knew that God had called him to this particular ministry, and no matter what others thought he was certain. His calling in life was to defend God, his religious tradition, and way of life, against those people who wanted to change things. He had no doubt about his purpose or his methods. He knew the direction of his life and he was pursuing it with his whole heart.

And while he was on the path that he definitely knew was his to follow, he essentially ran into a brick wall covered in a stop sign with flashing lights.

When the voice spoke to him — calling his name twice, as often happens in biblical stories where a person needs to be stopped from doing something, but isn’t paying attention the first time — Saul was so confused. Who could possibly be speaking to him? He knew what God wanted him to do, and this voice was stopping him from doing it, which means the voice couldn’t be God. There was no way. He would surely recognise God’s voice, and God would be approve his direction of travel, right? So this voice, stopping him from his zeal…he had no clue who or why or what or how.

Can you imagine how scary it must have been to get up from the ground and realise he couldn’t see? To become so vulnerable, having been so powerful just moments before. His traveling companions helped him get into a safe place, but then what? He wouldn’t have known how long it was going to last…maybe this was his life now? Maybe he would never see again, and the last thing he had seen was the light of the world he didn’t believe in. Maybe it was God who stopped him, but why? Maybe it was actually Satan, the adversary. Maybe his life was over. All he knew was that for some reason, the door had been slammed and the thing he thought he was supposed to do, he wasn’t allowed to do anymore. What was he supposed to do now?

I would guess some of us, maybe even many of us, have had those moments. Maybe not as dramatically, but we have probably had doors close in front of us, things we thought were right for us disappear before our eyes — relationships, opportunities, plans. Perhaps we’ve gotten good at just saying “well, what’s for ye’ll no go by ye” and moving on, but underneath the cliche is still the pain of running headlong into a closed door. And it can be really confusing, really vulnerable, like we’re groping around in the dark trying to figure out what to do next. We don’t know what Saul did with that time, when he didn’t know it would be only three days, apart from fasting. Did he think about why God might have stopped him following that path? Or did he assume he’d been attacked by an evil spirit trying to stop him from fulfilling his divine mandate? Did he pray for healing, or for a new vision? Did he wallow in his fear and frustration? Did he just wish to get back to normal so he could carry on and try again? What do we do, when it happens to us?

I admit that when God has closed doors in front of me, my first response is pretty much always to wallow and to lament how unfair it is. I probably need at least three days to feel sorry for myself and to complain to all my friends. Most of my prayers during the wallowing time are just me whining “whyyyyyyyyy” while Jesus looks on with arms crossed, waiting for me to look him in the eye so I can listen to the truth. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with a little wallowing, because recognising our emotions and dealing with them is important, ignoring them leads to other problems! But we can’t stay wallowing…Jesus stopped Saul because the only way Saul would listen was if he physically couldn’t carry on his own ideas…a bit like Jonah in the fish. A hard stop can actually make space for God to be heard, because then we aren’t keeping ourselves too busy and distracted to listen.

So when the door closes, we feel the grief and then look and listen…what might God be trying to say? What might we have misunderstood about who God is and what God calls us to do? What gifts have we used for a different purpose than God intended when giving them to us? What gifts might we have overlooked or tried to conjure up so we could justify what we wanted, or what we thought others wanted of us?

Those days of darkness were a chance for Saul to feel, and to listen, and they prepared him for what was coming next.

Meanwhile, across town, God was opening a door that no one wanted opened.

When Jesus called to Ananias, his response was the opposite of Saul’s, and the same as so many people we’ve heard before in scripture: Here I am, Lord. I’m present, I’m listening, I’m tuned in, I’m with you. And then, as we have heard many times before in scripture, God asked him to do something outrageous: to be a conduit of healing for the very man who was coming to arrest him and punish him for daring to follow Jesus’ Way.

Ananias even asked — as many prophets had done before him — are you sure, Lord? Like….that guy? You’re absolutely certain you want to open that door?

I would guess many of us have had that kind of experience too, when something falls into our lap and we kind of can’t believe it. Like really, this is what you want from me? Maybe it’s an unexpected opportunity that we aren’t really qualified for but… Maybe it’s a person that crosses our path. Maybe we’re drawn to something no one in our family or friend group has done before. We question our sanity in going for it, we question God’s sanity in opening it to us, maybe we’re even tentative or afraid to take the step…double checking with God, like Ananias does. Are you sure, God? Because this doesn’t make sense.

The thing is…the door that opened for Ananias was to reach out to someone who wanted him dead. Someone who was his enemy. Someone very different, with a different worldview, a different understanding of the same God, a different personality. Ananias knew about this guy. He knew he was dangerous. He knew they would not get on. He knew. He was sure. The way some people on social media and news media and political circles are sure.

And yet God opened the door and said: trust me. I am doing a new thing.

And Ananias did. On behalf of the fledgling church, he walked through that door, and when he saw this man who had come here to harm him and his friends and family, this man who had started out with fury and power, and was now vulnerable and dependent, Ananias’s first words were: “brother Saul.” He called him family. It feels extreme, like a way-too-fast move for someone who four days ago wanted you dead! But Jesus spoke and said things were changing, so…Ananias had to change too.

I wonder what would have happened if Ananias chose to look away from God opening an unexpected and unwanted door. Or if he couldn’t trust God enough to step through it. Or if he hadn’t changed his own mind, but instead looked at Saul and seen only who he used to be, refusing to acknowledge his journey or any possibility of transformation.

Because I think we often do that. We don’t like change…not for ourselves and we don’t really believe it’s true for other people, and certainly not for God. We want stability and predictability, not something new. The idea that someone else might change, thus requiring us to change the way we think about them or relate to them, also requires us to think about our own journey and whether we can change…it’s a lot. I think we’d rather jiggle the handle of the firmly closed door than turn and walk through a newly opened one that we aren’t sure where it leads.

Saul could have kept pounding on the door the risen Christ had closed in front of his face. Ananias could have shut the door the risen Christ opened. But since they didn’t, they became siblings in God’s family. They couldn’t be more different, but that happens with siblings sometimes, doesn’t it. The hothead and the quietly faithful, the passionate and the thoughtful. The Body of Christ needs them all…just as we are. Notice that Jesus doesn’t ask either of them to become somebody different in order to be part of the family. Instead, Jesus asks them to use their gifts for his kingdom rather than for their own agendas. God didn’t need Saul to protect him from Jesus-followers…and God didn’t need Ananias to protect him from people like Saul. And so for one the door closed, and for the other the door opened, because God needed them both to turn their attention out to the world God so loves, and take their passion and their compassion, their fire and their prayerfulness, just the way they are, and put them to kingdom work. We don’t know how Ananias lived out that calling after this day — like most of us, he was faithful in his community without needing to make the news. We do know what happens to Saul — when he unexpectedly heads out into the gentile world, he’ll use the greek form of his name: Paul. And his zeal turned toward the good changed the world.

So it is today…sometimes God closes a door we were so sure was right, and we have a grief journey to go on. Sometimes God opens a door we were so sure was wrong, and we need to ask all our questions. Sometimes God calls the wrong people. Sometimes God asks us to change our minds. All the time, God says: I love you and made you, and your gifts are for kingdom work, so trust me enough to follow, even if it isn’t where you thought.

May it be so. Amen.

Silence for Reflection

Hymn: Take It Easy (praise band)

Sanctuary Offering Hymn: Open the Eyes of My Heart, Lord (praise band)

Sanctuary Offering Response: Response 410 v. 4
Sing we to our God above: Alleluia!
Praise eternal as his love: Alleluia!
Praise him, all you heavenly host: Alleluia!
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost: Alleluia!

Concerns of the Church
*new members gathering after worship today or tomorrow night at the manse
*Bible Study Wednesday 7:30ish in the manse
*Stedfast Silver Band concert this afternoon
*Prayer groups

Prayer and Lord’s Prayer
We praise you, Loving God,
for you reveal your glory in unexpected ways
and you set and re-set our feet on your Way.
We give you thanks for all your faithful people
who answer your call to reach across barriers with your good news,
who shine your light even in difficult places.
Guide and protect them by your Spirit
that they may speak boldly and truthfully.
And we bring you our prayers today
for those who have missed the mark in their proclamation,
who have tried to impose their own faith on others,
who have shared in ways that sound like bad news.
We also pray for those who use violence to impose their vision
and those who believe they need to defend you with force.
Show them your way of peace,
your irresistible beauty,
your community of hope.
We lift up our prayers for our neighbours
who have been hurt by people using faith as a weapon,
especially those who have been traumatised, excluded, or abused in your name.
Heal their hearts, minds, and spirits with your grace,
and lead them into a community practicing your more excellent way.
We bring you our prayers for your Church,
seeking your direction and yet so often fractured,
proclaiming your love and yet so often withholding it,
hearing your word and yet so often unable to share it.
Show us how to love one another as you have loved us,
and give us courage to step up when we would rather step back.
We bring you our prayers for the community and nation and world in which we live,
where so often despair and division are the order of the day.
Let your presence flash like lightning and your voice resound,
filling every corner
with courage to be vulnerable rather than projecting a curated image,
with strength to stand up for what is right,
with peace that spreads beyond our hearts and into our streets,
with hope that opens doors rather than closing them,
with healing that draws us into your resurrection life.

On the 26th day of the month we join our hearts as your St John’s family to pray:
*For Gourock Primary School — for the children, the teachers, the staff, and the families. Bless them with bright minds and open hearts and willing spirits, with friendship and laughter and the graciousness it takes to be in community together. May the school have the resources it needs and the families the support they need to ensure the children grow in mind, body, and spirit.
*For the Contact Group and other fellowship groups at St John’s, that they may learn and deepen friendships together in your presence.
*For the land, people, and governments of the nations of Trinidad & Tobago, Grenada, St Vincent & Grenadines, Barbados, St Lucia, and Martinique
Whatever it takes to bring about your transformation, O God,
we pray that we will be ready to participate when you call.
Thank you for calling all kinds of people
with all kinds of personalities
from all kinds of backgrounds.
Help us to do your work,
And help us to accept the work others do too.
Bring us together today as your family.
We ask these and all things in the name of the One who confounds our expectations
and calls us beyond ourselves into your kingdom,
Jesus the Christ, who lives even now
and 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.

Sanctuary Hymn 727: In the Bulb There Is a Flower (organ)

Sending
Go from this time of worship to put your passion to work in service of the gospel, knowing the blessing of the living God and sharing that blessing with all whom you meet.
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.

Sanctuary Postlude Music (organ)

Announcements

* We worship in the sanctuary on Sundays at 11am, and Sunday worship is also online.

* The first Sunday of the month at 11am is an all-age service, with different ways of encountering God’s word without a traditional sermon. All people — young and old, different personalities and learning styles, are welcome! You’ll find a more informal service with a variety of music, a Bible story, prayer, and some more interactive elements. The online service for the first Sunday will therefore also be different — there will still be a reading, prayers, and music, but usually not a sermon.

* Starter Packs are in need of Shaving Foam, Shampoo, Soap, Hand Wash.
The FoodBank are short of diluting juice, cereal, noodles/microwave rice, jarred sauce, biscuits, UHT milk, and tinned meat/soups/vegetables.

You can bring donations to the church and place them into the boxes in the vestibule. Thank you!

* The new members group is meeting today after the service or tomorrow (Monday 27th) in the evening. Speak to Teri for details!

* Bowl & Blether is on the first Mondays of the month, with doors open from 11:30-1:30, and lunch served from noon. All are welcome for a bowl of soup, a toastie, a friendly chat in our warm hall! See you a week on Monday, the 4th of May.

* The Contact Group is hosting a fundraising concert THIS AFTERNOON Sunday 26 April at 3pm in the sanctuary with special guests the Stedfast Silver Band! All are welcome. Tickets are £8 and available at the door.

* The Anchor Boys end-of-session display will be on Tuesday evening the 28th at 6:30pm. You’re welcome to come along and celebrate what they’ve been doing this year!

* Registration will be open soon for the summer exploratorium: On Holy Ground, an Inverclyde Staycation, the week of 27 July! We are looking for some volunteers — especially in the kitchen, and in crafts, as well as in shepherding groups. If you would be interested in learning more about volunteering, please speak to Teri or Graham Bolster.

* Free period products are available in the church toilets for anyone who might need them, thanks to Hey Girls and Inverclyde Council.

* Did you know that the ministry we do at St John’s costs about £3000 per week and we are currently running about £500 short? Everything we do is funded by your generous giving — all our support for young people, older people, bereavement care, community outreach, worship, study, spiritual growth, and community work is because of your offering. If you would like to 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 Teri and she can give you the treasurer’s details. You can also send your envelopes to the church or the manse by post and we will ensure they are received.

* Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Youtube, and to sign up for our email newsletter! Midweek you can watch Wine and the Word and Theology Thursday on Youtube, get snippets of thought or inspiration following Teri on TikTok, and of course keep up with announcements and events on Facebook and our weekly email.