Weekly Bulletin – May 10, 2009

Posted on May 7, 2009 
Filed Under Weekly Bulletin

MOTHER’S DAY!
May 10, 2009
WELCOME!

PREPARE TO WORSHIP
We come craving the gifts of your mercy and peace, Lord. touch us, and we will indeed be touched.

ANNOUNCEMENTS
If you are visiting us today, please fill out a visitors card & drop it in the offering plate as your contribution today. Thank you.

PRAISING GOD WITH SONG

GIVING TO GOD  Offering  /  SPECIAL MUSIC

(Jr. Church children ages 4 -7 may be dismissed))

HEARING FROM GOD

WORSHIPING GOD IN SONG

____________________
PLEASE STAY FOR SUNDAY SCHOOL NEXT!

TONIGHT :  No Evening Service
Next Sunday night Dr. Snyder from Davis College will be with us to take us thru the book of Ruth. Please join us!

THIS WEEK :

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Twitter Note: If you would like to keep pace with Pastor Bill, go to Twitter and do a search under William Berkheiser.

Visitation Team: Members on call this week
If you or someone you know needs a home or hospital visit, please call: Terry Johnson – (570) 967-2288 or Elaine Schafer – (607) 775-3985

Thanks for attending FIRST CHRISTIAN, please come again!

COURAGEOUS CONVERSATION Lk. 11:1-13

Posted on May 2, 2009 
Filed Under Pastor's Blog, Sermons

“Prayer begings with the movement in which a man wishes and seeks to win a new clarity about the fact that God is the one who rules” (karl Barth). The Lord’s prayer has been a model of prayer for the Church for centuries. Though I fear it has in many ways it has fell by the wayside in the world of shallow evangelicalism. It reminds us what the old Desert Father said about “prayer being more than words.” Prayer is the place of deep struggle where we wrestle with ourselves and with God over who is really in control of our lives. Who is really Lord of all eternity and the creator and sutainer of heaven and hell. Barth was right. Prayer is the place where we seek a fresh clarity about the fact that God is the one who rules.

The Lukan text is often forgotten in regards to the Lord’s prayer. Matthew’s gospel seems to take precedence in this conversation. Yet, Lukes’ placement of the prayer is very important to understanding what Luke is seeking to accomplish/assert about Christ. Looking back to Luke 9 we see Jesus sending out the 12 and the seventy. They are commissioned and given power to do great deeds. Subsequently Jesus begins to assert the apex of his mission will be the cross and the disciples happen upon a demon they can not deal with. Ironically Jesus informs them that these kind only come out by fasting and prayer. Keep in mind Jesus is answering a desire of the disciples. “Teach us to pray” (1). What follows is the Lord’s prayer and two parables on prayer. Subsequently Jesus is then accused of being in league with Satan by his antagonists. The context helps explain Luke’s usage of the text. Jesus authorizing and empowering his followers and then being villified and slandered as being in league with Satan helps highlight that Luke is using prayer (a definite kind of prayer) as a defining characteristic of discipleship. Real followers of Christ have fierce conversations with God about who is in control.

Take into account what Jesus is advocating through the prayer.

1. Let God be God in your life

2. Let yourself be exposed to what God wants in your life

3. Let God treat you the way you treat others

4. Let God be the leader in your life

This is a conversation that does not end. We are to persistently labor over who is Lord of our life (5-8). It’s prayer that costs us something. When it is over you should be exhausted. As Jacob wrestled with the Angel of the Lord in Genesis so we also must have our own knock down drag out fights with God. Just read the prayers of the prophets in the Bible. They are anything but boring. This is not prayer that “gives things” to God (a popular notion usually phrased “give it to God”). These are prayers of surrender. Where we decrease and Christ increases in our life.

Unfortunately we gloss over Jesus’ conclusion in this passage. It is two-fold. One, is an assessment of us. He flatly says. “we are evil” (13). Such is his theology. This sounds worse than being sinners. At least as sinners we can just say we are less than perfect. But ‘evil’. It has a judgmental ring to it. Why does God have to be so honest. Secondly is what the Father gives. That is the Holy Spirit. Our philosophy of prayer is that we pray for God to change circumstances and situations. While God’s intent with prayer is the change us (at least in this passage). Those who have fierce conversations with God get more of God in their life.

There it is. Did you catch it? More of God in your life. Is that really what you want? Or do you just want God to deal with particulars in your life. He is a troubleshooter, a fixer of your life. But you remain the architect. You do the drawing and approve the plans. Sorry, God doesn’t work that way. Barth was right. “Prayer begins with the movement in which a man wishes and seeks to win a new clarity about the fact that God is the one who rules.”     WHB

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