22nd. January. 2023. Service.

Inverkeithing linked with North Queensferry

Service of Worship  22nd January 2023

Third Sunday after the Epiphany

 Prelude: “When all thy mercies, O my God”

Call to Worship
Introit Hymn 779 “Holy, holy, holy!”

Opening Prayer

Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Saviour Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive the glory of his marvellous works, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Hymn 175 “Praise, I will praise you, Lord”

Call to Prayer

The Lord is our light and salvation.
We will not be afraid.
Behold the beauty of the Lord!
God will shelter us on any day of trouble and set us high upon a rock.
Let God’s people shout for joy!
For Christ calls us and claims us as his own.
Come and worship in unity and love; let us rejoice together!         

Let us pray:
Gracious God, you shepherd us by still waters and guide us along paths of justice and peace.
You send your comfort and courage to relieve our tears and fears in the face of the shadow of death.
We offer our praise in love and loyalty because you are always with us.

Merciful God, you call us to follow your way of compassion,
but instead, we find it easier to criticize each other.
You call us to follow your way of peace, but too often we remain divided and suspicious.
You call us to trust you,
but our faith is weak, and our fears and doubts overwhelm so often overwhelm us.
Forgive us, O God, and strengthen our commitment to follow Jesus as he has promised to hold us up on the way.
God calls to us in love and forgiveness and welcomes us in with a warm embrace. Hear the good news of the Gospel. Rejoice that in Christ we are forgiven, and be at peace with God, yourself and with each other.

O God, we need your wisdom and truth in the as they are to be found in our Scriptures. Help us to perceive and receive its truth through the influence of your Holy Spirit. Challenge and comfort us according to our need and strengthen us as we follow Jesus, your Living Word. Our Father…  (In the words most familiar to you)

Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory, For ever. Amen.

 All Age Talk
 

Do you enjoy fishing? Have you ever caught a fish?

Fishing is a great sport, and if you have ever been fishing and have caught a fish, you know that there’s a great feeling of excitement when you catch a fish. One of the things that makes fishing such a great sport is that it doesn’t matter if you’re young or old…you can still be good at fishing.

What does it take to be good at catching fish? First, you need to be properly equipped. You can’t just get a piece of string, put a hook on it, and tie it on the end of a stick and expect to catch many fish, can you? No! If you’re serious about fishing, you’ll make sure you have all the right equipment. You’ll want a nice rod and reel like this one I have this morning.

The next thing you need to know is that you must go where the fish are to catch fish!

Finally, if you want to be good at fishing, you must be patient. Sometimes the fish just aren’t biting. You must wait patiently.

Our Bible lesson today has something to do with fishing. One day, Jesus was walking along the seashore when he saw two brothers named Peter and Andrew. Jesus knew they made their living by fishing, so He called out to them, “Follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” Do you know what they did? They laid down their fishing nets and followed Jesus.

Jesus wants you and me to fish for people, too. That means that Jesus wants us to tell others about what He has done for us and what He wants to do for them. Fishing for people is a lot like fishing for fish.

First, we need to be properly equipped. We need to know what the Bible teaches and learn how to share it with others.

Next, we go out where the people are and tell them about Jesus.

Finally, we must be patient.

If we will do these things, we can really become fishers of people like Jesus wants us to be. If you think there is a great feeling of excitement in catching a fish, just imagine how exciting it must be to bring someone to Jesus!

Dear Jesus, help us become fishers of people. Help us tell others what You have done for us and what you want to do for them. In Jesus’ name, amen.

 Hymn 340 “When Jesus saw the fishermen”

 Intimations

The Inverkeithing Coffee morning will be held in Inverkeithing on Tuesday 24^th from 9:45-11:45 The next coffee morning in North Queensferry will be on Wednesday 1^st February from 10:30-Noon.

St Fillans Church Aberdour are celebrating their 900^th Anniversary with several events: Friday 10^th February a live broadcast of “Any Questions” on BBC 4 Radio. One ticket has been allocated to Inverkeithing and claimed, but you may wish to listen in after the news at 20:00 hours.

Sunday 19^th February, the Rev. John Bell, Hymn writer, broadcaster and member of the Iona Community will lead worship at 10:30am and give a talk from 3-5pm entitled “Humour in the Bible.” Please speak to Joan More if you are interested.

There is a new Flower Calendar in the vestibule. Please add your name if there are special dates on which you wish to put flowers in the church. Money can be given to Janet McCauslin or Robert Dowie. Two other rotas are posted for volunteers to help with refreshments following worship on the last Sunday of the month and for a coffee morning on the final Saturday of each month.

The North Queensferry Board and Kirk Session will meet on Wednesday 25^th January at 7:00pm in the Church.

Invitation to the Offering

Jesus called the first disciples who followed, not knowing that we would follow their example so many centuries later. We bring our gifts in Jesus’ name, not knowing whose lives will be touched, but trusting that something good will come of everything we offer to God.

Prayer of Dedication

God of the fishers who first followed Jesus, you have called us to follow and here we are. We offer what we have and ask you to bless our gifts. Give us the courage we need to invite others to join us in following Jesus, our friend and saviour. Amen.

Reading: Psalm 27:1;4-7

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation –
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life –
of whom shall I be afraid?

⁴ One thing I ask from the Lord,
this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
and to seek him in his temple.
⁵ For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
and set me high upon a rock.

⁶ Then my head will be exalted
above the enemies who surround me;
at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make music to the Lord.

⁷ Hear my voice when I call, Lord;
be merciful to me and answer me.
⁸ My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’
Your face, Lord, I will seek.
⁹ Do not hide your face from me,
do not turn your servant away in anger;
you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
God my Saviour. Amen

Hymn 189 “Be still, for the presence of the Lord.”

Reading:  Matthew 4: 12-23

¹² When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. ¹³ Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali – ¹⁴ to fulfil what was said through the prophet Isaiah:¹⁵ ‘Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles – ¹⁶ the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.’¹⁷ From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’

¹⁸ As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ ‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will send you out to fish for people.’ ²⁰ At once they left their nets and followed him. ²¹ Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James, son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, ²² and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.²³ Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and illness among the people. Amen, this is the Word of the Lord, to Him be all glory and praise.

. Amen, this is the Word of the Lord, to Him be all glory and praise

Hymn 198 “Let us build a house where love can dwell”.

Sermon

Jesus is on the move. His cousin John has been arrested. “From that time, Jesus began” to preach, teach and, just as important, to recruit. He needs a team.

He doesn’t hire a high-powered recruiting agent. No ads in the Jerusalem Times. No scouting of the best universities. No corporate raiding for talent. No consultations with the titans of industry about their best and brightest. No third-party psychological personality inventories. No background checks or job shadowing.

Instead, he goes down to the harbour, a minor cove in Capernaum or perhaps Tiberius, and mingles with the fishmongers. He finds two sets of brothers — Peter and Andrew, and James and John — who appear to show some promise.

He uses their profession as the metaphor for the life work to which he is calling them: They will be fishermen, and they will fish for people. To mix a metaphor, Jesus casts the net or perhaps the line, presents the fly and sets the hook. And ever since those days on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, discipleship and evangelism have been spun from the same rod and reel.

Lead

Who is this leader who invites these brothers to follow him? Was he like other wealthy philosophers of the ancient Greek world, who came from well-heeled, patrician families, or who had rich patrons who supported them financially?

No, Jesus was not like that. His parents were not particularly poor, but they weren’t rich, either.  Jesus himself said that he did not have a place to call home, or even to lay his head at night. Like many of the ancient philosophers, he was an itinerant, moving from place to place, and -in his case -preaching a gospel of repentance: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This was his life and the life he offered his followers: a life of wandering, proclamation, teaching, preaching and modest living. “Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.”

He was good at this. People began to call him “Rabbi,” which means literally, “my great one,” but was generally understood as “Teacher.” It was meant as an expression of respect, although sometimes, his enemies, while calling him Rabbi to his face, did so, possibly to humour him or with a degree of sarcasm. They regarded him as dangerous and a threat to the “way we have always done things,” especially their own authority.

But the most folks did not feel threatened; rather, they were attracted to him, and saw his worth Even as a child, he was well-liked, and as a young man, he created a lot of buzz and excitement. With a couple of notable exceptions, crowds welcomed him with curiosity and excitement wherever he went. He had little trouble assembling a team for his work. He called them; they followed. “Immediately they left their nets and followed him. … left their boat and their father and followed him.”

 Follow

The American General, George S. Patton is noted for saying, “We herd sheep, we drive cattle, we lead people. Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way.” Some say Thomas Paine said that first.

A common misconception about “followership” is that the leader-follower relationship is a simple separation of roles. One is either a leader or a follower. Patton said, “lead or follow.” Make your choice. Yet most people are both leaders and followers, and whether they are one or the other depends on both their skill set and the mission itself.

As fishermen in Galilee, the brothers were no doubt leaders in their profession. Good fishermen know their water and their prey. As fishermen of people, they followed Jesus and learned from him. Most people are comfortable identifying themselves as one or the other. No shame in being a follower, we say. Followers are usually not mindless pawns, a “basket of deplorables,” a tabula rasa on which demagogues can imprint lies and fake news, as the media sometimes suggest.

Most people follow because it is in their best interest to do so. We understand a need to learn from masters -those with knowledge, skill and power. Someday we, too, may be leaders, but for now, we follow, we learn, we do what we’re told and, if we need to, we will stop following, become leaders ourselves or take a more radical step and, as Patton suggests, “Get out of the way.” No one goes through life without being a follower at some point. Followership precedes leadership. The Boys Brigade is an example of that process.

What distinguishes Christians as followers of Jesus is the mission he embraced and the one for which, as Christians, we have signed up. The mission is identified in verses 12-17 of our Gospel reading, and especially in verse 16: “The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”.

Our mission is to shed light, to bring light, to be the light.

This should not be too hard because we are children of light. As St Paul told the Ephesians, “For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light -for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true.”4

Jesus described himself as the “light of the world.” As such, he taught us how to dispel the darkness of despair with the joy of hope; the gloom of night with the lightness of dawn; the midnight of evil with the sunlight of righteousness; the addiction to bad habits with the strength of self-control; the debilitating effects of isolation with the blessing of community.

His mission, then, was to be the light of the world, and to guide others from darkness to light. This included doing “not … my own will but the will of him who sent me.”6 He came “to seek out and to save the lost.”7 He preached the primacy of love -love for God and one’s neighbor.8 He had great empathy for the marginalized of his culture.

Many people today live in the shadows of darkness. They are looking to come clean, to come out of the shadows. This was Jesus’ mission, and  it is our mission, too, as followers of Jesus. It is the mission of the church. Therefore, we must take Jesus seriously. We must become students of the Word. We must re-examine the windows of our soul to see if they’ve become encrusted with the cultural layers of grime and debris. In other words, it doesn’t hurt to inspect the light. Is it bright and shining?

Get out of the way.

General Patton was not known for being tactful. His unwillingness to varnish what he called the truth landed him in hot water on many occasions. He was bull in a china shop. His tripartite view of life was simple. You are leading, following or you’re in the way. If it’s the latter, please get out of the way before I run you over.

Jesus does not share this view. No one was ever in his way. He had time for people -too much time. Often, he was exhausted. He was compassionate to the point of being physically ill when he saw how much people suffered. He wept over the sorry state in which he found Jerusalem. He came to save the world. No one was, or is, in the way. Conversely, he was happy to tell the Pharisees that they needed to get out of the way by repenting, by changing.

But Jesus knew something else few leaders understand. He knew that the time would come when he himself would need to “get out of the way.” This is precisely what he did. He got out of the way. He died.

Of course, he rose again, and refused the invitation of followers to anoint him as a king or earthly ruler, but instead, turned over the mission to his followers, who now became the leaders of a movement that at times has been known as Christendom, Christianity or the Church. Smart leaders know that at some point, the team will be ready for the leader to disappear.

The genius of this is that if leaders eventually get out of the way, the leader’s message will be perpetuated for generations … maybe even centuries -perhaps even millenniums! Here we are in 2023 -more than 2,000 years after Jesus “got out of the way,” and we are still on a mission in the name of Jesus, still giving Jesus a “Like” or a “Love” on Facebook, still giving Jesus a shout-out, still inviting people to be Jesus followers.

We’re taking a page right out of our Gospel reading. We are inviting people to follow Jesus. Like the first disciples, we are fishing for people. In the coming year there will be a new congregation of which we will be a part. We have to submit a mission statement to Presbytery. It is all here in this sermon. We are here to follow Jesus and to invite people to do the same We are fishers of men and women. We are following the light and leading people to the light.

Christians in the early church were often called people of “the Way.” When we fish for people, we are not asking them to “get out of the way,” but rather to get in the Way. For to get in the Way, rather than out of the way, is to step into eternal life. It is to step out of darkness into the glorious light of the good news. Lead, follow -and get in the Way! Amen.

Prayer

God in whom we live and move and have our being, this week we join with Christians around the world to pray for peace and unity, and for justice and mercy throughout the whole of your fragile creation.
We remember before you today people who daily live with the horrific reality of war and violence,  especially in those places where ancient hatreds burn. We think of Palestine, Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, the many countries in Africa as well as Colombia, Mexico and Myanmar where there is great violence. God, speak to us a word of peace. Embrace us with your love.

We remember before you today people living face to face with economic uncertainty, who struggle with rising costs of daily necessities and energy. There are those who must choose to eat in the cold and people who have lost their jobs, their savings, their homes or businesses because of flooding or extremes of weather
And we pray for people in other places who face different challenges than we do. God, speak to us a word of reassurance.
Embrace us with your love.

We remember before you today people living face to face with discrimination and social prejudice, those who are bullied at school, at work or at home, everyone who has been made ashamed of who they are, who feel pressured to conform to the norms and the expectations of the majority. Give us grace to see the image of God in all our neighbours.
God, speak to us a word of dignity. Embrace us with your love.

We remember before you today people living face to face with illness and suffering, many are waiting for diagnosis or treatment, many are struggling with disability or delay in medical attention, experiencing fear, despondency or grief.
God, speak to us a word of healing. Embrace us with your love.

We remember before you today people of different creeds and faiths, people who look for ways of understanding and co operation among different religious traditions. We thank you for people who show love to their neighbours, whatever their creed or conviction.God, speak to us a word of reconciliation. Embrace us with your love.

We pray for the whole creation and its many vulnerable elements caused by human greed or carelessness and pray for the renewal of our planet as promised in the gospel and words of the apostle: Behold, I make all things new, that as the gospel spreads and the light of heaven shines in the darkness, it may prevail in this world.
Teach us how to care for the rips and tears in the fabric of the world and may we each live together wisely to protect the future for those who will follow us.
God, speak to us a word of wisdom. Embrace us with your love.

And so, in unity with your Church around the world we offer all our prayers in the Name of Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.

Hymn 737 “Will your anchor hold in the storms of life?”

 Surrender of Boys Brigade Colours

The person surrendering the Colours will have moved to the chancel and take up position in the centre facing the congregation. At the conclusion of the slow march the Chaplain will face the congregation and say:

“We are gathered together in this church to lay-up these Colours of the First Inverkeithing Company of The Boys’ Brigade.  No more fitting place could be found wherein to deposit these emblems of Duty and Service than the House of God, where praise and prayer are wont to be made.”

The person surrendering the colours takes the Second Colour in their left hand and the Queen’s (or only) Colour in their right and presents them to the Chaplain saying:

“These consecrated Colours, formerly carried by the First Inverkeithing Company of The Boys’ Brigade as a sign of their duty to towards our Queen, our Country, and the Brigade in the sight of God, I deliver into your hands for safe custody within these walls.”

The Chaplain takes them with the words: “I receive these Colours for safe custody within this church.”

The Colours are then placed in some suitable position on display for the remainder of the service.  The Queen’s on the right and the Second Colour on the left.  The Colour Party and the person who handed over the Colours will retire to their places.

The Chaplain will then say:

“Let us pray: Almighty God and Lord of Hosts, we now lay-up within this House of Prayer these emblems of Thy Grace and Blessing; may all who look upon them be reminded of their duty to their God, their King, their Country, and The Boys’ Brigade for Jesus Christ’s sake.  We thank you for the work and witness of the First Inverkeithing Company throughout the past years. We remember those who kept the flame alive and who established, revived and sustained the company. We thank you for their faithfulness and commitment, their willingness to give time and talent to the building of young lives in this community and commend them to you as good and faithful servants. May their work continue to bear fruit among the last generation of boys and young men who have been cared for in these latter years. We ask these prayers in Jesus Christ our Captain, Lord and Saviour. Amen.”

Hymn MP 302 I want to walk with Jesus Christ”

Sending out and Benediction

Go into the world to live out the gift of unity in Christ,
eager to serve and open to learn from the Christ who calls us and sets us free.

May the love of God, the peace of Christ and unity in the Holy Spirit be yours now and always.  Amen

“May God’s blessing surround you each day”

Postlude: “I want to walk as a child of the light”