North Queensferry Church

23rd. October. 2022. Service.

Inverkeithing Parish Church linked with

North Queensferry Church

Worship 23rd October 2022

Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost

 

 
Prelude: “Secret Prayer”

Bible Introït 802 “We are here to praise you”

 Collect: 
Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us the gifts of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain what you promise, make us love what you command; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Hymn 147 “All creatures of our God and King”

 Call to Prayer

 From the routine of work and school, home and play,
we have come to worship God.
With the weight of the world heavy on our hearts,
we have come to worship God.
In the face of our fears and our hopes,
we offer our prayer and praise in Jesus’ name trusting.
Let us worship God with heart, mind, soul and strength.

 Prayers of Adoration and confession

Creating God, the mountains you have raised
reflect your strength and majesty.
Sunrise and sunset frame the day with your light and joy.
Harvested fields and trees covered with autumn glory
sing of your steadfast love.
Images from the depths of space bring us a glimpse of your infinity, yet in Christ you have walked the humble earth.
You alone are worthy of our praise. You alone are the source of all hope. Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer of Life, we praise you,
and join our voices to those of sentient creature as contemplate mystery and majesty of your eternal being.

Merciful God, You created us with gifts of intelligence and imagination.
But we often use these gifts to exploit your creation and
and put other people down or at a disadvantage.
So often we think that we are greater than we are because of our abilities and when in fact we are small and petty in our thinking and behaviour.
Or we claim to be small or weak when you set a challenge before us. We convince ourselves that our sins is not nearly as great as others, forgetting that every sin offends your purpose for us.
Forgive us, we pray, and show us as we truly are that by your grace, we may be honest with ourselves.  For you are good and gracious. Jesus has promised that those who humble themselves will be exalted. Having confessed our sin, help us to trust the good news of the Gospel that in Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

God of all truth, when we think that we have life all figured out, hold up the mirror of your Word that we can see our own limitations.  When we fear we are beyond forgiveness, remind us of  the mercy and love which are offered to us by Christ, your Living Word.

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on 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.

The Intimations

Coffee Mornings 

Inverkeithing Tuesday 25th 10:00-noon North Queensferry Wednesday 26th 10:30-noon.

If you wish to participate in the Inverkeithing Church Choir for Christmas, our preliminary meeting will be on Saturday 29th October at 2pm in the Church to decide on the music and rehearsals. Please let the minister know if you would like to join.

North Queensferry Messy Church will take place on Sunday 6th November from 4-6pmin the church and hall Children must be accompanied by a parent for Messy Church.

A Time to Remember memorial service for all who have been bereaved in the past years will be held on Sunday 6th November at 3pm in Dalgety Bay Church.

From Evadne Holligan
I would like to thank everyone who donated to my Cancer Research Shine Night 10k walk. I have raised the amazing sum of £395. Your generosity and support is much appreciated. My daughter accompanied me on the night, and we managed to complete the walk in 1 hour and 41 minutes. It was a great night with over 800 people taking part and lots of support on route. Again, thank you all.

Soup and Pudding Lunch.
This will be held on Wednesday 26th October from 12 noon in Inverkeithing Church cost £5.00.

Communion Service.                                                                 
Our autumn Communion Service will be held on Sunday November 6th postponed from October 23rd.

The minister has intimated to the Kirk Session his intention to retire from the ministry and the parishes on January 31st 2023.

The Offering     
Sometimes we think what we have to offer is not significant Others may have more to share. But God knows the value of a few loaves and fishes shared, a lost coin claimed, one tiny seed planted from which a tree grows. Trust God with what you have to offer and see what he can do.

Prayer of Dedication
Good and generous God, receive our humble gifts, offered in hope and gratitude. Make something of them – and of us, so that many may  be surprised by your love and what we can give them,  in Jesus’ name. Amen.

All Age Talk

Every child at some time in their life has played with building blocks. I still remember the fun I had as a child building different things from these blocks. Here is a picture of me helping my son, Jimmy, with building blocks one Christmas Day in Trinidad.

Sometimes children like to try and beat each other making the biggest tower. Often, they boast about how well they can do it.  Then at the last minute their tower gets too tall and crashes down, they think they are better than they are.

Jesus taught His disciples that whenever people think they are so good that they don’t need God, they are headed for a fall!

Jesus told about two men who went to the temple. A temple is like a church. One of the men bragged about all of the great things he did and thanked God that he wasn’t like those other sinners in the temple.

The other man, instead of bragging about how great he was, humbly asked God to forgive him for all of the times he failed to be the kind of person that God wanted him to be.

This man knew that he could never do enough good things to be as high as God. This man knew that he needed God.

Jesus was not the least bit impressed with all the bragging of the first man. After all, when we compare our goodness to the goodness of Jesus, it just doesn’t stack up, does it?

Heavenly Father, please help us remember that when we build our lives upon our own goodness, we are headed for a fall. Instead, let us never forget that we need You because You are so good. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Hymn 493 “Standing in the need of prayer”

Reading: Joel 2:23-32

23 Be glad, people of Zion,
rejoice in the Lord your God,
for he has given you the autumn rains
because he is faithful.
He sends you abundant showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.
24 The threshing-floors will be filled with grain;
the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.

25 ‘I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten –
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm –
my great army that I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the Lord your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
never again will my people be shamed.
27 Then you will know that I am in Israel,
that I am the Lord your God,
and that there is no other;
never again will my people be shamed.

28 ‘And afterwards,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.
29 Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
30 I will show wonders in the heavens
and on the earth,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
31 The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
32 And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved;
for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be deliverance,
as the Lord has said,
even among the survivors
whom the Lord calls. Amen.

Hymn 52 “How lovely is thy dwelling place”

Reading: Luke 18: 9-14        

9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 ‘Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: “God, I thank you that I am not like other people – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.”

13 ‘But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

14 ‘I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.’’ Amen, this is the Word of the Lord, to Him be all glory and praise.

Hymn 535 “Who would true valour see”

Sermon

What d0 Ken Dodd, Al Capone, Jimmy Carr, Vince Cable, Wesley Snipes, Martha Stewart and Alan Partridge all have in common?  They are famous tax evaders. Ken Dodd got off with it when he was revealed to have very little money in his bank account, having £336,000 in cash stashed in suitcases in his attic. When asked by the judge, “What does a hundred thousand pounds in a suitcase feel like?”, Dodd made his now famous reply, “The notes are very light, M’Lord.”

Most people understand that paying taxes is their civic duty. They may not like it, but they do it. They may take every tax credit, tax break and deduction they can find, and walk through every available loophole. But, down deep, they know that, like death, there’s no avoiding taxes.

Every country in the world has its share of tax evaders, but in Italy, according to one observer, “tax evasion is the country’s most popular sport after soccer, [and] an estimated more than €100 billion a year is lost to tax evasion. … Officials also estimate that Italy’s underground economy … is worth about €200 billion a year, or about 11% of [Italy’s] gross domestic product

Perhaps this is why His Holiness Pope Francis recently praised Italy’s much-maligned tax collectors, noting “that while they will never win popularity contests, they were vital for the functioning of a fair society.” He was speaking to an audience of Italy’s version of the Inland Revenue agents. He argued that “everyone had to pay their fair share of taxes, particularly the wealthy, so that the weakest members of society were not ‘crushed by the most powerful’ people.”

The pontiff also reminded the revenue agents “that while they may not be showered with affection on earth, they have a patron saint in heaven. St. Matthew the Apostle, he said, was a publican or tax collector before he decided to follow Jesus. When the pope praised tax collectors, he was of course relying upon precedent — that being the highest of all possible authorities, Jesus Christ himself.

In today’s reading, Jesus tells a story about two men, a tax man and a wealthy and self-righteous churchgoer, a Pharisee. He had high praise for the former and contempt for the latter. Since we have a gospel reading that involves a man who earns the adulation of not only the pope, but our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ — this is a story worth examining.

The first thing we notice — perhaps with disappointment — is that this reading is not about taxes and tax collectors at all! It is rather about the best way to get on God’s good side.

Jesus expressed this somewhat more theologically: “I tell you; this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted. We get on God’s good side by humbly confessing that we’re sinners in need of God’s redemptive mercy. Of course, a lot of people don’t believe this, they think instead that God tots up their good deeds and hope they have a credit balance!

The Pharisee could not say he was a sinner because he didn’t believe it. And, truth be told, we also might gag on “The Sinner’s Prayer,” because we don’t believe it either! After all, this wealthy religious person did not lie! He claims he was grateful. He was. It was not a lie, and it is universally acknowledged that gratitude is a good thing. He expresses his gratitude to God: “God, I thank you.”

Then he messed up. “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers ….” Here he probably crossed the line, but he might’ve been okay if he’d stopped right there. But no, he had to keep going, pushing his self-righteous foot past the lips and gums and deep into his gargantuan throat, and in so doing expressing pride dressed up as gratitude. “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: … or even like this tax-collector.” In other words, humble bragging. Here’s an example from social media: “I saw a homeless man in front of , and I was only getting one thing Because I didn’t have much money, but instead I bought a case of water and gave it to the man. I gave him the last of my money I walked away crying because I just felt God praising me for putting others before myself.”

The Pharisee can’t stop and leave well enough alone. After mentioning “thieves, rogues, adulterers,” he adds, “or even like this tax-collector” — with perhaps a nod to the wretched penitent standing in the shadows. This is pride, not gratitude, in its most egregious form.

This guy forgot that God loves thieves, rogues, adulterers and tax collectors! Jesus said to the thief on the cross that the two of them would meet up that very day in Paradise. The rogue, also known as Saul, persecuted and terrified many Christians of the early church. He heartily approved of the execution of St. Stephen, the first martyr of the church. But it was worse. Saul literally entered the houses of believers and “dragged both men and women” out into the streets and threw them in prison. Then he saw the light and became Christianity’s first and foremost theologian.

For adulterers, recall Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, a woman who had had five husbands and was currently cohabiting with a man who was not her husband. Or think of the woman — probably a prostitute — who unfortunately was caught in flagrante delicto and tossed at the feet of Jesus by some Pharisees not unlike the one described in today’s reading. Although the Law of Moses prescribed stoning, Jesus famously suggested that “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.”

Of this group itemized by our noble and righteous Pharisee, perhaps the tax collector was the lowest of them all. But, like the pope speaking to Italy’s revenue agents, Jesus praised this tax collector. Within days, he would meet another tax man, Zacchaeus, a tax agent operating out of an office in Jericho. After spotting him in a ridiculous position in a sycamore tree, Jesus asks him to climb down and suggests dinner at his place. The result is the redemption of the tax man, who returned fourfold to all those he had cheated. It is in this story that Jesus reveals his mission. Explaining why he’d had dinner at chez Zacchaeus, he said, “For the Son of Man came to seek out and save the lost.”

A couple of words of caution here though. In the parable the tax collector is not painted as a nice person, despite his profession. He is a rogue, a despicable person. Our common use of the word “tax collectors” as those whom Jesus welcomed, must not blunt the fact that they were often traitors who collected taxes for an occupying army.  These men were hated for good reason. They were the “bag men” for Rome. With the broad swords of the Roman military behind them, they enforced the payment of tolls, even from the poorest of the poor. And they made an extortionate profit from the business.

Also, the Pharisee goes closer to the front of the church, the tax collector stays at the back.  Please, this not a justification for the habit of sitting towards the back of a church and leaving the front pews vacant. Those who sit nearer to the front are not necessarily Pharisees who are unjustified in the eyes of God. Nor are those who cling to the back pews necessarily more humble and justified in God’s eyes.  Things are never that simple.

However, as one person put it, “the tax man at the back of the Temple had been a blood sucking creep. I see him as very plump, well dressed and wearing jewellery”

On the other hand, the Pharisee is  a good man.  We may imagine him as lean from living with moderation and fasting often.  He is trying desperately hard to do the right thing. The only obligatory fast for a good Jew was once a year on the Day of Atonement.  This chap is voluntarily doing it twice a week. What is more he does not merely give a tenth of his income to the temple, he gives a tenth of the cost of anything he buys; just in case the shop keeper does not tithe on his income.

This is not one of those religious people who get legalistic and meticulously pay attention to legal requirement but do not do a thing more. This man is generous.  We would love to have him as a member of this church, wouldn’t we?

However, the Pharisee had it all wrong: Those on his no-fly list were closer to God than he was! They had a better chance of getting on God’s good side (justification) than he did. They knew who they were. They were sinners, yet God loved them. In fact, Jesus once said to a group of “chief priests and elders” that “tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you”

The Pharisee could not wrap his head around this. What? He saw this enormous gulf between himself and these worms of society consisting of thieves, rogues, adulterers and tax collectors. What he failed to understand was that the gulf between himself and God was far greater than between him and these “lowlife losers” as some self-righteous people describe them.  It would seem, in other words, that the Pharisee was beyond redemption — unless he could walk to the publican, stand beside him and bow beside him as a sinner in the presence of God.

The second surprise is the Pharisee’s assumption that his value to the Almighty rested in his religious activities. His bold and aggressive arrogance is breath-taking. The Bible says that he was one of those “who trusted in themselves.” The problem with ego-centric knowledge is that the ego is notorious for its overestimation of assets and underestimation of deficits. The Bible puts it this way: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is extremely sick; Who can understand it fully and know its secret motives?

 The Pharisee was of this tribe. He trusted in himself. This was his first problem. The second was that he thought logically to a wrong conclusion. The logic went this way:

The second premise is faulty. Jesus was talking to a group of those “who trusted in themselves that they were righteous.” They were not righteous — at least not because they tithed and fasted. Fasting and tithing can be valuable religious endeavours, but not when they are used as leverage to pry oneself into the kingdom of heaven. Jesus said that only the key of humility can open the celestial gates: “For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

This is illustrated by the Pharisee’s third problem. He belonged to a cohort of those who “regarded others with contempt.” Here, the Bible seems to suggest that the Pharisee not only had little respect for thieves, rogues, adulterers and tax collectors, but that he regarded others — read everyone! — as beneath his notice!

Somehow, this man had found a way to climb a pedestal and assume a perched position. How can anyone who lives in a cloud of contempt possibly believe the doors of the kingdom are going to swing open as automatically as those of the local supermarket.

How did the Pharisee get it wrong then?

Notice the odd way he prayed “the Pharisee prayed with himself like this.”   Prayed with himself? He is airing his goodness before God rather than communing with God. Flaunting his virtues instead of falling in awe before such pure beauty and holy love.

Where the Pharisee goes totally wrong is when he attempts to justify himself by making comparisons with others. “I thank you God, that I am not like some other men.”  He attempts to find his soul’s security by establishing his credentials as compared with the poor credentials of extortioners, the unjust, and adulterers.

You may have heard a similar comment from someone watching the news or reading a paper. They comment on an item about some respectable person who has been caught breaking the law: “I know I am not a saint, but at least I’m not like that!” Or the worldly person who plays the self-justification game this way: “I know I don’t go to church very often, but at least I am not a hypocrite.” In the Presence of God, we are not siblings, jealous of each other and hoping to buy more parental love by being better than our sisters and brothers.  We don’t earn good points that way. Nor do we earn extra vouchers by bad-mouthing others.

Our only justification for being in the Presence of God comes down to this: God’s unconditional love for us. We are here because God wants us here. The tax collector had it right. He was a sinner. He humbled himself and asked for mercy. He was destined for great things, for, as Jesus said, “all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

The tax collector was a despicable man, but he now knew he was and looked for nothing but the mercy of God. He knew he had no right in the Temple.  He was aware that any comparison with others would leave him in more debit.  His only source of feeling okay was if God granted it to him, gratis!  Grace is what the Gospel is fundamentally about. It is God’s verdict alone that matter and God’s verdict is grace.

I have one final comment. A sting in the tail. There is a little, demonic trap lurking close by after we have heard this parable. It is the temptation for each of us to think: “Thank God I’m not like that Pharisee.” Amen.

Prayers of thanksgiving and intercession
Almighty God, we thank you that your written Word continues to inspire us, showing us who you are, how you love us and how we should live. Thank you too for the way in which the Bible brings guidance, hope and health to people everywhere. We pray for the work of the Bible Society and other organisations and ask for your blessing on the work they do to introduce the Bible to people’s hearts and minds.

Faithful God, we pray for Christians throughout the world, and particularly for those who are persecuted because of their faith in you. We ask for your protection for them, and strength and guidance for all individuals and organisations that seek to help them.

We pray for the whole family of your church in our parish May we all be renewed in our love of the Scriptures that, through the study of your Word, we might encounter Jesus and allow ourselves to be transformed by his words and actions.  We ask for your guidance on all that we do in our churches to ensure that we serve the local community in the way that honours you.

Creator God, we thank you that scripture shows that you care for the entire world and all its people, and we pray for all countries that are torn apart by conflict, illness and hunger.  We pray for peace in the world bringing before you the troubles and dangers of people and nations, particularly Ukraine. Shower your blessings on communities seeking to rebuild their lives in peace and hope; guide and protect refugees fleeing from war, hunger and persecution in their homelands and direct all rulers, governments and leaders of people to strive for justice, peace and fair share for all people from the rich bounty of their lands.  In a moment of silence, please pray for any country that is on your mind today.

Loving God, we pray for our local community. Please show us how we can best serve people who are struggling in any way.  We pray for all children, teachers and staff at schools in our parish and ask that they will be refreshed after their half-term holiday.  In a moment of silence, please pray for any aspect of life in our local community that is on your mind today.

Gracious God, we pray for the sick, the lonely and the hurting in our community and for those who care for them. Help them to draw strength from the love of our Lord Jesus shown through the words of scripture. As we think of the power of your Word to set captives free, we pray too for those who are chained by situations beyond their control or by sickness of body, mind or spirit.   We lift our session clerk, Moira, and husband Ron to you as she faces the prospect of major surgery and pray your healing power for her.

Loving God, we remember in our prayers friends and those we love who have enriched our lives and are now departed from us. We pray for those who have died recently or whose anniversaries occur at this time of year.

Holy God, thank you for hearing our prayers and we ask you to guide us with your Holy Spirit in all that we do and say in the coming week. Merciful Father accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Hymn MP 302 “I want to walk with Jesus Christ”

 The Benediction

May God be our vision and may Christ be our pattern,
may the Spirit be our energy, and may the love of God
Creator, Saviour and Holy Spirit, be with us, and those we love
today and always. Amen.

May God’s blessing surround you each day

 Postlude: “How great thou art”