Saginaw First Free Methodist ChurchThrid Sunday of Easter

May 5, 2019

“That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for

they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.’" (John 21:7-8)

Rev. Jason EvansFirst Free Methodist Church

2625 N. Center Rd.Saginaw, Michigan 48603

Phone: (989) 799-2930Email: saginawfmc@gmail.com

www.saginawfirstfmc.org

May 5, 2019Third Sunday of Easter

The mission of Saginaw First Free Methodist Church is to be faithful to God and to make known to all people everywhere God’s call to wholeness in Jesus Christ.

Prelude**Greeting/Announcements*Call to Worship (spoken responsively)L: O Lord our God, we praise youP: We cried to you for help and you answered usL: You have restored our livesP: You have rescued us from the grave L: To the One who is seated on the throne and to the LambP: Be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever

Opening Hymn: “Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty”

1 Holy, holy, holy! Lord God AlmightyEarly in the morning our song shall rise to theeHoly, holy, holy! Merciful and mightyGod in three Persons, blessed Trinity

2 Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore theeCasting down their golden crowns around the glassy seaCherubim and seraphim falling down before theeWhich wert, and art, and evermore shalt be

3 Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide theeThough the eye of sinful man thy glory may not seeOnly thou art holy; there is none beside theePerfect in pow'r, in love, and purity

4 Holy, holy, holy! Lord God AlmightyAll thy works shall praise thy name in earth and sky and seaHoly, holy, holy! Merciful and mightyGod in three Persons, blessed Trinity

Invocation and Lord’s Prayer

L: Holy God, you have called us to follow in the way of your risen Son, and to care for those who are our companions, not only with words of comfort, but with acts of love. Seeking to be true friends of all, teach us to offer our lives on behalf of the church and the world. Let the Spirit lead us into your resurrection power, as we pray the prayer Jesus taught his disciples...

P: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, your 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 Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.

*Gloria PatriGlory be to the FatherAnd to the SonAnd to the Holy GhostAs it was in the beginningIs now and ever shall beWorld without end, Amen, Amen.

First Scripture Lesson: Psalm 30I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up, and did not let my foes rejoice over me. O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed

me. O LORD, you brought up my soul from the depths, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.

Sing praises to the LORD, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger is but for a moment; his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning. As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.”

By your favor, O LORD, you had established me as a strong mountain; you hid your face; I was dismayed. To you, O LORD, I cried, and to the LORD I made supplication: “What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness? Hear, O LORD, and be

gracious to me! O LORD, be my helper!”

You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever.

Prayer of ConfessionL: When your soul is suffering in silence, call out to the Lord our God, who heals our brokenness, who lifts us up from the pit, and restores our lives.

Therefore, let us confess our sins to our Merciful God.

P: Lord God, in the light of your glory, we see the sin we have done. We can see the suffering we’ve caused, the good we have refused, and the truth we have denied. Heal us of our sin, wash us in your mercy, and feed us with your grace, so that we may follow your way and tell the good news of your gospel. Amen.

Affirmation of FaithL: Let’s affirm our faith as we read from Revelation 5 together…

P: Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, singing with full voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing, “To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the elders fell down and worshiped.

*Hymn: “Have Thine Own Way, Lord” 1 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own wayThou art the potter, I am the clayMold me and make me after thy willWhile I am waiting, yielded and still

2 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own waySearch me and try me, Savior todayWash me just now, Lord, wash me just now As in thy presence humbly I bow

3 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own wayWounded and weary, help me I prayPower, all power, surely is thineTouch me and heal me, Savior divine

4 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own wayHold o'er my being absolute swayFill with thy Spirit till all shall see Christ only, always, living in me

Second Scripture Lesson: Acts 9:1-20Meanwhile 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 baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength. For several days he was with the disciples in Damascus, and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is

the Son of God.”

Communion

*Passing of the PeaceDuring Passing of the Peace, parents may take their children, ages 4 to 10, to Spark. The Spark room is just off the front of the sanctuary toward the

fellowship hall.

Prayers of the PeopleL: Lord in Your Mercy…P: Hear Our Prayer.

Gospel Lesson: John 21:1-19

After these things Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. Simon Peter said to them, "I am going fishing."

They said to him, "We will go with you." They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, "Children, you have no fish, have you?" They answered him, "No." He said to them, "Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some." So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish.

That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off. When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread.

Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish that you have just caught." So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn.

Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, "Who are you?" because they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs." A second time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Tend my sheep."

He said to him the third time, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, "Do you love me?" And he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep.

Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go." (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, "Follow me."

Sermon

This past week, I was able to get together with a couple of different friends over coffee, and catch up on life. We sat around and talked about how our families were doing, what was happening in our churches, and I was able to hear a little about their traveling.

Sometimes, getting together face to face can take months of planning, while other times it's as simple as quick text message. Depending on how far we have to travel to meet, or how busy our schedules are, can make a huge difference in how often we see our friends or loved ones. How often we see one another also affects what kind of plans we make.

As we see each other once or twice a week here at the church, a two- or three-minute conversation is all we may need to catch up on things, but if it’s been five or six months, like it’s been since Brianne has seen her sister, a two week trip to Texas may be in order.

For whatever reason, no matter how often we see each other, gathering around food always seems to increase the value or the richness of the gathering. As nice as it is to say “Hello” right before church service, but that doesn't stop us from going out for lunch after. Getting together over a meal takes investment on behalf of all the parties involved. There is an unnamed commitment made when we decide to have a meal together, that says “I'm putting myself into relationship with you.”

Getting together over a meal takes a time commitment, it also can take a work or effort commitment, as Carol and other can attest to from yesterday’s Mother-Daughter Banquet, as Sarah and Deb can say from coordinating our potlucks, plug for Wednesday Night’s potluck with the Cross Family. It also takes a personal and emotional commitment to sit and listen to what’s happening with other people’s lives, and to share what is happening in your own life. There is a

vulnerability and a fidelity that comes from committing our lives to one another in this way.  And those commitments escalate the more we commit ourselves to any given relationship, just think of a marriage or family relationship.

The more that is given to these relationships, the more we desire these relationships, the more sacred they become to us. That word “sacred” means to set apart or consecrate. When we make something sacred, we place the value, importance, and meaning above, what we call, ordinary.

When we look at a Gospel lesson like this week’s Gospel lesson, it’s easy to look at it without seeing it in full context. It’s easy to read it and picture it as they guys were out fishing, and Jesus shows up, again I might add, when the fish seem to be missing, and Jesus makes the fish appear from thin air.

But really, just ten or twelve days before, there were the traumatic events of the arrest of Jesus, the betrayal of Judas and Peter, the crucifixion, the resurrection, the appearance of Jesus to those in the upper room, the Road to Emmaus, Jesus again showing up and revealing himself to Thomas. Really this would be an awful lot to take in for a first century human over two weeks.

In the great scheme of things, Jesus has revealed himself as Messiah, or Christ, and has lead God’s people out of the old way of life, and into a new, resurrected way of living. And of course, the narrative reenacts or imitates the way God lead the Israelites out of Egypt.

When Moses, by the power of God working in him, leads the Exodus from Egypt, he performs the Ten signs of the plagues, they have the Passover meal, they cross the Red Sea, and God gives them the commandments. THEN, which hardly gets a footnote these days, God and the elders of the tribes, have a sacred meal together. Exodus chapter 24, in my study Bible, titles it, The Covenant Confirmed.

Jesus, of course, comes to Israel the same way. He performs signs and miracles, transforming the negative idea of plagues, into healings and restoration. As our Communion ritual testifies to, Jesus hosts a Passover meal, Jesus, in his death and resurrection, imitates passing through the Red Sea, instead of slavery and bondage to Egypt, it’s slavery and bondage to sin and death.

In our Gospel lesson, Jesus reminds Peter of his calling to feed his sheep, and care for his lambs. If Peter truly loves the way he says he does, Peter’s actions will feed the sheep and care for the lambs. It is a reminder of the Gospel lesson from a few weeks back when Jesus tells Peter he will be a fisher, or rescuer, of men, in the way Jesus has rescued men.

Then Jesus sits down with them and they feast. It is sacred, though it is not extravagant. It is set apart, a reminder that God, in the Old Testament and again in the revelation of Christ, has come to commune with mankind, and to fellowship with us.

God has come to rescue all people, Peter the denier, and Paul, as we’ve seen from our New Testament reading, the persecutor of God’s people. God’s desire is for all to sit at the table and feast with almighty God, not to drive any away from the table of fellowship. God invites all to the table, wanting that none should perish, but all to have abundant life.

This is our mission, as the church of God, if we chose to accept it. We too, are called to rescue men, and bring them to the table of our Lord and savior, in fellowship. So that all may eat and be satisfied, and all may experience the love of God and be embraced with God’s glory. As our Communion reminds us that God has come to us, God eats with us and fellowships with us, we too are to take to the world this love, hope and faith. We are to take to the world this rare, relentless grace.

This makes Communion sacred. This makes our fellowship with one another here in these walls, and out there in our communities sacred. This makes every cup of water we give in Christ’s name, over can of soup donated, ever Christmas gift, every dollar we donate to missions, every box of facial tissue we put out for the rescue mission sacred.

As we make these simple, selfless acts, done for Christ and the work of God, they become sacred and they become a blessing, charged and filled with God’s mission, purpose, dignity, and value for those we serve. This is how we can become the hands and feet of God here on earth, so that the Holy Spirit can work and do mighty deeds that we read about in scripture.

This week, as we dwell in the resurrection of God from the dead, may we remember that we have passed on from death unto life. May we remember God feasts with us, and we are Gods, and God’s alone. May we put away the things that drive anyone away from God’s table of fellowship and love. And may we humbly share what God has provided us, so that our gifts too may bring resurrection to those who receive. Amen.

*Hymn: “There Is a Redeemer”

1 There is a Redeemer Jesus, God's own SonPrecious Lamb of God, Messiah, Holy OneThank You, O my Father, For giving us Your SonAnd leaving Your Spirit till, The work on earth is done

2 Jesus, my Redeemer, Name above all namesPrecious Lamb of God, Messiah, O for sinners slainThank You, O my Father, For giving us Your SonAnd leaving Your Spirit till, The work on earth is done

When I stand in glory, I will see His faceThere I'll serve my King forever, In that holy placeThank You, O my Father, For giving us Your SonAnd leaving Your Spirit till, The work on earth is done

Prayer of Response

OfferingL: Jesus calls us to feed his lambs and tend his sheep. Let us show and share his love, as we collect this morning’s tithes and offerings.

*Doxology

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow Praise Him, all creatures here belowPraise Him above, ye heavenly hostPraise Father Son, and Holy Ghost.Amen.

*Prayer

*Hymn: “Redeemed”

1. Redeemed, how I love to proclaim itRedeemed by the blood of the LambRedeemed through His infinite mercyHis child, and forever I amRedeemed, redeemedRedeemed by the blood of the LambRedeemed, redeemedHis child and forever I am

2. Redeemed, and so happy in JesusNo language my rapture can tellI know that the light of His presenceWith me doth continually dwellRedeemed, redeemedRedeemed by the blood of the LambRedeemed, redeemedHis child and forever I am

3. I think of my blessed RedeemerI think of Him all the day longI sing, for I cannot be silentHis love is the theme of my songRedeemed, redeemedRedeemed by the blood of the LambRedeemed, redeemedHis child and forever I am

4. I know I shall see in His beautyThe King, in whose law I delightWho lovingly guardeth my footstepsAnd giveth me songs in the nightRedeemed, redeemedRedeemed by the blood of the LambRedeemed, redeemedHis child and forever I am

*BenedictionL: Jesus said, “Feed my lambs, tend my sheep, and follow me.” To the Good Shepherd, who is seated on the throne, go in peace to love and serve. Amen.