Sunday message and worship, 2016-0410


Children at the Altar, Anthem, and Message (with song)

ReThink Easter: In the Night My
Hope Lives On
 
      #2,
Victory for the Fearful
2016/04/10 Christ Church,
Mountain Top, Easter 3
Call to Worship, Psalm 46
Children, Genesis
32
Message, 2 Kings 6.8-23
Song, “In the Night”, vv 1-2, 7-8
Song: In the Night (Andrew
Peterson), including lyrics below
I am weary with the pain of
Jacob’s wrestling
In the darkness with the Fear, in
the darkness with the Fear
But he met the morning wounded
with a blessing
So in the night my hope lives on
When Elisha woke surrounded by
the forces
Of the enemies of God, the
enemies of God
He saw the hills aflame with
angels on their horses
So in the night my hope lives on
Well, I remember how they scorned
the son of Mary
He was gentle as a lamb, gentle
as a lamb
He was beaten, he was crucified,
and buried
And in the night, my hope was
gone
But the rulers of this earth
could not control Him
No they did not take his life–he
laid it down
And all the chains of death could
never hope to hold him
So in the night my hope lives on

 

Easy to focus on the simplistic …
which destroys the story’s appeal
      God
as an ace up our sleeves
      Just
have faith
      Genesis
31.53, Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac
      God
wrestles with Jacob, all night long!
Be careful of misdirected fear
      The
attendant’s cry: Alas, master! What shall we do?
      Focused
on the imminent threat
      Forget
that our God is the Living God, the Almighty,
            “The
Fear of Isaac”
      “I
will show you whom you are to fear”
Do not call conspiracy all that
this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what it fears, or be in
dread.  13 But the LORD of
hosts, him you shall regard as holy; let him be your fear, and let him be your
dread (Isaiah 8:12-13).
The threat is always more visible
than salvation and gift
      Problem
is always bigger than the solution
      Dad’s
anger, Robin’s appendicitis
            The
root of her call
 
Be wary of becoming the monster
you fear
      The
king’s suggestion: Father, shall I kill them? Shall I kill them?
      Beowulf,
Grendel, Grendel’s mother, the dragon
Overcome evil with good
      Bullies
– 2nd grade, high school
      Jesus,
“gentle as a lamb …”
Live in HOPE
      Good
does overcome evil, not by power but through weakness and brokenness! Christ is
Risen!

      While
the threat is always more visible than salvation and gift, it is salvation and
gift that have the last word. Christ is Risen!