1-10-2021 “About My Father’s Business”

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PRE-SERVICE LOOP goes up TWO OR THREE MINUTES before 10 a.m. — WELCOME/DATE slide and any pre-service announcement would loop until 10 a.m.

WELCOME AND DATE

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WELCOME AND DATE

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GREETING

pastor gives a few words of greeting
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ANNOUNCEMENTS — listed by date

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ANNOUNCEMENT —Ralls Mobile Food Pantry

Final reminder — Volunteers needed for food distribution to needy families in Ralls Thursday, January 14. Distribution begins at 10, so volunteers should come early.
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ANNOUNCEMENT — Men’s Breakfast — Lorenzo

The men of Lorenzo FUMC will have their Men’s Breakfast at 6:30 a.m., Wednesday, January 20, in the Fellowship Hall
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ANNOUNCEMENT — Make a Difference — Lorenzo

Make A Difference has been on a break during the pandemic, but it has started up again. Participants make blankets for cancer patients, but no sewing is involved. They’re meeting at 2 p.m. on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at Lorenzo FUMC. Supplies will be provided, and each person will have their own table for social distancing, although it’s “Bring Your Own Mask.” Call Donna Campbell for details.
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ANNOUNCEMENT — Let pastor know of changes

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CENTERING OUR HEARTS ON WORSHIP

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Today is the first Sunday after Epiphany, and it is traditionally celebrated as Baptism of The Lord Sunday. However, because we spent several weeks during Advent on these very same verses recommended for today, I’m focusing today’s sermon on Jesus being “lost” from His parents when He was 12 and them finding Him in the Temple deep in conversation with the religious scholars there.
If we were worshipping in our building today, we would ordinarily celebrate our own baptisms with water and stone or a pebble. That’s not very practical today. But I think it is important that we DO remember our baptisms — that is, that we WERE baptized and we ARE in Christ — or as Galatians 3:27 says you have “clothed yourselves with Christ.”
change to REMEMBER YOUR BAPTISM slide and leave up until time for GATHERING PRAYER
That should make a difference in the way we live our lives, how we present ourselves to others and how we treat others — especially those who are different from us. So I challenge you to take just a moment to remember that you WERE baptized. Perhaps it was when you were a child and you didn’t have any say in the matter. But later, as a teenager or a grownup, you took on those vows for yourself when you were confirmed or joined the church. Those vows are still binding — that we a re to SHARE Christ and BE Christ to the world. Remember those vows and re-commit this morning to living out those vows each day.
And now, let us join together in our Gathering Prayer as we begin worship.
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GATHERING PRAYER

pastor prays ... AMEN.
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CALL TO WORSHIP (Based on Psalm 29)

PASTOR: David calls all divine beings – in the heavens and the ones on earth who were created in His image, to praise and glorify God.
PEOPLE: Give to the Lord the glory due His name! Bow down to the Lord in holy splendor!
PASTOR: The Lord’s voice is over the waters; the glorious God thunders; the Lord is over the mighty waters.
PEOPLE: The Lord’s voice is strong; the Lord’s voice is majestic.
PASTOR: The Lord’s voice unleashes fiery flames; The Lord’s voice convulses the oaks, strips the forests bare,
PEOPLE: but in His temple everyone shouts, “Glory!” Let the Lord give strength to His people! Let the Lord bless His people with peace!
change to FIRST HYMN slide, which gives the name of the hymn and stays up for a short introduction of the hymn . Then the slide changes to the words of the first hymn (a single slide that is actually several slides. If a verse is broken up into more than one slide, the signal for the slide change is a dash ( — )

FIRST HYMN — “How Great Thou Art”

As we are beginning a new year, we are minded of the awesomeness of God, whether it’s creating or dissipating huge storms and whether those storms are in nature or on the streets of the Nation’s Capital or in our hearts. Put it all in God’s hands, God’s capable great hands. So let us praise God by singing two verses of “How Great Thou Art”
Verse
O, Lord my God,
when I, in awesome wonder,
consider all the worlds
thy hands have made.
I see the stars,
I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy pow'r thru'out,
The universe displayed.
Chorus
Then sings my soul,
“My Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art!
How great Thou art!”
Then sings my soul,
“My Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art!
How great Thou art!
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Verse
When through the woods
and forest glades I wander,
and hear the birds
sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down
from lofty mountain grandeur
and hear the brook
and feel the gentle breeze.
Chorus
Then sings my soul,
“My Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art!
How great Thou art!”
Then sings my soul,
“My Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art!
How great Thou art!
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When the song is over, change slide to Old Testament reading and leave up during the introduction to the passage, which usually ends with something like, “Let’s listen to the book/chapter/verses, reading from the Common English Bible.”
OLD TESTAMENT READING — Genesis 1:1-5 (CEB)
The Revised Common Lectionary takes us through the Old Testament in a three-year cycle as it covers all t he books of the Old Testament in one way or another.
Starting with the season after Epiphany, we begin at the very beginning. As John tells us later in his Gospel, nothing was there, and God brought everything into being. So Genesis describes how God began to act, His Spirit sweeping over the dark waters and Him breathing light into the world. Wind in Hebrew is the same word as spirit and breath: ruach.
“Let’s listen to the Old Testament — the book about God and His relationship with the people He created — begins. We’re reading Genesis 1:1-5 from the Common English Bible.
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(change slide to the slides for the Old Testament reading, which will look like one slide but is several slides — the signal to change the slide is a dash (—)
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. --
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. --
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. --
5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning — the first day.
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CENTERING OUR HEARTS IN PRAYER

Monty Roberts is HOME! After some two months in ICU and several more weeks in rehab, he was able to come home last Monday. Praise God for his miraculous healing. Ed Smith, formerly of Lorenzo and a member of Lorenzo FUMC, has died, and we’’ve added his family to the list. We’re keeping Emilie Cook on the list, but I got word this week of several people on t he list for a long time who could be taken off. You received a then up-to-date current list Friday, and I try to keep it updated on our website.
Angela Arthur remains on the Ralls list. She learned last week that she has to stay off her feet for at least another four weeks.
If there are names that came off either list, let me know, and of course, we can add names to it, as well.
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PASTORAL PRAYER

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THE LORD’S PRAYER

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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
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TITHES AND OFFERINGS/NO DOXOLOGY

Where to send regular offerings
Enchanted Tree offering
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EPISTLE READING — Acts 19:1-7 (CEB)

We’re not reading today about John the Baptist baptising Jesus, but our Epistle lesson brings up some others that John baptized —some 12 men who had become his disciples. However, Paul says these disciples had never heard of the Holy Spirit — a pastor friend in Austin used to joke that they were the first Methodists! These disciples of John had been baptized only into the waters of repentance that John taught. But John had also taught t that one was coming after him, named Jesus, who was greater than him.
Paul then laid his hands on John’s disciples to receive the Holy Spirit. He did not call them to go back into the water again, but instead, prayed for the Holy Spirit to come upon them in the name of Jesus and they did receive the Holy Spirit — God’s Holy Spirit — that day.
We’re reading Acts 19:107 from the Common English Bible:
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19 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples --
2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No,
we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” --
3 So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,” they replied. --
4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” --
5 On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. --
6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. --
7 There were about twelve men in all.
after the Scripture, change to SECOND HYMN slide, which gives the name of the hymn and stays up for a short introduction of the hymn . After the hymn introduction, change slide to words to the second hymn, which will look like a single slide, but will include several slides, depending on the number of verses, etc. If a verse is broken up into more than one slide, the signal for the slide change is a dash (—)

SECOND HYMN — "I Love to Tell the Story”

One of the aspects of remembering our baptism is to remember that we have been charged with telling the story of Jesus. Our second hymn reminds us of what that’s all about. We’ll sing two verses of “I Love to Tell the Story.”
Verse
I love to tell the story of unseen things above,
of Jesus and His Glory,
of Jesus and His Love.
I love to tell the story, because I know 'tis true.
It satisfies my longings
as nothing else can do --
I love to tell the story,
'Twill be my theme in glory:
To tell the old, old story
of Jesus and His Love. --
Verse
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I love to tell the story
for those who know it best
seem hungering and thirsting
to hear it like the rest.
And when in scenes of glory,
I sing the new, new song
'Twill be the old, old story
that I have loved so long. --
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I love to tell the story,
'Twill be my theme in glory:
To tell the old, old story
of Jesus and His Love.
To tell the old old story
of Jesus and his love.--
When the song is over, change slide to the BREAKING OPEN OUR HEARTS WITH THE WORD slide, which stay sup for a few seconds. Then change to SERMON TITLE

CENTERING OUR HEARTS WITH THE WORD

SERMON TITLE: “About My Father’s Business”

change to CONTENT slide until you hear the Scripture reference, then change to GOSPEL LESSON
All we know about the birth of Jesus we read in Matthew and Luke. There were outlandish stories about angels telling two women — one an old woman who had been childless for many years and one who was still a virgin — that they were about to become mothers, and an angel telling a carpenter that the woman he was engaged to but had not slept with was going to have a baby conceived by God’s Holy Spirit. Impossible stories, but as the angel told Mary, “Nothing is impossible with God.”
Then the pregnant Mary and her husband Joseph head to Bethlehem, because there’s a governmental decree that everyone is to go to the city where their families came from to be counted in a census. Both Mary and Joseph were from the line of King David, and that meant going to Bethlehem. It’s not a coincidence: God arranged for a census to be ordered that would take this couple to the city long prophesied as the place from which the Messiah would come — although few were expecting the Messiah to come as a baby.
Next come amazing stories about shepherds guarding their sheep late one night when when an angel tells them that the Messiah HAS been born that very day in David’s City and is lying in a manger and a heavenly host of angels begin singing praises to God. They hurry to Bethlehem and do see the baby lying in a manger, and the shepherds return to their sheep singing God’s praises.
And then, sometime later, magi (or wisemen) show up in Bethlehem -- not at a stable but at a house — which indicates the child might be as old as 2 or so. They had brought gifts for the baby, but an angel warned them the evil King Herod planned to have the child killed. That’s how we know the child might have been as old as 2 years of age, because Herod had all boy babies killed two years old or younger in that region.
’We learned last week about the magi coming and their gifts and their going home by a different route to avoid going through Jerusalem. We read about traditions we were familiar with — like the circumcising of a boy eight days after his birth — and some we’ve heard little about — like purification rituals the mother had to go through after the birth of a baby and the “buying back” of a family’s first-born boy, who traditionally was dedicated to God. These were all traditions required by the Law, given by God to Moses for the Hebrew people to follow. So Mary and Joseph did all these things in the first two or three months of Jesus’s life, and Luke tell us “The child grew up and became strong. He was filled with wisdom, and God’s favor was on him.”
That’s it — not another word about Jesus until He is a grown man EXCEPT for one story that immediately followed those rituals required on the birth of a baby and told in Luke. And THAT story comes 12 years later and, again, only in Luke. But it’s significant to note that Jesus is now 12 years old, and there are certain rituals that go along with that age. We’ll talk about that in a minute.
First, let’s listen to Luke 2:41-52, reading from the Common English Bible.
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GOSPEL LESSON — Luke 2:41-52 (CEB)

41 Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. 42 When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom. --
43 After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. --
44 Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. --
45 When they did not find him, they went back to look for him. --
46 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. --
47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. --
48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” --
49 “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they did not understand what he was saying to them. --
51 Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. --
52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
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THE TRIP TO JERUSALEM

Jesus was on the verge of becoming a man. A 12-year-old boy in 2021 is nowhere near being a man, but things were different in Jesus’ day.Life expectancy was shorter than today, and children were expected to take up adult duties at an earlier age. Thirteen was the age when males in His time took up their adult responsibilities. [ATTRIBUTION: from “Just What the Doctor Ordered” sermon on Proclaim sermon website]
A father began teaching his 12-year-old son what it meant to be a man and about making his way in the world. When he reached 13, the boy became a “son of the law” and began taking on the obligations of the law. By the time he was 13, he was — In the eyes of the Law, of his family and the world — a man.
One aspect of that was Jesus going to Passover when He turned 12, and and He went with His family to the Passover at the Temple in Jerusalem, as was their custom. As commentator William Barclay put it, “We may well imagine how the holy city and the Temple and the sacred ritual fascinated him.” [ATTRIBUTION: William Barclay (Ed.). (1975). The Gospel of Luke (p. 300). Barclay, W. (Ed.). (1975). The Gospel of Luke (p. 300). Philadelphia, PA: The Westminster John Knox Press, Philadelphia, PA]
Probably the most important ritual prescribed by Jewish law was attendance at the Passover Festival in Jerusalem. Historian William Barclay said “every adult male Jew who lived within fifteen miles of Jerusalem must attend the Passover. In point of fact.” he noted, “it was the aim of every Jew in all the world at least once in a lifetime to attend that feast.”
Luke tells us that it was Mary and Joseph’s custom to go every year to the feast of the Passover in Jerusalem. Since it was a three-day journey from Bethlehem to Jerusalem, people usually traveled in caravans with friends and family. Women usually walked with women and started out earlier because they traveled slower than the men, and then the men walked with the other men. Some “children might have walked some with their fathers, some with their mothers and many more simply walked together on their own, looking after each other.” [ATTRIBUTION: from “Just What the Doctor Ordered” sermon on Proclaim sermon website] The families would meet up again until time for the evening encampment.
That’s why the family would not have noticed if one of the group was among the missing. There would have been a lot of children, and each parent would think their child was with the other parent if they noticed the absence at all. It wouldn’t be until after all were at the encampment that a parent would realize that a child wasn’t there.
Everything went fine going to Jerusalem, but the first night going back home, nobody noticed that Jesus wasn’t with them until they reach the evening camp. And then, it’s Katy, Bar the Door! Where is Jesus? They searched throughout the encampment for Him and then made the day’s journey back to Jerusalem to search for Him, spending another three days looking for Him. They looked almost everywhere for Him (except, apparently the Temple, or the parts of the Temple where, during the Passover season, the Sanhedrin would discuss religious and theological questions or other points of Jewish law in the presence of all who would listen — since no one would have expected to find Jesus there!)
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WHY DID JESUS STAY BEHIND AND WHAT WAS HE DOING?

We don’t know exactly why Jesus stayed behind. It does appear to be a deliberate choice on His part. Luke tells us when the feast was over and His parents were leaving, “ the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem.” Paul H. Ashby suggests that this translation, which is used most commonly, has the meaning of staying overtime. He says, “This gives the story a slightly different feel, as if Jesus stayed behind purposefully, not because He wanted to for His own benefit, but because He felt it right to do so.” On the other hand, another pastor suggests this was perhaps “an example of how preteens and teens truly believe, in their heart of hearts, that they are already an adult and can make their own decisions.” That seems unlikely for that day and time.
But when confronted — really rebuked by His parents — for what they considered flagrant disobedience on His part, Jesus gives an answer to the “Why?” question. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”
Two things there. One is the imperative. Jesus articulates his purpose with clarity and conviction: “I must be in my Father’s house.” The English word “must” is derived from the Greek word dei, implying a sense of necessity. This word dei, though, is from the root word deo, which means to literally bind or chain two things together. “I am literally bound to my Father’s house.” Secondly, or perhaps it’s part of the first, this 12-year-old boy knows — at least to some extent — who He is and what He is to be about.
When His parents locate Him, they find Him in the Temple where they had last seen Him. He is sitting with and surrounded by the most learned men of His day. I read that the Jewish tradition had the “most learned rabbis sit down to teach, while their followers stand around them. The fact that Jesus is sitting amongst these distinguished scholars shows they’re treating Him as a peer.” [ATTRIBUTION: from “The Time Is Now” sermon on Proclaim sermon website]
Jesus e is asking them questions, He is listening, and they are apparently asking Him questions. Barclay notes, "We must not think of it as a scene where a precocious boy was dominating a crowd of his seniors. Hearing and asking questions is the regular Jewish phrase for a student learning from his teachers. Jesus was listening to the discussions and eagerly searching for knowledge like an avid student. But more than just listening, He was conversing with the religious scholars, who Luke tells us were “amazed at his understanding and his answers.’
And however you see Jesus’ actions in staying behind in Jerusalem, Luke does say” Jesus found favor with God.”
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WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN?

And that brings us to what Barclay calls “one of the key passages in the life of Jesus.” When Mary asks why He has troubled them so, Jesus says , “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” Barclay then presents several interesting theories — some of which I agree with and some I’m not so sure about. First, Barclay points to how “very gently but very definitely Jesus takes the name father from Joseph and gives it to God. “ That is definitely true. Jesus did do that in this moment. But Barclay goes on, “At some time Jesus must have discovered his own unique relationship to God. He cannot have known it when he was a child in the manger and a baby at his mother’s breast or he would be a monstrosity. As the years went on he must have had thoughts; and then at this first Passover, with manhood dawning, there came in a sudden blaze of realization the consciousness that he was in a unique sense the Son of God.”
It’s that last part I’m not sure about. It’s not clear to me WHEN Jesus knew WHAT about Himself. Late in His life, he acknowleges that He is the Messiah and God’s Son. Some scholars pinpoint different times in His life when He seemed to recognize His role — like at His baptism and His crucifixion. But since He was 12? I’m not so sure as to how much He knew or understood.
Still, it is clear that Jesus is discovering who He is. And Barclay makes an interesting point, saying, “mark this—the discovery did not make him proud. It did not make him look down on his humble parents, the gentle Mary and the hard-working Joseph. He went home and he was obedient to them. The fact that he was God’s Son made him the perfect son of his human parents. The real man of God does not despise earthly ties; just because he is God’s man [or woman], he [or she] discharges human duties with supreme fidelity.”
And here’s another point. The reason Jesus is in the temple in the first place is because He’s so focused on living with God in the present moment, He’s got no room in His life for anything else. Or, as one writer put it, “That’s not to say Jesus is all work and no play. On the contrary, he was criticized, in his day, for spending too much time at parties, for drinking too much wine, for hanging out with the sorts of people whose presence wasn’t exactly edifying. Yet the scriptures demonstrate that, when Jesus was with that sort of person — the tax collector, the tavern-keeper, the transient — he was so completely present to that person, the encounter was life changing for them.”
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OUR HEARTS RESPOND TO THE WORD

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Here’s the question for us to reflect on and respond to today. What does it mean for US to be about Our Father’s business? I guess that depends on how you define God’s business. My definition says it isn’t about me — it’s about God and what He wants, and He has made it perfectly clear what HE wants. He wants the Church to be the Body of Christ IN the community FOR the community, not for us. William Temple once said, “The Church is the only institution that exists primarily for the benefit of those who are not its members.” Or as theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it: “The Church is the Church only when it exists for others...not dominating, but helping and serving. It must tell men of every calling what it means to live for Christ, to exist for others.” To me, that is BEING the Church, BEING the hands and feet and heart of Jesus whenever, wherever, however. I don’t succeed as much as I’d like to, but that’s the definition of the church I strive for. What about you? How do you see the Church and your role in it?
2020 is now in the past — over and done with. Can’t make any changes there. But we have a new day, a new week, a new year, a new chance to try to be more like Jesus every day in every way. And that means being present to God, as Jesus was in the Temple, and present to your fellow human beings, as Jesus made Himself available and truly present in every way to loveables, unloveables and outcasts.
As we look at these first few days of 2021, how much of it did you live purposefully so far? How much came from a place of clarity and conviction? Are you listening for a soft whisper from Jesus about YOUR purpose for 2021 and the purpose for the Church? Has Jesus whispered a new purpose to you for 2021, a new goal? Has Jesus given you a new way of life, a new standard of conduct and a new power for living?
Are we ready to accept this responsibility? Are we ready to be forgiven so that we might forgive others? Are we ready to receive God’s peace, that we might be at peace with others? Are we ready to elevate the status of those considered unworthy, as we have been elevated? Are we willing to live with a different standard of conduct, a different power and a different way of life? In other words, as Christians, are we what Paul called “baby Christians” or are we ready to grow up and take responsibility for our actions, for Jesus’ sake?
Think on these things his week as we be honest with ourselves and with God as to whether or not we’re WILLING to be the Church, the Body of Christ, in the world.
As our immediate response, let’s say the words of the Affirmation of Faith. Each week we say these words that have come down to us through Scripture and tradition, and we SAY “This is what I believe.” But saying the words require attempting to live out the truth of these words. If we truly believe Jesus is the Son of God, that He died for our sins and will come to judge everyone — living or dead — at the end of time, that God will forgive our sins and expects us to forgive t he sins of others, and that all of this is for all of eternity and not just this lifetime, then that should make a noticeable difference in our lives. Will you join with me in saying — and meaning — these words?
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change to the words to the Affirmation of Faith

AFFIRMATION OF FAITH/GLORIA PATRI

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I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord;who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried;
the third day he rose from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church,the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body,a nd the life everlasting. Amen.
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INVITATION

after the INVITATION, change to INVITATION HYMN slide, which gives the name of the hymn and stays up for a short introduction of the hymn . After the hymn introduction, change slide to words to the second hymn, which will look like a single slide, but will include several slides, depending on the number of verses, etc. If a verse is broken up into more than one slide, the signal for the slide change is a dash (—)

INVITATION SONG — “Only Trust Him”

Our hymn of invitation is “Only Trust Him.” But I want to remind you that this song is not just inviting people to accept Christ for the first time as their Savior or to join our church and be a part of this community of faith. This song invites ALL of us to “Only Trust Him” with our lives, to commit anew to the promises made at our baptisms or when we first joined the church, or even to new commitments made today. We’ll sing two verses.
Verse
Come ev'ry soul by sin oppressed,
There's mercy with the Lord.
And He will surely give you rest
by trusting in His Word.
Only trust Him, only trust Him ,
only trust Him now.
He will save you, He will save you,
He will save you now.
Verse
For Jesus shed His precious blood,
rich blessings to bestow.
Plunge now into the crimson flood
that washes white as snow
Only trust Him, only trust Him ,
only trust Him now.
He will save you, He will save you,
He will save you now.
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BENEDICTION

Text for Benediction prayer goes here
after the Benediction and the “Amen,” change to FINAL slide and leave up

PARTING SONG?

STOP LIVESTREAMING AND RECORDING

FINAL SLIDE

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