A Worship Magazine
Easley Presbyterian Church
Easley, SC
Sept. 2015
Vol. 1 Issue 1
A common thread that joins us together with Christ and with each other.
Welcome to Tapestry What is Tapestry anyway? We are offering a new monthly magazine about worship at Easley Presbyterian Church. We believe that worship is “a common thread that joins us together with Christ and with each other.” And we want to provide an opportunity to instill a better understanding of our worship and to develop a passion for worship. You will find this magazine expand and grow and change in this process, but we hope to offer information about the church year and special Sundays and seasons. We plan to offer hymn meditations and background information on Anthems and service music. We plan to provide
To come into the presence of God is to stand on the mountain-top of God’s compassion and justice and see the world from this vantage point. The journey is outward and inward — in both cases a widening of our everyday perspective. Outwardly, we enter into a wider circle of humanity… But there is more — an inward “stretch” or widening of self… One’s unique history, gifts and eccentricities … and one’s very ego are now rooted in something deeper than themselves — Christ. — Robert Hurd
scripture readings for the month and some devotions to help prepare us for a time of worship. We may even be able to provide recordings of the hymns and anthems for the month to enjoy at home in your study and preparation for the week. It is the dream to become a balance of information and inspiration. It is our hope to become a community of believers, woven together as the Body of Christ, worshiping together to the glory of God. Welcome to Tapestry.
Come into God’s presence with thanksgiving, and enter his courts with praise.
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Sunday, September 6 David and Bathsheba 2 Samuel 11:1-27
In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem. 2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful,3 and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4 Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.) Then she went back home. 5 The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.” 6 So David sent this word to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent him to David. 7 When Uriah came to him, David asked him how Joab was, how the soldiers were and how the war was going. 8 Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king was sent after him. 9 But Uriah slept at the entrance to the palace “King David Giving Uriah a Letter” with all his master’s servants and did not go down to his Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, Il Guercino (1591-1666) house. King David sends Uriah to deliver a letter to Joab. This same letter 10 David was told, “Uriah did not go home.” So he asked delivers the orders that lead to Uriah’s death in battle. Uriah, “Haven’t you just come from a military campaign? Why didn’t you go home?” 11 Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are wall? 21 Who killed Abimelek son of Jerub-Besheth[b]? Didstaying in tents,[a] and my commander Joab and my lord’s n’t a woman drop an upper millstone on him from the men are camped in the open country. How could I go to my wall, so that he died in Thebez? Why did you get so close to house to eat and drink and make love to my wife? As surely the wall?’ If he asks you this, then say to him, ‘Moreover, as you live, I will not do such a thing!” 12 your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.’” Then David said to him, “Stay here one more day, and 22 The messenger set out, and when he arrived he told David tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jeru13 everything Joab had sent him to say. 23 The messenger said salem that day and the next. At David’s invitation, he ate to David, “The men overpowered us and came out against and drank with him, and David made him drunk. But in the us in the open, but we drove them back to the entrance of evening Uriah went out to sleep on his mat among his masthe city gate. 24 Then the archers shot arrows at your servter’s servants; he did not go home. 14 ants from the wall, and some of the king’s men died. MoreIn the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it over, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.” with Uriah. 15 In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where 25 David told the messenger, “Say this to Joab: ‘Don’t let the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will this upset you; the sword devours one as well as another. be struck down and die.” 16 Press the attack against the city and destroy it.’ Say this to So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a encourage Joab.” place where he knew the strongest defenders were. 17 When 26 When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she the men of the city came out and fought against Joab, some mourned for him.27 After the time of mourning was over, of the men in David’s army fell; moreover, Uriah the Hittite David had her brought to his house, and she became his died. 18 wife and bore him a son. But the thing David had done disJoab sent David a full account of the battle. 19 He instructpleased the Lord. ed the messenger: “When you have finished giving the king this account of the battle, 20 the king’s anger may flare up, and he may ask you, ‘Why did you get so close to the city to fight? Didn’t you know they would shoot arrows from the
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Hymn Meditation: “Brethren, We Have Met to Worship” (click title to listen)
Brethren, we have met to worship and adore the Lord our God. Will you pray with all your power while we try to preach the word? All is vain unless the Spirit of the holy One come down. Brethren, pray, and holy manna will be showered all around.
Sisters, will you come and help us? Moses’ sister aided him. Will you help the trembling mourners who are struggling hard with sin? Tell them all about the Savior. Tell them that he will be found. The apostle Paul’s favorite name for Sisters, pray, and holy manna will be showered all around. fellow believers was “brethren”. He used this term at least sixty times Is there here a trembling jailer, seeking grace and filled with fears? throughout his various epistles. Paul’s Is there here a weeping Mary pouring forth a flood of tears? concept of the local church was a Brethren, join your cries to help them; sisters, let your prayers abound! Pray, O pray, that holy manna will be scattered all around. worshiping family — the family of God. While we need to worship God Let us love our God supremely; let us love each other, too. daily in our individual devotional lives, Let us love and pray for sinners till our God makes all things new. every believer also needs the enrich- Christ will call us home to heaven; at his table we’ll sit down. ing experience of worshiping and Christ will gird himself and serve us with sweet manna all around. — George Atkins, 1819 serving God with others on a weekly basis. Only a church of faithful worshiping members is prepared to do its work and fulfill its witness in the world. Our worship of God, both personally and corporately, should reflect these five elements from Isaiah’s call, found in Isaiah 6: Recognition (vs 1), Praise (vs 3), Confession (vs 5), Pardon (vs 7), and Dedication (vs 8). This hymn tune: HOLY MANNA has been a favorite tune since it first appeared in 1825. —Osbeck “Amazing Grace 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories”
Anthem Meditation: “The Majesty and Glory of Your Name” (click title to listen)
O Lord, our God, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
When I gaze into the night skies And see the work of Your fingers; The moon and stars suspended in space. Oh what is man that You are mindful of him? You have given man a crown of glory and honor, And have made him a little lower than the angels. You have put him in charge of all creation: The beasts of the field, The birds of the air, The fish of the sea. But what is man, oh, what is man that You are mindful of him?
“O Lord, our God, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouths of babes and infants O Lord, our God, the majesty and glory of Your name you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, Transcends the earth and fills the heavens. O Lord, our God, little children praise You perfectly, to silence the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your finAnd so would we and so would we. gers, the moon and the stars that you have estabAlleluia, Alleluia, lished; what are human beings that you are mindful the majesty and glory of Your name. of them, mortals that you care for them? Yet you —Linda Lee Johnson, Psalm 8 have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor. You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet, all sheep and
4 oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!”— Psalm 8
Hymn Meditation: “Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy” (click title to listen)
Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, Weak and wounded, sick and sore; Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love, and power.
I will arise and go to Jesus, He will embrace me in his arms. Joseph Hart, author of “Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and In the arms of my dear Savior, Needy”, was born in London in 1712. He was raised in a O, there are ten thousand charms. Christian home, but he turned away from the church in his Come, ye thirsty, come, and welcome; twenties. He even described himself as a “monstrous sinner.” God’s free bounty glorify, He wrote, “I ran such dangerous lengths both of carnal and True belief and true repentance, of spiritual wickedness that I outwent professed infidels.” Jo- Every grace that brings you nigh. seph even wrote an anti-Christian pamphlet entitled “The Unreasonableness of Religion,” in response to a sermon John Come, ye weary, heavy laden, Lost and ruined by the fall; Wesley preached from Romans 8. If you tary till you’re better, Finally, at age forty-five, after a serious bout with depres- you will never come at all. sion, his heart was turned again to Christ, after attending a Moravian service on Pentecost Sunday 1757. “Such a light Let not conscience make you linger, Nor of fitness fondly dream; and comfort flowed into my heart, as no words can paint.” Soon Joseph was writing Christian poems which became All the fitness he requireth very popular. He entered into ministry and served in a meet- Is to feel your need of him. — Joseph Hart inghouse in London until his death in 1768. By then, he was so beloved that 20,000 people attended his funeral. His greatest hymn is an expression of his testimony: “I will arise and go to Jesus, he will embrace me in his arms. In the arms of my dear Savior, O , there are ten thousand charms.” —Kenneth W. Osbeck “101 Hymn Sotires”
As you sing this hymn, note how the verses are a call to come to the loving arms of Christ and the refrain is the responsive declaration of entering into those embracive arms.
Story Behind the Art — The Prodigal Son”
“The Prodigal Son” Liz Lemon Swindle
The Lord gave a parable of a man whose younger son took his inheritance and then wasted it foolishly. Hungry and penniless the prodigal decided that even being a servant in his father’s house was better than his current condition, and so began the long journey home. As I read this parable, I wondered why the Lord was silent about the father’s agony during his son’s absence. Maybe it is because we already know the story. What parent has not spent countless nights on their knees pleading for their children, or wondered with worry where their children were or what they were doing? And what parent has never looked to the horizon hoping to catch a glimpse of a son or daughter that isn’t there. This painting is the hope of every parent. The hope that each of us will someday find our children — Liz Lemon Swindle, artist
5 Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in thee; Let the water and the blood, (click title to listen) From thy wounded side which flowed, “My Father who has given them to me, is greater than all; Be of sin the double cure; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” Save from wrath and make me pure. John 10:29 Not the labors of my hands On November 4, 1740, a baby in Farnham, England, was Can fulfill thy law's commands; given the formidable name of Augustus Montague Toplady. Could my zeal no respite know, His father died in a war, his mother spoiled him, his friends Could my tears forever flow, thought him “sick and neurotic”, and his relatives disliked All for sin could not atone; Thou must save, and thou alone. him. But Augustus was interested in the Lord. “I am now arrived Nothing in my hand I bring, at the age of eleven years,” he wrote on his birthday. “I Simply to the cross I cling; praise God I can remember no dreadful crime; to the Lord Naked, come to thee for dress; Helpless, look to thee for grace; be the glory.” By age 12 he was preaching sermons to whoFoul, I to the fountain fly; ever would listen. At age 14 he began writing hymns. At 16 Wash me, Savior, or I die. he was soundly converted to Christ while attending a service While I draw this fleeting breath, in a barn. And at 22 he was ordained an Anglican priest. When mine eyes shall close in death, Augustus Toplady died at age 38, but his poem outlived When I soar to worlds unknown, him and has been called “the best known, best loved, and See thee on thy judgment throne, most widely useful” hymn in the English language. Rock of Ages, cleft for me, — “On This Day”, Robert J. Morgan, 1997 Let me hide myself in thee.
Hymn Meditation: “Rock of Ages”
— Augustus Toplady
“If You Believe and I Believe” (click title to listen)
There was a “celebration moment” for Africa University at General Conference on Wednesday morning, April 30. It is a remarkable success story that deserves to be more widely known throughout the denomination--and beyond. One of the gifts of Africa University is their choir. Their touring choir shared a song that has become their theme song. It includes the line: If you believe and I believe, and we together pray The Holy Spirit will come down, and Africa will be saved. Their song was meaningful, but its power moved to a deeper level with new verses that the choir sang. One was to substitute “America” for “Africa” and then to substitute “The Church” for “Africa.” If you believe and I believe, and we together pray, The Holy Spirit will come down, and America will be saved. And then, If you believe and I believe, and we together pray, The Holy Spirit will come down, and The Church will be saved. It is one thing to pray (through song) for another nation or continent, it is another thing entirely to realize that we all stand in continuing need of salvation. May we believe and pray and sing that the Holy Spirit will come down, and save all of us
If you believe and I believe And we together pray, The Holy Spirit will come down And set God’s people free. And set God’s people free, And set God’s people free. The Holy Spirit will come down And set God’s people free.
Be Still and Know that I Am God.
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Sunday, September 13 David’s Repentance 2 Samuel 12:1-15 The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him. “Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.” David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.” Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’ “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’” Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for the Lord, the son born to you will die.” After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill.
“David and Nathan” Matthias Scheits, 1672
This painting by German artist Matthias Scheits depicts the scene of Nathan the prophet rebuking King David for his adultery and murder. David sits on his throne with his psalter opened in front of him. His harp lies on the floor, broken. In the background, two additional scenes play out. To the left, you will see David sending the letter that brought about Uriah’s death. To the right you will see David in sackcloth, prostrate in contrition for the sins he had committed.
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Hymn Meditation: “I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art”(click title to listen) This is per- I greet thee, who my sure Redeemer art, haps the most My only trust and Savior of my heart, “Presbyterian” Who pain didst undergo for my poor sake; I pray thee from our hearts all cares to take. of hymns in our hymnal. It is of- Thou art the King of mercy and of grace, ten attributed Reigning omnipotent in every place: to none other So come, O King, and our whole being sway; than John Cal- Shine on us with the light of thy pure day. vin himself Thou art the life, by which alone we live, (although reAnd all our substance and our strength receive; search places Sustain us by thy faith and by thy power, much doubt on And give us strength in every trying hour. that authorship). The English Thou hast the true and perfect gentleness; attribution to No harshness hast thou and no bitterness. O grant to us the grace we find in thee, Calvin appears That we may dwell in perfect unity. to be wishful thinking dating Our hope is in no other save in thee; especially from the translation in 1869. It is closely connected to Our faith is built upon thy promise free; Calvinist theology of the middle period of the Reformation. Lord, give us peace, and make us calm and sure, John Calvin was a strong proponent of Psalm singing in the That in thy strength we evermore endure. church. Even today, our hymnal includes a large portion of psalms. Calvin commissioned Clement Marot to oversee the versification of the psalms — setting the text of the psalms in a poetic meter that could be easily sung. But nowhere during his time did Calvin condemn the writing of hymns of human poetic composition. In his compilation of the 1551 Geneva Psalter, Calvin included this hymn text: “I Greet Thee Who My Sure Redeemer Art.” The text was first published in the 1545 Strasbourg Psalter. It is sometimes easy to forget the tumultuous events of the Reformation period. It is amazing to realize that even during these difficult times (and perhaps even because of the difficult times) congregational singing was emphasized and blossomed. Perhaps the fact that the authorship of this hymn is still debated reveals the important recollection that the Reformation was achieved not by one individual, but by many working together to determine how reformed worship should truly be expressed. True renewal of the church takes place within community and is never the work of just one person.
Hymn Meditation: “There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy” (click title to listen)
Showing Mercy Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Matthew 5:7 (NIV) As a college professor, I had always been a stickler for the rules. In my opening speech on the first day of class, I even mentioned that while I hoped my students would learn the subject, I guaranteed they would learn about responsibility. I then would go on about deadlines, due dates, and the im-
8 portance of being on time and handing in papers promptly. Then, last semester, one student was going through a difficult period, including a sudden death in her family. She was obviously emotional as she informed me that she would not turn in her final project on time. I was left with a choice: I could stick to my rules, or I could let her turn in the project a few days late. In an instant, I concluded that the biggest lesson I could teach in this situation was not responsibility but grace. Her relief was apparent when I told her she could have an extension. A few days later, she turned in an excellent project and appeared more rested and less depressed.
There’s a wideness in God’s mercy, Like the wideness of the sea. There’s a kindness in God’s justice, Which is more than liberty. There is no place where earth’s sorrows Are more felt than up in heaven. There is no place where earth’s failings Have such kindly judgment given.
For the love of God is broader Than the measures of the mind. And the heart of the Eternal Is most wonderfully kind. If our love were but more faithful, We would gladly trust God’s Word, And our lives reflect thanksgiving This experience helped me For the goodness of our Lord. realize that I was sometimes —Frederick William Faber, 1854 missing opportunities to teach my students the life lessons of grace and compassion that Christ taught me. Making an exception for the one student reminded me that life lessons are the most important thing I can teach. Prayer: O God, help us to realize that you teach us great lessons so we can pass them on to others. Amen. Upper Room Devotional, June 13, 2006 Andy C. Billings (South Carolina, U.S.A.)
Anthem Meditation: “Create in Me a Clean Heart” (click title to listen) In Psalm 51 David asks God to create a clean heart inside him. He isn’t just asking God to forgive his sin, he is asking God to change him on the inside. David used the same word for “create” in Hebrew that is used when God created the world. So it’s like David is asking God to take out his old heart and make a brand new one. This is not just a little fix to get it right—this is major heart surgery. David knows he didn’t just do one thing wrong; the problem is deep inside him. David hints at this in verse 7: Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. If you lived in Israel at the time of David, you would know about “hyssop.” Hyssop is a plant that is easy to find in Israel, and people used it to clean things, kind of like a detergent. Hyssop was also part of the cleansing of people who had the disease called leprosy. A perCreate in me a clean heart, O God; son with leprosy was considered unclean. People with leprosy did And renew a right spirit within me. not live with their families. They lived with other people who had Cast me not away from thy presence; leprosy. Even if people with leprosy got better, they still could not And take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; be with their families until they washed with hyssop and a priest deAnd uphold me with thy free spirit. clared that they were clean. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; By mentioning hyssop, David is not just saying that he sinned. He is And sinners will be converted unto thee. saying that he is unclean, like a person with leprosy. —Psalm 51 We sometimes think that if we do just one or two things better, then God will be completely happy with us. David realizes that this is not
9 the case. He knows that his heart needs a total cleaning, and that isn’t something he can do on his own. We can’t do it on our own either. — Robert and Laura Keely, “Psalms for All Ages” Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
Hymn Meditation: “Amazing Grace”
(click title
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found; They are justified by His Was blind, but now I see. to listen)
grace, as a gift, through the redemption that is in 'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, Jesus Christ.” Romans And grace my fears relieved; How precious did that grace appear 1:24 The hour I first believed. In a small cemetery of a parish churchyard in Through many dangers, toils, and snares, Olney, England, stands a I have already come; granite tombstone with 'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, And grace will lead me home. the following inscription: “John Newton, clerk, The Lord has promised good to me, once an infidel and his word my hope secures; Libertine, a servnat of he will my shield and portion be, as long as life endures. slavers in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord When we've been there ten thousand years, and Savior Jesus Christ, bright shining as the sun, preserved, restored, we've no less days to sing God's praise pardoned, a n d than when we first begun. —John Newton appointed to preach the Faith he had long labored to destroy.” This testimonial aptly describes the unusual and colorful life of this man, one of the great evangelical preachers of the eighteenth century. Until the time of his death at the age of eighty-two, John Newton never ceased to marvel at God’s mercy and grace that had so dramatically changed his life. This was a dominant theme of his preaching and writing. Undoubtedly, the most representative expression of Newton’s life is his appealing hymn, “Amazing Grace.”
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Sunday, September 20 Absolom’s Return and Deceipt 2 Samuel 14:1-15:12
Joab son of Zeruiah knew that the king’s heart longed for Absalom. 2 So Joab sent someone to Tekoa and had a wise woman brought from there. He said to her, “Pretend you are in mourning. Dress in mourning clothes, and don’t use any cosmetic lotions. Act like a woman who has spent many days grieving for the dead. 3 Then go to the king and speak these words to him.” And Joabput the words in her mouth. 4 When the woman from Tekoa went [a] to the king, she fell with her face to the ground to pay him honor, and she said, “Help me, Your Majesty!” 5 The king asked her, “What is troubling you?” She said, “I am a widow; my husband is dead. 6 I your servant had two sons. They got into a fight with each other in the field, and no one was there to separate them. One struck the other and killed him. 7 Now the whole clan has risen up against your servant; they say, ‘Hand over the one who struck his brother down, so that we may put him to death for the life of his brother whom he killed; then we will get rid of the heir as well.’ They would put out the only burning coal I have left, leaving my husband neither name nor descendant on the face of the earth.” 8 The king said to the woman, “Go home, and I will issue an order in your behalf.” 9 But the woman from Tekoa said to him, “Let my lord the king pardon me and my family, and let the king and his throne be without guilt.” 10 The king replied, “If anyone says anything to you, bring them to me, and they will not bother you again.” 11 She said, “Then let the king invoke the LORD his God to prevent the avengerof blood from adding to the destruction, so that my son will not be destroyed.” “As surely as the LORD lives,” he said, “not one hair of your son’s head will fall to the ground.” 12 Then the woman said, “Let your servant speak a word to my lord the king.” “Speak,” he replied. 13 The woman said, “Why then have you devised a thing like this against the people of God? When the king says this, does he not convict himself, for the king has not brought back his banished
son? 14 Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But that is not what God desires; rather, he devises ways so that a banished person does not remain banished from him. 15 “And now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. Your servant thought, ‘I will speak to the king; perhaps he will grant his servant’s request. 16 Perhaps the king will agree to deliver his servant from the hand of the man who is trying to cut off both me and my son from God’s inheritance.’ 17 “And now your servant says, ‘May the word of my lord the king secure my inheritance, for my lord the king is like an angel of God in discerning good and evil. May the LORD your God be with you.’” 18 Then the king said to the woman, “Don’t keep from me the answer to what I am going to ask you.” “Let my lord the king speak,” the woman said. 19 The king asked, “Isn’t the hand of Joab with you in all this?” The woman answered, “As surely as you live, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right or to the left from anything my lord the king says. Yes, it was your servant Joab who instructed me to do this and who put all these words into the mouth of your servant. 20 Your servant Joab did this to change the present situation. My lord has wisdom like that of an angel of God—he knows everything that happens in the land.” 21 The king said to Joab, “Very well, I will do it. Go, bring back the young man Absalom.” 22 Joab fell with his face to the ground to pay him honor, and he blessed the king. Joab said, “Today your servant knows that he has found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, because the king has granted his servant’s request.” 23 Then Joab went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem. 24 But the king said, “He must go to his own house; he must not see my face.” So Absalom went to his own house and did not see the face of the king. 25 In all Israel there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. From the top of his head to the sole of his
11 foot there was no blemish in him. 26 Whenever he cut the hair of his head—he used to cut his hair once a year because it became too heavy for him—he would weigh it, and its weight was two hundred shekels[b] by the royal standard. 27 Three sons and a daughter were born to Absalom. His daughter’s name was Tamar, and she became a beautiful woman. 28 Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing the king’s face. 29 Then Absalom sent for Joab in order to send him to the king, but Joab refused to come to him. So he sent a second time, but he refused to come. 30 Then he said to his servants, “Look, Joab’s field is next to mine, and he has barleythere. Go and set it on fire.” So Absalom’s servants set the field on fire. 31 Then Joab did go to Absalom’s house, and he said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?” 32 Absalom said to Joab, “Look, I sent word to you and said, ‘Come here so I can send you to the king to ask, “Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there!”’ Now then, I want to see the king’s face, and if I am guilty of anything, let him put me to death.” 33 So Joab went to the king and told him this. Then the king summoned Absalom, and he came in and bowed down with his face to the ground before the king. And the king kissed Absalom. 15 In the course of time, Absalom provided himself with a chariot and horses and with fifty men to run ahead of him. 2 He would get up early and stand by the side of the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone came with a complaint to be placed before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out to him, “What town are you from?” He would answer, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel.” 3 Then Absalom would say to him, “Look, your claims are valid and proper, but there is no representative of the king to hear you.” 4 And Absalom would add, “If only I were appointed judge in the land! Then everyone who has a complaint or case could come to me and I would see that they receive justice.” 5 Also, whenever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him. 6 Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the people
of Israel. 7 At the end of four[c] years, Absalom said to the king, “Let me go to Hebron and fulfill a vow I made to the LORD. 8 While your servant was living at Geshurin Aram, I made this vow: ‘If the LORD takes me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the LORD in Hebron.[d]’” 9 The king said to him, “Go in peace.” So he went to Hebron. 10 Then Absalom sent secret messengers throughout the tribes of Israel to say, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpets, then say, ‘Absalom is king in Hebron.’” 11 Two hundred men from Jerusalem had accompanied Absalom. They had been invited as guests and went quite innocently, knowing nothing about the matter. 12 While Absalom was offering sacrifices, he also sent for Ahithophelthe Gilonite, David’s counselor, to come from Giloh, his hometown. And so the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept on increasing.
“David Forgives Absalom” — Rembrandt This is a scene that has been painted by many artists, but Rembrandt makes the scene his own. He skillfully crates the pair of figures as a single unit. Absalom’s face is not even seen. He is content to indicate in the portrayal of the back of this man the sobs that are shaking him. There is only one set of eyes in the painting—-that of the father, looking down at his son with an affectionate and forgiving glance. After all, David certainly understands the significance of being forgiven. Rembrandt has softened all of the edges and created a very intimate scene. And we, the viewer, come into their presence un-
12 “Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father; There is no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not; thy compassions they fail not. As thou hast been thou forever wilt be. Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness! Morning by morning, new mercies I see. All I have needed thy hand hath provided. Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me. Summer and winter, springtime and harvest, Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above. Join with all mature in manifold witness To thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love. Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth, Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide, Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow: Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!
Hymn Meditation: “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” (click title to listen)
“Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is nor variableness, neither shadow of turning.” James 1:17 “It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22. Of the many gospel hymns written in recent times on the theme of God’s goodness and faithfulness, this hymn stands out like a beacon of light. This hymn was not born of some great tragedy of experience, it was simply the result of the author’s “morning by morning realization of God’s
personal faithfulness.”
Thomas Obadiah Chisholm was born in Franklin Kentucky, on July 29, 1866. Without the benefit of high school or advanced training, he began his career as a school teacher at the age of sixteen in the same country school house where he had received his elementary training. He went on to become an editor in the local newspaper and eventually an editor for a paper in Louisville. He also served a short while as a Methodist minister and an insurance agent. But it is as a poet that he has made his greatest contribution. Mr. Chisholm wrote more than 1200 poems, appearing in religious periodicals. In a letter dated 1941, Mr. Chisholm writes: “My income has not been large at any time due to impaired health … but I must not fail to record here the unfailing faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God, who has given me many wonderful displays of His care, for which I am filled with astonishing gratefulness.” Mr. Chisholm sent this hymn text to Rev. W. M. Runyan, a noted musician of the time. Mr. Runyan set the text to the tune FAITHFULNESS and it was first published in “Misty Mountain Morning” Waynesville, NC 1923. Every morning His mercies are new; every morning we need new mercies. —Thomas O. Chisholm, 1923
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Anthem Meditation: “He Never Failed Me Yet” (click title to listen)
“Hesed” is one of my favorite words. I first learned the word in my Old Testament class back in seminary. It is a Hebrew word often I will sing of God’s mercy, used in Every day, every hour. He gives me power. the I will sing and give thanks to thee Psalms. For all the dangers, toils, and snares It is not that he has brought me out. easy to He is my God and I’ll serve him, No matter what the test. define, but its meaning is clear. In fact, a whole new word was Trust and never doubt, Jesus will surely bring you out, created just to translate “hesed” into English — LovingkindHe never failed me yet! ness. If you come across that word in scripture, it is “hesed”. Sometimes it is also translated as mercy or faithful mercies. It is I know God is able to deliver in time of storm. I know that he’ll keep you safe from all earthly harm. God’s unending , faithful mercy and love, and grace, lavishly One day when my weary soul is at rest, bestowed on his children. I’m going home to be forever blessed. I love that this extraordinary expression of grace is not easily Trust and never doubt, Jesus will surely bring you out, defined, or easily explained, but once you’ve experienced it, He never failed me yet! it is simply understood. So many times in my life I have felt that Didn’t my Lord deliver Moses from King Pharoah? powerful and gentle embrace of the Father’s forgiving arms, And didn’t he cool the fiery furnace now I have a word for it — Hesed. For Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego? When the adulterous woman was brought before Jesus for When I think of what my God can do, condemnation, she looked into his eyes and saw it — Hesed. He delivered Daniel, I know he will deliver you. When the prodigal returned to a robe, a ring, a calf, and the Trust and never doubt, Jesus will surely bring you out, He never failed me yet! arms of his father — Hesed. When God’s time was right, he —Robert Ray chose to show the world how deep his love really is, how wide his mercies really are, and he raised a cross for an enduring image of grace — Hesed! The writer of Lamentations new that every morning God gives new mercies because every morning we are in need of that mercy — Hesed. Before I knew the word, I know what it meant; I had felt it, I had seen it. How can a little word mean so much? I don’t know, but I am grateful for it. “Hesed” is definitely one of my favorite words. -- Robert Norris
Hymn Meditation: “Remember Not, O God” click title to listen) When Compassion Arrives Most of us have regrets. Some of us carry them around like badges of honor. We all have sins we tote on our backs, allowing them to grind us down until it seems we cannot take another step. And then something that is almost magical occurs: compassion arrives and we are suddenly free. It happens because we have allowed God’s compassion to meet us on our road to re-
Remember not, O God, the sins of long ago; In tender mercy visit us, distressed and humbled low. O Lord, our Savior, help, and glorify your name; Deliver us from all our sins and take away our shame. Then, safe within your fold, we will exalt your name; Our thankful hearts with songs of joy your goodness will proclaim. —From Psalm 79
14 covery. We are free, not because we have loosened our own bonds but because God’s compassionate love has saved us once again. I remember a time in my late teenage years when I committed a real faux pas. I had acted out in a way that was detrimental to myself, my family, and everything that was important to me as a young Christian. The conversation I had with my father was one I would have preferred to avoid. But in spite of my fears, my guilt and shame, I came away from that encounter healed because I was able to meet compassion. Compassion had arrived through the love of my dad. God’s compassion is waiting for us on whatever road we journey upon. God wants to meet us where we are and touch us with grace. Compassion is a beautiful thing to experience. It is also a great gift to give. Prayer: Almighty and loving God, come to us in our need. Share your compassionate love with us and free us from whatever binds us. Give us strength to admit we are in need of compassion and the willingness to accept it. Amen. - Dr. William Galbraith, Spring River Presbyterian, “Devotional Psalms”
Hymn Meditation: “Hear the Good News of Salvation” (click title to listen) Hear the good news of salvation: Jesus died to show God’s love. Such great kindness! Such great mercy! Come to us from heaven above. Jesus Christ, how much I love you! Jesus Christ, you save from sin! How I love you! Look upon me. Love me still and cleanse within.
John Baptiste Renville was the first Native American (Dakota) to be ordained as a Presbyterian minister in 1866. His father, Joseph Renville invited a missionary group to come and build a chapel in 1835. The Renville ancestors were from France. They came to Minnesota and became fir traders. For generations they took native American brides and became bi-cultural, bringing European ideas to the native culture. Joseph Renville started a school for the Dakota men All the sins I have committed, who worked for him. He created a written version of the native DaTo my Savior now I bring. kota language and taught it to his “pupils”. Along with the I bow down with tears of anguish; protestant missionaries, Joseph invited a young white woman to Christ forgives and so I sing: come and teach English. Soon Mary Butler and Joseph’s youngest Jesus Christ, how much I love you! Jesus Christ, you save from sin! son, John (or Jean) fell in love and married. How I love you! Look upon me. In 1862, the Dakota War ravaged the area. The Renvilles who had Love me still and cleanse within. been leaders in the community and walked the line between the — John B. Renville, Native American two sides were caught in the swell of the war. John and Mary were taken prisoner by the Dakota factions and held. In the war they lost all of their property and wealth. John lived out his days continuing to minister and Mary continued to reach out and teach. Together they sought ways to The act of worship makes us “church.” bring peace to the troubled area. Surely having lost so very much, John new the importance of sharing All that we do beyond worship — teachthe Good News of Salvation. —RN ing our children, serving the poor, gath-
ering in small groups, maintaining buildings in which to meet — arises from our encounter with the living God in worship. Like Christians through the centuries, in worship we take part in the actions that form our identity as individuals and as the body of Christ. —- Marlea Gilbert
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Sunday, September 27 David Mourns the Death of Absolom 2 Samuel 18:31-33 Then the Cushite arrived and said, “My lord the king, hear the good news! The LORD has vindicated you today by delivering you from the hand of all who rose up against you.” The king asked the Cushite, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” The Cushite replied, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up to harm you be like that young man.” The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!”
Music Notes: Fanny Crosby “Blessed Assurance” (click title to listen)
Fanny Jane Crosby was born of humble parents at Southeast, New York, on March 24, 1823. She was blinded at the age of six weeks by improper medical treatment. Throughout her lifetime she was a faithful member of the St. John’s Methodist Episcopal Church in New York City. She was educated at the New York school for the blind. From 1847 to 1858 she served as a teacher at this school. In 1858, she married a blind musician, Alexander Van Alstyne, a highly respected teacher of music at the institution for the blind. Through the influence of a well-known church musician, William Bradbuy, she began, in her early forties to write gospel song lyrics in earnest. Fanny Crosby never wrote a hymn text without first kneeling in earnest prayer asking for divine guidance.
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! O what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of his Spirit, washed in his blood. This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long; this is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long. Perfect submission, perfect delight, visions of rapture now burst on my sight; angels descending bring from above echoes of mercy, whispers of love. Perfect submission, all is at rest; I in my Savior am happy and blest, watching and waiting, looking above, filled with his goodness, lost in his love. —Fanny Crosby
King David weeps at the death of his son, Absalom.
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“Pacem” (click title to listen) Blessed are the peacemakers. Are you a peace maker or a peace lover? Perhaps you are wondering, “What’s the difference?” Dona nobis pacem A “peacemaker” is someone who works for peace, even Etwhen in terrait pax hominibus and costly. On the other hand, a is unpopular Bonae voluntatis “peace lover” is someone who wants, “peace at any price”. Peacemakers look beyond the presenting conflict. They Give us peace. want to know And on earth peacewhat to all isofcausing good willthe war or fight. They are look—Traditional ing for ways to achieve lasting friendship and harmony. Often, this involves addressing issues of injustice and oppression. In contrast, peace lovers don’t like confrontation. They don’t want to address awkward or difficult issues. They especially don’t like feeling uncomfortable or challenging others. The risk for them in pursuing real peace is that it might be costly. They might even get involved with people and feel their pain. They may get hurt in the process of seeking lasting solutions. They prefer to cover over problems and hope that they will go away. James describes “peacemakers” as being like farmers who are sowing seed for a harvest. This requires time and patience. But the outcome is a “harvest of righteousness”. This describes a life of peace and justice for both individuals and society. The Hebrew word for this is “shalom”. It is more than the absence of conflict. It is a deep seated connection and harmony between people, the creation and the Creator. The prophet Isaiah describes it as a setting in which, “the wolf and the lamb will feed together” (Isaiah 65:25) The theologian, William Barclay is a preacher and writer of some note in the Church of Scotland. In part, here is what he said about this beatitude: "The blessing is on the peace-makers not necessarily on the peace-lovers. It very often happens that if a person loves peace in the wrong way, he succeeds in making trouble and not peace. We may, for instance, allow a threatening and dangerous situation to develop and our defense is that for peace's sake we do not want to take any action. There is many a person who thinks he is loving peace, when in fact he is piling up trouble for the future, because he refuses to face the situation and to take the action which the situation demands. The peace which the bible calls blessed does not come from the evasion of issues; it comes from facing them, dealing with them and conquering them. What this beatitude demands is not the passive acceptance of things because we are afraid of the trouble of doing anything about them, but the active facing of things and the making of peace even when the way to peace is through struggle" (Daily Bible Study, Matthew, I, Westminster Press).
“Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.”
Hymn Meditation: “God Weeps with Those Who Weep and Mourn”
(click title to listen)
What is the meaning of Psalm 116:15, “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints”? God certainly doesn’t value or find enjoyment in the death of His children! If He did, why would the psalmist praise God for delivering him from death? And why did Jesus groan and weep as He saw the grief at Lazarus’ tomb? (John 11:33-35). I agree with scholars who render Psalm 116:15, “Costly in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” In this world, unless you are a celebrity, your passing will soon be forgotten by all but a small circle of
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17 relatives and friends. But Jesus showed us that God shares the sorrow and pain of the bereaved, and that the death of the humblest believer causes His heart great pain. This thought came to me recently at the funeral of my brother Tunis. His family and his pastor extolled his compassion, kindness, and generosity. Afterward, people who knew him as a Dona nobis pacem spoke well of him. Though his name was just one businessman Et in terra pax hominibus of many in the newspaBonae voluntatis per obituaries, his death was a matter of great loss Give us peace. to us who knew and And on earth peace to all of good will —Traditional loved him. And it is comforting to know that God did not take his passing without feeling our pain. In fact, I believe He wept with us.
God weeps with us who weep and mourn; God’s tears flow down with ours, And God’s own heart is bruised and worn From all the heavy hours Of watching while the soul’s bright fire Burned lower day by day, And pulse and breath and loves desire Dimmed down to ash and clay. Through tears and sorrow, God, we share A sense of your vast grief: The weight of bearing every prayer For healing and relief, The burden of our questions why, The doubts that they engage, And as our friends and loved ones die, Our hopelessness and rage.
And yet because, like us, you weep, We trust you will receive And in your tender heart will keep — Herbert Vanderlought, The ones for whom we grieve, “Our Daily Bread” While with your tears our hearts will taste The deep dear core of things From which both life and death are graced By love’s renewing springs. —Thomas H. Troeger, 1996
Hymn Meditation: “Abide With Me”
(click title to listen) The author of this text, Henry F. Lyte, was an Anglican pastor. Though he battled tuberculosis all of his life, Lyte was known as a man strong in spirit and faith. It was he who coined the phrase “it is better to wear out than to rust out.” Rev. Lyte’s Abide with me; fast falls the eventide; inspiration The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide. for writing “Abide with Me” came shortly before When other helpers fail and comforts flee, his final sermon. His failing health had forced him Help of the helpless, O abide with me. to give up his parish in Lower Brixham. He was inspired while reading from the account in Luke 24 Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day; Earth's joys grow dim; its glories pass away; of our Lord’s appearance with the two disciples on their seven mile walk from Jerusalem to the vil- Change and decay in all around I see; O thou who changest not, abide with me. lage of Emmaus on that first Easter evening. “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, the day is I need thy presence every passing hour. far spent…” How the hearts of those discouraged What but thy grace can foil the tempter's power? disciples suddenly burned within them when they Who, like thyself, my guide and stay can be? realized that they were in the company of the ris- Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me. en, eternal Son of God! When we gather for worI fear no foe, with thee at hand to bless; ship, we find ourselves in the presence of the Ills have no weight, and tears not bitterness. same risen Lord. Mr. Lyte died only three weeks Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory? after writing this hymn. “When other helpers fail I triumph still, if thou abide with me. and comforts flee, Help of the helpless, o abide with me.” Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes; Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies. Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee; In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.
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Liturgy — \li-tər-jē\ — n. “The work of the people” Liturgy only exists when it is enacted with the participation of all. Worship involves the active participation of all the people. Worship is not entertainment, nor is it “performed” by clergy or musicians. It is instead, our work, our words, our prayers, our songs. Our full and active participation in singing, listening, moving, praying, committing, and serving is crucial. If worship is to be truly transformative, then it asks of our utmost attention to the presence of the Spirit in our midst.
Liturgical Colors: Green
Liturgical colors help us identify the seasons of the church year. These seasons help us celebrate important days in the life of the church. The main seasons are: Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, Pentecost, and Ordinary Time (or Kingdomtide). The color green is used for most of the season of Epiphany and for Kingdomtide. The color green signifies growth and learning. “But grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18. “Blessed is the one who delights in the law of the Lord. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.” Psalm 1. The colors should remind us that we are entering into God’s time. We should remember that this is a holy place and a holy time. Worship is the place where heaven and earth meet. Be nourished by the waters of the Word of God. Grow and reach toward the Light of Christ. And go and bear fruit for the building of the Kingdom of God.