All Hallows Saturday Evening Worship (January 21, 2023)
THE PREPARATION
Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
Lift up your hands to the holy place,
and bless the Lord. Psalm 134: 1-2
Open this link in a new tab to hear Ron Klusmeier’s “Praise to the Lord.” [TFWS # 2029]
Praise to the Lord all of you, God's servants.
Blessed be the name of Our God now and ever.
From the rising up of the sun,
may the Lord be praised.
Praise to the name of the Lord!
There is none like our God in the heav'ns or on earth,
who lifts the poor from the dust
seating them with the mighty,
who stoops to raise the weak and low;
may the Lord be praised.
Praise to the name of the Lord!
Praise to the Lord all of you, God's servants.
Blessed be the name of Our God now and ever.
From the rising up of the sun,
may the Lord be praised.
Praise to the name of the Lord!
Praise to the Lord!
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:8-9
Let us confess our sins to almighty God.
Silence is kept, and then this prayer of confession is said.
Heavenly Father,
you have love us with an everlasting love,
but we have often gone our own way,
and rejected your will for our lives.
We are sorry for our sins and turns away from them.
for the sake of your Son who died for us,
forgive us, cleanse us, and change us.
By the power of your Holy Spirit, enable us to live for you,
and please you in every way,
for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
God is slow to anger and full of compassion. He forgives all who
humbly repent and turn to his Son Jesus Christ, in whom there is
no condemnation. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Terry Butler’s “Cry of My Heart.” [TFWS #2165]
It is the cry of my heart to follow You
It is the cry of my heart to be close to You
It is the cry of my heart to follow
All of the days of my life
It is the cry of my heart to follow You
It is the cry of my heart to be close to You
It is the cry of my heart to follow
All of the days of my life
1 Teach me Your holy ways oh Lord
So I can walk in Your truth
Teach me Your holy ways oh Lord
And make me wholly devoted to You
Oh, oh, whoa
It is the cry of my heart to follow You
It is the cry of my heart to be close to You
It is the cry of my heart to follow
All of the days of my life
2 Open my eyes so I can see
The wonderful things that You do
You do wonderful things, God
Open my heart up more and more
And make it wholly devoted to You
Oh, oh, whoa
[Interlude]
It is the cry of my heart to follow You
It is the cry of my heart to be close to You
It is the cry of my heart to follow
All of the days of my life
It is the cry of my heart to follow You
It is the cry of my heart to be close to You
It is the cry of my heart to follow
All of the days of my life
All of the days of my life
All of the days of my life
All of the days of my life
All of the days of my life
The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.
Let us pray.
Silence is kept, followed by this opening prayer.
Loving God,
the light of the minds that know you,
the life of the souls that love you,
and the strength of the hearts that serve you:
help us to so know you
that we truly love you,
and so to love you
that we may faithfully serve you,
whose service is perfect freedom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD
A Reading from the New Testament (Matthew 18: 1-7)
About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”
Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.
“And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.
“What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting.
Silence follows the reading.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Let’s take a look at Jesus’s answer to the disciples’ question, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”
A Reading from the New Testament (Matthew 18: 1-7)
About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”
Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.
“And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.
“What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting.
Silence follows the reading.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Who Is the Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?
What Jesus' Answer Means for Us
Let’s take a look at Jesus’s answer to the disciples’ question, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”
The Bible is divided into two parts, the first part is called the Old Testament. The second part is called the New Testament. The gospel that Matthew wrote, his account of Jesus’ life, ministry, teaching, suffering, death, and resurrection is the first of the four gospels. It is found at the beginning of the New Testament.
The Kingdom of Heaven about which Jesus is speaking is not heaven, the place where God is believed to live, but rather the rule of God over our hearts, minds, and lives. By heart I do not mean the organ in our chest that pumps blood around our body but our innermost thoughts and feelings. A person can be said to have entered the Kingdom of Heaven, also called the Kingdom of God, when God, represented by Jesus, is the most important and controlling influence on them.
What Jesus is telling his disciples is that they not only turn away from the bad things they have done or keep doing, but they must also change their attitude toward God and become humble like a little child is humble. Those who are humble like a little child will be considered “the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.”
What Jesus is telling his disciples is that they not only turn away from the bad things they have done or keep doing, but they must also change their attitude toward God and become humble like a little child is humble. Those who are humble like a little child will be considered “the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.”
Humility is a quality by which God sets great store—the quality of not being proud because we are aware of our need for God. We recognize that we have no righteousness of our own, that is, we cannot think, feel, or act in ways pleasing and acceptable to God by our own efforts. We are utterly dependent upon God not only to enter into the right kind of relationship with God but also to live in ways that are pleasing and acceptable to God. As Marty Haugen, a Christian songwriter and composer puts it in one of his songs, “All is gift and all is grace,” God’s merciful kindness shown toward us.
Having called to the disciples’ attention the importance of being humble like a little child, Jesus goes on to tell them that anyone who welcomes on his behalf a little child like one that he has just placed in the midst is welcoming him. The implication is that children are Jesus’ representatives. The kind of welcome that we show them is the kind of welcome that we show Jesus.
Jesus warns the disciples that anyone who causes “one of these little ones who trust in me” to sin, it would be better for them to have a large millstone tied around their neck and then thrown into the sea to drown.
The Jews of Jesus’ time were not a maritime people. They had a dread of the Mediterranean Sea, the “great green sea,” which they equated with the forces of chaos and destruction. The bodies of people who drowned in the sea rarely were recovered. This meant that a victim of drowning could not buried with their ancestors as was the Jewish custom. Instead, their bodies would be devoured by sea creatures.
The millstone to which Jesus refers was most likely the top stone or bottom stone of a hand quern, a simple device for griding grain between two heavy stones. The stones had a hole in their middle and a rope could be passed through the hole and used to tie a stone to someone’s neck. The heavy stone would drag the individual to the bottom of the body of water into which they were thrown. Even if their hands were free, they would drown before they were able to untie the stone.
Execution by drowning in not a form of capital punishment prescribed in the Old Testament or practiced by the Jews. However, it was not unknown among the Romans. One form of execution that they reserved for those condemned to death for parricide, murdering a parent or other near relative, was to sow the condemned person in a leather sack with a serpent, a rooster, a dog, and a monkey and then throw them into a river or a lake or the sea. As one can imagine, it was a slow and painful form of death.
“…these little ones who trust in me” is sometimes interpreted as a reference to Jesus’ disciples. But to interpret this phrase in this way, one must conclude that Jesus abruptly switched from talking about children to talking about his disciples. There is not a lot in the passage to support this conclusion.
I believe that we are safe in concluding that the little ones to whom he was referring were children. In any event, it is not a good thing to persuade someone, adult or child, to do something that is wrong or to encourage them in wrongdoing. This includes setting a bad example for them.
It is a very human tendency for one person who is doing the wrong thing to urge others to join them. We may have heard teenagers say or we ourselves may have said when we were teenagers, “everyone else is doing it" as if someone else doing the wrong thing makes doing it alright. The fact a number of other people are doing the wrong thing does not change the fact that it is the wrong thing. We are deceiving ourselves.
To give direction and guidance to the early Methodists and to foster their spiritual growth, John Wesley, the Anglican priest who founded the Methodist movement, drew up three general rules for the Methodist societies that had formed in response to his preaching. They were to do no harm to others and to avoid all forms of evil; to do good to all but especially fellow believers; and to employ the means of grace. These rules have their basis in what is taught in the Scriptures. One of the ways that we avoid doing harm to others, particularly children, is by not setting a bad example for them.
Children imitate their parents, and they internalize their parents’ attitudes, ways of thinking, and behavior. They also copy grandparents, older siblings, and other people in their environment, absorbing their attitudes, ways of thinking, and behavior as a part of their character too. We are not going to teach a child to love others if we are always bad-mouthing people and treating them in an unfriendly manner. Indeed, we are showing them how to be unpleasant and unkind in what we say about them and in how we speak and act toward them.
If we think about it, we may be exerting a negative influence on others around us without realizing it. While we cannot control how they react to us, we do have control over our words and actions, the triggers that are eliciting a reaction in them. It means that we need to be more conscious of how our words and actions may affect others and to be more careful about what we say or do. In being mindful of how our attitudes, ways of thinking, and behavior may affect others, we are showing our love for God as well as our love for others. We are living what Jesus taught was the greatest commandment of all—to love God with our whole being and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Having called to the disciples’ attention the importance of being humble like a little child, Jesus goes on to tell them that anyone who welcomes on his behalf a little child like one that he has just placed in the midst is welcoming him. The implication is that children are Jesus’ representatives. The kind of welcome that we show them is the kind of welcome that we show Jesus.
Jesus warns the disciples that anyone who causes “one of these little ones who trust in me” to sin, it would be better for them to have a large millstone tied around their neck and then thrown into the sea to drown.
The Jews of Jesus’ time were not a maritime people. They had a dread of the Mediterranean Sea, the “great green sea,” which they equated with the forces of chaos and destruction. The bodies of people who drowned in the sea rarely were recovered. This meant that a victim of drowning could not buried with their ancestors as was the Jewish custom. Instead, their bodies would be devoured by sea creatures.
The millstone to which Jesus refers was most likely the top stone or bottom stone of a hand quern, a simple device for griding grain between two heavy stones. The stones had a hole in their middle and a rope could be passed through the hole and used to tie a stone to someone’s neck. The heavy stone would drag the individual to the bottom of the body of water into which they were thrown. Even if their hands were free, they would drown before they were able to untie the stone.
Execution by drowning in not a form of capital punishment prescribed in the Old Testament or practiced by the Jews. However, it was not unknown among the Romans. One form of execution that they reserved for those condemned to death for parricide, murdering a parent or other near relative, was to sow the condemned person in a leather sack with a serpent, a rooster, a dog, and a monkey and then throw them into a river or a lake or the sea. As one can imagine, it was a slow and painful form of death.
“…these little ones who trust in me” is sometimes interpreted as a reference to Jesus’ disciples. But to interpret this phrase in this way, one must conclude that Jesus abruptly switched from talking about children to talking about his disciples. There is not a lot in the passage to support this conclusion.
I believe that we are safe in concluding that the little ones to whom he was referring were children. In any event, it is not a good thing to persuade someone, adult or child, to do something that is wrong or to encourage them in wrongdoing. This includes setting a bad example for them.
It is a very human tendency for one person who is doing the wrong thing to urge others to join them. We may have heard teenagers say or we ourselves may have said when we were teenagers, “everyone else is doing it" as if someone else doing the wrong thing makes doing it alright. The fact a number of other people are doing the wrong thing does not change the fact that it is the wrong thing. We are deceiving ourselves.
To give direction and guidance to the early Methodists and to foster their spiritual growth, John Wesley, the Anglican priest who founded the Methodist movement, drew up three general rules for the Methodist societies that had formed in response to his preaching. They were to do no harm to others and to avoid all forms of evil; to do good to all but especially fellow believers; and to employ the means of grace. These rules have their basis in what is taught in the Scriptures. One of the ways that we avoid doing harm to others, particularly children, is by not setting a bad example for them.
Children imitate their parents, and they internalize their parents’ attitudes, ways of thinking, and behavior. They also copy grandparents, older siblings, and other people in their environment, absorbing their attitudes, ways of thinking, and behavior as a part of their character too. We are not going to teach a child to love others if we are always bad-mouthing people and treating them in an unfriendly manner. Indeed, we are showing them how to be unpleasant and unkind in what we say about them and in how we speak and act toward them.
If we think about it, we may be exerting a negative influence on others around us without realizing it. While we cannot control how they react to us, we do have control over our words and actions, the triggers that are eliciting a reaction in them. It means that we need to be more conscious of how our words and actions may affect others and to be more careful about what we say or do. In being mindful of how our attitudes, ways of thinking, and behavior may affect others, we are showing our love for God as well as our love for others. We are living what Jesus taught was the greatest commandment of all—to love God with our whole being and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
A time of silence is kept, followed by this affirmation of faith.
We believe in one God,
who made us and loves all that is.
We believe in Jesus Christ,
God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was born, lived, died and rose again,
and is coming to call all to account.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
who calls, equips and sends out God’s people,
and brings all things to their true end.
This is our faith, the faith of the Church:
We believe in one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen
Open this link in a new tab to hear Danie Charles Damon’s “Like a Child.” [TFWS #2092]
1 like a child
love would send
to reveal
and to mend,
like a child
and a friend,
Jesus comes
like a child
we may find
claiming heart
soul and mind,
like a child
strong and kind,
Jesus comes.
2 like a child
we will meet,
ragged clothes
dirty feet
like a child
on the street,
Jesus comes
like a child
we once knew
coming back
into view,
like a child
born anew,
Jesus comes.
[Instrumental interlude]
3 like a child
born to pray
and to show
us the way,
like a child
on the street,
Jesus comes
like a child
we receive
all the love
one can conceive,
like a child
we believe,
Jesus comes.
THE PRAYERS
Let us pray for all people and for the Church throughout the world.
Grant, almighty God,
that all who confess your name may be united in your truth,
live together in your love, and reveal your glory in the world.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Guide the people of this land, and of all the nations,
in the ways of justice and peace;
that we may honor one another and serve the common good.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Give us all a reverence for the earth as your own creation,
that we may use its resources rightly
in the service of others and to your honor and glory.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Bless all whose lives are closely linked with ours,
and grant that we may serve Christ in them,
and love one another as Christ loves us.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Comfort and heal all those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit;
give them courage and hope in their troubles,
and bring them the joy of your salvation.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
We commend to your mercy all who have died,
that your will for them may be fulfilled;
and we pray that we may share with all your saints
in your eternal kingdom
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Additional intercessions, petitions, and thanksgiving may be offered in silence or aloud.
Almighty God, you have promised to hear our prayers.
Grant that what we have asked in faith
we may by your grace receive,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Accept our prayers through Jesus Christ our Lord, who taught
us to pray,
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,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
THE CONCLUSION
Father, take us and use us
to love and serve you
and all people,
in the power of your Spirit
and in the name of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Ruth Duck’s “As a Fire Is Meant for Burning.” [TFWS # 2237]
1 As a fire is meant for burning
with a bright and warming flame,
so the church is meant for mission,
giving glory to God’s name.
Not to preach our creeds or customs,
but to build a bridge of care,
we join hands across the nations,
finding neighbors everywhere.
2 We are learners; we are teachers;
we are pilgrims on the way.
We are seekers; we are givers;
we are vessels made of clay.
By our gentle loving actions,
we would show that Christ is light.
in a humble, listening spirit,
we would live to God’s delight.
3 As a green bud in the springtime
is a sign of life renewed,
so may we be signs of oneness
mid earth’s peoples many hued.
As a rainbow lights the heavens
when a storm is past and gone,
may our lives reflect the radiance
of God’s new and glorious dawn.
May the God of peace equip us with everything good for
doing his will, working in us what is pleasing to him,
through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
hear our prayer.
Give us all a reverence for the earth as your own creation,
that we may use its resources rightly
in the service of others and to your honor and glory.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Bless all whose lives are closely linked with ours,
and grant that we may serve Christ in them,
and love one another as Christ loves us.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Comfort and heal all those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit;
give them courage and hope in their troubles,
and bring them the joy of your salvation.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
We commend to your mercy all who have died,
that your will for them may be fulfilled;
and we pray that we may share with all your saints
in your eternal kingdom
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Additional intercessions, petitions, and thanksgiving may be offered in silence or aloud.
Almighty God, you have promised to hear our prayers.
Grant that what we have asked in faith
we may by your grace receive,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Accept our prayers through Jesus Christ our Lord, who taught
us to pray,
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,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
THE CONCLUSION
Father, take us and use us
to love and serve you
and all people,
in the power of your Spirit
and in the name of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Ruth Duck’s “As a Fire Is Meant for Burning.” [TFWS # 2237]
1 As a fire is meant for burning
with a bright and warming flame,
so the church is meant for mission,
giving glory to God’s name.
Not to preach our creeds or customs,
but to build a bridge of care,
we join hands across the nations,
finding neighbors everywhere.
2 We are learners; we are teachers;
we are pilgrims on the way.
We are seekers; we are givers;
we are vessels made of clay.
By our gentle loving actions,
we would show that Christ is light.
in a humble, listening spirit,
we would live to God’s delight.
3 As a green bud in the springtime
is a sign of life renewed,
so may we be signs of oneness
mid earth’s peoples many hued.
As a rainbow lights the heavens
when a storm is past and gone,
may our lives reflect the radiance
of God’s new and glorious dawn.
May the God of peace equip us with everything good for
doing his will, working in us what is pleasing to him,
through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
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