Sermon: Psalm 100 Why Worship?

I want to ask you a question, and the question is this: Why have you come to church tonight? And as I ask that question, there might be lots of different answers that you could give. Maybe it’s because you’re in church every Sunday, either here or somewhere else. It’s part of your regular routine. Or maybe you’re here because you were told that you had to come along tonight, whether you wanted to or not. Or you came because you wanted to see the Baptism, to be part of Harry’s special evening. So whether you’re here for some of those reasons or for some other reason, you are very welcome here tonight.

In each of our services we focus in on a particular reading from the Bible, and tonight our focus is on Psalm 100, which you’ll find on the service sheet. And in that Psalm, we find the answer to the question why we would want to come to church; why we would want to worship God.

But first, before we come to the ‘why’ of worship, we find the ‘what’ of worship. In verses 1-2 we are told what to do when we come to worship. Now, maybe you’re not used to the Church of Ireland, and you can’t get over how many times we stand up and sit down, but in those opening verses we’re told what to do:

‘Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.’ (1-2)

Do you see the active words? Shout! Worship! Come before him! Now, we haven’t had much shouting already - maybe that will come when Harry is baptised. But it’s meant to be loud - and also joyful. It’s shout... for joy; worship... with gladness; coming before him ... with joyful songs. Sometimes Christians are thought of as the frozen chosen, as people who are miserable, and dour, but that shouldn’t be the case. We should be singing with joy and gladness - this is the what of worship.

And it’s all directed toward ‘the LORD’. When you see the word LORD in capital letters, it’s speaking of God as the one who makes promises and keeps his promises, the God who is always the same. So that’s who we worship - but did you notice who is meant to be doing the worshipping? The what is to shout and worship and sing joyfully; but who should worship? Is it just for a few people? Only men or only women? Only rich or only poor? Only older people or only young people and then you grow out of it? Only people in the UK or only people in Africa? Well, look again at verse 1: ‘Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.’

The call to worship goes out to everybody, to all the earth. As the first hymn put it: ‘All people that on earth do dwell.’ So if you live on earth, if you are alive tonight, then you are called to worship the LORD. You’re called to shout and sing with joy and gladness. Will you answer the call?

And why should you worship? We see that in verse 3:

‘Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.’

Why should we worship? Because God is God (and we are not). But notice that there’s another something we’re to do there - ‘know.’ We come to worship God because we know that God is God. And as we come to him, and sing to him, and worship him, we are reminding ourselves of how great God is. And how is he so great? Because he made us.

Tonight that’s obvious as we celebrate the birth and safe arrival of Harry. In another Psalm, king David talks about how God ‘knit me together in my mother’s womb.’ And so we rejoice in God’s gift of life, in the person that Harry is already and is becoming every day. God made us, and we are his (or as the footnote suggests, God made us, and not we ourselves.

God made each of us, has given us life and breath and everything else, and so we are God’s people. We are the sheep of his pasture, under his care and keeping. The Lord is our shepherd.

Do you see why we should worship? Because God is God, and has made us, given us life. That should be reason enough - the very fact of our existence should cause us to worship. But the Psalm doesn’t stop there. Rather, the why of worship leads to even more worship, to the what of worship all over again. Look at verse 4:

‘Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.’

It tells us to ‘enter’ his gates and his courts. This Psalm was written when the temple was in Jerusalem - the place where people came to worship God. But the temple doesn’t stand there any more; there’s just the wailing wall left of it. So does that mean we all have to go to Jerusalem? Or how does that work if there’s no temple any more?

The thing is, though, that God still has a temple on the earth; he has a dwelling place, but it isn’t made of brick or stone. Rather, it’s made up of people - people who love Jesus, who worship him and follow him. The church is the temple of God, the place where God dwells - not this building, but the people who meet inside. So for us to enter God’s gates and his courts is to be with other Christians, to join together in worship, to give thanks to God and to praise his name. To worship is to say ‘thank you’ and to praise God’s name - his character.

Later on in the service, I’ll use Harry’s name when I baptise him. And from here on, Harry will be getting a name for himself - he’ll be building some kind of reputation as he goes to nursery, and school, and work and whatever else he does in life. And people will know him - that Harry Harper one - they’ll know his name, his reputation, his character.

And when I baptise Harry, I’ll also use God’s name. Harry will baptised in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. And what is God’s reputation? His character? Why do we praise his name?

We see that in the last verse of the Psalm. Here’s the why of worship: ‘For the LORD is good and his love endures for ever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.’

We worship God because of who he is and what he is like. The LORD is good. All of the time. He doesn’t change, he is always the same, and always good. But more than that, his love endures for ever - it never runs out, it never stops, it never comes to an end. His love is constant towards us, and even higher and wider and deeper than your love for little Harry. The love that you have for him is like nothing compared to God’s love for you.

In fact, God loved you so much that he gave you Jesus, who came into the world to die on the cross for you; he came to open up the gates so that we can come to God. You see, our sins were a barrier, separating us from God. God is good, but we aren’t. But Jesus came to take away our sins, to bring us to God, to bring us home. And he did it because he loves us so much; with this love that endures for ever.

And because God is good, and he loves us, he is also faithful - he keeps his promises; he doesn’t change his mind. And his faithfulness continues through all generations.

It’s because we know who God is and what God is like that we can come to him in worship. It’s the reason why we meet every Sunday morning and Sunday evening here, and why Christians around the world worship Jesus. The question is: will you join us as we worship? Will you give your life to follow the Jesus who gave his life for you?

That is our prayer for Harry tonight - that he will grow up to know the goodness, love and faithfulness of the Lord Jesus, and that he will follow him all his days. And it’s our prayer for each of us gathered here, and for everyone in all the world - that you and they and everyone will worship as we shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth; because of the why of worship - God’s Godness, his goodness, his love and his faithfulness.

This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday evening 25th August 2019.

Sermon: Psalm 95 - Worship and a Warning

A few years ago, I went on a stag do to do some go karting. As you can imagine, when fifteen fellas get together, there’s plenty of competition, lots of chat about who’s going to win. When the races started, I was more like someone out for a Sunday afternoon drive compared to some of the boy racers - some had even brought their own helmets and gear. But the thing that stood out that day was the time before the racing started. We were gathered in a wee room, and the owner gave us a short talk. First of all, he welcomed us and told us to have fun, but then came the second thing - the warnings. We watched a safety video, and had to sign the disclaimer, that if we were injured it would be our own fault. Welcome and warning, side-by-side.

It’s what we find in Psalm 95, in these very familiar words. There’s a welcome - a call to worship; and a warning, and you can’t have one without the other. So let’s dive in, to see how the welcome of worship of the warning of worship sit together. And first, the welcome.

I wonder if you’ve ever received a summons to serve on a jury? The letter arrives in the post, and you are obliged to turn up on the day, whether you want to or not. Is that how the opening words of verses 1 and 6 come across? ‘Oh come’. Here’s a summons, you have to do this, you have to come along to worship, whether you want to or not? Now, maybe some Sunday mornings it might feel like a struggle to get up, and you could think of a million and one other places to be. But that’s not the sense of the call to worship.

It’s more like a wedding invitation, a joyful welcome to come along, to be a part of something exciting, to be caught up in celebration. Oh come! And what is it we come to? Well, in Psalm 95 we have what I think of as a row of lettuces. You know that I’m not much of a gardener. The only thing I can grow is weeds. If I needed lettuce for salad sandwiches, I would buy it in the shop. But some of you are gardeners; you might even have a row of lettuces growing (if it’s the time of year for them - I don’t even know!). Do you see the row of lettuces here in Psalm 95? ‘Oh come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!’

There’s our row of lettuces. And there’s another mini row in verse 6 - ‘let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!’ Here’s the welcome to worship, as we come together to worship. In these words we’re not speaking to God, our eyes aren’t on heaven as such; our eyes are all around us, urging and encouraging one another to sing, to make a joyful noise, to give thanks.

It’s like the team sports in the Olympics, as each member supports and cheers on the rest of the team. The rugby sevens teams seem to come together for a hands in the centre kind of cheer before they go out to play the match. We’re to be doing the same - encouraging those around us as we sing out; or being encouraged when we don’t find it easy.

Now why would we want to come together to worship? Why should we praise with loud singing? We’re given the reason in verses 3-5. Do you see the ‘for’ at the start of verse 3? Here’s why: ‘For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.’ As we encourage one another to worship, we recognise who God is - he is the great God, the God of gods, if you like. In fact, he’s the only God.

When Psalm 95 was written, the nations all around believed there were lots of gods and goddesses, each localised, each one in charge of something in particular. There would be the god of a mountain; of the sea; of a piece of land. Up on the north coast, there’s an example of this sort of pagan thinking. High above Magilligan Point, on the Bishop’s Road, stands a statue of Manannán mac Lir. That was the statue that was cut down last year, but now replaced. He was believed to be the Celtic god of the sea, so if you were going on a sea journey, you would sacrifice to him, to keep him onside.

But Psalm 95 cuts through all that. The LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. And here’s why (v4): ‘In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.’ Our God rules over all, because he made everything, and holds it in his hands. Here’s the reason why we encourage one another to sing and make joyful noise!

Perhaps you came today feeling as if you are carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. As we sing, praise and give thanks to our God, we’re reminded that we don’t need to carry the weight of the world - our God holds it in his hands. He’s in control. He doesn’t need a hand to hold it - he can do it all by himself.

Now in verse 6, the pattern repeats - another welcome to worship, as we speak to and encourage one another to worship, followed by the reason why. But notice that this time round it’s quieter. In fact, there’s no noise at all, unless you count a creaky hip or the wee sigh as you get down... ‘Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!’

You see, worship isn’t just loud singing. Worship is also bowing and kneeling before the LORD - recognising him as our God; submitting to him. And we do this together, urging one another to bow. Why would we surrender to him, bow before him, come humbly to him? Again, we have the reason, the ‘for’ - ‘For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.’

Even though God is great and glorious, reigning over all he has made, even so, he is not distant. He is our God, our shepherd king as we thought about last week - again with this picture of his people and his sheep. He holds the world in his hand, and we are the sheep of his hand. He holds us as well.

So we have the call, the welcome to worship, and the reason why. But then suddenly, at the end of verse 7, we have the warning - a warning we still need to hear. You see, it’s not enough to worship. It’s not enough to be noisy and loud and then merrily go our way. As we worship, in singing and in bowing, we must also be listening, ready to hear and obey.

‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.’ The warning for the people of God still stands for us, as the writer to the Hebrews makes clear - that even when we’re worshipping, we could still fall away, if our hearts become hard, if we refuse to listen and obey.

We’re presented with a case study from the history of God’s people. Moses had led the Israelites out of Egypt, freedom from slavery, salvation through the Passover Lamb, escape through the Red Sea, where they arrived in the wilderness. It was here that disaster struck. The very same people who had trusted in the Passover suddenly refused to listen. Their hearts wanted to be back in Egypt, back in slavery. They feared for their lives because of a lack of water. They questioned whether God was really with them (Ex 17:7).

These were the people who had sung the songs of salvation; who were on the way to the promised land, guided by the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, yet they refused to listen, refused to trust God any more. They (v8) hardened their hearts.

Maybe you’ve seen this in a child. Their mum tells them to do something, and they say ‘no.’ And nothing will change their minds, not bribes, or threats. If you’re the parent, you only want what is best for them, but they just can’t or won’t see it. That’s how it was with God’s people. They hardened their hearts. They wouldn’t listen. And so, despite having seen evidence of God’s goodness and saving power up close and personal, they turned away, they have not known my ways.

We’re told that God loathed that generation. They were barred from the land of promise, the promised rest of the land of Israel. For forty years they would wander in the wilderness until that whole generation had died out (except for Joshua and Caleb).

Now you might be thinking, what has that got to do with us? That was thousands of years ago, far, far away. But the writer to the Hebrews in our second reading makes clear that the warning still stands, and all because of that word ‘today.’ Today, if we hear God’s voice, we can enter into that promised rest, a rest from labour, a rest that comes by trusting the promise.

And how do we make sure that we’ll receive the promise and enter that rest? It’s what we’ve seen in Psalm 95, and explained in Hebrews 3:12-13:
‘Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today’, that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.’

Exhort one another. Encourage one another. Do it together - the welcome of worship, as we urge one another to worship our great God in loud singing and in humble submission. It’s so important that we are here for one another, not just for ourselves and what we get out of our time together. It’s why our prayer diary for today is to ‘look for opportunities to encourage others as we meet to worship.’ If each of us are on the look out to encourage everyone else, then all of us will encourage and be encouraged. Perhaps before you leave your pew, you can pray for the people around you, in front, beside or behind. Perhaps you can chat over coffee about something more than the weather - find out how you can pray for someone this week, what’s been going on with them, and then catch up next week to see how your prayers have been answered - what an encouragement to praise that would be!

We need each other. We can’t do it on our own. It’s why we’re called into the church, the family of God, the people of his pasture. We welcome one another to worship - singing to our great God; and bowing before our shepherd King. And this applies every week, but even more so today - today, if you hear his voice, if you are prompted to play your part, to step up, or speak up, or sing up, or pray up, then don’t harden your hearts. Don’t turn away. Enter his rest. Receive his grace. Submit to his word, as we seek to do that together.

This sermon was preached in Aghavea Parish Church on Sunday 14th August 2016, as part of the Summer Psalms sermon series.

Sermon Audio: The Weekend's Words

Last Sunday in Aghavea we had a special Gift Day service in the morning, and a Favourite Hymns Evening as well. So here are the two sermons that were preached, for you to listen in.

Sunday morning: Gift Day Sermon from Acts 4:32 - 5:11 on Ananias and Sapphira's offering

Sunday evening: The Worship of Heaven from Revelation 4&5.

Sermon: Revelation 4 & 5 The Worship of Heaven

I wonder if you’ve ever stopped to think about the words we use in the Holy Communion service: ‘And so with all your people, with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and saying...’ It’s a reminder that we aren’t the only people praising God - all over the world, we join with God’s people; but more than that, we join with all the company of heaven. Tonight we’re singing and praising, but what is the worship of heaven like?

If you’re a certain age, you might remember a TV programme called Playschool. And each day, we were invited to take a look through the round window (or the square window or the arched window) to discover more about something in the world. Well, in our reading tonight, the apostle John sees an open door into heaven. We’ll hear what he sees, and also what he hears, as we discover what heaven’s worship is like.

The first thing John sees in heaven is a throne. Now, even though we might think that the universe revolves around us, that we are in charge of our own world, the throne of heaven is occupied. There is one seated on the throne. John’s description may not be very helpful - the appearance of jasper and carnelian (precious stones, both with a reddish colour). He doesn’t really tell us much directly about the one on the throne - but what he hears tells us much more. You see, there’s a constant chorus, a day and night proclamation of praise in verse 8.

You see, around the throne there are 24 other thrones, the elders, clothed in white, with gold crowns on their heads. Also around the throne are the four living creatures, with six wings and eyes all around, one like a lion, one like an ox, one like a man, and one like an eagle. And they never cease to say: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come.’

The one on the throne is Holy, Holy, Holy. He is so entirely different to everything else. Total purity. Totally perfect. He is the Lord God Almighty. The one who rules and reigns with perfect power and wisdom. He is the eternal one, with no beginning and no ending, everlasting.

And every time the creatures declare God’s glory, the elders fall before him, casting down their golden crowns, giving their worship: ‘Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.’

This holy, holy, holy God is worthy to be praised, to receive glory, honour and power. Why? ‘For you created all things.’ God is worthy to be praised because he gave us life, in the first place. Without God, we would not have existed. Life was his idea. And so, we should praise because he made us, according to his will.

John sees the throne, and hears the praise of God’s creation. Do we give glory to God because he made us?

John then sees something else. It’s a scroll, rolled up, and sealed up with seven seals, with writing front and back. This is the unfolding of history, God’s plans for the whole universe. God holds it in his right hand, and the challenge goes out. Who is worthy to open the scroll and break the seals? No one is found to answer the challenge - heaven, earth, under the earth. What will happen? John begins to weep.

One of the elders tells him to weep no more. ‘Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.’ So John looks to see the Lion of Judah, the Root of David, and he might wonder if he needs to go to Specsavers. Have you ever had a restaurant bring you out the wrong order? You ordered the beef, and they bring you turkey.

Here, they’ve called for the Lion, and standing before the throne is... a Lamb, as though it had been slain. But it’s no mistake. The Lion of Judah is the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus, crucified, slain as the sacrifice for our sins; for our unwillingness to praise the God who gave us life and breath and everything. It is the Lion / Lamb Lord Jesus who controls history, who unveils God’s plan for the world.

As he takes the scroll, the living creatures and the elders sing a new song. Again, it follows the same pattern: ‘Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals... Why?... ‘For you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.’

John sees the scroll, and hears the praise of Jesus. Will we give him our praise, because of all that he has done for us - he died for us; he paid the ransom for us and all his people; he has brought us into his kingdom, and made us priests to our God, and given us a share of his reign. Will you praise the King of your salvation?

It’s as if the praise of Jesus kicks off a chain reaction; or like dropping a stone into a still lake, the ripples spread wider and wider. First, the voice of many angels, myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, all praising: ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing!’ And then, as if all that wasn’t enough, John hears: ‘every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea...’ And they all join in: ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honour and glory and might for ever and ever!’ Amen.

Paul in Philippians tells us that one day every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Why wait until that day? Why have it forced out of you reluctantly? Why not joyfully receive Jesus as your Lord. Submit to him today, and join in the joy of heaven, to worship him here and now, on earth as it is in heaven.

He is worthy to be praised. He made you. He gave you life. And he gives you new life, a place in his kingdom. So don’t wait until you ‘have to’ worship him. Let’s worship him with joy and gladness.

This sermon was preached at the Favourite Hymns Evening in Aghavea Parish Church on Sunday 5th June 2016.

Sermon: John 12: 1-8 Extravagant Worship

I wonder if you’ve ever had a memorable meal. A dinner that really sticks out in the mind. Now, maybe you can remember every single meal you’ve ever had, but for most of us, you couldn’t remember much about what you had for dinner Tuesday week ago, let alone fifteen years ago. But you might remember some memorable meals. Perhaps you can remember the best steak you’ve ever tasted; or the most delicious dessert (all with no calories, of course).

But sometimes it isn’t the food itself that makes a meal memorable. Something happens, and the meal will be remembered for a long time. A wee while ago I was out for lunch with my mum and dad. Ordered a chicken Maryland, and the plate came out, piled high - bacon, chips, banana fritter, battered pineapple, peas and sweetcorn - it was all there; but no chicken! They’d forgot to put it on the plate. We’ll never forget that it happened! Or perhaps you’ve had a memorable meal when you pulled out a ring and popped the question (and had to answer the question...).

As John sits down to write his gospel, there’s a memorable meal that he includes, and it’s found in our reading today. We’re not told anything about the food, just that Martha served it; but it was unforgettable because of what happened - an act of unashamed, extravagant worship.

The setting is Bethany, the home of siblings Lazarus, Martha and Mary. Lazarus, you might remember, had been dead, but Jesus raised him from the dead. And so the family give a dinner in Jesus’ honour. A time of table fellowship they wouldn’t have thought possible a few days before. Practical Martha cooked up a treat; Lazarus reclined at table - they weren’t sitting at a dining room table the way you might when you go home for your dinner. Instead, they reclined on one arm, with the other used to eat; legs sprawled out behind.

And Mary? Mary does something unforgettable. Let’s watch as John describes the scene. She took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard. The other night at the Christmas Fair there was the guess the weight of the Christmas cake. It was about 6lb 12 oz, but this is one pound of pure nard - a rare and expensive ointment. This is a costly act of worship. Later we’re told that it could have been sold for 300 denarii - a year’s wage.

That’s like going into Boots and asking for the most expensive perfume. In fact, you probably wouldn’t even get close. This would be like flying to Chanel and asking them to make you up your very own perfume. A year’s worth of wages was a huge sum to save up in order to buy this perfume for this costly act of worship.

I wonder are we as deliberate, as thoughtful when it comes to deciding what we’re offering in worship?

This wasn’t just a costly act of worship, this was also unashamed worship. Mary... anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. Now we might not quite ‘get’ what’s going on here. For a single woman to let down her hair, to touch and anoint a single man’s feet; this was shocking in that culture. This wasn’t how you were meant to get on.

But Mary doesn’t care what other people think. She is pouring out her worship as she pours out her ointment, as she anoints the anointed one (the Christ). This is pure devotion, not held back by what other people think. It’s the same attitude that David showed when the ark of the covenant was brought into the city of Jerusalem in 2 Samuel 6. David danced before the Lord with all his might, wearing just an ephod. His wife Michal was raging at how David had behaved in front of his female servants. But David replies, ‘I will make merry before the Lord. I will make myself even more undignified than this.’ (2 Sam 6:21-22). He doesn’t care what other people think. And neither does Mary. Nothing will stop her as she offers this unashamed worship.

Sometimes we can hold back from really worshipping because we’re fearful of what someone else will think or say. They might not like it, but don’t hold back. Be unashamed in your devotion.

And all the more so, because this was a public act of worship. No one could miss what was happening. John says: ‘The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.’ I’m not sure how I’d have coped in the house - I sometimes have to take a deep breath to walk through all the perfume counters in Debenhams in Belfast just to get to the rest of the shop. The candle shops can be overpowering. And the worship offered that day was just as unavoidable. Everyone could smell it. Everyone would smell of it.

Public worship, witnessed by all, missed by none. Are we in the same category? Is the fragrance of our devotion to Christ obvious? Or would people be surprised that you’re here today; that you identify as a Christian?

Extravagant worship is costly, unashamed, and public. It doesn’t go unnoticed, and can sometimes be misunderstood. Criticised, even, by those you would think would know better.

Judas, one of the twelve, speaks up. ‘Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?’ What a waste! A year’s wages poured out in one go - think of the hungry mouths to feed. Think of the hands eager to receive even a fraction of it.

Perhaps you find yourself nodding along. Except we need to be careful of the company we keep. You see, the only hungry mouth Judas was worried about was his own. The only eager hand to receive even a fraction of the money was his own. John tells us (with the benefit of hindsight) that Lazarus didn’t care about the poor. He was a thief, helping himself to what was put into the common money bag. Judas was about to betray Jesus (4), but he already had many times before.

He was one of the twelve; he was with Jesus; he had a position of responsibility; but he was a thief. His time with Jesus didn’t lead to worship and wonder; he grew in selfishness and cynicism. Now for us gathered in church today, we need to face up to the same challenge. As we listen to Jesus, as we hear of all the amazing things he did, are we hardened to it all, and only watching out for how we can prosper ourselves? Or are we moved to worship?

Jesus speaks up in Mary’s defence. You will always have the poor with you. Now that doesn’t mean what one of our old teachers tried to say - there’s always going to be poor people, so don’t bother helping... It means we can and should be helping, and can do so all the time. But Jesus wouldn’t always be around. This anointing was done to prepare Jesus for burial, something which would happen in less than a week, that very Passover.

You see, Jesus is worthy of this costly, unashamed, public, extravagant worship. This Jesus who raised Lazarus from the dead would himself go to the place of the dead, crucified for us, dying the death we deserved, to give us hope. When we see his glory, then the only right response is to worship him with all that we have. To welcome him in.

As we begin this Advent season, as we’re reminded that Jesus is coming - will you receive him in? Will you make him Lord of your life, Lord of your home?

Nuala is going to come and share a poem she has found helpful and challenging on this theme of welcoming Jesus in. Let’s pray.

This sermon was preached in Aghavea Parish Church on Sunday 29th November 2015.

Sermon: Psalm 150: The W5 of Worship

The dockyard area in Belfast is becoming a place to go for a family day out. The Titanic Centre sits beside the Paint Hall where they film Game of Thrones. The Odyssey hosts concerts and ice hockey and all sorts of things. There's also an exciting science exhibition and learning centre which goes by the name of W5. But why is it called W5? Well, it's all about getting children to ask the W5 questions, made famous by Rudyard Kipling in his little ditty:

I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.

Now he throws how into the mix, but the W5 are who, what, where, why and when. For a few moments we're going to use the W5 as we think about Psalm 150, the very last in the collection of Psalms in the Bible.

So first up, who? We find the answer in verse 6: 'Let everything that has breath praise the Lord' Now you might be feeling a bit out of puff having sung all those songs thus far, but if you have breath in your lungs, then you are the who. The call goes out for everyone to praise the Lord. But it's more than just people. You see, the Psalm doesn't say everyone who has breath - it's everything that has breath. Every creature is called to praise, to join the chorus of praise to our God. Everything that God made is called to praise the God who made it. Who? Everyone.

What? Well, when you look at the Psalm, it's hard to miss the what, isn't it? In every sentence, on every line, the call comes to 'praise' or 'praise him'. We can even sneak in the 'how' question, as we see and hear the musical instruments joining the praise. It's as if there's a great crescendo as the instruments join in and become louder and louder - trumpet sound, lute and harp, tambourine and dance, strings and pipe, sounding cymbals, loud clashing cymbals. Who? Everyone. What? Praise the Lord.

Where? The answer comes in verse 1. 'Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens.' The call comes to praise God in his sanctuary, his mighty heavens. Now that doesn't mean that we have to be in heaven to praise - everyone and everything can praise God who is in heaven wherever we are. No matter where you are, or what you're doing, you can praise God. Who? Everyone. What? Praise the Lord. Where? Everywhere.

Why? Look at verse 2. Here's why we're called to praise God. 'Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness.' Here are the two reasons to praise God. His mighty deeds - the amazing, wonderful, works of his power, to create, to save, to rescue, and to keep his people. The writer might have looked back to the Exodus from Egypt. But to the Passover and the return from Babylonian exile, we can also add the mighty deeds of the cross and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. God has worked his mighty deeds to save us - which will lead us to praise him.

But the second reason to praise is 'according to his excellent greatness.' We praise God for what he has done, but we also praise him for who he is. When we think about God's greatness, it leads us to praise. Just think of God's goodness, love, grace, mercy, justice, compassion, kindness, his all-knowing, all-seeing, almighty all-powerful strength. We've already sung of all of those things. Reflecting on God's excellent greatness leads us to praise him. Who? Everyone. What? Praise the Lord. Where? Everywhere. Why? His mighty deeds and his excellent greatness.

When? When should we praise? All the time. For all time, and for all eternity. When we have been saved by God, gathered into his people, we are turned from living for our own glory and our own good name. We are gathered to join the chorus of praise, sung by all God's people. We're called to praise now, but we'll still be praising God forever.

Who, what, where, why, when. Praise the Lord. Will you hear this call tonight? Will you praise God, not just now in your songs, but in every moment of your life? Let's pray.

This sermon was preached at the Favourite Hymns Evening in Aghavea Parish Hall on Sunday 7th June 2015.

Sermon: Psalm 47 Directions for Worship

If you’ve been away over the summer, you might have gone along to church where you were staying. And if it wasn’t a Church of Ireland church (or maybe if it was!), you get to your seat and you look around. There might be a hymn book, hopefully a Bible, but you won’t find a Prayer Book in the Methodists or Baptists. The service will all come from the front, not necessarily set out for you to follow along.

It’s the Church of Ireland (or Anglican churches across the world) where you find the BCP, the Book of Common Prayer. In it, the services are laid out, the words are there to follow so you know what to say, but as well as the words, sometimes there are also some stage directions. The rubrics (the bits in red ink - think ruby red) are the bits that tell you how to worship - whether to stand or sit or kneel. They are the directions for worship. They tell you (or invite you) what to do as you worship God.

And in our reading from Psalm 47, we find some more directions for worship. But, being Church of Ireland, these directions might take us by surprise, or at least, out of our comfort zone. Just look, for example, at the very first word of the psalm. We’re used to a round of applause coming at the end of a song or a play or when the plane has landed safely, but here the applause comes at the start: ‘Clap your hands, all peoples!’

Immediately, the call to worship goes out from the temple - not just to the Israelites gathered at the temple, but to ‘all peoples.’ Every person of every people / nation is called to worship, to clap your hands. But this isn’t a polite round of applause when the Sunday School have sung at the Family Service. Not when it’s joined by the next line: ‘Shout to God with loud songs of joy!’

This is the roar of a crowd at a sporting event. It’s going to be loud! Don’t hold back. Now that might well be beyond what you’re used to. But that’s the first call to worship. We might be better able for the second call to worship found in verse 6: ‘Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises!’ [Sometimes modern songwriters get a bit of stick for a repetitive chorus. The sons of Korah were at it a long time ago!]

The call to worship goes out from Jerusalem to all peoples. The instructions are clear. It’s going to involve clapping, shouting, and singing. Lots of singing. But you know the way sometimes you wonder why we do what we do? Why do we stand during the Communion prayer when we used to kneel; or why do we do what some of my Presbyterian friends call ‘Anglican Aerobics’ - the standing, sitting, kneeling, up and down and up again? There’s normally a good reason for why we do what we do, but in case we’re in any doubt, the sons of Korah give us lots of reasons to praise God by clapping, shouting and singing.

Do you see the start of verses 2 and 7? The same word is there each time. ‘For’. Here’s the reason for the call to worship. Here’s why we are to do what we do. In both verse 2 and verse 7, the same point is brought out. In fact, the same words are used. Why should all the nations praise God? ‘For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared, a great king over all the earth.’ (2) ‘For God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm.’ (7)

God is the King, not just in Jerusalem; not just in Israel; he is the King of/over all the earth. If God rules over all the earth, then every person should worship their true king. Now that should be a good enough reason. But the psalm gives us even more reasons to worship. The evidence that God is indeed king of all the earth. The evidence of both the past and the present. Do you see the pattern here? A call to worship (v1, v6); a declaration of God as king (v 2, v7); the evidence of God’s kingship - in the past (v3-5) and the present (v8-9).

So what has already happened? Look at verse 3: ‘He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet. He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob whom he loves. God has gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.’ As the sons of Korah lead worship in the Jerusalem temple they look back to their history. They remember that God gave them the victory as he subdued the nations who lived in the land. God gave them the promised land they were living in. They were small and weak (like grasshoppers compared to the Canaanites), but God the King gave them the victory. They couldn’t have done it by themselves. God must be the king over all, for them to have gained the land of promise. In the past, God subdued the nations opposed to him and his people. Grand High Treason is always punished. God did that as a sign of his love for his people - giving them their heritage, this pride of Jacob.

But now the call goes out to all peoples to sing praises to God. God is the king of all the earth, with all the trappings of kingship - he reigns over the nations; he sits on his holy throne. And here’s the present tense evidence of God’s kingly reign. Here’s the reason for everyone to praise him. Look at verse 9: ‘The princes of the peoples gather as the people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; he is highly exalted.’

Here we get a glimpse of what God is doing, and continues to do more and more since Jesus the King reigns. People from every nation are being gathered together as the people of the King. The opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games was on TV on Wednesday night. Athletes from over sixty nations paraded into Celtic Park, people from Northern Ireland and Namibia and Nauru joining together for a fortnight of swimming and shooting and squash. But it’s just a glimpse of people from every nation coming together as the people of the King. And what was being seen as present in the psalm writer’s day is even more so now.

Look how God is described. He is the God of Abraham. Now why did the sons of Korah describe God in that way? Why not just write ‘The princes of the peoples gather as the people of God.’ It’s shorter, simpler, and saves on scrolls. There must be a reason why God is described in this way. And if you were around when I wasn’t, then you might be one step ahead of me. Robert preached three weeks focussing on the promise God made to Abraham (Gen 12) and how it is fulfilled in Jesus. God had said: ‘In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ (Gen 12:3). As the nations hear the call to worship the King, so they find blessing, as they gather as the people of the God of the promise, the God of Abraham.

Directions for worship, and the reason why. We’re faced with a challenge this morning. The call to worship has gone out. Have we heard it and heeded it? Are you worshipping God, the King of all the earth? Not just on a Sunday as you clap and shout and sing, but in every moment of your life? If you aren’t already, in heart and voice, then join the chorus.

But if you have heard, and you are worshipping, then it’s up to us to also join with the sons of Korah, not just in worshipping, but also in calling others to worship. Our church must turn from only being inward focused, and start to look outside. We’re good at the big social events - the BBQ brings in a huge crowd, but are we only inviting people to have a good night? How can we also invite them to worship God with us? Let’s clap, and shout, and sing for God our King. Amen.

This sermon was preached in Aghavea Parish Church on Sunday 27th July 2014.

Sumer Mudness

While I had forgotten to mention it in the actual posting, the title of the last posting was referring to the fact that there hadn't been very much rain for the first day or so at Summer Madness. However, by last night when the festival was drawing to a close, it was indeed Summer Mudness, especially in the Paddock sub camp, where mats had to be put down to navigate a path through the mud leading into the camp!

So today is a fallow day, for resting up before Streetreach is launched tonight. Tomorrow morning hundreds (or is it thousands) of young people will go into thirty areas of Belfast to demonstrate the grace and love of God in practical ways. But before that happens, we'll recap on some news from the festival!

I've really enjoyed being on the Prayer Ministry Team, and being able to pray with young people seeking to return to God, or to honour him with their lives, or to come to know him for the first time. Last night was really special, as I got to lead a man to Christ! Earlier in the day I also prayed with a wee lad who had made the commitment but hadn't went forward for prayer ministry or a chat with his youth leader.

In all, there were about 100 new Christians over the weekend, which is absolutely brilliant! Please be praying for them now as they begin this new life with Jesus.

The Prayer Ministry Team themselves were great, and a very welcoming and encouraging bunch. It was Robert and my first time on the team, and they were brilliant at helping us in getting involved - a special thank you to Chris and Susan Bennett, who lead the team so well!

Another great aspect of Summer Madness was getting to meet up with people you don't generally see from one year to the next. Sadly, though, one such meeting was called very short as I was called to the prayer room, but hopefully it won't be so long before we meet again!

So the rest of this week for me is shaping up with the Streetreach worship events in the evenings (starting at 9pm in the King's Hall - entrance by the Lisburn Road); and writing sermons for Dundonald and Dromore during the day, as well as proof-reading my book!!! I now have it in my possession and am trying to get it proofed as soon as possible for a September launch. More news will follow in due course...

New Summer Madness CD

Yes, the new Summer Madness CD has finaly arrived!!! Tim Hughes, Johnny Parks, Ian Hannah and others are just waiting to burst onto your music system via cd to remind you of the worship from this year's festival. If you click on it, you might even be one of the first 150 to get a signed copy!

And what of the cd? It's great... really, really good, and worth a waiting for. Sadly there wasn't a cd last year, but its back this year, and as good as ever!