'We shall do all that God requires'

Loving God, you call us to be your people. You make us and fill us with your Spirit. You call us to see your glory in creation, your inspiration in our work, and your love in our lives. Refresh us here, rebuild us and renew us as we offer you thanks and praise, for you are our breath and our life.

StF 28 Jesus calls us here to meet him .

​Prayers of Praise 
Living and loving God, once more we bring you our praise and worship. We acknowledge you as our God. We recognise your greatness and power. We marvel at your love and compassion. We come before you with awe and wonder. You are the Lord of heaven and earth, of space and time, of this world and all of the universe, of life and death. Draw near to us to open our hearts to the risen Christ. Speak to us through the worship we offer this day, and through it all deepen our faith. 
Living and loving God, we praise you that there is so much that speaks to us of your love and purpose, in our daily experience, in the world around us, in the vastness of the universe, in the fellowship we share with one another, and in the relationship we enjoy with you, through which you teach and guide and challenge us. We offer you our worship with glad and grateful hearts, in Jesu’s name. 

Prayer of Confession
​Dear Lord Jesus, even though you did no wrong and did not need to be forgiven, you chose to be baptized; you chose to be like us. We are sorry when we make wrong choices. We are sorry when we don’t have the right attitude. We are sorry when we choose to go our own way, rather than following your perfect example. We are sorry; please forgive us. Help us to show humility and obedience as you did. Help us to become more like you. Amen.

Prayer of Assurance
​Beloved Jesus, who loves us so much, thank you that, by your blood, we are forgiven and restored to new life in you. Amen

Lord’s prayer
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your Name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours. Now and for ever.
Amen​

​StF 423 Forgive our sins as we forgive

Bible Readings
​Isaiah 42 v 1 – 9
Acts 10 v 34 – 43

​StF 164 Your words to me are life and breath

​Matthew 3 v 13 – 17

​Sermon
Matthew 3 v 15 We shall do all that God requires.’
During the last few days you have probably been removing the signs of Christmas from your home. No doubt there are particular memories and experiences which have meant something to you. That may also have been the case in the various church services or other church-related events which you may have attended. 

Today, we find that the church year has moved on for the gospel reading was the baptism of Christ. Jesus sums up the event with the words, ‘We shall do all that God requires.’ 

1) This is what John had been doing in his life. John was calling people to repentance and the offer of a way to forgiveness. John was offering baptism to the people. The emergence of John was like the sudden sounding of the voice of God. The Jews had become conscious that the voice of prophets spoke no more. John fearlessly denounced evil wherever he saw it – in Herod, the leaders of religion, the ordinary people.
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John’s message was not just a negative denunciation, but he encouraged people to be righteous, to follow the moral standards of God. He came with a message from God. It is no surprise that he recognised who Jesus was and was reluctant to baptise Jesus. John’s baptism was for sinners conscious of their sin, therefore it did not seem applicable to Jesus.

2) Jesus insisted on baptism. He acknowledged it as an important part of his life. As Jesus grew up he must have become increasingly aware of his role in life. The time for taking a decisive step can be crucial. When John started his mission to the Jews and received the response which he did from Jewish people who realised their own sin and their need for God, Jesus would have recognised this as the moment for him to take his opportunity. In being baptised Jesus was identifying himself with the people whom he had come to save and who were searching for God. 

In his baptism Jesus was affirmed in a way which the Jews would recognise. The words, ‘this is my dear (beloved) Son’ are from Psalm 2, a Psalm which every Jew accepted as a description of the Messiah, the mighty king of God who was to come. ‘With whom I am well pleased’ comes from the reading which we had from Isaiah, a description of the Suffering Servant. The baptism gave the certainty that Jesus was the chosen one of God, and the certainty that the way in front of him was the way of the cross. 

‘We shall do what God requires’ may have been words used in referring to the process of the baptism, but it started a commitment for the rest of his life.

3) If doing what God requires was true for John and Jesus it is also true for any who follow Jesus. Sometimes what God requires may appear unusual and something which Jesus’s followers find hard to do. In the reading from the Acts of the Apostles we heard how Peter recognised that the Gospel was for all, not just for the people of Israel. ‘Whoever worships him and does what is right is acceptable to God, no matter what race they belong to.’ Peter continued with a summary of all that Christ had done and how he had left his followers with the encouragement to preach the gospel. He could also have used Christ’s words spoken at his baptism, ‘We shall do all that God requires’. Peter had had the vision of seeing a sheet with all kinds of animals, reptiles and birds. A voice encouraged him to kill and eat, even though he regarded that doing that would mean eating something ritually unclean or defiled. The voice persisted in saying that he should not consider anything unclean that God has declared clean. As Peter was having his vision, Cornelius, a Roman soldier who worshipped God and helped Jewish poor people, was instructed by an angel to send for Peter as this would be God’s way of speaking to him. When Peter arrived at the house of Cornelius he explained how God had encouraged him to associate with Gentiles. As Peter spoke the people listening were filled by the Holy Spirit – what a learning experience for Peter!

As we look ahead to a new year we could be asking the question, ‘What does God require of us?’ Perhaps we may be surprised in the opportunities which come our way. 

StF 233 When Jesus came to Jordan

​Prayers of Intercession
Almighty God, surrounded as we are by the troubles of the world, where paths are not straight and where justice does not prevail, where so much pain and anguish is in evidence, we bring our prayers for those in need, knowing you hear our prayers and the deep yearnings of our hearts.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 

We pray for those we know whose needs seem so overwhelming, those whose pain finds no relief, those who feel submerged by their anguish and their distress. May we offer words of comfort where we can, a listening ear to those who will talk, a gentle touch for those who need companionship, a smile that restores their belief in humanity.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts.

We pray for those who are alone and feel all at sea in this troubled world. Those who cannot see the way ahead, cannot see God’s hand at work among them, around them and within them. For those for whom Christmas was no more than a time for Santa and fripperies, those for whom Baptism is a meaningless unknown ceremony, those who have not felt the touch of God’s Holy Spirit, or felt the touch of Jesus or seen the hand of God. For those for whom the church has no meaning and no purpose, no relevance and no place.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 

For those experiencing flooding in our country, those snowed in in America and Canada, those countries with searing heat and no rain and no harvests. Those countries already suffering dreadfully from climate change and all its ramifications.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 

For those suffering injustice beyond our imagining and understanding. Those exploited or abused because of gender or colour, race or creed, social standing or disability. Those who feel marginalised, ignored, cast aside.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 
We pray for whole nations that are being torn apart by war and violence, those who keep making headline news and those who slip from memory but not from the aggressor’s hand.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 

We give thanks for those who have changed the world for the better, those whose lives have meant so much to us and others. For those we know and love who have died and for those who we know of who have changed the lives of us and many more besides. We give thanks this weekend for the life of Pope Benedict whose faith and writings have influenced so many. We give thanks for the life of footballer Pele who had such a positive influence on so many in Brazil and further afield.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 

We pray for all aspects, providers and users of the NHS. For politicians who decide on planning and the way forward, for the treasury who decide on how much the nations can afford, for nurses, doctors, cleaners, admins who all bear the brunt of shortages and live with chaos daily while themselves feeling the pressures of our economic crisis. For patients and relatives who need care, attention, love and support.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 

We pray for ourselves, our family members, our neighbours and communities, that together we may live lives that are good, true and honest. That we may support and love each other as Jesus loves us. That we each may see the needs around us and respond in Jesus’ name.
Hear us, Lord; hear our words and the yearnings of our hearts. 

Almighty God, this day, these are our prayers. Amen.
(Taken from Roots Resources Jan 8th)

​StF 684 Here on the threshold of a new beginning

Blessing
As Jesus came to the river to do what God wanted, the Spirit came upon him to show that God loved him.
Send us out from here as your beloved children, filled with the right attitude to share your love with all the world.​