Sunday 20th December 2020

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Welcome to Elmwood Congregation Sunday worship. Fourth Sunday of Advent

This morning Mr Nigel Malka will give the message in church and also on WhatsApp. We thank Nigel, who has worked twice as hard to produce our services. Thanks also to Elmwood Team who will read the bible and pray in church and on whatsapp.

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Call to Worship Claudette

 

Hymn 988 How deep the Father’s love for us https://youtu.be/tzQj7XvKFmA

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Opening prayer Cel

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The Lord’s Prayer Cel

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Hymn Born in the night, Mary’s child https://youtu.be/T8N510iu7Pg

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Bible Reading - Matthew 1:18-25 Basha

Bible Readings - Various - Nigel

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Hymn 211 Hark the Herald angels sing https://youtu.be/lCt1s44cfMM

 

Talk: Christmas Priority

 

When we are found breaking the rules in a game we are first given a warning

   Do it again and we can be excluded and have nothing more to do with the game.

      It is our choice what we do, some aim to win at all costs, including cheating

   Being created with freewill, we have the ability to decide just what we do in life

We need to assess how we live, what’s our priorities, is it ours, others, or God’s.

 

How committed are we to live as God wants us to?

   Take Christmas, what are our priorities in its celebration

      Before Christianity, the New Year pagan festival was when lighter days started again

         People had week long parties, games, sung songs, with lots of food and drink,

      When the early Christian church wanted people to convert to Christianity

They change the celebration to remember Jesus, the most important man ever born

 

Christmas in our modern western world has reverted to partying

   Times to eat too much, drink too much, and spend too much

      For some it’s a time to review lives, change things and make New Year resolutions

   As Christians we remember God sending his Son, to teach us his ways

And give us the opportunity to become part of God’s family.

 

The Christmas story is told in John in one line

   ‘The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.’

      Jesus gave us the task like his disciples to go and witness that he is God’s Son, 

   Paul writes; Through him we receive grace and apostleship, to call all people

Giving us the purpose to have the obedience that comes from faith,

 

At Christmas we have the perfect opportunity to witness for Jesus,

   To demonstrate our faith, in what we are seen to do and say by those who know us

      When asked what we have done over Christmas, We could say

   ‘Met up with friends in church and celebrated the birth of God’s Son,’

Maybe add, ‘After all Jesus gives life a purpose and a reason for what we do.’

 

If asked, the best way to explain how we know Jesus and why we love him

   Is simply to give our very own personal reasons as to why we follow him. 

God created us, loves us and wants us to follow his ways for they bring joy and peace

 

Lets look at priorities of some of the people involved in the Christmas story

   Mary, a young woman maybe about 18

      Loved God, loved by Joseph her fiancée and about to be married

   She would have had high hopes about the future, new home new family,

Then Gabriel appears and turns her world upside down

 

Yet she accepts the task given her, facing rejection by Joseph and society

   Total disgrace as seen in the eyes of the world, without any means of support

      Nowhere to live and maybe it was this that drove her to run away to Elizabeth 

         Her priority in life was to God, not to society, family, Joseph or herself.

            Mary then had to tell Joseph that she was going to have God’s child

         Joseph didn’t believe her, and decided the only opinion was to divorce her

      What would Joseph have thought about the situation?

   The girl he loved had been unfaithful for it’s unbelievable to have a child by God,

If true maybe he might have wanted to have a rant at God. Maybe say… 

 

Lord God, I honoured you, I worshiped you, you who created all things

   You who made us your promised people, Gave us your commands.

      How could you give my wife a child, it’s against your own laws

         Why her, why would you do this thing and why not ask me first I’m her husband!

            Oh we know the Messiah’s due and from a virgin, but why Mary?

               We’ve been told for years the prophet from David’s line, my line would come

                  But not this way, I cannot believe you would chose me to be involved in this

               Mary said she had seen an angel and agreed willingly to do this,

            And she’s proud to be pregnant, expects me to go along with it

         Who’s the father? Josiah that freedom fighter, he’s always had girls around him

      Did a Roman solider rape her and now she’s blackmail me into an early marriage?

   I love you God and you wouldn’t do this to me, so let her be stoned to death, no!

Let her go to Elizabeth’s it’s her disgrace, yet she’ll be shunned by Law abiding people 

 

Joseph would think Mary lied, after all pregnancy happens because of intercourse

   She didn’t scream rape; she still wanted the child so must think him gullible

      Maybe he considered his own reputation, for people would think he was the father

         Then he would be to blame in not able to control his urges before the wedding

         The Torah told him what to do for the idea God would be the Father was nonsense

      You see to a Jew, God is incorporeal, that is, he has no body, he is non-physical

   God is known as Yahweh and is neither male nor female, He’s The Creator, a spirit

So how then could God be the Father, It’s no wonder he rejected her

 

Joseph was a good Jew, obedient to God, and he would have known the scriptures

   Knew that God did search out those to serve him and told them what to do

      So when he was told to marry Mary and look after the child, he did so

   When told to take Mary and the child into exile, he became a refugee in Egypt

He did what he was asked, because doing what God wanted was like Mary his priority

 

What of our priorities, How much do we put ourselves out for God.

   Do we love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind soul and strength,

      Do we love one another, do we work at knowing what Jesus taught

Do we even try to carry out his final command to go and make disciples of all nations?

 

We have the privilege of being chosen by God and the responsibility is enormous

   To carry out his wishes, yet by being chosen we must be capable to doing that task

      And the how is to live every aspect of our lives honouring God

   In life and in how we approach death shows others not only that we love God

But that we acknowledge that God loves us.

 

So we witness our faith, our love for Jesus and his Heavenly Father

   When the opportunity arises to talk about Christmas then we should include Jesus

      Not how he came, but why he came, how our own lives have been affected

   Why we hold the beliefs that we do, be prepared to stand up when challenged.

As Christians we are expected to have an opinion so let’s not disappoint anyone      

 

Had a good Christmas? Yes I did celebrate it and really enjoyed the peace and worship

   Get much this Christmas? Lot’s but Christmas is more than presents and partying

      People agree Christmas is too commercial giving opportunities to witness its purpose

   The object is to throw out seeds of thought, and so prompt for more questions

Not to preach, but rather to bring home why Loving God is important to us.

 

Yet in all the answers we can give the most important seed is why was Jesus born? 

   At that time in that place the human race was given the chance to know God

      Because they had drifted from God’s ways towards thinking they knew better

         We are in the same position for many now no longer think they need God

            Rejecting his ways and putting themselves first

         What was important to Mary and Joseph was to do what God asked them to do

      Jesus came to bring us the opportunity to know God and live to his ways

   To choose him as our Lord and Saviour, he would not deny who he was, God’s Son

Our priority is not to deny him or his ways but to witness that we know and love him

 

Jesus was born so each of us can know him and in knowing him to know God’s Word

   He was hung on a cross for witnessing who he was, God’s Son, Witnessing The Truth

      When we accept Jesus as our Lord, Know The truth, Know God’s Ways, his Word

   Then we have the responsibility to live by it and tell others about it

 

Nigel Malka

Email  nigel.malka@yahoo.co.uk

Web:- https://christianviews.info/

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Hymn 493 O Come, O come Emmanuel https://youtu.be/01BcaaggibDw

 

Prayers of Intercession Cel

 

Hymn 491 O come all ye faithful https://youtu.be/Q8dg14-bVPU

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Blessing Claudette

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