What Does God Require of Us?

Good Morning and Welcome to Worship! Worship is often the first place that new people come into contact with this growing community of faith. And so, if you are joining us for the first time, I say to you what is said every Sunday: You are welcome here. Here is a place where all are welcome. For such is the love of God for God’s Very Good Creation.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow; praise God, all creatures here below; praise God above, ye Heav'nly host: praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kin-dom 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 kin-dom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.

O God, who is ever-present and the source of all love in the world, help us to grow as a people of hope, as we offer our prayers for this community and the world.

We pray for those who mourn; may they know the comfort of your abiding presence as we sit with them in their time of need.

We pray for the meek; may they receive the goodness of your earth as we look out for them, see them, acknowledge them and invite them in.

We pray for those who hunger and thirst for your way of loving kindness; may they be encouraged and filled with goodness as we share with one another from our abundance.

We pray for those who are merciful; may they also receive mercy from us and may we show mercy to one another.

We pray for the pure in heart; they have seen you face to face and bring the reflection of your way, light, and love into the darkness around us; may we be encouraged by their presence among us.

We pray for the peacemakers; may we be counted amongst their ranks.

We pray for those who are persecuted for the sake of following the teachings of Jesus; may they know the protection that comes from standing in solidarity.

We rejoice this day and give thanks for the many blessings of this life and for the gift of heaven which is ours even now.

May we, your children, have the wisdom to pursue your truth and the courage to do what is the Way of Love. We ask this in the name of Christ, who is our light and our life. Amen.

Loving God, your blessings are abundant, and your way of love exceeds our ability to comprehend and complete. Fill us with your Spirit as we hear your word this day, that we may be justice seekers and peacemakers, sharing your life among those who are forgotten, weak, or persecuted, and revealing to all your way of love and life. Amen.

⁶ “With what shall I come before the Lord and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? ⁷ Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” ⁸ He has told you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God?

The Beatitudes ¹ When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ² And he began to speak and taught them, saying: ³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

How do we practice hope in the midst of the world around us? Where do you see instances of God’s justice, peace, and healing? Have you given thanks to God and those who are creating this space in God’s image? Where are you being called to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly in the ordinary course of your day today?

Here at Community Church, we celebrate “Open Communion.” Anyone who wishes to commune may come to God’s Table. You do not have to be sinless; God forgives you. You do not have to be perfect; God encourages you to grow. You need not belong to any church; God invites all people to this meal. It is enough to love and follow God with all your heart. This is what God asks us to do. Come to God’s Table in faith this day. Go from this place to live, and never be the same again. Let us commune as siblings in Christ.

God be with you. And also with you.

Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to our God.

Let us give thanks to the Source of Love.

It is right to give our thanks and praise.

Great God of the Coming Dawn, in each new day you surprise the earth with splendor. Your Spirit moves across the face of the waters and brings forth life. At the dawn of all things, in a garden you worked the earth, elbow deep in mud you fashioned us, gifted us, and gave us work to do.

Made from the earth, made by your hand, we forgot who we were. We forgot who you were and we tried to remake ourselves. We rejected your love and fell into selfishness. Yet even in our darkness, you continued to speak your vision of light and life. When we were slaves in a foreign land, you brought us out of our oppression, led us through the waters, and washed us up on the shores of a new life as a chosen people. And you spoke of a day to come when you would come once more to save. And so, we who live on the edge of this land look across the waters to the horizon. We come to live on the edge of your new and promised day, and we raise our voices with all the saints as we proclaim …

Blessed are you, and blessed in your Son Jesus the Christ, whose coming was announced by wilderness prophets. In Jesus, you not only took our name but our flesh. He announced the new day and the acceptable year when blind folks would see, and poor folks would rejoice — when captives would be set free, and the oppressed would once more walk upright in liberty. In stories, he spoke of waiting bridesmaids and prodigal sons. With tears and compassion, he brought a dead man to life and gave a woman at a well the living water she sought. With anger he overturned tables and challenged the powerful. On the cross he revealed the power of weakness, and in the emptiness of the tomb he gave us a glimpse of your tomorrow that does not end in death.

On the night when he was betrayed, he sat at a table with his friends. He took bread, blessed it, broke it, gave it to his followers and said: “Do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way he took the cup, blessed it, served it to his followers, and said, “Drink from this every one of you. Do this to remember me.” And so, we remember … and so, we offer our praise and thanks, and our very lives in union with Christ’s offering for us, as we proclaim the mystery of faith:

So, we call on you to send your Holy Spirit on us once more, and on these gifts of bread and fruit of the vine. Let them be for us once more a reminder that we are Christ’s body resurrected and alive in the world today. Make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world, until Christ comes again and we feast at his table.

With all the saints who share your name and our flesh, we raise this song, until we hear in fullness, the harmony of heaven:

God of the Dawn, Christ of the new Day Coming, Spirit who is Ever-Present, we recommit ourselves to your way this day. Amen.

Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.

The bread which we have eaten is a sharing in the bread of Christ. The cup over which we give thanks is the sharing in the cup of Christ.

Eternal God, we give you thanks for this holy mystery in which you have given yourself to us. Grant that we may go into the world in the strength of your Spirit, to give ourselves for others, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

With what shall we come before God this day? We come with a love of justice and a passion for sharing the Way of Jesus.

We thank you God, that you have blessed us with an abundance of gifts for the flourishing of your world. May this offering of our life and labor reveal your love as we seek to share your new creation with all life around us.

May Christ the Sun of righteousness shine brightly on your path as you walk the way of justice and peace. And the blessing of God — the Creator, Healer, and Sustainer — bless and keep you always. Amen.