Welcome (James 4:7-10)

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into dejection. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

Preparation: Humble thyself in the sight of the Lord

Call to Worship

God’s praise endures forever,
and eternity meets us in fleeting moments.   
God’s praise endures forever,
and glory bursts into ordinary activities.
God’s praise endures forever,
and faith is steadfast in the midst of change and challenge.
Let us worship the Eternal God who calls us to this time and place.

Hymn: Praise my soul the king of heaven

Prayer (Prayer from The PCC worship resources)

Loving God, 
you are the wisdom behind all mystery, 
the glory hidden in all that makes us wonder, 
the strength in all that nourishes.  
With eyes open and spirits alert, we experience your glory around us. 
Scattered throughout the earth, 
smoldering deep inside us and radiating in acts of love, 
sparks of your glory reside. 
We feel joy each time we encounter you.  
So we gather to express our praise and gratitude 
for all the good we have experienced, 
knowing it all comes from your hand, 
for you are Creator, Christ and Spirit,
Ever Three and Ever One.  

Gracious God, 
we confess there are many times we forget you.
We focus on what troubles us and ignore the help you offer. 
We seek wisdom and meaning in the wrong places. 
In thoughtless moments, 
we harm the earth and each another.
Forgive us. 
Remind us to live each day focused on your purposes
revealed in Christ who loves us. Amen.

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:1-8

Now as an elder myself and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as one who shares in the glory to be revealed, I exhort the elders among you to tend the flock of God that is in your charge, exercising the oversight,* not under compulsion but willingly, as God would have you do it*—not for sordid gain but eagerly. Do not lord it over those in your charge, but be examples to the flock. And when the chief shepherd appears, you will win the crown of glory that never fades away. In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you must clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for
‘God opposes the proud,
  but gives grace to the humble.’

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. Discipline yourselves; keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour.

Sermon: Humbling

Our world is a busy place where the strong prevail while the weak perish, the powerful take seats above the poor and the in-the-know rule over the excluded. In this way, our world is no different than any other worlds in time and history. If anything, our world has accelerated everything hundred folds. Yes, bad and evil things are increasing abundantly while virtuous and good become more and more scarce. We seem to be on track to destroy the human race as we know it when we look around and see how our ways seem to lead to greater threats to humanity.

In reality, what we see–the increase of evil and bad–has always been with us. Socrates, Buddha, Old Testament prophets and many other ancient people pointed this out. Before Jesus, all these wise people directed people’s attention to the necessity of being humble. Jesus and his followers, like all those wise teachers before him, exhorted people to be humble. They in particular chose to live life demonstrating how the life of humility and humbleness was the hallmark of those who are called by God through Jesus.

Indeed, being Christian in our world is difficult precisely because we are to be humble in our world where no one who is humble gets anywhere or receives any accolades and praise. As you know, in our world, the brash, loud and know-it-all types are rewarded richly. Have a brilliant idea? Let other people know you alone have it and that you came by it with your own effort and smart. Have power and authority? Don’t share it. Demonstrate that you alone can choose what to do with what you have and everyone is at your grace if they are to flourish. This is our world where humility and humbleness are seen as weaknesses.

Our world responds well to the powerful and mighty God. We want our God to change the world to suit our needs. We believe in God who will destroy enemies–not only our national enemies, but also the very illnesses that destroy our bodies and minds–allowing us to live a life of health and prosperity. Indeed, it sounds great for us to be under such a powerful god who can protect and bless us unceasingly. But a god who is humble and meek? A god who refuses to demonstrate power that can obliterate the world with a command? A god who comes to the poor as one of the poorest of the poor?

Jesus knew he could always call on God to save him. At the temptation, the devil reminded him that if he were to jump off from a high place, God would send angels to make sure he would not be hurt. He knew this not only at the very beginning of his ministry, but also at the end. As he was being arrested, one of his disciples tried to fight against those who came to arrest him by taking out a sword and cutting off an ear of a slave of the high priest. He pointed out that if it was God’s will, legions of angels would come to save him.

Paul described Jesus as the one who emptied himself. Jesus did not seek human glory, fame, power and dominion. Instead, he came to call the poor, the oppressed, the weak, the meek, etc. He came for the sinners. This was the humbleness and humility that marked Jesus’ ministry before death and after the resurrection. This was why Christians throughout history were encouraged and admonished to follow the humble Lord, not the mighty and powerful Messiah.

Yet, among Christians the desire to have the almighty Jesus in all circumstances never stopped. Instead, even today, many Christians insist on projecting the image of Jesus who is almighty and all powerful to fulfil all our wishes and desires. The followers of Christ, just like James and John, desiring to sit on his right and his left, have held on to the all powerful Jesus who will return to wipe out all his enemies as stated in certain sections of the New Testament.

I am not arguing against Jesus having the power of God. What I am saying is that Jesus’ mighty power is demonstrated in how he was able to empty himself and come for the sinners, the poor, the meek, and those who were the least of this world. I am also not arguing that we ought to denounce power, authority, riches and strength. I am insisting that no matter who we are, we are to remember that as our Lord emptied himself and came to bring God’s love for the lost, we, too, empty ourselves to be with the sinners, the poor, the weak, the meek, the abused and the lost.

By emptying, Jesus did not give up everything including being God’s Son. What Jesus did was to let God’s will come before his own will. Everything he was and who he had become was nothing more than tools to achieve God’s will, rather than what he thought of himself to be and how he were to save the world from the powerful and the mighty. This was why he told the disciple who took out the sword that it was necessary to let God’s will take place. After all, that was his prayer at Gethsemane, “not my will, but yours.” In other words, God’s love was, is and will be put before my wish, desire and love.

Paul as well as Peter were very clear on this point of humbling ourselves. Faith is not about putting my own needs and concerns above all, but it is all about putting God’s love first and foremost. It is all about letting God’s love come alive through everything we do. This is the only way that we can follow Jesus and empty ourselves as Jesus did. This is the only we are able to look at the poor as those whom we need to serve and to see others as better than ourselves bringing respect and dignity to others. This is not easy. This goes against what the world demands, yet as Christians, we are called to be just like Jesus.

Do I treat you as less than me? Do I disrespect you in any way? Do I dismiss you as not worthy? Do I lord over you? Do I deride you? Do I abuse you? Do I favour others over you? Do I puff myself up against you? Asking these questions helps us to be more like Jesus every day. As we approach the forty days of fasting in Lent, each day we will remind ourselves to put God’s will and God’s love before our desires and wishes.

Prayer

Holy God, Lord of heaven and earth, Giver of love and light,
Your bright light fills us each day with life full of joy and peace. 
Though our world is filled with darkness of humankind,
We thank you for the simple pleasures of each day, 
and for the strength to meet the challenges that arise. 
We thank you for small joys that remind us of your grace and mercy.
We thank you for those who bring us your love and hope in this time of darkness.

In these uncertain times,
we are grateful for prayer in its many forms
which lead us to communion with you -  
through word and silence, music and movement,
feeling the Spirit’s breath within us.
Draw close to us whenever we need you,
and renew our spirits to continue serving you as best we can.

Hear us now as we pray for the world.
In your love you created and breathed life into all living things, yet in our power in our smarts, we have built our own Tower of Babel to challenge your creative power by recreating and manipulating all things around us, resulting in a human world that is filled with destructive power.
In your love you call us into a life of peace, yet in our power, we find more ways to hurt and kill one another in the name of law and order.
In your love you recreated us to be the people who bring love, yet in our power, we transform love of others into love that benefits oneself.
Forgive us. Set us on a new path to your peace where your love abounds for all.

Hear us as we pray for the economy:
For those whose decisions shape it [Silence]
For employers and business owners [Silence]
For workers and those who cannot find work [Silence]
For all who seek economic justice, fairness and the common good,  
and those who struggle to discern what this means in a complex world. [Silence]
Teach us how to care for our neighbours in these days of economic uncertainty.

We pray for our own circle of family and friends. 
Heal, bless, lead and encourage them. [Silence]
We pray for neighbours and strangers in our community
who face struggles and sorrows we can’t even imagine. [Silence]
Remind us that we belong to each other and to you
and help us respond to one another with compassion and kindness.

Finally, in silence, we bring to you the cares and hopes on our minds today. [Silence]
Thank you for hearing the prayers of every heart.
We join our prayers with all who follow Jesus as we pray the words he taught us: 
The Lord’s Prayer

Offering/Offering Prayer

Announcements

Please help us with raising funds for our ministry by promoting our Valentine Soiree on Saturday, February, 10 at 5 pm. We need all your help. The cost is $25/person.

Please remember that we are preparing for Lent with All You Can Eat Pancake Supper on Shrove Tuesday, February, 13 4 pm - 6 pm. The commitment fee is $5.

On Ash Wednesday, February 14, we will begin the Lent Devotion at 10 am. The Lent Devotion will be held on Wednesdays from February 14 until Wednesday, March 20 at 10 am.

On Wednesday afternoons at 3:30 pm, we will gather for prayer time. Please come out and join us.
Today after the worship, members will be holding its 2024 Budget meeting while Patrick and Jedida will discuss with newcomers regarding Sunday after service activities in the church hall.

Hymn: I’m gonna live so

Benediction