WORSHIP RESOURCES
Ordinary Time (Proper 19)
I Timothy 1:12-17
Grace and Mercy Overflow
Additional Scriptures
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28; Psalm 14; Luke 15:1-10; II Nephi 8:11;
Doctrine and Covenants 165:2a-b
Prelude
Song of Gathering Encourage participants to sing in languages other than their own.
“Dios esta’ aquí /God Is Here Today” CCS 150
OR “Herr, du mein Gott/You Are My God” CCS 12
Welcome, Joys and Concerns
Call to Worship
Can be read by two readers alternating lines or used as a responsive
reading.
My soul delights in God’s mercy;
I was lost, but now I’m found.
My soul delights in God’s power;
I was carried out of the wilderness.
My soul delights in God’s justice;
In the presence of my friends there was reconciling.
My soul delights in God’s grace;
There was joy in heaven on my behalf.
I was lost, but now I’m found;
I was bound, but now I’m free.
—II Nephi 8:11 and Luke 15:3-7, adapted
Song of Praise
“Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise” CCS 13
OR “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” Stanzas 1 and 3 CCS 87
Invocation
Scripture Reading: I Timothy 1:12-17
Focus Moment
Read the storybook Each Kindness, by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by E. B. Lewis. Nancy Paulsen Books, ©2012, ISBN 0399246525. When a new girl named Maya joins their class, Chloe and her friends refuse to play with her. When Maya stops coming to school, Chloe regrets how she handled things.
For Reflection
When Chloe’s teacher explains that even small acts of kindness can change the world, she feels guilt and regret. She thinks about how much better it could have been if she’d shown a little kindness toward Maya.
- What feelings do you think Chloe has at the end of this story?
- What do you think she will do the next time she is in a similar situation?
Even if we make choices that hurt others, God is merciful, meaning that God does not punish us for poor choices. If we love God, we should love others—by being kind, caring, and understanding. If we make a mistake, we can do it right the next time. God hopes we learn from our mistakes and choose to (in the words of Maya Angelou) “Do the best [we] can until [we] know better. Then when [we] know better, do better.”
OR
Consider the hymn text, “Sometimes We Wait, Expecting God,” CCS 304. Project or use the hymnal so all have access to the words. Have someone read the entire text and then reflect on each stanza. Possible discussion questions:
· Have we ever waited, expecting God to step in?
· God’s grace and mercy overflow. How can this grace and mercy overflow from us?
· When have you given grace or shown mercy?
Prayer for Peace
Light the peace candle.
Peace Prayer
Lead congregants in this prayer as you would the Prayer of Examen. Pause after each section to allow time for reflection and contemplation. If you prefer, you can choose to only read the translated names for God. Before you begin the prayer, offer these words of guidance:
Our Prayer for Peace will follow the rhythm and structure of the Prayer of Examen. This prayer will allow you to focus attention on the quality of life during the past few days as a follower of Jesus, the peaceful One.
The names for God used in this prayer will be in Hebrew with a brief translation. Allow these words to be your words. Permit your heart to be open to God’s unconditional love, healing, grace, and forgiveness.
Jehovah Shammah – Ever-present God,
We come before you in humble prayer, aware of your unconditional love and grace. We are deeply grateful for your Spirit. We acknowledge your presence in all of life and reflect on how we have witnessed you these past days.
Pause.
El Roi – God Who Sees,
Help us to recall the events, interactions, and emotions we have engaged in recently. Let the light of your Spirit reveal the ways our responses promoted peace, healing, or reconciliation.
Pause.
El Emet – God of Truth,
Allow that same light to reveal the ways our responses might have been unsupportive, insensitive, unloving, or damaging to others, creation, or self.
Pause.
HaRachaman – Merciful One,
We are reminded of your boundless love and grace, which you unconditionally extend to us. We trust and receive your grace, forgiveness, and healing in this moment of our lives.
Pause.
Mechayeh HaKol – God of My Life,
With heart-felt gratitude we give you thanks for the gift of this day; for guidance in seeing it through your compassionate eyes. We look forward to living the rest of this day and the ones that follow more conscious of our thoughts, words, and actions. May we be more aware of your presence living within us. May our actions and responses be as those of Jesus Christ: peaceful, life-giving, healing, and reconciling in this day and in every day.
We pray all of this in the name of the One who is our living guide, Jesus the peaceful One. Amen.
Ministry of Music or Congregational Song
“How Deep the Silence of the Soul” CCS 165
OR “I Will Talk to My Heart” CCS 168
Morning Message
Based on I Timothy 1:12-17
Song of Proclamation
Encourage participants to sing in languages other than their own.
“Lord, Who Views All People Precious” CCS 637
OR “God Forgave My Sin in Jesus’ Name” CCS 627
Disciples’ Generous Response
Statement
“Stewardship” comes from the Greek oikonomos, which means somebody who manages a household but does not own it. Stewards in the ancient world ensured the floors were clean, oversaw finances, and provided the public face of the household.
As stewards, we are not the owners of creation, but God trusts us with the care of everything—creation, gifts and talents, money, or other forms of currency such as seeds or livestock, time, and the gospel—for the sake of God’s vision of shalom for the world. Community of Christ believes that who we are and all that we have are gifts from God. Life and all creation are God’s gifts. God’s grace and love for all creation are generous and unconditional. We see God’s grace and love represented in the life, ministry, and continuing mission of Jesus Christ.
We do not earn God’s grace and generosity, nor can we cause God to withdraw them. God’s grace and generosity are not dependent on us. Grace and generosity simply are, which is why they are the first of nine Enduring Principles that describe the core of what it means to be Community of Christ.
When we choose to believe that God is continuously pouring out grace and generosity, we begin to see God in everything—the good, the bad, and everything between.
Life is full of choices. How we make sense of the world is a matter of what we choose to believe. For many of us, what we do with our life is a choice. When we understand that everything comes from God and that God gave first and keeps giving, this changes what we choose to do with our life. We not only choose what we give to God through our tithing of time, talents, treasures, and testimonies but also how we use what we keep.
—Choose Generosity: Whole-Life Stewardship, Herald House, 2019.
When we share generously, we help God’s love and compassion grow endlessly.
If you have participants joining the worship online, remind them that they can give through www.CofChrist.org/give or through eTithing at www.eTithing.org (consider displaying these URLs).
Scripture Reading: Doctrine and Covenants 165:2a-b
Blessing and Receiving of Local and Worldwide Mission Tithes
Song of Commitment
“Sizohamba Naye /We Will Walk with God” CCS 377
Encourage participants to sing in languages other than their own.
OR “Send Me Forth” CCS 651
Sending Forth: Unison Reading of the Mission Prayer
God, where will your Spirit lead today? Help me be fully awake and ready to respond. Grant me the courage to risk something new and become a blessing of your love and peace. Amen.
Postlude
SERMON AND CLASS HELPS
Year C—Letters
Ordinary Time (Proper 19)
1 Timothy 1:12–17
Exploring the Scripture
Saul of Tarsus tried to destroy the new Christian church by persecuting followers of Jesus Christ. After his conversion, he left his old life and Hebrew name behind and became Paul. The testimony of Paul’s conversion in verses 12–17 shows God’s grace to Saul, the persecutor. The story presented here is consistent with Paul’s accounts in Galatians 1:13 and 1 Corinthians 15:9.
In other letters, Paul recognized his error in persecuting Christians. However, he presents himself (with a certain pride) as a strict Pharisee “blameless” under the law (Philippians 3:6). In today’s lection, the author characterizes his previous life as “a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence” (v. 13). He justifies his behavior as ignorance and unbelief. But he says full justification comes through grace because of one’s transformed faith in Christ.
God’s grace is not a response to right living or spiritual service. God freely gives forgiveness and mercy. Paul points out that he deserved condemnation for persecuting Christians. Instead, meeting the Risen Christ transformed him. His new life of serving Christ was not a ticket to salvation. Salvation is by grace alone, not a matter of works.
How does “Jesus save?” One way is to consider Jesus a lens through which God views human beings. Because of our faith in Jesus, God accepts us as he would accept Jesus. The gift of grace motivates us to become more fully the disciples God already sees us to be through the filter of Jesus Christ.
Another way to understand salvation is to view it as God’s gift of wholeness. Christ lived connected, fully empowered. He rejected disunity, divisiveness, individual and systemic pride, negation, and control. Faith allows us to adopt Christ’s wholeness as our own—not because we earned it, but because God willingly makes us whole through mercy. Grace transforms how we understand ourselves and how we relate to others.
The testimony of conversion became a spontaneous act of worship, followed by an affirming “Amen.” The testimony ends with a declaration of praise addressed to “the King of the ages” (v. 17), which could mean Christ. Paul never refers to God as “king,” but the object of adoration is characterized in terms usually reserved for the Creator God: “immortal, invisible…be honor and glory forever and ever” (v. 17).
Like Paul, our lack of faith can find expression in violence toward others. For the oppressed, it can find expression in violence toward themselves. We can extend mercy toward ourselves and others when we accept God’s mercy. Forgiveness can transform us into faithful disciples who serve others, leading us into moments of worship and praise.
Paul’s story captured people, stirred their emotions, and assured them God’s grace was real. His conversion was so well-known that later disciples could share it easily on his behalf. How well do others know your testimony of Christ? Seekers and followers are hungry to hear the good news again. If God could forgive and commission Saul to become Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles, then God can forgive each of us and call us into service.
Central Ideas
- Paul’s conversion was an important testimony of God’s grace.
- God’s forgiveness and mercy are given freely, not a response to right living or spiritual service.
- Salvation could be seen as a Christ-lens through which God views humanity or as a gift of undeserved wholeness that heals divisions.
- Forgiveness can transform us into faithful disciples who serve others, leading us into moments of worship and praise.
Questions for the Speaker
- Who are the “Timothys” in your congregation in need of mentors? How can that need be met without patronizing or falling into outdated platitudes?
- How well does salvation in this lection fit with the more modern perspectives of the Christ-lens and restoring wholeness?
- When have you tried to “earn” salvation? When have you tried to ensure your salvation by being the perfect disciple? What was the result?
- When has God’s grace and forgiveness led you into an attitude of worship?
SACRED SPACE: A RESOURCE FOR SMALL-GROUP MINISTRY
Year C—Letters
Ordinary Time (Proper 19)
1 Timothy 1:12–17 NRSVue
Gathering
Welcome
Ordinary Time is the period in the Christian calendar from Pentecost to Advent. This span is without major festivals or holy days. During Ordinary Time we focus on our discipleship as individuals and a faith community.
Prayer for Peace
Ring a bell or chime three times slowly.
Light the peace candle.
God of the lost and God of the found, teach us to know you in our daily lives—to see you in the small wonders of your creation, to hear you in the music of encounter and exchange, and to recognize you in the faces of our brothers and sisters, neighbors and strangers alike, so your peace might be the very fabric of our lives.
Teach us to seek you—in loving encounters, in opportunities for service, in dreams for a future of community and respectful coexistence, so your peace might be a blessing in the lives of each life we touch.
Teach us to follow you into the world—to seek the lost, bind the wounded, and free those who need to find you to experience the freedom and peace you so freely offer. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Prayer of Examen
Read the following aloud:
The prayer of examen is a prayer form developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola (1491–1556). It is often a prayer for the end of the day, but it may be used anytime as a way of reviewing the day with God. The intent is to recognize where we need forgiveness and healing, reconciliation, and recommitment. The following is an adapted prayer of examen.
Lead the group the prayer, line by line. Take your time, inviting participants to pray and meditate with each statement.
Thank you, God, for the gifts of life and this day.
Allow us to see the day as we have loved it and in light of your will.
Let us reflect on the events, interactions, and emotions of the day.
Give us insight into the ways our responses were good, life-giving, or healing.
Give us insight into the ways our responses may have been insensitive, unloving, or damaging to others, creation, or self.
May we find in your grace and mercy, forgiveness, healing, reconciliation, and release.
God, we give our tomorrow to you. May you be present in our thoughts, actions, and relationships as we live a new day in the presence of Christ.
Close with “Amen.” Invite people to share their thoughts and feelings as they experienced the prayer of examen.
Sharing Around the Table
1 Timothy 1:12–17 NRSVue
I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because he considered me faithful and appointed me to his service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance: that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience as an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
Saul of Tarsus tried to destroy the new Christian church by persecuting followers of Jesus Christ. After his conversion, he left his old life and Hebrew name behind and became Paul. In other letters, Paul presents himself as a strict Pharisee, “blameless” under the law. In today’s passage, however, he characterizes himself in his previous life as “a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence,” a product of ignorance and unbelief. But he says full justification comes through grace because of one’s transformed faith in Christ.
God’s grace is not a response to right living or spiritual service. God freely gives forgiveness and mercy. Paul points out that he deserved condemnation for persecuting Christians. Instead, meeting the Risen Christ transformed him. His new life serving Christ was not a ticket to salvation. Salvation is by grace alone; not a matter of works. The gift of grace motivates us to live more fully into God’s image.
Grace transforms how we understand ourselves and how we relate to others. Christ lived connected, fully empowered. He rejected disunity, divisiveness, individual and systemic pride, negation, and control. Faith allows us to adopt Christ’s wholeness as our own—not because we earned it, but because God willingly makes us whole through mercy.
Paul’s story captured people, stirred their emotions, and assured them God’s grace was real. When we accept God’s mercy, we are freed to extend mercy toward ourselves and others. Forgiveness can transform us into faithful disciples who serve others, leading us into moments of worship and praise.
Questions
1. Who are the “Timothys” (those in need of mentors like Paul) in your life?
2. When have you tried to “earn” salvation? When have you tried to ensure your salvation by being the perfect disciple? What was the result?
3. How has your experience of mercy encouraged you to extend mercy to yourself and others?
4. When has God’s grace and forgiveness led you into an attitude of worship?
Sending
Generosity Statement
Faithful disciples respond to an increasing awareness of the abundant generosity of God by sharing according to the desires of their hearts; not by commandment or constraint.
—Doctrine and Covenants 163:9
The offering basket is available if you would like to support ongoing, small-group ministries as part of your generous response. You also may give at CofChrist.org/give.
This offering prayer is adapted from A Disciple’s Generous Response:
Discipling God, as we navigate our world of debt and consumerism, help us save wisely, spend responsibly, and give generously. In this way may we prepare for the future and create a better tomorrow for our families, friends, the mission of Christ, and the world. Amen.
Invitation to Next Meeting
Closing Hymn
Community of Christ Sings 237, “God, Renew Us by Your Spirit”
Closing Prayer
Optional Additions Depending on Group
· Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper
· Thoughts for Children
Thoughts for Children
Materials needed are small pictures or objects:
· clock or watch
· toy
· musical instrument or music notes
· crayons
· happy face
· praying hands
· plant or flower
· toothbrush
· heart
God is generous to us. We respond by giving generously to others.
In a moment, we’ll sing “God Loves a Cheerful Giver” to tune of “This is the Way We Wash Our Clothes.”
This is the way we give our time
Give our time, give our time
This is the way we give our time
God loves a cheerful giver.
2. share our toys
3. sing a song
4. draw for Jesus
5. smile at you
6. pray for others
7. love our friends
In a small basket, place small items or pictures that represent ways the children can give: clock (time), toy (share), musical note (song), crayons (art), happy face (smile), praying hands (prayer), flower (care of planet), toothbrush (care of self), and heart (love).
Have children sit in a circle. Tell them God loves cheerful givers (2 Corinthians 9:7), and there are many gifts to give. Sing the first verse of “God Loves a Cheerful Giver” while the basket is passed from child to child.
When the verse stops, have the child holding the basket reach in and get an item. Ask children what it is and how they can give that thing to Jesus. Have everyone repeat the verse “God loves a cheerful giver” and then continue until the basket is empty. For each round of singing, change the verse to match the item pulled from the basket.
Challenge: Encourage the children to be cheerful givers every day.
Thank the children for participating.