WORSHIP RESOURCES
Ordinary Time (Proper 12)
Ephesians 3:14-21
What is the Breadth, Length, Height, and Depth of Christ’s Love?
Additional Scriptures
2 Samuel 11:1-15, Psalm 14; John 6:1-21
Share and Care
Prelude
Greetings and Welcome
The presider should prayerfully read all 4 of the lectionary scriptures several times and prepare a statement of Welcome including an overview of the scripture and theme of the day. The following is an example.
Welcome to this sacred time. We come in response to the invitation issued through God’s grace. We come to experience the fullness of God’s love.
Today’s theme scripture from Ephesians 3 is full of spiritual qualities of the committed disciple. The “fullness of God’s love” is the goal and result. It is critical for the disciple’s life and the blessings of community to be realized.
Let’s take a few moments to greet fellow worshippers. You could suggest statements such as “May you be filled with the fullness of God’s love.” or “I see the fullness of God’s love expressed in you.” The introduction to the welcoming hymn will call us back to quiet community.
Welcoming Hymn
“Love Divine, All Loves Excelling” CCS 565
OR “Rain Down” CCS 260
OR “How Can We Name a Love” CCS 2
Call to Worship: Ephesians 3:14-17
Hymn of Praise
“Holy, Holy, Holy. Lord God Almighty" CCS 52
OR “The God of Abraham Praise” CCS 94
OR “Great and Marvelous Are Thy Works” CCS 118
Encourage participants to sing in languages other than their own.
Invocation
Response
Scripture Reading: Ephesians 3:18-21
Moments of Reflection
As “In the Quiet of This Day,” CCS 161, is quietly played in the background, ask everyone to turn to the hymn and read the words. At the end of the reflection time sing Stanza 5 (Alleluia) together.
Prayer for Peace
Light the Peace Candle.
Prayer
Loving God,
We ask you to expand our hearts and minds so that we may realize the width and breadth of your love. We ask you to help us see the needs around us, those in our families, our communities, our nation, and our world. Show us pathways to peace. Help us work together to pursue peace so that wanting and suffering may be abolished. Guide us to work together to pursue peace so that hunger and poverty may be alleviated. Make us instruments of peace as followers of Jesus, the peaceful One. Amen.
--Steve Bolie
Peace Hymn
“Shalom chaverim” CCS 653
Ask youth to lead this song in a 2 or 3-part round.
OR “Peace Salaam Shalom” CCS 310
Ask youth to lead this song, perhaps with the vocal recording found on
Community of Christ Sings Audio Recordings, available from HeraldHouse.org or the video recording found here: Youtube.com/watch?v=lBQ-KsGo_BI
Message
Based on Ephesians 3:14-21
Ministry of Music OR Congregational Hymn
“Restore in Us, O God” CCS 219
OR “I Sought the Lord” CCS 175
OR “In Christ We Live” CCS 326
Disciples’ Generous Response
Statement
Explanation for visitors: For more than twenty years, Community of Christ has used the term Disciples Generous Response in place of offertory. It emphasizes that our offerings are our response as disciples to generous God. Mission tithes may be designated for worldwide mission or local mission.
During the Disciples’ Generous Response, we focus on aligning our heart with God’s heart. Our offerings are more than meeting budgets or funding mission. Through our offerings we are able to tangibly express our gratitude to God who is the giver of all.
As we share our mission tithes either by placing money in the plates or through eTithing, use this time to thank God for the many gifts received in life. Our hearts grow aligned with God’s when we gratefully receive and faithfully respond by living Christ’s mission.
If your congregation is meeting online, remind participants they can give through CofChrist.org/give or through eTithing.org (consider showing these URLs on screen).
Blessing and Receiving of Local and Worldwide Mission Tithes
Closing Hymn
“He Came Singing Love” CCS 226
OR “When We Seek Language” CCS 61
OR “Lord Jesus, of You I Will Sing/Jésus, je voudrais te chanter” CCS 556/557
Encourage participants to sing in a language other than their own.
Benediction
Read Ephesians 3:14-21 These verses will have been read previously in the worship so read from a different version such as International Children’s Bible or The Message or Good News Version.
Response
Postlude
SERMON AND CLASS HELPS
Year B—Letters
Ordinary Time (Proper 12)
Ephesians 3:14–21
Exploring the Scripture
Last week’s scripture passage announced Jesus as the barrier-breaker, who destroys all that divides and separates humankind. The barriers on the Temple Mount are symbols of division between nations, and the veil of the temple symbolizes God’s inaccessibility. Destroying those barriers and setting up equality among all Christians was the critical point of conflict between Paul and the apostles in Jerusalem. But conflict and persecution couldn’t change Paul’s conviction that Christ’s salvation is for every nation.
Paul begins chapter 3 by saying, “This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles.” Verse 14, the beginning of today’s passage, says, “For this reason, I bow my knees before the Father…” Bowing the knee was a symbol of loyalty and service to a king.
Paul’s relationship with his Gentile neighbors was directly connected to his loyalty and worship of God. Recognition of God’s love for all nations was at the heart of Paul’s devotion to God. Neither arguments by the Jewish apostles nor persecution could change his conviction that God embraces all people and includes everyone in God’s family.
Verses 14–15 uses the phrase: “…the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name.” In ancient times, the father named the children. A name was not just a label. It was a complete identity, character, and will.
Here, Paul reminds the Gentile Christians that God made all people in God’s image, not just the Jews. Every person of every family and lineage reflects God’s image. Every person is created with an independent will and can live in the character of the Divine.
Christ lives in our hearts, not as a temporary guest, but as a lifelong resident who changes and transforms us with love beyond understanding. Paul’s prayer expresses his deep wish for that character to shine forth as Christ’s indwelling Spirit of love. Paul prays the Gentile disciples may come to understand the greatness (breadth, length, height, and depth) of Divine love, so they can live in the fullness of that gift.
To know a love that is beyond knowing is a paradox. Humans “know” God’s love by experiencing it personally, not by any rational thought. Knowing occurs through the Spirit living in us, transcending our human limits and transforming our inadequate responses into offerings of life as disciples. The heart knows the love of Christ that surpasses human reasoning, and the way the heart “knows” is through the indwelling Spirit.
Public prayers rely on human words and therefore are limited. Paul closes his prayer with an acknowledgment that God’s blessing goes beyond human speech and transcends the limits of our imagination and yearnings. We express our petitions from our limited understanding of needs and possibilities. God responds from the Divine perspective to carry out fully more than we have asked for (v. 21). The church exists to point toward God, not itself, just as Christ came to point the way toward God.
The prayer ends the first three chapters of Ephesians. Those chapters focused on the unifying act of Christ breaking down barriers to bring people into one body. The last three chapters provide instruction on how disciples respond to God’s grace by offering their lives and obedience to Christ’s teachings.
Central Ideas
- When we honestly recognize God’s love for all nations, we bow our knees in worship, devotion, and wonder.
- Every person of every family and lineage reflects God’s image, and God knows each by name.
- Humans “know” God’s love by experiencing it personally through the indwelling Spirit.
- God’s blessing goes beyond human speech and transcends the limits of our imagination and yearnings.
Questions for the Speaker
- When have you known with your whole being that God loves you with love beyond all understanding?
- Who would you like to exclude from the family of God? Why? How can God’s Spirit help you adjust your thinking to accept them as God’s children?
- When have you felt your prayers were inadequate to express your yearnings? What are various ways we can try to express our deeper yearnings to God?
- Where does your congregation need strengthening in its inner being to live God’s love?
SACRED SPACE: A RESOURCE FOR SMALL-GROUP MINISTRY
Year B Letters
Ordinary Time, Proper 12
Ephesians 3:14–21 NRSVUE
Gathering
Welcome
Ordinary Time is the period in the Christian calendar from Pentecost to Advent. This period 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.
Today’s Prayer for Peace is inspired by the hymn, “The Peace of the Earth,” Community of Christ Sings 647. It’s a Guatemalan song.
Deep peace falling over you;
God’s peace growing in you.
Creator God, thank you for peace in all its forms. The roaring peace of rivers, the crashing peace of oceans, the constant peace of Earth’s gravity, the mysterious peace of the heavens.
Help us pursue peace in all its forms: the still peace in our hearts, the just peace in our society’s systems, the calming peace of reconciliation in relationships, the humbling peace of treating Earth with integrity.
As we pursue this peace, plant it deep within us God, so that it can begin to grow within us, working within us to become a new creation. As we feel that peace growing, help us cultivate it in others so that they can sense the growing peace of your presence. Then as we go out together with this new expression, we might draw others to you so that they can grow peace within their hearts, too.
In the name of Jesus, the Giver of deep peace. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Receiving in Gratitude
Today we are focusing on the Enduring Principle of Grace and Generosity. The first thing we do in this life is receive. Our first breath is a gift we receive. It is a gift that is given freely. The spiritual practice for today is a breath prayer. During the prayer we use words to breathe in and words to breathe out. Today we will be breathing in receive life and breathing out thank you.
Slowly read the following instructions:
Sit with relaxed posture and close your eyes. We will spend three minutes in breath prayer.
Breathe in a regular, natural rhythm.
As you breathe in, silently say, “Receive life.” As you exhale, respond, “Thank you.”
Breathe in and out, focusing on what you are breathing in and what you are exhaling.
Watch the time for three minutes. Urge participants to continue the breath prayer for the full three minutes.
When time is up, ask the following for a short group discussion:
What is one thing you are grateful for in this moment?
After the discussion say:
Thank you, God, for another day. Thank you for the opportunity to connect with others, to receive and to give to one another. Amen.
Sharing Around the Table
Ephesians 3:14–21 NRSVUE
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
The beginning of today’s passage states, “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father…” Bowing the knee was a symbol of loyalty and service to a king. Paul’s relationship with his Gentile neighbors was connected directly to his loyalty and worship of God. Recognition of God’s love for all nations was at the heart of Paul’s devotion to God.
Neither arguments by the Jewish apostles nor persecution could change his conviction that God embraces all people and includes everyone in God’s family. In ancient times, the male parent named the children. A name was not just a label. It was a complete identity, character, and will. Here, Paul reminds the Gentile Christians that God made all people in God’s image, not just the Jews. Every person of every family and lineage reflects God’s image. Every person is created with an independent will and can live in the character of the Divine.
Christ lives in our hearts, not as a temporary guest, but as a lifelong resident. Paul’s prayer expresses his deep wish for the indwelling of Christ’s Spirit. Paul prays the Gentile disciples may come to understand the greatness (breadth, length, height, and depth) of divine love. The heart knows the love of Christ that surpasses human reasoning, and the way the heart “knows” is through the indwelling Spirit.
Paul closes by acknowledging that God’s blessing goes beyond human speech and transcends the limits of our imagination and yearnings. We express our petitions from our limited understanding of needs and possibilities. God responds from the divine perspective to carry out fully more than we have asked for.
Questions
- When have you known with your whole being that God loves you?
- What are various ways we can try to express our deeper yearnings to God?
- How do you sense Christ’s Spirit of love dwelling in you?
Sending
Generosity Statement
Beloved Community of Christ, do not just speak and sing of Zion. Live, love, and share as Zion: those who strive to be visibly one in Christ, among whom there are no poor or oppressed.
—Doctrine and Covenants 165:6a
The offering basket is available if you would like to support ongoing, small-group ministries as part of your generous response.
The 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 2 “How Can We Name a Love”
Closing Prayer
Optional Additions Depending on Group
- Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper
- Thoughts for Children
Thoughts for Children
You will need:
- A live plant or a picture of a plant/tree with visible roots
Say: Today I brought something to share with you.
Show participants your plant or picture with visible roots. Ask them to tell you what they see. When someone points out the roots, go deeper there.
Ask: What do you know about roots? How do they help the plant? (Affirm answers.)
Say: Roots are really important for plants. They help plants stand firm and get the food and water they need to grow.
In today’s scripture, we are invited to be rooted and grounded in love. Just like roots connect the plants to nutrients and water, when we are rooted in love, we are connected to God’s love and are able to feel and share it with the world.
Let’s take a minute and imagine we have actual roots. Stand up and imagine roots coming from your feet deep into the ground.
Now imagine those roots being surrounded by love. Imagine the love traveling up the roots and into your heart. What color is that love? How does it feel in your heart?
Now, stretch your hands high above your head like they are branches. Imagine the love of God traveling from your heart and into the world. Whom will you share God’s love with?
When you are ready, open your eyes and head back to your seat.