LaughingBird

Proper 5 - Year B
2042-06-08 00:00 - 23:59 (Australia/Melbourne)
Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.

Bible Readings (paraphrased)

Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

1 Samuel 8:4-11, (12-15), 16-20, (11:14-15)

A gathering of the most influential people of Israel made arrangements to meet with the prophet Samuel at Ramah and present their demands. They said to him, “You are getting too old to lead the nation, and the way your sons are going, they’ll never be up to it. It is time for a change of system. We want you to appoint a king to deal out justice for us. Every other nation has a king, and we want one too.”
Samuel was horrified by their demand for a king and he went straight to the LORD in prayer about it. But the LORD answered him saying, “Go ahead and give them what they want. It is not only you they are turning their backs on; it’s me. They don’t want me as their ruler. This has been going on ever since I rescued them from their slave-drivers in Egypt. Over and over again they have turned their backs on me and run off after other gods. Now they are doing the same thing to you. So go ahead and give them what they want, but before you do, spell out to them in no uncertain terms what kings are really like once they are in power.”
So Samuel went back to the people who were demanding a king and passed on the LORD’s message. He said, “Let me warn you what sort of ‘justice’ your king will deal out once he takes power. He will conscript your sons into his army, some as foot soldiers, some as drivers, some on horseback. He will appoint officers of various ranks to give them orders and lead them off to war. Of those who do not go off to war, he will press some into service on his farms to produce food for the troops, and others he will put to work manufacturing weapons and equipment. He will take your daughters too and set them to work cooking and baking and powdering the noses of the noblewomen.
“He will seize the best of your land, your best fields, vineyards and olive orchards, and hand them over to his cronies. He will tax you heavily, taking a big cut of everything you produce and giving it to the freeloaders who serve him as officers and officials. He will help himself to the best of everything you have, your workers, your livestock, your equipment, everything. He will be constantly looking to squeeze a bit more out of you. It will be like being slaves all over again. Then you’ll be sorry and you’ll be begging to be rescued from your king, but it was your idea to have a king, so there will be no point expecting the LORD to do anything about it.”
But everything Samuel said fell on deaf ears and the people continued to say, “No! Our mind is made up. We want a king and we will have a king. We want to be just like the other nations with a king to rule over us and rally the troops and lead us into war.”
So Samuel said to the people, “Come on then. Let’s go to Gilgal and set a king on a throne for you.”
So all the people gathered at Gilgal and there at the sacred site they crowned Saul as their first king. They offered up sacrifices to the LORD, asking for success and prosperity. When it was done, King Saul and all the Israelite people celebrated long and hard.
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 138

Thank you, LORD, thank you!
Thank you, from the bottom of my heart!
I will stand and sing your praises
in the face of every would-be god!
Wherever I am, I turn towards your holy Temple
and fall to my knees in gratitude,
thanking you for your rock-solid love and loyalty;
With everything you say and everything you do
your reputation continues to go through the roof.
The minute I called, you were there for me,
you put steel in my spine,
gave me the guts to go on.
When the things you have been saying sink in, LORD,
all the earth’s powerful rulers will give credit to you.
They’ll join the party, singing and dancing in your honour,
celebrating the wonderful things you do.
As great as you are,
you never think of ordinary people as beneath you,
but you don’t waste your time
on those who are pretentious and stuck-up.
Although I must often walk into dangerous situations,
you protect me from hatred and hostility;
your invisible hand is always there, keeping me safe.
You, LORD, have made plans for me
and you will see them through to completion.
Your love is as timeless and dependable as the rock;
you have made us what we are
and you never give up on us.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1

Why do we speak as we do? We have the same kind of faith as the psalm-writer who said, “What I say is what I believe.” We are no different. We say these things because that’s what we believe. We are quite sure that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead is not going to stop there. God is also going to raise us and you and reunite us all, together with Jesus. So, yes, everything that God is doing is ultimately for your benefit. God’s extravagant generosity just keeps reaching out further and further to more and more people, and so the flood-tide of gratitude just keeps swelling and all the glory goes to God. And rightly so.
That’s why we never feel like chucking in the towel. We might look like we are going downhill fast, and it’s true that our bodies are falling apart on us, but on the inside we’ve never been better and God seems to be making us stronger and stronger every day. This run of trouble that we’re copping at the moment is really no big deal in the scheme of things, and it will make the final, infinitely jackpotted prize of glory all the sweeter.
We don’t worry about how things look on the surface because the things that really matter aren’t visible. The things you can see won’t last long anyway, but these things you can’t see are rock solid forever. We know that the bodies we live in now are like flimsy tents and soon enough, they’ll be blown away. But no problem. Then we will get to move into the houses that God is giving us. They haven’t been knocked up by amateurs; they’ve been built by God to last forever in paradise.
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Mark 3: 20-35

Jesus was at home with his followers when once again such a big crowd gathered around the house that they couldn’t even get out to buy food. There was a rumour going round that Jesus was losing the plot, and when his family heard what was going on, they set out to take him in hand. The religious experts from Jerusalem had arrived too, and they were ready to give their opinion: “He has gone over to Beelzebul,” they said. “It’s all black magic. His power over the demons comes straight from the supreme commander of the demons.”
But Jesus gathered the people around him and responded with a riddle. “If there is an attempt to expel the satan from our midst, could his own evil finger-pointing be driving the purge? Think about it. When an empire breaks into factions that undermine one another, it collapses. When a team is split and at war with itself, it all comes crashing down. So if the satan’s mob are divided because they have turned on their own, then he has shot himself in the foot and his game is over.
“The fact is, no one can raid the house of a violent thug and carry off his belongings without first dealing with the thug himself. But if you can disarm him and tie him up, then you can help yourself to everything in his house.
“I kid you not, people will be forgiven for all their toxic ways, even the most despicable things they have said or done. But those who spit in the face of the Holy Spirit when they see the good things that God is doing have gone too far. There is no turning around once you go down that slippery slope.” Jesus said this in response to allegations that he had teamed up with the forces of evil.
When his mother and his brothers arrived, they sent a message in to let him know they had come for him. The crowd sitting around him inside passed on the message, saying, “Your mother and your brothers are outside and they want to see you.”
But Jesus replied, saying, “Who are they?” And looking around at those who were with him, he said, “Here are my true family! My brothers and sisters and mothers are those who are doing what God wants.”
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Below are the alternative 1st Reading and Psalm themed to the Gospel lection

Prior to the revision of the Lectionary in 1992, the 1st reading and the psalm that responded to it were chosen to link thematically with the gospel reading. After hearing the critique of those who said that the Hebrew Scriptures, from which the first reading is usually chosen, should be allowed to speak with their own voice rather than just add support to the gospel reading, the Lectionary was revised so that during Ordinary Time, the 1st reading runs in its own semi-continuous series, working through various books of the Hebrew Bible. The older themed series continues to be available as an alternative.
The weekly prayers offered here at LaughingBird Resources are based on the four readings above, and do not draw on the themed 1st reading and psalm.

Genesis 3: 8-15

In the cool of the evening breeze, Adam and Eve heard the LORD God walking towards them in the garden. They panicked and hid behind the some trees, trying to avoid coming face to face with the LORD God. But the LORD God was looking for them, and called out to them, saying, “Where are you?”
The man said, “I heard you coming through the garden and I panicked because I was stark naked, so I dived for cover.”
The LORD God asked, “Who pointed out that you were naked? It never bothered you before. Have you eaten fruit from the tree that I clearly told you not to eat from?”
The man said, “It wasn’t my fault. You put this woman here with me. She gave me the fruit and I ate it.”
So the LORD God turned to the woman and said, “What’s the story? What have you done?”
The woman replied, “I was tricked into eating it by the snake.”
So the LORD God passed sentence on each of them, beginning with the snake, saying,
“A curse upon you for what you have done.
You of all the animals, cursed!
You of all the wild creatures, cursed!
Down on your belly you go!
Face down: you can eat dust
for the rest of your life!
You and the woman will be sworn enemies.
There will always be war
between your offspring and hers.
Her offspring will go for your head
and you will go for his heel.
©2014 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 130

From the depths of despair, from rock bottom,
I cry to you, O LORD.
I beg you to listen!
Please tune in and hear what I’m asking!
If you put black marks against our names
for every failing,
Lord, wouldn’t you have to write off everyone?
But forgiveness is much more your style,
and for this we adore you.
I wait in eager anticipation for your presence, LORD.
Everything inside me yearns for you
and your promises fill me with hope.
Deep in my guts there is a hunger for you, LORD,
more pressing than a woman
waiting for the birth of her baby,
more impatient than a child
waiting for a birthday;
crossing off the days, one by one.
O People of Israel, put your trust in the LORD!
The LORD’s love never lets us down,
and is always ready to rescue us from danger.
It is the Lord who will bail us out
when we are caught in the consequences
of our own sin.
©2000 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prayers

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
for your steadfast love and faithfulness endure forever
and your Word is exalted above everything.
The Earth is the work of your hands,
and you redeemed for yourself a people out of slavery.
Though you sent prophets to warn them,
they rejected you and clamoured for a king,
When kings had done their worst
and we were mired in unspeakable blasphemies,
you sent your child, Jesus,
to walk with us in the midst of trouble
and extend your grace to all.
When Jesus was condemned as unclean, and crucified
it seemed that the ruler of demons had won,
but you raised Jesus from the dead,
binding death’s strong man
and plundering his divided house.
So now we do not lose heart
for you are preparing us for glory beyond measure
as the family of our Lord forever.
Therefore with .....
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your child, Jesus,
for you raised him from the dead,
binding death’s strong man
and plundering his divided house.
So now we do not lose heart
for you are preparing us for glory beyond measure
as the family of our Lord forever.
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
for your steadfast love and faithfulness endure forever
and your Word is exalted above everything.
The Earth is the work of your hands,
and you redeemed for yourself a people out of slavery.
Though you sent prophets to warn them,
they rejected you and clamoured for a king,
When kings had done their worst
and we were mired in unspeakable blasphemies,
you sent your child, Jesus,
to walk with us in the midst of trouble
and extend your grace to all.
When Jesus was condemned as unclean, and crucified
it seemed that the ruler of demons had won,
but you raised Jesus from the dead,
binding death’s strong man
and plundering his divided house.
So now we do not lose heart
for you are preparing us for glory beyond measure
as the family of our Lord forever.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

Truly I tell you, your sins will be forgiven
for God’s steadfast love and faithfulness endure forever,
and the work of God’s hands will not be forsaken.
Christ Jesus has bound the ruler of demons
and broken us free from the house of sin.
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

Go now, praising God’s name with your whole heart.
Rejoice in the work of the Holy Spirit,
even when others call it evil and denounce you as mad.
Be the true brothers and sisters of Jesus
by doing the will of God always.
And may God extend grace to you and through you;
May Christ Jesus walk with you in the midst of trouble;
and may the Holy Spirit prepare you for glory beyond all measure.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2012 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons

Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

Ties that BindA sermon on Mark 3: 20-35 by Nathan Nettleton

How Satan Casts Out SatanA sermon on Mark 3: 20-35 by Nathan Nettleton

To Reign Over Us?A sermon on 1 Samuel 8:4-20; 11:14-15 & Mark 3:20-35 by Nathan Nettleton

Family: Painfully Difficult Good NewsA sermon on Mark 3: 20-35 by Nathan Nettleton

Proper 4 - Year C
2043-05-31
Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.
Bible Readings (paraphrased)
Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

1 Kings 18: 20-21 (22-29) 30-39

At Elijah’s suggestion, King Ahab called all the prophets of the god Baal to an assembly on Mount Carmel, and advertised it throughout Israel. When the crowd had gathered, Elijah stepped forward and addressed them saying, “How long are you going to keep trying to play for both sides? Make up your minds and follow the real God. Is it going to be the LORD or Baal?”
But there was silence. No one moved one way or the other.
So Elijah threw down the gauntlet, saying, “I’m here as the last remaining prophet on the LORD’s side, but there are four hundred and fifty prophets here on Baal’s side. Bring us two bulls for a sacrifice. Baal’s mob can choose the bull they want. They are to butcher it and lay it out on the firewood on their altar, but they are not allowed to light the fire. I will prepare the other bull the same way, laying it out on the wood but not lighting the fire. Then they can call out to their god and I will call out to the LORD, and we’ll see which god can prove himself by sending down fire.”
The gathered crowd thought this was a great idea.
Elijah turned to the prophets of Baal and said, “There are lots of you, so you can go first. Choose your bull, prepare it for the sacrifice, and start praying to your god. But you are not allowed to light the fire yourselves.”
So they took one of the bulls and butchered it for the sacrifice. From morning till midday they prayed to Baal, crying out, “O Baal, god of fire, answer us.” But nothing happened. There was no answer, not so much as a whisper. They prayed harder and harder as they marched around the altar which they had made.
Come midday, Elijah started making fun of them. “Come on,” he said. “Shout louder! What kind of god is he? Maybe he’s dreaming. Perhaps he’s nicked out to the dunny. Could he have wandered off somewhere? Maybe he’s fallen asleep, and needs to be woken up.”
So they prayed louder and louder and more and more desperately. They slashed themselves with swords to offer up their own blood, as was their custom, and soon there was blood all over the place. They continued this well into the afternoon, trying everything they could to get an answer out of their god, but still there was nothing. Not a whisper, not a spark, no answer of any kind.
Then Elijah called the people to gather around him, and they crowded in close. The altar of the LORD that had once stood on the mountain was in ruins, so Elijah rebuilt it in honour of the LORD using twelve large stones. Each stone represented one of the twelve tribes descended from the sons of Jacob to whom the LORD had given the name Israel. When Elijah finished building the altar, he dug a trench around it, deep enough to hold several buckets of water. He arranged the firewood on the altar, cut the bull into pieces, and laid it on the wood. Then he said, “Fill four buckets of water and pour it all over the offering and the wood. When they had done it, he said, “Do it again”, so another four buckets were poured over it. Then he said, “Do it a third time,” so four more buckets full were poured over it so that everything was completely soaked. The whole altar was dripping wet and the trench was flooded.
At the usual time of the evening sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stood with the people and prayed, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, prove to everyone now that you are the real God in Israel, and that I am serving you and acting on your authority. Answer me, LORD. Show these people what you are made of, so that they will know that you are the real God and that you are winning their hearts back to you.”
With a flash, the LORD’s fire fell and incinerated the lot: the meat, the wood, the stones, and even the water in the trench. There was nothing left but scorched dirt. When the people saw it happen, they fell on their faces in awe, saying “The LORD is the true God! The LORD is the true God!”
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 96

We sing like we’ve never sung before, LORD;
singing to you with all the earth.
Every mention of your name sets us singing your praises.
We never tire of telling the story of how you bailed us out;
all over the world, we speak of your incredible accomplishments;
everyone we meet hears us giving the credit to you.
You are the greatest, LORD; we can’t praise you enough!
When it comes to gods, you are in a league of your own;
all other objects of devotion are powerless.
But you, LORD, created the whole cosmos;
you are surrounded by majesty and celebration;
strength and beauty are signs of your presence.
People of every race and creed recognise you, LORD;
they recognise you behind all that is strong and true;
they name you as the one who deserves all the glory.
We offer ourselves to you, LORD;
we fall to our knees in this beautiful place of worship;
with all the earth, we celebrate you alone.
You are our king, LORD; we’ll tell everyone everywhere!
You have set the world on firm foundations,
and with you in charge, everyone will get a fair go.
Let the heavens and the earth celebrate;
let the roar of the sea join in;
let everything that walks, flies or swims join the party!
You are on your way, LORD,
and even the roadside trees cheer as you approach,
for you are coming to set things right on the earth.
You will sort things out and put things right,
and reveal the truth about everything and everyone.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Galatians 1:1-12

I, Paul, am one of God’s special ambassadors. I wasn’t given this job by a popular vote, or by some ordinary human boss. I was entrusted with the job by none other than Jesus the Messiah and God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead. This letter comes to you, the churches in Galatia, from me, and from the rest of God’s crew who are with me.
I wish you a full helping of generous love and peace from the God who conceived us and from our number one man, Jesus the Messiah. Faced with the record of our corruption, he gave himself completely to breaking us free from the grip of the evil culture that is so entrenched in the present day. God made our freedom a priority, and all the credit should go to God, now and always. And so say all of us!
I can hardly believe what I’m hearing about you. I’m disgusted. The Messiah was extravagantly generous in calling you, but already you are turning your backs on him and getting sucked into some other message that claims to be good news. There is no other message that’s worth a pinch of spit, but I hear that there are some snake oil merchants there who are twisting the Messiah’s message and leading you all astray. This is not about me. If anybody, including me, or for that matter even an angel from heaven, starts pushing a message that goes against what we taught you, they can go to hell! I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again: if anybody comes pushing a message that goes against the one you have already received, they can go to hell!
Does it sound like I’m pandering to the crowd and telling people what they want to hear? Does it like like I care what people think of me, or rather what God thinks of me? If I was still trying to impress the crowd, I wouldn’t be serving the Messiah at all.
Let me set you straight on this, brothers and sisters. The message that you heard me announcing is not something that somebody just cooked up one day. I can assure you that I didn’t get it second hand from any human source, and nor did anybody word me up about it. Instead, the message was the result of Jesus the Messiah revealing himself directly.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Luke 7: 1-10

After spending some time teaching the people, Jesus went into the town of Capernaum. There was a Roman military commander there who had a slave who was very special to him, but the slave had fallen ill and was dying. The commander was desperate to save the life of his slave, so when he heard that Jesus was in town, he sent some of the local Jewish officials to ask for his help. The officials spoke to Jesus with great enthusiasm on behalf of the commander. “This man is certainly worthy of your help,” they said. “He is a great friend of our people. He even bankrolled the building of our local synagogue.”
Jesus headed off with them, but before he reached the house, the commander sent another delegation of friends out to him with a message saying, “Lord, don’t put yourself out for me. There is no need for you to come all the way to my house. I’m not worthy to have you under my roof, and I wouldn’t presume to approach you in person. Please, just give the word, and my servant will be healed. I know how it works because I too am a man who obeys orders and who gives orders, knowing that they will be obeyed. I tell one soldier ‘Go,’ and he goes. I tell another ‘Jump,’ and he says ‘How high?’ I tell my servant to do something, and he does it.”
When Jesus heard the commander’s message, he was gob-smacked. Turning to address the crowd that was following him, he exclaimed, “Did you hear that? You might think you could find an Israelite with faith like that, but no, I have never before, anywhere, come across such deep trust.”
And sure enough, when the commander’s messengers got back to the house, they found the slave back on his feet, a picture of health.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Below are the alternative 1st Reading and Psalm themed to the Gospel lection

Prior to the revision of the Lectionary in 1992, the 1st reading and the psalm that responded to it were chosen to link thematically with the gospel reading. After hearing the critique of those who said that the Hebrew Scriptures, from which the first reading is usually chosen, should be allowed to speak with their own voice rather than just add support to the gospel reading, the Lectionary was revised so that during Ordinary Time, the 1st reading runs in its own semi-continuous series, working through various books of the Hebrew Bible. The older themed series continues to be available as an alternative.
The weekly prayers offered here at LaughingBird Resources are based on the four readings above, and do not draw on the themed 1st reading and psalm.

1 Kings 8: 22-23, 41-43

Solomon stood in front of the altar of the LORD and, with his hands raised high, he led the gathered people in prayer. He prayed:
“O LORD, God of Israel, you are one of a kind! No other god in the universe is like you. Your love is rock-solid and you never forget the alliance you have made with those who follow you whole-heartedly.
And don’t stop with just us – foreigners will no doubt hear about you too. Attracted by your reputation and by news of the awesome things you do, they will come from all sorts of far flung places to live among your people and offer their prayers within sight of this Temple. When they do, listen to them from your heavenly home and answer their prayers. That way everyone on earth will hear of you and give you the same respect that your people Israel do. They will know that this Temple which I have built carries your authority.
©2000 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 96: 1-9

We sing like we’ve never sung before, LORD;
singing to you with all the earth.
Every mention of your name sets us singing your praises.
We never tire of telling the story of how you bailed us out;
all over the world, we speak of your incredible accomplishments;
everyone we meet hears us giving the credit to you.
You are the greatest, LORD; we can’t praise you enough!
When it comes to gods, you are in a league of your own;
all other objects of devotion are powerless.
But you, LORD, created the whole cosmos;
you are surrounded by majesty and celebration;
strength and beauty are signs of your presence.
People of every race and creed recognise you, LORD;
they recognise you behind all that is strong and true;
they name you as the one who deserves all the glory.
We offer ourselves to you, LORD;
we fall to our knees in this beautiful place of worship;
with all the earth, we celebrate you alone.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prayers

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
and to tell of your salvation from day to day
and declare your glory and your marvelous works to all.
You made the heavens and established the earth,
and revealed yourself through your law and prophets
to be a God of glory and strength
who answers the cries of your people.
Though we were not worthy to receive you,
for we turned our backs on your grace
and limped off after worthless other gods,
you came to us in your child, Jesus,
speaking the word of healing and forgiveness.
When we turned against him,
he gave himself into our hands
as a revelation of your self-sacrificing love,
and when we crucified him,
you raised him from the dead,
and sent down your Spirit in fire
to heal us and set us free from this evil age.
Therefore with .....
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your child, Jesus,
who came to us as a revelation of your self-sacrificing love,
speaking the word of healing and forgiveness
and sending down your Spirit in fire
to heal us and set us free from this evil age.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
and to tell of your salvation from day to day
and declare your glory and your marvelous works to all.
You made the heavens and established the earth,
and revealed yourself through your law and prophets
to be a God of glory and strength
who answers the cries of your people.
Though we were not worthy to receive you,
for we turned our backs on your grace
and limped off after worthless other gods,
you came to us in your child, Jesus,
speaking the word of healing and forgiveness.
When we turned against him,
he gave himself into our hands
as a revelation of your self-sacrificing love,
and when we crucified him,
you raised him from the dead,
and sent down your Spirit in fire
to heal us and set us free from this evil age.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

Jesus gave himself freely for our sins
to set us free from the present evil age,
according to the will of our God and Father,
and to turn our hearts back to righteousness and truth.
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

If the Lord is God, go now, and follow him,
and do not be tempted to share your loyalty with other gods.
Stay true to the gospel that has been revealed to you in Jesus.
Call on the name of the Lord,
tell of God’s salvation from day to day,
and live in righteousness and truth.
And may God bring you grace and peace;
May Christ Jesus heal you and raise you up,
and may the Holy Spirit’s fiery glory strengthen your hearts.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons
Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

Followers or Fans?
A sermon on Luke 6:39 – 7:10 by Nathan Nettleton
A Different Gospel?
A sermon on Galatians 1:1-12; 1 Kings 18:20-39 & Luke 7:1-10 by Nathan Nettleton

Proper 3 - Year C
2046-05-27
Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.
Bible Readings (paraphrased)
Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

Sirach 27: 4-7

When grain is put through a sieve,
you find out how much rubbish was in it.
It’s the same when a person starts talking.
Whatever rubbish they are full of is soon out in the open.
The heat of the kiln tests a potter’s work for hidden faults.
What a person is made of is tested in the heat of conversation.
The quality of the fruit tells you if a tree has been looked after.
The things people have to say
reveal how they have taken care of their minds.
Don’t pump anyone up before you hear how they talk.
That’s the way the truth about people comes out.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

OR Isaiah 55: 10-13

This is what the LORD says:
Everything I say has a powerful purpose;
no empty words ever pass my lips.
My words are like drops of rain in the cycle of nature:
wherever they fall they give life;
they replenish, renew and nourish life,
and then the earth gives them back and they start again.
My words always achieve their purpose;
they flourish where I plant them,
they nourish all who feed on them.
My Word will bring peace
and you will come home with great celebration.
The trees will line the road, clapping and singing;
the mountains will rain down ticker tape as you pass.
Where the saltbush struggled,
a redgum will take root and grow;
where noxious weeds ruled,
native orchids and daisies will bloom again.
The wilderness in all its glory will stand like a monument,
like a permanent sign of the LORD’s rich goodness.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 92: 1-4, 12-15

It is a privilege to be able to publicly thank you, LORD,
to sing your praises and put your name up in lights.
It is great to start the day singing about your rock-solid love,
with a full band ringing out the tune,
and to end it thanking you for being so loyal and trustworthy,
accompanying our praise with guitars.
For you, O LORD, have given us so much to be happy about;
what you have done with your own hands
sets us singing and dancing for joy.
People who always do the right thing by others
will thrive like a tropical rainforest
and grow strong like a river redgum.
They have put down their roots in your soil, LORD,
and they will brighten up your temple like flowers.
Even when they grow old they will still be fruitful,
healthy and vibrant and pulsing with life.
They are a credit to you, LORD,
proving for all to see that you are straight and true.
You are our rock,
and there is nothing rotten or crooked in you.
©2009 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

1 Corinthians 15: 51-58

Listen up! I will let you in on a mystery! We are not all going to die after all. But we will all be radically changed. When the final siren blows, it will happen in the blink of an eye. Just like that. The siren will sound, and those who were dead and buried will be raised up new, never to decay again, and any of us who hadn’t yet died will be changed just like them. The biggest make-over of all time! Our bodies will be stripped of their old steady decline, and clothed instead in never-ending health. These short-term bodies will lose their use-by dates, and be refitted, completely immortal. When that happens – when our old falling-apart bodies put on never-ending health and immortality – then the old saying from the prophets will have come true:
“Life wins! Death has been eaten alive!”
“You were so sure of yourself, Death,
but you turned out to be toothless.
Your bark was worse than your bite.”
Death depended on sin for its bite, and sin was powered by the law. But they have been blown away by our Lord Jesus, the Messiah. When he enters the fray, we win! Thanks be to God!
That being the case, my beloved friends, hang in there, rock solid, come what may. Whatever role the Lord has asked you to play, give it your absolute best, because you can be sure that when you are on his side, your work will never be in vain.
©2015 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Luke 6: 39-49

While teaching the people, Jesus quoted the proverb: “If the blind are leading the blind, both fall into the same hole,” and then he went on to say, “Trainees can’t hold a candle to their teacher, but if they continue their training, they will eventually catch up with the teacher and be able to show others the way.
“Why is it that you are always the first to point out a loose thread or a speck of dust on someone else’s clothing, but you are the last to notice the dirty big vomit stain down your own front. There you are, making a big display of offering to help the other person get their appearance in order, without realising what a disgusting mess you are yourself. You pretentious fraud! Clean up your own act first, and then you might gain enough perspective to be able to help others.
“A healthy tree doesn’t produce sick fruit, and neither does a sick tree produce healthy fruit. The health of each tree is judged by the quality of the fruit it produces. You don’t find mangoes growing on a lemon tree. You can’t pick grapes from a blackberry vine. Good people have hearts and minds full of good things, and it shows in the generous and healthy ways they respond to others. Toxic people spew forth poison from the toxic filth churning inside them. Whatever your heart and mind are full of will colour what comes out when you open your mouth.
“What’s the use of dropping my name all the time and prattling on about what a high view of my authority you hold, when you ignore everything I ask you to do? The people who come to me and listen to what I say and put it into practice are like a builder who puts down solid foundations before building a house. When the flood waters rise and the river breaks its banks, it can’t budge that house because it has been built to last. But those who hear what I say and don’t bother doing anything about it are more like someone who knocks up a house without laying any foundation at all. The first time the river bursts, it is all over in a minute. The whole house comes crashing down and is swept away in little pieces!”
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prayers

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
We do indeed give you our thanks and praise, O God,
for your victory has swallowed up the power of death
and given our living an unshakable foundation.
Your Word went forth to create the earth,
and to give seed to the sower and bread to the eater.
Your Word went forth through the law and prophets
to form a people who hear and act on all you say.
Your Word went forth in your Son, Jesus Christ,
and brought forth the full fruits
that grow from the goodness of your heart.
His words unmasked hypocrisy,
disarmed the powers of death,
and laid the foundation for your Church.
Though he was killed by those
who lead others to destruction,
you raised him to life
and clothed him in immortality.
In his victory, death has lost its sting,
and we can offer you our labour
knowing that all your purposes will be accomplished.
Therefore with .....
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your Word which went forth to create the earth,
and to form us as a people who hear and act on all you say.
In your Son, Jesus Christ, your Word unmasked hypocrisy,
disarmed the sting of death,
and laid an unshakeable foundation for your Church.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you thanks and praise, O God,
for your victory has swallowed up the power of death
and given our living an unshakable foundation.
Your Word went forth to create the earth,
and to give seed to the sower and bread to the eater.
Your Word went forth through the law and prophets
to form a people who hear and act on all you say.
Your Word went forth in your Son, Jesus Christ,
and brought forth the full fruits
that grow from the goodness of your heart.
His words unmasked hypocrisy,
disarmed the powers of death,
and laid the foundation for your Church.
Though he was killed by those
who lead others to destruction,
you raised him to life
and clothed him in immortality.
In his victory, death has lost its sting,
and we can offer you our labour
knowing that all your purposes will be accomplished.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

Thought the words of our mouths betray the sin in our hearts,
the words of God’s mouth will accomplish their purpose,
overcoming the sting of death
and giving us victory over sin
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

Go now and act on the words of Christ which you have heard.
Proclaim that the Lord is just.
Be steadfast and unshakeable.
Give your best to the work of the Lord,
for in Christ, your labour is not in vain.
And may God lead you out in joy and back in peace;
May Christ Jesus give you victory over the powers of death;
And may the Holy Spirit cultivate your heart and mind
to produce in you abundant fruits all your life.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons
Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

Why you probably don’t need to learn more
A sermon on Luke 6:39-49 by Nathan Nettleton

Proper 4 - Year B
2051-06-04 00:00 - 23:59
Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.

Bible Readings (paraphrased)

Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

1 Samuel 3: 1-10, (11-20)

Samuel grew up in the Temple at Shiloh, working as an apprentice to Eli the priest, in the service of the LORD. In those days, the people had completely lost touch with God, and messages or visions from the LORD were rare. The light of God had not gone out, but Eli’s failing eyesight had left him unable to see.
One night, Eli had gone to bed in his room, and Samuel was lying down in the Temple of the LORD near the sacred Ark of God. The LORD called out, “Samuel! Samuel!”
“At your service,” said Samuel, jumping up and running into Eli’s room. “You called me and here I am, at your service.”
But Eli said, “I didn’t call you. Go back to bed.”
So Samuel went and lay down again, and the LORD called out again, “Samuel!”
Samuel got up and went to Eli, saying “You called me and here I am, at your service.”
But Eli said, “I didn’t call you, my son. Go back to bed.”
Now it was no surprise that Samuel didn’t understand what was going on, because he did not yet know the LORD, and his mind had not yet been opened to what the LORD had to say. The LORD called Samuel a third time, and again he got up and went to Eli, saying “You called me and here I am, at your service.”
Finally the lights went on for Eli and he realised that it was the LORD who was calling the boy, so he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if you hear the call again, say, ‘Speak to me, LORD. I’m at your service, and I’m all ears.’ ”
So Samuel went and lay down again in the same place. The LORD came and stood alongside him, calling out as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”
And Samuel replied, “Speak to me. I’m at your service, and I’m all ears.”
The LORD said to Samuel, “Look, I am about to do something that will make the hair stand up on the back of everyone’s necks when they hear about it. On that day I will follow through on everything I have ever said I would do to Eli and his offspring. I have told him that I am about to bring down a permanent punishment on his family, because his sons have been dragging my name through the mud and even though he knew about their corruption, he didn’t crack down on them. So now I swear to Eli’s family that the charge of corruption will stand against them forever, no matter how many apologies, sacrifices or gifts they offer.”
Samuel had a restless night after that! When he got up in the morning to open the doors of the house of the LORD, he was afraid to say anything about the vision to Eli. But Eli wanted to know, and called him, saying, “Samuel, my son.”
“At your service,” Samuel answered.
“What did the LORD have to say to you?” Eli asked. “Don’t keep me in the dark. May God punish you big time, if you don’t tell me every detail of what was said to you.”
So Samuel told him the whole lot, every last detail, and when he had finished, Eli said, “The LORD has spoken. I will have to cop whatever the LORD sees fit to do.”
As Samuel grew to be a man, the LORD kept a guiding hand on his shoulder, and saw to it that when he spoke, not a word was wasted. Before long, the whole land, from one end to the other, knew that Samuel was the real deal – a messenger of the LORD who could be trusted.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 139: 1-6, 13-18

You have taken a good hard look at me, LORD,
and you know exactly what makes me tick.
You know when I’ve got my feet up and when I’m on the job;
you can read my mind like an open book.
You see where I am going and where I stop,
and you know all about what I do and why.
You know exactly what I am going to say, LORD,
even before I open my mouth.
You are in front of me, behind me, beside me;
your hand on my shoulder at every turn.
All this is more than I can get my head around;
I pinch myself, and struggle to take it in.
It was you who put me together, every part of me;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I sing your praises, LORD,
for the the way you have made me fills me with awe.
Your creative works blow my mind;
too wonderful for words.
You could see me clearly before I was born;
you watched me taking shape in the secret depths
and laid out the intricacies of nerve and muscle.
You kept your eye on me
from conception to birth.
My life lay before you like an open book
before I had even lived a day.
Your thoughts are way beyond my grasp, God,
and they add up to more than I can count.
Deeper than the oceans,
outnumbering the grains of sand;
I give up trying
but you are with me just the same.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

2 Corinthians 4: 5-12

We are not preaching about ourselves. The message we preach is that Jesus the messiah is Lord of all. We ourselves are slaves, at your service, for Jesus’s sake. The very God who kicked off creation by calling for light to shine from darkness has now filled our hearts with the light that comes from seeing the glory of God in the face of Jesus the messiah and knowing it for what it is.
You might not notice how beautiful that light is if you just look at us though. It is in us, for sure, but like a diamond necklace in a plain paper bag. That way nobody can make the mistake of thinking too highly of us. It is clear that the power is all God’s.
We cop the worst of everything, but it hasn’t finished us off. It drives us nuts at times, but it hasn’t driven us over the edge. We are picked on unfairly, but we know we are not alone. We keep getting knocked down, but we get right back up again. When you look for Jesus in us, what you are most likely to see is his battered corpse, but that now means that it is also possible to see his risen life taking shape in our bodies. Our lives are on the line all the time. We are always being thrown into the jaws of death because of Jesus, but again that just means that the risen life of Jesus can be seen taking shape in our fragile flesh. No doubt death will finish us off soon, but in you, life is getting a good strong hold!
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Mark 2: 23 - 3:6

It was a Sabbath, the day of rest, and Jesus was leading the way through some wheat fields. As they walked, his followers were casually plucking off a few heads of grain. The next thing you know, some members of the devoutly religious Pharisee party popped up and challenged Jesus, saying, “Look at that! What do they think they are doing? Haven’t you taught them that it is against the law to harvest grain on the Sabbath?”
But Jesus replied, “Haven’t you read in your Bibles what our national hero David did when he and his followers were hungry and had nothing to eat? He went into the house of God and took the sacred bread off the altar and ate that, right under the nose of Abiathar the high priest. The law clearly says that only the priests are allowed to eat that, but not only did he eat it himself, he gave it to his followers to eat too. Don’t you lot get that the Sabbath was made for the benefit of the people, not the other way around. The New Human is in charge now, and even the Sabbath falls into line.”
Arriving back at the synagogue, Jesus went on in. There was a man there who had one hand that was wasted away and useless. Some people there were keeping a close eye on Jesus to see if they could catch him doing a work of healing on the Sabbath and then dob him in to the authorities. Jesus saw the man with the crippled hand, and said to him, “Come out here, up the front.”
Then he looked around at the people and asked, “What do you all think the law would want from us on the Sabbath, to do good or to let things go bad, to save a life or to destroy one?”
But they bit their tongues and said nothing. Jesus was outraged; gutted by their lack of compassion. Turning back to the man, he said, “Stretch out your hand.”
The man stretched out his hand, and that was all it took: it was back to full strength. That was too much for the Pharisees. They went straight out and began conspiring with Herod’s mob to destroy Jesus.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Below are the alternative 1st Reading and Psalm themed to the Gospel lection

Prior to the revision of the Lectionary in 1992, the 1st reading and the psalm that responded to it were chosen to link thematically with the gospel reading. After hearing the critique of those who said that the Hebrew Scriptures, from which the first reading is usually chosen, should be allowed to speak with their own voice rather than just add support to the gospel reading, the Lectionary was revised so that during Ordinary Time, the 1st reading runs in its own semi-continuous series, working through various books of the Hebrew Bible. The older themed series continues to be available as an alternative.
The weekly prayers offered here at LaughingBird Resources are based on the four readings above, and do not draw on the themed 1st reading and psalm.

Deuteronomy 5: 12-15

Keep up the practice of making Saturday a dedicated rest day, as the LORD your God has told you to do. You are to work on your business, your projects, and your chores on the other six days, and keep the seventh day as a rest day, dedicated to the LORD your God. You are not to do any work that day, and you are not to ask anyone else to work either — not your family, not your employees, not the migrant workers who live down the street, and not even your bullocks, horses, dogs, or any other animal you own. All who work for you need rest, just as you do. Always keep in mind that you were forced to work as slaves in a foreign land, and the LORD your God bared his arm and reached out and rescued you from there. That is why the LORD your God told you to keep the dedicated rest day.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 81: 1-10

We sing our lungs out to you, God,
for you make us strong;
we shout for joy, celebrating you,
the God of our ancestors.
Our songs ring out in your honour,
and on our instruments we make the sweetest music we can.
A trumpet blast opens the festival;
every month we celebrate your new creation.
We are your people, God, and this is our tradition;
a sacred law for every generation to follow.
You gave it to us through Joseph
when our ancestors took refuge in Egypt.
You have spoken to us in an unfamiliar voice,
reminding us that it was you who freed us from slavery
and you who lifted the burden from our backs.
When we cried out in panic, you rescued us;
from the thunder clouds you answered our plea,
and at a desert spring you called us to account.
You begged us to pay attention,
to let you set us straight;
you longed for your people to listen to you.
You warned us to steer clear of alternative gods;
to avoid offering our devotion to every new fad.
You are the LORD our God;
the God who rescued us from the land of slavery.
When we come to you with our hungers,
you fill us with all that we need.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prayers

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
for it was you who knit together the newborn earth
and said, “Let light shine out of darkness.”
Wonderful are all your works.
In ancient times,
you spoke through trustworthy prophets like Samuel,
revealing to us your Word and your thoughts.
How weighty they are, O God!
How vast is the sum of them.
Now you have revealed yourself in your child, Jesus.
He made known your grief at our brokenness
and your desire to feed us
with the bread of compassion and mercy.
When the powerful and hard-hearted conspired against him,
persecuting him and striking him down,
you raised him to new life.
Now, even when we are afflicted in every way,
you shine in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
Therefore with .....
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your child, Jesus,
who made known your desire to feed us
with the bread of compassion and mercy.
Now, even when we are afflicted,
you shine in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
for it was you who knit together the newborn earth
and said, “Let light shine out of darkness.”
Wonderful are all your works.
In ancient times,
you spoke through trustworthy prophets like Samuel,
revealing to us your Word and your thoughts.
How weighty they are, O God!
How vast is the sum of them.
Now you have revealed yourself in your child, Jesus.
He made known your grief at our brokenness
and your desire to feed us
with the bread of compassion and mercy.
When the powerful and hard-hearted conspired against him,
persecuting him and striking him down,
you raised him to new life.
Now, even when we are afflicted in every way,
you shine in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

The Lord has searched us and known us
and grieved over our hardness of heart.
But the Lord’s mercies are as uncountable as the sand
and we are forgiven, not through sacrifices or offerings,
but through the love and grace made known in Jesus.
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

Go now, and listen always for the Word of the Lord.
At all times, do good and not harm,
save life and do not destroy it.
Carry always in your bodies
the life and death of Jesus.
And may God be with you to the end.
May Christ Jesus make his life visible in you.
and may the Holy Spirit give you the light of the knowledge
of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons

Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

Religion v’s LifeA sermon on Mark 2:23 – 3:6 by Nathan Nettleton

#Sabbath OutrageA sermon on Mark 2:23 – 3:6 by Nathan Nettleton

Crackpots or Cracked Pots?A sermon on 2 Corinthians 4:5-12 by Nathan Nettleton

9th Sunday between Epiphany and Lent - Year B
2057-03-04
This occasion next occurs in 2057 and only for churches that do not observe the last Sunday before Lent as Transfiguration Sunday.

Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.

Bible Readings (paraphrased)

Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

Deuteronomy 5: 12-15

Keep up the practice of making Saturday a dedicated rest day, as the LORD your God has told you to do. You are to work on your business, your projects, and your chores on the other six days, and keep the seventh day as a rest day, dedicated to the LORD your God. You are not to do any work that day, and you are not to ask anyone else to work either — not your family, not your employees, not the migrant workers who live down the street, and not even your bullocks, horses, dogs, or any other animal you own. All who work for you need rest, just as you do. Always keep in mind that you were forced to work as slaves in a foreign land, and the LORD your God bared his arm and reached out and rescued you from there. That is why the LORD your God told you to keep the dedicated rest day.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 81: 1-10

We sing our lungs out to you, God,
for you make us strong;
we shout for joy, celebrating you,
the God of our ancestors.
Our songs ring out in your honour,
and on our instruments we make the sweetest music we can.
A trumpet blast opens the festival;
every month we celebrate your new creation.
We are your people, God, and this is our tradition;
a sacred law for every generation to follow.
You gave it to us through Joseph
when our ancestors took refuge in Egypt.
You have spoken to us in an unfamiliar voice,
reminding us that it was you who freed us from slavery
and you who lifted the burden from our backs.
When we cried out in panic, you rescued us;
from the thunder clouds you answered our plea,
and at a desert spring you called us to account.
You begged us to pay attention,
to let you set us straight;
you longed for your people to listen to you.
You warned us to steer clear of alternative gods;
to avoid offering our devotion to every new fad.
You are the LORD our God;
the God who rescued us from the land of slavery.
When we come to you with our hungers,
you fill us with all that we need.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

2 Corinthians 4: 5-12

We are not preaching about ourselves. The message we preach is that Jesus the messiah is Lord of all. We ourselves are slaves, at your service, for Jesus’s sake. The very God who kicked off creation by calling for light to shine from darkness has now filled our hearts with the light that comes from seeing the glory of God in the face of Jesus the messiah and knowing it for what it is.
You might not notice how beautiful that light is if you just look at us though. It is in us, for sure, but like a diamond necklace in a plain paper bag. That way nobody can make the mistake of thinking too highly of us. It is clear that the power is all God’s.
We cop the worst of everything, but it hasn’t finished us off. It drives us nuts at times, but it hasn’t driven us over the edge. We are picked on unfairly, but we know we are not alone. We keep getting knocked down, but we get right back up again. When you look for Jesus in us, what you are most likely to see is his battered corpse, but that now means that it is also possible to see his risen life taking shape in our bodies. Our lives are on the line all the time. We are always being thrown into the jaws of death because of Jesus, but again that just means that the risen life of Jesus can be seen taking shape in our fragile flesh. No doubt death will finish us off soon, but in you, life is getting a good strong hold!
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Mark 2: 23 - 3:6

It was a Sabbath, the day of rest, and Jesus was leading the way through some wheat fields. As they walked, his followers were casually plucking off a few heads of grain. The next thing you know, some members of the devoutly religious Pharisee party popped up and challenged Jesus, saying, “Look at that! What do they think they are doing? Haven’t you taught them that it is against the law to harvest grain on the Sabbath?”
But Jesus replied, “Haven’t you read in your Bibles what our national hero David did when he and his followers were hungry and had nothing to eat? He went into the house of God and took the sacred bread off the altar and ate that, right under the nose of Abiathar the high priest. The law clearly says that only the priests are allowed to eat that, but not only did he eat it himself, he gave it to his followers to eat too. Don’t you lot get that the Sabbath was made for the benefit of the people, not the other way around. The New Human is in charge now, and even the Sabbath falls into line.”
Arriving back at the synagogue, Jesus went on in. There was a man there who had one hand that was wasted away and useless. Some people there were keeping a close eye on Jesus to see if they could catch him doing a work of healing on the Sabbath and then dob him in to the authorities. Jesus saw the man with the crippled hand, and said to him, “Come out here, up the front.”
Then he looked around at the people and asked, “What do you all think the law would want from us on the Sabbath, to do good or to let things go bad, to save a life or to destroy one?”
But they bit their tongues and said nothing. Jesus was outraged; gutted by their lack of compassion. Turning back to the man, he said, “Stretch out your hand.”
The man stretched out his hand, and that was all it took: it was back to full strength. That was too much for the Pharisees. They went straight out and began conspiring with Herod’s mob to destroy Jesus.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prayers

These prayers are based on a set of readings that use a different 1st reading and psalm, and will be replaced at some point.

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
for it was you who knit together the newborn earth
and said, “Let light shine out of darkness.”
Wonderful are all your works.
In ancient times,
you spoke through trustworthy prophets like Samuel,
revealing to us your Word and your thoughts.
How weighty they are, O God!
How vast is the sum of them.
Now you have revealed yourself in your child, Jesus.
He made known your grief at our brokenness
and your desire to feed us
with the bread of compassion and mercy.
When the powerful and hard-hearted conspired against him,
persecuting him and striking him down,
you raised him to new life.
Now, even when we are afflicted in every way,
you shine in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
Therefore with .....
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your child, Jesus,
who made known your desire to feed us
with the bread of compassion and mercy.
Now, even when we are afflicted,
you shine in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
for it was you who knit together the newborn earth
and said, “Let light shine out of darkness.”
Wonderful are all your works.
In ancient times,
you spoke through trustworthy prophets like Samuel,
revealing to us your Word and your thoughts.
How weighty they are, O God!
How vast is the sum of them.
Now you have revealed yourself in your child, Jesus.
He made known your grief at our brokenness
and your desire to feed us
with the bread of compassion and mercy.
When the powerful and hard-hearted conspired against him,
persecuting him and striking him down,
you raised him to new life.
Now, even when we are afflicted in every way,
you shine in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

The Lord has searched us and known us
and grieved over our hardness of heart.
But the Lord’s mercies are as uncountable as the sand
and we are forgiven, not through sacrifices or offerings,
but through the love and grace made known in Jesus.
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

Go now, and listen always for the Word of the Lord.
At all times, do good and not harm,
save life and do not destroy it.
Carry always in your bodies
the life and death of Jesus.
And may God be with you to the end.
May Christ Jesus make his life visible in you.
and may the Holy Spirit give you the light of the knowledge
of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2016 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons

Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

Religion v’s LifeA sermon on Mark 2:23 – 3:6 by Nathan Nettleton #Sabbath OutrageA sermon on Mark 2:23 – 3:6 by Nathan Nettleton

Proper 3 - Year A
2062-05-28
Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.
Bible Readings (paraphrased)
Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

Isaiah 49: 8-16a

This is what the LORD is saying:
What a day! I have answered your call.
It’s the day of rescue, and here I am.
I have kept you safe,
and I have given you to the people
as the sign that I will always be with them.
I have given you the job of putting the land in order,
of resettling the people
on the properties that were left abandoned.
Tell the prisoners they can now go free.
Tell those cowering in the darkness
that it is now safe to come out of hiding.
They will find all the food they want along the way.
Even the rocky mountain tops will produce food for them.
They will never go hungry or thirsty;
never again be burnt by the sun or cut by the wind.
I care deeply for them and I will lead them.
I will guide them along the perfect track
from one fresh waterhole to the next.
I will level out the track
so that there are no tough climbs
and no treacherous descents.
Take a look and see!
Here come my people from far away,
from all points of the compass,
from this land and that.
Sing your lungs out, sky above!
Explode with joy, O planet earth!
Burst into song, O mighty mountains!
For the LORD’S people were suffering,
but the LORD has felt their pain and given them comfort.
But Zion said, “The LORD’S back is turned to me.
My Lord has given up on me, written me off.”
Get a grip! Does a woman give up on the child at her breast?
Can she turn her back when her own child is hurting?
And yet a woman forgetting her child
is a lot more likely than me forgetting you.
Look here and see,
I have written your name on the palm of my hand.
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 131

LORD, I am not too full of myself.
I don’t set my sights too high.
I don’t try to get involved in things
that are out of my league
or beyond my capabilities.
What I have done, LORD, is look after my soul.
Like a mother tenderly calming a young child,
I have calmed my soul to a quiet peace.
May all your people put their hope in you, LORD,
from now on, and forevermore.
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

1 Corinthians 4:1-5

How should you think of us? Think of us only as servants of the Messiah, and as those whose job it is to handle the mysteries of God’s business. Now the basic expectation of anyone who is given such a job is that they can be trusted with it. For myself, I couldn’t care less whether you or any other mob think I measure up. I don’t even try to judge myself. I am not aware of any black marks against my name, but that doesn’t prove anything. It is only what the Lord thinks of me that matters. Therefore, don’t go jumping the gun and trying to tally the score before time’s up, before the Lord arrives. He will shine a spotlight on things that are now hidden under the cover of darkness, and what really makes us tick will be out in the open for all to see. Then, and only then, will each person receive the thumbs-up from God for the things they’ve done well.
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Matthew 6:24-34

Jesus said:
“No one can play on two teams.
You’ll either give your best to one
and under-perform for the other,
or short-change one
and give your heart and soul for the other.
You can’t dedicate yourself to both God and financial success.
“So I’m telling you, don’t go worrying about your life, about where your next meal is coming from or what you will find to drink. Don’t stress about what you look like or whether you’ve got the right clothes to wear. Life is more than food, isn’t it? And the body is not just a clothes rack, is it? Look at the birds flying around. They don’t do any farming. They don’t stock up the pantry with extra supplies. And yet the one who conceived you in heaven feeds them. You are worth more than they are, aren’t you? So what good does worrying do you? It won’t make you live any longer - not even an hour - will it?
“And why do you worry about what to wear? Think about the wild flowers. They grow without ever shopping or sewing a stitch. But you can take it from me that they are clothed more perfectly than even a princess at a royal wedding. If God takes such care over dressing the wildflowers, which bloom today and are mown down and composted tomorrow, how much more care will God take to make sure that you have the clothes you need? Yet you find it hard to trust!
“So don’t get all anxious and go asking, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘Where will we find a drink?’ or ‘What on earth will we wear?’ It is the people who don’t put their trust in God who put all their energy into these things. You can rest assured that the one who conceived you in heaven knows perfectly well that you need these things. So you can make your first priority the new culture of God and doing the right thing, God’s way, and all these other things will be taken care of for you.
“So don’t stress out about tomorrow. Just deal with the troubles of today, and leave tomorrow’s worries until they come.”
©2008 Nathan Nettleton Laughingbird.net

Prayers

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
for you show compassion to your suffering ones
and have written our names on the palm of your hands.
You created the earth and all its creatures,
clothing even the grass of the fields in splendour
and bringing forth abundant food,
even for the birds of the air.
You found your people imprisoned in darkness
and through Moses and the prophets,
you called them to freedom
and led them by springs of water.
In your child, Jesus, you have come to us again,
teaching us to entrust our souls to you
and to seek first your kingdom
and its righteousness and justice for all.
When he was killed by those
who serve wealth and power,
you raised him to life again
so that his light might shine in the darkness
and bring all the earth to freedom.
Therefore with .....
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your child, Jesus,
in whom you have taught us to entrust our souls to you
and to seek first your kingdom
and its righteousness and justice for all.
You raised him to life
so that his light might shine in the darkness
and bring all the earth to freedom.
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
for you show compassion to your suffering ones
and have written our names on the palm of your hands.
You created the earth and all its creatures,
clothing even the grass of the fields in splendour
and bringing forth abundant food,
even for the birds of the air.
You found your people imprisoned in darkness
and through Moses and the prophets,
you called them to freedom
and led them by springs of water.
In your child, Jesus, you have come to us again,
teaching us to entrust our souls to you
and to seek first your kingdom
and its righteousness and justice for all.
When he was killed by those
who serve wealth and power,
you raised him to life again
so that his light might shine in the darkness
and bring all the earth to freedom.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

It is the Lord’s judgement alone that matters,
and God will no more write us off
than will a mother write off her nursing child.
God has sent comfort and a word of compassion,
”Come out of darkness and be free.”
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

Go now, as servants of Christ
and stewards of God’s mysteries.
Strive firstly for the kingdom of God
and its righteousness and justice.
Do not be anxious, but calm your soul within you
and do not condemn, even yourselves.
And may God generously provide all you need;
May Christ Jesus guide you in the ways of light;
And may the Holy Spirit fill you with comfort and hope.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2008 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons
Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

Feasting and Fasting
A sermon on Matthew 6: 24-34 by Alison Sampson
When Buildings Fall: Do Not Worry?
A sermon on Matthew 6: 24-34 by Nathan Nettleton
The Church Facing Judgement
A sermon on 1 Corinthians 4:1-5 & Matthew 6: 24-34 by Nathan Nettleton
God and Possessions
A sermon on Matthew 6: 24-34 by Jennifer Smith

9th Sunday between Epiphany and Lent - Year A
2068-03-04
This occasion only occurs in 2038 for churches that do not observe the last Sunday before Lent as Transfiguration Sunday.
Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.
Bible Readings (paraphrased)
Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

Deuteronomy 11: 18-21, 26-28

Moses said to the people:
“Take to heart these teachings I have passed on to you from the LORD your God. Do whatever you need to do to keep them fixed in your minds: write them on the back of your hands; wear them as a badge stuck on your forehead. Teach them to your children and talk about them morning, noon and night, at home or wherever you go. Hang them over your front doors, put them up on a billboard at the entrance to your town so that you will be reminded of them as you come and go. That way you will be assured of a long and happy life in the land that the LORD promised to your ancestors. Your children will enjoy the same, and their children too, as long as the earth keeps turning.
“Take note. Today I have taught you how the LORD your God wants you to live, and now it is in your hands. Your life can be blessed or cursed; the choice is yours. Everything will work out well for you if you live the way the LORD your God has told you to live. But everything will fall apart for you if you turn your back on the way that the LORD your God has told you to live and take off after other ways and other objects of devotion.”
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 31: 1-5, 19-24

I look to you for refuge, LORD;
don’t let me be dragged through the mud.
You promised justice – save me!
Give me your ear – I’m crying for help;
rescue me before it’s too late.
Be a secure refuge for me,
a bomb shelter where I can hide.
Your solid walls protect me from danger;
lead me and guide me so I’ll be a credit to you;
keep me clear of pitfalls and traps.
You are the only refuge I trust, LORD;
I put my life in your hands.
You are a faithful God,
and you have saved me.
Your goodness is rich and free;
available to all who respect you and trust you.
Out in the open, for all to see,
you stockpile blessings for those in your care.
You shelter them yourself, LORD,
keeping them safe from vindictive plots.
You give them a safe hiding place,
sheltered from malicious talk.
You are the greatest, LORD;
and you proved yourself when I needed you.
When I was surrounded by a violent mob,
your love protected me like a solid wall.
At first I panicked;
I thought you had given up on me.
But you were there in a flash
when I cried out for help.
I call on all your people to give you their love, LORD.
You keep the faithful safe
and repay the arrogant as they deserve.
I say to myself, “Be strong, tough it out,”
as I wait with my trust in you, LORD.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28, (29-31)

Being identified with God’s message does not make me cringe at all. I am honoured to be associated with something that God is working through so powerfully in order to bring everyone who believes home to the safety and wholeness for which they were created. It began among the Jewish people, but now everyone is in on it. It reveals God’s unshakable commitment to doing the right thing by all who put their trust in God’s trustworthiness. The scriptures put it this way: “Anyone who gets things right with God through a relationship of trust, will live.”
This is not applied differently to different groups of people. Everyone is in the same boat because we have all done wrong and fallen well short of the shining integrity God created us for. But God treats everybody with a generosity that is out of all proportion to anything we could deserve and, as a gift, puts us back in the good books. This happens as part of the work done by Jesus the Messiah in putting everything back the way it should be. He was sent by God to clean up the mess we had gotten ourselves into and bring us back into a relationship based on trust, and he made the ultimate sacrifice and paid the price in his own blood to get the job done. This demonstrated God’s unshakable commitment to doing the right thing by everyone, both in the past and in the present. In the past God’s commitment was expressed by putting up with people’s wrongdoing and not dishing out the punishments they deserved. In the present, God is again proving that commitment by putting those who put their trust in Jesus into the good books.
So what is left of our boast that we Jews are the only ones in the good books with God? Clearly it is not backed up by the facts. Why? Did others do something to earn an equal place before God? Not at all, but God put the relationship on a trust basis, and that put everyone on an equal footing. What we are saying is that people get into the good books by trusting God, regardless of whether or not they observe the customs prescribed by the traditional Jewish law. God is not only the God of the Jews, but of everyone else as well. After all, there is only one God! Those who have been brought up to be religious are put in to God’s good books on the basis of a relationship of trust, and everyone else is put in through exactly the same relationship of trust. However, if you think we are saying that this relationship of trust means that there is no value in the traditional law, you have missed the point. What we are saying is quite the opposite. It is only within this relationship of trust that the customs set out in the law can prove their worth.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Matthew 7: 21-29

Drawing to the end of his sermon on the mountain, Jesus said, “You can’t bluff your way into the culture of heaven by dropping my name and prattling on about what a high view of my authority you hold. It is those who walk the walk who will get in – those who actually live the way God wants them to live. When the day comes, many people will appeal to me saying, ‘Lord, Lord, look at all the great things we did in your name. We preached. We took on the forces of evil and won. We were real movers and shakers. We did all sorts of impressive things and we gave you the credit for it all. Doesn’t that count for anything?’ But I will tell them straight, ‘I’ll have nothing to do with you. You are a bunch of frauds, rotten to the core. Get out of my sight!’
“The people who take notice of what I teach and put it into practice are like experienced builders who always put down solid foundations before building a house. When violent storms come, or even if cyclones and floods hit, that house stands firm, rock-solid on its foundations. But those who hear my teachings and don’t bother doing anything about them are like brainless do-it-yourselfers who knock up a house with nothing but sand for foundations. The first time it is hit by a decent storm, the wind and rain rip into it and in no time at all there is a spectacular crash and down it comes!”
When Jesus had finished speaking, the crowd was stunned. His teaching was like nothing they had ever heard before. His words carried great weight and it was clear that he stood behind everything he said, which was quite a contrast to the religious teachers they were used to!
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prayers

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
for by grace you have justified and redeemed us
and become our refuge and strength.
In the first of your works you created the universe
and everything that moves on the earth.
When you sent a flood to purge the earth of corruption,
you made a covenant with your servant Noah
and saved every family of living creatures.
You sent your child, Jesus Christ, among us,
to teach us with authority how to live by your words
and be welcomed into your kingdom.
When he was killed by those who were filled with violence,
you raised him with power from the dead
and called everyone to put their faith in him.
To all who hear your invitation and act on it
you give the gift of righteousness in your presence
and redemption in and through Christ Jesus.
Therefore with .....
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your grace
in which you have justified and redeemed us
and become our refuge and strength,
even though we had becoe corrupt and fallen short of your glory.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
for by grace you have justified and redeemed us
and become our refuge and strength.
In the first of your works you created the universe
and everything that moves on the earth.
When you sent a flood to purge the earth of corruption,
you made a covenant with your servant Noah
and saved every family of living creatures.
You sent your child, Jesus Christ, among us,
to teach us with authority how to live by your words
and be welcomed into your kingdom.
When he was killed by those who were filled with violence,
you raised him with power from the dead
and called everyone to put their faith in him.
To all who hear your invitation and act on it
you give the gift of righteousness in your presence
and redemption in and through Christ Jesus.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,
but through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
we are forgiven and justified
as a gift of his grace.
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

Go now and build your lives on the solid rock
of Christ’s words, heard and put into action.
Do not be ashamed of the gospel,
but live by faith
and find your refuge and strength in God.
And may God be known to you in the stillness;
May Christ Jesus be the solid foundation of your lives;
And may the Holy Spirit give you courage,
even when the earth is shaken around you.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons
Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

The Blessing of Homeland
A sermon on Deuteronomy 11:8-12, 18-21, 27-28 by Nathan Nettleton

9th Sunday between Epiphany and Lent - Year C
2079-03-05
This occasion next occurs in 2079 and only for churches that do not observe the last Sunday before Lent as Transfiguration Sunday.

Below you will find the Bible readings set for this occasion in the Revised Common Lectionary, with our Australian idiomatic paraphrases of them, plus prayers and sermons based on them.

Bible Readings (paraphrased)

Lections from The Revised Common Lectionary. Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on Common Texts(CCT) P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN 37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.

1 Kings 8: 22-23, 41-43

Solomon stood in front of the altar of the LORD and, with his hands raised high, he led the gathered people in prayer. He prayed:
“O LORD, God of Israel, you are one of a kind! No other god in the universe is like you. Your love is rock-solid and you never forget the alliance you have made with those who follow you whole-heartedly.
And don’t stop with just us – foreigners will no doubt hear about you too. Attracted by your reputation and by news of the awesome things you do, they will come from all sorts of far flung places to live among your people and offer their prayers within sight of this Temple. When they do, listen to them from your heavenly home and answer their prayers. That way everyone on earth will hear of you and give you the same respect that your people Israel do. They will know that this Temple which I have built carries your authority.
©2000 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Psalm 96: 1-9

We sing like we’ve never sung before, LORD;
singing to you with all the earth.
Every mention of your name sets us singing your praises.
We never tire of telling the story of how you bailed us out;
all over the world, we speak of your incredible accomplishments;
everyone we meet hears us giving the credit to you.
You are the greatest, LORD; we can’t praise you enough!
When it comes to gods, you are in a league of your own;
all other objects of devotion are powerless.
But you, LORD, created the whole cosmos;
you are surrounded by majesty and celebration;
strength and beauty are signs of your presence.
People of every race and creed recognise you, LORD;
they recognise you behind all that is strong and true;
they name you as the one who deserves all the glory.
We offer ourselves to you, LORD;
we fall to our knees in this beautiful place of worship;
with all the earth, we celebrate you alone.
©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Galatians 1:1-12

I, Paul, am one of God’s special ambassadors. I wasn’t given this job by a popular vote, or by some ordinary human boss. I was entrusted with the job by none other than Jesus the Messiah and God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead. This letter comes to you, the churches in Galatia, from me, and from the rest of God’s crew who are with me.
I wish you a full helping of generous love and peace from the God who conceived us and from our number one man, Jesus the Messiah. Faced with the record of our corruption, he gave himself completely to breaking us free from the grip of the evil culture that is so entrenched in the present day. God made our freedom a priority, and all the credit should go to God, now and always. And so say all of us!
I can hardly believe what I’m hearing about you. I’m disgusted. The Messiah was extravagantly generous in calling you, but already you are turning your backs on him and getting sucked into some other message that claims to be good news. There is no other message that’s worth a pinch of spit, but I hear that there are some snake oil merchants there who are twisting the Messiah’s message and leading you all astray. This is not about me. If anybody, including me, or for that matter even an angel from heaven, starts pushing a message that goes against what we taught you, they can go to hell! I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again: if anybody comes pushing a message that goes against the one you have already received, they can go to hell!
Does it sound like I’m pandering to the crowd and telling people what they want to hear? Does it like like I care what people think of me, or rather what God thinks of me? If I was still trying to impress the crowd, I wouldn’t be serving the Messiah at all.
Let me set you straight on this, brothers and sisters. The message that you heard me announcing is not something that somebody just cooked up one day. I can assure you that I didn’t get it second hand from any human source, and nor did anybody word me up about it. Instead, the message was the result of Jesus the Messiah revealing himself directly.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Luke 7: 1-10

After spending some time teaching the people, Jesus went into the town of Capernaum. There was a Roman military commander there who had a slave who was very special to him, but the slave had fallen ill and was dying. The commander was desperate to save the life of his slave, so when he heard that Jesus was in town, he sent some of the local Jewish officials to ask for his help. The officials spoke to Jesus with great enthusiasm on behalf of the commander. “This man is certainly worthy of your help,” they said. “He is a great friend of our people. He even bankrolled the building of our local synagogue.”
Jesus headed off with them, but before he reached the house, the commander sent another delegation of friends out to him with a message saying, “Lord, don’t put yourself out for me. There is no need for you to come all the way to my house. I’m not worthy to have you under my roof, and I wouldn’t presume to approach you in person. Please, just give the word, and my servant will be healed. I know how it works because I too am a man who obeys orders and who gives orders, knowing that they will be obeyed. I tell one soldier ‘Go,’ and he goes. I tell another ‘Jump,’ and he says ‘How high?’ I tell my servant to do something, and he does it.”
When Jesus heard the commander’s message, he was gob-smacked. Turning to address the crowd that was following him, he exclaimed, “Did you hear that? You might think you could find an Israelite with faith like that, but no, I have never before, anywhere, come across such deep trust.”
And sure enough, when the commander’s messengers got back to the house, they found the slave back on his feet, a picture of health.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prayers

These prayers are based on a set of readings that use a different 1st reading and psalm, and will be replaced at some point.

Eucharistic Preface

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
and to tell of your salvation from day to day
and declare your glory and your marvelous works to all.
You made the heavens and established the earth,
and revealed yourself through your law and prophets
to be a God of glory and strength
who answers the cries of your people.
Though we were not worthy to receive you,
for we turned our backs on your grace
and limped off after worthless other gods,
you came to us in your child, Jesus,
speaking the word of healing and forgiveness.
When we turned against him,
he gave himself into our hands
as a revelation of your self-sacrificing love,
and when we crucified him,
you raised him from the dead,
and sent down your Spirit in fire
to heal us and set us free from this evil age.
Therefore with .....
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Short Preface (for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with fixed prefaces)

We give thanks for your child, Jesus,
who came to us as a revelation of your self-sacrificing love,
speaking the word of healing and forgiveness
and sending down your Spirit in fire
to heal us and set us free from this evil age.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

General Prayer of Thanksgiving

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
and to tell of your salvation from day to day
and declare your glory and your marvelous works to all.
You made the heavens and established the earth,
and revealed yourself through your law and prophets
to be a God of glory and strength
who answers the cries of your people.
Though we were not worthy to receive you,
for we turned our backs on your grace
and limped off after worthless other gods,
you came to us in your child, Jesus,
speaking the word of healing and forgiveness.
When we turned against him,
he gave himself into our hands
as a revelation of your self-sacrificing love,
and when we crucified him,
you raised him from the dead,
and sent down your Spirit in fire
to heal us and set us free from this evil age.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Declaration of Grace / Absolution

Jesus gave himself freely for our sins
to set us free from the present evil age,
according to the will of our God and Father,
and to turn our hearts back to righteousness and truth.
Sisters and Brothers,
your sins are forgiven;
be at peace.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Commission & Benediction

If the Lord is God, go now, and follow him,
and do not be tempted to share your loyalty with other gods.
Stay true to the gospel that has been revealed to you in Jesus.
Call on the name of the Lord,
tell of God’s salvation from day to day,
and live in righteousness and truth.
And may God bring you grace and peace;
May Christ Jesus heal you and raise you up,
and may the Holy Spirit’s fiery glory strengthen your hearts.
We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
©2013 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Sermons

Sermons will open in new tabs from our SYCBaps church website.

Followers or Fans?A sermon on Luke 6:39 – 7:10 by Nathan NettletonA Different Gospel?A sermon on Galatians 1:1-12; 1 Kings 18:20-39 & Luke 7:1-10 by Nathan Nettleton
