Worship at Home
First Presbyterian Churches of
Paris and Deport, Texas
May 10, 2020
Mothers Day
Greetings in the name of Christ! We are trying a new thing today! We're taking social media to a whole new level we are using this new blog to combine a few youtube videos with the written word to hopefully bring you closer to a worship experience you are used to.
Armel Crocker and Jane Els gathered in the pecan grove behind Armel's house to introduce this blog. Jane suggested this place as a good place to inaugurate our online "presence" because this spot is one of the most spiritual places you can imagine. Put yourself in our place for a while as you read our words and listen to our voices. We will gather together surrounded by God's natural beauty in a peaceful setting.
Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation-if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in scripture: "See, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame." To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe, "The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner," and "A stone that makes them stumble, and a rock that makes them fall." They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Hour by hour I place my days in your hand,
safe from the hands out to get me.
Warm me, your servant, with a smile;
save me because you love me.
Armel Crocker and Jane Els gathered in the pecan grove behind Armel's house to introduce this blog. Jane suggested this place as a good place to inaugurate our online "presence" because this spot is one of the most spiritual places you can imagine. Put yourself in our place for a while as you read our words and listen to our voices. We will gather together surrounded by God's natural beauty in a peaceful setting.
LISTEN FOR THE WORD OF THE LORD
Acts 7:55-60
But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and
saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
"Look," he said, "I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man
standing at the right hand of God!" But they covered their ears, and with
a loud shout all rushed together against him. Then they dragged him out of the
city and began to stone him; and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of
a young man named Saul. While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, "Lord
Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud
voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said
this, he died.
This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
1 Peter 2:2-10
Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation-if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in scripture: "See, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame." To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe, "The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner," and "A stone that makes them stumble, and a rock that makes them fall." They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
The word of the Lord. Thanks
be to God.
The Gospel of our Lord Jesus according to John (14:1-14)
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God,
believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it
were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if
I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to
myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the
place where I am going." Thomas said to him, "Lord, we do not know
where you are going. How can we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I
am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do
know him and have seen him." Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the
Father, and we will be satisfied." Jesus said to him, "Have I been
with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen
me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not
believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say
to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his
works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you
do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly, I tell
you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact,
will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do
whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If
in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise
to you, O Christ.
SERMON(s)
Only One Way Armel
Crocker CP
The problems of
today and the future are almost overwhelming. Some of those in a position to
know the facts are privately saying that things are not nearly as bad as they
seem—they are worse. Public officials seem to have taken the same approach to
our national problems as many doctors do with a terminally ill patient—keep the
unpleasant truth from them as long as possible.
The situation was this: The disciples were
gathered together with Jesus on the last Thursday night of his life in the
Upper Room, and he was talking to them about the inevitability of his death
(and theirs). And he said to them. “Trust
God. Trust in me. Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe
in God, believe also in me.
That verse could well be called a Manual for Stress
Management, a remedy for anxious and troubled hearts.
In my Father’s house are many dwelling places, are many
living places, and I am going to prepare a living space for you. If
this were not so, I would not have told you. And when the time is
right, I will come again and take you to myself.” And Thomas said,
“Jesus, we don’t know where you are going and we don’t know the
way. How would we know the way to my Father’s house?” And
Jesus said: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. I am
the way to my Father’s house; the way to my Father’s living spaces; the way to
Eternal life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
And in this passage we clearly hear two wonderful
promises of Jesus. And the promises of Jesus are the promises of God, and the
promises of God are the promises of Jesus, for Jesus and God are one and the
same. And Jesus makes two wonderful promises: “I
am going to prepare a living space for you, a place for you for all
eternity. Trust God. Trust me. That is what I
am going to do for you. And secondly, when the time is right, I
will come again and take you to that place.” And
Thomas questions: “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, and how
would we get there? Is heaven beyond the Stars? Or in
some other galaxy? Lord, we have no idea of where heaven is and we
don’t know how to get there.” And Jesus said, “Thomas, trust
me. I am going to prepare a place for you and when the
time is right, I will come and get you and take you to
this place.”
Two wonderful promises of God.
And Jesus says to you this day: “Trust
God. Trust me. I have gone to prepare a place
for you. In my father’s house are many dwelling place. If
this were not so, I would not have told you. I am preparing a
place for you. And when the time is right, I will come
again and take you to myself and take you to this place.” God wants
you and me to trust, to trust his promises.
So we hear the two wonderful promises of Jesus: I
go to prepare a living space, for you, and I will come again to take
you to myself and to that place. Jesus continues,
“I am the way, the
truth and the life. I am the way to the father’s house, to the
father’s dwelling places, to life eternal.
No one comes to the Father except by me.”
Let’s focus on that sentence and phrase, “except by
me.”
Upon Baptism we each individually entered into a covenant
with Jesus and corporately as a church to follow Jesus teachings and do the
works that he did. When we believe in Jesus we are capable of doing even
greater works.
Respecting and loving our worldly neighbors, taking care of
the disenfranchised and poor. We must continue the work of love, compassion,
and service to mankind that Jesus embodied throughout his earthly life. We must
live out the gospel message in all areas of our life “so that the Father may be
glorified” (v13)
Christ is the only Way and Christ
is the Way.
And a message from Jane Els: (using selections from Psalm
31, and reading from The Message version)
Psalm 31
I run to you, God; I run for dear life.
Don’t let me down!
Take me seriously this time!
Get down on my level and listen,
and please—no procrastination!
Your granite cave a hiding place,
your high cliff a place of safety.
Don’t let me down!
Take me seriously this time!
Get down on my level and listen,
and please—no procrastination!
Your granite cave a hiding place,
your high cliff a place of safety.
You’re my cave to hide in,
my cliff to climb.
Be my safe leader,
be my true mountain guide.
Free me from hidden traps;
I want to hide in you.
I’ve put my life in your hands.
You won’t drop me,
you’ll never let me down.
my cliff to climb.
Be my safe leader,
be my true mountain guide.
Free me from hidden traps;
I want to hide in you.
I’ve put my life in your hands.
You won’t drop me,
you’ll never let me down.
Hour by hour I place my days in your hand,
safe from the hands out to get me.
Warm me, your servant, with a smile;
save me because you love me.
Now we will close with listening to this old favorite hymn:
This video was taken by Jane a couple of years ago in Oklahoma at a friend's house while on a weekend retreat with a bunch of friends who all (except Jane) are musical. There is a button on the bottom right corner to enlarge the picture. You can turn the volume up if you need to. And once the video is over it might go on to other youtube videos of all sorts I can't control like bread making or other such. You can just stop the video whenever you want.
This video was taken by Jane a couple of years ago in Oklahoma at a friend's house while on a weekend retreat with a bunch of friends who all (except Jane) are musical. There is a button on the bottom right corner to enlarge the picture. You can turn the volume up if you need to. And once the video is over it might go on to other youtube videos of all sorts I can't control like bread making or other such. You can just stop the video whenever you want.
