Introduction:
Over the last few years a number of members of our congregations have trained in leading worship, while others have also gained experience through study. One of the plans for this summer had been to invite them to take the lead in various services; this would let them share what they had learned or developed, and give them an opportunity to put it into practice. This week we’re beginning this by having our service created by Linda Farrer. Over the next couple of months we hope to repeat this with others taking the lead.

Call to worship (Psalm 105:4-5)
Seek the Lord and His strength; seek his presence continually.
Remember the wonderful works he has done,
his miracles and the judgements he has uttered.

Hymn 485 Dear Lord and Father of mankind

Prayer

Faithful God,We give all praise and thanks to You this morning,for Your the steadfast hand which has always guided us,for Your promise which has never faltered,for Your gracious love and mercies new with each morning,We pray as those of us who come here often and those who have not been for a long time.As those who are full of faith and those who feel challenged and full of doubtAs those who can hardly keep from singing, and those who can barely face the day.

We are here because You have called us,
because You love us,
because You are our God.
We are here not because we are good or pure or holy, but because of our need.We know we have failed to live as You would have us live,We know that we sometimes stray from the path,that we have not loved one another,that we have not loved Your creation,that we have not loved You,that we have not loved ourselves.Forgive us, God, and renew us to be Your people.Light our way that we may follow you more closely,Help us to learn from our mistakes, and to show love and compassion to each other,For we pray this in the name of Jesus Christ,
Our faithful and forgiving friend.
Amen

The Lord’s Prayer

Readings:
Genesis 37: 1-4, 12-28
Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan
This is the account of Jacob’s family line.
Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them
Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. ….

…. Now his brothers had gone to graze their father’s flocks near Shechem, and Israel said to Joseph, ‘As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am going to send you to them.’
‘Very well,’ he replied.
So he said to him, ‘Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and bring word back to me.’ Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron.
When Joseph arrived at Shechem, a man found him wandering around in the fields and asked him, ‘What are you looking for?’
He replied, ‘I’m looking for my brothers. Can you tell me where they are grazing their flocks?’
‘They have moved on from here,’ the man answered. ‘I heard them say, “Let’s go to Dothan.”’
So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.
‘Here comes that dreamer!’ they said to each other. ‘Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.’
When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. ‘Let’s not take his life,’ he said. ‘Don’t shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him.’ Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his father.
So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe – the ornate robe he was wearing – and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it.
As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt.
Judah said to his brothers, ‘What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.’ His brothers agreed.
So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.

Matthew 14: 22-33
Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. ‘It’s a ghost,’ they said, and cried out in fear.
But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’ ‘Lord, if it’s you,’ Peter replied, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.’
‘Come,’ he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came towards Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ he said, ‘why did you doubt?’
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshipped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’

Hymn 510 Jesus calls us here to meet him

Reflection
I was once asked by a young man on the streets what it felt like to be a Christian. That was a huge question and I could have talked to him at length about having God as the centre and foundation of my life. I was delighted to share how my faith guides me through my everyday life. I had a strong feeling that this was not a chance meeting and the God was beside me urging me on.
A friend related a story to me about when he found a young man lying in a phone box bleeding. He had been badly beaten for being homosexual. My friend called an ambulance and waited with the young man, cradling him in his arms and talking gently to him. He had an overwhelming sense that this was where God wanted him to be and it is what Jesus would have done.
We read in the Bible, especially in Paul’s letter about the characteristics that Christians are required to follow, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. My friend showed many of these during his time with the injured young man. Of course, there are other traits that we are required to turn our back on; adultery, stealing, greed, envy, murder, being judgemental and so on.
In the reading from Genesis about Joseph and his family, we see many of the things that lead to disharmony. Jacob shows blatant favouritism to Joseph, he gives him a cloak that would normally only be worn by noblemen and royalty. Of course, the brothers are envious. Does Joseph become conceited as a result, sharing his dreams of becoming powerful, and foretelling that his brothers would bow down before him? This riles and angers his brothers so when the opportunity arises, they plot to kill him. Judah, one of the brothers, does not want to be an accomplice to murder so persuades the others against it. Reuben shows compassion and hatches a plan to save Joseph and return him to their father, but he is too late, the group have sold Joseph into slavery and the greedy brothers have made a profit.
The brothers agree that having the blood of Joseph on their hands is wrong but is selling him into slavery any less sinful? The only small light is Reuben who wants to return Joseph home. Nowhere in this passage is there any mention of God. The brothers divert from the wrong path onto another wrong path, or is God leading them to follow His planned route for Joseph’s life? Joseph’s faith in his dreams could not be broken.
In the second reading, Jesus has been spending time in solitude, praying. He has sent the disciples out onto the lake ahead of him. Jesus walks out onto the lake to meet them and they think it is a ghost that they see. They are afraid. Someone walking on water is a difficult concept to understand for them and for us. Jesus allays their fears and Peter is encouraged to get out of the boat to walk to Jesus. But his faith waivers when he sees the wind and waves, so he begins to sink, calling out to Jesus for help. Jesus reaches out to Peter and the waters calm. This is a message to the disciples, and to us that whether our faith is firm or wavering, if we ask Jesus for help, he will provide it. Our reading ends with “And those in the boat worshipped him, saying “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Because God is the centre and foundation of our lives as Christians, we can hold onto the faith that he is with us through the dark day when we question our faith.
The disciples were being prepared for the day when they will go out alone, when they could be firm in the knowledge that when they have doubts, Jesus will be there to help. The way forward for the disciples to make a difference in the lives of the people was planned as it was for Joseph when he was sold into slavery.
The disciples and Joseph experienced dark times as they ventured into the unknown with no knowledge of how they would be received. We, too, have, and will experience difficult times in our lives when our faith is challenged. However, we can find strength in the Bible and in prayer and feel refreshed and renewed in our faith.
Initially, I did not know if the young man’s question about being a Christian was to tease me or if he was being serious. Some 20 minutes later, he walked away saying, “You’ve given me such a lot to think about”. I hoped and prayed that I had planted a seed that could be nurtured and grown by God into a journey of faith for this young man.
Amen.

Prayer
We give you thanks O Lord for the privilege of communication, for the phone calls we can make and receive, for post, for a face to face chat and for electronic means of keeping in touch. Guide us O Lord to those this day and this week, who need encouragement, need to see a friendly face, and need to know that someone cares for them.
We pray for all the people who contribute to the well-being of our society and the wider world, be they volunteers or salaried, skilled, or unskilled, or neighbours and friends.
We pray for the people who find themselves living on the streets again as the hotels reinstate their original businesses.
May the bereaved find peace as they mourn their loved ones and try to plan how they might celebrate a life recently lost and the difficulties that are currently visited upon them.
As the lockdown measures ease, we pray for new beginning as we move forward, innovative thinking and wisdom to implement changes. Amen

Hymn 547 What a Friend we have in Jesus

Benediction
As Jesus reached out a hand to help Peter and the waters calmed,
let us go now to do the same,
offering compassionate words and actions to anyone in need.
And as we go,
may the blessing of God Almighty,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
go with us,
evermore. Amen.

Acknowledgements:
Holy Bible, New International Version® Anglicized, NIV®
Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Call to worship (Psalm 17: 6-7)
I call on you, my God, for you will answer me;
turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.
Show me the wonders of your great love,
you who save by your right hand
those who take refuge in you from their foes.

HYMN 122 Let all the world in every corner sing

Prayer

Holy God,
to you alone belong glory, honour and praise.
We join with all of creation to lift high your name,
for you alone are worthy of such praise.,
You create the earth in your power;
you redeem all people in your mercy,
and renew us through your grace.
To you, loving God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
be all glory, honour and praise
now and for ever.

Loving God,
we have sinned against you
in what we have thought, said and done.
We have not loved you with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.
We are truly sorry
and turn away from what is wrong.
Forgive us for the sake of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.

silence

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
This is his gracious word:
‘Your sins are forgiven.’
Thanks be to God. Amen

The Lord’s Prayer

Scriptures

Isaiah 55: 1-5
‘Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.
Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labour on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
Give ear and come to me;
listen, that you may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David.
See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,
a ruler and commander of the peoples.
Surely you will summon nations you know not,
and nations you do not know will come running to you,
because of the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendour.’

Matthew 14: 13-21
When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed those who were ill.
As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so that they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.’
Jesus replied, ‘They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.’
‘We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,’ they answered.
‘Bring them here to me, ’he said. And he told the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

HYMN 540 I heard the voice of Jesus say

Reflection

Prophetic Compassion
Have you ever noticed that sometimes compassion and common sense are like strangers that pass in the night? We see it in the story that is told of a particular missionary to China. He had compassion for the crowd to whom he had been preaching for he could see clearly that they were hungry. As he had access to sufficient food supplies he started to give them all something to eat. However in the chaos around this a riot arose, and several of the crowd were killed. He had compassion, but little common sense.
Our Gospel story this week is one of the best known. Here Jesus, moved by compassion for the large crowd that had gathered before him all day, decided to feed them as they were hungry. Jesus exercised common sense, for he had them sit down in manageable groups. Note that the number mentioned, 5,000, counts only the men; there is no information given as to the number of women and children present other than to state that they were there. Unlike the action of the missionary there were no recorded riots, and no deaths. There is common sense applied here, yet we almost overlook it as we tend to focus on the compassion instead.
We notice the compassion of Jesus particularly because this episode interrupts his time of peace and solitude. His reaction to this breaking in to his time alone with God is not to become angry or frustrated; the response of Jesus is to first heal the sick, and then to feed the hungry. It is a response of grace as he appears to deem it unreasonable to send the folk to the nearby villages to purchase food.
This miracle is recorded in all four Gospels, and it is significant that it involves food. Many of the crowd would have been involved in subsistence living, with little to spare after meeting their own family’s needs. Food was also a theme that would resonate with the crowd for other reasons. Feeding the hungry masses was also regarded as a sign of a prophet at work. Their ancestors were not only fed by God in the wilderness during the Exodus; the prophets Elijah and Elisha were fed, and fed others, in desolate places. This feeding, though, is more than just a prophetic sign; it is a sign of a time to come. It looks forward to a time when the world has been redeemed, evil defeated, and the needs of humanity met. We see it in our reading from Isaiah:
“…. you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost
It’s known as the Messianic Age. In this miracle Jesus is not only laying plain his credentials as a prophet, but also pointing beyond this to something greater. As a sign it is something more dramatic than those of Elisha and Elijah.
It is often said that ‘words are not enough’. Here Jesus is backing up his ministry of preaching and teaching through prophetic action. Feeding the five thousand men is seen as affirmation of the preaching and teaching, as well as providing a tool by which to interpret the words that had been spoken. Likewise the words also explain the actions.
We often find it easier to do something compassionate than to talk about what motivates it. Yet in Jesus, our role model, we find that he does both. In Him we find word explaining action and action illustrating the word. We should be endeavouring to do likewise. When we act in mercy or grace we should be also seeking to find the words that speak of our motivation, the love of God for us all. Our words should explain our actions while our actions should back up our words. We may not be called by God to be prophets, but we are called to be compassionate. We are called that our words and actions may also be prophetic.
Amen.

Prayer

Blessèd are you, loving God,
to be praised and glorified for ever,
for you hear and answer prayer.

Hear us as we pray for your Church:
make us one in spirit, that the world may believe.
Grant that every member may humbly serve you,
that the life of Christ may be revealed in us.

Strengthen all who serve in Christ’s name,
giving them courage to proclaim your Gospel
in both word and deed.

Inspire and lead those who hold authority
in the nations of the world
guiding them in the ways of justice and peace.

Make us alive to the needs of our community,
helping us to share each other’s joys and tears.
Look with compassion on our homes and families:
that your love may grow in our hearts.

Inspire us to have compassion on those who suffer
in sickness, grief or trouble;
in your presence may they find strength and hope.

We remember those who have died –
into your mercy filled hands we commend them.

We praise you for all your saints
who have entered your eternal glory:
bring us at the last to share in your heavenly kingdom.

Heavenly Father,
you have promised to hear
what we ask in Jesus’ name.
Accept and answer our prayers,
not as we deserve,
but as love us in Christ,
our Lord. Amen.

HYMN 543 Longing for light, we wait in darkness (Christ be our light)

Benediction
As we move on from this time of worship,
may we journey in compassion and truth.
And as we go
may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
go with us
now and evermore. Amen.

Acknowldgements:
New International Version – UK
Holy Bible, New International Version® Anglicized, NIV®
Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.