Bible Readings for May 31, 2022

Study, Learn and Grow: Bible Readings for May 31, 2022: Let's read the Bible togethe r in the next year.  Today, our passages are   2 Samuel 17:1-29; John 19:3-42; Psalm 119:129-152; and Prove...

The Sligo Presbyterian Church Celebration Service - Sunday, May 29, 2022

Sunday, May 29, we finished our sermon series entitled “Good News for a Change: How the Resurrection Can Change Us.”  For six weeks, we’ll focus on these changes during our worship service. In other words, we’ll talk about how the resurrection can change us in six ways. We’ll follow the following schedule:

• April 24 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Faith
• May 1 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Expectations 
• May 8 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Values 
• May 15 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Relationships 
• May 22 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Response 
• May 29 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Message 

During the sixth message, we considered how the resurrection of Jesus Christ can change our message. A copy of the bulletin, a recording of this message and a video of the service is below:

Sunday's Message: Good News for a Change - The Resurrection Can Change Our Message

We live in a world where there seems to be a lot of bad news. In fact, there are times when it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all those things that seem to tap our strength and drain our spirits. But as we move through Easter and remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there’s good news. And if we allow it, this good news can change us in some very profound ways.

For six weeks, we’ll focus on these changes during our worship service. In other words, we’ll talk about how the resurrection can change us in six ways. We’ll follow the following schedule:

• April 24 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Faith
• May 1 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Expectations 
• May 8 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Values 
• May 15 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Relationships 
• May 22 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Response 
• May 29 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Message 

During the sixth message, we considered how the resurrection of Jesus Christ can change our message. A copy and recording of this message is below:

********

This morning we’re finishing a series we started on the Sunday right after Easter entitled Good News for a Change: How the Resurrection Can Change Us. And during the last five weeks, we’ve looked at how the resurrection of Christ can change our faith by reminding us that the one we trust has authority and love, and how it can change our expectations by challenging some, confirming others and clarifying them all. And then we talked about how the resurrection can change our values by encouraging us to work a little more humility, compassion and simplicity into our lives, and how it can also change our relationships by leading us to ignore less and to listen more, to assume less and to understand more, and of course, to exclude less and to engage more. And then last week, we talked about how the resurrection can change our response by moving us to make our response to the call of Christ tangible and unconditional and immediate. Now that’s what we’ve talked about over the last five weeks. And if you’re interested in hearing any of them again, you can go to our YouTube channel or our Facebook page or our blog. And you can find all the addresses in our bulletin, page 5. Now that’s where we’ve been.

And today we’re going to finish it up with how the resurrection can change our message, and I’m talking about the Christian message we share to the world either through the words we use or the work we do. And I’ll tell you, I think it’s really interesting that we’re looking at this on the day before Memorial Day, because, in my opinion, the way we celebrate this very special day is actually a lot like how we share the gospel, but unfortunately, not in a good way. Let me show you what I’m talking about. I mean, why do we celebrate Memorial Day? Well, it goes back to just after the Civil War and has everything to do with remembering those who have died in military service. In other words, it’s a solemn day, when we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice. Now, that’s its purpose. And so how do we generally celebrate it? Well, I think I’m pretty safe in saying it’s often not very solemn, now is it? I mean, for most Americans, it’s the unofficial beginning of summer and so if you’ve got a pool, you open it, if you’ve got a grill, you ignite it, and if you’ve got an unmaxed credit card, you use it. And I haven’t even mentioned baseball, brats and beer. But you know, even if you go to a Memorial Day service, it may have a whole lot more to do with celebrating our country and honoring our vets than in remembering those who served and died. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that celebrating and honoring isn’t appropriate, but isn’t that why we have Independence Day in about a month and Veterans Day on November 11? No, it seems as though Memorial Day has sort of gotten pulled in a lot of different directions, making the day itself unnecessarily confused and complicated and often downright contradictory. At least, that’s my opinion.

And I’ll tell you, I think the same thing can happen to our Christian message, and I’m talking about what we as believers communicate to the world around us. For example, I believe our message can become really confused as churches and denominations compete with one like McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s compete for customers, and often we do it by tingling the ears and reinforcing prejudices rather than in challenging assumptions and uplifting the spirit. But more than that, I think it can also become really complicated, as we strain at gnats in order to justify us being us and them being them. And Lord have mercy, I believe what we share can often seem to be contradictory, at least to those who aren’t on the inside. And if you don’t believe me, just think about how often Christians use the word “but” when sharing their faith: Jesus came to save the world, but... Grace is free, but... God loves you, but... Do you see what I mean by contradictory? That one little 3-letter word undercuts the whole message. And sadly, this is the message we often take out into the world, one that may make us feel comfortable but that I believe is really unappealing to those who’ve never been on the inside. And frankly, maybe that explains why, when Americans between 18 and 29 are asked about their religious affiliation, about 40% say “none.”

And I’ll tell you, for that reason, I’m really glad to be finishing this series by looking at how the resurrection can change our message, not only making it easier for everybody to understand but also bringing it back inline with what it says in the Bible. You see, when we claim the resurrection as a guide, I believe our Christian message can change in three really important ways.

For example, first, I think it can make what we share more focused, and I’m talking about focusing on what’s most important or at least what should be most important. And let me tell you, it’s not the amount of water used in baptism or the kind of hymns sung during a service or the number of prayers prayed from a book. Those things just don’t matter, not when we trust in that clear and concise message those women heard when they entered the tomb. Remember, according to the Evangelist Luke, 

Suddenly two men in shining white clothes stood beside them. The women were afraid and bowed to the ground. But the men said, “Why are you looking in the place of the dead for someone who is alive? Jesus isn’t here! He has been raised from death. Remember that while he was still in Galilee, he told you, ‘The Son of Man will be handed over to sinners who will nail him to a cross. But three days later he will rise to life.’” Then they remembered what Jesus had said. [Luke 24:4b-8, CEV]

Now that’s what those women heard, a message that was focused on the one who wasn’t there, that was focused on the one who had been raised and that was focused on the one who’d already told them exactly what would happen. And I’ll tell you, it worked, because when those women left that tomb, Jesus was their focus. And I’ll tell you something else, that remained the focus of the early church. As a matter of fact, right after the Spirit came on him at Pentecost, something we’ll talk about next week, just listen to what Peter told the crowd:

Now, listen to what I have to say about Jesus from Nazareth. God proved he sent Jesus to you by having him work miracles, wonders, and signs. All of you know this. God had already planned and decided that Jesus would be handed over to you. So you took him and had evil men put him to death on a cross. But God set him free from death and raised him to life. Death could not hold him in its power. [Acts 2:22-24, CEV]

I’m telling you, Peter was focused.

And you know what, so can we. I mean, we can decide to put aside all the stuff that’s just plain confusing, at least to those who’ve never been an insider, and we can focus like a laser beam on Jesus Christ, you know, on who he was and what he taught and how he challenged us to live. Of course, sometimes when we do that, it’s going to challenge some of the assumptions that folks have. It might even shake up some of the stuff they’ve gotten comfortable believing. That just might happen. But I’ll tell you, whatever discomfort they might feel will be more than made up for by a truth that’s clear and concise. You see, the resurrection can focus our message. And that’s the first thing it can do.

And second, when we claim it as a guide, our Christian message can become more simple. In other words, it won’t be crammed with a whole bunch of details and loop-holes and fine print. Instead, it can be plain and basic and simple, in fact as plain as an rolled away stone and as basic as an empty tomb and as simple as what that angel said to those three frightened women, this time according to the Evangelist Matthew, 

“Don’t be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was nailed to a cross. He isn’t here! God has raised him to life, just as Jesus said he would. Come, see the place where his body was lying. Now hurry! Tell his disciples he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. This is what I came to tell you.” [Matthew 28:5b-7, CEV]

You see, the good news of Jesus Christ, the message we’re called to share and to live, is really simple. And I’ll tell you, I think the Apostle Paul sort of captured this radical simplicity when he wrote this to the Ephesians:

But God was merciful! We were dead because of our sins, but God loved us so much he made us alive with Christ, and God’s gift of undeserved grace is what saves you. God raised us from death to life with Christ Jesus, and he has given us a place beside Christ in heaven. God did this so in the future world he could show how truly good and kind he is to us because of what Christ Jesus has done. You were saved by faith in God, who treats us much better than we deserve. This is God’s gift to you, and not anything you have done on your own. It isn’t something you have earned, so there is nothing you can brag about. [Ephesians 2:4-9, CEV]

You know, it’s just that simple.

And in my opinion, this is what we need to be sharing. My goodness, Christianity has become really complicated by every group telling us what we have to do in order to get or to be. And given the fact that a lot of our world either doesn’t care or is just tire of hearing all the different answers, maybe we need to push the complexity to the side and make the decision that we’re going to give the world a big kiss, because we’re going “keep it simple, stupid.” You see, even though we’d love it to be about us, what we need to say, what we need to do, what we need to promise, it just isn’t. It isn’t about you, and it isn’t about me. It’s about a God who’s merciful. And it’s about a grace that’s undeserved. And it’s about trusting the one who treats us better than we deserve. You know, it’s really about what that minister told me when I was much younger than I am now and was literally drowning in a faith that had become way too complicated. He simply said to me, “Ed, you’re going to have to accept the fact that God loves you. Now, what are you going to do about it?” You see, the resurrection can simplify our message. And that’s the second thing it can do.

And third, I am absolutely convinced that it can also make our message a whole lot more positive. And you know, I think that’s really connected to the stuff we’ve already said about focus and simplicity. I mean, remember how, according to what we read from Matthew, the angel told those women not to be afraid and to tell the disciples that Jesus would meet them in Galilee. Just listen to what happened:

The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and greeted them. They went near him, held on to his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid! Tell my followers to go to Galilee. They will see me there.” [Matthew 28:8-10. CEV]

Now think about what happened: not only did they leave the tomb happy, but just imagine the joy they must have felt when they met Jesus as they were doing exactly what they’d been told to do, and he said to them the same thing the angel had said: “Don’t be afraid.” I’m telling you, the message we’ve been given is just about as positive as it can be. And you know, I think we can hear this positivity in what Paul wrote to the Romans:

In everything we have won more than a victory because of Christ who loves us. I am sure that nothing can separate us from God’s love—not life or death, not angels or spirits, not the present or the future, and not powers above or powers below. Nothing in all creation can separate us from God’s love for us in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Romans 8:37-39, CEV]

Now this is the message we have to share.

And we can do it without all those contradictions that seem to undermine the power of the message. Remember, a little while ago, we talked about how we tend to qualify and distort the good news by sticking a “but” at the end of the promise. You know, “God loves us, but...” Well, we just read a passage about God’s love. Where’s the “but” at the end? Now I hope this doesn’t offend anybody, but maybe it’s time to get the “but” out of our faith, so we can share the Good News, that “nothing in all creation can separate us from God’s love for us in Christ Jesus our Lord": period, close the book, Elvis has left the building. I’m telling you, the resurrection can make our message unbelievably positive. And that’s the third thing it can do.

Now, we won’t be celebrating Easter again until April 9, 2023; therefore, we’re probably not going to focus much time on the resurrection for about ten months. And that’s only if we can avoid the monkeypox. But just because it won’t be our primary focus, doesn’t mean that we should push it to the back burner, because, when you get right down to it, the resurrection can change our faith and our expectations and our values. It can change our relationships and our response and as we talked about this morning, our message. And I’ll tell you, that’s why, when we consider the resurrection of Jesus Christ, it really is Good News for a change. 

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The Bulletin for the SPC Worship Service - Sunday, May 29, 2022

Below is the bulletin for our service, on Sunday, May 29, 2022. We're continuing our 6-part series entitled Good New for a Change: How the Resurrection Can Change Us. During this last message, we'll consider how the resurrection can change our message. Remember, you can stream the service live by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube page beginning at 10:00 a.m. 

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On Sunday, May 29 Silgo Presbyterian Church will lift to God the following needs.

• Armed Forces 
• Arnold Bowser
• Bob and His Family
• Bob Varner
• Brooke Schmader
• Bruce Amsier
• Bruce Bowman
• Bus Clark
• Carla Hepler
• Cass' Neice
• Church Leaders 
• College Students
• Debbie Myers
• Dee, Jeremy & Jacob
• Doctors & Nurses & all essential workers
• Ella Henry
• Government Leaders 
• Jim Mason
• Kathy
• Keith McKinley
• Kevin, Denise & Shayla Mock
• Larry Hewitt
• Maxine Hartle
• Maxine Simpson
• Melva Grabill
• Micki Summerville
• Mike Hiles
• Mr. Wolff
• Nancy Wilson
• Noah
• Our Youth
• Police Officers
• Randy Frampton
• Richard Wallace
• Riley
• Ron & Shelly Haines
• Ron Black
• Ron Lerch
• Rwanda Partner
• Sean Bayless
• Stephen & Alice Lucas
• Tammy Dell
• The Bud Solida Family
• The Uvalde victims
• Tracey
• Velma Stewart
• World Vision

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The Sligo Presbyterian Church Celebration Service - Sunday, May 22, 2022

Sunday, May 22, we continued our sermon series entitled “Good News for a Change: How the Resurrection Can Change Us.”  For six weeks, we’ll focus on these changes during our worship service. In other words, we’ll talk about how the resurrection can change us in six ways. We’ll follow the following schedule:

• April 24 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Faith
• May 1 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Expectations 
• May 8 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Values 
• May 15 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Relationships 
• May 22 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Response 
• May 29 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Message 

During the fifth message, we considered how the resurrection of Jesus Christ can change our response. A copy of the bulletin, a recording of this message and a video of the service is below:

Sunday's Message: Good News for a Change - The Resurrection Can Change Our Response

We live in a world where there seems to be a lot of bad news. In fact, there are times when it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all those things that seem to tap our strength and drain our spirits. But as we move through Easter and remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there’s good news. And if we allow it, this good news can change us in some very profound ways.

For six weeks, we’ll focus on these changes during our worship service. In other words, we’ll talk about how the resurrection can change us in six ways. We’ll follow the following schedule:

• April 24 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Faith
• May 1 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Expectations 
• May 8 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Values 
• May 15 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Relationships 
• May 22 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Response 
• May 29 – The Resurrection Can Change Our Message 

During the fifth message, we considered how the resurrection of Jesus Christ can change our response. A copy and recording of this message is below:

*******

Although I grew up in the south, I’ve spent well over half my life above the Mason-Dixon Line, sometimes way above it. And one of things I’ve learned living up north is that there are two times of year when the weather is really unpredictable; therefore, you need to be flexible in how you respond. And one of those times is what we would consider, down south, the late Spring, you know, the time between mid-April to mid-May. Now, by that time in Virginia, we’ve really pretty much entered summer, but up here, well, not necessarily. For example, I think most of us would agree that yesterday was a really nice day, with the sun shining and the temperatures pushing the mid-eighties. But, do you realize that, about a month ago, this was the forecast for April 19:

Today – Rain and snow showers, becoming all rain after 1pm. High near 41. West wind 9 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.

Tonight – A chance of rain showers, possibly mixing with snow after 9pm, then gradually ending. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 28. West wind 6 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. [Explore Clarion, 7-Day Weather Forecast for Clarion County]

And so, in about thirty days, we’ve moved from winter coats and snow shovels to short sleeve shirts and weed wackers. Let’s just say that, in the last month, how we should respond has been just about as unpredictable as the weather.

And I’ll tell you, that’s what we’re going to talk about his morning. But of course, we won’t be focused on changing temperatures and precipitation. Instead we’re going to look at how the resurrection can change or, maybe better, shape our response to Jesus Christ. Now, as y’all know, this is the fifth message in the series we started right after Easter on how the resurrection can change our faith and our expectations, our values and our relationships. And when we talked about values, we looked at how the resurrection can teach us to value humility and compassion and simplicity. Of course, when we’re talking about what we are called to do as Christians, man, I think compassion says it all. I mean, even though it’s gotten a little muddy by some folks who want to promote their own limited agenda, I’m not sure Jesus could have been clearer about what he expects his disciples to do than he was. My goodness, in response to the question, “What is the most important commandment?”

Jesus answered, “The most important one says: ‘People of Israel, you have only one Lord and God. You must love him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.’ The second most important commandment says: ‘Love others as much as you love yourself.’ No other commandment is more important than these.” [Mark 12:29-31, CEV]

Now that’s what Jesus said; therefore, when you’re talking about the what, it’s not exactly a mystery. But the how, you know, how can we do it, how can we respond to the call of Christ and love God and others, well, that’s not quite so easy or obvious.

And so, with that in mind, we’re going to spend the next ten minutes or so talking about how we might better show compassion to those around us. And since we’re still focused on the resurrection, we’ll use three statements Jesus made after he was raised to better understand how we might respond with compassion and love to the world around us. And I’ll tell you, I really think it comes down to three things that we might want to work intentionally into our response.

For instance, first, following the example offered by the resurrection, our Christian response must be tangible. In other words, it must be grounded in the real, concrete world, you know, the world that we have and not the one that we may want. And I’ll tell you, since the resurrection itself was as real and as concrete as an empty tomb, man, that just makes sense.

And I’ll tell you something else, the fact that our response needs to be concrete and physical rather than impractical and spiritual, I think we can see this very thing in Jesus’s conversation with Peter after the resurrection. Remember, 

When Jesus and his disciples had finished eating, he asked, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than the others do?” 

Simon Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, you know I do!”

“Then feed my lambs,” Jesus said.

Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, you know I love you!”

“Then take care of my sheep,” Jesus told him.

Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus had asked him three times if he loved him. So he told Jesus, “Lord, you know everything. You know I love you.”

Jesus replied, “Feed my sheep.” [John 21:15-17, CEV] 

Now, that’s what happened. And even though there was all kinds of stuff going on here about the shifting meaning “love,” for our purposes right now, the point seems clear. If Peter loves Jesus, his response must be concrete and physical. Man, it must be as tangible as feeding lambs and taking care of sheep. 

And this is something I think we need to remember. Jesus didn’t tell Peter to “pray” for the lambs or to “witness” to the sheep, although both are important. Instead, we’re talking about actual feeding and caring for those who need our help. And you know, this is really not different from what Jesus said would be the basis by which the nations of the world will be judged:

When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat, and when I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me, and when I was naked, you gave me clothes to wear. When I was sick, you took care of me, and when I was in jail, you visited me.” [Matthew 25:35-36, CEV]

I’ll tell you, if we’re serious about showing compassion, I think what we choose to do must be tangible. And for me, that’s the first way the resurrection can change our response.

And second, I believe the resurrection also gives us an example of a response that’s unconditional. In other words, it’s not based on whether or not we believe the other person deserves it, and it sure isn’t determined based on whether it’s going to people like us or like them. No, the compassion, the love that we’re called to show should never be conditioned by what we think or who they are. Instead, the need itself should be enough.

And I’ll tell you, I think we hear Jesus making this very point to his disciples when he gave them their great commission at the very end of the Gospel of Matthew. Remember, this was what Jesus said:

I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth! Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to do everything I have told you. I will be with you always, even until the end of the world. [Matthew 18b-20, CEV]

Now that’s what Jesus said, and personally, I think it’s really important. I mean, not only did he tell them to do something tangible, you know, like baptizing and teaching, he didn’t tell them to “go to our people first” or to “go to those who think like us first” or to “go to those who speak our language and share our culture first.” Man, he didn’t say that. Instead, he said to “go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples.” [Matthew 28:19a, CEV] A shared humanity and a basic human need would seem to be the only condition for their response.

And I’ll tell you, I think this must shape our response too. I mean, even though it’s really easy and tempting and comfortable to take the political jargon of the day and apply it to our faith so that we can separate us from them, the first from the last, the found from the lost, this is just not what we see in scripture. Instead, over and over again we’re challenged to take a radically different perspective on the world. It’s like what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Colossians, and if you think this is kind of uncomfortably radical now, just imagine how it sounded about two thousand years ago:

Each of you is now a new person. You are becoming more and more like your Creator, and you will understand him better. It doesn’t matter if you are a Greek or a Jew, or if you are circumcised or not. You may even be a barbarian or a Scythian, and you may be a slave or a free person. Yet Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.

God loves you and has chosen you as his own special people. So be gentle, kind, humble, meek, and patient. Put up with each other, and forgive anyone who does you wrong, just as Christ has forgiven you. Love is more important than anything else. It is what ties everything completely together. [Colossians 3:10-14, CEV]

You see, as Christians, the compassion, the love we show must be unconditional. And for me, that’s the second way the resurrection can change our response.

And third, following the example offered by the resurrection, our Christian response must also be immediate. In other words, it probably shouldn’t be referred to a subcommittee for discussion until it can be taken up by the committee of the whole for more discussion until it can be sent to a task force for implementation. I mean, for as much as we really like structure and understand that, to be successful, we’re probably not going to be able to just fly by the seat of our pants, we really need to balance the need for planning with the need for action. 

And you know, I think we can find this kind of immediacy in the words the resurrected Jesus shared with the eleven before his ascension. You see, right after they asked “Lord, are you now going to give Israel its own king again?” [Acts 1:6b, CEV], Jesus shifted their focus away from this tangent to the job they were expected to do starting right this minute.

Jesus said to them, “You don’t need to know the time of those events that only the Father controls. But the Holy Spirit will come upon you and give you power. Then you will tell everyone about me in Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and everywhere in the world.” [Acts 1:7-8, CEV]

You see, even though there are all kinds of questions and concepts and ideas that can burn all kinds of brain cells, the bottom line is that we have a job to do and we’ve been called to do it right now.

And I’ll tell you, I think this is something we need to remember, because it’s really easy to forget about the immediacy of human pain and need. I mean, we can sort of dink along and ignore what we see and pretend that it doesn’t exist. You see, this we can do. But you know, what we choose to do, man, that not only does it reflect how we see others, it may also demonstrate more clearly than anything else exactly what we believe about God. And I think we see this very thing in what John wrote in his first letter:

If you hate each other, you are murderers, and we know murderers do not have eternal life. We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. This is why we must give our lives for each other. If we have all we need and see one of our own people in need, we must have pity on that person, or else we cannot say we love God. Children, you show love for others by truly helping them, and not merely by talking about it. [1 John 3:15-18, CEV]

If we’re serious about living as Christians, in the face of human need, the compassion we choose to show must be immediate. And for me, that’s the third way the resurrection can change our response.

Well, now that we’ve entered into late May, I’m not thinking the changes in weather will be as great as they were during the last month or so. As a matter of fact, we might not face this kind of stuff for another four and a half months and that special time when we again sort of bounce between Indian Summer and frost on the pumpkin. And since the changes are settling down, so will our response, as complaining about the heat and humidity pushes any talk about snow and ice literally to the back burner. 

Of course, that same thing really doesn’t apply to our response as followers of Christ. I mean, as we consider how we can actually live the compassion we’re been called to show, I think it’s important to remember that it must be tangible and it must be unconditional and it must be immediate. You see, following the example offered by the resurrection, this can shape our Christian response. And next week, we’ll bring this series home by talking about how the resurrection can change our message.

Follow Me - Meeting Jesus in the Gospel of John ( A Woman at a Well (4:1-54))

Join with your friends and neighbors at Sligo Presbyterian Church to meet Jesus in the Gospel of John. During the study, we’ll follow the outline below:

• Session 1 - Introduction and Prologue (1:1-18)
• Session 2 - Let the Witnessing Begin (1:19-51)
• Session 3 - Transforming the Old (2:1-25)
• Session 4 - In a Nutshell (3:1-35)
• Session 5 - A Woman at a Well (4:1-54)
• Session 6 - Jesus as Testimony (5:1-47)
• Session 7 - Jesus as Bread (6:1-71)
• Session 8 - Who Is Jesus (7:1-52)
• Session 9 - Who Is Jesus [Part 2] (8:-59)
• Session 10 - The Blind See and the Sighted Become Blind (9:1-41)
• Session 12 - Lazarus (11:1-57)
• Session 13 - Jerusalem for the Last Time (12:1-50)
• Session 14 - The Last Supper (13:1-38)
• Session 15 - Someone Else Is Coming (14:1-31)
• Session 16 - Since We Abide in the Vine (15:1-26)
• Session 17 - To Our Advantage (16:1-33)
• Session 18 - Last Prayer (17:1-26)
• Session 19 - Jesus Is Still in Control (18:1-40)
• Session 20 - Lifted Up (19:1-42)
• Session 21 - Raised (20:1-31)
• Session 22 - Love vs. Like (21:1-25)

In our fifth study, we'll looked at the prologue in John 4:1-54. The passage and a recording of the lesson is below:

John 4:1-54

Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard, “Jesus is making and baptizing more disciples than John” —although it was not Jesus himself but his disciples who baptized— he left Judea and started back to Galilee.

But he had to go through Samaria. So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.” Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come back.” The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!” The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.” Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking to you.”

Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you want?” or, “Why are you speaking with her?” Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” They left the city and were on their way to him. Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” So the disciples said to one another, “Surely no one has brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work. Do you not say, ‘Four months more, then comes the harvest’? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting. The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.” Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I have ever done.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world.”

When the two days were over, he went from that place to Galilee (for Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in the prophet’s own country). When he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, since they had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the festival; for they too had gone to the festival. Then he came again to Cana in Galilee where he had changed the water into wine. Now there was a royal official whose son lay ill in Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my little boy dies.” Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and started on his way. As he was going down, his slaves met him and told him that his child was alive. So he asked them the hour when he began to recover, and they said to him, “Yesterday at one in the afternoon the fever left him.” The father realized that this was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” So he himself believed, along with his whole household. Now this was the second sign that Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee.