Sunday Service from Hillside Circuit for September 15th 2024:
Lectionary Theme: Confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord
Occasion: 17th Sunday after Pentecost
Lectionary readings:
Psalm 116: 1-9
Isaiah 50: 4-9a
James 3: 1-12
Mark 8: 27-38
[Click or tap on a Bible reference above to jump down the page to the Bible reading to read it for yourself (and/or to listen to it) and then click or tap on Back to top to come back here.]
Songs:
Here are the songs for Sunday morning service. Click or tap on a song to open it in YouTube.
Who will save our land.
Give me joy.
He is Lord.
Blessed assurance.
Love divine.
Now unto Him.
You can listen and join in with prayers from the English Methodist Service Book. They can be found at the Prayers for worship webpage.
Children’s Address:
Sermon:
The audio message for Hillside Circuit is not available, but follow this link to go to the Youth in Action Week 2024 webpage to hear the Connexional Launch of Youth in Action Week, with Rev Marry Chiwara, Youth and Children’s Ministry Coordinator.
Bible readings:
Psalm 116
1 I love you, LORD! You answered my prayers.
2 You paid attention to me,
and so I will pray to you as long as I live.
3 Death attacked from all sides,
and I was captured by its painful chains.
But when I was really hurting, 4 I prayed and said,
“LORD, please don’t let me die!”
5 You are kind, LORD, so good and merciful.
6 You protect ordinary people,
and when I was helpless, you saved me
7 and treated me so kindly
that I don’t need to worry anymore.
8 You, LORD, have saved my life from death,
my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.
9 Now I will walk at your side in this land of the living.
^ Back to top. ^
Isaiah 50
4 The LORD God gives me the right words
to encourage the weary.
Each morning he awakens me eager to learn his teaching;
5 he made me willing to listen and not rebel or run away.
6 I let them beat my back and pull out my beard.
I didn’t turn aside when they insulted me
and spit in my face.
7 But the LORD God keeps me from being disgraced.
So I refuse to give up,
because I know God will never let me down.
8 My protector is nearby; no one can stand here
to accuse me of wrong.
9 The LORD God will help me and prove I am innocent.
^ Back to top. ^
James 3
1 My friends, we should not all try to become teachers. In fact, teachers will be judged more strictly than others. 2 All of us do many wrong things. But if you can control your tongue, you are mature and able to control your whole body.
3 By putting a bit into the mouth of a horse, we can turn the horse in different directions. 4 It takes strong winds to move a large sailing ship, but the captain uses only a small rudder to make it go in any direction. 5 Our tongues are small too, and yet they brag about big things.
It takes only a spark to start a forest fire! 6 The tongue is like a spark. It is an evil power that dirties the rest of the body and sets a person’s entire life on fire with flames that come from hell itself. 7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and sea creatures can be tamed and have been tamed. 8 But our tongues get out of control. They are restless and evil, and always spreading deadly poison.
9-10 My dear friends, with our tongues we speak both praises and curses. We praise our Lord and Father, and we curse people who were created to be like God, and this isn’t right. 11 Can clean water and dirty water both flow from the same spring? 12 Can a fig tree produce olives or a grapevine produce figs? Does fresh water come from a well full of salt water?
^ Back to top. ^
Mark 8
27 Jesus and his disciples went to the villages near the town of Caesarea Philippi. As they were walking along, he asked them, “What do people say about me?”
28 The disciples answered, “Some say you are John the Baptist or maybe Elijah. Others say you are one of the prophets.”
29 Then Jesus asked them, “But who do you say I am?”
“You are the Messiah!” Peter replied.
30 Jesus warned the disciples not to tell anyone about him.
31 Jesus began telling his disciples what would happen to him. He said, “The nation’s leaders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law of Moses will make the Son of Man suffer terribly. He will be rejected and killed, but three days later he will rise to life.” 32 Then Jesus explained clearly what he meant.
Peter took Jesus aside and told him to stop talking like that. 33 But when Jesus turned and saw the disciples, he corrected Peter. He said to him, “Satan, get away from me! You are thinking like everyone else and not like God.”
34 Jesus then told the crowd and the disciples to come closer, and he said:
If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross and follow me. 35 If you want to save your life, you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me and for the good news, you will save it. 36 What will you gain, if you own the whole world but destroy yourself? 37 What could you give to get back your soul?
38 Don’t be ashamed of me and my message among these unfaithful and sinful people! If you are, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.
^ Back to top. ^
[Did you miss last week’s Sunday Services? They can now be found at Worship Archive – September 8th 2024.]
Methodist Church: Hillside Circuit 
You must be logged in to post a comment.