BELLS CORNERS UNITED CHURCH

FOURTH SUNDAY IN LENT

March 14, 2021

The video recording of this service can be found here.
You can also dial-in by phone to listen to the audio recording at 613-820-8104

Gathering Music: I See a New Heaven – Voices United #713 (verses 1, 3, 4) – BCUC Choir

In loving memory of our parents (Rev. Angela & Keith Bailey)

Refrain:

I see a new heaven. I see a new earth
as the old one will pass away,
where the fountain of life flows
and without price goes
to all people who abide in the land.

1 There, there on the banks
of a river bright and free,
yielding her fruit, firm in her root,
the Tree of Life will be. R

3 There, there where the darkness
brings visions from above.
There where the night, bearing new light,
reveals the promise of love. R

4 There, there where we work
with the love of healing hands.
Labour we must, true to our trust
to build a promised new land. R

Words & Music © Carolyn McDade
Song # 117685 Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214. All rights reserved

Welcome & Announcements Rev. Kim Vidal

Good day everyone! On behalf of BCUC, I welcome and greet you in the name of Jesus Christ on this Fourth Sunday in Lent. About one year ago today, we made a big decision to close our building due to the declaration of COVID-19 as a world pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. So today, we remember all those who have been affected by this pandemic, particularly those who lost their loved ones. We also pay tribute to the many first responders, essential workers, health people and personal care workers, leaders in all sectors and all those who have been doing their part in supporting, promoting and implementing the health protocols.

Since Ottawa is in the orange zone, we are able to gather in the sanctuary for a modified worship service at 10 am with a maximum number of 28 people invited to gather. The Public Health strongly recommends to stay at home but if you wish to attend, please call the office to register and be reminded that the usual protocols will be in place which include masking, social distancing, hand sanitizing and staying home if you feel unwell.

We continue to offer worship service in a number of ways. Check our website at bcuc.org, for our worship service in audio, video and text formats with the weekly announcements, online meetings, events and other updates. You can also listen to the service via telephone by dialing 613-820-8104. Please continue to reach out by connecting with each other through emails, phone calls and prayers.

If you would like your favourite hymn sung in memory of a loved one or in celebration of a joyful occasion, please let the office know. With a suggested minimum donation of $30, your hymn request will be featured in one of the Sunday services from February 28 until May 23. Proceeds from this fundraising will help enhance our worship experience. Please send your name, hymn request and dedication to the office via email. Donations can be made by e-transfer, cash or cheque payable to BCUC with the note: “Hymn-Sing”. Thank you for supporting this initiative.

LENTEN APPEAL 2021: This year the SOSA committee has chosen to help people from the social housing neighbourhoods of West Ottawa to experience a weekend at Camp Otterdale.

Participants will be contributing but they will also need sponsorships of $50 per person. Please consider how you can help an individual or family to experience a much-needed break this summer. You can send in your donation via cash or by cheque payable to BCUC or by etransfer with the note: Lenten Appeal 2021. Please call the office for more details.

I invite you to participate in the Prayer Circle every Wednesday at 8 pm. Wherever you are, light a candle and say a prayer for the world, your community including our congregation, your family, your friends and yourself.

There will be a Zoom Fellowship today at 11 am, so please join us if you are able.

For all other announcements, please visit the website.

Friends, in this season of Lent, we know what God desires of us:
To remind ourselves that the message of Jesus is love.
To remember that now is the right time to put love into action.
So with grateful hearts, let us gather in worship.

Lighting of the Christ Candle Acolytes: Susan & George Young

We light this Christ candle as a sign of God's love at work in the world.
Through the warmth of this light, let us celebrate God’s presence among us.
And may the light of Christ shine through us as we brighten the world.

Sung Response: Don’t Be Afraid – More Voices #90 - Susan TeGrotenhuis

Don’t be afraid. My love is stronger, my love is stronger than your fear.
Don’t be afraid. My love is stronger and I have promised, promised to be always near.

Call to Gather [1] Rev. Lorrie Lowes

From darkness and despair,
from being lost and lonely,
God calls us home.
Even though we have been selfish
and let God down,
we are still called beloved.
Remember the welcoming love of God
which has been poured out for us.
Our hearts rejoice at the wondrous ways
in which God loves and cares for us.
Remember that in all your ways you can
trust in God’s compassion.
Let us gather in worship.

Prayer of Confession & Words of Assurance Rev. Kim Vidal

Holy God, who is Creator, Redeemer and Guide, we come before you
in prayer, in praise and in quietness. May we welcome your holy presence
among us and within us. Inspire our minds that we might hear your Word.
Lift our voices that we might praise you.
Quieten our souls that we might find you.
Forgive us the many times we listen to the noise and clamour of the
world above your voice; the times we complain rather than give you
thanks; the times we are too preoccupied to be still.
Holy One, grant us the wisdom to listen for your voice and to follow
in your Way. Amen. (Moment of Silence)

Hear now the words of God’s assurance:
As we walk with God, we are transformed day by day.

God’s never-ending love journeys with us,
making us new, again and again. Thanks be to God!

Hymn: Bathe Me in Your Light – More Voices #82 - BCUC Choir

1.       Bathe me in your light, O God of All, Creator;
          let it shine upon my soul with healing and with grace.
          Be to me a beacon bright through shadows of life’s wounding
          showing me the way to live in faith, in your embrace.

2.       Bathe me in your love, O Source of Awe and Wonder;
          help me walk the sacred path of harmony and peace
          May I be attentive to the musings of your presence,
          drinking from the well of hope that brings the heart release.

3.       Bathe me in your grace, O One of Spirit’s longing;
          teach me of your gentle ways that fill the soul with strength.
          Guide me on the pilgrimage that leads to truth and wholeness,
          Fill me with your promise of a love that knows no length.

Storytime Rev. Lorrie Lowes

Hi Everyone! Well, today’s scripture reading sure gave me a lot to think about! It’s one of those readings in the Bible that we might call “problematic” because it is difficult to understand or because it is easy to misinterpret. It’s one of those passages that almost makes your head hurt when you try to figure it out!

I bet most of the adults in our congregation know parts of this reading by heart – maybe some of the kids too! We even see people holding up signs at big sporting events that read “John 3:16” Have you ever seen that and wondered what it was about? I know I did when I first saw one of those signs. So, I looked that verse up. It goes like this: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”

My first thought was, “What the heck does that have to do with baseball?” Once I realized that it has absolutely nothing to do with baseball, or any other sport for that matter, I guessed that those folks were Christians who just wanted to get Jesus’ message out to as many people as possible, and that a big sporting event is a great way to reach a lot of people.

But I wonder why they chose that particular verse. To me, it doesn’t really tell us the most important parts of what Jesus wanted people to hear. It doesn’t say anything about the changes we need to make so that the world is more like what God wants for creation, nothing about love or justice. If this was the only verse you ever heard from the Bible, it might sound like a magical promise: “If you believe in Jesus, you will live forever!” Is that what the writer of the book of John really meant?

When I was reading today’s scripture passage this week, this line reminded me of a book called, “Tuck Everlasting” by Natalie Babbitt. It’s a novel (written for kids about 10 or older) about a girl who meets a boy in the woods whose family has discovered that, if you drink the water from a particular spring on the property, you will live forever. She has to decide if she should drink from that spring or not. It may surprise you to hear that it wasn’t an easy decision!

When we read the whole story about Jesus, we know that he didn’t come to the world to wave a magic wand and make everything better. He came with a message about loving God, your neighbour and yourself, and living in a way that is good for everyone and everything in creation. He left us with a lot of work to do – and he didn’t give us forever to do it, just one human lifespan at a time. This makes me think that the author of John was talking about something totally different from what “Tuck Everlasting” means by eternal life.

In just a few weeks, it will be Easter and we will celebrate that, even though Jesus was put to death because of his teachings and the way he lived his life, he continues to live through us if we follow in his example! I am pretty sure none of us have met Jesus, the actual man who lived more than 2000 years ago, but I do think that we can meet him in the stories of the Bible and that we can also meet him in people who live in the way that Jesus taught – not only through Christians, but people who come from many different faiths and cultures. I wonder if this is what John was talking about? Maybe “believing in” Jesus means a whole lot more than just being sure he actually exists.

So much to think about! One verse in the Bible can’t tell us everything we need to know about God’s dream and our part in making it come true. I think we need to keep reading, and discussing, and living into, the whole story, don’t you?

Let’s say a short prayer together:

Challenging God,

We want to be the kind of people you can count on to make the world live up to your dream. Sometimes we wish it could be as easy as just making a wish or saying a magic word, but we know that there is a lot more you need us to do. Help us as we do our best to learn from the writings in our Bible and from the example and wisdom of those who love you. Amen.

Hymn: Lead Me, God – Voices United #662 - BCUC Choir

Lead me, God,
lead me in your righteousness;
Make your way plain before my face.
For it is you, and you, God only,
who makes me to dwell in safety.

Words based on Psalm 4 & 5; Music 1861 Samuel Wesley
Song # 126117 Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214. All rights reserved

Prayer for Illumination Reader: John Boivin

We come to your Word, O God, seeking inspiration, courage, and possibility.
Open our eyes to see the truth in your Word. Amen.

The Reading: John 3:14-21 (NRSV) “God So Loved the World”

14And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.17“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 20For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.”

May the Light of Christ dwell where the Word is spoken. Thanks be to God!

Sermon: “Jesus: A Beacon of Love” Rev. Kim Vidal

The light at the opposite end of the street turned green and I crossed too hastily and almost bumped into a man at the street corner with a big poster attached to his body on front and back. The front screamed at me with the words JOHN 3: 16 in a supersized font and the back poster says “Jesus is coming! Are you saved?” I cringed! I always do when I see a poster like that! I’m fed up with one-liners that do not have any explanations at all especially when it is being fully broadcasted to the public. Even if I knew by heart the verse that I have memorized since I was 9 years old, the verse that says “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life”, I still have a thousand and one questions to this poster man. Why did God give his only son? Do we really need someone to die for us in order to be saved? What is your understanding of salvation? What do you mean by eternal life? Who is this Jesus that is coming again? Why do you do this? Who made you do it? Have you fully thought about these questions yourself? Why here? What is the catch?

I bet you that if there is one particular verse in the Bible that has been overly recited, used, abused, misused, misinterpreted, or misunderstood, it is this verse in John 3:16. Over the years, we’ve seen it displayed at sports events; on posters during rallies & protests; on bumper stickers; on fridge magnets; on T-shirts; or even framed for wall decoration. But NT theologian Marcus Borg warns that, taken literally, “this verse turns Christianity into a religion of requirements and rewards, particularly in the afterlife. The reward is eternal life. The requirements, of belief or behaviour or both, are a means of reaping the reward. Christianity, understood this way, becomes contractual. To emphasize the afterlife as opposed to life here and now turns Christianity into a religion of self-preservation. It also divides people into saved and unsaved. The verse puts a mark on all non-Christians, even many Christians, who are suspected of being unsaved.”

But have we really thought why John wrote, not only this verse but the whole gospel of John that seemed to be at odds with Matthew, Mark and Luke? Have we thought about the danger of extracting one particular verse from a whole series of discourse without even knowing the context or the story behind it? I almost did not preach on this text today. Why? Because it made me very uncomfortable. I believe that this text not only divides or puts people off but it also reduces the real meaning of God’s love and Jesus’ message for us. It diminishes Christianity to a mere slogan, contract or formula that is divisive and offensive to people of other faiths and religions. It makes Christians blind followers of a religion that promotes triumphalism. John 3: 16 has become a sort of bad publicity: read this verse, believe in it and you will be saved. Easy-peasy. Done. But God cannot be reduced to a formula or an idol. This is my position and you don’t have to agree with me. John 3:16 is an insufficient guide for healing and salvation. The verse is not enough to form a fully mature Christian life. Instead, we need an authentic encounter with the Mysterious, Loving, Divine and Gracious Presence that we call God — and concrete actions transforming one’s life by following the message of Jesus which is love.

Written around 95-100 CE, almost 70 years after the crucifixion of Jesus, the writer John, whose readers and audience were primarily Greek Christians, had a different way of looking at the relationship of God and Jesus. He certainly believed that God and Jesus are cut from the same cloth. John declares that “Jesus and God are one.” Think about how John started his gospel, not by a birth narrative of Jesus but by his profound theology: “In the beginning was the logos, transliterated as the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John is the proponent of an “incarnational theology” which emphasizes that God became “human” with flesh and blood in the person of Jesus. John is also the master of dualism and irony. For John, there is no grey area. It’s either you are in the dark or in the light; either you are in the Jesus’ club or in the devil’s club. John wove his themes to opposite polarities: cosmic or worldly; heaven or hell; spirit or flesh. He divides the world between believers and non-believers, saved and unsaved, rewarded and punished. But this problem is not only with John 3:16. Most people still interpret a large portion of the Biblical texts literally without verifying their historical, social, religious, cultural or political contexts of the passage. We tend to attach meanings to individual words or the whole sentence that may have little to do with what it really means for the author and for his readers in a particular time and place.
     And here’s what we need to know. Most biblical scholars agree that today’s gospel reading is actually a continuation of the encounter of Nicodemus and Jesus. Not about a requirement for people to show off that they are better than others. It would be good to revisit this story so we can fully understand the meaning of today’s text. Nicodemus was identified as a Pharisee, a well-known leader in his religious community. But he was kind of torn between two worlds. He witnessed Jesus of Nazareth made some good points in his sermons and teachings, perhaps saw Jesus did some healing miracles. But for Nicodemus, Jesus was just too risky and a threat to the established powers. So he met Jesus at night for his questions to be answered. He met Jesus in the evening, in the dark, when no eyes can see nor ears can hear so he can keep his faith secret separated from the rest of his public life. This is the gospel writer John giving us a clue, because John borrows a lot from Isaiah contrasting darkness with light and proclaims Jesus as the light of the world.
     Nicodemus came from a place of confusion. He met Jesus with his assumptions and his proud knowledge of what he thought he knew was the truth. He has to hear first-hand from Jesus about his mind-boggling dilemma: “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” Jesus responds rather amusingly, without being distracted by his praise or his compliments. Nicodemus was surprised at Jesus’ recommendation. That he needed to start his life over - to undergo a “rebirthing process”. The original Greek word closest to the English translation is “born from above” but other versions translated it as “being born again!” Jesus’ response is direct to the point: “I’m introducing you to something that transcends your curiosity. You’ve come asking for a sign to help you control your life or to validate what you already know. I want to put you in touch with a whole new world. I want to turn your world upside down to where you will see reality as it really is. It is a world totally out of your control. You’ve got to be born again, anew from above, if you are to enter that new world.” Jesus here offers a whole new possibility. It requires a radical reorientation and transformation of his life.
     It is indeed ironic that some Christians have been brought up around Nicodemus’s defensive mis-hearing of Jesus in this passage. They have made it into a ritual of “receive Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviour and you will be saved” that has very little to do with radical internal transformation and justice-oriented missiology. The “born again” brand of Christianity really does not require a change of name and identity. Peter Woods calls it “an arrogant label by which others who are not in the Jesus club are made to feel less than equal”. Jesus did not tell Nicodemus to be converted to Jesus’ way. Instead, Jesus told Nicodemus, "Check your heart Nicodemus. Is it God and what God stands for who’s in there – is it true love, compassion or justice consuming you or is it your own religious, political and social biases and affiliations that make you who you are?” Being born again is a breaking free of twisted beliefs to transformative grounding. It is a breaking free of restricted, prejudiced, judgmental life into life-giving, welcoming, abundant life preached and lived by Jesus.
     There’s another puzzle – a gap in today’s text, for it’s not at all clear that Nicodemus remains on the scene by the time we get to Jesus’ words in today’s reading. Verse 14 opens up with an ambiguous analogy between a bronze serpent being lifted up for the healing of the Israelites in the book of Numbers and Jesus being crucified, lifted up on a cross so that people will receive God’s love, forgiveness and healing. Traditional view of this kind of theology makes Jesus a scapegoat not only for the early followers’ wrongdoings but continues in this day and age. Not only this concept is problematic for me but also the big words that John uses in his gospel. Words like condemnation, judgment and punishment—words that exclude and divide. If interpreted literally, this passage requires people to believe in Jesus, otherwise, you will die and go to hell and those who believe in Jesus will be rewarded with eternal life. In addition to John’s favourite word, “love”, the verb “believe” appears more often in John than anywhere else in the New Testament, but it’s worth noting that the word “faith” never appears in John’s gospel. Believing for John is about relationship. It is not about making Jesus an idol but trusting that Jesus’ message of love is a way to transform people’s heart. Jesus for John is a beacon of love and light. If you believe in, if you trust Jesus, then you must live your life following the message of Jesus which is love.
     One way of thinking about this whole passage is to re-translate it to: “this is how God loves the world through the message and life Jesus”. God so loved the world—that God became human through Jesus, God’s message of love for the world. The passage offers us to reflect on our images of God. Is God a God of love or a condemning, judgmental, punishing God? Should we follow Jesus’ life-giving message? Or should we choose to follow those things that lead us to waywardness and death? And this thing about eternal life, I believe this is not a reward when we die. Eternal life is what we experience here and now if we live in God’s love.
     Dear friends, as we continue to witness the senseless deaths of millions of people due to COVID-19 pandemic, as we experience the rise of racism, homophobia, gun and domestic violence, the marginalization of the poor and the mentally-challenged, the treatment of immigrants and those who do not worship in the same way like us, we prevent ourselves, our institutions and our communal life from flourishing, from living an abundant life, from living into our full potential. God loves the world, God loves us. God offers us, as we follow Jesus’ message of love, justice and compassion, a different way, a different possibility for transformed living. John calls us to look up to the cross, not to see God’s judgment, condemnation and punishment but to see God’s love – a possible way to experience healing and hope. NT professor Lance Pape contends that this passage in John is about an encounter with Jesus that left Nicodemus scratching his head in bewilderment as he went back out into the darkness. This is a story about how any one of us might reject the light offered to us because of the way it exposes what is dark in us. To “believe” this Good News requires more than “believing;” it requires “trusting in Jesus” and to let our own lives be transformed by the Jesus we encounter in John.
     So the next time I run into the poster man again, I know I have several ways to answer his question, “are you saved?” But for sure, this is what I will respond to him: “Being saved is not about beliefs or doctrines or creeds. It is not about making Jesus an idol but it is about allowing his message of love to transform me through God’s grace and leading, in this life, here and now. So- yes, I am saved in many ways than I could ever imagine.” Thanks be to God. Amen.

Sources:

Grateful for the reflections, input and wisdom of the BCUC Lectionary Group
Jonathan Grieser’s sermon, This is How God Loves the World, March 11, 2018 https://jonathangrieser.com
Marcus Borg, Convictions, 2014, Harper One. Chapter 4: Salvation is More About This Life than an After Life
Rev. Carl Gregg, “John 3:16 — The Rest of the Story”, patheos.com
Lance Pape, workingpreacher.org.

Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer Rev. Lorrie Lowes

Holy One,
It has been a year since the pandemic first took hold of us,
A year of masking and hand washing and isolating,
A year of missing the hugs, and handshakes, and uncovered smiles,
A year of virtual meetings and virtual school,
A year of losses – of loved ones and friends for many of us, of employment and security for some, of access to services, of the ability to both grieve and celebrate together.
We are tired.
Help us find hope in the lengthening days and the warmer temperatures.
Help us find hope in the promise of vaccines and the careful re-opening of businesses.
Give us the strength, the wisdom, and the patience to see us through this next phase of the journey safely.
Help us to turn our thoughts from the troubles this year has brought, to the blessings that have also been there – the reaching out of our community, the support of friends, the generosity of strangers, the creativity and the technology that have helped us connect, and the time to reflect on what is important.
Help us see reasons for gratitude, even in the reality of our struggle.

We know, even in the midst of pain and sorrow and frustration, there are many in the world and even in our local community for whom the pandemic has added just another layer to their struggle, and so we pray to you…

We pray for those who lack the bare necessities of life…
We pray for those who suffer from illness and injury
We pray for those who are isolated and for those who are lonely…
We pray for those who are faced with violence every day…
Help us find ways to be a blessing to those in need.

We pray for the world, our community and our leaders,
We pray for this faith family,
We pray for ourselves,
That we might see, in spring’s promise of rebirth, a glimpse of brighter days to come.

All this we ask in the words that Jesus gave to us so long ago:

Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kin-dom come, thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, And forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kin-dom, the power and the glory, Forever and ever, Amen.

Invitation to Offer Rev. Lorrie Lowes

Seedtime and harvest, summer and winter, day and night, God’s love has always been abundant, in every age. We are grateful to a generous and loving God for every sign of new life.

On this winter morning, we come together to thank God and to offer our gifts so that the ministry of this church will continue to grow and be a blessing to the world.

I now invite you to offer your gifts of time, talents and resources as expressions of your gratitude to God’s blessings. If you are not on PAR and wish to send in your offering and donations, you can drop them in the slot by the kitchen door of the church or mail them to BCUC. You can also send in your support through e-transfer. Thank you for your continued love and support to BCUC.

Offertory Prayer

God of great wonders, we join with you in the joy of giving.
You give us life and breath, you fill the world with beauty,
our hands with bounty, and our hearts with the desire to give.
Accept these gifts, and ourselves in your service. Amen.

Sending Forth Rev. Kim Vidal

As you continue your Lenten journey,

look up, look down, look out, look all around,
seeking those who need love;
love that you may show them,
love by which they may know of God’s love.
We are called to be God’s people.
Let us follow in love, hope and trust.

Go in peace. Amen.

Hymn: Though Ancient Walls - Voices United #691 - BCUC Choir

1 Though ancient walls may still stand proud and racial strife be fact,
though boundaries may be lines of hate, proclaim God's saving act!

Refrain:
Walls that divide are broken down;
Christ is our unity!
Chains that enslave are thrown aside;
Christ is our liberty!

2 When vested power stands firm entrenched and breaks another's back,
when waste and want live side by side,
it's Gospel that we lack. R

3 The truth we seek in varied scheme,
the life that we pursue,
unites us in a common quest
for self and world made new. R

4 The church divided seeks that grace,
that newness we proclaim;
a unity of serving love
that lives praise to God's name! R

5 This broken world seeks lasting health and vital unity.
God's people by God's Word renewed, cast off all slavery! R

Departing Music: When Peace Like A River - BCUC Choir

In loving memory of Young Hoon Kim (Kim Family)

1 When peace like a river attendeth my way,
when sorrows like sea billows roll;
whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say,
"It is well, it is well with my soul."

Refrain:

It is well with my soul;
it is well, it is well with my soul.

2 Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come
Let this blest assurance control
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate
And has shed His own blood for my soul. R

3 O Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
the clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
the trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend;
even so, it is well with my soul. R

11 am – ZOOM Fellowship

[1] www.ministrymatters.com

Sunday Worship Service - March 14, 2021