As most of you know by now, our bulletin has gotten a little thinner. There's not as many announcements in it, but you can find the announcements online at FirstPrecetarian.com. That website is at the bottom right hand of the second page. And you can also find it on just single-seat to paper at all the entrances. And I just want to invite Darren Hurley to come up here for a second and make an announcement about stewardship. While he makes his way up, I just want to remind everybody that I can't best for a point where registering campers. So I just encourage you to look at that at our website'sbestperpoint.org. Good morning. About 17 years ago, I was a young bachelor living and working downtown when my two good friends Roger and Boone's the Ingallson reached out to me and asked me if I wanted to come to a Wednesday night service at FirstPrecetarian. She also mentioned that dinner was being served, so of course I said yes. But I'm so glad that I came, I love the service, I love the people that I met, and I've been coming ever since. I'm so thankful that I have the opportunity to come here and be around other believers wanting to learn and grow in their spirituality. But spiritual growth does not happen without effort. It's my opinion that you do not get the full benefit of FirstPrecetarian unless you connect with others by participating and volunteering. If you're looking to plug in, ministry teams and discipleship groups are great places to start. Tim and the other pastors are trying to get us out of our comfort zone by educating us so that we can lead more effectively. As a result of this refreshing vision behind W2, they are in the process of better equipping us to reach others for God's glory. In the past year, our pastors have done their part and what's expected of them and then some, but have we done our part as a body? Are we trusting in God's provision and are we giving as directed? As many of you know by now, our church leaders and committees have had to make some very hard decisions. And we've had to cut back on programs, services, and some personnel as we live within our budget. When financial support is louder than expected, things are reduced. If we know that we have a responsibility to support our church in its pastors and if we use these facilities, why do we hold back? There are many reasons, but I think that we have not been taught well. If we have been taught, we have largely ignored our responsibility as evidenced by Christians' low overall giving as a percentage of income. Another reason that I see as the society tells us to only think about ourselves and that spending on worthless things will make us happy. I know because the world influences my family and me as well. Several years ago, we started doing the Operation Christmas Child Boxes with our kids and we wanted to teach them what it was like to share and give back as Hebrews 13-16 tells us. So they went out shopping, they filled the boxes with toys and pins and paper and stuffed animals and I told Jack up in this room that even how proud I was I think for putting something together and to give something to a child that would likely not get very much for Christmas. So I'm telling him this and his chin starts to quiver and his eyes start to water and I say, what is it buddy? And he says, I wanted those toys. It was pitiful because he really did want those toys. I thought what a great teaching moment this is but what I learned instead was that I was no different than Jack. He was just more honest about it than me by expressing it aloud. John 3-16 says, for God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life or eternal life. He sent his son to save us and undeserving people by dying a horrible death to cover our sins so that we may live eternally. By his example, God teaches you to give, setting a standard for unconditional love and sacrificial giving. What we learn is that giving directs our hearts to Christ. This act of worship is about the attitude giving without an attitude of love provides no benefit to you the giver. He has provided for us and it all belongs to him. If we give proportionally to the blessings received as directed we would not have to worry about programs and staff being reduced but rather we could grow and serve more. As I close, please consider these six p's to Christian giving. Giving should be a priority. It should be personal. It should be premeditated. Giving should be proportional. It should be given without pride and giving should be prayed over. So I ask you to pray and listen to the Lord on how you are to help further his kingdom by contributing to our church. Write down the amount of your gift in your household budget. Then tell the church the amount by turning in a pledge card since this is a vital part of the church's planning process. Thank you. Thank you, Darren. I appreciate that and would ask that we now take a moment to turn our hearts, prepare to worship our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The call to worship comes from Psalm 40, not Psalm 39, Psalm 40, verse 6 and following. Sacrifice and offering, you have not desired but you have given me an open ear. Burn offering and sin offering, you have not required. Then I said behold, I have come in the scroll of the book. It is written of me. I desire to do your will. Oh my God. Your law is within my heart. I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation. Behold, I have not restrained my lips as you know, O Lord. I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart. I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation. I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation. Father, as we lift to you our morning prayers, help us to not restrain our lips in worship and praise. Let us call to worship the God who is worthy above all names. We ask it in the name of Jesus, amen. As we begin our worship today, we will sing verses 1, 2, 4 and 5 of all creatures of our God and King. Which commandment is the most important of all? The most important is, here of Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these. And because we are, oh, please be seated, sorry. And because we are affirmed in our faith, we confess our sin corporately. Lord, we come to you this morning, aware of our need for grace. We have fallen short of your glory and not lived as kings and queens under your lordship. We have sought to build our own kingdoms rather than yours to run after pleasures apart from your presence, to desire fame from others rather than honor from you. We call upon your mercy forgiveness of our sins. And we know that we are assured of our salvation and so we pray together who is a God like you, hardening aiquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance. He does not retain his anger forever because he delights and said fast love. You will again have compassion on us. You will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will pass all our sins to the depths of the sea. You will show your faithfulness to Jacob and said fast love to Abraham as you have sworn to our fathers from the days ago. Now, agree to each other in the name of the Lord. Bow your heads with me. Our Father in heaven, we thank you for this morning that we can come together and worship you. Father, I pray that you would set our hearts towards the message that Jared will give us through your Holy Spirit. Father, there are many among us among us that are sick and alone and needy. Father, I pray that we would not neglect them. Father, I pray that we would not succumb to the distractions of our life and not love our neighbor as ourself. Father, many of us are stressed and anxious. Father, I pray that we would turn to you in prayer and that you would give us the peace that you promise us that transcends all our understanding. Father, we know that you are not a distant God. Father, we know that you are a God that dwells among us people. Father, I pray that you will bless these offerings. Father, I pray that our offerings would be from our heart. Father, I pray that whatever we do, we may glorify you. In your name, I pray. Amen.
Amen. Thank you, choir. If I could ask you to stand, if you are able, and turn for the reading of God's Word to Micah, chapter 6, Micah, chapter 6, that will be paid 779 if you are following in the Pew Bible. Micah 6, beginning at verse 1, here what the Lord says, arise, plead your case before the mountains. Let the hills hear your voice. Here you mountains the indictment of the Lord and you enduring foundations of the earth for the Lord has an indictment against his people and he will contend with Israel. O my people, what have I done to you? How have I worried you? Answer me. For I brought you up out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. O my people, remember what Balak King of Moab devised and what Balam, the son of Bayor, answered him. And what happened at Shateem to Gilgah, that you may know the saving acts of the Lord. What shall I come before the Lord and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves, a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with the thousands of rams, with 10,000 of rivers of oil? Shall I give my first born for my transgression the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O man, what is good and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God? You'll turn to Mark chapter 12 beginning at verse 28, page 848 in your Pew Bible. And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another and seen that he answered them well, asked him, which commandment is the most important of all? Jesus answered, the most important is here, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these and the scribes said to him, you are right teacher. You have truly said that he is one and there is no other beside him and to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength and to love one neighbor as oneself is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, you are not far from the kingdom of God, this is the word of the Lord, you may be seated. You know, it's interesting, after September 11, 2001, and the tragedy that occurred in 2002, the University of North Carolina required every incoming freshman to read the book approaching the Quran by Michael Cells. They saw the issue so important that everyone on their campus coming into the school needed to work through and interact with Islam. In 2010, the popular retailer, American Apparel, that makes, quote, hipster, unquote t-shirts, leaked out their hiring policy. They had a dress code that said you needed to wear their materials. You needed to wear American Apparel clothes, but they also had a hiring policy that required a head-to-toe photograph attached to your application and they used it to vet people who didn't match up to the persona they wanted in their company. What is it so important to you, or so important to a company, or so important to God that it would be required of everyone? I know, as a side note, I recently interacted with a childhood story. I was so excited to sit down with Scotty and read one of my favorite stories. Only to come to find out, it was now all about clean air and not polluting and recycling. And the chicken who used to run around and tell us the sky was falling was sending a very different message. What does the Lord require? The passage we look at today addresses that question. You have in your bulletin, it's a little pamphlet that shows our budget. It's a balanced budget. And what we mean by that is it represents the giving that is consistent with this church. One amazing thing, by the way, is for all the changes that have happened to First Presbyterian Church over the last decade, our giving has stayed pretty close to the same. That's an amazing fact. We have been generous with our giving. We have spent down reserves in very good ways with home missions. Camp Vesper Point. But we've also, if we're honest, have lived off our reserves and spent on deficit. And as you look at this budget, I want you to see, first and foremost, that we are not allowing the budget to drive ministry. What do I mean by that? We have asked the session to speak in early on in the process and say, how can we allocate funds? We've asked pastors, directors, ministry teams, for some of you may be hearing that word going, what is that? A ministry team is a highway and freeway of decision making. It is deacons and elders working with laypeople around the areas that God has gifted you or made you passionate, that you might bring an idea and see it implemented for the glory of Jesus Christ. That you might come and bring your giftedness to an area where the church needs that gift to the glory of Jesus Christ. It is a venue where you can come and celebrate, celebrate the unity of the Bible. And we have organized them around our mission statement, worship, we have a worship ministry team, discipleship, we have adult enrichment, youth and family, ministry team, missions. We have a world missions and we have an outreach home missions ministry team. And I bring you this budget on stewardship Sunday, and I know many of you saying, Jerry, this is really starting to feel like a lecture hanging there with me. Because the budget is the voice of many people who have said, this is what God has given. Let us serve the Lord well with the resources He has provided. And in that comes a paradigm shift, a paradigm shift that moves toward life on life ministry. The world around us has changed. I don't consider myself to be that old. When I was in college, there was maybe 20 channels on television. I had no email. Let alone Facebook. Think about that. That the world in which we live has changed, it is not an assumption anymore that 10 people you meet today, nine of them are churched. In fact, probably the opposite is true. And as you go downtown to the inner city, to UTC campus, to the suburbs, we need to realize more and more. We need to take the gospel message, life to life, person to person, out from this building. And so we see in Micah, the Lord addresses his people. And he says some hard things. He says, what have I done? How have I bored you? That can't vest for a point at the end of the summer, the counselors often have what they call DTRs. Define the relationship. That's when you've been flirting all summer, kind of sending signals. And now it's time to decide if you really are going to get together. God is giving his DTR. What have I done? Let me go back and tell you what I've done for you. I brought you out of Egypt. I delivered you. I mentored you. I gave you Moses and Aaron and the prophetess Miriam. I, not only that, but I protected you. As this foreign king, Bayluk, had plans for your destruction, I used his intended evil for your good and for my glory, through a talking donkey. So don't doubt that it was me. And if you look on a map, your team is the last place on one side and Gilgal is the first place in the promised land. I took your feet from the wilderness to the promised land. That's what I've done, says the Lord. That's our DTR. Define the relationship. And listen to their response. Well, what do you want from us? What more can we do? A thousand rams, 10,000 rivers of oil? You want me to be at church five times this week, Lord? How about if I take the pew cushion off? Then I'll suffer. How about my first born? We'll slap in the face to God because in the Old Testament, we see in Genesis that God actually takes Abraham up to a hill and says, sacrifice your son. And the whole point of that story is, I will substitute a ram so that he doesn't die. In Exodus, God says, put this blood of your doorpost so that your first born doesn't die. I am not like the pagan gods. I do not require that. In fact, if you want a DTR to find the relationship, I intend to send my only son, Jesus Christ, to die for you. That's the sacrifice. But if you live in the world of the ancient Near East, pagan gods would be something that you broker to deals with. I don't know how many of you all go to my case, the use bookstore. I go there and when I go, I usually look through the Christian book section. And there's probably about three or four authors that I'll look for. And if I see their book on the shelf, I think it's so heretical and horrible, I'll buy it just so I can throw it away. Just to get it out of circulation. And I look for those. But that's no way to have a relationship with God. And that's what they're doing. They're saying, I'll pay God off. I'll give God his money. But the deal is he stays over there. In other words, on a stewardship Sunday, let me ask this question. Have you given the Lord your heart and therefore giving? Are you giving so that you don't have to give the Lord your heart? That's a compelling question, isn't it? Have you given the Lord your heart and therefore you're giving? Or are you giving so that you don't have to give the Lord your heart? I love Paul Tripp, whose ministry has the tagline connecting the transforming power of Jesus to everyday life. And he says this, I think it is a scandal. A scandal that there are hundreds of marriage books on Christian bookstore shelves that never mention the heart. Hundreds of marriage books that never mention the heart as part of marriage. Unfortunately, there are probably equally as many books on worship that talk about mode, method, how to reach the culture, how to be secret friendly, that forget the heart. If I could, there's probably equally number of stewardship sermons that talk about how to give your money and forget to mention the heart. God's response in Micah is, I won't your heart. And in 68 we see to do justice. This is what it means. This is my requirement to do justice. Not just to like justice, but to do it. Where in your life do you see injustice and how has the Lord gifted you to speak into that vacuum? That's a great question. That's a mission's question, isn't it? To do justice. To love kindness. Some translations say to love mercy. Now, in my house occasionally one of my kids will do something. And I'll say now you need to go apologize to your sister. No, sorry. That's not what's being talked about here. This is not to do mercy. This is to actually love mercy. This is to say it is my DNA. My first response is to want to seek forgiveness, reconciliation, restoration to seek grace poured into people's lives. My mentor's Lee Clawer has a blog site. And on the blog site he has this great little section where he says that he has seen over the years the what would Jesus do bracelets. And he says that he would like to do a bracelet that says instead of WJD it says widget. Where is Jesus in this? That's a great question. Where is Jesus in this? Where is Jesus in your suffering? Where is Jesus in your success? Where is Jesus in your relationship with your spouse, your children, your neighbor, your business partners? Where is Jesus in this? And if you start asking that question it will not be long before you start saying the eyes of Jesus are always looking to extend mercy. Love mercy. And then walk humbly with your God. In Mark chapter 12 when Jesus gives the great commandments it is on the heels of one of the most significant events in his life when he in Mark chapter 11 he goes to the temple. And he turns over the tables. And I'm telling you the temple was a big place. They didn't just have a little girl scout cookie table. They had lots of tables sitting around and he turns the tables over and runs everyone out and he says you have turned my house into a din of robbers. You know at first glance we say well I'm sure it was much like Disney World where when you walk in all of a sudden the same coke out there that was two bucks now cost 12. You know outside you buy a pigeon for $3 inside their $14. And there was marketing I'm sure but I don't think that's actually the core of what Jesus is saying. Because catch this if you read Leviticus 1 and Jerry Harwood has sinned I am called by Leviticus 1 to bring a bull from my flock to the temple. That means I've got a rope attached to my shoulder and I'm walking down Main Street and you're going what did Jerry do? Oh my goodness did he mess up. It's a beautiful picture isn't it? Because in one sense you know I'm walking humbly and I'm repenting but the other side is you actually don't know the offense unless the offense was to you. And when I get to the temple with that bull the priest has me lay my hand on it and says this is a substitute for you until the savior comes. And a once for all sacrifices made that's a powerful image and the temple sellers were robbing people of that opportunity. You could come pay a little money the bull got moved around offering made you were robbed of the opportunity to walk humbly with your God. I would ask you are you walking humbly with the Lord or has your stewardship been an excuse to not do so or is it a model of you walking humbly with your God. And first Corinthians my favorite New Testament example of this there's this great passage that it says you know women you shouldn't you should wear head coverings that people should know and the context of first Corinthians that people should know that you're married that you should wear this head covering if not you're saying something about yourself that you're promiscuous don't do that in a public area. And it says these man it says by the way man when you pray don't throw your togas over your head and we kind of scratch your head and go what's that all about. Well in the Roman Empire you weren't allowed to wear certain colors on your toga they were restricted for senators and nobility but you could wear whatever underwear you wanted. You could wear colored underwear and it was expensive to get your underwear died so when you prayed you'd flip your toga over so that God looking down from heaven would see your cute purple underwear and go that's an important man. I'm going to listen to that prayer and Paul goes that is not in at all you give the Lord your heart are you giving because the Lord has your heart. What are you giving to keep the Lord from having your heart that's a core question. Micah 6 says walk humbly with your God you know it's interesting Micah chapter 5 if you go read it talks about how God will be born in lowly conditions in Bethlehem. So make no mistake he's coming and he's coming to Bethlehem. The Micah passage and the great commandment are given to those of us who are willing to do all sorts of religious things but not willing to do what is needful. We need to perform but not be broken willing to serve but not be relational life on life for people who thrive on program conference but reject reject when relationships push in and we push it away. Our relationship with God love the Lord your God with all your heart so mind and strength love your neighbor as yourself these things by the way are not necessarily bad to love program to love the things and the religious acts but they're not ultimate things and if they become ultimate things we have to check and see have we allowed our heart to go somewhere other than to the Lord. I'm gonna confess to you all that as a husband for many many years I've been a Micah chapter 6 verse 7 husband when my wife was stressed I'd buy her flowers when she was really stressed I'd buy her jewelry when she was really really stressed and I had done it I'd buy her jewelry and tape it to the flowers but you know what my wife she wants my heart. She wants me to give her flowers because I've given her my heart she doesn't want me to give her flowers as a way of putting a barrier between us. If I'm honest as a Christian there's many times in my Christian walk I've been a Micah 6 verse 7 Christian. Lord here you go I'm paying my dues back off but the Lord says no six eight is where I want you to do justice to love mercy and kindness to walk humbly with me to live in such a manner that when the Lord comes into my life when things happen I say where is Jesus in this and even in a stewardship Sunday I ask that question and I think I see it that we come together as worshipers we do missions and disciples if you're visiting today I want to encourage you if this is all coming new to you I want to encourage you to ask someone around you one of the elders who's serving communion myself about the claims of Jesus on your life if you're here and know the Lord I want to encourage you what's the next step between you and Jesus Christ where is he working in your life He'll let you know take those steps of faith with him as we come to the table of the Lord's supper we do so empty handed we do so knowing that we don't come and give because the Lord has set fair market value over his services we come and give our hearts to the Lord who gave of himself entirely to die on the cross that those who should believe should be saved let's pray Father as we bridge between the word and the table help us to do so and not separate the two that the word of God who calls us to love you first and to love one another that we might come to the table as the bride of Christ as the people of God as the adopted children of our Savior that we might come together in unity in Christ Jesus that we might set our sand at the foot of the cross and set our hope in the empty tomb we ask it in the name of Jesus Christ hey man would you please stand our response of reading is found on the third page of the bulletin the Lord be with you and also with you lift up your hearts lift them up to the Lord let us give thanks to the Lord our God is right for us to give thanks and praise you may be seated let us pray father we come giving thanks for this table that Lord we recognize that in our rebellion to you we deserve condemnation and that in your grace and mercy you extend eternal life for those who accept Christ into their heart and Lord we give such great things Lord let us be a people known in Chattanooga known in Tennessee in America and throughout the world that here at First Presbyterian Church we give our heart to you Lord help us to do that that is an act of your spirit and we pray that your spirit would be with us even in the taking of these elements we ask it in your name amen the Lord's table was established by our Lord the night he was betrayed if you're here and you are with us today and you're a member of an evangelical church and good standing if you have professed Jesus Christ in your heart and with your lips that he is your Savior this table is for you it's not just for members of First Presbyterian Church this table is for those who have looked upon Jesus Christ as the Savior of their sins and understand they have no hope except for him if that's not you today I want to encourage you to let the elements pass by they simply say something about you that's not yet true would encourage you to take them as they come if you're here and believing and hold them until we can take them together to represent the unity of the body of Christ before I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you that the Lord Jesus on the night he was betrayed broke bread and after giving thanks he broke it and said this is my body broken for you do this in remembrance of me in the same way also he took the cup after supper saying this cup is the new covenant in my blood do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me for as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes let's pray fathers we moved toward taking these elements together help us to see your word preached clearly the gospel of Christ and to recognize the sign and seal of this means of grace in Christ's name we ask amen take and eat and in the same way after supper he took the cup take and drink father the Lord's table has united believers for thousands of years people of different languages different cultures different generations born that you have truly made all one is your people father help us to do justice to love mercy to walk humbly with you help us to respond to your grace as worshipers first and foremost of Jesus Christ that this would not just be a table we come to because of ceremony but be a table we come to because our hope is in nothing less than in Jesus Christ in his righteousness we ask it in the name of Jesus for there is no other name under heaven and earth by which we can find salvation please rise for the benediction may the Lord bless you and keep you may make his face to shine upon you may he give you his grace and his peace he is good and he's good to do it and all of God's people said amen