Free from the Law

Week two of the Break Free series. Last week we established that while we may not have complete free will to literally do whatever we want (I'm still not a major league baseball player!!) we do have a broad ability to make our own choices. So how do we know if we're making good choices or bad choices? Well, that's part of why God has given us laws to follow. But the law can become an idol. So this week we discuss what it means to be free from the law.

A new face joins us today! Stefanie Wienecke is a long term substitute for Jeremy Watson while he is on a national tour of Miss Saigon. Stefanie grew up in Kansas, and decided to venture out to Nashville Tennessee for college where she attended Trevecca Nazarene University. She graduated with a commercial music and songwriting degree. Stefanie was 1 of 6 winners in the John Lennon songwriting competition with one of her original compositions. She is also a part of a traveling worship group called Ruah, and they have had some great success. If you are interested in hearing what they're all about, their self-titled album is available on iTunes. Now based out of Kansas City, Stefanie works full-time doing professional theatre, and is loving every minute of it. Welcome Stefanie! 

 

8:15

The Scripture reading this morning comes from The Message. The Message is a paraphrase written by Eugene Peterson. It's called a paraphrase rather  than a translation because he was freer with his word choice than a translator would be. The translator tries to keep the integrity of each word, whereas Peterson tried to keep the artistry of the original language - "What would this text sound like if it was being written today" instead of "what is the correct English word for this Greek word?" We prefer to use translations like the Common English Bible in worship, but every once in a while Peterson hits on a reading that sounds just right.

Our Call to Worship this morning is global. It was adapted from Ann Siddall, a member of the Uniting Church. The Uniting Church is an Australian denomination that came together from Methodist, Presbeteryian, and Congregationalist traditions.

We're incorporating the refrain from Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) around children's time this morning. This is a great example of contemporary 

church musicians and pastors bringing traditional hymns and songs into congregational worship, they have done so with great creativity and with a variety of methods. For more background on this song go to  http://www.gbod.org/lead-your-church/worship-song/resource/amazing-grace-my-chains-are-gone

 

 

9:30

This morning's playlist:
Free Ride
I Am Free
Manifesto
Free
Redeemed

Welcome to our new members! Eric Hissong, Janelle Schnorf-Hissong, and Zack Schnorf join as full members. Von and Madison join as preparatory members. Preparatory members become full members when they are Confirmed. Confirmation is a series of classes that we generally hold for high-school freshmen and older. Madison and Von plan to be part of the next Confirmation class in the spring of 2014.
 

11:00

Our Call to Worship this morning is global. It was adapted from Ann Siddall, a member of the Uniting Church. The Uniting Church is an Australian denomination that came together from Methodist, Presbeteryian, and Congregationalist traditions.

The Scripture reading this morning comes from The Message. The Message is a paraphrase written by Eugene Peterson. It's called a paraphrase rather  than a translation because he was freer with his word choice than a translator would be. The translator tries to keep the integrity of each word, whereas Peterson tried to keep the artistry of the original language - "What would this text sound like if it was being written today" instead of "what is the correct English word for this Greek word?" We prefer to use translations like the Common English Bible in worship, but every once in a while Peterson hits on a reading that sounds just right.

The anthem this Sunday is a musical look at life inspired by a poem from Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass." The spirit of youthful life is portrayed in the energetic piano accompaniment. Under brief lines of narration, chords paint a palette of spacious texture and freedom. While the text speaks to the infinite opportunities of life, the piano ends with a dissonant chord, suggesting a tension of choices, possibilities, and the unknown. 

This week's sermon:

 

There are several good resources if you want to dive deeper into the differences among the various sects (think denominations) of First Century Judaism. Major and minor movements are described in the Jewish Virtual Library site. Here's another look from a Jewish laywoman that I think may be better. She includes the Zealots, which are another important group. We sometimes forget that Christianity has its roots in Judaism. We encourage you to explore Jewish traditions more deeply to discover the connections.

 

An important sentence is buried in the sermon that some day I will talk about more. In discussing Jesus' use of two Old Testament stories  I said, "This is exactly how the first century reader would have seen it." This is an important sentence because it is a significant part of how I, and the majority of Christians back to the very beginning, interpret Scripture. The first person that I am aware of who talked about reading the Bible "literally" was Augustine in the 4th century. But for Augustine, reading the Bible literally meant exactly what I just said - it meant reading the Bible the way the first Christians would have read it. The idea that each word of Scripture is historically or scientifically true, what we think of today as "literal", is not what the original authors or first readers had in mind.