Exodus
17:1-7 –
All
the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by
stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but
there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarreled with
Moses and said, "Give us water to drink." And Moses said to them,
"Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?" But the
people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and
said, "Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children
and our livestock with thirst?" So Moses cried to the Lord, "What shall
I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me." And the Lord
said to Moses, "Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the
elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the
Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and
you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will
drink." And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he
called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of
the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord by saying, "Is the
Lord among us or not?"
Romans
5:1-11 –
“Therefore,
since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace
in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that,
but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,
and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does
not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through
the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
For
while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For
one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person
one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were
still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified
by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if
while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much
more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than
that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have
now received reconciliation.”
John
4:5-42 –
So
he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given
to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his
journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
A
woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a
drink." (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The
Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink
from me, a woman of Samaria?" (For Jews have no dealings 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
nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living
water? Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank
from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock." Jesus said to her,
"Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever
drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water
that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal
life." The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I
will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water."
Jesus
said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here." 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 now have is not your husband. What you have said is true." The
woman said to him, "Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers
worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where
people ought to worship." Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the
hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship
the Father. 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 is
seeking such people 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 (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell
us all things." Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he."
Just
then his disciples came back. They marveled that he was talking with a woman,
but no one said, "What do you seek?" or, "Why are you talking
with her?" So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and
said to the people, "Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can
this be the Christ?" They went out of the town and were coming to him.
Meanwhile
the disciples were urging him, saying, "Rabbi, eat." But he said to
them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about." So the
disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought him something to
eat?" Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent
me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then
comes the harvest'? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the
fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and
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 town believed in him because of the woman's testimony,
"He told me all that I ever did." 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 indeed the Savior of the world."
We
were warmly welcomed by, I think, everyone we passed including a member who
came to us in the pew to ask if we had any questions about the service. Another
offered the locations of the restrooms, which was appreciated since there was
some signage but I did not notice directions to the restrooms.
The
sanctuary was a moderate arched ceiling and I should have assessed the
acoustics. I enjoyed the sound of the choir and noticed some smiles there. I
didn’t realize till late in the service that had we sat in the alcove at the
rear of the sanctuary we would have been able to hear more clearly as I missed
a lot of what was said.
From
where we sat, though, I was able to enjoy the antics of a delightful
one-year-old. It was interesting to watch the range of reactions to her, and I
couldn’t help but be reminded of Christ’s admonishment to let the children come
near for heaven belongs to such as these. I especially enjoyed watching one
young girl’s heart melt when the baby played with her hair.
The
sermon seemed to be based on re-telling of the story of Christ and the
Samaritan woman at the well. Unfortunately, I was unable to understand much until
I turned and heard the speakers behind us.
We
had some interesting conversations after the service including some special
time with a woman who had also lost a son and we ministered to each other.
Arriving
early gave us an opportunity to wander around the building a bit. I had the
sense this congregation would be very much like a family, and it was.
After
finding coffee near the sanctuary, several members arrived and greeted us
warmly. As more arrived we got caught up in conversation and before we knew it,
it was time to find a seat for worship.
There
was a front section and a rear section, and we sat in the very back of the
front section. When I suggested a seat that looked good to me, I failed to take
into account the lower ceiling in the rear which would have made the echo
considerably less of an issue.
The
greetings continued after we sat down, before worship got underway, and during
the greeting portion of the service. Afterward we enjoyed a meaningful
conversation with a woman who has two Marine sons and had lost another son five
years ago. It’s always a bittersweet joy to encounter someone with whom we have
so much in common.
One
of the women who first greeted us thoughtfully stopped before the service to
ask if we had any questions about the Order of Worship, since Lutheran services
can be a bit confusing.
The
décor was as expected for such a traditional mainline denomination: a high
ceiling, lots of dark wood, and intricate stained glass. The ample legroom and
padded pew made for comfortable seating.
The
music was presented by a traditional choir led by an excellent organist. The
volume was perfect and without a hint of pretention.
The
sermon expounded in detail on the story of the woman at the well.
The
service ended with the Sacrament of Communion which is always a humbling
privilege.
Lord, there is so much life left in this, Your church. We ask You to continue to bless and guide this congregation. Amen.
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