Worship on the Lord’s Day
10:00 am 30 June 2024
Online & Onsite (Mixed Presence) Gathering as a Worshipping Community
Minister: The Rev Brad Childs Led by: Raymond Baker
Music director: Binu Kapadia Vocalist: Rom Rhoad
Elder: Iris Routledge
We gather to worship God
Music prelude
Greeting
L: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
P: and also with you.
Lighting of the Christ candle
Welcome and announcements
Silent preparation for worship
Call to Worship
L: Out of the depths, we cry to the Lord.
P: We will wait upon the Lord.
L: Hope in the Lord!
P: For with God, there is steadfast love;
L: With God, there is great power to redeem.
P: So we offer prayers and praise to God in whom we trust.
Opening praise: Forever God is faithful
Prayers of approach and confession
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.
In Jesus’ Powerful name we pray. Amen.
Response: We come to ask you forgiveness, O Lord
Assurance of God’s pardon
Scripture teaches that there is a time for every matter under heaven.
A time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.
In confessing our sins to God, we have offered God our tears of regret.
Now is the time to rejoice in God’s mercy:
In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.
In Jesus Christ, we can make a new start. Thanks be to God.
We listen for the voice of God
Children’s time
Response: Open our eyes, Lord (445)
Story
Story: The Apple Tree
How many of you like apples?
Apples not only taste good, they are good for you. Apples are fat-free, salt-free, cholesterol-free, gluten-free, and a good source of vitamins to help you grow.
There are a lot of different ways to enjoy apples. Can you give me some examples?
* apple juice or apple cider
* applesauce, maybe in your school lunches
* have you ever had some tasty apple butter on your toast in the morning?
* apple slices dipped in caramel are a delicious treat
* my all-time favourite, of course, is apple pie. So yummy!
I am sure that all of you know where we get apples: they come from apple trees. Well, what would you do if you planted an apple tree in your garden, watered it, and took care of it and it never produced any apples? It wouldn’t be much good as an apple tree, would it?
I planted an apple tree in my yard about 10 years ago, and I was looking forward to harvesting bushels of delicious apples each summer. It started out as a bit of a twig, of course, but I had high hopes that it would grow strong and healthy in no time. Unfortunately, the ground where it sits is pretty tough AND my dogs decided to use it as a bit of a chew toy. In the first few years, it mostly just sat there looking like a bare post in the ground. Maybe it had a few leaves on it, but definitely no apples. I debated whether or not to just take it out and try again.
I decided to just keep watering it often and see what happened. After about five years, I noticed a new shoot was growing out of the part of the wee trunk that was closest to the ground. Still, there has never been any hint of an apple on this tree … and it’s ten years later!
Last week, I was walking around the yard and decided to take another peek at my sad, little tree, and this is what I saw – a bunch of small buds that are showing to be the beginnings of what will become full-fledged apples at the end of the summer!! This will be the very first time a piece of fruit has grown on this tree – as long as the dogs don’t decide to have a feast, of course!?! I’m so excited! I can’t wait to taste the apples this fall; I can’t even remember what brand they are, at this point.
This reminds me of a story that Jesus told about a man who had a fig tree in his yard that didn’t produce any figs. For many years, he waited for the tree to produce fruit — but it didn’t. He was going to have it cut down, but the gardener convinced the man to wait one more year and, in the meantime, he offered to give it some extra care and attention. The owner agreed to give the tree another chance. And guess what? The tree started producing fruit.
Jesus was really talking about us – and about God. God has “planted” us on this earth, and he expects us to produce good fruit in our life. What kind of fruit does God expect? Things like loving one another, living peacefully with our neighbours, having patience, and showing kindness. When God doesn’t see us doing these things in our life, He is very disappointed — but He is willing to give us another chance. He’s not going to give up on us. Just like the trees we talked about: they were not cut down, and they were given another chance.
Jesus is like the gardener. He wants to care for us and help us to be the kind of fruit-bearing children that God wants us to be. If we will trust in him, read the bible, and pray — Jesus will help us to produce a lot of good fruit.
Prayer
Dear Jesus, thank you for giving us another chance, help us to have the kind of fruit in our lives that would be pleasing to our Heavenly Father. And now, together, we will say the prayer that you taught us.
Prayer
The Lord’s Prayer (535)
Transition music
Song: Lord Jesus, think on me (207)
Today’s Message
Scripture reading: Luke 13: 6 – 9
Response: Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
Message: Jesus is the gardener of our lives
Today I want to begin with a story.
Let’s go way back in time to when I was nine years old. My father had a special box on his dresser and told me not to touch anything in this special box. One day, however, I looked in that box and found a pocket watch that was once owned by my Grandad. Carefully, I opened this special watch and found it very interesting. While I was examining it, Dad came home, and I did not have time to put it away. I rushed out of my parent’s bedroom, leaving the watch open and lying on the ensuite floor. Trying to pretend nothing was going on I quietly walked to my bedroom.
Minutes later, I heard my Dad’s footsteps entering my room and he looked me straight in the eye, and asked, “Raymond, did you disobey me by taking Grandad’s pocket watch out of my special box?”
I was guilty and immediately confessed. I asked my father to please forgive me and I promised never to go into his things again.
Years ago, when I was nine, I was remorseful about not respecting my father’s possessions and learned from my mistakes. Now, years later, my father sees me as a responsible and mature son. In light of this story, I find it interesting that just recently, he gifted me with his entire watch collection. It actually includes a 1950’s Rolex and other important watches to our family. As I reflect, the watch collection resembles the fruit that God bestows on us when we humbly repent.
The story I just told reminds me of today’s parable.
Let us read Luke 13:6-9,
Then Jesus told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. So, he said to the gardener who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’
“‘Sir,’ the gardener*9 replied, ‘Please leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”
Most mornings I listen to the news while I am getting ready, so I know what is happening in the world. Did you know that some local news was reported to Jesus in the Bible? This is found just before today’s scripture.
Jesus reflects on the news with a question for the people in Luke 13:1-3. Let me read it–
“At that time some people were there who told Jesus about the Galileans whom Pilate had killed while they were offering sacrifices to God. 2 Jesus answered them, “Because those Galileans were killed in that way, do you think it proves that they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? 3 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”
Then Jesus tells about a tower that collapsed in Luke 13:4-5.
4 “Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them – do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.’”
Jesus’ news update, as I am calling it, tells about two incidents where people were killed. Jesus then asked his listeners if they think these people died because they were more sinful than others. He answers his question with a resounding, “No!” Jesus then goes on to say that unless people repent of their sinfulness they will die spiritually or physically without everlasting life.
It is important to note here, that Jesus told the parable of the barren fruit tree right after emphasizing the need for repentance when the upset Galileans came to him with the sad news update.
The first point of my sermon is: we should repent and then we will be fruitful.
Before we repent, we have to humble ourselves and believe we have sinned. The word for ‘sin’ in koine Greek is HAMARTIA. The definition of HAMARTIA is to miss the mark. In the Bible the mark is the Will of God.
One summer I was a camp Pastor at Brightwood Youth Ranch just west of Edmonton. I remember telling the camp children that sin was doing something bad. Through my studies, I have learned that this explanation may have been too simplistic. In fact, everything we do that is not in God’s will, is sinning.
According to the Bible, the result of sin without repentance is death.
In Luke 13:5, Jesus says, “if one does not repent, one will surely perish,” and Romans 6:23 states, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Repentance is key!
The word for repent is the koine Greek word METANOIA.
Thayer’s lexicon defines METANOIA as: “To change one’s mind.” In other words, to repent, is to change one’s mind to the Will of God. Some pastors have used the word turn for METANOIA. In other words, we turn from sin to God’s Will in our minds.
Luke 3:8 states that we are to produce fruit in keeping with repentance.
Repentance is key!
Another important place repentance is found is in Matthew 3 where John the Baptist is baptizing people around him. John the Baptist states in Matthew 3:2, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
These people were repenting and confessing their sins and John baptized them in the Jordan River. John noticed that many of the Pharisees and Sadducees came to where he was baptizing. John said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
I baptize you with water for repentance…”
In other words, the Pharisees and Sadducees were not saved because they were descendants of Abraham, just like we are not saved because our parents were saved, and we go to church.
Did you notice John described the Pharisees and Sadducees who knew the scriptures as Vipers? They did not produce fruit in keeping with repentance and they must flee from the coming wrath. This parallels the parable of the barren fruit tree in today’s reading. God, being depicted as the owner of the vineyard, wants to cut down the tree that is not producing fruit and put it in the burn pile. Wow! This is serious.
Charles Spurgeon, a prominent pastor in England during the 1800s wrote a book called, “Turn or Burn.” In the book he said, “Trees that bring not forth fruit must be cut down; and sinners who bring not forth repentance, faith, and holiness, must die.
OK, now, I feel like I am preaching a fire and brimstone sermon that announces if we don’t repent of our sins, we will be put into an eternal fire.
Let’s slow down here. There is a solution to all of this: it is to repent, not out of fear, but out of understanding the transformation that takes place when we are repentant to God.
Repentance is key!
If we are to look for fruit, what is the fruit?
In Genesis and Leviticus, we find the phrase ‘be fruitful and multiply’. Fruitful here, means to have children. In the New Testament the meaning of ‘fruitful’ seems different.
An example of being fruitful is given in Galatians 5:22-23. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Fruit is evidence of genuine repentance. In Acts 26:20, Paul preaches that people should repent and turn to God. They demonstrate their repentance by their deeds or /fruitfulness.
Fruit also is an indication of the expanding of the Kingdom of God.
Repentance is key!
The next point of this sermon is: through Jesus we are given another chance.
The fig tree in our reading today is given another chance, but it is not just left to produce fruit on its own. No, the gardener fertilizes it, and digs a ditch for good irrigation. In other words, it is the hard work of the gardener or Jesus/and the Holy Spirit who makes the most of the second chance given to the tree or to us, the sinners. All we have to do is humble ourselves, repent and accept Christ’s sacrifice for our sins and to commit to live Godly lives.
Peter states in 2 Peter 1:5-9
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
When we focus on Christ and read our Bibles, we slowly show Godly characteristics or fruit.
The third point of this sermon is: Jesus and the Father can be the Gardener of our lives.
Jesus actually describes the Father as the gardener of our lives in John 15:1-4.
Let me read it. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean, because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
In today’s parable found in Luke 23 the orchard owner is the Father and the gardener is Christ or the Holy Spirit working in our lives. Both Luke 13 and John 15 focus on Christ being the source of transformation in our lives.
Continuing with the gardening idea, let’s think about what Jesus was getting at in this story as he describes the gardener watering and fertilizing the tree for one more year to produce fruit. The writer of Hebrews writes in chapter 12 how God disciplines us. It draws out the similarity we have with our human fathers. The intent of our human father’s discipline is to teach their children to make good decisions, but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in God’s holiness or sanctify us and make us more Christ-like, exhibiting the fruit in our lives.
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. God does not discipline us because he is being mean, rather he is pruning us to be more fruitful. One might naturally think when we repent, we stop sinful actions. That is true, but with repentance to God, we not only stop our sinful actions, we also develop fruit in our daily lives.
This brings me back to the story I told at the beginning of this sermon about my dad’s prized pocket watch and my disobedience to him. At the time, my father told me how disappointed he was in me, relating this to Scripture, I was being pruned. Later, after many mistakes, my continued repentance and years of maturity, my father has finally gifted me his prized watches.
The focus for repentance should not be that we will be blessed with fruit. Rather, we should understand that, because Christ forgives us, we can have a relationship with God, our Father. If we humble ourselves and repent of our sins we become new creatures and are slowly sanctified and show fruit in our lives. Let me read what Jesus tells his disciples that are being persecuted in John 15:1-27
I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned… 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
Jesus is saying that with Christ, we can bear much fruit, because He is our source, like a vine is to the branches.
To be fruitful means to live a life that produces good works and reflects the character of Christ. It means remaining connected to Him in relationship and allowing Him to work through us to accomplish His purposes.
The final point of this sermon is: the patience of God is limited.
It is imperative that we understand God to be a merciful God who is full of grace, but we have to repent of our sinfulness. Peter 3:9, it says that the Lord is not slow about His promise. He is patient with us, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.
In the parable of the barren fig tree, the owner of the vineyard allows one more year for the gardener to nurture the tree in hopes that it will produce fruit. It is interesting that the vineyard owner noticed the tree was barren for three years. Some scholars think this number is significant, because Jesus’ earthly ministry was three years. The hearers of this message may have listened to Jesus preach many times during the three years, but some still did not repent. Just like us, we have the Bible in our own language, but we still do not repent. It has been made clear that we either repent of our sins or find ourselves at odds with God. Time is of the essence; we do not want to find ourselves barren like the fig tree, wasting soil. Instead, starting today, let us repent regularly, admitting that we need God every moment of our lives. Use the gifts he has given us to be fruitful in the kingdom of God.
Throughout the New Testament, the illustration of being pruned, so we can grow into God’s will is repeated.
Like me, you probably say, “I have already repented, so this sermon is not relevant to me.” The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 7:15 “I do not understand what I do; for I don’t do what I would like to do, but instead I do what I hate.” Later in Romans 7:24-25 Paul writes “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
Paul kept sinning even while trying his best to do God’s will. I can truly relate to him in this regard. Every day, we can repent of our sins and through Christ, the gardener of our lives, we will be transformed into new creatures and will bear godly fruit.
Also, we do not know when our lives will end. Matthew 25:13 states, ““Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” We do not know the timing of Christ’s return, nor do we know when our lives will come to an end. So, repentance and making Christ Lord of our lives is critical.
To conclude
- Repentance is the key. As we repent, God will bless us with fruit in our lives. We should not repent to be blessed, rather we should repent, because we believe that Christ will redeem us and transform us to be fruitful in the Kingdom of God.
- Every day, through Christ we are given another chance. Everyday becoming more mature in Christ. We may have repented of our sins and accepted Christ as saviour, but like Paul in Romans 7 We may find ourselves sinning many days but like Paul says through Jesus Christ who delivers him over and over again; all one has to do is repent.
- Jesus and the Father are the Gardeners of our lives. If we have repented and accepted Christ’s sacrifice for our sins, He will feed, water and prune us, so we become fruitful and the person He created us to be. The father also prunes us so that we can be more fruitful. We can get to know God better by reading His Word and praying. Jesus and the Holy Spirit will do a good work in us, to help us mature in Christ and be fruitful!
- God is waiting.
The owner of the vineyard allowed one more year for the gardener to work with the fig tree. Our Lord patiently waits for us to repent, but we do not know when our lives will end. The time to repent is every day.
- The barren fig tree parable does not have an ending. I believe the reason Jesus does not tell us what happened with the fig tree after the year of grace is that the hearers need to decide how the story ends in their own personal lives.
So, will you repent and focus your life on Christ and use the gifts he has given you to be fruitful in the kingdom of God? Even though Jesus is your Saviour, continue to focus on him every day. If you are here today and you do not know Christ as the Saviour of your life, I would be happy to talk with you about that after the service.
Brothers and sisters of Dayspring, let us go forth and be fruitful.
Song: When we are living (630)
We respond to serve God: Our time of giving
Reflection on giving: Dayspring is empowered to carry out our mission of worship, service, and care by generously given volunteer time, talent, and treasure. Many thanks to all who give so generously!
Prayer of gratitude and for others and ourselves
Lord, we come before you today to say thank you. Thank you for all you have given us–for all the blessings that we can and cannot see. With a grateful heart we thank you Lord for saving us from darkness and delivering us from evil. We accept what you did on the cross as you took our sin and shame. You can take away our sickness and can heal our pain. We thank you for all you have done and are about to do in our lives. Thank you, Lord.
Song: Go ye, go ye unto the world (755)
Sending out with God’s blessing
Repent and focus your life on Christ everyday resulting in being more fruitful for the Kingdom of God. Let us go forth and be fruitful.
Response: Benediction (As you go)
Music postlude
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Numbers in brackets after a song/hymn indicate that it is from the 1997 Book of Praise of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Those and other songs are being used in accordance with the specifications of Dayspring’s licensing with One License (3095377) and CLC (A735555).
Raymond Baker retains the copyright (© 2024) on all original material in this service. As far as Raymond Baker is aware, all of the material that has not been attributed to others is his own creation or is in the public domain. Unacknowledged use of copyrighted material is unintentional and will be corrected immediately upon notification being received.