Ideas for a sermon or interactive talk
See also ‘Thought for the week’ to read out in place of a sermon; and ‘The week in focus', linking the readings to the news.
- This week focuses on vocation in the passages and would suit a vocation Sunday. God calls all of us to live out our vocation as Christians and in specific ways. It is easy to assume the only vocations that are worth honouring are those within the Church (e.g. being a church leader, worship leader, etc), but our vocation covers the whole of life. St Benedict’s rule says that we should offer all our work as prayer, as a form of worship. How can we celebrate all the vocations in our community and worship God through them?
- Both Isaiah (6:5) and Peter (Luke 5:8) recognise their sinfulness when they are called. Both of them are forgiven, despite feeling unworthy. How can we foster a humility that understands we are sinful and in need of repentance but also called and chosen? Think about other seemingly unsuitable characters in Scripture who are called by God for specific work, e.g. Jonah, David, Paul, Tamar, Rahab. Or some more contemporary examples, such as Mick Fleming, a former violent drug dealer and addict who now leads Church on the Street in Burnley (3). These people were called by God and redeemed after their failures. Their stories guide us in understanding how we, despite our sinfulness, can be forgiven and undertake what God calls us to do.
- In Luke's Gospel, it is only when Jesus demonstrates that he has power over Simon Peter’s area of expertise, the catching of fish, that his understanding of Jesus is transformed. We often think that spiritual experience is a one-off thing, a road-to-Damascus event that changes us forever and cannot be repeated. Instead, it is useful to see this part of Simon Peter’s life as one of many insights and epiphanies he had about Jesus, leading through his impulsive words, his betrayal and desertion, his reinstatement by the Sea of Galilee and finally his leadership of the early church. God is always building on his earlier work, and we do well to value and remember each stage in our journey with him.
- Simon Peter was a fisherman. Jesus told him that he would continue to fish, but for people. Peter was used to planning out a day’s catch of fish; now he was planning where to go and how to reach people. Similarly, can we give thought to how we can best meet people and to help them to see Jesus. If Jesus is going to encounter our friends and family in their workplaces or their homes, it will surely be through us!
3 https://spckpublishing.co.uk/blown-away
Thought for the week: Qualifications
Read out in place of a sermon if you wish
What qualifies you to be a missionary? Is it a knowledge of other languages? Depth of biblical understanding? An ability to blend in with different cultures? A young man once spent a year teaching English in the Middle East. He said that he had felt really special when they’d accepted his application and went out feeling like he was going to make such a difference to the people there. Reflecting on the experience after he returned, he realised that the main reason he had been chosen was that, in a competitive school environment, a native English-speaking teacher is a selling point. As a result, he had been paraded before parents to show that this school had teachers with a genuine English accent. ‘I had done all that they wanted from me in a week – they weren’t worried how good my teaching was,’ he said.
Perhaps you think this a sad story, but he continued: ‘I thought I was going to change the whole country. Instead, God changed me and used me in a number of really small ways with certain people. God could have used someone else but, because I was there, I was able to be part of things he was doing and my picture of God and of the world got bigger.’
Both Simon Peter and Isaiah are chosen when they recognise who God is and obey his call. Their obedience is their only qualification. Isaiah is made clean only by the angel’s intervention and Peter knows he isn’t good enough to be with Jesus. By recognising something of who God is, and following what he tells them, Peter and Isaiah show us all that we need to do if we are to be missionaries, telling others about Jesus.
Active worship
Your calling W E
Hear stories of vocation
- Beforehand, ask up to three people to be prepared to talk about their vocation or ‘calling’ in life. (Choose a range of people, in paid and unpaid work – remember that calling can cover more than a job, it could be to volunteering work or a hobby.)
- Ask them some of the following questions:
- What drew you to pursue this role/hobby?
- What promptings from God did you receive along the way?
- What role did other people play?
- Were there any stumbling blocks? What helped you to overcome them?
- How does your calling benefit others? - Then invite questions from the rest of the congregation.
Whom do you trust? W E
Explore whose instructions to follow
You will need: images of public figures, e.g. politicians, judges, emergency services personnel, lawyers, ministers, teachers, car salespeople and an image of Jesus.
- Place the images at the front of your space or project them on a screen, but hold back the image of Jesus. Ask people to imagine that each of these people is giving them instructions. How far would they trust them? They should give a number from 1-10, with 1 being not at all, and 10 meaning they would follow the instructions without question. Ask people why they have given their scores.
- Then show the image of Jesus. Don’t ask for a spoken response but give space for people to think about what Jesus has asked them to do. How will they respond?
Confession time W E S
Reflect on what comes between us and God
You will need: paper and pens; bin or shredder.
- Isaiah’s response to seeing God’s glory was to become very aware of his own sin (Isaiah 6:5); Peter’s response to the miraculous catch of fish is to declare his own sinfulness (Luke 5:8). Give everyone a piece of paper and a pen and ask them to reflect on what might come between them and a holy God. They don’t need to write any details but can instead draw a shape or scribble to represent each thing that comes to mind.
- After a few minutes of quiet, invite everyone to bring their paper to the front and to dispose of it in a dustbin or shredder.
Missionary job spec W E
What does a missionary look like?
- On a flip chart/large piece of paper, draw a vertical line down the middle. Return to the missionary job specifications people wrote in Gather.
Ask people to call out some of the adjectives they wrote down and write these on the left-hand side of the paper. - Now ask what adjectives describe Isaiah or Peter from the Bible readings – write these on the right-hand side of the paper.
- Then ask if we have built up the idea of ‘missionary’ as some kind of expert or mystic? Why would God not be calling us? Who might God be sending us to in the week to come? Take a minute to reflect and then pray.
A simple worship activity E S
Pray about sharing our faith
You will need: card or paper fish shapes.
- In small groups of three or four, share what you will be doing this week and some of the people you will be meeting. Think together about who God is asking you to ‘fish’ for and share your faith with. Write their names on the fish shapes.
- Pray for each other that God would be at work in the people you will see this week. Take your fish shapes home as a reminder to pray for them.
A prayer for all ages together
Jesus, you have the power to change any situation.
Be with us this week at home, work and school,
and help us to share your love and strength
with everyone we meet. Amen.
Activity sheet
| Spiritual styles abbreviations W Word E Emotion S Symbol A Action Read our Spiritual Styles articles |