West Cork Methodists

Love at the Centre - the sermon delves into Matthew 22:34-46 I hope you find the sermon challenging andcomforting... how about a thought for what the love looks like in action ...

There’s an old Irish saying that people live in each other’s shelter.

Anyone who’s lived in the West Cork countryside knows how true that is. When the weather turns, you don’t get through it alone. Someone checks in, someone lends a hand, someone turns up at the door with a lift or a pot of stew or just a bit of company.

This morning the clocks went back, and we were all handed an extra hour. Most of us were glad of it, and most of us have probably already found something to put in it.

But what if we gave a little of that hour to someone’s shelter later today?

 A phone call to someone on their own.

A visit.

 A cup of tea shared.

Jesus tells us that everything hangs on loving God and loving our neighbour. Maybe that’s what love looks like: being a bit of shelter for somebody else, and letting them be a bit of shelter for us.

None of us gets through life alone. Thanks be to God for that.

We dig deep into Matthew 22:15-22

1. Traps and truth

2. Earthly responsibilities

3. Ultimate loyalty

And perhaps this week's clarity is simply this:

Know whose you are.

Yes, live in the world.

Live responsibly.

Pay what you owe.

Take your responsibilities seriously.

Love your community.

Love your neighbour.

Get involved.

Care.

But don't confuse any earthly loyalty with the one loyalty that sits beneath everything else.

Empires come and go.

Governments come and go.

Companies come and go.

Currencies change.

The coins in our pockets change.

But the image you carry...

that doesn't wear off.

(Take the coin. Look at it one last time.)

The coin carries an earthly image.

You carry God's.

So give Caesar what belongs to Caesar.

And give to God what belongs to God.

And what belongs to God?

You do.

Matthew 22:1–14 Where am I going: Invitation and readiness

Initial points:

Main thrust of the argument: All are invited — but we must come prepared.

1. Whose vineyard is it? (Matthew 21:33)

2. God's patience: still he sends (Matthew 21:34-37)

3. Human resistance: hands that won't let go (Matthew 21:38-39; Philippians 3:4-8)

4. Christ the cornerstone: build around him (Matthew 21:42-44)

5. The fruit that grows (Matthew 21:43; Philippians 3:9)

our greatest treasure is not what we own.

Matthew 21:23–32 Obedience from the heart

Initial points:

If your honest answer today is:

Lord, I've said yes, but I haven't gone.

Or even:

Lord, actually, I've been saying no.

The story isn't finished.

The field is still there.

The Father is still calling.

And you can still change your mind.

You can still go.

The Lay Leader of the Methodist Church came to share with us a Harvest Thanksgiving message based on the parable of the Sower.

There is a little ambient noise

Grace that offends our sense of fairness

Main thrust of my argument: God’s grace is not earned — it is given.

Matthew 18:25-35

The parable of the unforgiving servant

1. Peter’s Question - Lord, how many times?

2. The Story - The Unforgiving Servant

3. The Heart of Mercy - Why Forgiveness Matters

4. What Forgiveness Looks Like in Real Life

5. The Kingdom Clarity Moment - Seeing the Cross Again

6. The Invitation - A Kingdom Shaped by Mercy

Matthew 18:15-20 is unpacked as we look at reconciliation and how the church can be a grace filled community

This week I was in need of some pausing so along withthe sermon there is a call tp worship based on Psalm 15, a prayer, the Scripture reading Matthew 16:21-28 and a Selah Pause.

1. JESUS PREDICTS HIS SUFFERING - CLARITY THAT SHOCKS

2. PETER’S REACTION - THE TEMPTATION TO AVOID THE CROSS

3. TAKE UP YOUR CROSS - THE HEART OF COSTLY DISCIPLESHIP

4. LOSING LIFE TO FIND IT - THE PARADOX OF THE KINGDOM

5. THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP - WHERE THIS MEETS US

We will hear a story frm Corrie Ten boom's life and the challnge -

And Jesus says:

Follow Me.