11th Sunday of Pentecost "God is the Master Planner of Our Lives" August 16, 2020

1. 150 South Orange Ave., South Orange, NJ 07079
11th Sunday after Pentecost

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PRAYER OF CONFESSION
[All]: Forgiving God,
you know when we withhold forgiveness.
Merciful One, you know when we are not merciful.
Gracious Christ,
you know when we are stingy with your grace.
Acceptor and Lover of all,
you know when we reject and exclude.
Forgive us and reclaim us.
Strengthen us with your Spirit of love,
that we may offer forgiveness and compassion
in the pursuit of your unity and love.
In your mercy and grace, we pray. Amen.
(Time for Silent Reflection)

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WORDS OF ASSURANCE
[Leader]: God, who is merciful to all,
forgives us all through the grace and compassion of Christ.
[All]: Thanks be to God!
As we are strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit,
Christ’s mercy will flow through us,
that others may find mercy in us. Amen.

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PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION
[All]: Lord, open our hearts and minds
by the power of your Holy Spirit,
that, as the Scriptures are read
and your Word proclaimed,
we may hear with joy
what you say to us today.
Amen.

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Genesis 45:1-15 (NRSV)
Joseph Makes Himself Known
1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all
his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave
my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he
made himself known to his brothers.
2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him,
and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.
3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father
still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer
him, because they were terrified at his presence. 
FIRST SCRIPTURE READING

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Genesis 45:1-15 (NRSV)
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to
me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother
Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not
be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for
selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent
me ahead of you. 6 For two years now there has been
famine in the land, and for the next five years there will
be no plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of
you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save
your lives by a great deliverance.[a] 
FIRST SCRIPTURE READING

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Genesis 45:1-15 (NRSV)
8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but
God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire
household and ruler of all Egypt. 9 Now hurry back to
my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son
Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt.
Come down to me; don’t delay. 10 You shall live in the
region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children
and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you
have. 11 I will provide for you there, because five years
of famine are still to come. 
FIRST SCRIPTURE READING

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Genesis 45:1-15 (NRSV)
Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to
you will become destitute.’
12 “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother
Benjamin, that it is really I who am speaking to you.
13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in
Egypt and about everything you have seen. And bring my
father down here quickly.” 14 Then he threw his arms
around his brother Benjamin and wept, and
Benjamin embraced him, weeping. 15 And he kissed all his
brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked
with him.
FIRST SCRIPTURE READING

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Romans 11:1-2, 29-32 (NRSV)
Israel’s Rejection Is Not Final
1 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I
myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member
of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected his people
whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says
of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? 29 for the
gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 Just as you
were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy
because of their disobedience, 31 so they have now been
disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they
too may now[a] receive mercy. 32 For God has imprisoned all
in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all.
SECOND SCRIPTURE READING

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Matthew 15:10-20, 21-28 (NRSV)
Things That Defile
10 Then he called the crowd to him and said to them,
“Listen and understand: 11 it is not what goes into the
mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the
mouth that defiles.” 12 Then the disciples approached and
said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees took offense
when they heard what you said?” 13 He answered, “Every
plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be
uprooted. 14 Let them alone; they are blind guides of the
blind.[a] And if one blind person guides another, both will
fall into a pit.” 
GOSPEL LESSON

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Matthew 15:10-20, 21-28 (NRSV)
15 But Peter said to him, “Explain this parable to
us.” 16 Then he said, “Are you also still without
understanding? 17 Do you not see that whatever goes
into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into
the sewer? 18 But what comes out of the mouth
proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles.
19 For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder,
adultery, fornication, theft, false witness,
slander. 20 These are what defile a person, but to eat
with unwashed hands does not defile.” 
GOSPEL LESSON

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Matthew 15:10-20, 21-28 (NRSV)
The Canaanite Woman’s Faith
21 Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and
Sidon. 22 Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and
started shouting, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my
daughter is tormented by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her at
all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, “Send her away, for
she keeps shouting after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the
lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before
him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 He answered, “It is not fair to take
the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord,
yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’
table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Let it
be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
GOSPEL LESSON

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By Dr. Ndubuisi Ejike
August16,2020
of our lives

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Joseph had a dream.

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But the plot to kill the
dream was in vain.

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God had a plan for Joseph!
His dream came into fruition.

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Conclusion:
The Good News!
By Dr. Ndubuisi Ejike
August16,2020

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THE LORD’S PRAYER
AMEN.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power,
and the glory, forever and ever.

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The South Orange-Vailsburg United Methodist Church