If anyone would like the music for our hymns today, please put your hand up and we will bring it to you.

Please don't feel embarrassed if the children are a bit noisy - we welcome everyone here.

"The Bible".

Our sentence for today is :

"Your Word is a lamp to guide me and a light for my path." ( Psalm 119 verse 105 )..

Well, perhaps they do, but most people know very little about the Bible, and sometimes what they do know about the Bible turns out to be wrong. We haven't time to tell you much about the Bible, but we'll try to get it right, and we think it's interesting.

Perhaps one of the things that everyone does know about the Christian Bible is that most of it is Jewish. The first part of the Bible is the Old Testament, and that's all Jewish scripture. The last part is the New Testament, and most of that was written by Jews who'd chosen to follow Jesus.

That's what our first hymn is about. It's an echo song. Some of the actors will sing the line then we invite you to join in the echo.

Please stand to sing the hymn

A.D. - B.C..

Organist start CD Player.

During this hymn Child 1, Child 2, Child 3 Child 4, Child 5, Child 6 stand near flowers on organ side with the Bibles ready to bring them to front, assisted by teacher with the eight cards, Helper ready to put cards on wall.

Organist turn CD Player off;

Singers return to their places.

The Bible : for some it is a family heirloom that sits on the shelf gathering dust.

Some never read it.

Others read it every day.

( pointing to the family Bible ) It might be very large.

It might be very small.

Whatever text, language or form the Bible comes in, the content is the same.

It carries within its pages the knowledge and teachings of our God and a history of His people, the Jews.

The Old Testament.

The Jewish people collected their writings about God together and they became what we now know as the "Old Testament", a collection of 39 books which were carefully copied and preserved from generation to generation.

Jesus knew these writings and often quoted from them.

The first five books of the Old Testament contain THE LAW - and also the Jewish understanding of how the universe began, and of how the Jewish nation came into being and settled in the land of Israel.

Teacher whispers the name of the book of the Bible to each child in turn who shouts the name out. In all cases, particularly for the long lists, the names should follow as quickly as possible.

Between the Old and New Testaments there is a gap of about 400 years.

The Jews didn't go to sleep during this time, and produced some other religious writings, including the fourteen books of the Apocrypha, which are accepted as worthy by most of the Christian church. We don't hear much about them, perhaps because they don't introduce much that's new, but they do include some lovely poetry and two detective stories.

The really new event that came along was Jesus.

It was during the Roman era that Jesus was born, and the writing of the New Testament began. These 27 books were written in the period between 60 and 100 AD.

The New Testament.

The Bible is a truly wonderful book, and for those who read it seriously and prayerfully it has the power to change their lives. The next reading tells us how this happened to one of the Jewish kings at a time when the Jews had forgotten their relationship with God, and let the temple fall into disrepair.

King Josiah makes a covenant to obey the Lord God.

Josiah was eight years old when he became king of Judah. In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young he began to worship God. In the eighteenth year of his reign he sent three men to repair the Temple of the Lord God.

Whilst they were clearing the money from a store room, Hilkiah, the high priest, found the book of the Law of the Lord that God had given to Moses.

He said to Shaphan, "I have found the Book of the Law here in the Temple".

He gave the book to Shaphan, who took it to the King. When the king heard the book being read, he wept and tore his clothes in dismay, and repented and humbled himself before the Lord.

Then King Josiah summoned all the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, and together they went to the Temple, accompanied by the priests and the Levites and all the rest of the people, rich and poor alike. Before them all the king read aloud the whole book of the covenant, which had been found in the Temple. He stood by the royal column and made a covenant with the Lord to obey Him, to keep His laws and commands with all his heart and soul, and to put into practice the demands attached to the covenant as written in the book. He made the people of Benjamin and everyone else present in Jerusalem promise to keep the covenant. And so the people of Jerusalem obeyed the requirements of the covenant they had made with the God of their ancestors. King Josiah destroyed all the disgusting idols that were in the territory belonging to the people of Israel, and as long as he lived, he required the people to serve the Lord, the God of their ancestors.

Please stand to sing the hymn

"The B I B L E" -

which says much the same sort of thing, but in a much simpler way.

costumes on - Mrs Evans, Mary, Mr Charles.

Mrs Evans to lectern, Mary to front by flowers organ side, Mary's Father and Mr Charles ready at back.

"The story of Mary Jones".

And now we'd like to tell you the story of how the Bible came to be translated into many different languages. Often the spoken language had to be turned into a written language before the translation could be written down.

Mary Jones was born in Wales over 200 years ago.

A month went by, six months, a year - two years. And still Mary could not read. She went on with her nightly prayer.

( to the congregation ). So Mary came as often as she could. She read every story in it but still wasn't satisfied.

( Father goes across to organ and gets small wooden box. )

Look, Mary! Here is a box that I have made. You can save your money in it.

Pause.

Six years ! Now she was sixteen and she had been working and saving since she was ten.

( Mary goes to organ side and packs her bag. )

... and walked the forty kilometres to Bala. Perhaps she sang as she went -

Mrs Evans ( down Hospital aisle ) and Father ( down organ aisle ) return to their seats.
Mr Charles comes to front up Hospital aisle and closes the altar rail "gate".

( to Mary ) Don't cry any more. I'll see what I can do.

Mr Charles moves to lectern.

which we'll sing twice.

Stage hand places small chair in front of altar.

Now we have guns and our tribal warfare is increasing, especially with the Te Arawa warriors from Rotorua.

When our people are killed we are expected to take revenge, it is our way of life. Things are very bad.

Please can I go to it ? Please, please, please !

She learned that Jesus was different. He had great mana.

He loved people. He didn't fight back, even when His enemies were going to kill Him.

"No revenge" was one of His teachings. "Love your enemies" was another.

Mr and Mrs Brown gave Tarore a copy of the newly printed "Te Rongopai A Ruka", the Gospel of Luke in Maori.

Everyone come and listen !

Ngakuku continues to stand by altar, not joining in but obviously listening.

Ngakuku jumps up grabs his son.

Te Arawa warriors creep closer.

Uita and Warriors 1 and 2 show him the book.

The other warriors pretend not to be interested but they listen too.

Uita hands a note to Warrior 3 who takes it to the back down the centre aisle

Some years later in 1842 Uita and Ngakuku were seen at a prayer meeting praying together.

Meanwhile Ripahau returned, with the book, to Otaki.

PAUSE.

"Tell me the old, old story".

Love for Enemies

But I tell you who hear Me : Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you. If anyone hits you on one cheek, let him hit the other cheek too; if someone takes your coat, let him have your shirt as well. Give to everyone who asks you for something, and when someone takes what is yours, do not ask for it back. Do for others just what you want them to do for you.

If you love only the people who love you, why should you receive a blessing ? Even sinners love those who love them! And if you do good only to those who do good to you, why should you receive a blessing ? Even sinners do that! And if you lend to those from whom you hope to get it back, why should you receive a blessing ? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount! No! Love your enemies and do good to them; lend and expect nothing back. You will then have a great reward, and you will be children of the Most High God. For He is good to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful just as your Father is merciful.

We pray for people in countries where there are no schools or not enough teachers that You would help make it possible for more schools and teachers to be provided. Amen.

Thank You for those who give their time and money to help these things happen. Amen.

We pray that Your Word will continue to have a powerful effect in our lives and in the lives of other people. Amen.

PAUSE

Together we sing -

Amen.

"Thanks to God Whose Word was spoken".

BLESSING