Morning Prayer - Saturday, 8 June 2019

From the day after Ascension Day until the Day of Pentecost 

Thomas Ken, Bishop of Bath and Wells, Nonjuror, Hymn Writer, 1711

Psalm 42

As the deer longs for the water brooks, so longs my soul for you, O God. My soul is athirst for God, even for the living God; when shall I come before the presence of God?

My tears have been my bread day and night, while all day long they say to me, ‘Where is now your God?’

Now when I think on these things, I pour out my soul: how I went with the multitude and led the procession to the house of God, with the voice of praise and thanksgiving, among those who kept holy day. 

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul, and why are you so disquieted within me? O put your trust in God; for I will yet give him thanks,

who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

My soul is heavy within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of Jordan, and from Hermon and the hill of Mizar.

Deep calls to deep in the thunder of your waterfalls; all your breakers and waves have gone over me. The Lord will grant his loving-kindness in the daytime; through the night his song will be with me, a prayer to the God of my life. I say to God my rock, ‘Why have you forgotten me, and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresses me?’ As they crush my bones, my enemies mock me; while all day long they say to me, ‘Where is now your God?’

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul? and why are you so disquieted within me? O put your trust in God; for I will yet give him thanks, who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

Psalm 43

Give judgement for me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people; deliver me from the deceitful and the wicked. For you are the God of my refuge; why have you cast me from you, and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresses me? O send out your light and your truth, that they may lead me, and bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling, that I may go to the altar of God, to the God of my joy and gladness; and on the lyre I will give thanks to you, O God my God.

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul, and why are you so disquieted within me? O put your trust in God; for I will yet give him thanks,who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

Deuteronomy 32.48-end

On that very day the Lord addressed Moses as follows: ‘Ascend this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites for a possession; you shall die there on the mountain that you ascend and shall be gathered to your kin, as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his kin; because both of you broke faith with me among the Israelites at the waters of Meribath-kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, by failing to maintain my holiness among the Israelites. Although you may view the land from a distance, you shall not enter it—the land that I am giving to the Israelites.’

Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the Lord showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain—that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees—as far as Zoar. The Lord said to him, ‘This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, “I will give it to your descendants”; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.’ Then Moses, the servant of the Lord, died there in the land of Moab, at the Lord’s command. He was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor, but no one knows his burial place to this day. Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired and his vigour had not abated. The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab for thirty days; then the period of mourning for Moses was ended.

Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him; and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face. He was unequalled for all the signs and wonders that the Lord sent him to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants and his entire land, and for all the mighty deeds and all the terrifying displays of power that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.

1 John 5

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only but with the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, for the Spirit is the truth. There are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood, and these three agree. If we receive human testimony, the testimony of God is greater; for this is the testimony of God that he has testified to his Son. Those who believe in the Son of God have the testimony in their hearts. Those who do not believe in God have made him a liar by not believing in the testimony that God has given concerning his Son. And this is the testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him. If you see your brother or sister committing what is not a mortal sin, you will ask, and God will give life to such a one—to those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin that is mortal; I do not say that you should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not mortal.

We know that those who are born of God do not sin, but the one who was born of God protects them, and the evil one does not touch them. We know that we are God’s children, and that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

The Collect

O God, from whom all blessings flow, by whose providence we are kept and by whose grace we are directed: help us, through the example of your servant Thomas Ken, faithfully to keep your word, humbly to accept adversity and steadfastly to worship you; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Morning Prayer - 23 May 15

Psalm 42
As the deer longs for the water brooks, so longs my soul for you, O God. My soul is athirst for God, even for the living God; when shall I come before the presence of God?
My tears have been my bread day and night, while all day long they say to me, ‘Where is now your God?’

Now when I think on these things, I pour out my soul: how I went with the multitude and led the procession to the house of God, with the voice of praise and thanksgiving, among those who kept holy day. 
Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul, and why are you so disquieted within me?
O put your trust in God; for I will yet give him thanks, who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

My soul is heavy within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of Jordan, and from Hermon and the hill of Mizar. Deep calls to deep in the thunder of your waterfalls; all your breakers and waves have gone over me. 

The Lord will grant his loving-kindness in the daytime; through the night his song will be with me, a prayer to the God of my life. I say to God my rock, ‘Why have you forgotten me, and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresses me?’ As they crush my bones, my enemies mock me; while all day long they say to me, ‘Where is now your God?’

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul? and why are you so disquieted within me?
O put your trust in God; for I will yet give him thanks, who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

Psalm 43
Give judgement for me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people; deliver me from the deceitful and the wicked. For you are the God of my refuge; why have you cast me from you, and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresses me?

O send out your light and your truth, that they may lead me, and bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling, that I may go to the altar of God, to the God of my joy and gladness; and on the lyre I will give thanks to you, O God my God. 
Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul, and why are you so disquieted within me?
put your trust in God; for I will yet give him thanks, who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

Deuteronomy 32.48-end, 34
On that very day the Lord addressed Moses as follows: ‘Ascend this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites for a possession; you shall die there on the mountain that you ascend and shall be gathered to your kin, as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his kin; because both of you broke faith with me among the Israelites at the waters of Meribath-kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, by failing to maintain my holiness among the Israelites. Although you may view the land from a distance, you shall not enter it—the land that I am giving to the Israelites.’ 
Is not this laid up in store with me, sealed up in my treasuries?

1 John 5
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only but with the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, for the Spirit is the truth. There are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood, and these three agree. If we receive human testimony, the testimony of God is greater; for this is the testimony of God that he has testified to his Son. Those who believe in the Son of God have the testimony in their hearts. Those who do not believe in God have made him a liar by not believing in the testimony that God has given concerning his Son. And this is the testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him. If you see your brother or sister committing what is not a mortal sin, you will ask, and God will give life to such a one—to those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin that is mortal; I do not say that you should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not mortal.

We know that those who are born of God do not sin, but the one who was born of God protects them, and the evil one does not touch them. We know that we are God’s children, and that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

The Collect
Risen, ascended Lord, as we rejoice at your triumph, fill your Church on earth with power and compassion, that all who are estranged by sin may find forgiveness and know your peace, to the glory of God the Father. Amen.

Daily Office - May 18

Psalm 42
 As the deer longs for the water brooks,
so longs my soul for you, O God.

My soul is athirst for God, even for the living God;
when shall I come before the presence of God?

My tears have been my bread day and night,
while all day long they say to me, ‘Where is now your God?’

Now when I think on these things, I pour out my soul:
how I went with the multitude and led the procession to the house of God,
With the voice of praise and thanksgiving, among those who kept holy day.

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul and why are you so disquieted within me?

O put your trust in God; for I will yet give him thanks,
who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

My soul is heavy within me;
therefore I will remember you from the land of Jordan,
and from Hermon and the hill of Mizar.

Deep calls to deep in the thunder of your waterfalls;
all your breakers and waves have gone over me.

The Lord will grant his loving-kindness in the daytime;
through the night his song will be with me,
a prayer to the God of my life.

I say to God my rock,
‘Why have you forgotten me, and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresses me?’

As they crush my bones, my enemies mock me;
while all day long they say to me, ‘Where is now your God?’

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul?
and why are you so disquieted within me?

O put your trust in God;
for I will yet give him thanks,
who is the help of my countenance, and my god.

Psalm 43
Give judgement for me, O God,
and defend my cause against an ungodly people;
deliver me from the deceitful and the wicked.

For you are the God of my refuge;
why have you cast me from you,
and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresses me?

O send out your light and your truth, that they may lead me,
and bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling,

That I may go to the altar of God,
to the God of my joy and gladness;
and on the lyre I will give thanks to you, O God my God.

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul,
and why are you so disquieted within me?

O put your trust in God;
for I will yet give him thanks,
who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

Deuteronomy 32.48-end, 34
On that very day the Lord addressed Moses as follows: ‘Ascend this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites for a possession; you shall die there on the mountain that you ascend and shall be gathered to your kin, as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his kin; because both of you broke faith with me among the Israelites at the waters of Meribath-kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, by failing to maintain my holiness among the Israelites. Although you may view the land from a distance, you shall not enter it—the land that I am giving to the Israelites.’
Is not this laid up in store with me, sealed up in my treasuries?

1 John 5
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only but with the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, for the Spirit is the truth. There are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood, and these three agree. If we receive human testimony, the testimony of God is greater; for this is the testimony of God that he has testified to his Son. Those who believe in the Son of God have the testimony in their hearts. Those who do not believe in God have made him a liar by not believing in the testimony that God has given concerning his Son. And this is the testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him. If you see your brother or sister committing what is not a mortal sin, you will ask, and God will give life to such a one—to those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin that is mortal; I do not say that you should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not mortal.

We know that those who are born of God do not sin, but the one who was born of God protects them, and the evil one does not touch them. We know that we are God’s children, and that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

The Collect
O God the King of glory,
you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ
with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven:
we beseech you, leave us not comfortless,
but send your Holy Spirit to strengthen us
and exalt us to the place where our Saviour Christ is gone before,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Seeing God as man and God in mere mortals

I was extremely taken up by the readings in the communion service this morning for in one people were in the presence of God and yet saw a mere man whilst in the other we had men and were invited to see God.

Let's unwrap this by starting with the Gospel passage first (Luke 4. 14 - 22):

"Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ 
Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down.
The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him.
He began by saying to them,
‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’ 

All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. ‘Isn’t this Joseph’s son?’ they asked.

So here we are, imagine the scenario before us for what we have is God's people (the Jews, the 'chosen' ones, call them what you will) and there, in their very midst is God made man - Jesus! And they not only missed it; but very soon after (if we were to read on from vv23 - 40 ) we find that it wasn't long before they were not only up in arms over Him and His words but were heading for a cliff to throw Him off!

Yes indeedy - God was in their midst and they missed Him!

Now compare this with the New Testament reading from 1 John (4.19 - 5.4):

"We love because he first loved us.
Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.
And he has given us this command:
anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.

This is how we know that we love the children of God:
by loving God and carrying out his commands.

In fact, this is love for God:
to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the wo rld, even our faith."

We love because he first loved us, or for those of you out there who think it's  only 'theology' when it has proper 'theological' words, 'the ethical imperative is based upon the soteriological indicative!'  
(Now we can all relax and consider what I'm writing to be proper!)

What this passage tells is that we only need to look at the human person before us to see the invisible God made visible and if we claim to love this invisible God - how on earth can we hate the image of him before us? How amazing that when we have mere mortals before us we can, if we look with right eyes and hearts) find the very God we love unveiled before us? How odd that the Jews in Nazareth had that same God incarnate and saw despicable (and church of the cliff-worthy) man!

The 1John passage is what the Church needs to hear, live and then, in those before them, see - it is what we are called to be: Inclusive and welcoming!

We need to work so that those who see in us the image of the invisible God made visible and we need to work to find the same in others; and this is not always an easy task for so many of us are unloveable!

So many of us are broken, flawed, disobedient, cruel, spiteful and condemnatory (I know - I've seen some of the letters that get written!) and even worse than those things listed - and yet we need to keep an eye open for the God revealed in the person before us. We need to be working to help others see the same in us and - if someone comes in to your church and reads the Isaiah 61 passage that Jesus did in our Gospel - don't panic, you'll recognise Him next time (and it won't be Him) so you can welcome them and seek the image of God in them (for they ain't God) - better still, no need to chuck him (or her) off a cliff.

Thank you for helping me see God made visible :-)

Daily Office - Jan 10

William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1645

Psalm 97
The Lord is king: let the earth rejoice;
let the multitude of the isles be glad.

Clouds and darkness are round about him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

Fire goes before him
and burns up his enemies on every side.

His lightnings lit up the world;
the earth saw it and trembled.

The mountains melted like wax at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

The heavens declared his righteousness
and all the peoples have seen his glory.

Confounded be all who worship carved images
and delight in mere idols.
Bow down before him, all you gods.

Zion heard and was glad, and the daughters of Judah rejoiced,
because of your judgements, O Lord.

For you, Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.

The Lord loves those who hate evil;
he preserves the lives of his faithful
and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

Light has sprung up for the righteous
and joy for the true of heart.

Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name.

Psalm 149
Alleluia.
O sing to the Lord a new song;
sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful.

Let Israel rejoice in their maker;
let the children of Zion be joyful in their king.

Let them praise his name in the dance;
let them sing praise to him with timbrel and lyre.

For the Lord has pleasure in his people
and adorns the poor with salvation.

Let the faithful be joyful in glory;
let them rejoice in their ranks,

With the praises of God in their mouths
and a two-edged sword in their hands;

To execute vengeance on the nations
and punishment on the peoples;

To bind their kings in chains
and their nobles with fetters of iron;
To execute on them the judgement decreed:
such honour have all his faithful servants.
Alleluia.

Isaiah 65.17-end
For I am about to create new heavens
   and a new earth;
the former things shall not be remembered
   or come to mind.
But be glad and rejoice for ever
   in what I am creating;
for I am about to create Jerusalem as a joy,
   and its people as a delight.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
   and delight in my people;
no more shall the sound of weeping be heard in it,
   or the cry of distress.
No more shall there be in it
   an infant that lives but a few days,
   or an old person who does not live out a lifetime;
for one who dies at a hundred years will be considered a youth,
   and one who falls short of a hundred will be considered accursed.
They shall build houses and inhabit them;
   they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
They shall not build and another inhabit;
   they shall not plant and another eat;
for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
   and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
They shall not labour in vain,
   or bear children for calamity;
for they shall be offspring blessed by the Lord—
   and their descendants as well.
Before they call I will answer,
   while they are yet speaking I will hear.
The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,
   the lion shall eat straw like the ox;
   but the serpent—its food shall be dust!
They shall not hurt or destroy
   on all my holy mountain, says the Lord.

1 John 5.13-end
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him. If you see your brother or sister committing what is not a mortal sin, you will ask, and God will give life to such a one—to those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin that is mortal; I do not say that you should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not mortal.

We know that those who are born of God do not sin, but the one who was born of God protects them, and the evil one does not touch them. We know that we are God’s children, and that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

The Collect
O God,
who by the leading of a star manifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth:
mercifully grant that we,
who know you now by faith,
may at last behold your glory face to face;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Daily Office - Jan 9

Psalm 2
Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,
‘Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.’
The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.
He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
‘I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.’
I will proclaim the Lord’s decree: He said to me,
‘You are my son; today I have become your father.
Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.
You will break them with a rod of iron; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.’

Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth.
Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling.
Kiss his son, or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction, for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Psalm 48
Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise,
in the city of our God, his holy mountain.
Beautiful in its loftiness, the joy of the whole earth,
like the heights of Zaphon is Mount Zion, the city of the Great King.
God is in her citadels; he has shown himself to be her fortress.
When the kings joined forces, when they advanced together, they saw her and were astounded; they fled in terror.
Trembling seized them there, pain like that of a woman in labour.
You destroyed them like ships of Tarshish shattered by an east wind.
As we have heard, so we have seen in the city of the Lord Almighty, in the city of our God: God makes her secure for ever.
Within your temple, O God, we meditate on your unfailing love.
Like your name, O God,
your praise reaches to the ends of the earth;
your right hand is filled with righteousness.
Mount Zion rejoices, the villages of Judah are glad because of your judgments.
Walk about Zion, go round her, count her towers, consider well her ramparts,
view her citadels, that you may tell of them to the next generation.
For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end

Psalm 77
I cried out to God for help;
I cried out to God to hear me.
When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;
at night I stretched out untiring hands, and I would not be comforted.
I remembered you, God, and I groaned;
I meditated, and my spirit grew faint.
You kept my eyes from closing;
I was too troubled to speak.
I thought about the former days, the years of long ago;
I remembered my songs in the night.
My heart meditated and my spirit asked:
‘Will the Lord reject for ever?
Will he never show his favour again?
Has his unfailing love vanished for ever?
Has his promise failed for all time?
Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has he in anger withheld his compassion?’

Then I thought,
‘To this I will appeal:
the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.
I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
I will consider all your works
and meditate on all your mighty deeds.’

Your ways, God, are holy.
What god is as great as our God?
You are the God who performs miracles;
you display your power among the peoples.
With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.
The waters saw you, God,
the waters saw you and writhed;
the very depths were convulsed.
The clouds poured down water,
the heavens resounded with thunder; your arrows flashed back and forth.
Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind,
your lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked.
Your path led through the sea,
your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen.
You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

Isaiah 65.1-16
‘I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me. To a nation that did not call on my name, I said, “Here am I, here am I.”

All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people, who walk in ways not good, pursuing their own imaginations  - a people who continually provoke me to my very face,
offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on altars of brick; who sit among the graves and spend their nights keeping secret vigil; who eat the flesh of pigs, and whose pots hold broth of impure meat; who say, “Keep away; don’t come near me, for I am too sacred for you!”

Such people are smoke in my nostrils, a fire that keeps burning all day.
'See, it stands written before me; I will not keep silent but will pay back in full; I will pay it back into their laps - both your sins and the sins of your ancestors,’
says the Lord.
‘Because they burned sacrifices on the mountains and defied me on the hills, I will measure into their lap the full payment for their former deeds.’

This is what the Lord says:
‘As when juice is still found in a cluster of grapes and people say, “Don’t destroy it, there is still a blessing in it,” so will I do on behalf of my servants; I will not destroy them all. I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah those who will possess my mountains; my chosen people will inherit them, and there will my servants live. Sharon will become a pasture for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting-place for herds, for my people who seek me.
‘But as for you who forsake the Lord and forget my holy mountain, who spread a table for Fortune and fill bowls of mixed wine for Destiny, I will destine you for the sword, and all of you will fall in the slaughter; for I called but you did not answer, I spoke but you did not listen. You did evil in my sight and chose what displeases me.’

Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
‘My servants will eat, but you will go hungry; my servants will drink, but you will go thirsty; my servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame.
My servants will sing out of the joy of their hearts, but you will cry out from anguish of heart and wail in brokenness of spirit.
You will leave your name for my chosen ones to use in their curses; the Sovereign Lord will put you to death, but to his servants he will give another name.
Whoever invokes a blessing in the land will do so by the one true God; whoever takes an oath in the land will swear by the one true God. For the past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from my eyes.

1 John 5.1-12
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

This is the one who came by water and blood - Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son.

Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony.
Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son.
And this is the testimony:

God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
Whoever has the Son has life;
whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

The Collect
O God,
who by the leading of a star
manifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth:
mercifully grant that we,
who know you now by faith,
may at last behold your glory face to face;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Version: NIV

What a great Sunday!

Just loved this morning's readings (Acts 10:44-48, 1 John 5:1-6 and John 15:9-17) as they led us in to some wonderful places. Here's some brief thoughts:

Open to God Acts 10
The Acts 10 reading this morning find us with a Peter who has, three times, been challenged by a vision which called upon him to put aside his dietary rules. In the vision he is told, "Get up, Peter, kill and eat." Peter's response is, "Surely not, Lord. I have never eaten anything impure or unclean. God's response is clear: "Do not call anything that God has made clean impure!"
Peter is thinking about what this means when a delegation from a Gentile, Cornelius, arrives and, to cut the story short, at the bidding of the Holy Spirit he goes. Cornelius tells Peter how God told him to call Peter to come. Now it was against the religious laws for a Jew to enter a Gentile house and we have to remember that Peter was a 'Jew above Jews' in his story. This was a tough one.
But the realisation that God does not show favouritism but accepts all who acknowledges Him and does what is right! And so he tells them the kerygma (the Good News, Gospel, the account of jesus, life, death and resurrection) and as he does the Holy Spirit came upon those gentiles and the Jews, who had come with Peter were 'astonished' WHAT! And so Peter asks the question: "If they have received the Holy Spirit, how can anyone stand in the way of their being baptised with water?"

Born of God 1 Jn5
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God and everyone who loves the father loves the child as well. These AD 90 words form for us a summation of the Acts passage.
He speaks of a birth that is a collision of who we were with who God calls us, and has caused Christ to die, for us to be. We are not a recalled creation, like a car that has been taken back to the manufacturer to remove a design flaw, as some preach, but a NEW creation. We are reborn. We are completely undone and remade into an entirely new creature. (C S Lewis)
And it begins with love. Loving God and as we heard last week, we can't love the invisible God and not love the image of Him made visible in those around us. And if we have love then there should be no enmity between us. No factions. No vile and wicked finger pointing. We may not agree but there has to be a place where unity in who God is and why Christ died for us is open to the healing and unifying move of the Holy Spirit.
This is the evidence of the new birth and the sign of being one family, laos, the people of God.

Abiding in God Jn 15
Last week we were challenged by the words that: Jesus is the true Vine, the father is the gardener. We were exhorted to bear fruit. Abundant fruit and told how we couldn't do this in isolation from the plant. Separation meant withering and dying (could that be a word to the Church today?).
So here we are being told that just as the Father loves the Son, so too does the Son loves us. To remain centred in this love we need to do something tough; "To keep Jesus' commandments just as jesus has kept His father's!"
And this not only places us in His love but brings us joy. Yes, it sounds odd to us, God's children, but doing what we are told (commanded) to do brings us joy. Those of us who are parents will be aware that we tell our children what to do (and not to do) so that they will be safe, happy and loving (and loveable).
Our John passage continues with the words that I have used often in a military setting. The words about laying down one's life foe a friend. This is what Jesus did for us, His friends. But there is a barb here perhaps, the fact that we are His friend is we keep His commands. Those who oppose God's commands oppose Him and are not His friends. This is a passage I often hear others skip over or drop their voice over.
If we are open to God and are born of God then surely we need also to be obedient to God?
And if we are friends with God we know what the Son is doing and have open to us all that God intends for us that we might be bearing good fruit, a fruit that will last.

From the first words to Peter - to the last words of John, the hallmark is this:

Love one another

Pax

ps. more men than women in the service - what a great blessing :-)