Can't make it to church - Sunday, 24 November 2019

So here we are at the end of the church's liturgical year C (and weekday lectionary 1 - next week Year A and weekday lectionary 2 begins).

The feast of Christ the King (CTK) came into being in 1925 to remind us that our allegiance to other kings and Kaisers),  political leaders (Lenin) brought war, overthrew royal households and Governments.

What was needed was for the world to turn and look to Christ, the King, and following Him bring about a new revolution where the world bowed its knee to Him and worked for peace and unity.  For Pope Pius the eleventh, whose idea CTK was, it was a response against all that brought about war and civil unrest as witnessed in the carnage of the 244 weeks that were WW1 and the October 1917 uprising of the Russian Revolution which had reshaped the world.

Christ the King was a call to reject the emerging secular state, fascism and the communism of Marx and Lenin (and Engels too) which opposed Christian faith and the Church as it sought to dethrone Jesus.

The irony here is that the Church (RC, C of E, Orthodox and others) was perhaps no different a political body than those this feast sought to bring new thinking against! Perhaps if the Church had heeded the cry to take up its cross, deny itself and follow Jesus, the world and the Church might look very different today.

Like the Russian October rising – this feast also appeared in October (later, in 1970, moving to the last Sunday before Advent where it is now) and has become one of the major feasts of the Church where we reflect upon the service, sacrifice and the glory of Jesus, our Lord and our King.

So today we reflect upon those ‘shepherds, who are destroying and scattering the sheep’ and think of the judgement and justice that is to come when Jesus, the Christ, The King returns. We reflect upon those faithful believers throughout the world as again we look at our Old testament reading and reflect upon ‘the remnant of God’s  flock’ and think of what following the Christ really means.

As this last Sunday of the liturgical year arrives we think of Jeremiah’s words:
“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Saviour.”

Here, at the edge of Advent, that path that leads us to Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus becomes once more real for us, we look back on a year of selfish ambition, lies, deceit and division; of conflicts and awful happenings and rather than utter the words ‘Never Again’ – we commit ourselves to follow Jesus and His teachings and the message of love made real in our flesh just as it was made real in His!

We celebrate the invisible God taking on flesh and coming among us and embrace Him for all that He is. Remembering that just a the Father did not spare His Son, so too are we called to face opposition, lies, and strife – perhaps even to death as the saints we remembered and reflected on in our season of Remembrancetide. “Jesus is the head of the body, the Church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy over all things.’

Today the world stands as condemned as those men either side of the cross of Christ.

The men represent those who mock and those who believe.

Which side do you find yourself on today?

Do you ‘fear God’ (which doesn’t mean ‘fear’ in the common sense but means ‘respect, submission, honour, and the same reverence many still exhibit for a monarch such as our own Queen Elizabeth’)?

Where are you today?

Where is the world?

Where is the Church?

Pray for them and for yourselves and those you love – and more importantly, those you hate!

The Collect
God the Father, help us to hear the call of Christ the King and to follow in his service, whose kingdom has no end; for he reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, one glory. Amen.



Jeremiah 23:1-6
“Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord.

Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord.

“I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.

“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Saviour.

Colossians 1:11-20
[We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,] being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Luke 23:33-43
When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.”

The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”

There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the jews.

One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”

But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”

Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”



Post Communion Prayer
Stir up, O Lord, the wills of your faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may by you be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Can't make it to church? Sunday, 11 August 2019

Last week’s Gospel reading ended with a rich man who planned to stop work and, “Eat, drink and be merry,” but died and left it to others before he could enjoy it! In the final verses in the chapter before today’s reading we read:

“Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.”

It is important to consider these words as we begin to unpack today’s Gospel reading for in it we find support for the claim that the Father, “Has been pleased to give you the kingdom.” The problem is that today’s Church (I fear) reads the Bible all wrong because we read it with the eyes of power and possession: The idols of the age.

Not only that but I think the Church is ‘living it wrong’ too, and has been since it got itself organised and started having leaders who were no longer priests (which would surely have been enough) but political leaders playing power-broking games and demanding to be worshipped and feted by the plebeian classes (or in today’s language – Bums on Pews (BoPs)).

Church leaders should be (and should have been) the servants of all and the shepherds of the shepherds – but read your history and you’ll find political figures who schemed, plotted, covered up wrongs and acted contrary to the word of God. Recent Church history confirms the ‘falleness’ of the human race and its impact on the Church and its reputation and its effectiveness in the the society around us as those in authority stumble and fall.

Some, looking at other faiths (and those of no faith), seek to find comfort in the fact that they too have in their histories abuse of power, trust and integrity; but that should only make us more sad shouldn’t it? We live in a fallen world and without the renewal and the life-changing presence of the one true and living God made open to us by the sacrificial death of Jesus, the Christ – the taking of our place on the cross – the power-seeking, self-pleasing, self-satisfied fallen humanity persists and corrupts.

But here’s the good news (and that’s the Gospel!):
“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”

You have been given the kingdom – what on earth does that mean?

Someone I knew won the Lottery. It was a big win totalling a few million pounds. The first thing they did was take a few days off from their job to get over the shock and try to make sense of it all whilst catching their breath. Monday came and there they were back at their desk as usual. Come tea break time I passed them and they asked if we could have a chat – which being me was readily accepted as I LOVE to chat – and it was fascinating. They’d decided to continue with their job until their scheduled retirement arrived. The reason for this was that having worked to reach the top of their ladder, to bin it and walk away would have diminished the value of their whole working life. The had pretty much everything a person could want and yet they did not sell out or become focussed on themselves but sought to live out a higher truth.

Now we, as Christians, have everything too and the question is who you going to serve and how are you going to do it? Do you believe that Jesus’ dying for you has given you the kingdom? If the answer is ‘Yes’ then are you living by faith in that kingdom now? Are you storing up your treasures in heaven, after all what does the Gospel reading tell us to do?

“ Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Where is your heart I wonder? What is your expectation and reality?  Are you living as a citizen of the kingdom of God and seeking the things of the kingdom or living as one of this world and playing at being a believer?

Are you prepared and ready for the Lord to return or is it merely a nice idea, a dream which you hope will be fulfilled? Are you watching and waiting, ready for His return or are you thinking, "My master is taking a long time in coming," and because of this are living as one of the world in the world rather than as one of the kingdom in the world? "It’s been so long, what if He never returns?" But we should be assured that He will and so it’s a question of ‘who do you believe?’ And ‘who do you trust?’

Do you have faith? A faith that gives you confidence in what we hope for even though we do not see it? Like those we read of in the Hebrews passage, do we have a faith which sees past the now and lives fulfilled in the ’yet to come’. Aren’t we like every other unbelieving generation in that we are looking for signs and assurances? The whole point of having 'faith' is that we believe and trust that the hope we have, which is made real for us by the sacrifice of love that is Jesus, will come to pass. We may not see it in the 'now' but it will be ours in the eternity with Him.

Trust in God and believe in Him and the promises made to us – have a faith that denies the wisdom of this world and reside in the wholeness and health won for us by Jesus, the great physician.

Who do you say you believe?

Is this the reality those around you see you living in, or do we look like the rest of the world?

Who are you going to serve?
 

I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Wait for the Lord; be strong and he shall comfort your heart; wait patiently for the Lord. 

(Psalm 27)

The Collect
Lord God, your Son left the riches of heaven and became poor for our sake: when we prosper save us from pride, when we are needy save us from despair, that we may trust in you alone; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Luke 12:32-48

“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”

The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

“The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

Hebrews 11:1-16
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.

By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.” For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith.

By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

Genesis 15:1-18
After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield,  your very great reward.”

But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?”

So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half. Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.

As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. You, however, will go to your ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age. In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.”

When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates—

Post Communion Prayer
Strengthen for service, Lord, the hands that have taken holy things; may the ears which have heard your word be deaf to clamour and dispute; may the tongues which have sung your praise be free from deceit; may the eyes which have seen the tokens of your love shine with the light of hope; and may the bodies which have been fed with your body be refreshed with the fullness of your life; glory to you for ever. Amen.

Can't make it to church - Sunday, 21 October 2018

A few years back I was privileged to hear a sermon on the Gospel where the preacher spoke of James and John and their request of Jesus in the light of being the parent of five children under the age of twelve. The five children would come up to them and ask for things which would exclude, or at least demote down the ranking, the other children. They would often be heard proclaiming the word, "Shotgun (or Dibs," along with whatever it was they wanted.

James and John are doing that today. They are shouting, "Dibs on the thrones either side of you. We want to sit on the thrones!"  Jesus responds by telling them that they don't know what they are asking for and asks them a question: "Can you drink the cup and be baptised with the baptism I have?"

Now they don't understand and so they say, "Of course we can. Bring it on!" But to understand what it is that He is speaking of, we need to look at the Isaiah passage on the suffering servant and consider the resonances and parallels with Jesus' final days:

He took upon Himself the pain and suffering and the eventual death upon the cross. The pain that was the penalty our sins demanded. Those who stood watch Jesus with the Sanhedrin and during the final trial before Pilate considered Him to be a blasphemer and so the death sentence was, for them, punishment from God.

He was pierced by the nails and hanged upon a cross (a death disfavoured by God which meant separation from God) and yet this death reconciled all creation to God and so, 'by His wounds, we are healed'.

He died with the wicked and yet was placed in a rich man's tomb (as the passage says) and rose again (He saw the light of life) and will see many offspring (the believers).

We could go on with Isaiah but instead let us look to Hebrews and see how not only is the Isaiah passage is referred to again but Jesus is proclaimed as our great High Priest. One who offers Himself as an atonement for sin and in His groaning and pain offers up for us prayers of reconciliation to the Godhead. The interesting thing about being a High Priest like Melchizedek is the fact that all the priest came from the Levitical line - that is they were all from Levi's family - But Melchizedek was not part of Levi's family tree, but was appointed by God Himself. Just as Jesus (who is God) was appointed by God to be our High Priest. Melchizedek was the first priest we read of - Jesus is the last and the only priest that we will ever need.

Cool innit?

But back to James and John were sinful people (just like us) and could not have fulfilled the role that Jesus, the Christ, came to fulfil. They were not spotless (that is, without sin) as Jesus was. They could not have made that atonement for the whole of creation. Truly, they did not know what they were asking for! How true this is of us too as we make claims, utter promises and take positions which prove that sometimes we just don't get it!

James and John wanted a place of honour whilst Jesus came to occupy a place of true servanthood and sacrifice. What about us?

Isaiah 53:4-12

Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgement he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested?

For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Hebrews 5:1-10

Every high priest is selected from among the people and is appointed to represent the people in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people. And no one takes this honour on himself, but he receives it when called by God, just as Aaron was.

In the same way, Christ did not take on himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.”

And he says in another place, “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”

During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Son though he was, he learnt obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Mark 10:35-45

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”

“What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with?”

“We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The Collect

Almighty God, in whose service lies perfect freedom: teach us to obey you with loving hearts and steadfast wills; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Post Communion Prayer

Father of light, in whom is no change or shadow of turning, you give us every good and perfect gift and have brought us to birth by your word of truth: may we be a living sign of that kingdom where your whole creation will be made perfect in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jesus and Divorce

(Can't make it to church - Sunday, 7 October 2018)

So here we are again and it's another Sunday where we find the Pharisees trying to trip Jesus up with a question about divorce – as much of a prickly issue theological argument then as it is a sensitive issue now. This was (and still is) one ‘the’ big sex-related controversies: and it was no different in Jesus time thanks to a division between supporters of the two differing rabbinic camps led by rabbis Hillel and Shammai (who we will meet shortly).

I don’t think we can look at the Mark passage without consulting Matthew, for together they form a key to Jesus’ words. Not only that but we need to consider divorce in Deuteronomy 24.1-4 to get an understanding of the context of divorce.

In our Gospel reading Mark reports the Pharisees as asking: “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”  Matthew reports the same encounter with the Pharisees with them posing the question as, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?

Now it’s important that when we look to the Bible for answers we look for consensus and consistency, this way we don’t cherry pick the words we want to have that support our views (we call this ‘proof texting’).

A bill of divorce doesn’t end a marriage but permits remarriage. If a couple who were married dissolved that marriage then neither would be able to remarry because to do so would mean that they were in (as an Elim colleague used to say) ‘a perpetual state of adultery’. Marriage was supposed to be for life, but as Jesus is reported as saying in both the Matthew and Mark readings, “Moses gave a bill of divorce because people’s hearts were hard.”

An engagement ring doesn’t make a couple, but recognises that there is a couple. It is something that follows the act of relationship. A marriage doesn’t just happen – you can’t just walk up to a stranger and marry them – the marriage is a recognition that the relationship is already there: It affirms what already is. So too with a bill of divorce. It doesn’t end a marriage but recognises that the marriage has ended and spiritually and legally (but rarely emotionally) severs the ties and permits remarriage. It’s like resetting the odometer on a car!

But of course resetting the odometer changes the mileage but the age and condition and other factors regarding it are still in existence.

So the first point to make a note of is: Divorce doesn’t end a marriage but recognises that the marriage is ended and removing the impediment to remarriage that is adultery, permits remarriage.

In Deuteronomy 24.1-4, we find that a man who marries a woman who ‘becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her’, can give her a certificate of divorce and send her away! A practical solution from Moses for a contentious and divisive situation. For if a man sent his wife away then she could not return to her family and she could not enter into a relationship that God would bless as the relationship would be adulterous. The bill of divorce removed the religious objections and ensured that her living by immoral means, or dying through neglect and starvation, were removed at a stroke. Harmony (of sorts) in the community.

Then in walk two rabbis with their interpretations of the whole issue. Shammai held that divorce was only permitted for serious breaches of the marital relationship (like adulterous) whilst Hillel was a little more liberal and said that there had to be a reason, any reason – like they were old, ugly, fat, could cook, and the like – and these two views divided the population into two distinct camps.

This is the context in which Jesus is being tested on by the Pharisees question. Which camp will he offend? Obviously, within the context of Moses and the lawful side, it is ‘lawful’ to divorce and yet Jesus wants to deal with the heart rather than the law for this is what the real issue is. He’s not looking to support one camp or the other but to get to the universal issue regarding divorce.

Marriage was for life, but this changed because of the hardness of our hearts. Because people separated, Moses had to find a way of maintaining the community and keep the people right before God.without finding a religious way of permitting remarriage then those who did it would be religiously unclean and face being stoned too! This is where our Genesis passage comes in with the making of a companion for Adam and the two becoming one flesh. The beginning of a life-long commitment. The way it should be and yet in today’s society, the way it is no longer. This is a reality in and amongst our fallen and self-governing world.

The reason for divorce under Moses’ authorship is adultery. But Jesus is pointing at the people before Him with the law to support Him and make them uncomfortable.divorce recognises the breach that has occurred and responds to permit remarriage. But for those who divorced to marry another, then adultery was not the cause but the result!

There was a practice amongst some where they divorced and remarried and then divorcing the new wife would simply remarry the former wife. This meant they could play away from home without the sin of adultery being a reality thanks to clever use of the legal. But reading the Deuteronomy passage below you’ll see that remarriage to a previously divorced partner is not permitted! How uncomfortable must Jesus has made this Pharisees!!!

Jesus goes on to make sure that no one is left in any doubt that the regulations regarding divorce and remarriage apply equally to men and women. Divorce is there to permit serious reasons for the marriage to permit remarriage, nothing else.

Now some say that divorce must result in a single (and therefore celibate) life because they take the Gospel readings out of context and quite often ignore completely the Deuteronomy reading altogether. To this I can but point to Deuteronomy four and our Genesis passage and make the observation that it is not good for us to be alone! And add the cherry: “Those whom God has joined together, let no one separate.”

Today’s issue is so big that whilst the Genesis passage underpins the divorce discussion it would be easy to miss the Hebrews passage and yet there is an important point to be taken from it as we consider divorce in the context of being right with, and before, God. The same Jesus who speaks to the Pharisees, who sees past the law into the heart, is that same person spoken of in the Hebrews passage. Let us never lose sight of who Jesus is and what He did for us on the cross and does in us by His Holy Spirit in our daily lives.

Let us keep the laws and walk to His heartbeat in love, fidelity, compassion and forgiveness.

Genesis 2.18-24
The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said,  “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.”
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.


Hebrews 1.1-4; 2.5-12
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.

It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking. But there is a place where someone has testified:
“What is mankind that you are mindful of them, a son of man that you care for him? You made them a little lower than the angels; you crowned them with glory and honour and put everything under their feet.” In putting everything under them, God left nothing that is not subject to them. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them. But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honour because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. He says,
“I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters; in the assembly I will sing your praises.”

Mark 10.2-16
Some Pharisees came and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”

“What did Moses command you?” he replied.

They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away.”

“It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law,” Jesus replied. “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

When they were in the house again, the disciples asked Jesus about this. He answered, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery.”

People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.

Post Communion Prayer
Holy and blessed God, you have fed us with the body and blood of your Son and filled us with your Holy Spirit: may we honour you, not only with our lips but in lives dedicated to the service of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Collect
Faithful Lord, whose steadfast love never ceases and whose mercies never come to an end: grant us the grace to trust you and to receive the gifts of your love, new every morning, in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


Matthew 19
When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.

Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?”

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

“Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”

Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”

The disciples said to him, “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.”


Deuteronomy 24.1-4
If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, and if after she leaves his house she becomes the wife of another man, and her second husband dislikes her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, or if he dies, then her first husband, who divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been defiled.

Can't make it to church - Sunday 30th September 2018

Last week we were faced with Jeremiah and his ‘lament’ as he struggled with those around him and their complaining and rejection. Today, winding back the clock a bit we find Moses struggling with the people God has placed under his care as they moan about the lack of meat on the exodus journey. They were fed up with manna. They wanted fish, cucumbers, and other stuff. God was angry – after all hadn’t He done the miraculous with the plagues and the passage through the waters to get them free from the Egyptian oppression and yet here they are moaning about cucumbers!

Moses is beside himself, frustrated at the people and their demands and wondering what he had done to be lumbered with them. “What have I done to you God that I should end up with this lot?” he cries. (A not unfamiliar cry from those in leadership.

So God has Moses set apart seventy of the elders so that they can be anointed and filled with the Spirit and help in leading the people of God in their journeying. They were going to have meat, so much meat that it will come out of their nostrils!! Now Moses is a bit doubting here and so God asks him whether he really believes the Lord’s arm is ‘too short’. 

This is a ‘Watch this moment’ as the elders gathered and the Spirit fell upon them – two who remained behind in the camp (Eldad and Medad) were also filled with the Spirit and were prophesying so Joshua rushes off to tell Moses. He wanted Moses to stop them but instead of stopping them he was glad that they had been gifted and filled with the Spirit. Not only that but he tells Joshua that he wished everyone was in the same place!

This is true leadership, the goal of all who minister (or it should be) that they should be filled with the Spirit and as gifted and effective as them. But it's a sad truth that many leaders seek to limit those under their care in case the surpass them - and this is one of the reasons that church is so often so very limited I reckon.

Mind you, others will just blame satan for all the problems before they look in the mirror!!!

James is great as he tells us to praise God when we are happy and doing well. He tells us to pray - because he expects us to be praying just as he expects our faith to bring about good works. The sadness is that so few of us do really little real prayer (other than to pray that I'll shut up and do a short sermon perhaps).

James goes on to show us that the calling out of a spiritual eldership is important. Not just important, it's essential and it is about more than giving out badges and positions of power. The elders of the Church are in a ‘doing’ role. What's more it is a spiritual doing role - the elders should be out praying and anointing the sick, the broken and the crushed. 

Those called to have positions of authority should be spiritual and righteous and filled with prayer and faith – and the prayers of a righteous person are indeed powerful and effective. And who is called? We all are!

We are called to restore those who have fallen into sin. Not only to restore them but to restore them gently (Galatians 6). This is important because if we treat those around us wrongly; if we act and proclaim wrongly then we place stumbling blocks in the path of those who are far off from God with the result that they may never come into the light and love of God.

So how you doing so far with today’s readings? 

Have you been set aside, called out, to do the stuff?  

The answer is ‘Yes’ even if that’s not your reality or your expectation. 

Do you call upon God when there’s troubles and sing praises to Him when there’s not? 

When you’re sick do you seek to be anointed with oil?

Today a BBC news item looks at the UKs attitudes to miracles. A quick summary is this:

62% of British adults believe some form of miracle is possible today

75% of those aged 18-24 believe some form of miracle is possible today, the largest age group

43% say they have prayed for a miracle

37% of British adults who attend a religious service at least monthly say they believe the miracles of Jesus happened word for word as described in the Bible

19% of that same church attending population say they have prayed for a miracle and had it answered as they’d hoped it would be. YET 37% of that same church attending population have never prayed for a miracle (almost twice as many as have prayed for one!).

Another survey conducted recently claimed that some 20% of those who considered themselves to be Christian and attended church services were unsure about Jesus being an actual historic figure and had doubts that He did the miracles the Bible claims.

These last two claims can only be laid at the feet of those who lead our churches. Some appear more concerned with their political campaigning than they are with the preaching of the word of God and making the facts about Jesus commonplace in their congregations. They're more concerning with looking like the world with their watering down of Biblical truths and their accommodation of things the Bible would never accommodate to actually preach the fundamental truths of our faith it seems. 

When Moses was told of the two men prophesying he was glad. In our Gospel reading when John tells Jesus about a man who is casting out demons and how they told him to stop, Jesus’ response is “Don’t stop them!” His rationale is this: If someone does a miracle in Jesus’ name, then how can they do or say something bad regarding Him with their next breath?

Jesus utters the reverse of the zealot’s cry: “whoever is not against us is for us.” Would that the Church would pick up this mantra and live in in rather than try to win them over by watering down and capitulating to the zeitgeist before us.

We need to ensure that we do not cause others to stumble, for not only will we be judged harshly because of it  but this is as sure a way to make impotent the love of God in the life of the unbeliever.

In this Gospel passage we find the 'If you’re right hand offends then cut it off' passage. This isn’t about amputation or poking our eyes out but it's there as a calling to us to recognise the seriousness of our causing others to fall short and become separated from God by our words and actions.

You are the light of the world – you are the salt of the earth. But is you are dimmed then you’re no used to illuminate the path or enable others to clearly see God’s Gospel of love that is Jesus. If you have no flavour then you are no use to the world and the peace and presence of God is lost in the Church.

So what are you going to do? 

Seek the indwelling of God’s Holy Spirit and become salt to the bland world around us and a light to those in darkness?

Will you be filled with God’s Holy Spirit and do the miraculous in and through God’s amazing love as shown through the cross of Jesus, the Christ, in your own life and the lives of others?

Open your hands and receive God's Holy Spirit.

Open your hearts and be filled. 

Peach God’s love, proclaim his salvation and expect miracles. Be transformed and change the world around you today.

The Collect
God, our judge and saviour, teach us to be open to your truth and to trust in your love, that we may live each day with confidence in the salvation which is given through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Numbers 11:4-29

The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”

The manna was like coriander seed and looked like resin. The people went around gathering it, and then ground it in a hand mill or crushed it in a mortar. They cooked it in a pot or made it into loaves. And it tasted like something made with olive oil. When the dew settled on the camp at night, the manna also came down.

Moses heard the people of every family wailing at the entrance to their tents. The Lord became exceedingly angry, and Moses was troubled. He asked the Lord, “Why have you brought this trouble on your servant? What have I done to displease you that you put the burden of all these people on me? Did I conceive all these people? Did I give them birth? Why do you tell me to carry them in my arms, as a nurse carries an infant, to the land you promised on oath to their ancestors? Where can I get meat for all these people? They keep wailing to me, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ I cannot carry all these people by myself; the burden is too heavy for me. If this is how you are going to treat me, please go ahead and kill me—if I have found favor in your eyes—and do not let me face my own ruin.”

The Lord said to Moses: “Bring me seventy of Israel’s elders who are known to you as leaders and officials among the people. Have them come to the tent of meeting, that they may stand there with you. I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the power of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them. They will share the burden of the people with you so that you will not have to carry it alone.

 “Tell the people: ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow, when you will eat meat. The Lord heard you when you wailed, “If only we had meat to eat! We were better off in Egypt!” Now the Lord will give you meat, and you will eat it. You will not eat it for just one day, or two days, or five, ten or twenty days, but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and you loathe it—because you have rejected the Lord, who is among you, and have wailed before him, saying, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?”’”

But Moses said, “Here I am among six hundred thousand men on foot, and you say, ‘I will give them meat to eat for a whole month!’ Would they have enough if flocks and herds were slaughtered for them? Would they have enough if all the fish in the sea were caught for them?”

The Lord answered Moses, “Is the Lord’s arm too short? Now you will see whether or not what I say will come true for you.”

So Moses went out and told the people what the Lord had said. He brought together seventy of their elders and had them stand around the tent. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke with him, and he took some of the power of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied—but did not do so again.

However, two men, whose names were Eldad and Medad, had remained in the camp. They were listed among the elders, but did not go out to the tent. Yet the Spirit also rested on them, and they prophesied in the camp. A young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

Joshua son of Nun, who had been Moses’ aide since youth, spoke up and said, “Moses, my lord, stop them!”

But Moses replied, “Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!”The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”

James 5:13-20

Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.

My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

Mark 9:38-50

“Teacher,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.”

 “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us. Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward.

 “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where “‘the worms that eat them do not die, and the fire is not quenched.’ Everyone will be salted with fire.

 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can you make it salty again? Have salt among yourselves, and be at peace with each other.”

Post Communion Prayer
We praise and thank you, O Christ, for this sacred feast: for here we receive you, here the memory of your passion is renewed, here our minds are filled with grace, and here a pledge of future glory is given, when we shall feast at that table where you reign with all your saints for ever.  

Can't make it to church - Sunday, 19 August 2018

One of the weaknesses of breaking John chapter six into four Sundays is that its is easy to miss out on the bigger picture as we take a theme for each week and focus on it. There is great value to be found in winding down the magnification and taking a look at the whole terrain rather than isolated peaks and individual places of interest. Many of us will majored on the Eucharist to the point of it becoming on a par with Vogon poetry in its repetition and cunning use of iambic pentameters, so I'm attempting to point at the features which define the whole terrain. After all, it's August, a time when we find ourselves away from church for one or more weeks in search of the sun (or whatever it is that holiday demands), and the impact of the four weeks that John six heralds gets generally lost in the noise:

After feeding five thousand with just five small loaves and a couple of fish, the people find Jesus on the other side of the lake (they know He wasn't in the boats with His disciples and wondered how He got there - but everyone expected Him to walk on water didn't they?).

The crowds haven’t followed Him because of the things He said or the miraculous stuff He'd done in feeding them all. They'd followed Him because  (and here I quote Jesus) “You ate the loaves and had your fill!” One of the big draws when it comes to following God is to do so because of what you think you can get - and these folk, having already had, wanted more of the same [hold that thought for a moment whilst we digress a little].

In discussions with a Rabbi, he has told me how he struggles with Christians and the way they are, "Always telling God what He should do and how He should give them everything they want or take away their struggles and trials." As a Jew he says that he looks at what he has or what he needs and then seeks to find the way that he live out that situation with God and,  reflecting and drawing upon his faith, live it out in the scenario before him. I mention this as a little food for thought and to provide a reflection on the folk following Jesus were they any different to those living today [theist or atheist]?

So back to the story:

What follows is a conversation on doing the work of God and of bread that does not spoil.

The work of God is: To believe the one God sent [Jesus]. This is something that Church appears to have forgotten. Harsh words but we do seem to be less and less bothered about believing Jesus and the things He taught and more concerned with attracting minorities, affirming sexual politics, seeking young ordinands, and affirming things Jesus and the written word of God appears not to as we seek to convince people that we are open-handed, inclusive and relevant to those outside the Church. We win people for Christ by making Him known as demonstrated by our faith and belief in Him and the Godhead that sent Him.

Far too often Church is seen to leaning out of the boat in an attempt to bring it level when what is needed is for it (and that means us) to stand on the word of God and the lifestyle, ministry and words of Jesus, the Christ, and rejoice as the boat rights itself! Too often we look at the world and its standards, values and methods and give them approval by calling the Church to live by them and look like the world. Take a look at the scandals and betrayal of trust that the Church has engaged in over the past fifty years and tell me where the words and example of Jesus are to be found.

We have food for the body - physical food, and spiritual food - which sustains us spiritually.

Food physically keeps us alive - spiritual food gives us life.

The manna kept the people alive on their journey to the promised land. It was sufficient for the day - after which it spoiled. It was truly 'daily bread' and needed to be gathered again the next day.

 Jesus tells them of a bread that does not spoil - one that lasts for eternity, and confers eternity, and feeds the inner spiritual being.  And He is that bread! He says to the people:  “Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.”

Is Jesus telling us ‘to work’ for this enduring bread?

The answer is both ‘yes and no’ - I have heard many sermons on this which 'encourage or accuse' us to get out there and work for our salvation. But b
no, we do not work to gain our salvation - works do not bring salvation (other than that one salvific work of Jesus, the Christ upon the cross as a 'once and for all' act of Grace!) but the ‘work of God’ we are called to be engaged in is TO BELIEVE THE ONE HE SENT.

And this raises an important question for us: How then are we living? if we believe in Jesus then we follow Him as the Christ - we live with, and for, and because of Him. We cannot win salvation by our acts or our giving or our outward appearance. Salvation comes from God, through God and by God. ‘Good works’ do not bring salvation - God does.

Exodus 16 - (the manna) features large in the expectation of the Jews regarding the Messiah. Bread would fall from heaven as confirmation of the Messiah.  The expectation was that bread would fall just as it did in the Exodus when manna - that daily bread - fell and sustained the people. This was the sign the people called for. The Jews wanted to ‘see and believe’ (remember Thomas and 'seeing and believing' in his encounter with the risen Lord?)

An unbelieving people seek signs. It was true in the people around Jesus, true in those Moses gazed upon, it is true today. But a faith based upon signs is a faith that can be conned and causes us to build on sand rather than the rock of assured and steadfast faith. We build by doing the work of God which is TO BELIEVE THE ONE HE SENT

The bread which God sent from heaven in Ex 16 was the manna. But God had, in the presence of those gathered in the countryside with Jesus, indeed sent bread from heaven - but this bread is the living bread that is Jesus. Those who feed in Him will not die as those who ate manna died but will live for ever. Bread sustains physical life but the living bread gives life, life in abundance, for all eternity!

Seven times Jesus speaks of "coming down from heaven". A nod to those who expected the bread to do that as did the manna in the wilderness - made explicit in the words: “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” And yet the people didn’t join the dots using the words they heard Jesus speak.

Seven times Jesus uses the term I AM - what’s that about? The answer is simple for just as God revealed Himself to Moses in Exodus 3:  “God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”

Jesus uses the I AM - to give I AM the living bread the final seal of authenticity and authority.
Jesus, God made man, is Jehovah - YHWH - the true and living, triune God! What more is there to say?

Of course the people around Him, on the whole, cannot make sense of what is before them It's not what they expected and so even when it is explicitly proclaimed, they miss it all. There we expecting someone taller - or more powerful - or perhaps riding a charger with armour and cohorts of armed men. They expected something that reflected power in the way Alexander did, or perhaps the Caesar (man made lower-case god).

Isn't this why Church is struggling for we have bought in to the consumer society and the politics of power and the (ab)use of might rather than right!

So how do we as Church make real the kingdom of God in the lives of those who surround us?

It all comes down to one simple reality: Do not work for food that sustains the body yet perishes but work for that food that sustains our spiritual bodies - and that work is what? - TO BELIEVE THE ONE GOD SENT

Remember that Manna- the bread which came down from heaven sustained life - but was there for a day then perished as (eventually) did those who ate it.

Preach the reality of Jesus  - the living bread - who came down from heaven and sustains the spiritual body for all for eternity (an eternity which is the reality of those who look to Him and the Cross).

When Jesus uses I AM He is claiming to be God.

So bottom line:
Do not work for food which perishes.
Do not look for signs which can deceive and lead us astray
But look to do the work of God, which is:
TO BELIEVE THE ONE GOD SENT - AND TO MAKE HIM KNOWN

This is quick 'splurge' and there's more than a fair chance the edits and the typos will have conspired to make the words a little more challenging than they might be - my apologies. I just needed to dialogue with what was in my head and scribbling helps this happen.

Pax

John 6.25 - 59
When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.

Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”

Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

“Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

At this the Jews there began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”

“Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered.  “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life.

I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

Can't make it to church - Sunday 22, July 2018: Mary Magdalene . . .

. . . Happy Hooker or faithful follower of Jesus?

In using the label 'Hooker' I'm not suggesting she played rugby but acknowledge the popular press she has, and has had for many centuries, regarding her being a bit of a wrong 'un!

I've never come across anything but nudges and knowing nods regarding this woman and her dodgy past and yet, despite searching, I've never found this directly supported anywhere in the Bible; which always rings alarm bells.

Today, as the Church remembers and celebrates Mary Magdalene, there will be some who continue to present her as a woman with a dodgy past and others who will seek to elevate her because of the modern passion for 'bigging up women' (a term used by a shaven-headed feminist theologian I encountered during my Westminster days who claimed that her subject was more than such things :-) ).

If we look to the Bible, which is always a good and most essential starting place, in Luke 8 we find this mention of her:
“After this, Jesus travelled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, 2 and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; 3 Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.”

Nowhere do we find Magdalene associated with prostitution - but we do have her mentioned as being a follower and a financial supporter. But there are so many Marys in the Bible. They range from Mary (the theotokos - that is ‘godbearer’) to Mary the sister of Lazarus and Martha - who poured oil over Jesus’ feet -  who helps the confusion as we find a woman assumed to be a prostitute doing the same thing elsewhere.

The confusion comes to a climax when on the 14th September 1591 the Pope, Gregory the Great, gave Mary Magdalene the prostitute label. Let’s look at Gregory’s words:

“She whom Luke calls the sinful woman, whom John calls Mary, we believe to be the Mary from whom seven devils were ejected according to Mark, and what did these seven devils signify, if not all the vices? ... It is clear, brothers, that the woman previously used the unguent to perfume her flesh in forbidden acts . . .”

So here we find our prostitute labelled and paraded, perhaps as am example of the Church’s inclusivity as found in the claim that ‘nothing separates us from the love of God‘. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time a bit of overzealous (yet inaccurate) preaching made an indelible mark, would it?

So here we have a woman about to be rehabilitated - not a bad thing from the point of us wanting to ensure that there is integrity in what we believe and proclaim as truth and, having seen the film, supports the modern feminist zeitgeist too. So its a win for Pope Francis as overturns the error of a previous incumbent and, completes a move began in the late sixties to accept her as someone of integrity and value, and proclaims a feast day in her honour a couple of years back (2016).

Scanning the media I found the Vatican magazine ‘Catholic Women Speak’ where the editor says of Magdalene’s rehabilitation:
“By doing this, he (Pope Francis) established the absolute equality of Mary Magdalene to the apostles, something that has never been done before and is also a point of no return” for women in the church!”

Take a look at John 20:
"Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.’

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ She said to them, ‘They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.’ When she had said this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus.

Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?

For whom are you looking?’

Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’

Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbouni!’ (which means Teacher).

Jesus said to her, ‘Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” ’

Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her."

So the woman who meets the risen Christ is a good ‘un. Huzzah for that (never thought any different but then again I see Thomas as a hero not a doubting piece of cancerous work too!). To be honest I am, and always have been, more taken up with the fact that it was her who first met with the risen Christ. That it was a woman was neither a positive or a negative - it was what it was and the episode merely confers something special and life-changing on, and from, her. What is important (and I'll repeat it because it is important) is that we have integrity in our beliefs and correct our wrongs when they are recognised as such.

Undoubtedly there will be some who are saddened by this because there’s more value in the wayward coming to Jesus that the goody two-shoes characters (been there - was told I had no ‘real’ witness because I’d never done drugs or ‘seriously gone of the rails’!!).

She was a good inclusive role model, the inclusion being because of her past. But of course now she will be for some a talisman for those who wish to promote women’s rights and overcome misogyny past and present. For me she will be the hero of the faith she always was and I’ll merely continue to regard her as someone who walked with Jesus and is a sister in Christ with the additional joy that yet  another wrong has been righted.

The Collect
Almighty God, whose Son restored Mary Magdalene to health of mind and body and called her to be a witness to his resurrection: forgive our sins and heal us by your grace, that we may serve you in the power of his risen life; who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Don't you long for the day when the whole Church celebrates the Virgin Mary and others as one of our heroes? we need to look to the example of others regardless of their colour, sex or life history. Isn't this what Church is all about?

And now one last contentious call:

Now that the desk has been cleared and this wrong has been righted, I wonder if some of the (many) other errors owned by the Church (universal) and by the Catholic Church in particular might not also be addressed now?

Just asking :-)

Can't make it to church - Sunday, 1st July 2018

Many years ago I had a meeting with an Archdeacon to discuss my going off to train for the Anglican ministry. The man made it very clear that he was far too important and busy to have been asked to meet with me and the whole event was one that leaves me smiling at his inept and arrogant handling of my visit. "So, "he said with a fair amount of vitriol, "What would you say your favourite Bible passage is?" My immediate response was, "Mar5 - the woman with the issue of blood."

"And why is that passage so important to you?" my adversary responded. "I would like to think that one day I was serving a community where those in it would have the audacity to touch the hem of Jesus' garment," I replied.

With that he showed me out of his study and back into the sunlight. I felt as if I'd visited Miss Haversham in her mouldy and cobweb-ridden rags and a pang of sorrow touched me for it was not an enjoyable encounter, I felt as if I'd had tea with one of the Harry Potter story's Dementor (without the tea)!

Imaging the picture in our Gospel today. We have an important person with a need and an unimportant person who shouldn't even have been there (she was 'bleeding', she shouldn't have been near anyone) and, unlike many who call themselves Church today Jesus didn't put the reserved signs on the seats and fill the place with the 'important' people with their gold chains, fine clothes and titles whilst leaving the ordinary folk at the back of the church building (or even excluded totally). Jesus - sensing that He'd been touched and that 'power had gone out from Him' - asked who had touched Him and engaged with this woman.

Can you imaging the scene? Jesus is involved with this unclean and lowly woman rather than the dignitary. She didn't even have a wristband to get her into His presence or an invite. How can we build Church if we don't Kowtow to, and simper at, the thought of meeting the man who is surely the Major Royal of all time? And isn't He in our church buildings every day?

How I long to be able to utter the words, "Go in peace, your faith in Jesus, the Christ, has healed you," for in these words is the missio dei (God's mission in the world) fulfilled and made real around us.

Yesterday I was chatting to one of the Queen's representatives about the reading they had at an Armed Force's day service. They were captivated and enthusing about the words of the reading from Micah 6.6-8 from the Message. They loved the accessibility and the final words especially, "Don't take yourselves too seriously - take God seriously!"

The woman is sent off - healed and restored by her faith (and there's much we could say about that matter) - her life has been given back to her in every way possible by the encounter. Then we turn back to the dignitary and hear how his daughter has died. "Don't bother Him anymore. Let's go home," they said. But Jesus turns to them and tells the father of the child, "Don't be afraid. Just believe!"

Perfect love, we are told, casts out fear - and we've just seen a woman overcome her fear and reach out. So too must the synagogue ruler reach out and trust Jesus and look to the love of God. And so they go to the man's home and Jesus calls out, "Little girl, come!" (talitha koum) And she does. Jesus exhibits His power over life and death.

What stands before you today? Illness, troubles, stress, uncertainty over work, family, children and schooling, life and even Church itself?

Reach out and touch the hem of His garment today saying. "Lord, If you will it this situation will be changed and I, or those for who we pray, will be made whole. As we pray we do so to remind ourselves of the importance the situation or person has for us (for God already knows it before its on our lips) and God, who hears will answer our prayers (just not always in the way we desire, demand or request).

Live in the perfect love of God and approach Him without fear.

"Don't take yourselves too seriously - take God seriously!"

The Collect
Almighty God, send down upon your Church the riches of your Spirit, and kindle in all who minister the gospel your countless gifts of grace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

More later on the other passage - time has beaten me as I reflect and services beckon (catch you later for the final bits)


2 Samuel 1
After Saul died, David returned to Ziklag. He had won the battle over the Amalekites. He stayed in Ziklag for two days.

David sang a song of sadness about Saul and his son Jonathan. He ordered that it be taught to the people of Judah. It is a song that is played on a stringed instrument. It is written down in the Book of Jashar. David sang,

“Israel, a gazelle lies dead on your hills. Your mighty men have fallen. “Don’t announce it in Gath. Don’t tell it in the streets of Ashkelon. If you do, the daughters of the Philistines will be glad. The daughters of men who haven’t been circumcised will be joyful. “Mountains of Gilboa, may no dew or rain fall on you. May no showers fall on your hillside fields. The shield of the mighty king wasn’t respected there. The shield of Saul lies there. It isn’t rubbed with oil anymore. The bow of Jonathan didn’t turn back. The sword of Saul didn’t return without being satisfied. They spilled the blood of their enemies. They killed mighty men. “When they lived, Saul and Jonathan were loved and respected.  When they died, they were not parted. They were faster than eagles. They were stronger than lions. “Daughters of Israel, mourn over Saul. He dressed you in the finest clothes. He decorated your clothes with ornaments of gold. “Your mighty men have fallen in battle. Jonathan lies dead on your hills. My brother Jonathan, I’m filled with sadness because of you. You were very special to me. Your love for me was wonderful. It was more wonderful than the love of women. “Israel’s mighty men have fallen. Their weapons of war are broken.”

2 Corinthians 8:1-15
Brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given to the churches in Macedonia. They have suffered a great deal. But in their suffering, their joy was more than full. Even though they were very poor, they gave very freely. I tell you that they gave as much as they could. In fact, they gave even more than they could. Completely on their own, they begged us for the chance to share in serving the Lord’s people in that way. They did more than we expected. First they gave themselves to the Lord. Then they gave themselves to us because that was what God wanted. Titus had already started collecting money from you. So we asked him to help you finish making your kind gift. You do well in everything else. You do well in faith and in speaking. You do well in knowledge and in complete commitment. And you do well in the love we have helped to start in you. So make sure that you also do well in the grace of giving to others.

I am not commanding you to do it. But I want to test you. I want to find out if you really love God. I want to compare your love with that of others. You know the grace shown by our Lord Jesus Christ. Even though he was rich, he became poor to help you. Because he became poor, you can become rich.

Here is my opinion about what is best for you in that matter. Last year you were the first to give. You were also the first to want to give. So finish the work. Then your desire to do it will be matched by your finishing it. Give on the basis of what you have. Do you really want to give? Then the gift is measured by what someone has. It is not measured by what they don’t have.

We don’t want others to have it easy at your expense. We want things to be equal. Right now you have plenty in order to take care of what they need. Then they will have plenty to take care of what you need. The goal is to even things out. It is written, “The one who gathered a lot didn’t have too much. And the one who gathered a little had enough.”

Mark 5:21-43
Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee in a boat. It landed at the other side. There a large crowd gathered around him. Then a man named Jairus came. He was a synagogue leader. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. He begged Jesus, “Please come. My little daughter is dying. Place your hands on her to heal her. Then she will live.” So Jesus went with him.

A large group of people followed. They crowded around him. A woman was there who had a sickness that made her bleed. It had lasted for 12 years. She had suffered a great deal, even though she had gone to many doctors. She had spent all the money she had. But she was getting worse, not better. Then she heard about Jesus. She came up behind him in the crowd and touched his clothes. She thought, “I just need to touch his clothes. Then I will be healed.” Right away her bleeding stopped. She felt in her body that her suffering was over.

At once Jesus knew that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd. He asked, “Who touched my clothes?”

“You see the people,” his disciples answered. “They are crowding against you. And you still ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”

But Jesus kept looking around. He wanted to see who had touched him. Then the woman came and fell at his feet. She knew what had happened to her. She was shaking with fear. But she told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Dear woman, your faith has healed you. Go in peace. You are free from your suffering.”

While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus. He was the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”

Jesus heard what they were saying. He told the synagogue leader, “Don’t be afraid. Just believe.”

He let only Peter, James, and John, the brother of James, follow him. They came to the home of the synagogue leader. There Jesus saw a lot of confusion. People were crying and sobbing loudly. He went inside. Then he said to them, “Why all this confusion and sobbing? The child is not dead. She is only sleeping.” But they laughed at him.

He made them all go outside. He took only the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him. And he went in where the child was. He took her by the hand. Then he said to her, “Talitha koum!” This means, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!” The girl was 12 years old. Right away she stood up and began to walk around. They were totally amazed at this. Jesus gave strict orders not to let anyone know what had happened. And he told them to give her something to eat.


Post Communion Prayer
Grant, O Lord, we beseech you, that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by your governance, that your Church may joyfully serve you in all godly quietness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.