Joyful discipleship

Sermon preached at St Alphege Church, Solihull at the 11am Eucharist
27/01/08 – Third Sunday after Epiphany - Year A

Readings: Isaiah 9:1-4 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 Matthew 4:12-23


The DJ Chris Evans has a regular “Drive Time” programme in the early evening on Radio 2. On a recent programme he asked listeners to telephone in with stories along the lines of “I went out to buy a …., but I came back with a …..” One gentleman telephoned in with a story. It went something like this: “I went out one day to sign up to join the Navy, but when I got there the Navy man was on his lunch break, so I joined the RAF instead.” I like this story. It is somehow refreshing to think that something as incidental as a lunch break could make such a big difference to someone’s life.
In our gospel reading today we heard Matthew’s account of Jesus calling the first disciples. In Matthew’s account (and Mark’s account is very similar) it looks as though a rather incidental meeting with a stranger makes a huge difference to the disciples lives. It seems that Jesus walks up to the disciples, calls them and they immediately drop everything and follow him. It is almost as though Simon Peter could telephone up Chris Evans and say, “I went out to catch a few fish, but I ended up an Apostle; a fisher of people.”
What makes Matthew’s account so surprising is that it seems that short and coincidental meeting with Jesus that makes the first four disciples drop everything and follow Jesus. However if we start to read the accounts of this event in the other gospels we do start to realise that the account in Matthew is a very bare bones account.
Our gospel reading last week was John’s account of the calling of Andrew and Simon (John 1:35-42). It suggests that Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist and John the Baptist encouraged him to follow Jesus who he called “the Lamb of God”. The account in Luke’s gospel (Luke 4:38-5:11) suggests that Jesus has actually done a great deal with Simon and Andrew before he asks them to follow him. In Luke’s gospel Jesus has spent time at Simon’s house, has healed his mother-in-law, has borrowed his boat to preach from and has delivered to the first four disciples a miraculous catch of fish, so huge that it filled two boats to sinking point. Only after all this and after Simon has expressed great fear of Jesus’ mighty powers, does Jesus ask them to follow him.
Personally I find that Luke’s rather fuller account makes the story much more believable. Jesus did not appear from nowhere, call out to some fishermen and have them go away with him. Rather Jesus spent some time with Simon and Andrew, built a relationship with them, did some wonderful things for them, showing them the power of his love and only then called them to be disciples.
And discipleship that arises from a relationship with Jesus, from an experience of his love for us, also gives us a much better pattern for our own discipleship. There are, sadly, many people who experience their Christianity as though some powerful and scary headmaster type has appeared to them and said “follow me” and they have not had the courage to do anything different than to follow. And when Christianity is like this, there is the danger that it can be fearful rather than joyful, experienced as a burden rather than a blessing and there can even be a certain envy of people who have not had that call; people who can devote Sunday morning to leisure activities and who seem accountable to no one.
But this is not the way that discipleship is meant to be. Christianity is a blessing, not a burden. It is not based on fear but rather it casts out fear (1John 4:18). It is the pearl of great value, the treasure hidden in the field (Matt 14:44-46). It is the great wedding banquet (Matt22:2ff). We should not feel envy for people who do not have this gift, rather we should feel compassion, and the desire to share the gift with them.
And what is it that makes the difference? What is it that makes Christianity a blessing rather than a burden, a treasure rather than a liability? I believe it is the love of God, the love of Jesus, the experience of being loved, of being forgiven. If we truly feel ourselves to be loved by God, then it is the most natural thing in the world to want to respond to that love, to want to be a disciple. If we feel we should be a disciple, but don’t particularly feel loved by God then we are going to find being a disciple very hard work!
So they key to it is experiencing ourselves as loved by God. This is what makes discipleship desirable, a blessing. It was the love that Jesus had for Andrew and Simon, the miracles he worked for them, that made them want to follow him. But what if we don’t feel loved by God? What if we do feel loved by God, but only a little? What if we do feel loved by God, but we know that we could feel much, much more loved by God? What can we do about it? How can we come to experience and believe in God’s love for us.
Well first of all, it is a very good thing to desire a great gift like this (c.f. 1 Cor 12:31, 14:1) and if we desire it, and pray to God for it then surely it will please God to give it to us.
Secondly we need to re-educate ourselves, reminding ourselves of the great love that God has already shown us. God shows his love for us in his creation of us. And God has not created us in random isolation. Rather he created us in a specific context with people around us who have raised us as children and who helped us to grow. He has created us with a specific path to walk in life and a specific purpose to fulfil. He has created us for a great destiny as children of God (1John3:1), to join in the glorious life of love that the Jesus shares with the Father (1John1:3). Then, beyond our creation, Jesus, in his great love for us, has redeemed us through his passion and death. He has overcome sin and death and reconciled us to the Father. “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1John 4:10). And so we can be forgiven. When we turn to Christ, there is no past sin or human frailty or bad experience that can separate us from his love (c.f. Romans 8: 38-39).
A third thing we can do is train ourselves to see God’s love for us in the things that happen to us. Sometimes this is very easy; when people give us presents or do us some good turn. Sometimes it is much harder, when things seem to go wrong for us or we feel hurt by other people. We have to train ourselves to discover the love of God even in these difficult things. Everything is either willed or allowed by God, in his great love for us. They are all part of his plan for us, part of the road down which he calls us as we journey towards heaven. Now this can be hard, and it requires training. We can make a start by learning to thank God, even for the difficult things. We need to grow in love for even the suffering Christ, who loves us in his passion and death. Slowly we can learn that, “in all things God works for the good of those who love him” (Rom 8:28).
Another thing we can do is to grow in our own love for God by obeying his commandments, especially his commandment to love God and to love our neighbour. Jesus says, “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." (John 14:21). Jesus reveals himself as love to those who love him.
So here are some practical things we can do to help us to understand and to feel the great love that God has for us. We can pray for it. We can thank God for our creation, our great destiny and our salvation. We can learn to thank God for all the things in life that happen to us. We can learn to love God and our neighbour, so that Jesus reveals himself to us and we can know his love. And if we do these things we will become more and more aware of the great love that God has for us, and we will find it more and more natural to respond with a discipleship that is real and full of joy.

Confession for a Unity Service

Prayer of confession used at the Unity Service for Churches Together in Central Solihull on 20th January 2008, 6.30pm at Solihull Methodist Church.



Most Holy Trinity, you show us the perfect example of unity and diversity, yet we know that the church is divided and there are many failings in our unity and communion.

We confess that we fail to live by your commandments. Help us to follow the commandments of Jesus, so that we can live in him and he in us (c.f. 1 John 3:24).
Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy

We confess that our hearts are often too small to love people very different from us. Help us to grow in love, so that we can love everyone, as Jesus does.
Christ have mercy
Christ have mercy

We confess that we are far from united. Help us to be one, as Jesus and the father are one. May we be so completely one, that the world will believe that Jesus was sent by the Father. (c.f. John 17:20-23)
Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy

May Almighty God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, forgive us our sins and draw us towards the unity that He desires for His church.

The Lamb of God

Preached at St Alphege Church on Sunday 20th January 2008 at 8am Eucharist
Second Sunday after Epiphany, Year A

Readings: Isaiah 49:1-7 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 John 1: 29-42

In today’s Gospel we hear John the Baptist’s testimony about Jesus. He says, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John the Baptist explains that Jesus is the one for whom he has been preparing the way. He testifies that, “I saw the spirit descending from heaven, like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptise with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptises with the Holy Spirit.’ And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God. The next day he sees Jesus again and says again, “Look, here is the Lamb of God.”
So John is as clear as he can be that Jesus is the Son of God, the one on whom the Holy Spirit rests, the one for whom John has been preparing the people. He also twice calls Jesus “Lamb of God”.
The “Lamb of God”. It is a rather strange title, but one that we use a lot. In this service we have already used the phrase once in the Gloria. We will repeat it three times when we say the Agnus Dei after the breaking of the bread, and I shall repeat it again at the invitation to communion. (Agnus Dei is of course Latin for Lamb of God).
When John the Baptist says, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” it is likely that he is thinking of the sin offerings stipulated in the Law of Moses. It is fascinating to read in the book of Leviticus (chapters 4 and 5) the procedures for sin offerings. If a member of the community sinned then that person had to bring a lamb to the priest. It had to be a good lamb, without blemish and valuable. The lamb would be slaughtered and the priest would take some of the blood on his finger and mark it on special parts of the altar. The rest of the blood would be poured out at the foot of the altar. The priest would cut off the fat from the lamb and burn it on the altar. Through this ceremony the person was forgiven their sins and their relationship with God and the community was restored.
Animal sacrifices now seem a very antiquated idea both for Jews and for Christians, but the idea of sacrifice is still very relevant. Christianity is founded on the sacrifice that Christ made for us on the cross. When we celebrate the Eucharist we make a memorial of that sacrifice, which helps us to receive its benefits, even today. St Augustine defined a sacrifice as “any action which is designed to unite us to God.” “Any action which is designed to unite us with God.” I find this an astonishing definition and I spend a lot of time pondering it.
“Any action which is designed to unite us with God.” This means that, according to St Augustine, our coming to church can be a sacrifice. Saying our prayers can be a sacrifice. Reading the bible can be a sacrifice. Anything we do with the intention of drawing closer to God is a sacrifice. And this can include so many things. In fact, in any present moment of our lives, if we seek to do well what God wants from us in that moment then we can draw closer to God in that moment; we can live that moment as a sacrifice. It might be sweeping the floor. It might be typing on the computer. It might be listening to someone. It might be helping someone. It might be resting or playing or catching up with the family. All these things, if they are done in accordance with what God wants, and done for love of God, all these things can draw us closer to God, all these things can be a sacrifice.
And there is a sense in which they are a sacrifice, because there is always cost involved. In the Old Testament sacrifices it was the cost of the lamb. In fact the regulations in Leviticus had a special provision for people who could not afford a lamb. They were to offer two doves or young pigeons instead. But even today our drawing closer to God has a cost. Coming to church costs us part of our Sunday morning. Saying our prayers costs us time and energy and requires discipline. The same is true of reading the bible. Following what God wants from us in each present moment also has a cost. We have to focus on doing that thing properly and well, for love of God, be it sweeping the floor, typing on the computer or listening to someone or helping someone. Certainly there can be a big cost involved in loving our neighbour, especially when it is someone we do not instinctively like. We have to be attentive to our neighbours needs, being prepared to put aside our own agenda.
So, as we reflect on Jesus, the Lamb of God, let us give thanks for his sacrifice on the cross, that drew humanity closer to God. Let us give thanks for the Eucharist which draws us closer to God each time we share in it. Let’s try to draw closer to God in each present moment of our lives, by seeking to do well what God wants from us in that moment. And let’s not be surprised if there is a cost or an effort involved. We can think of that as our own very small contribution to lay alongside the big sacrifice made by the Lamb of God.

The meaning of "Epiphany"

Preached at St Alphege Solihull at the 9.15am Parish Eucharist
Sunday 6th January 2008 – Year A
Readings: Isaiah 60:1-6 Ephesians 3:1-12 Matthew 2:1-12

One of the Christmas presents received in our family this year was the Simpson’s movie on DVD. A few days after Christmas we sat down as a family and watched it together. Now I am great fan of the Simpson cartoons and I enjoyed the film. But I was particularly interested because in the middle of the film there is a discussion about the word “Epiphany”. By this point in the film Homer has reached rock bottom; he almost dies a lonely death in the snow and ice of a remote corner of Alaska. Then, inexplicably, he is saved by an old wise native American, mother figure. She tells him that she is going to make him have “an Epiphany”. “An Epiphany!” Homer asks, “What’s that?” “Sudden realisation of great truth,” she tells him. Well Homer is rather pig headed, and his Epiphany is some time in coming. But, eventually he realises that he has to stop thinking about himself and start helping his family and his home town. It is the turning point of the film; from that moment things slowly start to get better again, until, by the end of the film, as always happens in Simpson’s cartoons, everything has been restored to its proper state.
So, according to the Simpson’s movie, Epiphany means a “Suddenly realisation of great truth.” Apparently James Joyce also uses the word Epiphany in this way in his short stories about Dubliners. And I wonder about it. Is this really what Epiphany is all about?
We normally say that word Epiphany comes from the Greek word epiphania, which means "manifestation," or “appearance”. In the Church we associate the Epiphany with the key moments when Jesus was shown to the world. Today, on the feast of the Epiphany itself, we think of the moment when the baby Jesus was shown to the wise men from the East. After the service you might like to take a moment to look at our crib scene in St Thomas’s chapel. If you do, you will see that the shepherds have now left and the wise men have arrived and are offering their gifts to the Holy Family. And certainly this is a moment of “showing” a moment of “manifestation”. The wise men encounter Jesus. They respond by paying homage and by offering gifts. But is this, I wonder, a “Sudden realisation of great truth”?
If Epiphany is the “sudden realisation of great truth”, what is the great truth that is being realised here. Did the wise men recognise Jesus as the son of God, as the Messiah? Well we don’t know quite what they understood, we are not told. But they clearly understood that Jesus was important, worthy of homage, and worthy of the most valuable gifts. And perhaps the gifts tell us something of what they understood. Gold is a gift for a king. Frankincense is a gift for a priest, because it’s used in incense. Myrrh is a gift for one who dies. It is the bitter resin used in embalming and in incense for funerals. So the gifts suggest that the wise men had indeed understood some profound truths about Jesus.
But in the end, it does seem to me, that Epiphany is more about the “manifestation” or “appearance” of the baby Jesus on earth. It is about being shown Jesus and it is about showing Jesus to others. The encounter with Jesus does bring about many great things. It might bring about the sudden realisation of great truth, but in the gospel stories meeting Jesus more commonly brings about healing or joy, reconciliation or forgiveness, new life or new understanding.
So in Epiphany tide it is good for us to ponder “How is Jesus shown to us” and “How do we show Jesus to others.” And in this parish, this very much what our Going for Growth programme is about. Through Going for Growth we hope to grow in our own personal encounter with Jesus, and also to help others to encounter Jesus, so that the church can grow. The next big step in our Going for Growth programme is called Fan the Flame. In a few weeks time we will be inviting you all to take part in Fan the Flame, which will happen on five successive Thursdays, starting on 10th April. Each of the five Fan the Flame events focuses on a different aspect of our Faith, with some teaching and reflection. There will also be lots of music in a “Songs of Praise” format.
As we prepare for the Fan the Flame event we would like to invite every member of the congregations to attend a House Eucharist during Lent 2008. The House Eucharists will give us the opportunity to share in the Eucharist together in a more homely and informal environment. The priest will lead a short reflection during the Eucharist. Afterwards, depending on host, we might have tea and coffee and a discussion about favourite hymns, and this will help us to prepare for the Songs of Praise aspect of Fan the Flame.
Lent comes very early this year. Ash Wednesday is exactly a month away, so now is the right time to start thinking about these House Eucharists during Lent. As you leave church today you will be given a leaflet all about the House Eucharists, so please do take those away and read them and think about how you might like to be involved. In particular you might like to think about hosting one of the House Eucharists. It is a wonderful thing to have the Eucharist celebrated in your home. It is a wonderful opportunity to welcome Jesus into your home; in the scripture readings, in the sacrament, in the people who come (Matt 25: 40) and in the midst of the people gathered in his name (Matt 18:20).
So during this Epiphany tide let’s think about how we encounter Jesus and how we show Jesus to others. And let’s start to think in particular about how we can do this through the House Eucharists and through Fan the Flame. Amen

The journey of faith

Magazine article for Solihull Parish News
January 2008 Edition, written for the "Faith Matters" section.

It is often helpful to think of our Christian life as a journey. It is a journey that starts on earth and takes us to heaven. For this reason we might call it a Journey of Faith or a Holy Journey.
Our journey towards heaven, towards God, is a journey that we make step by step in each present moment of our lives. Each present moment of our lives is an opportunity to draw closer to God, by seeking to do well what God asks from us in that moment. Perhaps in this present moment God asks us to drop a child of at school? If so then let’s drive well to school as an act of love for God and for the child. Perhaps in this moment God asks us to pray? If so then let’s find a quiet place and pray well, so that our relationship with God can be strengthened.
Each present moment that we live well is a small step on our journey towards God. As we practice we get better at living each present moment well, and over time the effect of all these small steps really adds up. Did you know that walking 10 miles a day for seven years is equivalent to walking round the full circumference of the earth?
It is helpful to think of our lives in this way because we start to see everything that happens to us, the good things and the bad, the happy and the sad, as part of our journey towards God. And this gives meaning to everything; everything starts to have value. Even our sufferings become an opportunity to grow in love for Christ who suffered and died for us on the cross.
Despite this we all know that it can be very hard to make a good journey of faith. Often hours or even days might go by without us even thinking about God. It is all too easy to lose lots of time pursuing our own agenda and not being properly attentive to what God wants from us.
The bible is a key resource for our journey. The bible tells us about Jesus, who is the “way” for our journey (John 14:6) and the example we should follow (John 13:15, 1 Cor 11.1, 1 Peter 2:21). He also our teacher (Matt 23:10) and our friend for the journey who is always with us (Matt 28:20).
Our worship in church also helps us on our journey. When we receive Holy Communion we receive Jesus, present in the bread and wine, inside us. Through Holy Communion Jesus shares his life with us, nourishing us, strengthening us and renewing our orientation for our journey.
As we travel on our journey of faith we go through many different phases. There are periods of excitement and discovery, periods where we have to work on our discipline and consistency, periods of great grace when God seems very present, and periods of desolation where God seems absent and we have to really search for him.
It is very helpful to talk about our faith journey we others. This is one of the huge advantages of house groups or courses like Just Explore or 3D. Simple discussion about what is easy or hard in our faith can really clarify things for us. Also, as we journey on, we become more aware of how our own journey of faith is related to the journeys of the people around us. Helping others and being helped by others becomes an important part of the journey.

Footnote about St Alphege Bookstall and New City books
I am delighted that the St Alphege bookstall has a new arrangement with New City publishers that allows it to stock a wider range of books. Most of the New City books that have been selected for the St Alphege bookstall are books designed to help people on their journey of faith.
Some of these books are collections of meditations or short reflections on different spiritual topics. These are intended to be used for five or ten minutes for quiet reflection each day, ideally in the morning. We read the meditation slowly perhaps two or three times and then we pause to reflect on it for a few minutes, so that it can start to enter into us, body, mind and spirit.
There are also books about particular saints. These too can be read in short chunks and reflected upon. New City books usually present saints to us in ways that help us to see their relevance for our lives today.
When we first start to read about the saints or look at books of meditations it can feel like we are entering a different world. The attitudes and assumptions of the writers and the way that they use language can feel very foreign to us. It is like we are rich Western tourists with cameras looking round a market town in rural India; lots of things seem to be happening, but it seems very confused and it is certainly a very different world from our own. And yet the attitude of the saints is the attitude of heaven. It may feel a very different world, but it is a world we most definitely aspire to become part of. Spending time reading about these things and pondering them can help us on our journey into that most holy and wonderful place.
I commend the books to you – Fr Gerard.

Saved by the presence of God

Thought for the parish pew slip - Sunday 30th December 2007
Christmas 1 - Year A

Readings: Isaiah 63:7-9 Hebrews 2:1-18 Matthew 2:13-23


In the Christmas season we reflect on the deep mystery of God present among us as a fellow human being. Today’s readings highlight the power of that presence of God to save us.
In our reading from Isaiah the prophet recalls God’s goodness and faithfulness to the people of Israel. He emphasises that it was not an angel or messenger that saved Israel, but rather it was the presence of God.
Our reading from Hebrews reminds us that Jesus shares so completely in our human experience that he thinks of us as brothers and sisters. Jesus shares with us the experience of having human flesh and blood. He shares with us the experience of suffering. Through his sufferings and death he conquers death for us.
In our gospel reading we hear about some of the sufferings that affected the Holy Family when Jesus was very young. The family fled to Egypt as refugees to avoid Herod’s murder of children. Later they returned, but then struggled to find a safe place to settle.
At the Eucharist we encounter the presence of God in word and sacrament. Let’s count on the power of that presence to save us, remembering that Jesus saves us through sufferings more than from sufferings. – Fr Gerard

Being like Mary, so that Jesus can grow

Preached at St Alphege, Solihull at 9.15am Eucharist on Christmas Day 2007
25/12/07 - Year A
Informal sermon at all-age worship, with drawing activity for children.

Readings: Titus 3:4-7 Luke 2:8-20

I would like to invite all the children to come to the front.
Now, I wonder if anyone has a Christmas present that they would like to show everybody? [We look at presents]
Tell me, what is the most exciting thing when you receive a present?
[Unwrapping it]
Well there is a big box here that needs unwrapping! Now I don’t want you to get two excited, this is not really a Christmas present. What does it say on the label?
[Activity for Christmas morning]
So its not really a present, it is an activity for this morning. So who is going to take the lid of? What can you see?
[Drawing materials]
So this is our activity for the younger ones this morning. It might be more interesting than listening to the sermon! I would like to invite each of you to draw a picture of Jesus as a child. And draw him at the age that you are now. So if you are four years old now, draw a picture of Jesus aged four, and if you’re six years old now draw Jesus, when he was six. And if you’re a baby, get your parent to help you to draw a picture of Jesus as a baby.
So does everybody know what they are doing? Right well while you are carrying on with that drawing the rest of us can carry on thinking about Christmas.

Christmas is such a wonderful event, because God came into the world as a human being. God shared our human life with us, and he transformed our human lives, bringing light and hope and peace for the whole world.
So let’s pause for a moment and think about how this wonderful event came about. What made it happen? Well it was God who made it happen. People didn’t really have to do anything. The shepherds were jus sat on the hill as usual, and suddenly they were told that God had already done this great thing. People didn’t do it; God did it.
But there was at least one person who had to do something, and that was Mary. What did Mary have to do?
Well she had to agree to co-operate with God’s will. When the angel Gabriel told her that she was to have a baby, she said, “Be it unto me according to thy word”.
She also had to trust God. It was a risky business betting pregnant without being married. She had to trust in God’s plan for her; trust that God would take care of her.
She accepted Jesus inside her; loved him and helped him to grow. Then after he was born she fed him and nurtured him continued to help him to grow. And because of this wonderful things happened. Jesus grew up among us and lived his life for us, and died for us and reconciled us to God.

So how are the drawings doing? We have got about another minute, so you need to be finishing off now.

Now I want to suggest is that we too, are called to be a bit like Mary. We are called to accept Jesus inside us and help him to grow. Not so much physically, but spiritually, so that we can grow to become like Christ. St Paul prays that we might all grow up into him who is the head, into Christ, into the full stature of Christ. (c.f. Eph 4:13-15).
Now it is God who makes Christ grow in us. It is not something that we can do ourselves. But if we behave like Mary then we allow God to do this work, without getting in the way.
So like Mary we are called to follow God’s will for us; to say with Mary “Be it unto me according to thy word.”
Like Mary we have to trust God. Sometimes God’s ways seem very strange, frightening even but it is important for us to trust God to bring about his work in us.
Like Mary we need to welcome Jesus, feed him and help him to grow. We can welcome Jesus by loving him in the people around us; we know Jesus is present in each person. We can nurture Jesus within us by listening to his word and by receiving his sacraments. This is how we make Jesus grow spiritually in us.

Now let’s have a look at these pictures of Jesus. Can we line them up so that we have the youngest Jesus at this end and the oldest one at that end. So then as we look along the line we see Jesus growing. So here at this end Jesus is just a baby. Let’s hold the pictures up high. How old is Jesus here? So slowly we can see Jesus growing to maturity. And at this end he is really very mature and the pictures are getting very good! So here before us is the pattern for our lives; Jesus growing. Let’s live our lives like Mary so that God will make Jesus grow within us. Amen.

Doubt and John the Baptist

Sermon preached at SS Mary and Bartholomew, Hampton-in-Arden, West Midlands at the 10.30am Eucharist, 16/12/07 Advent 3, Year A
(A shorter version of this sermon was also preached at the 8am Eucharist at St Alphege, Solihull, also on 16/12/07)

Readings: Isaiah 35:1-10 (James 5:7-10) Matthew 11:2-11

As we travel along on our Christian journey towards heaven we pass through many different stages and many different experiences. There are happy times and sad times; times when we experience great understanding and clarity, and times when all is confusion and doubt. We know that God, in his great love, can and does use all of these many different experiences to help us to draw nearer to him. But we are only human, and we tend to be much more comfortable when it is all about happiness and clarity, and we are far less comfortable when it is all about sadness and doubt.
In our gospel reading today we hear about John the Baptist, and it would seem that while he is locked up in prison he is experiencing a very painful period of darkness and doubt.
Let’s just remember that a few months earlier John the Baptist had really taken the people of Israel by storm. As we heard in last week’s gospel reading, John’s ministry had been very high profile. He had gone into the wilderness of Judea preaching all the prophecies from Isaiah about the coming of the Messiah. “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight”. (Matt 3:3, Is 40:3) John’s key message was “Repent for the kingdom of heaven has come near”. And people had flocked to John in great numbers and many received from him the baptism of water for repentance.
So John had developed a huge following, but he had also witnessed wonderful moments of revelation about Jesus. On the second Sunday of epiphany will hear in our gospel reading Matthew’s account of the Baptism of Christ. We will hear how at that moment John recognises Jesus for who he is. John is initially reluctant to baptise Jesus, but when he final does baptise him he sees the Spirit of God descending like a dove onto Jesus and he hears a great voice saying, “This is my son, the beloved, with whom I am well pleased” (Matt 3:17). At this point John is very sure about who Jesus. In chapter one of John’s gospel we hear John testifying about Jesus. John twice calls Jesus the Lamb of God. He explains that the decent of the Holy Spirit as a dove was for him a direct confirmation from God that Jesus was son of God. John had the clearest and most wonderful understanding of Jesus, and he shared this freely with the people around him, just as God had intended.
So we know that John was a very great man. And yet John’s great following soon started to fade. People began going to Jesus for baptism rather than to John. John’s comment on this, recorded in John's gospel, was that, “He [Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). And indeed it seems that John’s fortunes did start to dip quite dramatically. We know that Herod put John in prison, and it seems that while he is in prison and he starts to suffer all kinds of doubts and fears about who Jesus really was. Eventually he becomes so unsure that he sends his own disciples to ask Jesus if Jesus is the one who is to come, or if they should look for another.
To me it seems extraordinary that John the Baptist, the man above all others who bore witness to Christ, should himself start to suffer doubts like these while he his locked away in prison. And off course we know that it does not get any better for John. He never gets out of prison. Eventually, because of the king’s frivolous promise at a drunken party, John is beheaded.

[And the answer that Jesus gives to the disciples of John the Baptist seems not quite as clear as it might be. He says, “Go and tell John what you hear and see; the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the poor have good news brought to them.” (Matt 11:5). This is a reference to prophesies about the messiah like the one that we read today in Isaiah. Isaiah said, “For then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, the ears of the deaf unstopped; the lame shall leap like a deer and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.” (Is 35:3-4).
All these things were already very manifest, and were probably already known to John, so it is not clear that this would have helped him very much. I wonder if perhaps John was passing through a very dark moment in his own spiritual journey. We know that God often allows such moments, especially in the lives of his saints, so that the saints can lose their own ego completely and learn to trust entirely in God.]

It is interesting that Jesus waits for John’s disciples to go away before he makes his big speech of affirmation about John. In the big speech Jesus confirms that John is the one of whom it was written “I am sending my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way before you”. Jesus affirms that “among those born of women, there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist” (Matt 11:11). If we had read further in our gospel reading we would have heard Jesus say that John is the Elijah who, in the very last sentences of the Old Testament, is promised to come before the messiah. John the Baptist’s disciples had already left when Jesus said all this, but it might have been very comforting to John if he had heard it.
So when we suffer doubts and uncertainties we can take heart that we are in very good company. Even John the Baptist, the very person who announced the coming of Jesus, had these problems. We might wonder why God seems to allow such experiences. These are deep mysteries, but perhaps one reason is to teach us always to be ready to lose our own understanding of things and to trust completely in God. These moments of losing can be very painful and difficult, but we must never lose heart. John the Baptist became a very great saint. At the very moment that he was suffering from doubt, Jesus was teaching the world how great he was.

Waiting for Deliverance

Preached at St Alphege, Solihull at Choral Evensong, 6.30pm 09/12/07 (Advent 2)

Readings: Isaiah 40:1-11 Psalm 80 2 Peter 3:8-15a

There is a theme of waiting for deliverance in our scripture readings today.
First of all the choir sang for us psalm 80. This psalm was clearly written during one of the low points of the history of the Jewish people, perhaps during the period when exile in Babylon in the 6th Century BC. The psalmist pleads with God to come and save his people. The psalmist compares Israel to a vine which the Lord brought out of Egypt and established in a fine vineyard, such that it prospered and grew and extended. It sent our branches to the sea, and shoots to the river. But now it feels to Israel as though God has abandoned the vine. The vineyard wall have fallen down and any person or animal who wants a grape can just stroll in and strip whatever they want from the vine.
So, the psalmist pleads with God, “You have taken so much trouble over this vine, gone to such lengths to nurture it and to help it flourish, why now have you abandoned it? Look down from heaven and have regard for this vine that your right hand has planted. Put away the vine’s enemies and restore the vine, so that Israel may be saved [paraphrased].”
Our reading from Isaiah chapter 40 comes from the later end of this traumatic period when the Jewish people were in exile. The prophet tells the people that comfort is at hand. They should take heart. Jerusalem’s penalty has been paid. She has served her term and has paid double for all her sins. Now, at last, God is coming. Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight a highway for our God. Lift up the valleys, lay low the mountains for the Lord is coming and his glory shall be revealed. Because even though human beings come and go like grass, and grow up and fade away like the flowers of the field, the word of the Lord stands for ever. So stand up on the high mountain and proclaim the good news. God is coming with great might, and when he comes he will take care of his people, like a gentle Shepard taking care over his flock.
For Christians this prophecy is most perfectly fulfilled in the coming of Christ, but it is also fulfilled in the end of the exile in Babylon. This came about in a dramatic and extraordinary way. In 555BC the Persians and Medes conquered Babylon. Soon afterwards King Cyrus of Persia encouraged the Jews to go back to Jerusalem and to start rebuilding the temple. (Ezra 1:1-4)
This theme of waiting for God to come and deliver his people is also picked up in our New Testament lesson from the second book of Peter. Peter, and indeed all the church have been waiting for the second coming of Christ. Jesus had always been very clear that nobody, not even Jesus himself, knew the time of the second coming, but despite this there was a clear expectation in the early church that it would happen quickly. But the years went by and after a time scoffers had appeared, saying “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” In other words, “You should forget him, he’s not coming”.
Peter responds by telling us that 1000 years in God’s sight is like a day, and a day is like a 1000 years. The Lord is not being slow in making good his promise, rather he is being patient. He is allowing time for people to come to repentance, so that no one may perish. Peter remains adamant in his expectation that the whole earth will be destroyed by fire, but we await the new heavens and the new earth where righteousness is at home. Therefore we should continue to wait for the coming of the Lord, living lives of holiness and godliness, without spot or blemish and be grateful that the Lord is so patient.
Well 2000 years have gone by and we are still waiting. Surely God is being extremely patient!
But we must not underestimate what has happened in the last 2000 years. Christianity has spread from the original 12 disciples to cover about a third of the world’s population. And it is important to notice that Christianity continues to move forward and grow, especially in Africa, in the former communist countries and particularly in China. In the UK, and in much of the Western Europe we might well feel that Christianity has been in decline for 100 years, but that decline has no more significance than a big wave reseeding when the worldwide tide is still coming firmly in. So we should not underestimate the value of 2000 years of patience.
But let’s remind ourselves of Peter’s advice about this time of waiting. Peter describes it as a time to come to repentance, in which we should live lives of holiness and goodness. He says that we should strive to be found by the Lord at peace, without spot or blemish. What does he mean by this? What does it mean to come to repentance?
Let’s stop for a moment and think about this word, repentance. It is a word we use a lot in Advent, but what does it mean? Well I think it means many things.
Repentance means putting God in the first place in our lives and making sure that everything else (family, job, house, car, friends) finds its rightful places in our lives under God.
Repentance means knowing our need of God. It means remembering that it was God who created us, it is God who sustains us and it is above all God who wants our good. He wants to share with us the life of heaven.
Repentance means letting to of our own will, in order to follow the things that God wills for us. He made us, and knows better than we do, what is good for us.
Repentance means turning away from sin and all rebellion against God, in order to be obedient to God and to follow him in all that he wants from us.
Repentance means owning up to our sin, our human frailties, our fears, our inner hurts and entrusting all these to God’s mercy and compassion. In this way we become free of sin, from fears, from hurts and they cease to have power over us. This allows us to walk in the way of God without carrying loads of baggage.
Coming to repentance is therefore a process rather than an event. It takes time, so we can be grateful for the time that God has given us on this earth. Over time we orientate ourselves ever more perfectly in God’s love for us. Little by little we become more precise in our adherence to God’s will. Step by step we let go of our baggage that gets in the way and learn live in the freedom of God’s love.
So this use the time we have this Advent to come to repentance. Let’s make sure that God is in the first place in our lives, and other things find their right place under him. Let’s be ready to let go of our own will, in order to follow the things that God wills for us. Let’s own up to our sins and put them behind us. Living repentance will bring us to live lives of holiness and godliness, peace without spot or blemish, just as Peter recommends. And if we do this we prepare ourselves well for the second coming of Christ, or indeed for our own deaths if these should come first.

Prepare the way of the Lord - Repentance

Preached at St Helen’s Church. St Helen’s Road, Solihull at the 10am Eucharist, 09/12/07
Second Sunday of Advent - Year A

Readings: Isaiah 11:1-10 Romans 15:4-13 Matthew 3:1-12


In our gospel reading today we hear of John the Baptist preparing the way for the Jesus. “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” he proclaims. And this is what we are about in Advent. In Advent we are preparing for the coming of Jesus. We are preparing, in the first instance, for the coming of the baby Jesus at Christmas time. And we all enjoy making the practical preparation to celebrate the feast; we start to buy and wrap up presents. We plan Christmas dinners and parties and stock up the larder with good food. We buy new clothes to wear at our Christmas get-togethers. We prepare decorations for houses and churches. And all these practical preparations are important because Christmas is an important feast and we want to celebrate it well.
But when John the Baptist tells people to “Prepare the way of the Lord” I don’t think he is expecting his listeners to go out shopping for presents! John the Baptist, who lives in the wilderness, is not thinking about decorating houses. John the Baptist, who eats locusts and wild honey, isn’t thinking about stocking up the larder with food. John the Baptist, who wears camel’s hair with a leather belt isn’t thinking about fine clothes. Well what is he thinking about?
Well he is thinking much more of the spiritual preparation for the coming of Christ. In particular he is telling people to repent.
He says, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven has come near”. He baptises in the Jordon people who have confessed their sins. He tells the Pharisees and Sadducees to “bear fruit worth of repentance”. So John the Baptist is thinking of repentance as the essential preparation for the coming of Jesus.
Repentance. Let’s stop for a moment and think about this word, which is so alien to our times, so completely counter cultural. What does the word Repentance mean? Well, I think it can be defined in a number of ways; here are some of them:
Repentance means putting God in the first place in our lives and making sure that everything else (family, job, house, car, friends) finds its rightful places in our lives under God.
Repentance means knowing our need of God. It means remembering that it was God who created us, it is God who sustains us and it is above all God who wants our good. He wants to share with us the life of heaven.
Repentance means letting to of our own will, in order to follow the things that God wills for us. He made us, and knows better than we do, what is good for us.
Repentance means turning away from sin and all rebellion against God, in order to be obedient to God and to follow him in all that he wants from us.
Repentance means owning up to our sin, our human frailties, our fears, our inner hurts and entrusting all these to God’s mercy and compassion. In this way we become free of sin, from fears, from hurts and they cease to have power over us. This allows us to walk in the way of God without carrying loads of baggage.
Repentance therefore is not a one time thing. It is a process that goes on for a lifetime. Little by little we orientate ourselves ever more perfectly in God’s love for us. Little by little we become more precise in our adherence to God’s will. Little by little we let go of our baggage that gets in the way and learn live in the freedom of God’s love.
Repentance is an on-going process, but twice a year, in Advent and Lent, the church particularly invites us to remember repentance so that we can hear afresh the call to conversion and to make the necessary adjustments in our lives.
Over the last year or so I have enjoyed getting to know Fr Sean from St Augustine’s RC church. I meet him through Churches Together in Central Solihull. Fr Sean is quite an old man. He is a priest of 57 years standing and he has many holy qualities. Fr Sean is also a great joker. Something he does quite frequently is to ask people to pray for his conversion. And this can seem very funny, because their can be few people who are as thoroughly and truly converted as Fr Sean. And although it is funny, the point he is making is of the utmost seriousness and importance. However saintly we have become, there is always room for more conversion, always scope for truer repentance.
So this Advent lets work on repentance. Let’s make sure that God is in the first place in our lives, and other things find their right place under him. Let’s be ready to let go of our own will, in order to follow the things that God wills for us. Let’s own up to our sins and failings and put them behind us. In this way we prepare to meet Jesus. In this way we prepare to celebrate the Christmas season with holiness and joy.

Choir Sunday

Preached at St Alphege, Solihull on 18/11/07 – Second Sunday before Advent – Year C (Choir Sunday)
The sermon was preached at the 9.15 Eucharist with the boys choir interviewed and repeated at the 11am Eucharist with Girls Choir interviewed.

(Readings: Malachi 4:1-2a 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 Luke 21:5-19)

Choirs Sunday gives us an opportunity for us to celebrate our different choirs and to give thanks for the contribution that they make to our worship.
And there is a lot to give thanks for here. Perhaps most obviously we can give thanks for Nigel, our Director of Music and for John, the assistant organist. We give thanks for the people who sing in the choirs themselves; the boys, the girls, the ladies and the men. Then there are the families who support the choir members. Most people who sing in the choirs can only do so because of the support and commitment of other family members. We can also give thanks for groups like the Friends of St Alphege Music and the Royal School of Church Music who in different ways support the ministry of our choirs. So there is lots to give thanks for.
But Choirs Sunday is also a good opportunity to reflect upon the role of music in our worship. Music enhances the worship. It adds breadth and depth helping us to enter into the liturgy in a more complete way. Music makes the liturgy more beautiful and more fulfilling. If we go home from church still humming the music, then this helps us to remain in the spirit of the liturgy as we set out on our week.
Now most of us appreciate music, but many of us are not great musicians. And this is where a good choir can really help us. The choir can help us by leading our singing. It can also enhance our liturgy with additional anthems and settings that are well beyond the musical ability of most people. And this is a wonderful thing, and we need to celebrate it.
But there is another aspect that we must not lose sight of. Worship is something that we do together. When we come together as a church community to celebrate the Eucharist, we come together as one body; the body of Christ (e.g. Romans 12:4-5,1 Cor12:17, Eph 1:23). When we share in the bread and wine of the Eucharist we are share together in the body of Christ; we are participating in the body of Christ (1 Cor 10:16-17). The body of Christ in the Eucharist strengthens, renews and enlivens the body of Christ which is the church. And so it is essential that this celebration of the Eucharist is something we do together.
Now saying that we must celebrate the Eucharist together, does not mean that we all do the same thing. Just as the many organs of a physical body have different roles, so we have different roles in the church, and different roles in the liturgy. But the key point is that all these different things must be done to help and support the worship of the whole congregation; they must be done on behalf of the whole community.
So if the choir sing for us the Sanctus, or a special anthem we don’t need to join in and sing with them, but we do need to own and participate in that part of the worship. And we do this by listening, by praying and by contemplating the heavenly mysteries through the singing.
Now someone might say, “I’d rather sing my own Sanctus: that way I am participating more in the service.” Well, that is a good starting point. But as we grow in the faith, and as we get better at worship, we need to move beyond an individualised worship which is all about I do and say. Each of us needs to develop an awareness of or own worship as part of the worship of the whole community. My worship is my contribution to the worship of the whole congregation; it’s my sharing in the worship of the whole congregation. And in most cases the worship of the whole congregation is going to be more beautiful, and bring us closer to God, if the Sanctus is sung by the choir.
And this places a huge responsibility on the choir. It is very easy for the choir to get caught up in the technicalities of singing, and keeping the music sheets in order, and to forget they are worshiping, that worship is the essential thing. The more than the congregation is aware of the choir worshiping, the easier the congregation will find it to entrust the signing to the choir. And our liturgy will be the more beautiful for it.
Now I would like to ask the boys choir to come forward. We have talked about sharing in worship together, and sharing becomes easier as we know each other better, so I thought we could end this sermon by taking the opportunity to get to know the boys choir a little better. So we can start off by getting a proper look at you!
[A brief interview follows]
Tell me, how often do you come to church?
How often to practice, and how often to a service?
And what are the best bits of the service? What are the bits you enjoy?
And what about the rest of the service? Do you manage to say the prayers and listen to the sermon?

Gaining our souls by endurance

Thought for Parish Pewslip – 18th November 2007 - Second Sunday before Advent - Year C

Readings: Malachi 4:1-2a 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 Luke 21:5-19

In our New Testament reading Paul urges us to quietly get on with earning our living and not to grow weary of doing what is right.
This comforting advice for our everyday lives is in sharp contrast to our reading from Malachi which foretells of a terrifying day when the arrogant and evil doers perish, but those who revere the name of God shall see righteousness and healing.
Jesus echoes Malachi’s theme in our gospel reading. He talks of a time when the temple in Jerusalem will be completely destroyed. People ask him when this will be and he indicates that many wars, natural disasters, trials and betrayals must come first. Jesus’ main message is not to worry, but to continue to trust in him and by endurance to gain our souls. He says, “They will put some of you to death…but not a hair of your head will perish.” It is clear that Jesus is looking to a safety beyond death (c.f. Matt 10:28).
A few days after saying these words Jesus himself was killed. Then his resurrection revealed the hope that lies beyond death. Let us therefore carry on with our everyday lives, seeking always to do what is right. We know that traumas will come, and we know that one day we shall die, but let us continue to trust in Jesus and by endurance gain our souls.

Live Simply – Our Global Challenge

Article for Parish Magazine, published November 2007

God calls us to look hard at our lifestyles and to choose to live simply, sustainably and in solidarity with the poor.
In this way we can help create a world in which human dignity is respected and everyone can reach their full potential.
This would be true progress, worth more than economic growth alone.

This is how the Live Simply project introduces itself on its website at www.livesimply.org.uk. As time goes by I find more and more to admire in this way of thinking and living. It seems to me that seeking to live a simpler life can often be an authentic Christian response to many of the difficulties and problems that we face in western society today. I am thinking particularly of problems like consumerism, individualism, global warming and isolation of the poor. Here are some example of ways of “living simply”:
If I grow some of my own vegetables then I don’t have to buy my vegetables from the big supermarkets. My awareness of the earth, its soil and the weather grows. This helps to keep me “grounded” as a human being and increases my environmental awareness. The work involved gives me fresh air an exercise, making me less dependent on the gym. If I grow too many vegetables and chose to share some then a communitarian aspect of this project starts to develop. I am minimizing my carbon footprint because no transport is involved in the sourcing of my vegetables. I am showing solidarity with the poor by not using money to secure my vegetables.
If I buy a smaller, simpler car, rather than a big high status car, then the car has lower carbon emissions. I am less isolated from other people as I drive around and I undermine consumerism by saying “I am not dependent on a big car to feel good about myself”. I am less isolated from the poor than if I drive a high status car. Of course, all these effects are increased even further if I choose to go by bus or by bicycle rather than use a car.
If, in our family, we relax by playing a card game together rather than by watching TV or playing electronic games then we spend the evening in a more communal way. We build up the relationships among ourselves, we spend less money on electronic games, we use no electricity, we watch no adverts and we learn games which can be played by the poor.
Now, for me personally (and probably for many people in Solihull) this is very challenging! As a family we do grow some vegetables, but I personally do very little in the garden. I drive a biggish car and am very dependent on screen based entertainment! However I do see the point of “living simply”. I can also see that it is very counter cultural to our consumer society and all the marketing messages that we absorb consciously and unconsciously in our day to day lives.
On the evening of 16th November 2007, I shall be exploring this theme further by attending a lecture entitled “Live Simply – our global challenge” by Brazilian Sociologist Vera Araújo. The lecture is a major event; CAFOD's annual Paul VI Lecture in the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, Westminster. If anyone else is interested in coming along then please let me know.

– Fr Gerard

Knowing our need of God

Informal sermon - 28/10/07 – Last Sunday after Trinity – Year C
Readings: Ecclesiasticus 35:12-17 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18 Luke 18:9-14


First of all I would like to thank Club 1 for proclaiming the gospel for us today, via video clip! As you know, Club 1 have been reflecting on the parable the we heard in today’s gospel reading, so I thought it might be good to ask them a question or two!
[What do we know about the Pharisees at the time of Jesus? Tell me about the Pharisees.]
In the world that Jesus grew up in the Pharisees were pretty much the most respectable people around. They were religious leaders, usually well educated and usually from good families. People would like to be associated with the Pharisees; they would like to invite them to their parties and to talk to them in the streets.
[What do we know about Tax Collectors at the time of Jesus? Tell me about Tax Collectors.]
By contrast the tax collectors were about the least respectable people in society. The tax collectors worked for the occupying Roman force. They had the power to decide how much or how little tax you paid, so you could afford to fall out with them. If they wanted to take money off you they had the full power of the Roman army behind them. Also they often took a bit of money on the side for themselves, in addition to the money that they took for the Romans, and there was nothing you could do about it. People hated the tax collectors. It was dangerous to talk to tax collectors, because everything they knew about you or your friends they used to get taxes out of you. So people stayed away from the tax collectors and tried to have nothing to do with them.
[Last question! What is it about the parable that would have been rather
shocking to the people that Jesus was talking to?]
The parable is shocking because, when they pray to God, it is the Tax Collector not the Pharisee who walks away justified, that is who walks away in the right relationship with God. This could be very unsettling. It tells us that the ordinary values of human society can be very different from what matters to God. I was wondering how the parable might look if we switched it into modern times.
Solihull is a very respectable place. Someone from Solihull, a priest even, might go up to the church and pray “I thank you God that I have a nice house and a nice car and a nice family. I thank you that I obey the law of the land and go to church and I keep the Ten Commandments and I give money to the church. I thank you that I am a really respectable person.”
And perhaps somewhere else in the Borough, perhaps in Chelmsley Wood a drug addict might go into church, and he might have all kinds of debts, and problems, and a broken family and he might pray “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” And perhaps it is that person who is in the right relationship with God.
To be in the right relationship with God! To be in a right relationship with God we have to humbly accept our need of God. We have to humbly accept the love that God has shown us in making us, in giving us our families, our friends and all the good things that we have. And above all we have to humbly accept that God has overcome our sins, through the passion and death of Jesus.
It is very easy to think, “I am a very respectable person…I’m not a sinner…well that’s not a sin…well everyone does that nowadays.” But that’s the Pharisee talking! It is much, much harder to be honest about the painful reality of our own sin; we have to cry out with the tax collector “God be merciful to me, a sinner.”
And the key thing here is to believe ever more truly and ever more deeply in the mercy of God. The more that we can truly trust in God’s love for us, despite all the worst things about us, the more we can start to love ourselves as God loves us, to forgive ourselves as God forgives us and to move beyond denial, to move beyond self hatred, to move beyond our sin.
And I think it is important to acknowledge that this can be a painful process. Sin can cause pain in our relationship with God and our relationship with other people. Jesus on the cross has accepted that pain and we too need to accept some of the hurt before relationships can be properly restored.
Now I would like to tell you about a prayer that can help us to do this. Perhaps you know it already. It is called the “Jesus Prayer”, and it is rather similar to the prayer that the Tax Collector made in our gospel today. The prayer has many forms, but probably the most common is the simple phrase, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” , “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” In the tradition of the Orthodox Church it is recommended to repete this phase time and time again for several minutes. To start with we say the prayer with our lips, but the idea is that we build up a rhythm of prayer and slowly we start to say the prayer with our whole mind, our whole body and our whole spirit. And this is very helpful, because it reminds us ever more deeply who Jesus is, the Son of God, who we are, sinners, and of the mercy of God in which we are held.
So as we continue our service today, and as we go home, let us continue to reflect on this parable. Let’s be honest about our sin to God, and honest about our need of God. And let’s use the Jesus prayer to remind us that we stand always and only in the mercy of God. Amen.

Funeral homily at harvest tide

Preached in St Alphege Church, 2.30pm, 18th October 2007.
Reading: 1 Corinthians 15: 35b-38,42-44,50-58
Hymn: Come ye thankful people come.


Our Christian Faith stands us in good stead at the time of our death. Through our baptism we are united to Christ in his death, and we shall also be united to him in his resurrection. (Romans 6:5). In our scripture reading today from 1 Corinthians 15 we heard St Paul talking about the resurrection of the dead. Although our natural bodies, perishable and weak come to die, from them we grow new bodies, spiritual, imperishable and powerful.
And much of this is reflected in the famous harvest hymn that we will sing after our prayers. The first verse of the hymn starts “Come ye thankful people come, raise the song of harvest home” and it is all about giving thanks to God for the harvest and for the food that we eat.
But then the rest of the hymn is about a different kind of harvest. The hymn talks about we ourselves as God’s own field and the harvest that God hopes to receive from us at the end of our days. In the hymn we pray that we might be good at wholesome grain and that at our death, God may gather us to himself to become citizens of heaven. Then in the final verse of the hymn we think of ourselves in heaven as part of the Church in heaven, triumphant, purified from all sin and sorrow and rejoicing with all the angles and saints.
Following ?????’s death on Tuesday last week, the family came to our regular 8 o’clock service here on the Sunday. By chance it was harvest festival and Fr Patrick preached on the words of this hymn. And for the family this hymn spoke about ????? and gave great reassurance. It helped the family to trust in the love of God, who has now called ????? to himself.
And I would like to invite all of us take reassurance from our Christian heritage. Let’s put our trust in a loving God, who has grown us on this earth, for a future in heaven. Let’s seek to be good grain, wholesome and true, full of love for God and for one another. And, in the fullness of time, let’s be ready to yield to God a rich harvest, as we leave our mortal bodies behind, and go to join the Church Triumphant in heaven.

Being an apprentice of Christ

Teaching for a special "Going for Growth" vision service at St Alphege, 9.15am 07/10/07

Reading John 13:12-17

Teaching slot of 20 minutes, including some testamony and reflection.

Sermon delivered without notes, so text is approximate.

A similar sermon, in a shorter and more traditional style was preached at the 8am service.




[Image 1 – Going for growth cycle]
As you probably know, in this church we have identified three priorities areas for us to focus on to help us make progress around the “Going for Growth” cycle. The three priorities areas are, “Welcome”, “Relevance” and “Participation”.
[Image – Welcome, Relevance, Participation]
Fr Tim has already lead us in a Teaching Mass about wecome. Today we are thinking about Relevance and on 4th November we shall have a special service about Participation.
So today we are thinking about the theme of Relevance.
[Image saying "Relevance"]
And what do we mean by relevance? We mean the relevance of what we do in church to the rest of our lives. Why does going to church make a difference? How does going to church change my life?
And the thing that makes a difference is following in the way of Christ. It is practicing to become more Christ like. It is allowing Christ to grow within us and share his resurrection life with us. It is like we are apprentices in the art of life we have the opportunity of learning and becoming like Jesus, who is the expert teacher on living. This takes time, but over time we can learn.
Now I don’t know what you think of when you hear the word apprentice? Perhaps you think of Alan Sugar and the TV show?
[Image of Alan Sugar]
Well let me assure you that we are not thinking about Alan Sugar! We are not worrying about being fired; we are learning to accept that we are forgiven. No we are not thinking about Alan Sugar. We are thinking about Jesus.
[Picture of Jesus in worshop]
Now here is a picture of Jesus working in his father’s carpentry shop. There is a sense in which Jesus himself was an apprentice. Jesus’ father Joseph was a carpenter and Jesus would have learned the family trade as he grew up. And this would have taken time. Joseph would have taught Jesus. Jesus would have practiced and over time he would have become a good carpenter.
So in the carpenters shop Jesus was an apprentice and Joseph was his teacher. But in our day to day lives it is we who are apprentices and Jesus who is our teacher. As we heard in our gospel reading today, Jesus is our Teacher and Lord. Jesus sets us an example of how to live life, and blessed are we if we follow that example.
[Image - Icon style picture of Jesus]
So how do we go about following the example of Jesus? How does what we do in church help us with this? Well first, like any apprentice we must watch the expert craftsman at work. In church we do this especially when we read the stories about Jesus in the gospel. We have a gospel procession and we sign the Alleluias in order to emphasise the importance of the gospel reading. From the gospel readings we learn how Jesus lived his life. We learn about his attitudes; the love he shows for God and for the people around him, his particular care for the poor and weak. We hear about his complete obedience to the Father’s will, his desire to help others.
Secondly, just as the apprentice must listen to the teachings of the expert, so we must listen to Jesus the teacher. Again, as we read the gospel in church we constantly hear Jesus teaching, telling us what to do. We saw some of these teachings on the projector screens as we came into church. We need to hear these teachings and to learn how to put them into practice in our everyday lives.
Thirdly, the apprentice learns by talking to the expert. We too can talk to Jesus through prayer. Just as an apprentice might ask the expert when he or she is unsure what to do, so we should ask God in prayer when we don’t know what to do in our lives. This is true for very small things, “Shall I go out tonight?” and in very big things, “Shall I ask my girlfriend to marry me?” And when we ask God something in prayer, let’s remember to leave some moments of silence so that we can listen to anything he might want to tell us from deep within our heart. Coming to the Eucharist is a particularly good way of talking to God in prayer. As the gifts of bread and wine are offered at the altar, so we can offer our questions and prayers up to God. When we receive communion we received Jesus into our bodies, and can we try to still our mind and to listen to the wisdom that we are receiving into our hearts.
But the most important thing that an apprentice does to learn a trade is to practice. To become skilled at living life we have to put into practice the things we have learnt from Jesus. We have to live out in our day to day lives the things which we have heard about in church. Living out the commands of Jesus can feel very awkward and difficult at first. “Forgive as you have been forgiven”, “Do not worry”, “treat others as you would like them to treat you”. These things are not easy. It is like learning to use a new tool of the trade. It takes practice. When we first start it’s difficult and the results of your efforts may not be very good…but with time we become skilful.
And our everyday lives give us plenty of opportunities for practice and training in living a more Christ like life. Every person we meet in our day to day lives is someone we can love, trying to see them as Jesus sees them, believing in God’s love for them and wanting their good. And this can be very challenging, especially if the person is someone whom we do not instinctively like. But as we practice we become more Christ like and we get better at loving even the most difficult people.
And ever situation we find ourselves in is an opportunity to try and live better the life of Jesus. Being stuck in a traffic jam is an opportunity to learn patience. The joyful moment is an opportunity to give thanks to God. The anxious situation is an opportunity to learn to trust in God and not worry. The laborious task is a way of loving the person for whom the task is done. Every moment of our day is an opportunity to follow in the path of Jesus and attaining his skill of doing his father’s will. And this then starts to give meaning to all of our lives, even to the laborious bits, even to the moments of suffering.
So now we would like to share with you some examples from our own lives.



[Personal testamony 1, Personal testamony 2, Personal testamonies video from the youth Friday prayer group]



So hopefully these practical examples have got us all thinking about how our church life is relevant to our everyday lives and in particular how we can try to live out the phrases of the gospels in our everyday lives. I would like to invite you so form into groups of two or three and discuss the question, “How can I become a better apprentice of Jesus”.
[New slide - “How can I become a better apprentice of Jesus?”]
We will give you three minutes for this, plus a couple of minutes to note down your insights on the cards that have been distributed. We are not going to collect these cards in, they are for you to make a few notes to help remind yourself of ways of applying what we learn in church to our everyday lives.
[3 minutes]
So that is three minutes so please be finishing off you conversations now and start making a few notes for yourself on the card. Remember the card is for you to take away with you, and to remind you of things from church and from the gospels that you can put into practice day by day.
[2 minutes]
Right – thank you for that, so please could you be finishing off and putting your pens down and put your cards in you’re your pocket or bag where you will remember to take it with you. And let’s summarise where we have got to.
[Screens return to the icon picture of Jesus]
I said at the beginning that Jesus is the expert in living life, and we as apprentices have the opportunity to learn to live like him. But to say that Jesus is the expert on life is rather understating the point. Jesus is in fact the source of life itself. (e.g. John 1:4, 4:13, 5:21, chapter 6, 14:6, 20:31). Jesus came that we might have life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10). And this is why it is so desirable to follow Jesus and to copy him in his way of living. If we do this, then over time we become more Christ like. Christ like qualities start to form within us. (2 Cor 3:18, Col 3:10) This is very reassuring because we start to find that our life in Christ has an enduring quality that survives all manner of disasters and disappointments.
But the benefits of becoming more Christ like extend beyond our own lives. We start to have a positive influence on our families and the people around us. Our relationships start to work properly because everything begins to find its right place under God. Problems start to disappear.

So I commend to you living as an apprentice of Jesus as a way of making our church life relevant to our day to day lives.

The dwelling place of God

Thought for parish pew slip 07/10/07 - Dedication Sunday

Readings: 1 Chronicles 29:6-19 Ephesians 2: 19-22 John 2: 13-22

Today we have the readings for Dedication Sunday, when we give thanks to God for the buildings that we have set aside for the worship of God.
In our reading from 1Chronicles we hear about King David, who had brought the Israelites out of their years as a wandering tribe, and established them in the city of Jerusalem. King David longed to replace the nomadic tent of the tabernacle with a permanent dwelling place for God in Jerusalem. The work of constructing the temple would be done by David’s son Solomon, but David made all the preparations. He drew up the plans and donated his personal treasury for the construction. In this passage we hear how the people responded with their own free will offering on a grand scale.
In Ephesians, St Paul points out similarities between the physical building up of the temple and the spiritual building up of the worldwide church. In Christ we are all being joined together into a spiritual building which is the dwelling place of God.
In the gospel reading Jesus reflects, with irony, that his own body is more truly the dwelling place of God than the temple in Jerusalem.

Treasure in heaven - part 1 (text)

Informal Sermon - 23/09/07 – Trinity 16 (Proper 20) – Year C
Preached at St Alphege, Solihull 9.15am Eucharist
Readings: Amos 8:4-7 1 Timothy 2:1-7 Luke 16:1-13
(Approximate text – notes not used)


Now I wonder if you can work out who this character is? [Image 1 – Grumpy Scrooge]
This is Scrooge from the Charles Dickens Novel, A Christmas Carol. And what do we know about Scrooge? [What does he say – Bar Humbug!] We know that he is a bitter and twisted old man who only cares about money. All he thinks about is his accounts; he even does his accounts late on Christmas Eve. He also thinks about how to save a few pence here and there by not putting any fuel on the fire. Now Scrooge is an example of someone who lives his life for money. Let’s remember that, and we’ll come back to Scrooge in a few moments.
Now, I would like to thank the young people of Club 1 for reading our gospel for us today. They have been studying this particular gospel story this month, and now we are going to reflect on it together…so that’s good isn’t it.
But there’s a bit of a problem. And the problem is that today’s gospel reading is a very difficult gospel reading.
So I wonder if Club 1 found it difficult?
[hands up club 1 if you found it a difficult gospel reading]
[why did you think it was difficult ?]
Personally, I find it a difficult parable because when you first read it, it looks as though Jesus is telling us to be dishonest. Hummm! Let’s have a think about that.
First of all let’s just remind ourselves of the story. A rich man has a manager who he employs to look after his business affairs. But then people start telling the rich man that the manager is squandering the rich man’s money – he is being very wasteful with it. So the rich man decides to sack the manager. He says bring me all the accounts and hand them back over to me, because you are to be sacked.
And the manager is very worried because he is about to lose his job, and he does not know how he will get by without it. Then he has a brain wave. The last few hours that he his in charge of his master’s money he spends giving away his masters money, and in this way he makes some friends for himself, who will look after him when he has no job. And then the strange bit. The rich master commends, that is he praises, the dishonest manager. If I was the rich man I would be very cross with the manager, who is being blatently dishonest, but instead what does the rich man do?
[He praises the dishonest steward – for being shrewd]
So is Jesus telling us to shrewd? Is he telling us to be good at looking after ourselves?
I think Jesus does want us to look after ourselves and he recognises that in this earthly life we sometimes need to be shrewd in the way that we do that. In Matthew’s gospel (10:16) Jesus tells us to be cunning as serpents and innocent as doves. So we have to be innocent, but when we are dealing in the affairs of this world we also have to be shrewd.
So is Jesus is telling us to be shrewd, so that’s aright then, isn’t it?
But is it alright? What about the bit where he says, “Make friends for yourself by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.”
Is Jesus telling us to be dishonest? Does he want us to be like Robin Hood, steeling from some people and giving to others?
Well it is pretty clear that Jesus does not want us to be dishonest. In this very passage he says that people who are faithful in small things are also faithful in large, and people dishonest in small things also being dishonest in large. So Jesus does not want us to be dishonest.
What, then, does Jesus mean by “Make use of dishonest wealth”?
Well I think he means ordinary money, worldly wealth that you and I understand as nice houses, smart cars and big bank balances. In fact many bible translations translate this as worldly wealth, not dishonest wealth. In the eyes of Jesus, worldly wealth is not really ours; it s just lent to by God. All things come from God, and we give him what is his. (c.f. 1 Chronicles 29:14)
We arrive on this earth as little babies, with absolutely nothing; not even clothes. Our parents look after us and give us stuff and we learn how to make things and how to earn money and how to get the things we need. But then when we die we leave the earth with absolutely nothing. Even our bodies turn to dust and ashes. In the eyes of Jesus, all worldly wealth is just something lent to us. It has no lasting value. It will pass away, or even if it does not pass away we will lose it when we die.
Jesus is always pointing out the contrast been worldly wealth and wealth in heaven. He says do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth where it can be destroyed by moths and rust and where thieves break in and steel it; rather store up treasure in heaven where there are no moths or rust or thieves, so that where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Matt 6:19-21)
By contrast what Jesus really values he calls treasure in heaven. Treasure in heaven is the acts of generosity we have done, the times we have stood patiently by with those who suffer, it’s the efforts that we have made with the people we find difficult, it is all acts of love we have done great and small. And this treasure in heaven has eternal value and it is much more truly ours then anything we might own on earth.
And so this is what Jesus is saying – use your earthly wealth to build heavenly wealth, by serving other people on earth, by building up friendship and community on earth. [It didn’t cost the dishonest manager anything when he gave away his masters money, but it did buy him friends. So Jesus invites us to use our earthly wealth that is leant to us, to buy friends in heaven. We loose our earthly wealth anyway when we die, so it is a much better idea to use it to buy wealth in heaven.]
And this brings us back to Scrooge. [Image 2 - Happy Scrooge] Now in the story of the Christmas carol Scrooge goes through a conversion experience. It is a difficult and frightening experience involving three ghosts, but Scrooge has a complete change of heart. He starts to care about other people. He starts to give away his money. He starts to be generous. He starts to build up treasure in heaven. And as he does all this, he starts to find his happiness again.
So let’s be happy, like the converted Scrooge. Let’s think of our money and our wealth as something that is lent to us by God. Let’s use it while we are on this earth, to build up treasure in heaven.

Treasure in heaven - part 2 (images)

Mercy and repentance

Sermon - 16/09/07 – Trinity 15 (Proper 19) – Year C
Preached at St Michael’s, Sharman Cross School, Solihull 10.30am Eucharist, 16/09/07
Readings: Exodus 32:7-14 (1 Timothy 1:12-17) Luke 15:1-10

When I was a boy, about 9 years old, it was very clear to me that my parents wanted me to be good at school. And by and large I was good at school, but not all the time. There was one occasion when a group of us had got into trouble for messing around and we had to spend our break inside writing out lines. Well, things like this happened from time to time and as I sat down with the others at the start of break to do the lines I was not unduly concerned. But then a terrible thing happened. I heard, very clearly, my father’s voice in the hallway. I realised that my father was visiting the school, as he often did (he was the local rector). I realised that he was about to walk through the classroom and he would find me, writing my lines for having been naughty. For me, it was one thing to be punished at school, it was quite another to have it known about at home. I was thrown into a terrible panic.
When my father finally entered the classroom I fell of my chair, in my panic, and tried to hide under the table. Of course it was hopeless. The teacher fished me out from under the table, and I hung my head while it was explained that I was writing lines for messing about earlier that morning. My Dad said something like, “Oh dear! So you’re in trouble for messing around are you?” He picked me up and hugged me, and while still hugging me he carried on discussing a completely different matter with the teacher. Eventually he put me down, and went on to the next classroom. I went back to writing my lines. The incident was never mentioned again, but I was changed person.
I had an overwhelming sense of relief that my crime was not going to cause problems at home. I also had a huge sense of gratitude to my Dad who continued to love me and support me even though I had done something wrong. I had learnt something about mercy and I had experienced repentance.
The readings that we read this morning make us think about mercy and repentance. Mercy is love and compassion expressed towards those who are in difficult situations. There are works of mercy that seek to help those with bodily needs, so we try to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and shelter the homeless. There are also works of mercy that seek to help those with spiritual needs, so we try to console those who mourn, we try to patiently put up with the faults we perceive in other people and we try to forgive the sins of others. It is especially this mercy towards those who sin, that we think about in today’s readings.
In our OT lesson we hear about God who is angry with the Israelites because they have made a calf of gold and started to worship it, rather than worshiping the one true God. God says that his wrath will burn hot against them and he will destroy them all. but Moses, who scriptures tell us was the most humble of men, courageously pleaded with God and he managed to persuaded God not to wipe out the Israelites totally. Now had we read on a bit we would have discover that that was not the end of the matter. Moses returned to the Israelites very angry; he ground their golden calf into a fine power, mixed it with water and made the people drink it. Later 3000 Israelites died by the sword, and many more through a plague on account of the golden calf, but after that it seems that there was real repentance. Certainly God was able to continue to help the Israelites on their journey to the promised land.
Repentance. That is the other key word from our scripture readings today. In the gospel reading Jesus told the story of the lost sheep. When the sheep is finally found there is great joy. Jesus says that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents that over 99 righteous people who need no repentance. Similarly he tells the story of the woman who lost one of her ten silver coins. She searches high and low, and when she eventually finds it there is great rejoicing. Similarly, says Jesus, there is joy in heaven when one sinner repents.
Repentance means saying that we are sorry, and starting again in obedience to God. It means putting God in the first place in our lives, and letting everything else (houses, families, jobs, holidays) letting all these things find their right place under God.
So as we leave this church today, let us try to put into practice mercy and repentance. First of all let’s have an attitude of repentance ourselves. Let’s make sure that God has first place in our lives and that everything else is done in obedience to him. And after that, let’s have an attitude of mercy. Especially when we encounter faults in other people, let’s have an attitude of mercy. In fact it is the love and compassion of our mercy that is the most helpful thing in bringing them to repentance.

Funeral Homily - Joseph Foote - Hope

Funeral Homily - 10th September 2007

Funeral of Joseph Foote - 1.45pm St Alphege Church
Background: Joseph Foote was an inspiring 9 year old who died on 1st September after seven years with a brain cancer. More about Joeseph can be found on his website at http://www.josephfoote.co.uk/ including the funeral order of service and Joeseph's father's tribute.

Reading: Matthew 18:1-5,10


Today we have heard a wonderful tribute to Joe from Andy his father. We have heard a piano piece and a very moving poem from Nancy, Joe’s sister. We have also heard a poignant tribute from Ash, who is Joe’s Godfather and who was present at Joe’s baptism.
In his words, Andy described Joe’s story as one of Love, Laughter, Courage and Hope. Today Andy has spoken particularly of the Love the Laughter and the Courage, but when I went to visit Andy and Judy in their home, it was particularly the Hope that we spoke of. And that might, at first sight, seem strange. Someone might ask, “Where is the hope in the story of a child who dies?”
Right from the time of Joe’s first diagnosis back in 2000 Andy and Judy always believed that Joe would get better. They worked hard, and Judy in particular worked hard, to make sure that Joe too believed he would get better; that things would be alright. And this hope gave the family great energy. They did everything possible. They made sure that Joe got the very best medical treatment. They established the Joe Foote Trust to fund research in the treatment of brain cancer. Andy told me how empowering he found this hope. “If you have got hope you can do anything. You can walk through walls if you have got hope,” he said.
And this hope was also very helpful to Joe. According to Andy it was this belief that he would get better that gave Joe his courage and his strength of character. This was the reason that he never moaned and never complained.
Then there was a critical moment, about two years ago. Joe’s condition developed to such a point that the hospitals refused to perform any further operations. And with news came the terrible realisation that the hospitals were not going to make Joe better. And this point all hope seemed to disappear. Andy told me about a terrible two hours, during which he and Judy languished in complete despair. The loss of hope was completely debilitating. They could do nothing. They could barely even stand up. It was a terrible, terrible moment.
But then, as emptiness and despair sank deeper and deeper into their hearts, something strange happened. They realised that at a deeper level there was something solid within them, something that had not drained away in the despair. Something that was still there, that could be counted upon. Despite the terrible news from the hospitals hope was still present in their hearts. They could carry on. They could still do things for Joe. They did not know quite what, but they could find things. They could move forward.
And so hope returned; a deeper and more profound hope. And with this, energy returned. They were able to take Joe to the States for further treatments. They redoubled all their efforts in looking after Joe. The belief that Joe would be alright sustained them and kept them going these last two years.
When I heard this I was quite concerned. I asked Andy, “And what happens to this hope two years later, when the child finally dies.” He told me, “Hope is still there. It is still there. We still have each other. We still have Nancy. We still have the grandparents and wider family. There are still things we can do, people we can work for. And we can still have hope for Joe.”
[Pause]
This extraordinary and inexplicable resilience of hope goes right to the heart of the Christian story.
When Jesus of Nazareth was teaching in Judah and Galilee many people started to place their hope in him. Jesus was a great prophet, who worked great miracles. People thought he would do great things; restore the fortunes of Israel, kick out the Roman occupation and rule as a great and just king.
And then it all went terribly wrong. Jesus was put on trial by his own people. He was scourged, mocked and crucified. He died a most terrible death, hanging on a cross. The friends of Jesus ran away and hid. For two days they suffered the most terrible despair. Was all that teaching for nothing? Could the one who healed others simply be killed himself? Then, on the third day, the strange news of the resurrection started to filter through. Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene and to some of the apostles, not as a ghost, but as a complete and real human being, still bearing his scares from the crucifixion. There were more and more appearances, and slowly the realisation set in that Jesus had conquered death. Jesus truly was the resurrection and the life. Hope was born again. Not the futile hope that we can somehow escape death, but rather the deep and profound realisation that death is not the end. We can come to share in the new life of Christ. We can share in his resurrection.
Ash and the other godparents present hear today remind us of Joe’s baptism. When we are baptised we are baptised into the death and resurrection of Christ. Through the darkness and despair of the cross, Christ came to the hope and new life of the resurrection. By baptism we too can pass through the loss and emptiness of our own death, as we come to share in the new life of Christ. And this is our hope for Joe. And this is the hope for each one of us. In particular this is the hope for Joe’s family. I have no doubt that there will be some difficult days and months ahead as the loss of Joe’s earthly presence really sinks in, but through our baptism we have a hope that is deeper and more profound. And with hope we can do anything!

The choice of God; putting God first!

Sermon - 09/09/07 – Trinity 14 (Proper 18) – Year C
Preached at St Alphege, Solihull 8.00am Eucharist on 09/09/07
Readings: Deuteronomy 30:15-20 Philemon 1-21 Luke 14:25-33


Our readings today make us to think about the choice of God. Choosing God! What does this mean, choosing God! It means putting God in the first place in our lives and then allowing all the other things in our lives to find their right place in accordance with what God requires.
In our Old Testament lesson the Israelites are just about to enter the Promised Land. For years God has been promising them this land, if they live according to his commandments. At long last God is delivering on his promise. Forty years of wondering around in the desert are over and the good times are at hand. And God chooses this moment to remind the Israelites that they face a clear choice. They can continue to walk in the Lord’s ways, obeying his commandments, in which case God will bless them, and they will be prosperous in their new land and their descendents too will prosper. God describes this as choosing life and blessings. Or they can choose to stray from God’s ways and serve other Gods. If they choose to stray from God then they will not live long in their new land, rather they will perish. God describes this as the choice of death and curses.
And we too all of us face this choice at the personal level. We can put God in the first place in our lives and seek to walk in his ways, obeying his commandments. God is our creator and the source of our life, so to make this choice is to choose life and to choose blessings. Alternatively we can give first priority in our lives to something that is not God, but which feels important to us. We might give top priority to our job, or our home, or our financial security, or to our children, or to our sense of being in control, or to money, or to shopping, or to holidays. It is not that there is anything wrong with these things; if fact they are all very good things when they are put in their rightful place under God. The problem comes if we prioritise these things over God. If we do this then we deprive God of his rightful place, we cease to be open to the things he asks of us. We fail to notice or fail to value the good things that he gives us. To do this is to choose death and curses. Eternal life does not come from shopping. It does not come from financial security, or even from our children. Eternal life comes from God, the giver of all life, the one who created us and who wants our good, and who has a wonderful destiny planned for us in heaven. In fact to choose God, and to put God in the first place in our lives is the only logical and sensible way to live our lives. And the beautiful thing is that if we seek first the kingdom of heaven, then all these other things will be added to us as well. God will give us the things we need. Generally he does allow us to shop, he gives us financial security, he looks after our children, but we have to give first priority to God.
In our gospel reading Jesus tells us very forcibly about the cost of that choice. Jesus is God. There is no conflict between choosing God and following Jesus. These are in fact the same thing. To put God first means to follow Christ. We must not let anything stop us from following Christ. We must put Christ above father, mother, wife and children, above brother, sisters and even above life itself. We have to carry our cross and follow Christ. We have to be ready to give up all our processions.
This might make it seem very hard to follow Christ, undesirable even. But we have to trust God who made us and wants our good. He knows the things that we need and he will provide. We receive these things as gifts, not as things we snatch for ourselves. As we follow Christ we may pass through all kinds of difficulties but over time our lives become simpler and more harmonious. Certainly there are sufferings and certainly we have to be ready to lose things that we value in order to put God first, but everything we ever had comes from God, and he gives us far more back than we ever lose. In the long term Christ’s yoke is easy and his burden light.

The old covenant and the new covenant

Sermon - 26/08/07 – Trinity 12 (Proper 16) – Year C
Preached at St Alphege, Solihull 8.00am Eucharist on 26/08/07
Readings: Isaiah 58:9b-14 Hebrews 12:18-29 Luke 13:10-17

In the gospel reading that we have just heard, Jesus performs a healing miracle on the Sabbath. This is a great scandal to the leader of the synagogue because this appears to be working on the Sabbath and it is certainly not consistent with the Jewish Law as it was generally understood. The synagogue leader argues, “You have six days in a week for work; come and be healed on those six days, but keep the Sabbath day holy.” Jesus however is completely insistent. He appears to see the healing of the woman, bound by Satan for 18 long years, as something that just has to be done. He perhaps even suggests that the Sabbath Day is a particularly appropriate day to do it.
It seems that this was a popular move. The gospel reading tells us that the entire crowd rejoiced at the wonderful things that Jesus was doing. And yet for ordinary Jews who sought to live a good life this must have been a very confusing incident. For a Jew at that time, to live a good life meant, by and large, to follow the Law of Moses. It was the job of the Scribes and the Pharisees to explain to the people what the Law was. It was important to keep the Law. Through Moses, God had agreed a covenant with the people of Israel. They would keep God’s law and God would give them the Promised Land. Keeping the Law was doing you side of the bargain; it was honouring God and helping to secure the Promised Land.
But then Jesus comes along, who is clearly a man of God and a good man, and says don’t just focus on the detail of the Law, rather focus on doing good! Jesus was redefining the covenant of Moses and redefining the relationship between God and his people.
From the earliest times in the Church, we have always been very clear that Jesus was able to do this. Jesus was the Christ, the son of the living God, who could be worshipped as God. He was much more significant than Moses, and had every right to redefine the covenant.
Through his passion and death, Jesus mediated a new covenant between people and God. No longer should we be slaves to the details of the Law, but rather we are saved through faith in Christ and by following Christ, the way, the life and the truth. In the Eucharist we celebrate this new covenant, nurturing ourselves on Christ. We hold up the chalice and remember the words of Jesus, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me.”
The difference between the old and new covenant is emphasised by our New Testament lesson. It is a difficult reading, and worth studying again when you get home. It says that we have not come to something tangible and rigid like the Law of Moses. It describes the scene from Exodus chapter 19 with the tempest, the trumpet and the terrifying voice when the Law was handed over to Moses. Rather, the reading emphasises, we have come to a new covenant, to the city of the living God, to innumerable angels, to the assembly of the first born enrolled in heaven, to God, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect and above all to Jesus.
Notice that the new covenant is expressed in terms of people and relationships, much more than it is expressed in terms of rules and regulations. Rules and regulations, like the 10 commandments, are still there to guide us, but our primary responsibility is to true to our heavenly relationships, especially to be true in our relationship with Christ.
So how do we do that? How are we true in our relationship with Christ. Well, in John chapter 14 Jesus says, “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” In the same discourse he gives us the New Commandment – to love one another, as he has loved us. Love is indeed the fulfilment of the Law (Romans 13:10). It is by growing in love that we live out the new covenant, and grow in communion with all the citizens of heaven.

Keeping the Sabbath

Thought for parish pew slip – 26th August 2007 - Trinity 12 (Proper 16) Year C
Readings Isaiah 58:9b-14 Hebrews 12:18-29 Luke 13: 10-17

Our readings today challenge us to think about the Sabbath.
In our reading from Isaiah, the prophet asks us not to go our own way, serve our own interests or pursue our own affairs on the Sabbath, but rather to honour the Sabbath and to think of it as a delight.
In our gospel reading Jesus performs a healing miracle on the Sabbath. This is one of several gospel stories where Jesus heals on the Sabbath, and it is always a challenge to the Scribes and Pharisees because it goes against the detailed regulations of the Law. Jesus however is insistent. In Luke 6:9 he asks, "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil”.
Nowadays we live very busy lives and it is hard to live the Sabbath well. And yet the busyness of our lives makes it all the more important to set aside time for rest, for the family and for worship. If we don’t do these things on a Sunday, then when do we do them? Trying to observe the Sabbath is a good way of ensuring that rest, family and worship do not get crowded out of our lives. We need these things if we are to live fully human lives.