Sheringham: St Peter

We don’t know what we don’t know, do we? The older I get, the more I know that I don’t know what I don’t know. The value of every experience in life is in what it teaches us. We never stop learning.

I’m fresh back from a 3 month Sabbatical. It was good, a time of deep prayer and reflection, recollection, reading and refreshment in which I made some important decisions. I also learned a lot. I’ll share three experiences with you.

For the first 6 weeks, I found out what it’s like to do on-line church only. By then, I was missing being with my fellow Christians in person. I missed you. I wanted to pray, worship, sing and share in communion with you. I went to another benefice for the Ash Wednesday service, and joined in with their Lent course which was good, but it was wonderful to be back here in my home church for the Easter services.

For the second 6 weeks of my Sabbatical I found out what it’s like not to be able to walk far, because my knee seized up. I could only go anywhere if facilitated. I couldn’t climb stairs, or stand for long, or use buses or trains. I so appreciated such things as taxis, lifts, seats, accessible toilets, and kind patient people.

And I attended the funeral of a neighbour while I was away. It was led by a pleasant secular celebrant who said nice things. But there was something missing. She didn’t mention the afterlife at all - rather we were told to commit the deceased to memory. I found myself silently praying the words of the committal in our funeral service: ‘earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust: in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our frail bodies that they may be conformed to his glorious body, who died, was buried, and rose again for us. To him be glory for ever. Amen.’

In our scripture reading this morning Peter told the people what they didn’t know they didn’t know: the Jesus they crucified was risen from the dead - he was the Lord, the Messiah! They were cut to the heart, but he gave them the good news that by repentance and baptism in the name of Jesus Christ their sins would be forgiven, and they would receive the Holy Spirit! Can we grasp this? What amazing news this is! God’s love is overwhelming! He sent his Son to show us the way, then when people not only rejected his message but cruelly and wickedly scorned and killed him, he still loved enough to forgive them and give them the gift of the Holy Spirit! Those who welcomed his message accepted it, and the invitation is still open to everyone today.

In our wonderful gospel reading of the encounter on the road to Emmaus, the risen Jesus told two confused disciples what they didn’t know they didn’t know, how everything that had happened was in accordance with the scriptures. They received the news with joy. Their hearts were burning within them. They invited him in, then recognised him in the breaking of the bread.

‘For things unknown there is no desire’ is an old adage which encourages us to tell people about what we know to be good, so that they will seek it out. Malcolm told us last week not to be afraid to share the good news of the risen Christ.

So many people don’t know what they don’t know. The Christian message is one of hope and joy, of loving relationship with God now and forever. If we truly believe this we surely want to tell people about it. It’s the loving thing to do. That doesn’t necessarily mean standing on street corners with a megaphone, but if that’s what grabs you go for it! It does mean being ready to tell people what you believe if and when a conversation goes that way. It does mean expressing your beliefs to your nearest and dearest and if it’s important to you telling them that you would like a Christian funeral, with a committal which aligns with your beliefs. It does mean expressing our faith in loving action too - being with and facilitating one another, showing kindness and patience.

We’ll let Peter have the last word, from his epistle: ‘Through Christ you have come to trust in God so that your faith and hope are set on God. Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart.You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.’

Let’s share that love in word and deed, and in the breaking of bread. Amen.

Julie Rubidge, Lay Minister

Sheringham: St Peter

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