6th Sunday of Easter Readings: Acts 16v9-15; Psalm 67; Revelation 21v10&22-22v5; John 14v23-29 Let us pray: May the words of my mouth and the thoughts and meditations of all our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer. A Word: In the gospel of John, Jesus tells us that he was sent to us by his father. He also said that if we love him that we will keep his word. In return, for keeping Jesus word, his father will love us and live within us. This will be through the holy spirit who will live within us to teach and remind us of all we need to know. Other scriptures tell us that the holy spirit is powerful and amazing. For through it we are transformed, made new and changed into God’s people. Through the holy spirit God speaks to us in many and varied ways and calls us into his mission and ministry. Through the holy spirit we are given the ability and skills we need to do God’s bidding. In the other readings for today we hear about God speaking to his people through visions. In Acts, we hear that Paul had a vision of a man from another land calling to him and asking for help. Prompted by this vision, Paul and his companions visited the Roman settlement in Macedonia. Here they proclaimed the good news and spoke to people by the river where the locals went to pray. It was here that a rich woman named Lydia heard about Jesus. After Lydia and her household were baptised, she invited the missionary deputation to stay with her. This vision was a calling to action by God which is quite different to the other vision in the Book of the Revelation. In this other vision God shows John the new Jerusalem, the place that we call heaven. A place where there is no night because all of it is the temple of God filled with the light and glory of God. A place with a river carrying the water of life, bordered by trees that produce life giving fruit and leaves that heal the nations. For this is a temple that is open forever. A temple that welcomes in only those whose names are written in the Book of Life. A temple where those who can enter will see God face-to-face, and will worship God in the heavenly realm and reign with God forever. I believe that the Book of Life referred to in this vision is something that the early followers of God must have known about because in Psalm 67 we learn that God will review our lives and appraise us justly. So, what is the meaning of our scriptures today? I believe that we are being reminded that the holy spirit is at work in the world, teaching and reminding us of many things. For God speaks to us in many and varied ways and visions are just one of the ways. For God is able to speak to us through inner promptings, by our reactions to the bible, in unexpected revelations, in times of prayer, in what we witness in the world all around us, in how we feel about life, in the messages brought to us by others as well as through hearing God speak to us or in seeing visions. But however, we hear the spirit speak to us, Paul teaches that we must be careful. For he teaches us to discern the promptings we receive and make sure they are really from God. I believe that after his vision that Paul must have shared it with his companions and had a conversation about its meaning. I believe this because the reading tells us that Paul and his companions were convinced that the vision was God’s call to them to mission and together they decided to go. From this, we learn that when we hear God’s promptings we should speak to others about what we have been prompted about. Then we must pray for the wisdom to understand what it is that God truly wants of us and them await God’s reply. For as we heard in Acts, when we follow what God truly wants of us other people are brought into the life that Jesus is pointing us to within God’s kingdom. So, like our ancestors in faith in the psalm for today, lets ask for God’s grace and blessing so that God’s ways will spread to the ends of the earth. Let us Pray: Almighty and eternal God, our father and redeemer. You have saved us from the power of darkness; you have given us the water of eternal life; you have brought us into the kingdom of your son. Help us this day by making us thirst for your spring of life, the source of all goodness. Raise us to everlasting joy by helping us to keep in mind that though the death of Jesus we are recalled to a life without end. Keep us in your family of faith by your continued presence in our lives. Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer. Amen Thanks for joining us today.
5th Sunday of Easter Readings: Acts 11v1-18; Psalm 148; Revelation 21v1-6; John 13v31-35. Let us pray: May the words of my mouth and the thoughts and meditations of all our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer. A Word: In Acts we hear that Peter was told off by the Jewish followers of Jesus for welcoming, visiting and eating with gentile believers. In reply, Peter told them about a vision he had from God. In this vision Peter was offered all sorts of creatures to kill and eat but, as many of them were forbidden in Judaism, Peter refused to eat them. When this vision occurred a second time it came with a voice that told Peter that nothing that God has made clean is forbidden. After this vision occurred three times, three Gentile men arrived from Caesarea and invited Peter to go with them. Prompted by the Spirit, Peter went with them to a man’s house, where he was told that the man had been visited by an angel. This angel instructed the man to send for Peter because Peter had a message that would save him and his whole family. After this, Peter shared the good news of Jesus and as he did, the holy spirit fell upon them, prompting Peter to recall the prophecy that John baptised with water but they would be baptised with the holy spirit. Having seen this happen to the gentiles, Peter knew that the gentiles were included in God’s plan and Peter’s witness testimony was enough to convince his Jewish Christian hearers that all was in the hands of God. I believe that this reading tells us that it is God who calls his people back to him and that we as his messengers here on earth are simply sent to open doors for all those that God is calling into his Kingdom. As messengers I believe that we have a special role to fulfil. For as we hear in the gospel of John, before he completed his mission and returned to heaven, Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment : to love one another as he has loved them; so others will know they are His disciples. In our time, in this place, this is the commandment we are called to fulfil: to love one another as Jesus loved us; so others will know that we are His disciples. I also believe that our readings today are a call to see that God’s kingdom is one that begins here on earth and continues into eternity. An eternity that we hear about in the book of Revelation. For in this book, John describes a new heaven, a new earth and a new holy city of Jerusalem that will one day replace all that we know right now. For it is a place in which God will live alongside humanity forever, in a place in which God will make everything new by erasing sorrow, death, crying and mourning. This is a gift that God wants all of his creation to have because God loves us so much. It is a gift we do not deserve and it is a gift we can do nothing to earn. I believe that this generous and gracious gift of love that God has for his creation is something that the psalmist understood because in Psalm 148 the whole of creation is called to praise God. Let us Pray: Almighty and eternal God, whose son Jesus is the way, the truth and the life; the one who has opened the gate of everlasting life by overcoming death. Put into our minds the desire to do good, and the grace to fulfil it, so we can follow Jesus by rejoicing in his truth and sharing in his risen life. Amen Thanks for joining us today.
4th Sunday of Easter Readings: Acts 9v36-end; Psalm 23; Revelation 7v9-end; John 10v22-30. Let us pray: May the words of my mouth and the thoughts and meditations of all our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer. A Word: The psalm tells us that we have a shepherd who takes good care of our bodies and souls through each and every day of our lives. For we have a shepherd who walks with us through every difficulty and danger in life. A shepherd who is leading us to everlasting life to the place where we shall be invited to join the Messiah’s celebration feast. In Revelation we hear about everlasting life in the vision of heaven. For it is a place full of many people robed in white, all standing before the throne of God and his Lamb. A people gathered from every nation, tribe and language; and all of them washed clean by the Lamb of God. A people given the water of everlasting life; who in heaven will never again feel hunger, thirst or sorrow. A people who will worship and praise God alongside the angels, the four living creatures and the elders. But, who are these people? In John we hear Jesus say that his sheep will hear his call and follow him because they believe in him and belong to his flock. Jesus says: that to these sheep he will give eternal life; for they will not perish; and no-one can snatch them from out of his hand. But how do we hear the call of Jesus? Well some are like St Paul and meet Jesus face to face. Others are like John who was shown the visions of heaven. Others are like the writers of the psalms, they feel inspired from deep within themselves, with ideas and words given to them by God. There are so many ways that God may speak to us and call us into his kingdom and service. Today in the Book of Acts we hear of yet another way that God may speak to us. For after Tabitha died and was laid out in readiness for burial and funeral rites, messengers were sent to ask Simon Peter to come. Like all good pastors, Peter listened to what everyone had to say about her and he heard that Tabitha was a gentile Christian woman who was well loved because of all the care and help she gave to others. So, when Peter went in to pray for Tabitha, he was inspired and empowered by God, to call her back to life and returned her to those who loved her. The news of this most amazing miracle was spread far and wide by those who knew she had died and been returned back to life; and in hearing about this miracle, many heard the call of God and were brought to faith in Jesus. For God can get his call through to each and everyone of us; and when we receive it, if we belong to Jesus’ flock, then we learn to follow Jesus; and in learning to follow Jesus, we are hearing the call of God, all the way to heaven. Let us Pray: Almighty God, our ever loving and merciful Father, we thank you for giving your Son Jesus to be our shepherd, the good shepherd who in love for us, laid down his life to take away our sins before taking it back up and rising again. Keep us under Jesus’ protection and give us grace to seek heavenly things and follow in Jesus’ footsteps, so we may be raised from the death of sin to the life of righteousness. Amen Thanks for joining us today.
