Sunday next before Lent Readings: Exodus 34v29-end; Psalm 99; 2 Corinthians 3v12 to 4v2; Luke 9v28-43a. 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 Exodus, an ancient scripture, we hear that Moses met with God on Mount Sinai where he was given the covenant to share with all the people of Israel. These people were the ones who had been rescued from captivity in Egypt and were now wandering in the dessert as a landless and itinerant people. What we learn from this reading is that when Moses met with God, his face shined so brightly with the glory of God, that it disturbed the people, so he chose to wear a veil over his face when he was with them. In Luke we hear about a series of amazing events – an echo of what we hear in Exodus – witnessed by the disciples Peter, James and John. For when Jesus went up a mountain to pray he met with God his father and shone so brightly with the glory of God that the whole of his being and clothes became intensely luminous. The three disciples also saw Jesus speaking with Moses and the prophet Elijah before finding themselves overshadowed by a great cloud and hearing a voice instruct them to listen to Jesus because he was God’s son, the chosen one. After this they went back down the mountain with Jesus and saw him being asked to help a boy who had convulsions. Jesus responded to the request and the disciples saw Jesus cast out the cause of the boy’s illness and healing him from having convulsions. What do you make of all that we hear in these two scriptures? Well, from these readings, I hear that some people meet God face to face, like Moses and Jesus; and others hear the word of God as a voice, like the disciples of Jesus; whilst others see signs of God, like the bright radiance seen on Moses’ face and in Jesus’ transfiguration on the mountain top. What I also hear from Corinthians, is that we have a veil that clouds our minds and obscures our vision of God. A veil that will be set aside when we turn to Jesus. For when we turn to Jesus we are set free from our sins by the Spirit and begin a journey of being changed and transformed from what we are now into what God would have us become. A hope that Paul proclaims we can all share in through Jesus – the hope of having our minds set free to connect with God. For we have a glorious God who wants us to connect with him. A God that the psalm calls us to worship, exalt and bow before. For the Lord our God is holy, a mighty king, a king enthroned in heaven, high above all peoples. A king who loves justice and equity. A king who brings fairness and morality. A king who is the same Lord who spoke to and was followed by Moses, Aaron and Samuel. The Lord who can be trusted to hear and answer his people’s calls. The Lord who pardons and forgives his people’s offenses. For we have a God who is there with us in the clouds of life. A God who is worthy of our worship and praise. A God who is worth listening to and following, wherever he may wish to take us. A God whose glory is reflected out into the world through all who connect with him, a light that shines in the darkness, everywhere we go; pouring out God’s glory and hope into the world. Let us Pray: Holy God, Almighty Father, whose Son was revealed in majesty, grant to us the grace to become aware of his glory and to see your glory in the face of Jesus. Strengthen us for all that life presents to us and help us to speak and act in ways that accurately mirrors Jesus and presents him in the world. May all of us and all we share Jesus with, know his power to save and change us into his likeness. Amen Thanks for joining us today.
Candlemas – Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple Readings: Malachi 3v1-8; Psalm 24; Hebrews 2v14-end; Luke 2v22-40. 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: Through the prophet Malachi, we are warned that when the Lord comes to judge us we must be as clean as refined silver so we will be an offering that is pleasing to the Lord. For God is coming to judge us and God will judge against all those who have not mended their ways with the list including: sorcerers, adulterers, liars, racists, oppressors of workers and the poor, as well as those who reject God. The psalm tells us more about God who is coming to judge us. It says that God is the King of Glory, the one who created and filled the earth with life, the one who sits on his holy hill. The one who gives blessings and just rewards to those who are saved by him. All people who no longer worship idols nor swear oaths on lies. The people who have been made pure and seek his face. But we do not have too much to fear or worry about because in Luke we hear that on the day that Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the Temple that an old righteous and devout man named Simeon was called by God to come and meet his Lord and saviour. Then a short while later, an old widowed woman called Anna, a woman who worshipped, prayed and fasted night and day in the temple, came and also gave witness that this was the child that God’s people were waiting for. What we learn from these encounters, is that Jesus is a light of revelation for the Gentiles, the one who will redeem Jerusalem, a sign who will be opposed, the one destined for the rise and fall of many in Israel. The reason we do not need to be afraid is also explained in Hebrews because it tells us that Jesus became like one of us because he is a merciful and faithful high priest, the one working in the service of Almighty God. As a priest Jesus came to make a sacrifice for the sins of all people, the sacrifice Jesus made through his own death, a death that destroyed the power of the devil and freed us from the fear of dying. For in dying for us as our great high priest, Jesus brought full and final cleansing of the sins of the whole world. Today, all of us need to keep in mind that God is coming and when he does we will all face judgement. This means we need to mend our ways with God’s help and live our lives as taught to us through the Scriptures. But whenever we fall from grace we need to keep in mind that each and everyday of our lives we can be made clean because of Jesus’ sacrifice for us. Let us Pray: Almighty and ever-living God, we thank you for your beloved Son who was: presented in the Temple, who was welcomed by Simeon and Anna, and who will come again one day to bring eternal life; cleanse us and make us pure so we can prepare to be presented to and meet our Lord Jesus. Amen Thanks for joining us today.
3rd Sunday of Epiphany Readings: Nehemiah 8v1-3&5-6 &8-10; Psalm 19v1-6; 1 Corinthians 12v12-31a; Luke 4v14-21. 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 reading about Nehemiah we hear about a Judean exile, a man of God, a man of prayer, a prophet of God who was serving King Artaxerxes in the land that he had found himself. Nehemiah was a good and capable man who listened to God’s call to return and rebuild Judah. He was a man who served the King so well that the king listened to his plea and trusted him enough to send his to be a governor to oversee the re-building works. However, all did not go smoothly for Nehemiah even though he was following God’s call and was supported by the King - because he met with resistance, hostility and plotting against him. However this did not stop him and eventually, the city was re-built and after many exiles returned, the priest Ezra encouraged them to return to the ways they had been taught. To help them understand what God expected of them, Ezra read the book of the law to them and others interpreted the meaning for them. In the reading from Luke, we hear that in Jesus’ time, the reading and explaining of God’s word continues in the synagogues. For after Jesus returned to his home town of Galilee, he went into the synagogue and taught those who were there. Then on the Sabbath day after Jesus read the scroll that set out the ministry he was sent to fulfil, Jesus declared that the scripture had been fulfilled in their hearing. For as he read it, Jesus knew he was called to: bring good news to the poor, proclaim the release of captives, give sight to the blind, let the oppressed go free and proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour. In many Churches, we do something similar in our own time to what Ezra, Nehemiah, the Levites and Jesus were doing in their time. For, we listen to and hear from the word of God when we listen to readings from the Bible and we learn about their meaning when we listen to what is said by those who preach. But learning how to live as God’s people is about more that this for we need more than people to read the Bible, or people to preach, or people to lead our intercessions. For in each generation we need to raise up people who will lead the Church in following God’s mission to the world. For there are many people across the world and in our own communities who have no access to a Bible and have not read or heard the stories and messages it contains. But God has a plan and has made provision for them, for as it tells us in the Psalm, the whole of creation points us to God and God’s glory – in the heavens and the sky, the day and the night, and the sun as it runs its daily course – and these people need someone to teach them. In our time, we believe it’s the work of the Church to help people who are being called by God to hear what God has to say through the Bible and learn how to live with help from the Church. In Paul’s time, we hear that the Church is a body of people with gifts that are to be used for the benefit of all, with no part of the body being more important than any other. In Paul’s time the worldwide church was made up of: apostles, prophets, teachers, people with powers, healers, people who assist and help others, people to lead and people who spoke in tongues; all of them appointed by God. In comparison in our time, we have Bishops, Clergy and Lay workers, alongside the main body of the Church, the people who gather regularly, plus all of those who turn to the church in their time of need. I believe that Paul is saying that no-one who holds a position of appointment in the Church is greater than anyone else – yes they have a part to play, in accordance with the gifts God has given them – but they are no more important than anyone else because everyone of us is called to service in God’s work. In response to this, I believe that each one of us is being asked to consider the call that God is asking us to respond to so he can use the gifts he has given us in his service. I pray that each of us will respond to his call. Let us Pray: Lord of all time and eternity, through your son Jesus you revealed signs and miracles and renewed your people by your grace. May your word enlighten us and our weaknesses be overcome by your mighty power so we shine with the bright reflection of Jesus’ glory. May Jesus our saviour, the light of the world, be known, worshipped and obeyed to the ends of the earth. Amen Thanks for joining us today.
