St Luke 11: 1 – 4

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.’  He said to them, ‘When you pray, say:

Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial.’

Reflection

What can one say about the most familiar prayer of all that hasn’t been said before? A prayer that most of us can easily say without hesitation, almost by rote – even non-church-goers!

And yet its familiarity somehow doesn’t make it lose its effectiveness and power.  Unlike the Creeds, which in the church of my youth we said every week and they appeared (to me at least) a virtually meaningless mash-up of words. Say them periodically, taking the time to consider what we are saying and their deep expression of faith resounds. Likewise the Methodist Covenant Prayer said once a year is powerful and moving, something that I suspect would be lost if said frequently.

Somehow, though, this simple prayer, taught by Jesus to his disciples, never seems to lose its potency, no matter how often it is said. Indeed I cannot conceive of a Sunday Service without it being in there somewhere! 

Yet it is not without its problems – a past church member had a sexually-abusing father and had serious challenges praying to a heavenly Father-figure.

On a smaller scale, some insist on sticking to ‘thees’ and ‘thous’ and ‘trespasses’ (whatever they are). In school, in Scotland we said ‘forgive us our debts’ which I found obtuse and yet later found that of course it is how Luke recorded the line. 

When the Church of England tried to replace the line about not leading us into temptation (as if God would ever do that!) with not bringing us to the time of trial, there was uproar and it was quietly sidelined, even though, to me, it makes much more sense.

Is it a magisterial source that gives it its power – after all there were very few things that Jesus specifically told us to do. Or is it its deeply personal nature, combined with spiritual simplicity? I don’t know but I plan to continue to pray frequently just as Jesus suggested, confidently expecting it to be as meaningful as ever.

Prayer

Say slowly, pausing between each line:

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins

as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial

and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours

now and forever. 

Amen

St Luke 10: 38 – 42

Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.’

Reflection

If you’re someone who has many burdens laid on them, who feels as if you’re the only one doing the work, then it is easy to see yourself in this story – even down to the lashing out at those whom you love. If you’re someone who spends time in contemplation and reflection, then this passage might resonate because you may have felt yourself belittled and chastised because others don’t think that you pull your weight.

In reading this passage, it is all too easy to jump to the conclusion that one type – the reflective and meditative type exemplified by Mary – is better than the busy and hardworking type that is exemplified by Martha. Jesus is obviously making a distinction between the sisters, but it can in no way suggest that there is only one way to behave whatever the time or situation. If that were the case, then very little, if anything would ever be achieved at all.

We should be wary of trying to distinguish and classify different ways of being faithful. There is a place for reflection and contemplation, just as there is a place for action. Neither is good in isolation, and neither is to be seen as being superior.

It is not what we do, per se, that is the problem, but it is the motivation behind our action that reveals our heart. It was not that Martha was busying herself preparing food and exercising hospitality that was an issue, for surely Jesus would have appreciated whatever provision was given to him.

What was a problem however, was that Martha seemed to be more caught up in the doing, in the fulfilment of the role of hostess, than she was in the actual care of her guest. Martha was not aware of what Jesus wanted, she was only aware of what she thought she had to do.

William Barclay draws our attention to this tendency to ‘decide that we have to do something’ that is in us all. He says, “So often we want to be kind to people – but we want to be kind to them in our way.” 

This is a dangerous way to model our actions and we need to guard against it. Whenever we seek to care for others, we truly need to look to their needs and not our own.

Prayer

Loving God,
Help us to reflect your compassionate heart in our lives. 
Help us to truly look out for others’ needs
and not simply give them what we think will be best for them.
May we give as we have ourselves received,
without prejudice, and without expecting anything in return.
In Jesus’ name, we pray.
Amen.

St Luke 10: 25 – 37

Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. ‘Teacher,’ he said, ‘what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? What do you read there?’  He answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself.’  And he said to him, ‘You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.’  But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbour?’  Jesus replied, ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.  But a Samaritan while travelling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity.  He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, “Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.”  Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?’  He said, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’

Reflection

Go and do likewise.
Four words. But they’re dynamite.

I’ve just come back from a university visit with my daughter: ‘Design for Performance’. It’s a very hands-on course. We saw workshops and paint rooms, mannequins and dye rooms, theatres, saw benches and 3D printers. The nearest thing to a classroom was the CAD suite.

I do hope she gets in. She’ll have her socks worked off but she’ll have a ball, helping stage dozens of productions each year and working alongside names like the BBC, Badwolf Studios and the Royal Opera House.Because that’s how we learn, isn’t it? By doing. I learned to knit by watching my mum; I learned to use a micrometer by watching my dad. Even if we study from a book, the most useful parts are the worked examples. “Here’s how I’m doing it; now you have a go.”

What’s not so useful is reading the page and skipping the exercises. Or watching someone crochet but never picking up a hook yourself. Or knowing what the spark plug’s gap should be, but never having a go with the feeler gauges. We have to do it to really know it.

So that’s what Jesus is saying to this expert in the law. Jesus knows he’s a good guy – reads his Bible diligently, probably a house group leader – and praises him for his answer. “You have answered correctly,” he says. “Do this and you will live.” But the knowledge is too much theory and not enough practice, so Jesus tells his story with a sting in the tail and ends, “Go and do likewise.”

Jesus doesn’t tell him to discuss the story at Bible study group where they might agree that, yes, having mercy on the less fortunate is good and then pray for the homeless people in their town. “Go and do likewise,” says Jesus. What, actually get off my bum and, like, do? Yup.

What will you do today?
Go and do likewise. It’s dynamite.

Prayer

Dear God,
I am happy in my comfortable chair with my mug of tea and my Bible,
reading about your wonderful words and your marvellous deeds.
I am less happy getting out of my comfortable chair and copying what you did,
because that might be inconvenient or get me looked at weirdly.
Disturb me Lord, I pray.
Shake me from my cosy complacency
that I might do one thing differently because I am yours. Amen.

 
Today’s service is led by the Revd Nicola Furley-Smith

 
Who’s agenda?

Welcome & Call to Worship 

Good morning and welcome to this morning’s service, which comes to you from Purley United Reformed Church.  My name is Nicola Furley Smith and I am the Secretary for Ministries. The Psalmist says: “How clearly the sky reveals God’s glory! How plainly it shows what he has done!  Each day announces it to the following day; each night repeats it to the next.  No speech or words are used, no sound is heard;  yet their message goes out to all the world and is heard to the ends of the earth.”

Hymn     O Sing a Song of Bethlehem
Louis F Benson 1889 Public Domain Sung by members of the Highland Baptist Church, Kitchener, Calfornia

O sing a song of Bethlehem, of shepherds watching there,
and of the news that came to them from angels in the air:
the light that shone on Bethlehem fills all the world today;
of Jesus’ birth and peace on earth the angels sing alway.

O sing a song of Nazareth, of sunny days of joy,
O sing of fragrant flowers’ breath, and of the sinless boy:
for now the flow’rs of Nazareth in ev’ry heart may grow;
now spreads the fame of his dear name on all the winds that blow.

O sing a song of Galilee, of lake and woods and hill,
of him who walked upon the sea and bade the waves be still:
for though, like waves on Galilee, dark seas of trouble roll,
when faith has heard the Master’s word, falls peace upon the soul.

O sing a song of Calvary, its glory and dismay;
of him who hung upon the tree, and took our sins away:
for he who died on Calvary is risen from the grave,
and Christ, our Lord, by heav’n adored, is mighty now to save.
 
Prayer of Approach 

May the words that we use in our worship be formed by God,
focused on Jesus and filled with the Spirit.

God the Father, we stand in awe of you, 
the one who spoke and brought the world into being, 
who shaped our bodies and breathed into us the gift of life.
Majestic, awesome and wonderful,
yet at the same time, tender, loving and kind,

God the Son, we stand in awe of you, 
who became incarnate to live on this planet alongside us.
You showed us how life should be lived,
and paid the price in full on the cross.

God the Spirit, we stand in awe of you,
the one alongside the Father at creation;
you inspired and strengthened his Son on earth,
and came in your fullness to be our companion,
to lead and inspire your people today.

Creative God, by your word comes life.
Forgiving Son, by your word comes love.
Empowering Spirit, by your word comes liberation.
Speak your word to us now and our lives shall proclaim your glory. Amen.

A Prayer of Confession

God, you gave us the power to speak.
Words enable us to tell each other what is happening, how we are feeling,  why we are behaving in the way we are.

Sometimes someone cannot speak the words,
or cannot communicate because the language is strange,
or is afraid to say what needs to be said.

There are times when I did not speak; I was distracted, I was silenced.
I was afraid of the consequences or even said words that meant nothing.

Forgive us when we did not speak as we ought.

And in the knowledge that you are indeed a forgiving God
let your word come alive in our words.
Let our words become Good News.
Let the Gospel be welcomed by all.
We pray in the name and spirit of Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. 
And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Prayer for  Illumination

O Lord, your Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Give us grace to receive your truth in faith and love, and strength to follow on the path you set before us; may your kingdom come and your will be done.  the name of Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

Reading     Nehemiah 8.1-3, 5-6. 8-10

All the people assembled with one accord in the broad space in front of the Water Gate, and requested Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had enjoined upon Israel.  On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra the priest brought the law before the whole assembly, both men and women, and all who were capable of understanding what they heard.  From early morning till noon he read aloud from it, facing the square in front of the Water Gate, in the presence of the men and the women, and those who could understand; the people all listened attentively to the book of the law.  Then Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above them; and when he opened it, they all stood. Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people raised their hands and responded, `Amen, Amen’; then they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves before the Lord. They read from the book of the law of God clearly, made its sense plain, and gave instruction in what was read.  Then Nehemiah the governor and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who instructed the people, said to them all, `This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep’; for the people had all been weeping while they listened to the words of the law. 
‘Go now,’ he continued, `feast yourselves on rich food and sweet drinks, and send a share to all who cannot provide for themselves, for the day is holy to our Lord. Let there be no sadness, for joy in the Lord is your strength.’

Hymn     Thy hand, O God, Has Guided
E. H. Plumptre (1864)  BBC Songs of Praise

Thy hand, O God, has guided thy flock, from age to age;
the wondrous tale is written, full clear, on every page;
thine people owned thy goodness, and we their deeds record;
and both of this bear witness: one Church, one faith, one Lord.

Thy heralds brought glad tidings to greatest, as to least;
they bade them rise, and hasten to share the King’s great feast;
and this was all their teaching, in every deed and word,
to all alike proclaiming one Church, one faith, one Lord.
 
Thy mercy will not fail us, nor leave thy work undone;
with thy right hand to help us, the victory shall be won;
and then, by all creation, thy name shall be adored,
and this shall be their anthem: one Church, one faith, one Lord.

Reading     Luke 4.14-21

Then Jesus, armed with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee; and reports about him spread through the whole countryside.  He taught in their synagogues and everyone sang his praises.  He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and went to the synagogue on the sabbath day as he regularly did. He stood up to read the lesson  and was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He opened the scroll and found the passage which says,  `The spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me; he has sent me to announce good news to the poor, to proclaim release for prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind; to let the broken victims go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and all eyes in the synagogue were fixed on him.  He began to address them: `Today’, he said, `in your hearing this text has come true.

Sermon

Whose agenda is it? As someone who sits in meeting after meeting, I sometimes wonder, who sets what we should or should not do as the church? Who sets what we should be or not be as the whole people of God? General Assembly? Synod? Church Meeting? We are the people of the Word. We come from a long tradition where the Word is given supremacy. I am a minister of the Word and Sacraments. And yet we do not live in a word-driven society. We live in an image-driven society. So, what does that say about the church? When I was a child, sermons were often 30 – 45 minutes depending on the preacher. People can no longer sit for 45 minutes and listen to the Word.

In today’s story from the Gospel of Luke, Jesus goes to the opposite extreme and preaches what could be the shortest sermon in history.   He goes to the synagogue in Nazareth where he had been brought up, he is given the Scroll of Isaiah by the synagogue officer, and he reads from Isaiah 61. 

“The spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to bring the Good News to the poor.  He has sent me to announce release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind; to set at liberty those who have been oppressed; and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” 

Then he sits down.  When a rabbi sat down, it didn’t mean they were finished.   That’s the position from which they taught or preached. The Gospels contain several incidents where Jesus sat to teach the disciples.  And Jesus sat down and said: “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing”.  That’s it. That is a very short sermon. 

Our Old Testament reading this morning shows us what happens when a community comes together to hear the written word proclaimed and interpreted. The reason that the people gather that year is twofold.  First, they have just finished the city walls of Jerusalem a few days earlier and the new moon festival seemed like a great time to celebrate what is a massive accomplishment. Jerusalem is a walled, protected city once again, for the first time in generations! Secondly, they gather for the festival of trumpets on the first day of the month of Tishrei, our modern-day Rosh Hashanah.  The people gathered, and they wanted to hear Ezra proclaim the law, but they did not know how it will affect them.  So what happens? The people bless God. The people give voice to their certainty, their faith, and their trust. The people let the actions of their bodies match the words in their ears and on their lips, lifting their hands to God in petition because they recognise that God alone gives life.  The people fall to the ground in profound humility, knowing that God alone can lift them up and help them to stand. When they hear the written word proclaimed and interpreted, people weep because they hear their sins spoken out loud and they know they are not innocent, but guilty.  People weep because they do not know how to bridge the gulf that separates sinful humanity from the faithful God who made them. But as surely as the Torah reveals to us their sins, it also reveals to the, the source of their hope: the God who keeps promises. 

Think of their context. Is it very different from our own? The people have recently returned to the Promised Land after spending five decades in Exile in Babylon. Here they are, gathered together in the square next to the Water Gate in Jerusalem, men, women, and children  and there the Law of Moses is read to them  and explained to them  from early in the morning till mid-day  for close to six hours! Not for 15 – 20 minutes but six hours. Yet that is not the reaction of the people to this incredibly long proclamation of God’s Word.

Far from it.  In fact the people are completely wrapped up in it. They cry.  They shout Amen.   They raise their hands to heaven.  They fall down on the ground and bow their heads low and pray.  In short, they are completely involved with the word that they hear.   For it touches them deeply.  When was the last time I was moved by the Word of God!  When was the last time it caused you or I to cry, or to fall upon our knees, or to lift up our hands in thanksgiving, or to say with enthusiasm and with joy – Amen! Amen! 

Perhaps we have become too familiar with the scriptures or perhaps we are not familiar enough with them or perhaps we have simply lost our hunger  our sense of our need for something more  for something divine,  for someone to help us make sense of it all. Perhaps a better understanding of Ezra’s time would help us with our context. There are two groups hearing Ezra: those who could understand and those who could not, but who were still listening attentively. Ezra had specially chosen assistants and Levites whose job it was to explain what he was reading to the people. These assistants read from the Law, translated it, and then interpreted it in the hearing of the people. Many men and women understood the law as it was read. But others needed to have it translated and then interpreted for them. Which is why they meet at the Water-gate and not the temple so that all may hear not just the select few.

For the people of Israel, the explanation of their reaction to Ezra’s reading of The Word  is found in their lack of familiarity with it and in the awesome sense that they had when they heard it proclaimed for the first time in many years of just how much they had strayed from God’s path, and just how much goodness from God’s hands that they had missed for so many years. Of course, the people of Israel 2500 years ago believed in God. They believed in living a good life, but they didn’t really pay attention to what God wanted of them to what was said in the scriptures.   They didn’t pay a lot of attention to what God wanted of them or to the promises that God made to them and how it was they could claim those promises for themselves and for their nation. They were a lot like us. Before the time of exile there was the business to look after, the relatives to entertain, a living to be sought and, of course, some time to relax.  The Sabbath worship was enough for some, for the rest the annual trips to the temple during Passover or for Yom Kipper was enough. They were a lot like us with changes in church going sometimes reduced to high days and holidays…Christmas Candlelight Services and very occasionally Easter Day.

When the people of Israel return from exile and all are finally are gathered to hear the Word of God it was a great eye opener to them. In listening to it, they knew the goodness of God. They heard the laws God had given them for their own conduct so that he might bless them  and they realized just how far they were away from that law and just why it was they had suffered so much, and they wept for what they done wrong, for how they had offended God and for what they had missed because of it. They mourned who they were who they had become they mourned and they prayed to God for help.  And Ezra and Nehemiah the Governor of the Land, and the rest of the priests, see them weeping and say:

“This day is Holy to the Lord your God – this time is special to God – do not mourn or weep.  Go your way, celebrate – eat the best food and the drink the best wine and share it with those who have nothing to eat or drink – for this day is Holy to our Lord.  Do not be grieved – do not sorrow – for the Joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Of course it is. Today is an important day, a holy day to our God for those of you who really hear the Word of God for those of you who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for wholeness for salvation, Now is a Holy Time!  Have we had our eye-opener moment? What is the Word that we have heard that is powerful, inclusive, and brings about transformation in a community in need of learning to live in the reality of God’s love. The sermon that Jesus gave in the temple in reaction to the word of God as it is found in the prophet Isaiah is the same word that Ezra and Nehemiah and all who understand the word of God right down the ages have proclaimed.  Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing! Today is the day of salvation.  Today is the time of God’s favour of God’s forgiveness, of God’s jubilee. Today the scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.  Listen to it…Listen with more than your ears. Listen with your hunger and your needs Listen with hope. Listen with the Spirit that God has given you for that purpose. So I ask you again whose agenda is it?  Amen.

Hymn     God’s Spirit is in My Heart
V1 and refrain Alan T. Dale (1902–1979) vv. 2-4 Hubert Richards (b. 1921) © 1969 Vanguard Music Corp OneLicence # A-734713    Sung by the Frodsham Methodist Cloud Choir and used with their kind permission.

God’s Spirit is in my heart; He has called me and set me apart.
This is what I have to do, what I have to do.
He sent me to give the good news to the poor, tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more,
tell blind people that they can see, and set the down trodden free,
and go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come;
And go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come!

Just as the Father sent me so I’m sending you out to be
my witnesses throughout the world – the whole of the world.
He sent me to give the good news to the poor, tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more,
tell blind people that they can see, and set the down trodden free,
and go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come;
And go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come!

Don’t carry a load in your pack; You don’t need two shirts 
on your back God’s workers earn their own keep –  can earn their own keep.
He sent me to give the good news to the poor, tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more,
tell blind people that they can see, and set the down trodden free,
and go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come;
And go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come!

Don’t worry what you have to say; don’t worry because on that day
God’s Spirit will speak in your heart – will speak in your heart. 
He sent me to give the good news to the poor, tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more,
tell blind people that they can see, and set the down trodden free,
and go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come;
And go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come!

Intercessions

O Lord, your Word contains truth for each new generation.
Thank you for fresh and exciting reminders 
of the power and glory of your sovereign love.
Help us to seek the wisdom to use your words wisely,
to pray for who cannot speak or who are inarticulate, 
who depend on others to speak for them

Thank you for your Word which reminds us
of your concern for justice for the poor and oppressed.
Help us to announce your good news;
to proclaim your liberty to those held captive;
to work and pray for a better world.

Thank you for your Word which reminds us
of the ways in which you want us to live.
Help us to share the hope we have in you;
to proclaim your love for every individual;
      to work and pray for new life for humankind.

Thank you for your Word which reminds us
of our calling as members of Christ’s body.
Help us to be united in love and respect for one another;
      to proclaim your salvation to the world;
      to work and pray under the guidance of your Spirit. Amen.

Offertory and Dedication

Generous God, 
giving abundantly more than we can know or ask, 
our promise is to justly share ourselves in celebration of your word. 
Take our gifts to use in your service, Amen.

Hymn     The Kingdom of God is Justice and Joy
Bryn Rees (1973)  © 1973 Alexander Scott OneLicence # A-734713   Sung by Paul Robinson and used with his kind permission.

The kingdom of God is justice and joy;
for Jesus restores what sin would destroy.
God’s power and glory in Jesus we know;
and here and hereafter the kingdom shall grow.

The kingdom of God is mercy and grace;
the captives are freed, the sinners find place,
the outcast are welcomed God’s banquet to share;
and hope is awakened in place of despair.

The kingdom of God is challenge and choice:
believe the good news, repent and rejoice!
God’s love for us sinners brought Christ to his Cross:
our crisis of judgement for gain or for loss.

God’s kingdom is come, the gift and the goal;
in Jesus begun, in heaven made whole.
The heirs of the kingdom shall answer his call;
and all things cry “Glory!” to God all in all.

Blessing

Go to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim release for all who are imprisonoed, recovery of sight for the blind and let the oppressed be valued in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

And the blessing of God Almighty Father, Son and Holy Spirit
be amongst us and remain with us, this day and for evermore. Amen.

Saturday 25 January 2025
 

St Luke 10: 13 – 16

Jesus said ‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But at the judgement it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum,

will you be exalted to heaven?
    No, you will be brought down to Hades.

‘Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.’

Reflection

Yesterday Jesus sent his disciples out to proclaim the Kingdom. Today, he seems to advocate a churlish response to those towns who do not respond. Not only should the disciples shake the dust off their feet, Jesus calls down woe upon them.

So what is annoying Jesus? Firstly, ingratitude. Remarkable things happen in Chorazin and Bethsaida. If the pagan cities of Tyre and Sidon had witnessed them, they would have responded with thanksgiving and penance. But the supposedly godly people of these Israelite towns cannot be bothered. Why be grateful for a few healings? Why respond in penitence when we are getting no more than we deserve?

It is Jesus’s prerogative to call down woe, but I admit I have been tempted. Those times when I have put my heart and soul into crafting worship, and the only response is a complaint about the hymns. Or that powerful call to repentance for our planetary greed, which produces the response “Nice sermon!” when it was not supposed to be nice at all. Even more when someone else’s efforts are dismissed – the person who bravely gives a testimony about a life-changing moment and is told “Oh, that kind of thing happens all the time. It’s no big deal.”

Or when I am in the congregation, and I catch myself thinking “that was rather pedestrian”, “not very well constructed”, “that did go on”. It is then that I need to read these verses again. Woe to me when I mentally trash someone else’s sincere efforts to bring people closer to God. Woe to me when I am superior about the books I have read or the experiences I have had. Woe to me when I think “I’ve heard this one before” and drift off. 

It is then that I need to be chastened with the thought that in being supercilious about the leadership that day, I am rejecting Jesus. So may I – and you – learn the eternal value of gratitude.

Prayer

Lord Jesus,
thank you for those who make the effort to lead worship, prayer, Bible study;
those who care about being an EcoChurch, an Inclusive Church, a community,
and work at it caringly and lovingly.

Help me to overlook what I think are the imperfections of their style and approach
and hear You in their words and see You in their actions,
so that I may never reject You again. Amen.

St Luke 10: 1 – 12

After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go.  He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest.  Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.  Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road.  Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace to this house!”  And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you.  Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the labourer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house.  Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you;  cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”  But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say,  “Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.” I tell you, on that day it will be more tolerable for Sodom than for that town.

Reflection

My friend Jean heard these words anew in her youth in the 1960s and trained as a nurse, midwife and missionary.  Growing up in the Brethren, Jean was bemused to find that, as a missionary, she had to lead worship, preach, and preside at Communion – but only in the mission fields!  Based in Macao she went over the border into China to run a clinic.  One day, during the Cultural Revolution, the border closed  and Jean was imprisoned with a group of nuns.  The horrors of imprisonment led to an ecumenism unusual in Jean’s background and, even more unusually, made her promise God that she’d become honest about her sexuality.  After her release she worked with LGBT people within an affirming church context.  Her gifts of encouragement touched many people and sustained me in my earliest years in ministry.  
 
Jesus, when he sent these disciples off, didn’t promise it would be easy.  Peace was to be shared but it would not always be accepted.  Great things were commanded of disciples – cure the sick, proclaim the kingdom, eat what’s provided – but there will be hard times when the message is not accepted.  Inhospitality will be dealt with as it was with the people of Sodom.  Heady words!

We read these words anew and, perhaps, see the message about few workers more than the one about the harvest being ready.  It’s hard to work as a missionary or minister in our contemporary age; we’re in the midst of social changes that we can only slightly grasp; we know spirituality attracts yet the Church doesn’t.  We know more are called than take up the challenge and yet…the saints of old inspire us as they followed without counting the cost, as they tried to work out the changes they were swept up in, as they tried to make sense of the Gospel in their own contexts and, like my friend Jean, they found in that discipleship meaning and fulfilment.  I pray you do too.

Prayer

God of the harvest,
help us to see the needs around us,
the desire for authentic spirituality,
a thirst for You
amidst the cries for justice.
As the workers are few, O God,
equip us to both work for You,
and see more clearly where You call us to go.
That we may be content, 
speak peace,
heal the wounded,
and proclaim Your coming Kingdom.
Amen.