Giving all

Widows are mentioned a lot in the bible.  The reason for this is that without any organised social security, the widow was particularly vulnerable through not being able to earn a living and so needed assistance from others to survive.  The Old Testament has rules for the Israelites to follow in the law to ensure that the widows were looked after.  When this was not the case, we hear that the LORD God was displeased, even angry, as his statutes and ordinances were not being followed and a sector of the community were under undue stress for not being properly cared for.

In both the Old Testament and the Gospel readings today we see a widow, each of whom were poor through their lack of possessions.  The widow that Elijah asked to provide for him, following the command of the LORD, had very little food, barely enough to survive for the rest of the day.  What an imposition it must have been to have another mouth to feed.  Yet she obeyed the will of the LORD.  There is a certain poignancy in the story as it is told and one can feel the anguish and pressure on the poor woman.  Yet, through her obedience and giving her all to the will of the LORD, through Elijah, her future was secured.  She did not want after the incident, and her jar of meal and bottle of oil never ran out.  What a blessing.

In the Gospel Jesus points out a widow who was giving nearly all she had to the temple.  She was giving her all, even if the total was not like that of others who gave out of their abundance.  By giving her all she was blessed and made worthy through Jesus seeing her and explaining her situation to the disciples.  Both widows had faith that God would provide and both were rewarded for their faith.

Fr Clive

Sentence

Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.                                   Luke 6.38

Prayer of the day

O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of evil and make us your children and heirs of eternal life: grant that, having this hope,

we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Reading:  1 Kings 17:8-16

Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you.”  So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.”  As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.”  But she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”  Elijah said to her, “Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son.  For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.”  She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days.  The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.

For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

Psalm 146

1 Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul:
   while I live I will praise the Lord;
2 While I have any being:
   I will sing praises to my God.
3 Put not your trust in princes:
   nor in flesh and blood, which cannot save.
4 For when their breath goes from them, they return again to the earth:
   and on that day all their thoughts perish.
5 Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob:
   whose hope is in the Lord their God,
6 The God who made heaven and earth:
   the sea, and all that is in them,
7 Who keeps faith for ever:
   who deals justice to those that are oppressed.
8   The Lord gives food to the hungry:
     and sets the captives free.
9   The Lord gives sight to the blind:
     the Lord lifts up those that are bowed down.
10 The Lord loves the righteous:
     the Lord cares for the stranger in the land.
11 He upholds the widow and the fatherless:
     as for the way of the wicked, he turns it upside down.
12 The Lord shall be king for ever:
     your God, O Zion, shall reign through all generations.

     Praise the Lord.

Second Reading:  Hebrews 9:23-28

Thus it was necessary for the sketches of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves need better sacrifices than these.  For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made by human hands, a mere copy of the true one, but he entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.  Nor was it to offer himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Holy Place year after year with blood that is not his own;  for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself.  And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

            For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 12:38-44

             Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

As he taught, he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honour at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny.  Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Readings Next Sunday, Twenty Fourth after Pentecost, (G), 15 Nov 2009.      

Daniel 12:1-3;    Psalm 16;    Heb 10:11-14, 19-25;    Mark 13:1-13

All Saints

The term ‘passed away’ is often used when we are referring to someone who has died.   All Saints Sunday is a day when we remember those who have died, those saints of former times, members of our own family, and especially those who have died in the faith.  The vision that appears in today’s reading from Revelation uses the words ‘pass away’.  The term is used for the passing away of a world and then for the passing away of all the first or former things.  What is surprising is that in Revelation the term is used in the opposite sense from dying.  We assume that things ‘pass away’ when death comes, but in today’s reading things ‘pass away’ when death goes away.  The first or former things that have passed away means that death will be no more; crying and pain will also be things of the past.  The first heaven and earth that pass away constitute the world in which death was operative.  To take death out of the picture is to bring about a new world. 

Creation is what God does and here we hear of a new creation.  Death is real for those whom God has created, yet in Christ, there is also the promise of resurrection, and resurrection is an act of new creation.  This is the promise of a new and transformed existence.  This is also what John envisions in his writing for the world itself.  Death affects all of us and the world to which we belong.  There is no escaping this, yet in his restless will to redeem us all, God holds out the promise of making us and our world new. In this new world where there is no death, all the marks of the former imperfect and sinful world have passed away.  God is the alpha [a] and the omega[w], the beginning and the end.  In God the future holds the promise of everlasting life.

Fr Clive

Sentence

And a great multitude, from every nation and tribe and people and language, cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!’                           Revelation 7.10

Prayer of the day

We praise you, heavenly Father, that you have knit together your chosen ones in one communion and fellowship in the body of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord: give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that we may come to those inexpressible joys you have prepared for those who truly love you;

through Jesus Christ our Saviour, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns,

one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

First Reading:  Isaiah 25;6-9

 On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food,   a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.  And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations; he will swallow up death forever.   Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.  It will be said on that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.  This is the Lord for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

Psalm 24

1 The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it:
   the compass of the world and those who dwell therein.
2 For he has founded it upon the seas:
   and established it upon the waters.
3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord:
   or who shall stand in his holy place?
4 Those who have clean hands and a pure heart:
   who have not set their soul upon idols, nor sworn their oath to a lie.
5 They shall receive blessing from the Lord:
   and recompense from the God of their salvation.
6 Of such a kind as this are those who seek him:
   those who seek your face, O God of Jacob.
7 Lift up your heads, O you gates, and be lifted up, you everlasting doors:
   and the King of glory shall come in.
8 Who is the King of glory?:
   the Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O you gates, and be lifted up, you everlasting doors:
   and the King of glory shall come in.
10 Who is the King of glory?:
     the Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory.

Second Reading:  Revelation 21:1-6

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.  And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals.  He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them;  he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”  And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.”  Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.

            For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to John 11:32-44

             Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved.  He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.”  Jesus began to weep.  So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”  But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?” Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it.  Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.”  Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”  So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me.  I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.”  When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”  The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord:

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

NOTICES

Today:  We welcome Fr Clive McCallum to preside and preach.

 A big welcome back to Jeff & Corolie Wilson after their trip through central Australia.

                                Please stay for a cuppa after the service.

Lakelands Church Trash & Treasure Saturday 7^th Nov 8.30am -1.00pm

Readings Next Sunday, Twenty Third after Pentecost, (G), 8 Nov 2009.      

1 Kings 17:8-16;    Psalm 146;    Heb 9:23-28;    Mark 12:38-44

Seeing with our ears

The Renault car company recently had quite a lot of publicity when it announced its plans for the future of its electric cars.  The announcement was greeted with much excitement as ecologically minded people looked to the possibilities of an energy saving future.  Strangely enough, there was one group of people who had some serious concerns about electric cars, these were people who were blind.  As a spokesperson for this group put it, we relate to the outside world by sounds and if we are near a road and hear a car we know that one is there.  If the car makes no sound, then we consider that we are in danger because if we attempt to cross a road and do not hear an electric car then we are in considerable danger.

There are similarities in today’s gospel passage with a blind Bartimaeus sitting by the side of the road.  With his well developed other senses he realised Jesus was near and cried out to him.  When Jesus called him to come forward he literally jumped at the opportunity leaving everything behind and totally confident of his safety in rushing to Jesus.  Through his encounter with Jesus his ultimate desire was fulfilled, that is, to see again.  What a simple yet astoundingly revelational story.  Essentially this is blind faith in Jesus and it is such faith that receives its rewards.

An interesting way to approach this story is to read it from the perspective of the one who is blind.  We usually see in our imagination what we think is happening in a story.  In this case I invite you to not see the story but to hear it; to approach the story aurally, to hear the sounds and how they relate and to hear the sound of Jesus’ voice.  To hear the emotion in the voices of both Bartimaeus and the dominant voices in the crowd, yet all these seem to become quiet and distant when sight is restored.

Fr Clive

Sentence

The redeemed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads.                   Isaiah 51.11

Prayer of the day

O God, you give light to the blind and comfort to the sorrowing, and in your Son you have given us a High Priest who has offered the true sacrifice for us and yet can sympathise with us in our weakness: hear the cry of your people and lead us home to our true country, where with your Son and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

First Reading:  Jeremiah 31:9-7

7 For thus says the Lord:
Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
“Save, O Lord, your people,
the remnant of Israel.”
8 See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north,
and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
among them the blind and the lame,
those with child and those in labour, together;
a great company, they shall return here.
9 With weeping they shall come,
and with consolations I will lead them back,
I will let them walk by brooks of water,
in a straight path in which they shall not stumble;
for I have become a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is my firstborn.

For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

Psalm 126

1 When the Lord turned again the fortunes of Zion:
   then were we like those restored to life.
2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter:
   and our tongue with singing.
3 Then said they among the heathen:
   “The Lord has done great things for them.”
4 Truly the Lord has done great things for us:
   and therefore we rejoiced.
5 Turn again our fortunes, O Lord:
   as the streams return to the dry south.
6 Those who sow in tears:
   shall reap with songs of joy.
7 They that go out weeping, bearing the seed:
   shall come again in gladness, bringing their sheaves with them.

Second Reading:  Hebrews 7:21-28

21 but this one became a priest with an oath, because of the one who said to him, “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind,
‘You are a priest forever’ ” 22 accordingly Jesus has also become the guarantee of a better covenant.
23 Furthermore, the former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office; 24 but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. 25 Consequently he is able for all time to save those who approach God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.
26 For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. 27 Unlike the other high priests, he has no need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for those of the people; this he did once for all when he offered himself. 28 For the law appoints as high priests those who are subject to weakness, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever.

            For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to mark 10:46-52

             Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

46 They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. 47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 Jesus stood still and said, “Call him here.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart; get up, he is calling you.” 50 So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “My teacher, let me see again.” 52 Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.

This is the Gospel of the Lord:

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

NOTICES

Today:  We welcome Fr Clive McCallum to preside and preach.

                                Please stay for a cuppa after the service.

Readings Next Sunday, Twenty Second after Pentecost, All Saints (W), 1 Nov 2009.      

Isa 25:6-9;    Psalm 24;    Rev 21:1-6a;    john 11:32-44

Saint Luke

Luke was born of Greek origin in the city of Antioch.  It is probable that he met Paul in Troas and was converted to Christianity there.  He accompanied Paul to Philippi and stayed there for some time superintending the young church.  Luke was Paul’s constant companion on the journey to Jerusalem.  We hear of Luke when Paul sets out from Rome and Luke remains with him during his first imprisonment.  The last mention of Luke is in 2 Tim 4:11, where Paul says ‘only Luke is with me’.

Luke is the author of the third gospel as well as the book of Acts.  He was clearly a well educated person and goes to great pains to be clear, precise and systematic in his writing.  It is widely acknowledged that he had a good grasp of Greek, the language the New Testament.  Not being of Jewish origin, yet knowing the customs, and having a close association with the early Christians, he is regarded as the evangelist to the gentiles.  It is certainly true that in his gospel there is more emphasis on social issues such as the poor, the oppressed, the role of women and Jesus being the light to the gentiles as well as the people of Israel.

Another important characteristic of Luke is that he was a medical doctor, or physician, as Paul states in Colossians 4:14.  As a physician he had knowledge of many things and his attention to physical detail comes from his profession.  Because he was a physician he has been made the patron saint of doctors and medical personnel.  This is why there is often a service of healing or a service of remembrance for those who have died in hospital or hospice care at the this time of the year when we have St Luke’s day, which is the 18^th of October where he is remembered as evangelist and martyr.

Fr Clive

Sentence

The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; ask therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest.                Luke 10.2

Prayer of the day

Almighty God, who inspired your servant Luke the physician to set forth in his Gospel the love and healing power of your Son: graciously continue in your Church

this love and power to heal, to the praise and glory of your name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Reading:  Jeremiah 8:22-9:3

 Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there?  Why then has the health of my poor people not been restored?

O that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears,
so that I might weep day and night for the slain of my poor people!  O that I had in the desert a traveller’s lodging place, that I might leave my people
and go away from them! For they are all adulterers, a band of traitors.  They bend their tongues like bows; they have grown strong in the land for falsehood, and not for truth; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know me, says the Lord.

            For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

Psalm 145:10-18

10 All creation praises you, O Lord:
     and your faithful servants bless your name.
11 They speak of the glory of your kingdom:
     and tell of your great might,
12 That the whole earth may know your mighty acts:
     and the glorious splendour of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom:
     and your dominion endures through all generations.
14 The Lord upholds all those who stumble:
     and raises up those that are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you in hope:
     and you give them their food in due season;
16 You open wide your hand:
     and fill all things living with your bounteous gift.
17 The Lord is just in all his ways:
     and faithful in all his dealings.
18 The Lord is near to all who call upon him:
     to all who call upon him in truth.

Second Reading:  2 Timothy 4:9-17a

Do your best to come to me soon, for Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful in my ministry. I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will pay him back for his deeds. You also must beware of him, for he strongly opposed our message. At my first defence no one came to my support, but all deserted me. May it not be counted against them!  But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it.

For the word of the Lord; thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Luke 10:1-9

             Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

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 laborer 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.’

This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

NOTICES

Today:  We welcome Fr Clive McCallum to preside and preach.

                                Please stay for a cuppa after the service.

Readings Next Sunday, Twenty First after Pentecost (G), 25 October 2009.      

Jer 31:9-7;    Psalm 126;    Heb 7:21-28;    Mark 10:46-52

A person who has everything

Have you ever had the situation where you have to buy a birthday present for someone and you find it hard because they seem to have everything they need?  Often the person has lots of things they don’t need as well.  Some people seem to have everything and so it is very hard to buy for them and you have to think very hard as to what would be appropriate present.  I always find that a good way out of this dilemma is to give a book or CD/DVD that is spiritually based.  While some people have ‘everything’, they most certainly don’t have everything for their spiritual journey and they in no way will have all the wisdom that there is to have.   I suspect that the rich man who approached Jesus would have fallen into the category of the person who has everything.  You can imagine the sort of person, a successful businessman, someone successful at sport, a person who made good and sound investments, someone who seemed to have all the luck in the world.

This man approached Jesus realising that he still had something to achieve. He wanted to have his successful life capped off with a blessing and some good advice from Jesus who was clearly the best spiritual person around at the time.  He was really deflated when Jesus said he had to sell ALL his possessions in order to inherit eternal life.  It is interesting that before Jesus spoke we are told he ‘loved him’.  Perhaps Jesus knew that if he kept on at the pace he was going he would not live to enjoy it, perhaps he could see some stresses and problems in the future that his wealth would cause.  Perhaps his wealth was taking him away from his love of God.  We do not know the details but we can learn from the story and set our own financial priorities straight.

Fr Clive

Sentence

No one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for Jesus’ sake, will not receive a hundredfold now in this age, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.                  Mark 10.29-30

Prayer of the day

Merciful God, in your Son you call not the righteous but sinners to repentance:

draw us away from the easy road that leads to destruction, and guide us into paths that lead to life abundant, that in seeking your truth, and obeying your will, we may know the joy of being a disciple of Jesus our Saviour; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Reading:  Amos 5;6-7, 10-15

Seek the Lord and live, or he will break out against the house of Joseph like fire, and it will devour Bethel, with no one to quench it. Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground! They hate the one who reproves in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks the truth. Therefore because you trample on the poor and take from them levies of grain, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not live in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine.  For I know how many are your transgressions, and how great are your sins– you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and push aside the needy in the gate.  Therefore the prudent will keep silent in such a time; for it is an evil time. Seek good and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, just as you have said.  Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts,
will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.

Psalm 90:12-17

12 Teach us so to number our days:
     that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.
13 Relent, O Lord; how long will you be angry?:
     take pity on your servants.
14 O satisfy us early with your mercy:
     that all our days we may rejoice and sing.
15 Give us joy for all the days you have afflicted us:
     for the years we have suffered adversity.
16 Show your servants your work:
     and let their children see your glory.
17 May the gracious favour of the Lord our God be upon us:
     prosper the work of our hands, O prosper the work of our hands!

Second Reading:  Hebrews 4:12-16

Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account.
Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.                      For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 10: 17-31

             Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.  You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honour your father and mother.’ “  He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.”  Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”  When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions. Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”  And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.” Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news,  who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age–houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields with persecutions–and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”

 This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

 Readings Next Sunday, Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost  St Luke (R), 18 October 2009.      

Jer 8:22-9:3;    Psalm 145:10-18;    2 Tim 4:9-17a;    Luke 10:1-9

Synod

Last Friday the forty-seventh annual Synod commenced with a Eucharist at St George’s Cathedral in Perth.  We were represented by The Revd Karen Lewis who was asked to be the deacon for this service which was presided over by the Archbishop, The Most Revd Roger Herft.  Synods are elected for three years but meet each year.  This year our representatives are Doug Fletcher and Catherine Baudains from Lakelands, and Anna McCabrey and Janice McLean from Atwell/Success.  Bishops, Clergy who are licensed to a Parish, and the elected lay members form the membership of Synod.  Since the formation of the Diocese of Perth, there have been forty-seven Synods.  The first Bishop, Blagden Hale, was appointed in 1857 and took up his duties in 1858.  He did not have his first Synod till 1872 but since then Synod has formed a regular part of the administration of the Diocese.

After the Friday evening Eucharist the business commences on Saturday morning and continues through Saturday evening.  The Synod then reconvenes Sunday afternoon and continues to sit until the business is complete, usually late on Sunday evening.  There is usually a mix of business and this is managed in a parliamentary style.  The Archbishop begins with his ‘Charge’ or report and goals for the year previous and new directions the diocese is to take. Reports are received form the various Anglican Schools and Agencies.  Motions are dealt with and these can be legislation concerning the laws or canons of the church, details of organisations or activities, and those concerning social justice issues.  Synod is an important part of ensuring that the church is governed properly, with openness and with transparency.  St Paul outlines his views on such matter in Romans Chapter 8.  It is comforting to know that many people put in much effort to ensure that the church is well governed, even if some of the sessions are sometimes tedious.

Fr Clive

Sentence

Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.

                             Mark 10.15

Prayer of the day

O God, your Son has taught us that we must receive your sovereign rule like a little child: help us to turn to you in faith and simplicity of heart, so that we may receive your blessing and enter the kingdom your Son has promised; through the same Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.

First Reading:  Genesis 2:18-24

Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.”  So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.  The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner.  So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.  And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man.  Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh;
this one shall be called Woman, for out of Man this one was taken.” Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh.

                 For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.12

Psalm 8

1 O Lord our Governor:
   how glorious is your name in all the earth!
2 Your majesty above the heavens is yet recounted:
   by the mouths of babes and sucklings.
3 You have founded a strong defence against your adversaries:
   to quell the enemy and the avenger.
4 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers:
   the moon and the stars which you have set in order,
5 What are we, that you should be mindful of us:
   what are we, that you should care for us?
6 Yet you have made us little less than gods:
   and have crowned us with glory and honour.
7 You have given us dominion over your handiwork:
   and have put all things in subjection beneath our feet,
8 All sheep and oxen:
   and all the creatures of the field,
9 The birds of the air and the fish of the sea:
   and everything that moves in the pathways of the great   waters.
10  O Lord our Governor:
      how glorious is your name in all the earth!

Second Reading:  Hebrews 1:1-4 and 2:5-12

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds.  He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.  Now God did not subject the coming world, about which we are speaking, to angels.  But someone has testified somewhere, “What are human beings that you are mindful of them, or mortals, that you care for them?  You have made them for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned them with glory and honor,  subjecting all things under their feet.” Now in subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.  It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings.  For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, saying, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters,
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.”

                For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 10: 2-16

                 Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Some Pharisees came, and to test him they asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”  He answered them, “What did Moses command you?”  They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her.”  But Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you.  But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’  ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,  and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter.  He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her;  and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”
 People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them.  But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.  Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.”  And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.

This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

NOTICES

Today:  We welcome Revd Karen Lewis lead the service and to preach.

                           Please stay for a cuppa after the service.

Readings Next Sunday, Nineteenth Sunday After Pentecost (G), 11 October 2009.      

Amos 5:6-7, 10-15;  Psalm 90:112-17;  Hebrews 4:12-16;  Mark 10:17-31

If you are not against me

There is certainly a lot of choice for people today if they decide that they would like to go to church.  If they have no particularly strong connection with any of the historically long established denominations then there is plenty of opportunity to ‘try out’ some of the new churches.  Many of these are located in industrial areas due to town planning constraints associated with noise and parking.  Many meet in converted factories and it is quite common to have a stage and a multi piece band to provide some up-tempo religious music.  The style of preaching can be different, and in some cases the majority of the presentation is done on large screens assisted by the latest computer technology.  All this can be a little daunting for those of us who have been brought up in the traditional style of church worship.

There is always a temptation to look at these fresh expressions of church and say that they will not last, or that they only cater for a certain type of people, or that they are basically not really church at all.  However, when you meet the pastors of these churches and speak to some members of their congregations you get the sense that they are worshipping the one God as manifest in the Lord Jesus Christ and they too are led by the Spirit into bringing others to know and to love the Lord.  Their methods and their services may different, but in the end they are for Jesus.  Jesus recognised this early in his ministry and had to give this message to the disciples.  He said, even if a group were outside their group, if they were for Jesus and were not against him, then they must be for him.  So they needed to be accepted and recognised as doing their part in the proclaiming of the Kingdom of God.

Fr Clive

Sentence

Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can it be seasoned? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.               Mark 9.50

Prayer of the day

O God, your Son has taught us that those who give a cup of water in his name

will not lose their reward: open our eyes to see those who are in need, and teach us to set no store by riches and earthly rewards, so that, in surrendering ourselves to serve you in your children, we may labour for the treasure that endures; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

First Reading:  Numbers 11: 4-6, 10-16, 24-29

The rabble among them had a strong craving; and the Israelites also wept again, and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we used to eat in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”
Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, all at the entrances of their tents. Then the Lord became very angry, and Moses was displeased. 11 So Moses said to the Lord, Why have you treated your servant so badly? Why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me?  Did I conceive all this people? Did I give birth to them, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a sucking child,’ to the land that you promised on oath to their ancestors?  Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they come weeping to me and say, ‘Give us meat to eat!’  I am not able to carry all this people alone, for they are too heavy for me.  If this is the way you are going to treat me, put me to death at once–if I have found favor in your sight–and do not let me see my misery.”
So the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tent of meeting, and have them take their place there with you.
So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord; and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent.  Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again.
Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”  And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, “My lord Moses, stop them!”  But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!”

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.12

Psalm 19: 7-14

1 If the Lord had not been on our side, now may Israel say:
   if the Lord had not been on our side, when our enemies rose    

   against us,
2 Then they would have swallowed us alive:
   when their anger was kindled against us.
3 Then the waters would have overwhelmed us, and the torrent gone   

   over us:
   the raging waters would have gone clean over us.
4 But praised be the Lord:
   who has not given us as a prey to their teeth.
5 We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler:
   the snare is broken, and we have gone free.
6 Our help is in the name of the Lord:
   who has made heaven and earth.

Second Reading:  James 5: 12-20

Above all, my beloved, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “Yes” be yes and your “No” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.
Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord.  The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven.  Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.  Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.  Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest.
 My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another,  you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 9: 38-50

   Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

       John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.”  But Jesus said, “Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me.  Whoever is not against us is for us.  For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.
 ”If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea.  If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell,  where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.
“For everyone will be salted with fire.  Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

 This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

NOTICES

Today:  We welcome Fr Clive McCallum to preside and preach.

          Please stay for a cuppa after the service.

Synod:  2^nd – 4^th October

Readings Next Sunday, Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost (G), 4 October 2009.      

Genesis 2:18-24;  Psalm 8;  Hebrews 1:1-4, 2:5-12;  Mark 10:2-16

Welcome the children 

Anyone who works in school these days knows something of the challenges of working with children.  The care and attention to social issues as well as the academic preparation for a life of learning and of change takes enormous effort and energy.  While there is effort and sometimes heartache, there is also the exhilaration of teaching young minds to be creative and of watching the emerging person develop in mind, body and spirit.  One of the most rewarding things about working in a school is that the children are generally open minded, do not have inbuilt prejudices and are prepared to be open to new ideas and to new ways of expressing themselves.  This shows in their creativity and in their relationships with their peers and adults. It is this honesty and openness that is the positive catalyst that augers well for the future.  This is the essence of what Jesus was indicating to his disciples.

Today we value children and nurture them as they grow into responsible adults.  In biblical times society was somewhat more harsh in its view of children.  They were often the first victims of famine, disease or war.  They were regarded as ‘non persons’ in the society with no rights whatsoever.  When Jesus took a child into his arms he was demonstrating a different ethic for the people to consider.  Jesus says that to welcome one who is powerless and vulnerable is also to welcome Jesus himself.  The welcoming of a child enacts the call to welcome others into the circle of community, including the powerless and those who can be overlooked in other circumstances.  We need to be open like children in seeing the world as it is and responding in a way that would make Jesus be pleased with us.

Fr Clive

Sentence

Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.       

                                                               Mark 9.35

Prayer of the day

God and Father of all, you have taught us through your Son that the last shall be first, and have made a little child the measure of your kingdom: give us the wisdom from above, so that we may understand that in your sight the one who serves is the greatest of all. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Reading:  Jeremiah 11:18-20

  ¹⁸It was the Lord who made it known to me, and I knew; then you showed me their evil deeds. ¹⁹But I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter.  And I did not know it was against me that they devised schemes, saying, ‘Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will no longer be remembered!’ ²⁰But you, O Lord of hosts, who judge righteously, who try the heart and the mind, let me see your retribution upon them, for to you I have committed my cause. 

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.12

Psalm 54

1 Save me, O God, by the power of your name:

and vindicate me by your might.

2 Hear my prayer, O God:

and listen to the words of my mouth.

3 For the insolent have risen against me:

the ruthless, who have not set God before them,

seek my life.

4 But surely God is my helper:

the Lord is the upholder of my life.

5 Let evil recoil on those that would waylay me:

O destroy them in your faithfulness!

6 Then will I offer you sacrifice with a willing heart:

I will praise your name, O Lord, for it is good.

7 For you will deliver me from every trouble:

my eyes shall see the downfall of my enemies.

Second Reading:  James 3:1-12

  Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters,^* for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. ²For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. ³If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. ⁴Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. ⁵So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.

  How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! ⁶And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature,^* and is itself set on fire by hell.^{* 7}For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, ⁸but no one can tame the tongue – a restless evil, full of deadly poison. ⁹With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. ¹⁰From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters,^* this ought not to be so. ¹¹Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? ¹²Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters,^* yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 9:30-37.

   Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

  They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; ³¹for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, ‘The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.’ ³²But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.

Who Is the Greatest?

33  Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you arguing about on the way?’ ³⁴But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. ³⁵He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.’ ³⁶Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’

 This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Who is Jesus?

It seemed like a reasonably harmless thing to do to ask his friends what others thought about him.  It was a long trip to Caesarea Philippi so Jesus passed the time in discussion with his disciples.  The answers they gave were quite predictable.  Some saying John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others a prophet.  Jesus did have all the attributes of each of these famous bible figures, but he was distinctly different.  John the Baptist preached about sin and repentance and baptised people, Elijah was the great prophet who was to return before the promised Messiah of the people, so with Messiah talk around some would think Jesus Elijah.  Certainly Jesus had a clear message about the end of times, the future and about how people needed to change so he was really like a prophet, remembering that the people had not had a serious prophet for 400 years.  Peter gets it right, however, when he says that Jesus is indeed the Messiah, but there was a lot of action still to happen so Jesus said for Peter to keep this quiet until Jesus’ work on earth was completed.

The other sting here is that if you believe that Jesus is the Messiah then you have to take what goes with it.  There can be persecution, humiliation and a loss of status.  Even in the end there was martyrdom for many of the early followers of Jesus.  Jesus had to suffer in order to save humankind from its sin.  While there is excitement and hope for the future, there is a responsibility to follow Jesus’ message, even if this is unpopular.  See, the real question that Jesus was asking was not the first one; ‘who do others say that I am’, but rather the second; ‘who do YOU say that I am?’  It is not about what others think but about what we think and believe as individuals that counts.

Fr Clive

Sentence

Those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for the sake of the gospel will save it.                                                Mark 8.35

Prayer of the day

God of mercy, help us to forgive as you have forgiven us, to trust you, even when hope is failing, and to take up our cross daily and follow you in your redeeming work; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Reading:  Isaiah 50:4-9a

The Lord God has given me
   the tongue of a teacher,^*
that I may know how to sustain
   the weary with a word.
Morning by morning he wakens—
   wakens my ear
   to listen as those who are taught.
⁵The Lord God has opened my ear,
   and I was not rebellious,
   I did not turn backwards.
⁶I gave my back to those who struck me,
   and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;
I did not hide my face
   from insult and spitting.

The Lord God helps me;
   therefore I have not been disgraced;
therefore I have set my face like flint,
   and I know that I shall not be put to shame;
   he who vindicates me is near.
Who will contend with me?

   Let us stand up together.
Who are my adversaries?
   Let them confront me.
It is the Lord God who helps me;
   who will declare me guilty?

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.12

Psalm 116:1-9

1 I love the Lord, because he heard my voice:

the voice of my supplication;

2 Because he inclined his ear to me:

in the day that I called to him.

3 The cords of death encompassed me,

the snares of the grave took hold on me:

I was in anguish and sorrow.

4 Then I called upon the name of the Lord:

‘O Lord, I beseech you, deliver me !’

5 Gracious and righteous is the Lord:

full of compassion is our God.

6 The Lord preserves the simple:

when I was brought low, he saved me.

7 Return, O my soul, to your rest:

for the Lord has rewarded you.

8 For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death:

my eyes from tears and my feet from falling.

9 I will walk before the Lord:

in the land of the living.

Second Reading:  James 2:18-26

  But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith without works, and I by my works will show you my faith. ¹⁹You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe – and shudder. ²⁰Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith without works is barren? ²¹Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²²You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. ²³Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness’, and he was called the friend of God. ²⁴You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. ²⁵Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road? ²⁶For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 8:27-38.

   Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

  Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that I am?’ ²⁸And they answered him, ‘John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.’ ²⁹He asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Messiah.’^{* 30}And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

31  Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. ³²He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ³³But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’

 34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. ³⁵For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel,^* will save it. ³⁶For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? ³⁷Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? ³⁸Those who are ashamed of me and of my words^* in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’

             This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

NOTICES

Today:  We welcome Fr Clive McCallum to preside and preach.

          Please stay for a cuppa after the service.

Welcome to our guests this week

Men’s breakfast St James Lakelands Saturday 26^th Sept.

Readings Next Sunday, Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost (G), 20 Sept 2009.   

Jeremiah 11:18-20;  Psalm 54;  James 3:1-12;  Mark 9:30-37

Persistent Faith

One of the issues recently discussed on current affairs programs was the use of mobile phones by children.  There is good reason for some children to have mobile phones, especially if their parents are both working, and contact is essential.  In this instance there is no questioning the safety aspect of a mobile phone so that there can be immediate and accurate communication. On the down side, however, is the expectation of immediacy.  Things can be expected to be instant.  There is no need to wait.  Simply a phone call will access whatever you want when you want it. The result is a concern that many members of the younger generation do not have the skills of persistence and the desire to work at something for a long time; except perhaps getting their parents to buy them a mobile phone!

As a student of the piano and taking exams I knew the many hours and weeks, sometimes months, to continuously work at perfecting a piece of music; the time it took to be ready for people to hear it, and for the music examiner to pass judgement.  Artists, quilters, model makers and many others know the need to be persistent, to not give up and to pursue what is a worthy goal and to not be put off by the many setbacks that are likely to come along the way.  If the Syrophoenician woman in Mark’s Gospel had wanted instant healing then she may never have received it.  Jesus was taken aback by her approach, especially since she was a Gentile and a woman.  It was her persistence driven by the love of her daughter that finally achieved the positive result.  She had faith, this faith was tested, and in the end she was greatly rewarded for this faith that showed persistence.

Fr Clive

Sentence

So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. James 2.13

Prayer of the day

O God, whose word is life, and whose delight is to answer our cry: give us faith like that of the woman who refused to remain an outsider, so that we too may have the wit to argue and demand that our children be made whole, through Jesus Christ. Amen.

 First Reading:  Isaiah 35:4-7a

Say to those who are of a fearful heart,    ‘Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.    He will come with vengeance, with terrible recompense.
   He will come and save you.’ ⁵Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,    and the ears of the deaf unstopped; ⁶then the lame shall leap like a deer,  and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,    and streams in the desert; ⁷the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water;

           For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.12

Psalm 146

1 Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul:

while I live I will praise the Lord;

2 While I have any being:

I will sing praises to my God.

3 Put not your trust in princes:

nor in flesh and blood, which cannot save.

4 For when their breath goes from them,

they return again to the earth:

and on that day all their thoughts perish.

5 Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob:

whose hope is in the Lord their God,

6 The God who made heaven and earth:

the sea, and all that is in them,

7 Who keeps faith for ever:

who deals justice to those that are oppressed.

8 The Lord gives food to the hungry:

and sets the captives free.

9 The Lord gives sight to the blind:

the Lord lifts up those that are bowed down.

10 The Lord loves the righteous:

the Lord cares for the stranger in the land.

11 He upholds the widow and the fatherless:

as for the way of the wicked, he turns it upside down.

12 The Lord shall be king for ever:

your God, O Zion, shall reign through all generations.

Praise the Lord.

Second Reading:  James 2:1-10, 14-17

  My brothers and sisters,^* do you with your acts of favouritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ?^{* 2}For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, ³and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, ‘Have a seat here, please’, while to the one who is poor you say, ‘Stand there’, or, ‘Sit at my feet’,^{* 4}have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? ⁵Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters.^* Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? ⁶But you have dishonoured the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? ⁷Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?

 8 You do well if you really fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ ⁹But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. ¹⁰For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.

  What good is it, my brothers and sisters,^* if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? ¹⁵If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, ¹⁶and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill’, and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? ¹⁷So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

                        For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 7:24-37.

   Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

  From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre.^* He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, ²⁵but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. ²⁶Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. ²⁷He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ ²⁸But she answered him, ‘Sir,^* even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ ²⁹Then he said to her, ‘For saying that, you may go – the demon has left your daughter.’ ³⁰So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

 31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. ³²They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. ³³He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. ³⁴Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘Be opened.’ ³⁵And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. ³⁶Then Jesus^* ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. ³⁷They were astounded beyond measure, saying, ‘He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.’

             This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Father of lights

Last month the world celebrated forty years since the first landing by humans on the moon.  This was truly a major achievement and, looking back over the forty years we can celebrate our world, especially from those first pictures of earth that the moon landers took from the moon.  This reminded me of an event that happened in the early sixties when space travel was young.  The American astronaut John Glenn was orbiting the earth in his small space capsule.  He looked out of the spacecraft and could see a glow around the place where Perth was situated.  The people of Perth had been asked by the Lord Mayor to turn on the lights.  Being a clear night, John Glenn could see these lights from the distance of space.  This created great excitement and pride and so at the time Perth became called the ‘City of Lights’.

In Chapter one of the Book of James we see reference to the ‘Father of lights’.  In the ancient world view the earth was considered still and flat with the dome of the sky encapsulating what was known as the earth.  If a person looked upward they would see the moon and stars and wonder at the creation.  James sees this and reminds us that God is generous and provides us with all we have, and he is referred to as the father of lights, or the source of all that is, seen and unseen.  God is also perceived as immense, like the evening sky, and provides for us the light of the sun by day and the light of the moon by night.  In this we glimpse the enormity and un-changelessness of God as we look with wonder and awe at the universe today, as did the people who were writing in biblical times.

Fr Clive

Sentence

Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

                                                  James 1.17

Prayer of the day

Cleanse our consciences, O Lord, and enlighten our hearts through the daily presence of your Son Jesus Christ, that when he comes in glory to be our judge we may be found undefiled and acceptable in his sight; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Reading:  Song of Songs 2:8-13

The voice of my beloved!
   Look, he comes,
leaping upon the mountains,
   bounding over the hills.
⁹My beloved is like a gazelle
   or a young stag.
Look, there he stands
   behind our wall,
gazing in at the windows,
   looking through the lattice.
¹⁰My beloved speaks and says to me:
‘Arise, my love, my fair one,
   and come away;
¹¹for now the winter is past,
   the rain is over and gone.
¹²The flowers appear on the earth;
   the time of singing has come,
and the voice of the turtle-dove
   is heard in our land.
¹³The fig tree puts forth its figs,
   and the vines are in blossom;
   they give forth fragrance.
Arise, my love, my fair one,
   and come away.

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.12

Psalm 45:1-2, 6-9

1 My heart is astir with fine phrases, I make my song for a king:

my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

2 You are the fairest of men, grace flows from your lips:

therefore has God blessed you for ever and ever.

6 Your throne is the throne of God, it endures for ever:

and the sceptre of your kingdom is a righteous sceptre.

7 You have loved righteousness and hated evil:

therefore God, your God, has anointed you

with the oil of gladness above your fellows.

8 All your garments are fragrant with myrrh, aloes and cassia:

music from ivory palaces makes you glad.

9 Kings’ daughters are among your noble women:

the queen is at your right hand in gold of Ophir.

Second Reading:  James 1:17-27

  Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.^{* 18}In fulfilment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

 Hearing and Doing the Word

19 You must understand this, my beloved:^* let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; ²⁰for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness. ²¹Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.

22  But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. ²³For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves^* in a mirror; ²⁴for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. ²⁵But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act – they will be blessed in their doing. 26  If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. ²⁷Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

            For the word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 7:1-8, 14-23.

   Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

  Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, ²they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. ³(For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands,^* thus observing the tradition of the elders; ⁴and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it;^* and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.^*) ⁵So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, ‘Why do your disciples not live^* according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?’ ⁶He said to them, ‘Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written, “This people honours me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; ⁷in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines.” ⁸You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.’

  Then he called the crowd again and said to them, ‘Listen to me, all of you, and understand: ¹⁵there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.’^*

 17 When he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable. ¹⁸He said to them, ‘Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, ¹⁹since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?’ (Thus he declared all foods clean.) ²⁰And he said, ‘It is what comes out of a person that defiles. ²¹For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, ²²adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. ²³All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.’

             This is the Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.