We keep a few moments of silence as we prepare ourselves to stand before Almighty God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.‘Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name.’ (Psalm 63:3-4)Hymn: For the fruits of his creation...1 Corinthians 10:1-13Let us come to the Lord, who is full of compassion, and acknowledge our transgressions in penitence and faith: Father eternal, giver of light and grace, we have sinned against you and against our neighbour, in what we have thought, in what we have said and done: through ignorance, through weakness, through our own deliberate fault. We have wounded your love, and marred your image in us. We are sorry and ashamed, and repent of all our sins. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, who died for us, forgive us all that is past and lead us out from darkness to walk as children of light. Amen. May Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and keep us in life eternal: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Prayer for the day: Eternal God, give us insight to discern your will for us, to give up what harms us, and to seek the perfection we are promised in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.Luke 13:1-9Let us kneel before God in prayer, asking for his cleansing love to be known to all people. We pray for St Peter’s Church, that your will be done, and for our work to be blessed; We pray for our world, that all of its creatures will thrive, and for peace in Ukraine; We pray for our friends, families and community, that we may share in the love of Christ; We pray for people who are sick or suffering, that they will know healing and strength; We remember the departed, and pray for all who mourn.Let us join in the words of the Lord’s prayer, whoever and wherever we are: 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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen. Hymn: Rock of ages, cleft for me...May Christ give us grace to grow in holiness, to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow him. And may the blessing of God Almighty who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit rest upon us and remain with us always. Let us go in peace to love and serve the Lord, in the name of Christ. Amen.
The passage from Luke features a very odd parable Jesus tells his followers that seems both harsh and confusing. An irritated landowner asks his gardener to chop down a fig tree that has failed to produce fruit for the past three years. The gardener then pleads for the life of the tree and convinces the owner to leave it growing for another year, during which time the gardener says he will give the tree extra care and will do all he can to enable it to produce fruit. We are not even told whether that works and if the tree eventually produces figs and is allowed to survive! What is the meaning of this short story that leaves us not only wondering what happens next but also, why Jesus told it?The context here is crucial: the parable appears within a longer passage in which Jesus is warning his followers of the difficult times that will be coming when he is no longer with them and of the urgent need for them to repent of their sins and walk the way of obedience. Jesus knows that if they are not fully committed and spiritually strong and prepared, characterized by the faithfulness, or fruitfulness, of their lives, they will be destroyed by the suffering that is to come.Read in conjunction with the passage from I Corinthians, in which Paul is warning his readers of the dangers of sin and of having a desultory attitude towards keeping themselves fit to follow Christ, the message is clear – and stark. As Paul writes, ‘so if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall.’ (v12) Yet Paul goes on to give a message of hope: even if we fall into sin, God is faithful and will not let us be tested beyond our strength but will provide a way out so that we will be able to endure. It is thought that Luke wrote his Gospel about 50 years after Jesus been resurrected and then ascended into heaven. At that time many of the Jewish people had rejected the belief in Jesus as the Messiah. By contrast, Paul’s letter to the Corinthians was probably written at least 30 years earlier to a group of Christians made up of both Jews and Gentiles. Both passages deal with urging the believers to be strong and faithful, yet Luke is more concerned with warning his readers to be prepared from the persecution that might come from other people, while Paul seems to be more worried about the Corinthians’ own spiritual health. From what he knows about Corinth, he is aware that they are somewhat spiritually complacent and that they do not think they have to guard themselves against activities that could damage their walk in Christ.These are not comfortable or easy messages but it is fitting that in Lent we remind ourselves that, no matter how long we may have been Christians, or how faithfully we may attend church or how many good deeds we may do, we still have to attend to the state of our own souls. Being a follower of Christ takes dedication, determination and discipline. It is not an easy path, but then life is not easy. But for a believer, there is the deep joy of drawing increasingly closer to God, the inner peace that comes from knowing that we are completely loved and accepted, and the exuberant1 confidence that we have within us the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead.Rev’d Christina Rees
We keep a few moments of silence as we prepare ourselves to stand before Almighty God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.‘Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud, be gracious to me and answer me! ‘Come,’ my heart says, ‘seek his face!‘ Your face, Lord, do I seek. Do not hide your face from me.’ (Psalm 27:7-9 )Hymn: There’s a wideness in God’s mercy...Philippians 3:17 – 4:1Let us come to the Lord, who is full of compassion, and acknowledge our transgressions in penitence and faith: Father eternal, giver of light and grace, we have sinned against you and against our neighbour, in what we have thought, in what we have said and done: through ignorance, through weakness, through our own deliberate fault. We have wounded your love, and marred your image in us. We are sorry and ashamed, and repent of all our sins. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, who died for us, forgive us all that is past and lead us out from darkness to walk as children of light. Amen. May Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and keep us in life eternal: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Prayer for the day: Almighty God, you show to those who are in error the light of your truth, that they may return to the way of righteousness: grant to all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s religion, that they may reject those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.Luke 13:31-35Let us kneel before God in prayer, asking for his cleansing love to be known to all people. We pray for St Peter’s Church, that your will be done, and for our work to be blessed; We pray for our world, that all of its creatures will thrive, and for peace in Ukraine; We pray for our friends, families and community, that we may share in the love of Christ; We pray for people who are sick or suffering, that they will know healing and strength; We remember the departed, and pray for all who mourn.Let us join in the words of the Lord’s prayer, whoever and wherever we are: 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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen. Hymn: All my hope on God is founded...May Christ give us grace to grow in holiness, to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow him. And may the blessing of God Almighty who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit rest upon us and remain with us always. Let us go in peace to love and serve the Lord, in the name of Christ. Amen.
Last week, the First Sunday of Lent, the Vicar helped us look at the theme `Who are you?`. This week, the Second Sunday of Lent, we think about the contrast between the lifestyle of those who follow Christ and those who have taken another route through life. We might call the theme `Where do you belong?`Our Gospel reading reminds us of the continued presence of war in our world: the Pharisees come to Jesus and warn him that King Herod wants to kill him: he is urged to escape to safety. We read of the sadness of Jesus as he responds: `Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.` There are tears also from St Paul writing to the church in Philippi: `As I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.` Paul speaks about two kinds of citizen, whose lives are marked in different ways.A warning about being the wrong kind of citizen1. Paul is clear: living as an enemy of the cross of Christ is the first mark of those who follow another path. Whether people are indifferent to the cross or opposed to it, it amounts to the same thing. People talk about the good example of Jesus and of the importance of loving one`s neighbour. But the cross so often proves a stumbling block to belief. 2. Secondly, those opposed to the cross live their lives based on secular values and the culture of relying on self. For some it might be over-indulgence on a house or a car. For others it is too much time spent on unhelpful activities, whether it is overeating or over emphasis on things in a way that makes possessions the most important things in their lives. As Paul puts it, `their god is their stomach`. 3. Thirdly, such an attitude means that there are no fixed moral values and no authority needs to be recognized outside a person`s own satisfaction. They find it hard to acknowledge the spiritual dimension of life and to respond to Christ`s call. They are bound by the horizons of this world and often they think only in an earthly way. Paul is clear: `their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things`.An encouragement about the right kind of citizenshipPaul encourages us to a different path. Verse 20: `But our citizenship is in heaven.` Whatever our nationality, whatever our passport says, if we are following Christ, calling ourselves Christians, we are citizens of heaven. We know that our present life is passing, that we are bound for heaven. We look forward to Jesus coming again, which governs our present behaviour and shows to whom and where we belong.That is not to say that we succeed all the time – far from it! We need to be aware of the pull of earthly values and stand firm against unhelpful influences. We endeavour to follow Jesus in the power of the Spirit. Paul in verses 13 and 14: `I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. .. I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.` We rely on the finished work of Jesus who bore our sin in his own body on the cross, recreating us in his image. Paul`s words: Christ will `transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.`Such a transformation enables him to be glad of who we are in Christ: `My brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, dear friends.` He celebrates our destination in chapter 1, verse 6, that he is `confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.`As we continue through Lent, continuing also to pray for Ukraine and the Christian church there, amidst the storms encountered on earth, may we show in our lives where we belong and eagerly await Jesus` return. (Revd) Pat Hopkins
