Shipley Church Self-Service Sunday 21st February 2021 Thought for the Week – He was in the desert for forty days Mark’s Gospel is very concise. It records no detail of Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness, but links together Jesus’ repentance at baptism, the deprivations of his being in the desert, and the nearness of the kingdom of God – the good news! This makes for an excellent start to Lent. (Mark 1: 9-15) We’ve been dealing with the reality of Covid19 for almost a year, and so much change and uncertainty has made us ask questions such as, “When will we return to normal?” A recruitment manager for the Church Mission Society, Susann Haehnel, reflects on our desire for a return to normality with a fresh perspective: “We will not go back to how it was. Our pre-corona existence was not normal, other than we normalised greed, inequality, confusion, intolerance, division etc. We should not be longing to return there, my friends. We are being given the opportunity to stitch a new garment. Change is needed. For us Christians, Jesus needs to be the starting point for lasting change.” Here is an invitation to work towards a different future; in Luke.4 Jesus articulates what could, should and will be: “hope for the poor, freedom for the broken-hearted, and new eyes for the blind”. (Luke 4: 18-19) As we embark on our annual journey of remembrance towards the death and resurrection of Christ, Lent can be about seeking, and finding, the path to new life!Hymn for todayForty days and forty nights Thou wast fasting in the wild, Forty days and forty nights Tempted and yet undefiled.Prayer for todayLet us pray that God will help us use this season of Lent to re-orientate our lives, seek forgiveness, and restore afresh our baptismal state.Note: The Gospel and Readings for today can be downloaded from the top right of this page.
Shipley Church Self-Service Sunday 14th February 2021 Thought for the Week – Christ’s Transfiguration The story we are looking at today is a defining moment in the life of Jesus and of his three closest disciples. The Transfiguration was the miraculous outward transformation of Christ’s appearance to Peter, James and John, and a vision of the prophets Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus, as they all appeared on the side of a mountain. The indescribable light and magnificence in which he stood before them created, just for a brief moment, the “caterpillar” becoming the “butterfly”! This remarkable scene took place just a few days after Jesus had explained to his followers that he was going to die, even as they had only gradually come to recognise who he was. Their fragile confidence in him as their Saviour would undoubtedly have been shaken. But here was a “light-bulb” moment, a moment of sudden revelation, beyond human understanding: the extraordinary sight of Christ in all of his glory, giving the most powerful demonstration of his divine nature, revealed in the context of ancient prophecies from the Old Testament. Jesus was proving to his apostles who he really was.(Mark 9: 2-9)Hymn for todayLord the light of your love is shining, In the midst of the darkness, shining; Light of the world, shine upon us; Set us free by the truth you now bring us – Shine on me, shine on me. Shine, Jesus, shine, Fill this land with the Father’s glory; Blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire.Prayer for todayThis is a good day to look at where God has led us. We rejoice that he accepts us as we are, and pray for him to take us by the hand, as we listen to him as instructed.Note: The Gospel and Readings set for today can be downloaded from the top right of this page.
Shipley Church Self-ServiceSunday 7th February 2021Thought for the Week – This is the Word of the LordJesus is like an authorised visual aid to understanding God, because he entered into our midst and dwelt among us. The opening of John’s Gospel is heard again, but in the context of understanding what is meant by the Word of God: “In the beginning was the Word; we have seen his glory” (John 1: 1-14). This famous – almost poetic - passage forms the preface of John’s Gospel which, like the overture to an opera, introduces an immense amount of theology into a few, precise lines. How could the dynamic person of Jesus claim also to be God entering into human history, taking on the entire experience of existence as a human being? Here was someone exercising the right to forgive sin – totally obedient to God – but who was also clearly human. His word was Creative : By the word of the Lord, the heavens were made; his word was Incarnate: God glorified the flesh of Man; his word was the Written word: Thanks to God whose word was written in the Scriptures; and his word was Spoken: The preaching of Jesus during his ministry. My friend, who imagines having regular spiritual conversations with God, once asked Him if he would play Scrabble with her, so that he could give her some high-scoring triple-letter words to help her live her life to the full. God answered her: My words will never pass away, for the Word of the Lord is right and true (Psalm 33:4).Hymn for TodayLord thy word abideth, And our footsteps guideth; Who its truth believeth, Light and joy receiveth. Word of mercy, givingSuccour to the living;Word of life, supplyingComfort to the dying.Prayer for TodayWe pray: O God, grant that we may hear thy word with a real desire to receive what it promises and to practise what it commands.Note: The Readings and Gospel set for today can be downloaded from the top right of this page
Shipley Church Self-Service Sunday 31 January 2021 Thought for the Week – From heaven you came Today’s Gospel continues the pattern of revealing throughout the Epiphany season precisely who Jesus is. He began teaching in his local synagogue, and wherever he went, crowds gathered, attracted by both the substance of his teaching and the authority with which he spoke. They were astounded as they saw him exorcise an evil spirit from a passing tramp (Mark 1: 21-28). Later Jesus healed a paralytic, saying to him, “Get up, take your bed and walk”. Those watching were amazed (Mark 2: 4-12). The revelation that this was truly “the Holy One of God”, comes from an unlikely source – a man with an unclean spirit, and another individual who was disabled. How prepared are we to accept profound insights from those on the margins of society, or even from outside the walls of the Church? The Christian answer, grounded in the doctrine of the incarnation, initially seems astonishing, then appears to be arrogant, before finally being recognised as deeply satisfying: Jesus is authorised to speak of God because he is God. When the Christ child was presented in the Temple at Candlemas, Simeon, a righteous and devout man, took him in his arms and uttered, Lord, now let thy servant depart in peace, for my eyes have seen thy salvation. (Luke2) Hymn for TodayAt the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, Every tongue confess him King of glory now; ‘Tis the Father’s pleasure we should call him Lord, Who from the beginning was the mighty Word.Prayers for TodayWe pray that despite being unable to come to church during health restrictions for Covid19, God may lift us out of our doubts and anxieties into the calm of his presence.Note: The Gospel and Readings set for today can be downloaded from the top right of this page.
