“….you who were once estranged and hostile in mind. he [Jesus] has now reconciled” declares the Letter to the Colossians. What a beautiful thing! Jesus, who “is the image of the invisible God” reconciles us to God, to one another and to creation. He calls us to join him in his work of life, of love, transformation, forgiveness and hope. Can there be a greater message to offer to a world where so many seem “estranged and hostile in mind?” It is our duty as members of his “body, the church” to do all we can to draw others to Jesus’ healing and reconciling power. This is our mission as a church.Rev Richard
In our Gospel reading from Luke this Sunday, Jesus tells a lawyer to obey the law, ‘love God and love your neighbour’ in order to inherit eternal life. The lawyer asks Jesus, ‘who is my neighbour?’ which prompts Jesus to tell the story of the good Samaritan. What the story illustrates is that our ‘neighbours’ aren’t just the people who live next door to us, or along the street, who we quite like, or the people we chat to in church. Our neighbours are sometimes hiding in plain sight. They are the people without homes living in tents around the town. They are the young people roaming around and getting into trouble because they have very little else in their lives. They are the lonely, isolated people who don’t venture from their homes because of illness or anxiety. Loving our neighbours can pose us something of a challenge, but it is the way we create flourishing communities and give people abundant life.Revd Liz
It’s a ridiculous idea to put your lambs in the middle of a load of wolves. They are not going to stand a chance and it’s an image which hardly makes sense in any culture.This is the vision Jesus sets out in our gospel reading today where the objective is to usher in the new ways of the kingdom into the madness and badness of the world. The forecast from the very start is for a rocky road so why does Jesus say this to his friends? Jesus knows himself to be totally vulnerable (even to death on a cross) yet protected by his Father, therefore Jesus suggests the same vulnerability to us!Friends, it appears that this journey of faith was always going to be a rough ride. Good news is that God‘s faithfulness rests with us and that the powers of darkness will flee. Whatever rough ride you may be having or have had through life, the reassurance for Christians is that God is with us at all times and in all situations.Fr Simon
This Sunday is the festival of Peter and Paul. Both men were apostles in the early church. Peter was called during Jesus’ ministry on earth, leaving a life of fishing and was given the ‘keys to the kingdom’. He was one of the twelve disciples who had walked with Jesus and continued to be the church’s main spokesperson. His ministry was to the Jews.Paul was called after Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. Originally Paul persecuted the church but after his conversion became the most prominent apostle and wrote the majority of the New Testament. His ministry as an apostle was to the known gentile world (everyone who’s not Jewish).God took Peter and Paul out of their comfort zones to minister. How might God be calling you? Where can you bring hope and good news?Revd Jassica
