Baptism of Christ Readings: Isaiah 43v1-7; Psalm 29; Acts 8v14-17; Luke 3v15-17 & 21-22. Let us pray: May the words of my mouth and the thoughts and meditations of all our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer. A Word : The readings tell us not only about God’s plans and purposes and our call to be a people of worship but also about baptism and the laying on of hands that is part of the rite of confirmation. In Luke’s gospel, we hear what took place after John had baptised Jesus. This baptism was a baptism of repentance – the saying of sorry for human sinfulness, the turning away from lives of sin and the turning towards lives lived for God. As Christians we believe that Jesus was baptised for the sins of the whole world, past , present and yet to come. Now in our day and age, as Christians we believe in Baptism as a sign that we are cleansed from our sins and brought into a community headed by Jesus, the Son of God, the Messiah. In the psalm we hear that all people are called to worship and honour the Lord who is enthroned as King forever in his temple because he is mighty and powerful, the one who gives strength and peace to his people. For as we hear through Isaiah, we have a God who makes a number of promises to us. First that all those who are his people are a people that belong to him and are called by name by him. Next that his people do not need to worry or be afraid even at the times of terror and bad things in life because God promises to be there alongside his people. Finally, God promises to gather in all of his people, the people he formed and made, a people from all over the world, a people created for God’s glory. As Christians we believe that we are called to be a people of worship and prayer because we have: a one true God who calls us to him; a one true God who can be trusted in the ups and downs of life; a one true God who gathers in all those who belong to him. In Luke’s gospel, we hear about this gathering in that is led by the Messiah that John said would baptise his people with the holy spirit - before sorting all people into one of two groups: either those who would be gathered in; or those who would be destroyed. As Christians we believe that Jesus is the Messiah because when he was baptised, the veil between earth and heaven opened, the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus in the fluttering of that like a dove and a voice told Jesus, and those who were there, that Jesus is God’s beloved son, the one that God was well pleased with. As Christians we believe that the Holy Spirit that descended on Jesus that day is the same Holy Spirit that John said the Messiah would Baptise God’s people with. As Christians we also believe that this is the same Holy Spirit that Peter and John prayed the Samarians would receive in the reading from the Book of Acts. For as we hear, after the people of Samaria had accepted the word of God and been baptised, Peter and John were sent to them to pray for them and lay their hands upon them and their prayer was answered and fulfilled as the apostles laid their hands upon them. In our day and age, this is the same action that takes place during the Christian rite of confirmation when the Bishop prayers for each confirmation candidate, lays hands on them and asks for them to be filled with the Holy Spirit. As Christians we believe that in confirmation we are affirming our baptismal promises and taking up the place that God has for us in the body of Christ, the Church, under the leadership of Jesus, the Son of God, the Messiah. Today, let each one of us give thanks for God’s provision for his people through worship and prayer, as well as the sacraments of Baptism and confirmation, and pray for all who guide, lead and teach them. Let us Pray: Lord of all time and eternity, who opened heaven and revealed yourself as Father at the baptism of your Son and anointed him with the Holy Spirit; anoint us that we may be born again, made faithful to our calling and in so doing complete the heavenly work of our re-birth as your adopted children – for the love of Jesus who came and died so we can be saved. Amen Thanks for joining us today.
Readings: Isaiah 62v1-5; Psalm 36v5-10; 1 Corinthians 12v1-11; John 2v1-11.A word from Lucy: The Isaiah reading tells us that God is ever working to help His people because of God's love for His creation; and the psalm is a prayerful echo of this. The letter, to the people in Corinth, is a call to live spirit filled lives in which we recognise that we all have different gifts that should be used for the common good. Today, we need to be mindful that the gifts that God gives us are all equally important to the community as a whole and are given to us so we can play the part God has designed for each one of us for the benefit of others. So, today we need to think about our gifts and find where God wants us to contribute them for the good of others. Today as I thought about the gospel and Jesus' attendance at a wedding, I noticed that I had never thought of the steward before. For here was a man serving his community at a wedding. A man who was willing to follow Jesus instructions and in so doing not only provided quality wine to the gathered community celebrating the sacrament of marriage but also witnessed a miracle. Today, its your turn to discern how God is calling you to serve the common good.Let us pray: Dear Lord, help us to serve you by serving others using the gifts you have given to us. This we ask in Jesus name, Amen.
Reading: Luke 3v15-17&21-22A word: Today we call to mind that Jesus chose to be Baptised by his cousin John, The Baptist. I commend the appointed gospel account to you because it tells us about the time at the end of John's ministry and the start of Jesus' ministry. For John, there were significant signs from God about Jesus. For Jesus, there was the anointing for his ministry by the holy spirit. For both, there was the handing on of God's mission from one to the other. For us, in our time and place, there is a message that is sometimes overlooked, which is that the Mission of God must be handed on in every generation. Today it is our turn to hand-on the baton of God's mission and our faith to others. What will you say and to whom?Let us pray: Lord, we ask you to guide and help us to hand on your mission and ministry to the next generation by sharing what we know of your plans and purposes, as well as sharing how you have been present in our lives. Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer. Amen
Readings: Isaiah60v1-6; Psalm 72v1-15; Ephesians 3v1-12; Matthew 2v1-12A word from Lucy: Today we remember that scholars in Persia who studied the stars saw something so astounding in the sky that they set off on a long journey to find a child they believed was born to be King. Once in the Holy Lands the men headed for the palace of King Herod, because they thought that this was where they would find the King they were searching for. The scholars continued their search and when they eventually found the holy family, they offered the child gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, and in so doing fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy.However, these men who are described as wise, were not so clever because they made a mistake in going to the palace and set Herod off on an evil course of action to kill the rival to his throne. Herod’s plot failed because the holy family were warned and escaped to Egypt in the night. Sadly though, all the children under two years of age from the area were murdered on Herod’s instructions.Today, we have so much to ponder: the prophecies in the Old Testament that were fulfilled in Jesus; the way God connects with and speaks to people from all over the world; the physical and spiritual journeys we are all called to make to find Jesus; the unforeseen consequences of the errors we make in our journeys throughout life; and the gifts we can bring and offer because God has a plan and a part for us to play in it. I hope and pray we will all listen, hear and respond.Let us pray: Lord inspire us, so we set out to find you; lead, help and guide us, so we stay firmly on the right path; then when we come face-to-face with you – may we offer to you the gifts you have made us to be, in service of your world.
