Welcome to Sunday Worship in Leesfield Parish on the Sixth Sunday after Trinity. Our Church Services this morning are at the usual times of 9.15 at St Agnes' and 11.00 at St Thomas'.
If you are unable to be with us in person, you will find resources below to worship at home.
Our first hymn this morning is "Thou Whose Almighty Word"
Today's Gospel
Luke 11:1-13Teaching about Prayer
Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." He said to them, "When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial."
And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.' And he answers from within, `Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
"So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
Reflection
Last week I mentioned how important it can be to set aside some time on a regular basis and talk to God in stillness, as if sitting outside your own metaphorical tent like Abraham. [Gen. 18:1].
As we witness the disciples who have been observing Jesus praying, I wonder what was going through their minds as they watched Him? We know that Jesus prayed constantly, sometimes with others, and on many occasions He would go off on His own into hills or into the wilderness. Perhaps as they watched Jesus, they were in awe of His relationship with God the Father, and the sense of devotion and persistence in His prayer life.
They can obviously, sense the power of prayer that emanates from Jesus’ interaction with God and they ask, "Lord, teach us to pray." It is worth noting that they asked, ‘teach us to pray’ and not ‘how to pray’.
At first glance it might not seem that there is much difference but when we take the whole excerpt into account perhaps we may discern the subtleness of the wording.
Jesus starts by telling them the words of the Lord’s prayer which we say every day. But interestingly, the version we see here is slightly different from what we read in Matthew 6:9-13, when Jesus was telling people not to pray in public and not to babble on endlessly. Perhaps it was that Matthew remembered the wording differently to Luke's sources, or perhaps Jesus is showing us that we don’t have to be absolutely prescriptive in saying the words exactly the same every time. Praying is more than just a repetitive ritual repeated by rote. That is not to say that I am suggesting the words of the Lord’s prayer are not important, but praying is more than saying the same things over and over again – it’s about talking with God just as Jesus did.
It's also about understanding that God is always listening, and most importantly, He is ‘our’ Father. Whilst God is occasionally referred to as Father of creation, or Father of the nation Isreal in the Old Testament, Jesus was the first person to refer to God as ‘Our Father’ - Father of each of us individually.
In teaching the disciples to pray, Jesus is showing them how to build a personal relationship with God, our Holy and loving Father.
I will not dissect the whole of the Lord’s Prayer as I have done before – rather it’s worth looking at the parables Jesus tells the disciples to give them insight into praying. The story about the man shamelessly knocking his friend up in the middle of the night is about persistence. It’s also about the honour of the man in the house. In those days the whole family would live in one room and so to help his friend the whole house would be woken up – however it was the Jewish custom to provide hospitality to those in need. Jesus is implying that if providing for one another as humans is important, how much more so will it be with God who wants to give us what is good and life-giving.
In the second parable, we are invited to pray continuously – it’s not just about asking God for everything we want and asking to fix the world, it’s about being true in our convictions. This parable can sometimes feel really hard to come to terms with, especially if we keep asking God for something and our prayer doesn’t seem to be answered or it’s not answered in the way we might have wanted.
Perhaps rather then God ignoring us, it’s us who are not praying for the right thing, or maybe God is doing what is right for us but we can’t recognise it. It’s not about God’s wish to give us what He knows we need, it’s about our human inability to receive what He gives. It’s about recognising and trusting in God’s will being done. In teaching us to pray, Jesus is showing us how to build a relationship with God so we might understand his will. Paul
Our Prayers
Loving God,
As your Son, Jesus, showed us,
We pray for a deeper and more loving relationship with you.
Guide our hearts and minds to trust in your will,
and in your loving purpose for us.
Help us to see the blessings in all you do,
even when it is difficult for us to understand,
and remember that when we search, we will find you.
Amen
Our final hymn today is "Father, Hear the Prayer we Offer"
Welcome to Sunday Worship in Leesfield Parish on the Fifth Sunday after Trinity. Our Church Services this morning are at the usual times of 9.15 at St Agnes' and 11.00 at St Thomas'.
If you are unable to be with us in person, you will find resources below to worship at home.
Our first hymn this morning is "Lord, for the Years"
Today's Bible Reading
Genesis 18:1-15 The Three Visitors
The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground. He said, "My lord, if I find favour with you, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on-- since you have come to your servant." So they said, "Do as you have said." And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, "Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes." Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.
They said to him, "Where is your wife Sarah?" And he said, "There, in the tent." Then one said, "I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son."
Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”
But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
Reflection
Imagine you’ve just spent the last hour or so having a nice soaking bath and getting all dressed up ready to go for a meal out and then the phone rings – it’s your partner who sheepishly and apologetically says, “I’m really sorry but something important has come up at work and I have to work late. I’ll make it up to you and we can go out next week instead.”
How do you feel? Let down, disappointed even angry. A promise has been broken – even though it might seem like a genuine reason. It’s not a nice feeling especially when it’s something you’ve been looking forward to. Perhaps you’ll think twice about the promise to go out next week.
In the verses that precede todays passage [Gen. 17:16-22], God promises Abraham that He will bless Sarah and give him a son by her. In this next encounter, the Lord repeats this promise. Sarah’s reaction on hearing this is much the same as Abraham’s first reaction - “Yeah right – of course I’m going to have a son at my age”.
We should remember that at this time, Abraham was a hundred years old and Sarah was ninety years old and long past the menopause, so I guess we shouldn’t be too quick to condemn their doubt. So God has repeated the promise to both of them – he is reassuring them and feeding their faith.
God is greater than their doubts, He is greater than all our doubts, and instead of rebuking Sarah, He is reassuring her. ‘Even if we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself’ [2 Timothy 2:13].
And of course God keeps his promise because He always does – He is never going to say, I’m sorry but I’m a bit busy at the moment or something else has cropped up.
Despite how incredible the promise seems, God makes it happen. What’s more incredible is that the baby is not conceived through some spiritual miracle, Isaac is conceived through natural means and the relationship between Abraham and Sarah. Sarah’s physical body is regenerated to make this happen as promised.
God knew that having a baby together was something that Sarah and Abraham had wanted all their lives, and even though Abraham recognised the Lord he still struggled to believe it was possible. The same can be true for us, as we look at the world today and see the suffering, wars, exploitation and inequalities, it’s hard to imagine how the world can ever be right again. But we have to have faith and trust in God. For with God, nothing is impossible.
In the same way that God regenerated Sarah’s body, He can regenerate us and the world. Jesus promised us that when we believe and trust in Him we will have a place by His side in heaven.
Sometimes we just need to set aside our inner doubts and find some space to sit and talk with God and also listen to Him. Like Abraham, sitting quietly outside his tent, we should find some time to reflect in the stillness. God doesn’t make Himself known in the thunder or an earthquake but in the stillness of our lives.
Sarah laughed inwardly with disbelief, she didn’t scoff out loud, but God still heard her.
God hears our silent thoughts too, but He is forgiving and full of grace and will never break His promises to us even if we occasionally have doubts.
Paul
Our Prayers
Almighty God,
We thank you for your abundant grace and love for us.
We pray that though your Word,
we will be strengthened in faith,
and trust in your power to heal and save.
Father God, we pray for an end to the atrocities we see in the news,
Welcome to Sunday Worship in Leesfield Parish. Today we have a Parish Eucharist at 11 am at St Thomas', with no service at St Agnes'.
If you are unable to be with us in person, you will find resources below to worship at home.
Our first hymn this morning is "Longing for Light, we Wait in Darkness"
Today's Gospel
Luke 10:25-37 The Good Samaritan
Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself." And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live."
But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbour?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, `Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.' Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
Reflection
Rather than look at the characters in this parable, including the lawyer, I want to focus on the Samaritan.
There are two key messages in this story; one about loving one another and the other about keeping the law. Jesus was the one who came to fulfil the law and the prophesies. Jesus is the one who demonstrated total obedience to the Father by taking on human form and living amongst sinners. As the Father loves us so did Jesus, showing his love for everyone, not just the Jews. He was obedient and loving, even to the extent that he was willing to be tortured like a criminal and die on the cross to redeem us – to rescue everyone who is willing to trust in him and repent.
Jesus is the Samaritan, and it us who are the injured person in need of help. We are all sinners at some point and it is the wounds of sin that need to be healed. Fortunately, like the Samaritan, Jesus is there for us – like the Samaritan who placed himself at risk and helped the wounded man at his own expense, Jesus in His love and obedience for us, was willing to rescue us at His own expense.
On the roadside, the Samaritan tended to the fallen with oil and wine. Similarly Jesus offers his body and his blood to save us. Next time you take Holy Communion, remember that in that sacrament he offers you that same love to sustain us and renew us until He comes again in glory. Paul
Our Prayers
Father God, we praise and thank you,
That when we sin and fall by the wayside,
you send your Son Jesus Christ to pick us up, heal our wounds and set us back on the path of righteousness.
Amen
Today's final hymn is "Brother, Sister, Let me Serve you"
Notices
Revd John Faraday and his wife, Joan, have sent a message of thanks to all of us for our prayers, help and good wishes as they mourn the loss of their son, Alan. A memorial Service for Alan will be held at Saint Thomas Church, Church Street, Delph, Oldham at 11.00am next Wednesday, 16th July, and all will be welcome. If you would like to share in the service but will find it difficult to be there, there is a link available so that you could join remotely on Zoom (please use the contact form for details).
Welcome to Sunday Worship in Leesfield Parish on the Third Sunday after Trinity. Our Church Services this morning are at the usual times of 9.15 at St Agnes' and 11.00 at St Thomas'.
If you are unable to be with us in person, you can find resources below to worship at home.
Our first hymn this morning is "I, The Lord of Sea and Sky"
Today's Gospel
Luke 1-11, 16-20Jesus Sends Out the Seventy
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 labourer 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.' But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, `Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.'
"Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me."
The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!" He said to them, "I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
Reflection
The harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few.
At a time when the parish is still in vacancy with no immediate sign of a new vicar on the horizon, and no vicars in the neighbouring parishes in our Mission Community, you might argue that we are in the same position now.
Who is there to spread God’s word and the Good News of the Gospel?
The first two ‘Marks of Mission’ for the Church of England are:
-To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom
-To teach, baptise and nurture new believers
Yet we have no Vicar! That gives rise to a number of questions:
1.How will the church manage its missional objectives then?
2.Who are the labourers that will do the missional outreach and spread the Gospel in and around Lees?
3.Who did Jesus send ahead of him to the places that he intended to go afterwards?
To answer each question in turn;
1.We are the people who are called to do mission in our community. The Marks of Mission are not guidelines for the clergy but for all of us who call ourselves followers of Jesus.
2.We, are therefore Jesus’s modern day labourers.
3.Jesus sent out ‘seventy others’ ahead of him. We don’t know who they were, but they weren’t the 12 apostles and it wasn’t Jesus himself doing the legwork.
I am writing this sermon on Petertide, the weekend when new deacons and priests are ordained. They will all have undertaken rigorous theological training on subjects such as doctrine, church denominational history and spirituality to name but a handful of topics.
But that won’t prepare them to be able to answer every question anyone might ever ask about God. No matter how well prepared they might think they are – their knowledge will still be very limited.
Many of them will have put a ‘dog collar’ on for the first time and be wondering, “what on earth have I got myself into?” That feeling is often referred to as ‘imposter syndrome’, where they doubt themselves, and question their worthiness, their abilities, and even if they are good enough to be a minister of the church.
So when I say we are all called to be Jesus’ labourers and spread the missional good news of the Gospel, you might rightly ask, who am I to do that? I am just one of the ‘others’. One of the folk that sits in the pews and listens.
Like the ‘others’ in today’s reading from Luke, we don’t need to be experts to answer Jesus’s call. Jesus didn’t send the ‘others’ to theological college for years to study before he sent them out.
When you speak about Jesus, he will give you words – he doesn’t call the knowledgeable but he will equip those he calls with what you need to know. Indeed, as one of the others, the bar is set lower; people won’t be expecting a profound theological discussion from us. To be fair that’s probably the last thing most people want. When we talk about Jesus, it’s fine to talk from our heart about what He means to us.
Jesus didn’t identify people with gifts for mission - He gave his followers the gifts that they would need for the mission.
Then he sent them, knowing that they wouldn’t always be well received, and that some would be shunned. He sent them as lambs amongst the wolves. But all seventy returned with joy in their hearts. Jesus had given them the authority and equipped them with all they needed.
He will give that same authority and power to you as and when you need it. And when you are prepared to talk with love and confidence about your names too will be written in heaven.
Paul
Our Prayers
Father God,
We thank you that we have been blessed,
To receive the good news of the gospel
and the ministry of your Son Jesus Christ
who died for the forgiveness of our sins and conquered death.
We pray that we may never be afraid to confess that good news to others
and that by the power of the Holy Spirit,
we may live and work to your praise and glory
Amen
Today's final hymn is "Lord, The Light of Your Love is Shining (Shine, Jesus, Shine)"
Notices
Next Sunday we have a Parish Eucharist at 11.00 am at St Thomas', and no service at St Agnes'.
For all of the upcoming services and events in Leesfield Parish, please click on the 'Calendar' tab in the page header.
