Tuesday, 1 October 2024
Bonhoeffer 2 – Gratitude
 

 

St Mark 8:31-38

Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.  But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.  For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life?  Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 

Reflection

In his book ‘The Cost of Discipleship’, published in German in 1937, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote “whenever Christ calls us, his call leads us to death.” Eight years later those words became a reality for him when he was hanged by the Nazis, following their discovery of his association with those who had tried to kill Hitler in July 1944. 

Bonhoeffer was nearly 27 when Hitler came to power in 1933. The Lutheran Church, into which he had been ordained two years earlier, had a strong tradition of supporting the government but, whilst the vast majority of Christians did support Hitler, Bonhoeffer opposed him from the start, and was instrumental in founding the Confessing Church. 

His activities were increasingly restricted and to rescue him from danger some of his friends worked long and hard to get him to the safety of the USA in 1939. But almost as soon as he arrived he realised that he had done the wrong thing. He wrote “I will have no right to participate in the restoration of Christian life in Germany after the war unless I share the trials of this time with my people.” So he returned to Germany, knowing the risks involved. He was arrested and imprisoned in April 1943, before being executed two years later.

We live in very different times from Bonhoeffer and our lives are not in danger for being Christians, but in the light of Jesus’ words quoted above, and Bonhoeffer’s comment on them, which was lived out in his life and death, we might ask which forms of evil we need to oppose and what there is in our lives which needs to die, if we would be true disciples of Jesus. 

And let us not forget that in many countries today our brothers and sisters in Christ are being persecuted for their faith, many suffering imprisonment and even death. Is it not incumbent on us to pray for them and to support them in practical ways?

Bonhoeffer

Dear Friends,

I hope you have found Allen Creedy’s reflections over the last week moving; we keep him in our prayers.

Over the next week we are going to be exploring, with John Matthews a retired Baptist minister and member of Wellingborough URC, some ideas from Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  Bonhoeffer (4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor,  theologian and anti-Nazi dissident who was a key founding member of the Confessing Church.   The Confessing Church opposed the Nazi take over of the German Church and was an irritant to the Nazi regime.  Bonhoeffer’s writings on Christianity’s role in the secular world have become widely influential; his 1937 book The Cost of Discipleship is described as a modern classic. 

Apart from his theological writings, Bonhoeffer was known for his staunch resistance to the Nazi dictatorship, including vocal opposition to Adolf Hitler’s euthanasia program and genocidal persecution of the Jews.  He was arrested in April 1943 by the Gestapo and imprisoned at Tegel Prison for 1½ years. Later, he was transferred to Flossenbürg concentration camp.
Bonhoeffer was accused of being associated with the 20 July plot to assassinate Hitler and was tried along with other accused plotters, including former members of the Abwehr (the German Military Intelligence Office). He was hanged on 9 April 1945 during the collapse of the Nazi regime.

As we dip into some of Bonhoeffer’s ideas this week, guided by John Matthews, I hope we find them stimulating and useful for our own Christian discipleship.

With every good wish

Andy

The Rev’d Andy Braunston
Minister for Digital Worship
 

Intercessions for Tomorrow

Dear Friends,

In addition to the intercessions in this week’s Worship Notes, the Revd Helen Everard has prepared some which can be downloaded here.

With every good wish

Andy

The Rev’d Andy Braunston
Minister for Digital Worship
 

Acts‬ ‭4‬:‭30‬ ‭

“Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

Reflection

Luke reminds the apostles and followers of Jesus that we are commanded to pray for healing from suffering, But it is clear that even though we may have faith, quite what response there is to our prayer is entirely up to God. Individuals who were suffering that encountered Jesus were healed: when they had faith, Bartimaeus, the woman who was subject to bleeding for twelve years, the leper, the servant of the centurion all were suffering, Jesus healed them.

Commissioned by Jesus, the disciples go out and heal, but initially cannot, and come to Jesus and ask why they couldn’t drive out a demon and heal a boy? Jesus replies, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”  Quite clearly the disciples and apostles’ faith became sufficient for them to heal those who were suffering with so many examples in Acts and other books of the New Testament. The Holy Spirit was with the apostles and Jesus’ followers, and it was clearly God’s will that those they ministered to would be healed.

So what should our response be to the challenge of suffering? Should we pray for healing? Indeed Luke says “Stretch out your hand and heal” so absolutely we should pray for healing, but in doing so we must draw close to God, listen to the Holy Spirit, and direct our prayers to those to whom we are guided. In praying we must also acknowledge that we may not perceive or understand any healing that may take place, for it may be not for us to know the healing:  God may choose to heal spiritually rather than physically. Whatever happens when we pray for healing, we must trust God and remain confident in our faith as we continue to listen for God’s will.  

Prayer 

The Lord is near
do not be anxious
but it every situation
with prayer and petition
and with thanksgiving
present your request to God
and the peace of God
which transcends all understanding
will guard your heart and minds
in the love of Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6
 

inspiration in your inbox Thursday 26 September 2024 Witness through Suffering  Romans‬ ‭5‬: ‭3‬-‭5‬ ‬‬ “…..but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” Reflection Paul writes words of encouragement to believers in Rome, encouraging and motivating them by reminding them that Jesus suffered to redeem us from sin and to provide us with the way to eternal life and unfathomable hope. This message is as relevant to us now – we too know the Holy Spirit has been given to us to support and guide us in our Christian journey. Beyond the book of Romans,  the New Testament is full of examples of Christians who suffered because of their faith. Such suffering has continued since then, and daily we hear of fellow Christians who are being persecuted, harassed, marginalised and killed just because of their faith. Their witness does not go unnoticed on earth or in heaven. But as Christians, and as we suffer in other ways, there is the opportunity, and perhaps calling, to also witness to the grace we are receiving. As we endure pain, loneliness, anxiety, physical distress or hunger there is the opportunity to witness that our endurance comes not from our own strength but from knowing we are loved by God, being supported daily by the Holy Spirit and being prayed for by fellow Christians.  Living with a terminal illness closes many doors, but opens a door that cannot be closed, one that leads to opportunities to be a witness to God’s love and the redeeming power of Jesus’ sacrifice. As you suffer, look not at the doors which are closed, but look for and go through the door which has opened to you. Prayer Lord Jesus, as you support Christians who suffer in whatever way, equip them with courage, and confidence in your love for them. Help them to recognise and acknowledge their many blessings, inspire them through your Holy Spirit to share their story of your love for them, and encourage them to persevere and in doing so to proclaim your grace for all. Amen

Today’s writer Allen Creedy is a member of Jesmond URC living with Motor Neuron Disease New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Worship Notes for November released
(and a reminder about October’s!)

Dear Friends,

We have now loaded up the Worship Notes for November and I thought I’d remind you of October’s material.

You can find the Worship Notes by going to the URC website urc.org.uk then going to Your Faith and then clicking on Prayer and Worship.  Worship Notes are one of the options to choose from.

The October material has been up for some time; we start with a service I lead for St Francis’ day which marks the end of Creationtide.  Lindsey Sanderson looks at Challenge Poverty week on 13th, Jonnie Hill explores suffering in Job on 20th, and Mark Rogers looks at the story of Bartimaeus on 27th October.  

In November I lead worship on 3rd exploring themes around All Saints’ and All Souls’ day which will have fallen just before, I lead worship again on 17th to mark Safeguarding Sunday.  Retired minister Lance Stone leads worship for Remembrance Sunday and Nicky Gilbert, a minister in Wessex, leads worship for Christ the King on 24th November.  

The Worship Notes contain all that is needed to build a service with a range of prayers, hymn suggestions, and notes on the readings which could be built into a sermon as well as an all age activity.  If you wish to see the full text of the services that have been prepared you can click here where we store the material in a variety of formats, including PowerPoint, for churches to download and use as pulpit supply material.  We will be sending November’s pulpit supply material out later to those who have signed up to receive it ahead of time.

With every good wish

Andy

The Rev’d Andy Braunston
Minister for Digital Worship
 

inspiration in your inbox Tuesday 24 September 2024 Suffering   Job 7: 1-6  Do not mortals have hard service on earth? Are not their days like those of hired labourers? Like a slave longing for the evening shadows, or a hired labourer waiting to be paid, so I have been allotted months of futility, and nights of misery have been assigned to me. When I lie down I think, ‘How long before I get up?’ The night drags on, and I toss and turn until dawn. My body is clothed with worms and scabs, my skin is broken and festering. My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and they come to an end without hope. Reflection Do you know the story of Job? The previous six chapters describe how God allowed Satan to test his faithful servant Job, by depriving him of his health, his future and all his possessions in not much more than a single day. The day I was diagnosed with MND I knew how Job felt. Read the rest of the book to understand the anguish of such a day. I echoed Job: Why me! Three friends of Job are convinced he has brought it upon himself because of his wrongdoing. Fast forward more than 2500 years, with the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus and knowing the Holy Spirit I knew this diagnosis was not related to any of my actions. Despite his affliction and loss Job continues to trust God. But in doing so he realises how little he understands about his God. After much prayer his faithfulness is rewarded as God reveals his purpose and Job is again blessed. Few MND sufferers or carers seem to be Christians, so there is no template for how to respond or what to pray. Few Christians have experience of ministry with MND sufferers.  Suffering can be a lonely road, even when you are surrounded by loving family, are part of a Christian fellowship and have practical support. Understanding God’s purpose and future for you whilst you are suffering requires trust in God, prayer and openness to be led by the Spirit.  Prayer Gracious God, when I turn away from my own problems, I feel sorrow for others’ suffering which gnaws at live’s edges wearing people down with sadness and despair.  Be with all who live with pain, and who  feel left by the side of life’s road.  Embrace them until they know they are loved by you.  Fill my heart with the same compassion; give me eyes to see how I can lovingly be a part of their healing. Amen

Today’s writer Allen Creedy is a member of Jesmond URC living with Motor Neuron Disease New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Genesis 3:17-19

“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return”. 

Genesis 4: 2-8

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favour. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. “Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast. If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it”. Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. 

‭‭Reflection 

It’s fair to say that we are neither biologically nor behaviourally as God intended us to be. The Fall from grace was swift and precipitous as the two readings illustrate. Human suffering arises because our bodies are mortal and fail. Suffering is also experienced by millions each day through humanity’s continuing failure to follow Christ teaching as we fail to love our neighbour as we love ourself: war, genocide, murder, famine, loneliness, exploitation, climate crisis all arise from an absence of love for our neighbour. 

Individuals suffer both physically and emotionally as our bodies fail. Medical advances together with the unequal distribution of wealth now allows the privileged few to continue to live into old age relatively pain free and comfortable. Whether a disease, injury or medical condition is terminal, life-threatening or life limiting will depend on where in the world you live, and how wealthy you are. But wherever we live and regardless of your wealth, as our bodies fail we suffer. As Christians, we do not suffer alone, nor is our suffering unnoticed. Christ shares our pain, anguish, sorrow and in doing so speaks to us and gives us direction and hope.

Prayer 

O Jesus,
please be in the hearts and lives of all who suffer.
Bring healing to those enduring pain.
Bring value to those who are disregarded.
Bring joy to those in great sorrow.
Bring hope to those that have nothing to live for.
Bring provision to those who hunger.
Bring shelter to the homeless.
Bring community to the lonely.

Please use and prompt me to be your hands of love across a suffering world.
Amen

 
Today’s service is led by the Revd Nigel Uden

 
Welcome

Hello, my name is Nigel Uden and I’m recording this service for 22nd September 2024 in Downing Place United Reformed Church in Cambridge.  I’m privileged to be the minister here and at Fulwood URC a few miles to the east of this city.  A warm welcome.  

Opening Words

May mercy, peace, and love be yours in abundance.                 
Jude 2

Like many seeking wisdom, consolation or hope,
perhaps we sometimes echo Samuel and say,
‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening.’
I Samuel 3.9

At such a time, may we also hear an echo of Isaiah:
And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, 
your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 
“This is the way (hodos); walk in it.”                     
Isaiah 30.21

Prayer of Approach

Gracious God,
awaken us from sleep
that we may worship you 
in Spirit and in truth;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen  

Hymn     Christ is Made the Sure Foundation
Latin, 7th cent. tr. J. M. Neale (1818-66) altd. Public domain. Sung by the choir and people of North Stoneham and Bassett Parish Church and used with their kind permission.

Christ is made the sure foundation, Christ the head and comer-stone,
chosen of the Lord and precious, binding all the Church in one;
holy Zion’s help for ever, and her confidence alone.

All that dedicated city, dearly loved of God on high,
in exultant jubilation pours perpetual melody;
God, the One in Three, adoring in glad hymns eternally.

To this temple where we call thee, come, O Lord of Hosts, today;
with thy wonted loving-kindness hear thy servants as they pray;
and thy fullest benediction shed within its walls alway.

Here vouchsafe to all thy servants what they ask of thee to gain,
what they gain from thee for ever with the blessed to retain,
and hereafter in thy glory evermore with thee to reign.
 
Laud and honour to the Father, laud and honour to the Son,
laud and honour to the Spirit, every Three and ever and One,
consubstantial, co-eternal, while unending ages run.

Prayers of Adoration and Confession

Creator God, you are source, guide, and goal of all that is
and we praise you.
Carpenter God, you are way, truth and life
and we praise you.
Companion God, you offer faith, hope and love
and we praise you.

We know and are sorry that we have
too glibly spoken of you
forgetting that you are the one without whom we would not be.

We know and are sorry that we have
too rarely walked in your way, grappled with your truth 
or made known your life in us.

We know and are sorry that we have
too cautiously entertained the Holy Spirit,
and thus been shallow in faith, hesitant in hope and half-hearted in love.

By your grace
Creator, remake us,
Carpenter, refashion us,
Companion renew us,
through Jesus Christ, Amen.

Hymn     It is a Thing Most Wonderful
W. W. How (1823-97) altd. Public Domain.  BBC Songs of Praise

It is a thing most wonderful,
almost too wonderful to be,
that God’s own Son should come from heaven
and die to save a child like me.

And yet I know that it is true;
he came to this poor world below,
And wept, & toiled, & mourned, & died,
only because he loved me so.

I sometimes think about the cross
and shut my eyes, and try to see
the cruel nails and crown of thorns,
and Jesus crucified for me.

It is most wonderful to know
his love for me so free and sure;
but still more wonderful to see
my love for him so faint and poor;
 
And yet I want to love thee, Lord;
O light the flame within my heart,
and I will love thee more and more,
until I see thee as thou art.

Reading     St Mark 9.30-37

They went on from there and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know it;  for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, ‘The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.’ But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him. Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you arguing about on the way?’  But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.’  Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them,  ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’

Reading     St Luke 24.13-35

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem,  and talking with each other about all these things that had happened.  While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him.  And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’ They stood still, looking sad.  Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’  He asked them, ‘What things?’ They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth,  who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,  and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him.  But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place.  Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning,  and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive.  Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.’  Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared!  Was it not necessary that the Messiah[e] should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’  Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them.  When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.  They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’  Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Hymn     O Thou Who Camest
Charles Wesley (1707-88) Public Domain sung by Joy and Ruth Everingham and used with their kind permission.

O thou who camest from above,
the pure celestial fire to impart,
kindle a flame of sacred love
on the mean altar of my heart.

There let it for thy glory burn
with inextinguishable blaze;
and trembling to its source return,
in humble prayer & fervent praise.

Jesus, confirm my heart’s desire
to work & speak & think for thee;
still let me guard the holy fire,
and still stir up thy gift in me:

Ready for all thy perfect will,
my acts of faith and love repeat,
till death thine endless mercies seal,
and make my sacrifice complete.
 
Sermon

In the Bible, we often join Jesus and the disciples ‘on the way’. Frequently they are going somewhere. In today’s Gospel passage, they are out and about around Galilee, and in but a little while they will be setting off for the decisive walk from Jericho to Jerusalem, with the events of Holy Week and Easter. 

I find myself ‘on the way’ all the time. Sometimes literal journeys, perhaps long-distance ones to see family, or en route to a much-anticipated holiday. Then there are the far shorter trips, like a walk along the banks of the Cam, just a cock’s stride from our home. On that way, there’s much to cherish, and in particular the heron who lives there and timidly rises up from the undergrowth as I draw too near for its comfort. I also recall the newly hatched family of cygnets who were being marshalled – not entirely successfully – by their parents one morning last May. 

Other journeys are quite different though. Many of us know what it is like to be 

• on the way through the seemingly endless and tortuous processes required when amending a charity’s constitution or adding a signatory to a bank account;
• on the way of discernment as local churches wonder what, under God’s good hand, their future should be;
• on the way towards retirement, with all its known and unknown unknowns;
• on the way along the sobering path into dementia;
• on the way round the sharp corner we call death. 

They are all journeys, and few of us will be unfamiliar with some or even all of them, plus a whole lot more. 

When we read St Mark telling of the disciples being ‘on the way’, it’s the translation of a word that is frequently used in the Bible. This word, derived from ‘hodos’, often means simply road or pathway. So, there’s the Ethiopian in Acts 8: after being captivated by the prophecy of Isaiah – ‘he was led like a sheep to the slaughter’ – and then baptised, they go ‘on their way rejoicing’. Hodos can also refer to being guided ‘on the way’ as Paul says God and Jesus helped him get to the church in Thessalonica. (I Thessalonians 3.11). 

More metaphorically, however, hodos can mean ‘a way of proceeding’. Remember how, in I Corinthians 12, Paul tells of the Holy Spirit’s work, bringing his point to a climax with ‘and yet I will show you the most excellent way’ (12.31), that hodos leading into his paean to love. (13.1-13)

Hodos comes right at the beginning of Mark, as well, when we learn of John the Baptist ‘preparing the way for the Lord’ (1.3).  

So, being ‘on the way’ is a profound thing, albeit never more so than as Jesus makes his way into Jerusalem on the first Palm Sunday – the way to the cross and the empty tomb; the way of dying and undying love. 

The Acts of the Apostles says that early in the life of The Church, followers of Jesus were known as people of The Way. Again it’s that word hodos. So it is that as Paul is in Ephesus his opponents ‘publicly maligned the Way’ (19.9), and in Caesarea, Paul admits to Governor Felix that he worships God … ‘as a follower of the Way.’ (24.14)

Do we see our Christian life as being followers of the Way? And if we do, how do we travel along the Way with a sense of progress and of getting somewhere?

Well, there is another use of hodos that comes in one of St Luke’s post-resurrection narratives – that exquisitely wrought account of two followers of Jesus disconsolately walking to Emmaus on Easter evening, when someone drew near to them and engaged them in deedy conversation. Looking back on it, they ask, ‘‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ And ‘road’ there is this word hodos. 

But it was no ordinary road that they found themselves trudging along. Nor was it any ordinary fellow traveller. This was a hodos with a difference; their companion himself something of a hodos. 

As he drew alongside the two who were talking with each other, he was a stranger. ‘They were kept from recognising him.’ Maybe we’ve all struck up conversation with a person we aren’t familiar with: 

• a street dweller, begging more for a chat than for loose change; 
• someone at the bus stop waiting for the Number 2 that never comes and at risk of missing an exam; 
• or the anxious soul beside us in the hospital waiting room, waiting like us for results they know they won’t find cheering. 

Encounters on the way with a stranger can be so precious in mutual support and embodying real community. 

Moreover, simply because they were willing to chat ‘on the way’, the Emmaus Two began to learn things. The stranger understood something of their story. And not only so. ‘He explained to them what was said in all the scriptures concerning himself.’ (24.27) The stranger became a teacher.

How much there is to learn from the chance encounter somewhere like an airport departure lounge, or meeting up on a hike, or queuing together at the supermarket checkout. I recall learning about music, about history, about God – and less fruitfully abut football – from various unexpected dialogues unconstrained by rush, but sitting or walking side by side without the intimidating eye-balling of facing each other.

On the way to Emmaus, stranger became teacher. Then, gradually some sense of connection developed. Indeed, reaching their destination they were reluctant to part company. ‘Come in for a meal’, they said. If Caravaggio is to be believed, it was a roast chicken dinner. So their fellowship intensified. The teacher becomes a friend.    

There is something ever so precious about learning from each other. Adventuring along the way of faith together can be profoundly and mutually enriching. It doesn’t leave us where it finds us. We engage at a level that gradually deepens and we, like the Emmaus Two find the flames of friendship being kindled. If we weren’t ‘on the way’ it wouldn’t happen. That’s what engenders the sharing, the growing trust and the respect that are the very essence of friendship. Of course, all this journey from Jesus being stranger to friend may happen in an evening, but for many of us it’s more of a lifetime’s pilgrimage, with many a diversion, as well as some deeply moving homecomings.

And then as they break bread (and chew chicken) together, the journey is completed. ‘Were not our hearts burning within us?’ Their journey reaches a revelation.
On this hodos to Emmaus, Jesus is revealed as the hodos to God. Yes, that’s the very word we find when in John 14 Jesus is summed as being the Way, the Truth and the Life. He is the way, the path, the access to God. ‘If we have seen him we have seen the Father’, Jesus says to Philip (John 14.9)   Stranger, Teacher, Friend, Saviour. 

It goes without saying that the life of the Christian Church in twenty-first century western Europe is challenging. It can sometimes feel as if we have ‘lost our way’. Might there be in the way that Jesus meets the Emmaus Two on their way a pointer to how we can be caught up throughout our lives in discovering Jesus as our way into walking with God? 

I dare to believe that it remains as full of potential as ever it has. We may not encounter the stranger/teacher/friend/Saviour in either the way or the order that Cleopas and their partner do. No, as each of us is different so our way into fellowship with God will vary. Nonetheless, I suspect we each have 

• periods of disconsolate despair;
• seasons of careful listening and fascinated learning;
• experiences of that friendship with Jesus which makes us marvel how ‘it is a thing most wonderful, almost too wonderful to be, that God’s own Son should come from heaven and die to save a child like me’;
• and the aha moments that find us with the Thomas who is told Jesus is the way, and just days later can murmur ‘My Lord and my God.’

Whatever it is that challenges local churches and denominations at this time, I cannot avoid the conclusion that alongside the arduous trek towards justice and peace, and the search for contemporary ways of authentically being The Church, there remains the commitment to accompany one another on the Way, there to find that the one who walks the Way to Calvary and beyond is beside us, unsurprised when we treat him as a stranger, available whenever we look to him for teaching, faithful as we reach out to him for friendship, and joyous as we own him as Lord, until he brings us the journey’s culmination and takes us home.

May it be so. And thanks be to God.  Amen   

Hymn     The Church of Christ 
F. Pratt Green (1903-2000) © 1971 Hope Publishing Co sung by members of Saint Peter’s Choir New York City OneLicence # A-734713  

The Church of Christ, in every age beset by change but Spirit-led,
must claim and test its heritage and keep on rising from the dead.

Across the world, across the street, the victims of injustice cry
for shelter and for bread to eat, and never live until they die.

Then let the Servant Church arise, a caring Church, that longs to be
a partner in Christ’s sacrifice, and clothed in Christ’s humanity.

For he alone, whose blood was shed, can cure the fever in our blood,
& teach us how to share our bread and feed the starving multitude.
 
We have no mission but to serve, in full obedience to our Lord;
to care for all, without reserve, and spread his liberating Word.

Statement of Faith

We believe in God, 
from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. 

We believe in Jesus Christ,
who lives in our hearts through faith,
and fills us with his love. 

We believe in the Holy Spirit,
who strengthens us with power from on high.

We believe in God, 
three in one and one in three.  Amen.

Offertory Prayer

God, we bring our gifts of money and with them we offer ourselves – 
all that we have and are.

We bring them not to buy your love, nor to earn your forgiveness,
less still to deserve your grace, but as a thank offering,
and a sign of our commitment to answer your love with our love,
in the church and in the world, through Jesus Christ, Amen

Prayers

Let us pray.

Gracious God, our companion on the Way, 
whose Spirit helps us in our weakness and guides us in our prayers,
we pray for the Church and for the world in the name of Jesus Christ. 

We pray for  the church throughout the world,
its unity and sense of purpose as it serves God’s mission.

Renew the faith and life of the Church, 
strengthen its witness; and make us one in Christ. 
Grant that we  and all who confess Jesus as our Saviour
may be faithful in service and filled with his Spirit, 
and that the world may be turned to him. 

We pray for the nations of the world,
for our own country, and for all seeking reconciliation

Guide the nations in the way of justice, liberty and peace;
and help them to seek the unity and welfare of humanity.

Give to all in authority 
wisdom to know and strength to do what is right. 

We pray for people who are sick and suffering,
for victims of injustice, and for people who are lonely and bereaved

Comfort those in sorrow, heal the sick in body or in mind;
and deliver the oppressed.

Give us active sympathy for all who suffer and help us
so to bear the burdens of others that we may fulfil the law of Christ.

We pray for our families, friends and neighbours
and for people we know who need our prayers.

Keep us and our loved ones united in loyalty and love,
and always in your care;
and may our friends and neighbours, and all for whom we pray,
receive the help they need, and live in peace. 

We remember those who have died. 

Eternal God, accept our thanks and praise
for all who have served you faithfully here on earth,
and especially for those dear to our own hearts.

May we and all your people,
past, present and to come,
share the life and joy of your kingdom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen 

The Lord’s Prayer

Hymn     Thine Be the Glory
Edmond Louis Budry. (1854-1932)  tr. Richard Birch Hoyle (1875-1939) Public Domain
Courtesy of St Andrew’s Cathedral & Choir,  Sydney, Australia

Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son;
endless is the victory thou o’er death hast won;
angels in bright raiment rolled the stone away,
kept the folded grave-clothes where thy body lay.

Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son;
endless is the victory thou o’er death hast won!

Lo, Jesus meets us, risen from the tomb;
lovingly he greets us, scatters fear and gloom;
let the Church with gladness hymns of triumph sing,
for her Lord now liveth, death hath lost its sting:

Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son;
endless is the victory thou o’er death hast won!

No more we doubt thee, glorious Prince of life;
life is naught without thee: aid us in our strife;
make us more than conquerors, through thy deathless love;
bring us safe through Jordan to thy home above. 
 
Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son;
endless is the victory thou o’er death hast won!

Blessing

Bless to us, O God, the earth beneath our feet.
Bless to us, O God, the path whereon we go:
we on your path, you in our steps. 

God, be with us in every valley;
Jesus be with us on every hill;
Holy Spirit, be with us on every stream, every cliff edge,
every green pasture, every moor and meadow,
in the crest of the waves on the sea.
Every time we rest and every time we wake up;
God be with us every step we take. Amen