St Luke 14: 1 – 6

On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely. Just then, in front of him, there was a man who had dropsy. And Jesus asked the lawyers and Pharisees, ‘Is it lawful to cure people on the sabbath, or not?’  But they were silent. So Jesus took him and healed him, and sent him away. Then he said to them, ‘If one of you has a child or an ox that has fallen into a well, will you not immediately pull it out on a sabbath day?’  And they could not reply to this.

Reflection

Sometimes, when you read a familiar Bible passage afresh, something different strikes you about it. For me that “something different” was the first part of the first sentence: “Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal”. A Pharisee offering hospitality to Jesus, and Jesus accepting! We often get the impression that Jesus had no time for the Pharisees, but obviously he interacted with them and dined with them too. No matter how much I tried to move past this and write a reflection based on the rules of the Sabbath, I found myself drawn back to this sentence. 

It reminded me of a conversation I was having recently about social media. I have various friends on my social media, not all of them of the same religious or political persuasion as I am. From Brexit and the American elections through gun reform to transgender people’s involvement in gendered sporting events, some friends have some quite strong and differing views and don’t hold back when sharing them on social media…. so much so that I have often found myself hovering with my finger over the “block” or “unfriend” button. But many on my social media have similar views to me. I can easily convince myself that I am right because “everybody thinks the same – it’s a majority view”. It’s why Brexit came as such a surprise. The echo-chamber effect is unhealthy – it’s decidedly healthier to form one’s opinions through hearing all points of view openly and prayerfully, respecting people’s right to think differently. And if I block, unfriend or avoid people who think differently to me, how can I share with them what I believe or model to them a different way? Through the hospitality of the Pharisees’ leader, Jesus prompted them to question what they vehemently believed. Maybe I should do likewise.   

Prayer

All-knowing and all-loving God, 
there is room in your kingdom for all. 
Nobody has it all right, or all wrong for that matter. 
Help us to listen, to truly listen, even when we don’t agree. 
Help us constantly to evaluate the opinions we hold. 
Lead us away from the echo-chambers and open us to challenge. 
And give us the confidence to share our beliefs with others, whenever the opportunity arises.
Amen. 

St Luke 13: 31 – 35
 
At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, ‘Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.’ He said to them, ‘Go and tell that fox for me, “Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed away from Jerusalem.”  Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets, and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!  See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.”’
 
Reflection
 
The Pharisees warned Jesus.  We usually read of them opposing Him.  Was this like the situation is in so many parts of the world today where various political factions support each other to oppose the greater threat?  Herod was one of the hated, cruel Roman leaders and Jesus was a Jew, so it is not surprising that they would want to protect one of their own people from a foreign tyrant. 
 
Jesus reacted by calling Herod a fox.  Today we might think of a fox as being cunning and clever but in the days of Jesus a fox was also considered to be inept and insignificant.  Jesus was not afraid to speak against the unjust ruler.  Jesus was clear that He was going to continue His ministry of healing and casting out of demons.  Jesus knew that He would not die until He reached Jerusalem.  
 
Jerusalem was a city He knew well.  Jesus had visited the temple with His parents.  It was the centre of the Jewish faith.  As He talks, Jesus either quotes from scripture or alludes to passages of scripture, mainly the Psalms and Jeremiah.  It is good to have a knowledge of the bible as it gives us something to draw on when we need divine strength or solace.  
 
Jesus knew what would happen when He reached Jerusalem, but He was still willing to follow the will of His Father and go there, knowing that it would lead to His death and resurrection.  We can follow this example by being obedient to God even if it seems to be leading us in a way that might not be the most comfortable.
 
Prayer
 
Loving God we thank you that Jesus was willing to obey you.
We thank you that Jesus was able to use scripture to show how He was following your plans for Him.
Show us how we can immerse ourselves in scripture which we know is your true and everlasting word.
Teach us how to obey you even when we are afraid and want to choose an easier path
We bring our prayers in the name of Jesus, Amen

23 February 2025 Psalm 70
 

O God, make haste to my rescue,
Lord, come to my aid!
Let there be shame and confusion
on those who seek my life.
 
O let them turn back in confusion,
who delight in my harm,
let them retreat, covered with shame,
who jeer at my lot.
 
Let there be rejoicing and gladness
for all who seek you.
Let them say for ever: “God is great,”
who love your saving help.
 
As for me, wretched and poor,
come to me, O God.
You are my rescuer, my help,
O Lord, do not delay.
 
Reflection
 
Whatever is going on, it isn’t good. A Bible I’m looking at entitles this as a ‘Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies.’ Plenty of enemies could have been looming. If these words sit within the context of nation and palace it could be the threatening approach of invading armies, the fears for a capital under siege. Maybe it was a more personal threat: rivals plotting, whispers undermining, jealousies and revenge circling. Perhaps some mistake or failure has been met with derision and cruel judgement.
 
The power of the Psalms is that they are simultaneously windows on a world long gone and into our own souls. Invading armies, plotting rivals and a thirst for revenge are all too familiar for many today as you read this. Add in some of the other damage that sticks around us and these words linger, don’t they? The diagnosis that turns a normal day into a catastrophe. The argument that leaves a bitter taste. The loss that overwhelms us. Anger and hurt we cannot duck or distance ourselves from. Failures and mistakes that keep on hurting. Enemies all, maybe.
 
The psalmist responds in this prayer in ways worth noticing. The overarching mood begins as desperation. This prayer is pleading for God to act, to do something, to help somehow. We’ll have prayed such a prayer I think. We’ll have prayed it with and for others too. We need to keep doing so, letting our agonies find voice in our praying. Then comes a shift. Now the focus is upon the threat, and the plea is that the threat be undone through retreat and confusion. We can pray this too. Asking that transformation comes and that what strikes fear might be overwhelmed. Now we shift again, and find ourselves praying in thankfulness that God is rescuer even if we don’t feel much stronger. Sometimes, just holding on is enough.
 
In the life we live and share with others, these moods, and shifts and the prayers they provoke, matter.
 
Prayer
 
Living God, 
hear us as we pray
from the heart of our lives.
Hear the truth in us;
the fears and confusion,
the faith and confidence.
Hear, and have mercy.
Hold us when all is shaking.
Strengthen us in weakness.
Guide us when everything is unclear.
Restore us when hope shatters.
Work your ways with us, around us and within us.
Be God for us today,
as for ever.
Amen.
 

Jesus went through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.  Someone asked him, ‘Lord, will only a few be saved?’ He said to them,  ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.  When once the owner of the house has got up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, “Lord, open to us”, then in reply he will say to you, “I do not know where you come from.”  Then you will begin to say, “We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.”  But he will say, “I do not know where you come from; go away from me, all you evildoers!” There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrown out.  Then people will come from east and west, from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God.  Indeed, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.’
 
Reflection

In this bit of Luke, Jesus is well into his short public life of loving, shocking and making some people very angry. These verses come after a stream of Jesus telling people to repent or perish, to destroy the unfruitful, that the sabbath can be ignored for love’s sake, and that the Kingdom of God is tiny or invisible, not obvious and powerful. After these verses, the pharisees warn Jesus that Herod wants him dead.

Inside these verses, Jesus is not making new friends. He’s saying that those who think they can be with God in eternity most likely won’t be and that the least expected entrants will be relishing the hospitality.  Jesus isn’t gentle. His messages are difficult, hard work.  He’s not comfortable at all. Yes, you say, I know that.  We all know that.

Let’s look then, taking our eyes out of the text. Let’s step back, go up a hill and look down on the institutions made in the name of Jesus. Not much looks anything like Jesus or love. No matter what the names on the buildings are, no matter the sentiments on the signs we hang, we don’t often see love taking over sabbath rules, or the Kingdom invisible.  We see rules taking over the people, dark secrets, and many God-facing buildings looking like kingdom castles.  Yes, you say, I know that.  And?

Well, somehow, we colluded to allow the institution to emasculate the real Jesus and reduced the Holy Spirit to our comforter.  Texts are mere words. Somehow, we’ve turned inside and Jesus has been safe in the tabernacle on the wall. I include myself in this awful challenge – to wake and move out of our familiar places.  Our planet and all people are crying out for radical real love.

Prayer

Yes, Lord, it’s me and it’s them.
We’ve got it wrong.
We are amazed that your love is not worn out.
I am so sorry about the times I held back and took the easy option.
You know how difficult times are and some people can be.
Bless you that you have pulled each of us to new life each time.
Give us more courage than ever to be difficult Jesus people.
In your eternal wisdom, Amen.
 

21 February 2025
 

St Luke 13: 6 – 9

Then Jesus told this parable: ‘A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, “See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?” He replied, “Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig round it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.”’

Reflection

Back in Genesis 1, the Creator puts in place all that is necessary for continuing life on Planet Earth. Each plant and every creature, including humans, is called forth to produce more of their kind in their time. And God declared it good.

The plants were to produce seeds. Fruit trees were to produce fruit containing seeds. So the reproduction and continuation of the species God has created could continue. That is His will, His plan.

I wonder what the Creator thinks of the scientists paid by commercial enterprises to produce the F1 hybrids and the like which deliberately do not produce seed, so poor farmers cannot save seed from one year’s crop but must find cash to buy in seed for the next year’s harvest.

And what of this story of a fig tree not following the Creator’s instructions? 

It is so easy to be angry with the people we think are wrecking Creation, stirring up wars and conflicts, doing bad things to the helpless. We can even be tempted to pray for God’s wrath on them.

But look what happens to this errant fig tree. In God’s economy, it gets another chance – and not only another full year in which to fulfil its potential, it also gets fed. Nourished. Maybe better nourished than it had been before. So this time, it has a real chance of doing better.

Dare we love the people who are trashing the planet? Dare we ask for God’s goodness and love for the people murdering women and children in Ukraine, Gaza, and all the other places in our world? Dare we trust that love wins? That the fig tree will produce fruit?

Prayer

You are a wise and loving gardener, Lord, and we have made an unhealthy mess of your garden with our greed and our wars.  Forgive us, and give us wisdom and generosity of heart so that all may have the environment they need in which to thrive. And may we be grateful for all the second chances and more that you give us. Amen.

Worship Notes

Dear Friends,

Most of the Worship Notes for March have been up for a few weeks but I’m pleased to say we now have the full set including notes for Ash Wednesday.  You can find the material here or by going to urc.org.uk clicking on Your Faith, then Prayer and Worship.  Notes for April should be up by the end of the month.

With every good wish

Andy

The Rev’d Andy Braunston
Minister for Digital Worship
 

St Luke 13: 1 – 5
At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  He asked them, ‘Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did.  Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.’

Reflection
Even for people of faith, the times of Jesus and his teaching can seem remote and buried in the realms of antiquity. We can feel a real sense of the remoteness of a bygone age and disconnected from the cultural context in which Jesus lived and breathed.

But there are occasions, like the one captured in today’s verses, when we gain a potent entry into the contemporary world of the gospel. We are suddenly viscerally present, and given an insight into everyday life and events. Here we read of two incidents that might have merited some column inches in today’s newspapers because of their topicality.

First, some people in the crowd mention to Jesus the breaking news about some Galileans who had presumably made a riotous assembly or staged a demonstration against the Romans, and were summarily massacred at the orders of Pilate. Jesus also refers to another event making the news, a local disaster when a tower fell and killed eighteen people. As with today, when such events occur the public reflect upon their meaning and significance – why these things happen and the innocence or otherwise of the victims.

Using these incidents, Jesus’ message is uncompromising. He says that his listeners are preoccupied with debate about whether these people deserved their fates, but give scant thought to their own sinful actions and their consequences. The victims of tragedy, whether of the vindictive severity of Pilate or to an unforeseeable accident, are no more sinners and deserving of their fate than his listeners. However, Jesus alerts them that such occurrences are a salutary reminder that unless they repent the whole nation is heading for a more comprehensive disaster.

In our current world, we are living in febrile times when cataclysms of natural disasters, war, pandemics, and political upheaval beset us. During such disturbances we also tend to wonder what on earth is going on and to take stock of our lives. Rather than be sucked into questions of blame and consequence, we do better to remember that this is God’s world and to find comfort and solace in relationship with him.

Prayer
Lord,
we live in difficult and troubling times;
where previous certainties are disappearing;
life seems increasingly precarious;
disturbing events make us feel vulnerable;
…and we worry:
for ourselves;
our loved ones,
our fellow citizens
and the peoples of the world.
As we struggle to make sense of all this
be with us and enfold us in your loving arms.
Amen.

St Luke 12: 57 – 59

‘And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? Thus, when you go with your accuser before a magistrate, on the way make an effort to settle the case, or you may be dragged before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer throw you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.’

Reflection

About 40 verses earlier and a week of Daily Devotions ago Jesus was asked to settle a legal case between two brothers. “Who sent me to be judge over you?” asked Jesus, who talked instead about the futility of greed. Several stories have followed about using our knowledge and weighing up ideas for ourselves, and now the legal theme returns. “Why do you not judge for yourself what is right?”

Is Jesus still speaking to the same brothers? He is speaking to the same crowd who have been considering the indolence of flowers, the servant wisdom of being ready for the return of a master, and the folk wisdom by which we could forecast the weather.  Can they not, also, use their own judgement in knowing right and wrong? We are the descendants of the first Adam, and Eve, who ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  Can we dare to admit their legacy and apply some wisdom?

And there is the problem. As those who are able to tell right from wrong, we have to admit we are in trouble. “If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves” (1 John 1:8) and tempting though that self-deception is, it does not satisfy even self-examination. And if we know we are in the wrong, then we should imagine ourselves as the debtor who would be wise to settle out of court rather than face the enforcement of a debt, and legal costs on top.  

Fortunately, we do not have to reckon with an accuser/ Satan figure/ or holy prosecutor to acknowledge our debt burden before God. We reckon with Jesus, who was indeed sent to be judge over us, but will also be the one to plead our case. We may dare to admit our truest assessment of ourselves to Jesus, and receive his forgiveness, if only we will let him.

Prayer

God of all goodness,
be with us as we reckon with right and wrong.
Help us to honestly account for ourselves before you and with others, 
and to make amends with those whom we have wronged.
Amen

Save me, O God,
for the waters have risen to my neck.

I have sunk into the mud of the deep
and there is no foothold.
I have entered the waters of the deep
and the waves overwhelm me.

I am wearied with all my crying,
my throat is parched.
My eyes are wasted away
from looking for my God.

More numerous than the hairs on my head
are those who hate me without cause.
Those who attack me with lies
are too much for my strength.

How can I restore
what I have never stolen?
O God, you know my sinful folly;
my sins you can see.

Let not those who hope in you be put to shame
through me, Lord of hosts:
let not those who seek you be dismayed
through me, God of Israel.

It is for you that I suffer taunts,
that shame covers my face,
that I have become a stranger to my family,
an alien to my brothers and sisters.
I burn with zeal for your house
and taunts against you fall on me.

When I afflict my soul with fasting
they make it a taunt against me.
When I put on sackcloth and mourning
then they make me a byword,
the gossip of folk at the gates,
the subject of drunkard’s songs.

This is my prayer to you,
my pray for your favour.
In your great love, answer me, O God,
with your help that never fails;
rescue me from sinking in the mud,
save me from my foes.

Save me from the waters of the deep
lest the waves overwhelm me.
Do not let the deep engulf me
nor death close its mouth on me.

Lord, answer, for your love is kind;
in your compassion, turn towards me.
Do not hide your face from your servant;
answer me quickly for I am in distress.
Come close to my soul and redeem me;
ransom me pressed by my foes.

You know how they taunt and deride me;
my oppressors are all before you.
Taunts have broken my heart;
I have reached the end of my strength.
I looked in vain for compassion, for consoles;
not one could I find.

For food they gave me poison;
in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
Let their table be a snare to them
and their festive banquets a trap.
Let their eyes grow dim and blind;
let their limbs tremble and shake.

Pour out your anger upon them,
let the heat of your fury overtake them.
Let their camp be left desolate;
let no one dwell in their tents:
for they persecute one whom you struck;
they increase the pain of one you wounded.

Charge them with guilt upon guilt;
let them never be found just in your sight.
Blot them out from the book of the living;
do not enrol them among the just.
As for me in my poverty and pain,
let your help, O God, lift me up.

I will praise God’s name with a song;
I will glorify him with thanksgiving.
A gift pleasing God more than oxen,
more than beasts prepared for sacrifice.

The poor when they see it will be glad
and God-seeking hearts will revive;
for the Lord listens to the needy
and does not spurn his servants in their chains.
Let the heavens and the earth give him praise,
the sea and all its living creatures.

For God will bring help to Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah
and men shall dwell there in possession.
The children of his servants shall inherit it;
those who love his name shall dwell there.

Reflection  Psalm 69 – The Psalm of Struggle.
 
This Psalm weaves a wonderful tapestry of emotion. It challenges us to bring our imperfect selves into our relationship with God.
 
The first sentence describes David’s raw emotion, which reflects his desperation. The image of him drowning in that situation evokes a sense of urgency and attests to the depth of his overwhelm.  As the Psalm unfolds, he describes vividly the hopelessness and isolation he felt as under weight of undeserved injustice.  Yet, among it all, David saw a spark of hope in the divine assistance he was seeking. Amid his overwhelm, he knew he could call out to God, share his suffering, and pray for an end to injustice.
 
It feels flippant to suggest that this is the key to ending all of our pain as easily as that. This Psalm is not that. Instead, it challenges us to call out to God and dares us to hope in these experiences. Do we speak to God about situations or people that are causing us pain, or do we follow the very human path of trying to handle it ourselves until we realise we can’t manage this alone? It feels like that is what David has done here, given the desperation shown in his opening line, which might suggest that he was at his wits end. 
 
The trouble is that feelings are scary; they can make us feel vulnerable and alone. Vulnerability is a difficult word even to read, let alone be! Yet, these times often are our greatest spaces of learning and growth.  When we run out of our own fight, we meet God and God meets us.
 
David showed his vulnerability before God; he laid his feelings bare and asked God to help. Jesus showed his vulnerability in the Garden of Gethsemane. Arguably, two of the biggest characters in the Bible show us that there is strength in vulnerability.  If only, we could just let go and ask for help.  David did … but can we?

Prayer

Dear God,
 
Please help us to be able to meet you in prayer 
in the times when we feel vulnerable, 
as David did in this Psalm.  
Be our light when our words fail us.
Be our compass when we don’t know which way to go.
Be our comfort when all feels lost.
Amen