St Luke 1: 1 – 4

Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us,  just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word,  I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,  so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.

Reflection

Mark launches his Gospel with “the beginning of the good news” Matthew takes us through a rather long, and confusing, genealogy whilst John gives us a dose of profound theology.  Luke gives us a little bit of methodology.  He tells us that “so many” have set down an “orderly account” of the events of Jesus’ life.  Only four of these accounts made it into the Bible; others that are around are rather odd.  We know that Luke had material that wasn’t in Matthew or Mark (the angel Gabriel appearing to Zecharius and Mary, the birth of John the Baptist, Mary’s visit to her cousin, the words of the prayer the Hail Mary, the shepherds in the fields) and some material that he shared with Matthew (much of Jesus’ ethical teaching) and used all of what we now call Mark’s Gospel.  We know that Matthew had some material that either Luke didn’t have or didn’t use (those blessed genealogies, Gabriel reassuring Joseph, the Magi and the Slaughter of the Innocents).  And we know that John’s Gospel has lots of material not in the other three.  

We shouldn’t be surprised, the editor of Luke tells us he is also setting out an orderly account.  He doesn’t say he’s using these other sources but we can read.  He also tells us why he’s doing this ‘so that you may know the truth..’  It’s one thing to see these ancient texts as things to be analysed and compared; it’s another to understand them as source material for what we know about Jesus, his life, and his teaching.  Academic biblical study will focus on the texts, their sources, type, influence, historicity, and the editing processes used on them.  Faith seeks to understand the texts as sources for a fruitful path of discipleship.  At its best, the Church tries to hold together the various academic understandings along with faith in Jesus, the living Word of God.  

Prayer

Dear God,
good students know their sources,
get their referencing right,
and learn to analyse to better understand.
Help us to understand You better
through the source material You’ve given us,
ancient words in the Bible, and your Living Word, Jesus Christ,
Amen.

St Luke’s Gospel

Dear Friends,

It has been deeply moving to read so many of your comments and experiences over the last 10 days in response to the series on Safeguarding and the worship materials for last Sunday.  As ever these series are planned, and written, months in advance; it was timely (but accidental), then, that they appeared just as the Makin Report was released.  This report looked into John Smyth’s sadistic abuse of boys and young men, the Church of England’s failures in dealing with him properly over so many years and failings of senior church leaders.  As you know this culminated in Justin Welby announcing his resignation as Archbishop of Canterbury.  Over the last 10 days we’ve thought about safeguarding, what leadership might look like, what justice might mean and how we might help our churches be safer.  I hope these reflections have given food for thought; I know from the many people who’ve written to tell me of their own experiences how helpful some have found them. 

We turn, tomorrow, to St Luke’s Gospel which will be, on and off,  the Gospel we read on Sundays from the first Sunday of Advent until this time next year.    The Gospel of Luke tells of the origins, birth, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus.  Together with the Acts of the Apostles, it makes up a two-volume work which scholars call Luke–Acts, accounting for 27.5% of the New Testament. The combined work divides the history of first-century Christianity into three stages, with the gospel making up the first two of these – the life of Jesus the Messiah from his birth to the beginning of his mission in the meeting with John the Baptist, followed by his ministry with events such as the Sermon on the Plain and its Beatitudes, and his Passion, death, and resurrection.  Most modern scholars agree that the main sources used for Luke were a), the Gospel of Mark (which is copied almost in its entirety), b), a hypothetical sayings collection called the Q source and found also in Matthew but not John and Mark, and c), material found in no other gospels, often referred to as the L (for Luke) source (much of the Christmas story). The author is anonymous and there’s no name in the text despite the work with a named recipient. The most probable date for its composition is around AD 80–110, and there is evidence that it was still being revised well into the 2nd century.

We start this work tomorrow but will jump over the Christmas story, looping back to it in late November, and continue our reading through of this Gospel until Easter next year.

With every good wish

Andy

The Rev’d Andy Braunston
Minister for Digital Worship
 

1 Timothy 3: 1 – 13

The saying is sure: whoever aspires to the office of bishop desires a noble task. Now a bishop must be above reproach, married only once, temperate, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an apt teacher,  not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and not a lover of money.  He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way —  for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he take care of God’s church?  He must not be a recent convert, or he may be puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil.  Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace and the snare of the devil.

Deacons likewise must be serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in much wine, not greedy for money; they must hold fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let them first be tested; then, if they prove themselves blameless, let them serve as deacons.  Women likewise must be serious, not slanderers, but temperate, faithful in all things. Let deacons be married only once, and let them manage their children and their households well;  for those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

Reflection

There’s much to ponder in these early instructions for Christian leaders; the Greek might mean “overseer” and the term “bishop” might not have meant then what we might mean it now.  We live in a world where there are women ministers and bishops.  In the paragraph about deacons it’s possible that “women” might have meant “women deacons”.  However, the focus for today is thinking about leadership criteria in regards to safeguarding.  Contemporary criteria for church leadership might include:

Whoever aspires to leadership in the Church desires a noble task.  Leaders must have no unspent criminal convictions, live a stable life with honest personal relationships, be temperate, sensible, hospitable, be good teachers, not suffer uncontrolled addictions, not be violent or have unresolved issues with anger.  They must be gentle, not argumentative, not be lovers of money and must manage themselves well, being self aware and committed to ongoing supervision to help this awareness grow.  If married they should treat spouses well with love and fidelity.  Any children must be loved and well treated; for if someone does not know how to be in loving relationships how on earth will they succeed in pastoral care?  Leaders must not be recent converts, or they may be puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil – and the press.  They should be humble and approachable.  They should be willing to be trained for their roles and to undertake refresher training realising they always have much to learn.  Church leaders know how to control their tongues and to hold on fast to the essentials of faith.  They know they are to be accountable to others.  

For a long time the Church has had impossible standards for leaders; now we tend to think of leadership as something akin to a covenant – with responsibilities and rights on both sides.  This is healthier and gives, I think, a more realistic view of leadership and helps us when things go wrong, as they invariably will.

Prayer

Safeguarding God,
help us to nurture those You raise up as leaders,
and to live with mutual accountability,
that Your people might be loved, 
the wounded tended, the vulnerable cared for,
and Your Church be ever safer.  Amen.

 
Today’s service is led by the Revd Andy Braunston

 
Introduction

Hello and welcome to worship for Safeguarding Sunday.  As we hear Tracy Chapman’s haunting song about domestic violence fade away we think about this year’s theme for Safeguarding Sunday “let’s talk about it”.  For some this will mean talking about what’s happened to them, for others it’s about talking about how to make the Church a safe refuge to find God, our shelter in the storm, and to find strength there to bring about change.  Our readings today all speak of finding safety, security and shelter in God amidst tumultuous times.  They are a good starting place to think about the role of safeguarding in the church as we seek to make our congregations places of safety, security and shelter.  My name is Andy Braunston and I am the United Reformed Church’s Minister for Digital Worship.  I live in Orkney off Scotland’s far north coast and am a member of the Peedie Kirk URC there.  Let’s worship God together.

Call to Worship

Arise in times of anguish and come to God, who delivers us.
Listen to God’s voice so that we awaken 
to everlasting life not everlasting contempt.
See through the light in the gloom to perceive God’s glory 
shine as the brightness of the day, like the stars forever and ever.  

Hymn     We Cannot Measure How You Heal
John Bell © 1989, WGRG the Iona Community (Scotland), admin. GIA Publications, Inc Sung by Ruth and Joy Everingham and used with their kind permission.  OneLicence # A-734713

We cannot measure how You heal 
or answer every sufferer’s prayer,
yet we believe your grace responds
where faith and doubt unite to care.
Your hands, though bloodied on the cross,
survive to hold and heal and warn,
to carry all through death to life
and cradle children yet unborn.

The pain that will not go away,
the guilt that clings from things long past,
the fear of what the future holds,
are present as if meant to last.
But present too is love which tends
the hurt we never hoped to find,
the private agonies inside,
the memories that haunt the mind.
 
So some have come who need Your help
and some have come to make amends,
as hands which shaped and saved the world
are present in the touch of friends.
Lord, let Your Spirit meet us here
to mend the body, mind and soul,
to disentangle peace from pain
and make Your broken people whole.

Prayers of Approach, Confession, and Grace

We come to meet You, delivering God, in an age of uncertainty;
we greet You with our pain and our praise, 
seeking healing in our weary woundedness. 
We cannot measure how You heal or answer our prayers,
yet faith and doubt combine to give us glimpses of Your coming Kingdom
where public and private agony will find peace.

We gather at Your table, Liberating Jesus, to be fed by Your own self,
to see Your hands hold, heal, and warn when we go astray
and embrace us in welcome when we turn back to You.  
In times of difficulty, we are tempted to trust 
in our wealth, politicians, and armies instead of in You.
Forgive us when we turn away from You,
when we cling to the safety of our pain, fear and memories 
which haunt us,
and when we trust in anything other than You.
Give us the courage to heal, to turn back to, and trust in, You.

We discern your presence, Most Holy Spirit, 
as perfume in the air, as light in the gloom, as joy in despair;
meet us here, O God, to mend and tend us,
to disentangle peace from our pain,
and to make Your broken people whole.  Amen.

Prayer for Illumination

Bless us, O God, with Your counsel, 
as the Word is read and proclaimed.
Instruct our lives and gladden our hearts 
that as we hear and think,
You may stir us to action and show us the path of life
where, in Your presence, there is fullness of joy.  Amen

Reading     Daniel 12:1-3  

“At that time Michael, the great prince, the protector of your people, shall arise. There shall be a time of anguish such as has never occurred since nations first came into existence. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.

Psalm 16 

Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.”
As for the holy ones in the land, 
they are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.
Those who choose another god multiply their sorrows; 
their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out 
or take their names upon my lips.

The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; 
I have a goodly heritage.

I bless the LORD, who gives me counsel; 
in the night also my heart instructs me.

I keep the LORD always before me; 
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; 
my body also rests secure.

For you do not give me up to Sheol or let your faithful one see the Pit.

You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Hymn     Heaven Shall Not Wait
John L. Bell (b.1949) and Graham Maule (b.1958) © WGRG, Iona Community, Glasgow G2 3DH  Scotland.  OneLicence # A-734713 Frodsham Methodist Church Cloud Choir accompanied by Andrew Ellams. Produced by Rev’d Andrew Emison and used with their kind permission.

Heaven shall not wait for the poor to lose their patience,
the scorned to smile, the despised to find a friend:
Jesus is Lord;he has championed the unwanted;
in him injustice confronts its timely end.

Heaven shall not wait for the rich to share their fortunes,
the proud to fall, the elite to tend the least:
Jesus is Lord;he has shown the master’s privilege 
to kneel and wash servants’ feet before they feast.

Heaven shall not wait for the dawn of great ideas,
thoughts of compassion divorced from cries of pain:
Jesus is Lord; he has married word and action;
his cross and company make his purpose plain.

Heaven shall not wait for triumphant Hallelujahs,
when earth has passed and we reach another shore:
Jesus is Lord in our present imperfection;
his power and love are for now; and then for evermore.
 
Reading     St Mark 13:1-8

As Jesus came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.” When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?” Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray.  When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

Sermon

Living so far north we are lucky to have regular opportunities to see the Northern Lights or, as they are called in Orkney, the Merry Dancers.  I have an app on my phone which alerts me but takes no account of cloud cover nor the fact one can’t see the Dancers in daylight.  A much more accurate alert is provided by our neighbour who excitedly bangs on our windows to tell us!  The odd thing about the Merry Dancers is that they aren’t very exciting to look at with the naked eye – coming across as, at best, a shimmering green-grey light or, at worst, a slightly lighter bit of cloud.  However, once you realise these are the Northern Lights, they can look spectacular when photographed.  This makes me wonder which is the reality – what I can see with my eyes or what I can see in a picture.  Our eyes give a glimpse of what’s there, but a fuller truth is revealed in a picture where the lens picks up the colours and shows us a different reality.

In some ways that shouldn’t surprise us.  As Christians we pray for the Kingdom to come; we read of Jesus’ acts of power and love showing the Kingdom breaking into His world, we read his parables and his teaching which shows us how we can embody God’s Kingdom in our lives and loves but, at the same time, we know the Kingdom isn’t fully here, the world isn’t as it should be, injustice and evil haven’t been banished, people still suffer, the earth still groans from our harmful activities.  Just as our naked eyes catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights so we catch glimpses of the Kingdom breaking in – yet we don’t yet see it fully revealed.  

There are many places in our world where we long for the Kingdom to break in more fully.  We live in uncertain times; who would have predicted the breakout of riots in the summer in many cities in England and Northern Ireland?  We’ve elected a new UK government who seem to make much of the economic legacy they’ve inherited and are concentrating on telling how bad it is rather than being hopeful about change; sunny uplands seem to be as far away as the coming Kingdom.  As I write, the outcome of the American election hangs in the balance but will be known when this sermon is published.  Has the American public voted for the strong white man with easy answers or the nuanced mixed-race woman who ran for office with a sense of joy?  Life is hard for those struggling to get by – the reduction of support for pensioners this winter will hit some very hard indeed; countless people struggle to afford to rent somewhere decent to live and for many the dream of owning their own home is a laughable fiction.  Many of those who have had to live with various forms of abuse have not been believed when they told their stories; horrifically some experienced abuse within the Church.  Our faith tells us the Kingdom is coming and will shine like the glorious colours of the Merry Dancers, yet our eyes only show a glimmer in the dark.  This sense of trusting there’s more going on underpins our three readings today.

Daniel is a difficult book – it doesn’t appear much in the Lectionary.  It was written to encourage faithful discipleship in the face of a powerful oppressive empire which neither understood nor cared about Jewish life and practice.  Against this imperial oppression the author of Daniel asserts God’s sovereignty.  Today’s passage concerns a power vacuum after the death of a king – all changes of government can be disruptive; in the ancient world a peaceful transition of power that we (hopefully) see in democracies today was not guaranteed.  Rival claimants to a throne might battle it out and the ability to quietly get on with life became more and more difficult.  

Daniel offers comfort that this change too will pass.  Daniel introduces Michael into the equation as a great ruler who will protect God’s people; the name “Michael” means “who is like God?” and later tradition saw Michael as an archangel.  The passage is a rare glimpse of Jewish belief in an afterlife; the idea is to provide hope, relief to those suffering and to show that God is not far away.  Daniel thinks those who remained true to God under the oppression of empire will rise to light and life whilst those who weren’t faithful will rise to shame and contempt.   Those who have faith can see beyond the dull light and see the colours and glory of God’s coming Kingdom.

Like the passage from Daniel, Psalm 16 is about offering hope in uncertain times.  The poet opens by asking for God’s protection and refuge. In our contemporary society we are constantly told to be afraid – the Climate Emergency demands our attention but little action, it seems, from our politicians.  The media tells us of the dangers of smoking or eating too much sugar, of crime and fear of the outsider.  These stories attract attention, they sell.  They are amplified in our social media echo chambers.  The Psalmist seeks to reassure and offers an antidote to fear; trust in the Lord and ignore those who say otherwise.  The Psalm opens and closes with assertions of trust in God; in uncertain and dangerous times this is what matters; uncertainty can produce anxiety, living with danger can be horrific.  The Psalmist offers faith in God as a source of stability, security and strength.  God is not just a shelter from the storms and pains of life but a means by which injustice, pain, abuse, oppression and fear can be resisted and subverted.  Those who have faith can see beyond the dull light and see the colours, glory and change embodied in God’s coming Kingdom.

Daniel faced moving political tectonic plates in the ancient near east. Jesus also looked to world changing events.  The destruction of the Temple came in the year 70; all that remains now are parts of the Western Wall and an area where the Temple was to be expanded – now with a mosque on the site.  The area is often in the news and is called the Haram al-Sharif or the Temple Mount.  In Jesus’ time the Temple was the centre of Jewish life and worship; to imagine the destruction of this Temple would have been horrific.  In such horrible times anyone who offers certainty might be believed and followed.  We’ve seen in our political life the rise of the strong leader who offers certainty, easy answers to difficult questions, and who blame the weak and vulnerable for problems caused by systems controlled by the rich.  Jesus’ warning not to follow those who promise such answers in times of cataclysmic change is useful for us now to remember in times of political and environmental change.  Instead of the strong leader, the problem-solving blamers, we need to cling to Jesus who offers us true security in an age of change where we don’t often see justice, where the powerful manage to stay in power even when governments change, and when social media conspires with those who pedal hate to drive up fearful ratings.  Jesus’ good news can seem like fiction in an age of horror; we long for the glory of the Northern Lights but see only a dim glow in the sky.  Yet Jesus’ presence can comfort, inspire, strengthen,  move us to action and remind us that the eyes of faith see more than our own naked eyes.

What might these passages teach us, then, today – especially as we mark Safeguarding Sunday.  Daniel, in the face of overpowering forces, reminds us that God is near, looks after His faithful people, and – whilst there may not be justice in this world – the resurrection offers a hint of justice in the next.  Those imperial systems of oppression, injustice, patriarchy, and violence will be defeated and those who operate them and hide behind them will be punished.   Whilst we work to make our churches and our institutions safer places we know that many who abuse will not face justice; people are often not believed, evidence can be hard to get, and lies are often credible.  Holding fast to the glory and colour of God’s justice beyond the dim flickers of our own systems of justice can provide hope and the power to heal.  The Psalmist reminds us that the security which comes from God’s love can give strength to speak and to act.  The Church should always be a place of strength and safety encouraging all to speak out to find both justice and dignity.  When abuse is perpetuated, tolerated, or covered up by the Church we betray our fundamental calling and further obscure the signs of the Kingdom breaking through.  Jesus calls us, again and again, to trust in Him – something made more difficult if the Church proves untrustworthy.  In all these situations of pain, confusion and injustice these readings offer hope.  Daniel’s assertion that God safeguards His people with justice – even justice that happens beyond the grave as it is denied in life – offers hope.  The Psalmist’s certainty that in God we find safety and security gives a space for action – to tell the truth, to demand justice, to cry for change.  Jesus’ words in the Gospel reading remind us to look for him as the calm centre in the storms and struggles of life; not simply as a refuge but as a place to regroup, heal and work for change.  

So, as I walk my dogs last thing at night and gaze at the sky I sometimes get glimpses of colour, glory, and power that I can’t quite see.  As we live our lives of quiet discipleship we get glimpses of the Kingdom breaking in, releasing the captive, healing the wounded, and allowing the silenced to speak.  As we pray and as we proclaim God’s Kingdom, His power, glory, and love, break in forever changing us and our world.

Let’s pray:  

Justice-bringing God 
help us to see beyond the drabness of the news 
into the glorious colours of your kingdom; 
that as we yearn and work for its coming, 
you will help us make all things right.  Amen.

Hymn     The Kingdom of God is Justice and Joy
Bryn Rees (1973)  © 1973, Alexander Scott OneLicence # A-734713. Sung by the Revd Paul Robinson and used with his kind permission.

The kingdom of God is justice and joy;
for Jesus restores what sin would destroy.
God’s power and glory in Jesus we know;
and here and hereafter the kingdom shall grow.

The kingdom of God is mercy and grace;
the prisoners are freed, the sinners find place,
the outcast are welcomed God’s banquet to share;
and hope is awakened in place of despair.

The kingdom of God is challenge and choice:
believe the good news, repent and rejoice!
His love for us sinners brought Christ to His cross:
our crisis of judgement for gain or for loss.

God’s kingdom is come, the gift and the goal;
in Jesus begun, in heaven made whole.
The heirs of the kingdom shall answer his call;
and all things cry “Glory!” to God all in all.
 
An Act of Commitment

As God’s people we are called to glimpse the glory of the coming Kingdom,  where all are safe and valued, where justice shines like the stars at night, and where all hurts are healed.   As God’s people we are called to make our churches reflect the values of the coming Kingdom and so I ask:

Will you show God’s love by treating everyone with respect and dignity, 
love and grace, seeking to harm no one?
With the help of God, we will.

Will you help make and keep this congregation safe and support all those who have safeguarding responsibilities? 
With the help of God, we will.

Will you make space for those who’ve been hurt and harmed?
With the help of God, we will.

Will you work for the Kingdom so that all might be safe, 
those who face justice will find the grace of repentance, self-knowledge, and change, and so that healing becomes a hallmark of the Church?
With the help of God, we will.

Will you learn to see beyond the gloom and use the eyes of faith to see
the light, colour, excitement, and energy of God’s coming Kingdom?
With the help of God, we will.

May the God who began this good work within you, 
continue it until it is finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.  Amen.

Intercessions

Loving God, 
we lay before you the challenges that confront us 
at home, at work, in our communities and churches. 
May your Son, the Good Shepherd, 
guide and shape the life of your Church 
that all may find a welcome, secure in your presence. 

Jesus, Lord of the Church, in your mercy, hear us. 

Renew your Church in the love of truth and in passion for justice. 
Take from us all hypocrisy and deceit, and teach us to serve with humility and honesty those whose lives are broken. 

Jesus, Lord of the Church, in your mercy, hear us. 

Help us to cherish children and all in our community who are vulnerable, 
to protect them, and keep them safe. 
May this place rejoice to be a place  
where your love is celebrated with integrity. 

Jesus, Lord of the Church, in your mercy, hear us. 

Bring into your healing presence 
all who have been damaged and diminished by abuse, 
or whose lives continue to be overshadowed by guilt or fear, 
may sorrows be shared and memories be healed. 

Jesus, Lord of the Church, in your mercy, hear us. 

May those who have been damaged by abuse 
not simply survive, but flourish. 
May young and old discover your life-giving love, 
and delight in your gift of life, 
so that fun, laughter and joy overflow to your glory. 

Jesus, Lord of the Church, in your mercy, hear us. 

Merciful Creator, 
accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, 
our Saviour Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying: Our Father…

Offertory

Giving is at the heart of our faith: God so loved the world that Jesus was given for its sake.  Jesus poured out himself in love to his friends and, on the Cross, for us.  The Holy Spirit gives us any number of graces to help us be faithful disciples.  We respond to God’s self-giving love through our own attempts to follow, through loving service of others and through the giving of our financial offerings.  We now pray for the gifts of grace and wisdom.

Giving God,
You shower your blessings upon us,
giving us gifts to herald Your coming Kingdom;
give us the grace and wisdom we need to see Your light in the gloom,
to see through faith You at work in our midst.
Bring light and life to all.
Bless this money which we offer to you,
and help us to use it wisely that it too may be a sign of Your love.  Amen.

Hymn     God’s Spirit is in My Heart
Alan Dale, Hubert Richards © 1982, Kevin Mayhew sung by Matt Beckingham and used with his kind permission. OneLicence # A-734713

God’s Spirit is in my heart 
He has called me and set me apart.
This is what I have to do, 
what I have to do

He sent me to give the Good News to the poor,
tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more;
tell blind people that they can see,
and set the downtrodden free.
And go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come,
and go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come.

Just as the Father sent me 
so I’m sending you out to be,
my witnesses throughout the world, 
the whole of the world.

He sent me to give the Good News to the poor,
tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more;
tell blind people that they can see,
and set the downtrodden free.
And go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come,
and go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come.

Don’t carry a load in your pack, 
you don’t need two shirts on your back;
God’s workers can earn their own keep, 
can earn their own keep.

He sent me to give the Good News to the poor,
tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more;
tell blind people that they can see,
and set the downtrodden free.
And go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come,
and go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come.

Don’t worry what you have to say, 
don’t worry because on that day
God’s Spirit will speak in your heart, 
will speak in your heart.

He sent me to give the Good News to the poor,
tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more;
tell blind people that they can see,
and set the downtrodden free.
And go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come,
and go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come.

Blessing

May the One whose realm shines like the stars at night,
the One who brings good news to the poor and downtrodden,
the One who brings love, live and laughter,
enable you to shine with the joy of the Kingdom,
encourage you to proclaim good news,
and energise you with divine healing,
and the blessing of Almighty God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be with you all, now and always, Amen.
 

2 Samuel 11: 1-5, 26: 12:7

In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab with his officers and all Israel with him; they ravaged the Ammonites, and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. It happened, late one afternoon, when David rose from his couch and was walking about on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; the woman was very beautiful.  David sent someone to inquire about the woman. It was reported, ‘This is Bathsheba daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite.’  So David sent messengers to fetch her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself after her period.) Then she returned to her house.  The woman conceived; and she sent and told David, ‘I am pregnant.’…When the wife of Uriah heard that her husband was dead, she made lamentation for him. When the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son.  But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord,  and the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, ‘There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.  The rich man had very many flocks and herds;  but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meagre fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him.  Now there came a traveller to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.’  Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, ‘As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die;  he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.’ Nathan said to David, ‘You are the man!

Reflection

The David and Bathsheba story is well known; Hollywood promoted it as a love story and Bathsheba has been presented as a temptress.  It’s not often, however, that we name David for what he was – a voyeur, rapist, and murderer.  A woman in that era would have had no choice but to submit to the king.  She was powerless, married to a foreigner, and unable to resist.  Now we understand rape to be less about sexual desire and more about power and control.  If we were to read this story about anyone else we’d have no problems in seeing it as abuse, rape, and murder.  Yet it feels slightly wrong to say this about the biblical hero David.  After all he was supposed to have written many of the Psalms!  

We find it hard to believe bad things about people we see as good.  Westminster Cathedral in London has stunning carved Stations of the Cross by Eric Gill – now widely known to have abused his daughters and his pet dog.  The Stations are beautiful; the man who made them had huge ugliness.  When the abuse was revealed in the late 1980s there were calls to remove his art from public exhibition; calls which have been resisted. The Catholic Church in Scotland was rocked when Cardinal Keith O’Brien – a long term vociferous critic of homosexuality – was exposed as a long term gay sexual predator who had abused his power over seminarians and priests.  It seems the Church knew for some time about complaints but refused to believe.   British charismatic evangelist, Michael Pilavachi, a former Anglican priest, co-founder and former leader of the Soul Survivor charity had, like O’Brien advocated celibacy outside marriage.  Allegations of inappropriate touching of young men led to him being laicised by the Church of England;  allegations which were first raised nearly 20 years before action was taken.  

Silence and dismissal of the truth leads to more abuse and pain.  Breaking the silence leads to justice and healing.

Prayer

God give us the courage of the prophet Nathan,
to call out evil into the light,
to name and disempower it,
that the wounded may find healing
and that your people might be safe. Amen.

Advent Worship Resources

Dear Friends,

First, as you may realise Daily Devotions are written ahead of time – to allow editing, formatting into emails, recording to Podcasts and to allow our Communications Team to develop graphics and share them on social media.  When I wrote the current series on Safeguarding I had no idea they would land just as the Makin Report would be published leading to the resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury.  It’s been rather an uncanny week.  Thank you to all those who’ve emailed to share their stories and perspectives; it’s been humbling.  

Secondly, I’m pleased to say that the Advent resources are now live on the Worship Notes page here.  We have material for each of the four Sundays of Advent, some prayers for Advent Candle Lighting (as well as different prayers in weeks 2 and 3) and a separate suggested hymns document covering the whole season.  Those on the Early Bird list will receive the Advent service material early next week.

Finally, I will get the Christmas and Epiphany Worship Notes loaded up early next week too.

With every good wish

Andy

The Rev’d Andy Braunston
Minister for Digital Worship
 

Safeguarding 4 Forgiveness – the last step? 

St Matthew 6: 9-14 
 
Jesus said: ‘Pray then in this way: 
 
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us to the time of trial,
    but rescue us from the evil one. 
 
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 
 
Reflection 

Almost every service of Christian worship includes the Lord’s Prayer in some form or other.  It is the prayer that every Christian knows by heart and, if we are honest, is often prayed without too much thought.  The rhythm and familiarity give comfort.  Yet, for some the prayer can be terrifying. 
Forgiveness can be used as a weapon by the Church; those who have experienced abuse, oppression, and injustice can be silenced by those who tell them they have failed to forgive their abuser.  Jesus’ words implying that God’s forgiveness is linked by our forgiveness of others can be a text of terror.  Winnie Johnson, the mother of Keith Bennett murdered in the 1960s, was a faithful Christian but could not bring herself to pray the Our Father.  Forgiveness can be a weapon we use against ourselves. 
Yet, perhaps, we could reimagine forgiveness to be something rather liberating.   

• To forgive does not mean we forget.   
• To forgive does not mean we say that what happened does not matter.   
• To forgive does not mean we would trust an abuser not to abuse again. 
• To forgive does not mean we don’t deal with the issue.   

 
Instead, forgiveness could mean not allowing the abuser, the bully, or the torturer to have power over us anymore.   It might mean letting go of the bitterness that holds us back. It might mean living our lives without reference to another’s desire to control.  

Forgiveness might be a final step in a journey of healing and freedom; it might be facilitated by true repentance (not just saying sorry but facing up to justice) and the administration of justice itself – which we will look at tomorrow.  Whatever forgiveness is, it must not be a weapon used by the Church, or its well-meaning members, to make itself feel less uncomfortable.  Instead, we need to think more about the power of forgiveness and diverse ways in which we might understand it. 

Prayer 

Forgive us, good Lord,
when we use your words as weapons,
when we insist the bruised are further hurt,
and when our discomfort makes us insist 
others act to make us feel better. 
Help us, instead, to see forgiveness as freedom from bondage,
liberation from control, and power to change.
Amen