Reading for Sunday April 15 can include Acts 4:32-37, 1 John 1:1-2:2, John 20:19-31 & Psalm 133
We would and do expect the accounts of the Resurrection experiences to be important parts fo the scriptural story.
They, after all. speak of what is at the heart of the Christian Gospel

that Jesus who once was dead
was encountered alive by the first disciples.
The stories are not straight forward
they are of course
sailing in uncharted waters.

We could make a couple of observations from todays readings:

ACTS: what ever else we see
the early church understood that things had changed
and there was a tremendous boost of energy
when Jesus was encountered alive
POINT: if we are wanting to focus our energies
then we look not to the empty tomb
but to the presence of the risen Christ
in our midst.

1JOHN: This is about seeing things as they are
God is light, and lights dispels darkness
We also need to be up front about where
we get things wrong
If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves
But that is not the end
because God who faithful will and can forgive sins
and bring us into relationship with Jesus
POINT: This changes and deepens our relationship with God
and is an invitation to live with a new freedom

JOHN 20
We should expect Jesus to bring peace
in our relationships
and in our lives
And we also need to take this seriously
the story of Thomas
reminds us
POINT: that we are not required to park our brains
or arbitrarily dismiss our doubts
but rather that
in struggling with doubt
and inviting Jesus to deal with us realistically
we can move to a deeper and profounder encounter with God.


THIS WEEK

Where is God inviting and challenging you to respond at this time?

Where do you need peace? Where do you need light? Where do you grapple with doubt?

None of this need be negative: rather it is the opportrunity to be a deeper person, more deeply committed and energised by the Holy Spirit of God

Moving on up! Life in the Spirit

Readings for Whitsunday or Pentecost, June 12, 2011; Numbers 11:24-30; *Acts 2:1-21; Psalm 104:24-34,I Corinthians 12:3b-13; John 20:19-23

Anglicans like candles!

In fact people like candles;
they are such a warm symbol
and so multi-layered in imaginal links
that we readily warm to them.

At Easter the principal symbol in many Churches
is the Paschal or Easter candle
which is marked in various ways at the Great Vigil.
With Alpha and Omega (the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet) , the number of the year, the sign of the cross,
and often including five nails.
It burns for the great 50 days which conclude today with today's feast of Pentecost

when we remember the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the first disciples

What, then, to do with with this very rich symbolic candle at the end of this season?
Well of course the logical thing to do is extinguish it!
though we do not want to give the impression that everything is now over and done with,
because of course it isn't!
In a way it has only just begun.

So in our churches today as the large candle is extinguished
individual worshipers are invited to light a personal candle of their own.
The simple idea is that the Easter Commission
to proclaim the risen Christ

is deliberately transmitted
to each individual as part of their baptismal responsibility.
This is, indeed, the movement that we trace in the readings today.
God pours out the Holy Spirit to renew the world
and to encourage and bless the community of faith
in order that they may bring the hope of Christ to the world.
The way this Spirit works is that it is given to individuals
whether it be (as in Numbers) the elders of the Church
or as in Acts and I Corinthians on the individual baptised;

We are invited to appreciate that the gift of the Spirit
apart from being a numinous spiritual blessing
to the world or community of faith in general
is also, in practice, worked out

in the individual giftedness of each of the baptised.

So, St Paul's idea is that
the Holy Spirit gives to each of the baptised an outpouring of the Spirit
which manifests itself in particular gifts
He cites a number of gifts..teaching, hospitality, prophecy, prayer, deep faith
and so on (some number these as many as 75 specific gifts)
His implication is that every baptised Christian
is gifted in some way
and that we are to use those gifts
for the furtherance of the kingdom of God.

That is, the presence of the risen Christ
is committed to you and me
and we are gifted by the Holy Spirit
to carry on Christ's work.

We are not expected to pass an exam
or do a whole pile of learning
in order to do this work
we are rather required to use the gift that has been given.

This may cause us to think about
how the Spirit has lit our personal candle!!!

Far from the work being over when Easter is finished
and we extinguish the candle
it is not so much over as transferred
to each of us individually.

So what we might ask ask,
is my particular gift?
and how am I to use it to further the kingdom of God?

We are given gifts, our candle is lit,
not to hide (Jesus uses this sort of image)
but for a purpose.
We do not have to get a qualification
it is more that we need to take the gift out of the box and use it.

So there are two questions for each of us
the second more important than the first,
First, what is my gift
and the second important question how might I use it?
The kingdom is weakened in so far
as we hide our light
or ignore it.
Our gift, be it prayer, teaching, almsgiving, hospitality
prophecy or what ever is to be used.

Paul is clear that not everyone has the same gift
we are not all teachers or prophets,
but we are all gifted as individuals and as community
with all the gifts necessary to do what God wants us to do
and to be what God wants us to be.

This week

• Give thanks to God for the Easter mystery, and the promise that Christ has given to be with us always
• Ask the Spirit to show you how you ahve been gifted by God, and what you are to do with that gift?
• Pray for imagination, opportunity and courage to use the giftedness that God has given me.

We pray, this today and every day:

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me
Spirit of the living God fall afresh on us

Do you want a meaningful relationship?

The Cross takes us to the point where we have to let go!
What ever view we have about God
is likely to be tainted, partial, self serving and inadequate
The Cross takes us to the point where we have to let go of that.
What ever comfortable view of God we have developed
-it may be
that if we are good then God will do what we want
the Cross puts an end to that shallow conception
-it may be
that if we go to Church, say the right prayers then we will be in God’s good books
the Cross shows us that even religion will not protect us

-It may be that we think if we retreat to the bosom of our family
then we will be able to protect
and be protected
the important paintings and sculptures of Mary and the dead Jesus remind us that this is not true.
WHAT THEN SHALL WE DO?
The only truth is that weare not being asked to do anything
We are not constructing any scheme
but rather God is not giving us a plan, a scheme, a solution
but a relationship.
This relationship is with a person who has died
What we are invited to discover
is that if we dare to risk this crazy relationship
that this dead person
Jesus
will be experienced as alive.

As you are invited in a few moments
to say I turn to Christ
Do you want to encounter the living God?
This is what God is offering.
We do what we can to make this Jesus relationship work
We listen,-we talk-we listen a bit more
we visit, we spend time, we trust our friend
even sometimes when it is hard
but we stick with our friend

The first disciples discovered
that out of the haze
this Jesus who died
was alive
and is always with us
(we are not always with him)


What ever else we make of it,
it is a relationship not a scheme
or a system
that is being offered
as you say
I turn to Christ
Be sure that this is what is on offer
And commit yourself,
with all your heart
to that.

A Moment of Truth

During Lent we will be following a local series of lections.If you are looking for the Common Lectionary References try here Revised Common Lectionary

March Chagall's White Crucifixion

This week is Palm Sunday , 4th April 2009. While there are many readings on which we could focus we will look particularly at Mark 15:16-39.

As Holy Week begins our hearts turn to the Cross
We have made a pilgrimage this Lent
as we have worked through Mark's Gospel
The flow of the Gospel is unremitting

• God's kingdom is here and now
• We are challenged to identify completely with Jesus
• We come to understand that in discovering who Jesus really is for us, we also discover who we really are
• It is in listening to his call, and trying to respond that we open ourselves to God's transforming power
• This journey requires, work, commitment, seriousness

Here, now on the Cross we see the climax of all this challenge
Jesus says to us:
I am an invitation to all people
to submit to the willof God
Knowing that there is no assurance of

• what the circumstances might be
• the troubles are that might emerge
• Indeed, we recognise that it might be quite hard.
• Perhaps even dangerous, certainly profoundly challenging

We trust that in the working out of this

All will be well....not all will be EASY

and that the fundamental reality of life

that in knowing Jesus we encounter God

• Listen to him
• Take up your Cross
• One thing more you need to yield to God

It is not that we are rewarded for being good, compliant
It is that at this place...Calvary
destiny. meaning, purpose and truth
are revealed

This week is Palm Sunday , 4th April 2009. While there are many readings on which we could focus we will look particularly at Mark 15:16-39.


As Holy Week begins our hearts turn to the Cross
We have made a pilgrimage this Lent
as we have worked through Mark's Gospel
The flow of the Gospel is unremitting
God's kingdom is here and now
We are challenged to identify completely with Jesus
We come to understand that in discovering who Jesus really is for us, we also discover who we really are
It is in listening to his call, and trying to respond that we open ourselves to God's transforming power
This journey requires, work, commitment, seriousness


Here, now on the Cross we see the climax of all this challenge
Jesus says to us:
I am an invitation to all people
to submit to the will of God
Knowing that there is no assurance of
what the circumstances might be
the troubles are that might emerge
Indeed, we recognise that it might be quite hard.
Perhaps even dangerous, certainly profoundly challenging
We trust that in the working out of this
All will be well....not all will be EASY
and that the fundamental reality of life
that in knowing Jesus we encounter God
Listen to him
Take up your Cross
One thing more you need to yield to God
It is not that we are rewarded for being good, or compliant
It is that at this place…
CALVARY
destiny. meaning, purpose and truth
are revealed

• THIS WEEK
  May this week be full of meaning Lord
  May I commit more fervently
  May I love you more
  

Finding our deepest identity

[During Lent we will be following a local series of lections.If you are looking for the Common Lectionary References try here Revised Common Lectionary]

This Sunday 1st March 2009 the focus reading is Mark 1:9-15. Mark's account of the baptism of Jesus

A lot happens in the first chapter of Mark. In the space of these few (only 7) verses...Jesus is baptised, he hears the voice of God, he goes into the wilderness and is tempted by Satan. John is arrested, Jesus goes back to Galilee and he makes a public declaration of what his ministry is about.

"The time is fulfilled 

and the kingdom of God has come near

therefore I call you to repent and believe in the good news"

It's a lot!

The Spirit affirms Jesus in the profoundest way possible

What ever it means, Jesus hears the voice of God saying

"You are my Son, and I love you, and I am well-pleased with you"

What does God say to you? What is God saying to me?

At our deepest level?

In Lent we are being invited to pay attention to God.

The idea of God speaking to us

is not without problem.

What do we mean by it?

It is not clear, for example, in this passage

whether Mark wants us to understand this as an external, audible voice.

Whether others might have heard it,

or whether this is just fanciful stuff.

I suspect if we allow ourselves to accept this passage,

not worrying too much about the mechanics of what is being addressed

that many of us would allow that God might be speaking to us

(heart-to- heart someone suggested to me during the week).

The wilderness

What unlocks some of this for us is that the same Spirit

who speaks this deep affirmation of Jesus's personhood

drives (a very strong word) Jesus into the wilderness.

This wilderness as we know, is an ambivalent place,

at once threatening (beasts)

but also where we are thrown back on total reliance on God.

It is as though Jesus not only has to hear the affirmation

but also then to go and appropriate it.

This needs the confrontation and threat of the wilderness.

It is not just nice words.

What might God be saying to you at this time of your life?

Can you take time this week to struggle with that a bit?

What don't I like about what God is saying to me?

Where do I resist? Where am I vulnerable?

Where do I deceive myself...about myself/about God?

It is out of this struggle

that Jesus comes to some realization

of what is happening!

The time is now, God is close

Things must change...I need to repent, to behave differently

(what will this mean for me today)

The time is NOW!

This Good News, if we are to believe it,

is for now

and will affirm us at our deeepest  level.

It will require some change,

and that we trust God for all that is necessary to effect it.

It is not without beasts,

but also with angels!

Do we trust God enough to enter into this?

THIS WEEK

• What is God saying to me at my deepest level (heart to heart)?
• Can I strip back everything and allow the wilderness to speak this to me?
• Will I decide to embrace the freedom that is being offered? To be free of sin? To live as one who tries to accept others? To embrace the possibility of failure? To trust only God?
• What is to stop me doing this now?

+

Fire and hail

Reading for this Sunday 19th August can be Isaiah 5:1-7 and Psalm 80:1-2, 8-19 (orJeremiah 23:23-29) and Psalm 82 Hebrews 11:29-12:2 Luke 12:49-56

A QUICK YOUTUBE THOUGHT HERE

Have we replaced genuine Christianity with pleasant cups of tea

Some passages of scripture don't actually encourage the faint hearted

to take up Christianity

though it is important to note that the readings this week are not so much about how hard it is going to be as attesting to the fact that there is a consequence, and indeed a cost, to identifying yourself as a Christian.

Although some people might think that the Christian Gospel is all fluffy puppy and sweetness and light
Jesus reminds us that this very message
peace, love and forgiveness
is a divisive message.
It will drive a wedge between those who thought they were inseparable
and alienate people from those who they most love.
Contemporary commentators remind us that

the price of true peace
the cost of genuine love
the expression of
genuine compassion and forgiveness
comes with a price.

It is a price that not all are prepared to pay
and indeed we seek to avoid.



Running the race
I am not a runner! Never have been,
but the image that the the writer of the letter to the Hebrews uses
captures something of this idea
of the effort that needs to be put into of faith.

This is a sort of dynamic contradiction
about faith.
Although we do not have to do good to curry God's favour
we have to believe in Jesus
Yet this believing has to be done right
There is a sense in which we have made for ourselves
a caricature of faith.
We have replaced genuine costly faith, the sort that invites you to carry a cross
with pathetic and polite expressions of belief which lack any real focus or cutting edge.
Have we, as I say, replaced the Cross with cups of tea?
There are many fine example of people who have chosen to live sacrificial lives
in the name of faith
and because they seek to follow Jesus.
We can name Maximilian Kolbe, one of the many martyrs of Auschwitz,m
William Wilberforce who lead the battle against slavery in England,
Florence Nightingale, Francis of Assissi, and of course many more
This 'great cloud of witnesses' attests to faith with a cost.
Can you think of those who you regard as most faithful,
what is the cost to them of being a faithful Christian?

Jesus himself, the writer tells us

is the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that
was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his
seat at the right hand of the throne of God

His pioneering example was that faith has a cost.
Have you and I lost that,
or replaced it with a cup of tea and a biscuit?

THIS WEEK

• Ask the Spirit to show you where you have become apathetic and lustreless
• Invite the Spirit to show you a way that is more costly, more challenging, where you can respond more fervently, more faithfully to Jesus.
• Pray for the courage to do it.

YOUTUBE COMMENT HERE

The Power of betrayal- Wednesday in Holy Week

Matthew 26:14-25

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus

Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, ‘What will you give me if I betray him to you?’ They paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.

The Passover with the Disciples

On the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, ‘Where do you want us to make the preparations for you to eat the Passover?’ He said, ‘Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, “The Teacher says, My time is near; I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.” ’ So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover meal.

When it was evening, he took his place with the twelve; and while they were eating, he said, ‘Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.’ And they became greatly distressed and began to say to him one after another, ‘Surely not I, Lord?’ He answered, ‘The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that one not to have been born.’ Judas, who betrayed him, said, ‘Surely not I, Rabbi?’ He replied, ‘You have said so.’

There are many powerful motifs in the Passion Story and one of them is betrayal. It is easy to project all the dimensions of this on to others, in this story on Judas.

What this passage shows is that the possibility of betrayal is at our doorstep. As Jesus reveals that one will betray him, so they each say "Surely not I, Lord?"....I am not sure of the force of the Greek here. But presumably it is a question rather than an emphatic statement.
They all thus assume that Jesus knows them better than they know themselves, and is able to say how they are likely to act. They do not therefore assert that they will not betray him, but rather question whether they will be the one who snaps.
This is actually I think the reality of the situation betrayal lies at our door, it is a question rather than a definite no!
We make the transition by committing ourselves to the life of Jesus above everything else.
It may, and probably will at some time, lead us to our own Cross.
The Cross, is also the gate to the eternal life that God longs for us to have in Christ.
Today
Pray for commitment to Christ, deeper than we have ever been committed before.
Commitment that moves us from question to certainty, from betrayal to loyalty.