St Barnabas Anglican Church, Warrington
“You will be my
witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of
the earth.”
Like a roaring
lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to
devour. ⁹ Resist
him, steadfast
in your faith.
24 May 2020
Dear Brothers and
Sisters,
Grace and peace to
you from God.
Today is the 7th
Sunday of Easter.
We are at Pandemic
Level 2.
Readings:
Acts 1: 6-14 1
Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
The Gospel
lesson is John 17:1-11.
Acts 1: 6-14
⁶ So when they had
come together, they asked him, “Lord, is this the time when you
will restore the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ He replied, “It is not
for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his
own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit
has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all
Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” ⁹ When he had
said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took
him out of their sight. ¹⁰ While he was going and they were gazing
up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. ¹¹
They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward
heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will
come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” ¹² Then they
returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near
Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. ¹³ When they had entered
the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying,
Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas,
Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot,
and Judas son of James. ¹⁴ All these were constantly devoting
themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the
mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.
1 Peter 4:12-14;
5:6-11
¹² Beloved, do not
be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to
test you, as though something strange were happening to you. ¹³ But
rejoice insofar as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, so that you
may also be glad and shout for joy when his glory is revealed. ¹⁴
If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because
the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you. ⁶
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he
may exalt you in due time. ⁷ Cast all your anxiety on him, because
he cares for you. ⁸ Discipline yourselves, keep alert. Like a
roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for
someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, steadfast in your faith, for you
know that your brothers and sisters in all the world are undergoing
the same kinds of suffering. ¹⁰ And after you have suffered for a
little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal
glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and
establish you. ¹¹ To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.
John 17:1-11 17
After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said,
“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may
glorify you, ² since you have given him authority over all people,
to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. ³ And this is
eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus
Christ whom you have sent. ⁴ I glorified you on earth by finishing
the work that you gave me to do. ⁵ So now, Father, glorify me in
your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before
the world existed. ⁶“I have made your name known to those whom
you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me,
and they have kept your word. ⁷ Now they know that everything you
have given me is from you; ⁸ for the words that you gave to me I
have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth
that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. ⁹ I
am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world,
but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. ¹⁰
All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in
them. ¹¹ And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the
world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name
that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.
The Kingdom and Its
Witnesses.
Eastertide is
passing as we cautiously reach out of our bubbles. Thursday was
Ascension and next Sunday will be Pentecost. We read of the
resurrected Christ trying to get the Apostles organised for the time
to come. During Eastertide we read from Acts every week. The Acts of
the Apostles is a misleading title since we only hear about one of
the Apostles (Peter) was doing or saying. We hear a lot about Paul in
later part but Paul is never called an Apostle in Acts.
Throughout his
ministry Jesus struggled with His followers. The centre of his
message was the kingdom of God; but he meant one thing by the kingdom
and those who listened to him meant another.
The Jews were always
vividly conscious of being God's chosen people. They that would be
shown by political success, and world domination. Humanly speaking
that could never be. Palestine was a little country not more than 120
miles long by 40 miles wide. It had its days of independence but it
had become subject in turn to the Babylonians, the Persians, the
Greeks and the Romans. So the Jews began to look forward to a day
when God would break directly into human history and establish that
world sovereignty of which they dreamed. They conceived of the
kingdom in political terms.
How did Jesus
conceive of it? Let us look at the Lord's Prayer. In it there are two
petitions side by side. "your kingdom come, your will be done,
on earth as in heaven." It is characteristic of Hebrew writing,
to say things in two parallel forms, the second of which repeats or
amplifies the first. That is what these two petitions do. The second
tells us what God’s kingdom means. So, we see that by the kingdom
Jesus meant a society upon earth where God's will would be as
perfectly done as it is in heaven. Because of that it would be a
kingdom founded on love and not on power. To attain to that men
needed the Holy Spirit. Luke has talked before about waiting for the
coming of the Spirit. We are not to think that the Spirit came into
existence then for the first time. God is eternally Father, Son and
Holy Spirit, but there came a special time when humans experienced to
the full that power which had always been present.
The power of the
Spirit was going to make them Christ's witnesses. The witnesses were
to operate throughout the world: first in Jerusalem, then throughout
Judaea; then Samaria, the semiJewish state, would be a kind of bridge
leading out into the heathen world; and finally this witness was to
go out to the ends of the earth.
Let us note certain
things about this Christian witness.
First, a witness is
someone who says “I know this is true.” In a court of law you
cannot give in evidence something you heard from someone else; it
must be your own personal experience. A witness does not say, "I
think so"; they say "I know."
Second, the real
witness is not of words but of deeds. At school we heard of David
Livingston the explorer and how the American reported Stanley found
him in the depths of Africa with that famous greeting “Dr
Livingston, I presume?” After Stanley had spent some time with him,
he said, "If I had been with him any longer I would have been
compelled to be a Christian and he never spoke to me about it at
all." The witness of the man's life was irresistible.
Third, in Greek the
word for witness and the word for martyr is the same. A witness had
to be ready to become a martyr. To be a witness means to declare the
truth you know, no matter the cost.
Amen. So be it.
I used to think I
was indecisive, but now I’m not sure. I can’t decide on a
sentence so I have given you two. I could argue that there is balance
as one is outward looking and one inward. The first is the
theologically greater, being a sort of Christian mission statement.
But then, I just like the drama of roaring lions. Perhaps together
they will remind us that without the risen Christ, without the
strength we get from the spirit within, we are not strong enough to
witness Christ to the world.
According to Ashley
Bloomfield, the Director General of Health, on Monday the Cabinet
will consider whether to raise the size limit on gatherings to more
than 10 people. After that Bishop Steven will have to decide if the
churches in his see will open. Pray for these people, that with
wisdom they will decide well.
As we await the
decision please pray for our sisters and brothers in Georgia and
Texas, especially the Catoosa Baptist Tabernacle in Ringgold, Ga.,
which resumed in-person services and later decided to suspend them
after several families became infected despite the church’s
socialdistancing and cleaning precautions. Also, in Houston the Holy
Ghost Parish reopened but now has cancelled services indefinitely
after one of its priests died and five other members tested positive
for the virus.
Dr Bloomfield has
praised the churches for our conduct during the Covid crisis,
although it would seem that the Destiny church is having a bit of a
crisis of its own. If a person without Faith said going to church was
like going to the cinema I would be saddened to think about what they
were missing without knowing. When brother Tamaki says it, I can only
guess he doesn’t go the cinema. If you are praying for Dr
Bloomfield, spare a word also for Dr Amy Acton, his opposite number
in Ohio. You might think Dr Acton is living the American dream.
Having grown up in extreme poverty she has, by hard work, reached a
senior position in the public service. For many, she is a hero whose
positive action has saved lives, and whose calm, clear and
compassionate style is a national model for how leaders should be
communicating. For others, Acton is a target. Protesters have
descended on her home with guns and one republican representative has
denounced her as a “medical dictator.” By contrast, Ohio’s
Republican governor, Mike DeWine, has stood by his top medical
adviser. Acton, DeWine has said in response to attacks from members
of his own party, is “a good, compassionate and honourable person”
who has “worked nonstop to save lives and protect her fellow
citizens.”
Captain Tom from the
UK, walking through his 100 birthday to raise funds for the NHS
charities, first got promoted to Hon. Colonel, and has now been
knighted for his services. It is astounding that someone, apparently
with their life and work behind them, in fact can still become a
significant influence in public affairs.
Blessings
Jeremy
Rev Dr JJ Nicoll,
0274 361 481
Priest-in-Charge, St
Barnabas, Warrington, NZ
Collect 7th
Sunday of Easter.
Holy God,
you have not left us
alone
but promised your
abiding protection.
In all we face,
grant us such a
knowledge of your presence,
and abiding care,
that nothing can
destroy our trust.
Through Jesus Christ
our Liberator,
who is alive and
reigns with you,
in the unity of the
Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for
ever. Amen
Confession
Almighty and most
merciful Father,
we have wandered
and strayed from your ways like lost sheep.
We have followed
too much the devices and desires of our own hearts.
We have offended
against your holy laws.
We have left undone
those things
that we ought to
have done;
and we have done
those things
that we ought not
to have done;
and there is no
health in us.
But you, O Lord,
have mercy upon us sinners.
Spare those who
confess their faults.
Restore those who
are penitent,
according to your
promises declared to mankind
in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
And grant, O most
merciful Father, for his sake,
that we may live a
disciplined, righteous and godly life,
to the glory of
your holy name.
Amen.
Prayer.
We praise you and we
bless you, our risen Lord Jesus, King of glory,
for in your birth
you were proclaimed the Prince of Peace,
and in your
resurrection you breathe into your people
peace beyond this
world’s understanding.
Be present, Lord,
this day
with those whose
lives are disfigured by conflict
and those whose
hearts know no peace.
Be present to those
who bear the burdens of Covid-19
Burdens of fear, of
illness, of separation and loss.
To you, Lord Jesus,
true bringer of the
peace of heaven,
be honour and glory,
now and for ever.
All Amen.
Praise to you, Lord
Jesus:
Dying you destroyed
our death,
rising you restored
our life:
Lord Jesus, come in
glory.
Acclaim the Risen
Christ.
Alleluia. Christ is
risen.
He is risen indeed.
Alleluia.
Praise the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He has given us new
life and hope.
He has raised Jesus
from the dead.
God has claimed us
as his own.
He has brought us
out of darkness.
He has made us
light to the world.
Alleluia. Christ is
risen.
He is risen indeed.
Alleluia.
The Dismissal
Gospel
Hear the Gospel
of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
Jesus said to
them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I
send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to
them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any,
they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are
retained.’
John (20:21-23)
This is the Gospel
of the Lord.
Praise to you, O
Christ.
