MY NEXT SERMON

I AM  PREACHING NEXT ON SUNDAY 14 DECEMBER 2025 - at ALL SAINTS' PARISH CHURCH, FARLEY, WILTSHIRE - 11.00 a.m.  MORNING WORSHIP

SERMON 227 - SUNDAY 7 DECEMBER 2025 - SECOND SUNDAY IN ADVENT

 Sermon at All Saints’ Church, Whiteparish – Advent 2 – Sunday 7 December 2025

Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12

May I speak in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and may these words be yours Lord, and may you bless all who hear them. Amen.

Today we lit the second candle on our Advent Wreath –often called the Bethlehem Candle, which symbolizes peace or faith and is lit, as today, on the second Sunday of Advent. It is, often, typically a purple candle and represents preparing for the coming of the Messiah, reflecting on the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. The candle can represent either peace, as Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace, or faith in preparation for Jesus’s arrival.  It is meant to be a reminder to work for peace and at the same time to have faith in God’s promises, reflecting on the journey to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, and the beginning of a New Covenant with God. In many churches the candle is purple in colour being the liturgical colour associated with Advent – symbolising royalty and penance.

Traditionally, also, it represents the character of John the Baptist, the cousin of Jesus, who is described in the bible (in the first chapter of John’s Gospel) as being sent by God but was not the light (i.e. the Messiah) but came as a witness to testify to the light – that the true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.  So many sermons have been preached on the Second Sunday in Advent on the topic of John the Baptist, that I thought, this morning, it would be good to remind ourselves of the reason why God sent Jesus into the world in the first place.

As is usual, on the Second Sunday in Advent, our Gospel Reading this morning, narrates the now very familiar story of the ministry of Jesus’s cousin, John the Baptist who, we learn, went into all the region around the Jordan to proclaim a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins and to proclaim the coming of Christ, the Messiah as foretold by the prophet Isaiah some hundreds of years previously – in fact in the First Reading we had this morning.

Back then, the world seemed to reject God, as we read in the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi.  I do recommend you read it as, in many ways, it seems to foretell how our world is today – lacking any enthusiasm for God our Creator and treating Faith as an irrelevance when we can take control of our own destiny.  Today’s world seems to be about image and control, and money and wealth of course; and, so it was back then.

I have now lived more than my three score years and ten and during that period I have seen enormous changes in the world and in this country in particular; probably none more so than attitudes towards the Church.

As many of you will know, I spend quite a bit of my time giving talks and leading stargazing sessions at sea wearing my other hat as an astronomer. A question I am very frequently asked is how I can reconcile my role as a scientist with that of a church minister? Similarly, with the news constantly seeming to concentrate on scandals and dissent in the Church, how I can continue to minister in the knowledge that religion is so flawed?

My response, first of all, is to say that churches are largely human institutions which often attract the wounded, the vulnerable and, like any human-made institution they will suffer from splits and dissent from time to time. Secondly, the wonders of God’s universe as I observe it from my viewpoint as an astronomer, fills me with the awe and wonder of God’s creation and the sheer awesomeness of it all.  Thus, my strength continues to lie in my Faith which is founded on the Gospel of the Good News of Jesus coming into the world, to lighten and brighten it.  To save the sinners, to comfort the poor and to bring God’s Kingdom to Earth.  In other words, to set aside the religiosity of the church and get back to basics – why Jesus came to Earth and what he said and did. 

For me, the light bulb moment occurred back in 2007 at Spring Harvest when a group of us went to that Christian Festival from Winterslow Church.  I was not entirely sure whether I would enjoy the experience as, having been brought up in a traditional Anglican liturgy, I was concerned that the event might be dominated by “wacky” Evangelical Christians all wanting to tell me how bad a Christian I was!  For me, therefore, I treated it as a cheapish holiday with my two children and if it all got a bit too much for us there was the North Somerset Steam Railway next door in Minehead which would certainly be “my thing”.

However, it was during the second night of the big service in the Big Top that the keynote speaker was Rev. Steve Chalke, the founder of Oasis and a Baptist minister in Waterloo, London. He reminded his congregation that our role as Christians was not being self-centred and ensuring our place in Heaven by being pious and religious but rather being in the community bringing Heaven down to Earth.  For me everything in the Gospel seemed to make sense and suddenly a light had been shown to me just as in Psalm 119:105 we read:

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path; it shows me the way wherein I should go, both night and day”.

That was the moment that I first felt called to ministry – although it did take another five years before I started training.

I love the gospels, because in them we see how “The Light” worked in everyday society. At that first attendance of Spring Harvest we all got “WWJD” plastic bracelets – WWJD standing for “What would Jesus Do” and although I have long since lost that bracelet I still regularly think about that slogan and it is a good mantra to have at times when your Christian Faith might be compromised.

You see, the people of the Old Testament had lost their way as we saw in Malachi. They needed “the Light” – they needed God to come down and talk to them in their own language and to be physically amongst them.

Imagine that you, a Human Being, had created a colony of ants and that the colony no longer acted in the way in which you had created them to be. It would be impossible to communicate with them directly and so you would have to send another ant, your special agent ant, to live and move amongst them to communicate with them and explain how they should behave – in their own language or communication system – that is how and why God Incarnate, in Jesus, came to be born in Bethlehem.

John the Baptist, appeared during the period of waiting for that Light of World to appear and he encouraged people to repent and be saved through baptism. Likewise, as we wait for Christmas, during this period of Advent reflections, let us think about how we might have contributed towards or ignored any darkening in our own lives by not reaching out for the lantern which is Jesus Christ.

We light candles on the Advent Wreath as a reminder of that light. In some churches we would also have had individual candles to remind us that as Christians it is our duty to carry that light of salvation – the way we should go – to all we meet in our daily lives.

Whenever we stray¸ when the world seems dark and cruel, when we feel we can no longer see God, remember he is all around us and by accepting Him and following Him we are in communication with God our Creator who made all things – from the tiniest of living creatures on Earth to the vastness of the Universe itself.  As John the Baptist told us, we need only repent of our sins to be cleansed. If we all followed that mantra then I am certain the world would be a better place.

Through the adherence of our Faith the dimness in our lives can be removed and replaced by the glorious light of Christ’s Kingdom on Earth.

Wishing you all a Happy Advent and Festive Season ahead.

  

Amen                                                                                                 MFB/227/04122025

 

 

SERMON 226 - SUNDAY 16 NOVEMBER 2025 - 2ND SUNDAY BEFORE ADVENT

Sermon at Morning Worship, All Saints’ Church, Winterslow and All Saints’ Church, Farley – Second Sunday before Advent – Sunday 16 November 2025

Malachi 4:1-2a; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13; Luke 21:5-19

May I speak in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and may these words be those of you, Lord, and may they be a blessing to all who listen and hear them.

What a truly terrifying collection of readings we have in church this morning!  They remind me of some of the warnings my mother would give me if I didn’t behave or eat my vegetables – such horrible fates awaited me such as a plum tree growing out of the top of my head if I swallowed the stone or, even worse, I would turn into a monkey if I sat too long in front of an open fire or ate too many bananas!  How dreadful and how untrue. 

Today, many people are shy of the bible because they believe it is a book full of “don’ts” foretelling dreadful things happening to non-believers. Better not to know what’s in it than to read it and disobey, might be the philosophy of many and, certainly, in the 19^th Century and earlier, ministers would stand in the pulpit and preach mainly of the wrath of God and his punishments to those who did not toe the religious codes and customs of the time. As we know from our own English history lessons, many people ended up going to the block or being burnt as heretics for not following the religious codes of the day. In this, our modern-day 21^st Century, the emphasis is now largely on the power of God’s love and little is spoken of his wrath except in what one might call the extreme Evangelical churches.

So how should we approach these readings today?  What is actually being said and, especially, what was Jesus saying to those around him two thousand years ago?  Each of our readings is dealing with “the end times” or as theologians call this study - eschatology! However, they must each be read in the context of the time in which they were written and it is so easy for some zealous Christians to apply them, especially what Jesus is saying in our Gospel reading, to events surrounding us today.  I am sure each of you has seen a street gospeller, at some time, walking up and down with a placard proclaiming that “The End is Nigh”!

I am therefore going to start with this Gospel reading first as it is quite a familiar piece of scripture which is quoted often.

Jesus is actually talking about the destruction of Jerusalem, not the end of the world. He is responding to his own disciples’ admiration of the finery of the Temple there – just as we today may look upon the beauty of our own cathedral and its spire in Salisbury.  Jesus is actually prophesying the destruction of this mighty edifice and the city by the Romans in 70 AD. Jesus is predicting that his church, and his disciples will suffer much persecution and difficulties in his name but, rather than preparing themselves to respond to these difficulties in advance, they should understand that at the right time He will give them the necessary resources to stand up against their persecutors.  When they ask Jesus when this will occur, He responds by telling them, in Matthew’s version of this event, that it will occur before another generation has passed.

 I think the best explanation for these words of Jesus is that they are to remind us to take them as a model for all Christian living, peering into an uncertain future, needing to trust in God when everything is crashing down around our ears. The Church, in many parts of the world today, 2,000 years on, lives with wars, rumours of wars, purges and persecutions on a daily basis.  Those of us who are not so suffering should read these passages often and then pray for those places of suffering and persecution in “Christian Family solidarity”, as Tom Wright puts it in his reflection on this passage.

An interesting point which Tom Wright also puts in his commentary on this passage is “If your church is not being persecuted sometimes, why not?”  His words remind me of a book I once read by the modern day theologian Steve Chalke entitled “Change Agents”.  It is a very short book of around 30 very small chapters one of which discusses that to be a “change agent”, that is somebody who can make a real difference to society, you must have enemies/opponents to be effective.  If everyone likes you and your philosophies without dissent, then it is likely that you are not being very effective.  I think that is the true message of Jesus in this passage – Christian effectiveness will be accompanied by opposition and discourse.  Martyrs and confessors around the world today testify to this – that God is faithful to his promises, providing words, wisdom and above all perseverance to his faithful servants when they are being oppressed or opposed.

Both of our other two readings, this morning, contain an element of eschatology too. In Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians, warnings of idleness seem rather outmoded in our present world where people seem to be busier than ever just to make ends meet. I think that few people today are really idle through choice. Two people who I can think of, personally, who might satisfy this description, on reflection I think have mental health issues. Paul’s warning is really another view on the end times – it might be tempting to think if the world is going to end, what is the point of spending a lot of time working? Why not just let things slide and enjoy what time is left?

Actually, what Paul is reminding the church in Thessalonica is that they are one collective body and need to work and support each other – a common theme of his writings. No one should “sponge off others”. We, as a global Christian Family, need to support each other and especially those of our brothers and sisters in places of persecution and wars where our common faith is under attack.  That is the meaning of true Christian love, the love described in Greek as “agape” and that starts within our own communities and spreads out from there.

Our first reading this morning is from the Book of Malachi – the very last book of the Old Testament and one of my favourite books in the whole of the bible. It is quite a short book – only some four short chapters and is written in the style of a dialogue between God and the writer.  In order to fully appreciate the two short verses of this morning’s reading, I recommend you read the whole of the book.

The background to the book is that the Jewish people had become somewhat indolent in their worship.  They were not being particularly oppressed or seeing God working miracles – they, therefore, felt no especial need to call upon God for protection or praise him - they were simply going through the motions of worship.  Indeed, instead of sacrificing the best animals on God’s altar they were keeping the best for themselves and sacrificing blemished ones.  I often think that we can, today in our modern world, fall into that same trap and be half-hearted about our relationship with God, forgetting that he made us in His own image and everything in the world today, and beyond, is due to his creation and grace.

Our reading from Malachi this morning comes in the very last chapter following on from the dialogue between prophet and God. It is a culmination of all that has come before – a reminder that those who are genuine in their love of God and “revere” his name will see Him, who made the world, put all things to right – the same sun which burns and scorches the land will shine upon the righteous.  What a lovely thought.

So, I ask you to examine yourselves and ask yourselves whether you are making God, through Jesus and the Holy Spirit, central to your life and giving him the honour and praise he so richly deserves – He who created us and loves us unconditionally.

Let us pray:

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your faithful promises to strengthen, establish, and protect us, even when our faith falters and we prove faithless and false to You. Keep us ever mindful of this truth and guide us in the choices we must make today. Use us as an instrument of Your grace and keep us from all evil, so that we may grow in grace and in a knowledge of You, and in our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, in Whose name we pray,

Amen.

                                                                                                         MFB/226/14112025

SERMON 225 - SUNDAY 26 OCTOBER 2025 - BIBLE SUNDAY

 

Sermon at Morning Worship, All Saints’ Church, Winterslow – Bible Sunday – Sunday 26 October 2025

Isaiah 45:22-25; Romans 15:1-6; Luke 4:16-24

May I speak in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and may these words be those of you, Lord, and may they be a blessing to all who listen and hear them.

As a child, living in the late 1950s and 1960s, we had few books in our house, or, especially in the house of my maternal grandparents, but one book which was common to each household was a black leatherbound copy of the King James Version of the bible – with gilded edges. In both cases, those volumes, whilst appearing to be quite old, were clearly seldom read. In picking our copy at home and skimming its flimsy pages, I found the language and content quite incomprehensible. Subsequently I learned most about the characters contained within its pages from bible stories learned at school.

Later on, I joined my local church choir, as I had, back then, a beautiful (so I was told) treble voice and would listen, twice on Sunday – at Matins and Evensong – to passages of the bible as read out by the church wardens and then discussed by the local vicar from the pulpit.  I still found the language archaic, mainly historic and of little relevance to me, my life and my community except that, living in a town built on fishing, I could relate to those first disciples, Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John although having seen, through the pages of the Grimsby Evening Telegraph, how the trawlermen of Grimsby could behave after weeks at sea, I thought it rather fantastical that Jesus should have chosen those types to be his first disciples.

It was not until I went away to Liverpool to study law in the early 1970s that I joined the Christian Union at the suggestion of a fellow student and was introduced to a more evangelic form of worship and to a paraphrase of the Bible which I could understand – The Living Translation – and through this and joining in with other Christians my understanding and faith grew.  Indeed, suddenly the Bible really did became a living thing.

I narrate this little biography as it really does say much about how the Bible can be a bit of a brick wall for many, preventing them from really understanding the messages it contains for us today and the fact that it is a living and important part of our Faith.

On this, Bible Sunday, we celebrate not an object but a living Word the Scriptures that form us, shape us and send us out into the world. Our readings, this morning remind us that God speaks to us, that we can hear what he is saying to us and by listening we are led to a life formed by what we receive. In other words, reading the Bible is more about being formed than being informed.

In Luke 4 we see Jesus in his hometown synagogue: an event which would have been a commonplace ritual for him and his family – just as we attend church on most Sundays with family and fellow worshippers. Jesus stands, is handed the scroll of Isaiah, just as we have had read a passage from Isaiah this morning, and reads words of good news to the poor, release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind and freedom for the oppressed.  Then he sits down and makes the startling claim -“Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing”. That one moment, in the Bible captures the heart of our Christian faith – unlike what I first thought, when I saw those ancient bibles in my family’s homes – scripture is not just a series of ancient poetry, biography or moral instruction (although it is also all of these), it is also the present Word of God that meets us, calls us and sets us all on a new path.

Turning back, a moment to out first two readings, Isaiah 45 calls us to look to God for our salvation: “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God and there is no other.”  A reminder to us that there is only one God and all others are false. It’s a voice which reaches beyond just Israel but to all nations hence “all the ends of the earth” and therefore calls upon us, as Jesus later called upon us in Matthew 28 to “go out and make disciples of all nations.”; to acknowledge that God alone, through Jesus Christ, is Lord and Saviour – the very essence of our Christian Belief today.

In our Second Reading, Paul in Romans, urges the Christian community to live with mutual care and unity so that, together, not individually, we may glorify God. Paul writes that the Scriptures give us hope and endurance – both of which we very much need to have in this modern-day world of such much hatred, division and suffering. We are to work together, to worship together, to support each other and bear with one another. Scripture is not a private fuel for individual devotion only – it is designed to be a communal glue that binds a diverse body of people, different individuals into a combined group praising and serving.

So what do these passages, when we read them together, tell us about the importance of reading and understanding the Bible in our modern world?

First of all, Scripture is a living encounter.  Like that congregation in Nazareth, we are summoned to hear and listen to God’s voice today. When we read our bibles we should do so with openness and prayer because as we read, the Holy Spirit can make words speak present truth, healing, justice and freedom in our own individual circumstances.

Secondly, Scripture will show us the way towards God’s call to us for his Mission in the World. Our reading should not just be an academic exercise but calls us to action – for example to go forth and make disciples of others, to relieve poverty and help others.  To be compassionate and seek social justice.

Thirdly, as Paul in Romans has already said to foster community and unity.  The bible does not seek to provide a club or, as I have often said a “holy huddle” but we should also share experiences and interpretations with each other through Bible study groups, family devotions and such like. That way we can each grow in our Faith and understanding.

Fourthly, reading the Bible will keep reminding us of Truth in a world where we see more and more lies and falseness, “fake news”, around us where it can be difficult to discern fact from fiction. Every time I pray, I always include a prayer for discernment.

A final word on how we should approach reading Scripture:

when we read the Bible we should read it with no fixed agenda. A great mistake is to have an idea of your own and then look for a piece of scripture to justify or support it.  This is a great device of many of the false “Word of Faith” prosperity gospel preachers. This is called eisegesis or proof texting (putting something into the meaning of the text to support your own thinking). The opposite is what we should be practicing – exegesis – meaning taking out of the text what it really means.  To do this we need to ask ourselves – When was it written? Who wrote it? Why was it written? In other word, what is the context in which it came about.

As we celebrate Bible Sunday, let us renew our commitment to let the Bible shape our minds hearts and hands. Let us follow Jesus who read Isaiah and announced God’s reign in action; Let us remember Isaiah’s call to turn to God and receive salvation and let us put on Paul’s vision of a community that bears with one another and glories God together.

So, here’s a practical invitation for the week – what good news do you feel your neighbours need? How is God calling you to embody that good news?  How can you help fulfil the promises which Jesus mentioned in his reading of Isaiah? 

Because the Word of God does not come back empty. Let us open our Bibles, open our hearts and allow God’s living Word to form us for faithful witness in our modern times.  Let us pray:

This world tempts us
to believe the wisdom that comes
from human minds,
to have faith in no other thing.
But we have glimpsed the Truth
revealed in Scripture’s words,
and we shall worship the Lord our God,
and serve him alone!
This world tempts us
to believe we have control
of our destiny,
and have no need of the Divine.
But we have felt the touch
of Christ upon our hearts,
and we shall worship the Lord our God
and serve him alone!

Amen

                                                                                            MFB/225/23102025

SERMON 224 - SUNDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2025 - TRINITY 13

Sermon at Morning Worship, All Saints’ Farley - 13th Sunday after Trinity – Sunday 14 September 2025

Exodus 32:7-14; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-10

May I speak in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and may these words be those of you, Lord, and may they be a blessing to all who listen and hear them.

Today’s theme is that of repentance, of turning round and returning after having either lost our way or deliberately having wandered off from the paths of life destined for us by God. All of today’s readings, therefore draw us into the very heart of God, a heart broken by our sin, but moved by mercy, and relentless in love. If we allow these passages to speak deeply to us, we will see that repentance is not just something we do, it’s something God makes possible through His mercy.

Beginning with our first reading, from Exodus 32, God says to Moses, “Go down at once! Your people…have become depraved.” The people, freshly delivered from slavery, could not even wait forty days before turning their hearts toward an idol—the golden calf. And notice the language: God says to Moses, “your people, whom you brought out of Egypt.” It’s as if God is disowning them, as if they are Moses’s people and not God’s!

There is a real grief in God's words. This is not a distant deity watching with cold detachment. This is a God wounded by the betrayal of those He loves. Sin is not simply breaking rules; it is breaking God’s heart.  Imagine, if you brought up a child, lavished love upon them and taught them the correct way to behave, and then they turned their back on you, behaved in ways totally against what you had hoped for,  how would you feel? Well, that’s exactly what God experiences.

But what happens next is amazing: Moses intercedes. He pleads on behalf of the people. And God, in His mercy, relents. The Hebrew word used implies that God allowed Himself to be moved with compassion. This is not God being indecisive, this is God being relational. Mercy wins.  We have seen this before, earlier in Genesis 18, when Abraham pleads with God not to destroy Sodom if there were at least ten righteous people living there or, allowing Noah to build the Ark in Genesis 6 and spared him and his family from the Great Flood.

This is the first movement of repentance: God grieving over our sin, and someone standing in the gap to restore the relationship. For Israel, it was Moses. For us, today, it is Jesus.

In our second reading, we have an example of God’s mercy to someone who has sinned. Paul writes: “I was once a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy.” Paul does not minimize his sin. He calls it what it is. And yet, again that sin becomes the backdrop for God’s incredible grace.

“I received mercy…so that in me, the foremost sinner, Jesus Christ might display His utmost patience.” Paul sees his life as a living testimony to what God can do with a repentant heart.

There is hope here, therefore, for every one of us. Sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking that repentance is only for the really bad sinner, people like Paul before his conversion. But if we are truly honest with ourselves and each other, each of us, in different ways, has turned our hearts to false gods, power, comfort, approval, pride, material wealth. And yet God’s mercy is bigger than our worst failures.

Paul teaches us that repentance is not about shame—it is about transformation. When we truly repent, we don’t just ask for forgiveness; we open ourselves to being changed.

Finally, in our Gospel reading, we meet a God who doesn’t just wait for sinners to come back—He goes out to find them. Jesus tells two parables: the shepherd who leaves the 99 to find the one lost sheep, and the woman who searches her house for the lost coin.

What do these parables have in common? Pursuit. Persistence and Joy.

God doesn’t abandon us in our lostness. He searches. And when He finds us—when we turn back, when we repent—there is joy. Not judgment. Not a lecture. Not punishment. Joy.  We see this again in the wonderful parable of the Prodigal Son – and there is another lesson there, unlike the brother who stayed behind, we should join in that joy when others turn back from their sinful ways and encourage them going forward.

Jesus says, “There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need repentance.” This flips everything we might assume about God. He is not looking to condemn us. He is longing to celebrate our return.

Repentance is not a one-time act. It’s a way of life. Every day we are invited to turn back to God—again and again.  That is why we have a time of confession in every service; to acknowledge our sins and turn away from them.

But how do we do this?  And like any good sermon there are three points, listing three steps we need to take:

First, by being honest. Like Paul, name your sins. Don’t justify them. Don’t sugarcoat them. Just bring them to the light.  No “I have sinned but…”

Second, by trusting in God’s mercy. Remember Moses and Abraham interceding, remember Paul being transformed, remember the shepherd lifting the sheep onto his shoulders. God is not reluctant to forgive. He is eager.

Third, by rejoicing in God’s joy. When we repent, we don’t grovel—we rejoice. We join the celebration in heaven.

And one more thing: As disciples of Jesus, we are called not only to repent but to become ministers of reconciliation. That means we search for others who are lost. We don’t write people off. We don't say, “They’ll never change.” We remember what God has done for us, and we extend that same hope to others.

Let us pray:

Loving Shepherd, You seek us when we wander and rejoice when we return. Thank You for never giving up on us, for carrying us back into Your arms with joy. Teach us to treasure every soul as You do, to celebrate restoration, and to extend mercy to the lost. May our hearts reflect Your compassion, and may our lives share in the joy of heaven when one sinner repents.

 

Amen

                                                                                            MFB/224/12092025

SERMON 223 - SUNDAY 31 AUGUST 2025 - TRINITY 11

Sermon at Team Service at St. Mary’s Church, West Dean - 11th Sunday after Trinity –Sunday 31 August 2025

Ecclesiastes 10:12-18; Hebrews 13:1-8,15-16; Luke 14:1,7-14

May I speak in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and may these words be those of you, Lord, and may they be a blessing to all who listen and hear them.

Whenever my mother heard anyone, especially a politician, speak arrogantly about themselves or what they had done she had a phrase which I am sure is well remembered by many of you of my generation - “Pride always comes before a fall, you’ll see”.  Indeed, my mother really didn’t like people who were boastful or full of their own importance and, as the wife of a local politician, and later the mother of one, me, there were many occasions when she met and conversed with people with whom she struggled to like. She had been brought up as the daughter of a simple Norfolk farm worker who had a very simple philosophy – “You should remember you are what you are, and there is no room for “airs and graces”.  You are who God created you to be, was his philosophy, although he might not have put it in so many words. He was not an ardent church goer but he served the church in many other practical ways as verger, coffin maker and grave digger, and most definitely led a Christian way of life. He had observed so many corpses that he often said – “All the time I’ve been helping the local undertaker I have never seen pockets in a shroud”.  What material wealth you have you can’t take with you.

Each of our readings this morning reminds us of this philosophy and at its centre is the need for us to remember that it is not by our own efforts and wealth that we reach salvation, but in trusting in, and following God. 

In Ecclesiasticus, our first reading, the writer, presumed to have been King Solomon, states, right at the beginning, that human pride is to forsake the Lord – in other words, once we talk about ourselves in such a way that would not have received my mother’s approval, we are placing ourselves at the centre of everything and displacing God in our hearts. As I read what King Solomon had written, some 3,000 years ago, it seemed to me that he was also foretelling the state of the world as it is today. There is too much pride and arrogance being displayed by many leaders of the world’s nations, but this passage reminds us that those who act in this way will be brought down – there will be a fall following the sin of pride.  It is a matter for God to be proud of us, his creation, not us of ourselves.  It is this message, written by King Solomon, which is the essence of Jesus’s parable which we will look at in a moment, but it is another reminder of the importance of understanding the importance of the Old Testament in prophesying what was to come and that Jesus came to fulfil those prophesies and to teach us all how we are to treat others.

Our second reading is one which I reach for from time to time and has been such a great comfort to me through some of the toughest years of my life. As with pride, many believe that money and wealth, material prosperity generally, will keep at bay all things evil and troublesome.  This is the world many of us live in – believing that if we have lots of money we will be alright, we will have good health and never have worries or fears.  I am reminded of Harry Enfield’s character “Lots of Money” and his Birmingham accent “I am considerably richer than yow”.  That is the false teaching we find with the prosperity gospellers who spread this wrong message. Appealing to the vulnerable, the only people who prosper, materially, are they themselves, telling the weak and sick that they need to “sow a seed” of money into their ministry to receive a blessing.  The reality though is that this is a totally false premise. God does not need to be bribed in order to bestow a blessing on us. Jesus himself told his disciples that following Him would never be easy but that the treasure we store up in our heart is the heavenly treasure of eternal life. You will recall the parable of the farmer who built bigger barns to store his wealth. You will also recall the time when Jesus suggested to the young wealthy man that to enter the kingdom of Heaven he should give all his possessions to the poor and follow him.

Here the writer of Hebrews reminds his readers, and us, that we don’t need masses of money and especially we should not worship it or believe that “sowing a seed of money” will yield ever more wealth. That is the gospel of the greedy, not of the true Christian.

In our last, gospel reading, Jesus declares “don’t sit at the top table” when attending a function. As Tom Wright puts it “If this is a parable then it is not about table manners at a dinner party”!  It’s actually a warning to his contemporaries – to the leaders of Israel. God has promised a great wedding party, the “messianic banquet”, but if Israel thinks that it has an inalienable right to sit at the top table by virtue of simple obedience to the law, she has another think coming. Jesus is reminding those Jewish leaders that pride comes before a fall or humility before exaltation.  That is again the message for all – for those who would seek to think of themselves as better than others. Jesus is saying that such people, by their lack of humility towards God, the great host, are themselves already committing a great sin even though they think of themselves as superior through religious fervour.  We see this again later on in Luke’s Gospel (18:9-14) when we meet the Pharisee and the Tax Collector in the Temple.

Jesus’s message to all the great leaders of the world at the time, and is today, is a focus on the Cross – the epitome of humility where the highest was seemingly crushed; followed by the resurrection, it summons the powers of the world to humility – those who think themselves great are being confronted by their own true King shamefully executed – a sight which overturns all arrogance and unmasks all pretensions. He is saying that faced with the crucified and risen Lord of the world, the rulers of the nations will begin with shame to take the lowest place.

This gospel passage ends with a reinforcement of what the writer of Hebrews is saying.  Don’t do things in the hope of receiving something in return, or being repaid, or for monetary gain (this again is in direct contradiction to the theology of the prosperity gospellers), but do it for those who cannot repay you but need your help and assistance. You will be repaid at the end times, when there is foretold the resurrection of the righteous.

We all need to be reminded of these teachings often, especially those of us in positions of influence and power.  I am sure that there are many leaders of the world today, and I guess you could name many of them, like me, very easily, who especially need to take heed of these words of scripture and of Jesus’s teachings generally throughout his ministry on Earth. 

I can do no better than, before we say a prayer, conclude with a quotation from Paul’s letter to the Romans which, I believe, summarises the message contained in this morning’s passages of scripture and this sermon:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. ² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.  ³ For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. (Romans 12:1-3)

Let us pray :

"Loving God, thank You for Your promise to bless those who help others in need, knowing that they cannot repay us. Forgive me when I only invest in those who can return my kindness. Father, open my eyes and give me the strength and resources to bless others, especially the poor and vulnerable, from whom I can expect nothing in return. May my actions bring glory to Your name and my body be a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to you. Through Jesus Christ your Son and Saviour” 

Amen

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SERMON 222 - SUNDAY 24 AUGUST 2025 - TRINITY 10

Sermon at Joint Service at All Saints’ Church, Winterslow - 10th Sunday after Trinity –Sunday 24 August 2025

Luke 13:10-17

May I speak in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and may these words be those of you, Lord, and may they be a blessing to all who listen and hear them.

In this morning’s gospel passage taken from Luke’s gospel, 13:10-17, we are presented with the story of Jesus healing a woman who had been crippled for 18 years. This passage is filled with powerful themes of compassion, healing, liberation, and the clash between religious legalism and the compassion of Jesus.

The story begins with Jesus teaching in a synagogue on the Sabbath. This was a common practice for Jesus, as he often used these opportunities to share important truths with those who were gathered to worship. On this particular Sabbath, Jesus noticed a woman who was bent over and unable to straighten up. This woman had been afflicted with this condition for 18 years, a significant amount of time to be suffering from such a debilitating ailment.

It is important to note that in Jewish culture at the time, physical ailments were often viewed as a result of sin or divine punishment, just as today, some of the prosperity gospel preachers use this as a way of extracting money from those who are suffering from disabilities and ailments. Therefore, this woman may have been marginalized and looked down upon by society due to her condition. However, Jesus does not see her as a sinner or someone deserving of her affliction. Instead, he is moved with compassion for her and reaches out to her, saying, "Woman, you are set free from your ailment" (Luke 13:12).

This act of healing demonstrates the power and compassion of Jesus. By healing this woman, Jesus not only physically restores her but also frees her from the burden of her affliction. He brings liberation and wholeness to her life, showing those around her, and us today, that his ministry is not just about words but about tangible acts of compassion and healing. This demonstrates Jesus as a caring and loving healer who is willing to reach out to those who are suffering and in need of his touch.

However, not everyone in the synagogue is pleased with Jesus' actions. The synagogue leader, who represents the religious authorities of the time, becomes angry that Jesus has healed on the Sabbath. In Jewish law, work was prohibited on the Sabbath, and healing was considered work. Therefore, the synagogue leader accuses Jesus of breaking the Sabbath law by performing this act of healing.

Jesus responds to the synagogue leader's accusation by pointing out the hypocrisy of the situation. He notes that even the religious leaders themselves would untie their animals and lead them to water on the Sabbath, showing compassion for their needs. Yet, they would deny this same compassion to a daughter of Abraham who had been suffering for 18 years. Jesus exposes the legalistic mindset of the religious leaders who prioritize rules over compassion and love for their fellow human beings.

Through this interaction, Jesus challenges the narrow-minded interpretation of the Sabbath law and redefines the true meaning of Sabbath. He shows that the Sabbath is not just a day to refrain from work but a day to show mercy and compassion to those who are suffering and in need. Jesus demonstrates that true Sabbath observance is about fulfilling the spirit of the law, which is love for God and love for neighbour.

In the end, Jesus' actions are vindicated, as the people rejoiced at the miraculous healing of the woman. They recognize the goodness and power of God at work through Jesus, and they glorify God for the wonderful things they have seen.

This passage therefore, invites us today to reflect on our own attitudes towards compassion, healing, and legalism. Are we like the religious leaders, who are quick to judge and condemn others for not following the letter of the law? Or are we like Jesus, who shows compassion and love to those who are suffering and in need?

As Christians, we are called to follow the example of Jesus and embody his compassion and love in all our dealings with others. We are called to prioritize mercy and justice over legalism and rigid adherence to rules. We are called to be agents of healing and liberation in a broken and hurting world, just as Jesus was for the woman in the synagogue.

As we look around us at the broken world today, where bigotry and prejudice seem to be on the increase, where communities and cultures are becoming split between “them and us”, we need to examine ourselves in this context – are we showing lack of mercy and compassion to those who are not like ourselves, or are we embracing the differences?

This passage also challenges us to examine our own attitudes towards Sabbath observance. Do we view the Sabbath as a legalistic obligation or as a day of rest and renewal? Are we willing to follow Jesus' example and challenge the status quo in order to bring healing and liberation to those who are suffering?

In conclusion, Luke 13:10-17 is a powerful and challenging passage that invites us to reflect on our understanding of compassion, healing, and legalism. It reminds us of the transformative power of Jesus' compassion and love, and calls us to emulate his example in our own lives.

Let us pray

Father God, may we be inspired by this story of the woman in the synagogue, being mindful of the words and teachings of your Son; may we show mercy and compassion to those who are suffering and in need, and help and guidance us to always prioritize love and justice over rigid adherence to rules and regulations so that we may truly be like Christ and worthy of your love. Through Jesus Christ our Lord,  Amen

 

 

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