Sermon at St. John’s Church, West Grimstead - 8th Sunday after Trinity – Sunday 10 August 2025
Genesis 15:1-6; Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16; Luke
12:32-40
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.
Did you notice how both our First and Gospel
Readings began this morning? On both occasions the Word of God/Jesus started
with the phrase “Do not be afraid?”. In fact, that phrase, and words with the
same meaning, occurs in the Bible, it is said, 365 times – once for each day of
the year but, as I have never counted them, I can’t say for certain that this
is true. It does appear, however, more times in the Old Testament than in the
New. Whatever the numerology, it is a
phrase which is encouraging to us all reminding us that if we have a belief in
the Trinity, we have nothing to fear but fear itself as a previous United
States President once stated.
With this in mind, each of our three readings
this morning reminds us of God’s awesome, and at the same time, inexplicable or
supernatural power.
Of course, I love our First Reading from
Genesis – that occasion when God, in a Vision, informed an elderly man, Abram
(as he was then known), that despite his age and childlessness, he would found
a dynasty – that he would have descendants more numerous than the stars in the
sky. Abram is asked to count them, if he
can, and today we know that there are at least 100 billion stars in our Milky
Way Galaxy with a further several trillion galaxies in our known Universe. How awesome is that? To put it in context, the stars of the cosmos
far exceed the grains of sand on every beach in the world!
Abram had been disappointed and fearful that
he had no issue of his own and that it would have to be the descendants of one
of his slaves who would inherit his wealth – for Abram, we read, was an
exceedingly wealthy man. We read that he and his wife, Sarah, were in their
eighties and so it seemed a biological impossibility that they could have
children. Of course, we know that God’s message to Abram came good and his
wishes for a family was answered.
In our second reading, the author of Hebrews,
who, for a number of reasons, we do not believe was Paul but probably one of
his acolytes, is writing to the Jewish Christian followers, mainly in
Jerusalem, who were being persecuted by orthodox Jews and being tempted to give
up following Jesus and return to traditional Judaism. For many biblical
scholars and general Christians this is the most important epistle after Paul’s
letter to the Romans and is a great book to read at times when our faith is
being challenged or we have doubts.
The essence of Hebrews is to remind the reader
that what has gone on before in the Old Testament is a prophecy and places the
New Testament in the context of the history of the Jewish Faith – a
continuation and therefore not at variance with Jewish tradition. Jesus reminded his followers that he had not
come to overthrow the Old but to fulfil it.
The writer, in the passage read out this
morning, is reminding his Jewish recipients of his letter of the events
portrayed in our First Reading and by Faith and Obedience, Abram/Abraham he
received all that had been promised to him and therefore his original fears had
been overcome. Towards the end of the
passage, the author reminds his readers that Abraham and his family and
followers had also to be treated as strangers and foreigners when they left
their homeland but because of their faith and obedience and would reach a
better heavenly one.
So here we see again the message of trusting
in God and thus overcoming our fear even if the tasks may seem fearful and
impossible. We are to take our faith
beyond our small parochial orbit, so to speak, and realise and appreciate the
vastness and awesomeness of God’s kingdom.
Our Gospel reading is quite a familiar one but
I think it does need some explanation.
Again, the passage begins with Jesus telling
his disciples not to be afraid. He is telling them that whatever might happen
to them here in Earth, because of their love and generosity and readiness to
trust in God, they can receive the Kingdom of Heaven where nothing passes away,
nothing rots, (where no moths can destroy as he puts it) unlike here. He is
setting the tone to trust and rely on God and not earthly efforts.
In fact, this passage encourages all who
believe to detach themselves from material possessions and to invest in
heavenly treasures; to live in anticipation of the Lord’s return for, as he
says, where your heart is, there you treasure will be also. To invest in the material world of today is
to invest in all that will disappear and not what will endure. My grandfather in Norfolk worked for the
local carpenter and funeral director and he had a very simple life, not storing
up riches but by enjoying God’s creation in the countryside around him. He never had much money or many holidays but
simply soaked up the wonderful scenery where he lived. He once told me that the reason for this was
that during all the time he had been working for the funeral director he had
never seen pockets in a shroud. “You
can’t take it with you” so he chose not to spend his time on gaining material
wealth. My grandfather indulged in
focussing on spiritual riches in his loving and compassionate manner rather
than material wealth. As a result, he became my favourite grandparent. A simple but, in his way, very spiritual man.
Jesus, also in this passage, reminds us, with
his analogy of the servants waiting for the return of their master, to be ever
vigilant about Jesus’s own return. We must be ready and not found wanting when
he does return. We should practice those
virtues which he taught us in the gospel and for this purpose we have the Holy
Spirit to assist us in that life of readiness and vigilance expecting his
return at any time; not to be complacent or indolent but alert and ready.
Finally, in this gospel passage, Jesus is
promising that those who wait and serve will themselves be waited upon and
served by the master, highlighting the theme of humble service and turning
social hierarchy on its head. Our humble
service will lead, in other words, to God’s graciousness.
In essence, therefore, the three takeaways
from our three readings today, and in particular our gospel reading are as
follows:
·
As Christians we should trust in God’s
provisions for us and not be afraid
·
We should prioritise spiritual wealth over
material possessions and live with generosity and compassion towards others
- Be ready for Christ's
return through a life of service and faith.
So, what is
your action plan going forward? Which of these will you prioritise and how will
do it? If you are doing it already, how
can you improve upon what you are doing?
A good
start is, of course prayer, so let us pray:
"Father God, I come
before you acknowledging your awesome power and sovereignty. I recognize that
you are the source of all strength and comfort. Help me to replace my fear with
your peace, knowing that you are with me always. Help me to be ever ready for
your return and to be there for all those in need of your grace and compassion;
to be a channel of your love for all creation. Finally, thank you for your
unending love and for being my refuge. Through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord
and ever-present Saviour."
Amen MFB/221/06082025
No comments:
Post a Comment