This week’s Readings and Sermon for the fourth Sunday of Advent
The Collect for This Week
O God, who by the leading of a star manifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth: mercifully grant that we, who know you now by faith, may at last behold your glory face to face; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
The Post Communion Prayer for this week
Psalm 72, verses 1 to 15
1 Give the king your judgements, O God, and your righteousness to the son of a king. 2 Then shall he judge your people righteously and your poor with justice. 3 May the mountains bring forth peace, and the little hills righteousness for the people. 4 May he defend the poor among the people, deliver the children of the needy and crush the oppressor. 5 May he live as long as the sun and moon endure, from one generation to another. 6 May he come down like rain upon the mown grass, like the showers that water the earth. 7 In his time shall righteousness flourish, and abundance of peace till the moon shall be no more. 8 May his dominion extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. 9 May his foes kneel before him and his enemies lick the dust. 10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall pay tribute; the kings of Sheba and Seba shall bring gifts. 11 All kings shall fall down before him; all nations shall do him service.12 For he shall deliver the poor that cry out, the needy and those who have no helper. 13 He shall have pity on the weak and poor; he shall preserve the lives of the needy. 14 He shall redeem their lives from oppression and violence, and dear shall their blood be in his sight. 15 Long may he live; unto him may be given gold from Sheba; may prayer be made for him continually and may they bless him all the day long.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning is now and shall be forever. Amen
The Old Testament Reading for this Sunday is taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah Chapter 60, verses 1 to 6
1Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. 2 For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. 3 Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. 4 Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms. 5 Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you. 6 A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come.They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord.
This is the Word of the Lord Thanks be to God
The New Testament reading for this Sunday is taken from the Letter of St Paul to the Ephesians, Chapter 3 verses 1 to 12
1 This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— 2 for surely you have already heard of the commission of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, 4 a reading of which will enable you to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. 5 In former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: 6 that is, the Gentiles have become fellow-heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
7 Of this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the working of his power. 8 Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, 9 and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; 10 so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was in accordance with the eternal purpose that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith in him.
This is the Word of the Lord Thanks be to God
The Gospel reading for this Sunday is taken from the Gospel of St Matthew Chapter 2, verses 1 to 12
Hear the Gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ, according to Matthew Glory to You, o Lord
1 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’ 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
6 “And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.” ’
7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’ 9 When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to You, o Christ
Note :All readings are shared from the Church of England Lectionary App and are subject to copyright . © The Archbishop’s Council
As this week’s service is a joint one with our friends at Rakefoot Methodist Church, there is no sermon at Goodshaw this week. However, here is the sermon which Rev Chich Hewitt delivered on Christmas Day
Over the past few years, we have enjoyed visits to the Edinburgh Festival during August. We attend concerts in which our older daughter sings in the Festival Chorus, and where we take in other events of interest. But it has become very difficult to find accommodation, and when we find it, it is very expensive. Fortunately we have managed to find comparatively cheap accommodation, which we could afford. But what of someone who comes to the city and cannot find anywhere to stay, because there is ‘no room in the inn’?
This was the experience the heavily pregnant Mary along with Joseph had, on a journey to Bethlehem, now in the hard to access area of the West Bank. They were not going to a concert, but to register in a census operation demanded of them by the authorities. If God had elected to come into the world alongside humanity he surely could have chosen a more comfortable option. But God chose the difficult path, experiencing what poor people without privilege experienced. I can think of a present world leader who would term them ‘losers’.
Our God is a God of surprise, and over and over in the scriptures we see God springing surprise upon God’s creation. While there was an expectation at that time of a Messiah figure, nobody would have anticipated the ‘word being made flesh and dwelling among us.’ And when Jesus was born ,God had another surprise to spring on the world. The first to be told about this birth were not rich and famous people, but some of the least regarded in society - shepherds.
If you want people to engage with something, it needs to be exciting and, yes, memorable. I think God was excited when he sent his son into the world. This was a moment which had been spoken about for years beforehand, but now the moment was here. God chose ordinary shepherds to be the first to know, and the message was dramatic. The angel appeared to these startled shepherds, telling them that there was a very important birth which had just taken place. They were the first to know, and they must go and see for themselves. And then Heaven opened and there appeared many, many angels all praising God. God was doing a new thing, and all of heaven was excited. This was in the now contested town of Bethlehem.
Isn’t it funny the way we mark Christmas? There is a huge build-up in the shops - food, Christmas music, presents, cards, counting down to Christmas. And then Christmas day comes, and no doubt the morning is exciting for children as they check presents. And then everything ends. Christmas Eve services are well attended, but by comparison very few seem come to church on Christmas Day, except in cathedrals. And then the excitement is all over. We put Christmas behind us, and move on. What next?
For us as Christians, this is where things begin, rather than where things end. God and the Heavenly Host were excited when Jesus came into the world. The Big Moment had arrived. What next? God’s own dear son had appeared in the world as a baby. Did he then get grabbed back into heaven? No, this is where the action began and it was tough, because God came to be alongside human beings, who were getting things wrong. This was the beginning, not the end. Now began growing up, baptism, ministry, teaching, healing, opposition - and then a cruel death. Yet God had a bigger, and even more dramatic plan.
When you think about it, there was a lot to be excited about. And while the world moves on to New Year and struggling with all that faces us in the new year, we will be part of that. But it is worth remembering and reminding ourselves that God came and experienced what it was like, and that God goes with us on that journey. Christmas may come to an abrupt end after lots of preparation, but what Christmas really means has just begun, and we are to take that message with us.
Is it possible to keep the message of Christmas alive? Our excitement and enthusiasm are important, but it is hard to maintain that energy. There IS one other important thing we can do. At the beginning I said our message needs not only to be exciting but memorable. And here we can learn some lessons from the world around us. If we can make our message memorable, that would be so good.
Politicians have learned the art of generating short, pithy phrases which are memorable, even if they are not achievable or not even true. Is there not something we can learn from this? A few years ago, as I have mentioned before, Dr Sam Wells, rector of St Martin’s in the Field, in London, was reflecting on this issue of a short sharp message, and left us with just 3 words relating to the Nativity ‘God showed up’.
When the world was in need, and not certain of its direction, ‘God showed up’. I would go further and put that in the present. Because as much as God showed up in the babe of Bethlehem, in a stable, God’s promise was to remain. God shows up. God continues to show up when we need him, and it does not always happen in the way we are expecting. But here is a phrase, short and sweet - and true. Many years ago, God showed up and did something startling, ending with resurrection. And at the moment when he returned to the Father, he said, Behold, I am with you always to the end of the age’. All those years ago, God showed up. And now God shows up.
It is so easy to put our faith in to the past tense. Yeas ago, at high school in Johannesburg, South Africa, I remember the chairperson of the College Council coming forward to read a lesson at an important church service. He had a presence about him as he read the lesson. When visiting their home to see his son I had mentioned that I was sensing a calling to full-time ministry. The man replied that he could not see that something which happened two thousand years ago had relevance to the present age. This came as a shock, especially as I had assumed he had a faith, and it was a learning experience about how the world works.
If the Christian story were just an event of the past - an inspiring story, but just a story - then indeed it might inspire us to be better people through our own efforts. But Christianity is a faith for all times, and our God is a God of the present. We not only believe that Jesus is alive but we believe it is possible to have a living relationship with him. And that the good in the lives that we live are not self-generated, but arise out of a living relationship with a personal friend, who lives in our hearts in the presence of the Holy Spirit. ‘God showed up’ is a pithy phrase to describe and remember Christmas. But the relevance to our faith its not only that. It is that God showed up, God shows up, and God will continue to show up.’
I wish you a holy and happy Christmas.