This week’s Readings and Sermon for the Eighth Sunday After Trinity
The Collect for This Week
Almighty God, who sent your Holy Spirit to be the life and light of your Church: open our hearts to the riches of your grace, that we may bring forth the fruit of the Spirit in love and joy and peace; 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
Holy Father, who gathered us here around the table of your Son to share this meal with the whole household of God: in that new world where you reveal the fullness of your peace, gather people of every race and language to share in the eternal banquet of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
The Psalm for this Sunday is Psalm 17: 1-7, 16
1 Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry; give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit. 2 From you let my vindication come; let your eyes see the right. 3 If you try my heart, if you visit me by night, if you test me, you will find no wickedness in me; my mouth does not transgress. 4 As for what others do, by the word of your lips I have avoided the ways of the violent. 5 My steps have held fast to your paths; my feet have not slipped. 6 I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me, hear my words. 7 Wondrously show your steadfast love, O saviour of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand.
16 As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness.
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 Genesis, Chapter 32: 22-31
22 The same night he got up and took his two wives, his two maids, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 He took them and sent them across the stream, and likewise everything that he had. 24 Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, ‘Let me go, for the day is breaking.’ But Jacob said, ‘I will not let you go, unless you bless me.’ 27 So he said to him, ‘What is your name?’ And he said, ‘Jacob.’ 28 Then the man[a] said, ‘You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.’ 29 Then Jacob asked him, ‘Please tell me your name.’ But he said, ‘Why is it that you ask my name?’ And there he blessed him. 30 So Jacob called the place Peniel,[d] saying, ‘For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved.’ 31 The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip..
This is the Word of the Lord Thanks be to God
The second reading for this Sunday is taken from the Letter of St Paul to the Romans, Chapter 9: 1-5
1 I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience confirms it by the Holy Spirit— 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my own people, my kindred according to the flesh. 4 They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; 5 to them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, comes the Messiah,[b] who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen
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 14: 13-21
Hear the Gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ, according to Matthew Glory to You, o Lord
13 Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. 15 When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.’ 16 Jesus said to them, ‘They need not go away; you give them something to eat.’ 17 They replied, ‘We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.’ 18 And he said, ‘Bring them here to me.’ 19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children
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
The sermon this week is from rev Chich Hewitt
Years ago I was taking part in a Christmas concert in the Johannesburg City Hall. I arrived for an evening rehearsal, but something looked wrong. I moved up the aisle towards the stage, but a big man stood in my way and told me I couldn’t go any further. ‘But I am taking part’ I said indignantly. Fortunately I got no further. Some of us had been given the wrong rehearsal venue. I am glad I wasn’t allowed to take part, because it was an all-in wrestling tournament. I still have a picture of lying on my back with some huge hulk standing on the ropes and jumping on me.
Have you ever wrestled with God? It is not a process I would commend because there can only ever be one outcome. But it is at the centre of our Old Testament reading this morning so let us see what the outcome of the wrestling match was.
If you were here 2 weeks ago you would have heard the inspiring words from Bishop Matthew as he discussed Jacob’s dream as he fled from his brother, Esau. He realised that he was on holy ground when he dreamt of the ladder going up to heaven, on which angels ascended and descended. Jesus also made reference to that event when he told Bartholomew that he would “see greater things” than that.
Now 2 weeks later we have the story of Jacob returning to his land. Central to our faith are the stories of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and then all the sons of which Joseph was one. The family stories make for interesting reading, because they were rather dysfunctional families. At the start of our story today was the birth of Esau and Jacob. Isaac and Rebekah had struggled to have a family, but eventually twins were born, Esau and Jacob. They were non-identical twins. In the words of an amusing skit I once heard, ‘my brother, Esau, was a hairy man, but I, Jacob, am a smooth man.’ The is what we are told. Esau was the first to emerge and he was hairy. Isaac liked Esau who was a good hunter, but Rebekah devised a devious plot to get her husband Isaac, by then losing his eyesight, to bless Jacob instead of Esau. Do read it, because it is well told. Esau was furious and wanted to kill his brother, and so Rebekah persuaded Jacob to flee. This is where the story of the dream came in, which Bishop Matthew shared.
Jacob landed up staying with a relative, at a distance from home, and married his two daughters, Leah and Rachel. He was a successful herdsman but relations turned sour, and so he attempted to flee from Laban with his wives, children and flocks. Laban caught up with him and things could have turned nasty, especially because Rachel had stolen her father’s household gods. She got away with it, again by devious means - do read it - I won’t go into the details.
Anyway, Laban allows Jacob to leave, and so Jacob, now prosperous, leaves with 11 sons, another still to be born, and at least one daughter. And with large herds of animals. But he was almost certain to meet up with his brother. Would he still be angry? Jacob lay down to sleep when night came, and he was surely not at peace. This is where our story picks up. This time no dream, but something really strange. A man came and wrestled with him all night. There were no referees, or breaks of any sort. And Jacob seemed to be doing quite well, against this man who wanted to fight with him. When the stranger saw that he was not winning he managed to hit Jacob, dislocating his hip. Ow. The contest was over and the stranger had eventually won. Who was this person? In the conversation which followed, Jacob realised that he had been wrestling with God. The stranger told Jacob that he would no longer be called Jacob, but his name would be Israel. We are told that this name was given to him because he had striven with God and with humanity. We are told that he set off the next day, limping, because of his hip.
As an aside, and as I have become more interested in the theology of disability, the issue is one of a few instances in the Old Testament of disability, along with Moses being slow of speech, and the son of David’s close friend Jonathan (son of Saul) , who had been dropped as a child, with resultant paralysis.
Our story continues with Jacob on his way to meet Esau whom he finds out is coming towards him. Jacob, now Israel, is terrified and works out a complicated plan of appeasement. Interestingly he sends out his wives before him, with offerings of sheep and cattle, hoping his brother will not kill him. Remember he is at a disadvantage, limping after fighting all ight resulting in a dislocated hip. The subsequent story is also worth reading. Esau has put the past behind him, and it is one of the great stories in Genesis, one of reconciliation, along with another story later in Genesis, involving Joseph and his brothers.
This night encounter, wrestling with God, is a weird story, but still pertinent. When I am not at peace with myself, nights can be disturbing. Night-time is wonderful when we are at peace with God, and Bishop Matthew even suggested that we should be open to dreams, if God has something to share with us. But nighttime can be very frightening when we are not at peace, and when we are wrestling with doubts and fears.
With regard to past sin, we are now blessed in knowing of a loving God who will forgive us when we repent, not just once but always, and that is through the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf. Even before the era of Jesus, Jacob found unexpected forgiveness from his brother, and
reconciliation. How much stronger is our situation when Jesus forgives us? But what about the wrestling?
There are 2 further issues. The first relates to responding to God’s call. There are so many instances in scripture from Moses though to Paul on the road to Damascus, of those resisting the call of God and finally succumbing to it. I think of a man I met when I was beginning my training. He had worked underground in the gold mines, and he was wrestling with a voice saying, ‘why are you working down here, when you could be doing my work above ground?’ This led to his eventual ordination.
The other issue is more difficult and relates to the tasks to which God calls us when we have agreed to follow him. There is a pertinent text in Jeremiah, where the prophet called to warn his people of a coming invasion. After much suffering he had the dubious satisfaction of seeing his prophecy fulfilled. When wrestling with God he said, ‘O Lord, you have enticed me, and I was enticed. You have overpowered me and have prevailed. I have become a laughing stock, and everyone mocks me. When I speak I must cry out…if I say I will not mention Him or speak any more in his name, then there is something within me like a burning fire shut up in my bones. I am weary with holding it in.’ That says it so powerfully. Jeremiah is saying he would like the quiet life, but when he does not speak out, the message he has is so painful to withhold that he cannot refrain from speaking out the difficult words. With one current issue gnawing at me - that of climate breakdown -I know just a little of how he feels. The prophetic word which is unpopular will never easily be received. Ultimately it is no good wrestling with God, even if you feel at first you are winning. Yet in a wonderful way when you take on the task, He will comfort and encourage you. Who knows, it may come in a dream. Paul had that experience. When under arrest he caused the Pharisees and Sadducees to argue with each other. And then at night he had a dream where God compliments him and encourages him to keep going.
The issues can be wide ranging, and I end with one challenge from the end of our Gospel passage in the well-known story of the feeding of the 5,000 (told in all 4 Gospels). Jesus asked that all fragments left over be collected up, so that in the words of one of the Gospels, “nothing be wasted”. Related to environmental issues is food waste, a discussion within itself. I have to wrestle with God on that, because I am guilty of that. Food we forget about goes to waste, when so many have so little. I was also brought up to eat everything on my plate - difficult to forget. So when we are moved by God, who can be persistent, it is preferable to act on his call. Doing so might result in a dream of encouragement rather than a wrestling match which we are bound to lose. In Jesus’ words, ‘Lo, I am with you even to the end of the age.’ The one who wrestles with us is also the one who supports us on our journeys.
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