This week’s Readings and Sermon for the Fifth Sunday After Trinity
The Collect for This Week
Gracious Father, by the obedience of Jesus you brought salvation to our wayward world: draw us into harmony with your will, that we may find all things restored in him, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
The Post Communion Prayer for this week
Eternal God, comfort of the afflicted and healer of the broken, you have fed us at the table of life and hope: teach us the ways of gentleness and peace, that all the world may acknowledge the kingdom of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
The Psalm for this Sunday is Psalm13
11 the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your lord, bow to him; 12 the people of Tyre will seek your favour with gifts, the richest of the people 13 with all kinds of wealth. The princess is decked in her chamber with gold-woven robes; 14 in many-coloured robes she is led to the king; behind her the virgins, her companions, follow. 15 With joy and gladness they are led along as they enter the palace of the king. 16 In the place of ancestors you, O king, shall have sons; you will make them princes in all the earth. 17 I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations; therefore the peoples will praise you for ever and ever.
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 24, verses 34-38, 42- 49 &58-67
34 So he said, ‘I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord has greatly blessed my master, and he has become wealthy; he has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female slaves, camels and donkeys. 36 And Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old; and he has given him all that he has. 37 My master made me swear, saying, “You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live; 38 but you shall go to my father’s house, to my kindred, and get a wife for my son.”
42 ‘I came today to the spring, and said, “O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, if now you will only make successful the way I am going! 43 I am standing here by the spring of water; let the young woman who comes out to draw, to whom I shall say, ‘Please give me a little water from your jar to drink,’ 44 and who will say to me, ‘Drink, and I will draw for your camels also’—let her be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.”
45 ‘Before I had finished speaking in my heart, there was Rebekah coming out with her water-jar on her shoulder; and she went down to the spring, and drew. I said to her, “Please let me drink.” 46 She quickly let down her jar from her shoulder, and said, “Drink, and I will also water your camels.” So I drank, and she also watered the camels. 47 Then I asked her, “Whose daughter are you?” She said, “The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.” So I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her arms. 48 Then I bowed my head and worshipped the Lord, and blessed the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way to obtain the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. 49 Now then, if you will deal loyally and truly with my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so that I may turn either to the right hand or to the left.’
59 So they sent away their sister Rebekah and her nurse along with Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,
‘May you, our sister, become thousands of myriads; may your offspring gain possession of the gates of their foes.’
61 Then Rebekah and her maids rose up, mounted the camels, and followed the man; thus the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.
62 Now Isaac had come from Beer-lahai-roi, and was settled in the Negeb. 63 Isaac went out in the evening to walk[b] in the field; and looking up, he saw camels coming. 64 And Rebekah looked up, and when she saw Isaac, she slipped quickly from the camel, 65 and said to the servant, ‘Who is the man over there, walking in the field to meet us?’ The servant said, ‘It is my master.’ So she took her veil and covered herself. 66 And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent. He took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.
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 7, verses 15-25a
15 I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. 17 But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me.
21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, 23 but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin.
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 11, verses 16-19 & 25-30
Hear the Gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ, according to Matthew Glory to You, o Lord
16 ‘‘But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market-places and calling to one another, 17 “We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.”
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, “He has a demon”; 19 the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!” Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.’
20 Then he began to reproach the cities in which most of his deeds of power had been done, because they did not repent. 21 ‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, on the day of judgement it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades.
For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 But I tell you that on the day of judgement it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom than for you.’
25 At that time Jesus said, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
28 ‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’
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
This week’s sermon is delivered by Lorraine Ashworth
Have you ever felt that you can’t do right for doing wrong? That whatever you do, with whatever good intention, somebody will find a reason to complain?
I remember that I once went to do some shopping for my sister before she could drive. I bought everything on her list, including the orange juice. But I didn’t know that she normally bought the giant size and I only got her the normal one! So I got told off good and proper – for doing her a favour!
And when Ruth was in Miss Dawson’s class at Crawshawbooth school, she got told off because her handwriting was big and untidy. So she tried her best to improve it. Of course, when your handwriting is neater, it is smaller, so Miss Dawson then told her off again for not writing as many lines as the other people on her table. Told off for trying to do the right thing. Has this ever happened to any of you?
And it’s not just a modern situation either. Look at the reading from St Matthew's Gospel that we’ve just had.
More than two thousand years ago, John the Baptist, a prophet, fasted in the wilderness. He didn’t eat and he didn’t drink. For a certain length of time, not his whole life of course. Was he doing the right thing? No! He was called – left, right and centre. ‘He’s got a demon in him’ they said. Perhaps today we might say he was mentally unstable – or worse, that he was a nutter!
And Jesus himself? Yes, once again the people said he was doing the wrong thing because he was eating and drinking! Of course, he was eating and drinking with the wrong people! The thieves, tax collectors, all the people who were considered bad!
But both John and Jesus knew that even though they were rubbing people up the wrong way, they were doing what God wanted them to do!
And Jesus is the son of God so he should know a little bit about his Father.
So… our memories may be a bit hazy but what can we remember about our parents? How well did we know them?
What was your dad’s favourite football team?
What did he like to eat for breakfast?
How often did he do the ironing?
And what about mums?
What was your mum’s favourite colour?
How often did she mow the lawn?
Which soap did she watch on tv?
So we know a bit about your parents.
Now can anyone tell me something special about their parents – maybe a favourite item of clothing, a place they liked to go, an object they treasured, a hobby? My Dad used to drive lorries carrying parts of aircraft through the centre of York – under those narrow arches in the walls and he was very happy that he didn’t once get stuck!
Parents and children know a lot about each other because they live together. But Jesus doesn’t just live with his Father in Heaven, He isn’t just the Son of God, He is God so Jesus knew and still knows everything about His Heavenly Father. And he was able to tell his friends just what his Father was like. He knew what would please his Father.
What do you think would make or would have made your parents happy?
I want to ask everyone now, what do you think would most please God, the God WE call Our Father?
You are right; being good, doing good things, caring for others, following Jesus' examples are what please God. But we can’t do it on our own. Even Saint Paul struggled to do the right thing.
You’d have thought he’d have got it sussed; he was surely an upright, God fearing Christian, always to be relied upon for doing the right thing – right? Nope! He calls himself a wretched man. SAINT Paul says that he can’t do right because he is doing wrong.
It’s quite confusing to read this passage isn’t it – it’s hard to know where to put the stresses to make sense of it all, but my understanding is that, in a nutshell, this passage talks of Paul wanting to do what is right and pleasing to God; knowing in his mind what he should do, but being let down by parts of his body because sin has control over it.
Perhaps he is thinking badly about someone for no reason, perhaps saying unkind words or cursing the stones he trips over. Maybe he is falling asleep instead of praying – we’ve all done that I’m sure. Maybe he neglects studying the scriptures because there is something more urgent or enjoyable to do. So how can we hope to be good if somebody like St Paul can’t be?
Well Paul says that it is Jesus that has rescued us from the power of sin. The same Jesus that the people thought was doing wrong when he was doing what God the Father wanted him to do!
Perhaps that’s all any of us can do. Follow what we believe to be the will of God, guided by His Spirit through prayer, reading the Bible and being advised by our ministers, our families, teachers etc. If we keep on doing that, then no matter what criticism is thrown at us, we can cope. We can be faithful!
Jesus has told us that He will give us rest, maybe not a lie down with a brew watching TV, but rest for our souls. A deep peace that comes from doing what He wants us to
If we keep trusting in Jesus, he will continue to love us and he will help us, even when we get it wrong. Amen.