St Clement Church Community Sunday Service
Good morning to you all as we celebrate our Third Sunday of Epiphany Service. I begin with the sad news of Barrie’s death in the early hours of Tuesday morning. His passing was peaceful whilst listening to Elgar’s ‘Nimrod.’ May he rest in peace and rise in Glory.
Let us pray;
Remember, O Lord, your servant Barrie, who has gone before us with the sign of faith and now rests in the sleep of peace.
We ask you to surround Barrie’s family with your love, that they may not be overwhelmed by their loss, but have confidence in your goodness, and strength to meet the days to come.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Hymn; ‘O Thou who camest from Above’
Our prayers of Penitence
During the season of Epiphany, let us seek the renewal of our lives in the light of God’s love for us, revealed by Jesus Christ:
Jesus, Saviour of all, who revealed the breadth of God’s love, forgive us when we fail to show care to those who are different…
Lord, have mercy.
Jesus, Son of God, who revealed the depth of God’s love, forgive us when we are too busy to pray, or to seek God’s will…
Christ, have mercy.
Jesus, Son of Man, who revealed the cost of God’s love, forgive us when we have made light of our sins…
Lord, have mercy.
May Almighty God, have mercy upon us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray our Collect for today
Almighty God, whose Son revealed in signs and miracles the wonder of your saving presence: renew your people with your heavenly grace, and in all our weakness sustain us by your mighty power, 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.
Readings:
Nehemiah 8. 1-3, 5-6, 8-10
1 Corinthians 12. 12-31a
Hymn; ‘Bethlehem of Noblest Cities’
Gospel Luke (4. 14-21)
(Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.
Response: ‘Glory to you O Lord.’)
Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’
And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’
(This is the Gospel of the Lord. Response: ‘Praise to you, O, Christ’)
Reflection
Luke’s Gospel tells us of the first act of public ministry of Jesus, so let’s consider what Jesus says in his inaugural address in his hometown synagogue. Following his baptism and time in the wilderness, Jesus returns to his home country, Galilee, where stories have been spreading about his healing miracles and synagogue teaching.
So, when he comes back home, it’s quite a big day in the synagogue, everybody’s there, eager to hear and see the local boy who’s been away making a name for himself. And when Jesus enters the synagogue that Sabbath morning, he’s asked to read the lesson from the prophets.
Now, unlike us, there’s no lectionary to consult to determine the reading; the choice is totally up to him, nor is there a book to flip through. Instead, a bulky scroll is brought to him and placed on the lectern. Jesus, searching for the text he wants, unrolls it to a place near the end of the scroll, and reads aloud these words:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives,
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”
Finished with these few verses, Jesus rolls up the scroll, returns it to the attendant, and takes his seat. It was the custom for teachers to sit, rather than to stand, so when Jesus sits, everyone looks at him, expecting some new commentary or explanation of the well-known text.
I imagine Jesus looking around at them, those familiar faces from his early years, older in appearance than before: his childhood friends, now present with their children; the parents of his friends, now senior citizens.
And he begins with a stunning sentence: words that remain just as provocative in our own time. He overthrows the expectations of the people around him by saying: “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Jesus does the unexpected, the unimaginable, on that memorable Sabbath morning in Nazareth. In today’s jargon, he claims for himself the ancient prophetic words as his own mission statement.
The reason God’s Spirit came down on him at his baptism was to empower him to do precisely this: To bring good news to the poor, proclaim release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, let the oppressed go free, and proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.
Jesus takes all this as his mission statement and isn’t content to leave it as only a string of high-sounding words, everything that follows in his life, as presented to us in the Gospels, amounts to the living out of the prophecy he claimed for himself that Sabbath morning in Nazareth. And he kept doing these things every chance he got, until finally it killed him. Killed by those who thought his murder would protect their comfortable, unfair advantage, and no longer make them question their complacency, and their infidelity to God.
They’re wrong, of course. Jesus rises from the dead and continues today to do what he talked about that Sabbath morning long ago, through his mystical body, the Church.
The poor gain hope, whether it’s their souls or their bodies that are starved.
The captives experience freedom, from whatever held them prisoner, be it lack of hope, bereavement or loneliness, to lead their lives to the full.
The blind receive sight, whether by the skill of cataract surgery, or the scales of prejudice falling off the eyes of a bigot.
The oppressed are set free, whether oppression is an unfair, enforced regime, or an ill-suited dependence.
When Jesus reads that passage in the Nazareth synagogue, he announces a mission statement for himself and for his body the Church, and we haven’t forgotten this here at St. Clement’s, the risen Christ is busy at work in this congregation.
For example, there are people in our local community whose stomachs are full because of the food we donate to the Foodbank.
There are people in this church this morning because somebody who already attends here spoke to them a word of Good News and walked with them on their journey to Christ.
These are only two examples, there are many, many more, some that go unrecognised, but are no less important in the eyes of God.
And who knows what new examples of living out the mission statement of Jesus will appear in the months and years ahead, if God willing, our new Benefice with St Allen allows our continued ministry here.
Today’s reading from First Corinthians is another important passage about how the Body of Christ, the Church, is to live out the mission statement of Jesus.
Number One. All members of this Church have gifts for ministry.
Number Two. The members of this Church have different gifts for ministry; we are not clones of each other.
Number Three. The different gifts come to life in the context of the whole.
We are all equal, no one is more important than the other, we cannot function without each other.
But as I mentioned earlier, we are about to start a new partnership with St Allen and both church communities will need to pool their different gifts and talents to enable the flourishing of a much-needed Christian presence in both places.
Jesus read the old words from Isaiah and claimed them for his own. And we can do the same as we listen to them again:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim
release to the captives,
recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”
Today, this scripture has been fulfilled in our hearing.
Amen
Hymn; ‘How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds’
Affirmation of our faith
Let us declare our faith in God.
We believe and trust in God the Father, source of all being and life, the one for whom we exist.
We believe and trust in God the Son, who took our human nature, died for us and rose again.
We believe and trust in God the Holy Spirit, who gives life to the people of God and makes Christ known in the world.
This is the faith of the Church. This is our faith.
We believe and trust in one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Our Intercessions are written by Helen Dunbar
Dear Lord, we bring before you on this third Sunday of Epiphany our prayers for the Church and the world, knowing that you are always there to hear us and help us.
We pray that the light of God will shine in all the dark corners of the Church, and set us free from prejudice, small-mindedness and hypocrisy; that as members of the Body of Christ we can move freely through the power of God wherever we are called to go, available and active in God’s service.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
We pray for peace in the world; for countries where there is war, for places where there is hatred and unrest between races. May bitterness and hatred be cast aside and may goodwill, peace and love abide in the hearts of all people.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Dear Lord, we ask your blessing on our church family here at St Clement. We ask for your guidance in all that we do, and that we are able to go forward in unity and faith. We give thanks for being part of this church.
We ask your blessing on all clergy, we especially think of our own much-loved Revd. Diane, not forgetting her supportive husband Ken.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
We pray for all who live in the local community and for our neighbours and friends and all people we come into contact with in our daily lives. We ask God’s blessing on all people in our country fighting for justice, peace and equality.
We ask God’s help for all those struggling to make ends meet, those who find it difficult to feed and clothe their children, more so during these winter months when fuel is costly. Give wisdom to all government and local authorities that they may find ways to help those in most need.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
We pray for all who are homeless and hungry as a result of wars and ongoing conflicts, people who are always looking over their shoulder, as they continually fear for their safety and that of their families, feeling totally powerless and overwhelmed by what is going on around them.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Bless and guide Charles our King and all members of the royal family as they go about their duties.
Comfort all those who suffer in body or mind or spirit; we pray in the quietness of our minds for all, who we know have need of You. Those who are sick, in hospital; those who are badly affected by financial problems; those who are lonely or depressed, or have no family to help and support them. Bless them and give them comfort and assurance and give us courage to do what we can to help. Give grace and strength to all whose lives are lived caring for others - we especially remember: Ken and Reverend Diane, May, Susan, Jan, Felicity, Lynda, Terry and Dot, Margaret, Maureen, Pam and David, Roger, Michael and Patricia, Daphne and Dave, Rob and Alison, Stella, Jeremy, William, Jane, Anita and Stephen, Callum and Elaine, Andy, Anne, Sue and Martin, Margaret and John, Dave and Jeanette, Jane, Carrie and John Paul, Tim and those who have no one to pray for them.
We remember the recently departed, we remember Barrie Anthony, who passed away last Tuesday morning surrounded by his loving wife Sandra and family, and Revd Di. Barrie was a much-loved member of our congregation here at St Clement, who will be greatly missed.
From our anniversaries book we remember Florence Bailey, Una Collins, Chris Easton, Joan Pearce and Ernest Albert Young.
Rejoicing in the fellowship of St Clement, St Andrew, St Allen and all the saints.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray with confidence as Jesus taught us;
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Barrie’s favourite Hymn: ‘Guide me O Thou Great Redeemer’
The Peace
Our Saviour Christ is the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end.
May the peace of God be always with us.
Amen.
Blessing
May Christ the Son of God perfect in us the image of his glory and gladden our hearts with the good news of his kingdom; and may the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among us, those whom we love, and remain with us always.
Amen.