A Morning Service for the Second Sunday of Lent 2022
HYMN – Be thou my guardian and my guide NEH 64 – Abridge
1 Be thou my guardian and my guide,
And hear me when I call;
Let not my slippery footsteps slide,
And hold me lest I fall.
2 The world, the flesh, and Satan dwell
Around the path I tread;
O, save me from the snares of hell,
Thou quickener of the dead.
3 And if I tempted am to sin,
And outward things are strong,
Do thou, O Lord, keep watch within,
And save my soul from wrong.
4 Still let me ever watch and pray,
And feel that I am frail;
That if the tempter cross my way,
Yet he may not prevail.
PRAYER OF PREPARATION
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord. Amen
PRAYERS OF PENITENCE
God the Father forgives us in Christ and heals us by the Holy Spirit.
Let us therefore put away all anger and bitterness, all slander and malice,
and confess our sins to God our redeemer. cf. Ephesians 4.30,32
Almighty God, our heavenly Father,
we have sinned against you and against our neighbour,
through our own fault, in thought, and word, and deed,
and in what we have left undone.
We are truly sorry and repent of all our sins.
For your Son our Lord Jesus Christ’s sake,
forgive us all that is past;
and grant that we may serve you in newness of life
to the glory of your name. Amen.
May the God of love and power
forgive you and free you from your sins,
heal and strengthen you by his Spirit
and raise you to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen
THE COLLECT
Almighty God,
you show to those who are in error the light of your truth,
that they may return to the way of righteousness:
grant to all those who are admitted
into the fellowship of Christ’s religion,
that they may reject those things
that are contrary to their profession,
and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same;
through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen
FIRST READING – Genesis 15.1-8, 18-21
After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir.” But the word of the LORD came to him, “This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir.” He brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” And he believed the LORD; and the LORD reckoned it to him as righteousness.
On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
HYMN – All ye who seek a comfort sure – St Bernard – NEH 63
1 All ye who seek a comfort sure
In trouble and distress,
Whatever sorrow vex the mind,
Or guilt the soul oppress,
2 Jesus, who gave himself for you
Upon the cross to die,
Opens to you his sacred heart;
O to that heart draw nigh.
3 Ye hear how kindly he invites;
Ye hear his words so blest–
‘All ye that labour come to me,
And I will give you rest.’
4 O Jesus, joy of saints on high,
Thou hope of sinners here,
Attracted by those loving words
To thee I lift my prayer.
5 Wash thou my wounds in that dear blood
Which forth from thee doth flow;
New grace, new hope inspire, a new
And better heart bestow.
GOSPEL – Luke 13.31-35
At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”
SERMON
“How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not.”
What a metaphor to choose, a mother hen! Where’s the biblical precedent for that? Wouldn’t the mighty eagle of Exodus, or Hosea’s stealthy leopard been far more appropriate, or how about the proud Lion of Judah? Compared to any of those a mother hen that does not inspire much confidence. But a hen is how Jesus chose to describe the way that he would relate to the people of Jerusalem. They longed for a champion, they longed for somebody who would take matters in hand, lead them to death or glory. How disappointing to be offered a hen.
But then Jesus was always turning things upside down so that children and the poor wind up on top while kings and priests end up on the bottom. He is always wrecking our expectations of how things should turn out – giving prizes to losers and paying the last first. What he chooses to be is a mother hen, a creature with no obvious power, no offensive weapons, but a creature who would stand between her chicks and those would mean to do them harm. All she has is her willingness to shield her own with her own body.
The writers of Genesis tell us that the Lord God made a covenant with Abraham, he promised he would make him the father of a multitude and give him a land he could call his own – he promised him a place in the world. The story of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the story of this promise, indeed in many ways it is central story of the Hebrew Bible.
It is a subtle story of faith and waiting and trusting and reliance upon a voice, a voice that is understood to be God’s and that draws this man and his family on, it is also a story of failure and disappointment, trial and challenge. There is much to learn from this story, much to learn in the trusting and waiting and the faithfulness. But perhaps it must never now be told without the words of Jesus, without the metaphor of the mother hen and an understanding that this God of promise is also a God of peace, that this God of faithfulness is also the God who would sacrifice himself, a God of love and compassion for all people; including incidentally the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites. They were people too, people who needed their portion of the promised land, not something the writers of the book of Joshua were very interested in.
Faith makes the same demands of us that it did of Abraham and his children – that we recognise him when he comes to us in the present and accept his call to follow him. Learning such faith will require much of our attention – and no little commitment.
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
Let us declare our faith in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures;
he was buried; he was raised to life on the third day
in accordance with the scriptures;
afterwards he appeared to his followers,
and to all the apostles:
this we have received,
and this we believe. Amen. 1 Corinthians 15.3-7
HYMN – In the cross of Christ I glory NEH 379 – Wychbold
1 In the cross of Christ I glory,
Towering o’er the wrecks of time;
All the light of sacred story
Gathers round its head sublime.
2 When the woes of life o’ertake me,
Hopes deceive and fears annoy,
Never shall the Cross forsake me:
Lo! it glows with peace and joy.
3 When the sun of bliss is beaming
Light and love upon my way,
From the Cross the radiance streaming,
Adds more lustre to the day.
4 Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure,
By the Cross are sanctified;
Peace is there that knows no measure,
Joys that through all time abide.
INTERCESSIONS – Val Etteridge
Lord we praise and thank you for this new day and ask you to guide our thoughts and hear our prayers. We pray first for the world wide Christian church and we remember especially your church in Ukraine, be with all those who minister there, the chaplains and clergy and give them wisdom and the help of the Holy Spirit. We pray for all everywhere who preach the Christian gospel and tell of your love and grace and ask that their words may enter the minds and hearts of those who listen and hear.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayer
Gracious Lord we pray next for our world, for a beautiful and wonderful place which we are spoiling, by our greed, our seeking for power and wealth. We pray for all the suffering in this world, the helplessness of the weak and those struggling to survive.
God of peace and justice, we pray for the people of Ukraine. We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons, We pray for all those who fear for tomorrow that your Spirit of comfort will draw near to them. We pray for those with power over war or peace, we ask for wisdom, discernment and compassion to guide their decisions. Above all we pray for all your people, at risk and in fear that you will hold and protect them. We ask it in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayer
Dear Father we bring before you our own country and the area in which we live. We thank you for the feeling we have here of safety and care. Bless the queen and her family and bless our own families and those dear to us. We pray too for the sick in body, mind or spirit and we name Hilary Venn and in a moments silence name any known to us…………. Father, heal the sick, give peace to the dying and comfort all who mourn.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayer
As we move through this beautiful world, may we vow to be a beacon of peace, a fearless carrier of respect and loving kindness for all life, a teller of truth, a voice for justice, a protector of those who are vulnerable and targeted. May the power of wisdom, integrity and compassion be our guide.
Merciful Father,
accept these prayers, for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
BLESSING
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make his face to shine upon and be gracious unto you.
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
The Lord God almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
the holy and undivided Trinity, guard you, save you,
and bring you to that heavenly city, where he lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen
HYMN – The God of Abraham praise NEH 148 – Leoni
1 The God of Abraham praise
Who reigns enthroned above,
Ancient of everlasting days,
And God of love:
To him uplift your voice,
At whose supreme command
From earth we rise and seek the joys
At his right hand.
4 There dwells the Lord our King,
The Lord our Righteousness,
Triumphant o’er the world and sin,
The Prince of Peace:
On Sion’s sacred height
His kingdom he maintains,
And glorious with his saints in light
For ever reigns.
6 Before the great Three-One
They all exulting stand,
And tell the wonders he has done
Throughout the land:
The listening spheres attend,
And swell the growing fame,
And sing in songs which never end
The wondrous name.
8 The whole triumphant host
Give thanks to God on high:
‘Hail, Father, Son and Holy Ghost’
They ever cry:
Hail, Abraham’s God and mine!
(I join the heavenly lays)
All might and majesty are thine,
And endless praise.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord
In the name of Christ. Amen