Morning Service for Trinity 8 2023
HYMN – Be thou my vision – NEH 339 – Slane
1 Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,
Be all else but naught to me,
save that thou art,
Be thou my best thought in the day
and the night,
Both waking and sleeping,
thy presence my light.
2 Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true word
Be thou ever with me, and I with thee, Lord,
Be thou my great Father, and I thy true son,
Be thou in me dwelling, and I with thee one.
3 Be thou my breastplate,
my sword for the fight,
Be thou my whole armour,
be thou my true might,
Be thou my soul’s shelter,
be thou my strong tower,
O raise thou me heavenward,
great Power of my power.
4 Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Be thou my inheritance now and always,
Be thou and thou only the first in my heart,
O Sovereign of heaven, my treasure thou art.
5 High King of heaven, thou heaven’s bright Sun,
O grant me its joys after victory is won,
Great Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be thou my vision, O Ruler of all.
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
We recall our Lord’s command to love and in a moment of silence we confess
the many ways we fail to keep his command:
Most merciful God,
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
we confess that we have sinned
in thought, word and deed.
We have not loved you with our whole heart.
We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.
In your mercy forgive what we have been,
help us to amend what we are,
and direct what we shall be;
that we may do justly, love mercy,
and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen
May the God of love and power
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE COLLECT
Almighty Lord and everlasting God,
we beseech you to direct, sanctify and govern
both our hearts and bodies
in the ways of your laws
and the works of your commandments;
that through your most mighty protection, both here and ever,
we may be preserved in body and soul;
through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, Amen.
FIRST READING – Genesis 29.15-28
Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah’s eyes were lovely, and Rachel was graceful and beautiful. Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.
Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” So Laban gathered together all the people of the place, and made a feast. But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. (Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maid.) When morning came, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” Laban said, “This is not done in our country—giving the younger before the firstborn. Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” Jacob did so, and completed her week; then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as a wife.
HYMN Dear Lord and father of mankind NEH 353/AMR 184 – Repton
1 Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
Forgive our foolish ways!
Re-clothe us in our rightful mind,
In purer lives thy service find,
In deeper reverence praise.
2 In simple trust like theirs who heard,
Beside the Syrian sea,
The gracious calling of the Lord,
Let us, like them, without a word
Rise up and follow thee.
3 O Sabbath rest by Galilee!
O calm of hills above,
Where Jesus knelt to share with thee
The silence of eternity,
Interpreted by love!
4 Drop thy still dews of quietness,
Till all our strivings cease;
Take from our souls the strain and stress,
And let our ordered lives confess
The beauty of thy peace.
5 Breathe through the heats of our desire
Thy coolness and thy balm;
Let sense be dumb, let flesh retire;
Speak through the earthquake,
wind, and fire,
O still small voice of calm!
GOSPEL – Matthew 13.31-33,44-52
He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”
He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
“Have you understood all this?” They answered, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”
SERMON
The parables of the mustard seed, the leaven, the treasure in the field, the pearl of great price, and the net full of fish.
More parables for us to ponder, parables we have known from our childhood, and heard countless sermons on, I am sure. Most of you will know my thoughts regarding the interpretation of the parables – how I believe their re-telling by the gospel and pseudo-gospel writers to have have been much influenced by the writers’ own situations and the audiences they were writing for. This is not revolutionary stuff – all academic biblical scholars would hold this position.
But how can we tell what Jesus meant by his parables if they were so susceptible to being changed and reinterpreted? Having four gospels helps enormously, where there is common ground each writer’s perspective becomes visible and so may be taken into account. Discovering Matthew, Mark, Luke and John’s own understanding of Jesus’ teaching and mission is worthwhile in itself. But freeing the parables to speak to us less encumbered by the straitjackets put upon them by others can allow them, and therefore Jesus, to speak to us afresh from across the millennia.
The parable of the mustard seed I have spoken about many times, but without repeating myself too much it is interesting to look it alongside the parable of the yeast. Both the mustard seed and the yeast are difficult substances for the Torah. The Torah required order in all things – this lead to the stipulation that crops must not be mixed (Leviticus 19.19). It is hard to avoid some mixing of crops with the self seeding mustard plant, so there were elaborate rules where you could and couldn’t plant mustard seed. The fact that yeast must be cleared out of the kitchen during the days of passover, and that it is very difficult to get rid of prior to cooking the unleavened bread for passover, ranks it with mustard as a polluting commodity on the borders of acceptability. Both must be contained and proscribed. So likening them to the kingdom of heaven, the rule of God on earth, present in simple acts of kindness, compassion and forgiveness, said a lot about the subversive and insidious working of the kingdom in the margins of what men [sic] regarded as unholy.
If we can find commonality in the first two of our parables, we can do the same with the second pair. The peasant buying a field to secure the treasure buried in it, and the merchant buying the pearl of great price both seem to point to one clear message – that the kingdom of heaven is worth not less than everything. But it is also worth noting a feature common to both stories – that both the peasant and the merchant both have to sell all they have in order to buy their respective treasures. And here we are reminded of Jesus’ words to the rich young man, ‘go sell all you have and follow me’ – a challenge he couldn’t meet, alongside most of us. These two stories make the same claim, not less than everything. Not to buy a ticket to the kingdom of heaven, but to live fully in the service of the kingdom of heaven, here and now.
Our last parable again seems rather straight forward, if more than a little unpleasant. The net is an often used simile, with stories finding morals in different directions. Matthew seems very sure where he wants his version to go: judgement. The good fish and the (literally) rotten fish are divided – quite how the fisherman caught fish that were already rotten he doesn’t worry about. Matthew employs his usual warning phrases, to the usual effect.
But the net of fish can take us in other directions. The Gospel of Thomas talks of choosing between the biggest of the fish and all the rest, leading to a similar conclusion to the stories of the treasures. The price of the best fish is throwing all the others back. Another ancient version tells of a net full of wonderful fish, but the smaller fish were able to escape through the mesh, whereas the larger were taken and stretched out in the boat. The followers of the kingdom, being insignificant in society, could slip the net and work their deeds of kindness, unnoticed under the brasher, louder voices claiming their larger place, and risking being stetted out on the deck of the metaphorical and not so metaphorical ship.
Would Jesus recognise any of these ‘retellings’ I wonder? Possibly, but it is unlikely – there are many ways to tell them, I haven’t scratched the surface. The important thing is to hear the stories, ponder them, find ways to apply them in the call for us to live kinder, more generous, compassionate lives – and to persevere in this even in the face of discouragement and opposition. If it takes freeing the stories from their gospel moorings, then let us liberate them to fly free once more.
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 Jesus shall reign where’er the sun NEH 388 – Truro
1 Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
2 People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on his love with sweetest song,
And infant voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on his name.
3 Blessings abound where’er he reigns;
The prisoner leaps to lose his chains;
The weary find eternal rest,
And all the sons of want are blest.
4 Let every creature rise and bring
Peculiar honours to our King;
Angels descend with songs again,
And earth repeat the long Amen.
PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION – Christine Hill
Heavenly Father, as we join together for our Benefice service today we give you thanks for the fellowship which we share, for the beauty of the countryside in which we live and for all your blessings. May we never take these for granted.
We thank you for William and for everyone who works in our parishes to enrich our worship – in leading services, in providing music, flowers, bells and refreshments, or quietly carrying out necessary administrative tasks. Again may we never take these for granted – and may we all be prepared to use our talents to serve where we can.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer
We pray for people around the world who are suffering from financial difficulties, war, hunger, homelessness, lack of medical facilities, trafficking and other forms of exploitation. We remember especially those whose homes and livelihoods are threatened by fires, and the emergency services facing danger as they go to help others. We pray for those in authority that they may work for peace, seek the common good and use our earth’s resources wisely and fairly.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer
At this time of year we pray for all those who are travelling, and for all students, teachers and others having holidays during this summer. May they travel safely and return refreshed and renewed. We also remember all those people who are unable to go on holiday for some reason, and those for whom the long summer holidays are difficult and stressful.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer
Father God, we pray for our relationships with our families, friends and neighbours. We thank you for the joy of human love and for all those who we live and work with. We pray for loved ones who worry us with their health, or circumstances, or life direction. We pray for those among our friends and families who do not know you, or whose faith has been shaken. Give us understanding and insight into their cares and needs, so that we may be able to love, help and serve them.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer
Dear God, we pray for all we know who are ill, anxious or bereaved, especially those who are facing long or incurable illnesses, and those who are finding it hard to get the treatment and care which they need. Bring comfort and healing to them and to all who are weary and carrying heavy burdens. [Especially today we pray for ………….]
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer
Merciful God, we pray for those whose earthly lives have ended. We remember especially those known to us and loved by us and we give thanks for lives well lived and for happy memories. May they find rest in the eternal joy of heaven and may all who mourn their passing find comfort and peace.
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 He who would valiant be NEH 372/AMR293 – Monks Gate
1 He who would valiant be
‘Gainst all disaster,
Let him in constancy
Follow the Master.
There’s no discouragement
Shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent
To be a pilgrim.
2 Who so beset him round
With dismal stories,
Do but themselves confound–
His strength the more is.
No foes shall stay his might,
Though he with giants fight:
He will make good his right
To be a pilgrim.
3 Since, Lord, thou dost defend
Us with thy Spirit,
We know we at the end
Shall life inherit.
Then fancies flee away!
I’ll fear not what men say,
I’ll labor night and day
To be a pilgrim.