Opening Verse of Scripture

'Not a hair of your head will perish, by your endurance you will gain your lives.' Luke Chapter 21:18 

Collect Prayer for the Day—Before we read we pray

Almighty God, you have created the heavens and the earth and made us in your own image: teach us to discern your hand in all your works and your likeness in all your children; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit reigns supreme over all things, now and for ever. CW

Almighty God, give us reverence for all creation and respect for every person, that we may mirror your likeness in Jesus Christ our Lord. CW

First Bible Reading Genesis 2: 4b-9, 15-25 

In the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of the field had yet sprung up for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground; but a stream would rise from the earth, and water the whole face of the ground then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’

The LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.’ So out of the ground the LORD God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner. So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman, for out of Man this one was taken.’Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked, and were not ashamed. NRSV

Second Reading Revelation 4

I looked, and there in heaven a door stood open! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, ‘Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.’ At once I was in the spirit, and there in heaven stood a throne, with one seated on the throne! And the one seated there looks like jasper and cornelian, and around the throne is a rainbow that looks like an emerald. Around the throne are twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones are twenty-four elders, dressed in white robes, with golden crowns on their heads. Coming from the throne are flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and in front of the throne burn seven flaming torches, which are the seven spirits of God; and in front of the throne there is something like a sea of glass, like crystal. Around the throne, and on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with a face like a human face, and the fourth living creature like a flying eagle. And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and inside. Day and night without ceasing they sing, ‘Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come.’And whenever the living creatures give glory and honour and thanks to the one who is seated on the throne, who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall before the one who is seated on the throne and worship the one who lives for ever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne, singing, ‘You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things,

and by your will they existed and were created.’ NRSV

Gospel Reading Luke 8:22-25

One day Jesus got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side of the lake.’ So they put out, and while they were sailing he fell asleep. A gale swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger. They went to him and woke him up, shouting, ‘Master, Master, we are perishing!’ And he woke up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; they ceased, and there was a calm. He said to them, ‘Where is your faith?’ They were afraid and amazed, and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?’ NRSV

Post Communion Prayer

God our creator, by your gift the tree of life was set at the heart of the earthly paradise, and the bread of life at the heart of your Church: may we who have been nourished at your table on earth be transformed by the glory of the Saviour’s cross and enjoy the delights of eternity; through Jesus Christ our Lord. CW

Commentary

Fantastic Readings

All of the bible readings set for today describe truly fantastic events. They are literally beyond human comprehension unless we suspend belief in the purely physical nature of our world. In Genesis, God takes a rib (or side) from Adam and brings forth Eve as the creation of man and woman is described. There are multiple plays on Hebrew words in this passage, God creates woman ‘ishshah’ from man ‘ish’, just as man, ‘adam, was shaped from the dust of the ground, ‘adamah. Hebrew too has no word for body, which is why these verses are now more accurately translated using the word flesh, which in itself has all the connotations of the weakness which would befall it later in the chapter. And though the world would fall, Revelation describes the glory of the heavenly world, a paradise of splendour and majesty where angelic beings worship at the throne of the lamb, the king of creation. Another fantastic story. The language of apocalyptic writings such as Revelation is richly symbolic and the importance of the visions described lie rarely in the immediate and literal meaning but rather in the imagery the writer intended to convey. It was written in a period of intense disturbance and persecution of the infant church as an encouragement against Rome and its empire (the Beast) who were being used by the real enemy, Satan, the great and only real enemy of Christ and His people. In our reading today the writer of Revelation, called John, describes God as the true and only Emperor, enthroned in heaven, surrounded by true worshippers. Revelation goes on to describe the judgement and ultimate annihilation that will come on those who persecute Christian believers and closes with an account of the beauty of the New Jerusalem which is the church, on earth. The book is broader than even this basic meaning. It shows the unchanging realities on which our faith is founded, God’s promise to be with His people, protecting them and saving them irrespective of the circumstances at any particular time in history or their personal lives. God’s promise was the foundation of the confidence in Him we read in the Old Testament. The promise of the risen Christ that, ‘I am with you always; yes, to the end of time’, gives life to the church and Christians down the ages to the present time.

The gospel reading describes another fantastic event. The calming of a storm as Jesus demonstrates authority over the elements of nature and the creation. For the disciples in the boat this was no academic exercise in understanding the authority of Jesus, no tutorial on the power of Christ. It was a practical demonstration of the creation and the creator at work, demonstrating for them and us the irrefutable truth that God is with us whatever we happen to be going through at the time and whatever our fears. When we step out with God on our journey of faith, he will never leave us stuck in the middle of nowhere, isolated from Him, in danger of going under, but will be with us always as our creator and Father, saviour and friend. The Lord God, the almighty, the ruler of all, whom we worship with our lives at His throne. Sam Cappleman 

Meditation

Hymns

• Thou whose almighty word
• Eternal Father strong to save
• Be still my soul
• I the Lord of sea and sky
• Praise the Lord, ye heavens adore Him
• All creatures of our God and King
• Lead us heavenly father lead us

Prayers for Sunday and the week ahead

Lord, teach me to trust you in whatever situations I may find myself. Help me to pray, not just when my boat is sinking, but in all the times and places of my life where you can make a real difference. Help me with my family and friends to establish better relationships, in my place of work to allow you to inform the way I behave. Forgive me when I make you a stranger and walk with me always. Amen. 

Creator God, in the beginning your word subdued the chaos and in the fullness of time you sent Jesus, your Son, to rebuke the forces of evil and to make all things new. By that same power transform our fear into faith that we might have courage to follow in the way of your Kingdom; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen 

Father God, we all know what it is like to be gripped with fear, perhaps not just for a moment of time, but for weeks on end. Thank you for strengthening our faith, and the faith of the church. Thank you for sending Jesus to bring us to yourself. Thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to dwell with us and in us. Thank you that not a sparrow falls to the ground without you knowing it. Thank you for the comfort of your presence. Help us be assured of your presence with us always, not matter what we fear. Amen 

Father forgive our unbelief. Teach us, and strengthen us so that our faith will appropriately reflect your greatness. Amen When we fathom the life of things and of conditionality we reach the indissoluble, when we dispute the life of things and of conditionality we wind up before the nothing, when we consecrate life, we encounter the living creator God. Amen adap Martin Buber (1878 – 1965) 

The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the eternal covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well pleasing in His sight; and may the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen