Trinity 18

Opening Verse of Scripture 

Collect Prayer for the Day—Before we read we pray

Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us your gift of faith that, forsaking what lies behind and reaching out to that which is before, we may run the way of your commandments and win the crown of everlasting joy; 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.

God, our judge and saviour, teach us to be open to your truth and to trust in your love, that we may live each day with confidence in the salvation which is given through Jesus Christ our Lord.

First Bible Reading Numbers 11.4–6, 10–16, 24–29

The rabble among them had a strong craving; and the Israelites also wept again, and said, ‘If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we used to eat in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.’

Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, all at the entrances of their tents. Then the Lord became very angry, and Moses was displeased. So Moses said to the Lord, ‘Why have you treated your servant so badly? Why have I not found favour in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? Did I conceive all this people? Did I give birth to them, that you should say to me, “Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a sucking child”, to the land that you promised on oath to their ancestors? Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they come weeping to me and say, “Give us meat to eat!” I am not able to carry all this people alone, for they are too heavy for me. If this is the way you are going to treat me, put me to death at once—if I have found favour in your sight—and do not let me see my misery.’

So the Lord said to Moses, ‘Gather for me seventy of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tent of meeting, and have them take their place there with you.

So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord; and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again.

Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. And a young man ran and told Moses, ‘Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.’ And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, ‘My lord Moses, stop them!’ But Moses said to him, ‘Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!’

Second Reading James 5.13–20

Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest.

My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another, you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

Gospel Reading Mark 9.38–end

John said to him, ‘Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.’ But Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterwards to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.

‘If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched. ‘For everyone will be salted with fire.50Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.’

Post Communion Prayer

We praise and thank you, O Christ, for this sacred feast: for here we receive you, here the memory of your passion is renewed, here our minds are filled with grace, and here a pledge of future glory is given, when we shall feast at that table where you reign with all your saints for ever.

Commentary

Sometimes we are afraid of things which are different, because we do not understand them. Sometimes we resent their success and look for reasons to criticise. In the passage from the Gospel reading today we find such an instance. In this passage from the Gospel according to St Mark, we find the disciples in a cross mood, they are a bit miffed! Someone who hardly knows Jesus has been achieving spectacular success as an exorcist, using their master’s name. It is in this situation that Jesus says that “he who not against us is for us”. It looks a bit odd, because we tend to turn the phrase around to mean that anyone who is not actively on our side, in politics, business or war, is helping the enemy.

This deceptive throw away comment by Jesus holds the key towards how people should cope with religious difference. Like so many of Jesus’ sayings it is hard for us humans to understand and cope with. We are like the disciples, we want to crush rivals whether in secular or religious life. How often have humans used the excuse that they are serving Jesus when they put to death women and men who do not understand the Bible in the same way, or criticise those who feel called to worship in different styles, or believe different things? Here Jesus is saying that difference, unless it is actively dangerous, cannot hurt the new Jesus movement. Jesus was brave enough to allow a stranger, who recognised the saving power of Jesus’ name to use it, unsupervised, for good purposes.

What a message to all control freaks! God does not allow us a limited amount of freedom and then reign us back. In his love for us, he grants us the freedom to love, to create and to serve in his name. But we must allow others to have this freedom too. Jesus' rebuke most likely surprised the disciples. The Twelve saw themselves as a uniquely-endowed, specially-selected group privy to Jesus' individual attentions and tutorials. They believed that because of their close relationship with the Master they had been "rewarded" with the power to cast out demons, as well as to preach and teach in Jesus' name. They considered this uninitiated outsider to be like we perceive an unlicensed doctor -- one who should immediately be reported to the authorities and whose illegitimate activities should be stopped. The disciples thought Jesus would be angry - but he wasn't. Instead he said - "it doesn't matter to me if those people are a part of your group or not. All that matters is that they are doing the things that God wants. They are a part of God's family.

These words of Jesus, then, are a rebuke to all our blind exclusiveness, our arrogant assumptions, that God's action in the world is limited to the forms which we are familiar. The church has suffered terribly, and the world has suffered terribly, from this fence-building frenzy. If one tenth of the time which Christians have devoted to building fences between one another had gone into building roads as a highway for God, the world would be a far better place today. Jesus throws open wide the doors of the Christian community by proclaiming that "whoever is not against us is for us" (verse 40). Jesus' point is clear. In verse 41 he goes on to stress that anyone who performs a service, no matter how small, because of Christ's name becomes a member of the community and shares in its "rewards." Charles Royden

Meditation

The great protestant reformers are often admired for their religious devotion but we must not be blind to their persecution of those who thought differently. Martin Luther approved the persecution and martyrdom of the Anabaptists and other sects who rejected his teachings. Commenting on the beheading of Anabaptists in Saxony, he said that “their courage showed that they were possessed by the devil.”  During the reign of young King Edward VI, Archbishop Cranmer persuaded him to sign the death warrant of two Anabaptists, one of them a woman. They were burned at the stake. Perhaps one of the most chilling episodes involved John Calvin who is still extremely influential today for his theological insights. In 1553 he came to blows with Michael Servetus who was a physician who did not conform to a traditional doctrine of the Trinity. He never saw Trinity ins scripture and thought a change in the understanding of it would bring closer unity between Christians, Jews and Muslims. When Servetus came to Geneva and visited Calvin's church it was too much for him to bear. Calvin had him arrested and as Servetus’ trial began before the Calvin-dominated Council, John Calvin wrote to a fellow reformer: “I hope that the judgment will be sentence of death...”  Calvin had his wish he was burned alive at the stake. . His last cry was “Jesus, Thou Son of the Eternal God, have pity on me.” The book for which Servetus was condemned was tied to his neck to be burned with him. It fell off, and was rescued from the flames. It may still be seen, a ghastly memorial of Reformation “ethics,” in the National Library at Paris. One detail which I found particularly disturbing, besides the book around the neck, was that they used green wood. It was just another indication of the bitter hatred that a man of God did not want his opponent to die to quickly. The suffering had to be seen by as many people for as long as possible, as a warning.     Charles Royden   

Hymns

• Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
• The trumpets sound
• Restore O Lord
• Lord for the years
• Our eyes have seen the glory
• Christ from whom all blessings flow
• Alleluia, Alleluia, give thanks to the risen Lord
• See how great a flame aspires (Tune: St George’s Windsor)
• Go forth and tell! 0 Church of God awake (Tune: Go forth)
• Come all who look to Christ today (Tune: Tallis’ Canon)

Prayers for Sunday and the week ahead

Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen. A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

O Lord, guard us all the day long of this troubled life, until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes: and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over, and our work is done. Then, Lord in your mercy, grant us a safe lodging, a holy rest, and your blessed peace at the last. Amen. (John Henry Newman)

Take my body, O Christ, to do your work, for here on earth you have no body now but mine. Take my hands to be your hands and my feet to walk in the ways of your feet. Take my eyes to be the eyes of your own compassion shining forth upon a troubled world; for your own mercy’s sake. Amen Teresa of Avila, 1515-1582

O God, light of the minds that know you, life of the souls that love you, and strength of the hearts that seek you - bless the words of my lips and the meditations of our hearts. We ask it in Jesus' name.

Lord God - we thank you for making us - a part of your family - help us open our hearts - to all the other parts - of your wonderful family - to those we don't know - to those who do things differently - to those who live in far off places - help us all to work together - and by ourselves - to do what Jesus asks us - we ask it in his name Amen

Gracious God - we thank you for the love you have bestowed upon us all through this past week - for the love that has brought us to this time of worship. We pray that you would bless us with your most Holy Presence this day and build in us an ever stronger faith. Meet us here, amid our doubts and questions, that we may know we are heard and understood. Grant that as we pray and sing your praises that we may be built up in Christ Jesus and made more able to serve you and please you in all that we think, say, and do. We ask it in his name. Amen.

O Lord Christ, who came that we might have life and have it more abundantly, so come that all shall have full opportunity to live; so come that we may open out opportunities to all who are dear to you because they lack and suffer hunger. Come and break down all that hinders life, the iron walls of grim refusal that give life no chance. Come and give us wisdom and patience, courage and resolution to discover how your goodwill may verify itself to all. Give us life that we may give out life. Come and fill us with your own strong desire; with your own brave hope, that all may find their way to live in you. Give unity; give brotherhood; give peace. H. Scott Holland (1847-1918), Theologian and canon of St. Paul's Cathedral, London.

The things, good Lord, that I pray for, give me your grace to labour for. Sir Thomas More (1478-1535), Lord Chancellor of England and martyr

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