| New Book now Available Here is an anthology of over 1100 brief prayers and thought-starters, for each day of the year, with almost 400 original prayers by Bruce Prewer. Included is both a subject index and an index of authors-- an ecumenical collection of about 300 different sources. |
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| Title: Brief Prayers for Busy People. Author: Bruce D Prewer ISBN 978-1-62880-090-6 Available from Australian Church Resources, web site www.acresources.com.au email service@acresources.com.au or by order from your local book shop or online on amazon. |
Year C, SUNDAY 13
June
26 - July 2
Luke 9: 51-62....(Sermon 1: “Let the Dead Bury the Dead”)
(Sermon
2: “A man in a Hurry”)
Galatians 5: 1 & 13-25....
2 Kings 2:1-2 & 6-14....
Psalm 77: 1-2 & 11-20
GREETING
This is the
day which has been given by a most generous God.
We will rejoice and be glad in it.
The grace,
joy and peace of the Lord Jesus be with you all.
And also with you.
ACCLAMATIONS
Wonderful is
the God of Christ, who gathers the poor of the earth.
Glorious is our God, who wipes away the tears of
sorrow.
Wonderful is
the God of Christ, who gives inheritance to the meek.
Glorious is our God, who satisfies the hunger of the
just.
Wonderful is
the God of Christ, who gives mercy to the merciful.
Glorious is our God, who gives vision to the pure in
heart.
Wonderful is
the God of Christ, who adopts the peacemakers.
Glorious is our God, who lifts high the persecuted.
Wonderful is
the God of Christ, who finds the lost.
Glorious is our God, who awakens the dead
PRAYER OF PREPARATION
Holy Friend,
you have prepared for those who love you, bonus gifts that are beyond human
understanding. Free our minds and hearts so to love you, that loving you more
than anything else, we may be ready to receive your
generosity which exceeds all expectation. Through Jesus
Christ our Saviour.
Amen.
FACING OUR SIN AND TRUSTING GOD’S GRACE
Jesus said,
seek and you shall find, ask and it shall be given to you.
To seek the
saving mercy of God,
Let us pray.
Most loving
God, because you see through us and understand us better than we know our own
minds, we bow before you with a sense of relief. With you there is no need for
pretence and no ground for excuse. You see as we really are,
a redeemable comedy of light and darkness, love and fear, faith and folly.
We need your searching glance to uncover everything
that is suspect and all that is blatantly corrupt. We need to know the truth.
We pray that the truth, exposed in your therapeutic courtroom, will lead us on
to divine grace; that grace which annuls past offences and promises a fruitful
future.
---- silent
prayer ----
Thank you,
loving God, for not dealing with us according to our sins, nor rewarding us
according to our iniquities. You are a pardoning God. You are light and health
and peace. We want to love, praise, serve and stay close to you forever!
Through Jesus Christ our
Saviour.
Amen!
ASSURANCE OF
FORGIVENESS
Sisters and brothers, don’t merely say it but fully trust it:
Jesus Christ is the Saviour who puts away all your sins and grants you a new
beginning. Live now as the forgiven family of God.
Amen! Thanks be to God!
PRAYER FOR CHILDREN
Make Me Brave
Dear God, it’s a buzz to be true to you
when I am with other Christians.
But it’s much harder in the school ground
among kids who say and do bad things.
Please make me braver,
and help me to do the right thing
even if others make fun of me.
Please, keep me close to you.
Please?
At all times?
Amen!
PSALM 77; 1-2 & 11-15
I call out
loudly to God;
very loudly, for
I must be heard.
On the day of my misery I need God,
at night my
hands reach out in the dark.
My soul
finds no comfort anywhere else,
yet I groan at
God’s apparent inactivity.
When I mull
over these confusing ways,
my spirit gets
very shaky.
As I recite the good things God has done,
the surprises
that have helped in the past.
My God, I
will think about your handiwork,
and reflect on
your remarkable activities.
God, you
really are something else!
Nothing is as wonder-full as you!
You do unexpected and wonderful things,
and show your
strength among the nations.
With wounded
hands you redeem your people,
and save the
children of your love.
© B.D. Prewer 2000 & 2012
LET THE DEAD DO THE BURYING
There they
go, preening on Oscar night,
those idols the crowds worship;
but
none worship so sadly as they
who
believe in their own fiction.
Meet the dead who bury themselves
among the living
dead.
There they
go across financial pages,
Italian-suited
men who rob the poor
and
are greatly envied by those
who
lust to win the lotto
and proudly join
with the dead
in burying the
dead.
There they
go, the “body beautiful”,
the
worshippers of masked decay,
big
boobs and bulging biceps
from pain-hours in surgery or gym,
to attain more
triviality of the dead
who bury the
dead.
© B.D. Prewer 2000
A FOCUSSING PRAYER
Most loving God, we who are drawn together by the
Gospel that is open-armed, pray that we may withstand any pressures that might
push us apart.
Please encourage us, especially when we are feeling
edgy, to trust you more than our fears, and love each person more than we love
our own opinions.
Stabilise us in the truth of saving grace, and help
us to express a similar grace in all our dealings.
Through Christ Jesus our
Master.
Amen!
WITNESS 1: LET THE DEAD BURY THE DEAD
Luke 9:60
Let the dead bury the dead. As for you, go and speak
out for the kingdom of God.
This is one
of the most upsetting statements ever made by a religious leader. It cuts at
one of the things our culture holds most dear: family love, family loyalty, family respect.
Jesus was
asking for trouble when he came out with this comment. It was bound to make
people either shocked and angry. Maybe
both.
The Bible
has a discomforting tendency to upset us. Whenever we are keen to settle down
and live cosily with things as they are (be it culture or fashion, custom or
habit, religious institution or church building, creed or personal code of
morality) then watch out! The Bible will invade our comfort zone.
It tells us
today that to make your peace with anything this corrupt world offers, is to trust that which is already polluted with
death. Yes, that’s what I said: polluted
with death!
THE BIBLE
SPEAKS OF DEATH
The Bible
has a radical way of speaking of death. Death is not merely the absence of
life. Death is an active, invading power. It is inextricably bound up with the
evil forces of darkness.
Death
contaminates and ruins all life. No human being can escape its hungry power.
Death infests all our human knowledge, all our social structures and
institutions. It gets its infected claws into our politics, philosophies,
creeds, education and religious organisations. Nothing escapes death;
everything is in danger of its corruption.
Therefore if
we put our faith in such things, we are doomed. If we put our trust in
political parties, democracy, a church denomination, Rotary, Lions, economic
theories, social reform programmes, even our own dear family, then we are trusting something that is already invaded by death.
None of these things can last; they cannot transcend death. Trust them and we
will be buried with them.
Only God is
unaffected by death. God’s kingdom, that new world about which Jesus spoke in
parables, that is where the only death-proofed life is found. Trust God and
live. What is more, anything we do out of love for God shall never be lost.
There may be
plenty of goodness in your church, or with your family and friends, or in some
humanitarian agency which you support. But unless it is aligned with the Life
that is God, then it is subject to corruption and death.
The people
of Israel were constantly challenged to choose God and life, or face corruption and
death. The Biblical choice is between
God and idols, holiness or corruption, getting lost or being found, life or
death.
As Jesus puts it in the Gospel according to St John: “Whoever believes in me has already passed
from death to life.”
JESUS SPEAKS
OUT
.
It is
against this background that we can appreciate the offensive word in our Gospel
reading for this Sunday: Let the dead
bury the dead. As for you, go and speak out for the kingdom of God.
It arose
when a man said he wanted to follow Jesus, but first he must “bury my father.”
To the Jew
this duty was extremely important. In Jewish custom, there was only one
exemption from the duty of handling the body of a loved one and seeing it
buried with respect.. That exemption was for the High
Priest who, because of his unique Temple duties, could not risk his ceremonial
holiness being made unclean by touching a corpse.
Yet here is
Jesus saying to a would-be disciple: “No. Put God’s kingdom first. Let the dead
bury the dead.” Your first loyalty is to
life, not to death. Unless you make that
choice clear cut, you are caught in the coils of death. Let the dead bury the dead. As
for you, go and speak out for the kingdom of God.
God must
come first. Not even the most sacred obligations as understood by our culture
or religion, can be allowed to wedge themselves
between a Christian and their Lord. Everything else is subject to the power of
death. Choose life. Choose real life.
A career
woman, while negotiating a terminal disease with all of her robust Christian
faith,, had much time for reflection. Once when I was
with her, she remarked sadly on the priorities of her family of origin. Her
family still lived on a wheat farm close to a country town. They were power
figures in their local church. However, their sacred priorities as she had
assessed them were: 1. Family. 2. The local sport teams. 3. Church.
With utmost
kindness, they wanted her to go home and be nursed by them until she died.
Although she loved them, she would not spend her last weeks in of that
environment where, as she saw it, God came third. They were offended and angry.
But she was at peace with herself and her God in a Christian hospice.
I think she
was saying: “Let the dead bury their dead. Even in my dying, I must continue to
proclaim the kingdom of God.”
WITNESS 2: A
MAN IN A HURRY
Luke 9:60
No one who puts his hand to
the plough. and
looks back over his shoulder, is fit for the kingdom
of God.
Jesus was a rare individual:
He was a man in a hurry yet who always had time for
people in need.
That is most unusual where I live.
In the common world that we experience, people in a
hurry rarely have time for others.
“Don’t bother me, can’t you see I’m busy.”
“Later, I’m
in too much of a hurry now.”
“Surely you
don't expect an important person like me to waste time on trivia!”
They ignore others, or brush past them, or push them
aside, or trample over them in their rush to fulfil their immediate goal.
Jesus was different. Very
different.
This becomes more obvious towards the end of his
three year ministry. As the mounting pressure to complete his one crucial goal
at Jerusalem became acute, he still seemed to have time for the lonely, the
sick, the desperate and the outcaste. He was in a hurry to complete his
mission, yet as he made his way through towns and villages he still made space
for genuine seekers who sincerely needed him. He had time for dining with
“collectors and sinners” and for telling wondrous parables
Conversely he had no time for prevaricators.
Those who sought a diversion by wanting an
intellectual debate with him got short shift. Those who were half hearted , or merely indulgently day-dreamed about following
him, received sharp words. And any who tried to
deflect him from the direction he took, even if they were his dearest
disciples, earned a terse rebuke.
THE TURNING POINT IN LUKE’S STORY
This is the situation in which we need to hear the
Gospel reading for today.
At Luke 9:51, the compiler of the Gospel clearly
marks a turning point.
When the time drew closer for Jesus to be
lifted up, he set his face towards Jerusalem.
On this resolute journey, his face set like a flint,
the next human encounters take
place. They are ones which offend some readers.
On the road one man said to Jesus: “I will
follow you no matter where you go.” But Jesus warned
him, “Even foxes have lairs and the birds have nests, but I, the Son of man, have nowhere to lay down my head.”
In other words,
before you gush into protestations
of loyalty to me, consider the consequences. On my path, there is no security,
no comfort, no pretty ending to the story.
When Jesus called another man to join him, the
fellow hesitated:
“ Master, let me first go and bury my father.”
To which Jesus retorted:
“Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But
as for you, go out and proclaim the kingdom of
God.”
How offensive can you be!
Even if that man’s father was not in fact already
dead, but if the would-be disciple was reminding Jesus of the social convention
whereby a son was not supposed to leave home until his father had died and was
respectably buried, it is still a harsh word from the lips of Jesus.
Then we read on about another encounter with a
would-be disciple,
a fellow who came up and said
to Jesus:
I will certainly follow you, Master. But
first let go home and say goodbye”
Was that asking too much?
Goodbyes are important, aren’t they? Only wilful and inconsiderate people leave
home for good without saying a word. Yet Jesus spoke sternly to said to this person:
No one who puts his hand to
the plough. and
looks back over his shoulder, is fit for the kingdom
of God.
Tough speaking!
From the experience of my early years on a small
farm in Tasmania,
I know that one of the skills of a ploughman,
cutting that furrow, was to fix his eyes on a point ahead -sometimes a stake in the ground at the end of
row- and to resolutely plough towards it. Any
diverting of glance would lead to a crooked furrow. Crooked furrows were
unworthy of a good ploughman.. So Jesus warns of any
second thoughts about following him in his pursuit of the business of the
kingdom of God. Looking back over the shoulder will reveal us as unworthy.
Offensive? Going too far?
A dear and remarkable friend,
who is now on the other side of
the great divide, spent a rich part of her later life working with students
from other countries and religions.. She told me of one memorable conversation.
It was with a Buddhist, a gentle young man from South East Asia, with whom she
was very close. He admitted that he found “your Jesus to be an impatient,
intolerant rude person, who rode roughshod over sacred familial obligations.”
He went on to quote the passage which is our Gospel for today.
Such a view has been held by many critics of
Christianity.
People have accused Jesus of being abrasive,
insensitive, and unbearably egotistical. To put himself ahead of loved ones,
and our basic obligations to them, seems to some folk to be going too far
indeed!
JESUS IN CONTEXT
To this understandable reaction, I would respond as
follows:
1/ Firstly, these terse statements by Jesus
came during the last phase of
his journey, when time was running out. Literally there was no time for
dallying. These were for him the last
days. He was then a man in a hurry. Nothing could be allowed to deflect him or
his followers from the costly
“way of the cross.” Absolutely nothing.
His impatience in today’s passage
is directed at those would-be
followers who are not prepared to be fully committed. He is impatient with
those who want to rush into words of commitment, before adding up the cost. He
will not waste time with those who are not “fair dinkum”. Nor does Jesus want
fair weather disciples.
2/ Second, I would point out that Jesus
was not at all egotistical.
The cause for which he was ready to give his life
was not his but God’s. His radical message, which upset many, was not about
himself but his “Abba,” the God with eternal love for every person. His own
life was given without reserve to God. Unadulterated
devotion. Even the looming cross will not deter him.
His message, and his life, were centred on what he called the kingdom of God
or the kingdom of heaven. The call to follow him was to take a plunge with
him into the new world of God’s activity, which is already here: upon us,
around us, and within us. God is central
to Jesus. A devout Jew through and through, Jesus will brook no rival to God.
Jesus is the least egotistical person; his life is filled with the love of God
and of his fellow human beings.
HOW MUCH APPLIES TO US?
Can the statements Jesus made at this critical point
in his ministry be generally applied today?
Yes and no.
Yes, in that God must be put first at all times. Top priority. Even higher than our dearest
friends and most precious family members. A second degree loyalty is not
only contrary to the way of Christ, it will prove a
waste of time and leave one’s religion as a burden to be carried.
No, in that God does not often ask us to literally
leave parents without saying goodbye, nor to ignore our family
responsibilities. Most of us do not have to deny family to follow Christ in his
undivided loyalty to God. In truth, we may love and care for them better as
followers of Jesus.
Yet in certain situations we may have to make that
difficult choice. Where any friend or family member tries to cajole or force us
to put God second, then we must make the hard decision.
Either we are for the Kingdom of God or not. Either
God is top priority or we are just playing games with religion. Jesus calls us
to follow him into exploring the new age of God with its new values and goals.
Single mindedly. No excuses. Not looking back over
our shoulder. No dithering, dallying or blathering.
I have seen children disowned, parents despised,
friends turn harsh critics, and wife or husband spurned, because of the
decision to give all to God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Moreover, even when the choice does not seem that
drastic,
it will always involve
significant cost. Never let us pretend that such a choice is easy, or that it
is not accompanied by degree of grief.
No one who puts his hand to
the plough. and
looks back over his shoulder, is fit for the kingdom
of God.
Jesus knows all about the cost and the grief. He
will be with us in such moments.
THANK YOU SO MUCH
We thank you
so much, loving Creator, for being present with us in this never-sleeping
theatre of creation.
For this exquisite
world, and for our ancient Australian landscape.
For its distinctive
gums trees and wattles, banksias and wildflowers.
For humpback whales
along our coasts and red kangaroos of the inland.
For the long story of
human habitation and the recent gathering of many races.
We thank you, loving Saviour, for wearing our humanity and offering us a
share in your beautiful divinity.
For being nursed by a mother and enjoying
play times with other children.
For partaking of our baptism and enduring
the many faces of temptation.
For including and
healing all kinds of people, without regard to status or race.
For daring to maintain integrity, even
though it cost you an agonising death.
For standing beyond
death, beckoning us to follow you into the unlimited future.
We thank you, loving Counsellor, for being the Spirit-Friend who
inspires us to attempt brave and loving things.
For enabling us to be reborn into a
family whose head is the living God.
For leading us on into
the full truth of Christ Jesus and nurturing our faith.
For breathing the mercy of Christ into
our soul; so that we too become merciful.
For including us within the community of
the church and giving us gifts for service.
For giving us
delight in life and profound comfort in the hour of grief and death.
Therefore,
with angels and archangels........
REMEMBERING OTHERS
When we pray
for the needy, let us remember that God is always with them ahead of our
prayers.
Let us pray.
For people who are afraid of dying, and those who are afraid of living.
For sufferers who wait to be admitted to hospital, and those who long
to be discharged.
For the
lonely who need friends, and the busy who feel constricted by too many.
For children who are blithe and carefree, and those who are timid and
anxious.
For folk who
care deeply about others, and those who think only of themselves.
For the
wronged who show mercy and forgiveness and those who plot a fierce revenge.
For seekers
who are keen to find faith, and the proud who wish to
avoid it.
For the churches where we feel at home, and others that seem strange or
off-putting.
For our
special friends in this congregation, and those who often rub us the wrong way.
For
ourselves: Loving God, we do not ask for special favours but that you will help
us delight in, and share generously, the favours you have already given. In
gratitude and trust we commit ourselves and all that we have into you hands. Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen!
GETTING ON WITH IT
Go out into
the world in peace.
Live as
those who have already passed from death to life.
Give aid and be willing to receive it,
trust and be
trusted,
forgive and be
forgiven,
give respect and
be respected,
love and be
willing to be loved.
In the name
of the three person’d God I
bless you.
Grace mercy
and peace be with you always.
And also with you.
Amen!
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