+ In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen
The Greeting:Grace, mercy and peace
from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ
be with you
and also with you.
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.
The Gloria:Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God, the Father. Amen
The Collect – 1st Sunday after TrinityO God,
the strength of all those who put their trust in you,
mercifully accept our prayers
and, because through the weakness of our mortal nature
we can do no good thing without you,
grant us the help of your grace,
that in the keeping of your commandments
we may please you both in will and deed;
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. Amen.
Readings:
1 Samuel 8: 4-11 and 16-20
4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.”
6 But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”
10 Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. 11 He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots.
16 Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. 17 He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. 18 When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the LORD will not answer you in that day.”
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We want a king over us. 20 Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.”
2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1
13 It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, 14 because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. 15 All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
5 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.
Mark 3: 20-35
20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. 21 When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”
22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebub! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”
23 So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house. 28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”
30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”
31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”
33 “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.
34 Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother and brother”
Homily by Revd Adrian Bell:
This year not only will have finished well over 4 years helping you in the Wayland Group, but later in June I will celebrate 50 years since I was ordained. Where the time has gone in both cases, I really don’t know. Marian and I would like to thank you all for your love and support and no doubt we will keep in touch and see you from time to time. I leave the Group of Parishes in Joy’s very capable hands until the Diocese decides when an incumbent is to be appointed. It has only taken 5 years to make a decision. The church does not act quickly.
At the centre of the reading from the Gospel today is the importance of unity in Jesus’ ministry and today. But also, the understanding of evil. Throughout its history those who criticise the church have often been called evil.
Even today, there is no doubt that in my mind the Church authorities do not like those who stand out and say what they really believe.
As Joy told us last week in her Trinity Sunday sermon, St Patrick had a very influential affect upon Christianity in Ireland but also in this country. He is certainly in the top tier of saints.
If was I going to list the Christians in history that affected my faith I would start with St Francis my personal patron saint since a child, and St Augustine of Canterbury, then go on to Martin Luther and finally C S Lewis. We often think of C.S Lewis writing children’s novels but in my early years his Christian books really affected my faith as I went to sixth firm conferences at Oxford and Cambridge Universities for those interested in the ministry. We often purchased his books. C S Lewis is still worth reading.
Jesus knew that whatever he said would be opposed by some and he had learnt from the dreadful experience of the temptation in the wilderness that he would always be questioned. Here in the Gospel he is accused of being mad or possessing evil. We know only too well that often those who questioned authorities are seen to be mad or misguided. But even with all this criticism Jesus kept going and kept firm to the faith and so should we.
But also in this reading we see Jesus’ family hovering around and wondering what is happening. There is no doubt that the call to the priesthood is demanding. In the Roman Catholic Church a priest will actually say ‘goodbye’ to his parents at the ordination because his family is now the church. In the Anglican Church we don’t quite go that far but there is no doubt that from a very early stage and throughout your ministry you have two families and at times these do conflict.
But I must also stress the importance of unity. Jesus at so many times in the Gospels and especially as he came to the end of his ministry, prayed for the unity for those who were to follow him. We know that a divided family or a divided church is easily destroyed.
What is remarkable about the Wayland Group is that not only have we managed to come through these years since Father Bob left and also more recently this dreadful pandemic, but that we have actually survived fairly well intact. However, I do believe that people are now looking for a change of direction and leadership and I am sure that Joy will be able to do this. I hope to keep in touch with her and I do thank her for her help.
So, this Sunday after Trinity gives us encouragement. We don’t need to look for devils everywhere, or disunity, or look for problems. Whoever you choose to be your next Vicar make sure that they see the glass half full – there is lots be thankful for in the church and a happy and united church welcomes people and people stay.
So, God bless you all.
Intercessions:For the peace that comes from God alone,
for the unity of all peoples,
and for our salvation,
Lord, in your mercy.
Here our prayer.
For the Church of Christ, for Graham and Alan our Bishops and Archdeacon Jane, soon to be Bishop of Lynn,
and for the whole people of God throughout the Anglican Communion.
For Nettle Jane Childerhouse, to be baptized after this service.
For Adrian and Marian, leaving us today that the Lord will make very clear to them the next step in their discipleship and ministry. We thank God for these past four years and all we have shared together.
Lord, in your mercy.
Hear our prayer.For the nations of the world, particularly praying for those where there is unrest and suffering
For Elizabeth our Queen and for all in authority,
Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer.For this village of Caston and all the churches in this Benefice: for our neighbours and our friends.
For our schools, farms and other places of work.
Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayerFor the good earth which God has given us,
And for the wisdom and will to conserve it,
Lord, in your mercy.
Hear our prayer.
For the aged and infirm,
For the widowed and orphans,
For the sick and suffering.
We pray for all the residents and staff at Thorp House and for all those being cared for in their own homes.
For …..
And for anyone else in need,
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.For the dying, for those who mourn,
for the faithful whom we entrust to the Lord in hope,
as we look forward to the day when we share
the fullness of the resurrection,
Lord, in your mercy.
Hear our prayer.Merciful Father,
accept these prayers
for the sake of your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ.
AmenThe Peace:We are the body of Christ. In the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. Let us then pursue all that makes for peace and builds up our common life.
The peace of the Lord be always with you
And also with you.The Lord’s Prayer:Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Final Prayer:Eternal Father,
we thank you for nourishing us
with these heavenly gifts:
may our communion strengthen us in faith,
build us up in hope,
and make us grow in love;
for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Blessing:The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord …
And the blessing of God Almighty,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you
always.
Amen