Alleluia! Christ is risen.
He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Theme Prayer
Risen Christ, for whom no door is locked, no entrance barred:
open the doors of our hearts,
that we may seek the good of others
and walk the joyful road of sacrifice and peace,
to the praise of God the Father. Amen.
Confession
Jesus Christ, risen Master and triumphant Lord,
we come to you in sorrow for our sins,
and confess to you our weakness and unbelief.
Where we have lived by our own strength,
and not by the power of your resurrection, in your mercy, forgive us.
Lord, hear us and help us.
Where we have lived by the light of our own eyes,
as faithless and not believing, in your mercy, forgive us.
Lord, hear us and help us.
Where we have lived for this world alone,
and doubted our home in heaven, in your mercy, forgive us.
Lord, hear us and help us.
May God grant us forgiveness of our sins, time for amendment of life, and the grace and comfort of his Holy Spirit. Amen.
God’s Word - Acts, chapter 4, verses 32 to 35 :-
The whole company of believers was united in heart and soul. Not one of them claimed any of his possessions as his own; everything was held in common. With great power the apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and all were held in high esteem.
There was never a needy person among them, because those who had property in land or houses would sell it, bring the proceeds of the sale, and lay them at the feet of the apostles, to be distributed to any who were in need.
John, chapter 20, verses 19 to the end :-
Late that same day, the first day of the week, when the disciples were together behind locked doors for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. ‘Peace be with you!’ he said; then he showed them his hands and his side. On seeing the Lord the disciples were overjoyed. Jesus said again, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father sent me, so I send you.’ Then he breathed on them, saying, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit! If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven; if you pronounce them unforgiven, unforgiven they remain.’
One of the Twelve, Thomas the Twin, was not with the rest when Jesus came. So the others kept telling him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails on his hands, unless I put my finger into the place where the nails were, and my hand into his side, I will never believe it.’
A week later his disciples were once again in the room, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them, saying, ‘Peace be with you!’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Reach your finger here; look at my hands. Reach your hand here and put it into my side. Be unbelieving no longer, but believe.’ Thomas said, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Because you have seen me you have found faith. Happy are they who find faith without seeing me.’
There were indeed many other signs that Jesus performed in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. Those written here have been recorded in order that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this faith you may have life by his name.
Thanks be to God, for this his holy word. Amen.
Happy are they who find faith without seeing me. So says Jesus to doubting Thomas. None of us can have the privilege Thomas was granted, when the risen Christ stood before him and said, “Look at the wounds in my hand and side.” We can only believe on the testimony of those who like Thomas were there, and did see, and on those who recorded these things in the Gospels.
But I recall that in the pulpit of one of my previous churches there was a small brass plaque which read, “Sir, we would see Jesus.” It was placed out of sight of the congregation, but where the preacher, when preaching, could see it. The words were spoken by the Greeks who went to Philip in John chapter 12 verse 21, asking him to take them to see Jesus. While in the pulpit those same words become a timely reminder that people do still need to be brought to see Jesus.
Back when I was working for USPG I remember an African bishop who spent time with us and led some seminars, and in one of them he said something that’s stayed with me: “Mission is not, for the most part, telling people about Jesus; mission is showing people Jesus.” In other words, doing mission is much less about what we say - or even how we look - than who we are.
That takes me to a somewhat challenging article I was reading the other day. Its author had a very real and active faith in God, but wrote that he had more or less given up on the Church. Why? Because (to him) though the Church spoke about the transforming power of God’s love, it didn’t seem to be showing it very much. In practice the Church didn’t seem to him to be very transformed. I think he felt that churches blended in, when they should be standing out; he wanted them - or their members - to look and feel different from the world around them, not just when they’re in church singing and praying, but at other times too. After all, he said, if people identify as believers, they’re the ones you look at to see whether believing makes sense. His words left me feeling a bit uncomfortable, but I also did have to admit firstly that he did have a point, and secondly that, yes, I do quite like to blend in.
But you’ve got to admit that the church described in our first reading - which was the church before there really was a church, in any settled sense - the apostolic church formed just after the first Christian Pentecost definitely wasn’t blending in. Their way of life was different, challenging, provocative, even. These were people living as a commune, holding everything in common, making sure everyone’s needs were met. If it comes across as a bit new age, that’s no surprise. For it was a new age, for these people as they embarked on a new life in the light of Easter; and they were expecting their Lord to return at literally any moment.
Scholars talk about what was going on there in terms of an interim ethic - in other words, a way of living together that could be sustained by a small group for a short while, but it wouldn’t work anywhere else. And by the time the Book of Acts was written, Christians clearly weren’t any longer living in such a way - for if they had been, there’d have been no need to write about it.
My grandfather, who was a plain speaking countryman, and had a plain speaking and rather rustic faith, reckoned to his dying day that he’d once met Jesus on the path through the churchyard of his village church. He told me the story on several occasions. It took place when he was a young man, and - if I know Granddad - no doubt when he was on his way home from the pub. Thomas was told, “Happy are those who do not see me, yet believe,”- but despite that, I think people do need to see Jesus in order to believe.
And that’s been true for me. My journey of faith has been helped and inspired and guided by a number of people through the years in whom I have seen Jesus. Some of them would be very surprised to be described in such a way, or to know what kind of impact they had on me. These were not people going out to convert me or to recruit me to anything; just ordinary Christian folk who were living in a beautiful and caring and attractive way. Francis of Assisi is supposed to have said, “Preach at all times, and where necessary use words.” These were people who did that.
One last story to leave you with. On my way home from church last Sunday, the car in front of me suddenly stopped, hazards on, and the driver jumped out, signalled to me (but I’m hopeless at interpreting signals) and ran up the road. He’d spotted that a driver in front of him was in trouble, and immediately responded and helped get his car moved off the road. By the time I worked out what was going on, he and the driver he'd gone to help had done the job. But it was something of an object lesson. If Jesus is the man for others, then people will see him in us when we are living with others in mind and being watchful and attentive - when we are listening and looking, finding out what our neighbour needs, what our communities need, and responding.
Statement of Faith
We believe in God the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. We believe in God the Son, who lives in our hearts through faith, and fills us with his love. We believe in God the Holy Spirit, who strengthens us with power from on high. We believe in one God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Prayer Pointers - Pray for peace and understanding between nations, and for wise and courageous leadership. Pray that in this time of stress and challenge, we may be ready to help one another, and act for the good of all. Pray that national considerations may not hinder the worldwide fight against Covid.
Pray for the Church everywhere, and especially for Christians in Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar, and for the Anglican Province of the Indian Ocean. In our own Diocese, pray for Bishop Richard and for the churches and communities of the Ledbury Deanery.
Pray for those in need today: for all who grieve, for the worried and anxious, and for those who are alone. Pray for all who are ill, and especially for those infected by Covid-19. Pray for all who live with Parkinson’s Disease, and for treatment, therapy and research.
Pray for our own communities and for our families and friends. May we act with care and responsibility, and look out for our neighbours. Give thanks for all who continue to volunteer, in local communities and vaccination centres.
A Prayer in memoriam of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh:
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O God,
whose love is boundless and
whose mercies cannot be numbered; accept our prayers
for the soul of your servant
Philip, Duke of Edinburgh,
and grant him an entrance into
your heavenly kingdom
of peace, light and joy,
in the fellowship of all your saints; through the grace of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord,
who died and rose again
and opened the gate of glory,
to whom with you and the Holy Spirit
be praise and honour
now and for ever. Amen.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.
Blessing
May the light of Christ, rising in glory, banish all darkness from our hearts and minds. Amen.
May God our Father, by whose glory Christ was raised from the dead, strengthen us to walk with him in his risen life. And may almighty God bless us, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.
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