May the grace, mercy and love of God be with us all. Amen.
Collect
God our saviour, look on this wounded world in pity and in power; hold us fast to your promises of peace won for us by your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Confession
Let us call to mind our sins, and make confession to our heavenly Father.
You were sent to heal the contrite: Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
You came to call sinners: Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
You plead for us at the Father’s right hand: Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
May the God of love bring us back to himself, forgive us our sins, and assure us of his eternal love, in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
God’s Word - 2 Corinthians, chapter 6, verses 1 to 13 :-
Sharing in God’s work, we make this appeal: you have received the grace of God; do not let it come to nothing. He has said: “In the hour of my favour I answered you; on the day of deliverance I came to your aid.” This is the hour of favour, this the day of deliverance.
Lest our ministry be brought into discredit, we avoid giving any offence in anything. As God’s ministers, we try to recommend ourselves in all circumstances by our steadfast endurance: in affliction, hardship, and distress; when flogged, imprisoned, mobbed; overworked, sleepless, starving. We recommend ourselves by innocent behaviour and grasp of truth, by patience and kindliness, by gifts of the Holy Spirit, by unaffected love, by declaring the truth, by the power of God. We wield the weapons of righteousness in right hand and left.
Honour and dishonour, praise and blame, are alike our lot: we are the impostors who speak the truth, the unknown men whom all men know; dying we still live on; disciplined by suffering, we are not done to death; in our sorrows we have always cause for joy; poor ourselves, we bring wealth to many; penniless, we own the world.
We have spoken very frankly to you, friends in Corinth; we have opened our heart to you. There is no constraint on our part; any constraint there may be is in you. In fair exchange then (if I may speak to you like a father), open your hearts to us.
Mark, chapter 4, verses 35 to 41 :-
In the evening, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Let us cross over to the other side of the lake.’ So they left the crowd and took him with them in the boat in which he had been sitting; and some other boats went with him. A fierce squall blew up and the waves broke over the boat until it was all but swamped. Now he was in the stern asleep on a cushion; they roused him and said, ‘Teacher, we are sinking! Do you not care?’ He awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Silence! Be still!’ The wind dropped and there was a dead calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you such cowards? Have you no faith even now?’ They were awestruck and said to one another, ‘Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him.’
Thanks be to God, for this his holy word. Amen.
A Reflection on the Reading
Sometimes our set readings seem to have an obvious connection; while at others they seem to go in quite different directions - today’s being a case in point. Paul is writing very frankly to the Church in Corinth about the struggles and obstacles he faces as an apostle. Sometimes it must have felt as if the whole world was against him; and, having had a very assured place among his own people as a Pharisee, Paul now has no place, no standing in society. But what he does have is worth more than everything he’s left behind: so he writes, “We are the imposters who speak the truth . . . penniless, we own the world.”
The Gospel reading is a very familiar story, one of what are sometimes called the “nature miracles”, to distinguish them from the miracles of healing that Jesus performed. Crossing the lake, he and his disciples run into one of the very fierce and sudden storms that can build up on the Sea of Galilee. The disciples are terrified; Jesus is asleep, until they wake him. And with a word, he stills the storm, leaving them awestruck.
So what’s the connection between these two readings? Indeed, is there one? I think there are things that connect our readings, and the first and simplest one is simply that what gave Paul the strength and determination and constancy to keep pressing on as an apostle even when so much was against him was that he had come to believe that all the creative power of God rested in Jesus. The truth this imposter spoke, the truth that drove him on, was that in Jesus the love of God had defeated for all and for ever the power of human sin, opening the way to a new creation, a new beginning, a new relationship with God.
Back to the Gospel for a moment. That storm on the lake must have been a particularly fierce one; after all, several of the disciples were experienced sailors, and used to the lake with its stormy moods. But for the Jewish people generally, the sea was thought of as a place of chaos and disorder. They weren’t natural sailors, and the Sea of Galilee is in reality just a large freshwater lake; sailing on the real sea was left to the maritime peoples among their neighbours, like the Phoenicians.
The story of creation in Genesis chapter 1 begins with chaotic waters; waters on which the Spirit of God moves, stilling them to bring life and goodness into being. In stilling the storm, Jesus demonstrated that this creative power and authority rested in him. They had witnessed miracles of healing, in which Jesus had brought order and peace to human bodies and minds; but this was a stage further, even a glimpse of a time when danger, destruction and death will be no more. No wonder they were awestruck.
One interpretation of this story sees the little boat as representing the Church of Christ. The main part of a church building is called a nave, and, like the word navy, it comes from the Latin navis, meaning a boat. Given the arched roofs of most churches, you could fancifully think of the church building as an upturned boat. When times are turbulent and the storms rage against the Church, we can be sure that even through the worst times, Jesus will guide his Church to safety. Indeed, it may be that it’s in the stormy times that we recognise his love most fully.
Paul knew this. It was fundamental to his faith. From where we stand today, we may look back on a time of calm for the Church, when to belong to the Church conferred status and respect; and we may look ahead to more difficult times, when the faith is met with ridicule or pity or even opposition. What counts, and what commends the Gospel, isn’t our social standing, but our integrity and resilience, and our determined resolve to do what is good and to desire that good for all; and in Christ we can find an inner peace to guide us through life’s storms.
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.
Prayers - Pray that the Church everywhere may take seriously its call to faithful service, and may find the resilience to maintain a Christ-like love in all the storms of life. Pray for Christians in India and for the United Church of North India. In our own Diocese, pray for Bishop Richard and for all that enables our life and ministry to be fully inclusive and welcoming to all.
Pray for the world, and for all who are denied human rights and access to justice. Pray too for the landless and refugee peoples of our world, and for those nations hosting large numbers of refugees. Pray for wise leadership here and in every nation; and pray this week for those who offer their services as reservists within our armed forces.
Pray for all in need today, and especially for those who are ill - for their care, treatment and recovery, and for the welfare of all who offer care, within our health services, in care homes, and within our social services. Pray this week for all who live with breathing problems; and also for Hope House and other hospices dealing providing care and respite for children and families.
Pray for families and friends, and for the life of our communities. Pray for those planning weddings and other important life events in the uncertainties of these times, and for all who work in hospitality and tourism. May we all act with care, looking out for one another and keeping safe ourselves.
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 love of God in Christ Jesus guide and shield us through the storms of life, and be our security and peace; and may the blessing of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, surround and sustain us now and always. Amen.
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