Sunday readings and prayers

THE THIRD  SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

 
The collect for the THIRD SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

Almighty God, you have broken the tyranny of sin and have sent the Spirit of your Son into our hearts whereby we call you Father: give us grace to dedicate our freedom to your service, that we and all creation may be brought to the glorious liberty of the children of God; 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.

As Christians we seek to love God and to love our neighbour as ourselves. We are called to be peacemakers and to serve our communities -  and yet  Christians in many parts of  the world are persecuted for their Faith. Worshippers have to gather in secret, knowing that their lives are in danger if they are discovered. Why should peace loving people be treated in this way?  How fortunate we are that we can worship in freedom! But how much do we take this freedom for granted? And what value do we place on our Bibles? In some countries reading the Scriptures is an illegal activity and could lead to imprisonment.

A reading from Jeremiah 20:7-13

O Lord, you have enticed me, and I was enticed;

you have overpowered me, and you have prevailed.

I have become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me.

For whenever I speak, I must cry out, I must shout, "Violence and destruction!"

For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long.

If I say, "I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,"

then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones;

I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.

For I hear many whispering: "Terror is all around!

Denounce him! Let us denounce him!" All my close friends  are watching for me to stumble.

"Perhaps he can be enticed, and we can prevail against him,  and take our revenge on him."

But the Lord is with me like a dread warrior; therefore my persecutors will stumble,  and they will not prevail.  They will be greatly shamed, for they will not succeed.

Their eternal dishonour will never be forgotten.

O Lord of hosts, you test the righteous, you see the heart and the mind;  let me see your retribution upon them, for to you I have committed my cause.

Sing to the Lord; praise the Lord!  For he has delivered the life of the needy

from the hands of evildoers.

Psalm 69: 8-11, 18-20

8   Surely, for your sake have I suffered reproach, and shame has covered my face. I have become a stranger to my own kindred, an alien to my mother's children. Zeal for your house has eaten me up; the scorn of those who scorn you has fallen upon me. I humbled myself with fasting, but that was turned to my reproach.

18 Answer me, O Lord, for your love is kind;  in your great compassion, turn to me.'  "Hide not your face from your servant;  be swift and answer me, for I am in distress. Draw near to me and redeem me; because of my enemies deliver me.”

Romans 6:1b-11

Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For whoever has died is freed from sin. But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Gospel: Matthew 10:24-3

Jesus said to the twelve disciples, “A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master; it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher, and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!  “So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows. “Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven. “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.  For I have come to set a man against his father,  and a daughter against her mother,  and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;  and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.”

Heavenly Father, we thank you for that precious gift of love that you pour into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. We thank you for the deep peace and joy that it brings, even in these unsettling times. We thank you too for the freedom to practise our Faith that we enjoy in this country and pray that we may never take it for granted.

God of Justice, we pray for Christians around the world who are being persecuted for their Faith, over 100 million of them in more than 60 nations. May they be strengthened by the Holy Spirit and know your reassuring presence. We pray too for those seeking to bring peace to neighbourhoods where inequalities are leading to unrest. 

Loving Father, we continue to bring before you those living in war torn countries, thinking once again of the people of Ukraine and the Middle East who have had to endure so much over the past few years.. We pray that peace may be reestablished and that the leaders of the world will stick by their commitment to rebuild Ukraine once that time comes. Meanwhile, we pray for the refugees and for all who are supporting them at this time of great anxiety. 

Heavenly Father, you have entrusted us with the care of your world: Give us wisdom and compassion that we and all your people may value your creation. After the joy of yesterday’s Open Gardens, we pray for all who work with plants, both to feed the world and to give us reason to rejoice in the wonders of the natural world. We pray for all who work on the land at this busy time of year and we bring before you those around the world whose lives are being affected by climate change, especially where unpredictable weather patterns are affecting the growing of food.

Heavenly Father, we pray for those in need, asking you to heal the sick,  strengthen the fearful, befriend the lonely and guide the perplexed.   We pray in particular at this time for .......................................We pray for the repose of the souls of those who have recently departed this world & for strength & reassurance for those they have left behind. 

We pray that each day we may live our lives as true followers of Christ and be reassured that He is with us always: we have nothing to fear.