Talks, Sermons and Reflections

Matthew 16:13-19 We are looking this morning at the Church. Not the institution of the Church. Not this beautiful building of All Saints, Burnham Sutton. We are talking about the Church, the ‘ecclesia’ (that is the word used here), the people who God has ‘called out’ to be his people, who Jesus gathered to himself, who live by faith in his promises, who are facing God rather than walking away from God, and who are seeking to grow in love and communion with God, together with each other and sharing in God’s mission to the world. A link to the audio of this sermon  (and apologies for the poor quality of recording) And I note from our reading 1. That this is Jesus’ Church. Jesus says, “I will build my Church”. We sing the hymn, ‘The Churches one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord’. Jesus is the rock that is the foundation, the cornerstone of the Church. He is the stone on which we stumble and fall to our knees, or which falls on us. And he is the rock on which we can build our ...

Luke 8:26-39 Today we meet the demon possessed man. Mosaic of the exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac from the  Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo  in  Ravenna , C6th Click here for the audio of this talk We meet a person who has almost been consumed by forces of evil. He is naked: stripped of dignity, protection, socially excluded and living like a wild beast. He lives among the tombs: he is living as a dead man among the dead. He has lost his name. When Jesus asks him what his name is, he defines himself by the demons He cannot be tamed. Others cannot control him. He cannot control himself. And when they enter into the pigs, the demons go into self destruct mode. They serve ‘Apollyon’ (Revelation 9:11), which means ‘the destroyer’. The demons can destroy the pigs. They would have destroyed this man, but for the tiny fragment of God residue that remains in him. But what we also see is that the demons recognise the person of Jesus; they recognise his authority. And they fear...

John 16:12-15 Today is Trinity Sunday It is the climax of the festivals: Good Friday and Easter, Ascension and Pentecost Click here for a link to the audio of this talk It is what all those feasts are pointing to The revelation of the fire of love that is at the heart of God And the life changing encounter with the three in one. And now, for the next 20 or so weeks of the church’s year, we have the opportunity to live out the Trinity. Trinity Sunday is when we reflect on the revelation of the mystery at the heart of God. It is a mystery – not in the sense of a puzzle to be solved (I love a murder mystery) or an ignorance to be overcome. Rather it is a mystery of awesomeness, a reality that is so profound that we will never understand it and so big that we can never encompass it. Indeed the more that we encounter this mystery, the bigger we realise it is, the more we discover that there is to explore, and the greater will be our wonder. There is so much, especially in John, about the r...

John 14:8-17 Thank you, God, for sending Jesus; Thank you, Jesus, that you came; Holy Spirit, please now teach us More about his precious name. Philip said to Jesus, ‘Lord, show us the Father and we will be satisfied’ (John 14:8). The audio of the talk can be found here Philip is asking to see the source of all honour and glory and power - the God of Glory. It is a big prayer. Only a very few people had seen the glory of God. Moses and Isaiah had seen the glory of God. The people of God had seen the glory of God, the shekinah of God, in the cloud which led them through the wilderness. They saw it when the glory of God filled the temple that Solomon had built. It was so real that nobody could enter it. Peter, James and John saw the glory of God in the transfigured Jesus on the mountain. And Paul later mentions a vision which he is given, which is so wonderful he cannot express it in words. Philip is asking Jesus, he is praying that he might see the glory of God. People have been transfo...

John 5.1-9 A link to an audio of this talk 1. Jesus sees this man. That is important. There are many people who are sick by the pool by the sheepgate. But Jesus chooses this one man. He has been ill for 38 years. We are not told what his illness is, but he obviously cannot move himself easily. And Jesus sees him . We’ve noticed that before. In John 1, Nathaniel comes to Jesus, and Jesus says to him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” It is a bit enigmatic, but it seems that Jesus is saying something that is incredibly significant for Nathanael. He had noticed Nathaniel and he knew Nathaniel. It is enough for Nathaniel to make the pretty dramatic declaration: “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (John 1:47-49) What is interesting in this passage is that whereas Nathaniel is told about Jesus and comes to Jesu...

  John 13:31-35 Jesus says, “I give you a new commandment that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another”. (John 13:34)  The audio of this talk can be found here It is a strange saying because the command to love is not a new command.  It is there in the Old Testament In Leviticus 19:18, the people of God are commanded to love their neighbour, the member of their community: “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbour as yourself: I am the LORD”. And now Jesus commands his followers to love 'one another', the community that is now centred on him.  So how can Jesus say that this is a new command? Some say that up to now, in John’s gospel, the great command has been to believe, to put our trust in Jesus as the Son of God. And now Jesus says that he is giving them a new command. Not just the command to believe but the command to love – to love one another. ...

Micah 4:1-4 It is wonderful to be here celebrating VE day 80. Quite a few of you will remember the actual celebrations. My mother travelled from Newcastle to London, to be in Trafalgar Square, along with thousands of other people. Evil had been defeated People were coming home. Children would see fathers for the first time, and there would be family reunions. There was peace: no more fear of sirens calling people to the air raid shelters There was the possibility to rebuild There was the promise of abundance Sadly, of course, we know that VE day was just a glimpse of what could be. There is still so much evil. Men and women go off to war. Today there is the fear of renewed war between India and Pakistan; and we add that to the litany of Sudan, Congo, Ukraine and Gaza Families and communities are torn apart People live in fear. Possibly tonight they will hear the sirens and have to run to the shelters The arms industry is huge, and it is growing And because of war, millions are homeless...

John 21:15-19 In our reading Jesus commissions Peter to care for his people, for his sheep. Jesus commissions Peter. Icon from the  church of St. Peter Gallicantu in Jerusalem   I wonder what the qualification is for a new Archbishop? Or a new pope? This is rather an appropriate passage for the beginning of the conclave. 1. It is about a very personal encounter between Jesus and Peter Three times Jesus asks Peter, ‘Do you love me?’ Twice Peter answers, ‘You know that I love you’. But the third time he says, and I wonder whether it is a bit of revelation to him, ‘Lord you know all things. You know that I love you’. John tells us that Peter denies Jesus three times, just as Jesus predicted. But, unlike Luke, he does not tell us that Jesus turns and looks at Peter after the third denial in the courtyard. So, when Jesus asks him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’, he must have realised and is now acknowledging that Jesus knew that he had denied him three times. In some homes ...

John 20:19-31 Thomas does not believe the other disciples. Thomas and the Disciples. Ravenna.  Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo He has been with them for 3 years. At times life will have been intense, and they will have had to completely rely on each other. But when the other disciples tell Thomas that they have seen Jesus, that he is risen from the dead; when they tell him that they have seen his hands and side, Thomas refuses to believe them. We are told a little about Thomas in John’s gospel. When Jesus says that he is going to Jerusalem, Thomas says to the other disciples, “Let’s go with him so that we may die with him”. And later, when Jesus says that his disciples know the way to the place where he is going – Thomas asks, ‘How can we know the way?’. And Jesus answers him by saying, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” I think it tells us quite a bit about Thomas It tells us that he imagined in his mind the worst possible outcome: death for Jesus and death for Jesus’ ...

Acts 10:34-43 This reading is about the passing on of a message. It was a message that began in Galilee with John the Baptist. It spread through Judea to Jerusalem, and from there to all people. The Acts of the Apostles ends with the message reaching the centre of the then world: Rome It is a very simple message. It is about Jesus God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and power to do good and to set people free. God raised this Jesus, who they rejected and crucified, from the dead. It is an incredible, almost unbelievable message. André Kamba Luesa (Congolese, 1944–1995), The Resurrection), 1992. Easter, Day 6: Mfurahini, Haleluya – Art & Theology When the women told the first followers of Jesus that the tomb was empty and that men in dazzling clothes had said that Jesus was risen – the disciples do not believe them. It is only when they see the empty tomb for themselves, and the graveclothes wrapped up in a separate place, that the penny begins to drop. And notice here how Pe...

And Jesus says, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32) At first glance this is a very simple icon. But it is rich in meaning. Icon of the Resurrection, Moscow C14th, Rublev museum We’ve looked at this when we were talking about John 19:26-27 how Jesus – by his death – makes a new community, and links his mother and the beloved disciple. And we saw how, certainly in John’s gospel, Mary represents both the mother of Jesus but also all people who put their faith in the promises of God; she represents the whole church. And John represents the individual believer, beloved by Jesus. The title above the icon is the Crucifixion of our Lord, and there are six characters here There are two angels representing the heavenly world. I think we can see three of their six wings There is Christ himself on the cross. Above him on the left and right are the initials – they appear to us as IC and XC – IC Jesus, XC Christ. On his halo – it is faded – a...