Sunday's coming!

John 13:12-15       Romans 12:1-13 The readings we heard – especially from Romans, can seem a bit scary in their demands to Roger & Jacquey and all of us: “ Really love them… Never be lazy… Always be eager”. But we know that we are all only human – so how do we do that and avoid burn out? I have spent this week at a course entitled ‘leading with emotional maturity’ – which aimed to help those of us on it to understand ourselves better and (I quote) ‘become more able to function as the people God has made us to be’. I suppose those of us in Christian leadership need courses like that because we need to check, every now and again, that we are serving God through the church in the way we should, but also getting the balance right and not trying to do too much. But I can save you four days of hard studying and all that expense by summing the course up in one sentence – be more like Jesus. As you came in I hope you got a ‘Be like Bill’ sheet. For th...

Leviticus 19: 1,2 12-19,  Matthew 5: 38-48 This week is our last chunk of the sermon on the mount before the lectionary asks us to look at the Transfiguration of Jesus, and then we go into Lent and start preparing for Easter. And what does Jesus offer us, in this final bit of teaching? A slap in the face. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, offer the left… love your enemies.. be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect. It all feels so impossible, so unattainable, so much like a slap in the face. I have been thinking all week about being perfect. How can I do that? How can I even try? Why is Jesus asking me to do the impossible? Then I read this translation of the passage in “The Message”. The Message is written by an American scholar of NT Greek, Eugene Peterson, as his attempt to make the Greek original come to life for a 21 st century audience. So here is how Eugene Peterson reads Matthew ch5 v 38-48  “Here’s another old saying that deser...

Deuteronomy 30: 15-20 Matthew 5: 21-27 We heard teaching from Jesus from ‘the sermon on the mount’. Last week – if you were following the lectionary – we heard how Jesus talks of the blessing of God on the poor, those who mourn, the reviled to the great crowd of all sorts of people who have gathered around him to hear what he has to say. This is good news – the blessing, care and love of God for those ho most need it. How the crowd must have felt cheered by what they heard, The love of God is great enough to stop down to the lowest and the least, to the rule-breakers and the unclean, and to bless them. But in today’s reading it might seem that the mood has changed. “You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, `You shall not murder'; and `whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.' But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and ...