19th July 2020

Please note that this Blogspot will no longer be updated after 26th July 2020. The 'reflection' for both this week and last week has been taken from the Methodist Church's weekly order of service, produced specifically  those for cannot take part in any other form of worship

Call to Worship*

 Holy God,

We come to You as Your children.

Not hesitant, not fearful, but with expectation;

We come to You like a seeking protection, comfort and your loving tenderness.

We have come here today to worship You as you people.

You made us to praise You, may our lives be a song of adoration to you.

Amen

 

Prayer of Confession*

I confess Lord that sometimes I feel lost I confess Lord that sometimes the questions are too many I confess Lord that sometimes the answers don’t come I confess Lord that sometimes I know what is right and don’t do it I confess Lord that sometimes I don’t even know what is right I confess Lord that sometimes I listen to other people more than I listen to You I confess Lord that sometimes it is easier to be moral than it is to be holy I confess Lord that sometimes I want to give up – what difference can I make I confess Lord that sometimes my choices don’t match my words I confess Lord that sometimes Your mystery scares me I confess Lord that sometimes I forget that you are a God of action I confess Lord that sometimes I feel lost.

Amen.

* From: https://churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/66995/19-July-7-Sunday-After-Pentecost.pdf

 

Bible Reading:        Matthew 13: 24-30, 36-43

 

He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?” He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?” But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’                          

 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, ‘Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.’ He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!

Time to Reflect  

Jesus often used the natural world as a means of helping his disciples explore the Kingdom of God. In today’s Gospel reading Jesus gives us one of the parables of the Kingdom which tells us about the way that plants grow. Here both the good crop and the weeds which are planted later begin to grow; as they grow, they merge together. 

Jesus knew about the impact of good and evil which was to find its full force as he walked the way of the cross. He knew about human nature. He knew that goodness, truth and justice are in the world but oppression, injustice and conflict are there also. Just like the plant and the weeds which grow together in this parable, so the complexity of human experience both good and bad exist alongside one another.

The crop and the weeds grow together as do good and evil and so does opportunity and oppression, hope and despair, light and darkness. It is only when the harvest is brought in that the weeds and the crop can be separated.  Here is a parable of the end times, but it was also a parable of the hope of the  Kingdom which means that forgiveness is always offered and when accepted has a transformational  impact on the way that life can be lived and hope is shared.  

What though might this mean for us today? We live in an imperfect world, where human beings do the best of things and the worst of things.

Jesus shows us, there is hope for all in what God has done and in what God is doing. May that hope be seen in our response to the world as we discover and share God’s love which continues to bring light into the darkness of our mixed up, imperfect world.                            

The parable tells us that the weeds and the good crop grow together; can good and evil ever be untangled in this world?  What challenge does this present to our living as God’s faithful people in the world today?

From: The Methodist Church (Sunday July 19^th 2020) This short act of worship has been prepared for you to use whilst we are unable to use Methodist Church premises

Prayers of Intercession

Let my prayer be counted as incense before You and the lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice. Lord, I pray for everyone I know who has lost a positive self-image, for those who loathe themselves, hurt themselves, starve themselves, drug themselves. I pray for all those who stay in places and with people who wound them. Holy Spirit help these people know who they are in You – beloved, forgiven, restored. Help me to help them. Let my prayer be counted as incense before You and the lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice.

 

 

 From The Methodist church, prayers at home, 19^th July 2020

Blessing

God who sows and God who reaps, God who allows growth even in the hard places, God who waits patiently for the right time, send us out now into the fields of your world to plant hope amidst the weeds and seeds of life. And may we learn to scatter love wisely till you gather us in once more. Amen

From:  * From: https://churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/66995/19-July-7-Sunday-After-Pentecost.pdf