21st June 2020 All Saints Church, Childwall
Read: Matthew 10: 9/39 to set today’s shorter extract in context – “24 “The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master……… If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household! 26 “So do not be afraid of them …. 27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.32 “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn “‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—36 a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’ 37 “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.
REFLECT: Last week we heard about Jesus call and commission to His first 12 disciples. In today’s reading Jesus tells them that responding to this call to follow Him and proclaim His message will neither be easy nor universally popular. Jesus makes it plain that they will experience opposition, persecution, threats, insults, punishment and, perhaps, even death and that the opposition may come from unexpected quarters – family members – friends – their own worshipping community as well as from strangers. Jesus does not want His followers [then or now] to be taken by surprise; if He was treated this way His followers can expect no better treatment. They are not to be afraid rather they are to be bold in proclaiming the Good News of Jesus and God’s Kingdom. This call is to take precedence over everything else in their lives!
What a challenging passage! But it’s not all doom and gloom. Jesus reminds them that they are precious to God and can be assured that Jesus will acknowledge them as His own, before God, and they will discover that their self-sacrifice is in fact the way to true fulfilment. Someone has said that in the West, evangelical Christians are more likely to experience the ‘deep freeze’ of indifference than the red hot fires of persecution, and that is probably true, but there are many places across the world where our brothers and sisters do experience everything Jesus foretold and yet the Church in many such places is flourishing.
RESPOND: Can you identify with any of today’s passage? Have you experienced any of the things Jesus speaks about? Have you experienced any other forms of opposition to the fact that you are a Christian and attend Church? How easy do you find it to be bold and unafraid to speak about your faith at home, at school, to friends/neighbours, or in the workplace? Does your lifestyle proclaim God’s Kingdom? Does your behaviour or your attitudes elicit any sort of comeback?
In a recent midweek video message Andrew reminded us of the poster which read, ‘If you were arrested and charged with being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?’ What do you think?
PRAY: Heavenly Father, we pray for our witness, in word and deed, to all you have done through Your Son, Jesus Christ. Help us to be bold and unafraid yet also gentle, sensitive and wise. Help us to identify where and in whom You are already at work and to be willing to respond in whatever way is most appropriate. We pray for our brothers and sisters facing opposition and persecution, this very day. Please strengthen, encourage, and protect them.
Father, we pray for our nation, divided in many ways and over many issues. We pray for peace with justice for all. Help us to identify where we may be prejudiced or judgemental and seek Your grace to change.
Rev Bill Forster (Associate Minster at All Saints, Childwall)
Dear Friends,
New Curate! – our new Curate Helen Deegan is being licensed next Sunday 28th June. There will be a Zoom licensing for all the new Curate’s in the Diocese at 10.30am. The service will be with both bishops, the archdeacons and the vocations team. Please remember them all in your prayers. Please pray for Helen as she prepares to join us in a way that she never expected. It is not going to be possible to welcome her personally as a church congregation as we would normally be able to do, we will do this when we can.
Services in Church – I wanted to update you all about services in church and explain where we are up to, what we are planning and what we have done.
Funerals – Currently only funeral services can happen in All Saints at the moment. We are 1 of only 4 churches in our Deanery who have made the decision to allow funerals to happen in church again. All other churches to date have decided not to open their churches yet for funerals. This is a local decision and there are very strict criteria that have to be followed to enable this to happen. Only clergy will be allowed in the church building for a funeral service along with a very limited number of mourners.
Weddings and Baptisms – Currently weddings and baptisms cannot happen in church yet although national guidance is being worked on for when this is possible.
Individual/private prayer in church – Churches are allowed now to be open for individual private prayer. Within our Deanery no church is currently opening and only one is planning to open from 28th June.
Church Services – The government have said that church buildings maybe able to open again for services from 4th July although this could change.
All Saints update – Our floor signage (keep 2M apart) stickers have arrived and I have put them in place along the floor in our main aisles. Peter has been making further signage on stakes that will be at eye height coming down all our paths into church. All books and bibles etc. have been removed from the pews. All the necessary PPE has been ordered. The aprons have arrived but we are still waiting for the gloves and hand sanitizer, dates we have been given are early July. Along with Peter Kefford I have gone through the risk assessment that has to be completed. We have talked through the practical movement of people and the risks when the church building is reopened. This has been a very useful and important exercise as it highlighted a number of extra areas and concerns that we now need to put into our planning. Once this is all completed next week, we will be in a position to plan for the reopening of our church building with confidence. Our biggest challenge will be how we accommodate the size of our congregation in our church building. Due to the necessity of social distancing we will only be able to use 35 of our 80 church pews in total for individuals or households at any one time.
Please be assured that I am considering all possibilities and I am having regular discussions with all the Deanery clergy as we learn together possible new ways of taking services in the future.
Weekly Prayer requests – If you would like other members of our church family to be able to pray for you or for another member of your family, please let me know and I will put names on this sheet each week. Please ask permission from the person who’s name will appear.
Zoom coffee – After our Online Service each Sunday please join us for Zoom coffee at 10.15am for 40 mins – remember to bring your own coffee! Details for Zoom coffee are as follows:
Zoom Coffee – every Sunday at 10.15am Meeting ID: 842 767 1496 Password: 4allsaints
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/8427671496?pwd=K2dMMnlvTHpwTkxDNEV6bDYwQXBDQT09
Some who usually contribute to the work of All Saints by Weekly Giving Envelopes have inquired as to whether they can continue to do this. If you would like to do this and are restricted in leaving the house, please contact Alison Kefford on 07748 334122 she will arrange with you to collect them safely.
Please can I encourage you to continue to pause every day at 12noon to pray for our nation and our community. As we pray let us be encouraged that we are not alone we are praying as the church, the people of God not in our church building, but in our homes and in the community.
Daily Hope – Is a free national phone-line aimed at the over 75’s who don’t have internet access. The line will be available 24 hours a day on 0800 804 8044. Callers will be able to choose from Prayer during the Day and Night Prayer, from Common Worship, and the Church of England’s weekly national online service.
With my prayers for you all at this time – Andrew Colmer – Vicar – Tel: 07305 842257
