5 March by Rev Caroline Wickens, Superintendent of Manchester Circuit
Reading: Matthew 6:1 – 6, 16 – 21
Theme: Giving/Treasures in Heaven
On Ash Wednesday, we recall Jesus’ time in the wilderness as he struggled with Satan. That story tells of a ‘hidden time’ when he was alone, focusing wholly on his relationship with God, without any distractions.
These verses from the Sermon on the Mount help us focus on our relationship with God and recognise the blessings that come when we attend exclusively to God. Jesus picks up on three practices that were – and are – part of the Jewish faith: giving to people in need, prayer and fasting. His question is not whether his followers should engage with these practices – he takes that for granted. He asks how and why we do this.
Each practice is described in the same pattern. First, Jesus paints a picture of how not to do it. ‘So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you’ (v.2). ‘Whenever you pray, do not be like those who love to stand and pray in public’ (v.5). ‘Whenever you fast, do not look dismal’ (v.16). Jesus uses ‘hypocrite’ to describe those who behave like this. The word’s root meaning is ‘actor’ and Jesus critiques their public display of holiness. Each time, he emphasises ‘they have their reward’. They impress other people – but do they impress God?
Jesus shares his experience of a hidden relationship with God, honed during those days in the desert. Give to needy people secretly (v.4). Pray in your room and shut the door (v.6). When you fast, let no-one see your hardship (v.16). He tells his followers to turn away from public display and its rewards. Their walk with God must be shared with God alone – ‘and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you; (verses 4, 6, 18). So we shall find our treasure in heaven, kept safe with God.
Wonder
- What surroundings make it easier for you to come close to God?
- How might Jesus have used public-facing platforms such as Instagram?
Prayer
God, who sees in secret all that we do to honour you,
Help us to come into your presence with whole-hearted commitment to worship
Bringing need – ours and others – to lay before you
Help us to focus on you, the one who focuses most sharply on us
Sharing the deep concerns of our hearts in speech and stillness
Help us to pay attention to your wisdom and love, flowing unstoppably towards us
So that we may store up the treasure of heaven, your limitless grace
Made known to us through your Son Jesus, in whose name we pray
6 March by Rev Rick Ormrod, Superintendent of Burnley and Pendle Circuit
Reading: Matthew 8 v 14-17
Theme: Jesus heals many
We are reflecting this week on The Way of Jesus and healing was certainly a part of the way of Jesus.
We see here in our gospel passage Jesus healing many people, starting with Peter’s mother-in-law and then both casting out demons and curing the sick. In the understanding of the first century this amounted to more or less the same thing, as sickness was still largely believed to be caused by demonic influence. Today we know better.
When meditating on this passage and the way of Jesus it isn’t primarily the many healings that come to mind, important and significant though they are, it is the twin themes of service and self-sacrifice that come to mind.
First, we see Jesus healing Peter’s mother-in-law who had been suffering from some kind of fever. Jesus healed her of this fever, and she then attended to Jesus’ needs as well as those of the other guests. Her response to the wonderful thing Jesus had done, for her was to serve him and others.
More than that, though, we see Jesus serving others by healing many more people; but not just serving, he was doing it sacrificially.
We know from other gospel passages that healing people took something out of Jesus. Before healing Peter’s mother-in-law, Jesus had already healed both a leper and a centurion’s servant. Now we are told “they brought to him many who were possessed by demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and cured all who were sick.”
Jesus didn’t stop for a minute to think of his own need for rest and restoration (though he did take rest when he could). Instead, he cured all who came to him in need. Jesus couldn’t rest when there were people in need.
As Jesus’ disciples we are called to follow his example, to serve others and, sometimes, to do so in a way which is sacrificial. Of course, we must not undertake this life of service to others without also following another way of Jesus: for the gospels tell us that sometimes he also rested.
I finish with a couple of questions for you to reflect on:
- How can you best serve Christ and others today?
- Do you have a good balance of service and rest / refreshment in your life?
Prayer
Lord Christ,
you remain, unseen,
at our side,
present like a poor man
who washes the feet of his friends.
And we,
to follow in your footsteps,
we are here, waiting for you
to suggest signs of sharing
to make us into servants
of your gospel.
Amen
(Brother Roger, The Taize Community)
7 March by Carolyn Hothersall, NWED Synod Secretary, Local Preacher in Chorley and Leyland Circuit and Lay Worker in Preston Ribble Circuit
Reading: Matthew 8 v 18-22
Theme: Cost of following Jesus
As a family we follow rugby league which, over the years, and has been costly both financially, and in time, and has even caused us to miss out on other occasions. But it’s a choice we willingly make and has brought us great excitement and joy, even if accompanied by bruises and piles of muddy laundry.
I wonder how exhausted Jesus must have been when he asked to be taken across the lake that evening. Having spent a long day healing, and still facing numbers of people bringing their sick to him, knowing it would be some time before he could rest, having no place to call his own, being reliant on the hospitality of others, he shared these challenges with the scribe proclaiming he would follow Jesus wherever he went.
In choosing to follow Jesus, we face challenges to our priorities, to existing friendships, leisure time, our treasured habits. I wonder what excuses come most easily to us when we face the conflicting choice between those things which could easily take our energy, and that which enables us to be followers of Jesus. It’s a costly commitment, but one which brings immeasurable rewards. And the man waiting for his father to die showed he was not yet ready to make that commitment.
As we prayerfully make our decision, may we respond in tune with the words of Jacqueline Jones’ hymn,
We will walk the path that will cost us much
and embrace the pain and sorrow.
We will trust in One who entrusts to us
the disciples of tomorrow.
8 March by Rev Kennedy Gondongwe, Superintendent of Oldham Circuit
Reading: Matthew 8 v 23-27
Theme: Jesus calms the storm
This story is a powerful representation of the two worlds that we find ourselves in. The first world is that of the disciples. This is a world where people are gripped with fear in the face of existential threats and chaos. This world is so dangerous, and it is so merciless that its inhabitants are in constant mode of fear and uncertainty.
On the other hand, there is an alternative world. This is the world of Jesus. This is the world where people keep on trusting even when they are faced with uncertainty and danger. It is the world that substitutes fear with trust. The inhabitants of this world continuously ask those in the former world “why are you afraid”? Mathew 8 v 27. The inhabitants of the divine world live their life the way of Jesus.
Recently we have experienced chaos, fear and uncertainly as peace talks between the President of Ukraine and the President of the United States of America crumbled like a deck of cards. A huge population of the world is so much afraid and yet those who live in Jesus’s world will keep trusting even in the face of this uncertainty. When fear is birthed, and circumstances are overwhelming only trust in the overwhelming God will save the world.
The other important aspect in this text is that of the presence of God in the troubled world. Although the boat was troubled Jesus was right there seemingly unconcerned and sleeping. Often, we live in a world where people think that God is sleeping or that God has taken leave of absence or that God simply does not care (Mathew 8 v 24 and 25.) This text teaches us that despite the challenges we face God is ever presence.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, make us citizens of the divine world even in the here and now. Save us from fear that inhibits us from trusting you when the tough gets going. Save us from fear that prevents us from learning from your previous acts of mercy within our lives. We recognize the chaos that we find ourselves in. Our own lives are messy sometimes because of difficult decisions we have made in the past. Our planet is in a deplorable state due to the actions of generations past and present. Give us new hope even in the midst of this chaos. Amen