Welcome

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to our third Sunday Service during the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevents us from meeting together physically in church. I hope you find this mixture of prayers, readings, and sermon a meaningful substitute and that you will feel able to worship God in your home knowing that other members of the All Saints’ family will be joining you. I realize not all of us will be worshipping at the same time but at least we will all be following the same service. I pray that all of you will be able to feel God’s love and presence as we all go through this period of separation.

For Palm Sunday, it is possible many of you are joining in a live version of the sermon being celebrated by zoom on your laptop, phone, or other devices. Digital directions (i.e., the zoom invite) to our Palm Sunday service at 11:00am on April 5 will be circulated by parish email. 

Greeting

Dear friends in Christ, during Lent we have been preparing for the celebration of our Lord’s paschal mystery. On this day our Lord Jesus Christ entered the holy city of Jerusalem in triumph. The people welcomed him with palms and shouts of praise, but the path before him led to self-giving, suffering, and death. Today we greet him as our King, although we know his crown is thorns and his throne a cross. We follow him this week from the glory of the palms to the glory of the resurrection by way of the dark road of suffering and death. United with him in his suffering on the cross, may we share his resurrection and new life. Amen.

Collect

Let us pray:

Assist us mercifully with your help, Lord God of our salvation, that we may enter with joy into the celebration of those mighty acts whereby you give us life and immortality; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Hymn:  “Ride On, Ride On in Majesty” (vs. 1-3) #182

(For personal viewing: King’s College, Cambridge)

Ride on, ride on in majesty!
Hark all the tribes ‘hosanna’ cry;
Thine humble beast pursues his road
With palms and scattered garments strowed.

Ride on, Ride on in Majesty!
In lowly pomp ride on to die!
O Christ, Thy triumphs now begin
O’er captive death and conquered sin.

Ride on, ride on, in majesty!
The wingèd squadrons of the sky
Look down with sad and wondering eyes
To see the approaching sacrifice.

Readings

• The Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew (Chapter 27: 11-54)

Sermon

May my words be in the name of The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. Amen.

Right, let’s stop everything right there. You have just listened to The Greatest Story Ever Told, a sequence of events which changed the course of world history like no other event has done … for Jesus’s death on the cross is the ultimate act of self-sacrifice a human being could do for his fellow human beings. Not only that, it is the one single act in the history of the world where God, through the Son, defeats the devil and all the sin of the world, is now borne by Jesus on his shoulders as he suffers the agonizing death on the cross – as Isaiah predicts of the suffering servant, “wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquity.”

As we gather in the quiet of our own homes, let us reflect on those people who conspired to bring this horrendous event about – some of them well-known favourites like Pilate, the High Priests, Peter and his denials, and Judas Iscariot. But what about ordinary people like you and me – the servant girl quizzing Peter, a man carrying a jar of water to lead the disciples to the place for the Last Supper, the prison guard who loses an ear, all those standing up to give false testimony, a man who offered Jesus a drink on the cross, the centurion doing his duty but recognizing who Jesus was after witnessing his death, and the women at the foot of the cross. All of them ordinary people caught up in this greatest event in world history and all playing their part.

But what were those people doing just five days before? They were doing exactly what we’ve done today – welcoming Jesus as King on a donkey, waving their palms, shouting Hosannas and praising God for sending them this man called Jesus as their Messiah to lead them out from under the yoke of Roman rule. And yet in less than a week that love turned to hate, cheering changed to a cruel cross, the joyful waving of the crowds turned to mockery, the hurling of insults and attempts at harming Jesus, the shouts welcoming him as King turned to shouts of “Crucify Him!” A day of joy turned into a day of immense sadness. In just a few days all these changes took place.

An astonishing turn around; but, thankfully, there was to be another more astonishing still. For on Easter Day Jesus was to change it all back again. Hate was replaced by love, the tears at and after the cross were replaced by cheers of awe and wonderment following The Resurrection. The mocking of the crowds gave way to tsunamis of happiness, sadness was replaced by joy, the one who had been killed was worshipped as Lord of Lords and King of Kings!

Palm Sunday and the events leading up to Jesus’s death remind us how quickly people can change – ourselves included – and how short-lived our love and faithfulness can be. But it reminds us also that the love of God shown in Christ never changes; that however much we may fight against his will and however faithless we may be, his love and purpose will endure for ever. And that purpose will always have at its fulcrum ordinary men and women. Like those involved in the death and resurrection of Jesus and like all of us gathered here, separated and yet so much together. Filled with the Spirit, we are called to follow in their footsteps and witness to that loving purpose of God in our generation. Amen.

Hymn: “My Song Is Love Unknown”  (vs. 1-3)  #184

(For personal viewing: Sylvia Burnside & the New Irish Orchestra)

My song is love unknown;
My Saviour’s love to me;
Love to the loveless shown,
That they may lovely be.
O who am I,
That for my sake,
my Lord should take
frail flesh, and die?

He came from His blest throne,
Salvation to bestow:
But men made strange, and none
The longed-for Christ would know.
But O my friend!
My Friend indeed,
Who at my need
His life did spend!

Sometimes they strew His way,
And His sweet praises sing;
Resounding all the day,
Hosannas to their King.
Then: Crucify!
Is all their breath,
And for His death
They thirst and cry.

Prayers

Almighty God, whose Son was crucified yet entered into glory, may we, walking in the way of the cross, find it is for us a way of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Almighty and ever-living God, in tender love for all our human race you sent your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ to take our flesh and suffer death upon a cruel cross. May we follow the example of his great humility, and share in the glory of his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Gracious God, the suffering and death of Jesus, your only Son, makes us pleasing in your sight. Alone we can do nothing, but through his sacrifice, may we receive your love and mercy.

We finish our prayers by saying the great family prayer Jesus taught us:

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father…

Hymn: “O Sacred Head, Surrounded”  (vs. 1-3)  #198

(For personal viewing: Jack Marti & Elisabeth Montague)

O sacred head surrounded
by crown of piercing thorn;
O royal head so wounded,
reviled and put to scorn:
death’s shadows rise before you,
the glow of life decays,
yet angel hosts adore you
and tremble as they gaze!

Your youthfulness and vigour
are spent, your strength is gone,
and in your tortured figure
I see death drawing on:
what agony of dying,
what love, to sinners free!
My Lord, all grace supplying,
O turn your face on me!

Your sinless soul’s oppression
was all for sinners’ gain;
mine, mine was the transgression,
but yours the deadly pain:
I bow my head, my Saviour,
for I deserve your place;
O grant to me your favour,
and heal me by your grace.

The Blessing

April 2, 2020

Over the next few days, we are going to hear a lot about Judas Iscariot and his betrayal of Our Lord. Many of my clergy colleagues’ sermons will paint Judas in bad colours. Phrases like “he had Jesus’ blood on his hands,”“he sent his Master to His death,” and “through his greed or resentment or disillusionment he became guilty of the greatest crime in history” will be used and they will point to the Gospels backing them in their opinions. All four evangelists unite in placing this act of Judas in the “very important” category of events which contributed to the death of Jesus. Thirty-three times this “act of betrayal” is mentioned in all four Gospels and each time it is seen as being critical in the Passion of our Lord.

Right from the start of my Christian journey in my late twenties, I have always struggled with the above assertions. Early on I learnt that the Greek verb used simply meant “to hand over” rather than the more negative “to betray,” and I just don’t believe the events of Easter would not have happened if Judas had not handed over Jesus to the Jewish authorities. As I said on Tuesday our Lord was in a “stature of waiting” throughout these awful days and His death was planned and inevitable and not due to any actions taken by Judas or anyone else involved. They were merely pawns in God’s hands.

My other reasons for not accepting Judas’ action as being of major importance lies in the actions of the other disciples and those of ourselves. Was Judas any more sinful than Peter denying Jesus three times, than the three disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane ordered to stay awake and keep guard but slept, or than the whole bunch when they forsook Jesus and fled from The Garden? And what about ourselves? Through Lent we have been looking at our shortcomings and failings. When we look at them, can we really say we are more sinful than Judas? I have no doubt he lives in all of us – especially me.

Let us pray:

Father, as we approach the events of Holy Week and Easter, grant us, we pray, the wisdom to rise above the demands of the Judas within us all and follow the way of Jesus in bringing love, joy and peace to this world which is consumed by the worries and anxieties of the COVID19 pandemic.

Lord in your mercy, Hear our prayer.

We pray for all those who are sick either with the virus itself or suffering mentally as a result of worry and those who have been bereaved.

Lord in your mercy, Hear our prayer.

Come Holy Spirit, fill us with your grace, with your enthusiasm for life and with a real sense of joy and satisfaction in serving you.

Lord in your mercy, Hear our prayer.

Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Welcome

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to our second Sunday Service of the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevents us from meeting together physically in church. I hope you find this mixture of prayers, readings, and sermon a meaningful substitute and that you will feel able to worship God in your home knowing that other members of the All Saints’ family will be joining you. I realize not all of us will be worshipping at the same time but at least we will all be following the same service. I pray that all of you will be able to feel God’s love and presence as we all go through this period of separation.

Collect

Almighty God, your Son came into the world to free us all from sin and death. Breathe upon us with the power of your Spirit, that we may be raised to new life in Christ, and serve you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Readings

• A Reading from the Letter of Paul to the Romans (Chapter 8, Verses 6-11)
• The Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to John (Chapter 11, verses 1-45)

Sermon

May my words be in the name of The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. Amen.

When I was a uniformed constable walking around the streets of central London, I developed a bit of a reputation among my colleagues because of the strength of my voice. Coupled with the sight of my uniform and especially the special Metropolitan Police “Bobby’s” helmet, they reckoned I could stop a fight from over 100 yards away by using my voice! Similarly, in my rural churches in England with no microphone and sound system, I was always told by the congregations that they never had any problems hearing me! Some of those churches were quite large too – believe me!

 Now, while I would never claim to have the same ability as Our Lord, we see in today’s reading just what power and authority his voice had – it was strong and powerful enough, literally, to awaken the dead! Lazarus, who had died and been in the tomb for 4 days, responds to Jesus’s voice and appears at the entrance with his hands and feet bound by strips of cloth and his face wrapped in a cloth – what a sight that must have been.

Today is the third Sunday in a row when we have seen not only the power, but also the authority, in Jesus’s voice. Remember, first of all, the Samaritan woman at the well – the authority in the words Jesus spoke led her to say to others, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done. He cannot be The Messiah, can he?” Last week the man born blind responded to the authoritative voice of Jesus by obeying Jesus’s instruction after having mud put upon his eyes, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam.” Later he responded to Jesus again, saying, “Lord I believe” and ‘then,’ we are told, ‘he worshipped him.’ But for me, and, I think, most people, today’s reading is the climax of these responses – a dead man coming out of his tomb, just because Jesus told him to!

 Of course, it is no accident that these three episodes in Jesus’s ministry, culminating in the raising of Lazarus from the dead, have been placed in the lectionary on the 3 Sundays leading up to the events of Easter, starting with Palm Sunday. The wise committee, which put the lectionary together, wanted to remind us through these consecutive readings of the power and authority of Jesus The Messiah, so that we might be encouraged in our faith as we face the harrowing events of Holy Week and Good Friday. We must not forget that many of Jesus’s followers deserted him through those events and even his own 12 closest disciples ran away in the face of his suffering on the cross. And let’s be honest, the events of the next 2 weeks are also stumbling blocks to those who are “wannabe” Christians, but find the brutal and undeserving death of Jesus on the cross hard to understand and difficult to accept. And, I don’t know about you, but, sometimes, when I sit down and contemplate it all, I too find the torture, the pain, the suffering and the ultimate undeserved death of Our Lord hard to fathom and I wonder at how, as a man, as one of us, he was able to go through with it.

So, we need these reminders that we’ve had the last 3 Sundays of Jesus’s power and authority to bolster our faith through the next 2 difficult weeks. We need to be aware as well of the reason why Jesus carried out these miraculous ‘signs,’ as John calls them in his gospel and of which raising Lazarus from the dead is one of the most famous. We find that reason in Jesus’s own prayer to His Father just before he calls Lazarus out of the tomb: “Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” In the last verse of today’s reading, we see that ‘many of the Jews, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in Him.’ May we, who already believe, hang on to that belief as a source of encouragement through the next 2 agonising weeks as Jesus makes that journey to The Cross.  Amen.

Prayers

God our Father, in your unfailing love and goodness, hear us as we bring our prayers for the world and for all people to you. In this period of Lent we come to you aware of our unreadiness for the enormity of the Easter message, that Christ suffered and died for us and was yet raised in glorious victory. Grant us healing in our souls, Lord, and in the souls of all those searching for meaning in their lives and for all who are blinded by the sin and darkness of this secular world and can see no way out of their physical and mental suffering.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayers.

We pray for all those who worry about the Coronavirus crisis and struggle with their loneliness and are being forced to stay in isolation. Give them courage and hope and we pray for the future, certain in the knowledge that you will continue to guide us and guard us throughout all things. Support us through these difficult times and through ill health, doubt or trouble, and fulfill your promise to be with us until the end of the age.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayers.

We pray for our church of All Saints as it faces the challenges of this difficult time with no provision for its members to meet for worship and mutual support and a large drop in income. We pray that those who can transfer their giving to the Automatic Debit facility do so as soon as possible and those who can’t, promptly drop their cheques into the mailbox at the rear entrance to the church offices.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayers.

We pray for all those who are sick and infirm, naming those in hearts who need your love and healing touch. We pray for those who are grieving the loss of a loved one. Bless them and surround them with your love.

The Lord’s Prayer

The Blessing

The Peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep us in the love and knowledge of God and His Son Jesus Christ and the Blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit be with us, with those whom we love and with those for whom we have prayed now and for evermore.  Amen.

Your wardens, along with Fr. Geoff and the Pastoral Care team, continue to meet weekly via video and phone to see how we can best serve the needs of our parish community in these difficult times. We will continue to send updates via email and post information on the All Saints’ Facebook page and parish website.

Many thanks to Arleane Ralph for creating a new page on our website labelled Together Apart. Here you will find a weekly Sunday service prepared by Fr. Geoff for you to follow at home, on-line prayer and worship resources, etc.

If you would like to be added to our email list, there is now a link to the email sign up form on the Together Apart page on the website. Thanks to the magic of our web designer, if you complete it you will automatically be added to the mailing list.

If you are interested in signing up for auto-debit (even temporarily in these troubled times), a pre-authorized giving form will soon be available, also on our Together Apart webpage. Despite the many closures, the bills still find their way into our mailbox. Thank you to the many folks who have donated via the website “donate button” or who have mailed a cheque.

We are working hard to keep our parish family connected and exploring ways to see if we can live stream services on Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Watch this space for more information. We are also reviewing the parish lists to see who among our parish family may be isolated and in need of a friendly phone call or someone to shop for them.

There is always good news and kindness amongst all the negatives. Our Deacon’s Cupboard food bank is continuing to operate thanks to a group of dedicated volunteers (with new procedures in place to keep both volunteers and clients safe.) And just the other day the Salvation Army told us they had “a few things for your foodbank.” Well, the “few things” completely filled Roy’s truck! Don’t forget, if you want to donate to the food bank, we are having a “drive though” donation day on April 8^th between 10 and noon. Come to the parking lot, pop your trunk and a volunteer will take your donation.

Blessings to all. Keep the Faith. Wash your Hands. Pray for each other.

Your wardens, Roy, Sheila, Tim and Karen