22 March 2026
10:30 | 
Posted by
Dr Platts |
If you are attending the 10am service next week (Palm Sunday), Please meet in the Church Hall to process to church if you are able.
A reading from the book of the prophet Ezekiel.
The hand of the Lord came upon me,
and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord
and set me down in the middle of a valley;
it was full of bones.
He led me all round them;
there were very many lying in the valley,
and they were very dry.
He said to me, ‘Mortal, can these bones live?’
I answered, ‘O Lord God, you know.’
Then he said to me,
‘Prophesy to these bones, and say to them:
O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
Thus says the Lord God to these bones:
I will cause breath[a] to enter you, and you shall live.
I will lay sinews on you,
and will cause flesh to come upon you,
and cover you with skin,
and put breath in you, and you shall live;
and you shall know that I am the Lord.’
So I prophesied as I had been commanded;
and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise,
a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
I looked, and there were sinews on them,
and flesh had come upon them,
and skin had covered them;
but there was no breath in them.
Then he said to me,
‘Prophesy to the breath,
prophesy, mortal,
and say to the breath:
Thus says the Lord God:
Come from the four winds, O breath,
and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.’
I prophesied as he commanded me,
and the breath came into them,
and they lived,
and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.
Then he said to me,
‘Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel.
They say, “Our bones are dried up,
and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.”
Therefore prophesy, and say to them,
Thus says the Lord God:
I am going to open your graves,
and bring you up from your graves, O my people;
and I will bring you back to the land of Israel.
And you shall know that I am the Lord,
when I open your graves,
and bring you up from your graves, O my people.
I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live,
and I will place you on your own soil;
then you shall know
that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act,
says the Lord.’
Romans 8:6-11
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
To set the mind on the flesh is death,
but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God;
it does not submit to God’s law—
indeed it cannot,
and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh;
you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit
of God dwells in you.
Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ
does not belong to him.
But if Christ is in you,
though the body is dead because of sin,
the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,
he who raised Christ from the dead
will give life to your mortal bodies also
through his Spirit that dwells in you.
John 11:1-45
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
A certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill.
So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ‘Lord, he whom you love is ill.’
But when Jesus heard it, he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’
Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus,
after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
Then after this he said to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judea again.’
The disciples said to him, ‘Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?’
Jesus answered, ‘Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world.
But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.’
After saying this, he told them, ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.’
The disciples said to him, ‘Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.’
Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep.
Then Jesus told them plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead.
For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.’
Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow-disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him.’
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.
Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away,
and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother.
When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home.
Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.’
Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’
Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.’
Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’
She said to him, ‘Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.’
When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, ‘The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’
And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him.
Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him.
The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there.
When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’
When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved.
He said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’
Jesus began to weep.
So the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!’
But some of them said, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?’
Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it.
Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ‘Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.’
Jesus said to her, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’
So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upwards and said, ‘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.’
When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’
The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’
Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.
15 March 2026
A sunny Sunday. Crafty church was in the Church Hall and Matins in church. To celebrate Motheriing Sunday, posies of flowers were distributed.
At Matins, there was no list of notices, so Chris our Churchwarden, mentioned the days of the week and people piped up with what was happening that day! It was a very entertaining way to deliver the notices.
Don't forget the Lenten course on Tuesday, but please let Fr Chris know you are attending or there won't be enough soup to go around
Catch up with those forgotten crafts session on Wednesday, but noon until 1pm as there is a meeting afterwards for people wishing to help with flowers in church
Mary's place on Thursday afternoon for chat, companionship, tea, coffee and cake.
Choir practice on Friday 6pm, come and join us if you fancy singing with them.
A reading from the first book of Samuel.
The Lord said to Samuel,
‘How long will you grieve over Saul?
I have rejected him from being king over Israel.
Fill your horn with oil and set out;
I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite,
for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.’
Samuel said, ‘How can I go?
If Saul hears of it, he will kill me.’
And the Lord said,
‘Take a heifer with you, and say,
“I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.”
Invite Jesse to the sacrifice,
and I will show you what you shall do;
and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you.’
Samuel did what the Lord commanded,
and came to Bethlehem.
The elders of the city came to meet him trembling,
and said, ‘Do you come peaceably?’
He said, ‘Peaceably;
I have come to sacrifice to the Lord;
sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.’
And he sanctified Jesse and his sons
and invited them to the sacrifice.
When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought,
‘Surely the Lord’s anointed is now before the Lord.’
But the Lord said to Samuel,
‘Do not look on his appearance
or on the height of his stature,
because I have rejected him;
for the Lord does not see as mortals see;
they look on the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks on the heart.’
Then Jesse called Abinadab,
and made him pass before Samuel.
He said, ‘Neither has the Lord chosen this one.’
hen Jesse made Shammah pass by.
And he said, ‘Neither has the Lord chosen this one.’
Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel,
and Samuel said to Jesse,
‘The Lord has not chosen any of these.’
Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Are all your sons here?’
And he said, ‘There remains yet the youngest,
but he is keeping the sheep.’
And Samuel said to Jesse,
‘Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.’
He sent and brought David in.
Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was handsome.
The Lord said,
‘Rise and anoint him; for this is the one.’
Then Samuel took the horn of oil,
and anointed him in the presence of his brothers;
and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David
from that day forward.
Samuel then set out and went to Ramah.
Ephesians 5:8-14
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Ephesians.
Once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light.
Live as children of light—
for the fruit of the light is found
in all that is good and right and true.
Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord.
Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness,
but instead expose them.
For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly;
but everything exposed by the light becomes visible,
for everything that becomes visible is light.
Therefore it says,
‘Sleeper, awake!
Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.’
John 9:1-41
Her the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
As Jesus walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.
His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’
Jesus answered, ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him.
We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work.
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.’
When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes,
saying to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’ (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see.
The neighbours and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, ‘Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?’
Some were saying, ‘It is he.’ Others were saying, ‘No, but it is someone like him.’ He kept saying, ‘I am the man.’
But they kept asking him, ‘Then how were your eyes opened?’
He answered, ‘The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, “Go to Siloam and wash.” Then I went and washed and received my sight.’
They said to him, ‘Where is he?’ He said, ‘I do not know.’
They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.
Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.
Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, ‘He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see.’
Some of the Pharisees said, ‘This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath.’ But others said, ‘How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?’ And they were divided.
So they said again to the blind man, ‘What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened.’ He said, ‘He is a prophet.’
The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight
and asked them, ‘Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?’
His parents answered, ‘We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;
but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.’
His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue.
Therefore his parents said, ‘He is of age; ask him.’
So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, ‘Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.’
He answered, ‘I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.’
They said to him, ‘What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?’
He answered them, ‘I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?’
Then they reviled him, saying, ‘You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.
We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.’
The man answered, ‘Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes.
We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will.
Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind.
If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.’
They answered him, ‘You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?’ And they drove him out.
Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’
He answered, ‘And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.’
Jesus said to him, ‘You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.’
He said, ‘Lord, I believe.’ And he worshipped him.
Jesus said, ‘I came into this world for judgement so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.’
Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, ‘Surely we are not blind, are we?’
Jesus said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, “We see”, your sin remains.
08 March 2026
Exodus 17:1-7
A reading from the book of Exodus.
From the wilderness of Sin
the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages,
as the Lord commanded.
They camped at Rephidim,
but there was no water for the people to drink.
The people quarrelled with Moses,
and said, ‘Give us water to drink.’
Moses said to them, ‘Why do you quarrel with me?
Why do you test the Lord?’
But the people thirsted there for water;
and the people complained against Moses and said,
‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt,
to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?’
So Moses cried out to the Lord,
‘What shall I do with this people?
They are almost ready to stone me.’
The Lord said to Moses,
‘Go on ahead of the people,
and take some of the elders of Israel with you;
take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.
I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb.
Strike the rock, and water will come out of it,
so that the people may drink.’
Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel.
He called the place Massah and Meribah,
because the Israelites quarrelled and tested the Lord,
saying, ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’
Romans 5:1-11
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
Since we are justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand;
and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.
And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings,
knowing that suffering produces endurance,
and endurance produces character,
and character produces hope,
and hope does not disappoint us,
because God’s love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
For while we were still weak,
at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—
though perhaps for a good person
someone might actually dare to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.
Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath of God.
For if while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son,
much more surely, having been reconciled,
will we be saved by his life.
But more than that,
we even boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.
John 4:5-42
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
Jesus came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.
Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.
A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink’.
(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.)
The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?’ (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.)
Jesus answered her, ‘If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink”, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.’
The woman said to him, ‘Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water?
Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?’
Jesus said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,
but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.’
The woman said to him, ‘Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.’
Jesus said to her, ‘Go, call your husband, and come back.’
The woman answered him, ‘I have no husband.’ Jesus said to her, ‘You are right in saying, “I have no husband”;
for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!’
The woman said to him, ‘Sir, I see that you are a prophet.
Our ancestors worshipped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.’
Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.
But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him.
God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.’
The woman said to him, ‘I know that Messiah is coming’ (who is called Christ). ‘When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.’
Jesus said to her, ‘I am he, the one who is speaking to you.’
Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, ‘What do you want?’ or, ‘Why are you speaking with her?’
Then the woman left her water-jar and went back to the city. She said to the people,
‘Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?’
They left the city and were on their way to him.
Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, ‘Rabbi, eat something.’
But he said to them, ‘I have food to eat that you do not know about.’
So the disciples said to one another, ‘Surely no one has brought him something to eat?’
Jesus said to them, ‘My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work.
Do you not say, “Four months more, then comes the harvest”? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting.
The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together.
For here the saying holds true, “One sows and another reaps.”
I sent you to reap that for which you did not labour. Others have laboured, and you have entered into their labour.’
Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me everything I have ever done.’
So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there for two days.
And many more believed because of his word.
They said to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Saviour of the world.’
01 March 2026
Today is the first day of spring. Lets hope we have seen the last of the heavy rain and welcome some sunshone into our lives. The plants are certainly putting on a show for us with lots of yellow and white.
Instead of an anthem this morning, our organist and director of music played Dafydd y Garreg Wen (David of the White Rock) a traditional Welsh musical air and folk song.
Don't forget Evensong this afternoon at 3.30pm with tea and cake afterwards in the rooms. In celebration of St David's Day, there will also be Welsh Cakes. The anthem will be Stainer's "God So Loved the World", words taken from our gospel reading today.
A reading from the book of Genesis.
The Lord said to Abram,
‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house
to the land that I will show you.
I will make of you a great nation,
and I will bless you, and make your name great,
so that you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and the one who curses you I will curse;
and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’
So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him.
Romans 4:1-5, 13-17
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
What then are we to say was gained by Abraham,
our ancestor according to the flesh?
For if Abraham was justified by works,
he has something to boast about, but not before God.
For what does the scripture say?
‘Abraham believed God,
and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.’
Now to one who works, wages are not reckoned as a gift
but as something due.
But to one who without works
trusts him who justifies the ungodly,
such faith is reckoned as righteousness.
For the promise that he would inherit the world
did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law
but through the righteousness of faith.
If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs,
faith is null and the promise is void.
For the law brings wrath;
but where there is no law,
neither is there violation.
For this reason it depends on faith,
in order that the promise may rest on grace
and be guaranteed to all his descendants,
not only to the adherents of the law
but also to those who share the faith of Abraham
(for he is the father of all of us,
as it is written,
‘I have made you the father of many nations’)—
in the presence of the God in whom he believed,
who gives life to the dead
and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
John 3:1-17
Hear the gospel of our Lorf Jesus Christ according to John.
There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus,
a leader of the Jews.
He came to Jesus by night
and said to him,
‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God;
for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.’
Jesus answered him,
‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God
without being born from above.’
Nicodemus said to him,
‘How can anyone be born after having grown old?
Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?’
Jesus answered, ‘Very truly, I tell you,
no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.
What is born of the flesh is flesh,
and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Do not be astonished that I said to you,
“You must be born from above.”
The wind blows where it chooses,
and you hear the sound of it,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.
So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.’
Nicodemus said to him,
‘How can these things be?’
Jesus answered him,
‘Are you a teacher of Israel,
and yet you do not understand these things?
‘Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know
and testify to what we have seen;
yet you do not receive our testimony.
If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe,
how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
No one has ascended into heaven
except the one who descended from heaven,
the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
‘For God so loved the world
that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him may not perish
but may have eternal life.
Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world
to condemn the world,
but in order that the world might be saved through him.
22 February 2026
A miserable day outside, but the Sunday School was here in force. Fr Roger took the service and asked the children why he was wearing purple vestments? Because it is Lent.
So no flowers in church now until Easter.
The Lent course starts on Tuesday 24th. If you are interested contact Robert and Vanessa St John, email addresses in February Sidlesham Parishioner.
A reading from the book of Genesis.
The Lord God took the man
and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
And the Lord God commanded the man,
‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden;
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat,
for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal
that the Lord God had made.
He said to the woman, ‘Did God say,
“You shall not eat from any tree in the garden”?’
The woman said to the serpent,
‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden;
but God said, “You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree
that is in the middle of the garden,
nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.”’
But the serpent said to the woman,
‘You will not die;
for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened,
and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food,
and that it was a delight to the eyes,
and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,
she took of its fruit and ate;
and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her,
and he ate.
Then the eyes of both were opened,
and they knew that they were naked;
and they sewed fig leaves together
and made loincloths for themselves.
Romans 5:12-19
A reading of the letter of Paul to the Romans.
Just as sin came into the world through one man,
and death came through sin,
and so death spread to all because all have sinned—
sin was indeed in the world before the law,
but sin is not reckoned when there is no law.
Yet death exercised dominion from Adam to Moses,
even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam,
who is a type of the one who was to come.
But the free gift is not like the trespass.
For if the many died through the one man’s trespass,
much more surely have the grace of God
and the free gift in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ,
abounded for the many.
And the free gift is not like the effect of the one man’s sin.
For the judgement following one trespass brought condemnation,
but the free gift following many trespasses brings justification.
If, because of the one man’s trespass,
death exercised dominion through that one,
much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace
and the free gift of righteousness
exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.
Therefore just as one man’s trespass
led to condemnation for all,
so one man’s act of righteousness
leads to justification and life for all.
For just as by the one man’s disobedience
the many were made sinners,
so by the one man’s obedience
the many will be made righteous.
Matthew 4:1-11
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Jesus was led up by the Spirit
into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
He fasted for forty days and forty nights,
and afterwards he was famished.
The tempter came and said to him,
‘If you are the Son of God,
command these stones to become loaves of bread.’
But he answered, ‘It is written,
“One does not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”’
Then the devil took him to the holy city
and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him,
‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down;
for it is written,
“He will command his angels concerning you”,
and “On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.”’
Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written,
“Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”’
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain
and showed him
all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour;
and he said to him,
‘All these I will give you,
if you will fall down and worship me.’
Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan!
for it is written,
“Worship the Lord your God,
and serve only him.”’
Then the devil left him,
and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
18 February 2026
Despite the atrocious weather, a small congregation met for the solemn Eucharist with imposition of ashes. The choir's anthem was Lead Me Lord.
A reading from the book of the prophet Joel.
Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near—
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness spread upon the mountains
a great and powerful army comes;
their like has never been from of old,
nor will be again after them
in ages to come.
Yet even now, says the Lord,
return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
rend your hearts and not your clothing.
Return to the Lord, your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love,
and relents from punishing.
Who knows whether he will not turn and relent,
and leave a blessing behind him,
a grain-offering and a drink-offering
for the Lord, your God?
Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sanctify a fast;
call a solemn assembly;
gather the people.
Sanctify the congregation;
assemble the aged;
gather the children,
even infants at the breast.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride her canopy.
Between the vestibule and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep.
Let them say, ‘Spare your people, O Lord,
and do not make your heritage a mockery,
a byword among the nations.
Why should it be said among the peoples,
“Where is their God?”’
2 Corinthians 5:20-6:10
A reading from the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
We entreat you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin,
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
As we work together with him,
we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain.
For the Lord says,
‘At an acceptable time I have listened to you,
and on a day of salvation I have helped you.’
See, now is the acceptable time;
see, now is the day of salvation!
We are putting no obstacle in anyone’s way,
so that no fault may be found with our ministry,
but as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way:
through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities,
beatings, imprisonments, riots, labours, sleepless nights, hunger;
by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit,
genuine love, truthful speech, and the power of God;
with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left;
in honour and dishonour, in ill repute and good repute.
We are treated as impostors, and yet are true;
as unknown, and yet are well known;
as dying, and see—we are alive;
as punished, and yet not killed;
as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing;
as poor, yet making many rich;
as having nothing,
and yet possessing everything.
Gospel: either Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21
Jesus said to the disciples,
‘Beware of practising your piety before others
in order to be seen by them;
for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
‘So whenever you give alms,
do not sound a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets,
so that they may be praised by others.
Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
so that your alms may be done in secret;
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
And whenever you pray,
do not be like the hypocrites;
for they love to stand and pray
in the synagogues and at the street corners,
so that they may be seen by others.
Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.
But whenever you pray,
go into your room and shut the door
and pray to your Father who is in secret;
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
And whenever you fast,
do not look dismal, like the hypocrites,
for they disfigure their faces
so as to show others that they are fasting.
Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast,
put oil on your head and wash your face,
so that your fasting may be seen not by others
but by your Father who is in secret;
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and rust consume
and where thieves break in and steal;
but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor rust consumes
and where thieves do not break in and steal.
For where your treasure is,
there your heart will be also.
or: John 8:1-11
Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
Early in the morning he came again to the temple.
All the people came to him
and he sat down and began to teach them.
The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman
who had been caught in adultery;
and making her stand before all the people,
they said to Jesus,
‘Teacher, this woman was caught
in the very act of committing adultery.
Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women.
Now what do you say?’
They said this to test him,
so that they might have some charge to bring against him.
Jesus bent down
and wrote with his finger on the ground.
When they kept on questioning him,
he straightened up and said to them,
‘Let anyone among you who is without sin
be the first to throw a stone at her.’
And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground.
When they heard it, they went away,
one by one, beginning with the elders;
and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.
Jesus straightened up and said to her,
‘Woman, where are they?
Has no one condemned you?’
She said, ‘No one, sir.’
And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you.
Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.’
15 February 2026
Exodus 24:12-18
A reading from the book of Exodus.
The Lord said to Moses,
“Come up to me on the mountain and wait there;
I will give you the tablets of stone,
with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.”
So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua,
and Moses went up onto the mountain of God.
To the elders he had said, “Wait here for us,
until we come to you again;
for Aaron and Hur are with you;
whoever has a dispute may go to them.”
Then Moses went up on the mountain,
and the cloud covered the mountain.
The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai,
and the cloud covered it for six days;
on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud.
Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord
was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain
in the sight of the Israelites.
Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain.
Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.
2 Peter 1:16-21
A reading from the second letter of Peter.
We did not follow cleverly devised myths
when we made known to you
the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty.
For he received honour and glory from God the Father
when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory,
saying, “This is my Son, my Beloved,
with whom I am well pleased.”
We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven,
while we were with him on the holy mountain.
So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed.
You will do well to be attentive to this
as to a lamp shining in a dark place,
until the day dawns
and the morning star rises in your hearts.
First of all you must understand this,
that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation,
because no prophecy ever came by human will,
but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit
spoke from God.
Matthew 17:1-9
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John
and led them up a high mountain, by themselves.
And he was transfigured before them,
and his face shone like the sun,
and his clothes became bright as light.
Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.
Then Peter said to Jesus,
“Lord, it is good for us to be here;
if you wish, I will make three dwellings here,
one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
While he was still speaking,
suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them,
and a voice from the cloud said,
"This is my Son, the Beloved;
with him I am well pleased;
listen to him!”
When the disciples heard this,
they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear.
But Jesus came and touched them, saying,
“Get up and do not be afraid.”
And when they looked up,
they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them,
“Tell no one about the vision
until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
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