07 September 2025
10:30 | 
Posted by
Dr Platts |
Deuteronomy 30:15-20
A reading from the book of Deuteronomy.
“See, I have set before you today
life and prosperity, death and adversity.
If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God
that I am commanding you today,
by loving the Lord your God,
walking in his ways, and observing his commandments,
decrees, and ordinances,
then you shall live and become numerous,
and the Lord your God will bless you
in the land that you are entering to possess.
But if your heart turns away and you do not hear
but are led astray to bow down to other gods and serve them,
I declare to you today that you shall certainly perish;
you shall not live long in the land
that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
I call heaven and earth to witness against you today
that I have set before you life and death,
blessings and curses.
Choose life so that you and your descendants may live,
loving the Lord your God,
obeying him, and holding fast to him,
for that means life to you and length of days,
so that you may live in the land
that the Lord swore to give to your ancestors,
to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.”
Philemon 1-21
A reading from the letter of Paul to Philemon.
Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus,
and Timothy our brother,
To Philemon, our dear friend and coworker
to Apphia our sister,
to Archippus our fellow soldier,
and to the church in your house:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
When I mention you in my prayers,
I always thank my God
because I hear of your love for all the saints
and your faith toward the Lord Jesus.
I pray that the partnership of your faith
may become effective when you perceive all the good
that we share in Christ.
I have indeed received much joy and encouragement from your love,
because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, my brother.
For this reason,
though I am more than bold enough in Christ to command you to do the right thing,
yet I would rather appeal to you on the basis of love—
and I, Paul, do this as an old man
and now also as a prisoner of Christ Jesus.
I am appealing to you for my child, Onesimus,
whose father I have become during my imprisonment.
Formerly he was useless to you,
but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.
I am sending him,
that is, my own heart,
back to you.
I wanted to keep him with me
so that he might minister to me in your place
during my imprisonment for the gospel,
but I preferred to do nothing without your consent
in order that your good deed might be voluntary
and not something forced.
Perhaps this is the reason he was separated from you for a while,
so that you might have him back for the long term,
no longer as a slave but more than a slave,
a beloved brother—
especially to me but how much more to you,
both in the flesh and in the Lord.
So if you consider me your partner,
welcome him as you would welcome me.
If he has wronged you in any way
or owes you anything, charge that to me.
I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand:
I will repay it.
I say nothing about your owing me even your own self.
Yes, brother, let me have this benefit from you in the Lord!
Refresh my heart in Christ.
Confident of your obedience,
I am writing to you,
knowing that you will do even more than I ask.
Luke 14:25-33
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.
Large crowds were traveling with Jesus,
and he turned and said to them,
“Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother,
wife and children, brothers and sisters,
yes, and even life itself,
cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me
cannot be my disciple.
For which of you,
intending to build a tower,
does not first sit down and estimate the cost,
to see whether he has enough to complete it?
Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish,
all who see it will begin to ridicule him,
saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’
Or what king,
going out to wage war against another king,
will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand
to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand?
If he cannot, then while the other is still far away,
he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.
So therefore, none of you can become my disciple
if you do not give up all your possessions.
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