25 June 2023
10:00 | 
Posted by
Dr Platts |
On a hot sunny day we met at 10 am for our Parish Eucharist and to celebrate the baptism of Katie, an adult candidate.
A joyous service to welcome a new member of our Christian family, supported by her partner Alex and her Mum and Dad.
The Choir sang the Irish Blessing setting by Bob Chilcot, as the Anthem.
Father Chris continued his exploration of chapter 10 of St Matthews Gospel, which we are al finding interesting as well as challenging. We know we are loved by God, we know we have died to sin and been reborn by baptism as Jesus was in the events of Easter. Just keep remembering it though!
Next Saturday more fun in the church yard in the morning, not forgetting the Sidlesham School Fete on Saturday Afternoon.
Genesis 21:8-21
A reading from the book of Genesis.
The child Issac grew, and was weaned;
and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.
But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian,
whom she had borne to Abraham,
playing with her son Isaac.
So she said to Abraham,
‘Cast out this slave woman with her son;
for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac.’
The matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son.
But God said to Abraham,
‘Do not be distressed because of the boy
and because of your slave woman;
whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you,
for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be named after you.
As for the son of the slave woman,
I will make a nation of him also,
because he is your offspring.’
So Abraham rose early in the morning,
and took bread and a skin of water,
and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child,
and sent her away.
And she departed,
and wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
When the water in the skin was gone,
she cast the child under one of the bushes.
Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off,
about the distance of a bowshot; for she said,
‘Do not let me look on the death of the child.’
And as she sat opposite him,
she lifted up her voice and wept.
And God heard the voice of the boy;
and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven,
and said to her, ‘What troubles you, Hagar?
Do not be afraid;
for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.
Come,
lift up the boy and hold him fast with your hand,
for I will make a great nation of him.’
Then God opened her eyes,
and she saw a well of water.
She went, and filled the skin with water,
and gave the boy a drink.
God was with the boy,
and he grew up;
he lived in the wilderness,
and became an expert with the bow.
He lived in the wilderness of Paran;
and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
Romans 6:1-11
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound?
By no means!
How can we who died to sin go on living in it?
Do you not know
that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
so we too might walk in newness of life.
For if we have been united with him in a death like his,
we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
We know that our old self was crucified with him
so that the body of sin might be destroyed,
and we might no longer be enslaved to sin.
For whoever has died is freed from sin.
But if we have died with Christ,
we believe that we will also live with him.
We know that Christ, being raised from the dead,
will never die again;
death no longer has dominion over him.
The death he died, he died to sin, once for all;
but the life he lives, he lives to God.
So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin
and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Matthew 10:24-39
Hear the spel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Jesus summoned the twelve
and sent them out with the following instruction:
‘A disciple is not above the teacher,
nor a slave above the master;
it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher,
and the slave like the master.
If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul,
how much more will they malign those of his household!
So have no fear of them;
for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered,
and nothing secret that will not become known.
What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light;
and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops.
Do not fear those who kill the body
but cannot kill the soul;
rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?
Yet not one of them will fall to the ground
unperceived by your Father.
And even the hairs of your head are all counted.
So do not be afraid;
you are of more value than many sparrows.
Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others,
I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven;
but whoever denies me before others,
I also will deny before my Father in heaven.
Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth;
I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
For I have come to set a man against his father,
and a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household.
Whoever loves father or mother more than me
is not worthy of me;
and whoever loves son or daughter more than me
is not worthy of me;
and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me
is not worthy of me.
Those who find their life will lose it,
and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.
18 June 2023
A warm overcast day with some sunlight. The church was a cool refuge for matins this morning.
Fr Chris preached on the gospel. "I don't know whether I am comingor going." This can be applied to being a Christian. The gospel of Matthew was written for an early Christian-Jewish group and reflects much of the Old Testament. God's people are sheep with no shephd - they are let doen by the Jewish religeous leaders. Plenty of people are ready to hear God's words but there are not enough people to do this. Jesus prayed before appointing his apostles (from the Greek meaning "one who is sent"). They are all named. However not all the disciples are named and not all the disciples are apostles.
There were twelve chosen men.
There were twelve distinct tribes each descended from the twelve sons of Jacob.
This represents the renewal of the twelve tribes of Israel. John in Revelations sees a new Jerusalem with twelve foundations.
Jesus' prayer is answered almost immediately. He sends out his apostles like sheep into the wolves. Be careful what you ask God for, the way he answers our prayers may not be what we wanted. Jesus offers safety and rest, like the loving embace of a parent. He then tells us to go. He tells his apostles to go more than her tells them to come, but always with the protection of the Holy Spirit.
The choir sang the Jubilate in B flat by C V Stanford and A Prayer for St Richard of Chichester by L J White - more information on the music blog.
More beautiful arrangements by oour flower arrangers.
What our Sunday School achieve on their notice board in church.
Genesis 18:1-15
A reading from the book of Genesis.
The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre,
as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day.
He looked up and saw three men standing near him.
When he saw them,
he ran from the tent entrance to meet them,
and bowed down to the ground.
He said, ‘My lord, if I find favour with you,
do not pass by your servant.
Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet,
and rest yourselves under the tree.
Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves,
and after that you may pass on—
since you have come to your servant.’
So they said, ‘Do as you have said.’
And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said,
‘Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour,
knead it, and make cakes.’
Abraham ran to the herd,
and took a calf, tender and good,
and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it.
Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared,
and set it before them;
and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.
They said to Abraham,
‘Where is your wife Sarah?’
And he said, ‘There, in the tent.’
Then one said,
‘I will surely return to you in due season,
and your wife Sarah shall have a son.’
And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him.
Now Abraham and Sarah were old,
advanced in age;
it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.
So Sarah laughed to herself, saying,
‘After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure?’
The Lord said to Abraham,
‘Why did Sarah laugh, and say,
“Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?”
Is anything too wonderful for the Lord?
At the set time I will return to you, in due season,
and Sarah shall have a son.’
But Sarah denied, saying,
‘I did not laugh’; for she was afraid.
He said, ‘Oh yes, you did laugh.’
Romans 5:1-8 (8am only)
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.
Matthew 9:35-10:8
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages,
teaching in their synagogues,
and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom,
and curing every disease and every sickness.
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them,
because they were harassed and helpless,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few;
therefore ask the Lord of the harvest
to send out labourers into his harvest.’
Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits,
to cast them out,
and to cure every disease and every sickness.
These are the names of the twelve apostles:
first, Simon, also known as Peter, and his brother Andrew;
James son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
Philip and Bartholomew;
Thomas and Matthew the tax-collector;
James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;
Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot,
the one who betrayed him.
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions:
‘Go nowhere among the Gentiles,
and enter no town of the Samaritans,
but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, proclaim the good news,
“The kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Cure the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.
You received without payment;
give without payment.
11 June 2023
The sun had disappeared this morning, and there were a few spots of rain. However Summer was inside the church with the beautiful flowers.
Today is Corpus Christi or the Thanksgiving for Holy Communion. This was reflected in the hymns we sang (mostly Communion hymns) and the readings which all referenced bread and wine. The choir sang "Ave Verum Corpus" by Charles Gounod, more information on the music blog.
Fr Chris also preached on the meaning of Corpus Christi - the Body of Christ. It invites us to ponder the power of the gift given to us by Christ on the eve of his passion. He remains with us in sacrament and word. But it remains a mystery, likehe Holy Trinity. We may overinterpret our participation as being deeply personal, but we cannot keep God to ouselves. It is not a private act as we are all the Body of Christ. At the end ofthe Eucharistic prayer we all say "Amen" - it is true, but we also say "Amen" to all that it means. Christ is the head of the church and we are all its members. It is a great mystery and we are invited to share and participate. Our responses are given in one voice. The Great Amen should be positively afirmed by everyone wholeheartedly. The celebration of the Eucharist is trinitarian, we pray to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It reminds us that we are part of God's plan.
The children were missing from church at the start of the service, although we still had the candle lit to remind us that they were here. They were very busy in the church grounds building a "Bug Hotel" which now has a home underneath the yew tree in the car park. Do take a look at it and maybe in the weeks to come, it will become occupied.
Genesis 14:18-20
A reading from the book of Genesis.
And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine;
he was priest of God Most High.
He blessed him and said,
"Blessed be Abram by God Most High, maker of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’
And Abram gave him one-tenth of everything.
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you,
that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread,
and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said,
‘This is my body that is for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.’
In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying,
‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
John 6:51-58
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
Jesus said to the jews:
I am the living bread that came down from heaven.
Whoever eats of this bread will live for ever;
and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.’
The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying,
‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’
So Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you,
unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood,
you have no life in you.
Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life,
and I will raise them up on the last day;
for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.
Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me,
and I in them.
Just as the living Father sent me,
and I live because of the Father,
so whoever eats me will live because of me.
This is the bread that came down from heaven,
not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died.
But the one who eats this bread will live for ever.’
04 June 2023
A gloriously sunny morning greeted us. The churchyard is full of life, I was nibbled whilst getting the lovely photo of the church!
How do you explain the Trinity? Fr Chris did not want to be accused of heresy, but had a wonderful visual aid. He requested help from the children of the congregation and removed 3 cloths one by one. Under the first was a bowl of liquid. The second covered a bowl of ice and the third a boiling kettle producng steam. All are made from water. But ice is not liquid or steam, Steam is not ice or liquid and liquid is not steam or ice, but they are all water. Likewise, the Holy Spirit is not the Father or the Son, The Father is not the Holy Spirit or the Son and the Son is not the Father or the Holy Spirit, but they are all God.
The Holy Trinity is not names as such any where in the bible, but our gospel reading today does speak of "the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit".
Over the years many different ways have been used to try and explain the Trinity. St Patrick is famous for using the shamrock with its trifold leaflets. But the only way to fully understand the Trinity is to be God. It is said that St Augustine was walking along the seashore pondering the Trinity. A small boy was running from the sea to a rockpool with a shell of sea water. When St Augustine asked him what he was doing, the boy told him her was going to empty the sea into the rock pool. St Augustine told the boy that he could not do that, it was impossible. The boy told St Augustine that he was more likely to achieve his goal the St Augustine was to understand the Trinity. With that, the small boy who was an angel of God vanished.
We get close to people and become friends by knowing them better. This is the same with God. Read, pray, think, reflect and by doing so become closer to God.
God is three persons, equal, but not the same, unitedf perfectly in love. Each of us are individuals under the love of God.
The Holy Trinity is a glorious mystery of the Christian faith, God the Fatehr, the Sn and the Holy Spirit.
The anthem for today was Stainer's God So Loved the World from The Crucifixion. See more on the Music blog.
A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah,
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure
and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?
Who has directed the spirit of the Lord,
or as his counsellor has instructed him?
Whom did he consult for his enlightenment,
and who taught him the path of justice?
Who taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?
Even the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
and are accounted as dust on the scales;
see, he takes up the isles like fine dust.
Lebanon would not provide fuel enough,
nor are its animals enough for a burnt-offering.
All the nations are as nothing before him;
they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.
Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel,
‘My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my right is disregarded by my God’?
Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted;
but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.
2 Corinthians 13:11-13 (8 am only)
A reading from the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
Brothers and sisters.
Put things in order, listen to my appeal,
agree with one another,
live in peace;
and the God of love and peace will be with you.
Greet one another with a holy kiss.
All the saints greet you.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with all of you.
Matthew 28:16-20
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee,
to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.
When they saw him, they worshipped him;
but some doubted.
And Jesus came and said to them,
‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.
And remember, I am with you always,
to the end of the age.’
28 May 2023
Today we celebrated Pentecost, the arrival of the Holy Spirit with the Disciples in Jerusalem. We had a Parish Eucharist at 10 am, the children, who start off in church with us, left to bake some special Pentecost cup cakes! They also made one for Father Chris.
The beautiful morning and the lovely music made this service especially joyful.
The Choir sang 'I will sing with the Spirit' by John Rutter as the Anthem, and the children came back to show us their cakes and to receive a blessing during the communion.
There was coffee after the service.
Next Saturday some of the Young People are taking part in a swimathon to raise money for the Church, so we will have our Family Fun in the Church yard on the 11th of June.
Acts 2:1-21
A reading from the acts of the Apostles.
When the day of Pentecost had come,
they were all together in one place.
And suddenly from heaven there came a sound
like the rush of a violent wind,
and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.
Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them,
and a tongue rested on each of them.
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in other languages,
as the Spirit gave them ability.
Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven
living in Jerusalem.
And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered,
because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each.
Amazed and astonished, they asked,
‘Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
And how is it that we hear, each of us,
in our own native language?
Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia,
Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene,
and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,
Cretans and Arabs—
in our own languages we hear them speaking
about God’s deeds of power.’
All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another,
‘What does this mean?’
But others sneered and said,
‘They are filled with new wine.’
But Peter, standing with the eleven,
raised his voice and addressed them:
‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem,
let this be known to you, and listen to what I say.
Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose,
for it is only nine o’clock in the morning.
No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
“In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
shall be saved.”
1 Corinthians 12:3-13
A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
No one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit.
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;
and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord;
and there are varieties of activities,
but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.
To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom,
and to another the utterance of knowledge
according to the same Spirit,
to another faith by the same Spirit,
to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit,
to another the working of miracles,
to another prophecy,
to another the discernment of spirits,
to another various kinds of tongues,
to another the interpretation of tongues.
All these are activated by one and the same Spirit,
who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.
For just as the body is one and has many members,
and all the members of the body, though many, are one body,
so it is with Christ.
For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—
Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—
and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
John 20:19-23
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
It was evening on that day, the first day of the week,
and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood among them and said,
‘Peace be with you.’
After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again,
‘Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’
When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
‘Receive the Holy Spirit.
If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them;
if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’
21 May 2023
This Sunday at 10 am we had a Choral Mattins. The set psalm was 68 and the Choir sang The Benedictus to the setting by C V Stanford in C major. The Anthem was 'God has gone up' by Croft.
In his sermon Father Chris talked about Prayer. How we pray and when, do we feel we are good at praying? It is the way we become closer to God, but it can happen at any time during the day, although conventionally we pray in church, kneeling and with no distractions, we can pray when we are with others and as we do things during the day. All prayer is good, and brings us closer to the Kingdom.
There was coffee after the service.
Acts 1:6-14
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles.
When the apostles had come together, they asked him,
‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’
He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods
that the Father has set by his own authority.
But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit has come upon you;
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,
in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’
When he had said this, as they were watching,
he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven,
suddenly two men in white robes stood by them.
They said, ‘Men of Galilee,
why do you stand looking up towards heaven?
This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven,
will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’
Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet,
which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away.
When they had entered the city,
they went to the room upstairs where they were staying,
Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas,
Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus,
and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.
All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer,
together with certain women,
including Mary the mother of Jesus,
as well as his brothers.
1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
A reading from the first letter of Peter.
Beloved,
do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal
that is taking place among you to test you,
as though something strange were happening to you.
But rejoice in so far as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings,
so that you may also be glad and shout for joy
when his glory is revealed.
If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed,
because the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God,
is resting on you.
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God,
so that he may exalt you in due time.
Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you.
Discipline yourselves; keep alert.
Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around,
looking for someone to devour.
Resist him, steadfast in your faith,
for you know that your brothers and sisters throughout the world
are undergoing the same kinds of suffering.
And after you have suffered for a little while,
the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ,
will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you.
To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.
John 17:1-11
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
Jesus looked up to heaven and said,
‘Father, the hour has come;
glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you,
since you have given him authority over all people,
to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.
And this is eternal life,
that they may know you, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
I glorified you on earth
by finishing the work that you gave me to do.
So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence
with the glory that I had in your presence
before the world existed.
I have made your name known
to those whom you gave me from the world.
They were yours, and you gave them to me,
and they have kept your word.
Now they know that everything you have given me is from you;
for the words that you gave to me I have given to them,
and they have received them
and know in truth that I came from you;
and they have believed that you sent me.
I am asking on their behalf;
I am not asking on behalf of the world,
but on behalf of those whom you gave me,
because they are yours.
All mine are yours, and yours are mine;
and I have been glorified in them.
And now I am no longer in the world,
but they are in the world,
and I am coming to you.
Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me,
so that they may be one, as we are one.
18 May 2023
To mark the festival of Ascension Day we had a sung Eucharist at 7:30 pm. At this time of year our evening services are still in daylight which is lovely.
The Choir sang The Anthem 'Lift up your Heads' by J S Bach during the service.
We enter Ascension tide and look towards Pentecost!
Acts 1:1-11
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles.
In the first book, Theophilus,
I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning
until the day when he was taken up to heaven,
after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit
to the apostles whom he had chosen.
After his suffering he presented himself alive to them
by many convincing proofs,
appearing to them over the course of forty days
and speaking about the kingdom of God.
While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem,
but to wait there for the promise of the Father.
‘This’, he said, ‘is what you have heard from me;
for John baptized with water,
but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit
not many days from now.’
So when they had come together, they asked him,
‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’
He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods
that the Father has set by his own authority.
But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit has come upon you;
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,
in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’
When he had said this, as they were watching,
he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven,
suddenly two men in white robes stood by them.
They said, ‘Men of Galilee,
why do you stand looking up towards heaven?
This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven,
will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’
Ephesians 1:17-23
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Ephesians.
I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus
and your love towards all the saints, and for this reason
I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.
I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,
may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation
as you come to know him,
so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened,
you may know what is the hope to which he has called you,
what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints,
and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power
for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.
God put this power to work in Christ
when he raised him from the dead
and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all rule and authority and power and dominion,
and above every name that is named,
not only in this age but also in the age to come.
And he has put all things under his feet
and has made him the head over all things for the church,
which is his body,
the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Luke 24:44-53
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.
Jesus said to his disciples,
‘These are my words that I spoke to you
while I was still with you—
that everything written about me in the law of Moses,
the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.’
Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures,
and he said to them,
‘Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer
and to rise from the dead on the third day,
and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed
in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised;
so stay here in the city
until you have been clothed with power from on high.’
Then he led them out as far as Bethany,
and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them.
While he was blessing them,
he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven.
And they worshipped him,
and returned to Jerusalem with great joy;
and they were continually in the temple blessing God.
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