Podcast: Play in new window
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Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
In your resurrection, O Christ,
let heaven and earth rejoice. Alleluia.
Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As once you ransomed your people from Egypt
and led them to freedom in the promised land,
so now you have delivered us from the dominion of darkness
and brought us into the kingdom of your risen Son.
May we, the first fruits of your new creation,
rejoice in this new day you have made,
and praise you for your mighty acts.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God for ever.
John 10.22-30
At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.’ Jesus answered, ‘I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.’
Reflection
Jesus answered: ‘I have told you, and you do not believe.’
In this age of modern technology, we are constantly bombarded with messages. We receive news headlines, shopping offers, local community bulletins, and warnings about the safety of the messages we receive. And, of course, in the last week we have received a test alarm that, when used, will warn us of an imminent danger to life and limb. We are bombarded with messages.
As is the way with human beings we develop our own way of editing all those messages. Many, probably the majority, are ignored and deleted. The overload of irrelevant information has led us towards ignoring almost all of those intrusive messages. But, this can work to our disadvantage.
Sometimes the message that is automatically deleted is important. It is a message that can bring about great change. It is one of those messages that needed us to pause and think carefully. It might have been one of those messages that demands a change in lifestyle, but it could still have been the one that would have made a great and positive difference to the lives we live.
In today’s reading Jesus is speaking to the Jews who have gathered around him when he attended the Festival of Dedication in Jerusalem. Those Jews want to know whether he is the long-awaited Messiah. You can almost hear Jesus’ exasperation when he says: I have told you, and you do not believe. We can be like those Jews. We have received the message of Jesus’ Messiahship; we have heard the accounts of the wonders and signs he performed in the presence of those questioning Jews; we have heard the testimony of those faithful souls who witnessed the power of Christ’s resurrection at first hand. But … we still filter all of those clear messages … we delete that which seems too good to be true and we distance ourselves from God.
This process of editing and deleting important messages is not one-way. Sometimes we are the bearers of that all-important message, and we are the ones who are not believed; we are the ones whose listeners refuse to hear; we are the ones who feel Jesus’ frustration when he said: I have told you, and you do not believe.
Today’s reading challenges us to listen to Jesus’ teaching and to pause and ponder on his words. It challenges us to respond in joy, rather than press ‘delete’ in doubt and despair. In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul wrote these words: The message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. Paul’s words urge us to pause and think when we find ourselves confronted with the Good News of Jesus Christ … to be careful that we do not automatically press the ‘delete’ button and miss out on the greatest offer humanity has ever been given.
Prayers
To Christ, the Lamb who was slain,
and who now lives in the glory of the Father,
let us lift our voices in praise, saying:
risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
Lord Jesus, you are the Amen, the faithful witness,
the firstborn of the dead:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You are Alpha and Omega,
the one who is, and was, and who is to come:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You search into the thoughts and affections of all people:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You reprove and chasten those whom you love:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
You open the eyes of the blind
and set the prisoners free:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
In your paschal victory,
you have proclaimed the coming of the kingdom:
Risen Lord, we bless you, alleluia.
God of glory,
by the raising of your Son
you have broken the chains of death and hell:
fill your Church with faith and hope;
for a new day has dawned
and the way to life stands open
in our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Rejoicing in God’s new creation,
let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
The God of peace,
who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus,
that great shepherd of the sheep,
through the blood of the eternal covenant,
make us perfect in every good work to do his will,
working in us that which is well-pleasing in his sight;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among us and remain with us always.
Amen.