Tag: prophesy

Third Sunday of Advent

14th December 2025

Reflection with readings below

Advent is the season when we prepare for the coming of Jesus – of his coming as both a frail human baby and as the Word that establishes the reign of God here on Earth. Prophets such as Isaiah gave their people – and us – a vision of what that world order would look like. It is one of beauty and flourishing, of abundance, of healing and restoration. Who wouldn’t want to love in such a world? Why then is it that 2000 years after the birth of Jesus we still seem stuck in a world order that doesn’t protect beauty, that doesn’t enable everyone to flourish, that allows a minority to have more than enough whilst others go without, that rations healing according to wealth or advantage, that is racing towards planetary destruction rather than restoration?

Somehow we are failing to live according to the rule, the way of life, that God intends for us. It was Bernard Shaw who famously said “Christianity might be a good thing if anyone ever tried it.”

Today’s canticle is the Magnificat, the Song of Mary, which is also prophetic. What Mary proclaims is not the state of the world as it was in her day, but how it could – would – become in the day of her son, God’s son. And it is prophetic in telling how that future will come into place – and it is a way that is radical, turning the accepted order upside down! 

It is a song that openly challenges the maintenance of the status quo. It is a song that openly asserts that those who are rich are going to have to fore sake most of their wealth; it is a song that asserts that those with power are going to have to vacate their high positions and enable a widespread sharing of power; it is a song that challenges those who think they know all the answers, who think they have everything under their control. 

I wonder if we are ready for such a revolution? How would we feel if the rich were asked to give up their wealth? Or if those with power were asked to share it? How would we feel if those who live in comfort were asked to share the life experiences of the poor? Maybe these are the situations we are expected to ponder on and prepare for during Advent? 

This last week the group Take Back Power tipped bags of manure out under the Christmas tree at the Ritz hotel in a protest aimed at highlighting the wealth inequality that exists in the UK. The group is calling in the government to establish a “permanent House of the People- a citizen’s assembly chosen by democratic lottery, that has the power to tax extreme wealth and fix Britain.”

Later the group carried out another action at the Tower of London, splashing apple and crumble and custard over the display case containing the Crown Jewels. One of the protestors said “Our country is crumbling before our eyes. We have homeless people dying on the very streets that King Charles passed on his way to the coronation, whilst there are more empty homes than unhoused people in this country. It’s time the ultra-rich pay their fair share.”

If such tactics revolt us, how would we go about bringing in the changes that the Magnificat celebrates?

Today’s gospel tells us that Jesus understood his coming onto the human stage as the messiah, would be apparent through the transformation his ministry wrought. Is his ministry still being carried on by us? Are we as Christians – as Christ Followers – bringing about a visible change in the order of things? Could a modern day bystander go and tell John that “the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offence at me.”? 

I think we are as Christians beholden to take a stand, to call our injustice and inequality, and to heal and to make good all that has been inured and destroyed by the world’s greed. We may have to be patient – and persistent – in this. But equally we should draw strength and hope from the knowledge that we are not alone, for even as we wait for Jesus, he is already alongside us. 

Isaiah 35:1-10

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad,
the desert shall rejoice and blossom; 

like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly,
and rejoice with joy and singing. 

The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.

They shall see the glory of the Lord,
the majesty of our God.

Strengthen the weak hands,
and make firm the feeble knees.

Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
“Be strong, do not fear! 

Here is your God.
He will come with vengeance, 

with terrible recompense.
He will come and save you.” 

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped; 

then the lame shall leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy. 

For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert; 

the burning sand shall become a pool,
and the thirsty ground springs of water; 

the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp,
the grass shall become reeds and rushes. 

A highway shall be there,
and it shall be called the Holy Way; 

the unclean shall not travel on it,
but it shall be for God’s people; no traveler, not even fools, shall go astray. 

No lion shall be there,
nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; 

they shall not be found there,
but the redeemed shall walk there. 

And the ransomed of the Lord shall return,
and come to Zion with singing; 

everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
they shall obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

The Song of Mary Magnificat

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,

my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour; *
for he has looked with favour on his lowly servant.

From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.

He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.

He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,

The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

James 5:7-10

Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors! As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

Matthew 11:2-11

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offence at me.”

As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written,

‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’ 

“Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

4th Sunday of Easter

30th April 2023

Reflection on the readings (see below).

Today’s readings feature what it is to be radical. 

The story in Acts tells us of a lifestyle that even today we would consider to be very radical. We wouldn’t really have enough trust in each other, to sell up and share all that we own. We would be worried that others would take us for a ride, living off our wealth and deprive us of any enjoyment. 

The writer of Acts notes that it is this radical lifestyles that makes the new faith in Jesus Christ so attractive. 

We might summarise this radical lifestyle as: Live in the present. Don’t hold onto things against the future; share and enjoy what you have now. Have regard for one another’s needs. And in all this praise and worship God.

We might hear Psalm 23 as a description of what is it like to be on the receiving end of such a radical way of living:- to be cared for, to be provided with what you need whether that is food and drink, rest, reassurance or companionship. And again the response is to praise and worship God. 

Returning again to the lifestyle envisaged in Acts, it seems as if it could never be a reality for us because we are too afraid of what we might loose – the sacrifice would be to great. Yet as Christians we are happy to acknowledge the sacrifice that Jesus made, the sacrifice that gained for us the opportunity of just such a new life. The writer of 1 Peter calls us to follow Jesus’s example, to be willing to suffer loss and hurt if it will bring in the kingdom of God. To do so is to be in the care of Jesus the Good Shepherd. Jesus knows our weaknesses, our lack of confidence, our inability to trust and take risks. That same Jesus knows that, like sheep, we will often go astray and, as the Good Shepherd, he is always going to come after us to rescue us. With Jesus in charge, can we somehow find the strength and desire to radically alter our lives so that everyone can benefit? 

If we look around us we see a great need for a better way of living, a better way of making daily life work. Here in the UK we hear of people whose income doesn’t allow them to buy even the food they need, whilst at the same time we hear of business leaders, city brokers, and celebrities whose weekly income would exceed the annual income of others. We hear of people who cannot afford to heat their homes, while at CEOs and shareholders (including several Anglican dioceses) reap the profits of soaring oil prices. Looking globally we can compare the subsidies given to the UK’s oil and gas sector, and the sums paid to contractors to keep refugees out of our country, with the diminishing sums the UK spends on overseas aid. Looking globally we see countries with far smaller economies suffering from droughts and floods and soaring temperatures, all triggered by the climate crisis which our continued exploitation of the fossil fuel economy has caused.

How are we going to get out of this mess? In John’s gospel Jesus describes two different ways of accessing the sheepfold and its resources. On the one hand there are the thieves and bandits who ignore the way into the sheepfold that has been designed by the Shepherd. Instead  find their own way in. They want to make a quick buck,  stealing the sheep. They have no interest in the long term management and wellbeing of the flock. The Shepherd in the other hand manages the flock by paying attention to the way the fold is designed. The Shepherd spends time getting to know the sheep and building up a trusting relationship with them. And as a consequence the herd thrives, enjoying abundant life.

If the sheepfold were our planet, the place where we live, is it better that we are looked after by thieves and bandits who ignore the ways in which the planet is designed? Or is it better that we are led by the Shepherd who is in tune both with us and the planet? Those of us who can see the damage that the thieves and the bandits – the self seeking multi nationals, the asset strippers – are causing should speak up. We should call out the damage that is being caused by those after a fast buck, and the suffering that is being endured as a consequence. We should be ready to call for a radical way of living. We should be ready to make sacrifices that will benefit us all.

Acts 2:42-47

Those who had been baptised devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd; *
I shall not be in want.

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures *
and leads me beside still waters.

3 He revives my soul *
and guides me along right pathways for his Name’s sake.

4 Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I shall fear no evil; *
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

5 You spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me; *
you have anointed my head with oil,
and my cup is running over.

6 Surely your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, *
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

1 Peter 2:19-25

It is a credit to you if, being aware of God, you endure pain while suffering unjustly. If you endure when you are beaten for doing wrong, what credit is that? But if you endure when you do right and suffer for it, you have God’s approval. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.

“He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in his mouth.”

When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

John 10:1-10

Jesus said, “Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”