Home Service 23rd March 2025

Prayers of Approach

Let us come before the loving God. Let us bring our pain and suffering, and the pain and suffering of our world – and let us pray for healing.

Let us bring all the burdens we carry, and the burdens of our world – and let us ask for strength.

Let us bring grief and sadness, and the grief and sadness of our world – and hope to find comfort.

God says: Incline your ear and come to me; listen so that you may live.

Creator God, as we gather today, we know we have often failed to choose well. Be with us, as we hear again the stories of your limitless love and measureless grace.

God of grace and growth, in this season of Lent and with spring blossoming all around us, we bring to you in word, music and prayer, our desire to change for the better – trusting in your patience, rooting ourselves in your Scriptures, believing in your love, appreciating the limitations of time, and celebrating the gift of life and all that there is to look forward to. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Hymn Jesus is Lord, creation’s voice proclaims it (R&S 268)

Readings: Isaiah 55:1-9

Luke 13:1-9

Introduction

The people of Israel are in exile in Babylon and are struggling to reconcile their situation with God’s promises to them. Today’s verses from Isaiah look ahead to the restoring of the covenant God made with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their descendants, and culminating in the covenant with the great king, David. In this future time, not only will God’s people be gathered but this invitation will extend to the nations, to whom the people of God were meant to be a witness. Therefore, says this passage, now is the time to change direction and turn back to God.

In our gospel reading Jesus is questioned about some terrible events and whether those involved perished because of their sinfulness. Jesus is clear that those who died were not being singled out for judgement, rather, judgement is coming to all, and the only way to survive this is to ‘repent’. He tells a parable that offers hope of a second chance to grow and produce good fruit.

Hymn Seek ye first the kingdom of God (R&S 512)

Sermon

In my house I have a collection of rather sick looking house plants. They are of varying ages, three of them acquired since I moved to Poulton but two of them dating way back to my first pastorate in Northumberland well over 20 years ago. I remove a few dead leaves now and then, and new ones appear periodically but I can’t remember when the last time was that one of them flowered, although the other did produce one flower shortly after I moved in. I can’t quite bring myself to throw them away, however. I just keep telling myself that they simply need repotting and they will be fine. I have even bought the compost and new pots to do it – I might even get around to doing it sometime too! I therefore have a lot of sympathy for the gardener and the fig tree in our gospel reading.

In the parable of the fig tree, Jesus emphasises that God provides second chances, because his desire is to redeem both nations and individuals, rather than to condemn them. The fig tree, like the vine, is a popular symbol of Israel and Jesus’ hearers couldn’t have failed to see the symbolism, the future of Israel is at risk without a drastic change of attitude and a turning back to God. The gardener begs for a stay of execution in order that intensive renewal may take place, but recognises that unless real fruitfulness appears rapidly, the demise of the tree is inevitable.

We often hear the phrase, ‘What have I done to deserve this?’ but Jesus reminds us that bad things and accidents happen – and we cannot avoid them. Isaiah describes ‘blessings without deserving’, and in Luke, Jesus responds to ‘suffering without deserving’. To the people in exile, and to us today, Isaiah brings God’s invitation to share in his generous feast, at no

cost. We may feel that we don’t deserve the difficulties we have suffered in our life, but likewise, we have done nothing to deserve the wine, milk and bread, or the Word of life, yet here they are. In God’s world there is a free lunch!

We sometimes go to the Bible looking for answers to questions that it doesn’t answer. Jesus makes no judgement on whether the two groups of people who suffered horrendous deaths were worse than others, or deserved their fate, his reaction to the disasters that are mentioned in our Gospel reading is not to apportion blame, or even to debate why bad things happen to good people. Instead, Jesus reminds us of a truth that we would rather forget: that all of us need to repent, to turn around, towards God, for none of us is without sin. God’s purposes and timings are beyond simple human explanation, as both Isaiah and Jesus express. We have to take a long-term view and recognise that in the meantime we have to live with and through suffering, and support others in doing so too. Both Jesus and Isaiah address the people within community, placing individual experience within the context of God’s relationship with his people as a whole.

Being a Christian does not protect us from disaster or suffering but it should help us to focus on what lies beyond them both. Our sins may seldom, if ever, relate directly to our misfortunes, but we are called to repent of them – not to avoid disaster, but to win eternal life. God keeps inviting us – what is our response?

Hymn There’s a wideness in God’s mercy (R&S 353)

Prayers of Intercession

We praise you, living God, that through the life, death and resurrection of your Son, Jesus, we have the chance to begin again, as we learn from his words; we have the opportunity to flourish, as we follow in his footsteps; we have the calling to serve, as we grow in his likeness; we have the time to do what is ours to do, as we trust his promises – slowly but surely, day by day.

And we bring to you our prayers for the world that all may have the opportunity to grow in your love.

God of Grace, we pray for those who live in areas of conflict and violence where bullets and bombs bring destruction and devastation – may your love be known. May your presence bring hope.

We pray for those who suffer the pain of famine and drought and the after-effects of natural disaster – may your love be known. May your presence bring hope.

We pray for those who suffer the pain of illness and disease, their own or that of a loved one – may your love be known. May your presence bring hope.

We pray for those who suffer the grief and torment of bereavement – may your love be known. May your presence bring hope.

God of love, we humbly offer to you all the suffering of our world, and we pray that you will bring healing and peace; for the sake of your dear Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Hymn Colours of day dawn into the mind (R&S 572)

Blessing

Go joyfully into the world. Go with the peace of God in your heart. Go strengthened by the love of God to bring comfort and healing to those in need.

Lord God, you look for growth and fruit; help us this week to grow closer to you, and to be patient when we have to wait – as you are patient with us. Amen.