St. Albans and Welwyn Methodist Circuit Service for Sunday 5th March 2023
A Service prepared by the Rev Andrew Prout
‘I lift mine eyes unto the hills’
This Sunday we mark the Second Sunday of Lent and are invited through the set Psalm (Psalm 121) ‘to lift up our eyes to the hills and see that our help comes from the Lord, maker of Heaven and Earth’. We begin with the Circuit Lenten Liturgy for this Second Sunday…
The Cross stands to remind us that the One who came became the One who was to die. On the Second Sunday in Lent, we place an inscription on the cross. The letters I.N.R.I. stand for the Latin “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews”, but before we put these words on the cross, we will be quiet in the presence of our God.
A moment of silence during which we place, or picture the words I.N.R.I. being placed on the cross.
M: Jesus, Saviour of the world, come to us in your mercy
P: We look to you to save and help us
M By your cross and your life laid down, you set your people free.
P: We look to you to save and help us
M: Come now and dwell with us, Lord Christ Jesus
P Hear our prayer, and be with us for ever
Hymn STF 117 (Schutz 1640-1690 / Cox 1812-1993 / Thwaites 1914-1993 / Tune: Mit Freuden Zart)
Opening Prayers (Written Tim Baker from ‘The Vine’ resource)
O Lord our God, we have gathered in our homes and places of worship, in awesome wonder, to worship and praise your name. Not because you need our worship, but because the joy of your love for us flows out of us, in song, in prayer, and in how we respond to our gathering today.
O Lord our God, we are gathered to give you thanks, for the many blessings we have received. Loving God, help us to live a life of gratitude. To say ‘thank you’ for all that we have received, over and over again. Living, loving, merciful God, we come to you in worship, knowing that there have been times this week when we have fallen short of your glory, when we have failed to live up to your hopes for our lives, when we have said and done things we regret, or have stayed silent or inactive when we could have spoken up or stood up against injustice. In the stillness, we bring these failings to you.
(Silence)
Lord God, even as we confess our sins, we know that you have already forgiven us, that we are loved and accepted just as we are. But we keep up this practice of naming our mistakes, because it helps us to grow, to be accountable and to be honest with ourselves and with you, Lord God. Thank you, for your grace, already reaching out to us for the week ahead and all our days to come. Bless us now, as we worship, in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
The Collect
Christ, Son of the Living God, who for a season laid aside the divine glory, and learned obedience through suffering: teach us in all our afflictions to raise our eyes to the place of your mercy, and to find in you our peace and deliverance. We make our prayer in your name. Amen
Old Testament Reading: Genesis 12: 1-4a (NRSV) – God calls Abram
Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ 4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
Hymn STF 464 (John L. Bell b.1949 and Graham Maule b.1958)
God it was who said to Abraham
Words video to be added shortly
Gospel Reading: John 3: 1-17 (NRSV) – Nicodemus visits Jesus in the night
3 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2He came to Jesus by night and said to him, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.’ 3Jesus answered him, ‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.’ 4Nicodemus said to him, ‘How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?’ 5Jesus answered, ‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7Do not be astonished that I said to you, “You must be born from above.” 8The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.’ 9Nicodemus said to him, ‘How can these things be?’ 10Jesus answered him, ‘Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?
11 ‘Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. 12If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16 ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17 ‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Address: ‘I lift mine eyes unto the hills’:
The Psalmist in the set Psalm for today (Psalm 121) invites us to lift up our eyes to the hills, and in so doing to find encouragement, help, courage and inspiration. It is always interesting what we are able to observe when we look up or cast our eyes over a new horizon. Those looking up at the night sky this past week may have seen the Northern Lights, a rare sight indeed in these parts, or the planets Jupiter and Venus duly aligned with the crescent moon, and drawing closer together with each passing night. As the hymn writer reminds us ‘sun, moon and stars bow down before Him dwellers all in time and space’ (STF 83).
In the Old Testament lesson set for today we meet Abram (before he became Abraham) in the city of Haran and looking to the horizon. Interestingly in the preceding verses (11:27-32) we learn that Terah, Abram’s father, had set off from Ur of the Chaldeans with Abram, his other son Nahor, and all the remaining family including his grandson Lot, who was the son of his deceased son Haran. Terah’s intention when he left Ur was to go to Canaan, but when he and the family reached the city of Haran, about halfway, a city bearing the same name of his deceased son, he decided to settle there. But Abram continued to look to the horizon and the land of Canaan, and called by God he later set off with his wife Sarai and nephew Lot for this unknown land of promise. It is interesting and noteworthy that Terah, Abram’s father, in remaining in Haran, never saw Canaan. What God requires, and he saw it very much in Abram, is a commitment to see things through to the end, to look up and set our hearts and minds towards a greater horizon, and a future by which blessed, we ourselves become a blessing. The kingdom of God is not for the half-hearted. Its rewards are only truly found by those who go the distance.
In the Gospel and New Testament reading for today we meet Nicodemus. He had been greatly moved by Jesus teaching, saying unto Jesus, after arranging to meet with him at night most probably for reasons of secrecy, ‘Rabbi we know you are a teacher who has come from God’. His, that is Nicodemus, is not a closed mind unlike some of his contemporaries upon the ruling council. Here is someone looking up and sensing, as with his ancestor Abram long before him, a calling to cast his eye over a new horizon. And it is Jesus who is the agency of this intrigue. A conversation follows which lifts Nicodemus’ sights even further. Jesus speaks of the need to be born again if one is truly to encounter the Kingdom of God. Nicodemus is confused thinking only in earthly and physical terms term but Jesus challenges him. In essence Jesus says ‘Nicodemus, you have to look to the heavens and be born again. You have by the Holy Spirit to undergo a complete and God-given transformation that leads to a new way of thinking and sets your sights on a new greater horizon. Jesus goes on to reveal to Nicodemus even greater truths. Or it might simply be John’s commentary, the disciple who let us not forget was present with Jesus as He was crucified – ‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it’ (John 3:16-17).
In these stories of Abram and Nicodemus, and in the words of Jesus, the invitation is being given to all. Lift up your eyes to the heavens. Set your sights on a new horizon and a new land of promise, the Kingdom of God. Do you not see? It is in your grasp. It is in your reach, if like Abram, and we trust Nicodemus, you are bold enough to embark on the journey, if in the words of Jesus you are willing to be ‘born again’. Let us then not be like Terah, Abram’s father who only went half distance. The greater blessing lies in seeing the journey through to completion. Jesus would say to those who embarked on this journey, ‘Whoever loses his life for me and the Gospel will save it ‘(Mark 8:35). These words mirrored his earlier central message … ‘Now is the time. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the Good News’ (Mark 1: 15). Time then my friends to accept the challenge. Time not to stall or turn back, but to set our destination, our present and our future, to the glory of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Hymn STF 338 (Melody Green b.1946 and Keith Green 1953-1982)
Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession (Written by Ruth Hilton from ‘The Vine’ resource)
With silence after each bidding to allow time for our own prayers …
Let us pray for all those on an unknown journey, for those ill and in strange places, fearful of an unknown future [Pause]
For those affected by the cost of living crisis, fearful of the next bill
[Pause]
For those with a sense of calling to ministry, unsure of what the future holds
[Pause]
For politicians and those in power, who know that their decisions shape the future of many
[Pause]
For the church and its mission in turbulent and changing times
[Pause]
For all those grieving, facing a future without a loved one
[Pause]
For ourselves and the fears within that sometimes we cannot speak even to ourselves, stopping us taking steps on an unknown journey.
[Pause]
And because we travel this road together we say in unison in the language of our choosing…
Our Father who art in Heaven …
Hymn STF 465 (William Williams 1717-1791)
The Blessing and Dismissal (Dismissal written by Tim Baker from ‘The Vine’ resource)
The God of all grace, who has called us to a holy path in Jesus Christ, confirm and strengthen us in our way by the Holy Spirit. And the blessing of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be upon and remain with us, and all whom we hold in our hearts and prayers, now and forever. Amen
We go out with an open-hearted God at our side. We leave here with a loving God in our midst. We face the week ahead with the Spirit of God amongst us. Thanks be to God. Amen.
