Worshipping at Home 23rd July 2023
Home Worshipping 
23rd July 2023

Welcome to Home Worshipping 23rd July 2023!
Seventh Sunday After Trinity

Bible Reading

Bible Readings

 

Isaiah 44: 6-8

Matthew 13: 24-30, 36-43


The Parable of the Weeds

Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.  When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’  “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’  “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them.  Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”


The Parable of the Weeds Explained

Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one,  and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age and the harvesters are angels.”

 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.  The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.  They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

Thought for the Day

The problem with ‘Knee-jerk’ reactions. “Pardon!” you might retort; “what have knee-jerk reactions got to do with a field of wheat that has obviously not been looked after and is in danger of losing the quantity and quality of its crop? Get the weed killer out before it’s too late and sort the problem out!”

Well yes at first glance I would agree with you, swift action is required to save the day and put things right. In the above passages from Matthew’s Gospel Jesus was once again using everyday examples of life to illustrate his point in a way that anyone listening and paying attention could understand. 

His explanation to his closest disciples clears up a lot of doubts that they may have had about this particular parable. The field of wheat represented the world as a whole. The good seed are the children of the kingdom of God and the weeds are children of the devil. 
Once they have lived together for any length of time their roots become intertwined and almost inseparable. In Jesus’ day effective weed killer was not available so the only way to sort things out would be manual intervention.

A heavy handed gardener or farmer might well destroy the roots of the good crop and cause more harm than good. Have you ever tried to sort out dense-rooted plants that have been infiltrated with buttercup roots? Almost certainly the buttercup wins in the long run!

So back to the problem of making sure that the good children thrive in the Kingdom of God and that the wicked children of the devil do not. As stewards of God’s creation we have a role to play in caring and nurturing it but when it comes to making sweeping decisions or interfering with its long-term future then the final arbiter has to be God himself. When I talk about creation here I am including the Kingdom of God as well.

The presence of evil in the world is obviously going to hold back the rate of growth of the Kingdom of God but Jesus is saying that even the good children cannot sort this out on their own and the ultimate solution rests in the hand of God. Only God can make that final judgement as to who will remain in his glorious presence at the end of the present age when the Kingdom of God will finally come to complete fruition.

Regrettably weapons of mass destruction have made it possible for mankind to either completely destroy themselves or to use those weapons to destroy substantial sections of society regarded as being completely evil. Under severe threat of destruction one nation may decide to use such weaponry ‘in defence’ but in such situations the only defence is attack. Millions of worthy lives might be destroyed in the pursuit of the elimination of evil; a knee-jerk reaction under the gravest of circumstances.

Despite all our quite justifiable concerns Jesus is urging us to use wisdom and restraint in our fight for goodness, love and justice. We must keep our faith in God even when we are worried that everything is going in the wrong direction. The kingdom of God will prevail and we can only do our small part in helping to make that happen but we are only agents of God. We know that we have a gracious, loving and merciful God and we know how to live according to his will. We cherish the hope of eternal life in his presence but have to accept that the final judgement is in his hands. Amen

Let us Pray

Dear Lord Jesus please grant us courage and perseverance in all our struggles, wisdom in our decisions and confidence in our faith in you. 
Amen.

Prayer for the interregnum of the Parish of Beaudesert with Henley and Ullenhall (to be said during intercessions).

Almighty and everlasting God as we travel together through this period of interregnum we thank you for your everlasting love for us. Give us strength to accept this time of change and send us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with encouragement and hope for the future. We ask that you will help us to share responsibilities growing in faith and love with one another. We look forward to the appointment of a new Rector and believe you will send us a priest best suited to your disciples in this parish and who will encourage many to join with us on our journey of faith. 
Amen
The Blessing

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep our hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among us and remain with us and all those whom we love and care for, always.


Amen

 The Collect Prayer

Lord of all power and might, the author and giver of all good things:

graft in our hearts the love of your name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness and of your great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.


Amen

If you have any thoughts, questions or concerns, please contact us

Henley in Arden The incumbent   (Vacancy)



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I believe if you keep your faith, you keep your trust, you keep the right attitude, if you're grateful, you'll see God open up new doors.
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