15th September 2024 10.30am – 16th Sunday after Trinity – Eucharist

The Readings

James 3.1-12

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.

How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one can tame the tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.

Mark 8.27-38

Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that I am?’ And they answered him, ‘John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.’ He asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Messiah.’ And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’

Scripture Quotations are from: New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

The Sermon
By The Revd Canon Dr Matthew Rhodes, Associate Priest.

Two weeks ago I was lucky enough to go to Greenbelt, a Christian festival that currently takes place
near Kettering. It’s probably the most inclusive Christian event that I know of in all sorts of ways and
there’s a wonderful variety of people who attend it.

Greenbelt has some great music and it also has some wonderful speakers. I was fortunate to hear
Professor Jason Arday talking. He is Professor of the Sociology of Education at the University of
Cambridge and he is the youngest black person ever to be appointed to a Cambridge Professorship.
Jason’s parents came to this country from Ghana and he grew up on a council estate in Clapham,
South London. He was diagnosed as autistic at 3 years old and he didn’t speak until he was 11. He
didn’t read and write until he was eighteen.

Professor Arday spoke with enormous grace and humility. But he is a man on a mission. He feels that
our current education system is failing too many young people. Too many are falling through the
cracks. Too many fail to get their voices heard. And he is trying to change that. It is wonderful that
Jason is a professor at Cambridge but I’m sure he looks forward to the day when he is not the
exception.

Today our readings challenge us to think about our voices. About who is heard and who isn’t. And
about the words that we use to talk about Jesus. Our first reading from the Letter of James warns
about the power of our tongues. While some animals can be tamed, no one can tame the tongue.
James describes it as a restless evil, full of deadly poison. I wonder whether James had had recent
experience of malicious gossip or unfounded rumours. Today his words might also be applied to
social media. James warns us to put a bridle on our tongues. To think before speaking. And there is
great wisdom in that. The noise of our world can be overwhelming sometimes. So many voices
clamouring for attention. So much news. So much chatter. In order to seek God, many of us have to
retreat to places of quiet. To a corner of our homes or to open spaces. We all need to cultivate
silence. To find peace.

But in shutting out the noise we have to be careful that we don’t shut out every voice. Those with loud
voices who command airtime may need turning down but there are other voices that need to be
heard. The poor, the vulnerable, the dispossessed. Those who are refugees. Those who are
homeless. Those who live at the periphery. These are dear to God. They were dear to Jesus. And
their voices need to be heard. The terrible riots in Rotherham and around the country during the
summer were appalling. But they didn’t come out of nowhere. In part they were the result of lies and
half truths about immigrants and asylum seekers on the internet. But some of those rioters were also
people who felt that their voices were not being listened to. Who felt ignored. Left behind. And if we
are to become and more cohesive society then there needs to be better listening. Better
communication. It was really moving to hear that members of the Abdullah Quilliam, Britain’s
oldest mosque in Liverpool, invited rioters to come into their mosque and have food and talk.

St James encourages us to use our words sparingly and wisely as indeed we should. But few of us
manage that all the time. And that was certainly true of the disciples. They frequently misunderstood
Jesus and said the wrong thing. And Peter is a prime example of that. In one moment he has real
clarity about Jesus and what he is about and the next he really puts his foot in it. In our Gospel today,
Jesus is doing some market research. ‘Who do people say that I am?’ he asks. I imagine that people
weren’t always sure what to make of him. And just as we compare new musicians or sports people to
their predecessors, people likened Jesus to John the Baptist or Elijah or one of the prophets. On
other occasions people likened Jesus to King David. It was quite unusual to imagine that God was
doing a completely new things. And it was verging on blasphemy to suggest that Jesus was the
Messiah. But that’s what Peter did. This humble fisherman really saw Jesus for who he was.

Jesus told the disciples to tell no one about him. That happens a lot in Mark. And as many of us
know, that’s often the way to spread news. ‘Don’t tell anyone I told you this but…’ is a surefire way to
spread gossip.

In Matthew’s later version of this story, Jesus really commends Peter for his insight. ‘Blessed are you
Peter, son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. And I
tell you, you are Peter and on this rock I will build my church.’ In Mark’s version, however, Jesus goes
on to explain what his being the Messiah will mean. That he will have to experience great suffering
and be rejected by the authorities and be killed. And after three days rise again. This isn’t what Peter
wants to hear. This doesn’t sound like Peter’s idea of a Messiah. And Peter tries to talk him out of it.
That must have sounded tempting to Jesus in that moment. And he reacts harshly. ‘Get behind me,
Satan!’ he says. You need to see this differently. You need to see this as God sees it.

And Jesus goes on to explain what following him means. He knows that some of his disciples think
they can ride on his coat tails. Throw out the Romans and take power. But they need to listen. They
will have to take up their crosses too. They will lose their lives but by doing do they will find life
everlasting. Jesus tells them all this. But they are not really listening. They don’t hear him. He will say
it again, but it will only be after the resurrection that his words will be fully heard. And yet, Jesus
doesn’t give up on them. He still loves them. And still listens to their nonsense.

Jesus asks us, ‘Who do you say that I am?’ And there will be times when we give the right answer.
When we can say, you are the Messiah. You are God. You are friend and brother. Our shepherd and
our king. When we know that our redeemer liveth. When we comprehend his amazing grace. And
sometimes we think we understand what that means as Peter did. But then Jesus will often challenge
us. Shake us up. Question what we mean. Sometimes Jesus needs to expand our understanding of
those words and we will need to listen hard. And sometimes, like Peter, we will get it wrong. We will
deny Jesus. Be ashamed of him. Give up on him. But he will not give up on us. Throughout it all, in
the good times and the harder times, Jesus continues to love us. He is always listening to us. Amen.

The Prayers
Prepared by Joe.

We pray for the Church of Christ, for Bishop Pete and Bishop Sophie,
our Archbishops Justin and Stephen, all here who lead us in worship
and prayer, and all those whose time and talents are given to St
Mary’s, St John’s and St Mark’s. We pray for those who lead your
Church in Gaza, the wider middle east and Ukraine.
Lord, hear us:
Lord graciously hear us.

Help us to recognize You for who You are and to trust in Your
purpose for our lives. Give us strength to follow You, even when the
path is hard, and to deny ourselves so that we may fully embrace
Your will. Let our hearts be open to Your teachings and our spirits be
willing to take up our cross, as You took up Yours.
Lord, hear us:
Lord graciously hear us.

We pray for all those impacted by war and civil unrest throughout
the world. In Israel, Gaza, Ukraine, Russia, Haiti, Sudan, Myanamar
and all places where people live in fear.
We pray for those affected by storms and floods throughout Eastern
Europe and the world.
Lord, hear us:
Lord graciously hear us.

We pray for our community here in Walkley, and for the city of
Sheffield, and for our neighbours and friends. We keep in our
prayers those who are homeless at this time. We pray that during
this season we remember all those less fortunate than ourselves and
do what we can to support them. We pray for those who will be
affected by changes in pensions and welfare payments, that they
may be safe from harm in the coming winter.
Lord, hear us:
Lord graciously hear us.

We pray for the aged and infirm, and those sick in mind, body or
spirit, and those who find life especially difficult at this time. We pray
that you bring them strength, healing, and peace. In a few moments
of silence, we think of those we know who need your healing
presence in their lives.
Lord, hear us:
Lord graciously hear us.

We pray for those currently close to death, and those accompanying
them on this final part of their Earthly journey. We pray for those
who have died, recently and in the past, and those who mourn.
Lord, hear us:
Lord graciously hear us.

Finally, Lord, we silently bring before you those special to us, and
those issues and concerns that we have in our own lives.
Lord, hear us:
Lord graciously hear us.

Rejoicing in the communion of Mary, Mark, John and of all the
Saints, let us commend ourselves, and one another, and all our life,
to God. Merciful Father: accept these prayers for the sake of your
Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Amen

St Marys Walkley

The Church on the Road: inclusive, eucharistic, a safe place to be with God

15th September 2024 10.30am – 16th Sunday after Trinity – Eucharist