Monday 6Th April 2020 Monday in Holy Week: Anointing at Bethany Sentence
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Monday 6th April 2020 Monday in Holy Week: Anointing at Bethany Sentence: Hear me, you that know what is right, the people in whose heart is my law; fear not those who reproach you , and be not dismayed at their iniquity. Isaiah 51:7 Collect: Jesus, receive our love and worship. Show us how to give you what we have, For nothing is too big or small For us to offer, or for you to use. Amen. Bible Readings: MORNING 10.30am: ❖ Psalm 41 Prayer for healing from sickness – a lament ❖ Lamentations 1:1-12 A lament over the deserted city of Zion (Jerusalem) ❖ Luke 22:1-23 The Last Supper EVENING 8pm: ❖ Isaiah 42:1-9 The Servant, a light to the nations ❖ Psalm 36:5-11 God’s steadfast love ❖ Hebrews 9:11-15 Jesus the Mediator of a new covenant ❖ John 12:1-11 Mary of Bethany anoints Jesus’ feet Questions to ponder and reflect on: John 12:1-11 Imagine that you are Mary, delighted to welcome Jesus into your family home, the one who has brought your brother Lazarus back from death. How do you feel as you take the costly perfume, anoint Jesus’ feet and wipe them with your hair? What do you sense in the room – the perfume? The reactions of your brother Lazarus and sister Martha? The responses of the other disciples? How do you feel when Judas criticises your action and says the perfume should have been sold and the money given to the poor? Can you think of a time when you have tried to show love and it has been misinterpreted or put down? How do you feel as Jesus defends you and says you have bought this perfume for the day of his burial? A Gift (John 12:1-8) A meal: Mary, Ointment – love gift, costly. Giving – poured out, all used? Sorrow – mourning, hair loose. Judas, Betrayal – money, slave price. Death, burial. Jesus accepting extravagance in gift, in emotional display, of love, of sorrow & heartache, of womanly intuition. Accepting the sign of submission to his authority in an act of anointed feet; Accepting a lover’s act, wiping tear-stained feet; more than a thank-you for a brother restored. A gift given and received. A prelude to the Gift given to all who would receive. MDW, Jan 1992 Tuesday 7th April 2020 Tuesday in Holy Week: A grain of wheat Sentence: Jesus said Truly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies, it bears much fruit. John 12:24 Collect: God, you have made known your love Through Jesus’ life and words. Help us to receive his teaching, To find the fulness of that love And bring its fragrance to others. Amen. Bible Readings: MORNING 10.30am: ❖ Psalm 27 The Lord is my light and my salvation ❖ Lamentations 3:1-18 A psalm of personal distress and of trust in God ❖ Luke 22:24-53 The Garden of Gethsemane EVENING 8pm: ❖ Isaiah 49:1-7 The Holy One of Israel has chosen you ❖ Psalm 71:1-14 An aged worshipper’s prayer for deliverance – a lament ❖ 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 We proclaim Christ crucified ❖ John 12:20-36 A grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies Questions to ponder and reflect on: John 12:20-36 “We want to see Jesus”. What do you want to say to Jesus? Who else do you want to see Jesus? Pray for them. “A grain of wheat must fall into the earth and die…if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Jesus died for us, that he might bear in us the fruits of salvation, forgiveness, restored relationship with God, reconciliation with others. What needs to die in us during this season, that we may bear more fruit in God’s time? Our freedom, our independence, our self-sufficiency? “Believe in the light, so that you may become children of light”. Pray that the light of Christ will fill our hearts and that we may share that Christ-light with others. Wednesday 8th April 2020 Wednesday in Holy Week: Is it I, Lord? Sentence: Jesus said Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. John 13:31 Collect: When all we are and everything we do Are called into question, Grant us dignity and direction, Grant us patience. Jesus, be there then. Amen. Bible Readings: MORNING 10.30am: ❖ Psalm 102 Prayer for healing in sickness – a lament ❖ Wisdom 1:16-2:1, 12-22 Life as the ungodly or materialist sees it ❖ Luke 22:54-71 Jesus before Caiaphas the High Priest; Peter denies Jesus EVENING 8pm: ❖ Isaiah 63:1-9 The Lord became their Saviour in all their distress ❖ Psalm 88 Desperate prayer for healing in sickness – a lament ❖ Revelation 14:18-15:4 A vision of the victorious martyrs in heaven ❖ John 13:21-32 One of you will betray me Questions to ponder and reflect on: John 13:21-32 How are we like Judas? Judas is there as one of the twelve disciples. Judas was called by Jesus and wanted to follow Jesus just as we do. Judas has shared the Last Supper, and Jesus has washed Judas’ feet. The disciples don’t suspect Judas – they all wonder who the betrayer will be. Did Judas feel betrayed by Jesus? That Jesus was not the Messiah he expected? Do we ever feel betrayed by the ways of God in the world, especially when God doesn’t take away illnesses and suffering in ourselves or loved ones, when we can’t understand things that happen in our lives or our world? How do we betray Jesus? Our failure to own or live out our faith in Jesus? Could the bread offered to Judas be not just a marker, but also a promise that one day Judas will share in the heavenly banquet? See Madeleine L’Engle’s story Waiting for Judas: https://breadandwinelentenstudy.wordpress.com/2014/04/16/waiting-for-judas/ How are we like the beloved disciple (John)? The beloved disciple in John’s Gospel sees when others are blind, believes when others doubt. He is an ideal disciple and a faithful witness to the truth about Jesus. How about us? The Holy Spirit enables us to see Jesus and to believe in who he is, as the agent of God’s love. We demonstrate this love of God by the way we treat our brothers and sisters. “We love because God first loved us.” “We know love by this, that Jesus laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for one another.” How are we like Judas? How are we like the beloved disciple (John)? We are both forgiven sinners and beloved children of God. .