In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Grace and peace be with you
and keep you in the love of Christ.
We acknowledge that during these strange and challenging times, we’ve learnt new skills, we’ve worshipped in new and different ways, we’ve considered our well-being, we’ve heard the birds sing and allowed creation to speak to us. We give thanks for blessings received! Amen.
We say together:
Father of glory, holy and eternal,
look upon us now in power and mercy.
May your strength overcome our weakness,
your radiance transform our blindness,
and your Spirit draw us to that love
shown and offered to us by your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Please take a moment of quiet to bring to God those things which weigh heavily on your hearts and souls....
we say together:
Heavenly Father,
we have sinned in thought, word and deed,
and have failed to do
what we ought to have done.
We are sorry and truly repent.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ
who died for us, forgive us all that is past,
and lead us in his way
to walk as children of light. Amen.
GLORY TO GOD
The Gloria is an ancient hymn of praise to the glory of God.
We praise you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit
with all the saints and angels
in heaven and on earth,
and we worship you in sincerity and truth
for you are the Holy One,
the Lord, the Most High. Amen.
Loving God, in you alone we find our hope and salvation,
in you alone we find our wholeness,
As we look forward to the time
when all members of your Church in this Parish
can worship together again, face to face,
and share in the communion of the Body and Blood of Christ,
we offer our worship, our sadness, our joy and our praise. Amen.
GOSPEL READING:
MATTHEW 20 1-16
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius[a] for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
3 “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ 5 So they went.
“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. 6 About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’
7 “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.
“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’
8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last
ones hired and going on to the first.’
9 “The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. 10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12 ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’
13 “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? 14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’
16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
Jesus used parables to talk to his disciples about the Kingdom of God. He told three around the scene of a vineyard - this represents the Kingdom. The Master represents God and the laborers are those who are called - or saved - by God. In this particular parable the laborers are grumbling because those who arrive last and do less than a days work are paid more than those who turned up on time. The Master tells the grumblers that he is paying them what he agreed to pay and basically it's none of their business if he choses to pay the latecomers the same, or more.
This parable is about the grace of God. It is about God's generosity towards his people.
At the heart of everything God is generous and his generosity is of course extreme.
God is the god of all peoples – not just the chosen of Israel and in these days when it is perhaps difficult for us to think of Israel as God’s chosen people Israel has surely become a metaphor for believers generally. When I hear the name of Israel from scripture, I apply it to all believers in God – not just the Jewish nation of the Bible.
God also wants us to be generous with our forgiveness and with our love - just as God our Father is generous in giving us his Son and sent to us his Holy Spirit to guide and strengthen us in all that we do. Life is quite hard sometimes – whether we have a difficult home life or we are struggling to find work, whether we are just exhausted by the business of our everyday existence, God is with us – in our midst – to help us through. When we feel there is nothing going right and we are fed up with trying, our generous God lifts us up, holds our hand, fills our heart with love so that we can carry on. We have a generous God. Amen.
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH:
We believe and trust in one God.
We believe and trust in God, the Father, the Creator.
We believe and trust in God, the Son, the Saviour.
We believe and trust in God, the Holy Spirit,
the Sanctifier.
We believe and trust in one God.
We believe.
We trust.
Amen.
LET US PRAY:
We have offered our praise, our faults, our lives and our love and now let us pray to God our Creator our Saviour and Friend.
Gracious Lord, we pray for the Church in the World – we pray for the continuing strength and commitment of all who minister in your Church and we give thanks for those who feel called to do your work, allowing themselves to be transformed by your healing and by your love.
Lord Graciously hear us.
Merciful Father, we pray for all the troubled places in the World. For countries where there is turmoil and conflict, where there is famine and disease, where there is injury and displacement. Lord we pray for ordinary people caught up in terrible situations – we pray for their safety, for the healing of communities and for justice and compassion in those who lead.
Lord graciously hear us.
Loving Lord, giving thanks for our families and friends, we pray for all those known to us who are poorly in body, mind or spirit. We pray for their comfort and their peace of mind - that they may draw strength offered by a loving community and by you. We pray that those who find themselves in darkness of spirit or mind may recognise your light and be brave enough to take your hand when it is offered.
Lord graciously hear us.
Eternal God, we pray for all those who have recently left this earthly life and for those whose anniversary of their death falls at this time, asking that they may all be accepted into your heavenly realm. We pray for those who feel left behind – may they find comfort in their good memories.
Lord graciously hear us.
Father God, we ask for the strengthening power of the Holy Spirit to be always in this place, guiding us as we move forward in Christian love. Lord, when we are at last transformed by the wholeness that your truth and love bring, may we shine as your light in the world doing the work of your hands, bringing our own gifts to the building of your Kingdom.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
As our Saviour taught us, we
boldly pray:
Our Father
who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily
bread.
And forgive us our
trespasses
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into
temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
THE PEACE
The Father of many resting places grant you rest;
The Christ who stilled the storm grant you calm;
The Spirit who fills all things grant you peace.
God’s light be your light,
God’s love be your love.
The peace of the Lord
be with you and those you love, now and always.
Go in Peace to love and serve the Lord -
in the Name of Christ. Amen.
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