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Reuben's Theme: "Christ the King"
(The Sunday before Advent) - MORNING MASS
0930hrs at Saint Aidan's District Church - Billy Mill, North
Shields.
Sunday, 21st. November 2004 Anno Domini.
Morning Mass: Jeremiah 23.16 Psalm
46 Colossians 1.1120 Luke
23.3343
November 21, 2004 Cycle C Christ the King
(Sunday Before Advent).
Morning Mass:
COLLECT
Eternal Father, whose Son Jesus Christ ascended
to the throne of heaven - that He might rule over all things
as Lord and King: keep the Church in the unity of the Spirit
and in the bond of peace, and bring the whole created order to
worship at His feet; who is alive and reigns with you, in the
unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
FIRST READING
Jeremiah 23.16
A reading from the book of the prophet
Jeremiah.
Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my
pasture! says the LORD.
Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the
shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered
my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended
to them. So I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the
LORD.
Then I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all
the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back
to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will
raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and they
shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be missing,
says the LORD.
The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will raise
up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and
deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the
land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in
safety. And this is the name by which he will be called: 'The
LORD is our righteousness.'
PSALM
Psalm 46
RR The
Lord of hosts is with us: the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble;
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be moved, and
though the mountains be toppled into the depths of the sea;
3 Though its waters rage and foam, and though the mountains tremble
at its tumult. RR
5 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the
holy habitation of the Most High.
6 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be overthrown; God
shall help her at the break of day.
7 The nations make much ado and the kingdoms are shaken; God
has spoken and the earth shall melt away. RR
9 Come now and look upon the works of the Lord, what awesome
things he has done on earth.
10 It is he who makes war to cease in all the world; he breaks
the bow and shatters the spear and burns the shields with fire.
11 'Be still, then, and know that I am God; I will be exalted
among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth.' RR
SECOND READING
Colossians 1.1120
A reading from the letter of Paul to the
Colossians.
[Brothers and sisters:] May you be made strong with all the strength
that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to
endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks
to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance
of the saints in the light.
He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred
us into the kingdom of his belovèd Son, in whom we have
redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;
for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things
visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers
or powers all things have been created through him and
for him.
He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning,
the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first
place in everything.
For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and
through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things,
whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood
of his cross.
GOSPEL
Luke 23.3343
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
according to Luke.
When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified
Jesus there with the criminals, one on His right and one on His
left.
Then Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them; for they do not know
what they are doing.'
And they cast lots to divide His clothing.
And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at
Him, saying, 'He saved others; let him save himself if he is
the Messiah of God, his chosen one!'
The soldiers also mocked Him, coming up and offering Him sour
wine, and saying, 'If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!'
There was also an inscription over Him, 'This is the King of
the Jews.'
One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding Him
and saying, 'Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!'
But the other rebuked him, saying, 'Do you not fear God, since
you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed
have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve
for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.'
Then he said, 'Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.'
Jesus replied, 'Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in
Paradise.'
POST COMMUNION
Stir up, O Lord, the wills of your faithful
people;
that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works,
may by you be plenteously rewarded;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Reuben's Theme: "Christ the King"
+ In the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
There's a rumour going round that it's bitterly
cold this morning. This is not true.
It's not bitterly cold... ...it's bitterly fresh!
So, here we are...
the Christmas decorations have been up in the shops for...
...only two months now.
The major department stores now have their Christmas displays
up in their main windows.
Gosh! it must be almost Advent!!!
Mind you, it's good to see that at least one
major store has broken with tradition and chosen a Christian
theme for their display.
But don't we find it just a little worrying
that the baby Jesus is already born, and in the manger, in the
shop windows of Newcastle.
The new version of the Band-Aid "Do they
know it's Christmas?" single has been re-recorded and can
be heard on the radio.
Fans should know, however, that in good keeping
with Christian tradition, the new Band-Aid single is being released
to the public on 28th. November...
...Advent Sunday.
Ahhh... Advent!!
There's a word that strikes terror into the
heart of every Christian Christmas shopper.
Advent: The time of preparation... ...preparation
for Christmas.
Advent: A word that we should be sharing with
everyone we meet from now until Christmas Day, reminding them
that it is not Christmas until 25th. December.
So, it seems, at first glance, a little odd
that on this day, the last Sunday before Advent 'Stir-up Sunday',
we hear a Gospel reading about the crucifixion.
Let me try to explain it all to you...
In the old testament reading for today the
government and religious leaders, referred to as 'the shepherds'
are criticised in a vicious verbal attack by Jeremiah.
Misrule and lies, pronounced in God's name, will not go unpunished.
God will set on the throne a king of his own choice.
But, as we know Jeremiah was talking of no earthly throne.
...and about 650 years later...
the King to be set on the throne is Jesus Christ - triumphant
in the Resurrection that first Sunday after He was crucified
and died.
In our second reading, Paul tells how Jesus
is the living expression of God - active in creation and holding
together all that exists. He was first, he is the first - in
existence, in power, in position.
He has first place in God's new creation and his new people,
the Christian Church.
He brought the Christian Church into being.
He is the head.
Through his death and resurrection it is possible for us to be
with God.
This is the good news... The Gospel.
Paul certainly knows for certain that Jesus Christ is King and
Lord of all.
So it seems a little odd that we have a Gospel
reading about about the crucifixion of Jesus and the moments
leading up to His death on the cross?
Well, that is not what this reading is about.
Because it stops where it does, this reading is about how we
gain entry into the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus is being taumented by everyone. Even
one of the criminals being crucified with Jesus kept taunting
Him saying, "Are you the Messiah? - Save yourself...
...and us!"
But another criminal actually comes to the defence of Jesus.
A convicted murderer comes to the defence of God Himself.
"Do you not fear God, since you are under the same
sentence of condemnation?
And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting
what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing
wrong."
A murderer sees he is being executed in the
same way as Jesus, but can see Jesus has done no wrong.
A murderer, in the pains of an agonising death, leaps to Jesus'
defence, then he turns to Jesus and asks that Jesus 'remember'
him when He comes into His Kingdom.
'Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.'
Then the most wonderful thing happens.
Imagine how the criminal must have felt...
...to hear Jesus, God Himself, say, "Truly I tell you,
today you will be with me in paradise."
The first person to enter the kingdom of heaven, with Jesus,
was a convicted criminal.
The patron saint of repentant criminals.
Known as Saint Dismus.
"Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."
For the kind act of coming to the defence of Jesus during His
agony, and the true sorrow and repentance for his wicked life,
Dismus learns, before he dies, that he will be with Jesus, in
paradise, that very day.
I heard a story some time ago about a parish
church where the old vicar went through a special ritual every
year at the midnight mass on Christmas eve.
Just before the service started, in front of a hushed congregation,
he would walk, purposefully, out of the vestry, and go to the
back of the church where the nativity scene was set out.
And he would pick up a wooden cross and with a six inch nail
and a hammer, he would loudly nail the cross to the front of
the stable.
One year, when he did this, there were two old ladies near the
back of the church and one of them, rather deaf, said to her
friend in a voice loud enough to be heard by many...
...There he goes. He has to spoil everything, doesn't he.
Through no fault of her own, she had forgotton what Christmas
is really about.
This is something that the world has forgotten about at Christmas.
This is what Christmas is all about.
The birth of God - as a human being...
...who will save us all by dying a terrible death.
So, the readings today, this Sunday of "Christ
the King" show us what should be at the back of our minds
as we prepare for Christmas.
Jeremiah predicts the coming of a King of
all... ...Christ the King.
Paul tells us how Jesus is the head of the
Church and therefore head of everything... ...Christ the King.
At the crucifixion, a murderer recognises
God in Jesus and, in those terrible hours of pain, defends Jesus
from the taunts of others.
Asking to be remembered when Jesus comes into His kingdom, he
is told by Jesus - God Himself...
"Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."
Don't let today's commercial world pull you
away from the true Christmas which STARTS on 25th. December.
Don't let people prevent you from observing Advent...
...your preparation for Christmas.
And as we prepare for Christmas, starting on Advent Sunday next
week, remember...
It's all about God...
who was born as a baby...
lived as a human...
and died a horrible death...
so that if we recognise Him...
...and truly repent of all our sins...
...we will...
...one day...
...be with Him in paradise.
+ In the name
of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
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