5th Sunday after Easter

5th Sunday of Easter – Sermon

Who here has watched the Coronation of King Charles today? I wonder if anyone had any thoughts about maybe wishing you could swap with him? Maybe take on the role of King or Queen? What do you think?

For me – I wouldn’t take it for a big clock! And I’ll tell you why. It is a life of service to the nth degree. I remember hearing about our late Queen’s annual diary in the years before she really slowed down due to her failing health. She was involved in more than 500 official appointments in a year: more than ten a week. That is some going. But she was dedicated to serving the people she reigned over. She was dedicated to looking after the needs of so many people and being the best representative of and for her people. And so, I expect Charles to follow in his mother’s footsteps. I expect him to be a servant of this country, this nation, this Commonwealth.

And our readings for this weekend could not have been more appropriate if we had hand-picked them. Our readings are about service, about duty, about trust and about complete faith in God our Father to do right by us and for us in all that we need.

They lead us to ask the question - Why do we have Deacons?  How did they come be a necessity within the body of the Church? Or to put it another way – why did Jesus leave so few instructions on how the church should start up and then be run? A planning disaster or a planning masterpiece?

With his last detailed conversation with the apostles, Jesus lets them know that he is soon to leave them but that they should not be worried or downcast. He tells them to trust in him and to trust in God: to trust that they will be looked after both in this life and forever in the next.

He tells them he is going to prepare a place for them, a room within his father’s house that will be waiting for them for when they make that final journey. He tells them not to worry about that final journey as they already know the destination and the route, the pathway – well – that is Him.

He doesn’t say that He knows the path or that he has the map. He says instead that he IS the path; he IS the map and that they shouldn’t get mixed up in things that are not of him or his father in heaven. “I am the way, the truth and the life. I am in the father and the father is in me. To have seen me is to have seen the father.

Shortly after this conversation, Jesus leaves the apostles with the job, the task of going out and spreading his message; the message of God’s love for all mankind as expressed through the birth, life, suffering, death and resurrection of his son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

But he doesn’t say – Here are the rules, the guidelines, and the project plan to follow to bring this about. He doesn’t say – here is the business model that I know has worked best before – follow that and you’ll not go fay wrong. He doesn’t say any of this.

Instead, he says – I am the way, the truth and the life. Trust in God still and trust in me. Whoever believes in me will perform the same works as I do myself.

The disciples have to work out how to go about spreading the Good News. They have to work out how to live their lives as true examples of Christ and of his message of love. They may well be saints but they are human too; they have to sort themselves out as a group, as a team and as individuals – all and each looking at what to do next and how to do to their best.

And as  their numbers increase, so too do the numbers of followers; people who need feeding and looking after; people who need support, who need  attention, who need to hear and understand the message of Christ. They became victims of their own initial success, resulting in too few disciples and too many followers; a shortage of shepherds amongst a hugely growing flock.

And so we come back to the initial question of why do we have deacons. This is where they came in. This is why they came in: to assist the shepherds in the feeding, the looking after, the care and wellbeing of the flock.  To help the disciples and enable them to focus on prayer and to the service of the word.

Jesus had not given the apostles the blueprint for a successful conversion of the world to his message of love and respect for all mankind. Rather, his Father had given them the courage and wisdom to work things out along the way; to decide on a way forward and to develop this path as they went and as they grew in the spirit of the Lord.

And this brings us to where we are today and it would appear, it would seem, as if not a lot has changed from that time. Here we are still trying to look at how best to look after the flock with a decreasing number of shepherds and how best to ensure that the daily and everyday needs are being acknowledged and considered and acted upon.

But this is no longer just the job of the Bishops, priests and deacons No – this is the responsibility for each of us. This is for each one of us to look at ourselves and our own actions and consider – Am I loving my neighbour as myself? Do I love others as Christ loves me?  Am I living as a true example of God’s love for mankind in my dealings with others?

Today’s gospel reading is one which is so often read out at funerals. This is because it offers that comfort and support of – believe in me for I am the way, the truth and the life. And if you believe in me, my father will give you the courage, the strength and wisdom to decide on what to do next; on how to go on living in such a way as to be an example of his love on earth; on how to spread his message through your actions.

To be a deacon is to serve. To be a deacon is to help others. That is the role for every one of us. Look to how you are living out your own deacon responsibilities here in St John’s.

And this weekend especially, let us remember our new King and pray that he can follow in his mother’s footsteps and be a true servant to the people and continue to deliver his service with humility and dedication, loyalty and professionalism.

Bidding Prayers

1.      That our new king Charles may reign with dedication to the service of and for all his people and with a special care and attention to those on the edges of society. Lord in your mercy

2.      That we each seek to identify ways and means where we can serve each other and offer care, support and love to our brothers and sisters. Lord in your mercy

3.      That Church and World leaders can come together to identify where their attention needs to be addressed to better the lives of the peoples in their care. Lord in your mercy

4.      That there is an increase in peace, harmony and mutual support amongst nations and a resulting decrease in war and conflict. Lord in your mercy

5.      That there is an increase in vocations to the priesthood, the religious life and to the diaconate and in the support and encouragement all peoples to consider these callings. Lord in your mercy

6.      That those who are suffering from any form of ill health – mental, physical, emotional or spiritual – are supported by our prayers and our loving actions. Lord in your mercy

7.      That those who have died recently find eternal rest in the Lord. We remember especially Bill Else whose funeral service is on 11th May at Landican. Lord in your mercy

8.      That Mary our Mother and the exemplar of true service and devotion will join her prayers to ours as we now pray together, Hail Mary