Sunday Service 2nd August
- 10 hours ago
- 8 min read
Which Path?
2/8/26
Call to worship
Hymn 153: Great is thy faithfulness
Time for all John
Hymn 641:Seek ye first
Dedication of Offering
Reading: Luke 9: 7-20 Gil
Prayer (The Lord’s Prayer will be on the screen)
Hymn 987(MP): Here is love
Sermon
Prayer
Hymn 510: Jesus calls us here to meet him
Benediction
Welcome to our meditation for 2nd August.
We often talk of the cost of things, and whether doing things end up being worth it or not.
But we forget that not doing things has a cost as well. And maybe we should consider in our cost analysis alongside whiter something is worth it or not, the cost of not doing the same thing.
We will look at that after our reading from Gil.
Prayer of Dedication of Offering
Heavenly Father,
Of all the things we could choose to do, may we choose life.
May we choose to live a life worthy of you,
may we choose to bring life into those we interact with,
may we choose to bring life into the lifer we live.
Amen
Sermon
I find the trick to studying scripture is to ask questions.
And it is in the asking questions, and seeking answers that we find some insight, maybe meaning for us to concise in our own lives.
So fore instance...how many people were fed that day?
The easy answer is five thousand.
It kind of says that in the scripture, it even had brackets round the number...it specifically says, says (There were about five thousand men there.)
Now here’s the thing. I am sure that you would have heard ministers like myself say things like, ‘Oh they didn’t bother counting women and children so there might have been up to 20,000 people there’.
Which is kind of OK to think about; only it does raise the question...why was the scripture so specific about there being five thousand men there?
Unless that was the complete accurate number...there was five thousand there that day, and they were all men.
Which then raises the questions...
Is that possible that there was no women or children there?
and
Why weren’t the women and children there?
So is it possible that there were no women or children there?
Yes that is very possible, in fact very likely when you consider the background.
The time is very volatile.
At the start of our passage we see Herod has killed John the Baptist.
John the Baptist was a very influential man.
Many thought of him as a prophet, a messenger of God.
You don’t just kill a messenger of God and get away with it.
Someone should do something about it
And who could do that?
Well we have Jesus.
Jesus who talks about a new kingdom where justice is pure.
Jesus who is building up a following in the Galilee area,
far enough away from the Roman powerhouse of Jerusalem that he has time to build up a military following that could reclaim the land for God.
Jesus who is a relative of John the Baptist so could rightfully seek vengeance for the unlawful killing of his cousin.
And in this hotbed of political activity,
while his disciples have been out seeking recruits to this ‘new kingdom that will overthrow the old kingdom and its corrupt rulers’...
Jesus disappears into the wilderness.
Now why he does this is open to interpretation.
If you think Jesus is an innocent soul then you think Jesus is going into the wilderness to seek his Father’s blessing on the new phase of his ministry.
If you think Jesus is not an innocent soul but a shrewd political animal; then you think Jesus is gathering his troops in secret to build them up before an attack on Herod’s domain.
Once he has got revenge for his cousin’s killing
and acted as judge, jury and executioner for the death of God’s prophet,
then Jesus can use Herod’s land as a base to attack and conquer the rest of Israel and fulfil the prophecies of the messiah restoring the land for God.
In an environment like that it is unsafe to bring women and children into the middle of a potential war zone.
So when Jesus disappears into the wilderness which of these two scenarios do you think dominates?
Jesus seeking peace...or...Jesus seeking revenge.
If Jesus is a Messiah in waiting, and the Messiah is a king with a kingdom, what should he do?
Negotiate, which makes him look weak,
or restore his honour, raise an army and kill Herod?
So men go to seek Jesus.
Many because they were disciples of John and want Jesus to take up John’s mantle.
Many because they are curious to what Jesus is going to do to Herod after Herod has so blatantly killed Jesus’ cousin.
Some because they are spies of Herod and/or the Roman army and/or the religious leaders in Jerusalem and they are trying to find out what Jesus’ intentions are.
And what does Jesus do? Jesus puts the men into military units.
All this would feed into everyone’s expectations about Jesus.
Jesus sees himself as the Messiah, the Messiah comes in power to rule and conquer,
Only Jesus refuses to be that kind of Messiah.
Instead of a rally call to take on Herod, Jesus feeds the men and sends them home.
Jesus gives them a choice...live the way of Herod, or live the way of Christ.
And I think Jesus is still asking us which choice we want to make...
The life of Herod or the life of Jesus.
The life of Herod is the life of power, of control.
It is based on the lie that we can control our lives, we can prepare for every eventuality.
And we can do that through power and wealth.
It depends on us having more than others.
Because if we don’t have more than other then we might not have enough...and not having enough is threatening to us.
We show others how much more security we have by showing off our better house, or better stuff, or more stuff.
That all gives us security and security is peace of mind.
We see the adverts; we are shown places round the world where there is not enough to eat. We see that there is not enough for everyone.
So we need to make sure that we have enough, and maybe more than enough...to make sure that we feel safe and secure.
But it’s not only about having enough stuff, we need power.
Because if we don’t have power then other people will take our stuff, then we won’t have enough.
So other people need to be wary of us, they need to know we will defend our stuff with prejudice, they need to be afraid of us, respect us...they need to know we can defend ourselves
They need to know that we have power and we are not afraid to use it.
The irony is that Herod had all that power, all that stuff...but he was still afraid.
All that power and stuff didn’t give him security.
And he knew he was afraid, he knew his life wasn’t secure...so how did he react?
By seeking more stuff, seeking more power, which led to him being less secure, more afraid.
Jesus sees that path and offers another one.
Instead of seeking more stuff he gives it away.
All that he has; five loaves, two fish...in themselves gifts given by someone else...he gives away.
Instead of asking for obedience to him to become his vessels of revenge...he offers them fellowship and relationship.
Instead of demanding the men around him to offer their lives for his cause...he instead offers them a new life.
Jesus’ security is in the love of his Heavenly Father.
His meaning is in the love of his Heavenly Father.
His trust is in the love of his Heavenly Father
Herod’s path means competition with every other human being.
Jesus path means sharing with every other human being.
Herod’s path means distrusting every other human being.
Jesus path means relationship with every other human being.
Herod’s path means isolation from every other human being...because in the end you can’t trust them.
Jesus path means community with every other human being...because in the end you trust God.
Herod wanted power so that he had the opportunity to make HIS world better.
Jesus had that power, and he used it, USES IT, to give others the opportunity to change their lives for the better.
We will choose one of these paths.
The way of the pretend king that tried to be a real king?
Or the way of the eternal king would seeks to be a servant to all?
Which path will we follow?
I think, if we are honest, we like the idea being kings of our destiny.
We like the idea that if we have just a bit more then we will be secure.
That if we did just one more thing then that would give us security and we can relax...
and maybe that one more thing would be to get an extra thousand pounds,
or get that better house in a safer housing area, or have better health insurance so we don’t have to wait too long for doctors appointments.
We would never be as extreme as Herod...we wouldn’t kill off someone to feel more secure...but we can see where he’s coming from.
I think Christ’s hope...is that if he offers a different path,
that we will at least review the life we are on, and seriously ask ourselves if the security we are looking for, the life we long for, will really come from that ‘one more thing’. That Herod thinks will give him what he wants.
And maybe we will see that lasting hope, lasting peace, lasting love, lasting joy comes not from chasing stuff, but accepting a relationship with God.
Let us pray
God of abundance,
we thank you that in Christ you did not turn the crowds away because they might want more than you could give
You saw their hunger and do not flinch from it, dreading that you would not have enough for yourself
You saw need and do not despise it...believing that you were more deserving therefore derived more
You took what seemed small; blessed it, broke it, and shared it, until there was enough.
Instead of acting from a heart of anger, or fear or revenge, your Son acted from a heart of compassion and love and generosity.
We thank you for all the ways your kingdom still comes among us:
in acts of courage and care, in burdens carried together, those giving time to make sure
justice longed for is pursued, in communities that make room for one more.
We pray for your world,
where so many are told there is not enough:
not enough food, not enough safety, not enough welcome, not enough mercy....
we give thanks for those who say, take my time, take my gifts, take my effort.
Be with all who are hungry today,
all who live with war, displacement, or fear,
all whose lives are diminished by poverty, violence, or neglect.
Stir leaders, nations, and communities to choose sharing over hoarding and courage over indifference.
We pray for your church, called to travel light and trust in you.
Where congregations are tired, renew them.
Where they are anxious, steady them.
Where they are uncertain, guide them.
Where they are tempted to believe that they have too little to offer, show them again the gifts already placed in their hands.
We pray for those known to us
who need healing, strength, or companionship this day: those carrying grief, those facing illness, those worn down by responsibility, those searching for work or home or hope, those whose faith feels fragile, and those whose questions have no easy answer.
And we pray for ourselves.
When we feel small in the face of great need, keep us from despair.
When we are tempted to send others away, give us the courage to stay present.
When we cling too tightly to what we have, teach us the freedom of open hands.
In the end, may our lives reflect the life of Christ within us.
Amen.
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