Readings
for 6 August 2023 – The Tenth Sunday after Pentecost
Gospel Reading: Matthew
14:13-21
The Lord be with you. And also with you.
A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.
Glory
to you, O Lord.
Now
when Jesus heard this (John’s death and
burial), he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself.
But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the
towns. When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion
for them and cured their sick. When it was evening, the disciples came to
him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the
crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” Jesus
said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to
eat.” They replied, “We have nothing here but five loaves and two
fish.” And he said, “Bring them here to me.” Then he ordered the
crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he
looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the
disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all ate and were
filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets
full. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and
children.
This
is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ!
Prayers of the Church:
Merciful
Lord, you have made us your people and added as to those who love you. With
faith and trust in your mercy, we ask you to hear our prayers this day.
Merciful
Lord, feed us
with your grace and nourish us with your Word, Lord, in your mercy, Hear
our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, You open your hand, satisfying the desire of
every living thing. Help us to feed those who hunger for food, for
comfort, and for freedom. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, we pray
this day for all who have heard your word and follow your way. Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, continue
to support all who work the land and bless their work in growing what is needed.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, give
peace to your people throughout the world, especially in Ukraine, Russia, and
Sudan. Be close to all those who suffer the terrors and dangers of
violence. Lord, in your mercy, Hear
our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, grant
healing to so many who suffer from diseases of mind, body, and spirit. Continue
to give strength and patience those who work for healing in any way. Lord, in
your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, hear
our prayers this day for all those in our nation who endure flooding or fires. Remember
all those throughout the world who suffer from natural disasters. Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, today
we pray for our Anglican neighbors, their bishop, Bishop Todd Townsend, the
people of Trinity Church, Aylmer, and their priest, the
Rev'd Ann Webber. Bless their faithful service. Lord, in your mercy, Hear
our prayer.
Merciful
Lord, we ask
you to hear our continual prayers for those we care for and for those who have
asked for our prayers … * Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer. {*Gail Mauer, Deb Kirschner, Rose Gotzmeister,
Rick Cerna, Rose Ungar, Marjorie Weber}
Merciful Lord, keep us in
your mercy and feed us with your Word. We turn to you in faith and ask you to
hear our prayers made in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Sermon
Jesus said to them, “They need not go away;
you give them something to eat.”
·
This is a story we all know. As with most of the
incidents in the Gospels, there is more to them then just want meets the eye.
·
Jesus was mourning John the Baptizer who had just
been killed and he wanted to be by himself. The crowds had other ideas. We
don’t know if they followed him because they had compassion on him and wanted
to share his grief or if they followed him to hear more of his teaching or if
they followed in order to experience more miracles. If they followed to share
his grief, they’d learned something from his teaching. If they wanted more
teaching, all well and good. If they desired more miracles, it might have been
out of a particular need or it might have been out of a craving for
entertainment.
·
I don’t think it mattered to Jesus. Matthew wrote he had compassion for them and cured
their sick. Further, when the time came, he fed them in an amazing
manner. There were even leftovers. This is the place where the story shows the
grace given to the crowds that day and to us as well.
·
The crowds came to Jesus with their own reasons. Whoever
come to Jesus is accepted no matter why, ‘cause things can change. In fact,
Jesus’ acceptance of each person is the place where grace is focused and where
such acceptance can change the heart of any person.
·
It’s interesting to note that there are words in
this event that remind us to look at the Last Supper and to Holy Communion.
Jesus uses Last Supper/The Lord’s Supper words, like take—blessed/gave thanks—broke—gave. When those words are used, it
is the Lord’s Supper that is being referred to. Matthew’s Gospel says this: While they were eating, Jesus took bread,
and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples,
saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a
cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink
from it, all of you.” (Matt 26:26-27)
·
In our Gospel passage, Jesus has the disciples
distribute the bread and fish. That directive remains with us today. We are to
share /distribute /give what Jesus has given us. This too is grace.
·
Here are some words attributed to Teresa of Avila, a
Spanish saint:
Christ
has no body but yours,
No
hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours
are the eyes
with
which He looks Compassion on this world,
Yours
are the feet with which He walks to do good,
Yours
are the hands, with which He blesses all the world.
Yours
are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours
are the eyes, you are His body.
Christ
has no body now but yours,
Christ
has no body now on earth but yours.
·
In the grace of God, every disciple of Jesus can do
this in whatever setting they find themselves, without exception.
·
In a world that needs feeding with the bread of
grace and the Gospel, we who have received grace and been formed by the Gospel,
have been given the menu, the platter, and the mission to feed one another and
the world.
