Trinity 21 2024 St Andrew’s Milngavie
Today we celebrated 21st Sunday after Trinity accompanied by Abigail.
The AGM was held after the service this morning. Thank you to all who came to support this and to everyone for their contribution to the life of the church this past year.
If anyone would like to go on a rota for church cleaning, coffee after church, readings, church flowers and welcoming at the door for the Sunday service, please let me know. All help in any way is warmly received, much appreciated and essential for the continued smooth running of the church and it’s ministry.
On Thursday 24th October at the 10am Said Eucharist we welcome St Paul’s new minister the Rev Lynsey Brennen to our service and to coffee afterwards. Please do come along to this service to meet Lynsey if you can.
Saturday 2nd November – A church walk is planned for the Ardmore peninsular. We will meet about midday with our sandwiches, walk and then enjoy a local tea shop.
Sunday 3rd November – 6pm we are invited to a Choral Evensong at All Saints to celebrate their Patronal Festival.
This Week
Tuesday 10am – Prayer Group in the Garden Room.
Thursday 10am – Said Holy Communion followed by coffee in Friendship House with St Paul’s new minister the Rev Lynsey Brennen
Readings for next Sunday – Last Sunday after Trinity and Bible Sunday – Jeremiah 31:7-9 Hebrews 7:23-28 Mark 10:46-end
Today’s reading – Mark 10:35-45, Heb 5: 1-10, Isaiah 53:4-12
At our AGM today we will be reflecting on the year that has been, giving thanks for all we have achieved and for the life of this church family. But particularly we will give thanks for all who give so much of their time and energy to insure the smooth running of our church and its ministry.
Today’s readings focus on this concept of service and sacrifice. In the gospel the story centres around James and John and some other disciples. They come to Jesus and ask “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you”. Mark 10:35
And then they get short shrift from Jesus and the rest of the disciples get angry with them. But in fact, they are only doing what Jesus had said to them previously. In Matthew 7:7, Jesus says, “Ask, and it shall be given to you…”
In John 14:13, Jesus says, “I will do whatever you ask in my name…”
Understandably James and John must have been a bit confused by the whole situation. In the same way we may experience when we feel our prayers go unanswered. Jesus is telling the disciples to ask for things and then, when they do, they get chastised. As for the request they make to Jesus: “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory”. Mark 10:37 this doesn’t seem like an unreasonable request because they didn’t have the benefit of hindsight like we do. As far as they knew, Jesus would be going to Jerusalem to set up the Kingdom of God by overthrowing Roman rule and renewing the role of the Temple.
They were expecting political and spiritual conflict, they were being loyal to Jesus and standing with him in this new world order, and so, it seems only reasonable that they should think that some rewards will be given in the glorious time to come.
But as so often happens in the gospel they had got it wrong! They had misunderstood this new world order. For Jesus – the longed-for messiah – was not an autocratic ruler, the king of kings on a throne with a mighty army protecting his kingdom. Jesus’ idea of kingdom and leadership was different.
Yet again, Jesus turns people’s thinking, rules and conventions upside down with his teaching. “He who wants to be master of all must be servant to all” Mark 10:43
Jesus teaches that those in positions of leadership must set an example of humble service. They must even in effect be servants to other members of the community. They must do this to follow the example of the one true leader, Jesus himself, who as the gospel says… “came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many” Mark 10:45
The whole of Jesus’ life, ministry and death was an expression of submission of service to humanity. He modelled a new kind of leadership. His kingship is one gained through the ultimate act of service, his death on the cross.
Today the world is desperate for leaders of this kind. Leaders who recognize God’s blessing in their own lives, leaders brave and bold enough to bless the people and the world around them through their humble service. Servant leadership needs to flourish in the complexities of the vast organizations that have so much control over our lives— politics, business corporations, hospitals, universities, and churches and many others.
Servant leadership at every level is essential, even in small establishments, if the impact of on all of us is to be a blessing and a force for good.
In the OT lesson from the prophet Isaiah, we have we have one of the most significant prophecy of Christ – and it was certainly no prophecy of a heroic figure, powerful and triumphant. But it was that of a suffering servant. It speaks of a disfigured servant, once despised but then seen in a totally new light. It is a very moving passage of scripture which points towards the suffering death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
In John’s gospel Jesus says to his disciples as he says to us now,
“ I tell you the truth
No servant is greater than his master
Nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him,
Now that you know these things
you will be blessed if you do them” John 13:16-17