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Christian Resources Library
Readings April to June 2005
April
| May | June
3 April
Second Sunday of Easter
John 20. 19 -31
Should faith depend on evidence? No, says the Gospel, for that destroys
the character of faith itself: faith is a matter of pure trust. Thomas
is a sobering model for us.
- We are surely to be content that God's deep-laid providence should
be worked out, for the blood of all his creatures.
- Is it not hard to trust when the going is hard? It is also uniquely
important and full of reward.
- Pray for the gift of pure trust, the true sign of love, not demanding
proofs or measurable recompense.
10 April
Third Sunday of Easter
1 Peter 1. 17 - 23
We must be encouraged when we read of how Christian life felt in the
days when all was fresh and new: life in the here-and-now seemed like
a kind of exile from our true home with God -where, through Christ,
we truly belong.
Psalm 116. 1 - 3, 10 - 17
Our instinct is to repay acts of kindness, all the more if they change
our lives. So we give thanks to God, but even our thankful hearts are
among his gifts to us.
Luke 24. 13 - 35
The meal at Emmaus shows us 'the breaking of bread' as a key way of
recognizing Jesus, ever and afresh; and as a way of learning his true
significance. To walk with him through life can even be an unconscious
way of 'finding' him.
- God's Spirit is his gift to renew and remake us, and to remove scales
from our eyes.
- Pray not to lose a sense of tension between the 'everyday world'
and the 'real world' whose meaning is given by God.
- We should hold to a sense of the wonder of Christ-with-us in the
Eucharist.
17 April
Fourth Sunday of Easter
Acts 2. 42 - 47
Being Christian thrives best not just on our 'going to church' or even
on our 'being good' but also on some kind of shared Christian community
life for the good of all.
Psalm 23
The picture of God as our shepherd, easy to grasp in the days when
the psalm and the Gospel of John were composed, speak not only of care
and nurture, but also of our value to God, through thick and thin.
John 10. 1 - 10
The image is not sentimental but down-to-earth: the shepherd values
the sheep because they are his property. What is more, he is the only
true and reliable guardian of the flock. These are Jesus' roles towards
us.
- Do we see our faith as chiefly an individual thing or a life we
live with others?
- Thank God for his care for us in the deepest and widest of ways.
- We must recognize Christ as the only true basis and measure of our
value and our security.
24 April
Fifth Sunday of Easter
1 Peter 2. 2 - 10
It is not just the work of God that we must see as God's new deed in
our midst, but the creation of a new people or community, taking over
the inheritance and task of the Israel of old. Words that echo the Old
Testament make the point.
Psalm 31. 1 - 5, 15 - 16
The picture is of God as our solid rock, our most dependable source
of security, come what may.
John 14. 1 - 14
We tend always to ask for more - from God as in other more mundane
areas of life. But we should rest content: in Christ, God has amply
supplied all we can truly need.
- We are to see martyrs of any time, including our own day, as especially
sharp images of genuine Christian life.
- Pray to grow in glad reliance on God as our deepest security
- How hard is it truly to believe in the adequacy of God's gift to
us in Christ?
1 May
Sixth Sunday of Easter
John 14.15 - 21
The constant presence of Christ is assured, a presence of love which
carries the necessity of obedience to his overriding command - that
we love one another.
- Is it hard to believe that love is the only bond that finally counts
in the life of goodness for God?
- Pray to be filled with the loving Spirit of truth.
8 May 2005
Seventh Sunday of Easter
Acts 1: 6 - 14
The story of the Ascension can easily seem just 'strange': see it as
a picture of the divine vindication of Jesus, leading immediately to
the shared life of his followers, the infant Church.
Psalm 68. 1 - 10, 32 - 36
This is a warlike psalm, mking plain God's hostitlity to all that stands
against his righteous will.
John 17: 1 - 11
We read here the most profound of all statements about the interweaving
of Jesus with the Father and then of us with them; it is our assurance
for now and always.
- Pray that the Church may always look to Jesus before it looks to
itself.
- Pray for grace to stand up for God's cause in the world.
- The goal we share is our being involved with Christ in the life
of God.
15 May
Day of Pentecost Whit Sunday
Acts 2. 1 - 21
The Spirit means: God as powerfully involved among us - and the story
gives us a striking picture of such power that it has made its mark
on the Christian imagination, especially in its promise of being for
everyone.
Psalm 104. 25 - 35, 37
The psalm gives a sense of God's benevolent love for his magnificent
creation and calls out our response of praise.
John 20. 19 - 23
Jesus gives the Spirit of wholesome peace and with it the removal of
sin which spoils his gift.
- Pray to recognise the splendour of the gifts of God.
- Give thanks for the wonder of creation.
- May we recognise the gifts of the Spirit around and within us.
22nd May
Trinity Sunday
2 Corinthians 13. 11 - 13
Paul ends his letter with a farewell greeting of peace, and christians
have taken it into general use in our prayers. It tells of god's all-embracing
gift of himself to us.
Psalm 8
To think of God is to recognise the wonder of his works in all the
universe. Our only right response is praise.
Matthew 28. 16 - 20
Jesus left behind a legacy of teaching and a mission for us to fulfill
- for the good of all humankind.
- Pray for the wholesome peace which God offers to us.
- Praise God for the glory of creation.
- Pray for our part in making the gospel known.
29 May
First Sunday after Trinity
Romans 1. 16 - 17; 3. 22b - 28
Paul sums up how he sees the Christian message: that everyone has the
chance to receive God's free gift of new life as his people.
Psalm 31. 1 - 5, 19 - 24
A psalm of prase to God for his constant will to save all who turn
to him.
Matthew 7. 21 - 29
A simple parable of two houses, one soundly built, the other ill-founded.
The choice of two ways of life, following Jesus or ignoring his teaching,
is stark.
- Thank God that our slavation is free: not a reward for us to earn.
- Pray to be open to the free gift of life from God.
- Pray for faithfulness to the teaching of Jesus.
5 June
Second Sunday After Trinity
Matthew 9: 9 - 13, 18 - 26
Jesus' love and acceptance are wide and deep, welcoming the outcasts
of society and overcoming death itself. This is close to the heart of
his gift to us.
- Pray for all those despised by those around them.
- We rejoice in Jesus' breaking of all society's mean and conventional
boundaries.
12 June
Third Sunday after Trinity
Romans 5: 1 - 8
This is a key passage in Paul's letters, summing up his sense of Christ's
unique role and achievement. He gave himself for sinful humans - and
raised us up to the heights: 'sharing God's glory', neither more nor
less.
Psalm 100
We are to share in the joy of all who know the boundless generosity
of God.
Matthew 9: 35 - 10.8
Jesus sends his disciples out on a mission and here are his instructions.
They are not orders for everyday life, but for special times and special
duties where self-abandonment and simplicity are the keynotes. And our
hearts are moved, however our journey goes.
- Pray to play our own part in the spread of the gospel.
- If only we could grasp the depth of Christ's self-giving for us.
- Is our own 'self-abandonment' for God currently on the right lines?
19 June
Fourth Sunday after Trinity
Romans 6: 1b - 11
We often call baptism a 'rite of passage' - but for what transition?
From womb to world? non-existence to life: husband-and-wife to daddy-and-mummy-plus-one?
From outside to inside the church? That is certainly warmer. But Paul
goes further: it is a death and resurrection - like Christ's and in
relation to him alone. It is a sacrament of power indeed.
Psalm 86. 1 - 10, 16 - 17
We hear one of the 'sad' psalms, where we express our sorrow for our
sins and failings, and cast ourselves on God.
Matthew 10: 24 - 39
Jesus presents vividly both the high cost of following him and the
great reward on offer from God, and notably the emphasis is on the infinite
worth of each of us in his eyes.
- Reflect on the depth of meaning in the baptism we have received.
- Pray for genuine sorrow for our wanderings from God's way.
- Pray to recognize how greatly God values you, and how special are
your gifts.
26 June
Fifth Sunday after Trinity
Romans 6: 12 - 23
Paul presents stark choices. We can serve 'sin' or 'righteousness',
twin powers seeking our loyalty. Each has its inevitable end: 'death'
or 'life'. But the former is for us to earn; that latter comes only
by God's free gift. Can we bear to receive such bounty - and by such
a means?
Psalm 89. 1 - 4, 15 - 18
We rejoice at God's faithful bond with his people.
Matthew 10: 40 - 42
The words end Jesus' instruction to missionaries of the gospel. They
will radiate the reward of Jesus to those who receive them and help
them on their way.
- Pray to see where choices simply have to be made and kept.
- Praise God for his reliable and gracious love.
- Give thanks for the ways the gospel has radiated to us.
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