Ephesians 1:13-23
You also became God’s people when you heard the true message, the Good News that brought you salvation. You believed in Christ, and God put his stamp of ownership on you by giving you the Holy Spirit he had promised. The Spirit is the guarantee that we shall receive what God has promised his people, and this assures us that God will give complete freedom to those who are his. Let us praise his glory!
For this reason, ever since I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all of God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks to God for you. I remember you in my prayers and ask the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, to give you the Spirit, who will make you wise and reveal God to you, so that you will know him. I ask that your minds may be opened to see his light, so that you will know what is the hope to which he has called you, how rich are the wonderful blessings he promises his people, and how very great is his power at work in us who believe. This power working in us is the same as the mighty strength which he used when he raised Christ from death and seated him at his right side in the heavenly world. Christ rules there above all heavenly rulers, authorities, powers, and lords; he has a title superior to all titles of authority in this world and in the next. God put all things under Christ’s feet and gave him to the church as supreme Lord over all things. The church is Christ’s body, the completion of him who himself completes all things everywhere
On All Saints Day we recall the great cloud or crowd of witnesses who have gone before, who are with us now, and who will be beyond our time. On All Souls Day we remember those who have passed away. What a wonderful annual reminder that God’s love reaches across all time and space. In every generation, we are thankful for the many faithful, who live amongst us and draw us into a deeper understanding as Christian people.
We are blessed as the whole people of God, who each bring something into each other’s lives. There is dissonance in discourse, different emphasis in expressions, alternative ways for seeking justice, and a rainbow of prayerful practices. In these divergent faithful expressions, God’s Spirit sings her song of peace and unity, linking us with the very beginning of creation to the time beyond our knowing. While there will be changes in the structural “Church” that we know now, just as there have been changes in the past, the church of God’s people will always remain. As we open ourselves to the love God offers, and are clothed with the gifts of the Spirit, we are more closely bound in unity as people of God. Now, that is truly something to celebrate!
Colossians 3: 12-17
Peace-making Jesus,
In you, there is no longer any distinction.
We are all God’s people.
In humility, we seek your Way
of listening, learning and loving each other.
May our clothing of heartfelt love
be woven with compassion, kindness,
humility, gentleness, and patience.
So that our face of tolerance smiles with warmth;
So that our ears of openness hear the deepest sorrows and richest joys;
So that your wisdom is in our decisions and thinking,
and in our justice and peacemaking;
So that our hands of welcome reach out freely
with friendship and living hope,
without any distinction,
receptive to all who come our way.
With thanksgiving in our heart,
we know you hear our prayer, O God. Amen
© Rev Anne Hewitt 01/11/2022
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