11 October 2015

Collects

Prayers developed from the daily readings 

Sunday 11 October 2015 

Morning Prayer   

Psalm 92

God’s faithfulness and steadfast love is praised. On this occasion enemies have failed in some other place and are no more. Everything has been restored. The righteous people prosper.

Mark 12: 13 – 17

Some Pharisees and Herodians come and try to trap Jesus. They begin with flattery then ask should taxes be paid to Caesar. Jesus can see it is a trap and asks to see a denarius (a coin). He takes the coin and asks whose portrait and whose inscription is on the coin? Jesus says, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”*

Collect for Morning Prayer

Bees in the gum blossom
Milo Vic L Osburn

In faith and hope and love we come to you our Lord and saviour. You deal with our enemies, those who war and those who trick but the great enemy is sin. Bring us to you today so that we may give everything to you and be your consistent people through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord and the power of your Holy Spirit in our hearts. Amen.

Sunday 11 October 2015

Evening Prayer

Job 28: 12 – 28

No one knows where to seek wisdom, not in the oceans. It cannot be bought for anything precious. So where does wisdom come from and where does understanding come from?

Death and hell will say they heard a rumour about wisdom once. God knows the way to it. God knows the place. God sees all parts of the world, the heavens, the wind and the water. God makes the path of rain and thunderbolts. God saw, established and sought out wisdom. God said to humans, the fear of the Lord is wisdom and to depart from evil is understanding.

Psalm 90: 12 – 17

The psalmist asks that we be satisfied in the morning with God’s steadfast love so that we may rejoice and be glad everyday. There is a separation from God and a plea that there be as many days connected to God as there have been separation. The psalmist asks for God’s compassion on the people and that the work of human hands may prosper.

Hebrews 4: 1 – 11

God’s rest was not just on the last day of creation or when the Israelites arrived in Canaan. God’s rest remains open to us all, today. “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harder your hearts.” God’s rest is salvation.

Collect for Evening Prayer

Water for the western farms at sunset
Mulwala Canal NSW L Osburn

Holy and loving God we seek you, your wisdom and your rest. In this silent moment bring us to full reverence of you and to recommit to turn to you knowing that you have already given us salvation, rest and peace in your Son Jesus Christ so that we greet each morning in joy and satisfaction and each night in sufficiency and peace through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord and Saviour. Amen.

* No portraits were allowed on Jewish coinage, they were specially minted because of the commandment against images –this coin was clearly a Roman coin. It can’t be used to pay temple tax.

Humans are made in God’s image. So Jesus might be saying – give the Roman coins and pay tax, but give Caesar to God and themselves to God. Caesar isn’t a God but is made in God’s image. Paying tax isn’t worship.

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