- 6 days ago
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00:23Let us pray
00:26Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, from the cross, looked in upon your mother, overwhelmed with
00:34grief and tears, and so truly took compassion on her sorrow, commending her to the care of your disciple John,
00:42as also you commended John, and in him, all of us, to her maternal care.
00:50Grant me to love and honour your mother with the purest and most ardent love, that I may have her
00:57for my mother and be worthily acknowledged by her as her son.
01:02Grant that in every necessity, and especially at the hour of my death, I may find her ever present and
01:09at hand to help me.
01:13Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, with your wounds gaping and your head crowned with thorns,
01:21while hanging in misery upon the cross, declared that you were without any consolation.
01:29Grant that in all adversity and times of temptation and desolation, I may fly with faith to you, my most
01:37holy Father, and putting no confidence in myself, grant that I may place all my hopes in you alone, and
01:44entirely resign myself and trust in you.
01:48Wound my innermost soul with the remembrance of your wounds, write and imprint them upon my heart, satiate me wholly
01:57with your blood, that all my intentions may be fixed in you alone, and that I may seek and find
02:03and hold you fast, possessing you for ever and ever.
02:09Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, when your body was exhausted from the loss of blood,
02:16gasped for breath, and cried out on the cross that you were tormented with thirst, while you burnt with unspeakable
02:23desire for our salvation.
02:27Give me grace to thirst most ardently after your honour, and the salvation of souls, and be ready cheerfully to
02:35spend myself for them, according to your will.
02:40Grant that no love of any transitory object may possess my soul, that I may never attach myself to any
02:47creature, and that even when I am bound to love, I may love only in you.
02:53But give me grace to love you above all, and with my whole soul, and quietly to rest in you.
03:02Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, when you were thirsty, even at the point of death,
03:09permitted a sponge filled with vinegar to be offered to you, and that by tasting this, you might make satisfaction
03:17for our gluttony, giving us an example of poverty.
03:22Grant me the grace to despise any unlawful pleasure and delight, and to avoid any excess in eating and drinking,
03:29and may I use with moderation and thanksgiving, whatever you do give me for the support of my poor body.
03:38So cleanse, I beg you, the taste of my heart, that it may relish nothing except that which is pleasing
03:44to you, and may find nothing but bitterness in whatever displeases you.
03:51Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, you, the greatest lover of the human race, who, when you
03:58were bringing out the work of our redemption to a close, wrought yourself as a holy victim upon the altar
04:05of the cross for the sin of all mankind.
04:09May this be the only end, I beg you, of all my thoughts, words and works, namely, to seek your
04:17honour with an upright and sincere heart, and to desire nothing save you alone.
04:24Grant that I may never grow weary or lukewarm in your service, but a fervent spirit, always be ever renewed
04:31within me, that I may daily be more and more inflamed to love and praise you.
04:59You are dead, my beloved one, that I may live forever.
05:06What hope, what confidence is laid up for me in your death and in your blood, I glorify you, I
05:12give you thanks as far as in me lies.
05:15Give me grace to die entirely, to sin, and all evil desires, and to live to you alone.
05:23May I think of you alone, may my understanding exercise itself in nothing except you,
05:30that, clad in your grace and with holy charity, I may soon after the close of this life come to
05:37you, the true paradise.
05:39O good Jesus, by your bitter passion and death, grant to me the living pardon and grace, and to the
05:46faithful departed rest and everlasting light.
05:50Praise honour and glory be to you, O Christ, at whose death the sun withdrew its light,
05:57and the veil of the temple was divided in two, the earth quaked, and the rocks were cut, and the
06:04graves opened.
06:07May the rays of your grace never leave me, I beg you, you son of righteousness,
06:14you that are my God, may they always lighten even the very inmost recesses of my heart,
06:21that I may joyfully serve you for ever.
06:25Tear away from me the veil of hypocrisy, make the ground of my soul quake with saving penitence,
06:32rend in tomb this heart of stone of mine, that, being wholly renewed within,
06:38I may despise anything perishable, and love only the things that are of heaven.
06:45Amen.
06:49O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
07:02O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
07:20O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
07:31O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
07:37O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
07:40O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
07:43O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
08:13CHOIR SINGS
08:44CHOIR SINGS
09:14AMEN
09:42CHOIR SINGS
10:13CHOIR SINGS
10:42CHOIR SINGS
11:11CHOIR SINGS
11:20CHOIR SINGS
11:22CHOIR SINGS
11:39CHOIR SINGS
11:41CHOIR SINGS
11:56CHOIR SINGS
12:09CHOIR SINGS
12:11CHOIR SINGS
12:14CHOIR SINGS
12:38CHOIR SINGS
12:55CHOIR SINGS
12:57CHOIR SINGS
12:59CHOIR SINGS
13:11from your feet as a witness against them.
13:15They went away journeying through all the tones,
13:19preaching the good news and making people free from diseases in all places.
13:29Now Herod the Tetrarch heard about
13:31everything that was happening and he was thoroughly perplexed,
13:35because some people were saying that John had been raised from the dead,
13:38while others were saying that Elijah had appeared,
13:42and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had risen.
13:47Herod said,
13:49I had John beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?
13:55So Herod wanted to learn about Jesus.
14:00When the apostles returned,
14:02they told Jesus everything they had done. Then he took them with him,
14:07and they withdrew privately to a town called Bethsaida.
14:11When the crowd found out, they followed him.
14:15He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God,
14:19curing those who needed healing.
14:24Now the day began to draw to a close.
14:26So the twelve came and said to Jesus,
14:28Send the crowd away,
14:30so that they can go into the surrounding villages and countryside,
14:33find lodging and food,
14:36because we are in an isolated place.
14:39But he said to them,
14:41You give them something to eat.
14:44They replied,
14:46We have no more than five loaves and two fish,
14:49unless we go and buy food for all these people.
14:53Now about five thousand men were there.
14:58He said to his disciples,
15:00Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.
15:05So they did as Jesus directed,
15:07and the people sat down with them.
15:10Then he took the five loaves and the two fish,
15:13and looking up to heaven,
15:14he gave thanks and broke them.
15:17He gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.
15:21They all ate and were satisfied,
15:23and what was left over was picked up.
15:26Twelve baskets of broken pieces.
15:31Once, when Jesus was praying by himself
15:34and his disciples were nearby,
15:36he asked them,
15:37Who do the crowd say that I am?
15:41They answered,
15:42John the Baptist.
15:44Others say Elijah,
15:45and still others that one of the prophets
15:47have long ago has written.
15:50Then he said to them,
15:52But who do you say that I am?
15:55Peter answered,
15:57The Christ of God.
16:00He forcefully commanded them,
16:02not to tell this to anyone,
16:04saying,
16:05The Son of Man must suffer many things,
16:07and be rejected by elders,
16:10chief priests, and experts in the law,
16:12and be killed,
16:14and on the third day be raised again.
16:19He said to them,
16:21If anyone desires to come after me,
16:23let him deny himself,
16:24take up his cross, and follow me.
16:27For whoever desires to save his life will lose it,
16:30but whoever will lose his life for my sake,
16:33the same will save it.
16:35For what does it profit a man,
16:37if he gains the whole world,
16:39and loses or forfeits his own self?
16:42For whoever will be ashamed of me,
16:44and of my words,
16:46of him will the Son of Man be ashamed,
16:49when he comes in his glory,
16:51on the glory of the Father,
16:52and of the holy angels.
16:56But I tell you the truth,
16:57there are some of those who stand here,
17:00who will in no way taste of death,
17:02until they see God's kingdom.
17:06This is the word of the Lord.
17:09Thanks be to God.
17:23Jesus said that,
17:24when you become a follower of his,
17:26you leave behind your old self,
17:28and prepare to travel light.
17:32First of all,
17:32you are forgiven.
17:34All that is past is gone,
17:36and of no consequence.
17:38It is baggage you no longer have to carry,
17:41a burden that has been thrown away.
17:44It no longer matters what you did,
17:46or who you were.
17:48You are now a full member of God's family.
17:53Second, the way ahead is in front of you.
17:56If you are walking a mountain path,
17:59continually looking over your shoulder,
18:01eventually you will fall,
18:03and take a tumble down the mountain.
18:05So be bold.
18:07Strike out in confidence,
18:09and live the first day of the rest of your life,
18:11as a child of God,
18:13free of the burden of the past.
18:18Today we read of the state of confusion,
18:21induced in Herod,
18:23as a result of the stories reaching him about Jesus.
18:28These were not just accounts of the things
18:30that he had done himself,
18:32but of those performed by his disciples.
18:36The teaching of Jesus,
18:38and the miracles performed by him,
18:39and in his name,
18:41were a clear sign that not only did he have the power,
18:44but he could attribute power to those
18:46who chose to follow him.
18:48The power not of a mortal man,
18:50but of the Messiah himself.
18:53The fact that simple people,
18:55like the fishermen from Galilee,
18:58as opposed to the clever and sophisticated men
19:00from the temple of Jerusalem,
19:03were performing miracles as well,
19:05must have been doubly worrying for Herod.
19:11Not only was Herod confused,
19:13but also the people themselves,
19:15for they wanted to know what was happening.
19:20Although they could not concede
19:21that Jesus was the Messiah,
19:24they did at least want to find an honourable rationale
19:26for his power.
19:29First of all,
19:29they thought perhaps it was John the Baptist
19:31who had risen from the dead,
19:33and how distressing this must have been
19:35for Herod his executioner.
19:38And then thoughts turned also
19:40to the return of Elijah,
19:41or the resurrection of one of the old prophets
19:43from the past.
19:47Herod was in a difficult position.
19:50We are told that while he pondered
19:52that he had ordered the execution of John,
19:55this Jesus of Nazareth
19:57had bid a far more formidable opponent.
20:01Whilst John had preached,
20:02he had never performed a miracle.
20:05And here was Jesus doing both on a regular basis.
20:11Note that although Herod wanted to learn about Jesus,
20:14he was unwilling to go and seek him out.
20:18He would not have been so hard to find
20:20had he chosen to look.
20:24Though sadly Herod may have thought it below
20:26his status as a king to go to Jesus,
20:28the king of kings,
20:31despite his curiosity.
20:35Sometimes we can be a little like Herod
20:37in this respect.
20:38We are curious about our faith.
20:40We hope that perhaps
20:42Jesus might walk into our lives
20:44and then we could have a lengthy discourse with him
20:47and be truly converted.
20:51This is rarely the case.
20:55Jesus told us that those who truly seek will find.
20:58Those who truly thirst and hunger
21:00will find satisfaction.
21:03Those of us though
21:04who merely go through the motions of faith
21:07are unlikely to find anything.
21:12The feeding of the multitude is a well known event
21:15from the Gospel.
21:16But before getting too far into looking at this
21:19in particular,
21:20let us take a moment to consider verse 11.
21:35The disciples had just returned from their mission
21:38and no doubt were tired
21:39and wanted to spend some quality time with Jesus
21:42and to relax.
21:44Which is why we read that they went away
21:46to a quiet place near Bethsaida.
21:50However, the crowd was anxious to find Jesus.
21:53So anxious that they sought him out and found him.
21:56Jesus made him welcome.
22:00This little passage makes me wonder
22:01how much we want to find Jesus.
22:05How hard are we prepared to look for him?
22:09Do we think we might find him
22:11if we go to church?
22:13And how often do people return from there disappointed?
22:18The truth is that we need to seek him out
22:20just as these simple people back in the Holy Land
22:23sought him out and followed him from town to town
22:27just to hear what he had to say.
22:30Yes, of course, we ought to go to church as a habit.
22:34But we should also learn to pray,
22:36to meditate and to read our Bibles.
22:40If we really look hard and work hard at finding God
22:43then we will find him and he will welcome us.
22:50Returning to the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000
22:52we can see how Jesus cared for those who want to be in his company.
22:58The solution offered by the disciples
23:00was to send the people away back to their own towns and villages.
23:05To Jesus, though, this was unutterly.
23:09For he never turns away anyone who has found him.
23:13You give them something to eat, he commanded.
23:16He cared for each and every one of them
23:19just as he cared for each and every one of us.
23:22What is more, just as he fed each and every one of them
23:25with plenty left over, so we will find an abundance in his love for us.
23:35Jesus was then alone in prayer with his disciples nearby.
23:40Much of the time he was surrounded by the crowds of people
23:43and he would have continually been busy teaching and cleaning.
23:48However, we learn here the importance of some private, quiet time in prayer.
23:53We all need to find some time to be on our own
23:55in relative silence to pray and meditate
23:58to listen to the voice of the Lord.
24:04Also note that the disciples were close at hand
24:06firstly to watch and learn
24:08but secondly to join with the prayers when Jesus was ready.
24:13Verse 18 underlines the importance of prayer
24:16both individually and as a small group.
24:19We can learn from this also
24:21the necessity of praying together as friends, as family
24:25with our wife or husband, with our children and with our parents.
24:32Jesus asked the disciples who the people in the crowd thought he was
24:36even though of course he already knew the answer.
24:40He did this to strengthen their own conviction of his identity
24:44by showing them the mistakes of others.
24:48Sometimes we can be so wrapped up in what we're trying to say
24:51that those listening fail to understand our message.
24:55It's important to secure the involvement of those to whom we are talking
24:59and to draw out some form of confirmatory response.
25:04Notice that at no time did Jesus say who he was.
25:08It was Peter who was to go on and answer the question
25:11and the confirmation from Jesus
25:13was his instruction not to tell anyone who he was.
25:18But why this secrecy?
25:20Jesus continued by explaining for the first time what lay ahead for him
25:24namely his death and resurrection.
25:27His path was already ordained
25:29and through the resurrection would come
25:31the final conclusive proof of his identity.
25:35Until this point
25:36perhaps even the disciples had been confused by the identity of Jesus.
25:42But now having come out
25:43and said that they knew him to be the Christ
25:46it was time to explain what that meant.
25:49For the time being however
25:51it was going to be necessary to keep this knowledge to themselves.
25:55There would be many opportunities later
25:57to proclaim his name to the world.
26:05It is certain that without holiness no man can serve God
26:09and that without self-denial
26:11no man can be holy.
26:14And so it must be from the nature of mankind
26:18and the nature of Christ's service.
26:19For what is man's nature but sinful flesh
26:23and what his service for the shop corrected.
26:27No two powers can be more antagonistic
26:29than man's nature and Christ's service
26:32and the struggle issues
26:34as either power prevails
26:36in apostasy or in self-denial.
26:45In the first place
26:47without crossing and denying of self
26:49there can be no purification of the moral habit.
26:53Without true compunction and a tender conscience
26:57purity of heart
26:58and the energy of a devout mind
27:00set free from the lure of evil
27:02no man can have fellowship with Christ
27:04and no man can have these without self-denial.
27:11So again
27:12even with those who have for a while followed Christ's call
27:15how often do we see the fairest promise
27:18of a high and elevated life
27:20marred for want of constancy.
27:23They had no endurance
27:25or they had no self-denial.
27:27A self-sparing temper
27:29will make a man not only utter a contradiction
27:32to his law
27:33but even to himself.
27:37Without self-denial
27:38there can be no real cleaving
27:39of the moral nature to the will of God.
27:43I say that
27:44to distinguish between the passive
27:46and seeming attachment of most baptised men
27:50to the conscious energetic grasp of will
27:53by which Christ's
27:54true despite disciples
27:56cleave to their master's service.
28:01We need to ask ourselves
28:03in what do we deny ourselves?
28:06It would be hard for most men
28:08to find out what one thing
28:10in the manifold acts of their daily lives
28:12they either do or leave undone
28:15simply for Christ's sake.
28:17And if we cannot find anything
28:19in which we deny ourselves already
28:21we need to resolve on something
28:23in which we may deny ourselves
28:25in the future.
28:27In things lawful and innocent
28:29and it may be gainful and honourable
28:32and in keeping with our lot in life.
28:35And such things as the world
28:37by its own measure
28:38esteems necessary things.
28:41We may truly try ourselves
28:43and we may find matter for self-denial
28:46and that in many ways.
28:53Let us pray.
28:55O God
28:57for as much as without you
28:59we are not able to please you
29:02mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit
29:05may in all things
29:06direct and rule our hearts
29:09through Jesus Christ our Lord
29:11Amen.
29:17May the Lord bless us
29:19and keep us from all evil
29:21bringing us to everlasting life
29:25Amen.
29:26Amen.