EChurch@Wartburg 02.05.22 NT Wright at Park Street Church, Boston, 2013: Christian Hope in a Confusing World – Colossians 1:9-23

Sun over the Earth; NASA/ISS

The Lorica of St Patrick link

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.

I arise today
Through God’s strength to pilot me;
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me,
God’s shield to protect me,
God’s hosts to save me
Afar and anear,
Alone or in a multitude.

Christ shield me today
Against wounding
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through the mighty strength
Of the Lord of creation.
Amen

A prayer of Martin Luther link

Behold, Lord, An empty vessel that needs to be filled. My Lord, fill it. I am weak in faith; Strengthen thou me.
I am cold in love; Warm me and make me fervent That my love may go out to my neighbour.
I do not have a strong and firm faith; At times I doubt and am unable to trust thee altogether.
O Lord, help me. Strengthen my faith and trust in thee. In thee I have sealed the treasures of all I have.
I am poor; Thou art rich and didst come to be merciful to the poor. I am a sinner; Thou art upright.
With me there is an abundance of sin; In thee is the fullness of righteousness.
Therefore, I will remain with thee of who I can receive But to whom I may not give.
Amen.

Prayer by Martin Luther King Jr. link

O God,…we thank Thee for Thy Church, founded upon Thy Word, that challenges us to do more than sing and pray,
but go out and work as though the very answer to our prayers depended on us and not upon Thee…
Help us to realize that man was created to shine like the stars and live on through all eternity.
Keep us, we pray, in perfect peace, help us to walk together, pray together, sing together, and live together
until that day when all God’s children, Black, White, Red, and Yellow, will rejoice in one common band of humanity
in the kingdom of our Lord and of our God, we pray.
Amen.

Colossian 1:9-23 NIV link

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you.
We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,[a]
10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,
11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,
12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father,
who has qualified you[b] to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.
13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,
14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities;
all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,
20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of[c] your evil behavior.
22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—
23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel.
This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

I was a member of this wonderful church in Boston. It was an intellectually stimulating church which brought in many thoughtful speakers.

Benediction: St Ethelwold  (c.904-984) link

May God the Father bless us,
may Christ take care of us,
the Holy Ghost enlighten us all the days of our life.
The Lord be our defender and keeper of body and soul,
both now and forever, to the ages of ages.
Amen

Comments

EChurch@Wartburg 02.05.22 NT Wright at Park Street Church, Boston, 2013: Christian Hope in a Confusing World – Colossians 1:9-23 — 8 Comments

  1. Lord, we pray for Dee and her mother in this time of transition to assisted living. Make a way for her mother so that she will quickly find a kindred spirit there. May she find favor in the eyes of the staff and may they always be kind. Give Dee your peace, strength, patience, and endurance in this difficult time and rest and peace after the move. In Christ’s name.

    Dee, special thanks for putting this together with so much on your plate.

  2. Thank you, Dee, for this week’s echurch. I am a new commenter, but have been reading along for a few years now. I appreciate all the songs and prayers and love the new format this year of having a different speaker each week. NT Wright is excellent.
    Prayers for you and getting your Mom settled into a new situation.

  3. FreshGrace,

    I’m glad it was meaningful for you. I sure get a lot out of looking at old prayers and thinking of new speakers. Glad you are now commenting.

  4. Echoing the prayers for you & your family, Dee.

    A note on the sermon: I think it was given in early 2009 or thereabouts. Wright was still working as the bishop of Durham. He is still technically a bishop, but does not administer a diocese anymore. While he was doing so in Durham, his flock liked him and how he did his job, but he is much more comfortable in academia. His pectoral cross is a copy of the cross of St Cuthbert, whose remains lie in Durham Cathedral.

    Reading Wright deeply gave me so much; his Christian Origins books probably saved my faith. As an Evangelical in the early 2000s, I finally had good news to tell people. What I could not have foreseen is that Wright’s reading of 1st century Judaisms opened up so much of what I was learning about EOrthodoxy and was very much a marker on my journey eastward.