My Ridley homily experience

As mentioned in my look back at 2006 below, one of my scarier experiences of the year was having to give a homily (or short talk) in a morning prayer service at Ridley chapel last term. Basically every Thursday during term time a student has to do this, and is given 3 mins max to say something linked to 1 of the morning's bible passages, kind of like a thought for the day. I'd been hoping to keep my head down really and avoid it - but that didn't work out. When I started to prepare for it, my 1st problem was realising that it's very hard to work out something to say that's in some way meaningful that can be shared in 3 mins. In many ways its easier preparing a decent length sermon - especially for someone like me who struggles with cutting out waffle and just saying the bare minimum anyway! Then I had to deal with the fact that getting up and doing this in front of my peers and lecturers at college was actually really scary. I found it far more scary than preaching I've done elsewhere. Looking back though, I kind of think that's a bit daft. Firstly because my fellow students are all in the same boat as me, and so were generally likely to be fairly sympathetic (even if they were maybe a bit more likely to notice any stuff ups!). Secondly, I was talking to a chapel full of Christians pretty much all involved in either training to be vicars or doing the training - surely I should be more concerned about what I say in churches and other situations outside of college where you never quite know all who are listening or certainly not everything about them and what they know of God and the Christian faith?

Anyway, enough rabbiting about it - if anyone is interested at all in what I actually said please read on. It was based on 2 Kings 19:1-19 and Phillipians 2:14-30.

(Had this image on the big screen for everyone to see, though someone more technical than me had 'airbrushed' out the TV aerial - I never got round to getting the resulting improved image.)
‘Christo Redontor’, ‘Christ the Redeemer’ the famous statue on a mountain top above Rio. I’m not normally a particular fan of statues, icons and things like that, but this image of Christ with his arms wide open in welcome and love, and the way it was situated, is something that will stay with me forever.

This morning we’ve heard King Hezekiah’s prayer showing his belief in who God was and crying out in desperation but with trust for God to save Israel from the threatening might of the Assyrians. Notice not only his trust that God could save Israel, but also his motivation: “…O Lord our God, save us, I pray you, from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O Lord, are God alone”.

Then in our New Testament reading we hear of Paul encouraging his readers to be blameless and innocent, shining like stars in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, holding out the word of life.

Hezekiah praying that all the kingdoms of the earth would know God through his saving of Israel; Paul wanting God’s people to stand out and shine in their world holding out the word of God, showing the world God’s salvation.

In many ways the world hasn’t changed much has it? Constant war and strife throughout OT times, Paul writing in NT times in a crooked and perverse generation, through to the messed up world we see around us today. In Rio I saw real extremes of what’s good in our world and what’s bad in just 1 city, but it’s all around us isn’t it – you don’t have to travel that far. What really struck me about Rio though, was that this statue of Christ was there above it all – visible from any point in that city, arms outstretched reaching out in welcome and love to a messed up world. I’m here at Ridley because I know that God through Christ has welcomed me with those outstretched arms and saved me, and that when I stray those arms are still outstretched to me in love drawing me back; and I firmly believe that he’s called me to show that salvation, that welcome, that love of Christ in the particular role of a vicar in the places he leads me to, to shine like a star, holding out the word of God.

As we continue in worship this morning and have the opportunity to receive prayer, lets consider the role God is calling each of us to play in showing this world his salvation, and lets consider the example of Hezekiah in recognising and stating who God is, crying out to him for help where we are weak and struggling, and seeking his glory that we and all the kingdoms of the earth would know that He is God, and that He alone can save. ‘Christo Redontor’ Christ the Redeemer, Christ our saviour and our Lord. Amen.