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In touch

Up-to-the-minute jumping-off points for sermons, linking the reading to the latest news and global issues

Facing the music

Human mistakes lead to human mistakes, leading to pain for others. 2 Samuel 18:5-9,15,31-33

Context

• Police have deployed into and reinforced specific areas this week to meet planned unrest and rioting.
• A list of the names and addresses of lawyers who work in immigration has been shared by those currently targeting immigration centres with violence.
• At the Olympics, outdoor swimming events have been cancelled multiple times due to pollution levels in the River Seine.
• The scandal of how professional dancers have acted behind the scenes at Strictly Come Dancing continues with more allegations from members of the production team.

 

Ideas for sermons or interactive talks

Throughout the last decade, immigration has been a political football, where many of our current national concerns – the underfunding of the NHS, a lack of housing, a cost of living crisis – have been blamed on refugees and asylum seekers coming to the UK. This is in spite of other European nations taking many more migrants into their communities than the UK. It has been easy to pin blame on those who are different and who can’t answer back. This week we have seen violence aimed at migrants and refugees around the country. In some places it has gone beyond this to be aimed at people from ethnic minorities or those seen to be helping people come to the UK.

Given the words of politicians and national figures over the past decade, it is unsurprising that some people feel that they are justified in attacking these people. We can criticise (and hopefully prosecute) those who are committing acts of violence and hatred, but we should be alert to the actions of those with authority and influence who have enabled this to happen – and speak out when we see people continuing on this path.

A local mosque in Harrow has been communicating with its MP, local churches and community groups ahead of the prospective violence this week. The focus has been two-fold: keeping people safe and ensuring that combating any rioters is left to the police force. It has been clear from images on the news and online that those seeking to attack and abuse immigration centres or Muslim places of worship are wanting confrontation. Jesus said ‘blessed are the peacemakers’ and our role as Christians is to ensure that we communicate truth and share peace. We might have news stories sent to us on WhatsApp or social media that inflame our own emotions, but it’s important that we fact-check these things before we pass them on to others. If we have a centre near us that is being threatened, we don’t need to stand outside it to physically protect it but we should communicate our support for them and pray for their protection and safety.

The world of Strictly Come Dancing is full of glamour and glitter but people know that professional dancing is a fiercely competitive world. We are still hearing stories about professional dancers who crossed a line in the demands they placed on both their celebrity partners and the production staff on the show. As a result, those dancers have lost their place on the show and are having their bad behaviour drawn out in the newspapers for everyone to see. In the same way, Absalom finds himself at the mercy of David’s generals. David has asked them all to be merciful to his son. However Joab knows that Absalom’s death would end the war, so kills him.

In both cases, the person suffering is reaping the consequences of their own earlier behaviour.

The Olympic Games in Paris have been full of wonderful examples of people reaping the rewards of years of practice and dedication. However, the outdoor swimming events such as the triathlon and the open-water swimming have been postponed multiple times due to pollution levels in the River Seine. Our cavalier attitude towards God’s creation has led to many places where nature has been poisoned. When we suddenly realise that people are watching and we want to undo the harm that has been done, we cannot. Cleaning up our rivers and seas will not be a quick fix. Governments will need to control what farmers, businesses and population centres dump into the water as a matter of course. We have a role to play in speaking up for the care of God’s creation, holding our law-makers to account as well as supporting those businesses and charities which care for the Earth even when the eyes of the world’s media aren’t on them.

 

Questions for discussion

• What experience do you, or your family, have of facing a difficult situation in the present which has its roots in things that happened years before?
• Which different actors (individual or corporate) bear responsibility for the violence happening this week?
• What do you think the Bible says about our approach to those who are different from us and from other countries?
• How are you currently engaged in the care of God’s creation? How can the church have a greater impact on this issue?

 

Steve Taylor shares the job of joint-vicar of St James Alperton CofE Church near Wembley with his wife, Ali. They share their home with their two children, two cats and numerous fish.

 

 

Check-in

Connecting faith with everyday, real-life issues for young people

'The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!'

What harrowing words, and what a distressing picture to see a parent weeping over the loss of his child. These words, written close to 3000 years ago, ring out loud – too loud – here today in the summer of 2024. How did David comprehend the loss, the pain and the anger? How can we live through such a broken world here today?

In our passage today it is suggested that David and Absalom are reaping the pain which they have caused to others. How does that make you feel? Do you think that is justice? Who should be the one to inflict that justice? Do all of our wrong actions then deserve a punishment?

So maybe you are of the mind that yes, you should reap what you sow and, as Absalom had killed his brother, he deserves no sympathy. Then we live through the events this month here in the UK, shaken to the very core by the actions of others. Riots, raids, stealing, violence. The murder of innocent, young, beautiful lives. You may be asking: where, then, is the justice?

During David’s reign the people looked to David, their king, for guidance on how to react in all situations. David here weeps. He weeps for humanity; he mourns for his son; he even shows forgiveness and redemption beyond his soldiers’ understanding. So let’s praise the Lord our God for giving us such a King in Jesus Christ to lead us and guide us through such devastating times. For Jesus teaches us that it is not up to us to judge injustices, but he does teach us how to love, how to grieve and how to pray.

For David, losing his son felt impossible; it was the darkest of days. But through this he has not turned away from his Lord, his God. When the actions of others – and indeed our own actions – are out of control and incomprehensible, remember that God is still in control, God understands; and the darkness of the world will never overcome the light.

This week spend time in prayer; spend time weeping; spend time mourning; spend time with God, our Lord always.

Natasia Bullock is Director of The B Tales, a Christian theatre company specialising in bringing the Bible to life through drama for children, young people and families.

 

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