Sermon 17 May 2026 – 7th of Easter, Year A
Charlotte Lait, LLM
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you O Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen.
“You are now subject to the regulations of the examination. Only materials listed on the question paper are allowed in the room. You must not have on or near you any other material.
Check your pockets now. Check for things such as notes and bits of paper, books, mobile phones, air pods, earphones and ear buds, iPods, smart devices and watches. If you have any of these items in your possession you must hand it to an invigilator now. Failure to do so may lead to disqualification.”
As some of you will know, away from church one of my jobs is to administer the GCSE and A Level examinations. The words I have just read out form part of the notice which is given before every single written exam up and down the country. Despite this notice, and the large posters outside the room with reminders on them, and having been repeatedly told by their teachers, students still bring things to their exams which they ought not to have. Usually, itsbecause they’ve forgotten something is in their pocket or pencil case and they hand it in immediately. And often if they’re found to have something during the exam, its because they’ve forgotten it was there and then failed to check their pockets when they were told to do so.
You’re perhaps left wondering how many times they need to hear the message for it to sink in. How they could possibly forget to check? I think it could be because they’ve heard it so many times that its become white noise – its just too familiar. Or because they’re under such enormous pressure during the exam seasons that their minds are elsewhere. Or it’s a combination of the two, which I think is most likely.
This problem, of course, is not the sole reserve of stressed-out students. We’ve all heard or said the words, “How many times do I have to tell you?” in moments of exasperation. A rhetorical question, because when it is asked its because somebody has failed to take heed of what has been said so many times before.
The passage we heard from John’s gospel takes us right back to Jesus and his disciples before they enter the garden of Gethsemane, before Jesus’ arrest, trial and brutal death; before the confusion and ultimate joy of the resurrection, before Jesus’ appearances to the disciples on the road to Emmaus and in the upper room and on the shore of Galilee. Before the Ascension, which was celebrated by Christians across the world on Thursday of this week, and which we heard recounted again in this morning’s reading from Acts. In our gospel reading, Jesus is preparing the disciples not only for the coming days but also for life without the person of Jesus in their midst. In this he reminds them, that Jesus’ teaching and example have prepared them to continue in the way. And in Acts we hear that the Holy Spirit will come to empower and equip those same disciples, now called the Apostles, as they are sent out to continue spreading the word of God throughout the world.
Scripture, together with the cycle of our church year, reminds us of certain truths and phrases again and again. Phrases like “Do not be afraid.”, instructions to love one another. To trust in God. The repeated theme I hear at this time of year is that God is with us. Again and again throughout the year we hear it in scripture. From reminders of God’s presence with people throughout the Old Testament, to the words given to and spoken by the Prophets, to the words of the angel to Joseph, to the spirit of God empowering the Apostles at the first Pentecost. God is with us. How many times do we need reminding? I wonder how familiar a message needs to be for us to forget that its for all of us here and now. The gospel writer knew, all those thousands of years ago, that we’d need reminding, as we are told exactly what Jesus was praying. We hear plenty of times that Jesus goes off to pray but very rarely are we privy to the words or sentiments of those prayers. Today we are told that Jesus prayed for the people he had been given, for their protection, and reminding them that they had been equipped for the road ahead.
When we open up God’s word in scripture, when we move to the centre of Church for the gospel to hear the words of Jesus spoken in our midst, we are reminded that these words speak afresh to us. These words to the disciples are also for us now. The same goes for Pentecost next Sunday when we recall the coming of the spirit to equip and empower. That gift of the spirit wasn’t just for them then, but is also for us now. The Holy Spirit present with us places us in the ongoing story of God’s work in the world, and equips and empowers us to do God’s work today.
Much like my students at school though, I think we forget this message, either because its too familiar, or because in the challenges and stresses of life we forget to look for God. In our reading from Acts we hear that we don’t need to look upwards to find Jesus’ presence, to encounter God, when God is indeed with us.
So as we stand in this time between Ascension and Pentecost, be reminded again that God is with us in all seasons and circumstances of life. God with us in the beauty of the created world. God with us in the faces of the people we meet every day. God with us in prayer and in our reading of scripture. God with us in bread and wine. God active and present in the world. Being present and attentive to God’s working in our midst is the work of discernment. Seeing where God is, where we are moved to participate in the life of the world around us, and remembering that we are equipped to go and join in. But how many times will we need to be told?
Amen.
Charlotte Lait, LLM
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you O Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen.
“You are now subject to the regulations of the examination. Only materials listed on the question paper are allowed in the room. You must not have on or near you any other material.
Check your pockets now. Check for things such as notes and bits of paper, books, mobile phones, air pods, earphones and ear buds, iPods, smart devices and watches. If you have any of these items in your possession you must hand it to an invigilator now. Failure to do so may lead to disqualification.”
As some of you will know, away from church one of my jobs is to administer the GCSE and A Level examinations. The words I have just read out form part of the notice which is given before every single written exam up and down the country. Despite this notice, and the large posters outside the room with reminders on them, and having been repeatedly told by their teachers, students still bring things to their exams which they ought not to have. Usually, itsbecause they’ve forgotten something is in their pocket or pencil case and they hand it in immediately. And often if they’re found to have something during the exam, its because they’ve forgotten it was there and then failed to check their pockets when they were told to do so.
You’re perhaps left wondering how many times they need to hear the message for it to sink in. How they could possibly forget to check? I think it could be because they’ve heard it so many times that its become white noise – its just too familiar. Or because they’re under such enormous pressure during the exam seasons that their minds are elsewhere. Or it’s a combination of the two, which I think is most likely.
This problem, of course, is not the sole reserve of stressed-out students. We’ve all heard or said the words, “How many times do I have to tell you?” in moments of exasperation. A rhetorical question, because when it is asked its because somebody has failed to take heed of what has been said so many times before.
The passage we heard from John’s gospel takes us right back to Jesus and his disciples before they enter the garden of Gethsemane, before Jesus’ arrest, trial and brutal death; before the confusion and ultimate joy of the resurrection, before Jesus’ appearances to the disciples on the road to Emmaus and in the upper room and on the shore of Galilee. Before the Ascension, which was celebrated by Christians across the world on Thursday of this week, and which we heard recounted again in this morning’s reading from Acts. In our gospel reading, Jesus is preparing the disciples not only for the coming days but also for life without the person of Jesus in their midst. In this he reminds them, that Jesus’ teaching and example have prepared them to continue in the way. And in Acts we hear that the Holy Spirit will come to empower and equip those same disciples, now called the Apostles, as they are sent out to continue spreading the word of God throughout the world.
Scripture, together with the cycle of our church year, reminds us of certain truths and phrases again and again. Phrases like “Do not be afraid.”, instructions to love one another. To trust in God. The repeated theme I hear at this time of year is that God is with us. Again and again throughout the year we hear it in scripture. From reminders of God’s presence with people throughout the Old Testament, to the words given to and spoken by the Prophets, to the words of the angel to Joseph, to the spirit of God empowering the Apostles at the first Pentecost. God is with us. How many times do we need reminding? I wonder how familiar a message needs to be for us to forget that its for all of us here and now. The gospel writer knew, all those thousands of years ago, that we’d need reminding, as we are told exactly what Jesus was praying. We hear plenty of times that Jesus goes off to pray but very rarely are we privy to the words or sentiments of those prayers. Today we are told that Jesus prayed for the people he had been given, for their protection, and reminding them that they had been equipped for the road ahead.
When we open up God’s word in scripture, when we move to the centre of Church for the gospel to hear the words of Jesus spoken in our midst, we are reminded that these words speak afresh to us. These words to the disciples are also for us now. The same goes for Pentecost next Sunday when we recall the coming of the spirit to equip and empower. That gift of the spirit wasn’t just for them then, but is also for us now. The Holy Spirit present with us places us in the ongoing story of God’s work in the world, and equips and empowers us to do God’s work today.
Much like my students at school though, I think we forget this message, either because its too familiar, or because in the challenges and stresses of life we forget to look for God. In our reading from Acts we hear that we don’t need to look upwards to find Jesus’ presence, to encounter God, when God is indeed with us.
So as we stand in this time between Ascension and Pentecost, be reminded again that God is with us in all seasons and circumstances of life. God with us in the beauty of the created world. God with us in the faces of the people we meet every day. God with us in prayer and in our reading of scripture. God with us in bread and wine. God active and present in the world. Being present and attentive to God’s working in our midst is the work of discernment. Seeing where God is, where we are moved to participate in the life of the world around us, and remembering that we are equipped to go and join in. But how many times will we need to be told?
Amen.
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