Psalm67│Isaiah 52.7-10│1 Timothy 6.11b-16│Matthew 9.35-38
Psaumes 67|Ésaïe 52:7-10|1 Timothée 6.11b-16|Matthieu 9.35-38
We know that Timothy travelled with Paul on his
missionary journeys in the Mediterranean and remained at his service as a
faithful helper for much of his career. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul
emphasizes the importance of sound teaching: “But you, man of God, flee
from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith,
love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith.”
A godly person must pursue ‘gentleness’, which
includes being kind and modest in our relationship with other people. We are
told that Jesus entered Jerusalem as a “meek” king riding on a beast of burden
rather than on a war horse (Matt. 21:5). He chose to exercise power and
authority in a spirit of gentleness and humility. This went against the
cultural expectations of the ancient world, in which humility was not at all
viewed as a virtue; yet Paul insisted that it was an essential part of living
out the gospel. At the same time, the evangelist had to be prepared to “fight
the good fight of the faith”.
Sculptures of Chad, Peada and Wulfhere above the western entrance to Lichfield Cathedral
By Sjwells53 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12140418
We find the combination
of gentleness and evangelical zeal in Chad, who travelled far and wide and
converted the ancient English kingdom of Mercia
to Christianity in the 7th century. He was much loved for his wisdom
and gentleness in otherwise difficult situations. According to the historian
Bede, Theodore of Canterbury was greatly impressed by Chad's humility and
holiness. This was displayed particularly in his refusal to use a horse: he
insisted on walking everywhere. Despite his regard for Chad, Theodore ordered
him to ride on long journeys and went so far as to lift him into the saddle on
one occasion!
Chad died this day in 672 AD. Bede records that
not many days before his death, the bishop was alone reading or praying in the
oratory of that place, when he suddenly “heard the voice of persons singing
most sweetly and rejoicing, and appearing to descend from heaven”. Chad was a
monastic founder, abbot,
and first bishop of
Lichfield. A fine Mercian illuminated Gospel Book of the 8th
century called the Gospels of St Chad was probably associated with his
shrine. See st-chad-gospels.pdf
(lichfield-cathedral.org)
Collect for 2 March
Almighty God, from the first fruits of the English nation who turned to Christ, you called your servant Chad to be an evangelist and bishop of his own people: give us grace so to follow his peaceable nature, humble spirit and prayerful life, that we may truly commend to others the faith which we ourselves profess; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Jonathan Halliwell
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