Trinity 24 / Pentecost 25
Sunday, 15/11/2026
SENTENCE FROM SCRIPTURE:
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy. (Psalm 123)
HYMN-
GREETING
Grace and peace to you from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
COLLECT FOR PURITY
Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
SUMMARY OF THE LAW
Our Lord Jesus Christ said: The first commandment is this:
Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is the only Lord. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.”
The second is this: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these. Amen. Lord, have mercy.
CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION
God is love and we are God’s children. There is no room for fear in love. We love because God loved us first.
Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith.
SILENCE
God our Father,
we confess to you
and to our fellow members in the Body of Christ
that we have sinned in thought, word and deed,
and in what we have failed to do.
We are truly sorry.
Forgive us our sins,
and deliver us from the power of evil,
for the sake of your Son who died for us, Jesus Christ, our Lord.
ABSOLUTION
God, who is both power and love,
forgive you and free you from your sins,
heal and strengthen you by the Holy Spirit,
and raise you to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen.
GLORIA
sung by Billy Riddick
COLLECT FOR TODAY
O Lord,
forgive the transgressions of your people:
and by your goodness release us from the snare of sin,
in which, by our frailty, we have been caught;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, world without end. Amen.
PROCLAIMING & RECEIVING GOD’S WORD
FIRST READING
Judges 4.1–7,
read by Robyn Brotherston
1 The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, after Ehud died. 2 So the LORD sold them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim.
3 Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD for help; for he had nine hundred chariots of iron, and had oppressed the Israelites cruelly for twenty years. 4 At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. 5 She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgement. ✝ 6 She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, ‘The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you, “Go, take position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. 7 I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the Wadi Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.”’
SECOND READING
1 Thessalonians 5.1–11,
read by Mark Toner
1 Concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you.
2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 When they say, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labour pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! 4 But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; 5 for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. 6 So then let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober; 7 for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.
GRADUAL HYMN
GOSPEL
Matthew 25.14–30,
read by the Rev Chris Wren
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew, Chapter 25, beginning at verse 14
Glory to Christ our Saviour
14 ‘The kingdom of heaven is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; 15 to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. 17 In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. 18 But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. 20 Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, “Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.”
21 His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” 22 And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, “Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.” 23 His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” 24 Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, “Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” 26 But his master replied, “You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents.
29 For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. 30 As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”’
Give thanks to the Lord for his glorious Gospel
Praise to Christ our Lord.
SERMON
Online Reflection 15th November 2026
Our Gospel reading for this morning continues Matthew’s recounting of parables which Jesus told to give us some sense of what the Kingdom of God will be like. The parable of the talents begins with the words, “For it is as if…” [Matt 25 v 14], so linking the story that follows with the preceding parable of the bridesmaids, which began, “Then the Kingdom of heaven will be like this…” [Matt 25 v 1] Here Jesus gives us another picture pointing us towards both what the Kingdom will be like and, in this parable, what its coming asks of us. And that Kingdom is not just confined to eternity, beyond the grave, “of heaven”. We are here given a picture of our role in working to build that Kingdom here on earth, a Kingdom that will continue through eternity.
A man going on a journey “entrusted his property” [v 14] to his servants. In the same way God, amazingly, puts His trust in us to continue the work here on earth begun by Jesus. The time comes, and the Gospels tell us that the first disciples are being prepared for that day, when Jesus will no longer be with them. The continuation of God’s work on earth, of building His Kingdom of love, peace, justice, hope, life for all, is entrusted to His disciples and so, centuries later, to us. God trusts us to be His body in the world today, offering His life and hope to all.
Then the man going on that journey apportions his property between his servants, “to each according to his ability”. No one servant receives everything. We each have our gifts, skills and abilities, but we also have our weaknesses, our frailties, those things that we need to turn to others to help us with. We may occasionally come across someone who has a somewhat inflated opinion of their own abilities, sometimes even in Church! More often, most of us will look at others as being more gifted than ourselves, with the result that we sit back and let others get on with it! If we deny the gifts that God has given us, that perhaps others recognise in us, even if we do not see them in ourselves, then we become like the servant who buries the ‘talent’ given to him and makes no use of it. The truth is that a healthy Church, one that truly seeks to be the Body of Christ in the world is one which recognises that all are needed, that our life together is about collaboration, working together, enabling, encouraging and using the gifts that each brings.
When we look on our world and, more locally, on the society of which we are part, we see division, injustice, abuse of power and increasing polarisation. Today, more than ever before perhaps, we who seek to be followers of the way of Christ, are challenged to offer to the world a picture, a microcosm if you like, of the world as God has created it to be; a world where each and all are loved and accepted as they are; where each is valued for their contribution to the whole; a world of true community, where division is healed and justice reigns.
And we are not left alone in the task entrusted to us, for God is with us in His love for us, accompanying us moment by moment in our life’s journey with Him. And His Kingdom will come, for ultimately the Kingdom is God’s not ours. In the meantime, may we offer back to God in service of Him, the gifts, talents and abilities that He has entrusted to us.
Amen.
THE CREED
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one substance with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven;
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father.
With the Father and the Son,
he is worshipped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
PRAYERS
For our intercessions today, the response will be coming from today’s Psalm, Psalm 123, so when I say, Our eyes look to the Lord our God, will you respond with until he shows us his mercy.
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
St Paul tells us, ‘Be thankful in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you who belong in Christ Jesus.’ So we give thanks both for things that have happened this week, such as the large attendance of schoolchildren here on Armistice Day, their openness and willingness to participate in our service, the many positive responses to invitations to Diana’s forthcoming Institution, and their good wishes and prayers for her and for us, for the many professionals who have helped us get the new Rectory ready; for a number of St John’s people who have been willing to step up and do what is needed; for a week of beautiful weather, for the prospect of Advent and Christmas, and just because that’s what we should be doing. As the Psalmist also says, ‘Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.’
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
We continue to pray for ourselves, and for those closest to us: for family, friends, neighbours, colleagues. We give you thanks for all of them, and ask that your strengthen and, where necessary, repair these relationships.
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
We commend to you the church, here at St John’s, other Dumfries churches and faith groups, our Diocese, the Scottish Episcopal Church and the Christian church and faith groups worldwide; particularly those in places where it takes more than ordinary courage to profess, or express, a faith, where believers are subject to threats or persecution, or where the powerful seek to undermine faith or shape it to their own ends. We give thanks for the signs of some of that manipulative power coming, itself, under threat. And we ask your blessing on faith leadership: in our particular case Jim, Bishop Nick, Diana and all assisting clergy.
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
We bring before you nations, leaders, governments; NGOs, civic authorities and charitable organisations, large and small. We ask your blessing on what they do that is good and where courageous and compassionate leadership is shown. We ask you to be with all prisoners, detainees, those euphemistically ‘rendered’ to other places, often uprooted from families, friends and support networks, and those charged with caring for them; remembering particularly those prisoners here in Dumfries and all those unjustly dealt with. And we give thanks for those known to us, particularly those from Ukraine, who have made their home amongst us and are having such a positive effect on our community here at St John’s. Jeremiah reports that God says, ‘Work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.’
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
We remember the weak, the sick, the powerless, the afraid, those at risk. Those for whom the word ‘home’ does not mean a place of safety, rest or warmth, or for home it has no meaning. Remembering those known to us in need of healing, we might mention […]. And, in a moment’s silence, we bring before God anyone known only to ourselves. […]
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
We give thanks for the lives of those who have recently died, and for all they meant to us and to others. It has been a week of Remembrance, with Remembrance Sunday observed last week and Armistice Day this Wednesday. And we give thanks for the continued willingness of people in general and schools and young people in particular, to engage with this festival of penitence, thanksgiving and hope.
Amongst those from our own community, or known to it, who have recently died, we give thanks for […] And, in another moment of silence, anyone known only to ourselves. May they rest in peace and rise in glory. We ask your comfort for those left behind and that they may be reassured by Jesus’ promise, ‘my father’s house has many rooms; I am going to prepare a place for you.’
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
And lastly, we pray for ourselves; for our own needs and wants, giving thanks, again, for Jesus’ promise, ‘Whatever you ask for in my name, I will do.’ In a final moment of silence, we bring before God our own requests and petitions, asking that he guide our prayers. […]
Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
AMEN
Merciful Father accept these prayers for the sake of your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ who taught us to pray together
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Do not bring us
to the time of trial
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power
and the glory are yours,
now and forever. Amen.
BLESSING
Christ the Son of God gladden your hearts with the good news of his kingdom; and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
HYMN –
DISMISSAL
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord
In the name of Christ. Amen
