How precious are the Collects of the Book of Common Prayer. Petitionary though they happen to be, they are also nuggets of sound Biblical truth worthy of prolonged meditation. As we offer them in prayer they bring to mind essential features of our faith in an experiential fashion as well as didactic, and we are compelled to consider the reality of the truths they encase for ourselves. Are we uttering statements that are sincerely heartfelt or are they mumbled as merely abstract? Personal participation is the essence of prayer, and prayers that are prepared have the capacity to prepare the attentive heart by drawing us into the sense of the words that comprise them. We are not distracted by wayward thoughts or our own impulsive whimsy, and the Collects may generate well ordered extempore prayer that is both devout and direct. They educate us to pray beyond superficial and selfish matters and to follow the pattern of kingdom requests on a broader plane. The thoughtful  use of Collects can be creative and expansive, corrective and encouraging, for they encompass objectivity and reality that we can sometimes ignore in our own “do it yourself” attempts at approaching God. It is ideal to combine our own prayers and the composed and considered prayers of the people of God in our times of private homage before the Lord. In this way we worship both individually and as members of the corporate entity we call the Church. We are participants in the life of the body of Christ living and looking to him in concert with the rest of the faithful. We are taken out of our subjective self- interest and limitations.

  The Collect for Christmas Day: Almighty God, who hast given us thy only- begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and as this time to be born of a pure Virgin: Grant that we being regenerate, and made thy children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy Spirit; through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, ever one God world without end. Amen. Here the miraculous event of the Incarnation is succinctly presented in all its saving significance. The Saviour is the tender-loving gift of the Almighty. His omnipotent strength is not without infinite sensitivity. The Son takes up our nature to identify with us in our predicament and to salvage us from our self-wrought ruin. His becoming one of us is a merciful act of rescue and restoration and yet he could only be our Redeemer by being preserved from the taint of original sin through being “conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary”. The perfect man has come to purify polluted man and present him acceptably to the Father. This perfection is possible through our rebirth performed also by the Holy Spirit who daily renews us and sustains us in grace and righteousness as adopted children of God. We have been elevated from the depths of corruption and misery to the loftiest of privileges imaginable. We are beloved sons and daughters of the Majesty on high with royal entitlements conferred upon us by the Sovereign of the universe himself and all of this because of the mediatorial office and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the essential joy of the season. And this joy is Christ himself possessed in our hearts, and ourselves in the possession of the Father.

  The Collect for St. Stephen’s Day: Grant, O Lord, that in all our sufferings here upon earth, for the testimony of thy truth, we may stedfastly look up to heaven, and by faith behold thy glory that shall be revealed; and being filled with the Holy Ghost, may learn to love and bless our persecutors, by the example of thy first Martyr Saint Stephen, who prayed for his murderers to thee, O blessed Jesus, who standest at the right hand of God to succour all those  that suffer for thee, our only Mediator and Advocate. Amen. To juxtapose this collect near to Christmas Day is a salutary reminder of the possible consequence of confessing Christ. Christmas is a time of heightened awareness of the deep issues pertaining to our ruin and redemption. It is not a season of sentimentality and self-gratification. Worldly indulgence and excess is pagan. Christmas hails the fact of our death to sin and our new life in Christ that commences and culminates in our eternal dwelling with God. The martyrdom of Stephen reminds us that Christmas peace is not peace with the world but confrontation with its wickedness and hostility toward God. Suffering here in this alien territory is intrinsic to our life in Christ and inevitable in a world so stoutly opposed to him. Christmas has revealed the glory of God in his mighty acts of compassion and deliverance, and our steadfast gaze towards heaven from which our Saviour has come, and where he now reigns, emboldens us to concentrate upon our prospect of victory over death and hold firmly to the hope of life everlasting gained through Christ. The Christian’s death is no loss or lasting disaster. It is a transition from time to eternity in the care of God. The great concern, enabled by the Spirit of God, is for the welfare of the lost who vent their malice and murderous hatred against the redeemed and thus jeopardize the wellbeing of their own souls at the judgment. Stephen was endued with such abundant grace that he could pray for his persecutors and the perpetrators of his cruel killing. Stephen is the warning not to trivialize Christmas and its repercussions for us who believe and trust in its facts.

  The  Collect for St. John the Evangelist’s Day:  How apt to mark, so close to Christmas,  the life and testimony of the one who gave witness to the Word. Whilst the other evangelists gave us the narrative of the nativity with its implicit theology, John went immediately to the heart of Christ’s advent. John, in an exceptional way, was the enlightener of the Church. His gospel, apocalypse, and letters illuminate the Saviour in every dimension of his being, assignment, accomplishment, and ascended glory. John, by the Holy Spirit, is the source of sublime information and explanation at the towering peak of the process of revelation like Isaiah his inspired prophetic predecessor. The two great seers enable us to see Christ with such clarity and in terms of such poetic beauty: Merciful Lord, we beseech thee to cast thy bright beams of light upon thy Church, that it being enlightened by the doctrine of thy blessed Apostle and Evangelist Saint John may so walk in the light of thy truth that it may at length attain to the light of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

  The Collect for The Innocents’ Day: Almighty God, who out of the mouths of babes and sucklings hast ordained strength, and madest infants to glorify thee by their deaths: Mortify and kill all vices in us, and so strengthen us by thy grace, that by the innocency of our lives, and constancy of our faith, even unto death, we may glorify thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. There is such poignancy and profound insight in this collect. No one is immune from violence and death at any age.  That is the wretched condition of this world as a result of our revolt against God. Safety has been forfeited through our severance from him. Babes are among the elect and travel through the tragedy of early death to be with the Lord. They are saved from the vices and vicissitudes of life that lie behind our sufferings who remain for a longer pilgrimage home. Violence cannot wrest life away from the believer and those little chosen ones who die as infants.  Continuance in the presence of God is guaranteed by the resurrection of the Saviour who suffered for us and in our stead. The vices within us would murder our souls if God did not ward them off and deal a death blow upon them. The Incarnation brought our divine Saviour into our world to purchase and prepare us for another and the fullness of grace that we so sorely need is found in him.

RJS

  Holy Scripture is a priceless legacy. It is the saga of divine salvation related in historical terms and it is filled with songs of the redeemed. The hymnic material is derived from the factual foundation. There are the accounts of the acts of God followed by the acclamation of the people of God. The Lord’s operations give rise to the ovations of his folk. Scripture supplies us with the facts of our salvation that inform the mind and the response of believers reveals how saving truth affects the heart. The Bible imparts saving notions and incites the liveliest emotions. It is a volume of prose and poetry devoted to the Promised One – his advent and accomplishment on our behalf. The Bible is an engrossing presentation of narrative interspersed with canticles of celebration. From Genesis to Revelation it is an epic that erupts in exultation. The material of inspired revelation inspires the heart’s melody of appreciation. God’s greatness alternates with human gratitude. Both elements bring us into vital engagement with the Word of the Lord. How is it possible for anyone to scan the lines of scripture unmoved? Just as the Spirit carried the human authors along so the same Spirit carries the attentive reader along into realms of wonder.

  The acknowledgement of divine instruction in sacred Scripture comes from the apostle Paul in his powerful letter to the Romans. “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us” (Romans 15:4). He wrote of the ancient Hebrew Scriptures which are a bequest to all believers throughout all time. He wrote as someone who was a vehicle of divine disclosure through his letters to the early churches. His apostleship is in the same ongoing line of annunciation as that of the prophets and he takes up their theme of hopeful expectation: “God was reconciling the world to himself through Christ, not counting men’s sins against them” (2 Corinthians 5:19).

  The Bible is a glorious provision of inestimable value; a miracle in itself. Its nature is divine. Its message is sublime. Its effects are marvellous. It comes from God as those who are born anew can keenly sense, feeling the breath of God as they press their ear to his lips. His secrets enthral the heart kindling assent, confidence, and love. The qualities of Scripture as the voice of God have nowhere been as beautifully described as in the matchless Westminster Confession of Faith.

  We may be moved and induced by the testimony of the Church to an high and reverent esteem of the Holy Scripture. And the heavenliness of the matter, the efficacy of the doctrine, the majesty of the style, the consent of all the parts, the scope of the whole (which is, to give all glory to God), the full discovery it makes of the only way to man’s salvation, the many other incomparable excellencies, and the entire perfection thereof, are arguments whereby it doth abundantly evidence itself to be the Word of God: yet notwithstanding, our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority thereof, is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts. (Chapter 1. V).

  The Holy Spirit is the ablest convincer of the veracity and heavenly origin of Holy Writ. Concurrently he opens text and mind and faith meets with fact to form settled conviction that one is hearing the speech of God. Just as one may detect and differentiate discordant sounds from harmonious music so one senses with heavenly skill and attunement the celestial character of Scripture. Peter describes the process of inscipturation. “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:20-21). The same Spirit carries conviction to the heart. The force of inherent authenticity moves the human spirit to acceptance of divine truth.

  The enchantment of Scripture is known and felt in its message of mercy. Mercy is the sweet liqueur encased in the language of the Bible. As we crack and consume the solid doctrine of the Biblical tradition we eventually arrive at the delicious centre and roll our tongue over the delicate flavours of God’s compassion. We are amazed at the scope of the Lord’s kindness to sinners, the detailed preparation for their welfare, and the guaranteed certainty of the success of his purpose. Perusal of Scripture becomes a strong source of hope. The deliverance he causes us to crave for is in prospect. Our reinstatement to God’s favour has been won. Eternal life lies just ahead beyond the portal of death. Our Bible is seen to be truly God’s Book; a compendium of the Lord’s pastoral counsel to his folk.

  We have access to the most engaging narrative ever told, the forecast of his coming, increasingly elaborated through many generations until at last we follow Messiah’s journey from wooden cradle to wondrous crown. Our Prayer Book affords the wisest advice for gaining the deepest insight into the literary treasure our hands are privileged to hold.

  Blessed Lord, who caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace and forever hold fast the blessed hope of eternal life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen. The Collect for the Second Sunday in Advent.

  Could there ever be a more concise, comprehensive guide to our approach to the Word of God? Here is no hasty, superficial scanning of the divine text. Here is no glib, disjointed, quoting of texts disconnected from context. The Bible is read at a reverent and thoughtful pace. Busy eyes close for rumination upon the word received. Slowly or swiftly, depending upon the motion of the interpreting Spirit, the heart swells to a crescendo of joy as the mind grasps that the promises are amazingly true and increasingly near to fulfilment. Our vice-like grasp seizes upon the future and not far off possession of glory. We find ourselves in full agreement with Bishop John Jewel’s In Praise of Scripture:

  Here is to be seen the triumph of God, the Lord of lords and the King of kings; how he hath made the name of his Son triumph over principalities and powers, and over the whole world.

  Here is a paradise full of delights: No tongue is able to speak them, they are so many; no heart is able to conceive them, they be so great. Here is a shop, wherein is set out the wisdom and knowledge, the power, the judgements, and mercies of God. Which way soever we look, we see the works of his hands; his works of creation and preservation of all things; his works of severe justice upon the wicked and of gracious redemption to the believer.

  If we desire pleasant music or excellent harmony, it speaketh unto us the words of the Father and the consent of the Son, the excellent reports of the prophets, apostles, angels, and saints of God, who have been all taught by the Holy Ghost. If we could learn, it is a school; it giveth understanding to the simple. . .So manifold and marvellous are the pleasures which are given us in the word of God.

RJS