SUNDAY 20^th July 2025- Fifth Sunday after Trinity

FIRST READING Genesis 18.1–10a

A reading from the book of Genesis.

The LORD appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre,

as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day.

He looked up and saw three men standing near him.

When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them,

and bowed down to the ground.

He said, ‘My lord, if I find favour with you,

do not pass by your servant.

Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet,

and rest yourselves under the tree.

Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves,

and after that you may pass on –

since you have come to your servant.’

So they said, ‘Do as you have said.’

And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said,

‘Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour,

knead it, and make cakes.’

Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good,

and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it.

Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared,

and set it before them;

and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

They said to him,

‘Where is your wife Sarah?’

And he said, ‘There, in the tent.’

Then one said,

‘I will surely return to you in due season,

and your wife Sarah shall have a son.’

PSALM Psalm 15

R Those who do what is right

will dwell in the presence of the Lord.

1 Lord, who may dwell in your tabernacle?

who may abide upon your holy hill?

2 Whoever leads a blameless life and does what is right,

who speaks the truth from his heart. R

3 There is no guile upon his tongue;

he does no evil to his friend;

he does not heap contempt upon his neighbour.

4 In his sight the wicked are rejected,

but he honours those who fear the Lord. R

5 He has sworn to do no wrong

and does not take back his word.

6 He does not give his money in hope of gain,

nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.

7 Whoever does these things

shall never be overthrown. R

SECOND READING Colossians 1.15–28

A reading from the letter of Paul to the Colossians.

Christ is the image of the invisible God,

the firstborn of all creation;

for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created,

things visible and invisible,

whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers –

all things have been created through him and for him.

He himself is before all things,

and in him all things hold together.

He is the head of the body, the church;

he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,

so that he might come to have first place in everything.

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,

and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things,

whether on earth or in heaven,

by making peace through the blood of his cross.

And you who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds,

he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him – provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven.

I, Paul, became a servant of this gospel.

I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake,

and in my flesh

I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions

for the sake of his body, that is, the church.

I became its servant

according to God’s commission that was given to me for you,

to make the word of God fully known,

the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages

and generations but has now been revealed to his saints.

To them God chose to make known

how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery,

which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

It is he whom we proclaim,

warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom,

so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

GOSPEL Luke 10.38–42

Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.

Now as Jesus and his disciples went on their way,

he entered a certain village,

where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home.

She had a sister named Mary,

who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying.

But Martha was distracted by her many tasks;

so she came to Jesus and asked,

‘Lord, do you not care

that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself?

Tell her then to help me.’

But the Lord answered her,

‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things;

there is need of only one thing.

Mary has chosen the better part,

which will not be taken away from her.’

SUNDAY 27^th July Trinity 6

FIRST READING Genesis 18.20–32

A reading from the book of Genesis.

The LORD appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre

and said,

‘How great is the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah

and how very grave their sin!

I must go down

and see whether they have done altogether

according to the outcry that has come to me;

and if not, I will know.’

So the men turned from there, and went towards Sodom,

while Abraham remained standing before the LORD.

Then Abraham came near and said,

‘Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?

Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city;

will you then sweep away the place

and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it?

Far be it from you to do such a thing,

to slay the righteous with the wicked,

so that the righteous fare as the wicked!

Far be that from you!

Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?’

And the LORD said,

‘If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city,

I will forgive the whole place for their sake.’

Abraham answered,

‘Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord,

I who am but dust and ashes.

Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking?

Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?’

And he said, ‘I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.’

Again Abraham spoke to the LORD,

‘Suppose forty are found there.’

He answered,

‘For the sake of forty I will not do it.’

Then Abraham said,

‘Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak.

Suppose thirty are found there.’

The LORD answered,

‘I will not do it, if I find thirty there.’

Abraham said,

‘Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord.

Suppose twenty are found there.’

The LORD answered,

‘For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.’

Then he said,

‘Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak just once more.

Suppose ten are found there.’

The LORD answered,

‘For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.’

PSALM Psalm 138

R When I called, you answered me, O Lord.

1 I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart;

before the gods I will sing your praise.

2 I will bow down towards your holy temple

and praise your name,

because of your love and faithfulness;

3 For you have glorified your name

and your word above all things. R

4 When I called, you answered me;

you increased my strength within me.

5 All the kings of the earth will praise you, O Lord,

when they have heard the words of your mouth.

6 They will sing of the ways of the Lord,

that great is the glory of the Lord.

7 Though the Lord be high, he cares for the lowly;

he perceives the haughty from afar. R

8 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,

you keep me safe;

you stretch forth your hand

against the fury of my enemies;

your right hand shall save me.

9 The Lord will make good his purpose for me;

O Lord, your love endures for ever;

do not abandon the works of your hands. R

SECOND READING (Short or long reading)For the short reading OMIT the verses shown between red brackets

Colossians 2.6–15, (16–19)

A reading from the letter of Paul to the Colossians.

Brothers and sisters, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord,

continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ.

For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,

and you have come to fullness in him,

who is the head of every ruler and authority.

In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision,

by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ;

when you were buried with him in baptism,

you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God,

who raised him from the dead.

And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him,

when he forgave us all our trespasses,

erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands.

He set this aside, nailing it to the cross.

He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it.

[Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food and drink or of observing festivals, new moons, or sabbaths.

These are only a shadow of what is to come,

but the substance belongs to Christ.

Do not let anyone disqualify you,

insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels,

dwelling on visions, puffed up without cause by a human way of thinking, and not holding fast to the head,

from whom the whole body, nourished and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows with a growth that is from God. ]

GOSPEL Luke 11.1–13

Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.

1 Jesus was praying in a certain place,

and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him,

‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.’

He said to them, ‘When you pray, say:

Father, hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come.

Give us each day our daily bread.

And forgive us our sins,

for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.

And do not bring us to the time of trial.’

And he said to them,

‘Suppose one of you has a friend,

and you go to him at midnight and say to him,

“Friend, lend me three loaves of bread;

for a friend of mine has arrived,

and I have nothing to set before him.”

And he answers from within,

“Do not bother me;

the door has already been locked,

and my children are with me in bed;

I cannot get up and give you anything.”

I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything

because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence

he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

So I say to you,

Ask, and it will be given to you;

search, and you will find;

knock, and the door will be opened for you.

For everyone who asks receives,

and everyone who searches finds,

and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

Is there anyone among you who,

if your child asks for a fish,

will give a snake instead of a fish?

Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion?

If you then, who are evil,

know how to give good gifts to your children,

how much more will the heavenly Father

give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’