May 2022
The following is a
possible framework for the Witnessing of the Word. It can be personalised or
altered: its purpose is to serve as an example of how this Saying might be used
primarily in the context of a Prayer Group, but it may be used by individuals
too. It is not intended to be definitive.
In the context of a group, the periods of silence should be appropriate
for your group: probably not less than 5 minutes, or more than 15 minutes.
Saying for the month: ‘You shall see greater things … you will see heaven opened’ (RSV). In your time of contemplation, you may like to shorten this to ‘Greater things … heaven opened’.
To begin the exercise, first spend a short while in relaxation and preparing to be still; you may want to relax your way through your muscles or you may find it helpful to become aware of the sounds around you and then put them aside as you offer this time of prayer to God. Say this introductory invitation to prayer, then keep a further minute or two of silence: ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest’ (Matthew 11.28)
Introduction to the first silence - a preparation for listening with the mind
‘You shall see greater things … you will see heaven opened’
The context of this
saying is the calling of the first disciples of Jesus, after he had been
recognised by John the Baptist as the ‘Son of God.’ Andrew, Peter and Philip respond with
enthusiasm and conviction but Nathaniel is much more sceptical and questions
‘can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ to which Philip’s answer ‘Come and
see’ provokes a response. Jesus has
already seen Nathaniel under a fig tree and when Philip brings him to meet
Jesus, there is recognition of who Jesus is: ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God!
You are the King of Israel!’
There is conviction now
but Jesus is going to take those first disciples further and deeper into the
truth of who He is and what this means: ‘You shall see greater things than
these. Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of
God ascending and descending upon the Son of man’.
He is reminding them of
Jacob’s dream which they would have known so well; the experiences of the founding
father of the people of Israel. He had wrestled all night with an angel and in
a dream saw a ladder which rested on the ground, with its top reaching to heaven
and the angels of God going up and down upon it.
So when Jesus spoke
these words they would immediately connect with their own Jewish faith. But now Jesus is saying something even more
startling about ‘greater things’, about ‘heaven opened’ and about ‘angels of
God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.’ The Son of Man. No ladder now;
the Messiah himself is the meeting point of human need and divine intervention.
The use of the ‘Son of Man’ is an apocalyptic association so it’s pointing to
the Messiah in glory as well as the Messiah in his utter humanity. The glory of
God and of His Christ are one and the same; heaven is opened!
We take this Saying into our minds, allowing the saying to speak to us: ‘You shall see greater things … you will see heaven opened’
A time is now kept for silence of the mind – perhaps between 5 and 15 minutes. The silence concludes with a short thanksgiving, and/or feel free to repeat the Saying. The first silence ends with the words: Father, we thank you for the gift of your Word.
Introduction to the second silence - a preparation for listening with the heart.
‘You shall see greater things … you will see heaven opened’
When we look back to
the calling of the first disciples of Jesus, how much do we identify with them?
The text often seems to point to an immediacy, which can be very different from
our own experience. Perhaps we have
grown into faith over many years or it might have been a dramatic conversion
experience which means we may closely relate to this Gospel account of the
calling of the first disciples. Whether it has been over a period of time or
has been much more of a conversion experience, it is God who has reached into
our lives to convert and convince us of the truth that Jesus is the Son of God,
the Son of Man, the Messiah.
Whilst we live out our
Christian lives, how do we see greater things? How do we see heaven opened?
‘Greater things’ and ‘heaven opened’ are surely extraordinary ways of seeing
and perceiving our lives, our relationships and indeed God’s involvement and
interaction with the world and all of us in it.
One way of looking at
this is through the image of angels ascending and descending. The Greek words
for ‘up’ and ‘down’ are ano and kato. The angels, God’s
messengers, are then lifting us out of the downward, egocentric, pull of our
sinful lives to the upward call of Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, towards
heaven. The angels are helping us on the rungs of the ladder between the earth
and heaven, to make sure we are safe, our footing sure as we take each step of
the long journey of our lives towards heaven.
‘You shall see
greater things than these. Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven
opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man’.
Now
we take this word into our hearts, as we allow Jesus’ words to speak in us, to
let it touch us and let it work more deeply upon our lives.
A time is now kept for silence of the heart – perhaps between 5 and 15 minutes. The second silence ends with the words: Father, we thank you that your Word is alive and within us.
Introduction to the time of intercession – taking God’s word outwards into the world.
‘You shall see greater things … you will see heaven opened’
Say the name of a person or a group of people, and after a short pause, repeat the saying. For example:
‘Alison
and your family …‘You shall see greater
things … you will see heaven opened’.
As we allow the word to speak through us we might direct Jesus’ word towards those people and situations where there is suffering, hurt and an absence of joy and where abiding in Christ would bring comfort. Conclude this time of intercession with words of thanksgiving: Father, we thank you that your Word has gone out through us to those for whom we pray.
The Conclusion
Feel free to use the
Fellowship Prayer (below) or another closing prayer to conclude your time of
contemplative prayer:
Loving Heavenly Father, we thank you for all your unsearchable riches which pour forth from you as light from the sun, in boundless profusion and generosity, whether received, ignored or rejected. And now we offer to you, in so far as we are able, as an emptiness to be filled with your divine fullness, ourselves, our souls and bodies; all that we are, all that we have and all that we do. Amen
You may wish to say the Grace together before departing.