More than meets the eye
Commentary
In many congregations this Sunday after Labor Day marks the transition from the lessened activity of summer to the heightened activity of fall. There are still congregations that call this Sunday Rally Day. It is time to move out of the summer mode.
The lectionary menu for the day offers Old Testament and gospel readings that can challenge us to reflect on what we are called to be up and about in our life together in the local church. Tucked between them is Paul's letter to Philemon. It's a little gem that has within it more than meets the eye. I'm partial to it for this Sunday.
Sermon Seeds In The Lessons
Jeremiah 18:1-11
Out of memory leaps the line from an old hymn, "You are the Potter, we are the clay." The title ["Have Thine Own Way, Lord," ed.] as well as the rest of the hymn escapes me, but the source of these lines is Jeremiah's parable of the Divine Potter. Here is a suggestive image of God that speaks a significant word to us as a community of faith and as individuals within that community. There is no blind determinism here. The human clay is not an inert material. It can resist the hands of the potter.
Jeremiah is primarily addressing the community. That can lead us to think about the gathering, fashioning and refashioning of a congregation. Jeremiah spoke the hard word that God is not particularly interested in the survival of religious institutions which forget the character of the vocation to which they are called. That is not an unimportant reminder to place before a congregation from time to time.
The parable of the Divine Potter speaks also to us as individuals for we are creatures fashioned in the image of God out of the dust of the earth. Among all the creatures of God, we are uniquely addressed by the Word from beyond. Think of the verbs the parable prods us to include in our vocabulary of congregational and private prayer. Petitions like "make us, mold us, fashion us" come to mind.
Jeremiah does not mention it, but the thought strikes me that before the fashioned clay becomes a finished and durable product it is fired in the kiln. And that thought brings to mind the words of a well remembered hymn: "Nearer, my God to Thee, E'en though it be a cross that raiseth me."
Philemon 1-21
Many expositions of Philemon which I have encountered tend to get sidetracked by individual verses and veer into discussions of massive issues that are not the burden of the letter. Paul has but one aim: to persuade Philemon to emancipate his runaway slave, Onesimus. Philemon could legally do this. What is especially interesting is that Paul makes his request in a way which Philemon can hardly refuse. Paul knows how to push all the right buttons and he does. Just why Paul wants Onesimus freed is stated in the letter.
Philemon is a prominent member of the church in Collossae (Colossians 4:9). He is obviously a person of means for he has a house large enough to host congregational gatherings as well as provide guest rooms. Now look carefully at the letter.
1. In the beginning, middle, and at the end of the letter Paul refers to himself as a prisoner of Christ. Is this a form of subtle pressure? "See the sacrifice I am making."
2. This is a personal plea to Philemon but the letter is addressed to the whole congregation and will be read in their presence. Philemon is on the spot!
3. Paul praises Philernon for his love and faith. In the same breath he reminds Philemon who he, Paul, is (vv. 4-8).
4. Paul states his affection for Philemon and declares his confidence that Philemon will do the right thing. Can't you see all the heads in the congregation turning toward Philemon with approving looks?
5. Paul promises to repay Philemon for anything Onesimus owes, even though Philemon owes much to Paul. Wow!
6. Then he asks Philemon to prepare a guest room. Paul will be along as soon as he is out of jail.
7. Lastly, Paul sends greetings from Epaphras, Aristarchus, Mark, Demas, and Luke. These are heavy hitters who are probably listening as Paul dictates the letter.
This letter gives us a great glimpse of Paul. He certainly had no qualms about asking people to do things in the Lord and for the mission. In the ministry having to ask people to do things goes with the territory. Might you use a sermon based on Philemon as a springboard for putting your own wish list before the congregation? I mean a wish list "in the Lord."
Any reading of Philemon will arouse questions about slavery and some will ask why the early church made no public challenge to the system. Listen: the leaven was in the lump through the presence of these little house churches where bond and free, male and female, Jew and Gentile gathered as brothers and sisters in Christ.
The climactic thrust of a sermon based on Philemon can start by asking why this brief letter, among all the personal letters Paul probably wrote, found its way into the New Testament canon. There is a story here for which the circumstantial evidence is overwhelming. In the year 110 A.D., Ignatius, bishop of Antioch in Syria, was arrested and sent to Rome for trial. En route the guards halted for several days at Smyrna not far from Ephesus. Churches in the area sent representatives to greet and minister to this prisoner for Christ. From a letter of Ignatius to the church in Ephesus we learn that the leader of the delegation was the bishop of Ephesus, a man named Onesimus. The bishop had visited Ignatius and taken with him four assistants. Ignatius wanted two of these assistants to accompany him to Rome, so he addressed a letter to the church in Ephesus. That letter is close in style to the letter of Philemon and contains respectful references to Bishop Onesimus.
Was Onesimus now in the place of Philemon? We know the leadership of the Pauline churches fell to Paul's associates. We also know that the letters of Paul were gathered and preserved in Ephesus. We know that influences in Ephesus had a lot to do with Paul's letters finding a place in the canon. Bishop Onesimus could have been a key person in preserving those letters, letters with ideas that shaped history. Here is an occasion to celebrate the mystery of God and affirm that when we work "in the Lord," we sometimes do more than we know.
Luke 14:25-33
The paradox is that the gospel we proclaim impales us in the act of proclamation. How can we who read these words and those who hear them retain a smug confidence?
"Large crowds were traveling with him." So Luke tells us. Jesus had a lot of sympathizers. He wanted disciples. Which are we? Thomas a Kempis in The Imitation of Christ observed, "Jesus has many lovers of his heavenly kingdom, but few sharers of his cross." I cannot speak for you, but this impales me.
The lectionary menu for the day offers Old Testament and gospel readings that can challenge us to reflect on what we are called to be up and about in our life together in the local church. Tucked between them is Paul's letter to Philemon. It's a little gem that has within it more than meets the eye. I'm partial to it for this Sunday.
Sermon Seeds In The Lessons
Jeremiah 18:1-11
Out of memory leaps the line from an old hymn, "You are the Potter, we are the clay." The title ["Have Thine Own Way, Lord," ed.] as well as the rest of the hymn escapes me, but the source of these lines is Jeremiah's parable of the Divine Potter. Here is a suggestive image of God that speaks a significant word to us as a community of faith and as individuals within that community. There is no blind determinism here. The human clay is not an inert material. It can resist the hands of the potter.
Jeremiah is primarily addressing the community. That can lead us to think about the gathering, fashioning and refashioning of a congregation. Jeremiah spoke the hard word that God is not particularly interested in the survival of religious institutions which forget the character of the vocation to which they are called. That is not an unimportant reminder to place before a congregation from time to time.
The parable of the Divine Potter speaks also to us as individuals for we are creatures fashioned in the image of God out of the dust of the earth. Among all the creatures of God, we are uniquely addressed by the Word from beyond. Think of the verbs the parable prods us to include in our vocabulary of congregational and private prayer. Petitions like "make us, mold us, fashion us" come to mind.
Jeremiah does not mention it, but the thought strikes me that before the fashioned clay becomes a finished and durable product it is fired in the kiln. And that thought brings to mind the words of a well remembered hymn: "Nearer, my God to Thee, E'en though it be a cross that raiseth me."
Philemon 1-21
Many expositions of Philemon which I have encountered tend to get sidetracked by individual verses and veer into discussions of massive issues that are not the burden of the letter. Paul has but one aim: to persuade Philemon to emancipate his runaway slave, Onesimus. Philemon could legally do this. What is especially interesting is that Paul makes his request in a way which Philemon can hardly refuse. Paul knows how to push all the right buttons and he does. Just why Paul wants Onesimus freed is stated in the letter.
Philemon is a prominent member of the church in Collossae (Colossians 4:9). He is obviously a person of means for he has a house large enough to host congregational gatherings as well as provide guest rooms. Now look carefully at the letter.
1. In the beginning, middle, and at the end of the letter Paul refers to himself as a prisoner of Christ. Is this a form of subtle pressure? "See the sacrifice I am making."
2. This is a personal plea to Philemon but the letter is addressed to the whole congregation and will be read in their presence. Philemon is on the spot!
3. Paul praises Philernon for his love and faith. In the same breath he reminds Philemon who he, Paul, is (vv. 4-8).
4. Paul states his affection for Philemon and declares his confidence that Philemon will do the right thing. Can't you see all the heads in the congregation turning toward Philemon with approving looks?
5. Paul promises to repay Philemon for anything Onesimus owes, even though Philemon owes much to Paul. Wow!
6. Then he asks Philemon to prepare a guest room. Paul will be along as soon as he is out of jail.
7. Lastly, Paul sends greetings from Epaphras, Aristarchus, Mark, Demas, and Luke. These are heavy hitters who are probably listening as Paul dictates the letter.
This letter gives us a great glimpse of Paul. He certainly had no qualms about asking people to do things in the Lord and for the mission. In the ministry having to ask people to do things goes with the territory. Might you use a sermon based on Philemon as a springboard for putting your own wish list before the congregation? I mean a wish list "in the Lord."
Any reading of Philemon will arouse questions about slavery and some will ask why the early church made no public challenge to the system. Listen: the leaven was in the lump through the presence of these little house churches where bond and free, male and female, Jew and Gentile gathered as brothers and sisters in Christ.
The climactic thrust of a sermon based on Philemon can start by asking why this brief letter, among all the personal letters Paul probably wrote, found its way into the New Testament canon. There is a story here for which the circumstantial evidence is overwhelming. In the year 110 A.D., Ignatius, bishop of Antioch in Syria, was arrested and sent to Rome for trial. En route the guards halted for several days at Smyrna not far from Ephesus. Churches in the area sent representatives to greet and minister to this prisoner for Christ. From a letter of Ignatius to the church in Ephesus we learn that the leader of the delegation was the bishop of Ephesus, a man named Onesimus. The bishop had visited Ignatius and taken with him four assistants. Ignatius wanted two of these assistants to accompany him to Rome, so he addressed a letter to the church in Ephesus. That letter is close in style to the letter of Philemon and contains respectful references to Bishop Onesimus.
Was Onesimus now in the place of Philemon? We know the leadership of the Pauline churches fell to Paul's associates. We also know that the letters of Paul were gathered and preserved in Ephesus. We know that influences in Ephesus had a lot to do with Paul's letters finding a place in the canon. Bishop Onesimus could have been a key person in preserving those letters, letters with ideas that shaped history. Here is an occasion to celebrate the mystery of God and affirm that when we work "in the Lord," we sometimes do more than we know.
Luke 14:25-33
The paradox is that the gospel we proclaim impales us in the act of proclamation. How can we who read these words and those who hear them retain a smug confidence?
"Large crowds were traveling with him." So Luke tells us. Jesus had a lot of sympathizers. He wanted disciples. Which are we? Thomas a Kempis in The Imitation of Christ observed, "Jesus has many lovers of his heavenly kingdom, but few sharers of his cross." I cannot speak for you, but this impales me.
