Sermon Illustrations For Lent 3 (2017)
Illustration
Exodus 17:1-7
Emmanuel, God is with Us! We just celebrated the coming of the Savior only a few weeks ago, and here we are grumbling. Of course, in this passage it is the Israelites who are grumbling. Yet aren’t you grumbling too? Haven’t you found some co-workers or friends to grumble about? How about some other drivers? Your boss? Your spouse? Your children? Your church? And don’t we wonder where God is in all these life challenges?
We could easily put up signs which read “Massah and Meribah” because we do the same thing. The sorrowful thing is that usually we do this grumbling and complaining during prayer. We forget all the gifts we have been given, and seek instead to have all our problems solved. Try something for me. Think about what your life would be like if you ceased to have or experience every single thing and person that you did not offer gratitude to God about this morning. What would be missing from your life? That puts things in perspective, doesn’t it? Maybe we can change our hearts and replace “Massah and Meribah” with “Gratitude and Praise.”
Bonnie B.
Exodus 17:1-7
The encampment Rephidim was renamed Massah and Meribah in response to the question asked by Moses in response to the complaints of the people about water: “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” (v. 2). Massah means literally “trial,” and Meribah means literally “quarrel.”
In contrast to prior grumbling, the Hebrew term rbv is also used. This is the root for legal terms suggesting that the people believe their dispute is grievous enough to take Moses and God to court. Yet God’s response is measured. God gives instructions to Moses and grants the people life-giving water in the desert.
Frank R.
Exodus 17:1-7
Wouldn’t we complain if we were dying of thirst and there was no water for us? Wouldn’t we complain if our parents did not provide the food we needed? It must have happened sometimes during the Depression. We, like the Israelites, have to depend on the Lord for our needs. Sometimes we get what we want by complaining.
Our Lord (like our folks) knows what we need and will provide it, if we believe. Having patience is essential. We also know that neither God nor our parents will let us die for lack of sustenance. Faith is the most important element. Don’t yell, just have faith!
God showed the people his power by freeing them from slavery. That took a lot more than just getting them a drink of water. If God brought them all that way out of slavery in Egypt, he surely wouldn’t let them die in the desert!
This passage shows that God will provide for us if we complain (so will our folks). But don’t complain -- just believe and have patience! Letting our church and our fellow believers know our need will also help.
Bob O.
Romans 5:1-11
Peace: it appears to be elusive and fleeting. We’d all like to have peace, that calm, confident assurance of the soul that things are as they need to be. Our world, however, seems far from peaceful. A quick scan of an evening newspaper or cable news channel will reveal a deluge of ugliness, strife, and anger. Protesters flock the streets; Nation remembers terrorist attack one year ago; Building Bombed: Over 100 Killed; War Continues -- these are a mere sampling of what’s in today’s newsfeed as I write this. Peace is far from here.
As much as we long for peace for our nation and our world, we have a strong yearning for peace for our own soul. That too, though, can be hard to find. Uncertainty about the future, financial concerns, health issues, family problems, doubt, fear, anxiety -- these are robbers of peace and steal from us confidence and joy. Is there any chance at peace?
There is a lot of material in this text, but one thing that stands out is found in the first verse: “Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Did you catch that? Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through Jesus. Our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ affords us the opportunity to have peace. It doesn’t necessarily mean that all threats will disappear immediately. It doesn’t necessarily mean that we’ll have no more problems when we have faith in the Lord. It does mean, though, that because of our faith we can be confident that God is in charge. Through Jesus Christ we know that all things will work together for good to the one who loves God and is called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). Are you looking for peace? Look to Jesus.
Bill T.
Romans 5:1-11
This lesson says that we are enemies of God. Martin Luther turns this around and says that we are our own worst enemies. In a lecture he once stated: “I have often said that a man has no deadlier enemy than he himself; for my experience has taught me that I have greater cause for fear within me than I have outside me, because the gifts which we have within us tend to inflate our nature” (What Luther Says, p. 464).
Thankfully our God is a God who has done to our enmity towards him and to ourselves what Oscar Wilde once advised: “Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.” He proceeds with us like Abraham Lincoln observed: “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?” What Martin Luther King Jr. once said about human love is certainly true of the love of God: “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”
Mark E.
Romans 5:1-11
In July 2011, less than a week after South Sudan celebrated its long-awaited independence, several mass graves were discovered that revealed vast numbers of people who had been indiscriminately tortured and killed. Episcopal bishop Andudu Adam Elnail said it was “devastating and saddening” to learn of the graves. It was the bishop’s hope that through the Enough Project such atrocities would stop.
Application: We learn from our lectionary reading that there will always be suffering in the world.
Ron L.
John 4:5-42
Are you a prophet evangelist? Are you willing to be one? Do you think you have the qualifications? If you consider the Samaritan woman in this reading, she doesn’t seem like much of a prophet evangelist either. But being a prophet evangelist isn’t about what you think. It’s about what God thinks.
Have you experienced God in your life, felt the power of faith, known an intimate relationship with Jesus, or encountered grace? If you can answer yes to any part of that question, you have all the qualifications to be a prophet evangelist. Share the good news of what God has done or is doing in your life. Pascal said that all of us are created with a God-shaped hole in our spirits. Only God can fill that space. We try filling it with all kinds of things: money, power, fame, food, sex, drugs, alcohol. But only God can fill that space. Invite someone to encounter God today. You have all the gifts you need and God’s permission to do so.
Bonnie B.
John 4:5-42
Why is the Samaritan woman shocked that Jesus would ask to drink out of the same vessel as hers? Beyond the fact that she was a woman, and people of different genders didn’t speak to each other casually in that day.
It’s complicated. In 596 BC Judah was conquered and became a vassal state to Babylon. By 587 the temple was destroyed, Jerusalem was laid waste, and the religious and political elite were led away in exile. We can hear the anguish in the famed lament of Psalm 137: “By the rivers of Babylon -- there we sat down and there we wept when we remembered Zion.”
Then the Persians conquered the Babylonians. In 539 BC the first of the exiles returned to their homeland. Psalm 126 proclaimed “When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy” (126:1-2).
The people returned, the walls were rebuilt, the temple was restored, and they all lived happily ever after!
Only not everyone went into exile. There had been people, the poor, called the “People of the Land” in scripture, the hoi-polloi, who’d been living there for decades. They’d been left behind to tend the grapes and work the fields. They were too poor to matter. But for decades they had lived there and died there.
Though they were the natives of Judah, once some of the exiles returned the natives were considered foreigners by the returnees. Those who had lived far away for decades, who could be considered foreigners, considered themselves the real natives and took over. The ancestors of the Samaritans were among those who were left behind. The ancestors of those who returned were among those who were exiled.
So there was a good deal of resentment. There were two peoples, Samaritans and Jews, with different versions of the same Holy Law, two different temples on two different mountains, and centuries of resentment between them.
Frank R.
John 4:5-42
Jesus was thirsty also, just like Moses’ gang. He asked a Samaritan lady who seldom talked with Jews for a drink. It might be like us asking for drink from a Muslim woman wearing her headscarf. But Jesus’ answer might have shocked her. A Muslim would have had trouble believing that he was more important than Muhammad. He was the one whom God had sent!
Jesus went on to prove himself by telling her about the husband she didn’t have. It was enough proof so that she went back and told her whole community about him -- that he was the true messiah.
What kind of proof do we need that Jesus is truly THE ONE God has sent? It might be like the people in the Samaritan woman’s village or just like the pastor of our church.
Jesus came to me in a mysterious way, but when I tell the story to most people they just say “that was an interesting story” and then forget it.
I had a bad history of asthma. It came mostly from dogs and cats. My grandma got rid of her dog so I could visit. I heard many healing stories in my Bible study group in Utah, but my wife did not believe them. Then one day they prayed for me and I was healed of the asthma. My wife didn’t believe me, so she brought home a dog from the pound. When I had no reaction from it, she began to believe.
Like the lady at the well, when it happens to you, you become a believer!
People in church must believe or they wouldn’t be there -- unless they were just following family tradition (like many in other faiths). Believe and you shall be saved! Just ask God and he will prove it to you.
Bob O.
Emmanuel, God is with Us! We just celebrated the coming of the Savior only a few weeks ago, and here we are grumbling. Of course, in this passage it is the Israelites who are grumbling. Yet aren’t you grumbling too? Haven’t you found some co-workers or friends to grumble about? How about some other drivers? Your boss? Your spouse? Your children? Your church? And don’t we wonder where God is in all these life challenges?
We could easily put up signs which read “Massah and Meribah” because we do the same thing. The sorrowful thing is that usually we do this grumbling and complaining during prayer. We forget all the gifts we have been given, and seek instead to have all our problems solved. Try something for me. Think about what your life would be like if you ceased to have or experience every single thing and person that you did not offer gratitude to God about this morning. What would be missing from your life? That puts things in perspective, doesn’t it? Maybe we can change our hearts and replace “Massah and Meribah” with “Gratitude and Praise.”
Bonnie B.
Exodus 17:1-7
The encampment Rephidim was renamed Massah and Meribah in response to the question asked by Moses in response to the complaints of the people about water: “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” (v. 2). Massah means literally “trial,” and Meribah means literally “quarrel.”
In contrast to prior grumbling, the Hebrew term rbv is also used. This is the root for legal terms suggesting that the people believe their dispute is grievous enough to take Moses and God to court. Yet God’s response is measured. God gives instructions to Moses and grants the people life-giving water in the desert.
Frank R.
Exodus 17:1-7
Wouldn’t we complain if we were dying of thirst and there was no water for us? Wouldn’t we complain if our parents did not provide the food we needed? It must have happened sometimes during the Depression. We, like the Israelites, have to depend on the Lord for our needs. Sometimes we get what we want by complaining.
Our Lord (like our folks) knows what we need and will provide it, if we believe. Having patience is essential. We also know that neither God nor our parents will let us die for lack of sustenance. Faith is the most important element. Don’t yell, just have faith!
God showed the people his power by freeing them from slavery. That took a lot more than just getting them a drink of water. If God brought them all that way out of slavery in Egypt, he surely wouldn’t let them die in the desert!
This passage shows that God will provide for us if we complain (so will our folks). But don’t complain -- just believe and have patience! Letting our church and our fellow believers know our need will also help.
Bob O.
Romans 5:1-11
Peace: it appears to be elusive and fleeting. We’d all like to have peace, that calm, confident assurance of the soul that things are as they need to be. Our world, however, seems far from peaceful. A quick scan of an evening newspaper or cable news channel will reveal a deluge of ugliness, strife, and anger. Protesters flock the streets; Nation remembers terrorist attack one year ago; Building Bombed: Over 100 Killed; War Continues -- these are a mere sampling of what’s in today’s newsfeed as I write this. Peace is far from here.
As much as we long for peace for our nation and our world, we have a strong yearning for peace for our own soul. That too, though, can be hard to find. Uncertainty about the future, financial concerns, health issues, family problems, doubt, fear, anxiety -- these are robbers of peace and steal from us confidence and joy. Is there any chance at peace?
There is a lot of material in this text, but one thing that stands out is found in the first verse: “Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Did you catch that? Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through Jesus. Our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ affords us the opportunity to have peace. It doesn’t necessarily mean that all threats will disappear immediately. It doesn’t necessarily mean that we’ll have no more problems when we have faith in the Lord. It does mean, though, that because of our faith we can be confident that God is in charge. Through Jesus Christ we know that all things will work together for good to the one who loves God and is called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). Are you looking for peace? Look to Jesus.
Bill T.
Romans 5:1-11
This lesson says that we are enemies of God. Martin Luther turns this around and says that we are our own worst enemies. In a lecture he once stated: “I have often said that a man has no deadlier enemy than he himself; for my experience has taught me that I have greater cause for fear within me than I have outside me, because the gifts which we have within us tend to inflate our nature” (What Luther Says, p. 464).
Thankfully our God is a God who has done to our enmity towards him and to ourselves what Oscar Wilde once advised: “Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.” He proceeds with us like Abraham Lincoln observed: “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?” What Martin Luther King Jr. once said about human love is certainly true of the love of God: “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”
Mark E.
Romans 5:1-11
In July 2011, less than a week after South Sudan celebrated its long-awaited independence, several mass graves were discovered that revealed vast numbers of people who had been indiscriminately tortured and killed. Episcopal bishop Andudu Adam Elnail said it was “devastating and saddening” to learn of the graves. It was the bishop’s hope that through the Enough Project such atrocities would stop.
Application: We learn from our lectionary reading that there will always be suffering in the world.
Ron L.
John 4:5-42
Are you a prophet evangelist? Are you willing to be one? Do you think you have the qualifications? If you consider the Samaritan woman in this reading, she doesn’t seem like much of a prophet evangelist either. But being a prophet evangelist isn’t about what you think. It’s about what God thinks.
Have you experienced God in your life, felt the power of faith, known an intimate relationship with Jesus, or encountered grace? If you can answer yes to any part of that question, you have all the qualifications to be a prophet evangelist. Share the good news of what God has done or is doing in your life. Pascal said that all of us are created with a God-shaped hole in our spirits. Only God can fill that space. We try filling it with all kinds of things: money, power, fame, food, sex, drugs, alcohol. But only God can fill that space. Invite someone to encounter God today. You have all the gifts you need and God’s permission to do so.
Bonnie B.
John 4:5-42
Why is the Samaritan woman shocked that Jesus would ask to drink out of the same vessel as hers? Beyond the fact that she was a woman, and people of different genders didn’t speak to each other casually in that day.
It’s complicated. In 596 BC Judah was conquered and became a vassal state to Babylon. By 587 the temple was destroyed, Jerusalem was laid waste, and the religious and political elite were led away in exile. We can hear the anguish in the famed lament of Psalm 137: “By the rivers of Babylon -- there we sat down and there we wept when we remembered Zion.”
Then the Persians conquered the Babylonians. In 539 BC the first of the exiles returned to their homeland. Psalm 126 proclaimed “When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy” (126:1-2).
The people returned, the walls were rebuilt, the temple was restored, and they all lived happily ever after!
Only not everyone went into exile. There had been people, the poor, called the “People of the Land” in scripture, the hoi-polloi, who’d been living there for decades. They’d been left behind to tend the grapes and work the fields. They were too poor to matter. But for decades they had lived there and died there.
Though they were the natives of Judah, once some of the exiles returned the natives were considered foreigners by the returnees. Those who had lived far away for decades, who could be considered foreigners, considered themselves the real natives and took over. The ancestors of the Samaritans were among those who were left behind. The ancestors of those who returned were among those who were exiled.
So there was a good deal of resentment. There were two peoples, Samaritans and Jews, with different versions of the same Holy Law, two different temples on two different mountains, and centuries of resentment between them.
Frank R.
John 4:5-42
Jesus was thirsty also, just like Moses’ gang. He asked a Samaritan lady who seldom talked with Jews for a drink. It might be like us asking for drink from a Muslim woman wearing her headscarf. But Jesus’ answer might have shocked her. A Muslim would have had trouble believing that he was more important than Muhammad. He was the one whom God had sent!
Jesus went on to prove himself by telling her about the husband she didn’t have. It was enough proof so that she went back and told her whole community about him -- that he was the true messiah.
What kind of proof do we need that Jesus is truly THE ONE God has sent? It might be like the people in the Samaritan woman’s village or just like the pastor of our church.
Jesus came to me in a mysterious way, but when I tell the story to most people they just say “that was an interesting story” and then forget it.
I had a bad history of asthma. It came mostly from dogs and cats. My grandma got rid of her dog so I could visit. I heard many healing stories in my Bible study group in Utah, but my wife did not believe them. Then one day they prayed for me and I was healed of the asthma. My wife didn’t believe me, so she brought home a dog from the pound. When I had no reaction from it, she began to believe.
Like the lady at the well, when it happens to you, you become a believer!
People in church must believe or they wouldn’t be there -- unless they were just following family tradition (like many in other faiths). Believe and you shall be saved! Just ask God and he will prove it to you.
Bob O.
