Sermon Illustrations for Proper 11 | OT 16 (2013)
Illustration
Object:
Amos 8:1-12
As United States troops were pulling out of Afghanistan, the Taliban continued its insurgency operations. Many towns and villages could not escape their military wrath and religious domination. During this time, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said, "And if we were having this conversation ten years from now, I suspect there would still be contested areas because the history of Afghanistan suggests that there will always be contested areas."
Application: Amos told the people of Israel that there will always be contested areas in their land as long as they disobey the Lord and fail to provide for the poor.
Ron L.
Amos 8:1-12
The situation in Amos' context was like our own: Free market capitalism exploits the poor, while the rich get richer (Herbert Marcuse, An Essay on Liberation, esp. pp. 11ff). Most recent U.S. Census Bureau data bears out the truth of this observation, as nearly 33% of all working families live near poverty, and the top 20% of Americans received 48% of all income, while the bottom 20% of Americans received less than 5% of the total national income! What can the church do about such economic realities? John Calvin offers sound advice:
"Will not the Lord say, 'Why have you allowed so many needy to die of hunger? Surely you had gold with which to minister sustenance. Why were so many prisoners carried off and not ransomed?...' Whatever, then, the church had was for the support of the needy" (Institutes of the Christian Religion [Westminster Press edition], p. 398).
Yale University Law School professor Stephen Carter offers corresponding advice regarding the contribution religious perspectives offer to political and economic life. In his view they provide a lesson in the importance of means (how you arrive at a political outcome or economic success). That is, faith teaches that means are as important as ends, that how you got there is as important as where you got (The Culture of Disbelief, p. 273).
Mark E.
Amos 8:1-12
In a math problem it is the final answer. It is the total. On a bill, it's what you really owe, after the taxes, the tip, parts and labor, and all the other stuff is worked in. "The bottom line" is what really matters. We make decisions based on our bottom line. But the bottom line is not always a number. It is not always money. Often, we forget that. All too often, we forget that there can be a huge difference between what something is worth, and what it costs. You can't put a price on everything. Some things are worth more than money. Whatever is most important; whatever is most valuable; whatever you would give everything else for, is your bottom line.
Scott B.
Colossians 1:15-28
There are major proteins in most living organisms. One group is called laminins. One of their basic functions is to provide adhesion that keeps a cell together as a cell and then keeps cells together as tissues and organs. It is most interesting to note that the structure of laminins are in the shape of crosses. Laminins are vital to maintain tissues. Like a biological, aesthetic teaser, laminins give visual expression by their cross-shaped structure to the bonding Paul is talking about when he writes that in Christ "all things hold together."
Mark M.
Colossians 1:15-28
You can't help but notice that there is a purpose in each of Paul's letters. He may start each one with a compliment for what they are doing right, but then he lays into them for where they have goofed up. That is good advice for pastors -- to start out with a few good words before laying down the law.
Paul certainly emphasized the supremacy of Christ. Over and over he lifts up Christ as the most important "person" that ever came to earth and also the supreme head of earth and heaven! In the history of the church, there have always been groups of "Christians" who tried to alter Christ's position and make schisms and divisions. The list fills the books we had to read in seminary. Some were just trying to make Christ's coming more logical to our minds, but this most often brought him down a peg.
Today there are agnostics who might accept some of what we say about Christ, but may think we go too far for a logical human being. The Muslims accept Christ as a great prophet, but make him lower than Muhammed and can't accept his resurrection. They should read this letter of Paul. He leaves no question about Christ's position on earth or in heaven. Nothing else is acceptable to him -- nor should it be to us! That doesn't mean we should kill those who disagree with us. "Vengeance is mine. I will repay" says the Lord.
All we have is God's message for us, from which we cannot deviate, but our command is not to kill but to convert others with our love and example. We are servants, though maybe not as important as Paul, but still he has given us the last word to proclaim.
Jesus suffered for his body, the church. He does not say "churches." As I often say, Jesus does not have a Lutheran body, a Baptist body, a Pentecostal body, a Roman Catholic body, and on and on! Jesus only has one body, and we are all part of it if we believe in this message of Paul.
Notice that is not Paul's energy, the energy in him, it is Christ's Spirit. That can and should drive us also!
Bob O.
Luke 10:38-42
The Seventh-Day Adventist denomination is one of the fastest growing today, especially in Latin America and Africa. This is because of the Adventist theology and teachings. The Third World nations can relate to the optimism of the immediate return of Jesus. These countries can also accept the importance of the healthy living doctrine that the denomination teaches.
Application: Martha is often looked upon as the foe in this story because of her business. Yet it is by being busy that we do bring others to come to believe in Jesus.
Ron L.
Luke 10:38-42
This text redirects our priorities, pushing us toward more appreciation of receiving instruction in God's word. We certainly need this redirection, it seems, for Bible reading seems to be in decline in America. While a 1980s Gallup poll found 73% of Americans undertaking this task, in 2000 the number had dwindled to 59%. Since the elderly were nearly twice as inclined to read the Bible than those between 18 and 29 at the time, we must assume that the number of readers later has fallen even more drastically.
Martin Luther provides sound advice in this context: "...whoever would be a member of Christendom and be called a member or disciple of Christ must simply hear God himself. And how do I hear him? How am I instructed by him?... No, to be taught by God himself means to heed the word of Christ, to learn from him, and then to feel convinced that it is God's word.
This is hearing God himself, and even though you were to hear an ass speaking, as Baalam did (Numbers 22:28), it would nevertheless be God's word" (Luther's Works, Vol. 23, p. 97).
Mark E.
Luke 10:38-42
In order to become a lawyer, you have to take a lot of classes, write a bunch of papers, get the right academic degrees, and pass some very difficult tests.
In order to become a brother or a sister, you have to have a sibling.
A professional athlete is someone who excels at a particular sport. They practice and train. They win trophies and contracts and endorsement deals.
You can only be a friend if someone else calls you their friend.
Some of the names we give ourselves: doctor, teacher, marathon runner are the result of what we do. Other parts of who we are: daughter, son, confidant are about the people we are connected to.
Scott B.
As United States troops were pulling out of Afghanistan, the Taliban continued its insurgency operations. Many towns and villages could not escape their military wrath and religious domination. During this time, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said, "And if we were having this conversation ten years from now, I suspect there would still be contested areas because the history of Afghanistan suggests that there will always be contested areas."
Application: Amos told the people of Israel that there will always be contested areas in their land as long as they disobey the Lord and fail to provide for the poor.
Ron L.
Amos 8:1-12
The situation in Amos' context was like our own: Free market capitalism exploits the poor, while the rich get richer (Herbert Marcuse, An Essay on Liberation, esp. pp. 11ff). Most recent U.S. Census Bureau data bears out the truth of this observation, as nearly 33% of all working families live near poverty, and the top 20% of Americans received 48% of all income, while the bottom 20% of Americans received less than 5% of the total national income! What can the church do about such economic realities? John Calvin offers sound advice:
"Will not the Lord say, 'Why have you allowed so many needy to die of hunger? Surely you had gold with which to minister sustenance. Why were so many prisoners carried off and not ransomed?...' Whatever, then, the church had was for the support of the needy" (Institutes of the Christian Religion [Westminster Press edition], p. 398).
Yale University Law School professor Stephen Carter offers corresponding advice regarding the contribution religious perspectives offer to political and economic life. In his view they provide a lesson in the importance of means (how you arrive at a political outcome or economic success). That is, faith teaches that means are as important as ends, that how you got there is as important as where you got (The Culture of Disbelief, p. 273).
Mark E.
Amos 8:1-12
In a math problem it is the final answer. It is the total. On a bill, it's what you really owe, after the taxes, the tip, parts and labor, and all the other stuff is worked in. "The bottom line" is what really matters. We make decisions based on our bottom line. But the bottom line is not always a number. It is not always money. Often, we forget that. All too often, we forget that there can be a huge difference between what something is worth, and what it costs. You can't put a price on everything. Some things are worth more than money. Whatever is most important; whatever is most valuable; whatever you would give everything else for, is your bottom line.
Scott B.
Colossians 1:15-28
There are major proteins in most living organisms. One group is called laminins. One of their basic functions is to provide adhesion that keeps a cell together as a cell and then keeps cells together as tissues and organs. It is most interesting to note that the structure of laminins are in the shape of crosses. Laminins are vital to maintain tissues. Like a biological, aesthetic teaser, laminins give visual expression by their cross-shaped structure to the bonding Paul is talking about when he writes that in Christ "all things hold together."
Mark M.
Colossians 1:15-28
You can't help but notice that there is a purpose in each of Paul's letters. He may start each one with a compliment for what they are doing right, but then he lays into them for where they have goofed up. That is good advice for pastors -- to start out with a few good words before laying down the law.
Paul certainly emphasized the supremacy of Christ. Over and over he lifts up Christ as the most important "person" that ever came to earth and also the supreme head of earth and heaven! In the history of the church, there have always been groups of "Christians" who tried to alter Christ's position and make schisms and divisions. The list fills the books we had to read in seminary. Some were just trying to make Christ's coming more logical to our minds, but this most often brought him down a peg.
Today there are agnostics who might accept some of what we say about Christ, but may think we go too far for a logical human being. The Muslims accept Christ as a great prophet, but make him lower than Muhammed and can't accept his resurrection. They should read this letter of Paul. He leaves no question about Christ's position on earth or in heaven. Nothing else is acceptable to him -- nor should it be to us! That doesn't mean we should kill those who disagree with us. "Vengeance is mine. I will repay" says the Lord.
All we have is God's message for us, from which we cannot deviate, but our command is not to kill but to convert others with our love and example. We are servants, though maybe not as important as Paul, but still he has given us the last word to proclaim.
Jesus suffered for his body, the church. He does not say "churches." As I often say, Jesus does not have a Lutheran body, a Baptist body, a Pentecostal body, a Roman Catholic body, and on and on! Jesus only has one body, and we are all part of it if we believe in this message of Paul.
Notice that is not Paul's energy, the energy in him, it is Christ's Spirit. That can and should drive us also!
Bob O.
Luke 10:38-42
The Seventh-Day Adventist denomination is one of the fastest growing today, especially in Latin America and Africa. This is because of the Adventist theology and teachings. The Third World nations can relate to the optimism of the immediate return of Jesus. These countries can also accept the importance of the healthy living doctrine that the denomination teaches.
Application: Martha is often looked upon as the foe in this story because of her business. Yet it is by being busy that we do bring others to come to believe in Jesus.
Ron L.
Luke 10:38-42
This text redirects our priorities, pushing us toward more appreciation of receiving instruction in God's word. We certainly need this redirection, it seems, for Bible reading seems to be in decline in America. While a 1980s Gallup poll found 73% of Americans undertaking this task, in 2000 the number had dwindled to 59%. Since the elderly were nearly twice as inclined to read the Bible than those between 18 and 29 at the time, we must assume that the number of readers later has fallen even more drastically.
Martin Luther provides sound advice in this context: "...whoever would be a member of Christendom and be called a member or disciple of Christ must simply hear God himself. And how do I hear him? How am I instructed by him?... No, to be taught by God himself means to heed the word of Christ, to learn from him, and then to feel convinced that it is God's word.
This is hearing God himself, and even though you were to hear an ass speaking, as Baalam did (Numbers 22:28), it would nevertheless be God's word" (Luther's Works, Vol. 23, p. 97).
Mark E.
Luke 10:38-42
In order to become a lawyer, you have to take a lot of classes, write a bunch of papers, get the right academic degrees, and pass some very difficult tests.
In order to become a brother or a sister, you have to have a sibling.
A professional athlete is someone who excels at a particular sport. They practice and train. They win trophies and contracts and endorsement deals.
You can only be a friend if someone else calls you their friend.
Some of the names we give ourselves: doctor, teacher, marathon runner are the result of what we do. Other parts of who we are: daughter, son, confidant are about the people we are connected to.
Scott B.
