Sermon Illustrations for Proper 18 | Ordinary Time 23 (2013)
Illustration
Object:
Jeremiah 18:1-11
Jeremiah found parables for life in the common things of life. When we open our eyes, we to can see the wisdom of God inscribed in the simple things around us. We are invited to accompany Jeremiah into insights that can shape our life. Let us not be like Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts. Linus is instructing Charlie Brown on the meaning of the nursery rhyme "Hey, Diddle Diddle": "The way I see it, 'The cow jumped over the moon' indicates a rise in farm prices. The part about the dish running away with the spoon must refer to the consumer." When Linus asks Charlie Brown if he agrees with his interpretation, Charlie Brown responds: "I can't say... I don't pretend to be a student of prophetic literature."
Mark M.
Jeremiah 18:1-11
I made a retreat to a monastery years ago and visited a monk who was making pottery. I still have one of his pieces as a reminder. He hardly left his room, so when he got up from his bed his potter's wheel was right there. Sometimes he made mistakes and crushed the clay and started over again, so when he made a good one he treated it carefully.
We are like clay in the hands of the Lord, and if we get messed up at some point he starts over again. I can't even think how often the Lord had to reform me on his potter's wheel. One time I wanted to be great scientist and then a great actor, then a teacher, then a salesman, then a film producer, and then a pastor by the time I was 30 -- then almost 50 years later a missionary! The Lord had to do a lot of reshaping of my clay, but even now I feel subtle changes every day in my retirement. How many have had the same dream for their life from the beginning? In my ministry I have never found any whom the Lord did not have to do a bit of work on at his potter's wheel!
The Lord is forming us and our whole nation. Our duty is to let him form us as he wills. If we resist him and his efforts to reform us, we will be lost. He may throw out our clay and start over with someone else (or some other nation). Our only option is to repent if we don't want to be uprooted and torn down.
It sounds menacing when this passage says that the Lord is planning a disaster for us. It sounds like we had better watch our steps. It also sounds like we had better make sure our nation also turns from evil! We spend a lot of time arguing over what is evil today. Why don't we ask him to tell us before it is too late -- or at least check his Book to find out!
Bob O.
Philemon 1:1-21
Nathaniel Hawthorne, upon completing a manuscript, always sought the approval of his wife for its emotional appeal. On the night that he finished The Scarlet Letter, he read to her the closing chapter. Upon hearing the story, it so broke her heart that she went to bed with a severe headache. Hawthorne said, "I look upon that as a triumphant success."
Application: Paul spoke of his disciples as ones after his own heart.
Ron L.
Philemon 1:1-21
It happens in books and in movies all the time. A long lost brother. A twin sister previously unknown. The villain turns out to be the hero's father. The butler is revealed to be the billionaire's son. And each time it happens, the relationship changes. The butler is now more than just the butler. The villain is no longer the faceless enemy.
As children of God, we are connected to each other in Jesus Christ. The stranger now is somebody important. People around us can never be mere stepping stones to be used, obstacles to be overcome, or competitors to defeat and outshine. Instead, in Christ we are brother and sisters, mothers and fathers. In Christ we are one family.
Scott B.
Philemon 1:1-21
This troubling book regarding Paul's interaction with the slave of a Christian implies a number of fruitful illustrations for getting across the point that God cares for the poor, for those who have been and are enslaved, and that they have an important contribution to make to the life of the church. Slavery is still a problem in the modern world. As recently as 2010 the U.S. State Department's office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons reported 1.3 million persons are enslaved. And poverty is of course the condition of slaves, just as poverty itself enslaves. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that 1 in 6 Americans lives in poverty, and a disproportionate number of these are the heirs of slaves (African Americans and Native Americans).
The reality portrayed in the text pertaining to the slave Onesimus' faithfulness illustrates a trend today and through much of human history. Poor people tend to be more devout than those in better financial positions. A 2009 study of the Gallup organization revealed that while 84% of the global population claim religion is an important part of their lives, in poor nations 95% of the population made this claim.
God seems to have a special mission and a special concern for the poor. This is a text to make that clear to parishioners, to stop their bashing of those enchained by poverty. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (2448) concisely makes this point: "For those who are oppressed by poverty are the object of a preferential love on the part of the church... to work for their relief, defenses, and liberation through numerous works of charity which remain indispensable always and everywhere."
Mark E.
Luke 14:25-33
Dietrich Bonhoeffer asks the pertinent question: "How can we live the Christian life in the modern world?" In his book The Cost of Discipleship, he writes about the passion with which Jesus is speaking to the crowds in Luke's text:
Jesus summons [people] to follow him not as a teacher or a pattern of the good life, but as the Christ, the Son of God... It is nothing else than [being captive] to Jesus Christ alone... No other significance is possible, since Jesus is the only significance... He alone matters.
Bonhoeffer continues to describe how discipleship is not hero worship "but obedience to the Son of God," who when he calls a person to follow, bids that person "come and die."
Mark M.
Luke 14:25-33
This scripture forbids us from hating anyone, much less our family. The word should be translated "love less than." In other words, Jesus wants to be at the top of our list. This calls into question those who would gladly give their own life for God, but would have to think twice if their wife or kids were threatened -- as has happened frequently even today. How can we love God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind if we have other priorities? This is worth thinking about! I'm sure it wouldn't be too much for some of us to give God our houses or our wealth or other material things. That could make it difficult for some to be disciples. It may not mean we are damned -- because there is always forgiveness -- but it may not put us on the top of God's list.
We are even supposed to carry our cross. When I read a book that described what went on at a crucifixion it turned my stomach! It is one of the most horrible ways to die. I wouldn't mind carrying it like Simon of Cyrene, but then I would hand it over to our Lord. We read that several of the disciples died on crosses. Peter even asked to be crucified upside down. He did not feel worthy to die like his Lord. They must have known what you went through on a cross. Following our Lord wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for that cross!
If we want to build a church, will we not first check out the cost? If we run out of money halfway through, won't that be embarrassing? Not only for us and our congregation, but maybe for our whole denomination! It could even embarrass our Lord. This is true especially since the foundation has already been laid by our Lord, as scripture tells us.
The next one is one we should send to the president and congress! Some want us to charge right ahead and attack, but others want to first check out the cost in dollars and human lives. In America each side is shouting at each other! We even hate to see our country negotiating with an "enemy" for fear of looking weak. North Korea goes too far in that direction!
I don't think the last verse tells us to rush right out and sell all we have and give it away. It is more a willingness to sacrifice all for our Lord if we want to be his disciple.
In the Revolutionary War some soldiers gave up everything to serve, though later some revolted when the new government wanted to tax them when they had given all and had nothing left.
What are you willing to sacrifice for our Lord to be his disciple or are most of us happy to just squeak through in hopes God will accept the smidgen we are willing to give?
Bob O.
Jeremiah found parables for life in the common things of life. When we open our eyes, we to can see the wisdom of God inscribed in the simple things around us. We are invited to accompany Jeremiah into insights that can shape our life. Let us not be like Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts. Linus is instructing Charlie Brown on the meaning of the nursery rhyme "Hey, Diddle Diddle": "The way I see it, 'The cow jumped over the moon' indicates a rise in farm prices. The part about the dish running away with the spoon must refer to the consumer." When Linus asks Charlie Brown if he agrees with his interpretation, Charlie Brown responds: "I can't say... I don't pretend to be a student of prophetic literature."
Mark M.
Jeremiah 18:1-11
I made a retreat to a monastery years ago and visited a monk who was making pottery. I still have one of his pieces as a reminder. He hardly left his room, so when he got up from his bed his potter's wheel was right there. Sometimes he made mistakes and crushed the clay and started over again, so when he made a good one he treated it carefully.
We are like clay in the hands of the Lord, and if we get messed up at some point he starts over again. I can't even think how often the Lord had to reform me on his potter's wheel. One time I wanted to be great scientist and then a great actor, then a teacher, then a salesman, then a film producer, and then a pastor by the time I was 30 -- then almost 50 years later a missionary! The Lord had to do a lot of reshaping of my clay, but even now I feel subtle changes every day in my retirement. How many have had the same dream for their life from the beginning? In my ministry I have never found any whom the Lord did not have to do a bit of work on at his potter's wheel!
The Lord is forming us and our whole nation. Our duty is to let him form us as he wills. If we resist him and his efforts to reform us, we will be lost. He may throw out our clay and start over with someone else (or some other nation). Our only option is to repent if we don't want to be uprooted and torn down.
It sounds menacing when this passage says that the Lord is planning a disaster for us. It sounds like we had better watch our steps. It also sounds like we had better make sure our nation also turns from evil! We spend a lot of time arguing over what is evil today. Why don't we ask him to tell us before it is too late -- or at least check his Book to find out!
Bob O.
Philemon 1:1-21
Nathaniel Hawthorne, upon completing a manuscript, always sought the approval of his wife for its emotional appeal. On the night that he finished The Scarlet Letter, he read to her the closing chapter. Upon hearing the story, it so broke her heart that she went to bed with a severe headache. Hawthorne said, "I look upon that as a triumphant success."
Application: Paul spoke of his disciples as ones after his own heart.
Ron L.
Philemon 1:1-21
It happens in books and in movies all the time. A long lost brother. A twin sister previously unknown. The villain turns out to be the hero's father. The butler is revealed to be the billionaire's son. And each time it happens, the relationship changes. The butler is now more than just the butler. The villain is no longer the faceless enemy.
As children of God, we are connected to each other in Jesus Christ. The stranger now is somebody important. People around us can never be mere stepping stones to be used, obstacles to be overcome, or competitors to defeat and outshine. Instead, in Christ we are brother and sisters, mothers and fathers. In Christ we are one family.
Scott B.
Philemon 1:1-21
This troubling book regarding Paul's interaction with the slave of a Christian implies a number of fruitful illustrations for getting across the point that God cares for the poor, for those who have been and are enslaved, and that they have an important contribution to make to the life of the church. Slavery is still a problem in the modern world. As recently as 2010 the U.S. State Department's office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons reported 1.3 million persons are enslaved. And poverty is of course the condition of slaves, just as poverty itself enslaves. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that 1 in 6 Americans lives in poverty, and a disproportionate number of these are the heirs of slaves (African Americans and Native Americans).
The reality portrayed in the text pertaining to the slave Onesimus' faithfulness illustrates a trend today and through much of human history. Poor people tend to be more devout than those in better financial positions. A 2009 study of the Gallup organization revealed that while 84% of the global population claim religion is an important part of their lives, in poor nations 95% of the population made this claim.
God seems to have a special mission and a special concern for the poor. This is a text to make that clear to parishioners, to stop their bashing of those enchained by poverty. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (2448) concisely makes this point: "For those who are oppressed by poverty are the object of a preferential love on the part of the church... to work for their relief, defenses, and liberation through numerous works of charity which remain indispensable always and everywhere."
Mark E.
Luke 14:25-33
Dietrich Bonhoeffer asks the pertinent question: "How can we live the Christian life in the modern world?" In his book The Cost of Discipleship, he writes about the passion with which Jesus is speaking to the crowds in Luke's text:
Jesus summons [people] to follow him not as a teacher or a pattern of the good life, but as the Christ, the Son of God... It is nothing else than [being captive] to Jesus Christ alone... No other significance is possible, since Jesus is the only significance... He alone matters.
Bonhoeffer continues to describe how discipleship is not hero worship "but obedience to the Son of God," who when he calls a person to follow, bids that person "come and die."
Mark M.
Luke 14:25-33
This scripture forbids us from hating anyone, much less our family. The word should be translated "love less than." In other words, Jesus wants to be at the top of our list. This calls into question those who would gladly give their own life for God, but would have to think twice if their wife or kids were threatened -- as has happened frequently even today. How can we love God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind if we have other priorities? This is worth thinking about! I'm sure it wouldn't be too much for some of us to give God our houses or our wealth or other material things. That could make it difficult for some to be disciples. It may not mean we are damned -- because there is always forgiveness -- but it may not put us on the top of God's list.
We are even supposed to carry our cross. When I read a book that described what went on at a crucifixion it turned my stomach! It is one of the most horrible ways to die. I wouldn't mind carrying it like Simon of Cyrene, but then I would hand it over to our Lord. We read that several of the disciples died on crosses. Peter even asked to be crucified upside down. He did not feel worthy to die like his Lord. They must have known what you went through on a cross. Following our Lord wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for that cross!
If we want to build a church, will we not first check out the cost? If we run out of money halfway through, won't that be embarrassing? Not only for us and our congregation, but maybe for our whole denomination! It could even embarrass our Lord. This is true especially since the foundation has already been laid by our Lord, as scripture tells us.
The next one is one we should send to the president and congress! Some want us to charge right ahead and attack, but others want to first check out the cost in dollars and human lives. In America each side is shouting at each other! We even hate to see our country negotiating with an "enemy" for fear of looking weak. North Korea goes too far in that direction!
I don't think the last verse tells us to rush right out and sell all we have and give it away. It is more a willingness to sacrifice all for our Lord if we want to be his disciple.
In the Revolutionary War some soldiers gave up everything to serve, though later some revolted when the new government wanted to tax them when they had given all and had nothing left.
What are you willing to sacrifice for our Lord to be his disciple or are most of us happy to just squeak through in hopes God will accept the smidgen we are willing to give?
Bob O.
