Sermon Illustrations for Proper 27 | Ordinary Time 32 (2020)
Illustration
Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25
Trent C. Butler, in his revision of his Word Biblical Commentary on Joshua (v. 2, p 321) zooms in on a couple of Hebrew words in Joshua 24:14. Joshua calls upon the people to serve God in two different ways. The first, tamyeem, translated in the NRSV as “in sincerity,” can mean both “totally” and “perfectly.” This can refer to the completion of a unit of time like the day or year, or it can also refer to the perfection of an animal chosen to be sacrificed. It is unexpected because the word is not usually used to describe people. The other word, emet, is translated as “faithfulness” in the NRSV, and it too is a quality that is rarely used for humans in the Hebrew Bible. So what Joshua is calling them to be is something unexpected, beyond the norm, and maybe even surprising. Joshua is calling the people to mirror the perfection and faithfulness of God towards the people, loyalty that is complete and total. The example the people have for this sort of behavior is God more than it is other people! That’s a tall order.
Frank R.
* * *
Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25
The coronavirus had affected everyone by July 2020. The order to “shelter-in-place,” the need for businesses to either close or limit capacity, the slowdown in production due to new safety standards and workers illness, brought suffering to many lives and caused economic hardship for individuals and businesses alike. Churches were equally affected as their doors were closed to public worship.
One of the most prominent churches in the United States has suffered from COVID-19. Saint Patrick’s Cathedral is located in the center of the business district of New York City. Even though the church is located in the central city of Manhattan, surrounded by business skyscrapers and hotels, absent of any residential community, it is still considered a parish church. As such, it is responsible for all of its own finances. The church has always been dependent on tourists and office workers to fill its pews and collection plates. Now, surrounded by empty office buildings and empty hotels, the church has lost its source of revenue.
Prior to the pandemic, 12,000 to 15,000 people worshiped at St. Patrick’s on Sunday. This month, fewer than 400 attended worship. On a normal Sunday, worshipers’ financial contribution to the church would be $1 million a month. The monthly income now, during the coronavirus pandemic, is $350,000. The church had five million tourists pass through its doors annually, who made both contributions and purchased items from the gift shop. The tourists have stopped coming.
The rector of the cathedral, Msgr. Robert T. Ritchie, said of the present financial situation of the church, “We rely on the goodness and generosity of people to support us because we don’t get any money from any other source beside what comes through our doors.” Presently, the cathedral has a $4 million budget shortfall.
Ron L.
* * *
Joshua 24:1-3, 14-25
“Guideposts” shares the story of world-renowned tenor Luciano Pavarotti. In the account, Pavarotti tells the story of a difficult choice he had to make as a young man.
"When I was a boy, my father, a baker, introduced me to the wonders of song," tenor Luciano Pavarotti relates. "He urged me to work very hard to develop my voice. Arrigo Pola, a professional tenor in my hometown of Modena, Italy, took me as a pupil. I also enrolled in a teachers’ college. On graduating, I asked my father, 'Shall I be a teacher or a singer?'
"'Luciano,' my father replied, 'if you try to sit on two chairs, you will fall between them. For life, you must choose one chair.'
"I chose one. It took seven years of study and frustration before I made my first professional appearance. It took another seven to reach the Metropolitan Opera. And now I think whether it's laying bricks, writing a book--whatever we choose--we should give ourselves to it. Commitment, that's the key. Choose one chair."
Choose one chair. That’s one way of putting what Joshua told the Israelites in this passage. The Lord had delivered their ancestors from Egypt and had brought them to the Promised Land. Joshua told them they had a choice. They could serve the gods of Egypt or the gods of the Amorites in whose land they were. He makes it clear, though, “but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua made his choice. We all have a choice to make.
Bill T.
* * *
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Encouragement can be hard to find in these days of pandemic. How do we encourage people of faith in these days? What do we do or say? I preach hope. When I was in seminary, I was teasingly referred to as the minister of hope. It probably had something to do with my optimism, but I think it is more than that — much more than that. I anchor myself in the hope of God — the hope that there is more for us, much more for us than the current circumstances. All that is not to say that I, too, don’t get discouraged, but I cling to the hope Paul writes about in 1 Thessalonians — there is encouragement in the knowledge that this life is not all there is, there is an eternal life of peace, joy and love waiting for us. As Pastor John Robinson told the Pilgrims as they set sail from the Netherlands, "There is yet more truth and light to break forth from God's Holy Word." That is the encouragement and hope to which I cling.
Bonnie B.
* * *
Thessalonians 4:13-18
Elections are all about the future and the hope for the future. But Americans do not have much hope. According to a Pew Research Center 2019 poll taken just as the pandemic was emerging, 60% of us believe the U.S. will be less important in the world; 65% believe our political polarization will get worse. A poll taken by Pew in the midst of our pandemic in June found that only 46% of Americans were hopeful, and 66% of us are fearful about the future. Americans need more hope than even the election results afford (for some). The lesson is about the real source of our hope. Two 16th-century reformers offer some relevant comments about that hope which really matters. John Calvin claimed that our text is seeking to “restrain excessive grief, which never had had such an influence among them, if they had seriously considered the resurrection and kept it in remembrance.” (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol.XXI/2, p.279) Martin Luther offered some comments about the hope for the future we might have:
We should learn to wait for God. No matter how other things turn out – whether a persecution comes upon us instead of the Presence of God which we had expected and which He had promised or whether we feel the wrath of God... we should say: I believe, I am baptized. I have absolution, I have the divine promise of grace and mercy. These reassurances are enough for me. Whether night or day, tribulation or job, come to me, I will not let go of His mercy or despond at heart. (What Luther Says, p.670)
American life looks better, not just because of the election (for some of us the election made it worse), but that because of the resurrection of Jesus and our own resurrections to come, the future is filled with hope.
Mark E.
* * *
Matthew 25:1-13
Prior to accepting the position on the Eisenhower cabinet as Secretary of Agriculture, Ezra Taft Benson made one request. He requested that all cabinet sessions begin with prayer. President Dwight David Eisenhower quickly agreed to Benson’s request. When the first cabinet meeting convened, the President forgot Benson’s request and omitted the opening prayer. Benson wrote the President a memo reminding him of their prior agreement. At the next cabinet meeting, held on February 6, 1953, Eisenhower inquired of the other officials if an opening prayer was acceptable to them. All agreed. They decided the prayer would be silent, though anyone was free to pray verbally. The president would end the brief silence with the words, “Thank you.”
Ron L.
* * *
Matthew 25:1-13
It’s surprising we know so little about wedding customs in biblical times. The Bible says very little on the subject. Take the customs in this story. Some people think it reflects a time when the future groom would first set out to earn the money for the couple to set up a household, and therefore his return was unknown and unknowable, until one day at dusk the lights of the torches would make it clear the groom was returning with his attendants. The bride and her bridesmaids were expected to be about the task of preparing for the wedding without knowing when it would occur.
It’s not clear if these are strictly local customs, perhaps Galilean, or even just Capernaum, or if they were the rule of people throughout the region, Jew and Gentile. Things like these were not written down because everybody already knew them.
Frank R.
* * *
Matthew 25:1-13
A college student had just started in school. One morning, after class, he went out to start his car to go to work. He saw right away he had a flat tire, but he wasn’t concerned. He had a spare. He changed tire quickly and got to work on time. He didn't have time to drop spare off to be fixed and thought, "I'll get around to it." He never did quite “get around to it.”
A week later, he went out to car after work to go back to the dorm. He saw it right away; another flat. Only this time no spare! He had to roll the flat tire almost two miles to nearest station and wait while it was fixed. Being prepared matters when it comes to tires and driving.
Being prepared matters spiritually, too. The five foolish bridesmaids brought no oil with them and had to go buy some when the bridegroom arrived. Because they were unprepared, they missed the wedding banquet. The door was shut while they were gone, and they were left out. The point is clear. Regarding the coming of Jesus, “Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” Are you prepared?
Bill T.
Trent C. Butler, in his revision of his Word Biblical Commentary on Joshua (v. 2, p 321) zooms in on a couple of Hebrew words in Joshua 24:14. Joshua calls upon the people to serve God in two different ways. The first, tamyeem, translated in the NRSV as “in sincerity,” can mean both “totally” and “perfectly.” This can refer to the completion of a unit of time like the day or year, or it can also refer to the perfection of an animal chosen to be sacrificed. It is unexpected because the word is not usually used to describe people. The other word, emet, is translated as “faithfulness” in the NRSV, and it too is a quality that is rarely used for humans in the Hebrew Bible. So what Joshua is calling them to be is something unexpected, beyond the norm, and maybe even surprising. Joshua is calling the people to mirror the perfection and faithfulness of God towards the people, loyalty that is complete and total. The example the people have for this sort of behavior is God more than it is other people! That’s a tall order.
Frank R.
* * *
Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25
The coronavirus had affected everyone by July 2020. The order to “shelter-in-place,” the need for businesses to either close or limit capacity, the slowdown in production due to new safety standards and workers illness, brought suffering to many lives and caused economic hardship for individuals and businesses alike. Churches were equally affected as their doors were closed to public worship.
One of the most prominent churches in the United States has suffered from COVID-19. Saint Patrick’s Cathedral is located in the center of the business district of New York City. Even though the church is located in the central city of Manhattan, surrounded by business skyscrapers and hotels, absent of any residential community, it is still considered a parish church. As such, it is responsible for all of its own finances. The church has always been dependent on tourists and office workers to fill its pews and collection plates. Now, surrounded by empty office buildings and empty hotels, the church has lost its source of revenue.
Prior to the pandemic, 12,000 to 15,000 people worshiped at St. Patrick’s on Sunday. This month, fewer than 400 attended worship. On a normal Sunday, worshipers’ financial contribution to the church would be $1 million a month. The monthly income now, during the coronavirus pandemic, is $350,000. The church had five million tourists pass through its doors annually, who made both contributions and purchased items from the gift shop. The tourists have stopped coming.
The rector of the cathedral, Msgr. Robert T. Ritchie, said of the present financial situation of the church, “We rely on the goodness and generosity of people to support us because we don’t get any money from any other source beside what comes through our doors.” Presently, the cathedral has a $4 million budget shortfall.
Ron L.
* * *
Joshua 24:1-3, 14-25
“Guideposts” shares the story of world-renowned tenor Luciano Pavarotti. In the account, Pavarotti tells the story of a difficult choice he had to make as a young man.
"When I was a boy, my father, a baker, introduced me to the wonders of song," tenor Luciano Pavarotti relates. "He urged me to work very hard to develop my voice. Arrigo Pola, a professional tenor in my hometown of Modena, Italy, took me as a pupil. I also enrolled in a teachers’ college. On graduating, I asked my father, 'Shall I be a teacher or a singer?'
"'Luciano,' my father replied, 'if you try to sit on two chairs, you will fall between them. For life, you must choose one chair.'
"I chose one. It took seven years of study and frustration before I made my first professional appearance. It took another seven to reach the Metropolitan Opera. And now I think whether it's laying bricks, writing a book--whatever we choose--we should give ourselves to it. Commitment, that's the key. Choose one chair."
Choose one chair. That’s one way of putting what Joshua told the Israelites in this passage. The Lord had delivered their ancestors from Egypt and had brought them to the Promised Land. Joshua told them they had a choice. They could serve the gods of Egypt or the gods of the Amorites in whose land they were. He makes it clear, though, “but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua made his choice. We all have a choice to make.
Bill T.
* * *
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Encouragement can be hard to find in these days of pandemic. How do we encourage people of faith in these days? What do we do or say? I preach hope. When I was in seminary, I was teasingly referred to as the minister of hope. It probably had something to do with my optimism, but I think it is more than that — much more than that. I anchor myself in the hope of God — the hope that there is more for us, much more for us than the current circumstances. All that is not to say that I, too, don’t get discouraged, but I cling to the hope Paul writes about in 1 Thessalonians — there is encouragement in the knowledge that this life is not all there is, there is an eternal life of peace, joy and love waiting for us. As Pastor John Robinson told the Pilgrims as they set sail from the Netherlands, "There is yet more truth and light to break forth from God's Holy Word." That is the encouragement and hope to which I cling.
Bonnie B.
* * *
Thessalonians 4:13-18
Elections are all about the future and the hope for the future. But Americans do not have much hope. According to a Pew Research Center 2019 poll taken just as the pandemic was emerging, 60% of us believe the U.S. will be less important in the world; 65% believe our political polarization will get worse. A poll taken by Pew in the midst of our pandemic in June found that only 46% of Americans were hopeful, and 66% of us are fearful about the future. Americans need more hope than even the election results afford (for some). The lesson is about the real source of our hope. Two 16th-century reformers offer some relevant comments about that hope which really matters. John Calvin claimed that our text is seeking to “restrain excessive grief, which never had had such an influence among them, if they had seriously considered the resurrection and kept it in remembrance.” (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol.XXI/2, p.279) Martin Luther offered some comments about the hope for the future we might have:
We should learn to wait for God. No matter how other things turn out – whether a persecution comes upon us instead of the Presence of God which we had expected and which He had promised or whether we feel the wrath of God... we should say: I believe, I am baptized. I have absolution, I have the divine promise of grace and mercy. These reassurances are enough for me. Whether night or day, tribulation or job, come to me, I will not let go of His mercy or despond at heart. (What Luther Says, p.670)
American life looks better, not just because of the election (for some of us the election made it worse), but that because of the resurrection of Jesus and our own resurrections to come, the future is filled with hope.
Mark E.
* * *
Matthew 25:1-13
Prior to accepting the position on the Eisenhower cabinet as Secretary of Agriculture, Ezra Taft Benson made one request. He requested that all cabinet sessions begin with prayer. President Dwight David Eisenhower quickly agreed to Benson’s request. When the first cabinet meeting convened, the President forgot Benson’s request and omitted the opening prayer. Benson wrote the President a memo reminding him of their prior agreement. At the next cabinet meeting, held on February 6, 1953, Eisenhower inquired of the other officials if an opening prayer was acceptable to them. All agreed. They decided the prayer would be silent, though anyone was free to pray verbally. The president would end the brief silence with the words, “Thank you.”
Ron L.
* * *
Matthew 25:1-13
It’s surprising we know so little about wedding customs in biblical times. The Bible says very little on the subject. Take the customs in this story. Some people think it reflects a time when the future groom would first set out to earn the money for the couple to set up a household, and therefore his return was unknown and unknowable, until one day at dusk the lights of the torches would make it clear the groom was returning with his attendants. The bride and her bridesmaids were expected to be about the task of preparing for the wedding without knowing when it would occur.
It’s not clear if these are strictly local customs, perhaps Galilean, or even just Capernaum, or if they were the rule of people throughout the region, Jew and Gentile. Things like these were not written down because everybody already knew them.
Frank R.
* * *
Matthew 25:1-13
A college student had just started in school. One morning, after class, he went out to start his car to go to work. He saw right away he had a flat tire, but he wasn’t concerned. He had a spare. He changed tire quickly and got to work on time. He didn't have time to drop spare off to be fixed and thought, "I'll get around to it." He never did quite “get around to it.”
A week later, he went out to car after work to go back to the dorm. He saw it right away; another flat. Only this time no spare! He had to roll the flat tire almost two miles to nearest station and wait while it was fixed. Being prepared matters when it comes to tires and driving.
Being prepared matters spiritually, too. The five foolish bridesmaids brought no oil with them and had to go buy some when the bridegroom arrived. Because they were unprepared, they missed the wedding banquet. The door was shut while they were gone, and they were left out. The point is clear. Regarding the coming of Jesus, “Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” Are you prepared?
Bill T.
