Emphasis Preaching Journal

1 Kings 19:1-4 (5-7) 8-15a and Psalm 42-43
I can’t tell you how often in the past year I have sought the peace that comes from resting in God. Almost every day the stress and strain of just living in peace with my neighbors can be a challenge to my peace, not to mention the chaos and the violence that is reported in the news every day. These are the moments when I wonder where God is, how God is present with me and the world. These are the moments, like Elijah, that I want to escape from all that is going on. While I am not seeking death, some days peace seems impossible while living in the world.

Then I am reminded that Elijah heard God in the silence, not in the cacophony of the world. Elijah is reminded to eat, to drink, to rest. Then Elijah goes forth to seek God — who is not found in wind, earthquakes, or fire, but is the still, small voice heard in the silence. That remembrance reminds me that resting in the mountains, by the streams, or simply in the quiet in my own home, is where I will hear God and where I will find God’s peace. These scriptures are great reminders of the need for self-care and quiet. I will move in that direction.
Bonnie B.

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1 Kings 19:1-4 (5-7) 8-15a
Life can be frightening sometimes. Thus it is both comforting but disconcerting to find a giant of faith like Elijah to fear the future. On that matter Martin Luther once claimed:

For we know that the greatest and most saintly men often fell in a horrible fashion and became contaminated not only with error and common weakness but also with the greatest sin. In this we are willing to have them as allies and examples to comfort us. Let us not think that they were statues, stones, or trunks of trees, but they were like ourselves. Elijah received an answer from God to his prayer that it should not rain for three years, but later he felt his flesh trembling and begging that he should be allowed to die. (Luther’s Works, Vol.6, p.177)

Concerning verse7 John Wesley adds a word of hope, reminding us that “Wherever God’s children are, they are still under their Father.” (Commentary On the Bible, p.219) And he also noted:

At the best, so the bravest of men are no more than what God makes them. (Commentary On the Bible, p.289)
Mark E.

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Psalms 42 and 43
Martin Luther understood the text as a reminder of our blindness toward God. He notes:

… it is difficult and not unusual for anyone to remember God and recall his goodness and mercy in the time of prosperity. (Luther’s Works, Vo.10, p.202)

Augustine made a related point:

For no one took to the remission of sins, except he who is dissatisfied with himself. (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol.8, p.135)  

Regarding the psalmist seeking God even in death, famed modern theologian Karl Barth claimed that of course this is not possible for those trapped in death. Yet Barth offers a word of hope, the hope for the miracle even for those trapped in death. He writes:

What lies beyond is the absolute miracle of salvation out of the midst of death, and the proclamation of this miracle… [But] In itself, to be dead is to be unable to live, even to live with God. (Church Dogmatics, Vol.III/2, p.593)  

Salvation from death, remission of sin, is nothing to take for granted, since it is literally impossible, and so can only be miraculous.
Mark E.

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Luke 8:26-39
For sermons on the Bible’s miracles like the one reported here, Martin Luther offered a timely comment regarding why such miracles seem no longer to happen. He wrote:

God will perform no miracles so long as problems can be solved by means of other gifts he has bestowed on us. (What Luther Says, p.955)

Regarding the theme of evangelism conveyed by the text, eminent 20th-century evangelical author C. S. Lewis thoughtfully reflects on the topic. He once wrote:

The church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time. God became man for no other purpose.

Martin Luther himself stressed the importance of evangelism:

We live on earth for no other purpose than to be helpful to others. Otherwise, it would be best for God to take away our breath and let us die as soon as we are baptized and have begun to live. But he lets us live here in order that we may lead other people to believe, doing for them what he has done for us. (What Luther Says, p. 961)
Mark E.

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Galatians 3:23-29
In a wealthy Greek or Roman household, the parents would assign someone, usually a slave, to watch over their son. It was his responsibility to keep the boy safe and out of trouble. That slave (called the paidagogos) taught the boy discipline and manners. The paidagōgos was not the teacher who provided formal, academic instruction. His job was to make sure the child went to the teacher. Later, he would accompany the lad home to ensure that there were no unscheduled detours.

It is fascinating to me that Paul uses the term “paidagogos” to describe the role the law played in the lives of the Galatian Christians. The NRSV translates it “disciplinarian.” That English word does a decent job of explaining the role. The ESV translates it “guardian.” The King James Version says, “schoolmaster,” and the NASB says, “tutor.” Again, all of these translations capture some of the essence of that word. Understanding, however, the Greek practice behind the word reveals even more about the law’s purpose. Like the “paidagogus” brought the child where he needed to go, the law brings people where they need to go. The law points out how people need Jesus. In 1984, Steve Green released a song whose message still resonates today. “People Need the Lord.”
Bill T.

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Galatians 3:23-29
In the second Christian century a Roman named Celsus laid out the case against Christianity. His book does not survive, except in those passages quoted from “Against Celsus,” a second-century work by Origen. One of Celsus’ criticisms is that Christianity was a religion of women, children, and slaves. Worship took place in house churches, and houses were the domain of women. One sees this also in the letter of Pliny the Younger to the Emperor Trajan, where he states that in an attempt to find out the truth of Christianity, he tortured two deacons, both women, both slaves, yet all he could discover was that Christians met before dawn to share a meal and to sing a hymn to Christ as to a god. These practices caused the Roman historian Tacitus to dismiss Christianity as “a most mischievous superstition” which spread from Judea to Rome “where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular.”

Women? Slaves? Judeans? Guilty as charged. As Paul writes in Galatians 3:28, “There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”
Frank R.

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Luke 8:26-39
The legion of demons who possess the demoniac are unmasked by Jesus. Note that unlike so many in the gospel, they recognize the lordship and power of Jesus. They address him, after all, as “Son of the Most High God.” Most High God was the way Gentiles referred to the God of the Judeans, YHWH. They dread being returned into the abyss, and beg to be allowed to enter into a herd of pigs. These animals were unclean to Judeans, and perhaps they imagined they’d therefore be safe from the God of the Judeans. Instead, their fear of being returned to the abyss comes true — for the waters in which the pigs drown are a symbol of the chaos which the Spirit of God conquers in the first verses of Genesis. In the religions of the era chaos remained a factor, always ready to well up and envelope whatever order had emerged temporarily. By contrast, the faith we inherit asserted from the start that God is not threatened by chaos, and that all will end in perfect order.
Frank R.

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Luke 8:26-39
I came across this story and, though it is well-used, it is an impactful one. There was a little boy and his older sister visiting their grandparents on their farm. The boy was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods. He practiced, but he could never hit what he was aiming at. Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner. As he was walking back, he saw Grandma's pet duck.

Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the head, and killed it. He was shocked and stricken with remorse. In a panic, he hid its dead body in the wood pile, only to see his sister watching! Sally had seen it all, but didn’t say anything.

After lunch the next day Grandma said, "Sally, let's wash the dishes." But Sally said, "Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen. Then she whispered to him, "Remember the duck?" So, Johnny did the dishes.

Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing and Grandma said, "I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper." Sally just smiled and said," Well that's all right because Johnny told me he wanted to help." She whispered again, "Remember the duck?" So, Sally went fishing and Johnny stayed to help. After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's, he couldn't stand it any longer.

He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck. Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug, and said, "Sweetheart, I know. You see, I was standing at the window, and I saw the whole thing, but because I love you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make a slave of you."

“Make a slave of you.” That line resonated. Sin and Satan have a knack for making slaves of those who open themselves to them. The man Jesus healed was definitely a slave to the demons who possessed him. The joy the man must have had at his new freedom must have been incredible. He asked to go with Jesus. Jesus, though, had a different plan. “Return to your home and declare how much God has done for you.” So, the man did just that. “If the son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36).
Bill T.

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Luke 8:26-39
A legion of demons are said to inhabit the man from Gerasene. Whether the man was suffering from what we would identify as schizophrenia, or there were truly demons in his mind and heart, Jesus knows the need for healing this man. Jesus knows that he needs to feel the presence of healing through the release of Jesus’ actions. And when he is healed, when he is back in his “right” mind, the community was fearful instead of thankful.

How often do we fear miracles in our midst? How often do we disbelieve the power of God, of miraculous healing or atonement or redemption? How often do we fear what we do not understand? I think I can do this often. I question how in all of creation healing comes in the most unlikely places, in the most disconcerting moments? And then why isn’t God bringing the healing that I pray for? Where was the healing for the brain of my five-year-old brother who died? Where was the healing for the lungs of my mother whose love was shared so freely? And in the heart of my father who respected and honored God and men? I’m not sure I understand. But perhaps I am not supposed to understand. Maybe I am just supposed to believe that God, in God’s time and love, will bring healing where it is most needed and welcome others into God’s embrace. I wonder.
Bonnie B.