Easter 5
Preaching
Hear My Voice
Preaching The Lectionary Psalms for Cycles A, B, C
We will meet Psalm 22 in its entirety on Good Friday, but here the lectionary designates just verses 23-31. The lectionary psalms generally illuminate the week's First Lesson, which in this case is about the covenant initiated by God with Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 17. The nine verses from this psalm, while not inappropriate, nonetheless leave us looking for an obvious connection with the First Lesson.
Structurally, the entire psalm falls into two parts. Verses 1-21a are a prayer for help, and verses 21b-31 are a song of praise for help given. In this second part, the one who has been delivered comes to offer praise for deliverance, and to arrange to pay whatever vows have been made (v. 25) during the plea for help.
Perhaps a connection with the First Lesson text can be drawn between vow-keeping and covenant-keeping: although, in biblical practice, vows tend to be made in connection with specific events whereas covenants tend to describe a whole way of living. Nonetheless, it can be useful to talk of vows today.
One reason to do so is that some people think of vows in terms of "bargains" with God. "Just let my wife get better, O Lord, and I will give up smoking," or "Help me out of this one jam, O God, and I promise never to lie again." While the Old Testament does give an example of that kind of vow making (Genesis 28:20-22), more often vows are freely made into promises that are not necessarily quid pro quo (though once made, they are considered binding). In the New Testament, Jesus condemns the abuse of vow making (Matthew 15:4-6; Mark 7:10-13).
In any case, it is worth challenging people on this matter of attempting a bargain with the Almighty. While it is certainly an understandable reaction when faced with the serious illness of oneself or a loved one, or when contemplating the unpleasant consequences of one's misdeeds, it is also a way of making God too small.
Recently, a man told me of how he prayed during his young son's struggle for life following a freak accident. The man, though a professing Christian, also viewed pornography from time to time, but in the face of his son's hospitalization, vowed to God to give up the pornography if only God would spare his son. A few weeks later, but before his son's outcome was certain, it came to the man while in prayer that he had no business treating God as someone to be bargained with. And so, while he continued to pray for his son's recovery, the man turned his son's well-being over to God and changed his vow to be that whether his son recovered or not, he would give up pornography. He would do that out of his devotion to God. As it happened, the son made a full recovery, and the man kept his promise, but he told me that he was prepared to do so in any eventuality. The vow had been made.
-- S. P.
Structurally, the entire psalm falls into two parts. Verses 1-21a are a prayer for help, and verses 21b-31 are a song of praise for help given. In this second part, the one who has been delivered comes to offer praise for deliverance, and to arrange to pay whatever vows have been made (v. 25) during the plea for help.
Perhaps a connection with the First Lesson text can be drawn between vow-keeping and covenant-keeping: although, in biblical practice, vows tend to be made in connection with specific events whereas covenants tend to describe a whole way of living. Nonetheless, it can be useful to talk of vows today.
One reason to do so is that some people think of vows in terms of "bargains" with God. "Just let my wife get better, O Lord, and I will give up smoking," or "Help me out of this one jam, O God, and I promise never to lie again." While the Old Testament does give an example of that kind of vow making (Genesis 28:20-22), more often vows are freely made into promises that are not necessarily quid pro quo (though once made, they are considered binding). In the New Testament, Jesus condemns the abuse of vow making (Matthew 15:4-6; Mark 7:10-13).
In any case, it is worth challenging people on this matter of attempting a bargain with the Almighty. While it is certainly an understandable reaction when faced with the serious illness of oneself or a loved one, or when contemplating the unpleasant consequences of one's misdeeds, it is also a way of making God too small.
Recently, a man told me of how he prayed during his young son's struggle for life following a freak accident. The man, though a professing Christian, also viewed pornography from time to time, but in the face of his son's hospitalization, vowed to God to give up the pornography if only God would spare his son. A few weeks later, but before his son's outcome was certain, it came to the man while in prayer that he had no business treating God as someone to be bargained with. And so, while he continued to pray for his son's recovery, the man turned his son's well-being over to God and changed his vow to be that whether his son recovered or not, he would give up pornography. He would do that out of his devotion to God. As it happened, the son made a full recovery, and the man kept his promise, but he told me that he was prepared to do so in any eventuality. The vow had been made.
-- S. P.
