Fourth Sunday After The Epiphany
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle C
Object:
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Jeremiah 1:4-10 (C, E); Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19 (RC)
Jeremiah has been called the "father of true prayer." Writing some time in the seventh century B.C, he carried the idea of supernatural monotheism with a profound ethical emphasis to its highest level. Here we find Jeremiah receiving his call from God who, as Jeremiah understood, predestined Jeremiah to this mission. Jeremiah's protests that he was too young for his calling were brushed aside by God who assured the young man that he, God, would see to it that Jeremiah was supplied with any needed abilities, particularly the ability to speak persuasively. The words of Jeremiah were henceforth to have a profound influence over the nation, resulting at once in tearing down of the bad and building up of the good.
Were one to preach on this passage, it seems to me the heart of the promise here is that when one feels called by God to any work, that person can be sure that God will prepare and arm him or her for the job. Any sense of inadequacy is understandable, but when God calls us, we are well advised to respond.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 (C); 1 Corinthians 12:31--13:13 (RC)
This passage has no peer. If there is anything in the Bible which God directly influenced, this must surely be such. Paul has reached the stars with these words. It's almost presumptuous to attempt to elaborate what Paul has written here. Yet we must. I have often used verses 4 through 7 in wedding ceremonies, and while I know there are endless possibilities here, I would use those four verses in order to pin things down a bit. The essence of these verses, of all the passage in fact, is that true love is sacrificial and faithful.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 14:12b-20 (E)
Two sermon themes come to mind from this passage. Paul suggests that if one wishes to experience a manifestation of the Spirit, it is necessary to build up the Church. Clearly, for him the Church is custodian of that Spirit. Verse 15 also commends making sense when in prayer.
Gospel: Luke 4:21-30 (C, RC); Luke 4:21-32 (E)
This is a strange passage in some ways. I doubt that the average sincere, busy Christian, trying to get in some Bible reading while facing a heavy workload, could make much sense out of it. Some things are obvious. The local townspeople weren't very happy with Jesus. He seemed much too willing to include the Gentiles in the divine promise, and the prevailing point of view would have been to be shocked by this. In fact, this passage provides a good example of the reason we should use the Lectionary. In my pre-lectionary days, I would never have used this. I thought there were too many other passages with a lot more value. Nonetheless, this does confront us with some issues.
We could, of course, pick up on the point that "no prophet is acceptable in his own country." We preachers are familiar with this, at least some of us are. When I first began preaching in a church near the university where I had been a student many years earlier, I saw several of my former fraternity brothers in worship with that "Yeah, it's the same guy" look on their faces.
Two possible themes of value appear to me in this passage. The first is the sad fact that the people were so put off by the feeling that this fellow who had merely been one of them for several years was now this famous evangelist. How could he know any more than they did, for goodness sakes? And therefore, they missed out on a great truth which might have brought them happiness, perhaps saved the lives of some. This theme was suggested by Bowie in Interpreter's Bible Commentary.
The other theme is suggested in Barclay's commentary: Jesus went to the synagogue even though he disagreed, was even irritated, by much that went on there. Still, he knew that was the place where one could grow and learn spiritually. This suggests a counterpart today as we see so many churches with dreary, unexciting worship and programming. The spiritually mature person does not run from the church. That person tries, in a loving, non-judgmental way, to help bring new life to the local church.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Stepping Up And Stepping Out"
Text: Jeremiah 1:4-10
Theme: It's my belief that everyone has some purpose to fulfill in this life. Some are called to the specific work of God as was Jeremiah. I feel that way about my own life, and I know you do about yours. Some may be called to other forms of worthy endeavor. Medicine, law, education -- but also carpentry, engineering, counseling, piloting -- any vocation which contributes to the welfare of humanity and which creates a positive benefit to the world. I watch the young men who gather trash in a large truck every Wednesday from our neighborhood. Believe me, with two young girls in our family, we have a lot of trash. Thank goodness there are people to do that and I respect them every bit as much as the policeman and the grocer and my physician. If I'm right, this should teach us something about social stratification. One person is not better than another if each is doing what he or she has been equipped to do, does so honestly and faithfully, and has a sense of the general welfare as well as one's own best interests. God empowers each of us when we do things in that way.
Title: "Love Never Fails"
Text: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Theme: One might discuss the difference between eros and agape. That used to seem ever so slightly pedantic, but in more recent times many people have become aware of the distinction. In an era when we love sports, and fried foods, and long vacations, as well as spouses and children, it's worthwhile to understand that eros love has its place. It's okay to love all those things. But agape love sets one's own agenda aside for the sake of the other. While we're all sinners and can't do that completely, it is our aim.
1. Love is patient and kind. "I'm bankrupt without love," wrote Peterson in The Message. Bishop Fulton Sheen correctly pointed out that true love has three main characteristics: kindness, kindness, and kindness. Patience means we put up with troublesome characteristics in those whom we would love.
2. Love is not jealous or boastful. This applies in a variety of ways. As far as jealousy is concerned, it means for one thing that I encourage my wife to have male friends her own age. Our trust level is such that this doesn't bother me. As for boastfulness, one thing it means is that I don't try to subtly drop the fact that I just received this or that honor while having lunch with a friend who is depressed about his progress in his work.
3. Love is not arrogant or rude. In other words, people who love are not self-important. If only some people could learn that the individual who is genuinely interested in other people, sincerely listens to them, shares of oneself but not in bragging or upstaging ways, is the one who has many valued friends. One of my friends received an honorary degree. He never mentioned it (I was glad for him but he just doesn't know how to boast). I learned of it two years later though we'd been together many times.
4. Love does not insist on its own way. That's certainly a practical word in every marriage. Where we eat, how we decorate, who we invite, where we vacation, what we watch -- what a loving family it is when two people genuinely want the other person to be happy. It's the opposite of the nagging, selfish, competitive attitudes that so easily destroy love.
Title: "Words Which Save"
Text: Luke 4:21-30
Theme: (If using the latter theme mentioned above, staying in the church, I would place emphasis that the church does not need harsh judges or self-righteous reformers. It does need upbeat, kind-hearted, positive-thinking people of sincere faith to help make it a better church).
I would place my emphasis on the former theme: how easily we miss the truth when we do not listen. There was a sad example of this in our local newspaper. A young man in his early twenties was speaking before a large gathering of high school students. He has AIDS and observed, "I don't know just when I will die." The import of his speech was the fact that he used to fall asleep during health classes when he was in high school. He said, "I didn't even know what AIDS was, and I missed all the warnings about the way it is spread. If I had only listened, it would have saved my life." He then went on to warn the other students to "pay attention."
1. Truth is truth no matter who speaks it.
2. God conveys truth to us in many ways, including through people we may not necessarily know or admire.
3. Our own jealousies and petty self-interest can too easily deafen us to truths which can save.
4. In church, whether the word is brilliantly preached, or humbly so, the truth is, nonetheless, true with the power to save.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
The poem "Les Sylphides" describes the death of romantic love in marriage. It describes two young lovers, dreaming of flowers, and flowing rivers, and satin, and waltzing trees. They marry:
So they were married -- to be the more together --
And found they were never again so much together
Divided by the morning tea
By the evening paper,
By the children and tradesmen's bills.
Waking at times in the night she found assurance
In his regular breathing but wondered whether
It was really worth it and where
The river had flowed away
And where were the white flowers.
____________
In preparation for Valentine's Day, a certain woman went to a portrait painter and asked to have him paint her, also asking that she be shown with a diamond necklace around her neck. The painter agreed, and suggested she bring the necklace for her first sitting. However, she explained that she didn't really have such a necklace. "But," she said, "my husband shows a lot of interest in a younger woman down the street. If he ever leaves me, I want her to spend the rest of her life wondering where that diamond necklace could be."
____________
The story is told of a man installing a sidewalk. As he knelt, smoothing the concrete surface, a little boy walked by and scratched his initials into the wet surface. The man, angered, shouted at the boy and sent the kid scurrying away. A bystander, amused, asked the man: "Don't you like little boys?" The man replied: "I like them in the abstract, but not in the concrete." (re: the need to make abstract biblical ideas concrete)
____________
Edwin Markham, at the end of his distinguished career, retired and looked forward to a restful last few years. But he then made the shocking discovery that a banker friend had stolen all his money. But he had no proof, no legal recourse. He became very bitter, and one day said to himself, "I must make a living. I'll start writing again." But he discovered he could no longer write. Hour after hour he alternately sat before his typewriter and paced the floor, but his creativity was gone. All he could concentrate on was his hatred of the man who had betrayed him.
One day, Markham sat at his desk, absently drawing circles on a piece of paper. Suddenly, he said to himself, "I must forgive him or I shall die." Then, in final surrender, he cried out "I do forgive him." He stared at those circles, and they reminded him that God had forgiven him much in his life. He later wrote, "If God can love me and include me in His circle of love, I must forgive this one who has wronged me." Then something powerful happened to Markham, something clean and hopeful flooded into his heart. He wrote four lines which many of us can repeat:
He drew a circle that shut me out;
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the wit to win.
We drew a circle that took him in.
From that time on, Edward Markham wrote some of his greatest poetry and songs. He had his greatest career after the age of sixty because of love. Truly, there is liberating power that comes through forgiveness.
-- Reported in Together magazine in 1978
____________
Dr. Karl Menninger believed that the main reason for the sickness of his patients was lack of love. Either they had not had someone to love, or they had not been loved.
____________
Roger Williams, founder of the Baptist Church in America, used to tell a story about a ship during a storm at sea. One of the passengers became afraid because of a reef he knew to lie ahead. He went to the captain's quarters and implored the captain to change course. The captain brushed the man aside, amused that a mere passenger would presume to try to tell the ship's captain how to run his ship.
The passenger, however, refused to give up. He pestered the crew and the passengers, begging them to try to change the captain's mind. Finally, fed up with this man's incessant complaining, they threw him overboard. Shortly after, the ship hit a reef and sank. Williams said the moral of the story is this: You can get rid of people who warn of dangers but you can't get rid of the dangers.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 71:1-6 -- "In Thee, O Lord, do I take refuge."
Prayer Of The Day
Help us to engage in the inner struggle to be lovers of people as against our native self-centeredness. Help us be vigilant in noticing the needs of those close to us, needs which we could easily meet with little cost to ourselves. Help us to find within ourselves a willingness to sacrifice, and the courage to give that love which you have chosen to make available to others through us. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.
Lesson 1: Jeremiah 1:4-10 (C, E); Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19 (RC)
Jeremiah has been called the "father of true prayer." Writing some time in the seventh century B.C, he carried the idea of supernatural monotheism with a profound ethical emphasis to its highest level. Here we find Jeremiah receiving his call from God who, as Jeremiah understood, predestined Jeremiah to this mission. Jeremiah's protests that he was too young for his calling were brushed aside by God who assured the young man that he, God, would see to it that Jeremiah was supplied with any needed abilities, particularly the ability to speak persuasively. The words of Jeremiah were henceforth to have a profound influence over the nation, resulting at once in tearing down of the bad and building up of the good.
Were one to preach on this passage, it seems to me the heart of the promise here is that when one feels called by God to any work, that person can be sure that God will prepare and arm him or her for the job. Any sense of inadequacy is understandable, but when God calls us, we are well advised to respond.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 (C); 1 Corinthians 12:31--13:13 (RC)
This passage has no peer. If there is anything in the Bible which God directly influenced, this must surely be such. Paul has reached the stars with these words. It's almost presumptuous to attempt to elaborate what Paul has written here. Yet we must. I have often used verses 4 through 7 in wedding ceremonies, and while I know there are endless possibilities here, I would use those four verses in order to pin things down a bit. The essence of these verses, of all the passage in fact, is that true love is sacrificial and faithful.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 14:12b-20 (E)
Two sermon themes come to mind from this passage. Paul suggests that if one wishes to experience a manifestation of the Spirit, it is necessary to build up the Church. Clearly, for him the Church is custodian of that Spirit. Verse 15 also commends making sense when in prayer.
Gospel: Luke 4:21-30 (C, RC); Luke 4:21-32 (E)
This is a strange passage in some ways. I doubt that the average sincere, busy Christian, trying to get in some Bible reading while facing a heavy workload, could make much sense out of it. Some things are obvious. The local townspeople weren't very happy with Jesus. He seemed much too willing to include the Gentiles in the divine promise, and the prevailing point of view would have been to be shocked by this. In fact, this passage provides a good example of the reason we should use the Lectionary. In my pre-lectionary days, I would never have used this. I thought there were too many other passages with a lot more value. Nonetheless, this does confront us with some issues.
We could, of course, pick up on the point that "no prophet is acceptable in his own country." We preachers are familiar with this, at least some of us are. When I first began preaching in a church near the university where I had been a student many years earlier, I saw several of my former fraternity brothers in worship with that "Yeah, it's the same guy" look on their faces.
Two possible themes of value appear to me in this passage. The first is the sad fact that the people were so put off by the feeling that this fellow who had merely been one of them for several years was now this famous evangelist. How could he know any more than they did, for goodness sakes? And therefore, they missed out on a great truth which might have brought them happiness, perhaps saved the lives of some. This theme was suggested by Bowie in Interpreter's Bible Commentary.
The other theme is suggested in Barclay's commentary: Jesus went to the synagogue even though he disagreed, was even irritated, by much that went on there. Still, he knew that was the place where one could grow and learn spiritually. This suggests a counterpart today as we see so many churches with dreary, unexciting worship and programming. The spiritually mature person does not run from the church. That person tries, in a loving, non-judgmental way, to help bring new life to the local church.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Stepping Up And Stepping Out"
Text: Jeremiah 1:4-10
Theme: It's my belief that everyone has some purpose to fulfill in this life. Some are called to the specific work of God as was Jeremiah. I feel that way about my own life, and I know you do about yours. Some may be called to other forms of worthy endeavor. Medicine, law, education -- but also carpentry, engineering, counseling, piloting -- any vocation which contributes to the welfare of humanity and which creates a positive benefit to the world. I watch the young men who gather trash in a large truck every Wednesday from our neighborhood. Believe me, with two young girls in our family, we have a lot of trash. Thank goodness there are people to do that and I respect them every bit as much as the policeman and the grocer and my physician. If I'm right, this should teach us something about social stratification. One person is not better than another if each is doing what he or she has been equipped to do, does so honestly and faithfully, and has a sense of the general welfare as well as one's own best interests. God empowers each of us when we do things in that way.
Title: "Love Never Fails"
Text: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Theme: One might discuss the difference between eros and agape. That used to seem ever so slightly pedantic, but in more recent times many people have become aware of the distinction. In an era when we love sports, and fried foods, and long vacations, as well as spouses and children, it's worthwhile to understand that eros love has its place. It's okay to love all those things. But agape love sets one's own agenda aside for the sake of the other. While we're all sinners and can't do that completely, it is our aim.
1. Love is patient and kind. "I'm bankrupt without love," wrote Peterson in The Message. Bishop Fulton Sheen correctly pointed out that true love has three main characteristics: kindness, kindness, and kindness. Patience means we put up with troublesome characteristics in those whom we would love.
2. Love is not jealous or boastful. This applies in a variety of ways. As far as jealousy is concerned, it means for one thing that I encourage my wife to have male friends her own age. Our trust level is such that this doesn't bother me. As for boastfulness, one thing it means is that I don't try to subtly drop the fact that I just received this or that honor while having lunch with a friend who is depressed about his progress in his work.
3. Love is not arrogant or rude. In other words, people who love are not self-important. If only some people could learn that the individual who is genuinely interested in other people, sincerely listens to them, shares of oneself but not in bragging or upstaging ways, is the one who has many valued friends. One of my friends received an honorary degree. He never mentioned it (I was glad for him but he just doesn't know how to boast). I learned of it two years later though we'd been together many times.
4. Love does not insist on its own way. That's certainly a practical word in every marriage. Where we eat, how we decorate, who we invite, where we vacation, what we watch -- what a loving family it is when two people genuinely want the other person to be happy. It's the opposite of the nagging, selfish, competitive attitudes that so easily destroy love.
Title: "Words Which Save"
Text: Luke 4:21-30
Theme: (If using the latter theme mentioned above, staying in the church, I would place emphasis that the church does not need harsh judges or self-righteous reformers. It does need upbeat, kind-hearted, positive-thinking people of sincere faith to help make it a better church).
I would place my emphasis on the former theme: how easily we miss the truth when we do not listen. There was a sad example of this in our local newspaper. A young man in his early twenties was speaking before a large gathering of high school students. He has AIDS and observed, "I don't know just when I will die." The import of his speech was the fact that he used to fall asleep during health classes when he was in high school. He said, "I didn't even know what AIDS was, and I missed all the warnings about the way it is spread. If I had only listened, it would have saved my life." He then went on to warn the other students to "pay attention."
1. Truth is truth no matter who speaks it.
2. God conveys truth to us in many ways, including through people we may not necessarily know or admire.
3. Our own jealousies and petty self-interest can too easily deafen us to truths which can save.
4. In church, whether the word is brilliantly preached, or humbly so, the truth is, nonetheless, true with the power to save.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
The poem "Les Sylphides" describes the death of romantic love in marriage. It describes two young lovers, dreaming of flowers, and flowing rivers, and satin, and waltzing trees. They marry:
So they were married -- to be the more together --
And found they were never again so much together
Divided by the morning tea
By the evening paper,
By the children and tradesmen's bills.
Waking at times in the night she found assurance
In his regular breathing but wondered whether
It was really worth it and where
The river had flowed away
And where were the white flowers.
____________
In preparation for Valentine's Day, a certain woman went to a portrait painter and asked to have him paint her, also asking that she be shown with a diamond necklace around her neck. The painter agreed, and suggested she bring the necklace for her first sitting. However, she explained that she didn't really have such a necklace. "But," she said, "my husband shows a lot of interest in a younger woman down the street. If he ever leaves me, I want her to spend the rest of her life wondering where that diamond necklace could be."
____________
The story is told of a man installing a sidewalk. As he knelt, smoothing the concrete surface, a little boy walked by and scratched his initials into the wet surface. The man, angered, shouted at the boy and sent the kid scurrying away. A bystander, amused, asked the man: "Don't you like little boys?" The man replied: "I like them in the abstract, but not in the concrete." (re: the need to make abstract biblical ideas concrete)
____________
Edwin Markham, at the end of his distinguished career, retired and looked forward to a restful last few years. But he then made the shocking discovery that a banker friend had stolen all his money. But he had no proof, no legal recourse. He became very bitter, and one day said to himself, "I must make a living. I'll start writing again." But he discovered he could no longer write. Hour after hour he alternately sat before his typewriter and paced the floor, but his creativity was gone. All he could concentrate on was his hatred of the man who had betrayed him.
One day, Markham sat at his desk, absently drawing circles on a piece of paper. Suddenly, he said to himself, "I must forgive him or I shall die." Then, in final surrender, he cried out "I do forgive him." He stared at those circles, and they reminded him that God had forgiven him much in his life. He later wrote, "If God can love me and include me in His circle of love, I must forgive this one who has wronged me." Then something powerful happened to Markham, something clean and hopeful flooded into his heart. He wrote four lines which many of us can repeat:
He drew a circle that shut me out;
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the wit to win.
We drew a circle that took him in.
From that time on, Edward Markham wrote some of his greatest poetry and songs. He had his greatest career after the age of sixty because of love. Truly, there is liberating power that comes through forgiveness.
-- Reported in Together magazine in 1978
____________
Dr. Karl Menninger believed that the main reason for the sickness of his patients was lack of love. Either they had not had someone to love, or they had not been loved.
____________
Roger Williams, founder of the Baptist Church in America, used to tell a story about a ship during a storm at sea. One of the passengers became afraid because of a reef he knew to lie ahead. He went to the captain's quarters and implored the captain to change course. The captain brushed the man aside, amused that a mere passenger would presume to try to tell the ship's captain how to run his ship.
The passenger, however, refused to give up. He pestered the crew and the passengers, begging them to try to change the captain's mind. Finally, fed up with this man's incessant complaining, they threw him overboard. Shortly after, the ship hit a reef and sank. Williams said the moral of the story is this: You can get rid of people who warn of dangers but you can't get rid of the dangers.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 71:1-6 -- "In Thee, O Lord, do I take refuge."
Prayer Of The Day
Help us to engage in the inner struggle to be lovers of people as against our native self-centeredness. Help us be vigilant in noticing the needs of those close to us, needs which we could easily meet with little cost to ourselves. Help us to find within ourselves a willingness to sacrifice, and the courage to give that love which you have chosen to make available to others through us. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.
