LENT 3
Worship
Scripture Notes
For use with Common, Lutheran and Roman Catholic Lectionaries
Since the texts selected for the next two Sundays (Lent 3 and Lent 4 of Series A) have Common and Roman Catholic readings that are nearly identical, while the Lutheran readings are entirely different from the Common and the Roman Catholic selections, we shall consider the Common and the Roman Catholic texts first, and then consider the Lutheran selections separately during the next two weeks.
Common, Roman Catholic
The connection between the Exodus 17 and the John 4 texts is clearly the concept of life-supporting water in each of them. The mention of Meribah and of Massah in Psalm 95:8 links that psalm to Exodus 17:3-7. The connections between the Romans 5 text and the other three are tenuous. Perhaps an allusion to the concept of life-supporting water in Exodus 17 and John 4 can be made in the use of the reference in Romans 5:5 to the love of God being poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us, or in the emphasis in Romans 5:1-5 on hope.
Common:
Psalm 95
Roman Catholic: Psalm 95:1-2, 6-9
This popular Community Hymn of Praise (used in Christian worship as the Venite Exultamus of the traditional Matins) includes a warning against disregarding the ways of Yahweh in verses 7b-11. The people of the Lord who live with patient faithfulness shall dwell securely in the land. Those who refuse to heed the ways of the Lord will be rejected.
Common, Roman Catholic: Exodus 17:3-7
In this text the proof of the presence of Yahweh with the people as they moved through the Sinai Peninsula is given in the use of Moses' rod to draw forth water from the rock at Horeb so that the Israelites and their cattle would live. The life-sustaining water was given, according to this text, not because the people were faithful to Yahweh, but because they complained to Moses and Moses complained to Yahweh.
Common:
Romans 5:1-11
Roman Catholic: Romans 5:1-2, 5-8
The gift of God celebrated in this text from Paul is more than water from a rock, important as that may be to those who wander in a desert. The gift here is the Holy Spirit and more specifically the life and death of Jesus the Christ. Paul says that Jesus died for the ungodly, for us while we were sinners. Certainly here the Lenten message is clearly focused.
Common:
John 4:5-26 (27-42)
Roman Catholic: John 4:5-42
There are some interesting similarities and some interesting differences between the First Lesson (Exodus 17:3-7) and this text. In Exodus 17:3-7 the proof of the presence of the Lord (Yahweh) with the people is given in the use of Moses' rod to draw forth water from the rock at Horeb so that the Israelites and their cattle would live. In John 4:5-42 the proof of the presence of the Lord (Jesus) with the people is given in the statement of the Johannine Jesus that he is the Messiah who is coming, who will provide the living water so that those who drink of it will never thirst again. The Johannine Jesus as the Messiah who is to come knows all things and shows all things. The Samaritan woman and the many Samaritans from the city responded correctly; they believed in the Johannine Jesus.
By placing these two texts in juxtaposition, those who selected these pericopes intended to bring to our attention the claim of the Johannine community that the Johannine Jesus is greater than Moses. Perhaps the members of the Johannine community also wished to say that the Johannine Jesus is greater than Yahweh, or at least that the Johannine Jesus is Yahweh among us.
It is our task as proclaimers of the Word to apply the message of this John 4 text to our situation, to communicate in some concrete way that Jesus raised from the dead is the Messiah who is coming who will provide for us living water that is so good that those who drink of it will never thirst again. The most important way in which we can do this is first to believe it ourselves, then to proclaim that we believe it, and finally to demonstrate with our lives that we believe it. The responsibility of the other members of the congregations in which we serve is basically the same as our responsibility in this regard. They too are to believe the gospel in this text, to proclaim it with their lips, and to demonstrate it in their lives.
In order to indicate the essential unity of the message in Exodus 17:3-7 and in John 4, and in order to keep us from falling into the sin of pride of thinking that we are superior to the Jews, we should note that while John 4 proclaims that certain people believed that the Lord had come, Exodus 17:3-7 proclaims that the Lord had come even though people did not believe. To proclaim the gospel even when there is no evidence of faith is as great as to proclaim the gospel that has been accepted by faith.
Lutheran:
It seems obvious, as we look at all four texts selected for this day, that something more than physical blindness and receiving of sight is involved. The human condition is indeed one of blindness from birth because of sin. Light is a gift from God, and sight is a gift from God. We have no "natural" right to them.
Lutheran: Isaiah 42:14-21
In this text Yahweh is presented as promising to lead and guide the blind in paths that they have not known. Yahweh will turn their darkness into light and will not again forsake them. Although the servant people of Yahweh are lost in the darkness of a strange land in Babylonian captivity, Yahweh is now pledged to redeem them.
Lutheran: Psalm 142
An idea similar to that expressed in Isaiah 42:14-21 is offered in Psalm 142 in the form of an individual lament. The psalmist cries aloud to Yahweh. No one else will hear. No one else will deliver. Yahweh will act to deliver the psalmist. The righteous people of God will again surround this hostage whom Yahweh will set free. Then the psalmist will praise the name of Yahweh, the Deliverer.
Lutheran: Ephesians 5:8-14
The Gentile background followers of Jesus addressed by the Pauline writer of Ephesians 5:8-14 are told that they were once blind in darkness, but now they can see with the light of their Lord Jesus the Christ. A source that probably comes from some gnosticizing Christian document unknown to us is quoted in 5:14 as an indication of how the Christ will shine upon these Gentile background followers of Jesus. They are admonished to conduct themselves honorably, as is appropriate for children of light.
Lutheran: John 9:13-17, 34-39
As we turn from Isaiah 42: 14-21, Psalm 142, and Ephesians 5:8-14 to the extended "mini-drama" of John 9, we see that in this mini-drama in "ministry of Jesus" form basically the same message is expressed as in Ephesians 5:8-14 and as in other forms with Yahweh as "Lord" in the Israelite Scriptures texts. When we are not so heavily distracted by the anti-Jewish polemic of this mini-drama (Please see Norman A. Beck, Mature Christianity: The Recognition and Repudiation of the Anti-Jewish Polemic of the New Testament, Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania: Susquehanna University Press, 1985, pp. 261-262), we see how we also who are "blind" from our birth are to be led by stages to full sight. We also are to look up, to recognize in Jesus first a prophet, then the Son of man, and finally in the Johannine Jesus fully revealed to us, a divine figure to be worshiped.
In order to express this message in a way that will be especially memorable next Sunday, perhaps we should ask the people of the congregation to keep their eyes closed during the first part of the proclamation of the message. Better yet, we should ask someone to cut several old clean sheets into strips of cloth to be used as blindfolds for everyone. If it is a Holy Communion Service, at least half of the people could remain blindfolded until they receive the Eucharist, coming forward partially guided by others. Since blindness/darkness and sight/light are so significant in all four of these texts, we can talk about darkness and sin and then move to light and forgiveness as we receive the Eucharist and have our blindfolds and our blindness removed.
Common, Roman Catholic
The connection between the Exodus 17 and the John 4 texts is clearly the concept of life-supporting water in each of them. The mention of Meribah and of Massah in Psalm 95:8 links that psalm to Exodus 17:3-7. The connections between the Romans 5 text and the other three are tenuous. Perhaps an allusion to the concept of life-supporting water in Exodus 17 and John 4 can be made in the use of the reference in Romans 5:5 to the love of God being poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us, or in the emphasis in Romans 5:1-5 on hope.
Common:
Psalm 95
Roman Catholic: Psalm 95:1-2, 6-9
This popular Community Hymn of Praise (used in Christian worship as the Venite Exultamus of the traditional Matins) includes a warning against disregarding the ways of Yahweh in verses 7b-11. The people of the Lord who live with patient faithfulness shall dwell securely in the land. Those who refuse to heed the ways of the Lord will be rejected.
Common, Roman Catholic: Exodus 17:3-7
In this text the proof of the presence of Yahweh with the people as they moved through the Sinai Peninsula is given in the use of Moses' rod to draw forth water from the rock at Horeb so that the Israelites and their cattle would live. The life-sustaining water was given, according to this text, not because the people were faithful to Yahweh, but because they complained to Moses and Moses complained to Yahweh.
Common:
Romans 5:1-11
Roman Catholic: Romans 5:1-2, 5-8
The gift of God celebrated in this text from Paul is more than water from a rock, important as that may be to those who wander in a desert. The gift here is the Holy Spirit and more specifically the life and death of Jesus the Christ. Paul says that Jesus died for the ungodly, for us while we were sinners. Certainly here the Lenten message is clearly focused.
Common:
John 4:5-26 (27-42)
Roman Catholic: John 4:5-42
There are some interesting similarities and some interesting differences between the First Lesson (Exodus 17:3-7) and this text. In Exodus 17:3-7 the proof of the presence of the Lord (Yahweh) with the people is given in the use of Moses' rod to draw forth water from the rock at Horeb so that the Israelites and their cattle would live. In John 4:5-42 the proof of the presence of the Lord (Jesus) with the people is given in the statement of the Johannine Jesus that he is the Messiah who is coming, who will provide the living water so that those who drink of it will never thirst again. The Johannine Jesus as the Messiah who is to come knows all things and shows all things. The Samaritan woman and the many Samaritans from the city responded correctly; they believed in the Johannine Jesus.
By placing these two texts in juxtaposition, those who selected these pericopes intended to bring to our attention the claim of the Johannine community that the Johannine Jesus is greater than Moses. Perhaps the members of the Johannine community also wished to say that the Johannine Jesus is greater than Yahweh, or at least that the Johannine Jesus is Yahweh among us.
It is our task as proclaimers of the Word to apply the message of this John 4 text to our situation, to communicate in some concrete way that Jesus raised from the dead is the Messiah who is coming who will provide for us living water that is so good that those who drink of it will never thirst again. The most important way in which we can do this is first to believe it ourselves, then to proclaim that we believe it, and finally to demonstrate with our lives that we believe it. The responsibility of the other members of the congregations in which we serve is basically the same as our responsibility in this regard. They too are to believe the gospel in this text, to proclaim it with their lips, and to demonstrate it in their lives.
In order to indicate the essential unity of the message in Exodus 17:3-7 and in John 4, and in order to keep us from falling into the sin of pride of thinking that we are superior to the Jews, we should note that while John 4 proclaims that certain people believed that the Lord had come, Exodus 17:3-7 proclaims that the Lord had come even though people did not believe. To proclaim the gospel even when there is no evidence of faith is as great as to proclaim the gospel that has been accepted by faith.
Lutheran:
It seems obvious, as we look at all four texts selected for this day, that something more than physical blindness and receiving of sight is involved. The human condition is indeed one of blindness from birth because of sin. Light is a gift from God, and sight is a gift from God. We have no "natural" right to them.
Lutheran: Isaiah 42:14-21
In this text Yahweh is presented as promising to lead and guide the blind in paths that they have not known. Yahweh will turn their darkness into light and will not again forsake them. Although the servant people of Yahweh are lost in the darkness of a strange land in Babylonian captivity, Yahweh is now pledged to redeem them.
Lutheran: Psalm 142
An idea similar to that expressed in Isaiah 42:14-21 is offered in Psalm 142 in the form of an individual lament. The psalmist cries aloud to Yahweh. No one else will hear. No one else will deliver. Yahweh will act to deliver the psalmist. The righteous people of God will again surround this hostage whom Yahweh will set free. Then the psalmist will praise the name of Yahweh, the Deliverer.
Lutheran: Ephesians 5:8-14
The Gentile background followers of Jesus addressed by the Pauline writer of Ephesians 5:8-14 are told that they were once blind in darkness, but now they can see with the light of their Lord Jesus the Christ. A source that probably comes from some gnosticizing Christian document unknown to us is quoted in 5:14 as an indication of how the Christ will shine upon these Gentile background followers of Jesus. They are admonished to conduct themselves honorably, as is appropriate for children of light.
Lutheran: John 9:13-17, 34-39
As we turn from Isaiah 42: 14-21, Psalm 142, and Ephesians 5:8-14 to the extended "mini-drama" of John 9, we see that in this mini-drama in "ministry of Jesus" form basically the same message is expressed as in Ephesians 5:8-14 and as in other forms with Yahweh as "Lord" in the Israelite Scriptures texts. When we are not so heavily distracted by the anti-Jewish polemic of this mini-drama (Please see Norman A. Beck, Mature Christianity: The Recognition and Repudiation of the Anti-Jewish Polemic of the New Testament, Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania: Susquehanna University Press, 1985, pp. 261-262), we see how we also who are "blind" from our birth are to be led by stages to full sight. We also are to look up, to recognize in Jesus first a prophet, then the Son of man, and finally in the Johannine Jesus fully revealed to us, a divine figure to be worshiped.
In order to express this message in a way that will be especially memorable next Sunday, perhaps we should ask the people of the congregation to keep their eyes closed during the first part of the proclamation of the message. Better yet, we should ask someone to cut several old clean sheets into strips of cloth to be used as blindfolds for everyone. If it is a Holy Communion Service, at least half of the people could remain blindfolded until they receive the Eucharist, coming forward partially guided by others. Since blindness/darkness and sight/light are so significant in all four of these texts, we can talk about darkness and sin and then move to light and forgiveness as we receive the Eucharist and have our blindfolds and our blindness removed.
