Proper 10
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle A
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Genesis 25:19-34 (C)
Esau wasn't very smart, that's a certainty. He was in line as firstborn to inherit whatever wealth his father Isaac possessed, and it's hard to believe he didn't know how that worked. However, Esau was an outdoorsman, a fellow who loved to hunt and fish, and probably he had more confidence in his brother Jacob than the facts would later warrant. In any event, we find Esau coming in from the fields while Jacob is having a meal. Rabidly hungry, Esau asks for some of the food. First, though, Jacob asks him to give him his birthright. Esau readily agrees, eats the food, and fails to realize until later what has just been done to him. We read this, knowing that ancient tradition was so ironclad that Esau would not be able to repudiate his promise, though just to make sure, mother Rebekah would pull a fast one on old Isaac. Of course, this whole story was written after the fact, and serves to account for the fact that the earlier arriving tribes in the Palestine area were not to be predominant in the development of Judaism.
Lesson 1: Isaiah 55:10-11 (RC); Isaiah 55:1-5, 10-13 (E)
What joyous celebration must have accompanied the recitation of this poetry. It is a promise of abundant life, of fulfillment without further cost, because David has been faithful. So, the word of God will nurture the people's spirit just as the rain and the snow nurture the earth. The people of Israel will be preeminent, and the other nations will turn to them for leadership.
Lesson 2: Romans 8:1-11 (C); Romans 8:18-23 (RC)
The early portions of this passage are discussed in last week's commentary. The latter verses,18-23, deserve our attention now, and are highly significant to an explanation of the problem of suffering. Paul has earned the right to discuss suffering, given his incredible history. (See 2 Corinthians 11:16-33.) Paul was able, through faith, to accept his many sufferings, realizing that something so wonderful lies ahead that what he has faced in this life will seem trivial by comparison. The world is currently giving birth to a new world which is being superimposed on the old one. The old is in its death throes, the new is opening up for all those who have in them the Spirit of Christ. Meantime, we must wait with patience for all to be revealed. Since Paul seems never to have been completely clear in his own mind as to how soon all of this must happen, we can't know for sure whether he thought as he wrote this that it might be in his own time. In any event, for this to be true, it must be in a time which lies beyond death. We know that Paul believed profoundly in that. (See 1 Corinthians 15:12f.)
Lesson 2: Romans 8:9-17 (E)
(See Proper 9)
Gospel: Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 (C, E); Matthew 13:1-23 (RC)
Great story. After telling of the seed falling on barren ground, rocky soil, among thorns, and on good soil, Jesus explains what he meant. It's pretty clear-cut. We don't all respond to the Christian message the same way. I'm not even sure this delineates four different individual responses. Maybe we all vary from one to another. I know a couple folks who seem constantly enthusiastic about their faith yet who don't always seem to treat everyone lovingly. One man brings it up in every conversation. In fact, it's hard to get a word in edgewise if you don't agree with him. One study group had to ask him to leave the group so other people could explore their faith without receiving a lecture with all the answers. On the other hand, I know several people who don't claim any great faith, yet who unfailingly treat everyone around them with love. I myself have hours when I feel those thorns choking me, and other times when I fear the birds have been at it. This is a challenging passage on which to preach.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Rascals Of The Faith"
Text: Genesis 25:19-34
Theme: This is a story which I don't think we would ever find in the New Testament. Paul would have been mortified at Esau, selling his birthright like that. In Paul's words, he had his mind on the flesh and not the spirit. Esau's fate worked out well according to the Genesis version, but I don't think Paul would expect such a conclusion. I suppose one could preach on the evils of emphasizing worldly things at the cost of one's faith, but that falls apart in this case inasmuch as Esau's life had, by ancient standards, a fairly happy ending. I'm more inclined to guess that here was a family more interested in success and reputation than in character and faithfulness. Families like that often turn out people like Jacob. I know he was part of God's plan for the Jews. I realize God can use bad people for good results. But I prefer not to applaud Esau or Jacob for what they did. In New Testament terms, they were both wrong and neither seems at any time to recognize the fact. And Momma? Rebekah was a culprit too. Isaac? He should have scolded both boys, then corrected the situation, instead of caving in. Probably he was too old to have the energy. (Reader: I realize this story is made of whole cloth to explain certain tribal relationships, but it does offend one's ethical sensibilities.) I form two conclusions. One, the Jews of the time believed God wasn't as picky as Jesus taught, in seeing that his will be done. And two, they were faced with some problems in recording their history for the future generations. This story at least accounts for the alignment of tribal communities of the time.
Title "Faith And The Struggle Within"
Text: Romans 8:18-23
Theme: Paul believed that suffering would be the lot of the Christian for the foreseeable future, just as Jesus seems to have believed. The analogy of labor pains, while perhaps bringing a smile to the feminine reader, given the fact that Paul knew about such only by observation, was meant to say that something new is being born, a new world, a new understanding of the meaning of creation and the nature of God. The pain to which Paul alluded was of a different sort from that which we must face as Christians, but that doesn't mean it's easy today. Paul wrote at a time when to be a Christian was to be a member of a small minority, one primarily made up of outcasts, small-town folks, and probably some heretofore unhappy people who had found new hope in the teachings of Jesus. One imagines that the Establishment was sparsely represented. Since the Romans bitterly resented any competition with their Emperor worship, and Christianity was beginning to make inroads among the populace, to announce a belief in Christ was to run the serious risk of painful consequences.
Today, of course, the reverse is true. There are even conservative communities all over America where people who don't have a church affiliation are looked upon with disapproval. But there are more subtle forms of suffering connected with the faith. Few are on a par with those associated with Nero, but they can still be difficult.
1. There's inner pain in the clash between our impulses and our Christian values. Anyone who has ever heard a group of clergy off together at a conference knows what gossips we can be. Yet we preach against it. Anyone who has been invited to a meeting in which he has no interest has dealt with the impulse to say, "I'd love to be there but I have another commitment," (which isn't true) while preparing a sermon on honesty. I remember once yelling at a slow driver (with my window closed) while working on a sermon based on the new axiom, "random acts of kindness." And money? Goodness me, how often have some of us railed against the current preoccupation with money and success, only to grouse about our Personnel Committee's (whatever name our church gives it) failure to give us a handsome raise?
2. There's inner pain in the conflict between our loftier commitment to human values and our desire for approval from the Establishment. Each of us has an audience whose approval we desire. Most clergy would probably identify that with our own congregation. A friend of mine, not long ago, frankly announced to his congregation that his church is open to gay people without judgment. That week, two of his most "generous" members left the church. Others asked the pastor if he felt his announcement was appropriate. He admitted that he hated the disapproval he received from a few people, but he believed he was right (the rest of the congregation backed him up, agree or not). That couple of weeks was no fun for him though.
3. There's inner pain in the conflict between our desire to be faithful servants and our desire to be "successful." I have no right to stand in judgment of colleagues in this matter. And yet, who among us dares cast the first stone at that clergy person (or anyone) who wishes for public recognition and acclaim? The church has subtle ways of testing us in this regard, especially us Methodists, with our conference journals which announce salaries, church attendance, who did and who did not pay apportionments. Throw in honorary degrees and some of the other forms of recognition, and it's a sainted soul who remains free of jealousy and snide observations at some of this.
Title: "On Living The Christian Faith"
Text: Matthew 13:1-23
Theme: There are differences of opinion as to how the parables are to be interpreted. My own view is that the simplest explanation is the right one. The folks to whom Jesus spoke would have had no opportunity to read C. H. Dodd and others whose reputation is based in part on their expertise on the parables. In this case, Jesus made it easy.
1. The Sower. That was, first of all, Jesus. Today, it can be the preacher. Significant is the fact that Jesus sowed willy-nilly. That is, he often spoke to large groups so that anyone could listen. On the other hand, some of Jesus' most important teachings were spoken to one or a few people. Apparently, Jesus was prepared to tell of the promise and the requirements of the Kingdom of God at every opportunity. Of course, the words were heard by a wide variety of people, each with needs which were unique. Jesus clearly felt that each listener was free to respond as he or she would without pressure or judgment from Jesus. Actually, the Sower is anyone who witnesses to the faith. For those to whom it may be natural, this may take the form of verbal witnessing. To others, living the faith is the best witness. The point to be made here is that this is not for a chosen few but for anyone we may encounter along life's way.
2. The Seed. Part of the significance of this parable, understood by farmers, perhaps not quite so obvious to some of us city folks, is the fact that seed takes time to germinate, grow, produce fruit. Those preachers who are effective in your work, especially as the years go by, will find one of your great rewards is the letter from a parishioner from years back, who tells of the effect your ministry or, it may be, some particular sermon had on his life. Former Methodist Bishop Gerald Kennedy told of the letter he received from a young man, referring to a sermon Kennedy had preached on some particular occasion. Kennedy said he recalled the occasion and the sermon quite well. He had come away feeling it was one of his worst sermons. But this young man said it was that sermon which caused him to enter the ministry. Likewise, with children, we may become discouraged in the short run, yet most of us can look back upon the excellent conduct of someone who thereby influenced us, though we may never have told him. The family which extols Jesus Christ will always see the day when this custom bears rich fruit.
3. The Ground. That, of course, is us. As preachers, we fully realize there will be those who, after some initial enthusiasm, fall away from the church and the faith. That does not mean, however, that the faith was lost to them. There is still tomorrow. There will also be those enthusiastic church volunteers who are there for everything -- bless their hearts. But sometimes among them is the one who spreads dissension and distrust among the congregation. A friend of mine is battling this right now. He has a church member, very active, who is stirring up some opposition to my friend who is, in fact, doing a great work. Only God can know which individual is the thorns, which the rich ground. I can make that observation regarding others. But for me, I must understand that if I am to fall in the category of fertile soil, I am to produce evidence of this in the way I treat others and the way I live my life. As the parable says, I must produce fruit.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
One of my favorite Bible stories, found in all three synoptic Gospels, is the story of the "rich young ruler" -- each gospel uses one of these descriptions -- who comes to Jesus one day and asks how he can find eternal life. Jesus replies that he must keep the commandments. The young man, probably a good person but also probably a Pharisee who defined good according to laws, insists that he has kept the commandments. Jesus then tells him something which perplexes a lot of people today. He tells him to sell all his possessions and give the money to the poor. The young man decides he has too much in the way of worldly goods to consider this, so sadly walks away. The price is too high. However, Jesus surely didn't mean that literally. Economic chaos would result if very many of us tried to sell everything. If we all did so, there would be no demand, no buyers, no money. What Jesus really meant was "things have become too important to you -- possessions, influence, fame. You must rearrange your values, put first things first, if you are ever to find eternal life." But the genius of this story is the fact that Jesus let the man walk away. He trusted him. Jesus was willing to wait. He had sown the seed. Now it must germinate.
____________
Some of us have forgotten the price others paid that we might have the Bible. In the early sixteenth century, a man named Tyndale defied the ban on Bibles, went to Europe, had Bibles printed in English, then shipped them to England hidden in bales of cotton. He was eventually caught and imprisoned near Brussels. At last he was strangled for his "crime," his body was burned, and the ashes scattered to the winds. That's how the Bible came to be available in the English language, and that's how Christianity has walked forward on bleeding feet.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 119:104-112 (C) -- "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
Psalm 65 (RC, E) -- "By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance."
Prayer Of The Day
O God, we turn to thee as pain deep within seeks to rend us. We do not pray to be set free unless that be thy will. We do pray for courage to endure, for strength to walk in faith, for integrity by which to continue in the work to which we are called. Thy will be done. Amen.
Lesson 1: Genesis 25:19-34 (C)
Esau wasn't very smart, that's a certainty. He was in line as firstborn to inherit whatever wealth his father Isaac possessed, and it's hard to believe he didn't know how that worked. However, Esau was an outdoorsman, a fellow who loved to hunt and fish, and probably he had more confidence in his brother Jacob than the facts would later warrant. In any event, we find Esau coming in from the fields while Jacob is having a meal. Rabidly hungry, Esau asks for some of the food. First, though, Jacob asks him to give him his birthright. Esau readily agrees, eats the food, and fails to realize until later what has just been done to him. We read this, knowing that ancient tradition was so ironclad that Esau would not be able to repudiate his promise, though just to make sure, mother Rebekah would pull a fast one on old Isaac. Of course, this whole story was written after the fact, and serves to account for the fact that the earlier arriving tribes in the Palestine area were not to be predominant in the development of Judaism.
Lesson 1: Isaiah 55:10-11 (RC); Isaiah 55:1-5, 10-13 (E)
What joyous celebration must have accompanied the recitation of this poetry. It is a promise of abundant life, of fulfillment without further cost, because David has been faithful. So, the word of God will nurture the people's spirit just as the rain and the snow nurture the earth. The people of Israel will be preeminent, and the other nations will turn to them for leadership.
Lesson 2: Romans 8:1-11 (C); Romans 8:18-23 (RC)
The early portions of this passage are discussed in last week's commentary. The latter verses,18-23, deserve our attention now, and are highly significant to an explanation of the problem of suffering. Paul has earned the right to discuss suffering, given his incredible history. (See 2 Corinthians 11:16-33.) Paul was able, through faith, to accept his many sufferings, realizing that something so wonderful lies ahead that what he has faced in this life will seem trivial by comparison. The world is currently giving birth to a new world which is being superimposed on the old one. The old is in its death throes, the new is opening up for all those who have in them the Spirit of Christ. Meantime, we must wait with patience for all to be revealed. Since Paul seems never to have been completely clear in his own mind as to how soon all of this must happen, we can't know for sure whether he thought as he wrote this that it might be in his own time. In any event, for this to be true, it must be in a time which lies beyond death. We know that Paul believed profoundly in that. (See 1 Corinthians 15:12f.)
Lesson 2: Romans 8:9-17 (E)
(See Proper 9)
Gospel: Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 (C, E); Matthew 13:1-23 (RC)
Great story. After telling of the seed falling on barren ground, rocky soil, among thorns, and on good soil, Jesus explains what he meant. It's pretty clear-cut. We don't all respond to the Christian message the same way. I'm not even sure this delineates four different individual responses. Maybe we all vary from one to another. I know a couple folks who seem constantly enthusiastic about their faith yet who don't always seem to treat everyone lovingly. One man brings it up in every conversation. In fact, it's hard to get a word in edgewise if you don't agree with him. One study group had to ask him to leave the group so other people could explore their faith without receiving a lecture with all the answers. On the other hand, I know several people who don't claim any great faith, yet who unfailingly treat everyone around them with love. I myself have hours when I feel those thorns choking me, and other times when I fear the birds have been at it. This is a challenging passage on which to preach.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Rascals Of The Faith"
Text: Genesis 25:19-34
Theme: This is a story which I don't think we would ever find in the New Testament. Paul would have been mortified at Esau, selling his birthright like that. In Paul's words, he had his mind on the flesh and not the spirit. Esau's fate worked out well according to the Genesis version, but I don't think Paul would expect such a conclusion. I suppose one could preach on the evils of emphasizing worldly things at the cost of one's faith, but that falls apart in this case inasmuch as Esau's life had, by ancient standards, a fairly happy ending. I'm more inclined to guess that here was a family more interested in success and reputation than in character and faithfulness. Families like that often turn out people like Jacob. I know he was part of God's plan for the Jews. I realize God can use bad people for good results. But I prefer not to applaud Esau or Jacob for what they did. In New Testament terms, they were both wrong and neither seems at any time to recognize the fact. And Momma? Rebekah was a culprit too. Isaac? He should have scolded both boys, then corrected the situation, instead of caving in. Probably he was too old to have the energy. (Reader: I realize this story is made of whole cloth to explain certain tribal relationships, but it does offend one's ethical sensibilities.) I form two conclusions. One, the Jews of the time believed God wasn't as picky as Jesus taught, in seeing that his will be done. And two, they were faced with some problems in recording their history for the future generations. This story at least accounts for the alignment of tribal communities of the time.
Title "Faith And The Struggle Within"
Text: Romans 8:18-23
Theme: Paul believed that suffering would be the lot of the Christian for the foreseeable future, just as Jesus seems to have believed. The analogy of labor pains, while perhaps bringing a smile to the feminine reader, given the fact that Paul knew about such only by observation, was meant to say that something new is being born, a new world, a new understanding of the meaning of creation and the nature of God. The pain to which Paul alluded was of a different sort from that which we must face as Christians, but that doesn't mean it's easy today. Paul wrote at a time when to be a Christian was to be a member of a small minority, one primarily made up of outcasts, small-town folks, and probably some heretofore unhappy people who had found new hope in the teachings of Jesus. One imagines that the Establishment was sparsely represented. Since the Romans bitterly resented any competition with their Emperor worship, and Christianity was beginning to make inroads among the populace, to announce a belief in Christ was to run the serious risk of painful consequences.
Today, of course, the reverse is true. There are even conservative communities all over America where people who don't have a church affiliation are looked upon with disapproval. But there are more subtle forms of suffering connected with the faith. Few are on a par with those associated with Nero, but they can still be difficult.
1. There's inner pain in the clash between our impulses and our Christian values. Anyone who has ever heard a group of clergy off together at a conference knows what gossips we can be. Yet we preach against it. Anyone who has been invited to a meeting in which he has no interest has dealt with the impulse to say, "I'd love to be there but I have another commitment," (which isn't true) while preparing a sermon on honesty. I remember once yelling at a slow driver (with my window closed) while working on a sermon based on the new axiom, "random acts of kindness." And money? Goodness me, how often have some of us railed against the current preoccupation with money and success, only to grouse about our Personnel Committee's (whatever name our church gives it) failure to give us a handsome raise?
2. There's inner pain in the conflict between our loftier commitment to human values and our desire for approval from the Establishment. Each of us has an audience whose approval we desire. Most clergy would probably identify that with our own congregation. A friend of mine, not long ago, frankly announced to his congregation that his church is open to gay people without judgment. That week, two of his most "generous" members left the church. Others asked the pastor if he felt his announcement was appropriate. He admitted that he hated the disapproval he received from a few people, but he believed he was right (the rest of the congregation backed him up, agree or not). That couple of weeks was no fun for him though.
3. There's inner pain in the conflict between our desire to be faithful servants and our desire to be "successful." I have no right to stand in judgment of colleagues in this matter. And yet, who among us dares cast the first stone at that clergy person (or anyone) who wishes for public recognition and acclaim? The church has subtle ways of testing us in this regard, especially us Methodists, with our conference journals which announce salaries, church attendance, who did and who did not pay apportionments. Throw in honorary degrees and some of the other forms of recognition, and it's a sainted soul who remains free of jealousy and snide observations at some of this.
Title: "On Living The Christian Faith"
Text: Matthew 13:1-23
Theme: There are differences of opinion as to how the parables are to be interpreted. My own view is that the simplest explanation is the right one. The folks to whom Jesus spoke would have had no opportunity to read C. H. Dodd and others whose reputation is based in part on their expertise on the parables. In this case, Jesus made it easy.
1. The Sower. That was, first of all, Jesus. Today, it can be the preacher. Significant is the fact that Jesus sowed willy-nilly. That is, he often spoke to large groups so that anyone could listen. On the other hand, some of Jesus' most important teachings were spoken to one or a few people. Apparently, Jesus was prepared to tell of the promise and the requirements of the Kingdom of God at every opportunity. Of course, the words were heard by a wide variety of people, each with needs which were unique. Jesus clearly felt that each listener was free to respond as he or she would without pressure or judgment from Jesus. Actually, the Sower is anyone who witnesses to the faith. For those to whom it may be natural, this may take the form of verbal witnessing. To others, living the faith is the best witness. The point to be made here is that this is not for a chosen few but for anyone we may encounter along life's way.
2. The Seed. Part of the significance of this parable, understood by farmers, perhaps not quite so obvious to some of us city folks, is the fact that seed takes time to germinate, grow, produce fruit. Those preachers who are effective in your work, especially as the years go by, will find one of your great rewards is the letter from a parishioner from years back, who tells of the effect your ministry or, it may be, some particular sermon had on his life. Former Methodist Bishop Gerald Kennedy told of the letter he received from a young man, referring to a sermon Kennedy had preached on some particular occasion. Kennedy said he recalled the occasion and the sermon quite well. He had come away feeling it was one of his worst sermons. But this young man said it was that sermon which caused him to enter the ministry. Likewise, with children, we may become discouraged in the short run, yet most of us can look back upon the excellent conduct of someone who thereby influenced us, though we may never have told him. The family which extols Jesus Christ will always see the day when this custom bears rich fruit.
3. The Ground. That, of course, is us. As preachers, we fully realize there will be those who, after some initial enthusiasm, fall away from the church and the faith. That does not mean, however, that the faith was lost to them. There is still tomorrow. There will also be those enthusiastic church volunteers who are there for everything -- bless their hearts. But sometimes among them is the one who spreads dissension and distrust among the congregation. A friend of mine is battling this right now. He has a church member, very active, who is stirring up some opposition to my friend who is, in fact, doing a great work. Only God can know which individual is the thorns, which the rich ground. I can make that observation regarding others. But for me, I must understand that if I am to fall in the category of fertile soil, I am to produce evidence of this in the way I treat others and the way I live my life. As the parable says, I must produce fruit.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
One of my favorite Bible stories, found in all three synoptic Gospels, is the story of the "rich young ruler" -- each gospel uses one of these descriptions -- who comes to Jesus one day and asks how he can find eternal life. Jesus replies that he must keep the commandments. The young man, probably a good person but also probably a Pharisee who defined good according to laws, insists that he has kept the commandments. Jesus then tells him something which perplexes a lot of people today. He tells him to sell all his possessions and give the money to the poor. The young man decides he has too much in the way of worldly goods to consider this, so sadly walks away. The price is too high. However, Jesus surely didn't mean that literally. Economic chaos would result if very many of us tried to sell everything. If we all did so, there would be no demand, no buyers, no money. What Jesus really meant was "things have become too important to you -- possessions, influence, fame. You must rearrange your values, put first things first, if you are ever to find eternal life." But the genius of this story is the fact that Jesus let the man walk away. He trusted him. Jesus was willing to wait. He had sown the seed. Now it must germinate.
____________
Some of us have forgotten the price others paid that we might have the Bible. In the early sixteenth century, a man named Tyndale defied the ban on Bibles, went to Europe, had Bibles printed in English, then shipped them to England hidden in bales of cotton. He was eventually caught and imprisoned near Brussels. At last he was strangled for his "crime," his body was burned, and the ashes scattered to the winds. That's how the Bible came to be available in the English language, and that's how Christianity has walked forward on bleeding feet.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 119:104-112 (C) -- "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
Psalm 65 (RC, E) -- "By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance."
Prayer Of The Day
O God, we turn to thee as pain deep within seeks to rend us. We do not pray to be set free unless that be thy will. We do pray for courage to endure, for strength to walk in faith, for integrity by which to continue in the work to which we are called. Thy will be done. Amen.
