Proper 13
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series III
Christians live between the time of the Lord's resurrection and his anticipated return to the earth. Their business is "to proclaim the Lord's death until he comes" in their worship and in their daily living for the Lord. Put another way, Christians are expected to live out their baptism in gratitude for the mercies they have received in Jesus Christ and the love of God. Worship is the celebration of hope, the affirmation of faith in the risen Lord and the anticipation of life in the age to come. It has a "because he lives, we shall also live" dimension to it. Since the Christian lives by faith and in hope of eternal life, he is freed from the old life and empowered, through the Holy Spirit, to live the new life in Jesus Christ. Pentecost is at once the celebration of the reign of the risen Christ and the consolidation of that new life in the Lord. It is a time to know the living Lord and to grow in the Christian faith and life. The readings speak to believers about these possibilities.
The Prayer of the Day
The first of the two prayers assigned to this Sunday in the Lutheran Book of Worship has its roots in the Gospel for the Day, John 6:24-35:
Gracious Father, your blessed Son came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world. Give us this bread, that he may live in us and we in him, Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Psalm of the Day
Psalm 78:1-25 or 78:14-20, 23-25 (E); 78:3-4, 23-25, 54-55 (R); 78:23-29 (L) - For once, the liturgical churches agree on the responsory psalm for one of the Sundays in Pentecost, but, typically, they disagree on how to cut it up for its inclusion in the Sunday liturgy. The psalmist declares his intention in verse 2: "I will open my mouth in a parable; I will declare the mysteries of ancient times.... the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord and the wonderful works he has done." And so, he recounts the blessings that the Lord has bestowed upon his people Israel so that they will trust God and obey his commandments. His is a recitation of salvation history, including God's concern and care during the year of the Exodus. Verses 23-35 are the heart of the psalm, in the context of the Gospel for the Day, and they are the common liturgical selections of the churches, speaking of the manna God sent down from heaven so that they would have food to eat. Verse 25 is that lovely saying, "So mortals ate the bread of angels; he provided for the food enough." This portion of the psalm is tailor-made for use with the sixth chapter of St. John. The length of the psalm - 72 verses - makes it almost mandatory to cut it up for its function as a responsory, and the verses used in common by the liturgical churches suggest at least one section that should be included in such a process.
The Psalm Prayer (LBW)
Lord Jesus Christ, shepherd of your church, to strengthen our faith and to lead us to the kingdom, you renewed and surpassed the marvels of the old covenant. Through the uncertainties of this earthly journey, lead us home to the everlasting pastures, where we may praise you now and forever.
The readings:
Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15 (E); 16:2-4, 12-15 (R); 16:2-15 (L)
In this, the tale of Israel's dissatisfaction with God during the forty-year trek through the wilderness, when they didn't have enough to eat or to drink, they "murmured" against God, who heard their complaints and spoke to Moses again when his "glory ... appeared in the cloud." God promised them flesh each evening and bread for their morning repast - and it was so. Flights of quail came to their camp each evening, and in the morning the ground was covered with "a fine, flake-like thing, fine as hoarfrost in the ground." The people of Israel asked each other, "What is it?" and Moses replied, "It is the bread which the Lord has given to you." God, in other words, made this good thing happen and fed the Israelites in this extraordinary manner. (Scholars contend that flights of quail often die of exhaustion as they attempt to fly across the Sinai, which could be one explanation for the presence of the quail in the evenings. Manna, too, may be explained as a natural phenomenon - something like the nectar of honey bees spread out like dew on the ground -
but this explanation is not as satisfying as the one about the quail.) The typology of the "bread from heaven" with the bread of the eucharist, given as a gift of God in Jesus' sacrificial death, suggests itself in this reading.
2 Samuel 12:15b-24 (C)
The application of Nathan's parable of the rich man who took and slew the poor man's ewe lamb, from verse 5 to 15, is omitted from the semi-continuous reading of 2nd Samuel, so that Nathan's accusation, "You are the man," and David's confession, "I have sinned against the Lord," are missing in this pericope. They supply the context for what follows in this reading, which tells of God's punishment of David (and Bathsheba) in the illness of the child, and how David prayed for the child's life, fasted, and lay on the ground (apparently, he refused to eat for nearly a week). But on the seventh day the child died. On hearing that the child was dead, David got up, washed, put on clean clothing, and went into "the house of the Lord, and worshiped." Then he went to his house and asked for food; his pen-od of mourning was over, because he had mourned before the child died and was certain that the child now was in the hands of God. So he said, "Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me." This last word reminds the Christian that one did not return - and that he will return again at the end of time.
Ephesians 4:1-6 (C)
The other three lectionaries included this section of Ephesians 4 in their selection of the first readings for last Sunday. Comments and a sermon suggestion may be found in the material for that Sunday.
Ephesians 4:17, 20-24 (R); 4:17-24 (L); 4:17-25 (E)
A comparison of the verses chosen by these three churches for the first reading highlights verses 20-24, where "Paul" reminds the Ephesian congregation of the consequences of their new relationship to God through Jesus Christ. As Christians, they are changed people, people who have "put off" the old nature and have "put on" the new nature in the Lord. His words remind us that this is what has happened in baptism, wherein we become children of God who are "sealed" into that very special relationship with the heavenly Father. We are "marked with the cross" of Jesus Christ, which means that we have died (and must die with him every day in repentance and faith) and that we have risen (and must rise daily) in his resurrection. We, therefore, have become new creatures in the Lord. In baptism, the early Christians took off their old clothing and were garbed in white robes when they came up out of the water. "Paul" believes that those who have received new life in Jesus Christ have put off the old life, the old nature and, as people whose nature has been renewed in holy baptism, should live a new life in and for the Lord. Christians renounce the old ways of living because they have been - and are continually being - renewed in the Lord.
John 6:24-35
No matter how often Jesus and the disciples criss-cross the Sea of Galilee, they cannot get away from the people he fed with the five loaves of bread and the two small fish; many, if not most, of them made their way to Capernaum and quickly located Jesus. Jesus knew that they followed him because he was able to satisfy their hunger. They couldn't see beyond their stomachs - and the one who had the potential to satisfy their every need. They were making the rather human error of seeking a god who could and would solve the problems faced in life in this world; they thought with their stomachs instead of their minds and hearts. Therefore, Jesus exhorts them to work for the food from heaven that will sustain them in eternal life, food which only the Son of man could give them. And, in response to their question about how they could work for this food, Jesus tells them that their work is to believe in him, whom God has sent to the earth. But the people want a sign like the one (the manna) God gave the people in the wilderness. That "bread" from God was given to the people by Moses, but the "true bread from heaven," which is also given by God himself, is Jesus Christ and he - that "bread" - gives life to the world. Like the woman at the well in Sychar, they ask for that bread (instead of water, as she did), and Jesus tells them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst." It is of critical importance for the people of God to hear the Word of the Lord, the Word of life, and to eat the meal he offers - his body and blood - for the forgiveness of sin and the blessed assurance of eternal life. Christ always satisfies those who are spiritually thirsty and hungry - with himself, his Word.
A Sermon on the Gospel, John 6:24-35 - "The Manna of the Master."
Today is, as I write this (in the Roman Catholic Church, at least) St. Lawrence's Day (August 10) when the church remembers that Lawrence became a martyr for the Lord. Tradition has it that he was, more or less, barbecued on a grid iron outside the walls of Rome, and that he died, saying, gruesomely, to his executioners, "I am done on this side; turn me over and eat." That he said anything at all while he was being burned to death (a "Lord, have mercy," at best) is doubtful; the pain would have been excruciating, unbearable. But the tradition is interesting in that his body is buried under the altar of the fourth-century church, St. Lawrence-Outside-the-Walls, on the east side of Rome. There is a sense that his tomb - the church - is the gravestone for all people buried in that cemetery. It is the "active" cemetery of Rome, ranging from catacombs emanating from the church to centuries' old graves above ground to modern mausoleums built in the motif of the catacombs. With Lawrence, all those who depart this life in faith and are buried in that place, have died in the Lord and in the hope of eternal life; every grave is marked by an eternal flame. But there is a sign here for the living, for pilgrims (San Lorenzo fiori le Mura is one of the seventh pilgrimage churches remaining in Rome. There once was something like fifty-five.) and regular worshipers. He is pointing upwards, in a sense, to the Table of the Lord, where he was fed by the Christ - and where those who have heard the Word and live in the Lord are fed and nourished with his body and blood.
1. People need two kinds of bread - that for which they labor in their callings and vocations every day, and that which only God can give, the bread of heaven which comes to those who hear the word of Jesus Christ.
2. Too many of us are "one type of bread" persons who, like the people Jesus fed, are primarily (maybe totally) concerned for our physical welfare. Such people turn to the Christ for physical and material blessings, ignoring the wholesome bread of heaven which offers eternal life.
One realizes, of course, that people who are hungry - as were the Israelites in the wilderness, the people by the Sea of Galilee, or people in countries like Ethiopia today, who are litarally starving - cannot think much about eternal life when they have nothing at all to eat and sustain them in this life. But those starving to death also need the bread of heaven, Jesus Christ - just as much, if not more than other people.
3. Jesus is the new bread, the manna of the master, which the Lord God has given to the world. This bread has been leavened by his bloody sacrifice on Calvary, allowed to rise for three days, and quickly "baked" in the explosive force that sent Jesus forth from the tomb. He came as the bread of heaven, which God offers to the world to sustain the spirits of people who must live and also die.
4. Jesus, the bread of heaven, is the bread of life. He feeds us on himself, through Word and Sacrament, that we might live in and through him in the hope of eternal life. He says to us, "The table is set. All is ready. Come, eat and drink of me - and live forever." Jesus, our Lord and master, feeds us with manna - himself.
A Sermon on the First Lesson, Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15 (E); 16:2-4, 12-15 (R); 16:2-15 (L) - "Wilderness Meal."
"Wilderness meals" are a specialty today, prepared and marketed by companies who cater to people who plan camping trips to remote wilderness areas. Such foods have to be purchased, carried, and properly prepared to be enjoyed by campers; they are nothing like the food with which God fed the people of Israel during the Exodus.
1. The predicament: food was so scarce that the Israelites declared that they would have been better off living and dying in Egypt than in the wilderness of Sinai. Moses had a near-rebellion on his hands.
2. Moses went into action. He took the matter to God, who assured him that he knew their plight and had heard their "murmurings." He assured Moses that he would do something about it, promising "flesh" for their evening meal and "bread" for their breakfast.
3. The "flesh" turned out to be quail, and that apparently was appreciated by the Israelites. But the "bread" was strange to them, manna, that David would later call "the food of the angels." When they asked, "What is this?", Moses faced another crisis.
4. Something more than manna - that's what they wanted instead of being thankful for the gift that God had given to them. That's a human reaction, isn't it, not at all unfamiliar to you and me? "Give thanks to the Lord; he opens his hands and satisfies the desires (the hunger) of every living thing."
2 Samuel 12:15b-24 (C) - "Confession, Repentance, and Mourning."
1. Convicted and sentenced - "You are the man." Aren't we all, in one way or another?
2. Confession and repentance - "I have sinned against the Lord." Sin is always two-dimensional, offending both people and God.
3. Forgiveness and punishment - "The Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless ... the child ... shall die."
4. From death to life - David suffered with the sick baby and mourned while he was dying. The knowledge that God had forgiven him, and that the sin had been paid for at an awful price, took him back to life.
5. Death and hope - David knew that the baby could not be brought back to life, but he also knew that he would join him in death (eternal life) some day.
A Sermon on the Second Lesson, Ephesians 4:1-6 (C)
See last Sunday's sermon suggestions.
Ephesians 4:17, 20-24 (R); 4:17-14 (L); 4:17-25 (E) - "To Be, or Not to Be."
1. That is the choice "Paul" presents to Christians - to be or not to be new creatures in Christ.
2. Believers put on a new nature - that of Jesus Christ - in their baptism and, at the same time, they put off the old.
3. There really is no choice - true believers live out their baptism in the life of righteousness and holiness that God has given them.
4. Be what Christ has made you - his person through continually putting off the old nature and putting on the new - not by strength of character or purpose - but by the power of the risen Lord.
The Prayer of the Day
The first of the two prayers assigned to this Sunday in the Lutheran Book of Worship has its roots in the Gospel for the Day, John 6:24-35:
Gracious Father, your blessed Son came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world. Give us this bread, that he may live in us and we in him, Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Psalm of the Day
Psalm 78:1-25 or 78:14-20, 23-25 (E); 78:3-4, 23-25, 54-55 (R); 78:23-29 (L) - For once, the liturgical churches agree on the responsory psalm for one of the Sundays in Pentecost, but, typically, they disagree on how to cut it up for its inclusion in the Sunday liturgy. The psalmist declares his intention in verse 2: "I will open my mouth in a parable; I will declare the mysteries of ancient times.... the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord and the wonderful works he has done." And so, he recounts the blessings that the Lord has bestowed upon his people Israel so that they will trust God and obey his commandments. His is a recitation of salvation history, including God's concern and care during the year of the Exodus. Verses 23-35 are the heart of the psalm, in the context of the Gospel for the Day, and they are the common liturgical selections of the churches, speaking of the manna God sent down from heaven so that they would have food to eat. Verse 25 is that lovely saying, "So mortals ate the bread of angels; he provided for the food enough." This portion of the psalm is tailor-made for use with the sixth chapter of St. John. The length of the psalm - 72 verses - makes it almost mandatory to cut it up for its function as a responsory, and the verses used in common by the liturgical churches suggest at least one section that should be included in such a process.
The Psalm Prayer (LBW)
Lord Jesus Christ, shepherd of your church, to strengthen our faith and to lead us to the kingdom, you renewed and surpassed the marvels of the old covenant. Through the uncertainties of this earthly journey, lead us home to the everlasting pastures, where we may praise you now and forever.
The readings:
Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15 (E); 16:2-4, 12-15 (R); 16:2-15 (L)
In this, the tale of Israel's dissatisfaction with God during the forty-year trek through the wilderness, when they didn't have enough to eat or to drink, they "murmured" against God, who heard their complaints and spoke to Moses again when his "glory ... appeared in the cloud." God promised them flesh each evening and bread for their morning repast - and it was so. Flights of quail came to their camp each evening, and in the morning the ground was covered with "a fine, flake-like thing, fine as hoarfrost in the ground." The people of Israel asked each other, "What is it?" and Moses replied, "It is the bread which the Lord has given to you." God, in other words, made this good thing happen and fed the Israelites in this extraordinary manner. (Scholars contend that flights of quail often die of exhaustion as they attempt to fly across the Sinai, which could be one explanation for the presence of the quail in the evenings. Manna, too, may be explained as a natural phenomenon - something like the nectar of honey bees spread out like dew on the ground -
but this explanation is not as satisfying as the one about the quail.) The typology of the "bread from heaven" with the bread of the eucharist, given as a gift of God in Jesus' sacrificial death, suggests itself in this reading.
2 Samuel 12:15b-24 (C)
The application of Nathan's parable of the rich man who took and slew the poor man's ewe lamb, from verse 5 to 15, is omitted from the semi-continuous reading of 2nd Samuel, so that Nathan's accusation, "You are the man," and David's confession, "I have sinned against the Lord," are missing in this pericope. They supply the context for what follows in this reading, which tells of God's punishment of David (and Bathsheba) in the illness of the child, and how David prayed for the child's life, fasted, and lay on the ground (apparently, he refused to eat for nearly a week). But on the seventh day the child died. On hearing that the child was dead, David got up, washed, put on clean clothing, and went into "the house of the Lord, and worshiped." Then he went to his house and asked for food; his pen-od of mourning was over, because he had mourned before the child died and was certain that the child now was in the hands of God. So he said, "Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me." This last word reminds the Christian that one did not return - and that he will return again at the end of time.
Ephesians 4:1-6 (C)
The other three lectionaries included this section of Ephesians 4 in their selection of the first readings for last Sunday. Comments and a sermon suggestion may be found in the material for that Sunday.
Ephesians 4:17, 20-24 (R); 4:17-24 (L); 4:17-25 (E)
A comparison of the verses chosen by these three churches for the first reading highlights verses 20-24, where "Paul" reminds the Ephesian congregation of the consequences of their new relationship to God through Jesus Christ. As Christians, they are changed people, people who have "put off" the old nature and have "put on" the new nature in the Lord. His words remind us that this is what has happened in baptism, wherein we become children of God who are "sealed" into that very special relationship with the heavenly Father. We are "marked with the cross" of Jesus Christ, which means that we have died (and must die with him every day in repentance and faith) and that we have risen (and must rise daily) in his resurrection. We, therefore, have become new creatures in the Lord. In baptism, the early Christians took off their old clothing and were garbed in white robes when they came up out of the water. "Paul" believes that those who have received new life in Jesus Christ have put off the old life, the old nature and, as people whose nature has been renewed in holy baptism, should live a new life in and for the Lord. Christians renounce the old ways of living because they have been - and are continually being - renewed in the Lord.
John 6:24-35
No matter how often Jesus and the disciples criss-cross the Sea of Galilee, they cannot get away from the people he fed with the five loaves of bread and the two small fish; many, if not most, of them made their way to Capernaum and quickly located Jesus. Jesus knew that they followed him because he was able to satisfy their hunger. They couldn't see beyond their stomachs - and the one who had the potential to satisfy their every need. They were making the rather human error of seeking a god who could and would solve the problems faced in life in this world; they thought with their stomachs instead of their minds and hearts. Therefore, Jesus exhorts them to work for the food from heaven that will sustain them in eternal life, food which only the Son of man could give them. And, in response to their question about how they could work for this food, Jesus tells them that their work is to believe in him, whom God has sent to the earth. But the people want a sign like the one (the manna) God gave the people in the wilderness. That "bread" from God was given to the people by Moses, but the "true bread from heaven," which is also given by God himself, is Jesus Christ and he - that "bread" - gives life to the world. Like the woman at the well in Sychar, they ask for that bread (instead of water, as she did), and Jesus tells them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst." It is of critical importance for the people of God to hear the Word of the Lord, the Word of life, and to eat the meal he offers - his body and blood - for the forgiveness of sin and the blessed assurance of eternal life. Christ always satisfies those who are spiritually thirsty and hungry - with himself, his Word.
A Sermon on the Gospel, John 6:24-35 - "The Manna of the Master."
Today is, as I write this (in the Roman Catholic Church, at least) St. Lawrence's Day (August 10) when the church remembers that Lawrence became a martyr for the Lord. Tradition has it that he was, more or less, barbecued on a grid iron outside the walls of Rome, and that he died, saying, gruesomely, to his executioners, "I am done on this side; turn me over and eat." That he said anything at all while he was being burned to death (a "Lord, have mercy," at best) is doubtful; the pain would have been excruciating, unbearable. But the tradition is interesting in that his body is buried under the altar of the fourth-century church, St. Lawrence-Outside-the-Walls, on the east side of Rome. There is a sense that his tomb - the church - is the gravestone for all people buried in that cemetery. It is the "active" cemetery of Rome, ranging from catacombs emanating from the church to centuries' old graves above ground to modern mausoleums built in the motif of the catacombs. With Lawrence, all those who depart this life in faith and are buried in that place, have died in the Lord and in the hope of eternal life; every grave is marked by an eternal flame. But there is a sign here for the living, for pilgrims (San Lorenzo fiori le Mura is one of the seventh pilgrimage churches remaining in Rome. There once was something like fifty-five.) and regular worshipers. He is pointing upwards, in a sense, to the Table of the Lord, where he was fed by the Christ - and where those who have heard the Word and live in the Lord are fed and nourished with his body and blood.
1. People need two kinds of bread - that for which they labor in their callings and vocations every day, and that which only God can give, the bread of heaven which comes to those who hear the word of Jesus Christ.
2. Too many of us are "one type of bread" persons who, like the people Jesus fed, are primarily (maybe totally) concerned for our physical welfare. Such people turn to the Christ for physical and material blessings, ignoring the wholesome bread of heaven which offers eternal life.
One realizes, of course, that people who are hungry - as were the Israelites in the wilderness, the people by the Sea of Galilee, or people in countries like Ethiopia today, who are litarally starving - cannot think much about eternal life when they have nothing at all to eat and sustain them in this life. But those starving to death also need the bread of heaven, Jesus Christ - just as much, if not more than other people.
3. Jesus is the new bread, the manna of the master, which the Lord God has given to the world. This bread has been leavened by his bloody sacrifice on Calvary, allowed to rise for three days, and quickly "baked" in the explosive force that sent Jesus forth from the tomb. He came as the bread of heaven, which God offers to the world to sustain the spirits of people who must live and also die.
4. Jesus, the bread of heaven, is the bread of life. He feeds us on himself, through Word and Sacrament, that we might live in and through him in the hope of eternal life. He says to us, "The table is set. All is ready. Come, eat and drink of me - and live forever." Jesus, our Lord and master, feeds us with manna - himself.
A Sermon on the First Lesson, Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15 (E); 16:2-4, 12-15 (R); 16:2-15 (L) - "Wilderness Meal."
"Wilderness meals" are a specialty today, prepared and marketed by companies who cater to people who plan camping trips to remote wilderness areas. Such foods have to be purchased, carried, and properly prepared to be enjoyed by campers; they are nothing like the food with which God fed the people of Israel during the Exodus.
1. The predicament: food was so scarce that the Israelites declared that they would have been better off living and dying in Egypt than in the wilderness of Sinai. Moses had a near-rebellion on his hands.
2. Moses went into action. He took the matter to God, who assured him that he knew their plight and had heard their "murmurings." He assured Moses that he would do something about it, promising "flesh" for their evening meal and "bread" for their breakfast.
3. The "flesh" turned out to be quail, and that apparently was appreciated by the Israelites. But the "bread" was strange to them, manna, that David would later call "the food of the angels." When they asked, "What is this?", Moses faced another crisis.
4. Something more than manna - that's what they wanted instead of being thankful for the gift that God had given to them. That's a human reaction, isn't it, not at all unfamiliar to you and me? "Give thanks to the Lord; he opens his hands and satisfies the desires (the hunger) of every living thing."
2 Samuel 12:15b-24 (C) - "Confession, Repentance, and Mourning."
1. Convicted and sentenced - "You are the man." Aren't we all, in one way or another?
2. Confession and repentance - "I have sinned against the Lord." Sin is always two-dimensional, offending both people and God.
3. Forgiveness and punishment - "The Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless ... the child ... shall die."
4. From death to life - David suffered with the sick baby and mourned while he was dying. The knowledge that God had forgiven him, and that the sin had been paid for at an awful price, took him back to life.
5. Death and hope - David knew that the baby could not be brought back to life, but he also knew that he would join him in death (eternal life) some day.
A Sermon on the Second Lesson, Ephesians 4:1-6 (C)
See last Sunday's sermon suggestions.
Ephesians 4:17, 20-24 (R); 4:17-14 (L); 4:17-25 (E) - "To Be, or Not to Be."
1. That is the choice "Paul" presents to Christians - to be or not to be new creatures in Christ.
2. Believers put on a new nature - that of Jesus Christ - in their baptism and, at the same time, they put off the old.
3. There really is no choice - true believers live out their baptism in the life of righteousness and holiness that God has given them.
4. Be what Christ has made you - his person through continually putting off the old nature and putting on the new - not by strength of character or purpose - but by the power of the risen Lord.
