Proper 17
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle A
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Exodus 3:1-15 (C)
This familiar and much loved story of Moses and the "burning bush" tells us a great deal about the ancient Hebrew concept of the nature and ways of God -- and a great deal about God in the present as well. Bernhard Anderson writes that "the story of Moses' encounter with the 'God of the fathers' and of the mighty struggle that this strange meeting precipitated within him is one of the masterpieces of the Old Testament. It should be read with religious imagination and empathy, as one would read a piece of poetry, for it communicates a dimension of meaning that cannot be cramped into the limits of precise prose."
We are shortsighted if we worry about whether there was, in fact, a burning bush. Moses undoubtedly saw with a higher, inner vision, not with mere visual sight. Any place is holy ground if we perceive God's presence. Moses was in a time of personal crisis, on the run from his home, a man guilty of a crime in the eyes of the authorities. No doubt deeply troubled within, he has suddenly realized God has come to him with a mission Initially frightened, he receives reassurance that his important mission will not be a lonely one. God will go with Moses. He is to lead the Hebrew people out of their miserable mistreatment, out of their captivity, into a new world of freedom and hopes fulfilled.
Regarding the interesting matter of the "name" for God, Anderson offers this explanation: "In Hebraic thought ... it was believed that the name is filled with mysterious power and significance, for the name represents the innermost self or identity of a person ... Moses' question, then, represented an attempt to know the mystery of the divine nature -- that is, the name of God." Anderson then explains the "name" this way. "In Hebrew I AM is the first person singular of the verb h-w-h (to be, or to happen); YHWH is the third person singular of the same verb -- that is, 'He will be,' or better, 'He causes to be ...' In other words, the question 'Who is God?' would be answered in events that would take place in the future."
Lesson 1: Jeremiah 20:7-9 (RC)
The great prophet has been rejected and reviled by his listeners. He wants to turn from the word of the Lord but he cannot. A burning inner force requires him to be constant in his prophetic mission.
Lesson 1: Jeremiah 15:15-21 (E)
Jeremiah is a miserable man, rejected, threatened, a man without humor or self-confidence. Yet his unbreakable faith in God sustains him as he awaits the Lord's retribution against his tormentors, and he finds hope and a certain pleasure in that expectation.
Lesson 2: Romans 12:9-21 (C)
What a genius was Paul. I always thought his thirteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians was unparalleled. But this passage comes close. You could preach for the better part of a year on these few verses. On the one hand, only Jesus himself could comply with Paul's injunctions here, yet he has superbly set before us and before the Church itself the nature of the excellent Christian. It seems almost impertinent to comment on these words which surely stand alone as a magnificent description of the divine summons.
Lesson 2: Romans 12:1-2 (RC); Romans 12:1-8 (E)
(See Proper 16)
Gospel: Matthew 16:21-28 (C); Matthew 16:21-27 (RC, E)
Jesus probably was not so much angry at Peter as he was disturbed at his own response to what Peter had said. Jesus must have struggled with the temptations faced earlier in the wilderness. Compromise. Give the people power. Lead a rebellion. Help them get free as Moses did. Save your life and become a celebrated leader. If Jesus was at all human as we believe he was, all these temptations must have assailed him again and again. But he had stood firm. He had worked this all through in the very depths of him. He was prepared to die, to follow the path of love, not power. Now Peter, his own good friend, was urging him to do the other. The word for Satan also means adversary. We can barely get into our heads the struggles which must have beset Jesus in the darkness of night. Now Peter represented all those arguments, all those rationalizations, all those reasons why he need not die. Little wonder that Peter, for all his love and good spirit, was unknowingly dealing Jesus a devastating blow. And when Jesus said, "Get thee behind me," he may very well have meant literally that Peter was to be his support, his friend who could understand and help him face what Jesus knew to lie ahead.
Jesus then says the words which have characterized Christianity for everyone ever since. "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." He goes on to warn that to live only for this life, to make all the compromises and evasions which that entails, will prevent that relationship with God wherein one can be saved from the most destructive forces of existence. He was almost surely speaking spiritually, as physical death comes when it will. But spiritual death, one well-known to millions today, is far more ruinous in the long run. That death can be avoided, but only by obedience to the King of creation.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "And God Will Help"
Text: Exodus 3:1-15
Theme: Moses experienced the presence of God in a powerful way. Fire is a common symbol for that presence and the value of this story is not some scientifically dubious natural event. It lies in the fact that Moses knew God was present, knew he was called to a profoundly important mission, was frightened as any thoughtful man or woman would be at first. Then receiving assurance from God that he would empower Moses in his work, he set forth.
1. God comes to us. Many world religions require that their adherents pursue religious experience. God, in fact, comes to meet us where we are. It might happen while at work, while driving down Main Street, or while sitting in church.
2. God requires work on our part. Look at Paul's admonitions in Romans 12:9-21.That would require immense effort for most of us, self-discipline, swallowing of some less-than-admirable impulses, expenditure of energy and resources for the sake of others. God calls one to a mission of one sort or another when we see our burning bushes. I for one did not find my call to the Church to be a pleasant one. I did what Moses did: resisted. But when God calls us, he persists until we answer.
3. God is active in the real world. Moses was out there doing something or other, his mind almost surely on other matters. God is not a withdrawn deity. His answer to Moses' question as to his name, when carefully interpreted, meant in effect, "You will see when you see what is about to happen."
4. God, when calling us, enables us to do as we are asked. God will never ask any of us to do something he knows we cannot do, with God's help.
Title: "Prescription For A Happy Life"
Text: Romans 12:12
Theme: Paul has commended to us a life in which we will "rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer." There's the perfect three-point outline. (Incidentally, some teachers make fun of the three-point outline. However, preachers who have full congregations on Sundays seem to like them. I wonder why. Perhaps it's because listeners can follow three points easily, and the measure of a good sermon is what the listener remembers later in the day. Also, the ideal sermon from a listener's point of view is one delivered without notes, and a three-point outline is easy to remember.)
1. Rejoice in hope. I define hope as "the belief that something good is about to happen." To rejoice means to be happy. Good spirit. Good humor. I like people who laugh a lot, especially if they're able to laugh at themselves. A friend of mine who, at a somewhat advanced age, is trying to be politically correct, told some of us the other day of a Mother's Day sermon he preached, using the female parent as a sometimes Christ figure. Then, when the service was ending, he was horrified to hear the opening strains of the closing hymn: "Rise Up, O Men of God."
2. Be patient in suffering. Let's face it, we all will have to suffer from time to time, whether from illness or injury, grief, worry, anxiety, stress, rejection, failure, or something else. It goes with living. Some people become depressed, complaining, not much fun to be around. It will all pass. Some people are like people who, when you ask how they are, they tell you. Paul is urging us to accept those problems which we cannot honorably avoid. It helps us grow, become stronger people. As Paul said elsewhere, "Suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character." I have always been interested in reading biographies and autobiographies of famous people. Amazingly, almost without exception, every famous successful person has had more than a normal share of suffering. It not only produces character, it also produces creativity.
3. Persevere in prayer. We all think of passages in which Jesus urged this. The persistent householder, the father who wouldn't give his son a stone to eat. Anyone who makes prayer a regular part of life can happily bear witness to its power to make possible a joyous, happy life.
Title: "God Gives The Gift Of Happiness"
Text: Matthew 16:24-27
Theme: If anyone wishes to follow Jesus, we are to take up a cross. That is, we are to accept sacrifice as part of life. If we presume to live life for our own satisfaction and rewards, we'll discover in due course that we have missed the most important thing of all. It may not be completely apparent in this life, but the time will come. I think of someone living in a frigid far northern climate who has never known the pleasure of a southerly breeze, of a quiet hour of sun on a sandy beach. Probably, adjusted to the cold and bitter winds, that person would never know what life is like for some people. So with those who have never known the power of prayer, or the inner good feeling of doing something for someone else, something totally selfless and kind. That's something most of us only learn by doing.
1. Sacrifice is part of the Christian life. Dr. Weatherhead supposed a person having to leave for a new home. He must leave all his possessions behind. Nothing of material value may be kept. His only possessions in this new environment will be those things of value which he has given away happily.
2. There is no happiness otherwise. Pleasure? Yes. Fun? Yes. But happiness? Joy? Fulfillment? No! We see many people whose lives are filled with possessions and achievement. There's nothing wrong with those things. But if that's all there is, if there isn't kindness and a history of doing things for others without thought of reward, then there is no happiness. That's part of the nature of the universe.
3. God gives the gift of happiness. Jesus said the day will come when everyone will be repaid for what he has done. Of course, that thought must be coupled with the promise of forgiveness where there is remorse. I don't subscribe to a theory of rewards and punishments for our deeds. I'm sure it will be more subtle than that. Still, every one of us knows the sadness which follows our selfish words and actions. And we know the joy which follows acts of kindness and generosity. Perhaps there are some people who are not able to perceive this truth. They will, though, if they follow Jesus.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
Paul Tournier, distinguished Swiss psychiatrist, told in his little book To Resist Or Surrender of the time he was summoned to his bank because of a difficult legal problem. Professional as he was, he knew nothing of matters to be discussed, so he prayed that night for help. He said two words came to his mind: "firm," and "smile." They meant nothing to him, but he went to the bank as scheduled, to be confronted by a bank officer and several attorneys. They wanted him to sign some papers which he didn't want to sign. He was tempted to give in to avoid trouble, but then he remembered that word "firm." He decided to refuse. Then, he said, the bank officer became upset, pacing the floor, urging him to reconsider. He then remembered the other word, "smile." So he did. That really drove the banker up a wall. Finally, the men left the room, and one remaining lawyer said, "Dr. Tournier, I think you just won." Writing of this, Tournier said others might have a different interpretation, but he was convinced those two words had come to him in answer to his prayer.
_____________
A young freshman girl at the University of Illinois wrote this definition of prayer a few years ago:
"To pray is to laugh, whistle, dance on happy feet. Sing, shout, jump
Higher than ever before. But it is also to whisper, wonder, stumble in
Dark places; cry, scream, or just hold a worried head in tired hands
And wait. Prayer is the tired reaching out to the one who holds us closer,
And loves us more than we would dare imagine."
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45 (C) -- "Make known his deeds among the people."
Psalm 63:2-6, 8-9 (RC) -- "So I will bless you as long as I live."
Psalm 26 (E) --Ê"I have walked in my integrity."
Prayer Of The Day
God of righteousness: we have tried this day to be faithful to our Lord. We have fallen short, but not by intent. There are those who do not understand us, who accuse us of self-righteousness, or of jealousy, because we try to remain steadfast. Strengthen us in this resolve, we pray, that we may remain faithful in what we believe to be good and right. Amen.
Lesson 1: Exodus 3:1-15 (C)
This familiar and much loved story of Moses and the "burning bush" tells us a great deal about the ancient Hebrew concept of the nature and ways of God -- and a great deal about God in the present as well. Bernhard Anderson writes that "the story of Moses' encounter with the 'God of the fathers' and of the mighty struggle that this strange meeting precipitated within him is one of the masterpieces of the Old Testament. It should be read with religious imagination and empathy, as one would read a piece of poetry, for it communicates a dimension of meaning that cannot be cramped into the limits of precise prose."
We are shortsighted if we worry about whether there was, in fact, a burning bush. Moses undoubtedly saw with a higher, inner vision, not with mere visual sight. Any place is holy ground if we perceive God's presence. Moses was in a time of personal crisis, on the run from his home, a man guilty of a crime in the eyes of the authorities. No doubt deeply troubled within, he has suddenly realized God has come to him with a mission Initially frightened, he receives reassurance that his important mission will not be a lonely one. God will go with Moses. He is to lead the Hebrew people out of their miserable mistreatment, out of their captivity, into a new world of freedom and hopes fulfilled.
Regarding the interesting matter of the "name" for God, Anderson offers this explanation: "In Hebraic thought ... it was believed that the name is filled with mysterious power and significance, for the name represents the innermost self or identity of a person ... Moses' question, then, represented an attempt to know the mystery of the divine nature -- that is, the name of God." Anderson then explains the "name" this way. "In Hebrew I AM is the first person singular of the verb h-w-h (to be, or to happen); YHWH is the third person singular of the same verb -- that is, 'He will be,' or better, 'He causes to be ...' In other words, the question 'Who is God?' would be answered in events that would take place in the future."
Lesson 1: Jeremiah 20:7-9 (RC)
The great prophet has been rejected and reviled by his listeners. He wants to turn from the word of the Lord but he cannot. A burning inner force requires him to be constant in his prophetic mission.
Lesson 1: Jeremiah 15:15-21 (E)
Jeremiah is a miserable man, rejected, threatened, a man without humor or self-confidence. Yet his unbreakable faith in God sustains him as he awaits the Lord's retribution against his tormentors, and he finds hope and a certain pleasure in that expectation.
Lesson 2: Romans 12:9-21 (C)
What a genius was Paul. I always thought his thirteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians was unparalleled. But this passage comes close. You could preach for the better part of a year on these few verses. On the one hand, only Jesus himself could comply with Paul's injunctions here, yet he has superbly set before us and before the Church itself the nature of the excellent Christian. It seems almost impertinent to comment on these words which surely stand alone as a magnificent description of the divine summons.
Lesson 2: Romans 12:1-2 (RC); Romans 12:1-8 (E)
(See Proper 16)
Gospel: Matthew 16:21-28 (C); Matthew 16:21-27 (RC, E)
Jesus probably was not so much angry at Peter as he was disturbed at his own response to what Peter had said. Jesus must have struggled with the temptations faced earlier in the wilderness. Compromise. Give the people power. Lead a rebellion. Help them get free as Moses did. Save your life and become a celebrated leader. If Jesus was at all human as we believe he was, all these temptations must have assailed him again and again. But he had stood firm. He had worked this all through in the very depths of him. He was prepared to die, to follow the path of love, not power. Now Peter, his own good friend, was urging him to do the other. The word for Satan also means adversary. We can barely get into our heads the struggles which must have beset Jesus in the darkness of night. Now Peter represented all those arguments, all those rationalizations, all those reasons why he need not die. Little wonder that Peter, for all his love and good spirit, was unknowingly dealing Jesus a devastating blow. And when Jesus said, "Get thee behind me," he may very well have meant literally that Peter was to be his support, his friend who could understand and help him face what Jesus knew to lie ahead.
Jesus then says the words which have characterized Christianity for everyone ever since. "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." He goes on to warn that to live only for this life, to make all the compromises and evasions which that entails, will prevent that relationship with God wherein one can be saved from the most destructive forces of existence. He was almost surely speaking spiritually, as physical death comes when it will. But spiritual death, one well-known to millions today, is far more ruinous in the long run. That death can be avoided, but only by obedience to the King of creation.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "And God Will Help"
Text: Exodus 3:1-15
Theme: Moses experienced the presence of God in a powerful way. Fire is a common symbol for that presence and the value of this story is not some scientifically dubious natural event. It lies in the fact that Moses knew God was present, knew he was called to a profoundly important mission, was frightened as any thoughtful man or woman would be at first. Then receiving assurance from God that he would empower Moses in his work, he set forth.
1. God comes to us. Many world religions require that their adherents pursue religious experience. God, in fact, comes to meet us where we are. It might happen while at work, while driving down Main Street, or while sitting in church.
2. God requires work on our part. Look at Paul's admonitions in Romans 12:9-21.That would require immense effort for most of us, self-discipline, swallowing of some less-than-admirable impulses, expenditure of energy and resources for the sake of others. God calls one to a mission of one sort or another when we see our burning bushes. I for one did not find my call to the Church to be a pleasant one. I did what Moses did: resisted. But when God calls us, he persists until we answer.
3. God is active in the real world. Moses was out there doing something or other, his mind almost surely on other matters. God is not a withdrawn deity. His answer to Moses' question as to his name, when carefully interpreted, meant in effect, "You will see when you see what is about to happen."
4. God, when calling us, enables us to do as we are asked. God will never ask any of us to do something he knows we cannot do, with God's help.
Title: "Prescription For A Happy Life"
Text: Romans 12:12
Theme: Paul has commended to us a life in which we will "rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer." There's the perfect three-point outline. (Incidentally, some teachers make fun of the three-point outline. However, preachers who have full congregations on Sundays seem to like them. I wonder why. Perhaps it's because listeners can follow three points easily, and the measure of a good sermon is what the listener remembers later in the day. Also, the ideal sermon from a listener's point of view is one delivered without notes, and a three-point outline is easy to remember.)
1. Rejoice in hope. I define hope as "the belief that something good is about to happen." To rejoice means to be happy. Good spirit. Good humor. I like people who laugh a lot, especially if they're able to laugh at themselves. A friend of mine who, at a somewhat advanced age, is trying to be politically correct, told some of us the other day of a Mother's Day sermon he preached, using the female parent as a sometimes Christ figure. Then, when the service was ending, he was horrified to hear the opening strains of the closing hymn: "Rise Up, O Men of God."
2. Be patient in suffering. Let's face it, we all will have to suffer from time to time, whether from illness or injury, grief, worry, anxiety, stress, rejection, failure, or something else. It goes with living. Some people become depressed, complaining, not much fun to be around. It will all pass. Some people are like people who, when you ask how they are, they tell you. Paul is urging us to accept those problems which we cannot honorably avoid. It helps us grow, become stronger people. As Paul said elsewhere, "Suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character." I have always been interested in reading biographies and autobiographies of famous people. Amazingly, almost without exception, every famous successful person has had more than a normal share of suffering. It not only produces character, it also produces creativity.
3. Persevere in prayer. We all think of passages in which Jesus urged this. The persistent householder, the father who wouldn't give his son a stone to eat. Anyone who makes prayer a regular part of life can happily bear witness to its power to make possible a joyous, happy life.
Title: "God Gives The Gift Of Happiness"
Text: Matthew 16:24-27
Theme: If anyone wishes to follow Jesus, we are to take up a cross. That is, we are to accept sacrifice as part of life. If we presume to live life for our own satisfaction and rewards, we'll discover in due course that we have missed the most important thing of all. It may not be completely apparent in this life, but the time will come. I think of someone living in a frigid far northern climate who has never known the pleasure of a southerly breeze, of a quiet hour of sun on a sandy beach. Probably, adjusted to the cold and bitter winds, that person would never know what life is like for some people. So with those who have never known the power of prayer, or the inner good feeling of doing something for someone else, something totally selfless and kind. That's something most of us only learn by doing.
1. Sacrifice is part of the Christian life. Dr. Weatherhead supposed a person having to leave for a new home. He must leave all his possessions behind. Nothing of material value may be kept. His only possessions in this new environment will be those things of value which he has given away happily.
2. There is no happiness otherwise. Pleasure? Yes. Fun? Yes. But happiness? Joy? Fulfillment? No! We see many people whose lives are filled with possessions and achievement. There's nothing wrong with those things. But if that's all there is, if there isn't kindness and a history of doing things for others without thought of reward, then there is no happiness. That's part of the nature of the universe.
3. God gives the gift of happiness. Jesus said the day will come when everyone will be repaid for what he has done. Of course, that thought must be coupled with the promise of forgiveness where there is remorse. I don't subscribe to a theory of rewards and punishments for our deeds. I'm sure it will be more subtle than that. Still, every one of us knows the sadness which follows our selfish words and actions. And we know the joy which follows acts of kindness and generosity. Perhaps there are some people who are not able to perceive this truth. They will, though, if they follow Jesus.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
Paul Tournier, distinguished Swiss psychiatrist, told in his little book To Resist Or Surrender of the time he was summoned to his bank because of a difficult legal problem. Professional as he was, he knew nothing of matters to be discussed, so he prayed that night for help. He said two words came to his mind: "firm," and "smile." They meant nothing to him, but he went to the bank as scheduled, to be confronted by a bank officer and several attorneys. They wanted him to sign some papers which he didn't want to sign. He was tempted to give in to avoid trouble, but then he remembered that word "firm." He decided to refuse. Then, he said, the bank officer became upset, pacing the floor, urging him to reconsider. He then remembered the other word, "smile." So he did. That really drove the banker up a wall. Finally, the men left the room, and one remaining lawyer said, "Dr. Tournier, I think you just won." Writing of this, Tournier said others might have a different interpretation, but he was convinced those two words had come to him in answer to his prayer.
_____________
A young freshman girl at the University of Illinois wrote this definition of prayer a few years ago:
"To pray is to laugh, whistle, dance on happy feet. Sing, shout, jump
Higher than ever before. But it is also to whisper, wonder, stumble in
Dark places; cry, scream, or just hold a worried head in tired hands
And wait. Prayer is the tired reaching out to the one who holds us closer,
And loves us more than we would dare imagine."
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45 (C) -- "Make known his deeds among the people."
Psalm 63:2-6, 8-9 (RC) -- "So I will bless you as long as I live."
Psalm 26 (E) --Ê"I have walked in my integrity."
Prayer Of The Day
God of righteousness: we have tried this day to be faithful to our Lord. We have fallen short, but not by intent. There are those who do not understand us, who accuse us of self-righteousness, or of jealousy, because we try to remain steadfast. Strengthen us in this resolve, we pray, that we may remain faithful in what we believe to be good and right. Amen.
