Proper 19 (C, E)
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle B
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Proverbs 1:20-33 (C)
Bernhard Anderson defined wisdom this way: ñAs we have seen, the sages believed that wisdom is not mere human insight, but is the divine purpose by which the universe is directed and in obedience to which man should order his life. From this conviction it was an easy step to regard wisdom as having a special and an almost independent status in GodÍs creation.'' So the passage in Proverbs is, in effect, accusing the reader of ignoring the purpose and the conditions of that purpose in creation. In verse 26 we are warned, ñI will laugh at your calamity.'' So, implicit in this passage is the warning that to ignore the advice of wisdom is to find oneself in serious trouble. However, there is also hope implicit in the words of verse 23b: ñI will make my words known to you.'' So, we are warned in time to avoid calamity. Finally, ñThose who listen to me will be secure.''
Lesson 1: Isaiah 50:5-9a (RC); Isaiah 50:4-9 (E)
(See Sunday Of The Passion)
Lesson 2: James 3:1-12 (C)
James is warning of the damage we do by saying hurtful and untrue words. ñNo one has ever been able to tame the tongue. It is evil and uncontrollable, full of deadly poison.'' Someone must have really gotten to James recently. But heÍs right. Shakespeare wrote of ñSlander, whose edge is sharper than the sword, whose tongue outvenoms all the worms of Nile....'' ñWords are but the shadow of actions,'' said Plutarch. So much harm is done by the tongue, by words, even sometimes words not intended to hurt.
Our tongues, though, by which James means the words we speak, are in fact the external evidence of our values, our sensitivity, our faithfulness to the service of love. They tell what kind of man I have become. They indicate the amount of discipline which I have achieved in my life, inasmuch as all of us sometimes feel anger or jealousy or rejection. Can I control those negative thoughts? Am I honest enough to see myself as I really have become? Can I master my own needs in order to celebrate the other personÍs victories and joys? ArenÍt the answers to these matters a true measure of my faith and thus my faithfulness?
Lesson 2: James 2:14-18 (RC); James 2:1-5, 8-10, 14-18 (E)
(See Proper 18)
Gospel: Mark 8:27-38 (C, E); Mark 8:27-35 (RC)
The ultimate word to be spoken to the human heart regarding Jesus Christ is that 34th verse: ñIf anyone wants to come with me ... he must forget himself, carry his cross, and follow me.'' These words are spoken to Peter, who in this passage is himself struggling with the dawning realization that Jesus is not planning to win out over the world in conventional terms. On the contrary, Jesus plans to suffer and die, and Peter doesnÍt like this idea at all.
Jesus asks Peter who other people believe him to be. There is some reason to think Jesus may not have been sure of the effect of his ministry. His question may really be an effort to find out what his close friends are hearing in the marketplace, on the highways. Then, receiving that answer, he fixes Peter with the question which would one day be posed to you and me as well: ñWho do you say that I am?''
Biblical scholarship suggests the preacher research this passage at greater depth, to ascertain whether, indeed, Jesus was himself beset by doubts about the effectiveness of his ministry. Some commentaries pose this possibility. Or perhaps Jesus intended that the truth of his mission be spread through the work and the faith of others, needing to know now whether people like Peter were prepared to follow a difficult and painful road. And implicit in all of this is JesusÍ unshakable conviction that right will prevail, that ultimately the power of love will triumph in a sometimes hateful world. He probably wasnÍt accusing Peter of being under SatanÍs influence, but was emphasizing that any sentiment in opposition to the divine mission was evil.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: ñDo What You Want, But Remember One Thing''
Text: Proverbs 1:20-33
Theme: Underlying this created universe are certain laws which cannot be broken. They are at the heart of things. Wisdom is warning the reader that any attempt to circumvent those laws will result in consequences we may not like. Gravity, for example, will always work precisely. I can jump off a cliff if I choose, but the consequences are predictable. But be warned, there are some far more subtle laws which work with equal certainty. Hurting people, acting in unloving ways, will also result in calamity. Because that law is more subtle, its consequences are less obvious perhaps. But they will result. Lost friends, unhappy family members, guilt and remorse, failure in vocation, unwise associations „ these follow as night the day.
I listened to Dr. Laura while driving today. A couple called in to ask Dr. LauraÍs opinion of their plan to take their two daughters, aged eight and eleven, to see their grandmother „ in prison. They seemed a nice couple with good values. The young man said his mother was a wonderful mother as he and his brothers grew up. But after they left home, and after a painful divorce, she turned to drugs. Then desperate for money, I guess, she sold drugs. Now that nice mother is in prison for the second time, and two little girls must see her there, and a totally humiliated son and daughter-in-law must make of it what they can. All because a middle-aged woman made a bad choice. As Dr. Laura pointed out, she was free, an adult; she should have known what she was getting into.
1. Every action has a reaction; every wrongful action has a calamitous result.
2. God is on our side. We know what is right to do, and the Holy Spirit will help us make right choices if we let him.
3. We must, however, expect to live with our choices.
4. Those who are faithful, who resist temptation and make right choices. will ñbe secure.''
Title: ñPainful Reality''
Text: James 3:1-12
Theme: I base my title on the fact that itÍs my belief that most of what we say that is hurtful results from our own inner pain and the immaturity we retain from our childhood. IÍm not thinking at the moment of the out-and-out thief or the blatantly antisocial criminal. IÍm thinking of myself, first of all, and if you will permit, of you. Just the other evening I spoke an impatient word to my wife whom I love very much. It wasnÍt that I intended to hurt her. I was just uptight, stressed as we like to say. But my immaturity led me to speak harshly. We have a wonderful marriage, but I confess that I do this from time to time.
Ours is a highly competitive society. We spend a great deal of effort trying to outdo someone or other. John Claypool described himself as a highly competitive minister seeking the elusive quality of self-esteem. He wrote in Opening Blind Eyes, ñI have always been a loner at heart despite certain extroverted relational patterns I have worked to acquire, and I trace this fear-of-closeness tendency back to the old vow to compete. After all, how can one establish authentic intimacy with those whom one is competing against and attempting to outdo?'' Claypool eventually found the maturity to go beyond this temptation.
We clergy know all too well that we arenÍt exempt. The United Methodist Church unfortunately fosters this by publishing a book every year which lists each pastorÍs salary, attendance for the past year, record of payment of apportionments, number of new members won, number of baptisms „ all the little means by which we score our points. Have any of us made it through our years without feeling a little of this competition?
And what has this to do with JamesÍ passage? Well, the proper use of the tongue is to build up, to commend and to encourage and to give hope to others. If self-esteem is important, the tongue can foster that by kind and appreciative words. The mature person, of course, works at overcoming the competitive temptations in order to do this. The mature Christian is slow to criticize, quick to sympathize.
1. God wants us to mature, to win mastery of our inner drives.
2. ItÍs our responsibility, and the more we struggle with the inner person, the more we become mature.
3. We are to build up those people in our lives. And we are to find the strength to say, ñIÍm sorry,'' when we slip.
4. Prayer can enable us in this. When we pray for people, we begin to experience a strange new sense of identification with that person which in turn leads us to want the best for that person, to want his success and fulfillment.
5. People who win this battle always discover an inner sense of self-worth which never quite results from successful competition.
Title: ñThe Winning Side''
Text: Mark 8:27-38
Theme: Christ gave us birth.
O glory of the lighted mind.
How dead IÍd been, how dumb, how blind.
The station brook to my new eyes
Was babbling out of paradise.
The waters rushing from the rain
Were singing Christ has risen again.
I knew that Christ had given me birth
To brother all the souls on earth.
Yes! Masefield had it right. Christ gave us birth, new birth, that we might be brother and sister to the people who come into our lives. The cross was not a sign that life is meant for suffering. ItÍs a sign that suffering is also in the world, and our call is to assume part of that suffering on behalf of those whom we can help and save. We all know the old saying (originally from the newspaper business I am told) that as pastors we are ñto comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.'' ThatÍs what the gospel message does for us. There are times when we are in pain, beset by fear or anxiety, exhausted from the dayÍs demands. Jesus told us that when we are weary and heavy-laden, we can come to him for rest. He did not, however, say that when we donÍt want to work too hard or face frightening difficulty we should expect him to solve the problem.
In this passage, Jesus wishes to reassure himself that Peter and his other friends understand the nature of the divine mission. He wishes them to understand that there will be discomfort and labor in the mission, and that it must be voluntarily assumed.
1. The Cross is a call to love. Sometimes this ñlove'' is painful to give, because it involves forgiving and accepting mistreatment without protest.
2. The Cross reminds us that we are, in turn, loved by Christ, which is the evidence that we are therefore, by definition, loved by God.
3. The burdens we assume in the work of love will be those which we are able to carry. God will always be present, empowering, leading, reassuring.
4. God will be pleased when we do this. I find this a difficult point to make, yet an important one. I donÍt believe God rewards and punishes, and in that sense, the person who believes in Jesus yet never puts himself out for others is not going to be punished. Nor will the person who does this be rewarded in any crass sense „ rewarded in oneÍs own heart perhaps. Yet Jesus, in describing the Last Judgment, made it clear that at some point in our existence, we will be dealt with on the basis of our serving as well as our intellectual beliefs.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
Scott Adams told of watching a PBS broadcast of Funny Business, and in the closing credits saw that it was a show about cartooning. Adams always thought he could be a cartoonist. The host of the show, Jack Cassady, urged his listeners to consider cartooning as a career, so Adams sent Cassady some cartoons. Cassady wrote back an encouraging letter, telling Adams that he thought he had talent, that he should send his work to some publishers, and not to be discouraged if he was turned down. He explained that it isnÍt easy to get such work published.
Sure enough, Adams sent his cartoons to some publishers and, just as predicted, they were returned. Discouraged, Adams gave up the idea of a career in cartooning. But to his surprise, he received another letter from Cassady about a year and a half later. He said he had been reviewing his files and was reminded of AdamsÍ letter of inquiry. Cassady wrote this: ñThe reason IÍm dropping you this note is to again encourage you to submit your ideas to various publications ... Sometimes encouragement in the funny business of graphic humor is hard to come by. ThatÍs why IÍm encouraging you to hang in there and keep drawing.''
Scott Adams was very touched by this thoughtfulness. Indeed, he did renew his efforts. He drew some more cartoons, sent them to several publishers. His cartoon strip, Dilbert, now appears in 700 newspapers across the country, and he has completed six books „ all because Jack Cassady had taken the time to give encouragement.
____________
A psychologist reported this conversation between a mother and her daughter following the death of the husband/daddy.
ñJessica was five. She showed her mother the picture she had painted. There were black clouds, dark trees, and red splashes. ïMy,Í said her mother, ïtell me about this, Jess.Í Jessica pointed to the red splashes. ïThatÍs blood,Í she said, ïand these are clouds.Í ïOh,Í said her mother. ïSee,Í said Jessica, ïthe trees are very sad. The clouds are black. They are sad too.Í ïWhy are they sad?Í asked her mother. ñThey are sad because their daddy has died,Í said Jessica, the tears slowly running down her cheeks. ïSad like us since Daddy died,Í said her mother, and held her closely, and they both wept.''
„ Reported by Judith Viorst
____________
ñThere is no point in exacting vengeance now, knowing it will cause future vengeance by the offspring of those we punish. Vengeance leads only to revenge.''
„ Archbishop Desmond Tutu (on the people who supported apartheid)
ñThe world is hungry for goodness''
„ Tutu
ñIt is not enough to say ïlet bygones be bygones.Í Indeed, just saying that ensures it will not be so. Reconciliation does not come easy. Believing it does will ensure that it will never be. We have to work and look the beast firmly in the eye. Ultimately, you discover that without forgiveness, there is no future.''
„ Tutu
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 19 (C) „ ñThe heavens are telling the glory of God.''
Psalm 114 (RC) „ ñWhen Israel went out from Egypt.''
Psalm 116 (E) „ ñI love the Lord because he has heard my voice.''
Prayer Of The Day
Reveal to us this day those whom you would have us see, those whose private needs are such that we might help. Grant us the sensitivity to set aside our own needs sufficiently that we might be able to hear with the inner ear, to perceive those calls from friends or loved ones to whom we might minister thy love. Amen.
Lesson 1: Proverbs 1:20-33 (C)
Bernhard Anderson defined wisdom this way: ñAs we have seen, the sages believed that wisdom is not mere human insight, but is the divine purpose by which the universe is directed and in obedience to which man should order his life. From this conviction it was an easy step to regard wisdom as having a special and an almost independent status in GodÍs creation.'' So the passage in Proverbs is, in effect, accusing the reader of ignoring the purpose and the conditions of that purpose in creation. In verse 26 we are warned, ñI will laugh at your calamity.'' So, implicit in this passage is the warning that to ignore the advice of wisdom is to find oneself in serious trouble. However, there is also hope implicit in the words of verse 23b: ñI will make my words known to you.'' So, we are warned in time to avoid calamity. Finally, ñThose who listen to me will be secure.''
Lesson 1: Isaiah 50:5-9a (RC); Isaiah 50:4-9 (E)
(See Sunday Of The Passion)
Lesson 2: James 3:1-12 (C)
James is warning of the damage we do by saying hurtful and untrue words. ñNo one has ever been able to tame the tongue. It is evil and uncontrollable, full of deadly poison.'' Someone must have really gotten to James recently. But heÍs right. Shakespeare wrote of ñSlander, whose edge is sharper than the sword, whose tongue outvenoms all the worms of Nile....'' ñWords are but the shadow of actions,'' said Plutarch. So much harm is done by the tongue, by words, even sometimes words not intended to hurt.
Our tongues, though, by which James means the words we speak, are in fact the external evidence of our values, our sensitivity, our faithfulness to the service of love. They tell what kind of man I have become. They indicate the amount of discipline which I have achieved in my life, inasmuch as all of us sometimes feel anger or jealousy or rejection. Can I control those negative thoughts? Am I honest enough to see myself as I really have become? Can I master my own needs in order to celebrate the other personÍs victories and joys? ArenÍt the answers to these matters a true measure of my faith and thus my faithfulness?
Lesson 2: James 2:14-18 (RC); James 2:1-5, 8-10, 14-18 (E)
(See Proper 18)
Gospel: Mark 8:27-38 (C, E); Mark 8:27-35 (RC)
The ultimate word to be spoken to the human heart regarding Jesus Christ is that 34th verse: ñIf anyone wants to come with me ... he must forget himself, carry his cross, and follow me.'' These words are spoken to Peter, who in this passage is himself struggling with the dawning realization that Jesus is not planning to win out over the world in conventional terms. On the contrary, Jesus plans to suffer and die, and Peter doesnÍt like this idea at all.
Jesus asks Peter who other people believe him to be. There is some reason to think Jesus may not have been sure of the effect of his ministry. His question may really be an effort to find out what his close friends are hearing in the marketplace, on the highways. Then, receiving that answer, he fixes Peter with the question which would one day be posed to you and me as well: ñWho do you say that I am?''
Biblical scholarship suggests the preacher research this passage at greater depth, to ascertain whether, indeed, Jesus was himself beset by doubts about the effectiveness of his ministry. Some commentaries pose this possibility. Or perhaps Jesus intended that the truth of his mission be spread through the work and the faith of others, needing to know now whether people like Peter were prepared to follow a difficult and painful road. And implicit in all of this is JesusÍ unshakable conviction that right will prevail, that ultimately the power of love will triumph in a sometimes hateful world. He probably wasnÍt accusing Peter of being under SatanÍs influence, but was emphasizing that any sentiment in opposition to the divine mission was evil.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: ñDo What You Want, But Remember One Thing''
Text: Proverbs 1:20-33
Theme: Underlying this created universe are certain laws which cannot be broken. They are at the heart of things. Wisdom is warning the reader that any attempt to circumvent those laws will result in consequences we may not like. Gravity, for example, will always work precisely. I can jump off a cliff if I choose, but the consequences are predictable. But be warned, there are some far more subtle laws which work with equal certainty. Hurting people, acting in unloving ways, will also result in calamity. Because that law is more subtle, its consequences are less obvious perhaps. But they will result. Lost friends, unhappy family members, guilt and remorse, failure in vocation, unwise associations „ these follow as night the day.
I listened to Dr. Laura while driving today. A couple called in to ask Dr. LauraÍs opinion of their plan to take their two daughters, aged eight and eleven, to see their grandmother „ in prison. They seemed a nice couple with good values. The young man said his mother was a wonderful mother as he and his brothers grew up. But after they left home, and after a painful divorce, she turned to drugs. Then desperate for money, I guess, she sold drugs. Now that nice mother is in prison for the second time, and two little girls must see her there, and a totally humiliated son and daughter-in-law must make of it what they can. All because a middle-aged woman made a bad choice. As Dr. Laura pointed out, she was free, an adult; she should have known what she was getting into.
1. Every action has a reaction; every wrongful action has a calamitous result.
2. God is on our side. We know what is right to do, and the Holy Spirit will help us make right choices if we let him.
3. We must, however, expect to live with our choices.
4. Those who are faithful, who resist temptation and make right choices. will ñbe secure.''
Title: ñPainful Reality''
Text: James 3:1-12
Theme: I base my title on the fact that itÍs my belief that most of what we say that is hurtful results from our own inner pain and the immaturity we retain from our childhood. IÍm not thinking at the moment of the out-and-out thief or the blatantly antisocial criminal. IÍm thinking of myself, first of all, and if you will permit, of you. Just the other evening I spoke an impatient word to my wife whom I love very much. It wasnÍt that I intended to hurt her. I was just uptight, stressed as we like to say. But my immaturity led me to speak harshly. We have a wonderful marriage, but I confess that I do this from time to time.
Ours is a highly competitive society. We spend a great deal of effort trying to outdo someone or other. John Claypool described himself as a highly competitive minister seeking the elusive quality of self-esteem. He wrote in Opening Blind Eyes, ñI have always been a loner at heart despite certain extroverted relational patterns I have worked to acquire, and I trace this fear-of-closeness tendency back to the old vow to compete. After all, how can one establish authentic intimacy with those whom one is competing against and attempting to outdo?'' Claypool eventually found the maturity to go beyond this temptation.
We clergy know all too well that we arenÍt exempt. The United Methodist Church unfortunately fosters this by publishing a book every year which lists each pastorÍs salary, attendance for the past year, record of payment of apportionments, number of new members won, number of baptisms „ all the little means by which we score our points. Have any of us made it through our years without feeling a little of this competition?
And what has this to do with JamesÍ passage? Well, the proper use of the tongue is to build up, to commend and to encourage and to give hope to others. If self-esteem is important, the tongue can foster that by kind and appreciative words. The mature person, of course, works at overcoming the competitive temptations in order to do this. The mature Christian is slow to criticize, quick to sympathize.
1. God wants us to mature, to win mastery of our inner drives.
2. ItÍs our responsibility, and the more we struggle with the inner person, the more we become mature.
3. We are to build up those people in our lives. And we are to find the strength to say, ñIÍm sorry,'' when we slip.
4. Prayer can enable us in this. When we pray for people, we begin to experience a strange new sense of identification with that person which in turn leads us to want the best for that person, to want his success and fulfillment.
5. People who win this battle always discover an inner sense of self-worth which never quite results from successful competition.
Title: ñThe Winning Side''
Text: Mark 8:27-38
Theme: Christ gave us birth.
O glory of the lighted mind.
How dead IÍd been, how dumb, how blind.
The station brook to my new eyes
Was babbling out of paradise.
The waters rushing from the rain
Were singing Christ has risen again.
I knew that Christ had given me birth
To brother all the souls on earth.
Yes! Masefield had it right. Christ gave us birth, new birth, that we might be brother and sister to the people who come into our lives. The cross was not a sign that life is meant for suffering. ItÍs a sign that suffering is also in the world, and our call is to assume part of that suffering on behalf of those whom we can help and save. We all know the old saying (originally from the newspaper business I am told) that as pastors we are ñto comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.'' ThatÍs what the gospel message does for us. There are times when we are in pain, beset by fear or anxiety, exhausted from the dayÍs demands. Jesus told us that when we are weary and heavy-laden, we can come to him for rest. He did not, however, say that when we donÍt want to work too hard or face frightening difficulty we should expect him to solve the problem.
In this passage, Jesus wishes to reassure himself that Peter and his other friends understand the nature of the divine mission. He wishes them to understand that there will be discomfort and labor in the mission, and that it must be voluntarily assumed.
1. The Cross is a call to love. Sometimes this ñlove'' is painful to give, because it involves forgiving and accepting mistreatment without protest.
2. The Cross reminds us that we are, in turn, loved by Christ, which is the evidence that we are therefore, by definition, loved by God.
3. The burdens we assume in the work of love will be those which we are able to carry. God will always be present, empowering, leading, reassuring.
4. God will be pleased when we do this. I find this a difficult point to make, yet an important one. I donÍt believe God rewards and punishes, and in that sense, the person who believes in Jesus yet never puts himself out for others is not going to be punished. Nor will the person who does this be rewarded in any crass sense „ rewarded in oneÍs own heart perhaps. Yet Jesus, in describing the Last Judgment, made it clear that at some point in our existence, we will be dealt with on the basis of our serving as well as our intellectual beliefs.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
Scott Adams told of watching a PBS broadcast of Funny Business, and in the closing credits saw that it was a show about cartooning. Adams always thought he could be a cartoonist. The host of the show, Jack Cassady, urged his listeners to consider cartooning as a career, so Adams sent Cassady some cartoons. Cassady wrote back an encouraging letter, telling Adams that he thought he had talent, that he should send his work to some publishers, and not to be discouraged if he was turned down. He explained that it isnÍt easy to get such work published.
Sure enough, Adams sent his cartoons to some publishers and, just as predicted, they were returned. Discouraged, Adams gave up the idea of a career in cartooning. But to his surprise, he received another letter from Cassady about a year and a half later. He said he had been reviewing his files and was reminded of AdamsÍ letter of inquiry. Cassady wrote this: ñThe reason IÍm dropping you this note is to again encourage you to submit your ideas to various publications ... Sometimes encouragement in the funny business of graphic humor is hard to come by. ThatÍs why IÍm encouraging you to hang in there and keep drawing.''
Scott Adams was very touched by this thoughtfulness. Indeed, he did renew his efforts. He drew some more cartoons, sent them to several publishers. His cartoon strip, Dilbert, now appears in 700 newspapers across the country, and he has completed six books „ all because Jack Cassady had taken the time to give encouragement.
____________
A psychologist reported this conversation between a mother and her daughter following the death of the husband/daddy.
ñJessica was five. She showed her mother the picture she had painted. There were black clouds, dark trees, and red splashes. ïMy,Í said her mother, ïtell me about this, Jess.Í Jessica pointed to the red splashes. ïThatÍs blood,Í she said, ïand these are clouds.Í ïOh,Í said her mother. ïSee,Í said Jessica, ïthe trees are very sad. The clouds are black. They are sad too.Í ïWhy are they sad?Í asked her mother. ñThey are sad because their daddy has died,Í said Jessica, the tears slowly running down her cheeks. ïSad like us since Daddy died,Í said her mother, and held her closely, and they both wept.''
„ Reported by Judith Viorst
____________
ñThere is no point in exacting vengeance now, knowing it will cause future vengeance by the offspring of those we punish. Vengeance leads only to revenge.''
„ Archbishop Desmond Tutu (on the people who supported apartheid)
ñThe world is hungry for goodness''
„ Tutu
ñIt is not enough to say ïlet bygones be bygones.Í Indeed, just saying that ensures it will not be so. Reconciliation does not come easy. Believing it does will ensure that it will never be. We have to work and look the beast firmly in the eye. Ultimately, you discover that without forgiveness, there is no future.''
„ Tutu
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 19 (C) „ ñThe heavens are telling the glory of God.''
Psalm 114 (RC) „ ñWhen Israel went out from Egypt.''
Psalm 116 (E) „ ñI love the Lord because he has heard my voice.''
Prayer Of The Day
Reveal to us this day those whom you would have us see, those whose private needs are such that we might help. Grant us the sensitivity to set aside our own needs sufficiently that we might be able to hear with the inner ear, to perceive those calls from friends or loved ones to whom we might minister thy love. Amen.
