Proper 28
Preaching
Aids To The Psalms
Exploring The Message
The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
The Lord is good to all,
and his compassion is over all that he has made.
All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your faithful shall bless you.
They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom,
and tell of your power,
to make known to all people your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The Lord is faithful in all his words,
and gracious in all his deeds.
Alternate Image
The Singer has on her choir robe prepared to direct the choir
in the service that will soon start. In the hallway a little boy
sees her, looks wide-eyed at her pretty robe and asks, "Are you a
saint?" She smiles and pats him on the head and enters the choir
room. "Perhaps so," she thinks.
After the service the Singer has doffed her robe and is
dashing down the same hallway in a tight red dress. In her hurry
to get to a gathering of friends she almost knocks down the same
little boy. Once more with his eyes riveted on her tight, bright
red dress, he asks, "Are you a sinner?" She stops and smiles and
tells him, "Right again."
Reflection
What makes us saints or sinners? We are saints when we know
God is gracious and merciful and is passionately in love with us.
We are saints when we acknowledge that and offer God our
heartfelt thanks and praise. We are saints when we bless God.
And, we are sinners when we don't.
We are saints and sinners. It doesn't have anything to do with
glorious robes or tight red dresses. It doesn't have anything to
do with pompous phrases or respectable public demeanors. It
doesn't have anything to do with that outward stuff. It has to do
with where we are oriented at any particular time. We are saints
and sinners throughout our lives. God knows that and welcomes us
both as saint and sinner into the kingdom. I suspect that the
saint part is what endures in the everlasting kingdom.
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
The Lord is good to all,
and his compassion is over all that he has made.
All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your faithful shall bless you.
They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom,
and tell of your power,
to make known to all people your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The Lord is faithful in all his words,
and gracious in all his deeds.
Alternate Image
The Singer has on her choir robe prepared to direct the choir
in the service that will soon start. In the hallway a little boy
sees her, looks wide-eyed at her pretty robe and asks, "Are you a
saint?" She smiles and pats him on the head and enters the choir
room. "Perhaps so," she thinks.
After the service the Singer has doffed her robe and is
dashing down the same hallway in a tight red dress. In her hurry
to get to a gathering of friends she almost knocks down the same
little boy. Once more with his eyes riveted on her tight, bright
red dress, he asks, "Are you a sinner?" She stops and smiles and
tells him, "Right again."
Reflection
What makes us saints or sinners? We are saints when we know
God is gracious and merciful and is passionately in love with us.
We are saints when we acknowledge that and offer God our
heartfelt thanks and praise. We are saints when we bless God.
And, we are sinners when we don't.
We are saints and sinners. It doesn't have anything to do with
glorious robes or tight red dresses. It doesn't have anything to
do with pompous phrases or respectable public demeanors. It
doesn't have anything to do with that outward stuff. It has to do
with where we are oriented at any particular time. We are saints
and sinners throughout our lives. God knows that and welcomes us
both as saint and sinner into the kingdom. I suspect that the
saint part is what endures in the everlasting kingdom.
