Proper 4
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle A
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Genesis 6:11-22; 7:24; 8:14-19 (C)
People still debate the question: is there any literal truth to this story of Noah and the flood? Expeditions are currently looking for Noah's ark. Actually, unless one likes only literal interpretation of Bible stories, it doesn't really matter. This is a myth, if by "myth" we mean a story designed to tell an important story which may or may not be historically true. Some excavations in the area suggest that there was, indeed, a major flood, and it's possible that anyone having no knowledge of the extent of earth's creation, stuck on a boat for 150 days, might at least think the water covered the entire earth.
What is important here is the ancient belief reported by the writers of Genesis that God must have despaired of people living at that time. They hypothesized that God found humanity a hopeless case and decided to rid the world of the abominable species and, along with it, the rest of the world's living things. However, on second thought, God decided to make one more effort. He would choose a family with a good record, save two animals, male and female, of each non-human species, cleanse the rest of the earth, and begin again. The main point of this seems to be homiletically (remembering that most mainline congregations don't really want long history lessons), that God does not give up on us as long as he sees any hope that we may change and be redeemed.
Lesson 1: Deuteronomy 11:18, 26-28, 32 (RC); Deuteronomy 11:18-21, 26-28 (E)
Remembering that we have not yet heard from Jesus, we have the Deuteronomist writer quoting God as telling people to get one thing straight, get it clear in their minds, stamp it on their foreheads if necessary, but get it: they have two choices. They can obey the divine commandments, in which case they will receive a blessing. Or, they can ignore the commandments, in which case they will receive a curse. Period. No arguments. No negotiation. That's it.
Lesson 2: Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28 (29-31) (C); Romans 3:21-25, 28 (RC); Romans 3:21-25a, 28 (E)
This is one of the Bible's most influential passages for mainstream Protestantism. It underlays Martin Luther's conversion, and John Wesley's theology, as well as that of modern figures of towering importance to contemporary theology, men like Karl Barth, Paul Tillich, and others. It also results in a certain amount of confusion for the average Christian who grows up believing that a good Christian is someone who does good things and avoids bad things. Our problem, of course, is that we often have the cart before the horse. That is, being good is not what thereby makes one a Christian. Rather, because a person is a Christian, he or she will be as good as possible (screwing up from time to time, of course, but doing one's very best). So Paul was saying that we are saved, not by good works, but by faith, and faith alone. And faith is not something we do by trying hard. It is a gift, free and clear, given by God. So, if you are found doing something kind for someone else, it isn't scoring points in the great somewhere. It is evidencing that you are the recipient of God's gift of faith, given not because you deserve it, but because of God's unlimited generosity, God's grace.
Gospel: Matthew 7:21-29 (C); Matthew 7:21-27 (RC, E)
Jesus makes clear that the mark of a true believer in the God of Jesus is not that such a person adheres closely to any particular religious practices, nor that one has done nice things (probably thinking "this ought to impress God"). The mark of a true believer is that person's private efforts to live by the divine commandments. This is, sometimes, a difficult distinction, because as we have learned from Paul, a true believer does good to others. It's a matter of motives, I suppose. T. S. Eliot wrote of "the greatest treason, to do the right thing for the wrong reason."
Jesus uses an analogy we can all understand. There's a neighborhood in Indianapolis in which several homeowners are currently involved in litigation with a home builder who put up several homes in a small subdivision, building them on lots which have such sandy soil that the ground has shifted and there has been damage of one kind or another to nearly all of the homes. Their value is, therefore, next to nothing. Doing that is like knowing what God expects of one but choosing to ignore same. Obeying, on the other hand, is like building one's home on hard, rock-solid ground, where even earthquakes will not strike.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Rainbow In The Sky"
Text: Genesis 6:11-22; 7:24; 8:14-19; 9:13
Theme: Ancient Jewish teachers loved hyperbole (exaggeration). I understand that. As I write, summer has begun and we haven't had a sunny day yet. May was twelve degrees below normal on average, and we're seven or eight inches above normal rainfall for the month. If I kept a diary, I'd probably write something like this: "date, weather still abominable. I haven't seen a sunny day for so long I feel like those fish in Mammoth Cave which are blind because they've never seen the light. If the sun doesn't shine in a few more years here, that's what will happen." Now of course if some literal-minded relative were to read that in future years, he might get the wrong idea. Actually, this is Sunday and Tuesday's weather prediction is for hot and sunny. I was simply expressing my own frustration with a lengthy period of unpleasant weather. I suspect something like that often went on in Judaic teaching and we need to be ready for that, using a little imagination. These writers used their writing implements like paint brushes as often as for mere historical recording.
I would focus on Noah (note the addition of Genesis 9:13 to the text).
1. God trusted Noah and gave him a mission. In later readings in the Bible we learn that the same is true for us. God trusts us and gives each one of us a mission. As I look back on my own life, I see years during which I had no specific sense of mission, of special responsibility and purpose. They were not happy years, though external conditions were good. I can also see later years during which I knew exactly what I'm here to do. They have been wonderful years, even though I have suffered the death of loved ones, some health problems, the usual vocational disappointments.
2. God loved the animals, in other words, the simpler things of creation. (Some wag is sure that as the two rabbits were walking up the gangplank in a line of other animals, Noah leaned over and said, "I'd like to speak to you two in my office.") Now, as we go through life, the simple things -- animals, growing things, sunsets, good books, friends -- are probably going to prove of at least equal value to success, and money, and recognition. If we were to lose the ability to love those little things, how sad we'd be.
3. God assured Noah he would not be alone, that God would enable him in his work. So with us. Is there one of us, preparing to preach, who has not learned this already: we always receive the help we need. We are partners in a covenant which holds that if we're faithful, God is faithful.
Title: "Goodness And The Grace Of God"
Text: Romans 3:21-28
Theme: Paul has set many a person free from guilt and religious neurosis by this passage. It was said that Martin Luther, while a priest, spent many an hour in his monastery cell beating himself with a whip, frantically trying to punish himself for his sins. They were not outward actions, they were those unavoidable naughty thoughts which can beset us all, no matter how good we are. In fact, psychologists sometimes suspect that the better a person tries to be, the more besieging these thoughts can sometimes become. I have never read where Luther was very specific on the point (they're not just sexual in nature; there are jealousy, wishing ill for another person, delight in a colleague's comeuppance, aspirations to be recognized, weariness of privation when others seem prosperous, and on and on). Then, as we all know, Luther came across this passage in his darkest hour and realized suddenly that his relationship with God was not premised on a totally clean life; it was already his as a free gift. He would henceforth live, not by works, but by grace.
1. Good works are not the path to a godly life. Rather, they are the result of a godly life. If we think to in some way coerce or bribe God by our goodness, we run the risk of self-righteousness (e.g., the Pharisees), of subtle self-interest in every good act.
2. A godly life begins with faith, received as a gift. While we can't arrange that, we can enable it by worship, prayer, Bible. Actually, it's ours already, but faith must be appropriated by our acceptance. Also, it must be nurtured by regular worship in its various forms. To say, "I love God, but I don't go to church," is like saying, "I love my spouse but I never go home."
3. Good works proceed from the love which comes through faith, by grace. Now we find ourselves able to make sacrifices for others, to in many ways do acts of kindness with no thought of reward. Emerson once remarked that the greatest joy is to be found doing a secret good, which only shows that we remain sinful to the end.
Title: "Life With A True Foundation"
Text: Matthew 7:21-29
Theme: Jesus used a clear figure, homes built either on rock or on sand. We, in preaching, must give specific meaning to those ideas. Jesus related this to obedience to divine commandments, but we could easily get caught up in a too simplistic gospel of works righteousness. Paul has clearly informed us that doing good versus doing bad are not the direct opposites of rock and sand. Forgiveness, reformation, motivation, new life, all these enter into the divine/human equation. Also, the world is arranged so that good and bad conduct have their own rewards and punishments not directly related to God. That is, if, for example, a man steals from his company then feels remorse and prays to God to be forgiven, we believe God will forgive provided the man makes restitution. However, for the rest of his life he'll be known as a reformed thief. He'll never stop paying for his offense in this life.
1. A reputation for integrity is an indispensable quality for a happy life. Once lost, it can never be completely regained. Quite apart from God's reaction to my moral conduct, I must spend this life facing the response of friends and employers. They're not quite so forgiving. My wife and I know a man we really like. He's a professional person and in many ways a man of high character. But he can't keep his mouth shut. We don't tell him anything we don't want the world to know.
2. Good personal relationships are essential for happiness. These, in turn, unless they are dysfunctional (as many are), require trust, mutuality, caring. I can't imagine a life which I would consider "built on rock" which did not include a circle of friends one can rely on, and to whom one is willing to give oneself in the relationships. I recently went through an illness and was surrounded by signs of genuine love from people I care about. How can anyone be truly happy without that? But to have a friend you have to be a friend. That means, among other things, being a man or woman of your word.
3. A clear conscience increases in value as we age. I discover as I look back upon my life that awards and accolades, which we all receive in the ministry, mean far less than the quiet belief that I never knowingly compromised my true beliefs. Far from perfection to be sure, I still must live with the private knowledge of who I really am. Within the circle which really counts -- family, true friends, self -- it's that knowledge which constitutes the rock on which a life is built. What about answering to God for all of this? Jesus said if I have done my best, I have nothing to fear from God.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
J. W. Hamilton told a story about a wealthy man who, toward the end of his years, was going on a long vacation. He called in his assistant, a man who had worked with him for many years. He told the assistant that while he was away, he wanted that man to oversee the construction of a new home in which he proposed to live his declining years. He made a large sum of money available and ordered that everything be done first-rate. Then he left.
The assistant, heretofore a responsible manager, began to do some thinking. He never felt he had been paid adequately. Here was a chance to make a nice profit for himself and his boss would never know. He hired the cheapest contractor for the building of the house. He bought shoddy materials, hired the least expensive workers and, in every way, saw to the building of a cheaply constructed house. He was, thereby, able to reap a large profit.
The boss returned. He called the assistant in and asked if the house was completed. That man said yes, it was. Then the old man said this: "You have been my good friend for years. I have had you build this home for yourself. It is my final gift. I was never able to pay you adequately in the early years but now I want to repay you with this house. I didn't tell you this for fear you would try to cut costs for my sake. The place is yours."
____________
Many years ago I was a member of a Junior Chamber of Commerce group which brought in the old Harlem Globetrotters professional basketball team, with people like Meadowlark Lemon, as a community fund-raiser. On the night of the game, we took jobs at the local gym to oversee the event with its large local crowd. A friend and I were assigned exit doors on opposite sides of the arena. We were to keep people from sneaking in without tickets. My friend, Mil Illich, was from Yugoslavia, where, as a teenager, he had served with Tito in the mountains, against the Germans at the end of World War II.
Unfortunately, the doors Mil and I were to guard were out of sight of the playing floor. When the game began, not wanting to miss the action, I left the door I was to guard and went in to watch the action. Later, when the game was over, I asked Mil how he liked the Globetrotters. He informed me he didn't know. He hadn't seen them because he was guarding a door out of view of the game. I realized he had remained at his post. I had not. An unimportant occasion, one might say. Yes. But that man taught me a lesson in faithfulness. He had said he would guard that door and he had not failed. I had. Jesus said, "He who is faithful in little is faithful in much." I had failed. But I learned an important lesson from a man who had learned in a larger arena where lives were at stake that when you say you'll do something, friends have a right to expect you to do it.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 46 (C) -- Confidence in the present help of God.
Psalm 31:2-4, 17, 25 (RC); Psalm 31 (E) --ÊBe a strong fortress to save me.
Prayer Of The Day
Confirm us in our faith, O God. Temptations beset us. We would, if less strong, do those things which we sometimes know to be wrong. Our words at times would hurt others, be less than truthful. But by your strength we can keep the faith. Be, then, that strength for us, O God of integrity and Love.
Lesson 1: Genesis 6:11-22; 7:24; 8:14-19 (C)
People still debate the question: is there any literal truth to this story of Noah and the flood? Expeditions are currently looking for Noah's ark. Actually, unless one likes only literal interpretation of Bible stories, it doesn't really matter. This is a myth, if by "myth" we mean a story designed to tell an important story which may or may not be historically true. Some excavations in the area suggest that there was, indeed, a major flood, and it's possible that anyone having no knowledge of the extent of earth's creation, stuck on a boat for 150 days, might at least think the water covered the entire earth.
What is important here is the ancient belief reported by the writers of Genesis that God must have despaired of people living at that time. They hypothesized that God found humanity a hopeless case and decided to rid the world of the abominable species and, along with it, the rest of the world's living things. However, on second thought, God decided to make one more effort. He would choose a family with a good record, save two animals, male and female, of each non-human species, cleanse the rest of the earth, and begin again. The main point of this seems to be homiletically (remembering that most mainline congregations don't really want long history lessons), that God does not give up on us as long as he sees any hope that we may change and be redeemed.
Lesson 1: Deuteronomy 11:18, 26-28, 32 (RC); Deuteronomy 11:18-21, 26-28 (E)
Remembering that we have not yet heard from Jesus, we have the Deuteronomist writer quoting God as telling people to get one thing straight, get it clear in their minds, stamp it on their foreheads if necessary, but get it: they have two choices. They can obey the divine commandments, in which case they will receive a blessing. Or, they can ignore the commandments, in which case they will receive a curse. Period. No arguments. No negotiation. That's it.
Lesson 2: Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28 (29-31) (C); Romans 3:21-25, 28 (RC); Romans 3:21-25a, 28 (E)
This is one of the Bible's most influential passages for mainstream Protestantism. It underlays Martin Luther's conversion, and John Wesley's theology, as well as that of modern figures of towering importance to contemporary theology, men like Karl Barth, Paul Tillich, and others. It also results in a certain amount of confusion for the average Christian who grows up believing that a good Christian is someone who does good things and avoids bad things. Our problem, of course, is that we often have the cart before the horse. That is, being good is not what thereby makes one a Christian. Rather, because a person is a Christian, he or she will be as good as possible (screwing up from time to time, of course, but doing one's very best). So Paul was saying that we are saved, not by good works, but by faith, and faith alone. And faith is not something we do by trying hard. It is a gift, free and clear, given by God. So, if you are found doing something kind for someone else, it isn't scoring points in the great somewhere. It is evidencing that you are the recipient of God's gift of faith, given not because you deserve it, but because of God's unlimited generosity, God's grace.
Gospel: Matthew 7:21-29 (C); Matthew 7:21-27 (RC, E)
Jesus makes clear that the mark of a true believer in the God of Jesus is not that such a person adheres closely to any particular religious practices, nor that one has done nice things (probably thinking "this ought to impress God"). The mark of a true believer is that person's private efforts to live by the divine commandments. This is, sometimes, a difficult distinction, because as we have learned from Paul, a true believer does good to others. It's a matter of motives, I suppose. T. S. Eliot wrote of "the greatest treason, to do the right thing for the wrong reason."
Jesus uses an analogy we can all understand. There's a neighborhood in Indianapolis in which several homeowners are currently involved in litigation with a home builder who put up several homes in a small subdivision, building them on lots which have such sandy soil that the ground has shifted and there has been damage of one kind or another to nearly all of the homes. Their value is, therefore, next to nothing. Doing that is like knowing what God expects of one but choosing to ignore same. Obeying, on the other hand, is like building one's home on hard, rock-solid ground, where even earthquakes will not strike.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Rainbow In The Sky"
Text: Genesis 6:11-22; 7:24; 8:14-19; 9:13
Theme: Ancient Jewish teachers loved hyperbole (exaggeration). I understand that. As I write, summer has begun and we haven't had a sunny day yet. May was twelve degrees below normal on average, and we're seven or eight inches above normal rainfall for the month. If I kept a diary, I'd probably write something like this: "date, weather still abominable. I haven't seen a sunny day for so long I feel like those fish in Mammoth Cave which are blind because they've never seen the light. If the sun doesn't shine in a few more years here, that's what will happen." Now of course if some literal-minded relative were to read that in future years, he might get the wrong idea. Actually, this is Sunday and Tuesday's weather prediction is for hot and sunny. I was simply expressing my own frustration with a lengthy period of unpleasant weather. I suspect something like that often went on in Judaic teaching and we need to be ready for that, using a little imagination. These writers used their writing implements like paint brushes as often as for mere historical recording.
I would focus on Noah (note the addition of Genesis 9:13 to the text).
1. God trusted Noah and gave him a mission. In later readings in the Bible we learn that the same is true for us. God trusts us and gives each one of us a mission. As I look back on my own life, I see years during which I had no specific sense of mission, of special responsibility and purpose. They were not happy years, though external conditions were good. I can also see later years during which I knew exactly what I'm here to do. They have been wonderful years, even though I have suffered the death of loved ones, some health problems, the usual vocational disappointments.
2. God loved the animals, in other words, the simpler things of creation. (Some wag is sure that as the two rabbits were walking up the gangplank in a line of other animals, Noah leaned over and said, "I'd like to speak to you two in my office.") Now, as we go through life, the simple things -- animals, growing things, sunsets, good books, friends -- are probably going to prove of at least equal value to success, and money, and recognition. If we were to lose the ability to love those little things, how sad we'd be.
3. God assured Noah he would not be alone, that God would enable him in his work. So with us. Is there one of us, preparing to preach, who has not learned this already: we always receive the help we need. We are partners in a covenant which holds that if we're faithful, God is faithful.
Title: "Goodness And The Grace Of God"
Text: Romans 3:21-28
Theme: Paul has set many a person free from guilt and religious neurosis by this passage. It was said that Martin Luther, while a priest, spent many an hour in his monastery cell beating himself with a whip, frantically trying to punish himself for his sins. They were not outward actions, they were those unavoidable naughty thoughts which can beset us all, no matter how good we are. In fact, psychologists sometimes suspect that the better a person tries to be, the more besieging these thoughts can sometimes become. I have never read where Luther was very specific on the point (they're not just sexual in nature; there are jealousy, wishing ill for another person, delight in a colleague's comeuppance, aspirations to be recognized, weariness of privation when others seem prosperous, and on and on). Then, as we all know, Luther came across this passage in his darkest hour and realized suddenly that his relationship with God was not premised on a totally clean life; it was already his as a free gift. He would henceforth live, not by works, but by grace.
1. Good works are not the path to a godly life. Rather, they are the result of a godly life. If we think to in some way coerce or bribe God by our goodness, we run the risk of self-righteousness (e.g., the Pharisees), of subtle self-interest in every good act.
2. A godly life begins with faith, received as a gift. While we can't arrange that, we can enable it by worship, prayer, Bible. Actually, it's ours already, but faith must be appropriated by our acceptance. Also, it must be nurtured by regular worship in its various forms. To say, "I love God, but I don't go to church," is like saying, "I love my spouse but I never go home."
3. Good works proceed from the love which comes through faith, by grace. Now we find ourselves able to make sacrifices for others, to in many ways do acts of kindness with no thought of reward. Emerson once remarked that the greatest joy is to be found doing a secret good, which only shows that we remain sinful to the end.
Title: "Life With A True Foundation"
Text: Matthew 7:21-29
Theme: Jesus used a clear figure, homes built either on rock or on sand. We, in preaching, must give specific meaning to those ideas. Jesus related this to obedience to divine commandments, but we could easily get caught up in a too simplistic gospel of works righteousness. Paul has clearly informed us that doing good versus doing bad are not the direct opposites of rock and sand. Forgiveness, reformation, motivation, new life, all these enter into the divine/human equation. Also, the world is arranged so that good and bad conduct have their own rewards and punishments not directly related to God. That is, if, for example, a man steals from his company then feels remorse and prays to God to be forgiven, we believe God will forgive provided the man makes restitution. However, for the rest of his life he'll be known as a reformed thief. He'll never stop paying for his offense in this life.
1. A reputation for integrity is an indispensable quality for a happy life. Once lost, it can never be completely regained. Quite apart from God's reaction to my moral conduct, I must spend this life facing the response of friends and employers. They're not quite so forgiving. My wife and I know a man we really like. He's a professional person and in many ways a man of high character. But he can't keep his mouth shut. We don't tell him anything we don't want the world to know.
2. Good personal relationships are essential for happiness. These, in turn, unless they are dysfunctional (as many are), require trust, mutuality, caring. I can't imagine a life which I would consider "built on rock" which did not include a circle of friends one can rely on, and to whom one is willing to give oneself in the relationships. I recently went through an illness and was surrounded by signs of genuine love from people I care about. How can anyone be truly happy without that? But to have a friend you have to be a friend. That means, among other things, being a man or woman of your word.
3. A clear conscience increases in value as we age. I discover as I look back upon my life that awards and accolades, which we all receive in the ministry, mean far less than the quiet belief that I never knowingly compromised my true beliefs. Far from perfection to be sure, I still must live with the private knowledge of who I really am. Within the circle which really counts -- family, true friends, self -- it's that knowledge which constitutes the rock on which a life is built. What about answering to God for all of this? Jesus said if I have done my best, I have nothing to fear from God.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
J. W. Hamilton told a story about a wealthy man who, toward the end of his years, was going on a long vacation. He called in his assistant, a man who had worked with him for many years. He told the assistant that while he was away, he wanted that man to oversee the construction of a new home in which he proposed to live his declining years. He made a large sum of money available and ordered that everything be done first-rate. Then he left.
The assistant, heretofore a responsible manager, began to do some thinking. He never felt he had been paid adequately. Here was a chance to make a nice profit for himself and his boss would never know. He hired the cheapest contractor for the building of the house. He bought shoddy materials, hired the least expensive workers and, in every way, saw to the building of a cheaply constructed house. He was, thereby, able to reap a large profit.
The boss returned. He called the assistant in and asked if the house was completed. That man said yes, it was. Then the old man said this: "You have been my good friend for years. I have had you build this home for yourself. It is my final gift. I was never able to pay you adequately in the early years but now I want to repay you with this house. I didn't tell you this for fear you would try to cut costs for my sake. The place is yours."
____________
Many years ago I was a member of a Junior Chamber of Commerce group which brought in the old Harlem Globetrotters professional basketball team, with people like Meadowlark Lemon, as a community fund-raiser. On the night of the game, we took jobs at the local gym to oversee the event with its large local crowd. A friend and I were assigned exit doors on opposite sides of the arena. We were to keep people from sneaking in without tickets. My friend, Mil Illich, was from Yugoslavia, where, as a teenager, he had served with Tito in the mountains, against the Germans at the end of World War II.
Unfortunately, the doors Mil and I were to guard were out of sight of the playing floor. When the game began, not wanting to miss the action, I left the door I was to guard and went in to watch the action. Later, when the game was over, I asked Mil how he liked the Globetrotters. He informed me he didn't know. He hadn't seen them because he was guarding a door out of view of the game. I realized he had remained at his post. I had not. An unimportant occasion, one might say. Yes. But that man taught me a lesson in faithfulness. He had said he would guard that door and he had not failed. I had. Jesus said, "He who is faithful in little is faithful in much." I had failed. But I learned an important lesson from a man who had learned in a larger arena where lives were at stake that when you say you'll do something, friends have a right to expect you to do it.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 46 (C) -- Confidence in the present help of God.
Psalm 31:2-4, 17, 25 (RC); Psalm 31 (E) --ÊBe a strong fortress to save me.
Prayer Of The Day
Confirm us in our faith, O God. Temptations beset us. We would, if less strong, do those things which we sometimes know to be wrong. Our words at times would hurt others, be less than truthful. But by your strength we can keep the faith. Be, then, that strength for us, O God of integrity and Love.
