Proper 7
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series IV
Two armies were facing each other in the Elah Valley. The
Israelite army was led by King Saul. The other was the army of
the Philistines. Three brothers of David were in Saul's army.
David's father sent David to check on his brothers' welfare and
to take them some food. During his visit, David heard Goliath the
giant make his offer to fight anyone from the Israelite camp.
David offered to fight the giant. Saul gave David his armor, but
David took it off because he was not used to it. On his way to
fight Goliath, he picked up five stones and with his slingshot he
shot one stone that hit Goliath in the head. With Goliath's own
sword, David cut off Goliath's head, and the Philistine army was
routed.
Lesson 2: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13 (C)
Paul reminds his Corinthian church that in Christ God was
reconciling the world to himself. He has given us Christians the
ministry of reconciliation. We are his ambassadors through whom
God's appeal to be reconciled is made. Therefore, we are workers
together with God because by grace we have been reconciled. The
danger is that we received the grace in vain. If we do, we are
obstacles for others to receive this grace. In order to prevent
being obstacles, we Christians are to endure all kinds of
hardships for the gospel's sake.
Gospel: Mark 4:35-41 (C, L, RC); Mark 4:35-41 (5:1-20) (E)
When Jesus completes his teaching with parables, he and his
disciples cross the Sea of Galilee to minister to Gentiles. A
storm threatens to drown them while Jesus, exhausted from his
work and at peace with God and himself, sleeps in the boat. They
awaken Jesus and accuse him of not caring if they perish. Jesus
tells the winds and water to be still. A great calm follows. Then
Jesus asks them why they were afraid and where their faith was.
Filled with awe, they ask, "Who then is this?" The disciples
failed to grasp the nature of Jesus and his work.
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 9:9-20 (C) -- "The Lord is a stronghold for the
oppressed." (v. 9)
Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32 (L); Psalm 107:1-32 (E)
Prayer Of The Day
"O God, our defender, storms rage about us and cause us to be
afraid. Rescue your people from despair, deliver your sons and
daughters from fear, and preserve us all from unbelief."
Hymn Of The Day
"Who Trusts In God, A Strong Abode"
195
THEOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS
Gospel: Mark 4:35-41 (C, E, L, RC)
1. Just (v. 36). The disciples took Jesus into their boat
"just as he was." What could that mean? Does it mean his clothing
-- was it not proper or adequate for a boat trip of several miles
to the other side? Was it that he needed to wash up? They took
him with dirty hands, feet and face? Was he tired and exhausted
from teaching and healing? Today we are not prone to take Jesus
as he is -- human and divine. We have a tendency to take him as
we want him to be.
2. Asleep (v. 38). How soundly Jesus must have slept! Can you
imagine anyone sleeping when waves toss the boat around like a
cork, with water splashing into the boat, and 12 men scampering
and yelling in fear of drowning? His sleeping indicates how worn
out Jesus was from his constant ministering, but it also
indicates his complete relaxation resulting from his faith in
God's providence and protection. It was not the sleep of a Jonah
who used sleep as an escape from reality. Jesus' sleep was one of
perfect trust in the Father's care.
3. Faith (v. 40). Jesus asked the men in the boat, "Have you
no faith?" Scared to death from the storm, the disciples awaken
Jesus and rebuke him, "Don't you care that we perish?" Jesus not
care -- how could they accuse him after all the good things they
already had seen him do? These hardened, seasoned men -- some
professional fishermen -- were scared to death. Jesus asked them
why they were afraid. In the light of the storm, it seems like a
foolish question. Who wouldn't be scared, except maybe Jesus
only? The answer to fear is faith. If they had faith, they would
not have been frightened. A storm calls for faith in the care and
protection of God.
4. Awe (v. 41). The disciples were amazed at the authority and
power of Jesus in stilling the storm. Would we not feel the same
if someone would speak to a tornado or a hurricane and there
resulted calm? There was a sense of awe, admiration and respect
for one who could command the forces of nature to obey. Their awe
was expressed in their question, "Who then is this?" Who but the
Creator-God could make nature behave?
Lesson 1: 1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23), 32-49
1. Just a boy (v. 33). When David offered to fight Goliath,
King Saul discouraged him from going because he was "just a boy."
It is the problem of underestimating a person's ability. David
was only a boy, but he had something the army did not have: faith
in God and courage. With these assets, giants of evil can be
conquered.
2. I cannot walk with these (v. 39). King Saul wanted to equip
David for the fight with Goliath by putting the royal armor on
him. David found this equipment was a hindrance. He was not used
to wearing heavy military armor. He had only a slingshot and five
stones. The victory was not in a human, but in God.
3. Stones (v. 40). The Holy Land, as tourists learn, is
covered with stones. The stones David used were about the size of
a baseball. A master slinger could throw a stone at a speed
approximately 100 miles per hour. One stone at that speed could
knock a person unconscious. Then David cut off Goliath's head
with his own sword.
4. Name (v. 45). Goliath came to David with enormous weapons,
but David came to Goliath in the "name" of the Lord. The name was
identical with the person and name of God. He had faith that God
was with him and that God would fight for him. With God on his
side, he could not fail, and he did not!
Lesson 2: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13 (C)
1. Together (v. 1). We Christians do not only work together as
fellow-Christians, but we work together with God. We are partners
with God in the work of reconciling the world to God. We have a
church to build, wrongs to be righted, and truth to be declared.
What an honor and privilege to be coupled with God in the most
important work anyone can do!
2. In vain (v. 1). How can anyone receive the grace of God in
vain? What does "in vain" mean? Grace means we are forgiven and
made people of God. To receive this grace in
196
vain is to nullify the grace by disloyalty and disobedience.
Grace can be of no effect if we turn from the gospel truth and
turn to other gods. If our lives do not correspond to the purity
of Christ, the grace is null and void.
3. Now (v. 2). The time to be accepted is today. At once is
the time to accept Christ as Lord and Savior. Salvation cannot
wait. To wait may be fatal. Salvation is being right with God by
faith in Christ. Be in right relations with God today, and keep
in that relationship for every tomorrow. Christians may keep non-
Christians from accepting God's grace by their manner of living.
PREACHING POSSIBILITIES
Gospel: Mark 4:35-41 (C, E, L, RC)
1. Stilling the storm in your life. 4:35-41
Need: What life does not have an occasional storm in it? It is
a time of danger which frightens us because we may perish. It is
not necessarily a storm at sea, but it is just as real and just
as deadly. The storm may be in the family which may be threatened
by drugs or divorce. It can happen in school or at work. In this
pericope we find guidelines for coming safely through a storm.
Outline: How the storm can be stilled in your life --
a. Accept the reality of the storm -- v. 37.
b. Go to Jesus for help -- v. 38.
c. Overcome fear with faith -- v. 40.
2. Jesus in who's who. 4:41
Need: When we want to know the identity of a person, we turn
to "Who's Who." People of accomplishment and prominence are
honored by being included in "Who's Who." The disciples needed
such a dictionary of the great, even though they had been with
Jesus for some time. They never did find the answer to their
question, "Who then is this?" until the cross. At the time of the
storm, he was a man of promise, but what man can make wind and
waves obey him when he commands, "Peace, be still?" No answer is
given at this time. It is left open-ended for a later answer.
Outline: Who then is this Jesus?
a. One whom nature obeys.
b. One whose life is sinless.
c. One who dies for love of the world.
3. Can you sleep in a storm? 4:38
Need: When a plane flies through turbulence, can you sleep?
When a boat is tossed around by 30-foot-waves, the motor fails,
and water fills the boat -- can you sleep at a time like that?
There are storms in your life: doubts, troubles, suffering,
failure, desertion. Can you sleep at night without sleeping
pills? At a time when troubles throng, we need to learn how to
sleep without medication.
Outline: How you can sleep during a storm --
a. Take Jesus with you -- v. 36.
b. Let Jesus give you peace -- v. 39.
c. Have faith in God's care -- v. 40.
Lesson 1: 1 Samuel 17:32-49 (C)
1. Confidence to overcome giants. 17:34-37
Need: Life is filled with threatening giants. There are giants
that seem to undo us. The giants are so big and strong that we
are terrified and scared to death. If we are going to defeat
these giants, we must have confidence in God and in ourselves.
Outline: To defeat the giants of our day --
a. We need confidence in God -- vv. 45, 47.
b. We need confidence in ourselves -- vv. 34-39, 46.
197
2. Be your own person. 17:39-47
Need: To overcome your giant enemies, you need to be yourself,
and use what you have. David was all alone in facing Goliath. He
had only a shepherd's staff, a slingshot and some stones. He
could not use another person's armor, even a king's. With what
little we have, plus faith in God's help, giants can be defeated.
Outline: To defeat giant enemies --
a. Be your self -- fight your own battles -- vv. 32, 37.
b. Use your own equipment -- vv. 38-40.
c. Have confidence in God -- vv. 45-47.
Lesson 2: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13
1. Partners with God. 6:1
Need: God cannot win the world alone! He needs human
instruments to declare his truth and to administer his grace. We
continue Christ's work of reconciliation in and through the
church which is his body. The church's growth and the moral
condition of society depend upon the effectiveness of our work as
fellow-laborers in God's kingdom.
Outline: As partners with God --
a. We have a gospel to proclaim.
b. We administer God's grace to the repentant and believing.
c. We have a world to change.
2. Are you a help or a hindrance? 6:3
Need: Paul is concerned about a Christian's being an obstacle
to faith in Christ. Probably Christians keep more people out of
church than they bring into church. Paul in this pericope gives
evidence that proves he is no obstacle because of his hardships
endured for the gospel's sake.
Outline: Are you an obstacle to faith?
a. You fail to witness for Christ?
b. Your life turns people away?
c. Your indifference and apathy discourage people?
198
Israelite army was led by King Saul. The other was the army of
the Philistines. Three brothers of David were in Saul's army.
David's father sent David to check on his brothers' welfare and
to take them some food. During his visit, David heard Goliath the
giant make his offer to fight anyone from the Israelite camp.
David offered to fight the giant. Saul gave David his armor, but
David took it off because he was not used to it. On his way to
fight Goliath, he picked up five stones and with his slingshot he
shot one stone that hit Goliath in the head. With Goliath's own
sword, David cut off Goliath's head, and the Philistine army was
routed.
Lesson 2: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13 (C)
Paul reminds his Corinthian church that in Christ God was
reconciling the world to himself. He has given us Christians the
ministry of reconciliation. We are his ambassadors through whom
God's appeal to be reconciled is made. Therefore, we are workers
together with God because by grace we have been reconciled. The
danger is that we received the grace in vain. If we do, we are
obstacles for others to receive this grace. In order to prevent
being obstacles, we Christians are to endure all kinds of
hardships for the gospel's sake.
Gospel: Mark 4:35-41 (C, L, RC); Mark 4:35-41 (5:1-20) (E)
When Jesus completes his teaching with parables, he and his
disciples cross the Sea of Galilee to minister to Gentiles. A
storm threatens to drown them while Jesus, exhausted from his
work and at peace with God and himself, sleeps in the boat. They
awaken Jesus and accuse him of not caring if they perish. Jesus
tells the winds and water to be still. A great calm follows. Then
Jesus asks them why they were afraid and where their faith was.
Filled with awe, they ask, "Who then is this?" The disciples
failed to grasp the nature of Jesus and his work.
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 9:9-20 (C) -- "The Lord is a stronghold for the
oppressed." (v. 9)
Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32 (L); Psalm 107:1-32 (E)
Prayer Of The Day
"O God, our defender, storms rage about us and cause us to be
afraid. Rescue your people from despair, deliver your sons and
daughters from fear, and preserve us all from unbelief."
Hymn Of The Day
"Who Trusts In God, A Strong Abode"
195
THEOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS
Gospel: Mark 4:35-41 (C, E, L, RC)
1. Just (v. 36). The disciples took Jesus into their boat
"just as he was." What could that mean? Does it mean his clothing
-- was it not proper or adequate for a boat trip of several miles
to the other side? Was it that he needed to wash up? They took
him with dirty hands, feet and face? Was he tired and exhausted
from teaching and healing? Today we are not prone to take Jesus
as he is -- human and divine. We have a tendency to take him as
we want him to be.
2. Asleep (v. 38). How soundly Jesus must have slept! Can you
imagine anyone sleeping when waves toss the boat around like a
cork, with water splashing into the boat, and 12 men scampering
and yelling in fear of drowning? His sleeping indicates how worn
out Jesus was from his constant ministering, but it also
indicates his complete relaxation resulting from his faith in
God's providence and protection. It was not the sleep of a Jonah
who used sleep as an escape from reality. Jesus' sleep was one of
perfect trust in the Father's care.
3. Faith (v. 40). Jesus asked the men in the boat, "Have you
no faith?" Scared to death from the storm, the disciples awaken
Jesus and rebuke him, "Don't you care that we perish?" Jesus not
care -- how could they accuse him after all the good things they
already had seen him do? These hardened, seasoned men -- some
professional fishermen -- were scared to death. Jesus asked them
why they were afraid. In the light of the storm, it seems like a
foolish question. Who wouldn't be scared, except maybe Jesus
only? The answer to fear is faith. If they had faith, they would
not have been frightened. A storm calls for faith in the care and
protection of God.
4. Awe (v. 41). The disciples were amazed at the authority and
power of Jesus in stilling the storm. Would we not feel the same
if someone would speak to a tornado or a hurricane and there
resulted calm? There was a sense of awe, admiration and respect
for one who could command the forces of nature to obey. Their awe
was expressed in their question, "Who then is this?" Who but the
Creator-God could make nature behave?
Lesson 1: 1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23), 32-49
1. Just a boy (v. 33). When David offered to fight Goliath,
King Saul discouraged him from going because he was "just a boy."
It is the problem of underestimating a person's ability. David
was only a boy, but he had something the army did not have: faith
in God and courage. With these assets, giants of evil can be
conquered.
2. I cannot walk with these (v. 39). King Saul wanted to equip
David for the fight with Goliath by putting the royal armor on
him. David found this equipment was a hindrance. He was not used
to wearing heavy military armor. He had only a slingshot and five
stones. The victory was not in a human, but in God.
3. Stones (v. 40). The Holy Land, as tourists learn, is
covered with stones. The stones David used were about the size of
a baseball. A master slinger could throw a stone at a speed
approximately 100 miles per hour. One stone at that speed could
knock a person unconscious. Then David cut off Goliath's head
with his own sword.
4. Name (v. 45). Goliath came to David with enormous weapons,
but David came to Goliath in the "name" of the Lord. The name was
identical with the person and name of God. He had faith that God
was with him and that God would fight for him. With God on his
side, he could not fail, and he did not!
Lesson 2: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13 (C)
1. Together (v. 1). We Christians do not only work together as
fellow-Christians, but we work together with God. We are partners
with God in the work of reconciling the world to God. We have a
church to build, wrongs to be righted, and truth to be declared.
What an honor and privilege to be coupled with God in the most
important work anyone can do!
2. In vain (v. 1). How can anyone receive the grace of God in
vain? What does "in vain" mean? Grace means we are forgiven and
made people of God. To receive this grace in
196
vain is to nullify the grace by disloyalty and disobedience.
Grace can be of no effect if we turn from the gospel truth and
turn to other gods. If our lives do not correspond to the purity
of Christ, the grace is null and void.
3. Now (v. 2). The time to be accepted is today. At once is
the time to accept Christ as Lord and Savior. Salvation cannot
wait. To wait may be fatal. Salvation is being right with God by
faith in Christ. Be in right relations with God today, and keep
in that relationship for every tomorrow. Christians may keep non-
Christians from accepting God's grace by their manner of living.
PREACHING POSSIBILITIES
Gospel: Mark 4:35-41 (C, E, L, RC)
1. Stilling the storm in your life. 4:35-41
Need: What life does not have an occasional storm in it? It is
a time of danger which frightens us because we may perish. It is
not necessarily a storm at sea, but it is just as real and just
as deadly. The storm may be in the family which may be threatened
by drugs or divorce. It can happen in school or at work. In this
pericope we find guidelines for coming safely through a storm.
Outline: How the storm can be stilled in your life --
a. Accept the reality of the storm -- v. 37.
b. Go to Jesus for help -- v. 38.
c. Overcome fear with faith -- v. 40.
2. Jesus in who's who. 4:41
Need: When we want to know the identity of a person, we turn
to "Who's Who." People of accomplishment and prominence are
honored by being included in "Who's Who." The disciples needed
such a dictionary of the great, even though they had been with
Jesus for some time. They never did find the answer to their
question, "Who then is this?" until the cross. At the time of the
storm, he was a man of promise, but what man can make wind and
waves obey him when he commands, "Peace, be still?" No answer is
given at this time. It is left open-ended for a later answer.
Outline: Who then is this Jesus?
a. One whom nature obeys.
b. One whose life is sinless.
c. One who dies for love of the world.
3. Can you sleep in a storm? 4:38
Need: When a plane flies through turbulence, can you sleep?
When a boat is tossed around by 30-foot-waves, the motor fails,
and water fills the boat -- can you sleep at a time like that?
There are storms in your life: doubts, troubles, suffering,
failure, desertion. Can you sleep at night without sleeping
pills? At a time when troubles throng, we need to learn how to
sleep without medication.
Outline: How you can sleep during a storm --
a. Take Jesus with you -- v. 36.
b. Let Jesus give you peace -- v. 39.
c. Have faith in God's care -- v. 40.
Lesson 1: 1 Samuel 17:32-49 (C)
1. Confidence to overcome giants. 17:34-37
Need: Life is filled with threatening giants. There are giants
that seem to undo us. The giants are so big and strong that we
are terrified and scared to death. If we are going to defeat
these giants, we must have confidence in God and in ourselves.
Outline: To defeat the giants of our day --
a. We need confidence in God -- vv. 45, 47.
b. We need confidence in ourselves -- vv. 34-39, 46.
197
2. Be your own person. 17:39-47
Need: To overcome your giant enemies, you need to be yourself,
and use what you have. David was all alone in facing Goliath. He
had only a shepherd's staff, a slingshot and some stones. He
could not use another person's armor, even a king's. With what
little we have, plus faith in God's help, giants can be defeated.
Outline: To defeat giant enemies --
a. Be your self -- fight your own battles -- vv. 32, 37.
b. Use your own equipment -- vv. 38-40.
c. Have confidence in God -- vv. 45-47.
Lesson 2: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13
1. Partners with God. 6:1
Need: God cannot win the world alone! He needs human
instruments to declare his truth and to administer his grace. We
continue Christ's work of reconciliation in and through the
church which is his body. The church's growth and the moral
condition of society depend upon the effectiveness of our work as
fellow-laborers in God's kingdom.
Outline: As partners with God --
a. We have a gospel to proclaim.
b. We administer God's grace to the repentant and believing.
c. We have a world to change.
2. Are you a help or a hindrance? 6:3
Need: Paul is concerned about a Christian's being an obstacle
to faith in Christ. Probably Christians keep more people out of
church than they bring into church. Paul in this pericope gives
evidence that proves he is no obstacle because of his hardships
endured for the gospel's sake.
Outline: Are you an obstacle to faith?
a. You fail to witness for Christ?
b. Your life turns people away?
c. Your indifference and apathy discourage people?
198
