Sixth Sunday After The Epiphany
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle A
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Deuteronomy 30:15-20 (C)
We find here a theology which the New Testament would supplant. The claim here is that the choice between selfishness and righteousness is a choice of life and death. This is not without its truth. However, the promise here is that the Israelites, if they elect to be faithful to Yahweh, will be rewarded with prosperity and life. Otherwise, they can expect adversity and death.
History was not nearly so kind. Many of the people were, indeed, faithful to God, yet suffered adversity and death. And as some of the Psalmists would complain, there were many who were not faithful, yet seemed to do quite well. That pattern continues today and supports a more realistic belief that God doesn't interfere in such matters during the course of this life, having, however, built into the nature of human life certain consequences of our moral choices.
Lesson 1: Sirach 15:15-20 (RC); Sirach 15:11-20 (E)
A decision as to whether to obey God's will.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (C, E)
Paul again alludes to some divisions within the Corinthian church. People have been taking sides, dividing their loyalties. Paul makes it clear that no one in the Church may take credit for its successes. Various individuals may, indeed, make contributions which set the stage. But God, and only God, can make it happen. Paul prefaces this little lecture with an implicit scolding, telling his friends that the way they are acting makes them look like children. I think in today's terms, Paul was saying, "Shape up and stop all the bickering. I don't care where your loyalties lie, it was God who brought you together and who will empower the church. So knock it off."
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 2:6-10 (RC)
Some people are spiritual, some are not. Those who are receive the gift of understanding, made possible by God's Spirit. Only thus can a person discern God's gifts and understand their meaning.
Gospel: Matthew 5:21-37 (C); Matthew 5:17-37 (RC); Matthew 5:21-24, 27-30, 33-37 (E)
One could, of course, interpret this passage literally. Keep in mind, however, that Jesus used a lot of hyperbole in his teachings. Of course murder, adultery, divorce, and the breaking of vows are bad, although divorce falls in a somewhat different category than the others. But when Jesus, for example, said that when one person calls another "fool" he is in danger of fire and "hell," it does seem that Jesus was exaggerating for emphasis. What he was really saying was that any hurtful conduct is bad and it's time we got this fixed in our minds. Homiletically, it might be well to treat each of these issues separately. They are important today, as they were in Jesus' time.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Choose Life"
Text: Deuteronomy 36:15-20
Theme: As suggested, the theology of this passage presents some problems. Good things happen to bad people. Peter pointed out that Jesus suffered for us, leaving an example that we should follow. Never did Jesus promise an exemption from adversity, no matter how dedicated our efforts to follow him. What he did promise was empowerment in time of adversity.
1. Adversity is our common lot. Paul said suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character. We'd all be good as gold if we could be sure of a carefree, happy life of long duration as a result. That's not how it works. Goodness has many rewards, but no guarantees.
2. Wrongdoing is not punished by God. There are, of course, many unhappy consequences of such conduct but it's more or less unpredictable and uneven. Damaged reputation, guilt feelings, lost friends, vocational problems, even legal problems may result. However, this preacher does not think God sends those things. Rather, they are inherent in our social structures, and not everyone gets caught. We can think of one or two instances of grievous wrongdoing which the law has allowed to go unpunished.
3. God's empowerment does, I believe, relate. Surely, God does not answer prayers designed to avoid responsibility for wrongful conduct. God may not send rewards and punishments. God does, however, enable us to transcend life's adversity when we are endeavoring to be faithful to the teachings of Jesus.
Title: "Being What We're Called To Be"
Text: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9
Theme: If we lose a sense of God's centrality in our church -- this can happen when we start to bicker and scrap among ourselves -- we weaken, possibly even ruin our church. Jesus taught that we are brothers and sisters, called to treat each other with love and forbearance. As long as God is recognizably at the center, we can weather the storms which may beset us. If we lose that sense, we lose what matters most.
1. Each of us is called to overcome our own selfish tendencies in an effort to make the church a place of harmony. We are, of course, human. We do get a little bit competitive. I once served a church which nearly divided over the issue of an Easter morning breakfast. One group wanted to serve eggs, bacon, and fruit juice. The other wanted doughnuts. I was a seminary student at the time and was totally confused about what to do. I guess it was part of my education. Mercifully, they finally closed ranks and the storm blew over.
2. The church is a body, requiring arms and legs as it were. It has a mission, but that mission must be carried out by people like us. Part of the mission is to each other. If I join your church, I have a right to expect a ministry to me. I can't expect the minister or the education director to do it all. When I'm in need I look to my fellow worshipers. Dr. Weatherhead told of a woman in his church who had a family member become very ill. When they did not appear for several months, someone went to visit the woman. With some embarrassment, she admitted that they had become Roman Catholics. She said it wasn't their theology. But other than two or three phone calls to inquire as to her husband's health, she heard little from her church. But a group of ladies from the nearby Catholic church called regularly, helped with housework, and sat with her children so she could go shopping. She said they were so friendly and so kind she wanted to share life with them.
3. We are to reach out to those beyond our walls. The needs are far greater than our resources. But we are to do what we can, find one or more ministries, and be the arms and legs of Jesus. I recently went on a work project to a poverty area. One of our participants had been a peripheral member of the church until he was asked to help. An expert carpenter, he soon was our most valued member. He did so much good, but as I watched, I saw that the life which was most richly blessed was his own.
Little squabbles quickly disappear when we are about the work of the church: taking our place as contributors to harmony, taking care of each other, and doing something for people outside our own walls.
Title: "Anger Can Kill Or Cure"
Text: Matthew 5:21-24
Theme: We all feel anger. Frustration produces anger. Some people are easily angered, some have only inadequate controls on their anger and are, therefore, capable of violent action. Our newspapers daily report instances where anger has literally led to murder. But there's a more subtle yet "deadly" effect of anger if we don't have it under healthy control.
1. Anger can destroy what is good within us. Years ago I was engaged in an educational project in competition with a number of other people. It involved a major writing project and through nearly all of the project I had received comments from a mentor who would later make a final judgment, which encouraged me to believe I was about to be a winner. One day, toward the end, my mentor offered a criticism which angered me. Like a five-year-old, I gave him to know in no uncertain terms that this was my project and I was the proper one to judge what was best. End of conversation. I lost. A competitor won, and the truth is, I deserved what I got. To be mature is to have healthy control of anger. I'm still mad at myself for the damage I did to myself.
2. Anger can damage relationships. In a church I served, a music director got in an argument with our choir director. Angry, he shouted in the presence of the choir, "I don't like you and I have never liked you." End of relationship. He tried to apologize but it was too late. Paul Tournier wrote: "It is a matter of daily experience that the worst thoughts spontaneously leap forth in anger ... We recognize that there is no smoke without fire; and in some respects anger is like the liberation of a part of ourselves which slumbered under the watchful eye of a psychological censor. Other people are not utterly deceived ... it is like the revelation of another self."
3. Anger, controlled, can be redemptive. Jesus was obviously angry when he sent the usurious money changers running from the temple. Abraham Lincoln was angry when, as a young man, he stood in the slave market in New Orleans, watching black slaves being sold. He turned to a companion and said, "If I ever get a chance, I'll hit that and I'll hit it hard."
4. Because we're human, we cannot purge ourselves of all anger. Because Christian faith helps us become mature, it can enable us to harness our anger, to use it in creative ways. A friend of mine, a feisty old minister, spent his whole professional life working for the poor, for inner-city churches, helping promote a home for troubled children. In retirement, he worked for a while to create low-cost housing for the homeless. He was angry a good part of the time, angry at "successful churches" for not doing enough, angry at wealthy people for lack of generosity. His anger wasn't always directed fairly, but his life was marvelously used to serve others. For reasons having to do with childhood and personality, he is an angry man. But because he is a good man, he used his anger well.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
That friend I mentioned got mad at me over lunch one day. He nearly shouted for a few moments in a crowded restaurant. Others heard, turned to look. He stopped. There was a moment of silence. Then my friend smiled, reached over, and touched my hand and said, "My friend, I love you." How can you stay mad at someone like that?
____________
Indianapolis, April 19, 1997. About a year ago, three young people were murdered in a nearby suburb. The murderers were soon caught, tried, convicted, and are in prison for life without possibility of parole. One young man was tied up by the killers, then his throat was cut. Yesterday, that boy's mother was interviewed by a reporter. She said, "Anger is such a pointless, energy-draining emotion. I will not allow the killers to do that to me. I asked myself, 'What would Chris do?' The answer is simple -- Chris loved people." Instead, she is throwing a party in her son's name for children at Methodist Children's Home.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 119:1-8 (C); Psalm 119:1-16 (E) -- Longest of the Psalms (with 176 verses), with a binding theme: praise of the law.
Prayer Of The Day
Like children, we have wandered through many of our days, acting selfishly, so often failing to understand this faith to which we have committed ourselves. It is in your unfailing patience that we hope as, maturing bit by bit, we begin to understand. Give us yet another chance, O God, to do what we once promised to do, to be what we once promised to be. We dare to pray this way through faith in your forgiving love. Amen.
Lesson 1: Deuteronomy 30:15-20 (C)
We find here a theology which the New Testament would supplant. The claim here is that the choice between selfishness and righteousness is a choice of life and death. This is not without its truth. However, the promise here is that the Israelites, if they elect to be faithful to Yahweh, will be rewarded with prosperity and life. Otherwise, they can expect adversity and death.
History was not nearly so kind. Many of the people were, indeed, faithful to God, yet suffered adversity and death. And as some of the Psalmists would complain, there were many who were not faithful, yet seemed to do quite well. That pattern continues today and supports a more realistic belief that God doesn't interfere in such matters during the course of this life, having, however, built into the nature of human life certain consequences of our moral choices.
Lesson 1: Sirach 15:15-20 (RC); Sirach 15:11-20 (E)
A decision as to whether to obey God's will.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (C, E)
Paul again alludes to some divisions within the Corinthian church. People have been taking sides, dividing their loyalties. Paul makes it clear that no one in the Church may take credit for its successes. Various individuals may, indeed, make contributions which set the stage. But God, and only God, can make it happen. Paul prefaces this little lecture with an implicit scolding, telling his friends that the way they are acting makes them look like children. I think in today's terms, Paul was saying, "Shape up and stop all the bickering. I don't care where your loyalties lie, it was God who brought you together and who will empower the church. So knock it off."
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 2:6-10 (RC)
Some people are spiritual, some are not. Those who are receive the gift of understanding, made possible by God's Spirit. Only thus can a person discern God's gifts and understand their meaning.
Gospel: Matthew 5:21-37 (C); Matthew 5:17-37 (RC); Matthew 5:21-24, 27-30, 33-37 (E)
One could, of course, interpret this passage literally. Keep in mind, however, that Jesus used a lot of hyperbole in his teachings. Of course murder, adultery, divorce, and the breaking of vows are bad, although divorce falls in a somewhat different category than the others. But when Jesus, for example, said that when one person calls another "fool" he is in danger of fire and "hell," it does seem that Jesus was exaggerating for emphasis. What he was really saying was that any hurtful conduct is bad and it's time we got this fixed in our minds. Homiletically, it might be well to treat each of these issues separately. They are important today, as they were in Jesus' time.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Choose Life"
Text: Deuteronomy 36:15-20
Theme: As suggested, the theology of this passage presents some problems. Good things happen to bad people. Peter pointed out that Jesus suffered for us, leaving an example that we should follow. Never did Jesus promise an exemption from adversity, no matter how dedicated our efforts to follow him. What he did promise was empowerment in time of adversity.
1. Adversity is our common lot. Paul said suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character. We'd all be good as gold if we could be sure of a carefree, happy life of long duration as a result. That's not how it works. Goodness has many rewards, but no guarantees.
2. Wrongdoing is not punished by God. There are, of course, many unhappy consequences of such conduct but it's more or less unpredictable and uneven. Damaged reputation, guilt feelings, lost friends, vocational problems, even legal problems may result. However, this preacher does not think God sends those things. Rather, they are inherent in our social structures, and not everyone gets caught. We can think of one or two instances of grievous wrongdoing which the law has allowed to go unpunished.
3. God's empowerment does, I believe, relate. Surely, God does not answer prayers designed to avoid responsibility for wrongful conduct. God may not send rewards and punishments. God does, however, enable us to transcend life's adversity when we are endeavoring to be faithful to the teachings of Jesus.
Title: "Being What We're Called To Be"
Text: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9
Theme: If we lose a sense of God's centrality in our church -- this can happen when we start to bicker and scrap among ourselves -- we weaken, possibly even ruin our church. Jesus taught that we are brothers and sisters, called to treat each other with love and forbearance. As long as God is recognizably at the center, we can weather the storms which may beset us. If we lose that sense, we lose what matters most.
1. Each of us is called to overcome our own selfish tendencies in an effort to make the church a place of harmony. We are, of course, human. We do get a little bit competitive. I once served a church which nearly divided over the issue of an Easter morning breakfast. One group wanted to serve eggs, bacon, and fruit juice. The other wanted doughnuts. I was a seminary student at the time and was totally confused about what to do. I guess it was part of my education. Mercifully, they finally closed ranks and the storm blew over.
2. The church is a body, requiring arms and legs as it were. It has a mission, but that mission must be carried out by people like us. Part of the mission is to each other. If I join your church, I have a right to expect a ministry to me. I can't expect the minister or the education director to do it all. When I'm in need I look to my fellow worshipers. Dr. Weatherhead told of a woman in his church who had a family member become very ill. When they did not appear for several months, someone went to visit the woman. With some embarrassment, she admitted that they had become Roman Catholics. She said it wasn't their theology. But other than two or three phone calls to inquire as to her husband's health, she heard little from her church. But a group of ladies from the nearby Catholic church called regularly, helped with housework, and sat with her children so she could go shopping. She said they were so friendly and so kind she wanted to share life with them.
3. We are to reach out to those beyond our walls. The needs are far greater than our resources. But we are to do what we can, find one or more ministries, and be the arms and legs of Jesus. I recently went on a work project to a poverty area. One of our participants had been a peripheral member of the church until he was asked to help. An expert carpenter, he soon was our most valued member. He did so much good, but as I watched, I saw that the life which was most richly blessed was his own.
Little squabbles quickly disappear when we are about the work of the church: taking our place as contributors to harmony, taking care of each other, and doing something for people outside our own walls.
Title: "Anger Can Kill Or Cure"
Text: Matthew 5:21-24
Theme: We all feel anger. Frustration produces anger. Some people are easily angered, some have only inadequate controls on their anger and are, therefore, capable of violent action. Our newspapers daily report instances where anger has literally led to murder. But there's a more subtle yet "deadly" effect of anger if we don't have it under healthy control.
1. Anger can destroy what is good within us. Years ago I was engaged in an educational project in competition with a number of other people. It involved a major writing project and through nearly all of the project I had received comments from a mentor who would later make a final judgment, which encouraged me to believe I was about to be a winner. One day, toward the end, my mentor offered a criticism which angered me. Like a five-year-old, I gave him to know in no uncertain terms that this was my project and I was the proper one to judge what was best. End of conversation. I lost. A competitor won, and the truth is, I deserved what I got. To be mature is to have healthy control of anger. I'm still mad at myself for the damage I did to myself.
2. Anger can damage relationships. In a church I served, a music director got in an argument with our choir director. Angry, he shouted in the presence of the choir, "I don't like you and I have never liked you." End of relationship. He tried to apologize but it was too late. Paul Tournier wrote: "It is a matter of daily experience that the worst thoughts spontaneously leap forth in anger ... We recognize that there is no smoke without fire; and in some respects anger is like the liberation of a part of ourselves which slumbered under the watchful eye of a psychological censor. Other people are not utterly deceived ... it is like the revelation of another self."
3. Anger, controlled, can be redemptive. Jesus was obviously angry when he sent the usurious money changers running from the temple. Abraham Lincoln was angry when, as a young man, he stood in the slave market in New Orleans, watching black slaves being sold. He turned to a companion and said, "If I ever get a chance, I'll hit that and I'll hit it hard."
4. Because we're human, we cannot purge ourselves of all anger. Because Christian faith helps us become mature, it can enable us to harness our anger, to use it in creative ways. A friend of mine, a feisty old minister, spent his whole professional life working for the poor, for inner-city churches, helping promote a home for troubled children. In retirement, he worked for a while to create low-cost housing for the homeless. He was angry a good part of the time, angry at "successful churches" for not doing enough, angry at wealthy people for lack of generosity. His anger wasn't always directed fairly, but his life was marvelously used to serve others. For reasons having to do with childhood and personality, he is an angry man. But because he is a good man, he used his anger well.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
That friend I mentioned got mad at me over lunch one day. He nearly shouted for a few moments in a crowded restaurant. Others heard, turned to look. He stopped. There was a moment of silence. Then my friend smiled, reached over, and touched my hand and said, "My friend, I love you." How can you stay mad at someone like that?
____________
Indianapolis, April 19, 1997. About a year ago, three young people were murdered in a nearby suburb. The murderers were soon caught, tried, convicted, and are in prison for life without possibility of parole. One young man was tied up by the killers, then his throat was cut. Yesterday, that boy's mother was interviewed by a reporter. She said, "Anger is such a pointless, energy-draining emotion. I will not allow the killers to do that to me. I asked myself, 'What would Chris do?' The answer is simple -- Chris loved people." Instead, she is throwing a party in her son's name for children at Methodist Children's Home.
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 119:1-8 (C); Psalm 119:1-16 (E) -- Longest of the Psalms (with 176 verses), with a binding theme: praise of the law.
Prayer Of The Day
Like children, we have wandered through many of our days, acting selfishly, so often failing to understand this faith to which we have committed ourselves. It is in your unfailing patience that we hope as, maturing bit by bit, we begin to understand. Give us yet another chance, O God, to do what we once promised to do, to be what we once promised to be. We dare to pray this way through faith in your forgiving love. Amen.
