Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sept. 13, 2015

The Prophet Isaiah, tempera on panel, Lorenzo Monaco (circa 1370–circa 1425).

The figure of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah is easy for Christians to visualize as Jesus Christ, and there is a reason for this: Isaiah understands the Servant as Messiah, the new King David who will emerge to lead Israel out of exile and back to glory. Christians see Christ as Messiah, who comes to save all humankind. Speaking with the tongue of a teacher, the Servant shows us God’s way. As Jesus would teach, the Servant turns his cheek to his enemies, responding to violence with peace.

Psalm: Psalm 116:1-8

The Psalmist, too, speaks from a place of suffering, sorrow and grief in a Psalm traditionally understood as a song of thanksgiving for recovery from illness. When he was sick, near death, full of grief, he called out to God and God answered. Saved from the grip of death, his tears wiped dry and his feet set firmly upon the road, he shouts out in gratitude: “I love the Lord.”

Second Reading: James 3:1-12


The teacher’s tongue may tell God’s way, but our tongues are tricky, small but powerful, James writes in delightful wordplay that likens our tongues to other little yet strong things that control forces beyond their size: A horse’s bridle, a ship’s rudder, a spark that starts a forest fire. Our tongues can bless, but tongues may curse, as well. Watch our tongues, James warns. Use them wisely to praise and bless our brothers and sisters, not to express hurtful things.

Gospel: Mark 8:27-38

We have reached the mid-point of Mark’s Gospel, and the narrative is taking a turn. Last week we saw Jesus for the first time extend his ministry to a Gentile, healing a woman’s child. Now, in a strange conversation with his disciples, much new is unveiled: First, Jesus confirms Peter’s bold announcement, the apostles’ first recognition that Jesus is the Messiah. Then, to Peter’s horror, Mark’s narrative turns toward the cross. Jesus tells them that he must endure great suffering, rejection and death. If they want to follow him, Jesus warns, they must deny themselves and take up the cross: You’ll have to lose your life in order to save it.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sept. 6, 2015

“Jésus christ et le ‘canaanite’ femme.” Jean Germain Drouais, oil on canvas, 1784.

God feeds the hungry, gives drink to the thirsty, heals the blind and the deaf and takes the side of the oppressed. The call for justice, simple justice, from God to us and from us to our neighbors, resonates through our readings today. The Prophet Isaiah sounds the call, speaking from exile in Babylon, where he tells the people to remain strong and fearless, knowing that God will come to save us, opening our eyes and ears both physically and metaphorically, and bringing us sustenance and joy.

Psalm: Psalm 146

Singing the praise of God who cares for God’s people and loves us deeply, the Psalmist calls us to look beyond earthly rulers, who cannot help us in the long run. Rather, place our hope in God, creator of the earth and all that is in it, who reigns forever. God’s caring justice favors the poor and the oppressed, those most in need: Hungry people, prisoners. those who are blind; the stranger, the widow, the orphan; those weighed down by life’s load. In caring for the least among us, as Jesus would later call on us to do, God cares for us all.

Second Reading: James 2:1-17

James’ rich advice this week should speak as clearly to us today as it did to its first century audience. What if a homeless person showed up this morning, looking for a haircut and a bath? Would we greet that person warmly? Would we greet them at the Peace with a friendly smile? Would we invite them to coffee hour? God calls us to love all our neighbors, both rich and poor, James gently reminds us. Speaking kindly to our poor and hungry neighbors is not enough; we must feed and clothe them too. Faith without such works is dead.

Gospel: Mark 7:24-37

Jesus is traveling in Gentile country when a woman with a sick child approaches him in hope. He responds with a nasty insult! How in Heaven’s name can this be? Is this a true story of the Jesus we worship and love? There’s a lot of theological and scriptural unpacking to be done here, but perhaps we’re seeing Jesus’ fully human side at first. Then, when the woman’s faith empowers her to challenge Jesus, he listens, he learns, and he heals her child, just as he will restore hearing and speech to the deaf Gentile man in the next town down the road.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Aug. 30, 2015

Ancient icon depicting James, the Brother of Jesus.

Last week we heard the people recommit to God’s covenant as they crossed the Jordan into Canaan with Joshua. Now we back up in time, to Deuteronomy, to listen as Moses emphasizes the importance of following God’s covenant. By carrying God’s teaching through the generations, the Israelites will earn the promised land, gaining the world’s respect for its wisdom and discernment.

Psalm: Psalm 15

Echoing Moses’ wisdom, the Psalmist – said by tradition in this Psalm to be King David himself – proclaims that those who live blamelessly and with righteousness and truth may earn God’s protection. Be honest, be trustworthy, be fair; protect the innocent. Follow these ways, and abide upon God’s holy hill.

Second Reading: James 1:17-27

After spending more than a month with the letter to the Ephesians, we now turn for a month or so to the letter of James. This epistle is traditionally attributed to James, the brother of Jesus, but it was probably written by a later Jewish Christian, perhaps around the same time as Matthew’s Gospel. Martin Luther is said to have disliked the letter of James because it seems to conflict with Luther’s belief in salvation by faith alone. This passage is akin to today’s other readings in its emphasis on God’s covenant – “care for the widows and orphans in their distress.” James seems in no doubt that we are called not merely to hear God’s teaching but to act on what we hear.

Gospel: Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

After our summer digression into John’s Gospel, we now return to Mark for the rest of this liturgical year. In keeping with today’s readings, we find Jesus arguing with the scribes and Pharisees over the details of following God’s teachings and keeping God’s laws. Challenged because his disciples failed to follow strict ritual practices before eating, Jesus cites the Prophet Isaiah as he raises up the spirit of God’s laws in favor of blind adherence to ritual. It is not eating that defiles us, Jesus proclaims, but the sins that come from our mouths and our hearts.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Aug. 23, 2015

“Joshua and the Children of Israel Crossing the Jordan With the Ark of the Covenant” by Benjamin West, 1800.

Decisions, decisions. When major life changes confront us, how do we decide? How do we find God in the process? Listen for this theme in today’s readings. We begin as Joshua, successor to Moses, leads the people into the Promised Land at last. First, though, they have a decision to make: Do they return to the gods of their ancient ancestors? Or do they renew the covenant that their ancestors Abraham and Moses made with God who led them out of exile in Egypt and brought them safely through the desert? Their response is clear: “We … will serve the Holy One, for he is our God.”

Psalm: Psalm 34:15-22

In our third Sunday with this Psalm, it concludes its hymn of praise and thanks to our merciful, saving God. Like the Israelites entering Canaan, those who make the decision to follow God’s commandments will earn God’s protection against fear, sorrow and danger. Those who choose otherwise, the wicked and the unrighteous, will eventually be punished, the Psalmist sings; but those who choose to serve God can trust in God.

Second Reading: Ephesians 6:10-20

Here, too, as we reach the conclusion of the letter to the Ephesians, we hear a call to choose: As a persecuted church, a tiny minority in the Empire of Rome, the people clearly understood that their struggle was not against “blood and flesh” – surely an echo of Jesus’ promise in John – but against the powerful earthly rulers who stood for the forces of evil. Our armor, breastplate, helmet, sword, belt and sturdy shoes of faith in God protect us when we choose to boldly declare our faith.

Gospel: John 6:56-69

Our month-long journey through Jesus’ difficult discourse about eating his body and drinking his blood comes to its end today. Previously, the skeptics and those who were short on faith had turned away from Jesus in disgust. Now the division grows, as even many of his own disciples become uncomfortable and leave. Only his closest disciples make the decision to remain with Jesus. They accept this hard teaching, even if they don’t understand it, because they know Jesus as the Holy One of God. In the end their faith wins out over doubt.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Aug. 16, 2015

Wisdom personified as a woman, Sophia. Ancient Russian Orthodox icon.

It may be a gift to be simple, as the Shakers sang, but the authors of Wisdom and the Psalms don’t treat simplicity so kindly, using the word “simple” for a naive person, lacking experience or, well, wisdom. Wisdom – personified in the Old Testament as a woman, present with God at the Creation – sets the table for a great feast, and invites the simple to come and be made wise. Through wisdom we learn to walk in God’s way.

Psalm: Psalm 34:9-14

A bright young man came up with a puzzled look one morning after hearing a similar reading. “I don’t understand about ‘fearing’ the Lord,” he said. “Are we supposed to be afraid of God?” We were quick to reassure him: Think rather of being in awe – awestruck by God’s love and righteousness. If you love life, the Psalmist sings, follow God’s way. Speak kindly and with truth; avoid evil and do good; work for peace.

Second Reading: Ephesians 5:15-20

Today’s verses from the Letter to the Ephesians continue where last week’s reading left off. Echoing Proverbs’ advice to become wise, this reading too urges us to follow God’s way, filled with the Spirit, giving thanks for all our blessings in prayer and song to God in Jesus’ name.

Gospel: John 6:51-58

Jesus’ long narrative in John’s Gospel has taken a turn. The crowds that have been awed by Jesus feeding the multitude begin to doubt him when he tells them that he is the “living bread.” Now they argue back. As the discussion turns adversarial, John calls the crowd “The Jews,” a term that will become more problematic as we move toward the Passion and find John blaming the Jewish Temple leaders for Jesus’ death. But Jesus is steadfast, even if his audience seems horrified: All must “eat his flesh and drink his blood” to earn salvation and eternal life.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Aug. 9, 2015

Prophet Elijah in the Desert, Dieric Bouts the Elder, Oil on panel, 1464-68, Sint-Pieterskerk, Leuven, The Netherlands.

God provides physical and spiritual sustenance in time of trouble: This theme continues in this week’s readings. Here the Prophet Elijah, pursued by an angry Queen Jezebel, is depressed, unwilling to get up or to eat. He goes to sleep under a broom tree and hopes to die. God sends an angel, though, who tempts Elijah with hot cakes and water and caring support, giving him strength to go on with his prophecy.

Psalm: Psalm 34:1-8

We will read Psalm 34 in three parts in coming weeks. A Psalm of praise and thanksgiving for God’s protection in time of trouble, it is held in tradition as a hymn sung by King David after he escaped from a threatening situation. In an unusual sensory metaphor that has been adopted in a contemplative Taizé chant, the Psalmist tells us to “taste and see” that God is good when we are thankful for God’s protection.

Second Reading: Ephesians 4:25-5:2

This lesson offers good advice for those who lived in community in the early church. It is good advice, too, for those in church community in any era: Tell the truth. If you’re angry with your neighbor, work it out; don’t let anger divide you. Don’t steal; work honestly, and share with those in need. Be honest, but be positive. Be gracious. Forgive one another. In short, love each other as Jesus loves us, and try to live as Jesus would have us live.

Gospel: John 6:35, 41-51

The verse that ended last week’s Gospel is repeated as the first verse this week: “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” These words describe our hope in the Eucharist so clearly that we often sing them in the Fraction Anthem before Communion. Here, though, the crowd following Jesus starts to push back. They know Jesus. They know his parents. They watched him grow up. Who is he to be talking like this? But Jesus stands firm, and will continue to do so as we stay with this Chapter of John for the next three Sundays. In Jesus we know God. Through Jesus, God is with us.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Aug. 2, 2015

Bakers mixing and kneading dough and filling bread molds, from a painting in an ancient Egyptian tomb.

From God’s gift of manna to God’s gift of grace through Jesus, our readings focus for several weeks on bread – the bread of life – as metaphor for God’s abundant love. In last Sunday’s First Reading, when the Prophet Elisha fed 100 people with a few small barley loaves, he recalled God promising the people that “They shall eat and have some left.” Today we read the verses of which Elisha spoke: the story of God providing ample manna. feeding the people their bread in the desert.

Psalm: Psalm 78:23-29

The Psalmist remembers God’s gift of manna and gives thanks to the Creator who saw the people’s need and rained down on them all the bread and meat that they could eat. God filled them up; God gave them what they craved. Now think about this: In the first part of this Psalm, which we do not hear today, the Psalmist recalled how God led the people out of slavery in Egypt. We remember how God cared for them, and ultimately overcame God’s own anger and fed them with love in spite of their ungrateful complaints.

Second Reading: Ephesians 4:1-16

The author of Ephesians offers life lessons in poetic language in today’s reading. Do you remember Paul’s memorable verses in 1 Corinthians, in which he speaks of the church as Christ’s body, within which each of us acts according to our gifts? Here, too, we are all called to work together with humility and gentleness, in unity as one body and one spirit, “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all.”

Gospel: John 6:24-35

Huge crowds continue following Jesus back and forth across the Sea of Galilee, looking around the lake shore and villages until they find him. Having watched his miraculous healings and shared in the bountiful loaves and fishes, they are surely fascinated by Jesus. They want to know more and, Jesus suggests, they probably want more bread. Jesus then begins an extended discussion that will take us through the next three Sundays. The world’s bread does not last, he tells them; but Jesus, the bread of life, endures forever. Those who come to him will never hunger nor thirst.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for July 26. 2015

Jesus is portrayed with the loaves and fishes in this ancient Coptic icon.

Just about everyone knows the Gospel stories of Jesus feeding the crowds with the mysteriously multiplying loaves and fishes. It is the only miracle of Jesus that is reported in all four Gospels. This fascinating story about the Prophet Elisha, however, is a little less well-known. The prophet directs an annual harvest sacrifice to a crowd of hungry people; and here, too, a portion that seemed insufficient – only 20 loaves for 100 people! – proves more than enough, with leftovers remaining.

Psalm: Psalm 145:10-19

Like many of the Psalms, this grateful hymn of praise expresses gratitude to a God who is not merely powerful but faithful and merciful, always prepared gently to lift up those who fall and to support those who are oppressed. Echoing the bounty that God provided for the hungry people in Ezekiel and the hungry crowd on the mountainside in John, the Psalmist, too, celebrates God who gives us food; whose outstretched hands satisfy every living creature.

Second Reading: Ephesians 3:14-21


Did you hear a familiar phrase in this reading? First, we hear a prayer that the people of Ephesus would receive strength through the Holy Spirit and have Christ living in their hearts through faith. Then this selection closes with beautiful words that have been adopted as a benediction for Morning or Evening Prayer: “Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine.”

Gospel: John 6:1-21

We get two miracles in today’s Gospel. First, we hear John’s version of the familiar story of the loaves and the fishes. John hints at the Eucharist in his account, in which Jesus blesses the bread, then distributes five barley loaves and two fish to 5,000 people, somehow making this small portion feed everyone abundantly, with more left over than they had to start with. The crowds are so amazed that they clamor to make Jesus king, but he slips away, catching up with the startled disciples by walking miles across the water to join them in their boat.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for July 19. 2015

The Prophet Jeremiah, Greek Orthodox icon.

Before we reach the Good Shepherd in today’s Psalm and Mark’s verses about the “sheep without a shepherd” in the Gospel, the Prophet Jeremiah reminds us that, counter to the image of God as loving shepherd, there are bad shepherds who would destroy the flock and send its sheep running away. God will attend to these evildoers, the prophet says, envisioning the Temple restored on Mount Zion and a successor seated on King David’s throne. Then the sheep will be gathered in when the people return to Jerusalem.

Psalm: Psalm 23

If you think we’ve heard this beloved Psalm recently, you are correct. Our Lectionary readings return to it often – five times in the three-year cycle – perhaps because it is so popular in its assurance that God’s goodness and mercy are always with us. If you’re feeling lost or uneasy, try using the 23rd Psalm in prayer: Sit quietly. Say the verses once or twice. Breathe deeply and relax. Close your eyes, and try to feel the comforting presence of the Shepherd. Sit with it for a while and be thankful for God’s restoring grace.

Second Reading: Ephesians 2:11-22

The author of the letter to the Ephesians takes pains to assure both Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians that all have become one through Christ Jesus, the cornerstone, who brings near even those who were far away. The context here is that Christianity was actively gathering in Gentile converts when this letter was being written, and it was important to emphasize that all were one in Christ.

Gospel: Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

Do you remember Mark’s Gospel, two Sundays past, when Jesus sent his disciples out in pairs to heal and to teach the good news? Now they’re back, full of stories about their mission, and bone-weary, too. They go off in the boat to rest, but the eager crowds follow them, and Jesus can’t help responding, because these sheep needed a shepherd. Then (after we skip over two stories that aren’t read today), they land on the other side. The people there, too, come running like a huge flock of sheep to see Jesus, and he willingly touches and heals all who come.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for July 12, 2015

Feast of Herod with the Beheading of St John the Baptist, Bartholomeus Strobel, 1633; Prado Museum, Madrid.

Amos never expected to be a prophet. He was a humble herder and tender of sycamore trees. But he heard God’s call to tell the people of Israel to expect destruction, because God had measured them and found them wanting. Their holy places would be destroyed and the people sent into exile. Amos knew, as John the Baptist would know centuries later, that this prophecy was dangerous and could get him killed; but he heard God’s call and could not refuse.

Psalm: Psalm 85:8-13

This beautiful Psalm segment gives us a moment of peace between the violence surrounding two anger-provoking prophets. When God speaks, the faithful people hear peace. Heaven and earth meet in truth and righteousness; righteousness and peace share a tender kiss. God grants prosperity and a fruitful harvest, and all manner of things shall be well.

Second Reading: Ephesians 1:3-14

We’ll spend the next six Sundays hearing verses from Ephesians, a letter most likely written by a later follower of Paul around the end of the first century. The Christian community was facing persecution. Many of its leaders were struggling to fit in to popular culture, and Ephesians may reflect that, as its pages include some “difficult” passages (which we won’t hear in our readings) that urge wives to submit to their husbands and slaves to obey their owners. In today’s reading, though, Paul’s concept of grace as God’s free gift through Jesus remains at the center. We also see a theology of Christ being present with God before the creation of the Earth.

Gospel: Mark 6:14-29

It did not take evil King Herod long to learn about the healings and miracles that Jesus and his apostles were performing in Galilee, and he didn’t like it. Herod probably had a guilty conscience, as he had just had John the Baptist beheaded – at the insistence of his new wife and her daughter – and Herod wasn’t happy about that. Now Herod wonders if Jesus is John, come back to life. He doesn’t get an answer, but in coming verses we will see crowds gather and grow as Jesus continues his public ministry.