Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for April 28, 2024 (Easter 5B)

The Baptism of the Ethiopian Eunuch (1626). Oil painting on oak panel by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606-1669). Museum Catharijneconvent, Utrecht, Netherlands. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading: Acts 8:26-40

Hear this assuring message through Sunday’s readings: God’s abiding love is open to all humankind. God showers love upon us as a free gift. The gently humorous story about Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch in the first reading from Acts recounts a reality of the infant church: All are welcome, no matter who they are. Even an Ethiopian eunuch – a foreigner with a high position in a strange land, but barred from full participation in Judaism because his physical condition made him biblically unclean – was eagerly welcomed as an equal. With mutual joy, right there on the spot, Philip baptized him as one of the community.

Psalm: Psalm 22:24-30

This relatively short passage comes from a longer Psalm that begins with the memorable words that Jesus uttered from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” But the despairing tone of the first two verses quickly turns to the idea we hear in this reading, a statement that resonates with Philip’s warm welcome to the Ethiopian eunuch: God is the ruler of all the world’s nations: those already born and all those yet to come. We live for God, we serve God, we praise God, and we fulfill our vow to God by caring for the poor and feeding the hungry.

Second Reading: 1 John 4:7-21

The verses selected from the first letter of John for this reading both reflect and add to Jesus’ unforgettable promise as told by John the Evangelist: “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you … love one another as I have loved you.” (We will hear that passage, by the way, in next Sunday’s Gospel.) This reading, like the passage from 1 John that we heard last week, assures us of God’s love, and in doing so it calls us to action. “Love one another” is not just a suggestion: It incorporates a covenant promise. If we can’t love our sisters and brothers, how can we make room in our hearts for God?

Gospel: John 15:1-8

For the remaining Sundays of Eastertide, our Gospel readings will draw from John’s account of Jesus’s long farewell to his disciples at the Last Supper. It might seem odd in the joy of Eastertide to return to Jesus’s last gathering with his apostles before his passion and death, but consider this: Now we celebrate the fulfillment of the promises that Jesus made on that tense and fearful night. In this section, Jesus uses the vineyard as an extended metaphor for our relationship with God through Christ: God prunes the vine’s weaker branches in order to make the remaining vines strong and productive. We must abide in God as God abides in us; otherwise we risk being pruned and discarded like the weaker vines. When we abide in God through Jesus, living in God like a sturdy branch on a nurturing vine, we remain strong and fruitful.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for May 2, 2021

First Reading: Acts 8:26-40

The sweet, funny story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts carried a powerful message to the young church a few generations after Jesus: This church is open to all, no matter who you are. Joining the community through baptism is as easy as asking for it.

The Baptism of the Ethiopian Eunuch by the Deacon Philip (c.1545-1550), oil painting on canvas by Lambert Sustris (1515-1584). The Louvre, Paris. (Click image to enlarge.)

This assuring message carries through all of Sunday’s readings: God’s abiding love is open to all humankind. It showers on us as a free gift. In the Acts reading we see that even an Ethiopian – a foreigner from a strange land and a eunuch as well, barred from Judaism because his physical condition renders him biblically unclean – is welcome as an equal. So with joy, just like that, Philip baptizes him as one of us.

Psalm: Psalm 22:24-30

Sunday’s Psalm portion, the ending verses of the Psalm that immediately precedes the beloved 23rd, rings out as a traditional hymn of praise. Its clear message resonates with Philip’s warm welcome to the Ethiopian eunuch: God is the ruler of all nations, all the world, those already born and all those yet to come. We live for God, the Psalmist sings. We serve God, we praise God, and we fulfill our vow to God by making sure that the poor are cared for and the hungry are fed.

Second Reading: 1 John 4:7-21

These verses selected for Sunday’s second reading echo and expand upon John the Evangelist’s memorable words, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you … love one another as I have loved you.” Indeed, we will hear that passage in next week’s Gospel, showing the interconnected nature of the readings for Eastertide. It is tempting to bask in the warm assurance that God loves us, but bear in mind that we are called to action too: “Love one another” is not just a suggestion: It is a covenant. If we can’t love our brothers and sisters, how can we make room in our hearts for God?

Gospel: John 15:1-8

In a noteworthy aspect of John’s Gospel, he attributes seven “I am” quotes to Jesus in which, according to John, Jesus offers striking metaphors to explain his identity and mission: I am the bread of life, the light of the world, the door to salvation, the good shepherd, the resurrection and life, the way, the truth and the life, and now in Sunday’s Gospel, the true vine. Here we begin a series of Gospels from John’s account of Jesus’ long farewell to his disciples at the Last Supper. Jesus uses the vine and the vineyard as an extended metaphor. Describing vineyard practices that continues to this day, Jesus imagines God cutting out weak branches in order to make the vine strong and productive. If we do not abide in God as God abides in us, we risk being pruned and discarded like the weak vines. Abide in God through Jesus, though – live in God like a sturdy branch on a nurturing vine – and we will be strong and fruitful.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for April 29, 2018

The Baptism of the Eunuch (1626). Oil painting on oak panel by Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669). Museum Catharijneconvent, Utrecht, Netherlands. (Click image to enlarge.)

Hear this assuring message through Sunday’s readings: God’s abiding love is open to all humankind. It showers on us as a free gift. The Acts reading offers a sweet, funny story of the young church: All are welcome, no matter who they are. To join the young Christian community through baptism, all you had to do was ask. Even an Ethiopian eunuch – a foreigner from a strange land, barred from Judaism because his physical condition made him biblically unclean – was eagerly welcomed as an equal. With mutual joy, right there on the spot, Philip baptized him as one of us.

Psalm: Psalm 22:24-30

This relatively short passage comes from a longer Psalm that begins with the memorable words that Jesus uttered from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” The despair of the opening two verses quickly turns, though, to the message we hear in this reading, a statement that resonates with Philip’s warm welcome to the Ethiopian eunuch: God is the ruler of all the world’s nations: those already born and all those yet to come. We live for God, we serve God, we praise God, and we fulfill our vow to God by caring for the poor and feeding the hungry.

Second Reading: 1 John 4:7-21

Sunday’s verses from the first letter of John both reflect and add to Jesus’ unforgettable promise as told by John the Evangelist: “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you … love one another as I have loved you.” (We will hear that passage, by the way, in next week’s Gospel.) This reading, like last week’s, assures us of God’s love, and in doing so it calls us to action. “Love one another” is not just a suggestion: It incorporates a covenant promise. If we can’t love our brothers and sisters, how can we make room in our hearts for God?

Gospel: John 15:1-8

For the remaining Sundays of Eastertide, our Gospel readings will draw from John’s account of Jesus’ long farewell to his disciples at the Last Supper. Here, Jesus uses the vineyard as an extended metaphor for our relationship with God through Christ. Clearly describing vineyard practices that continue with little change to this day, Jesus shows us how God cuts out weaker branches in order to make the vines strong and productive. We must abide in God as God abides in us; otherwise we risk being pruned and discarded as the weak vines are. But when we abide in God through Jesus, living in God like a sturdy branch on a nurturing vine, we will be strong and fruitful.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for May 3, 2015

“Christ the True Vine,” Orthodox icon, Athens, 16th century.

This sweet, funny story carried a powerful message to the young church a few generations after Jesus: This church is open to all, no matter who you are; joining the community through baptism is as easy as asking for it. Even an Ethiopian – a foreigner from a strange land and a eunuch as well, barred from Judaism because his physical condition renders him biblically unclean – is welcome as an equal. So with mutual joy, just like that, Philip baptizes him as one of us.

Psalm: Psalm 22:24-30

A traditional hymn of praise, today’s Psalm carries a message that resonates with Philip’s warm welcome to the Ethiopian eunuch: God is the ruler of all nations, all the world, those already born and all those yet to come. We live for God, we serve God, we praise God, and we fulfill our vow to God by making sure that the poor are cared for and the hungry are fed.

Second Reading: 1 John 4:7-21

These verses echo and expand upon John the Evangelist’s memorable words, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you … love one another as I have loved you,” which, by the way, we will hear in next week’s Gospel. It is tempting to bask in the warm assurance that God loves us, but note well that we are called to action too: “Love one another” is not just a suggestion: It is half of a covenant. If we can’t love our brothers and sisters, how can we make room in our hearts for God?

Gospel: John 15:1-8

In John’s account of Jesus’ extended farewell to his disciples at the Last Supper, Jesus uses the vineyard as an extended metaphor. Describing vineyard practice that continues to this day, Jesus imagines God cutting out weak branches in order to make the vine strong and productive. If we do not abide in God as God abides in us, we risk being pruned and discarded like the weak vines. Abide in God through Jesus, though – live in God like a sturdy branch on a nurturing vine – and we will be strong and fruitful.