Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for March 23, 2025 (Lent 3C)

First Reading: Exodus 3:1-15

As the theologian Marcus Borg famously wrote, God is both right here and out there: as near as our thoughts and as far as the stars. Sunday’s readings stretch our imagination with ideas of a transcendent God of mighty power. In our first reading from Exodus, we recall the ancestral story of God addressing a startled Moses from a flaming bush that burned but was never consumed. The people have suffered in slavery in Egypt long enough, God tells Moses, calling Moses – despite his protests of inadequacy – to lead the people out of Egypt and bring them to a promised land flowing with milk and honey.

Psalm: Psalm 63:1-8

We began Lent by recalling the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert, defying temptation and preparing for his ministry on Earth. Psalm 63 is set in a similar arid wilderness, a barren and dry land where there is no water. The Psalmist seeks God with a thirsty soul, aching not only for liquid refreshment but for God, whose lovingkindness is better than life itself. Through prayer, the Psalmist’s hunger is satisfied. Upheld by God’s strong hand, the poet sings for joy under the shadow of God’s wings.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Paul, writing to the people of Corinth in a time when early Christians were still working out their relationship with Judaism, recalls Hebrew Bible stories in which Israelites were struck down for failing to keep God’s ways. Paul holds up these Israelites who strayed from their commitments as examples for the early Christians to consider when they felt that God was testing them with hard times. Learn from those ancestors, Paul urges. Be faithful, don’t stray, and know that when hard times test us, God will provide us strength.

Gospel: Luke 13:1-9

A group of people came to Jesus, worried about a group of Galileans whom Pilate had killed and 18 others who died when a tower at Siloam fell on them. Did these bad things happen because the victims had sinned? Absolutely not, Jesus tells them. God does not punish sin with suffering, Jesus declares, perhaps recalling the wisdom of Job. But, Jesus goes on, repentance defeats death, bringing forgiveness and eternal life. Like the gardener who defers cutting down a barren fig tree to nurture it in hope it will eventually bear fruit, we are to hope for forgiveness and another chance.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for March 24, 2019

First Reading: Exodus 3:1-15

Scripture offers us scores of images and metaphors to help us visualize a God who is beyond our imagining. It is no surprise that its efforts to portray some small sense of God’s power sometimes stretch our imagination.

One such image is fire. God led the Israelites in the wilderness as a pillar of fire and column of smoke, and, as we hear in Sunday’s first reading, God surprises Moses by speaking out a bush that burns and burns but is not consumed. God, who is and always will be, calls Moses to lead the people out of slavery in Egypt to a promised land that flows with milk and honey.

Psalm: Psalm 63:1-8

We began the penitential season of Lent by recalling the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert, defying temptation and preparing for his ministry on earth. Psalm 63 is set in a similar place, a barren and dry land where there is no water. The Psalmist seeks God with a thirsty soul, aching not only for liquid refreshment but for God, whose loving-kindness is better than life itself. Through prayer, the Psalmist’s hunger is satisfied. Upheld by God’s strong hand, the poet sings for joy under the shadow of God’s wings.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Paul, writing to the people of Corinth in a time when early Christians were still working out their relationship with Judaism, recalls Old Testament stories in which Israelites were struck down for failing to keep God’s ways. Paul holds up these Israelites who strayed from their commitments as examples for the early Christians to consider when they felt that God was testing them with hard times. Learn from them, Paul urges. Be faithful, don’t stray, and know that when hard times test us, God will provide us strength.

Gospel: Luke 13:1-9

A group of people came to Jesus, worried about a group of Galileans whom Pilate had killed and 18 others who died when a tower at Siloam fell on them. Did these bad things happen because the victims had sinned? Absolutely not, Jesus says. Echoing the wisdom of Job, Jesus declares that God does not punish sin with suffering. But, Jesus goes on, repentance defeats death, bringing forgiveness and eternal life. Like the gardener who defers cutting down a barren fig tree to nurture it in hope it will eventually bear fruit, we hope for forgiveness and another chance.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Feb. 28, 2016

First Reading: Exodus 3:1-15

God is beyond our imagining. Scripture tells us this over and over. Our thoughts are not God’s thoughts, and our ways are not God’s ways, says Isaiah. It’s no surprise, then, that Scripture stretches our imagination with images that try to capture some sense of God’s power. One such image is fire. God led the Israelites in the wilderness as a pillar of fire and column of smoke. There’s fire, too, as God speaking to Moses from a burning bush. God, who is and always will be, calls Moses to lead the people out of slavery in Egypt to a land flowing with milk and honey.

Psalm 63:1-8

We hear a voice crying out in the wilderness, alone and thirsty yet nevertheless trusting in God. Even in a barren and dry and probably scary place where there is no water, the Psalmist’s soul thirsts not for mere liquid refreshment but for God, whose loving-kindness is better than life itself. Even in hard times we trust in God, finding comfort under the shadow of God’s wings, held in God’s strong right hand.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:1-13

In verses that link our First Reading, Psalm and Gospel, Paul recalls that many of the Israelites died in the wilderness, arguing that this happened because God was not pleased with them. Recalling lessons from Exodus, Paul urges us not to practice idolatry or immorality; don’t put Christ to the test; don’t complain. These things happened to our ancestors to serve as an example to us, reminding us to be faithful when hard times test us, knowing that God will provide us strength through our faith.

Gospel: Luke 13:1-9

Pilate killed a group of Galileans, and more people died unexpectedly when a tower fell. Sometimes bad things happen. Were these people punished because of their sins? Jesus, responding to the crowd’s questions, tells us that God does not punish sin with suffering. But repentance – turning away from bad behavior – brings forgiveness and eternal life. Just as the gardener gives the barren fig tree one more year of nurturing in hope of fruit, we hope for God’s forgiveness … and another chance.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, March 3, 2013.

First Reading: Exodus 3:1-15
Scripture offers scores of images and metaphors to help us visualize the idea of a God who is beyond our imagining. Still, the idea of God appearing to Moses in a burning bush might seem a little strange to our modern ears. But hear God’s message to Moses, foreshadowing God’s covenant with the people: God brought us out of slavery. God will be with us. God’s assertion to Moses, “I am who I am,” may also be translated from ancient Hebrew as “I will be what I will be,” a promise that carries down through the ages.

Psalm 63
We began the penitential season of Lent by recalling the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert, defying temptation and preparing for his ministry on earth. Today’s Psalm finds the Psalmist in a similar place, seeking God with thirsty soul in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Through prayer, the poet’s hunger is satisfied. Upheld by God’s strong hand, he sings for joy under the shadow of God’s wings.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:1-13
Paul, teaching the people of Corinth in a time when early Christians were still working out their relationship with Judaism, recalls Old Testament stories in which Israelites were struck down for failing to keep God’s ways. Paul holds up the Israelites as bad examples for the early Christians, who may have felt that God was testing them through hard times. Be faithful, Paul urges, and know that when hard times test us, God will provide us strength through our faith.

Gospel: Luke 13:1-9
Do bad things happen to people because they sin? No, responds Jesus. Bad things can happen to anyone. That is the way of the world. As God taught Job, so speaks Jesus: God does not punish sin with suffering. The world is more complicated than that. But, Jesus goes on, repentance brings forgiveness and eternal life. And, like the gardener who defers cutting down the barren fig tree in favor of nurturing it a little more, we have hope for forgiveness and another chance.