Sermon Illustrations for Proper 23 | Ordinary Time 28 (2024)
Illustration
Job 23:1-9, 16-17
I came across this anecdote about President Abraham Lincoln. Joseph R. Sizoo was the pastor of the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington. Years before, Abraham Lincoln often attended that church. Sizoo said he will never forget the day he held in his hands for the first time the Bible of Abraham Lincoln. It was the Bible from which Lincoln’s mother had read to him as a child. She had taught him to commit to memory many of its passages. It was the only possession Lincoln carried from Pigeon Creek to the Sangamon River. Sizoo surmised, “With his Bible in my hand, I wondered where it would fall open. It opened to a page which was thumb marked and which he must have read many times. It was the thirty-seventh Psalm, ‘Fret not thyself because of evildoers.... Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him.’”
Job likely knew how President Lincoln must’ve felt. Job has heard his friends speak about how God is against him. Job has heard the message of despair and discouragement. God’s people are not immune to difficult times. God is there, even when things are tough. “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold” (Ps. 18:2).
Bill T.
* * *
Job 23:1-9, 16-17
I think people just want to be heard. That is Job’s complaint. Job knows nothing about the folderol in the heavenly court way back in chapters 1 and 2, how God bragged on Job, and how the adversary challenged God to put him to the test to see if he is faithful when he’s got nothing. (Remember “the Satan” in this book refers to a “devil’s advocate,” if you will, a prosecuting attorney whose job it is to see the worst in people.)
Job’s friends don’t know about this either, and they’re intent of blaming Job. Bad things only happen to bad people. Against this backdrop, Job complains he can’t get a hearing in heaven’s court. It is an audacious demand on his part but it only underscores Job’s sense of innocence, that he’s done nothing to deserve this.
When someone is born with physical difficulties, when someone encounters financial distress, or medical problems, when people lose a spouse, some immediately ask questions which suggest it’s the fault of the sufferer. I’ve seen this over and over. What did you do? Why did you do this or that?
Job wants to be heard. Folks in our churches want to be heard.
Frank R.
* * *
Hebrews 4:12-16
The coming of Jesus into the world gives us, the believers, an advantage that no one held before. As the scripture reads, “Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Mercy and grace are granted to us. We need have no fear in coming before God when we make mistakes, when we sin, when our faithfulness fails us. We have a Savior who knows and has experienced the challenges of humanity, and although also divine, can understand our flaws and failings.
We do not need to hide. We can come freely to God. We can know the forgiveness and understanding of a God who has experienced and knows our human condition. What a blessing that is!
Bonnie B.
* * *
Hebrews 4:12-16
Martin Luther was commenting on this passage in 1517. He wrote: “Therefore the apostle introduced Christ here more as a priest than as a Lord and judge, in order that he may console those who are frightened.” (Luther’s Works, Vol.29, p.165) John Wesley nicely explained the sense in which Jesus is high priest:
As the Jewish high priest passed through the veil into the holy of holies, carrying with him the blood of the sacrifices, on the yearly day of atonement; so our great high priest went once for all through the visible heavens with the virtue of his own blood into the immediate presence of God. (Commentary On the Bible, p.565)
Famed early African Bishop Athanasius also taught Christ’s priestly sacrifice, but saw the sacrifice as paid not to God but for the purpose of setting us free from fear of death and evil. The priestly sacrifice of Jesus emboldens us to face life (v.15). It really is as Athanasius says:
For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for, then all died, and died for all.. that through death he might bring to naught him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver them who, through fear of death, were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For by the sacrifice of his own body, he both put an end to the law which was against us, and made a new beginning of life for us... (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second series, Vol.4, p.41)
Mark E.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
Following Jesus is not easy. Being faithful is not for the faint of heart. There are moments, hours, days, weeks and maybe even years when we will feel estranged and lost. Like the rich man, we have been asked to put Jesus first, to let go of the trappings of the world and focus on Jesus. Have you ever thought about what our response might be to Jesus? Well, I recently have. I am a “clothes hound” and I love to shop. Recently I’ve lost some weight and have had to [purchase new clothing – that being said I purchased way more than the minimum I would need. How would I feel if Jesus said to me, get rid of all but three outfits that fit in your backpack and follow me?
I think I would have a hard time. How could I leave all this behind? How could I just drop everything? And let’s be clear the rich man had power and influence that he would need to give up as well. How would it be if we were asked to leave our CEO position and become the janitor, or have no job at all and give everything away to those in need? Our response might be as challenged and challenging, How could we do this?
Perhaps it is not necessary to give everything away, but it is necessary to put God first, to act on our faith first, to care for those who are without and most in need. That’s a contemporary way of following Jesus. Maybe we could work on that focus in the days ahead?
Bonnie B.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
Bloomberg News reported on May 15, 2012, that a ruby and diamond ring sold for a record $6.7 million at a charity auction of jewels owned by the Brazilian-born billionaire Lily Safra. It was said to be the most valuable ring ever sold. Those who purchased the record-breaking ring truly own a treasure worth far more than most people will make in their entire lives.
That ring is an amazing and valuable asset. It would be hard to just give that ring up. That’s true of all the things we cherish, I think. I came across something called “The Monkey Jar Trap.” It works like this. A hunter would take a pot with a wide bottom and narrow opening and bury the pot in the ground to where the opening of the jar was just above the ground. In the jar the hunter would place a piece of fruit or nuts, and curiosity or hunger would attract the monkey to reach inside. The monkey reaches down into the narrow opening of the jar to grab hold of the treat, and as the monkey attempts to extract the treat from the jar, he finds that his fist full of food will not fit through the narrow opening! The monkey, excited and frustrated, may scream out as he continues to hold on to his food... but he will refuse to let go of it.
I do not know for certainty if that works with monkeys, but I know it is hard for people to let go of the things they value and cherish. The rich man Jesus talks about in this passage had so much going for him, but he couldn’t let go of that which he thought had value. It raises the question, is there anything more important to us than a relationship with Jesus?
Bill T.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
This image of tying a rich person’s chances of getting into heaven to the odds of a camel getting through the eye of a needle is distressing, not only to the rich young man, but also to the disciples. It has given rise to some story about a gate into Jerusalem which was low and narrow, requiring laden camels from a caravan to be relieved of their burdens and then was forced to kneel to get through the gate. The implication is that rich people are welcome in heaven as long, as they give some of their wealth of the church and kneel down in prayer while they’re at it.
Not only is this a works/righteousness image, it suggests it’s possible to buy your way into heaven, and that’s not what Jesus is telling the rich young man who evidently not only knows the commandments, but practices them.
In that time people assumed that wealth was a sign of God’s favor, an attitude which many people hold today, whether they articulate it that way or not. This statement by Jesus is a sharp challenge to that assumption.
No, the impossibility of a camel squeezing through the eye of a need is ridiculous as well as impossible, because why would a camel even try? It’s hard enough to lead a camel through a narrow gate. Jesus is challenging all of us, I think, who are preoccupied with our possessions to re-focus and reprioritize..
I think Jesus is challenging us to change our whole focus on possessions and righteousness. Equating wealth with well-being and God’s favor is a dead end. Literally. Every one of us will die and leave everything behind. What remains? As it says in Song of Songs 8:6, “…for love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave.” And of course there’s 1 Corinthians 13:13: “And now faith, hope, and love remain, these three, and the greatest of these is love.”
Possessions were necessary, not necessarily for Jesus, but for the infrastructure that supported him and the disciples. Luke 8:1-3 makes it clear that the ministry of Jesus required financial support, provided in part by the three rich women named in these verses. Seventy-two disciples were sent out and ordered to live off hospitality, which meant that the hospitable had to have the wherewithal to share. It may not be the possessions that are at fault, but being possessed by your possessions. But I want to be cautious about negating in any way the seriousness of these words of Jesus. Yes, nothing is impossible with God. But each of us must be challenged to do the impossible, and find a way to live in a material world without becoming materialistic.
Frank R.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
Americans, even American Christians, have a hard time getting their priorities right, just as the rich man Jesus encountered in our text did. The average American in 2023 spent 7 hours and 4 minutes on the computer screen per day. On the other hand, the average American who prays daily (and many do not) averages on 18 minutes daily on that activity. It is little wonder, then that Jesus spoke hard words to the rich man about his mixed-up priorities. We need to hear those words from Jesus! John Calvin well explained why we need pastors to provide such condemnation (even if our parishioners tell us they want encouragement not judgment) and why Jesus did it. In Calvin’s view:
Hence it is evident, that those teachers are guilty of gross impropriety, who are so much afraid to speak harshly, that they give indulgence to slothfulness of the flesh. They ought to follow, on the contrary, the rule of Christ, who so regulates his style that, after men have been bowed down within themselves, he teaches them to rely on the grace of God alone. (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol.XVI/2, p.403)
The God of love is always in the background of strong condemnations of sin. It is as Martin Luther once said of God: “He is an eternal fountain which overflows with sheer goodness and pours forth all that is good in name and in fact.” (The Book of Concord, p.368)
Mark E.
I came across this anecdote about President Abraham Lincoln. Joseph R. Sizoo was the pastor of the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington. Years before, Abraham Lincoln often attended that church. Sizoo said he will never forget the day he held in his hands for the first time the Bible of Abraham Lincoln. It was the Bible from which Lincoln’s mother had read to him as a child. She had taught him to commit to memory many of its passages. It was the only possession Lincoln carried from Pigeon Creek to the Sangamon River. Sizoo surmised, “With his Bible in my hand, I wondered where it would fall open. It opened to a page which was thumb marked and which he must have read many times. It was the thirty-seventh Psalm, ‘Fret not thyself because of evildoers.... Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him.’”
Job likely knew how President Lincoln must’ve felt. Job has heard his friends speak about how God is against him. Job has heard the message of despair and discouragement. God’s people are not immune to difficult times. God is there, even when things are tough. “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold” (Ps. 18:2).
Bill T.
* * *
Job 23:1-9, 16-17
I think people just want to be heard. That is Job’s complaint. Job knows nothing about the folderol in the heavenly court way back in chapters 1 and 2, how God bragged on Job, and how the adversary challenged God to put him to the test to see if he is faithful when he’s got nothing. (Remember “the Satan” in this book refers to a “devil’s advocate,” if you will, a prosecuting attorney whose job it is to see the worst in people.)
Job’s friends don’t know about this either, and they’re intent of blaming Job. Bad things only happen to bad people. Against this backdrop, Job complains he can’t get a hearing in heaven’s court. It is an audacious demand on his part but it only underscores Job’s sense of innocence, that he’s done nothing to deserve this.
When someone is born with physical difficulties, when someone encounters financial distress, or medical problems, when people lose a spouse, some immediately ask questions which suggest it’s the fault of the sufferer. I’ve seen this over and over. What did you do? Why did you do this or that?
Job wants to be heard. Folks in our churches want to be heard.
Frank R.
* * *
Hebrews 4:12-16
The coming of Jesus into the world gives us, the believers, an advantage that no one held before. As the scripture reads, “Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Mercy and grace are granted to us. We need have no fear in coming before God when we make mistakes, when we sin, when our faithfulness fails us. We have a Savior who knows and has experienced the challenges of humanity, and although also divine, can understand our flaws and failings.
We do not need to hide. We can come freely to God. We can know the forgiveness and understanding of a God who has experienced and knows our human condition. What a blessing that is!
Bonnie B.
* * *
Hebrews 4:12-16
Martin Luther was commenting on this passage in 1517. He wrote: “Therefore the apostle introduced Christ here more as a priest than as a Lord and judge, in order that he may console those who are frightened.” (Luther’s Works, Vol.29, p.165) John Wesley nicely explained the sense in which Jesus is high priest:
As the Jewish high priest passed through the veil into the holy of holies, carrying with him the blood of the sacrifices, on the yearly day of atonement; so our great high priest went once for all through the visible heavens with the virtue of his own blood into the immediate presence of God. (Commentary On the Bible, p.565)
Famed early African Bishop Athanasius also taught Christ’s priestly sacrifice, but saw the sacrifice as paid not to God but for the purpose of setting us free from fear of death and evil. The priestly sacrifice of Jesus emboldens us to face life (v.15). It really is as Athanasius says:
For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for, then all died, and died for all.. that through death he might bring to naught him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver them who, through fear of death, were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For by the sacrifice of his own body, he both put an end to the law which was against us, and made a new beginning of life for us... (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second series, Vol.4, p.41)
Mark E.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
Following Jesus is not easy. Being faithful is not for the faint of heart. There are moments, hours, days, weeks and maybe even years when we will feel estranged and lost. Like the rich man, we have been asked to put Jesus first, to let go of the trappings of the world and focus on Jesus. Have you ever thought about what our response might be to Jesus? Well, I recently have. I am a “clothes hound” and I love to shop. Recently I’ve lost some weight and have had to [purchase new clothing – that being said I purchased way more than the minimum I would need. How would I feel if Jesus said to me, get rid of all but three outfits that fit in your backpack and follow me?
I think I would have a hard time. How could I leave all this behind? How could I just drop everything? And let’s be clear the rich man had power and influence that he would need to give up as well. How would it be if we were asked to leave our CEO position and become the janitor, or have no job at all and give everything away to those in need? Our response might be as challenged and challenging, How could we do this?
Perhaps it is not necessary to give everything away, but it is necessary to put God first, to act on our faith first, to care for those who are without and most in need. That’s a contemporary way of following Jesus. Maybe we could work on that focus in the days ahead?
Bonnie B.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
Bloomberg News reported on May 15, 2012, that a ruby and diamond ring sold for a record $6.7 million at a charity auction of jewels owned by the Brazilian-born billionaire Lily Safra. It was said to be the most valuable ring ever sold. Those who purchased the record-breaking ring truly own a treasure worth far more than most people will make in their entire lives.
That ring is an amazing and valuable asset. It would be hard to just give that ring up. That’s true of all the things we cherish, I think. I came across something called “The Monkey Jar Trap.” It works like this. A hunter would take a pot with a wide bottom and narrow opening and bury the pot in the ground to where the opening of the jar was just above the ground. In the jar the hunter would place a piece of fruit or nuts, and curiosity or hunger would attract the monkey to reach inside. The monkey reaches down into the narrow opening of the jar to grab hold of the treat, and as the monkey attempts to extract the treat from the jar, he finds that his fist full of food will not fit through the narrow opening! The monkey, excited and frustrated, may scream out as he continues to hold on to his food... but he will refuse to let go of it.
I do not know for certainty if that works with monkeys, but I know it is hard for people to let go of the things they value and cherish. The rich man Jesus talks about in this passage had so much going for him, but he couldn’t let go of that which he thought had value. It raises the question, is there anything more important to us than a relationship with Jesus?
Bill T.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
This image of tying a rich person’s chances of getting into heaven to the odds of a camel getting through the eye of a needle is distressing, not only to the rich young man, but also to the disciples. It has given rise to some story about a gate into Jerusalem which was low and narrow, requiring laden camels from a caravan to be relieved of their burdens and then was forced to kneel to get through the gate. The implication is that rich people are welcome in heaven as long, as they give some of their wealth of the church and kneel down in prayer while they’re at it.
Not only is this a works/righteousness image, it suggests it’s possible to buy your way into heaven, and that’s not what Jesus is telling the rich young man who evidently not only knows the commandments, but practices them.
In that time people assumed that wealth was a sign of God’s favor, an attitude which many people hold today, whether they articulate it that way or not. This statement by Jesus is a sharp challenge to that assumption.
No, the impossibility of a camel squeezing through the eye of a need is ridiculous as well as impossible, because why would a camel even try? It’s hard enough to lead a camel through a narrow gate. Jesus is challenging all of us, I think, who are preoccupied with our possessions to re-focus and reprioritize..
I think Jesus is challenging us to change our whole focus on possessions and righteousness. Equating wealth with well-being and God’s favor is a dead end. Literally. Every one of us will die and leave everything behind. What remains? As it says in Song of Songs 8:6, “…for love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave.” And of course there’s 1 Corinthians 13:13: “And now faith, hope, and love remain, these three, and the greatest of these is love.”
Possessions were necessary, not necessarily for Jesus, but for the infrastructure that supported him and the disciples. Luke 8:1-3 makes it clear that the ministry of Jesus required financial support, provided in part by the three rich women named in these verses. Seventy-two disciples were sent out and ordered to live off hospitality, which meant that the hospitable had to have the wherewithal to share. It may not be the possessions that are at fault, but being possessed by your possessions. But I want to be cautious about negating in any way the seriousness of these words of Jesus. Yes, nothing is impossible with God. But each of us must be challenged to do the impossible, and find a way to live in a material world without becoming materialistic.
Frank R.
* * *
Mark 10:17-31
Americans, even American Christians, have a hard time getting their priorities right, just as the rich man Jesus encountered in our text did. The average American in 2023 spent 7 hours and 4 minutes on the computer screen per day. On the other hand, the average American who prays daily (and many do not) averages on 18 minutes daily on that activity. It is little wonder, then that Jesus spoke hard words to the rich man about his mixed-up priorities. We need to hear those words from Jesus! John Calvin well explained why we need pastors to provide such condemnation (even if our parishioners tell us they want encouragement not judgment) and why Jesus did it. In Calvin’s view:
Hence it is evident, that those teachers are guilty of gross impropriety, who are so much afraid to speak harshly, that they give indulgence to slothfulness of the flesh. They ought to follow, on the contrary, the rule of Christ, who so regulates his style that, after men have been bowed down within themselves, he teaches them to rely on the grace of God alone. (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol.XVI/2, p.403)
The God of love is always in the background of strong condemnations of sin. It is as Martin Luther once said of God: “He is an eternal fountain which overflows with sheer goodness and pours forth all that is good in name and in fact.” (The Book of Concord, p.368)
Mark E.
