Sermon Illustrations for Proper 6 | OT 11 (2013)
Illustration
Object:
1 Kings 21:1-10 (11-14) 15-21a
Here is one of the many crime scenes in the Bible. Greed, deceit, and murder claim the life of innocent Naboth, who was simply valuing his family inheritance over profit. Elijah is cast in the role of Richard Castle and Detective Kate Beckett (in the TV mystery series Castle) to unravel the deadly plot and reveal the culprits behind it. As in the stories of Castle and other CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) detective dramas, justice prevails: the guilty are found out and punished.
Mark M.
1 Kings 21:1-10 (11-14) 15-21a
It sounds like modern politics! If you want something there is always a way to get it -- and make it look legal. Is that cynical? It is also human. Lawyers find work in trying to find ways around the law. Even the biblical lawyers wrote volumes to show the Pharisees how to get around the law. On the Sabbath you were only supposed to walk a "Sabbath's day journey" or the distance you traveled after a meal. The answer to that was simple: Take a lunch with you and after the first leg of your trip, sit and eat your sandwich and then you can get up and walk again the same distance until your next meal. There are always ways around God's law, even today. It is even easier to get around man's laws, as you can see in the paper every day.
There are a few other things to be learned from this scripture. "Don't listen to your wife." (NO, that was cruel! Your wife may be more moral than you are!) I'm not sure scripture would approve of us sitting around brooding and sulking if we don't get our way. God's law warns about "coveting" our neighbor's property. Even thinking bad thoughts is not acceptable with God. As we say in the confession, we ask God to forgive our sins of thoughts as well as words or deeds. We are also warned against bearing false witness even if it may help us get our way. Again, the daily papers are full of the crimes of people -- some even in high office -- who twist the facts if not tell out and out lies to get their way. Ethics and morals are at least one area where the laws of evolution don't apply! The more I read both Old and New Testament, the more I am convinced that we haven't changed our hearts in thousands of years.
There is always the question of Naboth's stand on preserving tradition. His problem was a family thing. It would hurt the family honor -- even to make a buck! Today this is still the tradition in Nepal and India. For whatever the reason, he had a right to refuse Ahab's offer. It was his property to do with as he wanted -- even to deny the king! Today we don't want to violate the constitution -- except today we might do it for the right price.
The message here is that someday you will be found out if you violate the law. It may not be until we pass through that last gate, but then it would be too late to change and repent. We should be thankful if an Elijah came along today and saved us from an eternity of punishment.
Bob O.
Galatians 2:15-21
Matt Damon is a devoted husband and father. He dislikes being away from home and from his family. This is why he writes his movie scripts on the family's kitchen table. This way, there is always time to take a break from writing to play with the children, ages 2-14, and converse with his wife of seven years, Luciana.
Application: To know that Christ lives within us inspires us to want to be intimately involved in the lives of those whom we cherish.
Ron L.
Galatians 2:15-21
Ask anyone what the meaning of life is, and it's a pretty safe bet that their answer will start with the word "to." The meaning of life, people say, is "to make a difference," "to learn as much as possible," "to fulfill your potential," or "to serve and love your neighbor." Those are all good things, but they don't answer the question. Instead, they answer some other question, perhaps one about the purpose of life. A purpose is "to do... whatever." But a meaning is not something we do. The meaning of life is not an infinitive, it is a name. Jesus is the meaning of life. It is only the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus that gives our lives meaning.
Scott B.
Galatians 2:15-21
John Wesley nicely explained why we do not need the law because Christ lives in us: ...[Christ has become] a fountain of life in my inmost soul from which all my tempers, words, and actions flow.
Martin Luther further elaborates on what happens in our lives when Christ lives in us. "It further follows from this that a Christian man living in this faith has no need of a teacher of good works..." We may see this in an everyday example. When a husband and wife really love one another, have pleasure in each other, and thoroughly believe in their love, who teaches them how they are to behave one to another, what they are to do or to do, say or not to say, what they are to think? (Luther's Works, Vol. 44, pp. 26-27).
Mark E.
Luke 7:36--8:3
Jesus ate with anyone, Democrat or Republican, sinners or righteous (self-righteous?), rich or poor. He will even eat with us. Some are very class conscious and won't associate with those of the wrong class. In Nepal the outcasts would not associate with the Brahmins. In my seminary class and in our church we had both classes and they were as one in the Lord. When they went to a home of non-Christians near our church, we tried to send someone of the same class so as not to alienate anyone. When they came to the Lord, they sat together in church and shared with each other. It was the same in Jesus' day. In the upper class home where Jesus was eating they could be very offended if someone of a lower group even came in the door.
In my church in Weehawken, one of my members told me to visit a woman who had three children but no church. I went to see her and invite her to come. I asked about her husband. She said she didn't have one. I began to realize that she was a prostitute. I was proud of my member who was concerned about her and the children. She was received well by my congregation and joined our church. I believe she gave up her profession.
This text indicates there are certain duties expected of a host when they invite someone. Our traditions are not as ridged, but all people in the world have them -- even if it is nothing more than offering a cup of coffee to a visitor.
My grandma always kept a pot of coffee ready in case someone should come in. It was the depression and we were one block from the railroad tracks. There were often some unsavory characters who were invited in for coffee. When they left Grandma often gave them one of Grandpa's old funeral outfits that he had outgrown. Imagine seeing a vagrant walking the streets in a swallow tailed coat with a bowler hat! My mother always told me to be proud of my family for caring for others. No they did not wash their feet!
The woman who came to Jesus may have been poor but she spent her money on some anointing oil for his feet. What a contrast! I'm sure Jesus loved the Pharisees, but they evidently did not love him in return, but this prostitute did love him. He pointed out the difference.
I like to think of a church as a hospital for sinners, not just a club for the righteous. Some, I know stay away because they think they would be out of place.
In Cleveland there was an item in the church paper about a church that had thrown out a man because he was dressed like a bum when he tried to come in to a Christmas service. When the members realized what had been done, it made the whole church wake up. It never happened again.
Bob O.
Luke 7:36--8:3
It is often overlooked and not talked much about how Jesus and the disciples were able to go about their ministry of teaching and healing for three years. The gospel writer Luke tells us that there was a cadre of women especially who provided for their needs out of their own resources. Among these women were some who had received special blessings from Jesus, healing blessings and forgiveness blessings. It is often said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." The truth is that there is an integral relationship between giving and receiving. Jesus gave to those around him and received support for his continuing work; those who received healing and forgiveness blessings from Jesus gave generously to him from their resources to show their gratitude.
Mark M.
Here is one of the many crime scenes in the Bible. Greed, deceit, and murder claim the life of innocent Naboth, who was simply valuing his family inheritance over profit. Elijah is cast in the role of Richard Castle and Detective Kate Beckett (in the TV mystery series Castle) to unravel the deadly plot and reveal the culprits behind it. As in the stories of Castle and other CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) detective dramas, justice prevails: the guilty are found out and punished.
Mark M.
1 Kings 21:1-10 (11-14) 15-21a
It sounds like modern politics! If you want something there is always a way to get it -- and make it look legal. Is that cynical? It is also human. Lawyers find work in trying to find ways around the law. Even the biblical lawyers wrote volumes to show the Pharisees how to get around the law. On the Sabbath you were only supposed to walk a "Sabbath's day journey" or the distance you traveled after a meal. The answer to that was simple: Take a lunch with you and after the first leg of your trip, sit and eat your sandwich and then you can get up and walk again the same distance until your next meal. There are always ways around God's law, even today. It is even easier to get around man's laws, as you can see in the paper every day.
There are a few other things to be learned from this scripture. "Don't listen to your wife." (NO, that was cruel! Your wife may be more moral than you are!) I'm not sure scripture would approve of us sitting around brooding and sulking if we don't get our way. God's law warns about "coveting" our neighbor's property. Even thinking bad thoughts is not acceptable with God. As we say in the confession, we ask God to forgive our sins of thoughts as well as words or deeds. We are also warned against bearing false witness even if it may help us get our way. Again, the daily papers are full of the crimes of people -- some even in high office -- who twist the facts if not tell out and out lies to get their way. Ethics and morals are at least one area where the laws of evolution don't apply! The more I read both Old and New Testament, the more I am convinced that we haven't changed our hearts in thousands of years.
There is always the question of Naboth's stand on preserving tradition. His problem was a family thing. It would hurt the family honor -- even to make a buck! Today this is still the tradition in Nepal and India. For whatever the reason, he had a right to refuse Ahab's offer. It was his property to do with as he wanted -- even to deny the king! Today we don't want to violate the constitution -- except today we might do it for the right price.
The message here is that someday you will be found out if you violate the law. It may not be until we pass through that last gate, but then it would be too late to change and repent. We should be thankful if an Elijah came along today and saved us from an eternity of punishment.
Bob O.
Galatians 2:15-21
Matt Damon is a devoted husband and father. He dislikes being away from home and from his family. This is why he writes his movie scripts on the family's kitchen table. This way, there is always time to take a break from writing to play with the children, ages 2-14, and converse with his wife of seven years, Luciana.
Application: To know that Christ lives within us inspires us to want to be intimately involved in the lives of those whom we cherish.
Ron L.
Galatians 2:15-21
Ask anyone what the meaning of life is, and it's a pretty safe bet that their answer will start with the word "to." The meaning of life, people say, is "to make a difference," "to learn as much as possible," "to fulfill your potential," or "to serve and love your neighbor." Those are all good things, but they don't answer the question. Instead, they answer some other question, perhaps one about the purpose of life. A purpose is "to do... whatever." But a meaning is not something we do. The meaning of life is not an infinitive, it is a name. Jesus is the meaning of life. It is only the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus that gives our lives meaning.
Scott B.
Galatians 2:15-21
John Wesley nicely explained why we do not need the law because Christ lives in us: ...[Christ has become] a fountain of life in my inmost soul from which all my tempers, words, and actions flow.
Martin Luther further elaborates on what happens in our lives when Christ lives in us. "It further follows from this that a Christian man living in this faith has no need of a teacher of good works..." We may see this in an everyday example. When a husband and wife really love one another, have pleasure in each other, and thoroughly believe in their love, who teaches them how they are to behave one to another, what they are to do or to do, say or not to say, what they are to think? (Luther's Works, Vol. 44, pp. 26-27).
Mark E.
Luke 7:36--8:3
Jesus ate with anyone, Democrat or Republican, sinners or righteous (self-righteous?), rich or poor. He will even eat with us. Some are very class conscious and won't associate with those of the wrong class. In Nepal the outcasts would not associate with the Brahmins. In my seminary class and in our church we had both classes and they were as one in the Lord. When they went to a home of non-Christians near our church, we tried to send someone of the same class so as not to alienate anyone. When they came to the Lord, they sat together in church and shared with each other. It was the same in Jesus' day. In the upper class home where Jesus was eating they could be very offended if someone of a lower group even came in the door.
In my church in Weehawken, one of my members told me to visit a woman who had three children but no church. I went to see her and invite her to come. I asked about her husband. She said she didn't have one. I began to realize that she was a prostitute. I was proud of my member who was concerned about her and the children. She was received well by my congregation and joined our church. I believe she gave up her profession.
This text indicates there are certain duties expected of a host when they invite someone. Our traditions are not as ridged, but all people in the world have them -- even if it is nothing more than offering a cup of coffee to a visitor.
My grandma always kept a pot of coffee ready in case someone should come in. It was the depression and we were one block from the railroad tracks. There were often some unsavory characters who were invited in for coffee. When they left Grandma often gave them one of Grandpa's old funeral outfits that he had outgrown. Imagine seeing a vagrant walking the streets in a swallow tailed coat with a bowler hat! My mother always told me to be proud of my family for caring for others. No they did not wash their feet!
The woman who came to Jesus may have been poor but she spent her money on some anointing oil for his feet. What a contrast! I'm sure Jesus loved the Pharisees, but they evidently did not love him in return, but this prostitute did love him. He pointed out the difference.
I like to think of a church as a hospital for sinners, not just a club for the righteous. Some, I know stay away because they think they would be out of place.
In Cleveland there was an item in the church paper about a church that had thrown out a man because he was dressed like a bum when he tried to come in to a Christmas service. When the members realized what had been done, it made the whole church wake up. It never happened again.
Bob O.
Luke 7:36--8:3
It is often overlooked and not talked much about how Jesus and the disciples were able to go about their ministry of teaching and healing for three years. The gospel writer Luke tells us that there was a cadre of women especially who provided for their needs out of their own resources. Among these women were some who had received special blessings from Jesus, healing blessings and forgiveness blessings. It is often said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." The truth is that there is an integral relationship between giving and receiving. Jesus gave to those around him and received support for his continuing work; those who received healing and forgiveness blessings from Jesus gave generously to him from their resources to show their gratitude.
Mark M.
