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Sermon Illustrations for Third Sunday of Advent (2020)

Illustration
Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
I read these words from Isaiah and remember the gospels and Jesus reading this passage in the synagogue. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.” As one ordained into ministry, I recall occasions when I have truly felt the Spirit of the Lord upon me: seminary graduation, my ordination, the first time I led worship or presided at communion or a baptism, holding the hand at the bedside of a parishioner as she died, baptizing my grandson and later my granddaughter. At all these times, in these moments, I felt the Spirit of the Lord upon me. It’s a mountaintop experience and I am not surprised that I can recall the moments as they happened even if I cannot feel exactly what I felt then. But my call is to act on the presence of the Spirit, and whether I can feel the presence profoundly, I live into the call of that Spirit - to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn. That I can do.
Bonnie B.

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Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
With the new presidential term ready to begin, it is natural to consider the state of our nation. The pandemic has worked its evil on income inequality in our nation, with all the unemployment and poverty it has caused, not just in America but also worldwide. The World Bank has estimated that 49 million more people will be pushed into absolute poverty.

The lesson addresses these matters in referring to the justice of the Lord who hates robbery and wrongdoing, and a promise to deliver good news to the oppressed (vv.6,1). About God’s justice, Martin Luther once wrote words that hit home with well-off Americans:

Many live for themselves. Meanwhile they neglect the poor, devote themselves to prayer, and consider themselves saints. Yet it is not enough to have harmed one’s neighbor. God also demands positive uplifting of the needy through love. (Luther’s Works, Vol.16, p.19)

Get off the dime, Christians, in light of all the poverty. The ancient African theologian Clement of Alexandria also offered a formula for why Christians are the enemies of poverty. It follows from the very nature of the incarnation and the Trinity:

God brought our race into communion by first imparting what was His own, when He gave His own Word common to all, and made all things for all. All things, therefore are common, and not for the rich to appropriate an undue share. (Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol.2, p.268)
Mark E.

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1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
The actor Chadwick Boseman died of colon cancer on August 28, 2020. He was 43 years old. The black actor is known for a number of leading roles he played in the movies. He was Jackie Robinson in 42. He played Thurgood Marshall in the movie Marshall. He played the singer James Brown in the movie Get On Up. Boseman was becoming a cult hero as he played T’Challa in the movie the Black Panther produced by Marvel Comics.

In the last weeks of his life, he helped a dream-come-true for a little boy for the Make-a-Wish Foundation. In Boseman’s last tweet before he died, having sent it to the friend who assisted him in the Make-a-Wish project, he made reference to that effort when he wrote, “It broke me, man. But we need to do that for them. People deserve abundant life, special moments. They’ve been through hell battling disease. If we were able to ease their suffering and bring joy for a moment… then we made a difference in his life.
Ron L.

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1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
Joni Erickson Tada, a woman who’s been a quadriplegic since a diving accident in 1967, said, “Giving thanks is not a matter of feeling thankful, it is a matter of obedience.”

“The Houston Chronicle” on November 5, 2010 reported the story of Eunice Sandborn. On July 20, 2010, Sandborn became the world’s oldest living person by celebrating her 114th birthday at her church, First Baptist, in Jacksonville, Texas. The story quoted Eunice saying that she not only loves everything about her life, but she also has “no complaints.” If she had wanted to complain, she would have had many things accumulated throughout her 114 years to complain of. Sandborn, however, demonstrates that complaining is a choice.

Paul writes, “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). No matter what may come our way in our walk with Jesus, we are to have an attitude of gratitude. God has a plan. It’s up to us to choose to trust and be thankful. “Gratitude is an offering precious in the sight of God, and it is one that the poorest of us can make and be not poorer but richer for having made it.”
Bill T.

* * *

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
I don’t know how sincere we truly are, nor how dear the addressee of a letter really is to us, when we begin our letters with “Dear” and end them “Sincerely”? But these are nice words, and at their heart they express our best thoughts, or the thoughts we’d like to actually have for our correspondents.

When Paul tells the Thessalonians to “Rejoice Always” he is using a word, chairete, which literally means rejoice but which is also a perfunctory word of farewell often used in letters in the same manner we write “Dear” and “Sincerely.”

There is no suggestion of insincerity or emptiness when Paul uses the word. Here it is meant in the active sense that despite the worries the Thessalonians have regarding the future they should rejoice. Unlike the Corinthians, the Macedonians, including those of Thessaloniki, are not the richest people in the world. Life is tough -- yet they are responding abundantly to Paul’s request for an offering to be taken to the poor Christians of Jerusalem.

The good thing is that for Paul rejoicing is the default setting. This is how we should live life.

During this holiday season we will wish people a Merry Christmas many times over. Sometimes the words are spoken without much conviction. Other times these words are spoken with all the heart we can give them.
Frank R.

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John 1:6-8, 19-28
In these days of protests, pandemics, injustice coming to light, racism expressed and countered, I find myself feeling a little like John, a voice crying in the wilderness. I hope I am a voice that calls for grace, compassion, kindness, hope, and love. I hope I am speaking out for the least among us and moving more closely into alignment with God and God’s hopes for the world. I, like John, know who I am not. I am not the Messiah. I am not worthy to be considered so. Yet, I hope that my words and my actions point the way toward the one who comes in the name of God – Emmanuel, God-With-Us. I can do no more.
Bonnie B.

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John 1:6-8, 19-28
In church circles which prize liberal, bold critiques of the status quo, it is common to claim that you’re trying to be prophetic in your preaching and ministry. This story of John the Baptist shows that being a prophet, being a church leader, is a dirty job. Martin Luther made that clear, as he described what John did (the implication being it is what church leaders and would-be prophets are to do):

In accordance with this mission, he [the prophet] directs all, even his own disciplines, toward Christ the Lord... The true characteristic and mark for the identification of

false teachers is this, that they draw the attention of their hearers upon themselves and their lives, and not away from their person toward Christ. (Luther’s Works, Vol.22, pp.50, 52)

Martin Luther King, Jr. made a similar point concerning leadership about five centuries after his namesake was preaching. King was talking about avoiding what he calls The Drum-Major Instinct. He claimed:

And so Jesus have us a new norm of greatness. If you want to be important – wonderful. If you want to be important – wonderful... But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That is your new definition of greatness... it means that everybody can be great. Because everybody can serve. (A Testament of Hope, p.265)
Mark E.
UPCOMING WEEKS
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John Jamison
Object: This is a role play activity.

Note: You will need to select six children to play roles in this activity. If you have a smaller group, you might ask some older youth or even adults to play the parts of the two attackers and the man being attacked. I will give suggestions for how they can play their roles, but feel free to help your children make the story as fun and memorable as you can. I have used boys and girls in the various roles, but you can change those however you want to change them.

* * *

The Immediate Word

Dean Feldmeyer
Katy Stenta
Thomas Willadsen
Christopher Keating
George Reed
Mary Austin
Nazish Naseem
For July 13, 2025:
  • Samaritans Among Us by Dean Feldmeyer based on Acts 2:1-21. Samaritans were despised and dismissed by the original audience who first heard Jesus tell this parable. Who are the Samaritans in our lives and how does this parable apply today?

StoryShare

Frank Ramirez
I say, “You are gods,
    children of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, you shall die like mortals
    and fall like any prince….”
(vv. 6-7)

There have been any number of brother-sister acts that achieved a measure of fame. Take the Carpenters, famed for their singing, musicianship, and songwriting skills. Also worthy of mention are John and Joan Cusack who have acted together in over sixteen films.

Emphasis Preaching Journal

Wayne Brouwer
An ancient legend tells of a remote mountain village where people used to send their senior citizens out into the woods to die. The villagers had an eye to the future; they felt that those beyond a certain age would only slow down progress or use up valuable resources to no economically profitable end. Those who reached a certain age weren’t “put out to pasture” or “put out of their misery”; they were simply put out of other people’s way.
Mark Ellingsen
Bill Thomas
Frank Ramirez
Amos 7:7-17 and Psalm 82
The tallest building in the world is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It is more than 2,700 feet high—over half a mile tall. It has 160 floors and is twice as tall as the Empire State Building in New York City. It is home to the world’s fastest elevator which reaches speeds of forty miles an hour. The Burj Khalifa also hosts the world’s highest outdoor observation deck (on the 124th floor) and the world’s highest swimming pool (on the 76th floor).

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Mabel hummed a familiar hymn tune as she made her way to church. She always enjoyed her Sunday morning walk. It was one of the few times she felt safe to walk alone through the inner city, for she knew nobody would be up at 7.45 in the morning. Today was a particularly beautiful morning, with blue sky, warm sunshine, and the song of a few intrepid blackbirds who still inhabited the city.

SermonStudio

James Evans
Often, a distinction is made between the pastoral or priestly work of the church and the prophetic work. Pastoral care has to do with the care of souls, the offering of comfort in times of loss. The priestly character of pastoral work seeks to mediate the presence of God to those who are hurting.

Schuyler Rhodes
Trusting is never easy. Even in the best of relationships, people step into trust slowly. There is wariness -- questioning -- worry. What happens if trust is betrayed? What if this doesn't work? Sometimes it's like a dance. We step in and out of trust, moving to the rhythms of fear. For many, the routine is achingly familiar. Indeed, it's not easy to trust.
John Jamison
It was back in the days when the railroad was the most common mode of transportation. There were automobiles, and some airplanes, but the steam locomotive was the way most folks traveled and the way that most of the goods were distributed around the country. After dinner, people sat in the drawing room and listened to the radio programs, fading in and out from some faraway location, over the magical broadcasting signal.
Robert Leslie Holmes
Not many tourists to Washington, D.C., look for the Federal Bureau of Standards offices. It's the Capitol and the White House, the Supreme Court Building or the Smithsonian most of us want to see when we go there. Yet, at the Bureau of Standards offices something very important is stored, something that impacts your life and mine every single day. Have you ever bought the materials for a new project? When you did, most likely you purchased so many inches or feet or yards. Or, you stopped to buy gasoline for your car and purchased it at a certain price per gallon.
David O. Bales
I have the two best jobs in the world. I teach social studies at Leon Griffith Junior High School (a fairly small junior high) and I am Sunday School Superintendent at Calvary Presbyterian Church (an enormous church school). Each job is my vocation. I tell people that at school they'll find my room where the halls cross. At church they can look but probably won't find me. I'll be in someone's classroom. At each job I practice what I most deeply believe: it's how you see the world that determines how you respond to it. I'll give you an example, actually, two examples.
Erskine White
O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made,
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed,
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!
(Stuart K. Hine)

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