Epiphany 4/Ordinary Time 4
Preaching
Hear My Voice
Preaching The Lectionary Psalms for Cycles A, B, C
(See Proper 15/Pentecost 13/Ordinary Time 20, Cycle B, for an alternative approach.)
The first verse of Psalm 111 says the Lord is to be praised, and the rest of the psalm explains why. Structurally, this psalm is based on the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, with the first word in each measure beginning with the next letter in order, with a total of 22 measures.
This is a psalm of individual thanksgiving, probably belonging together with Psalm 112. It's worth noting that the wisdom reference in verse 10 -- "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and all who practice it have a good understanding" -- not only sets the theme for Psalm 112, but also abruptly introduces the notion that praising the Lord and obeying his commands are not just for purposes of worshiping the Creator and living righteously, but also makes sense. In other words, it's good advice because the righteous do better in life than the wicked.
We might argue that last point based on empirical evidence from our own day, but allowing that the psalmist and his contemporaries believed it, we are tempted to ask whether that misses the point. We know of people who live by the Golden Rule -- mentioned by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount -- because it makes sense, but that misses Jesus' intention. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus isn't running a seminar on how to have a happy and healthy life; he is talking about how to live righteously.
So a sermon on "The Motive For Bible Reading" or "Seeing Biblical Benefits As Secondary" or something similar might grow out of Psalm 111. It has nine verses devoted to worshiping God because of who God is, and one verse devoted to worshiping the Lord because there is a payoff for the worshiper -- and maybe that balance is about right. We would hope that we follow the way of Christ mostly for the highest motives.
-- S. P.
The first verse of Psalm 111 says the Lord is to be praised, and the rest of the psalm explains why. Structurally, this psalm is based on the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, with the first word in each measure beginning with the next letter in order, with a total of 22 measures.
This is a psalm of individual thanksgiving, probably belonging together with Psalm 112. It's worth noting that the wisdom reference in verse 10 -- "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and all who practice it have a good understanding" -- not only sets the theme for Psalm 112, but also abruptly introduces the notion that praising the Lord and obeying his commands are not just for purposes of worshiping the Creator and living righteously, but also makes sense. In other words, it's good advice because the righteous do better in life than the wicked.
We might argue that last point based on empirical evidence from our own day, but allowing that the psalmist and his contemporaries believed it, we are tempted to ask whether that misses the point. We know of people who live by the Golden Rule -- mentioned by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount -- because it makes sense, but that misses Jesus' intention. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus isn't running a seminar on how to have a happy and healthy life; he is talking about how to live righteously.
So a sermon on "The Motive For Bible Reading" or "Seeing Biblical Benefits As Secondary" or something similar might grow out of Psalm 111. It has nine verses devoted to worshiping God because of who God is, and one verse devoted to worshiping the Lord because there is a payoff for the worshiper -- and maybe that balance is about right. We would hope that we follow the way of Christ mostly for the highest motives.
-- S. P.
