Materialism versus what really matters
Worship
LECTIONARY WORSHIP AIDS
Series II
Exegetical note: Neither of the principals in this story comes out looking very good: Jacob is portrayed as greedy (albeit clever), and Esau as short-sighted (or downright stupid). Perhaps the best truly timeless lesson here is in the materialism that diverts both from righteousness: Jacob's lust for his brother's rightful double inheritance overcomes both fairness and brotherly love, while Esau's concern to meet immediate physical need (in this case, hunger) clouds his judgment about the future.
Call to Worship
(based on Psalm 46)
Leader:
God is our refuge! God is our strength!
People:
GOD IS OUR PROVEN HELPER IN TIMES OF TROUBLE!
Leader:
Though the mountains quake and the seas roar,
People:
YET SHALL WE TRUST IN GOD!
Collect
Creator God, you have warned us often in scripture about the dangers of materialism. Let us hear and heed this word of caution: that, turned away from the distractions of the physical world, we may devote ourselves fully to things of the spirit. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen
Prayer of Confession
Most generous God, it grieves us to admit just how materialistic we are, how fascinated we are with possessions and playthings, and how short-sighted and downright greedy we are as a result. Forgive us, we pray, and help us to redirect our attention and affections away from the pleasures of earth to the treasures of heaven, from the things that satisfy the physical to those that fulfill the spirit, and from that which is superficial in the present age to that which is substantial in the age to come. In Christ Jesus' holy name we pray. Amen
Proper 6
Sunday between June 12 and June 18 inclusive
(If after Trinity Sunday)
Second Lesson: Romans 5:6-11
Theme:
From wretchedness to reconciliation
Exegetical note: Paul's three "while we were (yet)" assertions in this selection underscore the utterly hopeless predicament of humanity before the atoning death of the Christ: helpless, sinners, enemies of God - in other words, completely undeserving of the reconciliation that God effected through that dramatic event. The entire selection may be regarded as an elaboration of the word "wretch" in the second line of the most beloved hymn that calls God's grace, appropriately, "amazing."
Call to Worship
(based on Psalm 46)
Leader:
Be still, and know that God is God!
People:
LET GOD BE EXALTED AMONG THE NATIONS!
Leader:
Let God be exalted in all the earth!
People:
FOR THE GOD OF HOSTS IS WITH US; THE GOD OF JACOB IS OUR REFUGE!
Collect
Most holy One, you reconciled us to yourself through Jesus while we were yet sinners. Deal with us graciously now and forever: that, despite our faults and failings, we by your grace may be and remain children of yours and brothers and sisters of the Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen
Prayer of Confession
God of mercy, we confess our utter sinfulness, which resides beneath our many wicked acts within our very natures as a part of our human condition; we recognize the extent to which it has alienated us from you; and we acknowledge our inability to remove it ourselves or to escape its effects. Forgive us, we pray, and touch us again with the grace that we know you have extended to us in the person of Christ Jesus. Cleanse our spirits, purify our actions, and restore us at last to a close relationship with you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen
Proper 6
Sunday between June 12 and June 18 inclusive
(If after Trinity Sunday)
Gospel:
Matthew 9:35--10:8
Theme:
The motherly compassion of the Christ
Exegetical note: The verb in verse 35 rendered in English as "had compassion" means literally to have one's "guts" wrenched, vis-a-vis either the bowels or, oddly enough, the womb. What we have on Jesus' part here, then, is the kind of deeply felt, profound love for "harassed and helpless" children usually associated with motherhood, which may well have been its reference in the original Ararnaic.
Call to Worship
Leader:
As mother's heart aches when a child is harassed and helpless,
People:
SO DOES GOD'S COMPASSION EXTEND TO ALL PEOPLE.
Leader:
And as a mother's nature is to show mercy upon her children,
People:
SO DOES GOD'S LOVING KINDNESS TOUCH US ALL!
Collect
Glorious God, through Jesus you showed your motherly compassion for us, your helpless, hopeless children. Make us now reponsive to your loving kindness: that, touched deeply by your gracious acceptance, we may live as worthy sisters and brothers of Christ Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen
Prayer of Confession
Gracious God, it humiliates us to admit that, if we are your children, we are mostly problems and prodigals, delinquents and derelicts, and wholly unworthy of being a part of your holy family. We claim your name and that of the Christ, but more often than not we bring shame upon it by our thoughts, our words, and our deeds. Forgive us, O God, and extend to us once again the nurturing warmth of your motherly care, which loves the unlovely, accepts the unacceptable, and brings hope to the hopeless. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen
Call to Worship
(based on Psalm 46)
Leader:
God is our refuge! God is our strength!
People:
GOD IS OUR PROVEN HELPER IN TIMES OF TROUBLE!
Leader:
Though the mountains quake and the seas roar,
People:
YET SHALL WE TRUST IN GOD!
Collect
Creator God, you have warned us often in scripture about the dangers of materialism. Let us hear and heed this word of caution: that, turned away from the distractions of the physical world, we may devote ourselves fully to things of the spirit. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen
Prayer of Confession
Most generous God, it grieves us to admit just how materialistic we are, how fascinated we are with possessions and playthings, and how short-sighted and downright greedy we are as a result. Forgive us, we pray, and help us to redirect our attention and affections away from the pleasures of earth to the treasures of heaven, from the things that satisfy the physical to those that fulfill the spirit, and from that which is superficial in the present age to that which is substantial in the age to come. In Christ Jesus' holy name we pray. Amen
Proper 6
Sunday between June 12 and June 18 inclusive
(If after Trinity Sunday)
Second Lesson: Romans 5:6-11
Theme:
From wretchedness to reconciliation
Exegetical note: Paul's three "while we were (yet)" assertions in this selection underscore the utterly hopeless predicament of humanity before the atoning death of the Christ: helpless, sinners, enemies of God - in other words, completely undeserving of the reconciliation that God effected through that dramatic event. The entire selection may be regarded as an elaboration of the word "wretch" in the second line of the most beloved hymn that calls God's grace, appropriately, "amazing."
Call to Worship
(based on Psalm 46)
Leader:
Be still, and know that God is God!
People:
LET GOD BE EXALTED AMONG THE NATIONS!
Leader:
Let God be exalted in all the earth!
People:
FOR THE GOD OF HOSTS IS WITH US; THE GOD OF JACOB IS OUR REFUGE!
Collect
Most holy One, you reconciled us to yourself through Jesus while we were yet sinners. Deal with us graciously now and forever: that, despite our faults and failings, we by your grace may be and remain children of yours and brothers and sisters of the Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen
Prayer of Confession
God of mercy, we confess our utter sinfulness, which resides beneath our many wicked acts within our very natures as a part of our human condition; we recognize the extent to which it has alienated us from you; and we acknowledge our inability to remove it ourselves or to escape its effects. Forgive us, we pray, and touch us again with the grace that we know you have extended to us in the person of Christ Jesus. Cleanse our spirits, purify our actions, and restore us at last to a close relationship with you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen
Proper 6
Sunday between June 12 and June 18 inclusive
(If after Trinity Sunday)
Gospel:
Matthew 9:35--10:8
Theme:
The motherly compassion of the Christ
Exegetical note: The verb in verse 35 rendered in English as "had compassion" means literally to have one's "guts" wrenched, vis-a-vis either the bowels or, oddly enough, the womb. What we have on Jesus' part here, then, is the kind of deeply felt, profound love for "harassed and helpless" children usually associated with motherhood, which may well have been its reference in the original Ararnaic.
Call to Worship
Leader:
As mother's heart aches when a child is harassed and helpless,
People:
SO DOES GOD'S COMPASSION EXTEND TO ALL PEOPLE.
Leader:
And as a mother's nature is to show mercy upon her children,
People:
SO DOES GOD'S LOVING KINDNESS TOUCH US ALL!
Collect
Glorious God, through Jesus you showed your motherly compassion for us, your helpless, hopeless children. Make us now reponsive to your loving kindness: that, touched deeply by your gracious acceptance, we may live as worthy sisters and brothers of Christ Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen
Prayer of Confession
Gracious God, it humiliates us to admit that, if we are your children, we are mostly problems and prodigals, delinquents and derelicts, and wholly unworthy of being a part of your holy family. We claim your name and that of the Christ, but more often than not we bring shame upon it by our thoughts, our words, and our deeds. Forgive us, O God, and extend to us once again the nurturing warmth of your motherly care, which loves the unlovely, accepts the unacceptable, and brings hope to the hopeless. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen
