Worshipfullly Speaking – June 2016
“Entering the ’Teaching Season’ of the Church Year”
How ironic—or is it paradoxic—that the Sunday we honor our graduates for completing their studies and wish them well, et cetera, we Sunday worshippers and sundry Christians are beginning what is called the “teaching season” of our Sunday lections and sermons that make the long semester between Pentecost Sunday (May 15, this year) and the Sunday of Christ the King (November 20, this year). We have completed the first half of the Christian Year…marked by holy days, feast days, and commemorations that give us our holidays and extended weekends…based on the major events in the life and ministry of Jesus.
The careening from one event to another is over, and we move rather-more ploddingly through assigned Old Testament lections, Epistle lections and Gospel lections. For instance, as you will see below: our readings from Kings follow the rough and tumble prophetic encounters of Elijah the Tishbite (with the widow of Zarephath, Ahab and Jezebel, God’s remonstrance on the mountain, and his ’passing the prophetic mantle’ to Elisha.) The readings from Galatians are the apostle Paul’s addresses to increasing numbers of Gentiles about their relationship to Judaism and whether they should convert to Judaism on the way to becoming Christians. Our Gospel readings follow Jesus from Capernaum to Nain, to the country of the Gerasenes, and then into a village of the Samaritans, where at each point, he encounters hostility either from demons or from people who simply will not receive him, proving once again that even the Gospel has its enemies. Which shall we preach from?
One thing we can do for sure: we can affirm our faith with the surety of Scripture, by speaking verses from Galatians. Paul’s epistles are wonderfully Trinitarian and creedal, and it should be very affirming to let Paul’s apostolic teachings be our affirmation of faith each week in our worship.
JUNE 5, 2016……………………………………..THIRD SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
Psalm 146 1 Kings 17.8-24 Galatians 1.11-24 Luke 7.11-17
FIRST SUNDAY SERVICE OF THE EUCHARIST
JUNE 12, 2016……………………………………..FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
Psalm 5 1 Kings 21.1-21 Galatians 2.15-21 Luke 7.36—8.3
UNITED METHODIST MEN’S DAY
JUNE 19, 2016……………………………………..FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
Psalm 42 1 Kings 19.1-15 Galatians 3.23-39 Luke 8.26-39
FATHER’S DAY
JUNE 26, 2016…………………………………….SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
Psalm 77 2 Kings 2.1-2, 11-20 Galatians 5.1, 23-25 Luke 9.51-62
As always, I invite—encourage, entrust—you to the readings above, in the week prior to their appointed Sunday, so that you will arrive at worship ‘prepared’ to consider with God and his congregation what He has to say to us.
Bruce
