Tagged: journey

Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

This text is used for the Lectionary Year C on July 3, 2016.

ByzanticonThere are few better metaphors for the spiritual life than “journey”; the concepts of movement, growth, purpose, and destination resonate with and illuminate our experiences. The same metaphor is equally apt for congregational life, especially as we consider the church’s presence, identity, and mission in our current cultural landscape. Luke’s long and intriguing motif of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem can be instructive. For the pastor looking to sustain a congregation’s self-understanding and growth during the more relaxed months of summer, Luke provides plenty of material for reflection. In the crush of preparing weekly sermons, many of us get in the habit of reading only the assigned Scripture, or perhaps also the passages immediately before and after it. Given the importance of the journey motif in Luke, the preacher would be well served by reading this entire section (Luke 9:51-19:28). This overview can give a helpful framework for preaching from now through October, and might help the pastor even structure the sermons over this sweep of time as a kind of journey with Jesus.

This passage from Luke 10, which follows immediately from the previous week’s lection, takes place very soon after the journey has begun. Jesus had been rejected by a village of inhospitable Samaritans (Luke 9:53) and then pursued by some enthusiastic would-be followers (Luke 9:57-62). Having previously sent a pair of messengers ahead of him to prepare a village to receive him (and before that, having appointed and sent out the Twelve to heal, to exorcise demons, and to proclaim the kingdom of God), Jesus now commissions a much larger group. There is a sense here already, this early in the journey, of the growth of his mission.

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Luke 9:51-62

This text is used for the Lectionary Year C on June 26, 2016.

Hermano Leon

This text comes up in the lectionary during summertime, when we might wish for lighter fare to serve to visitors and vacationers. The preacher who is looking to preach a word of encouragement, comfort, or inclusion will have to look elsewhere. This is a hard text, with a harsh tone. Jesus is not very nice.

Luke tells us that Jesus has “set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51), thus opening the long section of his Gospel that focuses on Jesus’ journey. From this point all the way to his arrival in Jerusalem (Luke 19:28), Jesus will be “on the way” (Luke 9:52); the lengthy journey motif sets Luke apart from the other Gospels. For the lectionary preacher, this means that from now until October, all of the Gospel readings will come from Jesus’ journey. Luke locates some of the best-loved stories of Jesus in the journey narrative, and at certain points will remind the reader that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem. We see the actions of Jesus and the many sayings of Jesus in the larger context of his journey towards the cross.

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Mark 6:1-13

This text is used for the Lectionary Year B on July 5, 2015.

Hermano León Clipart
Hermano León Clipart

As this story in Mark begins, Jesus and the disciples have just participated in the healing of the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue leader.  On the way to Jairus’ house, the bleeding woman is healed, and before that, Jesus heals the Gerasene demoniac.  One of the common threads of these stories is the necessity of faith for healing.  That context is worth considering when exegeting the stories that follow.

This passage begins with the “journey” motif and the destination is Jesus’ hometown, Nazareth.  It’s an important teaching time for the disciples.  The disciples came from other parts of Galilee.  Here they will see Jesus’ teaching among his “home folks.”  It seems that the response Jesus receives in Nazareth would have been a surprise to the disciples since they had seen Jesus command such large and adoring crowds elsewhere in Galilee.

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