Holy Textures

Welcome to Holy Textures, Year C, Season After Pentecost, From Trinity Sunday to the End of August

   

Holy Textures is a spot for my musings on the various Biblical texts that come our way through the Revised Common Lectionary.

My goal is to provide timely, short, easy to use and faith-provoking background commentary for your sermon or bible study preparation.

By entering your email and clicking "Subscribe," you can receive all new posts by email. You will only receive new posts, nothing else - no spam, nada, zip. Your information will not be shared or sold in any way to any one; ever.

Year C - Season After Pentecost, From Trinity Sunday to the End of August - 2022

Easter was late this year, so the first three readings are not used this year. These are shown as Pentecost NN.

Note that in Pentecost, the Sundays are numbered as "after" Pentecost Sunday. So the first Sunday after Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, is Pentecost 1. And I know that Pentecost Sunday is the final Sunday of the Season of Easter, but I've included it here just to get us started.

The Season After Pentecost is long. It occurs over many local seasons, anniversaries, and events that our communities celebrate. It will also occur over many unplanned, unexpected, unpredictable surprises - some of them welcome, some of them disruptive and unsettling.

We are fortunate then to find ourselves about to be immersed in stories about ancestors who lived through these same experiences. My prayer is that Holy Textures will help us all see what were the RELATIONSHIPS (i.e. NOT the feelings or ideas or beliefs) that changed and/or deepened and/or sustained them. And what then is needed now? More than ever, our planet - and perhaps your neighbourhood - needs healthy, functional, safe, constructive, sustainable relationships. May it be so.

And if you are one of those for whom thinking about Christmas is never too early, a heads up that Christmas Day, December 25, is a Sunday this year.

David Ewart
Permission is granted for non-profit use of these materials.
Acknowledgement in oral presentations is not required.
Otherwise, please acknowledge source as, "David Ewart, www.holytextures.com."

 

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit

Pentecost Sunday
June 5, 2022
Acts 2:1-21  
"We might all hear the same words - each in our own language - but we will not all hear and understand exactly the same meaning. The problem with life, and faith, and following Jesus is always: What does this mean?"

 

The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name

John 14:8-17, (25-27)
"Those who are bonded into Jesus will know a Truthful Spirit who will (Verse 26): 'Teach you everything; and remind you of all that I have said to you.' We, who like Philip, have been with Jesus all this time, and still do not know him, should receive this promise with great joy and thanksgiving at Jesus' generosity. We have not been left alone."

 

The Spirit of Truth will guide you

Pentecost 1, Trinity Sunday
June 12, 2022
John 16:12-15
"We need to hear this brief section from Chapter 16, not as Jesus giving a lecture on the doctrine of the Trinity, but as a personally intense commitment of abiding, continuing, present love / loyalty / protection / guidance / bonding with his followers then - and now - and always."

 

Not even in Israel have I found such faith

Pentecost NN
Not used this year.
Luke 7:1-10
"It is crucial for our understanding of the Good News to recognize that "Good News" is not just a proclamation. It is also a response. It requires not only a Jesus, but also a centurion to be realized. And the centurion is both the model and the challenge for you and me."

 

Young man, I say to you, rise!

Pentecost NN
Not used this year.
Luke 7:11-17
"I'm left wondering how often I prefer being dead to being obedient. I wonder how many times, Jesus' command to, "Rise," has fallen on deaf ears?"

 

She anointed his feet

Pentecost NN
Not used this year.
Luke 7:36--8:3
"Just as the host is thinking to himself, 'Doesn't Jesus know what sort of person this woman is?' Jesus tells a story to make plain that he does indeed know what sort of woman she is, and more than that, knows what sort of person his host is as well. Ouch."  

 

The demons entered the swine

Pentecost 2
June 19, 2022
Luke 8:26-39
"The name "Legion" has a double meaning. Literally, it means, "Many, thousands, multitudes." But it also alludes to the occupying Roman soldier legions which numbered 3,000 to 6,000 each. Many Israelites felt the Roman legions were another form of demonic occupation."

 

Nowhere to lay his head

Pentecost 3
June 26, 2022
Luke 9:51-62
"I'm hoping Jesus is saying: Make sure that following me is what guides all that you do. Don't put me aside to go bury your father; make following me guide you as you bury your father. ... I admit my hope is but a poor scrap of what Jesus has actually said, but I remember a time when even a scrap was good enough for Jesus to grant a woman's heart-felt desire."

 

Like lambs in the midst of wolves

Pentecost 4
July 3, 2022
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
"The joy in following Jesus is NOT in the results; the joy is in our relationship with him"

 

He took care of the wounded stranger

Pentecost 5
July 10, 2022
Luke 10:25-37
"Having created the impossible-possibility of a despised no-body doing what is needed to inherit eternal life, ... presents a double challenge. First. To be able to see someone we despise as being able to do what God desires. Second. To imagine ourselves lying left-for-dead in a ditch and being aided by such a one."

 

My sister has left me to do all the work by myself

Pentecost 6
July 17, 2022
Luke 10:38-42
"If we really do desire that God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven, then we need to ask, "Who is doing the chores in heaven?" And if the answer is, "No one," then the second best answer for here on earth would be, "Everyone.""

 

Knock. And the door will be opened

Pentecost 7
July 24, 2022
Luke 11:1-13
"Up till this point who has said anything about asking for the Holy Spirit? Up till now, it's all been about bread and forgiveness and not being tested and asking and seeking and knocking. But now all of a sudden it's about the Holy Spirit. What are we to make of this?"

 

Storing up treasure but not rich in God

Pentecost 8
July 31, 2022
Luke 12:13-21
"While Jesus does not ALWAYS attack wealth, this parable is reflective of a consistent theme of his teachings: Possessions distract us from true wealth; from what is rich in the eyes of God."

 

Where your treasure is, your heart will be also

Pentecost 9
August 7, 2022
Luke 12:32-40
"Wow. God, for no other reason than it simply pleases God - delights God - for this reason alone - God gives us the kingdom. No worries. So get over all your anxiety, guilt, shame, unworthiness, wretchedness, etc., etc. You don't deserve it, but God is giving it to you anyway."

 

Households will be divided

Pentecost 10
August 14, 2022
Luke 12:49-56
"It is difficult to over-emphasize how revolutionary Jesus is being in stressing loyalty to him - and kinship with those who are also loyal to him - over family."

 

(c)GoTell. Used with permission.

Pentecost 11
August 21, 2022
Luke 13:10-17
"This lesson invites all of us who seek to follow Jesus today to ponder the ways in which our own rules, customs, and habits of what is right and proper have in fact become "Bad News" for the poor, the blind, and the oppressed - and to break those bonds so that we might ourselves be proclaimers of Good News of release, recovery, and freedom."

 

When you give a banquet, invite the poor

Pentecost 12
August 28, 2022
Luke 14:1, 7-14
"This is what Jesus is teaching / proclaiming here. What does it look like for those with higher status / honour / privilege to live the year of the Lord's favour?"

 

Sit down first and consider the cost

Pentecost 13
September 4, 2022
Luke 14:25-33
"So at a minimum these sayings of Jesus ought to draw us up short. Cause us to reflect how much the choices we have already made are costing us - and our planet; and to consider whether the costs of following Jesus might be a better investment."

 

And here are the key calendar dates for 2022

Liturgical dates for 2022

Welcome to Holy Textures, Year B, Season Pentecost, Part 1

   

Holy Textures is a spot for my musings on the various Biblical texts that come our way through the Revised Common Lectionary.

My goal is to provide timely, short, easy to use and faith-provoking background commentary for your sermon or bible study preparation.

Year B - Season after Pentecost - 2021, Part 1
Trinity Sunday to first Sunday of September

One of the things I like about Year B with its focus on Mark is that we get a fuller reading of the Gospel text. A richer, more detailed hearing of Mark's narrative, of Mark's testimony, of Mark's proclamation of the Good News of Jesus Christ. The questions I ask myself in each of the commentaries below are always: "Why was this Good News at the time of Jesus?" and "Why is this Good News for us, here and now?" I pray you will be able to use these offerings to respond to those questions in your own context.

This summer is also your opportunity to preach Chapter 6 of John in August, so make sure to plan your vacation for then! Just kidding! Sort of. Diving more deeply into John has transformed my faith, and my connection to the visceral Good News that Jesus proclaims. Chapter 6 is a good way to get into the flesh, blood, and bread of the reality of Jesus.

Note that in Pentecost, the Sundays are numbered as "after" Pentecost Sunday. So the first Sunday after Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, is Pentecost 1. And because the dates of Easter and Pentecost change each year, so do the number of Sundays that follow Pentecost. In the listing below, a lesson is shown as Not Used This Year if its date does not follow Trinity Sunday.

David Ewart
Permission is granted for non-profit use of these materials.
Acknowledgement in oral presentations is not required.
Otherwise, please acknowledge source as, "David Ewart, www.holytextures.com."

 

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit

Pentecost Sunday
May 23, 2021
Acts 2:1-21
"We might all hear the same words - each in our own language - but we will not all hear and understand exactly the same meaning. The problem with life, and faith, and following Jesus is always: What does this mean?"

John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15
"Whatever else we may want to say on this day of Pentecost about the Spirit, it is important to notice that Jesus always refers to the Spirit as the Spirit of truth. And in John truth is always the way, the life, the light, the joy, the friendship."

 

Holy One. Holy Three.

Trinity Sunday
May 30, 2021
John 3:1-17
"Being born anew / from above is a huge transformation, since it means quite literally starting over with a new "family of origin.'"... (It) relocates our identity and resets possibilities for our character and life choices / opportunities."

 

Fr. Sieger Koder. All are welcome

Not Used This Year
***
Mark 2:13-22
"Jesus' response successfully rebuts the Scribe's challenge by quoting an ancient proverb. This is a double victory because it demonstrates Jesus' knowledge of wisdom lore, and his ability to think on his feet - to use popular knowledge to come up with a witty, punchy reply. Score 2 for Jesus; 0 for the Scribes."

 

Is it lawful to do good ...

Not Used This Year
***
Mark 2:23 -- 3:6
"So what are we religious people to do with this lesson? On the one hand, like the Pharisees, we want to live our lives in accord with the Bible. But on the other hand, we find Jesus using the Bible to challenge understandings of what the Bible tells us to do!"

 

Whoever does the will of God

Pentecost 2
June 6, 2021
Mark 3:20-35
"Here is the Good News: Jesus is not out of his mind; Jesus is not filled with demonic spirits. Rather, Jesus has the mind of God; Jesus is filled with the Holy Spirit - and invites all of us to be of the same mind and same Spirit in a new family as his sisters and brothers."

 

Faith like a mustard seed

Pentecost 3
June 13, 2021
Mark 4:26-34
"The comfort in this parable is to consider the possibility that the most helpful thing I could do to advance the Kingdom of God is to take a nap."

 

The calm of Jesus amid the storm

Pentecost 4
June 20, 2021
Mark 4:35-41
"The moral of this story is NOT: run to Jesus when you are in a crisis and he will make the storm go away. Rather the moral is: run to Jesus when you are in crisis and learn from him the source of his calm."

 

The child is not dead

Pentecost 5
June 27, 2021
Mark 5:21-43
"Once again, it is important to remember that in the Bible, "faith" is NOT about "beliefs," or "ideas," or "understandings." It is about trust. And so Jesus' observation: "My daughter, your faith has made you well" is better understood as: My daughter, your trust / loyalty / bonding with me has made you well."

 

He began to teach

Pentecost 6
July 4, 2021
Mark 6:1-13
"The reference to "son of Mary," with no mention of his father would not so subtly remind everyone of the shaming gossip about Mary being pregnant before getting married. And who would believe the story that Mary tells about who the real father is?"

 

Herod's daughter came in and danced

Pentecost 7
July 11, 2021
Mark 6:14-29
"All of this background is very interesting and helpful, but my original question remains: Where is the Good News? Perhaps there is none, and this is precisely Mark's point. Just in case we are getting too excited and thinking this business of being a disciple of Jesus is going to be a piece of cake, is going to be a story of ever increasing fame, miracles, and wonders, Mark gives a story of a good man being executed because of weakness, capriciousness, and vengeance."

 

As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd

Pentecost 8
July 18, 2021
Mark 6:30-34, 53-56
"Try posting this note on your office door / Facebook / Twitter / blog / voice mail / memo to your Board:
'Gone to the fields to be lovely.
Be back when I'm through with blooming.'
And say a grateful, gleeful prayer of thanks all the while for the poetry of Lynn Ungar."

 

Loaves and fish

Pentecost 9
July 25, 2021
John 6:1-21
"These stories try to open our eyes, hearts and minds to see the hidden truth that is in plain sight. They are trying to train us so that we too can SEE where is the bread of life. ... So that we can SEE Jesus and welcome him into our frail boats on the stormy sea."

 

I am the bread of Life.

Pentecost 10
August 1, 2021
John 6:24-35
"The challenge here is to SEE which things perish and which things endure, and to embed ourselves - to abide in, to focus our living on - the things that endure. Because only the things that endure truly satisfy, and only the things that endure bring true life."

 

I am the bread of Life

Pentecost 11
August 8, 2021
John 6:35, 41-51
"But the whole point of this passage is that while earthly bread nourishes earthly life (all of which will pass away), Jesus has been sent so that we might come / see / hear / learn / trust / eat the bread from heaven / the true bread that gives eternal life."

 

Whoever eats this bread will live for ever

Pentecost 12
August 15, 2021
John 6:51-58
"The crowd has looked at Jesus through the distorted lens of their longing and seen 'king.' Jesus is asking us to reverse our gaze. To look through the lens of himself at our longing."

 

Many turned back

Pentecost 13
August 22, 2021
John 6:56-69
"John wants us to hear the word, 'abide,' as being as viscerally real as 'flesh' and 'blood.' And to hear the words, 'flesh' and 'blood,' as dynamically real as 'abide.'"

 

Eating with unclean hands

Pentecost 14
August 29, 2021
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
"The struggle that every community in every age - including our own - faces is how can the 'tradition of the elders,' which has given us our identity, now be changed so that what was good in it - the desire to live according to the will of God - can actually be expressed in our current circumstances."

 

Even dogs eat the crumbs

Pentecost 15
September 5, 2021
Mark 7:24-37
"The racial and religious differences between Jesus and the Gentile woman are unchanged. But what has changed is that courage and caring for a daughter have been shown to be acceptable to God - even when they come from a Gentile heart; even when they come from a woman's heart; even when they come from the heart of a woman who has publically shamed herself by being out alone, by speaking to a man, and by daring to speak back to a man."

 

2021 Key Liturgical Dates

Welcome to Holy Textures, Year A, Season of Pentecost up to the End of August

Holy Textures is a spot for my musings on the various Biblical texts that come our way through the Revised Common Lectionary.

My goal is to provide timely, short, easy to use and faith-provoking background commentary for your sermon or bible study preparation.

Year A - Season after Pentecost - 2020 - Up to the End of August

Note that in Pentecost, the Sundays are numbered as "after" Pentecost Sunday. So the first Sunday after Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, is Pentecost 1.

This year, Easter was almost as late as it can possibly be. And so Pentecost and Trinity Sundays come just as we in the Northern Hemisphere enter the summer season. And enter into continuing uncertainty as to how the COVID-19 infection will impact our ways of being gathered communities. The chaotic upending of life as we knew it is not new to the Biblical story. No one expected Jesus' resurrection. And just like the first disciples, we too must now ask one one another, "What shall we do now?" And like them, perhaps we too will glean some comfort and some guidance by remembering what Jesus said and did while he lived amongst us.

Having left off reading through Matthew three months ago, we pick up at the end of Chapter 9. What has happened since we last were listening to Jesus at the Sermon on the Mount back in Chapter 7?

Quite a bit actually. Jesus has been demonstrating that he can walk the talk, and he has been teaching about the costs of following in his footsteps:

• Jesus cleanses a leper (8:1-4)
• Jesus heals a Centurion's servant (8:5-13)
• Jesus heals many at Peter's house (8:14-17)
• Jesus teaches the Son of Man has no where to lay his head (8:18-22)
• Jesus stills a storm (8:23-27)
• Jesus heals two Gadarene men possessed by demons (8:28--9:1)
• Jesus heals a paralytic (9:2-8)
• Jesus calls Matthew, a tax collector, to follow him (9:9-13)
• Jesus teaches about new wine (9:14-17)
• Jesus heals a woman and restores a girl to life (9:18-26)
• Jesus heals two blind men (9:27-31)
• Jesus heals a mute person (9:32-34)

And so we re-join Jesus as his words and deeds are spreading his reputation far and wide - and therefore, also attracting the attention of - and opposition from - the authorities in Jerusalem.

And remember, "the authorities in Jerusalem," the priests, scribes, and Pharisees, are elites who are collaborating with the Roman occupation, and who are therefore also dependent on pleasing their masters for their survival. Jesus' reputation is attracting crowds and raising the authorities' fears about social unrest.

And for those who like to plan in advance, a heads up that Christmas Eve is on a Thursday this year. 

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit

Pentecost Sunday
May 31, 2020
Acts 2:1-21  
"We might all hear the same words - each in our own language - but we will not all hear and understand exactly the same meaning. The problem with life, and faith, and following Jesus is always: What does this mean?"

   

Jesus came and stood among them

John 20:19-23, Alternate Reading 1
"To be a spirit-filled community of peace requires that we learn and practice and experience the reality and art of repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation." 

   

Let anyone who is thirsty come to me

John 7:37-39, Alternate Reading 2
"In John, 'thirst' has the double meaning of literal thirst for real water and physical life; and 'spiritual' thirst for a real relationship with God and eternal life. Thus, those who come to Jesus and trust him will have floods of life flowing out of them." 

   

Holy One. Holy Three.

Trinity Sunday
June 7, 2020
Matthew 28:16-20 
"These 5 short verses touch on several crucial themes: 1) The authority of Jesus. 2) The purposes of the church: go, make disciples, baptize, teach, obey, remember. 3) The presence of Jesus-now-resurrected. A congregation that is centred on these will not go far wrong. And might even get a fair bit right."

   

Consider the lilies

Pentecost NN
Not used this year
(Used if the Sunday following Trinity Sunday is between May 24 to 28 inclusive.)
Matthew 6:24-34
"Having our intentions aligned with God's desires plus trusting God frees us from being anxious / worried / fearful about what will happen next; allows us to let go of expectations."

   

A house built on sand

Pentecost NN
Not used this year
(Used if the Sunday following Trinity Sunday is between May 29 to June 4 inclusive.)
Matthew 7:21-29
""It is not enough for us to hear these words of Jesus; to study them; to be inspired by them; to have hopes / aspirations / dreams based on them. We must ACT on them; practice them; live them in our everyday lives."

   

Take heart, daughter

Pentecost NN
Not used this year
(Used if the Sunday following Trinity Sunday is between June 5 to June 11 inclusive.)
Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26
""If you stop and really think about it, the most difficult 'miracle' in today's text is not the raising of the girl from death, nor the healing of the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years. The most difficult healing was including the despised tax collector Matthew back into community. Don't believe it? Try thinking of a person your community despises and invite them to church with you."

   

The Harvest is plentiful

Pentecost 2
June 14, 2020
Matthew 9:35--10:8,(9-23)  
"Jesus then instructs his disciples on how to live as itinerants, what to expect, and how to handle difficulties. These teachings were important because his followers would only have known village life - relying on family and kin for sustenance - and would be totally unfamiliar with the social realities of being an outsider."

   

Take up your cross

Pentecost 3
June 21, 2020
Matthew 10:24-39  
"We all know how to lose our life so that it is lost. The trick is to figure out how to lose one's life so that it will be found. And the key to that mystery is to lose our life for Jesus' sake. For Jesus' purpose, aim, or end."

   

A cup of cold water to these little ones

Pentecost 4
June 28, 2020
Matthew 10:40-42  
"Welcoming "in the name of" means welcoming in the honour of; in the reputation of. It means welcoming in a way that is true to the integrity and character and goals of the one being welcomed. In a way that is truly worthy of the one being welcomed."

   

My yoke is easy

Pentecost 5
July 5, 2020
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30  
"A good way to open today's worship service might be to ask: Are there any here today who have never been weary? Never had to carry a heavy heart burden? Okay, you're free to go."

   

A sower went out

Pentecost 6
July 12, 2020
Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 
"You and I might not waste our efforts on the down trodden, the thorny, and the hardened, but God does."  

   

Wheat and weeds together sown

Pentecost 7
July 19, 2020
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 
"This is a parable about the FIELD - about the collective experience. At the end, the weeds ARE separated and burned. At the end, what is pleasing to God is taken in to God's care and keeping. But remember, think of yourself as the FIELD. At the harvest, the weeds in you are removed, and the wheat in you is gathered in."

   

Finding one pearl of great value

Pentecost 8
July 26, 2020
Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 
"Even those who are accustomed to finding and trading fine things might still encounter a life-changing experience. Even those involved in the church all their lives might still be transformed in ways beyond their imagining."

   

We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish

Pentecost 9
August 2, 2020
Matthew 14:13-21 
"This lesson invites us to remember our own wildernesses, our own places of chaos, when our own insufficiencies may have been blessed, broken, and given away. And yet it was precisely in risking that impossible insufficiency that there was enough. Indeed, more than enough."

   

Jesus immediately reached out his hand

Pentecost 10
August 9, 2020
Matthew 14:22-33 
"Walking on the sea is not an idle, capricious, magic trick. After spending time alone in prayer, Jesus has stepped out onto the back of a chaotic and dangerous spirit to go and be with his friends."

   

Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the table

Pentecost 11
August 16, 2020
Matthew 15:(10-20), 21-28 
"But this incident is a beautiful illustration of the teaching Jesus has just made. Outwardly, this woman has nothing about her that is "clean." But she has two things in her heart that make her right with God: her unwavering, nagging, persistent care for her daughter; and, her unwavering, nagging, persistent trust that Jesus can cure her daughter. And these two things cause Jesus to undergo a change of heart himself."

   

Who do you say I am

Pentecost 12
August 23, 2020
Matthew 16:13-20 
"It is very problematic that the Lectionary separates Verses 13-20 from Verses 21-23, the first of three occasions of Jesus showing his disciples that he must go up to Jerusalem, suffer, be killed, and on the third day be raised. If we want the transformational bonding with Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the living God, we also can't avoid bonding with Jesus the Crucified One."

   

Any who would be my followers must ...

Pentecost 13
August 30, 2020
Matthew 16:21-28 
"Peter rebukes Jesus. Jesus rebukes Peter. Calls Peter - or at least Peter's rebuke - Satan. That is, Tempter, Snake in the Garden, Introducer of Hesitation, Mixer of Motivations, Flaunter of Red Herrings, Side-Tracker of Mission, Setter of One's Mind on Human Things. Well, fear of pain and death will do that to most people, and Peter was no exception."

   

If another sins against you

Pentecost 14
September 6, 2020
Matthew 18:15-20  
"Real churches have - or should have - real conflicts. The only real harm that will come to a church community is to refuse to deal with conflicts. Conflicts do not kill churches. Refusing to deal with conflict kills churches."

   

And here are key liturgical dates for 2020.

Key dates for 2020

Welcome to Holy Textures, Year C, Season of Pentecost, Part 1: June 16 to September 8, 2019

Holy Textures is my attempt to provide a spot for my musings on the various Biblical texts that come our way through the Revised Common Lectionary. My goal is to provide timely, short, easy to use and thought-provoking background commentary for your sermon or bible study preparation.

Easter was late this year, so the first three readings are not used this year. These are shown as Pentecost NN.

Note that in Pentecost, the Sundays are numbered as "after" Pentecost Sunday. So the first Sunday after Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, is Pentecost 1. And I know that Pentecost Sunday is the final Sunday of the Season of Easter, but I've included it here just to get us started.

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit

Pentecost Sunday
June 9, 2019
Acts 2:1-21  
"We might all hear the same words - each in our own language - but we will not all hear and understand exactly the same meaning. The problem with life, and faith, and following Jesus is always: What does this mean?"
Sermon: "All We Need Is Love."

 

The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name

John 14:8-17, (25-27)
"Those who are bonded into Jesus will know a Truthful Spirit who will (Verse 26): 'Teach you everything; and remind you of all that I have said to you.' We, who like Philip, have been with Jesus all this time, and still do not know him, should receive this promise with great joy and thanksgiving at Jesus' generosity. We have not been left alone." 
Sermon: "To be added."

 

The Spirit of Truth will guide you

Pentecost 1, Trinity Sunday
June 16, 2019
John 16:12-15
"We need to hear this brief section from Chapter 16, not as Jesus giving a lecture on the doctrine of the Trinity, but as a personally intense commitment of abiding, continuing, present love / loyalty / protection / guidance / bonding with his followers then - and now - and always."

 

Not even in Israel have I found such faith

Pentecost NN
Not used this year.
Luke 7:1-10
"It is crucial for our understanding of the Good News to recognize that "Good News" is not just a proclamation. It is also a response. It requires not only a Jesus, but also a centurion to be realized. And the centurion is both the model and the challenge for you and me."

 

Young man, I say to you, rise!

Pentecost NN
Not used this year.
Luke 7:11-17
"I'm left wondering how often I prefer being dead to being obedient. I wonder how many times, Jesus' command to, "Rise," has fallen on deaf ears?"

 

She anointed his feet

Pentecost NN
Not used this year.
Luke 7:36--8:3
"Just as the host is thinking to himself, 'Doesn't Jesus know what sort of person this woman is?' Jesus tells a story to make plain that he does indeed know what sort of woman she is, and more than that, knows what sort of person his host is as well. Ouch."
  

 

The demons entered the swine

Pentecost 2
June 23, 2019
Luke 8:26-39
"The name "Legion" has a double meaning. Literally, it means, "Many, thousands, multitudes." But it also alludes to the occupying Roman soldier legions which numbered 3,000 to 6,000 each. Many Israelites felt the Roman legions were another form of demonic occupation."

 

Nowhere to lay his head

Pentecost 3
June 30, 2019
Luke 9:51-62
"I'm hoping Jesus is saying: Make sure that following me is what guides all that you do. Don't put me aside to go bury your father; make following me guide you as you bury your father. ... I admit my hope is but a poor scrap of what Jesus has actually said, but I remember a time when even a scrap was good enough for Jesus to grant a woman's heart-felt desire."

 

Like lambs in the midst of wolves

Pentecost 4
July 7, 2019
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
"The joy in following Jesus is NOT in the results; the joy is in our relationship with him"

 

He took care of the wounded stranger

Pentecost 5
July 14, 2019
Luke 10:25-37
"Having created the impossible-possibility of a despised no-body doing what is needed to inherit eternal life, ... presents a double challenge. First. To be able to see someone we despise as being able to do what God desires. Second. To imagine ourselves lying left-for-dead in a ditch and being aided by such a one."

 

My sister has left me to do all the work by myself

Pentecost 6
July 21, 2019
Luke 10:38-42
"If we really do desire that God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven, then we need to ask, "Who is doing the chores in heaven?" And if the answer is, "No one," then the second best answer for here on earth would be, "Everyone.""

 

Knock. And the door will be opened

Pentecost 7
July 28, 2019
Luke 11:1-13
"Up till this point who has said anything about asking for the Holy Spirit? Up till now, it's all been about bread and forgiveness and not being tested and asking and seeking and knocking. But now all of a sudden it's about the Holy Spirit. What are we to make of this?"

 

Storing up treasure but not rich in God

Pentecost 8
August 4, 2019
Luke 12:13-21
"While Jesus does not ALWAYS attack wealth, this parable is reflective a consistent theme of his teachings: Possessions distract us from true wealth; from what is rich in the eyes of God."

 

Where your treasure is, your heart will be also

Pentecost 9
August 11, 2019
Luke 12:32-40
"Wow. God, for no other reason than it simply pleases God - delights God - for this reason alone - God gives us the kingdom. No worries. So get over all your anxiety, guilt, shame, unworthiness, wretchedness, etc., etc. You don't deserve it, but God is giving it to you anyway."

 

Households will be divided

Pentecost 10
August 18, 2019
Luke 12:49-56
"It is difficult to over-emphasize how revolutionary Jesus is being in stressing loyalty to him - and kinship with those who are also loyal to him - over family."

 

(c)GoTell. Used with permission.

Pentecost 11
August 25, 2019
Luke 13:10-17
"This lesson invites all of us who seek to follow Jesus today to ponder the ways in which our own rules, customs, and habits of what is right and proper have in fact become "Bad News" for the poor, the blind, and the oppressed - and to break those bonds so that we might ourselves be proclaimers of Good News of release, recovery, and freedom."

 

When you give a banquet, invite the poor

Pentecost 12
September 1, 2019
Luke 14:1, 7-14
"This is what Jesus is teaching / proclaiming here. What does it look like for those with higher status / honour / privilege to live the year of the Lord's favour?"

 

Sit down first and consider the cost

Pentecost 13
September 8, 2019
Luke 14:25-33
"So at a minimum these sayings of Jesus ought to draw us up short. Cause us to reflect how much the choices we have already made are costing us - and our planet; and to consider whether the costs of following Jesus might be a better investment."

 

And here are the key calendar dates for 2019

2019 Liturgical Dates

Welcome to Holy Textures, Year B, Season of Pentecost, Part 1

Holy Textures is a spot for my musings on the various Biblical texts that come our way through the Revised Common Lectionary.

My goal is to provide timely, short, easy to use and faith-provoking background commentary for your sermon or bible study preparation.

Year B - Season after Pentecost - 2018, Part 1
Trinity Sunday to Last Sunday of August

One of the things I like about Year B with its focus on Mark is that we get a fuller reading of the Gospel text. A richer, more detailed hearing of Mark's narrative, of Mark's testimony, of Mark's proclamation of the Good News of Jesus Christ. The questions I ask myself in each of the commentaries below are always: "Why was this Good News at the time of Jesus? Why is this Good News for us, here and now?" I pray you will be able to use these offerings to respond to those questions in your own context.

This summer is also your opportunity to preach Chapter 6 of John in August, so make sure to plan your vacation for July!

Note that in Pentecost, the Sundays are numbered as "after" Pentecost Sunday. So the first Sunday after Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, is Pentecost 1. And because the dates of Easter and Pentecost change each year, so do the number of Sundays that follow Pentecost. In the listing below, a lesson is shown as Not Used This Year if its date does not follow Trinity Sunday.

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit

Pentecost Sunday
May 20, 2018
Acts 2:1-21
"We might all hear the same words - each in our own language - but we will not all hear and understand exactly the same meaning. The problem with life, and faith, and following Jesus is always: What does this mean?"

John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15
"Whatever else we may want to say on this day of Pentecost about the Spirit, it is important to notice that Jesus always refers to the Spirit as the Spirit of truth. And in John truth is always the way, the life, the light, the joy, the friendship."
Sermon: "To be added."

Holy One. Holy Three.

Trinity Sunday
May 27, 2018
John 3:1-17
"Being born anew / from above is a huge transformation, since it means quite literally starting over with a new "family of origin.'"... (It) relocates our identity and resets possibilities for our character and life choices / opportunities."

Fr. Sieger Koder. All are welcome

Not Used This Year
***
Mark 2:13-22
"Jesus' response successfully rebuts the Scribe's challenge by quoting an ancient proverb. This is a double victory because it demonstrates Jesus' knowledge of wisdom lore, and his ability to think on his feet - to use popular knowledge to come up with a witty, punchy reply. Score 2 for Jesus; 0 for the Scribes."

Is it lawful to do good ...

Pentecost 2
June 3, 2018
Mark 2:23 -- 3:6
"So what are we religious people to do with this lesson? On the one hand, like the Pharisees, we want to live our lives in accord with the Bible. But on the other hand, we find Jesus using the Bible to challenge understandings of what the Bible tells us to do!"

Whoever does the will of God

Pentecost 3
June 10, 2018
Mark 3:20-35
"Here is the Good News: Jesus is not out of his mind; Jesus is not filled with demonic spirits. Rather, Jesus has the mind of God; Jesus is filled with the Holy Spirit - and invites all of us to be of the same mind and same Spirit in a new family as his sisters and brothers."

Faith like a mustard seed

Pentecost 4
June 17, 2018
Mark 4:26-34
"The comfort in this parable is to consider the possibility that the most helpful thing I could do to advance the Kingdom of God is to take a nap."

The calm of Jesus amid the storm

Pentecost 5
June 24, 2018
Mark 4:35-41
"The moral of this story is NOT: run to Jesus when you are in a crisis and he will make the storm go away. Rather the moral is: run to Jesus when you are in crisis and learn from him the source of his calm."

The child is not dead

Pentecost 6
July 1, 2018
Mark 5:21-43
"Once again, it is important to remember that in the Bible, "faith" is NOT about "beliefs," or "ideas," or "understandings." It is about trust. And so Jesus' observation: My daughter, your faith has made you well.
is better understood as: My daughter, your trust / loyalty / bonding with me has made you well."

He began to teach

Pentecost 7
July 8, 2018
Mark 6:1-13
"The reference to "son of Mary," with no mention of his father would not so subtly remind everyone of the shaming gossip about Mary being pregnant before getting married. And who would believe the story that Mary tells about who the real father is?"

Herod's daughter came in and danced

Pentecost 8
July 15, 2018
Mark 6:14-29
"All of this background is very interesting and helpful, but my original question remains: Where is the Good News? Perhaps there is none, and this is precisely Mark's point. Just in case we are getting too excited and thinking this business of being a disciple of Jesus is going to be a piece of cake, is going to be a story of ever increasing fame, miracles, and wonders, Mark gives a story of a good man being executed because of weakness, capriciousness, and vengeance."

As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd

Pentecost 9
July 22, 2018
Mark 6:30-34, 53-56
"Try posting this note on your office door / Facebook / Twitter / blog / voice mail / memo to your Board:
'Gone to the fields to be lovely.
Be back when I'm through with blooming.'
And say a grateful, gleeful prayer of thanks all the while for the poetry of Lynn Ungar."

Loaves and fish

Pentecost 10
July 29, 2018
John 6:1-21
"These stories try to open our eyes, hearts and minds to see the hidden truth that is in plain sight. They are trying to train us so that we too can SEE where is the bread of life. ... So that we can SEE Jesus and welcome him into our frail boats on the stormy sea."

I am the bread of Life.

Pentecost 11
August 5, 2018
John 6:24-35
"The challenge here is to SEE which things perish and which things endure, and to embed ourselves - to abide in, to focus our living on - the things that endure. Because only the things that endure truly satisfy, and only the things that endure bring true life."

I am the bread of Life

Pentecost 12
August 12, 2018
John 6:35, 41-51
"But the whole point of this passage is that while earthly bread nourishes earthly life (all of which will pass away), Jesus has been sent so that we might come / see / hear / learn / trust / eat the bread from heaven / the true bread that gives eternal life."

Whoever eats this bread will live for ever

Pentecost 13
August 19, 2018
John 6:51-58
"The crowd has looked at Jesus through the distorted lens of their longing and seen 'king.' Jesus is asking us to reverse our gaze. To look through the lens of himself at our longing."

 

Many turned back

Pentecost 14
August 26, 2018
John 6:56-69
"John wants us to hear the word, 'abide,' as being as viscerally real as 'flesh' and 'blood.' And to hear the words, 'flesh' and 'blood,' as dynamically real as 'abide.'"

Matthew 16:13-20 - Updated

It is very problematic that the Lectionary separates Verses 13-20 from Verses 21-23, the first of three occasions of Jesus showing his disciples that he must go up to Jerusalem, suffer, be killed, and on the third day be raised. If we want the transformational bonding with Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the living God, we also can't avoid bonding with Jesus the Crucified One.

Click here to read the updated Holy Textures explanation of Matthew 16:13-20.

David Ewart,
www.holytextures.com,
Short, easy to use, faith inspiring explanations of the meaning of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for your sermon, homily, bible study, or reflection.

Permission is granted for non-profit use of these materials.
Acknowledgement in oral presentations is not required.
Otherwise, please acknowledge source as, "David Ewart, www.holytextures.com."

 

Matthew 15:(10-20), 21-28 - Updated

But this incident is a beautiful illustration of the teaching Jesus has just made. Outwardly, this woman has nothing about her that is "clean." But she has two things in her heart that make her right with God: her unwavering, nagging, persistent care for her daughter; and, her unwavering, nagging, persistent trust that Jesus can cure her daughter. And these two things cause Jesus to undergo a change of heart himself.

Click here to read the updated Holy Textures explanation of Matthew 15:(10-20), 21-28.

David Ewart,
www.holytextures.com,
Short, easy to use, faith inspiring explanations of the meaning of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for your sermon, homily, bible study, or reflection.

Permission is granted for non-profit use of these materials.
Acknowledgement in oral presentations is not required.
Otherwise, please acknowledge source as, "David Ewart, www.holytextures.com."

 

Matthew 14:22-33 - Updated

Walking on the sea is not an idle, capricious, magic trick. After spending time alone in prayer, Jesus has stepped out onto the back of a chaotic and dangerous spirit to go and be with his friends.

Click here for the the updated Holy Textures explanation of Matthew 14:22-33.

David Ewart,
www.holytextures.com,
Short, easy to use, faith inspiring explanations of the meaning of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for your sermon, homily, bible study, or reflection.

Permission is granted for non-profit use of these materials.
Acknowledgement in oral presentations is not required.
Otherwise, please acknowledge source as, "David Ewart, www.holytextures.com."

 

Matthew 14:13-21 - Updated

This lesson invites us to remember our own wildernesses, our own places of chaos, when our own insufficiencies may have been blessed, broken, and given away. And yet it was precisely in risking that impossible insufficiency that there was enough. Indeed, more than enough.

Click here to read the updated Holy Textures explanation of Matthew 14:13-21.

David Ewart,
www.holytextures.com,
Short, easy to use, faith inspiring explanations of the meaning of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for your sermon, homily, bible study, or reflection.

Permission is granted for non-profit use of these materials.
Acknowledgement in oral presentations is not required.
Otherwise, please acknowledge source as, "David Ewart, www.holytextures.com."

 

Luke 14:1, 7-14 - Updated

This is what Jesus is teaching / proclaiming here. What does it look like for those with higher status / honour / privilege to live the year of the Lord's favour?

Click here to read the updated Holy Textures explanation of Luke 14:1, 7-14.

David Ewart,
www.holytextures.com,
Short, easy to use, faith inspiring explanations of the meaning of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for your sermon, homily, bible study, or reflection.

Permission is granted for non-profit use of these materials.
Acknowledgement in oral presentations is not required.
Otherwise, please acknowledge source as, "David Ewart, www.holytextures.com."