The Abingdon Preaching Annual 2004

312 Pages·2003·1.26 MB·English

by  David N. Mosser

The Abingdon Preaching Annual 2004
compiled and Edited by David N. Mosser
Assistant Editor Karen Dies
Abingdon Press
Nashville
Copyright Information
INTRODUCTION

When people don’t know what to do, they often don’t do anything. For preachers,
planning texts on which to preach can be an arduous task, especially in the first
few years of ministry. In every pastor’s ministry, times and seasons arrive when
we can use a guide to help us. The New Revised Common Lectionary can be of
service to plan and implement a preaching schedule for the church. In addition, it
can also help pastors bring the Word of God to congregations for whom
preachers have spiritual responsibility. Although some preachers do not use the
lectionary and others use it only occasionally, the church makes the table of
readings available to aid preachers and teachers who desire to present a full
treatment of the Holy Scriptures. Therefore, when any preacher endures a
season of homiletical drought, the lectionary can provide a refreshing spring of
water to an otherwise parched homiletical wasteland. In other words, the
lectionary is not binding; it is a practical tool when preachers need an escort
through the seasons of the Christian year.
Confession is supposed to be good for the soul, so here is my confession. When
I was in fifth grade, my teacher caught me looking on another student’s paper
during a test. She promptly sent me to the principal’s office. Our principal was a
pleasant and good woman. She did, however, ask me what I thought I was doing.
Fortunately I had good grades, and when I explained that I looked on the other
student’s paper not for the answers, but rather to see if the other student had
gotten the test questions correct—as I knew I had—she believed me. Looking at
other people’s work does not necessarily mean that we are going to copy, cheat,
or plagiarize the other person’s answers. Perhaps we simply want to check
ourselves against someone else’s opinion or knowledge.
I suggest that this application of the work in this volume is one of the most
important aspects of the Abingdon Preaching Annual. Most readers who
purchase, read, and use this book are not looking to steal or pilfer another
preacher’s ideas. Rather, we merely check our exegetical and interpretive work
against those whom the church recognizes as our best and brightest preachers
from across the United States. When we read other reliable preachers’ works, we
measure our understanding against theirs. Perhaps this homiletical measurement
may give us confidence in the pulpit, or at the very least, may facilitate our
creative preaching juices as we serve the church.
Clearly, most preachers do all the other mundane tasks in ministry, such as
administrative toil or raising the budget, in order to preach the word. The reading
and study of Scripture is its own reward. Most preachers covet time to study and
reflect. At the same time, demands on a pastor’s time and energy seem to
increase annually. We do not have the absolute freedom of time we want or need
each week to explore biblical texts and commentaries thoroughly enough. Many
preachers feel too harried to do the kind of pulpit work for which the church has
trained us. Yet preaching remains the chief requirement for a church to move
forward into the world according to God’s claim on God’s people. Therefore, it is
to be hoped that the Abingdon Preaching Annual can assist preachers in
increasing and advancing their imaginative creativeness.
We have designed the Abingdon Preaching Annual to cover all the lectionary
texts from the Hebrew Bible, Epistles, and Gospels for the Sundays of the church
year. In addition, writers have provided a call to worship from the Psalter for each
Sunday. Further, the Abingdon Preaching Annual furnishes both an overall
worship theme and a pastoral prayer for each day. We have also included a
three-sermon series at the book’s beginning.
I encourage you to use those portions of the Abingdon Preaching Annual that
meet your needs. I want to thank our many writers who have worked long and
hard to provide this resource for preachers in order that the preaching of our
churches may thrive. May our preaching find a home in the hearts of our
congregations. We value your comments and suggestions that might make
subsequent annual editions even more beneficial to our reader-preachers. May
the Abingdon Preaching Annual assist you in the important work of preaching the
good news of Jesus Christ to the world.
David Mosser
SERMON SERIES
BEGINNING WELL: MAKING A GOOD START

[Editor’s note: the three sermons included in this series were designed to open a
new year. Thus the theme “Beginning Well.” They take their theme from the three
appeals of classic rhetoric: the mind, the heart, and the will. Of course, these
three sermons could be adapted to any part of the year when set in a different
context.]
ON YOUR MARK: THE MIND

“But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a
stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine
things but on human thing.’ ” (Mt. 16:23)
When the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall retired, reporters asked
him what he would like for people to say about him after he was gone. “So many
accomplishments have been a part of your legal career. You are recognized as
‘Mr. Civil Rights.’ You won thirty-two of thirty-five cases argued before the United
States Supreme Court. In Maryland, they called you the ‘little man’s lawyer.’
Many of your clients were poor and without means to pay for your services, but
you defended them anyhow.” Retired Justice Thurgood Marshall mused
momentarily and delivered a powerful one liner on how he wanted to be
remembered. “Tell them,” said Marshall, “He did the best he could with what he
had.”
Everyone has various gifts that God has put into our lives. Clearly, God endows
some people more fully with gifts than others. Yet, no person is devoid of gifts.
We all have them. In fact, some people define us by our gifts and graces. For
example someone might say, “She is an artist” or “he is a fine athlete.” This
sermon begins a three-part sermon series on “Beginning Well” that has to do with
starting a new year, but it could just as well mark the beginning of any new
adventure in good living. These sermons examine three gifts that every human
creature brings to faith: our mind, our heart, and our will. These are gifts that if
developed will serve people well as they become followers of God and as they
journey with Christ. God gives us these gifts to use in the building up of God’s
kingdom. We also possess these gifts to enhance our lives. Over the next three
weeks we will examine mind, heart, and will to help us make a good start on a
new year. Hear today’s lesson:
From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must
go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the
elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third
day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him,
saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” But he
turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a
stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine
things but on human things.” (Mt. 16:21-23)
Prior to today’s lesson, Peter is at the top of his game, or should we say, “his
discipleship.” Let us not forget that as a rabbi Jesus was a master teacher. Jesus
asks the twelve, “Who do you say that I am?” And Peter gives an A+ answer
when he says: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” From Jesus’
point of view this is a brilliant answer. Peter got it right! Jesus even goes on to
say, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of
Hades will not prevail against it.” If you could think of higher praise than this from
Jesus, then you are among the elite. Few places in the Gospels does Jesus
lavish such high praise on a human creature.
I don’t suppose any of us enjoy praise any more than when we receive it from a
teacher. Most people I know really light up when a teacher says, “That is a very
good question,” or “Very good, Johnny, you’ve certainly done your homework.”
Do you remember when someone heaped praise on you this way? If you do then
perhaps you can relate to how Peter felt when Jesus, the ultimate teacher,
praised him. It was as if Jesus said to him, “Peter, come on up to the head of the
class.” Unfortunately, we all know that Peter’s brilliance was short-lived. Too
soon the other shoe dropped.
It happened like this, according to Matthew’s Gospel. After Peter’s correct
answer, Jesus, after a short interval of time, explained exactly what “The
Messiah, the Son of the living God” really meant. In fact, Jesus did not exactly tell
the gathered disciples, rather we read: “Jesus began to show his disciples.”
Perhaps Jesus demonstrated exactly what it meant to undergo “great suffering at
the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes.” Evidently this dose of
Jesus’ reality was too much for Peter, because “Peter took [Jesus] aside and
began to rebuke him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to
you.’ ” No doubt, Peter had begun to realize what was going to happen to those
who follow such a Messiah.
I once officiated a wedding in which the bride informed me that her ex-boyfriend
was a violent drunk who opposed her getting married. My ears perked up when
she then told me, “And he told me that he was really mad and that he might show
up at my wedding, now that he has been released from prison on a weapons
charge.” She asked me if this kind of information was helpful to ministers who did
weddings. I thanked her and thereupon reflected that if the mean spirited ex-
boyfriend did show up, then I would be standing in the worst possible place at the
wedding—between the bride and groom. Our helpful sheriff gave me a
bulletproof vest to wear under my vestments. But I do know that Peter was
concerned about standing too close to one who would suffer in the ways Jesus
predicted. Thus, when Peter blurts out, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never
happen to you,” I think he really meant, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never
happen to us.”
Clearly, Jesus reads through his intention because Jesus chastises his “rock”
with another geological metaphor. Jesus describes Peter as a “stumbling block.”
The great rock that is to be the church’s foundation is now reduced to something
of a nuisance stone guaranteed to trip up others. What do you suppose is the
reason for Peter’s apparent fall from grace? My best guess is that he is setting
his “mind not on divine things but on human things.” Jesus’ statement is the
crucial punch line of the passage. It serves as a warning against double-
mindedness.
F. Scott Fitzgerald remarked that, “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability
to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability
to function.” However, this intelligence test is not an adequate test for first-rate
discipleship. To be a disciple is to be a person without a divided mind. We are as
we think. To be of divided mind is to sit on the fence, and fence-sitting creates
second-rate disciples. To be a good and faithful disciple, one must make up his
or her mind about who the Messiah is. Then we follow Jesus on Jesus’ term and
not our own. This is what Jesus meant when he said to Peter, the rock turned
stumbling block: “You are setting your mind not in divine things but on human
things.” There is no alternative to following Jesus. One either follows Jesus
where he leads, or one does not. And in a remarkably concise statement quipped
in another context, Henry Kissinger said, “The absence of alternatives clears the
mind marvelously.” We cannot be double-minded about a decision for Christ and
the life of faith (see James 1:7, 4:8).
I like this idea of avoiding double-mindedness. Many of us remember saying at
our ceremony celebrating the marriage covenant, “I take you to be my
husband/wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for
richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until we are
parted by death. This is my solemn vow.” If we truly hold to this promise, then we
don’t have to make the decision every time we meet an attractive person of the
opposite gender. We make our declaration and promise and then we live by it. In
reality it becomes a once in a lifetime decision and we do not need to repeat it
hourly. There are many other examples I could drag out, but I hope and believe
that you get the idea. Through a discerning mind, we can appreciate the
promises and pledges that we make to be the people God wants us to be, and
perhaps the kinds of people we want to become.
In the New Testament the mind has always played an important role in faith.
Jesus emphasized the new law by teaching, “You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all
your mind; and your neighbor as yourself ” (Luke 10:27). Paul too alerted his
readers, “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:5). In
addition Paul alluded to the dangers of having a split or divided mind when he
wrote to the Christians at Rome “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set
the mind on the Spirit is life and peace” (Rom. 8:6).
God created human beings with free will, and that includes free choice. Our mind
helps us look at facts, weigh evidence gained through experience, and then
make decisions that reflect faith in God or faith in something else. If all else fails
in your walk of faith or if life’s decisions constantly befuddle you, then remember
this simple little maxim: Let the mind of the Master be the master of your mind.
(David Mosser)
GET SET: THE HEART

“Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.” (Prov. 3:3)
Last week I suggested, as we began a new sermon series, “Beginning Well:
Making a Good Start,” that every person has some gifts that God has put into
your life. Although gifts and talents are not absolutely equally distributed,
nonetheless, we all have them. Our three-part sermon series on “Beginning Well”
has to do with new beginnings. As we contemplate any new beginning, we may
look at these three gifts from God Almighty: our mind, our heart, and our will. This
sermon explores the gift of the heart.
The greatest danger in talking about our faith is that often when people speak
about the heart and the mind we lose sight of a danger that lurks in this
combination. Most of us aspire to be “hardheaded and softhearted.” Yet, we all
know far too many Christians who are “softheaded and hard-hearted.” When we
say hardheaded we mean that we know how to think dispassionately and with a
cool reason. We need to make some decisions with a calculated rationality. For
example, your doctor will tell you not to let your desires for certain kinds of “bad
foods” dictate what you eat. If you do, then your diet may well “do you in.” On the
other hand, being hard-hearted is never the aim of a person who is concerned
with God or God’s creatures. Being softhearted means that we feel for and with
another person and his or her circumstance in life. Having a soft heart simply
means that we have feeling and passion for life and others. Without passion or
zeal we become merely human robots.
Scripture reminds us that being hard-hearted is no good thing. In Exodus,
Pharaoh, an example of one who opposes God’s will, is regularly described as
hard-hearted. We read in Exodus that “the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and
he would not let the people go” (Ex. 9:7). Who hardened Pharaoh’s heart? We
are not told, but later we find out that at least on some occasions, “The LORD
hardened the heart of Pharaoh” (Ex. 14:8). Thus, we are locked in a mystery.
God sometimes hardens the heart, while other times the Bible discloses no such
source. Either way, however, Pharaoh comes across as God’s enemy. J. Stowell
writes convincingly of the Bible’s use of the term heart:
Heart is used in Scripture as the most comprehensive term for the
authentic person. It is the part of our being where we desire,
deliberate, and decide. It has been described as “the place of
conscious and decisive spiritual activity,” “the comprehensive term
for a person as a whole: his feelings, desires, passions, thought,
understanding and will,” and “the center of a person. The place to
which God turns.” (Joseph M. Stowell, Fan the Flame: Living Out
Your First Love for Christ [Chicago: Moody Bible Institute, 1986],
13)
We see this understanding at work in David’s call to become Israel’s new king in
1 Samuel 16. Samuel visits Jesse near Bethlehem and asks to see all of Jesse’s
sons from which Samuel will choose Saul’s replacement as Israel’s king. Eliab
and Abinadab and Shammah each pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to
Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen any of these” (1 Sam. 16:10b). Finally, David
comes in from keeping sheep, and without delay “The LORD said, ‘Rise and
anoint him; for this is the one’ ” (1 Sam. 16:12). Why, we wonder, is this the one?
The story tells us something key not only for choosing kings but also for our own
lives: “The LORD does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward
appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7).
God “knows the secrets of the heart” (Ps. 44:21). Therefore, if one wants to get
right with God then one had best begin with getting his or her heart right first. But
if you are like me, this is a proposition that strikes fear into the hearts of rational
people. We all know and know all too well the dangers of combining religion and
passion. We want to stick closely with what we can think and therefore control.
Wild passion out of control—passion not checked by cool reason—furnishes
circumstances like Jim Jones’s jungle cocktails in Jonestown, Guyana, or David
Koresh’s fiery end, along with his flock, in Waco. Hitler’s emotional appeal and
scapegoated Jews provided his ascension to power. Hitler built his power without
any sort of solid logic. We all have good and recent historic reasons to distrust
emotional manipulation—no matter how convincing this emotional appeal may
be.
All this being said, however, our own passion for the gospel and zeal for our faith
is at the heart of our relationship with God. Our enthusiasm and fervor define the
depth of our commitments to the things we love. Can you imagine not being
passionate about your family or your life’s work or even your faith? We are
passionate about the things we love. Passion and a heart disposed toward God
define the intensity and vitality of our faith. Without it each of us is nothing more
than a walking and breathing human wasteland.
On the first Easter Sunday evening, two disciples “were going to a village called
Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about
all these things that had happened” (Luke 24:13-14). As they trudged along, no
doubt bewildered by recent events, Jesus drew alongside them and began to talk
with them as they walked. “Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he
interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures” (Luke 24:27).
Later (and this is the most telling part of the story), they said, “Were not our
hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was
opening the scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32). Because their hearts burned they
understood the significance of the encounter. My question for all of us is this:
Does your faith in Jesus cause your heart and passion to burn within you? I am
not suggesting that you shout or handle snakes or speak in tongues. Rather, I
only ask you in the quietness of your heart, are you convinced that Jesus is the
Lord of your life?
Søren Kierkegaard once wrote, “Purity of heart is to will one thing.” Do you will to
have a relationship with Jesus on a personal and heartfelt level? In your heart of
hearts do you desire to be a faithful disciple? Do you wish to remove all the
impediments in your heart that keep you from a personally satisfying relationship
with God? Are you willing to forgive others and yourself for the failure to bind
your heart to God? If so, I ask you to decide today to give your whole heart to
God through the mercy of Jesus Christ. Remember, “Happiness is in the heart,
not in the circumstances.” Amen. (David Mosser)
GO! THE WILL

“Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and
mother.” (Mark 3:35)
We conclude our sermon series on the mind, heart, and will with our exploration
of the human will. The will is basically human volition, or in more down to earth
terms, a “diligent purposefulness or determination” as understood by the
sentence, “She was an athlete with the will to win.” Some of our youth might
describe the will or human volition as “want to.”
Our human will is the third part of our sermon triology that makes up what human
beings bring to faith. First we considered the mind and its relationship to the
Christian faith. Then we examined the heart and how passion for faith was
essential to faith’s practice. This sermon investigates the will and how it helps
human beings express in action that which they think and feel about the faith we