Bruce Epperly on the Lectionary, Pentecost + 8 (C)
This is a very interesting Adventurous Lectionary.
This is a very interesting Adventurous Lectionary.
The texts are 1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20), Psalm 139:1-6,13-18, 1 Corinthians 6:12-20, and John 1:43-51. The common theme that stuck in my mind was on receiving God’s word. We frequently focus on how God gives his word, how reliable it is, how reliable God is, and how we must trust what God says. But how often…
In a previous post I mentioned that one problem we have with understanding forgiveness is that we tend to make excuses and to blame others rather than feel guilt on our own account. Everything is OK, and we’re “not too bad.” We also lose the impact of some of the richest texts about salvtion, because…
This week I did some reading on the lectionary, and even led a discussion on Wednesday, but due to work on some new book releases I never had time to write. There is one theme that came to mind when I was looking at the two liturgies–palms and passion. In teaching Bible study I like…
We often read the Psalms legalistically, i.e. all the discussion of the law leads us to believe we’re talking about some sort of righteousness by works, or better earning God’s favor through accomplishing certain works. If we read Psalm 1 as a sort of flat discourse rather than as structured poetry, we can easily read…
Scriptures: Acts 4:32-35; Psalm 133; (John 20:19-31) There are two major responses to fear in a group. One is to gather together and seek mutual support. The other is to scatter, with each individual seeking his own safety. One can see this in action in military history. Many military leaders have recognized the importance of…
The passages are Numbers 21:4-9, Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22; Ephesians 2:1-10 and John 3:14-21. These passages center around the story of the serpent that Moses put on a pole in the wilderness. The omission of verses 4-16 maintains that emphasis even in Psalm 107, though I would recommend reading the entire passage. I am not always…