For
Sunday, August 27, 2017, 12th Sunday after Pentecost, Year A, Readings: Exodus 1:8-2:10, Psalm 124,
Romans 12:1-8, Matthew 16:13-20
Now a new king arose over Egypt...[who] commanded all his people "Every boy that is born to the Hebrews you shall throw into the Nile...[When the Levite] woman...bore a son...she got a papyrus basket...she put the child in it among the reeds on the bank of the river...The daughter of Pharoah...took pity on him...she took him as her son. She named him Moses, "because," she said, "I drew him out of the water." [Exodus 1:8a, 22a, 2:2a, 3a,b; 5a, 6b, 10b]
Our help is in the Name of the Lord, the maker of Heaven and Earth. [Psalm 124:8]
...by the mercies of God...present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship...Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed...that you may discern what is the will of God...We have gifts that differ according to the grace given us... [Romans 12:1b, 2, 6a]
[Jesus] said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him..."I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." [Matthew 16:15-16, 17a, 19]
Just
as the well-worn literary device of "It was a dark and stormy night"
alerts us to trouble ahead, so do the opening words of this passage of Exodus,
"Now a new king arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph." Of course
we mostly know the story of Moses and what is to come so it is
easy in a Sunday service to tune out and let the reading roll on while we look
for our checkbooks, sneak a peek at a text message on our mobile phone, or
think about what is needed for the evening meal. But the re-telling, of this and each of the other specifically appointed readings, gives us a chance to
find a new focus, or hear something we hadn't noticed before. This is an
opportunity to seek and discover the keys to unlocking the connections between
the Hebrew and Christian Testaments and how - or if - it all
informs and shapes our everyday life now, IF being
the small yet formidable and operative word. Paul reminds us, in a most timely
way, that we are one body in Christ with God-given,
grace-filled gifts that we are to discover and offer in service to God and each
other. In saying, Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed
by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God
- what is good and acceptable and perfect, and then enumerating
examples of the gifts God has given, Paul both admonishes and encourages us to
look beyond ourselves and work together for God's purpose as a welcoming
all-inclusive community of many members in Christ.
*for the full text click here: Thomas Merton's Prayer
The disciples express to Jesus at his asking who others
think he is, perhaps wondering themselves if Jesus is some sort of
re-incarnation of the prophets. But Simon Peter gets the prize for getting the
answer correct. Peter - a name meaning rock in Greek - is then awarded the keys
of the kingdom of heaven to bind and loose on
earth and in heaven. Did Peter, in that moment, feel the enormous weight of the
responsibility? Binding and loosing is a rabbinical concept that, as Jews, the
disciples - and Matthew - understood. In very simplistic terms it means a
communal judgment to bind as in obligation or to loosen that requirement. How
does that apply to us in our lives today?
Many of us feel a strong obligation, or at least a
commitment, to present ourselves in Church each Sunday, but of course we are free
to not attend. So what does a true obligation to the work of Christ actually
mean? Ah, that's where discernment applies. Discovering what are and how to use our particular gifts, as well as offering them in the
sincere attempt to follow God's will, is the work of a lifetime, our spiritual
worship, our living sacrifice. Our human gifts are the
keys to unlocking our spiritual gifts when used in preparation for the true
life that is to come. All that was, is now, and all that is now, will come
again. It is up to us, individually and collectively, to recognize the
connections we share with the past and the future that help us to decipher the
signs that we are on the right path or diverging from it. To paraphrase
mystic/monk Thomas Merton's helpful and hopeful prayer* that begins, "My
Lord God, I have no idea where I am going...," the fact that I think I'm
following God's will does not mean that I truly am doing so, BUT, I do believe
that God knows when I am sincere in my desire to please and fulfill my calling.
Sincerity of purpose is one key to the loosening of apprehension and the
binding of trust. Connecting the lessons of the past and present is the key to
the future of life everlasting.
(As for a couple of biblical connections, the word for basket - as in the basket that Moses was placed in - is the same word as ark in Hebrew; ark is not just a vessel for water travel, it is a sanctuary, a safe place as a box or a chest such as the ark of the covenant. In Exodus, all Hebrew boy babies were ordered to be killed by Pharoah to prevent them growing up and revolting against him. Earlier in Matthew, Herod ordered all boys under 2 years old to be killed to prevent a Messiah from undermining his reign. Go forth and discover more each week!)
LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY
Leader: ~
Living God, our Maker and our Help, as through the waters that birth us, that
Moses was drawn from, that nourish the Earth and sometimes drown it, we often
struggle to navigate our lives between the raging and the calm. Let us not
drift aimlessly through tide and torrent, but by Your mercy, steer toward the
Light of Christ, our Messiah, the Incarnation of Your Holy Will for us.
O
Lord, our God
RESPONSE: Renew and Transform us, we pray
~ Living
God, our Maker and our Help, empower us to be dauntless in the vigorous pursuit
of re-forming the attitudes, agenda, and actions from callous to compassionate
on the part of the political leaders of this world, our country, and our
community. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
O
Lord, our God,
Renew and Transform us, we pray
~
Living God, our Maker and our Help, infuse all who are lost in the grip of
addiction, depression, or serious illness with hope and healing, and comfort all
who give of their strength in support. We now join our voices to pray
aloud for those in need…
O
Lord, our God,
Renew and Transform us, we pray
~ Living
God, our Maker and our Help, open wide the gates of heaven, as You receive in
joy, those we now commend to the bliss of eternal life. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
O
Lord, our God,
Renew and Transform us, we pray
~ Living
God, our Maker and our Help, we pause
in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt intentions and petitions, aloud
or silently…
O
Lord, our God,
Renew and Transform us, we pray
~ Living
God, our Maker and our Help, we offer our special thanksgivings for those who
guide us by their teaching, preaching, and prayers to discern our own gifts and
discover our path to all that is holy and acceptable to You. We pray especially
for:
O
Lord, our God,
Renew and Transform us, we pray
The Celebrant adds:
Holy and Immortal God, awaken us each morning with eagerness to offer
ourselves in service to Your Supreme Will, to escape the snares of conforming
to what is of this world, and bind ourselves to Your Kingdom. We ask through
Jesus, Son of Man, our Blessed Messiah; and the Holy Spirit, our Counselor and
Advocate, who together with You are one God, omnipotent, eternal, and
everlasting. Amen.
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