Difference between revisions of "Sermon for October 25th, 2020"
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Please forgive me if I seem a little tired this morning. A few of my neighbors came over yelling loudly and banging on our door at two o'clock this morning. Can you believe it? Two o'clock in the morning? Fortunately for them, I was still up, practicing my bagpipes. | Please forgive me if I seem a little tired this morning. A few of my neighbors came over yelling loudly and banging on our door at two o'clock this morning. Can you believe it? Two o'clock in the morning? Fortunately for them, I was still up, practicing my bagpipes. | ||
| − | Today is Reformation Sunday--the day when we remember and celebrate the Reformed, Scottish heritage that gave birth to the Presbyterian movement. In some ways, this is for us, what St. Patrick's day is for Irish Catholics: You may not have any particular Scottish ancestry, but if you're a Presbyterian, today you | + | Today is Reformation Sunday--the day when we remember and celebrate the Reformed, Scottish heritage that gave birth to the Presbyterian movement. In some ways, this is for us, what St. Patrick's day is for Irish Catholics: You may not have any particular Scottish ancestry, but if you're a Presbyterian, today you are part of our clan--part of a family and a proud tradition that spans the globe and stretches back for hundreds of years. |
| − | Today is also the last sermon in our series on the parables of Jesus, and | + | Today is also the last sermon in our series on the parables of Jesus, and today's parable, although very short, is my favorite one. In fact, this parable has been, for me, a sort of guiding light throughout my years as a pastor. Today's scripture passage is printed on the back of my business cards, and has been my "life verse" for most of my adult life. |
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| + | It's a relatively simple parable: First, Jesus compares his followers to scribes (Gr. γραμματεύς), basically those who are educated in the ways of the Kingdom of Heaven, which (as we've seen in all the parables) is shorthand for the teachings of Jesus. Those who have received this education in parables, he says, are like householders (the head of a household) who bring forth from their treasures, or use in their teaching, things both new and old. And then he ends his parables and leaves. | ||
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| + | Who are we in this parable? Like last week, there's really only one option, since there's only one character in the parable: We are the ones who have heard the teachings of Jesus; we are the scribes, the educated ones. As we share and spread those teachings, we are the householders who make use of both what is new AND what is old among our treasures. | ||
Revision as of 20:11, 23 October 2020
Matthew 13:51-53 (GNV)
51 Jesus said unto them, Understand ye all these things? They said unto him, Yea, Lord. 52 Then said he unto them, Therefore every Scribe which is taught unto the kingdom of heaven, is like unto an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things both new and old. 53 And it came to pass, that when Jesus had ended these parables, he departed thence.
Jesus & His Pair of Bowls: Treasures New and Old
Please forgive me if I seem a little tired this morning. A few of my neighbors came over yelling loudly and banging on our door at two o'clock this morning. Can you believe it? Two o'clock in the morning? Fortunately for them, I was still up, practicing my bagpipes.
Today is Reformation Sunday--the day when we remember and celebrate the Reformed, Scottish heritage that gave birth to the Presbyterian movement. In some ways, this is for us, what St. Patrick's day is for Irish Catholics: You may not have any particular Scottish ancestry, but if you're a Presbyterian, today you are part of our clan--part of a family and a proud tradition that spans the globe and stretches back for hundreds of years.
Today is also the last sermon in our series on the parables of Jesus, and today's parable, although very short, is my favorite one. In fact, this parable has been, for me, a sort of guiding light throughout my years as a pastor. Today's scripture passage is printed on the back of my business cards, and has been my "life verse" for most of my adult life.
It's a relatively simple parable: First, Jesus compares his followers to scribes (Gr. γραμματεύς), basically those who are educated in the ways of the Kingdom of Heaven, which (as we've seen in all the parables) is shorthand for the teachings of Jesus. Those who have received this education in parables, he says, are like householders (the head of a household) who bring forth from their treasures, or use in their teaching, things both new and old. And then he ends his parables and leaves.
Who are we in this parable? Like last week, there's really only one option, since there's only one character in the parable: We are the ones who have heard the teachings of Jesus; we are the scribes, the educated ones. As we share and spread those teachings, we are the householders who make use of both what is new AND what is old among our treasures.
