THE 10TH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
FIRST LESSON
2 SAMUEL 12.15b-24
The Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife bore to David, and it became very ill. David therefore pleaded with God for the child; David fasted, and went in and lay all night on the ground. The elders of his stood beside him, urging him to rise from the ground; but he would not, nor did he eat food with them. On the seventh day the child died. And servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead; for they said, “While the child was still alive, we spoke to him, and he did not listen to us; how then can we tell him the child is dead? He may do himself some harm.” But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, he perceived that the child was dead; and David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” They said, “He is dead.”
Then David rose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes. He went into the house of the Lord, and worshipped; he then went to his own house; and when he asked, they set food before him and he ate. Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while it was alive; but when the child died, you rose and ate food. He said, “While the child was still alive , I fasted and wept; I said “Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me, and the child may live.” But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? Shall I go to him, but he will not return to me.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
EPISTLE
EPHESIANS 4:1-6
I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOSPEL
The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
according to: John 6:24-35
So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.
Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written. “He gave them bread from heaven to eat.” Then Jesus gave to them bread from heaven to eat.” Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
The Gospel of Christ.
SERMON
Holding on for Grace
Reverend Muriel Foster
Joining the past with the present then taking it into the future, we all face a challenge, here to be present in all three areas of our reality. To make sense of our daily life and bring each of us into each of these areas, as a method to follow and find the best plan for our lives. Would you do some of the things which you thought were really good choices as a young person without any worldly experience, or change things to have a different out come? I sure would like to erase a number of mistakes from my life, yet gathered into all areas where there are things I`d not want to change, nor to have missed as part of the learning experience to bring about a new understanding in my life.
I wonder about David in todays reading, plotting to get rid of Uriah. This was no small feat because Uriah was such an honourable skilled warrior and dependable in times of trouble. Self interests first then a plan the to have Uriah killed, could David recognize the difference between right and wrong. Did he see it in himself or did he just think he could get away with it and no one would ask any questions concerning his actions. He sounds very much like any person alive here today and basically is no different from anyone of us faced with the same choices in life.
There is a saying that we are true to ourselves, when no one is watching. Beyond that is the reality that God is our present witness and knows what we are doing, and that we are also witnesses to our own actions and behaviors. Have you ever seen an appalling behavior in another and failed to recognize a similar response with- in ourselves? We can see God at work here quietly showing us His grace for all occasions. What is grace and how can we discern it for our lives and pass on the knowledge to others, so we may all share in the blessings grace offers for all who seek to find it.
SOZO is a Greek word for salvation, yet the root meaning goes far beyond just the forgiveness of all sins. According to Strong`s concordance, SOZO also carries the idea of being physically healed of diseases and delivered, you’re your own enemy, when we are separated from God`s grace. In the spiritual sense it is the ability to separate ourselves from any concerns about all forms of evil in our daily lives.
Psalm 103:2-4 sums up with the thought here and the promise given for even the worst type of sin. Bless the Lord, O my soul and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy. What a breath of fresh air these words must have brought into the heart of David when he wrote them.
Later Isaiah 53:5, wrote to further the concept David embraced in Psalms as the fore runner into the future, concerning Jesus, and life in future times. He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought each of us peace, and with his wounds we are healed, so we may reach out to accept the grace offered in all things.
During the Passover we discover many similarities that lead us into the celebration of the Lord`s Supper in our celebration of the Eucharist. We ask for the abundant Blessing to rest on us when living this Passover that began in Egypt (Exodus7:14-10:29) Jesus gathered each of us to receive communion with him and all who believe in him. The old Passover and the new Passover are celebrated to help us understand the life of Jesus and how it connects us together today. God is calling us to live with balance and be all that he has given us gifts to be. Finding those gifts and how they work in each of our individual lives may take a lifetime to uncover and fully recognize.
Many people have been persuaded to think that a search for grace in their lives or the lives of others is futile waste of time. We just pick the path so that we feel we can accomplish the good in our eyes, some will question this and are told to abandon the search. Have you ever asked the question, why am I here? What is the purpose of my life? Or is this all there is to life?
Truth, the great breathtaking challenge. What is truth about life? As believers we know the truth is as follows:
John 1:1-5, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
In Jesus Christ we find the answer to the overreaching theme of life it`s self, a multipronged description of God. The God who made the world then became man, the word of God became man, the Son became the father of all mankind and the children of God. In the struggle to define the need for God we have gone astray in our attempts to define who God is in our lives and in our present time. In this presentation we come to see Jesus in perfect contrast to our daily lives. We are destined to see Jesus, to know his peace, and live in the grace full of God.
Jesus is the bread that fulfils us in all our hungers and thirsts. Jesus frees us to claim God in every part of our life, as the center for us in our lives together, raising our expectations for our world in all things.
May the peace of God live within us and lift us from our hopelessness. In the love and peace of His grace for all of our lives. Amen