Proper 4 [9]We must listen for the call of the Lord, who knows and loves us completely, and shines through the life and witness of Christ. |
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| Scripture | Theme | Hymns |
|---|---|---|
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1 Samuel 3:1-10, (11-20) --or-- Deuteronomy 5:12-15 |
Recognizing the voice of the Lord --or-- Observing the Sabbath |
358: Dear Lord and Father of Mankind 398: Jesus Calls Us 419: I Am Thine, O Lord 436: The Voice of God Is Calling 727: O What Their Joy and Their Glory Must Be |
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Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18
--or-- Psalm 81:1-10 |
The Lord knows me completely --or-- Proclaim the decree of the Lord |
66: Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven 73: O Worship the King 526: What a Friend We Have in Jesus |
| Mark 2:23-3:6 | Honoring the Sabbath as Christ did |
153: Thou Hidden Source of Calm Repose 256: We Would See Jesus |
| 2 Corinthians 4:5-12 | Christ's sacrifice is reflected in us, as is His victory over death |
89: Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee 282: 'Tis Finished! The Messiah Dies |
Goodness gracious! God loves us so much that Christ came to save us. Jesus' example shines throughout the world and into our hearts, giving the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. And yet, how much energy do we put into fooling ourselves about God and how to encounter the divine? How much time do we spend making rules that we have to follow so that we can stay on our own misguided paths?
When Samuel was a boy he needed someone else to tell him that God was speaking to him. He was living with a priest and knew about God, but he didn't know God yet. He was learning the rules about worshiping God, but he wasn't worshiping God yet. When Samuel heard God's voice and answered, everything changed. Samuel was not simply serving a god. He was serving the God. He was not following empty rules. He was following God's commands. Knowing God made all the difference in the world--and beyond!
This week's featured hymn by John Greenleaf Whittier is the ending theme of a longer poem titled The Brewing of Soma. Soma was an intoxicating drink prepared and used by Hindus, producing what has been called "sacred madness" and "a storm of drunken joy." After revealing the futility of seeking God through inebriation with Soma, Whittier confessed that sometimes, "We brew in many a Christian fane the heathen Soma still." Then he implored God with the lines that open the stanzas that we sing still today.
Whittier could see the energy that people were using still to fool themselves about God and draw closer to Him. He saw the rules and rites that we adopt to follow our own misguided paths. And he saw that, just like the young boy Samuel, we must listen to God; like the disciples, answer the Lord's call; like Christ, kneel in silence and know God's love. Read these words as your own prayer.
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1. Dear Lord and Father of mankind, forgive our foolish ways; reclothe us in our rightful mind, in purer lives thy service find, in deeper reverence, praise. |
2. In simple trust like theirs who heard, beside the Syrian sea, the gracious calling of the Lord, let us, like them, without a word, rise up and follow thee. | |
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3. O sabbath rest by Galilee, O calm of hills above, where Jesus knelt to share with thee the silence of eternity, interpreted by love! |
4. Drop thy still dews of quietness, till all our strivings cease; take from our souls the strain and stress, and let our ordered lives confess the beauty of thy peace. | |
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God bless you--
Lection at HymnSite.com
God bless you!
| Passages suggested are from The Revised Common Lectionary: Consultation on Common Texts (Abingdon Press, 1992) copyright © by the Consultation on Common Texts (CCT), P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville TN 37203-0003. Reprinted with permission of CCT. |