Lectionary for Sunday 15
Your word, O God, is a lamp to my feet and a light on my path. Psalm 119:105
Collect. God, Let us pray (to be faithful to the light we have received, and to the name we bear): Father, let the light of your truth guide us to your kingdom through a world filled with lights contrary to your own. Christian is the name and the gospel we glory in. May your love make us what you have called us to be; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Reading. Isaiah 55:10-i3. As we read thew old testament it is important to remember that the people descended from Abraham always understood that the God they worshipped was the only God, the great Creator of all that is. This God was above and before all other gods and there was no God who was His equal. Therefore when the prophets spoke, they spoke with this understanding, their message was for Israel but it also had a message for the nations which surrounded Israel, God was in control of all things. Today we read a short passage from Isaiah. Among the prophets the book of Isaiah is one of the most popular. In his writing Isaiah makes many references which immediately draw our attention to Jesus. As we look back over many thousands of years we realise that Isaiah speaking prophetically revealed a future that God was already preparing. “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel” Isaiah 7:14. Isaiah did not know about Jesus as we do, for him he was declaring how God would deal with his people in his point in history. In his message Isaiah declares that God has a high expectation of his people. “Be holy for I am holy”: (Leviticus 11:44) this was the instruction that never varied. True to sinful human nature the people were constantly unfaithful to God by finding alternative ways to live without God. Jeremiah expressed it very poetically when he said that the people had rejected using the wells that God had provided for them and dug their own wells. (Jeremiah 2;13)
In our passage today Isaiah is promising an abundance from God. The Great Creator will water the earth bringing life and a plentiful harvest. In the same way God by his powerful word will usher in an era of peace and prosperity. It will not only be the people who will be satisfied, the whole of creation will rejoice with gladness. The “trees of the fields” clapping their hands is a most appealing picture. Isaiah’s message is that God will accomplish this abundance for God is both powerful and faithful.
The promise of abundance was hugely significant for the tiny nation of Israel was directly in the path of the vast Assyrian Kingdom. This kingdom was rapidly gaining ascendancy and sweeping all before them. Isaiah’s message was what God is offering to the people, a time of prosperity and peace; the only condition was to remain faithful. However His word will accomplish what God has purposed and so the promise of safety and abundance is for those who continue to be faithfully obedient. The message of the prophets was always to show the nation a better, more productive way and in order to find that way the people had to be prepared to trust in God.
Prayer. Lord of all history, we believe that it is not only from a distance that you rule over the affairs of humanity, but you yourself have entered human history and stand with us in all aspects of life. Help us by your constant and ever-present power to trust and not be afraid as we face life with you. Remind us each day of your presence among us. Save us from minds which dwell on the futile speculations of what might be and fail to see what blessings are already at hand to guide us.
We thank you Lord that you still hold out your hand for us to take. Let us grasp all that you are offering us, so that we would not serve you in words alone but with every part of our being. Guide us to clearly hear the truth and to undertake what is required. Our longing is to lift high the name of Jesus and to be aware of his presence in each moment of this day. To your name be all the glory and praise. Amen.
Reading. Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23. The parable of the sower is well known and well loved. As a young boy there was an old farmer who was something of a mentor to me. He would sow his oats in the front field using a hessian container strapped around his waist, in the very same way that the sower in Jesus parable would have done. The evenness of the sowing depended upon the expertise of the sower but no matter how experienced, seed still fell on the paths and the stony outcrops.
The picture that Jesus’ story describes would have been very familiar to the crowd listening to him as he spoke from the boat. The image of the sower and the seed is a story that still captures the imagination. However it was a story that Jesus used with purpose and so we need to keep its teaching aspects in our minds.
Firstly lets notice the potency of the seed. Even the seed which fell on the pathways became food for the birds. We read it as a negative aspect but not for the birds for seed is their staple that keeps them alive. Jesus names the seed as the word of the kingdom and we should never doubt the potency of the seed. The message of the kingdom that God is preparing is of vital importance to every living creature, even the birds. The message of what Jesus Christ has done may seem to be being drowned out by other seemingly more powerful messages but the potency of the word remains. We remember what Paul said, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe.” (1 Corinthians 1:21).
Though it is potent the word needs to be cultivated and attended to. The principle in Christianity is that we believe and we keep on believing. Jesus’ message reminds us that each of us needs to pay attention to our Christian life. We need to always keep before us what Jesus has done for us and it is an everyday decision to follow in the way of Jesus. In the New Testament salvation comes in three tenses, past, present and future! So we are thankful that Jesus has dealt with our past, provides for everyday needs and guides us on into a glorious future. Why wouldn’t you want to pay attention to that!(Philippians 2:12)
We are in the middle of winter and in some parts of our state we have just come through the wettest June on record. The pastures and the crops are blooming, all is going well. At the same time our meteorologists are saying that we can expect a drier and hotter time ahead. Already in the farming community is an anxiety that the springtime will not produce the rain which will be needed to bring the crops to their full potential. Life outcomes are always unknown but one thing we do know is that God is always faithful.
The parable ends with an emphasis on a productive maturity. The seed has yielded its increase. In receptive soil the seed grows on to a great harvest. It is not by striving or by effort but through the potential that is in the seed itself that the harvest comes. The outcome that is considered successful is the outcome that God desires and Jesus expects to reap a harvest. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. (1 Corinthians 3:6)
Prayer. Almighty God your word brings life and light to everyone who receives it and by your grace you call to all. Help us to hear and to obey as your word comes to us in many different ways. May we keep our courage when the way seems hard and when things go well may we keep our trust only and always in you. You are a faithful God and to you we give all praise for all the blessing that you have poured out on us. Grant that we may always give you first place in all our activities and may the wonder of your love for us strengthen every endeavour we undertake. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen
Collect. Jesus, divine storyteller, the seed of your teaching has taken root throughout the earth; may we hear and obey you, so that the stories of our lives will speak your word; we ask this in your name. Amen.
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