Eric Frey
January 25th, 2011, 04:31 PM
Deuteronomy 30.15-20
Psalm 119.1-8
1 Corinthians 3.1-9
Matthew 5.21-37
As I continue through the Sermon on the Mount, there seem to be a couple options with the Matthew text. The first option is to examine the commonality between all the "You have heard... but I say..." passages. Each moves beyond the action to the intent. Each moves us from the outward to the inward. This could be developed in any number of ways I think.
The second option, and the one I will probably be doing because of some ongoing issues in our church is to look specifically at one of the paragraphs. We are going to be looking specifically at the opening paragraph (vv 21-26). We are a church that celebrates communion weekly and so the idea of coming to bring a sacrifice is especially apparent as the people come to receive the sacrament. So the call for reconciliation and unity in worship hits us right where it hurts. Our liturgy moves from sermon to creed to prayers of the people to offering to communion. This week instead of doing the typical prayers of the people we are going to do a time of reconciliation. It is one of those things I am not particularly looking forward to, but that is vitally necessary.
With all the talk of marital ethics flying around in our world, I wonder how we deal with the teaching in vv 27-32. This is an uncomfortable passage even to read to our people, let alone to address publicly. I am not wanting this to become a discussion of the propriety of divorce and re-marriage outside of a textual discussion, but how do we, in todays world, deal with this particular text?
Psalm 119.1-8
1 Corinthians 3.1-9
Matthew 5.21-37
As I continue through the Sermon on the Mount, there seem to be a couple options with the Matthew text. The first option is to examine the commonality between all the "You have heard... but I say..." passages. Each moves beyond the action to the intent. Each moves us from the outward to the inward. This could be developed in any number of ways I think.
The second option, and the one I will probably be doing because of some ongoing issues in our church is to look specifically at one of the paragraphs. We are going to be looking specifically at the opening paragraph (vv 21-26). We are a church that celebrates communion weekly and so the idea of coming to bring a sacrifice is especially apparent as the people come to receive the sacrament. So the call for reconciliation and unity in worship hits us right where it hurts. Our liturgy moves from sermon to creed to prayers of the people to offering to communion. This week instead of doing the typical prayers of the people we are going to do a time of reconciliation. It is one of those things I am not particularly looking forward to, but that is vitally necessary.
With all the talk of marital ethics flying around in our world, I wonder how we deal with the teaching in vv 27-32. This is an uncomfortable passage even to read to our people, let alone to address publicly. I am not wanting this to become a discussion of the propriety of divorce and re-marriage outside of a textual discussion, but how do we, in todays world, deal with this particular text?