Readings for Sunday, August 22, 2021

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Please note—during Ordinary Time, we follow the thematic strand of Old Testament readings

Lectionary Readings for August 22, 2021

Reading One: Joshua 24:1-2a,14-18 (NRSV)

Song: Build My Life (lyrics here)

Reflection

Our first Old Testament reading this week is a well-known passage where Joshua places a choice before the people of Israel:

“…choose this day whom you will serve…” (v. 15)

The question is (seemingly) simple—will the people follow after foreign gods, or will they join Joshua in saying, “…as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord?” (v.15)

As the story of Israel plays out we see how this choice is one they come up against time and again, and we see how time and again they choose poorly. The enticement of false gods proves too much for them, and just as their ancestors did with the golden calf, they bow their knee to someone other than the One who brought them out of Egypt and formed them into a nation.

This is a theme that echoes through all of our readings this week: the intentional commitment behind our faith, the choice we make to follow God alone, even when other options seem tempting. It’s a choice we face every day, because every day the voices of other would-be gods call to us and ask for our allegiance. Some days, our weakness finds us kneeling before those false rulers, and our worship is diverted away from the only One worthy to receive it.

As we enter into this week, it’s very likely that you can look ahead into the coming days and anticipate some of the voices that will tempt to pull you off course. Others will catch you surprise. Let’s spend some time before God, then, asking the Spirit to search our hearts and show us what has the power to pull us away. Let us then offer those things to the Lord in acknowledgement of both our weakness and his strength. And before those voices even begin their assault, let us find in worship a fresh offering of ourselves to the only God worthy of our devotion. In his strength we can declare “we will not be shaken,” not because of our own defenses, but because of the sure foundation he offers in Christ.

I will build my life upon Your love
It is a firm foundation
I will put my trust in You alone
And I will not be shaken

Reading Two: Psalm 34:15-22 (NRSV)

Song: Dear Refuge of My Weary Soul (lyrics here)

Reflection

The psalmist is very aware of the two paths that lie before all of us: the path of trust, or the path of rebellion. And he makes it very clear that only one choice brings health and wholeness:

“The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry.
The face of the LORD is against evildoers, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.” (vv.15-16)

God hears and responds to the cries of those who trust in him. As the psalmist declares, when those who trust in him cry for help, the Lord responds, for he is close to the brokenhearted. He saves those who feel crushed by the weight of this world.

A cursory reading of this psalm could lead the reader into thinking that God miraculously intervenes to immediately end the suffering of those who choose to follow him. But that’s not what the psalmist is saying. In fact, he states without hesitation that those who follow God will encounter turmoil and hardship:

“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD rescues them from them all.” (v.19)

I think it is in the word “rescue” that we often get confused. True, sometimes our deliverance comes from a change in our circumstances. But sometimes our deliverance comes in the midst of the storm. As songwriter Scott Krippayne puts it: “Sometimes he holds us close, and lets the wind and waves go wild. Sometimes he calms the storm, other times he calms his child.”

The temptation to take a path other than the one God offers us can grow stronger when life hits a turbulent season. In those times, we need a “refuge for our weary soul".” We need to remember that “[God’s] mercy seat is open still.” Running after false solutions and easy fixes will lead nowhere, but as the psalmist reminds us,“none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.” (v.22)

As you look back on your journey of faith, can you see times when the storms of life led you to make unhealthy choices that affected your relationship with God? What particular storms have the ability to turn your attention away from him and towards false gods and false solutions? What can you do when those particular clouds appear on the horizon to ground yourself more firmly in his love?

Reading Three: Ephesians 6:10-20 (NRSV)

Song: His Strength is Perfect (lyrics here)

Reflection

The Apostle Paul doesn’t mince any words when it comes to talking about the voices and temptations that assail us as followers of Christ, enticing us to run after other desires or priorities:

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power.
Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (vv.10-11)

Whenever we encounter the “wiles of the devil,” we find ourselves in a very similar place to the ancient Israelites. Each of those moments becomes a “choose this day”-type moment. And so often the reason we make poor choices at those times is that we try to deal with it in our own strength. Maybe it’s pride—maybe we think we’ve been following Jesus long enough that we should know what to do on our own. Or maybe it’s shame—perhaps we’ve bought into the lie that temptation itself is tantamount to sin, and we’re too embarrassed to turn to God in our moment of choice. Whatever the reason, what we need is a reminder of this important fact: by ourselves we don’t have what it takes to live the life God would have us live. We need to continually lean on him, yielding to the Spirit in our weakness so that God’s strength might be made real in our lives.

In the end, what we need to remember is that the armor is God’s, not ours. He offers it to us out of his love, mercy, and grace. And we make the choice to put it on, so that his strength can “carry us when we can’t carry on.”

How often do you attempt to confront temptation on your own? When facing a choice to trust in God or yourself, what pulls you in the direction of self-reliance? What practices or reminders can you build into your life to bring to mind that “his strength is perfect?”

We can only know
The power that He holds
When we truly see how deep our weakness goes
His strength in us begins
Where ours comes to an end
He hears our humble cry and proves again

His strength is perfect when our strength is gone
He'll carry us when we can't carry on
Raised in His power, the weak become strong
His strength is perfect, His strength is perfect

Reading Four: John 6:56-69 (NRSV)

Song: Christ is Enough (lyrics here)

Reflection

In our gospel reading, Jesus puts a choice before his disciples. In face of difficult truths, many of those who have been following him have left, and Jesus asks his closest friends:

“Do you also wish to go away?” (v.67)

The response of the Simon Peter is one that has echoed in my own heart many, many times:

"Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life.
We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." (v.68-69)

As we reflected on earlier, the choice comes to us every day. In fact, it often comes to us many times in the course of a single day. And when it comes, Peter’s response is a good one: he reflects on who Jesus has shown himself to be. He speaks to the supernatural power of Christ’s words. The faith that is engendered by our experience with Jesus is a powerful reminder when other voices beckon. As we lean on God’s strength, as we trust the Spirit’s presence in our life, we can ask him to bring us to a fresh realization of who Jesus is. We can ask him to remind us how “Christ is enough.”

Take some time in prayer to sit with the lyrics of this song and how they have been true in your life. Ask God to root them even deeper in your soul. Ask him to help you with the daily decision to follow Jesus, no turning back.

Christ is my reward and all of my devotion
Now there's nothing in this world
That could ever satisfy
Through ev'ry trial my soul will sing
No turning back I've been set free

Christ is enough for me
Christ is enough for me
Ev'rything I need is in You
Ev'rything I need

Christ my all in all, the joy of my salvation
And this hope will never fail
Heaven is our home
Through ev'ry storm my soul will sing
Jesus is here to God be the glory

Christ is enough for me
Christ is enough for me
Ev'rything I need is in You
Ev'rything I need

I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back, no turning back
I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back, no turning back

The cross before me the world behind me
No turning back, no turning back
The cross before me the world behind me
No turning back, no turning back

Readings for Sunday, August 15, 2021

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Please note—during Ordinary Time, we follow the thematic strand of Old Testament readings

Lectionary Readings for August 15, 2021

Reading One: Proverbs 9:1-6 (NRSV)

Song: Growing (lyrics here)

Reflection

For the past few weeks, as we have been sitting with images of manna and the “Bread of Life,” we have focused mostly on the theme of “provision.” But in our readings this week, I believe there is common language that would have us think of another word: “invitation.”

Each of the Lectionary readings this week has a sense of invitation in it. That’s very appropriate, especially when we consider the most common image that comes to mind with Jesus’ teaching on the Bread of Life—the image of a communion table. As we finish our time with this theme it seems good to think about the varied invitations in these texts and how they relate to Christ’s invitation to share his body and blood in a celebration of the Lord’s Supper.

Our Proverbs text has the very obvious invitational language in verse 5, inviting the reader to eat bread and drink wine that has been laid before us. But being Proverbs, the bread and wine represents a very specific gift: the gift of wisdom. In the very next verse there is another invitation that makes this clear: “Lay aside immaturity, and live, and walk in the way of insight.” (v. 6)

“Lay aside immaturity and live.” These aren’t necessarily words we associate with a celebration of communion, but I think they’re very appropriate. The Lord’s Table represents many deep truths captured in simple images—bread and wine invite us to think about Christ’s sacrifice and Christ’s indwelling presence. As Jesus says in our gospel text, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.” (John 6:56) This is not an elementary teaching by any means. True, the invitation is to all, and contrary to what some part of church history seemed to insist, participation in the Lord’s Supper is not dependent on study and learned preparation. But, still…it is an invitation to go deeper into the mysteries of our life in Christ. To learn more about what it means to abide in him, and he in us.

As Wayne Watson reflects in this song, the journey of maturity is not an easy one. In fact, we often find that growing in our knowledge and experience of Jesus means knowing brokenness in deeper and deeper ways as we are weaned of any sense of self-sufficiency. Perhaps this is why the Apostle Paul said, “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” (Phil. 3:10-11) If we are going to “lay aside immaturity and live,” it will not always be easy. But it will always be worth it.

As you think of your own journey of growing in Christ, can you think of times you have been reluctant to go deeper in your walk of faith? What fears or desires drove that reluctance? How has God shown grace and patience with you, and how might you respond with greater trust as he seeks to take you even deeper?

Reading Two: Psalm 34:9-14 (NRSV)

Song: I’m Listening (lyrics here)

Reflection

In this passage a very specific and clear invitation stands out to me: “Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.” (v. 11) Like the voice of Wisdom in Proverbs, we are again invited to taste of the deeper things of God as we learn that “those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.” (v. 10)

There are so many voices that clamor for our attention these days. So many of them lead to empty and meaningless pursuits. Some of them even claim to be godly voices, but invite us into ungodly ways of thinking and being. If we ever needed to stop and listen to the voice of the one, true God, that time is now.

As a pastor, I’ve been amazed (but not really surprised) by how many times people have shared with me how God spoke a specific word to them during a service of communion. I do believe something unique and powerful happens at the Lord’s Table, but I also think that it is an act which fosters receptivity to what God might be saying and doing. God is able to speak to us anywhere at any time, and when they come to us his words are certainly bread for our soul.

Chris McClarney’s song “I’m Listening” captures so many truths about the voice of God when it speaks into our life, reminding us that his voice:

—clears away confusion
—drives away fear
—sets us free
—gives us hope
—gives us life
—soothes sorrows and trouble
—brings peace
—keeps us safe

As you look at that list, which of those speaks most to what you need today? Do any of them echo the testimony of your life and remind you of a time God’s voice intervened in your life? How do you approach the idea of “listening to God?” Is is a comforting thought? A troubling thought? A frustrating thought? Spend some time in prayer asking God to open your heart more and more to the things he would speak to you, and spend some time sitting in silence as you listen.

Reading Three: Ephesians 5:15-20 (NRSV)

Song: Come Holy Spirit (Uthando) (lyrics here)

Reflection

This passage from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians includes many invitations, but one stands out above all: “Be filled with the Spirit.” (v. 18)

The ministry of the Spirit is something we often take for granted, but the Spirit is always at work. One way we think of the Holy Spirit is the “presence of Christ,” which is language we sometimes find in services of communion. What the bread and cup symbolize, the Spirit imparts to us in ways that are powerful and palpable.

For this particular reflection, you’re invited to read the verses below that speak to the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Which of these speaks to you in a powerful way? Do any provoke you and indicate a need for a conversation with God? How do these verses invite you into a deeper experience of the Spirit in your life today?

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.—Romans 8:26

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.—Acts 1:8

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you.—John 16:13-14

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.—Galatians 5:22-23

Hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.—Romans 5:5

If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.—Romans 8:11

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.—Romans 15:13

Reading Four: John 6:51-58 (NRSV)

Song: We Hunger and Thirst (lyrics here)

Reflection

These teachings of Jesus in John 6, as the reaction of the crowd reflects, are difficult to fully understand. And to be honest, the experience of the Lord’s Table for me is sometimes diminished when I try to think too deeply about what is happening (or why, or how).

Sometimes I just need to express my hunger and my thirst. Sometimes I just need to come to the table as one who is desperately in need of Jesus. That’s not a time for theological reflection, it’s a time for confessing my need and falling on my face.

That’s what I would invite you to do as these reflections draw to a close. The words of “We Hunger and Thirst” are a wonderful prayer. Spend some time reflecting on them, praying with them, and sitting in the presence of the one who invites you to find in him alone what truly satisfies.

Exalted Son of glory humbly came down
Wounded for the broken, bore the sinner’s crown
Through the willing death You died
You became our bread of life


Jesus, we hunger and thirst for You, Lord
As we remember Your sacrifice
We see the wounds from Your hands and pierced side
Extravagant love! Oh how great the price
Now our lives are Yours


The priceless blood of Jesus, this gracious cup
A life spring overflowing, poured out for us
He has conquered every sin
For the ones who trust in Him


The cup we drink, the bread we eat
Reminds us You are all we need
And makes us long for Your wedding feast