[Propertalk] Fwd: Sermon Resources for July 13 - Part 1

[Joe Parrish]

Forwarded:


Sermons for Proper 10



Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 – “The Sower and the Seed”
Romans 8:1-11– “Be a Good Virus”


Matthew 13, the sermon title “The Sower and the Seed”   
 
The Kingdom of God was the main emphasis of Jesus’ ministry and this is accepted by most. But defining precisely what the Kingdom was is a bit more difficult. Indeed, even Jesus himself was often illusive about it. He did not speak in absolutes; rather, he spoke in parables. Such is our scripture text for this morning. Jesus compared the Kingdom to a sower going out and spreading seed. Some of it falls upon hard ground and is unable to take root. Some of it falls on shallow ground, and although it initially sprouts it later withers away. But some seed falls upon good earth and comes to fruition and produces a harvest.

We are to understand, of course, that the sower is God, the seed is the Kingdom, and the various types of soil represent us--you and me. On the surface of it, of course, it doesn’t sound as though God is a very frugal farmer. After all, most of the seed that is strewn about never takes root. But this is not really a story about the sower or the seed. It is a story about different types of soil, or to put it another way, the responses of different types of people to the Kingdom.

The question is really, what is the state of our hearts when the seeds are sown with us? With that in mind, let us examine the various conditions of the heart mentioned in this story.

I. The Hardened Heart
II. The Distracted Heart
III. The Defeated Heart
IV. The Hopeful (and Joyful!) Heart
 
The rest of this sermon can be obtained by joining Sermons.com athttp://www.sermons.com/signup 
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Romans 8, the sermon titled “Be a Good Virus” 
 
Neither “fish nor fowl.” “Lukewarm.” “Wishy-washy.” “Spineless.” “Mediocre.” 
 
These are not good character references. These are descriptions of people who have no personal convictions, no compelling passions, no “take-it-to-the-front-line” faithfulness. Instead, like liquid gelatin, those who have no backbone pour themselves into whatever mold is put before to them for the simplest, easiest gain.
 
The apostle Paul was definitely not a “lukewarm” or “wishy-washy” kind of guy. In fact, he warned the church at Rome “Do not let the world squeeze you into its mold” (Romans 12:2, Phillips translation). Of course, the church can “squeeze” you into a mold of its own making just as firmly as the world. The mold of Christ is the only mold that should gain entrance to the human heart.
 
When Paul stood against the new religious movement forming around this guy named “Jesus the Christ,” he was a “homeland defense” zealot. In his role as a protector of the establishment faith of Temple religion, Paul never hesitated to seek out and hunt down any and all who may have been open to the message of this so-called “Christ.” As a protector of the tradition, Paul was vigilant and virulent. In the case of Stephen, historically the first “Christian” martyr who was stoned by a mob, Paul was even deadly.
 
So it is not surprising that in this week’s Epistle text, Romans 8:1-11, Paul’s message sounds like yet another “black and white”  “fish or fowl” argument…
 
The rest of this sermon can be obtained by joining Sermons.com athttp://www.sermons.com/signup 
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The Wrong Question: What Does It Mean?
 
For a moment, let's put this story to one side and hear another story. It concerns a young anthropologist named Connie who works among aboriginal people in Australia. The community where she lives has a rich tradition of storytelling. Everyone gathers at night, a story is told, and then another, and another. Connie feels extraordinarily privileged when she is asked to join in this activity.

The first story told that evening is about the animal ancestor of this community and its adventures at the beginning of time. The story overflows with detail, action, imagery.

At the end of the story, Connie is delighted. "May I ask a question?" she says. "What does it mean?"

All eyes are upon her. The elder looks at her gravely and says, "That is the one question you cannot ask." A long time passes before she is invited again. She has asked the wrong question.

"What does it mean?" was the wrong question for Connie to ask about the aboriginal myth. It may also be the wrong question for us to ask about the story of the sower, or any of the stories told by Jesus. "What does it mean?" is the wrong question if we think that by having an answer, we can somehow get a handle on this story, domesticate it, make it safe. The stories Jesus tells are not subject to our control. He tells these stories so that we can be transformed. He tells these stories, not so that we can ask questions about them, but so that the stories can ask questions of us.

Charles Hoffacker, What Kind of Soil Are You, What Kind of Sower? 
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God and Three Pennies
 
Mother Teresa of Calcutta, India died as a world-known figure. But who would have ever thought she would have attained such influence when she first began? What did she have to recommend her? A tiny woman, she began with the most meager of resources. Mother Teresa told her superiors, “I have three pennies and a dream from God to build an orphanage.”
 
“Mother Teresa,” her superiors said, “you can’t build an orphanage with three pennies . . . with three pennies you can’t do anything.”
 
“I know,” she said, smiling, “but with God and three pennies I can do anything.”
 
Mother Teresa understood the principle of the seed. It takes very little -- but very little blessed by God -- and miracles can occur. This, of course is akin to Jesus’ teaching elsewhere, that faith only the size of a mustard seed can produce an enormous bush (Matthew 17:20). That is a constant law in God’s world.
 
King Duncan, www.Sermons.com
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