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<DIV>The following are SermonWriter materials for (June 14) Proper 6B. They
focus on Mark 4:26-34, where Jesus said that the kingdom of God is like a
mustard seed.<BR><BR>NO PASSWORD REQUIREMENT: We are posting these materials on
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<DIV>Dick Donovan<BR><BR><BR>A THOUGHT ON PREACHING: <BR><BR>The trouble
is that our public men are really artificial. They're created by the most
devastating tool that technology has invented -- the teleprompter: They
don't speak spontaneously.... They read this thing that's going around
there in front of them, words that have been created for them by PR men.
It allows an inadequate, minor individual to appear to be a statesman.
(Barbara Tuchman)<BR><BR><BR>TITLE: Would Jesus Wear a
Rolex?<BR><BR><BR>SERMON IN A SENTENCE: The kingdom of God is in our
presence today, not in dramatic, showy ways, but in ways as inconspicuous as a
tiny mustard seed.<BR><BR><BR>SCRIPTURE: Mark
4:26-34<BR><BR>Stories:<BR><><BR>"Would Jesus Wear a Rolex on His
Television Show?" The late Paul Harvey, with his whimsical sense of humor,
decided to interview several television evangelists to see how they would answer
that question.<BR><BR>Jerry Falwell replied:
<BR><BR> "I do not subscribe to the 'theology of
prosperity.'...<BR> I wear an inexpensive
watch. <BR> I think Jesus
would."<BR><BR>Evelyn Roberts, wife of televangelist Oral Roberts, said:
<BR><BR> "Jesus wore a seamless robe, doubtless a
gift from an admirer, <BR> but sufficiently
valuable so that Roman soldiers cast lots for the garment.
<BR> He was not afraid to wear nice things.
<BR> To maximize His ministry, He would need
television. <BR> For television programs he
would need to tell time. <BR> Would Jesus
wear a Rolex? Why not?"<BR><BR>Robert Schuller noted that you first have
to decide if Jesus would have been on television. Schuller thought he
would have, because television is a great medium for preaching the Gospel.
But would Jesus have worn a Rolex on his television show? Schuller said,
"I think not."<BR><BR>Paul Harvey, after relating the televangelists' responses,
closed with these words: <BR><BR> "Would
Jesus wear a Rolex on TV? <BR> More likely,
he would move about unnoticed <BR> within the
ranks of the Salvation Army. <BR> Which he
does."<BR><BR> The Salvation Army does lots of good work with the "little
people" of the world -- people who desperately need help. Paul Harvey
thought that Jesus would have done the same. </DIV>
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<DIV><BR>Some years ago, John Vannorsdall preached a sermon in which he told how
he happened, one day, to notice the kingdom of God. Allow me to close with
his words. See if you can find a parallel for your life. He
said:<BR><BR> "I remember one time, years ago,
<BR> when I was in a hotel in a strange city
<BR> and it was just before noon on a Saturday
<BR> when I heard the ringing of a bell.
<BR><BR> From my window I could see people
entering a stone church <BR> with the bell in an
open steeple. <BR> I'd never done it before,
especially on Saturday, <BR> but it seemed
important that I go across the square.
<BR><BR> The church was cool and dark, until my
eyes adjusted <BR> and I could see a handful of
people scattered here and there <BR> in what was a
large place. <BR><BR> The minister or
priest, I'm not sure of his tradition, <BR> led us
in Psalms and prayers, <BR> and said a few helpful
things about the lesson he had read, <BR> blessed
us, <BR> and we left as we were ready.
<BR><BR> The Kingdom of God had come close,
<BR> and I'd laid down my pen and followed the
sound of a bell. <BR> I'm glad I did
that. <BR> Too often I've
not."<BR><><BR>FOR MORE SERMONS ON THIS TEXT, GO TO: <BR><A
href="http://www.lectionary.org/SermLinks/NT/NT02mark.htm">http://www.lectionary.org/SermLinks/NT/NT02mark.htm</A>
<BR><BR>Scroll down to Mark 4. There are two sermons on this text posted
there.<BR><BR><></DIV>
<DIV><BR>THOUGHT PROVOKERS: <BR><BR>If angels came in packages, we'd
almost always pick the wrong one. Even as the devil is evil disguised as
good, angels are goodness disguised. They show up in foolscap, calico, and
gingham, and brown paper bags. Jesus discovered the realm of God in a
mustard seed, the smallest and least portentous of all seeds. Mustard
seeds and angels have this in common. They are little epiphanies of the
divine amidst the ordinary.<BR><BR>F. Forrester Church<BR><BR>* *
* * * * * * * *<BR><BR>People do not
enter the kingdom in crowds; they must enter as individuals; for the moment of
entry is the personal and individual acceptance of the will of God. That
is why the growth of the mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, into a tree
symbolizes the kingdom. That is why, if a person is placed in an
environment which is hostile or indifferent to the claims of God, he must not
regard it as something to regret and resent, but as a privilege and a challenge
to be the tiny seed from which the kingdom grows. <BR><BR>The Beatitudes and the
Lord's Prayer for Everyman, William Barclay<BR><BR>* * *
* * * * * * *<BR><BR>Jesus lets us in on an
astonishing secret. God has chosen to change the world through the lowly, the
unassuming and the imperceptible .. That has always been God's strategy --
changing the world through the conspiracy of the insignificant. He chose a
ragged bunch of Semite slaves to become the insurgents of His new
order.... And, who would have ever dreamed that God would choose to work
through a baby in a cow stall to turn the world right side up? It is still God's
policy to work through the embarrassingly insignificant to change his world and
create his future. <BR><BR>Tom Sine, The Mustard Seed Conspiracy<BR><BR>*
* * * * * * * * *<BR><BR>A holy
Christian life is made up of a number of small things:<BR> Little words,
not eloquent sermons;<BR> Little deeds, not miracles of battle,<BR> Or
one great, heroic deed of martyrdom;<BR>The little constant
sunbeam,<BR> not the lightning.<BR><BR>The avoidance of little
evils,<BR> Little inconsistencies, little weaknesses,<BR> Little
follies and indiscretions,<BR> And little indulgences of the flesh made
up<BR>The beauty of a holy life.<BR><BR>Andrew Bonar<BR><BR>* *
* * * * * * * *<BR><BR>"It's hard to
remember that Jesus did not come to make us safe, <BR>but rather to make us
disciples, citizens of God's new age, <BR>a kingdom of surprise."<BR><BR>Stanley
Hauerwas<BR><BR>* * * * * * * *
* *<BR><BR><><BR><BR><A
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