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2 Timothy 3:14-4:5 Sermon Commentary
Proper 24C
Our lectionary reading for this 22nd Sunday of The Growing Season (more commonly known as Ordinary Time) reminds us of one of the deepest darkest secrets of spiritual growth. As we’ve followed the readings for Year C, we’ve been reminded of the importance of getting the basic gospel straight (Galatians), of staying Christ centered (Colossians),…
2 Samuel 11:1-15 Sermon Commentary
Proper 12B
A sermon on this text might be entitled, “The Dream Ends, The Nightmare Begins.” This text is the Continental Divide of David’s life and of the history of the monarchy in Israel. Up to this story, everything gets better and better for David, as he climbs (or, more accurately, is lifted by God’s grace) from…
2 Samuel 7:1-14a Sermon Commentary
Proper 11B
This is arguably the most important text in the books of Samuel, indeed, in what scholars call the Deuteronomistic history from the Pentateuch through Chronicles. So, although I’ve written on it just 7 months ago at the height of Advent, I will attempt to offer some fresh preaching ideas for this Eighth Sunday of Ordinary…
2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19 Sermon Commentary
Proper 10B
There is no question what this text is about—the ark of the covenant. It is mentioned over and over, nine times in all. So is David; his name comes up even more. David brings the ark of the covenant into Jerusalem. That’s what this text is about. But, so what? Why was that so important…
2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10 Sermon Commentary
Proper 9B
This is a little text, but it is the exclamation point of the whole David story. He gets everything God promised him, and then some. The boy whom we first met when he was shepherding his father’s flock becomes the King of Israel, the shepherd of God’s flock. And he establishes Jerusalem as the capital…
2 Samuel 1:1,17-27 Sermon Commentary
Proper 8B
This is a strange and tough text to preach on, until you look at it through the lens of our contemporary situation, particularly in America. One of the hard realities of this past year was “the presence of [our] enemies,” as David put it in his most famous Psalm. Let me put this text in…
1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23), 32-49 Sermon Commentary
Proper 7B
As we continue to trace the development of the monarchy in Israel and use that history to reflect on the relationship between human leadership and divine sovereignty in our own lives, we come to this famous story of David and Goliath. It is the second chapter in the story of David’s rise to power in…
1 Samuel 15:34-16:13 Sermon Commentary
Proper 6B
This old story about God’s choice of David as the new king of Israel fairly bubbles with contemporary relevance, especially in America. I wrote the first draft of this Sermon Commentary just a few weeks after the inauguration of the Biden/Harris team. The words of Shakespeare’s witches of Eastwick described the national mood perfectly: “Double,…
I Samuel 8:4-11, (12-15), 16-20, (11:14-15) Sermon Commentary
Proper 5B
After our celebrations of the mighty acts of God from Advent to Pentecost, the prospect of entering Ordinary Time might seem like a bit of a downer. But the Old Testament readings for the next couple of months plunge us right into the kind of social and political turmoil that characterizes our own time. To…
Isaiah 6:1-8 Sermon Commentary
Trinity Sunday B
Using this prophetic text for Trinity Sunday will take a bit of exegetical ingenuity. You will have to use strong New Testament glasses to find the Trinity here. But, on the other hand, this is a perfect text for the transition from the celebration of the Great Feasts of the church year to Ordinary Time,…
Commentaries Written by Stan Mast