Commentary posted on August 16, 2021

Proper 16B Sermon Commentary

The Proper 16B Sermon Starters include commentary and illustration ideas for John 6:56-69 from the Lectionary Gospel; I Kings 8:(1, 6, 10-11), 22-30, 41-43 from the Old Testament Lectionary; Psalm 34:15-23 from the Lectionary Psalms; and Ephesians 6:10-20 from the Lectionary Epistle.

Related Reformed confession: Lectionary Epistle: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 127 (Lord’s Day 52)

 

Home » August 16, 2021 - Proper 16B

John 6:56-69 Sermon Commentary

Proper 16B

We are now at the end of our long jaunt through John 6. Rather climactically, the final question of why we find it difficult to simply believe culminates with Jesus asking a very non-hypothetical question of his own, forcing us to consider ourselves in the process. Can we accept God’s work and ways? There are…

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Psalm 34:15-23 Sermon Commentary

Proper 16B

Welcome to Week 3 of Psalm 34. As noted before, the Lectionary for some reason devotes three consecutive Sundays to this relatively short psalm. What’s more, in the original Hebrew this is an acrostic poem, meaning it is meant to be memorized and seen as a unity. But despite via the Lectionary we have considered…

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1 Kings 8:(1-6, 10-11), 22-30, 41-43 Sermon Commentary

Proper 16B

The last few verses of this lection strike me as much as anything. So much of the Old Testament is all-Israel all-the-time. There is warfare and defeat of other nations, dark warnings about inter-marriage with Canaanites, the threat of foreign religious practices wheedling their way into the faith of Israel. It’s easy at times to…

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Ephesians 6:10-20 Sermon Commentary

Proper 16B

The past approximately 17 months have taken a heavy toll on many of this Sunday’s Epistolary Lesson’s proclaimers and hearers. The pandemic and efforts to mitigate its affects have caused great physical, mental and even spiritual suffering. They’ve left us exhausted. What’s more, just when we seemed to have turned a corner, COVID-19 seems to…

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