Jesus tells us, “there is need of only one thing.” Find
for this Sunday the one thing in each of the texts that helps us to know what
Jesus means. That one thing is the gospel. How is it expressed?
Luke 10:38-42
The expression translated in our
text as “Mary has chosen the better part” is probably better translated as
“Mary has chosen the better portion.” Jesus is making a pun here. He means that
Mary is consuming the only truly necessary food: she is feeding her mind and
spirit as one of his students. . . And he's gently inviting Martha to sit down
to the feast as well.
Contemporary society is full of
Marthas. I am constantly amazed at the sheer busyness of many women's lives,
especially those who have children—and of the busyness of their children's lives
as well. . . . There is no time to be together as a family, nor, for the
individual family members, any time to stop, to rest, or to be refreshed.
Everyone is frantic—and exhausted.
. . . Who among us would want to
have missed a chance to sit at Jesus' feet because they were out in the kitchen
rattling pots and pans, or running the kids to soccer practice, or out in the
driveway hosing off the car? This does not mean that it's okay to sit there
being a couch potato when someone else is doing all the work. But it does mean
that we—and our children—need to take time to refresh our spirits, to pray,
read, dream, think. It is time, in short, to stop the busyness. To find time
for one another. To find time for ourselves. And to find time to sit at Jesus'
feet and, like Mary, to take the better portion for ourselves. – Judy
Buck-Glenn
The good news in this story is the
freedom Jesus offered to both sisters: for Martha, the freedom to let go of her
anxiety and worry, in order to spend time enjoying the company Jesus offered at
that moment. . . ; for Mary, the freedom to soak in the comfort and joy of
Jesus' presence. . . – Carol J. Noren
Genesis 18:1-10a
Sarah’s laughter at the visitors’ announcement of her
impending child is not part of this story. It is such a favorite moment in
scripture, it seems almost cheating to know it is there around the corner but
not included today.
What is the focus of this event if not Sarah’s
incredulity? It is the hospitality shown to strangers who, as we are plainly
told is the LORD, appearing in the guise of three men. The exact identity of the visitors
is manifold and confusing – just as are we individuals to each other when we meet. There is always more "there" than meets the eye. Abraham and Sarah demonstrate the welcome due to
those who drop into our lives. Those visitors bring surprising news and unfathomable
joy. Can we see it?
Colossians 1:15-28
The beautiful Christ-hymn in verses
15–20 invites awe and wonder at the place of Christ at the center of God's
work, celebrating the majesty of Christ as the image of God and firstborn of
creation. Interesting and surprising are the echoes of claims made by imperial
Rome concerning Caesar. When Colossians describes Christ in terms very similar
to those used by the cult of the emperor to honor Caesar, the “hymn” becomes a
prophetic word spoken against the empire's hubris. It is Christ, and not
Caesar, in whom the fullness of God is present and through whom God is making
peace in the cosmos. It is the way of Christ—forgiveness, generosity, trust and
sharing—by which God is renewing the world. The way of Caesar—domination,
violence and greed—embodies the evil from which Christ saves. – Aaron J. Couch
Judith M. M.
Buck-Glenn is associate rector at Christ Church Episcopal, in Ridley Park,
Pennsylvania.
Aaron J. Couch
is a co-pastor of First Immanuel Lutheran Church in Portland, Oregon.
Carol J. Noren, a
United Methodist pastor, is the Wesley W. Nelson professor of homiletics at
North Park Theological Seminary. She served churches as pastor in Minnesota for
twenty years.
Homily Service 40, no. 8 (2007): 31-38.
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