[Propertalk] Fw: SermonWriter materials for (June 14) Proper 6B, Mark 4:26-34

[Ann Fontaine]

Thanks for these Joe--   Ann


On Jun 8, 2009, at 7:46 AM, Joe Parrish wrote:

> 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.
>
> NO PASSWORD REQUIREMENT: We are posting these materials on the web  
> with no password.  To access those files, you MUST use the following  
> links.  If clicking on the link fails to work, copy the link and  
> paste it in the address window near the top of your browser.  Then  
> hit the ENTER key or click GO.
>
> Microsoft Word file:
> http://www.lectionary.org/SW/06-14jw/Mark_4.26-34.doc
>
> HTML file (web page):
> http://www.lectionary.org/SW/06-14jw/Mark_4.26-34.htm
>
> WordPerfect file:
> http://www.lectionary.org/SW/06-14jw/Mark_4.26-34.wpd
>
> <>
> A TIP: If you want the Word or WordPerfect files, LEFT-CLICK on the  
> link and see what happens.  That should bring up a dialog box that  
> asks if you want to open the file or save it.  Choose OPEN.  Then  
> save it wherever you like on your hard drive.
>
> If that doesn't work, RIGHT-CLICK on the link.  You should get a sub- 
> menu.  Hopefully, "Save Target As" will be one of the options.   
> Click on that.  Then save the file wherever you want on your hard  
> drive.
>
>
> <>
> Dick Donovan
>
>
> A THOUGHT ON PREACHING:
>
> 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)
>
>
> TITLE:  Would Jesus Wear a Rolex?
>
>
> 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.
>
>
> SCRIPTURE:  Mark 4:26-34
>
> Stories:
> <>
> "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.
>
> Jerry Falwell replied:
>
>       "I do not subscribe to the 'theology of prosperity.'...
>       I wear an inexpensive watch.
>       I think Jesus would."
>
> Evelyn Roberts, wife of televangelist Oral Roberts, said:
>
>       "Jesus wore a seamless robe, doubtless a gift from an admirer,
>       but sufficiently valuable so that Roman soldiers cast lots for  
> the garment.
>       He was not afraid to wear nice things.
>       To maximize His ministry, He would need television.
>       For television programs he would need to tell time.
>       Would Jesus wear a Rolex?  Why not?"
>
> 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."
>
> Paul Harvey, after relating the televangelists' responses, closed  
> with these words:
>
>       "Would Jesus wear a Rolex on TV?
>       More likely, he would move about unnoticed
>       within the ranks of the Salvation Army.
>       Which he does."
>
>  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.
>
> <>
>
> 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:
>
>       "I remember one time, years ago,
>       when I was in a hotel in a strange city
>       and it was just before noon on a Saturday
>       when I heard the ringing of a bell.
>
>       From my window I could see people entering a stone church
>       with the bell in an open steeple.
>       I'd never done it before, especially on Saturday,
>       but it seemed important that I go across the square.
>
>       The church was cool and dark, until my eyes adjusted
>       and I could see a handful of people scattered here and there
>       in what was a large place.
>
>       The minister or priest, I'm not sure of his tradition,
>       led us in Psalms and prayers,
>       and said a few helpful things about the lesson he had read,
>       blessed us,
>       and we left as we were ready.
>
>       The Kingdom of God had come close,
>       and I'd laid down my pen and followed the sound of a bell.
>       I'm glad I did that.
>       Too often I've not."
> <>
> FOR MORE SERMONS ON THIS TEXT, GO TO:
> http://www.lectionary.org/SermLinks/NT/NT02mark.htm
>
> Scroll down to Mark 4.  There are two sermons on this text posted  
> there.
>
> <>
>
> THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
>
> 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.
>
> F. Forrester Church
>
> *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
>
> 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.
>
> The Beatitudes and the Lord's Prayer for Everyman, William Barclay
>
> *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
>
> 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.
>
> Tom Sine, The Mustard Seed Conspiracy
>
> *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
>
> A holy Christian life is made up of a number of small things:
>  Little words, not eloquent sermons;
>  Little deeds, not miracles of battle,
>  Or one great, heroic deed of martyrdom;
> The little constant sunbeam,
>  not the lightning.
>
> The avoidance of little evils,
>  Little inconsistencies, little weaknesses,
>  Little follies and indiscretions,
>  And little indulgences of the flesh made up
> The beauty of a holy life.
>
> Andrew Bonar
>
> *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
>
> "It's hard to remember that Jesus did not come to make us safe,
> but rather to make us disciples, citizens of God's new age,
> a kingdom of surprise."
>
> Stanley Hauerwas
>
> *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
>
> <>
>
> www.sermonwriter.com
>
> www.lectionary.org
>
> <>
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Ann Fontaine c3
Lander, Wyoming


4311