LoginHome » Ministers' resources » Worship Resources » Preaching Kits » Year B Mark » Kit 7 » Pentecost 16
Pentecost 16 (28 September 2003)
Esther 7: 1-6; 9-10, 9: 20-22; Psalm 124; James 5: 13 – 20; Mark 9: 38 – 50
You might want to play around with the actual recommended readings this week. My suggestions are indicated above in brackets with question marks. I can’t see the point of missing out verse 8 in the Esther reading unless your congregations are particularly squeamish – the death of Ha’man being partly related to the king’s assumption about what Ha’man was doing to the Queen in verse 8. The other suggestion in Mark, to start reading from verse 36, is because it gives context to John’s question which follows. This does mean an overlap with last week’s gospel reading, but I don’t think that will hurt.
This week I can see a theme which runs through the first three readings, but not into the gospel. It is to do with the importance of prayer, and how God responds to the urgent prayers of people.
Esther 7: 1 – 6; 9: 20 - 22
A passage like this is an invitation to read or remember the whole amazing story of Esther, Mordecai and Ha’man. A story full of threat and grace and the good guys beating the evil ones. You can see why this story became commemorated in the annual celebration noted in chapter 9; it includes all the ingredients of a great story. At the heart is the desperate cry of the Hebrew exiles to God to save them – a prayer that was answered very dramatically. I will never recall this story without remembering a sermon by Rev Bev Holt - one of the early female kiwi Baptist ministers- on the text ‘You were called to the kingdom for such a time as this’. These words are spoken by Mordecai to Esther [chapter 4 verse 14]. There are times in each of our lives when those words ring true for us and we know that God has called us to do something courageous, for which we have been prepared over many years. This passage shows us the courage of this young woman who recognised that her position in royal society placed responsibility on her shoulders. It also encourages us to receive God’s call to courageous living in the places God has placed us, whether we enjoy a life of privilege or not.
Psalm 124
This psalm clearly resonates with the experiences of the Hebrew people described in Esther. Their enemies attacking, ‘their anger kindled against us’, the image of a flood sweeping the people away, and being ‘given as prey to their teeth’. This is a psalm attributed to David, or at least the collection of psalms associated with David. So the circumstances will be a different set of threats and enemies, possibly Saul’s campaign to hunt David down. But they apply powerfully to Esther’s situation and to countless numbers of ‘threats’ and ‘enemies’ since then. The message of the psalm rings true in every generation and to every person faced with any ‘threat’; that if God hadn’t been at our side, we would have been swallowed alive. God’s powerful presence as our rescuer, our Saviour, is a passionate theme of the faith of the people of God through the generations.
James 5: 13 – 20
This is one of the classic passages about prayer among Christians. The basic message is - if you’ve got trouble, pray. Whatever the trouble – whether sickness or sinfulness or lack of rain or someone struggling with their faith journey – pray. There is community language used of this praying - pray for yourself, pray for others, ask the church leaders to pray. The basic assumption is that part of our responsibilities to each other in churches is to pray for one another especially when we are in trouble. This is advice which the Hebrews in Esther’s day understood and took seriously. Faced with an enormous threat to their ethnic survival, they turned to God in prayer, ‘with fasting, weeping and lamenting’.
James refers to a different example of faith-filled prayer, that of Elijah. His prayers were about rain, and the rain gauge in rural Israel, was as accurate an economic indicator, as any of our modern measurements of economic growth. Elijah is an example that the prayers of ‘the righteous’ are powerful and effective. James encourages us to pray because he is convinced that God hears and responds to our prayers. This is a conviction shared by the psalmist and the characters in the Esther story.
Mark 9: 38 – 50
An interesting contrast in attitude is seen between Jesus and his disciple John in this passage. Jesus takes a child and says that anyone who welcomes a child in his name, welcomes him and the one who sent him. In contrast John says that they stopped people casting out demons in Jesus’ name, because they weren’t following ‘us’. This is a question the church has often wrestled with – to what extent do we allow people to engage in ministry who are not strongly identified with us, our congregation, our denomination, and our style of being a Christian. Who do we let preach in church, or lead youth group or children’s ministries. This is becoming an increasingly key issue as postmodern culture impacts the church; because increasingly people are reluctant to join the church formally, but they still wish to actively engaged in the mission of the church.
Jesus’ response to John is “Do not stop him ….Whoever is not against us is for us”. The way I read Jesus’ response is to not be overly concerned about membership in faith communities, but instead to encourage participation in the mission of Jesus. It is as we participate in what Jesus is about, that a sense of belonging grows to others who also participate in what Jesus is doing.
The final section of Mark 9 is straight to the point. Do not put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in Jesus. Jesus shows how serious he is by talking dramatically about millstones around necks and cutting off hands and feet. It is serious business to be the cause of anyone stumbling in their faith; whether it is turning children back who want to see Jesus, or telling those ministering in Jesus’ name that they can’t. In the history of the church we have been better at telling people not to minister in Jesus’ name, than we have been at enabling ministry to happen. So we need to take careful note of Jesus’ warning here. It is good to place this warning alongside James 5: 19 which commends those who, rather than being stumbling blocks, help the wanderers return to the fold.
Some preaching suggestions:
- Explore the theme of prayer as it is developed in Esther, Psalm 124 and James.
- Retell the story of Esther with its themes of courage and hope in the face of the threat of ethnic cleansing.
- Consider the issues related to authority, participation and belonging in the mission of Jesus, based around the gospel reading.
Hymn and song suggestions:
- Great and Deep the Spirit’s Purpose (AA 55)
- The Children’s Saviour
- Tell My People I Love Them
- O God, Our Help In Ages Past
- Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace
A Prayer
Lord may we live with Esther’s courage and Mordecai’s faithfulness in hostile times. Let us hear Mordecai’s words to Esther as your word to us today: ‘You were called to the kingdom for such a time as this’. We hear your call to live as your people in our world. We respond in courage and faithfulness and pledge ourselves to walk the way of the cross in our communities this week. Lord give us the strength we need to face the challenges of this week. In the strong name of Jesus. Amen.