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This Sunday is more of a potpourri of thematic threads than a single finely woven fabric. Each of the passages might speak powerfully and eloquently: God’s knowledge and plans for our lives; God’s invitation to focus on God’s unshakeable Kingdom; God’s care of our lives in the healing of a woman who has greatly suffered, and the psalm which expresses confidence in God’s protection through our entire life.

PSALM 71:1-6-PRAISE FROM AN AGING MUSICIAN

This psalm comes from an aging musician (vv. 9 and 18) who mixes lament and praise together to form a beautiful prayer for protection and help. The first four verses describe the security and safety which the psalmist finds in God and also include a prayer for deliverance. The final two verses recall God’s lifelong care and protection that now gives the psalmist confidence: "Upon you I have leaned from my birth . . . you took me from my mother’s womb" (v. 6).

JEREMIAH 1:4-10-JEREMIAH’S CALL AND COMMISSION

This is one of the most memorable calling passages in the Bible. The passage contains a conversation that God has with Jeremiah: God’s knowledge and plans for Jeremiah before he could possibly have known God (v. 4); the prophet’s reticence and feet-dragging, I’m not really good with getting up in front of people (v. 6); God’s rebuke-shush! Stop saying, I’m only a boy! (v. 7); and God’s fiat of the call-you’ll stand before any crowd I place you before and you’ll say what I tell you to say (v. 7). The final two verses contains God’s act of consecration and commission.

HEBREWS 12:18-29-TWO MOUNTAINS, TWO POSTURES, TWO FUTURES

This passage is introduced by "You have not come to . . . But you have come to . . ." The first phrase is the fearsome, terrifying Presence of God at Mt. Sinai (vv. 18-21); the second phrase moves the reader/listener to Mt. Zion-the newly refurbished and renovated City of God-heaven, the New Jerusalem, the place of innumerable angels in festive garb. The advent of Jesus has made the first pall in the radiance of the second. Thus, warns the writer, "do not refuse the one who is speaking . . ." (v. 25), for God’s new kingdom is one which "cannot be shaken" (v. 28).

LUKE 13:10-17-TWO CHALLENGED PEOPLE, ONE HEALING

We have in the gospel lesson both a healing story and a story of conflict; sometimes such actions are inseparable. In this case, Jesus notices a woman "bent over" in her stature and knows intuitively that this has been her lot in life for a long time (nearly two decades, v. 11). Jesus frees the woman of her ailment only to face the blistering criticism of the synagogue ruler for messing up the order of worship. Jesus, however, cuts to the chase and lays open the real issue of hypocrisy with the result that "his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing" (v. 17).