Daily Word, Pentecost 7A

Daily Word, Pentecost 7A

Daily Bible Readings for the Week of the Seventh Sunday of Pentecost, Year A

Join us for Morning Prayer in the chapel, Monday through Friday* at 8:30am, where we read and discuss these Scriptures and pray together. We do the same during Vespers in the parsonage Sunday evenings at 6pm. Join us! The parsonage is across the street from the church. 

Our readings for the week of the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost are listed below. Each verse is linked and will open to Biblia so you may read online. Click the link to read online or read in your Bible. The additional reading each day speaks to the common conversation between the three readings.

Reordering Reality

Israel’s grumbling impatience against God eventually (after much patience from him) elicits divine judgment through fiery serpents. The remedy — simply looking upon a bronze serpent raised on a pole — becomes God’s means of salvation (Numbers 21:4–9). This, of course, is absurd. Who could believe that simply looking at this lifted-up statuary could heal? Yet, those who did so with faith in the promise of healing would indeed be healed and saved from a painful death. Jesus identifies himself with this serpent, promising that his lifted-up death brings eternal life to all who believe (John 3:14–15). Who would believe that simply believing Jesus was lifted upon the cross to die for us would bring forgiveness of sins and eternal life? It is absurd, we might think. If one can be spared in a supposed afterlife, I must have to do something to be saved. But for those who believe, there is forgiveness of sin and everlasting life. The pattern in Numbers and the gospels moves from human grumbling to God’s grace.  

In Acts 17, Paul encounters the varied idolatry and philosophical skepticism of the Athenians. In answer to this, he boldly proclaims the true God who transcends human-made religions and their philosophical assumptions (Acts 17:12–34). Human religious confusion yields to apostolic proclamation of a divine reality.

In Matthew 21, Jesus cleanses the temple, redirecting its purpose from human centered commerce to the divine focus of prayer. Later, he curses a fruitless fig tree (likely a symbol of Israel), demonstrating what happens to people who indignantly ignore divine authority. In contrast, those who have faith in Christ are moved from self-dependence into the new reality of divine promise (Matthew 21:12–22).

All human systems —religious, philosophical (and we may as well add scientific here), or institutional — encounter God’s sovereign judgment and action that reorders reality. Each passage this week emphasizes that ultimate authority belongs to God alone, and our response involves acknowledgement and acceptance of his authority rather than continued resistance to it.

Sunday: Numbers 21:4–9, 21–35; Acts 17:12–34; Luke 13:10–17

Therefore it should have been preached that images were nothing and that no service is done to God by erecting them; then they would have fallen of themselves. That is what I did; that is what Paul did in Athens, when he went into their churches and saw all their idols. He did not punch anyone in the mouth, but stood in the marketplace and said, “You men of Athens, you are all idolatrous” (Acts 17:16, 22). He preached against their idols, but he overthrew none by force. And you want to rush about, create an uproar, smash the altars, and cast out the images! Do you really believe you can abolish the images in this way? No, you will only set them up more firmly. Even if you overthrew the images in this place, do you think you have overthrown those in Nürnberg and the rest of the world? Not at all. St. Paul, as we read in the book of Acts (28:11), sat in a ship on whose prow were painted or carved the Twin Brothers (i.e., Castor and Pollux). He went on board and did not bother about them at all, neither did he break them off. Why must Luke describe the Twins at this point? Without doubt he wanted to show that outward things could do no harm to faith as long as the heart does not attach itself to them or put its trust in them. This is what we must preach and talk about, and let the word alone do the work, as I said before. The word must first capture peoples’ hearts and enlighten them; we will not be the ones who will do it. For this reason, the apostles boasted in their service, ministeri (Romans 11:13), and not in its effect, executio. Let this be enough for today.

Martin J. Lohrmann, “The Invocavit Sermons,” in Pastoral Writings, ed. Hans J. Hillerbrand et al., vol. 4, The Annotated Luther (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1522), 28–29.

Monday: Numbers 22:1–21; Romans 6:12–23; Matthew 21:12–22

For grace and forbearance are not given in order that we may sin or act as we want to, as he later points out when he says that we are not under the law: “What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law?” (Rom. 6:15). And he answers: He does not remit sins in such a way that he no longer regards the work of anyone as sin and simply takes the law away, but he does not punish the sins of the past which he has patiently endured, in order that he may justify. He therefore is not indulgent toward us in order that we may do as we please.

Martin Luther, The Interpretation of Scripture, ed. Euan K. Cameron et al., vol. 6, The Annotated Luther (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2017), 496–497.

Tuesday: Numbers 22:21–38; Romans 7:1–12; Matthew 21:23–32

One design of the economy of law was to demonstrate the futility of every attempt to restrain wickedness by the system of mere “bounds.” What is needed is not “bounds,” but renewal.

H. D. M. Spence-Jones, ed., Exodus, vol. 2, The Pulpit Commentary (London; New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company, 1909), 120.

Wednesday: Numbers 22:41–23:12; Romans 7:13–25; Matthew 21:33–46

There is a fallen human nature within the child of God, which is prone to dishonor God, and is itself beyond the control of the human will. This important and much misunderstood truth is taken up at length in Romans 7:14–25... So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.” This battle between the old nature and the new is, then, never gained for God by human power or by religious exercise: but through Christ alone.

Lewis Sperry Chafer, Satan (New York: Gospel Publishing House, 1909), 154.

Thursday: Numbers 23:11–26; Romans 8:1–11; Matthew 22:1–14

Repose not your felicity in the pelf of this world, which shortly shall perish and come to nought: but set your hearts’ joy upon the living God; who, in Christ and for his sake, hath given himself wholly to be your portion and inheritance for ever, and therefore of right ought you with gladness to give yourselves wholly unto him, both in body and soul. But that do you not, so long as you seek to serve two Masters; which yet you cannot do, as Christ affirmeth, though you cloke, colour, and counterfeit never so much. Do you think it but a small thing for the Lord God himself, even the mighty Jehovah, to give himself wholly to be your own good God, and most dear loving father? Do you think it but a light matter, that he hath given for you, even to the death of the cross, his own only dear Son Jesus Christ, in whom was and is all his whole pleasure and delight, yea, and that when you were his very enemies—by the which gift he hath given you all things both in heaven and in earth? Do you esteem it but a trifle, that he hath given you the Holy Ghost, by whose power and mighty operation you are made the very sons of God, and co-heirs annexed with Christ of all your father’s goods and possessions?

Miles Coverdale, ed., The Letters of the Martyrs: Collected and Published in 1564 (London: John Farquhar Shaw, 1837), 458–459.

Friday: Numbers 24:1–13; Romans 8:12–17; Matthew 22:15–22

Faith gives...new courage and power for trust in the guidance of the whole life by the Father in which again the joy of eternal life is anticipated, and thus lays the basis for the freedom of the Christian or his royal dominion over all things which manifests itself in fearlessness and pride and defiance of Satan, world, and death as the counterpart of humble submission to God and which through the certainty of the blessing of divine guidance surpasses mysticism—ecstasies as well as resignation in God.

Samuel Macauley Jackson, ed., The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge (New York; London: Funk & Wagnalls, 1908–1914), 47.

Saturday: Numbers 24:12–25; Romans 8:18–25; Matthew 22:23–40

That which characterizes the subjective hope which is peculiar to the Christian is just this, that it is not of human origin, and does not pursue earthly aims. It is effected by the consolation of the Scriptures (δι? τ?ς παρακλ?σεως τ?ν γραφ?ν, Romans 15:4); it comes from the God of hope, in the power of the Holy Ghost (Romans 15:13); it has its origin in Jesus Christ and God our Father, who has loved us, and who gives us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace (2 Thessalonians 2:16); it is a living hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (1 Peter 1:3; comp. 1:21), and is entirely directed to the salvation which is to come (?λπ?ς σωτηρ?ας, 1 Thessalonians 5:8; see also Hebrews 9:28; Romans 8:23).

G. Chr. Adolph von Harless, System of Christian Ethics, ed. William Findlay, trans. A. M. Morrison, vol. XIX, Clark’s Foreign Theological Library, Fourth Series (Edinburgh, IN; London; Dublin, CA: T. and T. Clark; Hamilton and Co.; John Robertson and Co., 1868), 178.

*We do not meet in the chapel on Saturdays. On Sundays, we meet in the parsonage at 6pm to discuss the readings.

Log in to add a comment

Click Here For Content Archives