In worship, we offered a prayer to remind ourselves that we can, in fact, know and understand what we ought to do. But it is not simply enough to know and understand, we must depend upon God’s grace and power to do the things we do for God. Our New Testament reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans tells us that we wrestle with our humanity and our spirituality. He reminds us that our humanity is not permanent but our spiritual nature lasts forever. The Psalmist sings the reminder that God’s word and guidance is the light that leads us to the place God is calling us to. The gospel reading from Matthew is the parable of the sower and Jesus’ explanation of the parable to the disciples.

The sermon was based on the Hebrew Scripture reading from Genesis. We heard the story of Esau and Jacob, their birth and the dynamic of their shared existence. In this story we hear how God uses regular people to accomplish God’s plan. Even when they (and we) balk we are able to live a meaningful life which survives through time when we allow God’s grace to carry us. Even when we feel that it is taking too long, God’s grace will sustain us. Realistically, we are necessary for God’s plan – not because God can’t succeed without us but because it is our right to be part of God’s plan.

I invite your comments,
Les+

Readings: Genesis 25:19-34; Psalm 119:105-112; Romans 8:1-11; Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Listen at: https://audiomack.com/fatherles-1/song/7th-sunday-after-pentecost-sermon