The Fourth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 7 - 24 June 2012
Job
38:1-11
Psalm
107:1-3, 23-32
II
Corinthians 6:1-13
St.
Mark 4:35-41
Background:
Creation – Word and Chaos
In the readings
from Job and from the Gospel of Mark, we have echoes of one of the creation
stories in Genesis. It is one model that
is used in describing the work of creation, but it is not the only one. The influences on the creation stories flow
directly from the Canaanite culture that surrounded Israel, and somewhat more
indirectly from the Mesopotamian culture that was the background to the great
patriarchal epics. Both of the models
are indebted to these cultural streams.
One is the “Word” model, in which God speaks, and something is
accomplished. The other is a “Crisis” or
“Chaos” model in which God as creator overcomes forces of disorder. Some commentators speak of the Word model, as
being “dry” and of the Chaos model as being “wet”. The chaos is wet in that the forces of
disarray that are conquered in creation are seen in the unruly sea, and the
monsters (the Leviathan) that live there.
The reading from Job refers to the chaos model when YHWH says to Job,
“Or who shut in the sea with doors?”
Likewise, in the Gospel, we have a reflection of the creation story when
Jesus controls the chaos of wind and wave.
Such are the rich cultural backgrounds to our sacred texts.
Job 38:1-11
Then the LORD answered Job out of the
whirlwind:
"Who is this that darkens
counsel by words without knowledge?
Gird up your loins like a man,
I will
question you, and you shall declare to me.
"Where were you when I laid
the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who
determined its measurements-- surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon
it?
On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone
when the
morning stars sang together
and all the heavenly beings shouted for joy?
"Or who shut in the sea with doors
when it burst out from the
womb? --
When I made the clouds its garment,
and thick darkness its swaddling
band,
and prescribed bounds for it,
and set bars and doors,
and said, `Thus
far shall you come, and no farther,
and here shall your proud waves be
stopped'?
In the
conversations that Job is having with his erstwhile friends about his
difficulties and his sorrow, God intervenes to put Job gently back into his
place. This reminder comes in a
theophany, a divine appearance from the midst of a whirlwind (again God rules
over the chaos), and the divine name, YHWH, is used. God wants Job to see that it is God that is
control of nature, and does so in a series of questions to Job: “Who?” “What?”
“How?”. The common answer is “I”, God
the creator. The purpose of this reading
is not to lead the worshipper in the liturgy to the intricate conversations of
Job, but rather to see God, in the Book of Job, as the cause of creation. Thus, Jesus is lifted up in the Gospel in a
similar manner.
Breaking
open Job:
- How does creation help you believe?
- How do you see God in creation?
- How does this reading apply to a world in which we control so
much of creation?
Psalm 107:1-3,
23-32 Confitemini Domino
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, *
and his mercy endures for ever.
Let all those whom the LORD has redeemed
proclaim *
that he redeemed them from the hand of the
foe.
He gathered them out of the lands; *
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
Some went down to the sea in ships *
and plied their trade in deep waters;
They beheld the works of the LORD *
and his wonders in the deep.
Then he spoke, and a stormy wind arose, *
which tossed high the waves of the sea.
They mounted up to the heavens and fell back
to the depths; *
their hearts melted because of their peril.
They reeled and staggered like drunkards *
and were at their wits' end.
Then they cried to the LORD in their
trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
He stilled the storm to a whisper *
and quieted the waves of the sea.
Then were they glad because of the calm, *
and he brought them to the harbor they were
bound for.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his
mercy *
and the wonders he does for his children.
Let them exalt him in the congregation of
the people *
and praise him in the council of the elders.
This is a
collective thanksgiving psalm, which becomes clear to us as we see all the
levels of gratefulness that the author unfolds for us in the psalm. In verse two we need to understand the use of
the term “redeemed” there. This is used
here not in its religious sense but rather in its political sense. The “redeemed ones” are hostages that have
been released from some sort of political captivity. The following verse offers a possible context. Gathered from “out of the lands” might be a
reference to the Babylonian Exile. It
might be, however, that this is an older text, and the reference may have been
the return from Egypt.
Into the psalm,
which celebrates the return of the exile, we have the inclusion of material
that may have originally been from another, unrelated source. Ancient manuscripts note verses 23-30 with a
mark that sets them apart. This section on
the seafarer may serve as a commentary on God’s saving help at the time of death,
the sea often serving as an image of death in the Hebrew Scriptures. For our purposes, this morning, these verses
have been chosen to amplify the Gospel reading, with Jesus on the Sea of
Galilee.
Breaking
open the Psalm 107
- Have you ever been exiled in your life?
- Have you ever been returned from exile into life?
- What thanksgivings do you have about your life?
2 Corinthians
6:1-13
As we work together with Christ, we urge you
also not to accept the grace of God in vain. For he says,
"At an acceptable time I have listened
to you,
and on a day of salvation I have helped
you."
See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is
the day of salvation! We are putting no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no
fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we have commended
ourselves in every way: through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships,
calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger;
by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love, truthful
speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right
hand and for the left; in honor and dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We
are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet are well known;
as dying, and see-- we are alive; as punished, and yet not killed; as
sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having
nothing, and yet possessing everything.
We have spoken frankly to you Corinthians;
our heart is wide open to you. There is no restriction in our affections, but
only in yours. In return-- I speak as to children-- open wide your hearts also.
What we have here
is an invitation for mutual love and respect – Paul for the Corinthians, and
the Corinthians for Paul. The opening
line, with its sub note of cooperation (which is more than cooperation between
two entities – Paul and the Corinthians, but rather cooperation with God) also
notes through a quotation from Isaiah 49:8, that this work with God is done in
a time of God’s good favor – the “acceptable time.” Paul follows with the usual lists of virtues,
and contrasting qualities. It is as if
Paul is opening himself up to the people of Corinth so that they might see his
motivation and his intent in ministering to them. One note, the right hand was used for weapons
of offense, while the left hand for weapons of defense. The type of weapon, righteousness, is called
for in both situations, as a response to the enemies of the faith, and as a
defense against them as well.
Breaking
open II Corinthians:
- How does God work with you in your life?
- How can righteousness be a weapon?
- How does Paul display himself as a father in this reading?
Mark 4:35-41
When evening had come, Jesus said to his
disciples, "Let us go across to the other side." And leaving the
crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats
were with him. A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so
that the boat was already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the
cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care
that we are perishing?" He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the
sea, "Peace! Be still!" Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead
calm. He said to them, "Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?"
And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, "Who then is
this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"
Following the
parables of the seed and the mustard seed, Mark gives us three miracles: the
stilling of the storm, the Gerasene demoniac, and Jairus’ daughter. This morning’s reading is the first in this
series. The pericope, however, stands by
itself, originally a remembrance of Peter that is morphed into a creedal
statement, and an image of the Church (the boat). Some scholars see the original story as
consisting of four points of belief: a) A great windstorm arose (threat), b)
And Jesus was in the stern asleep (further threat), c) Jesus awakens and
rebukes the wind (salvation and revelation of true character), and d) The
disciples are filled with awe (faith).
What is the purpose of the story?
Perhaps it is to give a lesson about how to follow Jesus in times of
stress and difficulty. The question
posed by the disciples, “Who then is this…?” needs no answer, for the reader
supplies the answer of faith and trust in the claims about Jesus as the Christ.
Breaking open the Gospel:
- What are the stresses of your life?
- What role does faith play in your dealing with such stress?
- How do you pray in these times?
After
breaking open the Word, you might want to pray the Collect for Sunday:
O Lord, make us
have perpetual love and reverence for your holy Name, for you never fail to
help and govern those whom you have set upon the sure foundation of your loving-kindness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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