Rethinking the Lectionary: Reflection After a Year of Use

 

Today I am commenting on my experience over the past year with following a lectionary.

A year ago, I took on the task of using the Revised Standard Lectionary to create a year’s worth of devotions and messages. My thesis was that the lectionary was an over-looked resource for Evangelical ministers.  I wanted to test that theory and I am glad that I did. It produced some interesting results!

Lots of Options:

First, the lectionary offers a surprising number of Biblical passages which span the entire canon of Scripture. For each Sunday of the year, and for special holidays and holy days as well, the lectionary designates passages from at least one Psalm, one other Old Testament Passage, one Epistle, and one Gospel. On some days, the lectionary offers more than one passage in each category. Thus, the lectionary provides a cornucopia of Scriptures for worship, equal to well over two-hundred selections each year and over six-hundred passages across the three years of the lectionary.

Baptists consider themselves “people of the Book,” but few Baptist churches include more than one Bible reading on Sunday worship services, and that is one usually read by the pastor as a prelude to the sermon. In contrast to that, main line Protestant and Catholic churches will almost always feature the reading of multiple Bible passages, including several presented by lay readers. This exposes those who regularly attend worship a large variety of Scripture passages. I believe this is commendable and a practice Evangelicals should seriously consider.

The Whole Counsel of the Word of God:

Second, I was surprised how many times that the lectionary included a Scripture passage on which I had already preached a sermon. For example, over several weeks the lectionary included passages from Romans that closely matched a series of sermons I had preached on that book several years ago. And that is just one example. This same thing occurred on several occasions, and I think this points to a couple of points to consider.

After some reflection, I think the great advantage offered by the lectionary is that it helps prevent a minister developing a limited canon. While the lectionary includes many well-known and oft-preached passages of Scripture, it also includes a broad selection of lesser-known and even arcane passages as well. This would not prevent a minister from focusing on a favorite passage for that week’s sermon, but at least the lectionary reminds all who may reference it that the Bible includes a broad variety of passages and all of them, let me say that again, all of them, are God’s Inspired Word to us.

Another point to ponder is that the lectionary seems solid theologically sound. Just because it is used by main-line denominations whose doctrine differs in several respects from Evangelicals in general, and Baptists in particular, that does not make it deficient or defective. After all, ministers of all persuasions are free to exegete and exposit these passages of Scripture as led by the Holy Spirit. In that way, the selection of Scriptures for each week is pragmatic more than anything else, which leads me to my last finding.

Free Church and Free Choice (Led by the Spirit, that is):

Finally, while the lectionary is a great resource, I am glad that I am not mandated by my denomination to use it exclusively for worship. On a number of occasions I decided to use a different passage which covered the same subject as the one designated by the lectionary, or I added verses to the message which came before or after the passage in the lectionary. To paraphrase what Jesus said about the sabbath, if we take the attitude that the lectionary was made for the preacher, and the the preacher was not made for the lectionary, I think we will find the right balance.

As an example of what I mean, when we served in England, I was once invited to preach at a joint community service. I reviewed the three passages of Scripture which were scheduled to be read on that occasion. I felt led to preach from the Epistle, which was from one of Paul’s letters and I asked the committee which was organizing the service if we could read this passage last, since I would preach immediately following the reading of the three passages and I wanted the Epistle read just before I preached which was, of course, the practice I was familiar with. The committee agreed, but I later discovered that I had caused something of a controversy, because the Church of England and the Catholic Church always read the Gospel selection last regardless of the passage which is preached upon. Apparently, several members of the clergy who in attendance were scandalized, although lay people of all denominations didn’t seem to notice at all. Knowing what I know now I would not have asked for such a change but coming from what the British call a “free church” tradition I am more flexible in my approach to worship planning. It would be easier for me to adapt to their needs than vice versa.

Conclusions:

In short, I have found the lectionary to be a good servant, but I would never want it to be my master, and in fact this is my conclusion about my experience with the lectionary. I can see value using the lectionary in several different ways in a Baptist church.

First, I think the lectionary would be a good tool for planning Sunday evening sermons or Wednesday devotions. It can be hard to develop a sermon series for both Sunday morning and Sunday evening and a series of Bible studies for Wednesday prayer meeting. A pastor could use the lectionary for one of those services, which would make selection of a passage somewhat easier, even though the work of exegeting the passage and writing a sermon would still be necessary.

Second, a place where the lectionary could be especially useful is during holidays and holy days. I have known the struggle that many pastors have faced of preaching during the Christmas and Easter seasons and the struggle to find passages that have not been plowed over many times. Each week during these seasons the lectionary will present a number of options for sermons which may not otherwise come to mind. This can be very handy.

Finally, as I mentioned above, using the lectionary can prevent a pastor developing a restricted canon. God’s people need to be exposed to the Whole Counsel of God, and not just a pastor’s favorite books of the Bible or what selection of passages may be fashionable at the time. The lectionary is a great tool for this purpose.

Am I glad I explored the lectionary? Yes, yes, I am. It has been an enriching and reward experience!

Every blessing,

Dr. Otis Corbitt

"Thankful" from Acts 16:16-36

TODAY I AM COMMENTING ON ACTS 16:16-36.

At Thanksgiving we are supposed to be thankful, but at times we feel like the man who fell off of a skyscraper.  As he passed the 10th floor he was heard to say “So far, so good! So far, so good!”

You may be as tired as I am of people moaning and groaning about how bad 2020 has been. It’s almost become a cliché, but like every joke or internet meme, there is certainly a lot of reality in our complaints.

Paul and Silas were once confronted with a situation in which they seemed to have nothing for which to be thankful.  Let’s see how they reacted in Acts 16:16-36.

FIRST, THEY HAD VILE CIRCUMSTANCES:

Verses 16-24 tell us,

Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.

When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.”

The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

Paul and Silas were ministering in Philippi. They had won Lydia and her household to the Lord, the first of an untold many European converts to Jesus. They’d done good work like casting a demon out of a slave-girl.

They were in the midst of a vital, powerful ministry, but they were upsetting the powers that be, human and spiritual alike.

Robbed of profit, the slave-girl’s masters were enraged.  Robbed of a soul, Satan was enraged.  So, they decided to take their revenge. 

Paul and Silas were dragged to the magistrates and accused of being troublemakers. These accusations were false, but the mob had its way and Paul, and Silas, had their rights as Roman citizens violated. In other circumstances, Paul was wise to claim his rights, but he did not have a chance at Philippi. They had a right to a trial but were afforded no trial. Instead, they were beaten with many stripes, imprisoned, and bound in stocks.

NEXT THEY DEMONSTRATED A VITAL FAITH:

Under these circumstances, what would most people Do? Cry and whine? Give up and die? Become angry and curse God? Cop out and change sides?

What did Paul And Silas do? They prayed! They sang hymns! They praised God! They witnessed to the other prisoners! Acts 16:25 says, 

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

What possessed these men?  They had faith in God.  They knew Him to be powerful and trustworthy.  They also had faith in each other. They knew what they’d been through together.

One of my favorite quotes comes from a letter General William T. Sherman wrote to General Ulysses S. Grant after the Civil War: “I knew, wherever I was, that you thought of me, and if I needed you, you would come.”

Paul and Silas knew their God and they knew each other, and they had the confidence that comes from such solid relationships.

What is the underlying principle here? Romans 8:28 tells us,

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

This means that anything that we can imagine, God can use to bless us. Even being accused falsely. Even being beaten and thrown into prison.

FINALLY, THEY HAD A VIGOROUS BLESSING:

Verses 26-36 tell us the rest of the story,

Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.

When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.” 

When things are at their worse, that is when we often see God’s power, which in this case was demonstrated by the earthquake which freed all the captives. Just like the Cavalry showing up in the nick of time, everyone was rescued. 

And I think we should note here that God granted this temporal salvation to all in the prison, not just Paul and Silas.  I believe this indicates that all can be blessed if we accept God’s intervention.  Of course, the Jailer and his family were saved and baptized, and Paul and Silas had their wounds treated.

Although the situation faced by Paul and Silas appeared to be grim, God’s plan was clearly revealed:

Paul and Silas obeyed God and did ministry.

Paul and Silas were falsely accused, brutalized, and falsely imprisoned.

Paul and Silas praised God and witnessed by their faith. Then they and all the prisoners were released by God’s power.

The Jailer and his family were saved, and Paul and Silas were released, and God received the praise and the glory!

What Should We Do If We Think We Have Nothing For Which To Be Thankful?  

We need to look a little closer, because God might be trying to bless us!

We need to look a little closer, because God might be trying to use us to bless someone else!

We need to look a little closer, because God might be about to demonstrate His power!

We need to look a little closer, because God might be about to deserve our greatest respect, devotion, love, and praise!

CONCLUSION: 

This Thanksgiving may we all look a little closer and be truly thankful for all God is and all He has done in our lives! 

Every blessing,

Dr. Otis Corbitt

Enough!

Today I am commenting on Psalm 123:1-4, which reads:  

To you I lift up my eyes, O you who are enthroned in the heavens! As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, until he has mercy upon us. Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us, for we have had more than enough of contempt. Our soul has had more than its fill of the scorn of those who are at ease, of the contempt of the proud. 

One summer when I was a teenager, I helped a friend of mine cover a newspaper route while the regular driver was on vacation. We would arrive at the newspaper building at 3am, fold and place rubber bands on hundreds of newspapers, and then distribute the papers along the route. 

We thought we were working hard, but in truth we were hardly working. Still, on the last morning we worked the route, we decided to treat ourselves to a dozen doughnuts.

All day before our last morning on the route, I looked forward to those doughnuts, because we rarely had such treats in our house. The first two were delicious, but after the third doughnut I had had enough! I went from a sugar rush to nausea in just minutes. To this day I avoid eating doughnuts, although I admit that I do enjoy one every now and again.

As we look around us at the fallen world through which we sojourn, we often say the same thing, “Enough!” And like us, the Psalmist effectively said, like Popeye, “I’ve stood all I can stand, and I can’t stands no more!”

The difference between the Psalmist and Popeye is that the Psalmist did not look to spinach for his strength and his encouragement. With a child-like faith, the Psalmist looked to God. As Psalms 121:1-2 remind us:

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

Psalm 121 goes on to tell us that our God never sleeps, and He watches over us wherever we may be. He will not let our foot slip, and He will keep us from harm. He even provides us the shade we need from the hot Sun!

2020 has been a trying year for people in our country It began with an impeached president and the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. It continued with a spate of civil unrest which was followed by a contentious and bitter election, a drama which is still playing out as I record this. How many times have we said in 2020, “Enough, already!”

When we have had enough, we have someone to turn to, the same Almighty and All-loving Heavenly Father in which the Psalmist found refuge centuries ago. I commend that same Sovereign Lord to you today.

Of course, this begs the question, “Why wait until we have had enough of this world to seek our help in God?” After all, Our Lord stands at the door to our lives and knocks, and if we let Him in, He will fellowship with us, and we with Him.

So why wait? 

Every blessing,

Dr. Otis Corbitt