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Fourth Sunday after Pentecost • Year B
June 16, 2024 • Proper 6
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Historical Collect
O Lord, our God, arrange the course of this world that peace may come and your tranquil Church rejoice through greater service. Grant this, we pray, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. He lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Leonine Sacramentary, 6th Century)
Thematic Collect
Almighty One, renew us daily through the power of your Holy Spirit that we might be nurtured in faith and holiness through having been grafted onto the true vine, Jesus Christ, our Lord; in whose holy name we pray. Amen.
The Common Thread
The kingdom of God is a work in progress. He has been at it for a very long time. When we think things are going sideways, we may be certain God is in control of his kingdom. We may pray with confidence, “Thy kingdom come,” for the Lord himself will build his kingdom. When it seems that the kingdom is failing here on earth, we know it is coming just as surely as it is established in heaven. We walk by faith, not by sight! As we walk, we scatter the seed of the Gospel—and God gives the increase.
First Reading • Ezekiel 17:22-24
The kingdom of God was planted ages ago. It has been growing ever since. Even now, when some would have us believe the kingdom of God is in decline, it is growing more than ever. And one day, when days are no more and the light of the Lord makes the day last forever (Revelation 21:23), his kingdom will be realized. We see the things imperfectly and incompletely now, but we will see his kingdom as God has ordained it to be.
Psalm • Psalm 1
Did your parents ever tell you that you'd be judged by the company you keep? Parents often say that when we are not keeping the best company! We don't really need to hear that sage advice if all our friends are upright, kind, considerate, and behave themselves. The psalmist says that we are happy when we walk with the Lord but walking in the ways of the wicked causes us all sorts of trouble. It's true, we are privileged to have a life with Christ - it's not our "right," it's not due us, but it is a blessing that comes from God's eternal love.
Second Reading • 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 (11-17)
We are not getting any younger. Even those who think themselves youthful and fit are already in decline. Our “earthly homes” are being readied for destruction. On demolition day, the façades will be torn down, revealing who we truly are. An eternal dwelling will remain where the temporary, earthly “tent” had been. It is difficult to imagine but easy to believe, for it is guaranteed by God. He has even provided the earnestness of his Spirit. When one begins to groan under the pressure of life, and the tent is about to collapse, the Spirit of God will bring his precious promises to memory more and more. We are God's children and he will not leave us undone (Romans 8:16). When in death all seems over and done, our mortality will be consumed by the life of God.
So we may face life with courage, and having lived by faith in Christ, we may face death with no fear. For in dying we will have what we never enjoyed in these tents of our earthly lives. We will live in the glory of God and be forever with Jesus. And that is far, far better than to continue here away from the Lord.
Gospel • Mark 4:26-34
The work of the Church is to scatter seed. The work of the Spirit is to make the seeds grow. Some will grow; some will not grow. That is God's business. Our concern must ever be to plant — and wait. Even as actual plants require the power of God to grow and come to harvest, so do evangelism and other matters of faith. We do not cause rain and sunlight any more than we do germination and growth. Nor do we cause the seed of God's Word to find good soil and the nurture needed for the growth of faith. So, we must scatter as widely as possible and trust God with the rest.
Resources
Links to Worship Resources for this Service
