I’m preaching on 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 on Sunday and wrote this parable / story as part of the sermon. It’s no Booker-prize winner but it might be a helpful way of understanding what Paul is saying. I admit the body illustration is pretty straightforward, but sometimes it helps having two metaphors for the same idea. I was especially trying to make sense of why Paul refers to baptism in verse 13.
I was preaching yesterday on John 10:1-15 (which is 2/3 of the Good Shepherd passage). Naturally, Ezekiel 34 was the OT reading. In both there is criticism of false shepherds who abuse and harm the sheep; in Ezekiel the particular charge is that the bad shepherds “eat the curds, clothe [themselves] with the wool and slaughter the choice animals” without care for the sheep.
Later I was reading the Sunday Telegraph and found this article about some of Iran’s clerics. The summary says it all:
“The Ayatollah Khomenei brought millions on to the streets of Iran to overthrow the decadence of the Shah. Now the late leader’s grandsons and other Iranian clerics face a backlash over their families’ fondness for fast cars, big houses and hot tubs.”
(NB the sermon is here)
Earlier this month I preached on Remembrance Day (which was a Sunday). My text was Amos 5:24 “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”
It was part of a series on Amos, otherwise the passage isn’t the most obvious choice!
You can find it here courtesy of Google Docs.