“Come and dine,” Lady Wisdom beckons to us. “The table is set and there is a place for you.” Jesus echoes this invitation by saying he is the living bread for us to eat. This is a free party and all are welcome. So what is stopping you?
Accompanying Scripture:
Proverbs 9:1-6, Psalm 34:9-14, John 6:51-58
Jesus expands on this imagery of bread to be bigger than feeding us one meal. Jesus is the bread of life for today, tomorrow and forever. Regular bread can sustain us for a little while, as well as be a wonderful comfort to us. But the bread that Jesus is talking about is the sustenance we need for eternal life.
Accompanying Scripture:
1 Kings 19:4-8, Psalm 34:1-8, John 6:35, 41-51
After feasting on bread and fish, Jesus retreats and the crowd follows. As their stomachs begin to grumble again, they ask Jesus for a sign. Is he the one they have been waiting for. . .he may have fed them once but will he be able to support them for a lifetime? Jesus responds I am the bread of life. Just as God provides manna in the wilderness, Jesus promises to give us what we need for each day and more.
Accompanying Scripture:
Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15, Psalm 78:23-29, John 6:24-35
Mark’s gospel makes clear how great is the press of the crowd, with its countless needs to be met, on Jesus and his disciples. Yet in today’s gospel, Jesus advises his disciples to get away and rest, to take care of themselves. Sometimes we think that when others are in great need we shouldn’t think of ourselves at all; but Jesus also honors the caregivers’ need. We are sent from Christ’s table to care for others and for ourselves.
Accompanying Scripture:
Mark 6:30-34, 53-56, Psalm 23, Ezekiel 2:11-22
Sometimes being a disciple of Jesus is risky business. It may mean we aren’t popular or well liked. It may mean we have to share a hard truth. And yet- Jesus reminds those disciples, we have all that we need to bring God’s love to the world around us.
Accompanying Scripture:
Mark 6:1-13, Psalm 123, Ezekiel 2:1-5
When Amos reports his vision of God judging Israel for its mistreatment of the poor, he becomes a threat to the power of the priests and the king. John the Baptist also speaks truth to power, and Herod has him killed. In Herod’s fear that Jesus is John returned from the dead, we may hear hope for the oppressed: all the prophets killed through the ages are alive in Jesus. We are called to witness to justice in company with them, and to proclaim God’s saving love.
Accompanying Scripture:
Mark 6:14-29, Psalm 85:8-13, Amos 7:7-13
Sometimes it feels like we wait for a lifetime for God to hear us, see us, acknowledge us. Today we hear we are in good company – a woman who hemorrhages for 12 years seeks healing from Jesus at the same time as a desperate father for a dying daughter. With our loving God, we can come with our laments, our questions and our pain.
Accompanying Scripture:
Mark 5:21-43, Psalm 30, Lamentations 3:22-33
Through the storms of life, in Job’s trials and in the disciples’ seasick panic, God’s promise is not that we will be airlifted out of troubles but that God is with us. God proclaims to the chaos and to us – Peace! Be still.
Accompanying Scripture:
Mark 4:35-41, Psalm 107, Job 38: 1-11
The mustard seed becomes a great shrub that shelters the birds, recalling ancient images of the tree of life. We’d expect a cedar or a sequoia, but Jesus finds the power of God better imaged in a tiny, no-account seed. It’s not the way we expect divine activity to look. It may not appear all that impressive, but while nobody’s looking it grows with a power beyond our understanding.
Accompanying Scripture:
Mark 4:26-34, Psalm 92:1-4, 12-15, Ezekiel 17:22-24
| In the midst of conflict and shame, the messiness of life and relationships are lifted up in these texts. No matter how entangled we become, with God there is always steadfast love and forgiveness. |
Accompanying Scripture:
Psalm 130, Genesis 3:8-15, Mark 3:20-35
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