Brief Look at Sunday's Bible Lessons

On Sunday, at Friendship Lutheran Church, where I pastor, we conclude a series called Positive Parenting. Ordinarily, as regular readers of Better Living know, we use an appointed Bible reading as our lesson. But in the Sundays after Pentecost, I like to explore important topics. The idea is to help the people of the congregation--and me--to look at how we can live out our faith in life's everyday places. This is consistent with the meaning of the Pentecost Season, traditionally devoted to looking at the implications of faith in the risen Jesus Christ.

At Friendship, we'll be using two Bible lessons on Sunday. First, Proverbs 22:6:

Train children in the right way, and when old, they will not stray.

Second, Mark 9:14-27:

14When they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and some scribes arguing with them. 15When the whole crowd saw him, they were immediately overcome with awe, and they ran forward to greet him. 16He asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?” 17Someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought you my son; he has a spirit that makes him unable to speak; 18and whenever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, but they could not do so.” 19He answered them, “You faithless generation, how much longer must I be among you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him to me.” 20And they brought the boy to him. When the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. 21Jesus asked the father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. 22It has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you are able to do anything, have pity on us and help us.” 23Jesus said to him, “If you are able! —All things can be done for the one who believes.” 24Immediately the father of the child cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief!” 25When Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You spirit that keeps this boy from speaking and hearing, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again!” 26After crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.” 27But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he was able to stand.

A Few Comments:
1. The book of Proverbs purports to be a series of wisdom statements given by God to Solomon, ancient Israel's third king. (In terms of military, economic, and political power, Solomon was the nation's greatest king.)

2. In 1 Kings 3, we're told that God appeared to Solomon in a dream and told the earnest young man to ask of God anything he wanted. Solomon could have asked for wealth, power, sexual conquests, or anything. But he asked God for wisdom, the capacity to know right from wrong. At this, we're told:

It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you. If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life.” (1 Kings 3:10-14)

Proverbs represents part of God's answer to Solomon's petition for wisdom. The tragedy of Solomon is that in spite of a strong start, he became a spiritual disaster. He used his power and all the blessings God afforded him in selfish pursuits. He countenanced the worship of foreign gods. After his death, Israel split in two, never to be reunited.

3. The "promise" of this passage from Proverbs shouldn't be read in a mechanistic way. Just because parents expose their children to Jesus Christ and to God's values doesn't ensure that they will embrace faith in Christ or a life style of daily repentance and renewal. But when the foundation of faith is laid in children when they're young, the prospects of their returning to God even after they have strayed is stronger.

4. The Mark passage is, I suppose, mostly about faith. First, it's about the faith--or lack of faith--of Jesus' disciples who fail to even pray for the demon-possessed boy. Lacking confidence that God could or would do anything, they don't even dare prayer.

But it's also about the faith--and the faithlessness--of the boy's father. His words to Jesus, which are really a prayer, are among the most poignant in all Scripture: “I believe; help my unbelief!”

The final word on faith comes from Jesus here. He assures the father that no one needs a large faith, only a little faith in a large God.

5. But there's something else in this passage which interests me and which I will address on Sunday.