Twenty Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK:
Alternate First reading and Psalm
1 Kings 17:8-16 Psalm 146
Second reading
Hebrews 9:24-28
Gospel
Mark 12:38-44
The psalm:
Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD, O my soul!
I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long.
Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help.
When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.
Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God,
who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever;
who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free;
the LORD opens the eyes of the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous.
The LORD watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
The LORD will reign forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the LORD!
The gospel from Mark
A widow’s generosity
As Jesus taught, he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
He sat down opposite the treasury and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny.
Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
The sermon:
Pastor Stevenson’s message today is on both the psalm and the gospel. Psalm 146 begins with verses that read “Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD, O my soul! I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long.” This psalm is a lectionary reading every four years – election year in which there is a winner and a loser. We are in the season of several festivals ending with Christ the King Sunday. And it is these when we make our financial pledges. Money raised can be wasteful, but not at St John, The pastor is expected to raise money, but not our pastor, even though we will be needing a new furnace boiler. In our gospel lesson Jesus observes a poor widow donating one cent in the temple. At St John giving what we can is enough. Pastor Stevenson continues with his remarks on the psalm and gospel…………
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