Sermon for the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost
Our Gospel reading this morning opens in the space between two significant events in the life of Jesus and his disciples. Jesus has just finished feeding over five thousand people, starting with just a few loaves of bread and some fish. Now it is evening and Jesus seems eager to set the stage for the next scene in the drama of his ministry, sending the disciples off in the boat, dismissing the crowd to their homes, and going up the mountain by himself to pray.
Just as Jesus had looked to heaven before distributing enough food for all the people, so he absorbs himself in prayer before rejoining his disciples in a way that will further expand their sense of who he is. In accord with the biblical tradition of a God who makes a path through the mighty waters, Jesus walks across the stormy sea to the struggling boat. He then calms his disciples’ fear by identifying himself in the words of God: “Take courage. I am.”
…Sermon for the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost Read More »