YOU WILL DO GREATER THINGS
by Bob Wickizer
Scripture: Proverbs 8:1-4, Proverbs 8:22-31, Psalms 8:1-9, Romans 5:1-5, John 16:12-15
You Will Do Greater Things
Bob Wickizer
Proverbs 8:1-4,22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15
You will do Greater Things
On this first Sunday after Pentecost, the church, in its inestimable wisdom, decreed that today would be Trinity Sunday. It's kind of like Pi Day minus an irrational fraction. We do everything in threes from singing "holy holy holy" to swinging a censor three times to fill the sanctuary with smoke, to bowing or genuflecting. Trinity Sunday is THE day on which rectors of big churches always have their assistants or seminary students preach. It strikes terror in the hearts of seminarians whose heads spin on the very thought of "What can I say about the Trinity in ten or twelve minutes?"
As funny as the seminarian's dilemma is, it underscores a common problem in preaching. That is, preachers should proclaim the Good News of God's redeeming work IN US through the life of Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit. Oh dear, I just preached a Trinity Sunday sermon. Preachers are NOT supposed to preach about things. If you want to learn things, come to Sunday school. If you want to know how God's redeeming work happens in your life and what you can do about it, stay seated please.
Having just given you a Trinity Sunday sermon, I suppose we could stop right here, but I want to take you today to a single line in last Sunday's gospel which needs a lot more attention than we give it. Here it is from John's gospel.
Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these...
The words, plain and simple, straight from Jesus' mouth. "You will do greater works" than the works that Jesus has done. WOW. Here's a funny thing. When you read commentaries on this passage written by fundamentalists and people who take every word of the Bible literally, they get to this line in John and say, "No, Jesus didn't really mean that" and then they ju ...
Bob Wickizer
Proverbs 8:1-4,22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15
You will do Greater Things
On this first Sunday after Pentecost, the church, in its inestimable wisdom, decreed that today would be Trinity Sunday. It's kind of like Pi Day minus an irrational fraction. We do everything in threes from singing "holy holy holy" to swinging a censor three times to fill the sanctuary with smoke, to bowing or genuflecting. Trinity Sunday is THE day on which rectors of big churches always have their assistants or seminary students preach. It strikes terror in the hearts of seminarians whose heads spin on the very thought of "What can I say about the Trinity in ten or twelve minutes?"
As funny as the seminarian's dilemma is, it underscores a common problem in preaching. That is, preachers should proclaim the Good News of God's redeeming work IN US through the life of Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit. Oh dear, I just preached a Trinity Sunday sermon. Preachers are NOT supposed to preach about things. If you want to learn things, come to Sunday school. If you want to know how God's redeeming work happens in your life and what you can do about it, stay seated please.
Having just given you a Trinity Sunday sermon, I suppose we could stop right here, but I want to take you today to a single line in last Sunday's gospel which needs a lot more attention than we give it. Here it is from John's gospel.
Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these...
The words, plain and simple, straight from Jesus' mouth. "You will do greater works" than the works that Jesus has done. WOW. Here's a funny thing. When you read commentaries on this passage written by fundamentalists and people who take every word of the Bible literally, they get to this line in John and say, "No, Jesus didn't really mean that" and then they ju ...
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