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Your word is a lamp unto my feet, a light to my path.
- Psalm 119:105, NIV
"Lectionary" is a word we may have heard before. I would call it a "church word." It comes from two Latin words for "a reading" and "a collection." So, a lectionary is a collection of readings. In the Christian church, we have what is called a "common lectionary." These are suggested readings from the Bible, not only for every Sunday, but for every day of the week. There are four suggested readings for each day: one from the Old Testament, a Psalm, one from the gospels, and one from the New Testament letters and epistles. These suggested readings repeat every three years. They follow the liturgical or church year, beginning with Advent.
In worship, churches may read anywhere from one to all four of the suggested readings each Sunday. One of the reasons we have lectionary is to encourage not only the reading of scripture but reading from a wide range of passages -- so that we will hear the word of God from different Biblical perspectives. It also keeps us from only focusing on our favorite passages, challenging us to hear God's word from books we might not normally choose.
We have just finished up our-eight-week sermon series called Living Through the Storm. Over those eight weeks we actually covered a pretty wide range of passages from the Bible, beginning with Genesis and ending with Revelation. This Sunday, I'm not starting a new sermon series. (Surprise!) Instead, I decided to focus on a lectionary reading from the gospels to speak to us each week. Over the years, I've been surprised at how timely the words of scripture from the weekly lectionary reading speak God's word of grace and hope we need to hear. So, join us this Sunday for Drive-In or On-Line worship for our message, "When God Does the Unexpected" from Matthew 15:21-28.
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