|
June 1, 2008 - 3rd Sunday after Pentecost
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord GOD had made.
He said to the woman, "Did God say, "You shall not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden;
but God said, "You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the
garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.'" But the serpent said to the woman,
"You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened,
and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was
good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired
to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband,
who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they
were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
-- Genesis 3:1-7
This summer at Mount Olive we will explore many of the touchstone stories of the
Bible. For those of you who have some experience with reading the Bible, our first
“language of faith” you know the importance of this life-giving book. For those of you
to whom reading the Bible is new - there is no time like the present to begin.
Last week we entered into the story of creation. This week we will hear again of the
subtlety of sin and will be reminded of how crafty serpents continue to be at work in our
lives, attempting to introduce doubt and skepticism about God. Every day as individuals
we need to center our lives on the word of God, and every week it is essential to gather
to be fed with God's word and sacrament. On our own we are easily distracted, but centered
on God's word and gathered as God's people we live into God's design for our lives.
We pray: O God our rock, you offer us a covenant of mercy, and you provide
the foundation of our lives. Ground us in your word, and strengthen our resolve to be your
disciples, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen
Lesson for the 3rd Sunday after Pentecost:
Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible,
copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the
National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
|
|
|
