Sermon: The Work of the People

Scripture Text: 1 Peter 2:4-10 and Hebrews 10:19-25

Quotes for Reflection

Tish Harrison Warren, Liturgy of the Ordinary

I need rituals that encourage me to embrace what is repetitive, ancient, and quiet. But what I crave is novelty and stimulation.

James K.A. Smith, Desiring the Kingdom

Being a disciple of Jesus is not primarily a matter of getting the right ideas and doctrines and beliefs into your head in order to guarantee proper behavior; rather, it's a matter of being the kind of person who loves rightly--who loves God and neighbor and is oriented to the world by the primacy of that love. We are made to be such people by our immersion in the material practices of Christian worship--through affective impact, over time, of sights and smell in water and wine

N.T. Wright, Hebrews for Everyone

Faith isn’t something you can just drum up like that by your own efforts. It’s what comes when you are looking hard at the object of faith, namely Jesus – or, if you like, God seen in the light of, and in the face of, Jesus. The whole letter has been about Jesus, and about who we are as a result of who he is and what he’s done. Thinking that through, and holding firmly on to it, produces the complete assurance Hebrews is talking about.

Application Questions

1. What do you notice about the difference between cognitive and embodied learning?

2. Liturgy is defined as “the work of the people.” How do you paradoxically experience God’s grace while doing this “work.”

3. Why would Peter say that we are chosen to proclaim the excellencies of God? How does this aim change your relationship to God this week?