mamabishop: Third Sunday After Pentecost June 26, 2022

The Collect

Almighty God, you have built your Church upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone: Grant us so to be joined together in unity of spirit by their teaching, that we may be made a holy temple acceptable to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Old Testament 1 Kings 19:15-16,19-21

The LORD said to Elijah, "Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place." So he set out from there, and found Elisha son of Shaphat, who was plowing. There were twelve yoke of oxen ahead of him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle over him. He left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said, "Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you." Then Elijah said to him, "Go back again; for what have I done to you?" He returned from following him, took the yoke of oxen, and slaughtered them; using the equipment from the oxen, he boiled their flesh, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out and followed Elijah, and became his servant.

Psalm 16

1 Protect me, O God,

for I take refuge in you; *

I have said to the LORD,

"You are my Lord,

my good above all other."

2 All my delight is upon the godly

that are in the land, *

upon those who are noble

among the people.

3 But those who run after other gods *

shall have their troubles multiplied.

4 Their libations of blood I will not offer, *

nor take the names of their gods upon my lips.

5 O LORD, you are my portion and my cup; *

it is you who uphold my lot.

6 My boundaries enclose a pleasant land; *

indeed, I have a goodly heritage.

7 I will bless the LORD who gives me counsel; *

my heart teaches me, night after night.

8 I have set the LORD always before me; *

because he is at my right hand I shall not fall.

9 My heart, therefore, is glad,

and my spirit rejoices; *

my body also shall rest in hope.

10 For you will not abandon me to the grave, *

nor let your holy one see the Pit.

11 You will show me the path of life; *

in your presence there is fullness of joy,

and in your right hand are pleasures for evermore.

The Epistle Galatians 5:1,13-25

For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.

The Gospel Luke 9:51-62

When the days drew near for Jesus to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; but they did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, "Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?" But he turned and rebuked them. Then they went on to another village. As they were going along the road, someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." But Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God." Another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home." Jesus said to him, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."

It has been a hard few days for many people. The several supreme court rulings have been the topic at many tables. Many are fearful, many are afraid and some are glad. We live in a conflicted country and a conflicted world. Into the chasms of our ache and polarization, Jesus invites us to follow him. Some responded to him with a "yes, but." Jesus is saying to us now, "follow me." We need to decide if we will say yes or yes but. The world needs our faithfulness, our love, our care and inclusion now more than ever.

Abiding Creator, you are our beginning and our end

we struggle in these times of great sorrow and conflict

we are torn apart by politics and the power of money.