Your August 6, Lectionary Resources
These resources are published free weekly for all who want to use them. The paid version includes a full manuscript sermon in addition to the free materials.
Lectionary Readings — 10th Sunday after Pentecost, August 6, 2023
Gen. 32:22-31; Psalm 17:1-7,15; Rom. 9:1-5; Matt. 14:13-21.
Call to Worship (based on Psalm 17:1-7,15)
Leader: We gather today, called by the One who hears our just cause, attentive to our cry.
People: We come in trust, knowing our prayer does not rise from deceitful lips.
Leader: As God's beloved, we have called upon Him and know He will answer us; He will incline His ear to us, and hear our words.
People: Wondrously showing His steadfast love, He saves those who seek refuge at His right hand.
Leader: When we awake, we shall behold His face and be satisfied with seeing His likeness.
All: So let us gather and worship, for in His presence, we are truly at home. Amen.
Opening Prayer (based on Matthew 14:13-21)
Let us pray,
Loving God, in the spirit of compassion that Jesus embodied as He ministered to the crowd, even in His own sorrow, we gather here today. You see our needs even before we speak them, and You feed us with both physical bread and the Bread of Life. Lord, we are awed by Your capacity to take what seems scarce and turn it into abundance.
Lord, sometimes we feel overwhelmed by the needs around us and within us, just like the disciples who saw only five loaves and two fish to feed a multitude. In these times, remind us of Your infinite grace and power, which multiplies and blesses our humble offerings.
God, as we open our hearts to Your Word today, take our "loaves and fish," our small efforts, and multiply them in ways that we cannot imagine. Help us to trust in Your provision and to participate in Your miraculous work of feeding and healing the world.
We ask all this in the name of Jesus, who demonstrated Your love for us in the breaking of bread and in every act of compassion. Amen.
Sermon Outline (based on Genesis 32:22-31)
Purpose: to explore the transformative experience of Jacob wrestling with God in Genesis 32:22-31 and apply it to our own spiritual journeys. It aims to reveal the necessity of wrestling with our faith, confronting our fears, and surrendering to God's sovereignty. This account of Jacob's encounter with God serves as a metaphor for our spiritual struggles and the subsequent blessing that comes from prevailing in faith. The sermon seeks to encourage listeners that in the wrestlings of life, God is reshaping us, renaming us, and giving us a new identity in Him, just as He did with Jacob.
Title: Wrestling with God: A Journey of Transformation
I. The Struggle in Solitude (Genesis 32:22-24)
A. Preparation for Encounter (Genesis 32:22-23)
1. Alone with God (Matthew 14:23)
2. The Power of Solitude (Mark 1:35)
B. The Divine Wrestler (Genesis 32:24)
1. Mysterious Encounter (Hosea 12:4)
2. God in Unexpected Forms (Hebrews 13:2)
II. Persisting for a Promise (Genesis 32:25-26)
A. Wrestling with God (Genesis 32:25)
B. Engaging with God (Hosea 12:3-4)
C. Persistence in the face of struggle (Luke 18:1-8)
III. Transformed by the Touch (Genesis 32:27-31)
A. A New Identity (Genesis 32:27-28)
1. From Deceiver to God-Wrestler (2 Corinthians 5:17)
2. The Power of a Name (Isaiah 62:2)
B. A Lasting Reminder (Genesis 32:29-31)
1. A Permanent Mark of Encounter (2 Corinthians 12:7)
2. Walking With a Limp (Hebrews 12:11)
Closing Thoughts: Remember that Jacob limped away from the struggle, forever marked by the encounter, but he also walked away blessed and with a new identity. So too, our struggles and wrestlings might leave us changed, but they also position us for God's blessings and purpose. Therefore, let us embrace the wrestlings of life, for it's in them that we truly meet God, get reshaped, renamed, and realigned with our divine destiny.
Full Manuscript Sermon Below for Paid Subscribers
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Lectionary Link to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.