Sunday July 14 Pentecost 8
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Psalm 148
These three psalms are especially appropriate on Sundays, the mini-anniversary of the resurrection. All creation praises God—the heavens, the earth—including fog, sea monsters, and “creeping things” (perhaps even insects or worms)—and humanity—rulers, young people and old people—all things without exception praise God together. Notice that the sequence is taken from the first creation story in Genesis: first light, then the heavens, then creatures of the water, then creatures of the land, and finally people.
Psalm 149
Songs of joy at God’s victory. The joy of military victories toward the end of the psalm was their way of saying that God has ended all injustice.
Psalm 150
A scene of riotous joy as every conceivable instrument and every creature praises God.
Joshua 1.1-18 What’s Joshua about?
The book of Joshua is the first of eight historical books that recount how the Israelites experienced God in the land where they settled. The first half of the book of Joshua describes their invasion of the land and the intended destruction of those who already lived there, and the second part describes how the land was divided up among the twelve tribes.
As the book opens, God transfers Moses’ leadership to Joshua and repeatedly commands the people to be “strong and courageous” and they will be given the land. We may be hearing a much later exhortation to the people to retain hope while they were in exile away from the land a thousand years later when the book was written.
In our world we might understand that we are in exile from a world of justice and dignity for all and that we must remain as strong and courageous in claiming the world of global community and respect as the ancient Israelites were to claiming the land God promised.
Mark 1.21-27 What’s Mark about?
For the next six weeks we read Mark’s gospel on Sundays.
This week’s collect:
Almighty God,
you have made us for yourself,
and our hearts are restless
until they find their rest in you.
May we find peace in your service,
and in the world to come, see you face to face;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.