Going Deeper this Week...
August 13, 2017 - Tenth Sunday After Pentecost
Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28; Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22; Matthew 14:22-23, 44-52; Romans 10:5-15
Welcome to Milledge Avenue BaptistChurch. Today we move ahead in the story of God’s ancient people to the sons of Jacob (now called Israel). The older sons, jealous of Joseph—who is their father’s favorite—sold him into slavery in Egypt, telling their father a lion killed him. Their intention was to get rid of Joseph; God used their action, though, to save the family, as we will see in a few weeks, and ultimately to lead the descendants of all twelve brothers into freedom from Egypt in the Exodus.
We also continue to read the Epistle to the Romans. In this part of Romans, Paul is dealing with his sorrow that many of his fellow Jews have not accepted Jesus as Christ but he does not believe that God has rejected them. All who turn to God in faith belong to God and there is no distinction, for all are one in Christ who have called on the name of the Lord. —From The Rite Light: Reflections on the Sunday Readings, Michael W. Merriman
From a Child’s Point of View
Children, particularly those whose parents are continually after them to get along better with their brothers and sisters, love this Bible story. It tells of a set of siblings who treated one another worse than most children ever do. Though many children daydream about the possibility of life without a particularly pesky brother or sister, most would not go to the extremes that Joseph’s brothers did to realize their dream.
Though our reading today omits Joseph’s dreams, including them explains why Joseph’s brothers hated him so much. It was not simply that he had the misfortune of being the favorite of a father who should have known better than to play favorites so blatantly. Joseph was a braggy pain in the neck. His brothers had good reasons to detest him.
Children also can hear in this story a warning that family bickering can get out of hand. Boasting, as Joseph did; playing favorites, as Jacob did; letting envy and hate build up, as the brothers did—can lead to explosions such as kidnapping and attempted murder. The only hope is that families can identify their problems and work to solve them before they get out of hand. —From Forbid Them Not: Involving Children in Worship, Year A, Carolyn C. Brown
Sunday at 11:00am, Sunday School at 9:45am
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