21st Sunday of Ordinary Time

Year 1: August 25, 2019

Preaching Texts: John 1:1-18; 1 Corinthians 1:18-25

The Hat by Jan Brett

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: Rev. Karl Jacobson says of these passages, “Creation, incarnation, and revelation are all confessed by John chapter 1. The reading from 1 Corinthians then turns to the cross, what Paul calls “foolishness,” and at the same time, “the power of God” to save…The Word crucified is what is unique to the Christian’s creedal confession.” Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, is crucified, and that crucifixion is considered something foolish to other people, but once they realize the power it has to save, they see it differently. In The Hat, a hedgehog finds a little girl’s sock and begins to use it as a hat. The other animals make fun of him, asking him what he’s doing, but when he shows them how warm his head is, thanks to his “hat”, they all run off to take some of the little girl’s winter clothing, too, so they can feel the same warmth. At first, what the hedgehog is doing seems like foolishness, but once the other animals realize that the hat can keep him warm, they realize how much sense it makes. Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, being crucified, may seem like foolishness to us at first, and to other people who encounter us. But once we show the power to save found in this belief, it stops being foolishness, and becomes a powerful truth.

Thanks to Sara Anne Berger, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Nachitoches, LA, for writing the Year 1 Narrative Lectionary Links.

Lectionary Links (NL): August 25, 2019 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.