UNIFORM LESSON FOR July 23, 2017 Scripture passage and lesson focus: Ezekiel 3:1-11 God called the priest Ezekiel to be a prophet when the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar carried him and a large contingent of the Jewish people into exile. Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed in 597 B.C. The Jewish Study Bible describes the writing of the prophet Ezekiel with these words: “He presents some of the most theologically challenging and dynamic material among the prophets of the Bible, and some of the most difficult and bizarre passages.” One of those bizarre passages is the description of Ezekiel’s vision of the heavenly throne of God with which the book opens. It is replete with surreal mystical images of God’s throne as a heavenly chariot surrounded by flashing fire. Around the throne are creatures with a human form, but they also have four different faces, four wings, the feet of a calf and human hands beneath their wings. They move in any direction by means of wheels within … [Read more...]

UNIFORM LESSON FOR July 9, 2017 Scripture passage and lesson focus: Isaiah 6:1-8 In all of Scripture there is not a more dramatic description of God’s call than this account of Isaiah’s vision of God in the temple in Jerusalem. Like God’s call of Moses from the burning bush and Saul’s life-changing experience on the road to Damascus, God’s call dramatically redirects Isaiah’s life and culminates with his obedient response: “Here I am; send me!” This passage describes Isaiah’s experience that can appropriately be described as awesome, a term whose meaning is frequently diluted in casual conversations today. The editor of the book of Isaiah provides a firm historical reference point for Isaiah’s call as “the year that king Uzziah died.” Most scholars agree that that year was 738 B.C. While other parts of the book attributed to Isaiah reflect events more than 200 years later, Isaiah 6 clearly belongs to the earliest traditions collected in this book. At the heart of Isaiah of … [Read more...]

UNIFORM LESSON FOR July 16, 2017 Scripture passage and lesson focus: Jeremiah 1:4-10 Those familiar with Scripture may think God’s call to a prophet was typically a moment of high drama. The call of Moses from the burning bush, Isaiah’s vision of God in the temple and Jonah’s rescue from the belly of a giant fish seem to be typical of God’s mysterious and surprising way of calling a prophet. And that kind of dramatic encounter was indeed one way God enlisted persons to bring God’s message to the people. But it was not the only way. In today’s lesson we learn that God also called a prophet in a way that seems much more ordinary. God called this person even before he had been born. His whole life including challenges, tragedies and blessings was marked by God’s providential guidance. Jeremiah 1:4-5 —Called before birth The opening words of the prophecy of Jeremiah trace the origin of his prophetic call back to God’s actions before his birth. God said to Jeremiah, “Before you … [Read more...]