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Up-to-the-minute jumping-off points for sermons, linking the reading to the latest news and global issues.
Tumult and transformation
God’s love works for good, despite our chaos (Genesis 29:15-28; Romans 8:26-39).
Context
- Six prime ministers in just ten years! The past decade has seen the UK go through a period of unusually high political turnover. Andy Burnham, who took office on Monday 20 July, was preceded by Keir Starmer, Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss, Boris Johnson, and Theresa May, none of whom made it past three years in post. If David Cameron had hung on for just one more week, we’d have made it to seven PMs in a decade; but as his premiership finished on 13 July 2016, he’s just outside the limit. The press and pundits have noticed. And, as NBC News has illustrated, delightfully, Larry the cat is now the most stable force in Downing Street. We live in tumultuous, messy times.
- Burnham’s route to the top job in UK politics has been a winding one. He has two unsuccessful party leadership bids under his belt, in 2010 and 2015. But he persisted. A detour to become the first mayor of Greater Manchester could have kept him further off course but instead allowed him to build the momentum that’s brought him to power. Life doesn’t always follow a simple, straight line.
- Away from politics, and perhaps a welcome respite, The Great British Sewing Bee is back for its 12th series. My favourite part of the show is the Transformation Challenge. The contestants are given unloved second-hand garments and materials and race against the clock to transform them into something new. So far this series, a mish-mash of brown and purple clothing became skirts, tops and dresses (some more wearable than others!), and discarded aprons were turned into functional bags. What seems like trash sometimes becomes treasure.
Reflection and ideas for sermons or interactive talks
From chaos and division to peace and reconciliation
Jacob, as we know from our vantage point centuries later, had a part to play in God’s redemptive plan. But, at this point in his story, the route forwards isn’t clear. Having collaborated with his mother in tricking his father and brother, he’s run away from the ensuing mess. Now he becomes the victim of Laban’s trick. It’s not a pretty story, especially for the two sisters, Leah and Rachel, now pitted against each other in competition for their husband’s attention (Genesis 29:15-28). But eventually, if we read on beyond today’s passage, we learn that from the root of this chaotic family tree is born the Prince of Peace. Unloved Leah bears a fourth son, Judah, for whom she praises the Lord (Genesis 29:35). And Judah becomes ancestor to David, and David to Jesus, the saviour who brings reconciliation to us all.
The transformation challenge
Faced with life’s mess, from the trivial, like a pile of damaged, out-of-fashion, or ill-fitting clothing, to the truly painful, like a dysfunctional family dynamic, a betrayal, or the derailment of a dream, we might be tempted to give up - throw out the clothes or throw up our hands in despair. But God suggests there is another way, through the tumult towards transformation. In Romans 8:26-27, Paul writes that the Spirit will help us call out to God, even when we are too troubled to know how. The Spirit “intercedes with sighs too deep for words”. And God will answer. “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Jacob, the tricked trickster, becomes father to a nation. Leah, the unloved wife, becomes mother to the line of Jesus. In God’s hands the unlikely material of our lives is transformed into something glorious (Romans 8:30), the loving family of the kingdom of God.
Questions for discussion
- Have you ever worked a transformation on something? Perhaps you’ve picked up a piece of furniture discarded on the pavement and painted it to make it fit for your home; patched or adjusted a shirt or dress from the back of your wardrobe to make it wearable again; or dug and planted a neglected patch of ground to grow vegetables or flowers. What prompted you to begin and how did you find the process and the result? As you reflect or discuss, pause also to think about how God’s love transforms us.
- Many families are troubled by division, jealousy, or difficult dynamics. Is yours? In private, or with chosen trusted friends, can you bring these situations to God? Even if you do not have the words, bring your sighs: the Spirit will intercede for you and God will hear. Even though the road through this world may remain a rocky one, God will be with you. Claim the promise of Romans 8:38-39: “the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord”.
Rebecca Froley was the launch editor for the Roots website 20+ years ago and now works in web management in the culture and heritage sector. She worships at a Baptist church in the London Borough of Sutton where she helps with the young people’s groups, and a small Christian development charity.
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Navigating the mess
Did you watch any of the World Cup? (The men’s football version, that is). For the majority of the tournament, it seemed as if France were the team to beat. They were playing the best football; beating teams with ease.
It was theirs to lose.
And then they went and lost to Spain in the semi-final, before they lost to England in the Bronze Medal match. Suddenly, having made playing football seem so easy, they went and made it all Messi. Sorry...messy...
I don’t know about you, but far too often in life I look at other people’s lives and think that they’ve got it all sorted. A bit like France before they lost to Spain, it can sometimes appear that everyone else knows what they’re doing at work, school or college – until, at some point, things go wrong. They might have amazing photos or videos on Facebook / Instagram / TikTok. If they’re in work, they’re making amazing career choices on LinkedIn, whilst for us parents, everyone else’s kids are in bed by 8pm...
And yet I look at my own life, and I know it’s a mess. The messiness – and the joys and excitement – of adopting our youngest; the messiness of sickness and ill-health; the stretch of new jobs in areas we’ve not had much experience in before; the mess that that has had on my & our mental health.
And yet...and yet. It’s at moments like this that I’m glad stories like today’s passage involving Laban, Jacob, Rachel and Leah are included in the Bible. I’m glad that Scripture doesn’t shy away from the messiness of human life. Because it shows us that God works in and through the messy situations that we find ourselves in; and he works in and through messy people. Messy people like your friends and your siblings; your church leaders and your teachers; your parents and, dare I say...messy people like me and you?
Jonathan Buckley is the Redevelopment Manager at St Paul’s Wordsworth Avenue in Sheffield and the Youth Development Worker at YMCA White Rose in Rotherham.
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