The Sunday School Times published from 1859–1966. In 1859 and was the size of a regular newspaper. After the turn of the century it was reduced to the size of a magazine, although very thin. It ceased publication in 1966 (https://www.loc.gov/item/sn97067021/)
My father had stacks of these valuable periodicals around the house. Their gold mine was the expository teaching of the weekly and daily Bible readings. Included were DAILY lesson readings that led up to Sunday. Included were Lesson Plans, a Lesson Story, Teaching Points, Illustrations, Teaching Hints, Lesson Analysis, and notes by scholars, etc. (On-Line Google Books has the older issues on line for viewing.) The lessons were on a 3 year cycle, meaning that every 3 years a teacher would teach on the same Bible passages, but from a different perspective, particularly as it related to current events.
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| Vol 67 Issue 33, August 15, 1925 |
As a child I knew that the Bible lessons had been pre-established years before and that they were repeated in a cycle to reinforce Biblical truths. Dad was “religious” in his application of the strategy.
What I don’t remember, but was true, is that four Bible Readings were included, from:
- Old Testament
- Psalm
- New Testament Epistle
- Gospel.
These were not randomly selected, but were interrelated. Today they’re collected in a book called the Lectionary. Most denominations have a lectionary. The idea comes from the Jewish community which had a standardized schedule of readings from the Torah. We read of Jesus reading from this selection in Luke 4:16-21 when He began his public ministry.
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14th century Lectionary giving the prologue ofJohn in Greek and Arabic followed by a commentary |
That practice carried over to the Christian Church. There are ancient lectionary lists of readings. But until there were printed Bibles and a literate population (beginning in the 15th century), the Lectionary Readings were known only to the well-educated and those who had access to a Bible, which were rare and expensive.
Today’s Lectionary Readings was amazing to me, especially their interrelationship. Each morning before I get out of bed I listen to several devotion audio. The daily Mass Readings come from Augustine Institute's AMEN app. Then I listen to Dr. Tim Gray's reflections on those readings. Fascinating insights.
Here are today's readings and Gray's insights (abbreviated)
But, first you need to know that today is March 25…exactly nine months (per the Gregorian Calendar) before the Birth of Christ. It is the solemn celebration of the Annunciation of the Lord. It is the curx of history, the INCARNATION, when God became man.
Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10The Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us!”Psalm 40:7-11Sacrifice or oblation you wished not, but ears open to obedience you gave ME (Jesus is referenced here). Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not; then said I, “Behold I come.”The response to this Psalm (said antiphonally by the congregation is “Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.”WHAT I MISS IN THIS RESPONSE AND PSALM IS THAT THE INTERPRETATION OF THIS IS NOT ABOUT ME OR YOU SAYING TO GOD "I WILL DO YOUR WILL," but THESE ARE THE WORDS OF JESUS SAYING TO GOD, “HERE I AM LORD; I COME TO DO YOUR WILL.” Jesus says to God, “I will do your will and become a human being.” This interpretation is clear in the next reading.Hebrews 10:4-10It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins: Therefore when Christ came…he said….Here I am, I have come to do your will.Luke 1:26-28This is the story of Gabriel appearance to Mary, and Mary saying “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” THE INCARNATION HAPPENS. BANG! HISTORY WILL CHANGE DRAMATICALLY, FOREVER AND EVER.
Here’s what caught me by surprise.
In these readings we have TWO Fiats. (I don’t mean Italian cars). Fiat is a Latin word that means “LET IT BE DONE” as an authoritative order or decree.
Yes, we’ve all heard of Mary’s FIAT, “Let it be done unto me…..” but I never realized until this morning that just as Mary gave her FIAT to God, Jesus does the same in Psalm 40 as interpreted in Hebrews 10… “I will come to do your will.” There is Jesus’ FIAT to God.
Not that we, as Christians, would expect anything else, but that these FIATS which changed all of human history are together in the readings for one day, March 25…a day in the middle of Lent when we suspend our fasting and celebrate the Incarnation.
The INCARNATION is so important, that many Christians around the world pray the Angelus every weekday at Noon. If you’re in many European cities at noon, and here the church bells, it’s not to mark midday, it’s to mark the Incarnation. Look around you. You’ll see people kneeling in the middle of the street, bowing their heads and praying the Angelus. I had one friend who did this all the time, even in a public restaurant. It was shocking at first, but when taken against the backdrop of eternity, it is very meaningful.
Finally, below (the image) is a 3 min clip I produced a while back based on a short segment of Stan Walter’s Basic Christianity Lecture No. 4 Getting Information About God. This 3 minutes is excerpted from the longer lecture that is linked here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zty5cyR_OdM
Click image for 3 min excerpt
