Proper 27 (Ordinary 32) · Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Choosing Whom You Will Serve

Joshua calls Israel to remember God’s deliverance and to decide whom they will serve. Preach this as a summons to examine hidden allegiances—security, status, comfort—that compete with covenant loyalty. The text is not a one-time decision but a repeated, embodied choice made visible in households and public worship. Invite hearers to name their foreign gods and join the people’s declaration of faithfulness. The sermon can press both the cost and grace of choosing God again today.

Grief That Does Not Despair

Paul addresses a community anxious about believers who have died before Christ’s return. The gospel answer is not denial but resurrection hope: because Jesus died and rose, those who sleep in him will rise. Preach this as comfort for real grief, not an escape from sorrow. The trumpet and descent are images of God’s decisive act, not a timetable. Encourage the church to speak these words to one another, letting hope shape funeral practices, pastoral care, and the long ache of loss.

The Oil of Readiness

The parable of the ten bridesmaids contrasts wisdom and foolishness in waiting for the bridegroom. Preach readiness not as anxiety but as daily, prepared faithfulness. The wise brought extra oil—spiritual resources cultivated over time—while the foolish assumed they could borrow at the last moment. The shut door and the bridegroom’s refusal to recognize them are warnings that some preparations cannot be transferred. Ask what practices sustain the congregation for a long delay, and what it means to watch with both patience and urgency.

Mercy

“I wish to have pity, but I see no oil in your vessels. I desire to have mercy, but ye have passed through life entirely without mercy.”

— Hippolytus, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 5

Second coming

“So with the lamps of the wise virgins, lighted at night in the great darkness of ignorance.”

— Clement of Alexandria, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 2

Good works

“Even the exercise of charity is often a snare to us. It calls us to certain occupations that dissipate the mind, and that may degenerate into mere amusement.”

— Unknown, The World's Great Sermons, Vol. 2 (ed. Kleiser)