Hard Sayings—Introduction: A Four-Week Series on Teachings of Christ That Are Difficult to Understand and Practice

By Ruth Hofman

This is Part of the Worship Series
Hard Sayings

Series Introduction
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4

Introduction

My mother seldom let us off with easy answers. After the Bible reading that followed family meals, she would often wonder about the meaning of an obscure text by peppering our family with "why" questions:

Why does God act like a general in an army that is responsible for slaying thousands of Israel's enemies?
Why would God ask for the human sacrifice of Abraham's son, after the manner of pagan religions?
Why does Jesus curse a fruit tree for having no fruit in a season in which it was not meant to bear fruit?

Even though these questions made us squirm a bit, they were good for us. They allowed us to be honest about the ambiguities of faith and the challenges of living as people of faith. They led us to search for answers, and in so doing, we discovered the richness of God's Word and will.

Healthy questions and curious searching are the basis for this preaching series. Spawned from several books of the same title (among them Hard Sayings of Jesus and Hard Sayings of the Old Testament, published by InterVarsity), the sermons in this series explore texts that are in some way bothersome, obscure, or difficult to put into practice.

During the weeks when this series structured our liturgy, we used prayers and songs that gave voice to questions of faith and let us address the challenge of understanding and doing the Word of God. We included the following in our bulletin as a preface to the series:

During the next few weeks, our pastor will be preaching on the hard sayings of Jesus. Various texts will focus on teachings that are either difficult to understand and/or hard to practice. In our study, we pray that God will inspire us to know and do his will.

Involving Children

During the summer months, you may want to try some of the following ideas:

Ask children (with the help of their parents) to create a children's activity page for a specific Bible reading. This works best for stories and parables, though most passages lend themselves to fill-in-the-blank, word searches, crossword puzzles, or responses through drawing or writing. On the appropriate Sunday, distribute the activity page to all the children in church.
Invite children to design a bulletin cover. This should be done in black (felt-tipped pen/marker for clear, smooth lines) and white for best reproduction, or in color (markers) if the cost to reproduce is not prohibitive. Kids love to see their work in print.
Consider having older children read the story or parable as the Bible reading for the day. Identify those who have clear, deliberate reading voices.

Using Teens and Young Adults as Worship Leaders

Young teens can do a fine job of offering bidding prayers if the prayers are written in language that suits their age. Some may be able to write additional stanzas in their own words.
Teens and young adults can be encouraged to present a drama. Give them every opportunity to succeed (so they won't become embarrassed and self-conscious) by finding a coach who will rehearse them meticulously without losing the joy of creativity and community.

Bulletin Covers

Bulletin cover designs for each of the four weeks are available to download in the resource section below and can be used with the following copyright statement: Design © 1997 Reformedworship.org CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Series Outline

Hard Saying

Scripture

Bulletin Cover

Week 1

Unless You Hate Your Mother and Father

Matthew 10:24–42

Week 2

Faith to Remove Mountains

Mark 11:12–25

Week 3

Be Perfect

Leviticus 24:17–20;
Matthew 5:14–20, 38–48

Week 4

Many Are Called, But Few Are Chosen

Matthew 22:1–14
Revelation 19:7–8

Note from the Editors

Most parts of the liturgy (call to worship, prayers, confessions, benedictions) are tied to the theme of the series and may be used with any of the four services.