The name “Ordinary Time” comes from the word “ordinal” as in ordinal numbers (e.g. “first, second, etc.”) because each Sunday is counted after Pentecost. Ordinary time is not “mundane” time, though it can feel that way because it is the season of routine. We have been filled with the Holy Spirit and released into the world, to live to the Lord. Ordinary Time, then, is about learning to see how the resurrection infuses every day, transforming ordinary time into peculiar time.
June 14 | Third Sunday After Pentecost: Jesus is Authoritatively Open Handed
In Matthew 10, Jesus calls his twelve disciples to himself before giving them authority over unclean spirits and sickness. Jesus has all authority in heaven and on earth and yet he does not hold on to that authority. Kara Powell, of the Fuller Youth Institute, calls this “Keychain Leadership.” Keychain leaders are aware of the keys on their key ring, but they look for opportunities to give those keys away to the next generation.
June 7 | Second Sunday After Pentecost: Jesus Eats with Sinners
Jesus made his contemporaries uncomfortable with his choices of table fellowship. In Matthew 9, the Pharisees can’t believe that Jesus is eating with tax collectors and sinners. But Matthew, the recently called tax collector, knows that this is the greatest news of all: Jesus is here to eat with the sick and sinners, because we are all sick and need a doctor.
May 31 | First Sunday after Pentecost: Make Disciples, Not Converts
In Matthew 28, Jesus commissions his disciples to make disciples of all nations by baptizing and teaching them. Far too often, the great commission is understood to be an evangelism text, with the understanding to “go make converts” when Jesus is tasking his disciples with something far greater: to help people learn how to live as Jesus did.
