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Ordinary Time sermon ideas

Ordinary time may encompasses the time between Pentecost and Advent, and for some, the time between Epiphany and Ash Wednesday. Ordinary time offers time to reflect on the meaning of the stories of the Bible in our every day lives and has sometimes been called "green" or "growing" time.

What is ordinary time?

In some denominations this long season is split into parts:

  • Epiphany: the Sundays after Epiphany until Ash Wednesday; the liturgical color is green or white
  • Pentecost or Trinity: the Sundays after Pentecost until the Sunday closest to August 31; the liturgical color is red
  • Kingdomtide: from the Sunday closest to August 31 until Advent; the liturgical color is green
  • Creation-time: for reflecting on human's responsibility towards creation; from the first Sunday of the Eastern Orthodox church year (September 1) to the Feast of St. Francis (October 4)

When is ordinary time?

Ordinary time falls primarily between Pentecost and Advent. Some traditions also call the time between Epiphany and Ash Wednesday or Lent ordinary time.

What colors could be used for ordinary time?

Green, red, or white could be used for ordinary time, depending on the part of the season and the emphasis of worship.

What themes could be used for ordinary time?

Bible passage ideas for Ordinary Time

During ordinary time, the church is called to learn and grow, being faithful in the "normal" parts of life to the calling of Christ. During the long period from Pentecost to Advent, there is plenty of time for sermon series to focus on large sections of scripture or large themes in scripture. 

Specially designated services

Ordinary Time includes several specially designated Sundays with their own scripture suggestions, focus, and colors. These may include but are not limited to:

Old Testament Characters

The Roman Catholic and Revised Common Lectionaries feature stories from the lives of some major Old Testament characters across several Sundays during Ordinary Time. These include:

Abraham Resources (search results)

Prayer:
"Gracious Lord, this story of Abraham's [appeal for Sodom] astounds me,
even as it draws me close to you.
When I see how bold Abraham was with you and how receptive you were to him,
I am encouraged to tell you the whole truth and not hold back."
Produced by Higher Calling, "Abraham's Boldness Before God"

Moses Resources (search results)

David Resources (search results)

Jeremiah Resources (search results)

Elements of the Christian Faith

Ordinary Time may be a good time for a sermon series on important elements of the Christian faith, such as the Ten Commandments, the Lord's Prayer, or the Apostles' Creed—all key elements of Christian catechisms, and therefore in the catechesis of the congregation.

Unity of the church

Ordinary time provides a good opportunity to pay attention to the unity of the church. Jesus prayed in John 17:20-21 for unity. In our local churches, we can practice and preach unity and oneness in Christ: we have differences of experiences, ethnicity, opinion, gender, and age. 

As a body of believers, we are also united with the church of all times and all places. Unity does not mean uniformity. 

There are at least two occasious that fall during ordinary time, making this theme important and relevant to think about. 

  1. Worldwide Communion Sunday occurs during October
  2. Pentecost Sunday

Find more ideas on the unity of the church on Zeteosearch.org

Creation

God calls us to view all of creation, including all the humans that God made, with dignity, respect, care, and honor. This calling as implications for our worship where we therefore are called to give praise and thanks for everything that God made. We are also called to express grief and pain at the abuse, pollution, and corruption in creation. And we are called to pray for God's blessing in each season and for each piece of God's created world.

In worship therefore, this can sometimes take on an urgency in the call: when a crisis occurs, we are called to pray for God's aid and direction; when we harvest, we give thanks to God for the bounty; when we need rain, we pray to God to break the drought.

Find more ideas about creation on Zeteosearch.org.

Providence

God actively engages with his creation through the power of preservation and supervision, God holds all created things in existence, and God guides all people and events to the purposes that God intended. God's providence inspires our own gratitude: God holds all things in his hands and has given us many good gifts. God's providence also calls us to trust in him through any suffering, disappointment, or tragedy, trusting that God will guide things always, even when we cannot see what God's purpose is. 

Find more ideas about providence on Zeteosearch.org. 

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving celebrations are an important piece of our worship of God. In Exodus 23:16, God calls Israel, when preparing for new life in the promised land, to first celebrate the feast of harvest with the firstfruits from their crops. Ordinary time provides good times for services of thanksgiving, setting aside of special times to gather in thankful worship before God.

Find more ideas about thanksgiving on Zeteosearch.org.

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