Year C Proper 13 1 August 2010
Hosea 11: 1-11 Psalm 107: 1-9, 43 Colossians 3: 1-11 Luke 12: 13-21
Feel like your life is like a wilderness with you wandering around trying to find your home?
Psalm 107 “4 Some wandered in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city where they could settle. 5 They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away. 6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. 7 He led them by a straight way to a city where they could settle.”
The readings this week are about finding home. Remember, “Home is where the heart is”. Our problem is that modern society seems to have lost connection with their heart, denying it with our ambitions, and feeding it materialism when it is hungry. But this is not ever going to truly satisfy our hearts.
We live in a world that still embraces idolatry. Even our Government acknowledges it when they put debates on at a time that doesn’t clash with “Master Chef”. Our churches acknowledge it when they carefully avoid church meeting clashes with football games. But there is a whole lot more to idolatry that these things that we kind of laugh about – and these things are far more subtle, insidious and just as culturally accepted.
Our 2nd reading from Colossians 3 tells us: “5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” You don’t have to watch too much television to realize that these things are no longer considered sin by our society, yet the scriptures warn us that because of these things God’s wrath is coming. Ooo! We don’t like to acknowledge that God might have wrath do we? We’d much rather talk about the God of love and infinite mercy.
While many people believe that the Old Testament times was when God was wrathful and now He is a loving God, this is not the truth as God is the same always and forever. If He was a God whose word was to be feared once then He is still a God to be feared... Proverbs tell us that the Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, indeed it is. If we are warned about these things then we need to seriously heed that warning.... Monitor not just your behaviour but also your thoughts... take care in what television shows you watch and what images you hang in your sheds, and what emails you forward. Guard and search your heart for evil desires and greed. These inner things that we may believe to be harmless are the insidious roots of evil. There used to be a computer term that puts it very well, G.I. - G.o. meaning Garbage in – Garbage out.
We also find the exhortation in our reading from Colossians 3 :8 “But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.” These are all too easy habits to slip into. Certainly St. Paul was the victim of Malice and slander and knew the damage that it could cause in the Church. We need to check ourselves constantly.
It is a strange turn-around, that in this week’s readings we find the infinite mercy of God being declared in the Old Testament, and the wrath of God being mentioned in the New Testament.
From Hosea11:8 “My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused. 9 I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim. For I am God, and not man— the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath.”
When Jesus walked on Earth he came to save. It is often not God that caused devastation but our own evil and greed. In the words of the singer Jewel, “good golly we’re mad, that God kills children with our very own hands”. Meaning that we fail to see the consequences of our own action and when things go wrong, as they inevitably will, we blame God.
If we continue in our normal earthly behaviour of rage, malice, slander and greed etc.. our community is no better off than a non-Christian community and in fact it is far worse as we are misrepresenting God. In this way we are not only sinning against each other but also against God.
Our Gospel reading tells the story of the rich man whose crop went very well and with his abundance he built bigger barns to store his grain, however that night his life was demanded from him. We are exhorted to be rich toward God rather than store up riches for ourselves. It’s all a matter of where home is.
In our baptism we chose to have our life buried in Christ. Many of us may not remember that day and so we need to consciously be aware and constantly remind ourselves of this. In baptism we are also gifted with Christ’s life and resurrection. So... Christ is our life. Colossians 3:1 puts it this way, “1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”
Our life being hidden with Christ in God is an amazing thing as it means our sins have been buried – gone. Notice there is no “Maybe” in the last sentence, “when Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” This is the Good News that we proclaim and celebrate.
Our problem, and the place where we need to start, is in realizing who we are in Christ. When we do understand, then we will be “Home” as our life is in Him. No more wandering in the desert wasteland... well... I think we have an Earthly inclination for the desert but that is what our message is for this week, to put to death what belongs to the Earthly nature and make our home securely in Christ.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Reflection for Sunday the 25th July 2010
Year C Proper 12 25 July 2010
Hosea 1: 2-10 Psalm 85 Colossians 2: 6-15, (16-19) Luke 11: 1-13
Every day we wake up and go about our routine, but I wonder what our motivation is. What or who is it that we depend on?
In reality there will be a variety of answers and probably lots of different “whos” and “whats” , but deeper down than the practicalities is a basic philosophy and belief set that shapes and drives our lives. For many people that basic philosophy and belief is mostly veiled and hidden in the sub-conscious part of our being. This can be dangerous as when we don’t really know what we believe we are subject to fads, opinions and societal peer pressure. But worse than these, if we are unaware of our beliefs, we are open to the deceptions that are deliberately designed to cause our destruction.
Colossians 2:8 “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”
There is only one way to ensure that we are living motivated by the truth of Jesus Christ and that is to stay so connected to him and his word that we can immediately spot deceptions. I’ve heard that there are people who are trained to identify counterfeit money. Their training does not consist of studying the counterfeits, as they may come across some that they’ve never seen before. But what their training does consist of is much study and familiarity with the real thing. We need to study the word of God!
The prophet Hosea had just begun to hear from God. I can imagine that some may think being chosen to be one of God’s special prophets would be a great honour. It surely is, but when we hear of prophets, evangelists and miracle workers being almost worshiped like the Christian version of a rock star we can know that something isn’t right. Many of God’s prophets had a very rough time and Hosea was no exception. God told Hosea to go and take an adulterous wife. It was a recipe for heartache and I’m sure many would have questioned that Hosea was legitimately hearing from God, but it was God’s call on Hosea’s life. Fortunately for us, Hosea trusted and fully relied on God.
The life of Hosea was to be a prophetic sign of the relationship that God had with his people. God loves, cares, provides and protects his people, yet they reject him and worship other gods. Many people think that God showed himself to be a cruel and punishing God in the accounts of the Old Testament, but if we actually read some of the absolutely despicable things that these people did you’d be surprised that God didn’t completely wipe them off the face of the earth. Sometimes I think God deliberately chose the worst of the worst so that we can know if He showed mercy to them then He will surely show mercy to us also.
Always, after God declares his wrath, He follows with the promise of redemption and the story of Hosea is no different.
We need to have a good look at Hosea’s wife. If you ever get the chance to read a book by Francine Rivers called “Redeeming Love” I would highly recommend it as it not only is an enjoyable delight but it gives amazing insight into the wife of Hosea.
The question was asked on someone’s Facebook status recently, “Why do people cheat?” What was it that caused Hosea’s wife to constantly stray when she had everything she needed where she was? I believe... and the book by Francine Rivers seems to also back this idea, that the underlying philosophy or belief that drives this kind of person is one of insecurity. There is a disbelief that one is truly loveable and on the flipside, a belief that the one you are with could not possibly deliver all that is promised.
What this tells us about the Israelites relationship with God is that they didn’t believe God would really be all and do all that He promised.
Are we any different?
Does our life reflect the faith that we have in God? We have a great summary of what Jesus has done for us in our reading from the Colossians2: 9 “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. 11In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, 12having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
13When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”
There is quite a lot in that reading so I have underlined the key points to help.
To re-emphasize some points from last week, Christianity is a “Done” religion. In many other religions the people have to strive to achieve union or acceptance, but through the gift of Jesus Christ all our “doing”, or maybe what “should be done” is completed. It has already been achieved.
You will come across Christians, often, who are trying hard to “do” things to be acceptable – they’ve fallen victim to a hollow philosophy that depends on their actions. Maybe a hollow philosophy like that which is coined around Australian classrooms, “you can do it” – No! You actually can’t do it. Don’t feel bad when you fail – Christ knew that you would. He wouldn’t have gone through such a drastic death if it wasn’t absolutely necessary.
Can you discern what motivates you? Have you understood fully what Christ has done so that you can fully rely on God?
When Jesus disciples asked him to teach them how to pray he taught them not a set prayer – though we say it as the famous Lord’s Prayer. What Jesus taught them was to address God as father and to rely on him by submitting to him our daily needs knowing that as a father he will surely care for us. There is a bit more to the prayer than just this, but I believe our main message for this week is to fully rely on God.
It has always struck me that this Gospel reading ends with line about the Holy Spirit. Luke 11:13 “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
Ever since our post Easter reflections I have been looking for opportunities to encourage us all to unwrap the gift of the Holy Spirit. St. Luke was writing his Gospel to a non-Jewish nobleman during the period of time when the gifts of the Holy Spirit were relied on. It has always seemed to me that Luke was trying to impress on his reader the importance, goodness and credibility of the gift of the Holy Spirit.
We all have areas of our life where we are like the man who cried out to Jesus, “Lord I believe. Help my unbelief!” We believe God and then we, like the adulterous wife, put out trust in other things... other philosophies... I could get on my soap box and list a few – I am tempted to, but really the only way to know if you have taken on a deceptive philosophy is to let the search light of the Holy Spirit to find it out and make it clear to you.
We can pray as Jesus taught us, but we also need the help of the Holy Spirit for prayer, for discernment, for understanding, for interceding... and the list goes on. With the gift of the Holy Spirit teaching us as we read the scriptures we will more fully understand that we are free. We will have our eyes opened to the good things that God has done and we will know that we can trust Him. Now I’m understanding the letters that you can find on some Christian merchandise – FROG – Fully Rely On God!
Hosea 1: 2-10 Psalm 85 Colossians 2: 6-15, (16-19) Luke 11: 1-13
Every day we wake up and go about our routine, but I wonder what our motivation is. What or who is it that we depend on?
In reality there will be a variety of answers and probably lots of different “whos” and “whats” , but deeper down than the practicalities is a basic philosophy and belief set that shapes and drives our lives. For many people that basic philosophy and belief is mostly veiled and hidden in the sub-conscious part of our being. This can be dangerous as when we don’t really know what we believe we are subject to fads, opinions and societal peer pressure. But worse than these, if we are unaware of our beliefs, we are open to the deceptions that are deliberately designed to cause our destruction.
Colossians 2:8 “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”
There is only one way to ensure that we are living motivated by the truth of Jesus Christ and that is to stay so connected to him and his word that we can immediately spot deceptions. I’ve heard that there are people who are trained to identify counterfeit money. Their training does not consist of studying the counterfeits, as they may come across some that they’ve never seen before. But what their training does consist of is much study and familiarity with the real thing. We need to study the word of God!
The prophet Hosea had just begun to hear from God. I can imagine that some may think being chosen to be one of God’s special prophets would be a great honour. It surely is, but when we hear of prophets, evangelists and miracle workers being almost worshiped like the Christian version of a rock star we can know that something isn’t right. Many of God’s prophets had a very rough time and Hosea was no exception. God told Hosea to go and take an adulterous wife. It was a recipe for heartache and I’m sure many would have questioned that Hosea was legitimately hearing from God, but it was God’s call on Hosea’s life. Fortunately for us, Hosea trusted and fully relied on God.
The life of Hosea was to be a prophetic sign of the relationship that God had with his people. God loves, cares, provides and protects his people, yet they reject him and worship other gods. Many people think that God showed himself to be a cruel and punishing God in the accounts of the Old Testament, but if we actually read some of the absolutely despicable things that these people did you’d be surprised that God didn’t completely wipe them off the face of the earth. Sometimes I think God deliberately chose the worst of the worst so that we can know if He showed mercy to them then He will surely show mercy to us also.
Always, after God declares his wrath, He follows with the promise of redemption and the story of Hosea is no different.
We need to have a good look at Hosea’s wife. If you ever get the chance to read a book by Francine Rivers called “Redeeming Love” I would highly recommend it as it not only is an enjoyable delight but it gives amazing insight into the wife of Hosea.
The question was asked on someone’s Facebook status recently, “Why do people cheat?” What was it that caused Hosea’s wife to constantly stray when she had everything she needed where she was? I believe... and the book by Francine Rivers seems to also back this idea, that the underlying philosophy or belief that drives this kind of person is one of insecurity. There is a disbelief that one is truly loveable and on the flipside, a belief that the one you are with could not possibly deliver all that is promised.
What this tells us about the Israelites relationship with God is that they didn’t believe God would really be all and do all that He promised.
Are we any different?
Does our life reflect the faith that we have in God? We have a great summary of what Jesus has done for us in our reading from the Colossians2: 9 “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. 11In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, 12having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
13When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”
There is quite a lot in that reading so I have underlined the key points to help.
To re-emphasize some points from last week, Christianity is a “Done” religion. In many other religions the people have to strive to achieve union or acceptance, but through the gift of Jesus Christ all our “doing”, or maybe what “should be done” is completed. It has already been achieved.
You will come across Christians, often, who are trying hard to “do” things to be acceptable – they’ve fallen victim to a hollow philosophy that depends on their actions. Maybe a hollow philosophy like that which is coined around Australian classrooms, “you can do it” – No! You actually can’t do it. Don’t feel bad when you fail – Christ knew that you would. He wouldn’t have gone through such a drastic death if it wasn’t absolutely necessary.
Can you discern what motivates you? Have you understood fully what Christ has done so that you can fully rely on God?
When Jesus disciples asked him to teach them how to pray he taught them not a set prayer – though we say it as the famous Lord’s Prayer. What Jesus taught them was to address God as father and to rely on him by submitting to him our daily needs knowing that as a father he will surely care for us. There is a bit more to the prayer than just this, but I believe our main message for this week is to fully rely on God.
It has always struck me that this Gospel reading ends with line about the Holy Spirit. Luke 11:13 “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
Ever since our post Easter reflections I have been looking for opportunities to encourage us all to unwrap the gift of the Holy Spirit. St. Luke was writing his Gospel to a non-Jewish nobleman during the period of time when the gifts of the Holy Spirit were relied on. It has always seemed to me that Luke was trying to impress on his reader the importance, goodness and credibility of the gift of the Holy Spirit.
We all have areas of our life where we are like the man who cried out to Jesus, “Lord I believe. Help my unbelief!” We believe God and then we, like the adulterous wife, put out trust in other things... other philosophies... I could get on my soap box and list a few – I am tempted to, but really the only way to know if you have taken on a deceptive philosophy is to let the search light of the Holy Spirit to find it out and make it clear to you.
We can pray as Jesus taught us, but we also need the help of the Holy Spirit for prayer, for discernment, for understanding, for interceding... and the list goes on. With the gift of the Holy Spirit teaching us as we read the scriptures we will more fully understand that we are free. We will have our eyes opened to the good things that God has done and we will know that we can trust Him. Now I’m understanding the letters that you can find on some Christian merchandise – FROG – Fully Rely On God!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Reflection for the 18th July 2010
Year C Proper 11 18 July 2010
Amos 8: 1-12 Psalm 52 Colossians 1: 15-28 Luke 10: 38-42
Recently we’ve begun to experience Sunday trading in Mackay. Most of the locals (ie long term residents) didn’t want it. We like the idea of going for a picnic on a Sunday, or fishing or visiting family and friends. However, I’m becoming very aware that we no longer live in a democracy, and Sunday trading seems to be one of the things that we must take part in as we move toward a Global society. Slightly aside from the topic is, that I believe with this Global society will come a lack of country identity.
Similar pressures were being experienced in the time of the prophet Amos. The difference is that there were very strong religious traditions that inhibited the trade and finance that was to be had. The traders longed for the sacred days to end so that they could make their money. Our modern life is no different except for the fact that our modern church doesn’t seem to object to the consumerist society.
Have you heard about how to cook a frog? If you put a frog in the boiling pot it will jump straight out, but if you warm the pot slowly the frog will not realize what is happening and will cook. Like the frog cooked in the pot that boiled slowly, we’ve become transformed by the world around us. In fact, our mission is to be a catalyst that transforms our world.
We read where God warns the people in Amos 8:11 “The days are coming," declares the Sovereign LORD, "when I will send a famine through the land— not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD.”
The interesting thing about prophecy is that it is the message of God which has a meaning for fulfilment in the time in which it was set but it has eternal principals and I suspect that this famine of the word of God could well be where we are at now as a church in this nation. Why do I make such a comment? The Church is God’s prophet today and I haven’t heard the Church speak out about the state of our nation, about social justice or about the state of our world in some time. Maybe I missed it??? What do you think?
Amos had a vision of a basket of ripe fruit. The image that comes to mind with this is that of land of holidaying and enjoying festivity, but God describes the fruit as being the people ripe for harvest and he declares that he will spare them no longer. It seems to be all bad news for the Israelites but then there is this interesting prophecy that accompanies:
9 "In that day," declares the Sovereign LORD, "I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight.10 I will turn your religious feasts into mourning and all your singing into weeping. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day.”
I can’t help but wonder if there were any Pharisees who were familiar with the prophecy of Amos when Jesus was crucified. On the day of crucifixion we are told that the land became dark. God’s only son was one whom even nature mourned over. Perhaps there were a few of the religious of Jesus day who recognised the prophecy and repented. We don’t know, but I do believe that the purpose of the prophecy was to bring about repentance.
In Jesus day there were many people who didn’t really recognise him. They saw him as the illegitimate carpenter’s son, or as someone who broke the Sabbath law and threatened their authority. Others saw more in him but still didn’t recognise who he really was. These people saw him as a good man, even a prophet, who spoke God’s message and performed miracles. But our 2nd reading from Colossian 1 explains very clearly who Jesus is: “15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”
When Jesus went to visit Martha and Mary, Martha did the normal things that one does for a guest. She busied herself doing what was expected when there was a special guest. Martha knew that Jesus was someone special. She may have even believed him to be the Messiah, but she didn’t recognise who he really was. Mary saw. Mary looked at Jesus and saw her creator and redeemer. She saw her precious saviour and God.
What would you do or not do if you had Jesus walk into your house right now? Take a moment and think about it.
We are living in the end days. All the days after the time of Jesus are the “end days”. In many ways we are privileged as we can learn from the experiences of those who have gone before us. We can ask ourselves are we like Martha? Do we do the work of God not fully understanding that we have the presence of God with us?
We truly are privileged because of the times that we live in and because of the gift of God, but as I’ve said before, a gift left unwrapped is not achieving its purpose and leaves us short of fulfilling our potential. There is a little gem in our reading from the letter to the Colossians 1: 25 “I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness— 26the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. 27To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
What is this saying? We may live in times where there is nationally or globally a famine of the word of God, but we have the word of God in its fullness. Previously it had been a mystery and sadly it is still a mystery to many but here is the amazing simple truth..... Christ in you is the hope of glory.
By the Holy Spirit we have Christ in us and this means we are acceptable to God and reconciled in our relationship with him. We are Mary, recognising that we have our precious saviour and God with us. And that is the important part... we have God with us and in us. To explain, Martha is like the hand beater that I used to use to whip cream. It was hard work. Now I have an electric beater. There is a power flowing through the beater that makes it a joy to use and way more effective. We don’t need to perform works of service for God, as if doing it for him from the outside, but instead, empowered by God in us we are his body on this earth with access to all the power necessary to transform the world.... and “work out” what He within us would have us accomplish.
Last week we had a visiting preacher from Church bush aid. He said that all other religions are doing religions. In them people try to do things to become acceptable to God – or even become God. Christianity is a “done” religion. Christ has done all that needs to be done and on the cross proclaimed, “It is finished”. There is nothing really left to do but allow Christ in you to be the hope of glory.
Be still and know that He is God.
Amos 8: 1-12 Psalm 52 Colossians 1: 15-28 Luke 10: 38-42
Recently we’ve begun to experience Sunday trading in Mackay. Most of the locals (ie long term residents) didn’t want it. We like the idea of going for a picnic on a Sunday, or fishing or visiting family and friends. However, I’m becoming very aware that we no longer live in a democracy, and Sunday trading seems to be one of the things that we must take part in as we move toward a Global society. Slightly aside from the topic is, that I believe with this Global society will come a lack of country identity.
Similar pressures were being experienced in the time of the prophet Amos. The difference is that there were very strong religious traditions that inhibited the trade and finance that was to be had. The traders longed for the sacred days to end so that they could make their money. Our modern life is no different except for the fact that our modern church doesn’t seem to object to the consumerist society.
Have you heard about how to cook a frog? If you put a frog in the boiling pot it will jump straight out, but if you warm the pot slowly the frog will not realize what is happening and will cook. Like the frog cooked in the pot that boiled slowly, we’ve become transformed by the world around us. In fact, our mission is to be a catalyst that transforms our world.
We read where God warns the people in Amos 8:11 “The days are coming," declares the Sovereign LORD, "when I will send a famine through the land— not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD.”
The interesting thing about prophecy is that it is the message of God which has a meaning for fulfilment in the time in which it was set but it has eternal principals and I suspect that this famine of the word of God could well be where we are at now as a church in this nation. Why do I make such a comment? The Church is God’s prophet today and I haven’t heard the Church speak out about the state of our nation, about social justice or about the state of our world in some time. Maybe I missed it??? What do you think?
Amos had a vision of a basket of ripe fruit. The image that comes to mind with this is that of land of holidaying and enjoying festivity, but God describes the fruit as being the people ripe for harvest and he declares that he will spare them no longer. It seems to be all bad news for the Israelites but then there is this interesting prophecy that accompanies:
9 "In that day," declares the Sovereign LORD, "I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight.10 I will turn your religious feasts into mourning and all your singing into weeping. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day.”
I can’t help but wonder if there were any Pharisees who were familiar with the prophecy of Amos when Jesus was crucified. On the day of crucifixion we are told that the land became dark. God’s only son was one whom even nature mourned over. Perhaps there were a few of the religious of Jesus day who recognised the prophecy and repented. We don’t know, but I do believe that the purpose of the prophecy was to bring about repentance.
In Jesus day there were many people who didn’t really recognise him. They saw him as the illegitimate carpenter’s son, or as someone who broke the Sabbath law and threatened their authority. Others saw more in him but still didn’t recognise who he really was. These people saw him as a good man, even a prophet, who spoke God’s message and performed miracles. But our 2nd reading from Colossian 1 explains very clearly who Jesus is: “15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”
When Jesus went to visit Martha and Mary, Martha did the normal things that one does for a guest. She busied herself doing what was expected when there was a special guest. Martha knew that Jesus was someone special. She may have even believed him to be the Messiah, but she didn’t recognise who he really was. Mary saw. Mary looked at Jesus and saw her creator and redeemer. She saw her precious saviour and God.
What would you do or not do if you had Jesus walk into your house right now? Take a moment and think about it.
We are living in the end days. All the days after the time of Jesus are the “end days”. In many ways we are privileged as we can learn from the experiences of those who have gone before us. We can ask ourselves are we like Martha? Do we do the work of God not fully understanding that we have the presence of God with us?
We truly are privileged because of the times that we live in and because of the gift of God, but as I’ve said before, a gift left unwrapped is not achieving its purpose and leaves us short of fulfilling our potential. There is a little gem in our reading from the letter to the Colossians 1: 25 “I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness— 26the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. 27To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
What is this saying? We may live in times where there is nationally or globally a famine of the word of God, but we have the word of God in its fullness. Previously it had been a mystery and sadly it is still a mystery to many but here is the amazing simple truth..... Christ in you is the hope of glory.
By the Holy Spirit we have Christ in us and this means we are acceptable to God and reconciled in our relationship with him. We are Mary, recognising that we have our precious saviour and God with us. And that is the important part... we have God with us and in us. To explain, Martha is like the hand beater that I used to use to whip cream. It was hard work. Now I have an electric beater. There is a power flowing through the beater that makes it a joy to use and way more effective. We don’t need to perform works of service for God, as if doing it for him from the outside, but instead, empowered by God in us we are his body on this earth with access to all the power necessary to transform the world.... and “work out” what He within us would have us accomplish.
Last week we had a visiting preacher from Church bush aid. He said that all other religions are doing religions. In them people try to do things to become acceptable to God – or even become God. Christianity is a “done” religion. Christ has done all that needs to be done and on the cross proclaimed, “It is finished”. There is nothing really left to do but allow Christ in you to be the hope of glory.
Be still and know that He is God.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Reflection for 11 July 2010
Year C Proper 10 11 July 2010
Amos 7: 7-17 Psalm 82 Colossians 1: 1-14 Luke 10: 25-37
In an ancient time God spoke through His prophet, Amos, and told him that He would no longer spare the Israelites. God was setting a plumbline among them – the implication was that the nation was to be measured and understood that it would be found to be impure. I wonder how it would be if God was to speak today and set a plumbline in our nation.
The Israelite King was not happy about Amos’ message and told him to go back to the land of Judah. This occurred in a time when the nation of God’s people was in two parts; the Israelites, whose capital was Samaria and the land of Judah whose capital was Jerusalem. We are told the message of Amos to the people of Israel in Amos 7:11 “For this is what Amos is saying: “‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their native land.' " This did take place and the land was resettled by people who were of both Israelite and other pagan ancestry. These people were plagued by wild beasts and they took it as a sign that they needed to learn about the God of that land. And so it followed that the Samaritans were a people who had the law of God and followed it, yet also followed their pagan gods.
In the time of Amos there were other prophets and lots of them false. Why would anyone be a false prophet? It could be quite lucrative and easy bread to earn – providing of course that you tell the people what they want to hear. We still have these people today, they are the psychics and clairvoyants, and they still get paid for the stories they weave. Among them also may be a few claiming to be Christian ministers.... They say what the people want to hear and are rewarded!
Knowing this kind of “professional” prophet, the annoyed king speaks to Amos in Amos 7: 12 “Then Amaziah said to Amos, "Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. 13 Don't prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king's sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom."
Amos makes it clear that he is different from the “professional” prophets and describes his profession as a shepherd and the tender of sycamore-fig trees. The prophet is a prophet due to the call of God. Amos is not joining the “clergy” as a rational choice or because it is part of the “family business”, but simply because God called him.
Like Amos, the Church in this nation may sometimes need to speak out and say things that will not be popular. The Church is the plumbline in this nation – or at least one of the jobs of the Church is to explain that plumbline to the nation. According to this plumbline we don’t kill unborn babies and we don’t euthanize the weak. We find some explanations of this plumbline in the other readings for this week. From the Psalm we discover; Psalm 82:3 “Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. 4 Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
Just in case that wasn’t clear, we find someone asking Jesus to really spell it out for them in our Gospel reading. An expert in the Law asks Jesus what he must to do inherit eternal life. What would you say if someone asked you this question? Usually the people who ask these kinds of questions already have their own idea about how to inherit eternal life and are only asking so that they can state their own view, so it is interesting to note how Jesus answers the man. Rather than give a straight answer Jesus answers with a question back to the man, Luke 10: 26 "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"
27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' "
It is a great answer and Jesus acknowledges it. It is the correct answer according to the law. But now I wonder whether this is the answer we would have given. I probably would have said “believe in Jesus Christ and accept him as Lord and Saviour”. It is another correct answer, but I don’t think it is going to be effective in our modern world where most don’t see any need for a saviour. To answer with the Law of God, as this man did is probably where we need to be starting in bringing people to Christ – unless people understand what the Law is and how they have broken it they can never see any need for a saviour.
If you were to ask non church going/ fence sitting people randomly whether they thought they were going to heaven, most would answer “probably”, and their reason would be that they are a good person. They usually don’t believe that they have broken any of God’s commandments, yet when you ask them, “what is the first and greatest commandment?”, they have no idea.
Our expert in the Law communicating with Jesus is different from our modern day nominal Christian. This is a person who strives to keep all the commandments and knows them well.... so much so that he can summarise the law into those two. But as I’ve pointed out in other reflections, to know the letter of the law is often a long way from understanding the heart of the law, and our law expert was about to show his ignorance by his next question: “Who is my neighbour?”
Jesus goes on to tell that famous parable of the Good Samaritan. At a first hearing of the story we may think that Jesus is showing the priest and Levite to be heartless, but in truth these two did nothing wrong according to the Law. You see, the Law states that the Priest and Levites were not to become unclean by coming in contact with a dead body... or in the case of the story, a possible dead or dying person, if they did, they would not be able to perform their duties until they had been purified.
I can think of many people in the Church (capital C meaning the whole church of God), who would not have done anything different from the Priest and Levite... and would even preach about the good Samaritan, not realizing that there was a message for them in the text. I hesitate to list some, not wanting to offend, but to give an example.... A number of years ago, I went to see a church official about a matter of injustice. My issue, one that left me emotionally beaten and bashed on the side of the road, was completely overlooked and not addressed at all. Instead the church official was trying to work out whether or not I’d be able to marry Joe in the Catholic Church. It was not the issue that I needed addressed – left me emotionally on the side of the road untended - and was a ridicules adherent to the letter of the Law instead of understanding the heart of God. If I was ever concerned about being married to Joe in the Catholic Church, I certainly wasn’t after that! I couldn’t care less... I only care what God thinks of the matter, but sadly some people can’t see the forest for the trees.
According to the research that I’ve done, it is possible that the Samaritan’s were strict adherents to the Law of God also. So it is possible that between the Samaritan’s own “legal” issues and the fact that there was animosity between the two nations, the Samaritan may have had more reason that the others to leave the man on the side of the road to die.
I will go back once again to the Holy Spirit. It is with the Holy Spirit that we can discern the heart of the Law. As the Church we need to be able to state that there is a Law of God and it is sacred, but we need to know where those areas of black and white are and we need to know how God’s Grace fits in and what God’s heart is.... we can’t do this in our own strength, we need to have the Spirit of God operating within us.
From St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians 1:9 “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.”
Our nation has a new Prime Minister. It’s possible, with different values and beliefs from that upon which our country has been shaped; she may attempt to pass laws that are contrary to the Law of God and contrary to the heart of the Law of God. We, the Church, are to be the plumbline. Now, more than ever, we need to be filled with the knowledge of the will of God – we need to kindle that gift within us of the Holy Spirit. In all things we need to be loving God with all our heart, mind and strength, and loving our neighbour. Sometimes that will mean standing up and saying something that will make us unpopular.... Sometimes it may mean we will offend in order to set someone free. Love is not always gentle, sometimes it needs to be tough. Really the two greatest commandments - this is the plumbline. It’s time to explain it, live it and proclaim it.
Amos 7: 7-17 Psalm 82 Colossians 1: 1-14 Luke 10: 25-37
In an ancient time God spoke through His prophet, Amos, and told him that He would no longer spare the Israelites. God was setting a plumbline among them – the implication was that the nation was to be measured and understood that it would be found to be impure. I wonder how it would be if God was to speak today and set a plumbline in our nation.
The Israelite King was not happy about Amos’ message and told him to go back to the land of Judah. This occurred in a time when the nation of God’s people was in two parts; the Israelites, whose capital was Samaria and the land of Judah whose capital was Jerusalem. We are told the message of Amos to the people of Israel in Amos 7:11 “For this is what Amos is saying: “‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their native land.' " This did take place and the land was resettled by people who were of both Israelite and other pagan ancestry. These people were plagued by wild beasts and they took it as a sign that they needed to learn about the God of that land. And so it followed that the Samaritans were a people who had the law of God and followed it, yet also followed their pagan gods.
In the time of Amos there were other prophets and lots of them false. Why would anyone be a false prophet? It could be quite lucrative and easy bread to earn – providing of course that you tell the people what they want to hear. We still have these people today, they are the psychics and clairvoyants, and they still get paid for the stories they weave. Among them also may be a few claiming to be Christian ministers.... They say what the people want to hear and are rewarded!
Knowing this kind of “professional” prophet, the annoyed king speaks to Amos in Amos 7: 12 “Then Amaziah said to Amos, "Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. 13 Don't prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king's sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom."
Amos makes it clear that he is different from the “professional” prophets and describes his profession as a shepherd and the tender of sycamore-fig trees. The prophet is a prophet due to the call of God. Amos is not joining the “clergy” as a rational choice or because it is part of the “family business”, but simply because God called him.
Like Amos, the Church in this nation may sometimes need to speak out and say things that will not be popular. The Church is the plumbline in this nation – or at least one of the jobs of the Church is to explain that plumbline to the nation. According to this plumbline we don’t kill unborn babies and we don’t euthanize the weak. We find some explanations of this plumbline in the other readings for this week. From the Psalm we discover; Psalm 82:3 “Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. 4 Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
Just in case that wasn’t clear, we find someone asking Jesus to really spell it out for them in our Gospel reading. An expert in the Law asks Jesus what he must to do inherit eternal life. What would you say if someone asked you this question? Usually the people who ask these kinds of questions already have their own idea about how to inherit eternal life and are only asking so that they can state their own view, so it is interesting to note how Jesus answers the man. Rather than give a straight answer Jesus answers with a question back to the man, Luke 10: 26 "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"
27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' "
It is a great answer and Jesus acknowledges it. It is the correct answer according to the law. But now I wonder whether this is the answer we would have given. I probably would have said “believe in Jesus Christ and accept him as Lord and Saviour”. It is another correct answer, but I don’t think it is going to be effective in our modern world where most don’t see any need for a saviour. To answer with the Law of God, as this man did is probably where we need to be starting in bringing people to Christ – unless people understand what the Law is and how they have broken it they can never see any need for a saviour.
If you were to ask non church going/ fence sitting people randomly whether they thought they were going to heaven, most would answer “probably”, and their reason would be that they are a good person. They usually don’t believe that they have broken any of God’s commandments, yet when you ask them, “what is the first and greatest commandment?”, they have no idea.
Our expert in the Law communicating with Jesus is different from our modern day nominal Christian. This is a person who strives to keep all the commandments and knows them well.... so much so that he can summarise the law into those two. But as I’ve pointed out in other reflections, to know the letter of the law is often a long way from understanding the heart of the law, and our law expert was about to show his ignorance by his next question: “Who is my neighbour?”
Jesus goes on to tell that famous parable of the Good Samaritan. At a first hearing of the story we may think that Jesus is showing the priest and Levite to be heartless, but in truth these two did nothing wrong according to the Law. You see, the Law states that the Priest and Levites were not to become unclean by coming in contact with a dead body... or in the case of the story, a possible dead or dying person, if they did, they would not be able to perform their duties until they had been purified.
I can think of many people in the Church (capital C meaning the whole church of God), who would not have done anything different from the Priest and Levite... and would even preach about the good Samaritan, not realizing that there was a message for them in the text. I hesitate to list some, not wanting to offend, but to give an example.... A number of years ago, I went to see a church official about a matter of injustice. My issue, one that left me emotionally beaten and bashed on the side of the road, was completely overlooked and not addressed at all. Instead the church official was trying to work out whether or not I’d be able to marry Joe in the Catholic Church. It was not the issue that I needed addressed – left me emotionally on the side of the road untended - and was a ridicules adherent to the letter of the Law instead of understanding the heart of God. If I was ever concerned about being married to Joe in the Catholic Church, I certainly wasn’t after that! I couldn’t care less... I only care what God thinks of the matter, but sadly some people can’t see the forest for the trees.
According to the research that I’ve done, it is possible that the Samaritan’s were strict adherents to the Law of God also. So it is possible that between the Samaritan’s own “legal” issues and the fact that there was animosity between the two nations, the Samaritan may have had more reason that the others to leave the man on the side of the road to die.
I will go back once again to the Holy Spirit. It is with the Holy Spirit that we can discern the heart of the Law. As the Church we need to be able to state that there is a Law of God and it is sacred, but we need to know where those areas of black and white are and we need to know how God’s Grace fits in and what God’s heart is.... we can’t do this in our own strength, we need to have the Spirit of God operating within us.
From St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians 1:9 “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.”
Our nation has a new Prime Minister. It’s possible, with different values and beliefs from that upon which our country has been shaped; she may attempt to pass laws that are contrary to the Law of God and contrary to the heart of the Law of God. We, the Church, are to be the plumbline. Now, more than ever, we need to be filled with the knowledge of the will of God – we need to kindle that gift within us of the Holy Spirit. In all things we need to be loving God with all our heart, mind and strength, and loving our neighbour. Sometimes that will mean standing up and saying something that will make us unpopular.... Sometimes it may mean we will offend in order to set someone free. Love is not always gentle, sometimes it needs to be tough. Really the two greatest commandments - this is the plumbline. It’s time to explain it, live it and proclaim it.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
reflection for the 4th July 2010
Year C Proper 9 4 July 2010
2 Kings 5: 1-14 Psalm 30 Galatians 6: (1-6), 7-16 Luke 10: 1-11, 16-20
Our readings this week take us to the story of Namaan, the commander of the army of the King of Aram. In brief Namaan had contracted leprosy, most probably a mild form, however, any form of leprosy generally meant the end of life as the person knew it. Social events would become a thing of the past and his career was about to take a back seat due to the restrictions of this condition. Namaan had an Israelite girl in his household who suggested that he see the prophet in Israel who would heal him.
In focusing on the story we often overlook the little servant girl. She was taken as a slave during one of the army’s raids on Israel, yet despite this and the fact that her master was directly responsible for her predicament, this girl has knowledge and faith in God and his messengers. Unlike us in our modern day predicaments, this girl has not become despairing and depressed over her life, but in all that she does she is being a living witness to the God that she serves.
Namaan sets off to the land of Israel and goes directly to the King. The King of Israel shows his lack of faith in God by his actions. He tears his clothes in mourning, declaring that the King of Aram is deliberately trying to make war with him. Not only does this show that the King lacks faith in God, but it also shows that he lacks faith in God’s messengers. “Those who reject you, reject the one who sent you”! Or in the words of Luke 10:16"He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me."
The King of Israel created such a fuss that someone who witnessed the event, with greater faith and understanding, had the good sense to contact Elisha, the prophet.
Namaan was to be confused and offended by the actions of the prophet. Instead of meeting personally with this important commander of the army, Elisha sends a message that Namaan is to wash in the river Jordan 7 times. You can just imagine how Namaan, who was used to being treated somewhat like royalty was feeling.... he’d witnessed the Kings little royal hissy fit then sent to a prophet who didn’t even give him the courtesy of a greeting and then asked him to wash 7 times. What an insult!
What happens next makes me wonder that a processing plant was not set up at the Jordan river, bottling water that claims to be the fountain of youth – Just wash 7 times and your skin will become like that of a young boy! Needless to say, Namaan was healed.
The Prophet Elisha was not trying to make a good impression on the commander of the army, though it might have been personally very advantageous to do so. Instead the man of God follows God’s direction and in doing such Namaan’s pride is dealt with and God is glorified.
St. Paul and the Prophet shared a common aspect of being sometimes unpopular for the words they spoke. St. Paul made it clear that he was only interested in doing what God wanted and that was often not popular. Galatians 6:12 “Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ.”
We might reflect on the ways in which the modern church has circumcised itself in an effort to make a good impression outwardly. In our many different denominations we have different ways of making ourselves appealing to the secular masses. Promotion and community service is a wonderful thing, but we are not really here to be popular. We are here to proclaim the Good News, release the oppressed, heal the blind and set prisoners free. These things may make us popular with some, but in proclaiming the Good News we need to deal with some of the realities that people often avoid.... such as, “we are all sinners!” I dare anyone to go to a high school assembly and declare them to be sinners and see how popular it makes you.
We are living in a generation of people who have been brought up to believe they are innately good.... even if they do something undeniably wrong they will still declare themselves to be “good people”. So, in order to truly proclaim the Gospel we need to make them see the truth of our human condition..... this is not easy.
Add to the mix that we in the Christian community are these same self righteous people and we also are a people who tend to blame God if anything goes wrong. There is no one to be the servant girl who continues to serve and bear witness to God to those who are the instruments of her captivity.
Who are we bearing witness to? When we have situations at work that get us down, do we serve those who work with us with patience knowing that God will allow us, in it, to bear witness to him? Oops! I don’t think I’ve done so well there either.
The hard thing is in knowing when to serve and when to walk away!
In our Gospel reading Jesus has sent out the 72 to preach the Good News. It wasn’t always met with applause and Jesus knew this. He told them to wipe the dust off their feet in testimony against them.
We have a responsibility to preach the Good News. We don’t have a responsibility to make people accept it. It is God’s Holy Spirit that will draw to Him those who are His. We need to very clearly know what is our responsibility and what is not, otherwise we end up selling out, such that we forget what the Gospel even is and create various programs and platforms to gather people into our club.... it is a club that continues to gather people and as a side line has a vague belief in God.
I recently heard the story of a church that invited a pop singer to perform at an outreach. Their Gospel message seemed to be that God will give them everything they want if they follow him. The altar call was then to the song “Single Ladies”.... not exactly holy and a long way from the Gospel.
I look around at the Church (ie many denominations) in my local area and sense that things are dying. If feels like we are rowing upstream and getting nowhere... then we get tired and drift backward. We have plenty of programs and strategies that have worked in the past, but this is not the past and our programs are not working. Like Namaan we need to put our pride aside and that includes our denominational pride. Namaan had objected that the two rivers of his land were better than the river Jordan and this almost prevented his healing.
We the Church, some would think, have leprosy. People give us a wide berth as they go by. How can we be healed? Wash in the river Jordan 7 times! The Jordan River represents the entry to the Promised Land. Seven is the number of God and his 7 fold Spirit. We need to be immersed, well and truly, and walking in the Promised Land. In other words we need to be walking in the Spirit.... immersed in the message of God in our own lives and filled with the Holy Spirit.
Psalm 30: 1 “I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. 2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me. 3 O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit.”
2 Kings 5: 1-14 Psalm 30 Galatians 6: (1-6), 7-16 Luke 10: 1-11, 16-20
Our readings this week take us to the story of Namaan, the commander of the army of the King of Aram. In brief Namaan had contracted leprosy, most probably a mild form, however, any form of leprosy generally meant the end of life as the person knew it. Social events would become a thing of the past and his career was about to take a back seat due to the restrictions of this condition. Namaan had an Israelite girl in his household who suggested that he see the prophet in Israel who would heal him.
In focusing on the story we often overlook the little servant girl. She was taken as a slave during one of the army’s raids on Israel, yet despite this and the fact that her master was directly responsible for her predicament, this girl has knowledge and faith in God and his messengers. Unlike us in our modern day predicaments, this girl has not become despairing and depressed over her life, but in all that she does she is being a living witness to the God that she serves.
Namaan sets off to the land of Israel and goes directly to the King. The King of Israel shows his lack of faith in God by his actions. He tears his clothes in mourning, declaring that the King of Aram is deliberately trying to make war with him. Not only does this show that the King lacks faith in God, but it also shows that he lacks faith in God’s messengers. “Those who reject you, reject the one who sent you”! Or in the words of Luke 10:16"He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me."
The King of Israel created such a fuss that someone who witnessed the event, with greater faith and understanding, had the good sense to contact Elisha, the prophet.
Namaan was to be confused and offended by the actions of the prophet. Instead of meeting personally with this important commander of the army, Elisha sends a message that Namaan is to wash in the river Jordan 7 times. You can just imagine how Namaan, who was used to being treated somewhat like royalty was feeling.... he’d witnessed the Kings little royal hissy fit then sent to a prophet who didn’t even give him the courtesy of a greeting and then asked him to wash 7 times. What an insult!
What happens next makes me wonder that a processing plant was not set up at the Jordan river, bottling water that claims to be the fountain of youth – Just wash 7 times and your skin will become like that of a young boy! Needless to say, Namaan was healed.
The Prophet Elisha was not trying to make a good impression on the commander of the army, though it might have been personally very advantageous to do so. Instead the man of God follows God’s direction and in doing such Namaan’s pride is dealt with and God is glorified.
St. Paul and the Prophet shared a common aspect of being sometimes unpopular for the words they spoke. St. Paul made it clear that he was only interested in doing what God wanted and that was often not popular. Galatians 6:12 “Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ.”
We might reflect on the ways in which the modern church has circumcised itself in an effort to make a good impression outwardly. In our many different denominations we have different ways of making ourselves appealing to the secular masses. Promotion and community service is a wonderful thing, but we are not really here to be popular. We are here to proclaim the Good News, release the oppressed, heal the blind and set prisoners free. These things may make us popular with some, but in proclaiming the Good News we need to deal with some of the realities that people often avoid.... such as, “we are all sinners!” I dare anyone to go to a high school assembly and declare them to be sinners and see how popular it makes you.
We are living in a generation of people who have been brought up to believe they are innately good.... even if they do something undeniably wrong they will still declare themselves to be “good people”. So, in order to truly proclaim the Gospel we need to make them see the truth of our human condition..... this is not easy.
Add to the mix that we in the Christian community are these same self righteous people and we also are a people who tend to blame God if anything goes wrong. There is no one to be the servant girl who continues to serve and bear witness to God to those who are the instruments of her captivity.
Who are we bearing witness to? When we have situations at work that get us down, do we serve those who work with us with patience knowing that God will allow us, in it, to bear witness to him? Oops! I don’t think I’ve done so well there either.
The hard thing is in knowing when to serve and when to walk away!
In our Gospel reading Jesus has sent out the 72 to preach the Good News. It wasn’t always met with applause and Jesus knew this. He told them to wipe the dust off their feet in testimony against them.
We have a responsibility to preach the Good News. We don’t have a responsibility to make people accept it. It is God’s Holy Spirit that will draw to Him those who are His. We need to very clearly know what is our responsibility and what is not, otherwise we end up selling out, such that we forget what the Gospel even is and create various programs and platforms to gather people into our club.... it is a club that continues to gather people and as a side line has a vague belief in God.
I recently heard the story of a church that invited a pop singer to perform at an outreach. Their Gospel message seemed to be that God will give them everything they want if they follow him. The altar call was then to the song “Single Ladies”.... not exactly holy and a long way from the Gospel.
I look around at the Church (ie many denominations) in my local area and sense that things are dying. If feels like we are rowing upstream and getting nowhere... then we get tired and drift backward. We have plenty of programs and strategies that have worked in the past, but this is not the past and our programs are not working. Like Namaan we need to put our pride aside and that includes our denominational pride. Namaan had objected that the two rivers of his land were better than the river Jordan and this almost prevented his healing.
We the Church, some would think, have leprosy. People give us a wide berth as they go by. How can we be healed? Wash in the river Jordan 7 times! The Jordan River represents the entry to the Promised Land. Seven is the number of God and his 7 fold Spirit. We need to be immersed, well and truly, and walking in the Promised Land. In other words we need to be walking in the Spirit.... immersed in the message of God in our own lives and filled with the Holy Spirit.
Psalm 30: 1 “I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. 2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me. 3 O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit.”