25 December 2011 Xmas
Isaiah 52: 7-10 Psalm 98 Hebrews 1: 1-4, (5-12) John 1: 1-14
It has just become Christmas Eve, and I’m up rather late. It has been a while since I’ve written a reflection and if the truth be known, I’ve been struggling quite a bit. After Joe died I was coping pretty well. I think I had subconsciously psyched myself into coping before he died, but as the time has progressed I seem to be progressively running out of coping ability. I’m okay.... but worn out.
However, it is time I communicated again.
The readings for Christmas are very precious, and the Gospel reading from John is a personal favourite of mine.
John 1:1-5 “1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
Quite often, when someone first becomes a Christian, it is suggested that they read the Gospel of Mark. Mark is simple and gives a concise overview of the life of Jesus. If I am ever running a Bible study, I like to start with John 1. This is the very centre of Christianity. It is not simple, but divisive, as it states clearly that Jesus is God – and that is not easily accepted.
If you were to walk down the street – or maybe even survey your church about who Jesus is, you might be interested in the varying opinions and understandings. Many can accept Jesus as a good moral teacher, or a prophet.... even the son of God, but very few can grasp the idea of this oneness that the son had with the father.
In the beginning was the word. In this passage, John refers to Jesus as the “word” and we are told that the word was there in the beginning. If we go back to the account of the creation, back to the beginning of Genesis and look for the person of Jesus we might have trouble finding him, but if we look for the “word”, we will discover that God created, not by pointing his finger or twitching His nose, but by speaking.
Genesis 1:3 “And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.”
Throughout the Old Testament there are references to the “word of God” or “word of the LORD”. This is the case in the story of Samuel the prophet. He was a boy who lived with the priest and ministered in the house of God and yet this is said about him at the time that God called him:
1 Samuel 3:7 “Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.”
The “Word of the LORD” isn’t referring to anything written, but a personal revelation of God. Before this encounter Samuel knew about God, but after this encounter Samuel knew the “word of the LORD”..... he knew Jesus. (Though not by that name).
Our Christmas reading from the letter to the Hebrews also confirms the deity of Christ and that the son was there at the creation of the world:
Hebrews 1: 8- “But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.”
He also says,
“In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed. But you remain the same, and your years will never end.”
There is only one God, but like the Ferrero Rocher add where the goddess splits into 3, we know God is beyond our human limitations and is three “persons” in one. It is fair to say that Jesus is the visible expression of the unseen God and Jesus is a part of God that communicates with us.
In our changing times it is important to remember that God does not change. Our world is changing and we see in the reading from Hebrews a hint that God foresaw this when we are told, the foundations of the earth and the heavens will all wear out like a garment that will be changed. We could become quite panicked about the state of our world and climate change and the many disasters, but as Christians we should have calm at the core of our being because our trust is not in these things, but in the unchanging, merciful and loving God.
Each Christmas we recall that the “word of God” became flesh. It is a most holy recollection, and more often than not, the enormity and consequence is completely beyond our comprehension. A primary objective in this recollection should be to grow in our understanding of what this event means both theologically and personally. It is the Holy Spirit that enables us to understand these things, but often it seems to be one glimpse at a time.
A secondary objective in the Christmas story is to remember that Christ will come again. Once again, this is beyond our comprehension also, and we rely on the Holy Spirit to keep us focused on how we should be living our lives as we walk in the shadow of this reality.
In our changing times we sometimes lose sight of how we fit into the picture of God’s plans. Are we the spectators, God’s supporters cheering on the sidelines as God goes into battle against the evil of the world? It often feels this way, but of course, we are not.
We are called to be those who bring the good news. Isaiah 52:7-8 tells us “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy. When the LORD returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes.”
We are the watchmen, looking out to keep the Gods people alerted, but we also bring the Good News of God’s kingdom to those who don’t know about it, or don’t understand it. We are also those who proclaim peace.... not the kind of peace that means we are against war – no, this is much more important, this is the peace that exists between humanity and God because of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, and this is the salvation that we proclaim.
Many people become anxious when they hear the scriptures encouragement to proclaim the Good News, but this happens very naturally in our daily conversations and in the witness of our lives. Our responsibility is to grow in Christ so that these conversations and lives do bear witness to the Good News.
We, the Church, have a role to play as we herald the second coming of Christ. We are the ones who go ahead to prepare the way.... we are John the Baptist: John 1:7-8 “He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.”
John the Baptist dedicated his life to this role. Without this first coming of Jesus we are all lost in our sin with no hope of eternal life, but only fear of judgment. Instead we rejoice that we do have eternal life and loving union with God. We do not fear judgment because our sins are covered by the blood of Jesus shed on the cross. Without the “word becoming flesh” we have no life and no hope. We owe it then to dedicate our whole lives to heralding the Good News so that the world is prepared for the second coming of Christ.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Reflection on readings for 20th November 2011
Year A Proper 29 - Reign of Christ 20 November 2011
Ezekiel 34: 11-16, 20-24 Psalm 100 Ephesians 1: 15-23 Matthew 25: 31-46
The weak and the strong have differing abilities, needs and responsibilities. Which one are you, and what should you being doing about it?
Our first reading from Ezekiel reminds us of the love of God and how, like a shepherd, he will gather us when we’ve been scattered. We are reminded that God has a special love and care for the weak, but there is a word of judgment to the sleek and strong.
Ezekiel 34:15-16 "I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.”
At the time of Ezekiel the nation of Israel was scattered and broken. The reason for them being in such a state was because the majority had not steadfastly kept to God’s ways. They were a nation who liked to mix with the other nations and take a bit of religion from each and mix it with their own. In today’s culture we’d applaud them for being so embracing and open-minded. There were always an annoying minority though, who refused to be politically correct. These seemed to be judgemental because they proclaimed an ‘exclusive” kind of religion where certain actions were called “sin” and they refused to compromise with the nations around about whose god really was god.
The God of the Israelite nation had sent prophet after prophet to warn the people that these “politically correct” and “socially sensitive” ways were “sin”, but the majority of the people mistreated and persecuted these prophets. Is it any different today?
Due to the vast sin and the refusal to listen to the prophets, God inspired nations to come against the Israelites and in the fall out, the nation was scattered and broken.
There is a lot I haven’t yet said, but I hope you are reading in between the lines and seeing how much the church has in common with that ancient Israelite nation. We, the church, are God’s chosen people, but in many cases we are compromising. There are many, who belong to the church, who have taken on “other gods”.... strange beliefs.... because they are listening to new age philosophies from friends – philosophies that suit them and make them feel good. For example, I receive emails with a beautiful prayer – it is said to have special power if you send it to 12 more people. The power of prayer is only as powerful as the one to whom you are praying. Pray to God and there truly is infinite power, but it is according to his will and not something that you can manipulate by sending it to X amount of people.
There are a number of social issues that we feel pressure to bow to, but if we do so we are bowing to an idol. It is the Idol of a self made god, made in man’s image. It is sin. Let me list these: abortion, homosexuality, adultery. I am so tired of tip-toeing around these issues because I might offend someone. Please don’t misunderstand me, I don’t exclude people because of these sins.... and neither does God (Remember Jesus episode with the woman caught in adultery? He didn’t condemn her, told her to go and sin no more). We all sin!!! I have only listed these things that society has put pressure on the church to rename these as not being sin. I sin and you sin. That is why Jesus came to save us..... we cannot, by ourselves, attain the standard of perfection, but as God’s people we need to acknowledge our sin and if we re-name these things then we are the strong who are leading the weak astray and sending them to their own destruction.
We discover, as we look at our Gospel reading, that the strong have a responsibility to care for the weak. Traditionally this has been read and understood as our social responsibility to the poor and those in third world countries. The Church has been a leader in social justice and fighting for the rights of those who can’t fight for themselves. It is this Christian principal that we see in our defence forces. Unfortunately, many people who’ve grown up without this principal of caring for those less fortunate don’t understand and think if it is someone else’s problem then we should just let them have it.
If we look again at the reading we will see that there is more to the reading than social justice.
Matthew 25:37-40 ““Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
I notice that there is a relationship between the “King” and the “brothers and sisters”.
There is a dangerous tendency in our church families to think that those we need to care for are exclusively those outside the church or those perceived as different. A story that I heard once was of a problem between two ladies who were attending a church activity. One had a disability and the other did not. The people immediately went into social justice mode and looked after the lady with the disability and ignored the other lady.
We often assume if someone is like us that they need no extra support. We often think that if someone is at church then they are “okay!” We need to be aware of those around us, because these are the brothers and sisters of Christ and he wants us to be looking out for them.
I’d like to take this a step further; from church family to church family there are groups who are weak and groups who are strong. The Church has become scattered and fragmented. The strong still have a responsibility to care for the weak..... I’m not sure how this can happen, but I am sure that God does expect us to understand this concept and be looking for ways to care for one another. I know that some church leaders get together for prayer and the building of those relationships is a one small way that caring can take place.
In our churches, the same principal can be used. It is the getting together and praying in small groups where we can begin to properly care for one another. Our needs may not be for food and shelter.... but we maybe thirsty for spiritual nourishment, and our love gone cold, may need the cloak of someone’s love to warm.
Saint Paul writes to the Ephesians about his prayer for them. It is the way he, as one who was strong, gave to those brothers and sisters of Christ who were weaker than he. He imparted God’s truths and showed that he cared for them as if they were family. As an evangelist St. Paul might have thought, “okay they are Christians now, my job is done”, but instead he understood that he was also called to continue caring for God’s people.
Ephesians 1:15- 23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
And so, I’ll leave you with the question I began with. The weak and the strong have differing abilities, needs and responsibilities. Which one are you, and what should you be doing about it?
Ezekiel 34: 11-16, 20-24 Psalm 100 Ephesians 1: 15-23 Matthew 25: 31-46
The weak and the strong have differing abilities, needs and responsibilities. Which one are you, and what should you being doing about it?
Our first reading from Ezekiel reminds us of the love of God and how, like a shepherd, he will gather us when we’ve been scattered. We are reminded that God has a special love and care for the weak, but there is a word of judgment to the sleek and strong.
Ezekiel 34:15-16 "I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.”
At the time of Ezekiel the nation of Israel was scattered and broken. The reason for them being in such a state was because the majority had not steadfastly kept to God’s ways. They were a nation who liked to mix with the other nations and take a bit of religion from each and mix it with their own. In today’s culture we’d applaud them for being so embracing and open-minded. There were always an annoying minority though, who refused to be politically correct. These seemed to be judgemental because they proclaimed an ‘exclusive” kind of religion where certain actions were called “sin” and they refused to compromise with the nations around about whose god really was god.
The God of the Israelite nation had sent prophet after prophet to warn the people that these “politically correct” and “socially sensitive” ways were “sin”, but the majority of the people mistreated and persecuted these prophets. Is it any different today?
Due to the vast sin and the refusal to listen to the prophets, God inspired nations to come against the Israelites and in the fall out, the nation was scattered and broken.
There is a lot I haven’t yet said, but I hope you are reading in between the lines and seeing how much the church has in common with that ancient Israelite nation. We, the church, are God’s chosen people, but in many cases we are compromising. There are many, who belong to the church, who have taken on “other gods”.... strange beliefs.... because they are listening to new age philosophies from friends – philosophies that suit them and make them feel good. For example, I receive emails with a beautiful prayer – it is said to have special power if you send it to 12 more people. The power of prayer is only as powerful as the one to whom you are praying. Pray to God and there truly is infinite power, but it is according to his will and not something that you can manipulate by sending it to X amount of people.
There are a number of social issues that we feel pressure to bow to, but if we do so we are bowing to an idol. It is the Idol of a self made god, made in man’s image. It is sin. Let me list these: abortion, homosexuality, adultery. I am so tired of tip-toeing around these issues because I might offend someone. Please don’t misunderstand me, I don’t exclude people because of these sins.... and neither does God (Remember Jesus episode with the woman caught in adultery? He didn’t condemn her, told her to go and sin no more). We all sin!!! I have only listed these things that society has put pressure on the church to rename these as not being sin. I sin and you sin. That is why Jesus came to save us..... we cannot, by ourselves, attain the standard of perfection, but as God’s people we need to acknowledge our sin and if we re-name these things then we are the strong who are leading the weak astray and sending them to their own destruction.
We discover, as we look at our Gospel reading, that the strong have a responsibility to care for the weak. Traditionally this has been read and understood as our social responsibility to the poor and those in third world countries. The Church has been a leader in social justice and fighting for the rights of those who can’t fight for themselves. It is this Christian principal that we see in our defence forces. Unfortunately, many people who’ve grown up without this principal of caring for those less fortunate don’t understand and think if it is someone else’s problem then we should just let them have it.
If we look again at the reading we will see that there is more to the reading than social justice.
Matthew 25:37-40 ““Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
I notice that there is a relationship between the “King” and the “brothers and sisters”.
There is a dangerous tendency in our church families to think that those we need to care for are exclusively those outside the church or those perceived as different. A story that I heard once was of a problem between two ladies who were attending a church activity. One had a disability and the other did not. The people immediately went into social justice mode and looked after the lady with the disability and ignored the other lady.
We often assume if someone is like us that they need no extra support. We often think that if someone is at church then they are “okay!” We need to be aware of those around us, because these are the brothers and sisters of Christ and he wants us to be looking out for them.
I’d like to take this a step further; from church family to church family there are groups who are weak and groups who are strong. The Church has become scattered and fragmented. The strong still have a responsibility to care for the weak..... I’m not sure how this can happen, but I am sure that God does expect us to understand this concept and be looking for ways to care for one another. I know that some church leaders get together for prayer and the building of those relationships is a one small way that caring can take place.
In our churches, the same principal can be used. It is the getting together and praying in small groups where we can begin to properly care for one another. Our needs may not be for food and shelter.... but we maybe thirsty for spiritual nourishment, and our love gone cold, may need the cloak of someone’s love to warm.
Saint Paul writes to the Ephesians about his prayer for them. It is the way he, as one who was strong, gave to those brothers and sisters of Christ who were weaker than he. He imparted God’s truths and showed that he cared for them as if they were family. As an evangelist St. Paul might have thought, “okay they are Christians now, my job is done”, but instead he understood that he was also called to continue caring for God’s people.
Ephesians 1:15- 23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
And so, I’ll leave you with the question I began with. The weak and the strong have differing abilities, needs and responsibilities. Which one are you, and what should you be doing about it?
Monday, October 31, 2011
Reflection on readings for the 6th November 2011
Year A Proper 27 6 November 2011
Joshua 24: 1-3a, 14-25 Psalm 78: 1-7 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18 Matthew 25: 1-13
Joshua 24:23, 24 “23 “Now then,” said Joshua, “throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.” And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the LORD our God and obey him.”
We live in a society that doesn’t understand the concept of throwing away foreign gods. As I write this many children are “Trick or treating” and their parents are practising Christians who think this is okay. There are numerous schools, both Christian and secular who are doing activities that centres on Halloween and no one thinks it is anymore than a bit of fun. Much the same as many other popular activities like reading the horoscopes.
In our first reading, which comes from the book of Joshua, after the people have professed their faith in God and their desire to serve him, Joshua tells the people, “you are not able to serve the LORD....” This is true of them and true of us also – and we need some supernatural help to serve God.
Halloween is the eve of the holy day, “all Hallows”, meaning “all Saints”, but its practises and traditions come from the pagan festival honouring the god of the dead. I do not want to go into the Halloween debate, but I do want us to be aware that if we are partaking in these activities then we are not serving our God and we are holding on to, and taking into our houses, foreign gods.
This is not the only “foreign god” that is common in our culture.... we need to think carefully about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny also. While the events associated with these characters are meant to point to a reality of our faith, many times they teach our children completely opposing truths to our Christian faith. For example “Santa will come if you are good”. The truth is that we can not be good and that is why Jesus came. Also, we find that as children grow out of Santa and the Easter bunny they also grow out of the story of Jesus.
Tomorrow is the feast of all saints and it is followed by a day that is designated to all souls. So it seems fitting in the light of all that is happening this week to have readings about serving God whole heartedly and also our second reading which encourages us not to be so grieved over those loved ones who have died, and we are told that they have “fallen asleep” in Jesus and will rise with him.
The ancient festival on which Halloween is based is called Samhain. During this there were beliefs about the dead and how their souls may be either set free or released into animals. We are told clearly throughout different stories in the Bible that we live once, die and will rise with Christ at his return. It is a belief that is based on the credibility of the man named Jesus who was crucified and rose from the dead.
Saint Paul clarifies our understanding about those who have died in his letter, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.”
We have hope! This is an eternal hope – it is amazing good news. We do not need to appease a frightening god. We do not have to perform strange and frightening ceremonies to ensure a “happily ever after”.
This week we have a reminder of the hope that we have. Not only for an eternal existence for our loved ones, but for us also. But we also have very serious warnings in both our first reading and our Gospel.
Our Gospel tells the parable of the ten bridesmaids. These bridesmaids are symbolic of the people of God who greet the bride-groom and light the way for him. The bride-groom is symbolic of Christ and the church is his bride.
As the story goes, the bride-groom was a very, very long time coming. And what a coincidence! 2011 years after the birth of Christ we find Christ’s second coming seems such a long time coming, that many have “fallen asleep”.... The falling asleep is not a problem.... the problem is that when the bride-groom arrives it is in the hours of darkness and we need our lamps to be shining brightly.
Matthew 25:1-13 “ “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
“At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”
Oil was used to anoint and is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that keeps our faith lit.
All ten of the virgins/ bridesmaids had lamps that were lit. When the groom was long in coming some found that they had run out of “oil”... I guess they are those who ran out of faith.
We run out of faith when various things happen and it is different for each individual, but it happens and how is not important. The important thing is to consciously put into place strategies that “keeps the oil flowing”. This is what the wise bridesmaids did. They had the forethought to bring extra oil in a jar.
Therefore, we need to think about what strategies we need in our lives to keep our faith illuminated.
The early Christians would not have been so sure of the hope that they have as Christians, if it wasn’t for the letters from St. Paul. We need to be taught the Gospel truths and then we need to be constantly reminded of them. This is just one way that we keep our faith illuminated. Meeting with other Christians nourishes our spirits and the gifts of the Holy Spirit are shared throughout the community.... we need each other so that we are not lacking in spiritual gifts.
Certainly, if we ignorantly hold on to foreign gods and do not have definite ways of keeping our “lamps” lit (i.e. a community that keeps us on the right track), then we will not even know that we have gone astray from God’s truth and our lamps will go out........... Then when Jesus comes we will awaken and realize our need for our faith...... but will it be too late?
Joshua 24: 1-3a, 14-25 Psalm 78: 1-7 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18 Matthew 25: 1-13
Joshua 24:23, 24 “23 “Now then,” said Joshua, “throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.” And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the LORD our God and obey him.”
We live in a society that doesn’t understand the concept of throwing away foreign gods. As I write this many children are “Trick or treating” and their parents are practising Christians who think this is okay. There are numerous schools, both Christian and secular who are doing activities that centres on Halloween and no one thinks it is anymore than a bit of fun. Much the same as many other popular activities like reading the horoscopes.
In our first reading, which comes from the book of Joshua, after the people have professed their faith in God and their desire to serve him, Joshua tells the people, “you are not able to serve the LORD....” This is true of them and true of us also – and we need some supernatural help to serve God.
Halloween is the eve of the holy day, “all Hallows”, meaning “all Saints”, but its practises and traditions come from the pagan festival honouring the god of the dead. I do not want to go into the Halloween debate, but I do want us to be aware that if we are partaking in these activities then we are not serving our God and we are holding on to, and taking into our houses, foreign gods.
This is not the only “foreign god” that is common in our culture.... we need to think carefully about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny also. While the events associated with these characters are meant to point to a reality of our faith, many times they teach our children completely opposing truths to our Christian faith. For example “Santa will come if you are good”. The truth is that we can not be good and that is why Jesus came. Also, we find that as children grow out of Santa and the Easter bunny they also grow out of the story of Jesus.
Tomorrow is the feast of all saints and it is followed by a day that is designated to all souls. So it seems fitting in the light of all that is happening this week to have readings about serving God whole heartedly and also our second reading which encourages us not to be so grieved over those loved ones who have died, and we are told that they have “fallen asleep” in Jesus and will rise with him.
The ancient festival on which Halloween is based is called Samhain. During this there were beliefs about the dead and how their souls may be either set free or released into animals. We are told clearly throughout different stories in the Bible that we live once, die and will rise with Christ at his return. It is a belief that is based on the credibility of the man named Jesus who was crucified and rose from the dead.
Saint Paul clarifies our understanding about those who have died in his letter, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.”
We have hope! This is an eternal hope – it is amazing good news. We do not need to appease a frightening god. We do not have to perform strange and frightening ceremonies to ensure a “happily ever after”.
This week we have a reminder of the hope that we have. Not only for an eternal existence for our loved ones, but for us also. But we also have very serious warnings in both our first reading and our Gospel.
Our Gospel tells the parable of the ten bridesmaids. These bridesmaids are symbolic of the people of God who greet the bride-groom and light the way for him. The bride-groom is symbolic of Christ and the church is his bride.
As the story goes, the bride-groom was a very, very long time coming. And what a coincidence! 2011 years after the birth of Christ we find Christ’s second coming seems such a long time coming, that many have “fallen asleep”.... The falling asleep is not a problem.... the problem is that when the bride-groom arrives it is in the hours of darkness and we need our lamps to be shining brightly.
Matthew 25:1-13 “ “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
“At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”
Oil was used to anoint and is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that keeps our faith lit.
All ten of the virgins/ bridesmaids had lamps that were lit. When the groom was long in coming some found that they had run out of “oil”... I guess they are those who ran out of faith.
We run out of faith when various things happen and it is different for each individual, but it happens and how is not important. The important thing is to consciously put into place strategies that “keeps the oil flowing”. This is what the wise bridesmaids did. They had the forethought to bring extra oil in a jar.
Therefore, we need to think about what strategies we need in our lives to keep our faith illuminated.
The early Christians would not have been so sure of the hope that they have as Christians, if it wasn’t for the letters from St. Paul. We need to be taught the Gospel truths and then we need to be constantly reminded of them. This is just one way that we keep our faith illuminated. Meeting with other Christians nourishes our spirits and the gifts of the Holy Spirit are shared throughout the community.... we need each other so that we are not lacking in spiritual gifts.
Certainly, if we ignorantly hold on to foreign gods and do not have definite ways of keeping our “lamps” lit (i.e. a community that keeps us on the right track), then we will not even know that we have gone astray from God’s truth and our lamps will go out........... Then when Jesus comes we will awaken and realize our need for our faith...... but will it be too late?
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Reflection on readings 23rd October 2011
Year A Proper 25 23 October 2011
Deuteronomy 34: 1-12 Psalm 90: 1-6, 13-17 1 Thessalonians 2: 1-8 Matthew 22: 34-46
Things that make you go, “Hmmm???” Our readings this week contain some things that grab our attention and leave us with questions. One of these is the question that Jesus asked of the Pharisees. They had been trying to trip Jesus up by asking him questions but he turned the tables on them when he asked his question and left them speechless.
Matthew 22: 41-46 “While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”
“The son of David,” they replied.
He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.”’ If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.”
Many of the psalms of King David proclaimed prophecy about the Messiah. An interesting thing about Christianity is lack of black and white straight answers. A man made religion has all its beliefs set out clearly, but ours is not a man made religion and so we often struggle to understand. It is only with the gifts that God has given us that we can discern his ways.... which is another reason why it is important to stay connected to others in church.
The question that Jesus poses to the Pharisees deals with a fundamental stumbling block. It is a stumbling block that these people “fell” on and one which is still a stumbling block for many.
It was common knowledge that the Messiah would be a son (descendant) of King David, but Jesus question reveals that the nature of the Messiah was more than a natural descendant. David calling him “Lord” implies that this “son” is above and before King David.
Before we discuss this anymore, let’s look at our Old Testament reading; in this we find the story of Moses being taken up Mt. Nebo to look at the Promised Land. After God has shown Moses the land, Moses dies and he is buried. It is all shrouded in mystery as we discover that although Moses was 12o years old, he was still completely bright and strong. (The moral to the story might be that spending time with God is the best treatment for staying youthful and healthy!).
There is an important statement made about Moses in Deuteronomy 34:10, “Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,”. We often read that no one could see the face of God and live, and even in our previous readings we read about Moses being put in a cleft in the mountain while God revealed his glory – and the reason was so that Moses didn’t see God’s face – so how is it that it was later said that the LORD knew Moses face to face?
When Jesus walked on earth mankind witnessed the visible expression of the invisible God. The face of God was revealed.
God is so holy that, as we read a few weeks ago, even His very name must be held in the upmost respect. God is so holy that no one can see His face, but it was not God’s plan to be so separated from us. In the beginning God walked with humankind in the Garden of Eden and there was a relationship – a union between the humankind and the creator. Though it was not common, the Old Testament does tell of people who “saw the face of God” and lived, even though it was acknowledged that no one could see His face and live.
Each of these individuals who “walked” with God, are people to whom God revealed his nature and person. They are people with whom God had a personal relationship and they are people who knew God. It seems that in the same way that Jesus was the visible expression of God in the New Testament, this particular revelation of God existed in the Old Testament also.
It could be said that Moses saw God face to face, because God was revealed to Moses. Through that revelation Moses was brought into a personal relationship with God. The revelation of the person of God is the key to a relationship with God and that is where the Pharisees stumbled.
The Pharisees refused to see the “face of God”.
This is a fundamental issue that we all need to examine. There was a song many years ago now, recorded by Joan Osbourne, called, One Of Us. Some of the lyrics were; “ If God had a face what would it look like, and would you want to see, if seeing meant that you would have to believe in things like heaven and the saints and all the prophets?...”
God wants us to see his face. Through Jesus all are invited into this revelation. God wants to be in a personal relationship with us, but we have free will and need to choose.
The Pharisees were given hints to help them realize that the Messiah was not just a descendant of King David, but this Messiah had a divine nature. David called the Messiah his Lord, because he realized this divinity. The Messiah, the son of God, existed from the beginning of creation. It was the son of God who was the revelation of God to Moses and other prophets.
Our relationship with God can be a personal one also, but this can only be accomplished by a revelation of the person of God. In other words, we need to acknowledge who Jesus is.... He is not just a great prophet, a wise teacher, a good and compassionate man.... He is our saviour and our redeemer and He is God.
Deuteronomy 34: 1-12 Psalm 90: 1-6, 13-17 1 Thessalonians 2: 1-8 Matthew 22: 34-46
Things that make you go, “Hmmm???” Our readings this week contain some things that grab our attention and leave us with questions. One of these is the question that Jesus asked of the Pharisees. They had been trying to trip Jesus up by asking him questions but he turned the tables on them when he asked his question and left them speechless.
Matthew 22: 41-46 “While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”
“The son of David,” they replied.
He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.”’ If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.”
Many of the psalms of King David proclaimed prophecy about the Messiah. An interesting thing about Christianity is lack of black and white straight answers. A man made religion has all its beliefs set out clearly, but ours is not a man made religion and so we often struggle to understand. It is only with the gifts that God has given us that we can discern his ways.... which is another reason why it is important to stay connected to others in church.
The question that Jesus poses to the Pharisees deals with a fundamental stumbling block. It is a stumbling block that these people “fell” on and one which is still a stumbling block for many.
It was common knowledge that the Messiah would be a son (descendant) of King David, but Jesus question reveals that the nature of the Messiah was more than a natural descendant. David calling him “Lord” implies that this “son” is above and before King David.
Before we discuss this anymore, let’s look at our Old Testament reading; in this we find the story of Moses being taken up Mt. Nebo to look at the Promised Land. After God has shown Moses the land, Moses dies and he is buried. It is all shrouded in mystery as we discover that although Moses was 12o years old, he was still completely bright and strong. (The moral to the story might be that spending time with God is the best treatment for staying youthful and healthy!).
There is an important statement made about Moses in Deuteronomy 34:10, “Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,”. We often read that no one could see the face of God and live, and even in our previous readings we read about Moses being put in a cleft in the mountain while God revealed his glory – and the reason was so that Moses didn’t see God’s face – so how is it that it was later said that the LORD knew Moses face to face?
When Jesus walked on earth mankind witnessed the visible expression of the invisible God. The face of God was revealed.
God is so holy that, as we read a few weeks ago, even His very name must be held in the upmost respect. God is so holy that no one can see His face, but it was not God’s plan to be so separated from us. In the beginning God walked with humankind in the Garden of Eden and there was a relationship – a union between the humankind and the creator. Though it was not common, the Old Testament does tell of people who “saw the face of God” and lived, even though it was acknowledged that no one could see His face and live.
Each of these individuals who “walked” with God, are people to whom God revealed his nature and person. They are people with whom God had a personal relationship and they are people who knew God. It seems that in the same way that Jesus was the visible expression of God in the New Testament, this particular revelation of God existed in the Old Testament also.
It could be said that Moses saw God face to face, because God was revealed to Moses. Through that revelation Moses was brought into a personal relationship with God. The revelation of the person of God is the key to a relationship with God and that is where the Pharisees stumbled.
The Pharisees refused to see the “face of God”.
This is a fundamental issue that we all need to examine. There was a song many years ago now, recorded by Joan Osbourne, called, One Of Us. Some of the lyrics were; “ If God had a face what would it look like, and would you want to see, if seeing meant that you would have to believe in things like heaven and the saints and all the prophets?...”
God wants us to see his face. Through Jesus all are invited into this revelation. God wants to be in a personal relationship with us, but we have free will and need to choose.
The Pharisees were given hints to help them realize that the Messiah was not just a descendant of King David, but this Messiah had a divine nature. David called the Messiah his Lord, because he realized this divinity. The Messiah, the son of God, existed from the beginning of creation. It was the son of God who was the revelation of God to Moses and other prophets.
Our relationship with God can be a personal one also, but this can only be accomplished by a revelation of the person of God. In other words, we need to acknowledge who Jesus is.... He is not just a great prophet, a wise teacher, a good and compassionate man.... He is our saviour and our redeemer and He is God.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Reflection on readings for 9th October 2011
Year A Proper 23 9 October 2011
Exodus 32: 1-14 Psalm 106: 1-6, 19-23 Philippians 4: 1-9 Matthew 22: 1-14
Philippians 4: 1 “Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends!”
Stand firm! Sounds simply enough, but who among us will do it?
The more that I reflect on the scriptures, the more I’m convinced there are many messages of warnings for the people of God. In our first reading, this week, we find the story of what happened in the Israelite camp while Moses was on the mountain with God, receiving the commandments.
Exodus 32: 1-6 “When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”
Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD.” So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.”
There were two men who stood as leaders of the people of Israel, Moses and Aaron. Moses was the one to whom God appeared and the one called by God, but because Moses was scared, God allowed Moses a helper in the form of his brother Aaron.
The exodus of the people from Egypt was miraculous. God lead his people by a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day. If it happened to us we’d be awestruck. These people were used to witnessing supernatural occurrences through the religion of Egypt. Every time Moses performed a miracle as testament to the power of God the Egyptians showed a similar miracle, though never to the magnitude of those performed by Moses. This is the reason that it took so many plagues before Pharaoh let the people go, he didn’t hold miracles in such high regard.
Supernatural things happen and people interpret them according to their knowledge. Moses eventually was able to show that his God was stronger and more powerful, but the people of God were tainted with the same religion as the Egyptians, and their hearts were hardened to the way that God had so greatly rescued and provided for them.
We are often the same. We are given so much, we erroneously believe that we deserve all good things and when something doesn’t go our way we become very indignant. We don’t really understand that God is God and not someone that we can tell how, when and what to do. We can not shape God into a form that suits us.
Are we like Moses or like Aaron?
Aaron was approached by the people and they requested/ demanded that he make them a god to go before them as they travelled. Other nations had man made gods and in some way the god defined the nation. The choice of the calf may possibly have been because in some nations the calf was considered the mount for god. Certainly Aaron was not trying to deny God, as the festival was declared at the completion of the “god” was held to honour the LORD – it is written in capital letters to show that Aaron meant this to be a festival to “Yahweh”.
Pressure is also put on us to make “god”. Many of the aspects about God and his laws seem antiquated to general society and they demand that Christians get with the times. Many Christians, maybe even you and I, have been just like Aaron. We want to make God relevant to all people and show how God loves everyone and wants everyone in his kingdom. This is a truth – but does it matter that sometimes we “Put words in God’s mouth”, proclaiming that some of the things that are becoming societal norms are okay by God? We still proclaim the name of the LORD, so, at least in our own eyes and heart, we are not denying God.
Reflect carefully on the actions of Aaron and the actions of our own witness. Aaron was a good guy, a gifted leader, had respect and rapport with the people. His heart was in the right place and he was well meaning, but the result of his actions meant that God would have destroyed the whole Israelite nation except that Moses came to the rescue and begged for God’s mercy.
The message is clear that it is possible to be working for God and really get it so wrong. Unless we stand firm and absolutely steadfast in our commitment to God we will not only be like Aaron who bends to the pressure of societies conventions, but we will also be like the guests of the parable told by Jesus, who became too self seeking to come to the feast in God’s kingdom.
Matthew 22: 4-7“Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’
“But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.”
Are we already like these invited guests? Got better things to do than go to church this weekend? What it boils down to is that we’ve made a god of our own lives. This parable was told to the religious of Jesus day and was directed at them, but it is written and recorded for us.
What God has decided is that those who do not make him their priority do not deserve to be invited to the feast. The feast is an image symbolizing the joyful celebration in heaven at the fullness of time.
Matthew 22; 8-10 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.”
The good news is that all are gathered in to this holy celebration. There is amazing good news for those who think they are too bad for heaven because we are told that the bad and good were all to be gathered. ..........There is a “but”;
Matthew 22:11-14 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.
“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
“For many are invited, but few are chosen.”
It seems curious that all should be gathered, good and bad, but then someone thrown out simply for not wearing the right clothes. Being good or bad was not a deal maker or breaker, but this particular “wedding garment” is.
Joe and I had a wedding where all were welcome. We let people know to simply bring a plate and come along. These days people have to register their parties in case of unwanted gate crashers, but what is the difference between a guest and a gate crasher when there is a wedding where all are welcome?
The difference is whether or not there is a relationship with the person in whose honour the party is being held. All are welcome in the kingdom of God but unless you are “clothed in Christ”, you do not have a relationship with the guest of honour. Jesus is the only way to the father. It is in accepting his sacrifice and being so united in him, and our lives so closely entwined, such that our lives are covered by him that we are clothed in Christ. Christ is our wedding garment.
Unless.......
Unless is a heavy word implying that if certain requirements are not met then there will be an exclusion. And unless accept the sacrifice of Jesus and we stand firm and steadfast in our relationship with God we will be found not deserving of the celebration in heaven.....
Exodus 32: 1-14 Psalm 106: 1-6, 19-23 Philippians 4: 1-9 Matthew 22: 1-14
Philippians 4: 1 “Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends!”
Stand firm! Sounds simply enough, but who among us will do it?
The more that I reflect on the scriptures, the more I’m convinced there are many messages of warnings for the people of God. In our first reading, this week, we find the story of what happened in the Israelite camp while Moses was on the mountain with God, receiving the commandments.
Exodus 32: 1-6 “When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”
Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD.” So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.”
There were two men who stood as leaders of the people of Israel, Moses and Aaron. Moses was the one to whom God appeared and the one called by God, but because Moses was scared, God allowed Moses a helper in the form of his brother Aaron.
The exodus of the people from Egypt was miraculous. God lead his people by a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day. If it happened to us we’d be awestruck. These people were used to witnessing supernatural occurrences through the religion of Egypt. Every time Moses performed a miracle as testament to the power of God the Egyptians showed a similar miracle, though never to the magnitude of those performed by Moses. This is the reason that it took so many plagues before Pharaoh let the people go, he didn’t hold miracles in such high regard.
Supernatural things happen and people interpret them according to their knowledge. Moses eventually was able to show that his God was stronger and more powerful, but the people of God were tainted with the same religion as the Egyptians, and their hearts were hardened to the way that God had so greatly rescued and provided for them.
We are often the same. We are given so much, we erroneously believe that we deserve all good things and when something doesn’t go our way we become very indignant. We don’t really understand that God is God and not someone that we can tell how, when and what to do. We can not shape God into a form that suits us.
Are we like Moses or like Aaron?
Aaron was approached by the people and they requested/ demanded that he make them a god to go before them as they travelled. Other nations had man made gods and in some way the god defined the nation. The choice of the calf may possibly have been because in some nations the calf was considered the mount for god. Certainly Aaron was not trying to deny God, as the festival was declared at the completion of the “god” was held to honour the LORD – it is written in capital letters to show that Aaron meant this to be a festival to “Yahweh”.
Pressure is also put on us to make “god”. Many of the aspects about God and his laws seem antiquated to general society and they demand that Christians get with the times. Many Christians, maybe even you and I, have been just like Aaron. We want to make God relevant to all people and show how God loves everyone and wants everyone in his kingdom. This is a truth – but does it matter that sometimes we “Put words in God’s mouth”, proclaiming that some of the things that are becoming societal norms are okay by God? We still proclaim the name of the LORD, so, at least in our own eyes and heart, we are not denying God.
Reflect carefully on the actions of Aaron and the actions of our own witness. Aaron was a good guy, a gifted leader, had respect and rapport with the people. His heart was in the right place and he was well meaning, but the result of his actions meant that God would have destroyed the whole Israelite nation except that Moses came to the rescue and begged for God’s mercy.
The message is clear that it is possible to be working for God and really get it so wrong. Unless we stand firm and absolutely steadfast in our commitment to God we will not only be like Aaron who bends to the pressure of societies conventions, but we will also be like the guests of the parable told by Jesus, who became too self seeking to come to the feast in God’s kingdom.
Matthew 22: 4-7“Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’
“But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.”
Are we already like these invited guests? Got better things to do than go to church this weekend? What it boils down to is that we’ve made a god of our own lives. This parable was told to the religious of Jesus day and was directed at them, but it is written and recorded for us.
What God has decided is that those who do not make him their priority do not deserve to be invited to the feast. The feast is an image symbolizing the joyful celebration in heaven at the fullness of time.
Matthew 22; 8-10 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.”
The good news is that all are gathered in to this holy celebration. There is amazing good news for those who think they are too bad for heaven because we are told that the bad and good were all to be gathered. ..........There is a “but”;
Matthew 22:11-14 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.
“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
“For many are invited, but few are chosen.”
It seems curious that all should be gathered, good and bad, but then someone thrown out simply for not wearing the right clothes. Being good or bad was not a deal maker or breaker, but this particular “wedding garment” is.
Joe and I had a wedding where all were welcome. We let people know to simply bring a plate and come along. These days people have to register their parties in case of unwanted gate crashers, but what is the difference between a guest and a gate crasher when there is a wedding where all are welcome?
The difference is whether or not there is a relationship with the person in whose honour the party is being held. All are welcome in the kingdom of God but unless you are “clothed in Christ”, you do not have a relationship with the guest of honour. Jesus is the only way to the father. It is in accepting his sacrifice and being so united in him, and our lives so closely entwined, such that our lives are covered by him that we are clothed in Christ. Christ is our wedding garment.
Unless.......
Unless is a heavy word implying that if certain requirements are not met then there will be an exclusion. And unless accept the sacrifice of Jesus and we stand firm and steadfast in our relationship with God we will be found not deserving of the celebration in heaven.....
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Reflection on readings 2nd October 2011
Year A Proper 22 2 October 2011
Exodus 20: 1-4, 7-9, 12-20 Psalm 19 Philippians 3: 4b-14 Matthew 21: 33-46
I’ve known some pretty wonderful people. I’ve also known some great people who told me quite openly that they are pretty good people. I think I’ve touched on this subject before about people who are fine and upstanding citizens who like to believe that they would never succumb to the pits that others do. But it is from someone with greater wisdom comes the saying, “There but for the grace of God go I”.
One of the biggest pitfalls for “good” people is the misconception that they might be “good” enough to earn a place in heaven. The old fashioned term for this is actually “Self righteousness”, and it is a “right-ness” that comes from obeying the law of God. Good people will tell you that they keep God’s commandments. In fact some influential baby boomers and generation Xs have been so effective in encouraging the next generation, that you will find most people see themselves as good. The evidence of this is in how offended people become if you should hint that they may be sinners. Most people, without knowing what God’s commandments are, will assume that they keep them all.
Our first reading for this week lists those commandments, the first one being, “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me.” Exodus 20:2,3
Following on from this is the next command: Exodus 7 “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
We live in a country that worships the god of football. Our culture idolizes the god of good looks and intellect, and all of us to some extent serve the god of materialism. We live in a globally connected society that constantly misuses God’s name as an exclamation. My own little “hobby horse” is to try to get children to understand that some people may find it offensive to use the exclamation, “Oh my God”. But this little phrase has become such a catch phrase that the Legally Blonde musical actually has a song titled, “Oh my God”.
Generally we know that nothing is meant by the phrase and it is as meaningless as “bust my buttons!” However, there is a tradition among Jewish writers of writing G-d this way. They put a dash in the middle so that they are not technically using God’s name. They knew that God was serious in His commands and so they treated his name in all aspects with the upmost respect.
We live in an age of the Grace of God. We overlook sins because we know that Jesus died and took all the punishment for these things, but does that mean that the commandments are no longer valid?
As in many things to do with God, we are dealing with a two sided coin. On the one hand we have the commandments which are in every way valid and eternal, but on the other hand we have the fact that we simply cannot keep these commands perfectly and thankfully we have the grace of God to save us.
In our readings this week we find St. Paul striving to teach the Philippians about human goodness, because he was once a very fine, admirable and upstanding citizen. St. Paul was one who kept the commandments perfectly – at least as far as the “letter” of the law was concerned, yet he failed when it came to the “spirit” of the law and was ignorant that he was lost, until he was confronted by God.
Philippians 3:4b-7 “If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.”
St. Paul considered all his confidence in his own goodness to be complete loss for the sake of Christ. Why? Because he was aware that his “goodness” left him ignorantly misled and hardened him from any awareness of his need for a saviour. He was persecuting the followers of Christ and thought he was doing the “right” thing, yet the sick, the poor, the tax collectors and prostitutes and those who were acutely aware of their sinfulness were able to easily receive the grace of God and the gift of eternal life.
Our self perceived goodness is a stumbling block to seeing things as they really are, just as is our self perceived cleverness. The Psalm this week explains that the Heavens declare the glory of God. Nature itself is testimony to the person of God, but the self perceived clever won’t listen. Our cleverness gets in the way of allowing us to be vulnerable enough to simply say, “Wow! This is the work of God” and instead we labour for another explanation.
Our Gospel reading shows us the seriousness of self perceived “right-ness”. Jesus tells a parable which seems so outrageous. It is about a land owner who planted and established a vineyard then rented it to tenants. These tenants refused to give the land owner his fruit and they abused the servants that the land owner had sent. Finally the Land owner sent his son, but the tenants actually killed the son, thinking that they would then receive his inheritance.
It seems ridiculous that these tenants could be so foolish as to think that thinks would turn out okay for them. But this is a parable about the religious leaders, the Pharisees, who were listening to Jesus. They were so convinced of their own goodness that they couldn’t see the harm they were doing. It is a parable that was told to try to awaken and warn the people of Jesus time, but it is written down to be a warning to us.
The commandments of God have not been nullified by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. What has happened is that those who realize their need for a saviour and confess Jesus as Lord are completely forgiven any failure to keep those commands. – But first to be forgiven we must admit our sin.
Philippians 8- 9“ What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.”
Exodus 20: 1-4, 7-9, 12-20 Psalm 19 Philippians 3: 4b-14 Matthew 21: 33-46
I’ve known some pretty wonderful people. I’ve also known some great people who told me quite openly that they are pretty good people. I think I’ve touched on this subject before about people who are fine and upstanding citizens who like to believe that they would never succumb to the pits that others do. But it is from someone with greater wisdom comes the saying, “There but for the grace of God go I”.
One of the biggest pitfalls for “good” people is the misconception that they might be “good” enough to earn a place in heaven. The old fashioned term for this is actually “Self righteousness”, and it is a “right-ness” that comes from obeying the law of God. Good people will tell you that they keep God’s commandments. In fact some influential baby boomers and generation Xs have been so effective in encouraging the next generation, that you will find most people see themselves as good. The evidence of this is in how offended people become if you should hint that they may be sinners. Most people, without knowing what God’s commandments are, will assume that they keep them all.
Our first reading for this week lists those commandments, the first one being, “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me.” Exodus 20:2,3
Following on from this is the next command: Exodus 7 “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
We live in a country that worships the god of football. Our culture idolizes the god of good looks and intellect, and all of us to some extent serve the god of materialism. We live in a globally connected society that constantly misuses God’s name as an exclamation. My own little “hobby horse” is to try to get children to understand that some people may find it offensive to use the exclamation, “Oh my God”. But this little phrase has become such a catch phrase that the Legally Blonde musical actually has a song titled, “Oh my God”.
Generally we know that nothing is meant by the phrase and it is as meaningless as “bust my buttons!” However, there is a tradition among Jewish writers of writing G-d this way. They put a dash in the middle so that they are not technically using God’s name. They knew that God was serious in His commands and so they treated his name in all aspects with the upmost respect.
We live in an age of the Grace of God. We overlook sins because we know that Jesus died and took all the punishment for these things, but does that mean that the commandments are no longer valid?
As in many things to do with God, we are dealing with a two sided coin. On the one hand we have the commandments which are in every way valid and eternal, but on the other hand we have the fact that we simply cannot keep these commands perfectly and thankfully we have the grace of God to save us.
In our readings this week we find St. Paul striving to teach the Philippians about human goodness, because he was once a very fine, admirable and upstanding citizen. St. Paul was one who kept the commandments perfectly – at least as far as the “letter” of the law was concerned, yet he failed when it came to the “spirit” of the law and was ignorant that he was lost, until he was confronted by God.
Philippians 3:4b-7 “If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.”
St. Paul considered all his confidence in his own goodness to be complete loss for the sake of Christ. Why? Because he was aware that his “goodness” left him ignorantly misled and hardened him from any awareness of his need for a saviour. He was persecuting the followers of Christ and thought he was doing the “right” thing, yet the sick, the poor, the tax collectors and prostitutes and those who were acutely aware of their sinfulness were able to easily receive the grace of God and the gift of eternal life.
Our self perceived goodness is a stumbling block to seeing things as they really are, just as is our self perceived cleverness. The Psalm this week explains that the Heavens declare the glory of God. Nature itself is testimony to the person of God, but the self perceived clever won’t listen. Our cleverness gets in the way of allowing us to be vulnerable enough to simply say, “Wow! This is the work of God” and instead we labour for another explanation.
Our Gospel reading shows us the seriousness of self perceived “right-ness”. Jesus tells a parable which seems so outrageous. It is about a land owner who planted and established a vineyard then rented it to tenants. These tenants refused to give the land owner his fruit and they abused the servants that the land owner had sent. Finally the Land owner sent his son, but the tenants actually killed the son, thinking that they would then receive his inheritance.
It seems ridiculous that these tenants could be so foolish as to think that thinks would turn out okay for them. But this is a parable about the religious leaders, the Pharisees, who were listening to Jesus. They were so convinced of their own goodness that they couldn’t see the harm they were doing. It is a parable that was told to try to awaken and warn the people of Jesus time, but it is written down to be a warning to us.
The commandments of God have not been nullified by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. What has happened is that those who realize their need for a saviour and confess Jesus as Lord are completely forgiven any failure to keep those commands. – But first to be forgiven we must admit our sin.
Philippians 8- 9“ What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.”
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Reflection on readings for 18th Septemer 2011
Year A Proper 20 18 September 2011
Exodus 16: 2-15 Psalm 105: 1-6, 37-45 Philippians 1: 21-30 Matthew 20: 1-16
We are an upside down people. For a minute just imagine an “opposite day”. Kids know about opposite days and will tell you when you say “No” to them that it really means “Yes”! If everything was upside down we wouldn’t get a proper perspective on anything and things would be a little chaotic.... but here’s the thing... life is chaotic and we don’t have a proper perspective – we are an upside down people!
Shakespeare, in the words of Hamlet’s soliloquy, writes the thoughts that would be common to humans if we were clever enough to analyse and think it through. He writes the famous, “To be or not to be...” and he deliberates whether it is better to end his life or face the trials to come. In the end Hamlet decides that he doesn’t know what death entails and suspects that there may be more to it than a peaceful sleep. So fearing the “nightmares” that may await him after death he supposes that those trials of life may be the easier option.
Shakespeare obviously thought things through more than the average human being and articulated our inner fears and desires. The ancient Israelites, we read about this week were not so inclined to analyse and after being miraculously rescued by God grumbled that He had brought them out into the desert only to kill them by starvation. Not a very logical conclusion – but seemingly logical to an “upside down” people - and probably the one we’d all jump to in the same situation.
Are we more inclined to accept the wisdom and sovereignty of God when our life is in shambles and troubles surround us, or do we believe that God is punishing us and really dislikes us? The key to our being an upside down people or right way up depends on our perspective and unless we’ve been the “right way up”, we won’t realize that we are upside down.
Many of Jesus’ parables seemed to be “upside down” to the people – and they seems that way to us also. This week’s Gospel is no exception, and it tells of workers being paid the same amount even though some worked all day and some only worked for a short part of the day. This doesn’t seem fair to us and it didn’t seem fair to those listening to Jesus story either.
The Gospel is actually about us who work in God’s kingdom. Some have been working faithfully all their lives. Others have only just begun to be involved seemingly at the very end of their life. Is it fair that all be rewarded equally?
St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians 1: 27-30 “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.”
Is it fair that someone who worked as hard as St. Paul (persecuted and martyred) should share the same reward as the elderly lady who just started coming to church at the age of 80 and really didn’t do very much except pray and encourage those in her congregation? Whether it seems fair or not, Jesus proclaims that this is how the kingdom of God works. Certainly it is Good News for those like the elderly lady – and yet it is something that those like St. Paul will willingly suffer and struggle their whole lives for. St. Paul knew that his reward was the same as those for whom he was struggling and he willingly continued. His reward is the love of God, forgiveness of sins and eternal life.... to want for anything more is to not understand the gift.
St. Paul also writes some famous words that are similar and yet opposite to those of Hamlet – yet written many years before the time of Shakespeare:
Philippians 1:21-26 “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me.”
St. Paul was completely aware of the hardships of life. This is one who lived his life right on the edge of glory and suffered injustices and persecution for the faith he not only believed in, but knew beyond a shadow of a doubt was the truth.
Where Hamlet feared the punishment that awaited him due to his sins, St. Paul knew that Christ loved him and his sins were atoned for. St. Paul knew that to die meant to be with Christ and this was a good thing. But St. Paul knew that there was a reason and a purpose for his every day on earth and he lived that purpose without apology in the face of great affliction.
This week I taught a new song to one of my students, “clinging to a saving hand”. Because there were some old terms and words and this was a 10 year old student, I explained what the song was about and some of the terms, like, “sleep eternal”. The words of the song are: “Sing me a song of praise and glory. Help this wondering child to understand, that when I close my eyes in sleep eternal, I’ll be clinging to a saving hand”.
I explained that the saving hand was Jesus and that many people are scared of dying because they don’t know if Jesus will accept them. I explained that it is important to know Jesus now so that when we face death we can rest assured and know that Jesus will be there for us.
The Israelites that Moses led out of Egypt were the chosen people of God, but they didn’t KNOW him. They knew about Him and saw the amazing things that he did. More than this they were saved by Him from the land of slavery – and even, after them grumbling and complaining against God, they were miraculously given quails to eat and manna (bread). There was a difference between these people and St. Paul which caused them to interpret things differently. St. Paul was not an upside down person – he saw things as they really are.
We can be an upside down people if we don’t know Jesus. We can know about Jesus and still be “upside down”. We can experience Jesus and still be “upside down”. But to know Jesus and be the “right way up” is to be in a relationship with him. It means spending time with him.... learning about him... being led by his Holy Spirit and taught about him. It means making him the first propriety in our lives – because in the end our relationship with Him will one day be all that matters.
Spoken by Hamlet, Hamlet Act 3 Scene 1
To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, ’tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor’s wrong, the proud man’s contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law’s delay,
The insolence of office and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover’d country from whose bourn
No traveller returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.–Soft you now!
The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in thy orisons
Be all my sins remember’d.
http://www.nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/hamlet-to-be-or-not-to-be/
Exodus 16: 2-15 Psalm 105: 1-6, 37-45 Philippians 1: 21-30 Matthew 20: 1-16
We are an upside down people. For a minute just imagine an “opposite day”. Kids know about opposite days and will tell you when you say “No” to them that it really means “Yes”! If everything was upside down we wouldn’t get a proper perspective on anything and things would be a little chaotic.... but here’s the thing... life is chaotic and we don’t have a proper perspective – we are an upside down people!
Shakespeare, in the words of Hamlet’s soliloquy, writes the thoughts that would be common to humans if we were clever enough to analyse and think it through. He writes the famous, “To be or not to be...” and he deliberates whether it is better to end his life or face the trials to come. In the end Hamlet decides that he doesn’t know what death entails and suspects that there may be more to it than a peaceful sleep. So fearing the “nightmares” that may await him after death he supposes that those trials of life may be the easier option.
Shakespeare obviously thought things through more than the average human being and articulated our inner fears and desires. The ancient Israelites, we read about this week were not so inclined to analyse and after being miraculously rescued by God grumbled that He had brought them out into the desert only to kill them by starvation. Not a very logical conclusion – but seemingly logical to an “upside down” people - and probably the one we’d all jump to in the same situation.
Are we more inclined to accept the wisdom and sovereignty of God when our life is in shambles and troubles surround us, or do we believe that God is punishing us and really dislikes us? The key to our being an upside down people or right way up depends on our perspective and unless we’ve been the “right way up”, we won’t realize that we are upside down.
Many of Jesus’ parables seemed to be “upside down” to the people – and they seems that way to us also. This week’s Gospel is no exception, and it tells of workers being paid the same amount even though some worked all day and some only worked for a short part of the day. This doesn’t seem fair to us and it didn’t seem fair to those listening to Jesus story either.
The Gospel is actually about us who work in God’s kingdom. Some have been working faithfully all their lives. Others have only just begun to be involved seemingly at the very end of their life. Is it fair that all be rewarded equally?
St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians 1: 27-30 “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.”
Is it fair that someone who worked as hard as St. Paul (persecuted and martyred) should share the same reward as the elderly lady who just started coming to church at the age of 80 and really didn’t do very much except pray and encourage those in her congregation? Whether it seems fair or not, Jesus proclaims that this is how the kingdom of God works. Certainly it is Good News for those like the elderly lady – and yet it is something that those like St. Paul will willingly suffer and struggle their whole lives for. St. Paul knew that his reward was the same as those for whom he was struggling and he willingly continued. His reward is the love of God, forgiveness of sins and eternal life.... to want for anything more is to not understand the gift.
St. Paul also writes some famous words that are similar and yet opposite to those of Hamlet – yet written many years before the time of Shakespeare:
Philippians 1:21-26 “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me.”
St. Paul was completely aware of the hardships of life. This is one who lived his life right on the edge of glory and suffered injustices and persecution for the faith he not only believed in, but knew beyond a shadow of a doubt was the truth.
Where Hamlet feared the punishment that awaited him due to his sins, St. Paul knew that Christ loved him and his sins were atoned for. St. Paul knew that to die meant to be with Christ and this was a good thing. But St. Paul knew that there was a reason and a purpose for his every day on earth and he lived that purpose without apology in the face of great affliction.
This week I taught a new song to one of my students, “clinging to a saving hand”. Because there were some old terms and words and this was a 10 year old student, I explained what the song was about and some of the terms, like, “sleep eternal”. The words of the song are: “Sing me a song of praise and glory. Help this wondering child to understand, that when I close my eyes in sleep eternal, I’ll be clinging to a saving hand”.
I explained that the saving hand was Jesus and that many people are scared of dying because they don’t know if Jesus will accept them. I explained that it is important to know Jesus now so that when we face death we can rest assured and know that Jesus will be there for us.
The Israelites that Moses led out of Egypt were the chosen people of God, but they didn’t KNOW him. They knew about Him and saw the amazing things that he did. More than this they were saved by Him from the land of slavery – and even, after them grumbling and complaining against God, they were miraculously given quails to eat and manna (bread). There was a difference between these people and St. Paul which caused them to interpret things differently. St. Paul was not an upside down person – he saw things as they really are.
We can be an upside down people if we don’t know Jesus. We can know about Jesus and still be “upside down”. We can experience Jesus and still be “upside down”. But to know Jesus and be the “right way up” is to be in a relationship with him. It means spending time with him.... learning about him... being led by his Holy Spirit and taught about him. It means making him the first propriety in our lives – because in the end our relationship with Him will one day be all that matters.
Spoken by Hamlet, Hamlet Act 3 Scene 1
To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, ’tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor’s wrong, the proud man’s contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law’s delay,
The insolence of office and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover’d country from whose bourn
No traveller returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.–Soft you now!
The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in thy orisons
Be all my sins remember’d.
http://www.nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/hamlet-to-be-or-not-to-be/
Friday, September 9, 2011
Reflection 11 September 2011
Year A Proper 19 11 September 2011
Exodus 14: 19-31 Psalm 114 Romans 14: 1-12 Matthew 18: 21-35
I’m reminded this week of the Shakespearean quote from “The Merchant of Venice”. Those familiar will most probably know already what quote, “The quality of mercy is not strained. It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven.”
Last week we were told how to deal with a brother or sister who has sinned against us. This week, we are again told how to deal with someone who sins against us..... but it is different:
Matthew 18: 21, 22 “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.””
So you will note that we have two different approaches that are both correct. How can this be? This calls for the gift of the Holy Spirit and the accompanying wisdom. A parent will often understand and forgive the wrong doings of their child, and they will forgive infinitely, but for the good of the child certain boundaries may need to be enforced – the forgiveness and love, however, is limitless.
In our Gospel reading Jesus continues then, to tell the story of a servant who owed some money to his master. When his master demanded the repayment the servant begged for mercy. The master responded with mercy and forgave him, completely cancelling the debt, but the servant then went angrily and found a fellow servant who owed him money and had him thrown in jail. When the master founds out what had happened he was very upset with the servant as he was shown mercy and should have responded to his fellow servant with mercy.
We are shown great mercy by God. In some of the ways in which we are shown mercy we have no idea about. Our debts have been paid by Jesus sacrifice on the cross. Some of these debts we are aware of.... we know our failings. But there are many ways we fail and in our self assured ignorance we are oblivious to these. In one of the Psalms it says, “Who can discern his own errors?” We are actually much better at seeing others errors.
Jesus gives us these two different directives to ensure we understand that love and mercy and concern for the wellbeing of the other are the underlying motivation in all we do.
In our second reading we are urged to bear with those whose faith is weak. The reading goes on to explain that there are some whose faith permits them not to eat meat. In the early church there were people who had come from back grounds where meat was sacrificed to demons, therefore, because they were now Christians, they couldn’t eat that meat. Others realized that they could give thanks to God for the meat and eat it with a clear conscience.
Romans 14: 5-8 “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 8 If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”
From one church denomination to another we have the same issues. We have people who believe that it is good to observe special days and others who refuse. We have some who fast and others who don’t see the need. There are very many different things that I haven’t listed and we do get very passionate about them and can see very good and important reasons for these and the other issues that divide us. The issues in the times of the Romans were no less important. St. Paul is urging that we see beyond the issue and recognise that the heart of the person desires to please God.... and this is what matters to God above all, and therefore, above all, this is what we should recognise.
With all the various issues that divide us it truly is a miracle that the Christian Church remains. In many ways we are like those ancient Israelites who were living in the land of Egypt. Egypt is symbolic of the powers and principalities that come against the Church.
Our church lives in the world, surrounded by the forces of evil and those dark forces impact us, as we do take on some of the world’s way of thinking. The ancient Israelites were God’s people and yet they were affected by the beliefs of the Egyptians. Even though this was a fact, God did not reject His people, but He called them out and He both led the people and came between the people and Egypt to protect and teach them.
Exodus 14: 19-20 “Then the angel of God, who had been travelling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.
Our first reading is the story of the parting of the Red Sea. Some have tried to justify the miracle as something ordinary and that there is a place where the Sea is very shallow. But that is not how our Bible describes it:
Exodus 14: 21-22 “Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.”
Not only did the Israelites cross over on dry land, but when the Egyptians pursued them they were thrown into confusion and drowned. To put this in very human terms; the Israelite were a group of over worked and mistreated slaves and they had with them their women and children. The Egyptians were the strong army of only men, yet these are the ones who perished. There is only one explanation; God did something miraculous!
The message for us: We are called to be apart from the world and learn who God is. We need to let go of the "false Gods" that we picked up while out there in the world. We do this practically by spending time with God and without distractions. No matter that we come against powers and principalities that seem gigantic, when God acts for us the victory is ours. But know that God acted on behalf of his people who were less than perfect. We are less than perfect and have been shown great mercy. We need to be merciful with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Exodus 14: 19-31 Psalm 114 Romans 14: 1-12 Matthew 18: 21-35
I’m reminded this week of the Shakespearean quote from “The Merchant of Venice”. Those familiar will most probably know already what quote, “The quality of mercy is not strained. It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven.”
Last week we were told how to deal with a brother or sister who has sinned against us. This week, we are again told how to deal with someone who sins against us..... but it is different:
Matthew 18: 21, 22 “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.””
So you will note that we have two different approaches that are both correct. How can this be? This calls for the gift of the Holy Spirit and the accompanying wisdom. A parent will often understand and forgive the wrong doings of their child, and they will forgive infinitely, but for the good of the child certain boundaries may need to be enforced – the forgiveness and love, however, is limitless.
In our Gospel reading Jesus continues then, to tell the story of a servant who owed some money to his master. When his master demanded the repayment the servant begged for mercy. The master responded with mercy and forgave him, completely cancelling the debt, but the servant then went angrily and found a fellow servant who owed him money and had him thrown in jail. When the master founds out what had happened he was very upset with the servant as he was shown mercy and should have responded to his fellow servant with mercy.
We are shown great mercy by God. In some of the ways in which we are shown mercy we have no idea about. Our debts have been paid by Jesus sacrifice on the cross. Some of these debts we are aware of.... we know our failings. But there are many ways we fail and in our self assured ignorance we are oblivious to these. In one of the Psalms it says, “Who can discern his own errors?” We are actually much better at seeing others errors.
Jesus gives us these two different directives to ensure we understand that love and mercy and concern for the wellbeing of the other are the underlying motivation in all we do.
In our second reading we are urged to bear with those whose faith is weak. The reading goes on to explain that there are some whose faith permits them not to eat meat. In the early church there were people who had come from back grounds where meat was sacrificed to demons, therefore, because they were now Christians, they couldn’t eat that meat. Others realized that they could give thanks to God for the meat and eat it with a clear conscience.
Romans 14: 5-8 “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 8 If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”
From one church denomination to another we have the same issues. We have people who believe that it is good to observe special days and others who refuse. We have some who fast and others who don’t see the need. There are very many different things that I haven’t listed and we do get very passionate about them and can see very good and important reasons for these and the other issues that divide us. The issues in the times of the Romans were no less important. St. Paul is urging that we see beyond the issue and recognise that the heart of the person desires to please God.... and this is what matters to God above all, and therefore, above all, this is what we should recognise.
With all the various issues that divide us it truly is a miracle that the Christian Church remains. In many ways we are like those ancient Israelites who were living in the land of Egypt. Egypt is symbolic of the powers and principalities that come against the Church.
Our church lives in the world, surrounded by the forces of evil and those dark forces impact us, as we do take on some of the world’s way of thinking. The ancient Israelites were God’s people and yet they were affected by the beliefs of the Egyptians. Even though this was a fact, God did not reject His people, but He called them out and He both led the people and came between the people and Egypt to protect and teach them.
Exodus 14: 19-20 “Then the angel of God, who had been travelling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.
Our first reading is the story of the parting of the Red Sea. Some have tried to justify the miracle as something ordinary and that there is a place where the Sea is very shallow. But that is not how our Bible describes it:
Exodus 14: 21-22 “Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.”
Not only did the Israelites cross over on dry land, but when the Egyptians pursued them they were thrown into confusion and drowned. To put this in very human terms; the Israelite were a group of over worked and mistreated slaves and they had with them their women and children. The Egyptians were the strong army of only men, yet these are the ones who perished. There is only one explanation; God did something miraculous!
The message for us: We are called to be apart from the world and learn who God is. We need to let go of the "false Gods" that we picked up while out there in the world. We do this practically by spending time with God and without distractions. No matter that we come against powers and principalities that seem gigantic, when God acts for us the victory is ours. But know that God acted on behalf of his people who were less than perfect. We are less than perfect and have been shown great mercy. We need to be merciful with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Reflection on reading for 4th September 2011
Year A Proper 18 4 September 2011
Exodus 12: 1-14 Psalm 149 Romans 13: 8-14 Matthew 18: 15-20
Romans 12:13 “The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armour of light.”
There is a sense of “it is time to get serious” about this week’s readings. Time to get serious for three reasons; one is because of our relationships between each other, the other is because God’s judgment is near, and the third reason is because there is a move of God about to occur.
In our first reading we have God’s instructions to the Israelites who were in Egypt and in slavery. God gives very direct and specific instructions that these Israelites must follow. They must take a perfect male lamb on the 10th day of the month and on the 14th day at twilight, they are to slaughter it, painting the doorways of their homes with its blood and then eating the lamb roasted (not boiled and certainly not raw), leaving nothing until morning – all had to be consumed or thrown to the fire.
It was to be eaten with their cloaks tucked into their belt. In other words, as if they were about to leave in haste. God also explains what else was to occur that night:
Exodus 12:12-13 ““On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.””
The blood of the lamb painted on the doorways seems such a weird and revolting thing to us, but it is important to note that it was the blood of the lamb that saved the people. It was NOT that if the people had been really good that goodness saved them. It was NOT if the people had kept all the commandments that action saved them. It WAS the blood of the lamb and nothing else that meant these people were saved.
I’m guessing it was a very late dinner that night. If it wasn’t until twilight that the animal was slaughtered and all the requirements were fulfilled then the Israelites were kept very busy while the LORD passed over. The Israelites would have gone to sleep with the thought, “the night is nearly over and the day is nearly here”. In more ways than one, was their night nearly over, as the following day they would begin their great exodus from Egypt. They would witness the greatness of God as they walked through the parted sea, following the cloud of God by day and the pillar of fire by night, through to the desert.
God did not rescue this people because they were good. He rescued them because they were His people and he loved them. It is important to understand this as we look at our Gospel reading:
Matthew 18:15-17 ““If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
It is the words of Jesus..... the same Jesus who urged us not to judge, but to first take the speck out of our own eye... and the same Jesus who, when a lady caught in adultery was brought to him asked the crowd that whoever has not sinned to cast the first stone. So, how are we to interpret this?
In the passage, Jesus is speaking about brothers and sisters as those who are such in the body of Christ – i.e. the followers of Jesus, but it is probably best understood in the family situation, not just any family, but one that is closely united in love.
In my extended family at the moment, there is a somewhat dramatic situation. There is one member who we all have known for many years has been doing things to cause others grief. Finally things reached boiling point and boundaries have been laid down. In many ways there were one on one loving conversations, first within the primary family and then there were conversations with the extended family and even with counsellors. But there has been a refusal to listen and change.
In the end for the good of others in the family this person was told they were not welcome to live in that family home. Other family members provide temporary accommodation, and love and openness toward the person is still there, but basically the house rules are set and if this person won’t abide by them, they must live independently. This person is no longer a child, so living independently is not a cruel boundary to impose, but a necessity for the good of others in the family who are yet dependant.
I see this situation as being very similar to the instructions of Jesus in this passage. Within the body of Christ none is perfect. But we have new and young Christians as well as firm and mature Christians and all in between. We have a duty to care for each other in love and that is not always easy – in fact, very often it is hard.
Our reading from Romans tells us:
Romans 13:8-10 “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfilment of the law.”
Relationships are two sided and sometimes there is nothing you can do but walk away. Put some distance between yourself and the person who has offended you. And that is sometimes the most loving thing to do. Not only does it send a definite message to the person involved, but it allows you to continue loving, caring and praying for the person instead of simply being irritated by continued close contact.
I don’t think that we as church, really follow the directives of Jesus quite the same as in the passage of Matthews Gospel, but more often than not, we don’t have the one on one conversation, but instead make judgement without even discovering the facts. We confide in two or three, but not with the person with whom we’ve had the problem. This is not loving and caring for that person and not what Jesus intended. In all situations we require the wisdom of the Holy Spirit because, as we know, sometimes Jesus calls us to “walk the extra mile”, “turn the other cheek”, etc...
It is also important to note that this passage refers to a person who has personally offended you, not just someone who sins (because we all sin), but someone who has sinned against you.
When all is said and done we need to be reminded constantly of how God has dealt with us. We too are saved by the “blood of the lamb”. The Israelites were saved by the blood of a perfect male lamb, not because they were perfect themselves, they were far, far, far from perfect. In fact even as a nation, I’m sure there were others that more deserved God’s favour. But God chose them not because the deserved him – he just chose them! And then he rescued and saved them.
We are saved by the blood of the perfect male “lamb”.... Jesus is the “lamb of God”. There isn’t anything that we do that deserves his favour. It is really important that we understand this. We have nothing to boast about. We are simply chosen, rescued, saved and favoured because we accept the sacrifice of Jesus.
In the understanding of this we need to realize that the night is nearly over and the day is almost here– God’s salvation is here and in one sense we already enjoy it, but in another it is still becoming the reality in our lives - it is time to act accordingly.
Exodus 12: 1-14 Psalm 149 Romans 13: 8-14 Matthew 18: 15-20
Romans 12:13 “The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armour of light.”
There is a sense of “it is time to get serious” about this week’s readings. Time to get serious for three reasons; one is because of our relationships between each other, the other is because God’s judgment is near, and the third reason is because there is a move of God about to occur.
In our first reading we have God’s instructions to the Israelites who were in Egypt and in slavery. God gives very direct and specific instructions that these Israelites must follow. They must take a perfect male lamb on the 10th day of the month and on the 14th day at twilight, they are to slaughter it, painting the doorways of their homes with its blood and then eating the lamb roasted (not boiled and certainly not raw), leaving nothing until morning – all had to be consumed or thrown to the fire.
It was to be eaten with their cloaks tucked into their belt. In other words, as if they were about to leave in haste. God also explains what else was to occur that night:
Exodus 12:12-13 ““On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.””
The blood of the lamb painted on the doorways seems such a weird and revolting thing to us, but it is important to note that it was the blood of the lamb that saved the people. It was NOT that if the people had been really good that goodness saved them. It was NOT if the people had kept all the commandments that action saved them. It WAS the blood of the lamb and nothing else that meant these people were saved.
I’m guessing it was a very late dinner that night. If it wasn’t until twilight that the animal was slaughtered and all the requirements were fulfilled then the Israelites were kept very busy while the LORD passed over. The Israelites would have gone to sleep with the thought, “the night is nearly over and the day is nearly here”. In more ways than one, was their night nearly over, as the following day they would begin their great exodus from Egypt. They would witness the greatness of God as they walked through the parted sea, following the cloud of God by day and the pillar of fire by night, through to the desert.
God did not rescue this people because they were good. He rescued them because they were His people and he loved them. It is important to understand this as we look at our Gospel reading:
Matthew 18:15-17 ““If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
It is the words of Jesus..... the same Jesus who urged us not to judge, but to first take the speck out of our own eye... and the same Jesus who, when a lady caught in adultery was brought to him asked the crowd that whoever has not sinned to cast the first stone. So, how are we to interpret this?
In the passage, Jesus is speaking about brothers and sisters as those who are such in the body of Christ – i.e. the followers of Jesus, but it is probably best understood in the family situation, not just any family, but one that is closely united in love.
In my extended family at the moment, there is a somewhat dramatic situation. There is one member who we all have known for many years has been doing things to cause others grief. Finally things reached boiling point and boundaries have been laid down. In many ways there were one on one loving conversations, first within the primary family and then there were conversations with the extended family and even with counsellors. But there has been a refusal to listen and change.
In the end for the good of others in the family this person was told they were not welcome to live in that family home. Other family members provide temporary accommodation, and love and openness toward the person is still there, but basically the house rules are set and if this person won’t abide by them, they must live independently. This person is no longer a child, so living independently is not a cruel boundary to impose, but a necessity for the good of others in the family who are yet dependant.
I see this situation as being very similar to the instructions of Jesus in this passage. Within the body of Christ none is perfect. But we have new and young Christians as well as firm and mature Christians and all in between. We have a duty to care for each other in love and that is not always easy – in fact, very often it is hard.
Our reading from Romans tells us:
Romans 13:8-10 “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfilment of the law.”
Relationships are two sided and sometimes there is nothing you can do but walk away. Put some distance between yourself and the person who has offended you. And that is sometimes the most loving thing to do. Not only does it send a definite message to the person involved, but it allows you to continue loving, caring and praying for the person instead of simply being irritated by continued close contact.
I don’t think that we as church, really follow the directives of Jesus quite the same as in the passage of Matthews Gospel, but more often than not, we don’t have the one on one conversation, but instead make judgement without even discovering the facts. We confide in two or three, but not with the person with whom we’ve had the problem. This is not loving and caring for that person and not what Jesus intended. In all situations we require the wisdom of the Holy Spirit because, as we know, sometimes Jesus calls us to “walk the extra mile”, “turn the other cheek”, etc...
It is also important to note that this passage refers to a person who has personally offended you, not just someone who sins (because we all sin), but someone who has sinned against you.
When all is said and done we need to be reminded constantly of how God has dealt with us. We too are saved by the “blood of the lamb”. The Israelites were saved by the blood of a perfect male lamb, not because they were perfect themselves, they were far, far, far from perfect. In fact even as a nation, I’m sure there were others that more deserved God’s favour. But God chose them not because the deserved him – he just chose them! And then he rescued and saved them.
We are saved by the blood of the perfect male “lamb”.... Jesus is the “lamb of God”. There isn’t anything that we do that deserves his favour. It is really important that we understand this. We have nothing to boast about. We are simply chosen, rescued, saved and favoured because we accept the sacrifice of Jesus.
In the understanding of this we need to realize that the night is nearly over and the day is almost here– God’s salvation is here and in one sense we already enjoy it, but in another it is still becoming the reality in our lives - it is time to act accordingly.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Reflection for the 28th August 2011
Year A Proper 17 28 August 2011
Exodus 3: 1-15 Psalm 105: 1-6, 23-26, 45c Romans 12: 9-21 Matthew 16: 21-28
It was a burning bush that was not consumed. This was the way that God revealed himself to Moses. In a sense that bush was ever alive and always in the same state. It was a state which contradicted nature. In nature things come to pass and then pass away, but the burning bush, something which would normally be consumed very quickly, was not consumed with the burning. In this way God revealed His eternal nature to Moses. When Moses asked God for His name, God replied with “I am who I am”.
We discover that there was more than a little bit of Egyptian up-bringing in Moses. Moses hears the voice of God but doesn’t recognise Him and has to ask who He is. Moses was brought up with all the religion of Egypt and though he’d turned his back on Egypt and claimed his Israelite heritage, we realize that at this point he had much to learn about how different God is from the idols of Egypt. Lesson number 1: God is the LORD! The Hebrew for “LORD” is very close to “I Am”, and so God also taught Moses about His sovereignty with this play on words.
The story about the meeting of Moses with God through the burning bush is about the call of Moses. Moses was that baby who had been saved through the “ark” if you like – the little boat placed in the river, and by the providence of God. Moses had a dramatic salvation from death and a privileged up-bringing as the adopted grandson of Pharaoh. Moses was like one with a charmed life where he seemed to escape the natural consequences of who and what he was. There was no death for Moses and there was no slavery.... Moses had already experienced a land flowing with milk and honey – it was his up-bringing.
The part of the story which isn’t told in our reading is that part where as a young man Moses killed an Egyptian slaver driver who was harshly treating the Israelites. When he realized that people were aware of his actions he ran fearfully into the desert where he married and made his home in exile away from both his adopted family and his biological/ spiritual family. It is after many years that God calls this fearful and confused man to a position of leadership which overwhelms and frightens him.
In our Gospel reading Jesus begins to explain to his disciples that he is going to suffer, but he is taken aside and rebuked by Peter. Peter has confessed that Jesus is the Messiah, but fails to understand the mission that Jesus was to accomplish.
At the time of Jesus birth, Herod had all the baby boys born within a certain time frame put to death. He was trying to kill the “King of the Jews” whose birth had been proclaimed by the wise men – that is, he was trying to kill Jesus. Jesus, like Moses, escaped this infant death by the providence of God and the intervention of Angels. Jesus’ life had a purpose and that purpose would be fulfilled.
Moses’ life had a call and a purpose. He was to lead the Israelites from slavery and death and bring them through to the Promised Land. It is possible that Moses, as the young fiery man, sensed his being saved from death as an infant was for a higher purpose, but when this didn’t seem obvious to his fellow Israelites and things went wrong - he ran.
While answering the call to follow God there will be suffering. Will we also run into the desert? How many of us are there now?
Peter tried to tell Jesus that this idea of suffering was not part of God plan, but Jesus knew better. Just to make it very clear to his followers about their own call, he added;
Matthew 16:24-27 “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for you to gain the whole world, yet forfeit your soul? Or what can you give in exchange for your soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward everyone according to what they have done.”
Moses tried to save his own life by running into the desert, but instead he lost both his adopted life and his biological/spiritual life. But God had a plan for the life of Moses and through redeeming Moses to his spiritual inheritance he would also physically save the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt.
Many of us have run away to the desert. We feel overcome by evil and worn out. But here in the desert is where we strive to save our lives and we are fighting a losing battle. That desert is the place where we think we are “looking after ourselves”. It is that place where we avoid the call of God because we are too tired, too busy and too hurt to be part of the body of Christ.
In retrospect we can see that God had an amazing plan for the life of Moses. I have no doubt that this was not always obvious to Moses. In our own lives we often see the obstacles which prevent us from seeing any bigger picture, but it seems that Jesus is speaking to all his followers when he speaks of taking up our cross, and this indicates to me that there is a God given purpose for each of our lives. The purpose of Jesus words is to remind us that there will be some very hard times.
Jesus suffered and died, but on Easter Sunday he rose. In the bizarre contradiction of the natural order that God seems to delight in, by the giving away of Jesus life he gained eternal life for us all. Moses gave up his “life” - the life he had in the desert – the life he had as a prince of Egypt - and the Israelite nation was saved.
It may be Friday when everything looks black and hard.... but Sunday is coming!
Are you in the desert and is God calling you back to His purpose? Yes there will be a cross to take up, but ultimately at the end of the cross is the resurrection.
“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” (Rom 12:12)
Exodus 3: 1-15 Psalm 105: 1-6, 23-26, 45c Romans 12: 9-21 Matthew 16: 21-28
It was a burning bush that was not consumed. This was the way that God revealed himself to Moses. In a sense that bush was ever alive and always in the same state. It was a state which contradicted nature. In nature things come to pass and then pass away, but the burning bush, something which would normally be consumed very quickly, was not consumed with the burning. In this way God revealed His eternal nature to Moses. When Moses asked God for His name, God replied with “I am who I am”.
We discover that there was more than a little bit of Egyptian up-bringing in Moses. Moses hears the voice of God but doesn’t recognise Him and has to ask who He is. Moses was brought up with all the religion of Egypt and though he’d turned his back on Egypt and claimed his Israelite heritage, we realize that at this point he had much to learn about how different God is from the idols of Egypt. Lesson number 1: God is the LORD! The Hebrew for “LORD” is very close to “I Am”, and so God also taught Moses about His sovereignty with this play on words.
The story about the meeting of Moses with God through the burning bush is about the call of Moses. Moses was that baby who had been saved through the “ark” if you like – the little boat placed in the river, and by the providence of God. Moses had a dramatic salvation from death and a privileged up-bringing as the adopted grandson of Pharaoh. Moses was like one with a charmed life where he seemed to escape the natural consequences of who and what he was. There was no death for Moses and there was no slavery.... Moses had already experienced a land flowing with milk and honey – it was his up-bringing.
The part of the story which isn’t told in our reading is that part where as a young man Moses killed an Egyptian slaver driver who was harshly treating the Israelites. When he realized that people were aware of his actions he ran fearfully into the desert where he married and made his home in exile away from both his adopted family and his biological/ spiritual family. It is after many years that God calls this fearful and confused man to a position of leadership which overwhelms and frightens him.
In our Gospel reading Jesus begins to explain to his disciples that he is going to suffer, but he is taken aside and rebuked by Peter. Peter has confessed that Jesus is the Messiah, but fails to understand the mission that Jesus was to accomplish.
At the time of Jesus birth, Herod had all the baby boys born within a certain time frame put to death. He was trying to kill the “King of the Jews” whose birth had been proclaimed by the wise men – that is, he was trying to kill Jesus. Jesus, like Moses, escaped this infant death by the providence of God and the intervention of Angels. Jesus’ life had a purpose and that purpose would be fulfilled.
Moses’ life had a call and a purpose. He was to lead the Israelites from slavery and death and bring them through to the Promised Land. It is possible that Moses, as the young fiery man, sensed his being saved from death as an infant was for a higher purpose, but when this didn’t seem obvious to his fellow Israelites and things went wrong - he ran.
While answering the call to follow God there will be suffering. Will we also run into the desert? How many of us are there now?
Peter tried to tell Jesus that this idea of suffering was not part of God plan, but Jesus knew better. Just to make it very clear to his followers about their own call, he added;
Matthew 16:24-27 “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for you to gain the whole world, yet forfeit your soul? Or what can you give in exchange for your soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward everyone according to what they have done.”
Moses tried to save his own life by running into the desert, but instead he lost both his adopted life and his biological/spiritual life. But God had a plan for the life of Moses and through redeeming Moses to his spiritual inheritance he would also physically save the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt.
Many of us have run away to the desert. We feel overcome by evil and worn out. But here in the desert is where we strive to save our lives and we are fighting a losing battle. That desert is the place where we think we are “looking after ourselves”. It is that place where we avoid the call of God because we are too tired, too busy and too hurt to be part of the body of Christ.
In retrospect we can see that God had an amazing plan for the life of Moses. I have no doubt that this was not always obvious to Moses. In our own lives we often see the obstacles which prevent us from seeing any bigger picture, but it seems that Jesus is speaking to all his followers when he speaks of taking up our cross, and this indicates to me that there is a God given purpose for each of our lives. The purpose of Jesus words is to remind us that there will be some very hard times.
Jesus suffered and died, but on Easter Sunday he rose. In the bizarre contradiction of the natural order that God seems to delight in, by the giving away of Jesus life he gained eternal life for us all. Moses gave up his “life” - the life he had in the desert – the life he had as a prince of Egypt - and the Israelite nation was saved.
It may be Friday when everything looks black and hard.... but Sunday is coming!
Are you in the desert and is God calling you back to His purpose? Yes there will be a cross to take up, but ultimately at the end of the cross is the resurrection.
“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” (Rom 12:12)
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Reflection on readings for 21st August 2011
Year A Proper 16 21 August 2011
Exodus 1:8 - 2:10 Psalm 124 Romans 12: 1-8 Matthew 16: 13-20
When God gets involved in our lives amazing things happen.
Matthew 16:16-20 “Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of death will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.”
Most often people read this verse and concentrate on the role that Peter played in the establishment of the church, but if we look beyond this we will see that Jesus is telling his followers some very important things, which will encourage and reassure his followers throughout the hard times to come.
Firstly, we read the statement of faith where Peter proclaims that Jesus is the promised Messiah and the Son of the living God. It is this “rock” that is the foundation stone of the Church. Then we discover some aspects about this Church; Jesus says that the gate of death will not overcome this church. In some translations it says “the gates of Hades” or “the gates of Hell”.
It is important to realize that Jesus knew these followers were going to feel that Hell was fighting against them and winning. It would seem at times as though everything was so hard. There would be persecutions, imprisonment and throwing to the lions. It would certainly not always look like the gates of death would not overcome.
In our first reading we find out what it means when God says that the Gates of death will not overcome His church. We find that the descendants of those sons of Israel who sold their brother as a slave have now become enslaved. The Egyptians despised and enslaved the Israelites with hard labour, but still the Israelite population grew, and so the Egyptians killed all the males who were born to the Israelites.
An Israelite lady gave birth, during this time, to a beautiful health baby boy and she hid him from the authorities. When she could no longer hide him she made a basket, made it waterproof and set it in the Nile river with the baby inside. The baby’s sister stayed nearby to see what would happen. It would seem that this act was that of a visionary, who did not despair, but trusted in the providence of God. She may have given birth previously and lost the child.... we don’t know the dark and troubled circumstances which had previously been her life, but we know that she gave this baby every possible chance of life that she could. What happens next is amazing.
Pharaoh’s daughter went to the river to bathe, saw the basket and felt sorry for the baby. The baby’s sister, who had been watching the proceedings, seized the opportunity and offered to find a lady to nurse (i.e. to breast feed and care for) the child for Pharaoh’s daughter, indicating that Pharaoh’s daughter had taken on the responsibility for the baby. Pharaoh’s daughter was obliging and so the baby was taken back to its mother. Pharaoh’s daughter even paid the mother to look after the child, and then when he was old enough he went to live in the palace. This was the beginning of the life of Moses, the great prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery – but not until after many of his own struggles.
Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is true worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
What is the thought pattern of this world? With the many on antidepressants and most of us stressed, I expect that we have succumbed to the conformity of this world.
People who can hope though there is great darkness, trouble and persecution around them are those who have given their lives to God and through all – trust God. These are not simply clergy and the odd special person, but we are all urged to be like this. We are all urged to entrust our lives into the hands of God.... and this is true worship. We are urged to be transformed by the renewing of our minds and we do this by getting our minds in line with God.... How? We are transformed by the gift of the Holy Spirit through studying the word of God, the Bible and by prayer and by being connected to the body of Christ – His Church. Remember, it is His Church that the gates of death will not overcome.
Within the Church, and through the gift of the Holy Spirit, are people are called and gifted in many different ways.
Romans 12:6-8 “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
Here we find seven gifts listed. There are others listed in other places and the point is to know that your gift is a responsibility. It is given to you for the good of the body of Christ. This particular list is one that someone, somewhere, at some point in time developed a bit of an idea about and called them the motivational gifts. This was an exercise that I went through a number of years ago and I found it really helpful in understanding where I fitted in and most particularly why I was so frustrated.
Sometimes we mistakenly “pigeon-hole” people into areas within the church where they are not really called to be. I remember going on a camp with some Papa New Guineans’ and there was a man who frustrated everyone. He tried very hard to be the “leader”, as that was what the culture seemed to dictate should be his role in the church as a male. He was a round peg in a square hole. Then at the end of the camp he sang some songs he’d written and the whole group was totally amazed at how wonderful it was. In his eyes, however, the singing and artistic things were the role of the women.
You can actually answer a few questions online and get a fair idea of what your gift is. (To do this go to www.gifttest.org and click the link that says “Take the Survey”).
What is important is to understand the part of the Romans reading that we haven’t yet looked at....
Romans 12:3-6 “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.”
No gift is above another in the eyes of God. Each is meant for the good of the whole Church and is vital to the health and effectiveness of the Church.
Too often I see people in society think more highly of themselves than they ought. I had a brief conversation with someone recently about an experiment I heard about. I can’t remember much about it except that many good, moral people given the extreme circumstances gave way to some depraved behaviour. The person I was conversing with expressed that they’d like to think they were not they kind of person who would do those things. We all like to think that we’d hold true to our moral convictions under all circumstances, but I honestly believe that any good that we have, and can hold on to, is by the grace of God.
It is by the grace of God that we are born to families who impart values. It is by the grace of God that we can comprehend the good of those values. It is by the grace of God alone that if we were to be tested we might stand firm. I’m guessing this is the reason for the words of the “Our Father”, “save us from the time of trial”, or as it has been traditionally translated, “deliver us from temptation”. The reason we must pray it is because without the intervention of God we will fail.
It is an attitude of thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought that leads to the judgment and un-forgiveness that I wrote about last week. Being particularly clever, or gifted athletically or artistically, is no reason for thinking more highly of ourselves – though many do this. Our abilities are gifts from God. We practise and improve, but ultimately our abilities are gifts.
It is also important to note that these gifts we read about in the letter to the Romans, have no gender attached and in God’s redeemed there is no longer a status difference between male and female, as all are one in Christ Jesus. Some of these gifts involve leading. It doesn’t specify that this is only for males. Some of the gifts involve teaching – it doesn’t specify that if you are female you can only teach women and children. If we take these gifts and put limits on them we are limiting, quenching and grieving the Holy Spirit.
One final point: It was the mother of Moses who went about making a basket for him. It was the sister of Moses who kept watch and then suggested the mother as the nurse for the baby, and it was the daughter of Pharaoh who rescued the child, protected it and took responsibility for its life. These were brave women who stood up for something good and life-giving in a time of great darkness, but it was God’s plan, and the gates of death did not overcome it.
Exodus 1:8 - 2:10 Psalm 124 Romans 12: 1-8 Matthew 16: 13-20
When God gets involved in our lives amazing things happen.
Matthew 16:16-20 “Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of death will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.”
Most often people read this verse and concentrate on the role that Peter played in the establishment of the church, but if we look beyond this we will see that Jesus is telling his followers some very important things, which will encourage and reassure his followers throughout the hard times to come.
Firstly, we read the statement of faith where Peter proclaims that Jesus is the promised Messiah and the Son of the living God. It is this “rock” that is the foundation stone of the Church. Then we discover some aspects about this Church; Jesus says that the gate of death will not overcome this church. In some translations it says “the gates of Hades” or “the gates of Hell”.
It is important to realize that Jesus knew these followers were going to feel that Hell was fighting against them and winning. It would seem at times as though everything was so hard. There would be persecutions, imprisonment and throwing to the lions. It would certainly not always look like the gates of death would not overcome.
In our first reading we find out what it means when God says that the Gates of death will not overcome His church. We find that the descendants of those sons of Israel who sold their brother as a slave have now become enslaved. The Egyptians despised and enslaved the Israelites with hard labour, but still the Israelite population grew, and so the Egyptians killed all the males who were born to the Israelites.
An Israelite lady gave birth, during this time, to a beautiful health baby boy and she hid him from the authorities. When she could no longer hide him she made a basket, made it waterproof and set it in the Nile river with the baby inside. The baby’s sister stayed nearby to see what would happen. It would seem that this act was that of a visionary, who did not despair, but trusted in the providence of God. She may have given birth previously and lost the child.... we don’t know the dark and troubled circumstances which had previously been her life, but we know that she gave this baby every possible chance of life that she could. What happens next is amazing.
Pharaoh’s daughter went to the river to bathe, saw the basket and felt sorry for the baby. The baby’s sister, who had been watching the proceedings, seized the opportunity and offered to find a lady to nurse (i.e. to breast feed and care for) the child for Pharaoh’s daughter, indicating that Pharaoh’s daughter had taken on the responsibility for the baby. Pharaoh’s daughter was obliging and so the baby was taken back to its mother. Pharaoh’s daughter even paid the mother to look after the child, and then when he was old enough he went to live in the palace. This was the beginning of the life of Moses, the great prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery – but not until after many of his own struggles.
Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is true worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
What is the thought pattern of this world? With the many on antidepressants and most of us stressed, I expect that we have succumbed to the conformity of this world.
People who can hope though there is great darkness, trouble and persecution around them are those who have given their lives to God and through all – trust God. These are not simply clergy and the odd special person, but we are all urged to be like this. We are all urged to entrust our lives into the hands of God.... and this is true worship. We are urged to be transformed by the renewing of our minds and we do this by getting our minds in line with God.... How? We are transformed by the gift of the Holy Spirit through studying the word of God, the Bible and by prayer and by being connected to the body of Christ – His Church. Remember, it is His Church that the gates of death will not overcome.
Within the Church, and through the gift of the Holy Spirit, are people are called and gifted in many different ways.
Romans 12:6-8 “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
Here we find seven gifts listed. There are others listed in other places and the point is to know that your gift is a responsibility. It is given to you for the good of the body of Christ. This particular list is one that someone, somewhere, at some point in time developed a bit of an idea about and called them the motivational gifts. This was an exercise that I went through a number of years ago and I found it really helpful in understanding where I fitted in and most particularly why I was so frustrated.
Sometimes we mistakenly “pigeon-hole” people into areas within the church where they are not really called to be. I remember going on a camp with some Papa New Guineans’ and there was a man who frustrated everyone. He tried very hard to be the “leader”, as that was what the culture seemed to dictate should be his role in the church as a male. He was a round peg in a square hole. Then at the end of the camp he sang some songs he’d written and the whole group was totally amazed at how wonderful it was. In his eyes, however, the singing and artistic things were the role of the women.
You can actually answer a few questions online and get a fair idea of what your gift is. (To do this go to www.gifttest.org and click the link that says “Take the Survey”).
What is important is to understand the part of the Romans reading that we haven’t yet looked at....
Romans 12:3-6 “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.”
No gift is above another in the eyes of God. Each is meant for the good of the whole Church and is vital to the health and effectiveness of the Church.
Too often I see people in society think more highly of themselves than they ought. I had a brief conversation with someone recently about an experiment I heard about. I can’t remember much about it except that many good, moral people given the extreme circumstances gave way to some depraved behaviour. The person I was conversing with expressed that they’d like to think they were not they kind of person who would do those things. We all like to think that we’d hold true to our moral convictions under all circumstances, but I honestly believe that any good that we have, and can hold on to, is by the grace of God.
It is by the grace of God that we are born to families who impart values. It is by the grace of God that we can comprehend the good of those values. It is by the grace of God alone that if we were to be tested we might stand firm. I’m guessing this is the reason for the words of the “Our Father”, “save us from the time of trial”, or as it has been traditionally translated, “deliver us from temptation”. The reason we must pray it is because without the intervention of God we will fail.
It is an attitude of thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought that leads to the judgment and un-forgiveness that I wrote about last week. Being particularly clever, or gifted athletically or artistically, is no reason for thinking more highly of ourselves – though many do this. Our abilities are gifts from God. We practise and improve, but ultimately our abilities are gifts.
It is also important to note that these gifts we read about in the letter to the Romans, have no gender attached and in God’s redeemed there is no longer a status difference between male and female, as all are one in Christ Jesus. Some of these gifts involve leading. It doesn’t specify that this is only for males. Some of the gifts involve teaching – it doesn’t specify that if you are female you can only teach women and children. If we take these gifts and put limits on them we are limiting, quenching and grieving the Holy Spirit.
One final point: It was the mother of Moses who went about making a basket for him. It was the sister of Moses who kept watch and then suggested the mother as the nurse for the baby, and it was the daughter of Pharaoh who rescued the child, protected it and took responsibility for its life. These were brave women who stood up for something good and life-giving in a time of great darkness, but it was God’s plan, and the gates of death did not overcome it.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Reflection on Readings for 14th August 2011
Year A Proper 15 14 August 2011
Genesis 45: 1-15 Psalm 133 Romans 11: 1-2a, 29-32 Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28
Our readings continue from last week and we hear more of the story of Joseph and his brothers. This week we find that Joseph has become ruler under Pharaoh in Egypt and his identity is revealed to his brothers.
Can you imagine the emotions of the brothers? They sold this powerful man as a slave when he was just a boy. He now has the power of life and death over them. I’m guessing that they were somewhat apprehensive.
The theme that runs through all of our readings is about acceptance and rejection. Joseph had been rejected by his brothers. What would his reaction be towards them? What would your reaction be? We often have our own experiences of rejection and we have a choice in how we respond.
Most recently I had an experience of a friend who needed to make some changes in their life - changes in how they were controlling in their relationship. This person set about with counselling and seemed to be trying to make amends. A third person commented that a person like this will never change. Wow! That is kind of harsh. If that is true then the logical consequence means that this person should never be in a relationship because they have failed as a person. In fact, most of us if judged just as harshly, would find ourselves similarly rejected.
As a society we have moved from being Christian minded, second chance giving and merciful to being judgmental. With the crimes that have come from church leaders the society no longer looks to the church to give messages of forgiveness and even within the church there is a sense of demanding that “pound of flesh” instead of responding with mercy. It would have been quite reasonable for Joseph to have ordered his brothers executed for their crime.
To put this story of Joseph in another way, it is similar to those stories we hear about someone being abused as a child and then taking the abuser to court many years later. We hear of this happening all the time and we all approve. We hear of priests being taken to court for dealing indecently with children and we are horrified, though we don’t even know the facts – only the accusations. It has been brought to my knowledge that some of these men are advised to plead guilty to the lesser charges so that they can avoid jail – EVEN though they are innocent. YET we pass judgement without knowledge and without mercy.
As Christians we have been so busy trying to support victims that we’ve forgotten to preach the message of mercy and forgiveness. Without mercy and forgiveness for others our own sins are not forgiven.
We seem to have this idea that some sins are little and some are big, but here is an analogy to try to explain... Imagine that each commandment is like a link in a chain and that chain is holding back a ferocious beast. Some of the links are seemingly big and some are seemingly small. Whether a small link or large one is broken, the result is the same.... the beast is free. The Bible tells us that the wages for sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
Joseph was abused. His brothers wanted to kill him but didn’t really want to do it themselves. They certainly wished him dead and I expect they presumed he would have soon perished as a slave, otherwise when their guilty consciences caught up with them they would have gone looking for Joseph to rescue him.
What is Joseph’s reaction to his brothers after all this? He doesn’t immediately embrace them – He is genuinely hurt and grieving. With the gift of faith Joseph understands that God’s hand is in the situation.
Genesis 45:4-7 “Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”
What is our reaction to harm done to us? It isn’t that we allow ourselves to be mistreated – we must not. And we must not allow others to be mistreated either. Where is God in all of this?
It is hard to forgive when we have been hurt. But to take an extreme example, do you remember the shooting at Columbine? It was a school where two students murdered 13 students and another couple were shot but managed to survive. There were others who survived by “playing dead” and plenty who witnessed the horror and so the story unfolds through these witnesses of the awful cruelty. Those who were targeted were Christians, sports jocks and black people. The diary of Rachel Scott has become quite famous as the amazing Christian girl who seemed to know that she was about to give her life for God. How can these people, capable of such cruelty and hatred be forgiven?
Here is the story of a Columbine survivor:
“Despite the trauma and years that have passed, Mark Taylor still vividly remembers the day he was shot as many as 13 times outside Columbine High School.
On Tuesday, Taylor recalled standing outside the school, enjoying a nice spring day with friends when a bullet slammed into his leg. In the next second, he saw a bullet slam into the face of a friend, and then he felt several bullets rip into his own chest.
"I was stunned," he said. "I wasn't quite sure what had happened. I could see out of the side of my eyes the gunmen go over and shoot Rachel Scott."
Taylor wants to be a pastor. And a book he's written has spiritual overtones. It's called "I Asked, God Answered ... a Columbine miracle."
Taylor, now 22, recounts the horror of that day and a recovery that has required multiple surgeries, an initial hospital stay of two months and the anguish of having tubes thrust down his throat and tubes placed in his side.
"The horror of what I went through in the hospital, I can't even put in words," said Taylor, who was shot by Eric Harris on April 20, 1999.
But the book is about forgiveness. He has forgiven shooters Harris and Dylan Klebold and their families. He has talked to gang members and Vietnam veterans about forgiveness. He said he especially remembers the Vietnam vets who have spent 30 years blaming the government for the friends they lost. Some have thanked him for the message.
"After hearing me on forgiveness and healing, it was able to help them," he said.”
From the website: http://www.denverpost.com/ci_4785612
We know that God calls each of us into a relationship with him and that requires each of us to freely admit our sinfulness and need for a saviour.
Romans 11:29-31 “for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. ”
Joseph’s brothers were made aware of their very great sin, but then they were shown mercy. They were brought back into unity with their brother and their lives were saved. In fact their lives were blessed because of their relationship with Joseph. Our Psalm this week is Psalm 133 and speaks about the blessing of God that flows when His people live in unity. I suspect that we are not living in blessing of this unity in the body of Christ because we are not reaching out with mercy to each other, understanding that love covers a multitude of sin. Instead we judge and “reject” each other due to theological differences. If we are rejecting one another in this way over such matters, imagine how far we are from the attitude of Joseph who, though a victim, forgave his abusers.... even before they asked his forgiveness.
Our Gospel reading tells the story of a Canaanite woman. She was a reject in the society of which Jesus was a part. Jesus would have been considered unclean just for speaking with her. Jesus had just finished telling the Pharisees that it wasn’t things on the outside that make you unclean but from the attitudes of the heart.... such as the community’s attitude toward this woman. Jesus speaks out that prejudice by saying, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24). The woman does not argue this fact but begs for mercy but stating that even the dogs eat the children’s crumbs from the table. But her words she show great faith – she was “clean” – In comparison, the Pharisees by their words showed they were lacking faith and “unclean”.
It seems that those who are in touch with their fallibility are those who are accepted by God. And the reason is simple: it is because those who know their failings can repent and accept the mercy of God.
Our readings show the rejection of Joseph, and the rejection of the Canaanite woman, but through forgiveness Joseph accepted his brothers and the Canaanite woman was accepted by Jesus because she revealed her faith in God – she called out, not to Jesus as a mere man, but by the title, “Son of David”. This woman was rejected by others in that area and by the people to which Jesus belonged, but she didn’t let that rejection keep her from requesting the blessing of God.
Is our own hurt and rejection keeping us from the full blessing of God? Forgiveness is not easy – it is divine. But we need to agree with God that we need to forgive. In the body of Christ we need to truly love – and that also is divine.
Psalm 133 “1 How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the LORD bestows his blessing, even life forevermore.”
Genesis 45: 1-15 Psalm 133 Romans 11: 1-2a, 29-32 Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28
Our readings continue from last week and we hear more of the story of Joseph and his brothers. This week we find that Joseph has become ruler under Pharaoh in Egypt and his identity is revealed to his brothers.
Can you imagine the emotions of the brothers? They sold this powerful man as a slave when he was just a boy. He now has the power of life and death over them. I’m guessing that they were somewhat apprehensive.
The theme that runs through all of our readings is about acceptance and rejection. Joseph had been rejected by his brothers. What would his reaction be towards them? What would your reaction be? We often have our own experiences of rejection and we have a choice in how we respond.
Most recently I had an experience of a friend who needed to make some changes in their life - changes in how they were controlling in their relationship. This person set about with counselling and seemed to be trying to make amends. A third person commented that a person like this will never change. Wow! That is kind of harsh. If that is true then the logical consequence means that this person should never be in a relationship because they have failed as a person. In fact, most of us if judged just as harshly, would find ourselves similarly rejected.
As a society we have moved from being Christian minded, second chance giving and merciful to being judgmental. With the crimes that have come from church leaders the society no longer looks to the church to give messages of forgiveness and even within the church there is a sense of demanding that “pound of flesh” instead of responding with mercy. It would have been quite reasonable for Joseph to have ordered his brothers executed for their crime.
To put this story of Joseph in another way, it is similar to those stories we hear about someone being abused as a child and then taking the abuser to court many years later. We hear of this happening all the time and we all approve. We hear of priests being taken to court for dealing indecently with children and we are horrified, though we don’t even know the facts – only the accusations. It has been brought to my knowledge that some of these men are advised to plead guilty to the lesser charges so that they can avoid jail – EVEN though they are innocent. YET we pass judgement without knowledge and without mercy.
As Christians we have been so busy trying to support victims that we’ve forgotten to preach the message of mercy and forgiveness. Without mercy and forgiveness for others our own sins are not forgiven.
We seem to have this idea that some sins are little and some are big, but here is an analogy to try to explain... Imagine that each commandment is like a link in a chain and that chain is holding back a ferocious beast. Some of the links are seemingly big and some are seemingly small. Whether a small link or large one is broken, the result is the same.... the beast is free. The Bible tells us that the wages for sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
Joseph was abused. His brothers wanted to kill him but didn’t really want to do it themselves. They certainly wished him dead and I expect they presumed he would have soon perished as a slave, otherwise when their guilty consciences caught up with them they would have gone looking for Joseph to rescue him.
What is Joseph’s reaction to his brothers after all this? He doesn’t immediately embrace them – He is genuinely hurt and grieving. With the gift of faith Joseph understands that God’s hand is in the situation.
Genesis 45:4-7 “Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”
What is our reaction to harm done to us? It isn’t that we allow ourselves to be mistreated – we must not. And we must not allow others to be mistreated either. Where is God in all of this?
It is hard to forgive when we have been hurt. But to take an extreme example, do you remember the shooting at Columbine? It was a school where two students murdered 13 students and another couple were shot but managed to survive. There were others who survived by “playing dead” and plenty who witnessed the horror and so the story unfolds through these witnesses of the awful cruelty. Those who were targeted were Christians, sports jocks and black people. The diary of Rachel Scott has become quite famous as the amazing Christian girl who seemed to know that she was about to give her life for God. How can these people, capable of such cruelty and hatred be forgiven?
Here is the story of a Columbine survivor:
“Despite the trauma and years that have passed, Mark Taylor still vividly remembers the day he was shot as many as 13 times outside Columbine High School.
On Tuesday, Taylor recalled standing outside the school, enjoying a nice spring day with friends when a bullet slammed into his leg. In the next second, he saw a bullet slam into the face of a friend, and then he felt several bullets rip into his own chest.
"I was stunned," he said. "I wasn't quite sure what had happened. I could see out of the side of my eyes the gunmen go over and shoot Rachel Scott."
Taylor wants to be a pastor. And a book he's written has spiritual overtones. It's called "I Asked, God Answered ... a Columbine miracle."
Taylor, now 22, recounts the horror of that day and a recovery that has required multiple surgeries, an initial hospital stay of two months and the anguish of having tubes thrust down his throat and tubes placed in his side.
"The horror of what I went through in the hospital, I can't even put in words," said Taylor, who was shot by Eric Harris on April 20, 1999.
But the book is about forgiveness. He has forgiven shooters Harris and Dylan Klebold and their families. He has talked to gang members and Vietnam veterans about forgiveness. He said he especially remembers the Vietnam vets who have spent 30 years blaming the government for the friends they lost. Some have thanked him for the message.
"After hearing me on forgiveness and healing, it was able to help them," he said.”
From the website: http://www.denverpost.com/ci_4785612
We know that God calls each of us into a relationship with him and that requires each of us to freely admit our sinfulness and need for a saviour.
Romans 11:29-31 “for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. ”
Joseph’s brothers were made aware of their very great sin, but then they were shown mercy. They were brought back into unity with their brother and their lives were saved. In fact their lives were blessed because of their relationship with Joseph. Our Psalm this week is Psalm 133 and speaks about the blessing of God that flows when His people live in unity. I suspect that we are not living in blessing of this unity in the body of Christ because we are not reaching out with mercy to each other, understanding that love covers a multitude of sin. Instead we judge and “reject” each other due to theological differences. If we are rejecting one another in this way over such matters, imagine how far we are from the attitude of Joseph who, though a victim, forgave his abusers.... even before they asked his forgiveness.
Our Gospel reading tells the story of a Canaanite woman. She was a reject in the society of which Jesus was a part. Jesus would have been considered unclean just for speaking with her. Jesus had just finished telling the Pharisees that it wasn’t things on the outside that make you unclean but from the attitudes of the heart.... such as the community’s attitude toward this woman. Jesus speaks out that prejudice by saying, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24). The woman does not argue this fact but begs for mercy but stating that even the dogs eat the children’s crumbs from the table. But her words she show great faith – she was “clean” – In comparison, the Pharisees by their words showed they were lacking faith and “unclean”.
It seems that those who are in touch with their fallibility are those who are accepted by God. And the reason is simple: it is because those who know their failings can repent and accept the mercy of God.
Our readings show the rejection of Joseph, and the rejection of the Canaanite woman, but through forgiveness Joseph accepted his brothers and the Canaanite woman was accepted by Jesus because she revealed her faith in God – she called out, not to Jesus as a mere man, but by the title, “Son of David”. This woman was rejected by others in that area and by the people to which Jesus belonged, but she didn’t let that rejection keep her from requesting the blessing of God.
Is our own hurt and rejection keeping us from the full blessing of God? Forgiveness is not easy – it is divine. But we need to agree with God that we need to forgive. In the body of Christ we need to truly love – and that also is divine.
Psalm 133 “1 How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the LORD bestows his blessing, even life forevermore.”
Monday, August 1, 2011
7 August 2011 Year A Proper 14
Genesis 37: 1-4, 12-28 Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45 Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33
Genesis 37:1 “Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.”
Jacob lived in the Promised Land – physically and spiritually. He lived the faith of his father and grandfather, Isaac and Abraham. He lived a life that was connected to God and he walked that life with the hope in the promises of God’s covenant to make him a great nation. But tragedy struck the heart of Jacob. His favourite son, the son of his wife who he loved the most, was seemingly killed by a wild animal.
In some way each of the patriarchs experienced the death and resurrection of Christ. Abraham and Isaac were most dramatically connected to the story when God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice Isaac. There was another son of Abraham, if we are looking at the story in a biological and physical sense, but Isaac was like the only son of Abraham... the son of his heart, the beloved son, he was the son born due to the miraculous providence of God. Isaac was the son that God promised to make into a great nation.
Joseph was the son that was also born to a barren woman and as an answer to prayer. He was cherished above all his brothers who were born to Jacobs other wife and his two wives maidservants. This made Joseph rather unpopular with his brothers, not to mention the special coat that his father had made for him and his prophetic dreams of ruling over his family and the fact that he brought his father a bad report about his brothers.
Similarly, Jesus was unpopular among his brothers. The religious people were resentful of the popularity of Jesus and the miracles that he performed. Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, (there were 12 brothers altogether), and in particular by the one named Judah, who suggested selling Joseph as a slave for 20 shekels of silver. Jesus was betrayed by one of his 12 followers, a man of similar name, Judas, for 30 pieces of silver.
Ultimately, the betrayal of both Joseph and Jesus enabled the saving grace of God. The very people who betrayed and destroyed the lives of both Joseph and Jesus were the ones who God sought to save through the destruction of these beloved sons. And there was a special quality about each of these sons, as they willingly accepted hardship and suffering to save those who had betrayed them.
Judah was the 4th born son of Jacob and the one who suggested selling Joseph. After Joseph had become the right hand man of pharaoh these brothers came to Egypt to buy grain for food. They didn’t recognise Joseph as their brother, only as the harsh man who they needed to please to buy food. After many accusations about stealing and the threat of losing another brother, Judah finally takes the responsibility for his actions and offers to be put in jail instead of his brother, and at this point Joseph reveals his identity and all is forgiven. Judah is the human ancestor of Christ. Through the position of Joseph, and the seeming resurrection of this once dead son of Israel, the people of God’s covenant are saved.
The brothers of Joseph were not saved because they were good and righteous. They were saved by God’s will. To be in a relationship to enjoy the saving grace they did need to repent from their actions, but the grace was offered even before their repentance was expressed.
To then bring this message to our own lives, we know that the sacrifice, the death and resurrection of Jesus also happened in order to offer us the saving grace of God before any of us realised our human sinful and finite condition. The grace is offered, not because we are worthy of it, but simply because we are loved by God.
How can we enter into this covenant of Grace?
Matthew 14:25-33 “Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
“Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Peter was saved by Jesus. Peter took a “leap of faith” and walked toward Jesus but when he looked at the situation around him from his own human perspective he began to sink.
We often do the same. We step out in a life of faith when we get a glimpse of Jesus in the situation and then the reality and obstacles of our situations become more highly visible than the goal of our adventure and we falter. This is a lesson for living the life of grace, but as far as being saved by grace, then next part of the story is the most important.
Peter doubts and begins to sink. He calls out “God save me!” Peter realizes that he can do nothing to save himself. Peter does not have enough faith to continue walking, but only enough faith to cry for help. The amount of faith you have is not what saves you, but who you have faith in.
Someone once described the faith that we have in a chair. We have plenty of faith that a sturdy chair will hold us... and it does. We have a little faith that a fragile chair will hold us and sit down carefully testing it as we go. But if a chair is too fragile to hold us, no amount of faith in that chair will change the fact. Peter may have only had a tiny grain of faith, but his faith was in someone faithful and with power and ability.
We have story after story throughout the Bible of God’s saving grace. The story of Joseph clearly shows us that God’s saving grace is provided for His people who are clearly not worthy of such care. God’s hand is always outstretched to us and the way into a relationship with him has been provided, but it is up to us to accept.
Our reading from Romans explains how this message of God’s grace was always available. It is referred to as the righteousness that is by faith. That is, being right before God due to faith in him. This first section of the reading is also found in the book of Deuteronomy and proclaims that there is a righteousness that is accessible and near – in your mouth and in your heart.
Romans 10:5-11 “Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “Whoever does these things will live by them.” But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”
The message here is that the Law of God is in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, and our access into the way of grace is made easy as we are clearly told that if we declare with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved. – Simple as that. In the same way that Joseph’s brothers were saved by their relationship to Joseph, and not by any good deed that they had done, we also are saved by our relationship with Jesus.
Peter was the only one who got out of the boat and walked to Jesus on the water, but all were saved because they believed and confessed that belief in Jesus.
Matthew 14:32, 33 “And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Genesis 37: 1-4, 12-28 Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45 Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33
Genesis 37:1 “Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.”
Jacob lived in the Promised Land – physically and spiritually. He lived the faith of his father and grandfather, Isaac and Abraham. He lived a life that was connected to God and he walked that life with the hope in the promises of God’s covenant to make him a great nation. But tragedy struck the heart of Jacob. His favourite son, the son of his wife who he loved the most, was seemingly killed by a wild animal.
In some way each of the patriarchs experienced the death and resurrection of Christ. Abraham and Isaac were most dramatically connected to the story when God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice Isaac. There was another son of Abraham, if we are looking at the story in a biological and physical sense, but Isaac was like the only son of Abraham... the son of his heart, the beloved son, he was the son born due to the miraculous providence of God. Isaac was the son that God promised to make into a great nation.
Joseph was the son that was also born to a barren woman and as an answer to prayer. He was cherished above all his brothers who were born to Jacobs other wife and his two wives maidservants. This made Joseph rather unpopular with his brothers, not to mention the special coat that his father had made for him and his prophetic dreams of ruling over his family and the fact that he brought his father a bad report about his brothers.
Similarly, Jesus was unpopular among his brothers. The religious people were resentful of the popularity of Jesus and the miracles that he performed. Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, (there were 12 brothers altogether), and in particular by the one named Judah, who suggested selling Joseph as a slave for 20 shekels of silver. Jesus was betrayed by one of his 12 followers, a man of similar name, Judas, for 30 pieces of silver.
Ultimately, the betrayal of both Joseph and Jesus enabled the saving grace of God. The very people who betrayed and destroyed the lives of both Joseph and Jesus were the ones who God sought to save through the destruction of these beloved sons. And there was a special quality about each of these sons, as they willingly accepted hardship and suffering to save those who had betrayed them.
Judah was the 4th born son of Jacob and the one who suggested selling Joseph. After Joseph had become the right hand man of pharaoh these brothers came to Egypt to buy grain for food. They didn’t recognise Joseph as their brother, only as the harsh man who they needed to please to buy food. After many accusations about stealing and the threat of losing another brother, Judah finally takes the responsibility for his actions and offers to be put in jail instead of his brother, and at this point Joseph reveals his identity and all is forgiven. Judah is the human ancestor of Christ. Through the position of Joseph, and the seeming resurrection of this once dead son of Israel, the people of God’s covenant are saved.
The brothers of Joseph were not saved because they were good and righteous. They were saved by God’s will. To be in a relationship to enjoy the saving grace they did need to repent from their actions, but the grace was offered even before their repentance was expressed.
To then bring this message to our own lives, we know that the sacrifice, the death and resurrection of Jesus also happened in order to offer us the saving grace of God before any of us realised our human sinful and finite condition. The grace is offered, not because we are worthy of it, but simply because we are loved by God.
How can we enter into this covenant of Grace?
Matthew 14:25-33 “Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
“Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Peter was saved by Jesus. Peter took a “leap of faith” and walked toward Jesus but when he looked at the situation around him from his own human perspective he began to sink.
We often do the same. We step out in a life of faith when we get a glimpse of Jesus in the situation and then the reality and obstacles of our situations become more highly visible than the goal of our adventure and we falter. This is a lesson for living the life of grace, but as far as being saved by grace, then next part of the story is the most important.
Peter doubts and begins to sink. He calls out “God save me!” Peter realizes that he can do nothing to save himself. Peter does not have enough faith to continue walking, but only enough faith to cry for help. The amount of faith you have is not what saves you, but who you have faith in.
Someone once described the faith that we have in a chair. We have plenty of faith that a sturdy chair will hold us... and it does. We have a little faith that a fragile chair will hold us and sit down carefully testing it as we go. But if a chair is too fragile to hold us, no amount of faith in that chair will change the fact. Peter may have only had a tiny grain of faith, but his faith was in someone faithful and with power and ability.
We have story after story throughout the Bible of God’s saving grace. The story of Joseph clearly shows us that God’s saving grace is provided for His people who are clearly not worthy of such care. God’s hand is always outstretched to us and the way into a relationship with him has been provided, but it is up to us to accept.
Our reading from Romans explains how this message of God’s grace was always available. It is referred to as the righteousness that is by faith. That is, being right before God due to faith in him. This first section of the reading is also found in the book of Deuteronomy and proclaims that there is a righteousness that is accessible and near – in your mouth and in your heart.
Romans 10:5-11 “Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “Whoever does these things will live by them.” But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”
The message here is that the Law of God is in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, and our access into the way of grace is made easy as we are clearly told that if we declare with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved. – Simple as that. In the same way that Joseph’s brothers were saved by their relationship to Joseph, and not by any good deed that they had done, we also are saved by our relationship with Jesus.
Peter was the only one who got out of the boat and walked to Jesus on the water, but all were saved because they believed and confessed that belief in Jesus.
Matthew 14:32, 33 “And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
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