Eastertide
May 11, 2017
Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 2:2-10
Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.
Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. –1 Peter 2:2-5
I do wish we had an English verb for the word “faith” because much of the work of faith described in the Bible is active and engaging not a thing, a noun. Do you remember buying shoes as a child and having the store clerk press thumb and finger to the toe to test whether there was an adequate space to accommodate the speed with which children grow. Our scripture today recognizes our growth into salvation, which is a process or, I like to call it, a journey.
1 Peter goes on with the interesting imagine of letting ourselves be built into a spiritual house, a place where God dwells. What kind of living accommodations does God need? If we accept that we are a dwelling place for God, perhaps we might start by outlining what we need to live and move and have our being* in relationship with God. I have not accomplished much toward my two-year-old goal of declutterizing (if you will allow me to coin a word) my home but I am making progress one closet or drawer at a time. It is also important to declutterize our souls making room for God. Most of the descriptions of the temple of God in the Bible include the use of only pure gold. ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. (Matthew 5:8)
There is never a good time to paint a house in Oklahoma. It is too hot in the summer, two stormy in the spring, too cold in the winter, and I am too busy in the fall. One day I turn into my driveway and see the faded sadness of my soffit and eaves and realize I waited too long. Like maintaining a house, it is crucial that we refresh and nurture our souls. The Lord’s Supper nurtures our souls. Feeding our minds with study nurtures our souls.
What would you add to this list of ideas for growing into salvation and letting God build us into spiritual houses?
Prayer: Help us, O Lord, keep a place cleared for your presence in our lives that we might see you more clearly, love you more dearly, and follow you more nearly**. Amen.
*See Acts 17:28
** Derived from Prayer of Saint Richard of Chichester Learn more at http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/139.html