Living in the Spirit
August 27, 2018
Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 8:(1, 6, 10-11), 22-30, 41-43
‘But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built! Have regard to your servant’s prayer and his plea, O Lord my God, heeding the cry and the prayer that your servant prays to you today; that your eyes may be open night and day towards this house, the place of which you said, “My name shall be there”, that you may heed the prayer that your servant prays towards this place. Hear the plea of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray towards this place; O hear in heaven your dwelling-place; heed and forgive. –1 Kings 8:27-30
Revelation 21:3b-4 answers Solomon’s question, “Will God indeed dwell on the earth?” by saying:
‘See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away.’
God is omnipresent, bigger than both heaven and earth. God will live among us fully when love rules the world. We are the ones crowded God out.
God incarnate, Jesus Christ came to challenge us to work toward such a world to make it a reality sooner than later. The goal of Christ followers is not to judge who will be included in such a world. The goal is to work until all are included by taking responsibility for our own assignment of loving like Jesus. We are assigned the task of loving; Jesus is assigned the task of judging.
It must surely break God’s heart to hear the hate language being spewed throughout our land by those who claim to be God’s followers and those who use God’s followers for selfish gain. One way to test what we hear or say about others is how would it make us feel if someone were saying the same thing about us or treating us in the same way. It’s called loving your neighbor.
Prayer: Lord, forgive me when I get caught up in the movements to spread hate and divide your people. Remind us through the life of Jesus, how we are to love. Amen.