Kingdom Building
June 16, 2019
Scripture Reading: John 16:12-15
‘I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
We do continue to have prophets who speak for justice and righteousness. Rev. Dr. William Barber* was on trial in North Carolina recently for leading a protest two years ago calling for Medicaid expansion in the state’s legislative building. He is charged with trespassing. I did not know one could be charged with trespassing on publicly owned property. He is non-violent so I do not think he was a danger to anyone. He does make people uncomfortable because he has no problem speaking truth to power.
“Prophets believe that what they proclaim on any day can be transformed into real action.”
― William J. Barber II, Forward Together: A Moral Message for the Nation
Prophets do not normally predict the future; they predict outcomes of behavior patterns that if continued will led to success or ruin. They predict things over which we have control. I really do not know if climate students predicted the Dust Bowl. I do know that farmers across Oklahoma adopted a pattern of plowing the ground in straight rows with no natural barriers to hold back blowing earth. When the winds came the topsoil was removed from the earth and the ground became a wasteland for crops. Those farmers were encouraged to follow this way of plowing to increase their yield by people more interested in immediate financial gain than the stability of farming for the future. There were some who did not follow this pattern. There also were some who warned against it. If you drive through Oklahoma in the spring now you will see lines of trees planted at the edge of fields to serve as barriers to blown away soil and you will see different forms of plowing.
I wonder how much of this weird weather we are experiencing is the result of our not dealing with climate change. I wonder if these “natural disasters” are truly acts of God or the result of our inaction in taking responsibility for the earth.
Greed is the Baal of the 21st Century. It is epidemic in our land and it will bring us to ruination, if we do not turn away from it.
Prayer: Lord, forgive us for worshiping wealth. Lead us to springs of living water where our work as well as all other aspects of our lives is ruled by love. Amen.
*You can learn more about Reverend Barbers work at https://www.breachrepairers.org/
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.