Living in the Spirit
October 10, 2020
Scripture Reading: Matthew 22:1-14
Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, “Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.” But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, maltreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, “The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.” Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests .—Matthew 22:1-10
“If You Always Do What You’ve Always Done, You’ll Always Get What You’ve Always Got.” ~ Henry Ford
God did not create a stagnant world. if it were stagnant, we would all be dead. Nor did God populate the world with inert people. As the world is organic and alive, so our we. God also created us with purpose and possibilities.
Genesis 9:7– And you, be fruitful and multiply, abound on the earth and multiply in it.’
Genesis 12:1–Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’
Exodus 3:10–God said to Moses, So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.’
God still invites us to be active and engaged in God’s wondrous vision of a world ruled by love, filled with tremendous potential for good. We are not always called to do what we have always done. We are called to grow and prosper in love, do justice, and walk humbly with God* as we dedicate ourselves to implementing God’s purpose.
Prayer: Creator God Still Creating, give us the courage to remove oppression and be conduits of living love throughout our world. Amen.
*See Micah 6:8
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.