Epiphany

January 12, 2021

Scripture Reading:
1 Samuel 3:1-10, (11-20)

Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ And Samuel said, ‘Speak, for your servant is listening.’ Then the Lord said to Samuel, ‘See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle. On that day I will fulfil against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I am about to punish his house for ever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be expiated by sacrifice or offering forever.’ –1 Samuel 3:10-14

I take hope in the phrase from the above scripture that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be expiated by sacrifice or offering forever.’ By specifying two specific forms of expiation, sacrifice, or offering, the Lord does not limit God’s other means of forgiveness. Atonement can lead to forgiveness.

When I read the scripture, I thought of John Newton*. He was apparently not raised with any particular faith influence. He served in the Royal Navy and then became involved in the slave trade industry. In 1748 he was caught in a violent storm and cried out to God for mercy. After surviving the storm, he gave God credit for his survival and turned his life over to God, eventually withdrawing from slave trading. We know him as the author of Amazing Grace.

January 6, 2021, will live on in USA history as the date of an act of insurrection against the nation that occurred in Washington DC with a siege on the U.S. Capitol. Divisive forces have been growing the past few years until it spilled into a riot, resulting in an attack on the Capitol building.

According to the Constitution, one of the USA government’s responsibilities is to form a more perfect union. Jesus’ final instructions to his disciples included his great desire that we all become one.  At this point, I think we all need to seek atonement for any part we may have played in the evil that divides us, seek God’s forgiveness, and invest all our efforts in becoming one in Christ and becoming an undivided nation.

Prayer: Creator of all, forgive us for our sins of divisiveness. Make our diversity one of our most potent, positive characteristics as we seek to become one nation with liberty and justice for all. Amen.

*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazing_Grace

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.