Living in the Spirit

July 15, 2022

Scripture Reading:

Colossians 1:15-28

I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. I became its servant according to God’s commission that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and generations but has now been revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is he whom we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ. —Colossians 1:24-28

I wonder how many times I have written the words greed and lust for power over the past ten years as forces leading to our destruction as a nation. Greed is described in the story of the Garden of Eden. Esau and Jacob’s story described lust for power. While these attributes(?) have been with us from the beginning, they seem to raise their ugly heads in pandemic proportion from time to time. We are living in such a time as that and are already paying the consequences. Greed demands that the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. Lust for power requires someone else to decide how we live, breathe, and have our being. King Ahab and his wife Jezebel are good examples from the Bible. Vladimir Putin is a great example of that today. Paul’s challenge as an apostle of Jesus Christ was bringing people together to become one in Christ whose lives, like ours, had been shaped for generations by at least some of the ways of the world like greed and lust for power whether practicing them or being their victims.

Jesus’s vision of the Kingdom of God, what today might be referred to as the beloved community, can never be fueled by greed and lust for power. God created an organic world where all parts have purposes of importance that must work together to attain optimum outcomes for each and all its parts. Living into that vision demands that we, with the guidance and help of the Holy Spirit let go of what separates us from God and embrace the culture of the beloved community.

Prayer:
Precious Lord, take my hand
Lead me on, let me stand
I’m tired, I’m weak, I’m lone
Through the storm, through the night
Lead me on to the light
Take my hand precious Lord, lead me home*. Amen.

*First verse of Precious Lord, Take My Hand, by Thomas A. Dorsey see at https://www.austincc.edu/dlauderb/2341/Lyrics/PreciousLord.htm

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.