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God’s Agent Not My Own

Self-righteousnessEastertide April 9, 2015

Scripture Reading: 1 John 1-2:2 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. –1 John 1:5-10

I attended a meeting of an advocacy group last night whose membership includes about half and half people from faith communities and people who are not. It is interesting these days to walk that fine line as a member of a faith community with God’s children who are not members. It has probably been true throughout history that we who call ourselves Christian have done a great deal of harm to God’s children who are not Christian by inflicting on them something less than what Christ was all about. It is true at this time in history. For example, I see this when our attitudes are shaped by a belief that we are exceptional. At the meeting a fellow Christian raised a concern that had been expressed by someone in attendance that we prayed too much. They felt uncomfortable thinking they had been pulled into some kind of religious service.

Now it is easy to say we have all sinned and that we must confess our sins but is what we are confessing really the things that are separating us from God, particularly as we serve as God’s messenger to others? So much of what we do is habit. I, personally, have difficulty not ending a prayer with “in the name of Jesus.” When praying publically in an interfaith setting, I have tried to leave it out and been successful at time but not always. I have also attempted to make it a singular statement, “I pray in the name of Jesus.”

Now I must confess my first visceral reaction to the comment about too much prayer was to think, “They expect me to respect their right to not believe, why cannot they be tolerant of people of faith?” If this were an argument about church and state, I might cry freedom of religion. If it is a discussion about loving God and loving my neighbor as myself, I need to accept the others in my life exactly where they are and let my love and actions speak louder than any prayer I might pray. I think I understand a bit more about what Paul was saying in 1 Corinthians 9:22: To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I might by any means save some.

Prayer: Lord, help me see myself in the eyes of the others in my life, particularly those who are not people of faith. Cleanse me of habit or stubborn righteousness or whatever else might be inhibiting my serving as your agent. Amen.

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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Near to the Heart of God

Near to GodLent
March 20, 2015

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 5:5-10

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek. — Hebrews 5:7-10

And he was heard. Ever feel when you pray that you are just saying words that are bouncing back toward you off the ceiling? One of my friends described the scene in the delivery room when her first child was born. She was accustomed, shall we say, to using very foul language when she was among friends that were accepting of it, perhaps they even encouraged it. She was fairly good at guarding her mouth in company that would have been offended, although occasionally she slipped up. In the delivery room she reverted to what came naturally, embarrassing her husband mightily as her expletive deleted language was mixing with the prayerful cries of “God help me” from other women. I assured her that God hears God’s children’s cries even when they are not prayers. I believe that God not only hears more importantly God listens, understanding the depth and breadth of the concern being voiced.

The great comfort Jesus had was knowing God intimately. Jesus knew the unconditional nature of God’s love and knew he was not alone in his suffering. He also knew that his suffering would lead to something more important like the birth of a baby. Jesus’ suffering led to his death and his resurrection that led to the spread of the good news of God’s love from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. It led to our commissioning as the Body of Christ in the world today sharing God’s love so that all of God’s children might know God intimately when they cry out for help and find that there are people in the world today that are trying to love like Jesus and are willing to try to provide the help needed.

My favorite hymn since I was a small child is Near to the Heart of God. It is consider old fashioned now, we do not sing it much but it is true but I will share it with you here:

 Near to the Heart of God
There is a place of quiet rest,
Near to the heart of God.
A place where sin cannot molest,
Near to the heart of God.

Refrain
O Jesus, blest Redeemer,
Sent from the heart of God,
Hold us who wait before Thee
Near to the heart of God.

There is a place of comfort sweet,
Near to the heart of God.
A place where we our Savior meet,
Near to the heart of God.

There is a place of full release,
Near to the heart of God.
A place where all is joy and peace,
Near to the heart of God.

Prayer: Hold us who wait before Thee near to your heart and empower us to share that gift with others. Amen.

*Words and Music by Cleland B. McAfee, 1903, see at http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/n/e/neartoth.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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Snakes

Bronze snakeLent
March 10, 2015

Scripture Reading: Numbers 21:4-9

Then the Lord sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, ‘We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you; pray to the Lord to take away the serpents from us.’ So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.’ So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live. — Numbers 21:6-9

 We probably practice too little cause and effect thinking today, but our spiritual ancestors may have practiced too much. For example to our own peril today, we may not relate our patterns of eating and exercise to our health. My guess is those Israelites who were tired of the same old food day after day probably knew all along that God and Moses were meeting their needs not their wants. So when the snakes came they assumed it was God’s punishment and repented of their griping.

My mother was a town girl who married a farmer. Mom had always been an avid gardener so she adapted rather quickly, but she was deathly afraid of snakes. When one lives in the country one obtains an early education regarding snakes, both the good kind that provide natural control for rodents and the poison ones.

Rattlesnakes were prevalent where I lived. So my Dad, the farmer, bought my Mom, the town girl, a pistol to deal with the snakes. He even thought he had taught her how to shoot.  He learned he had not, when she emptied the entire load of bullets in the gun into the red earth around a large snake and never hit the snake once. If I remember correctly, my brother killed the snake with a hoe and thereafter, a hoe was what my mother used when called on to deal with a poison snake.

Our scripture today was most likely included in the readings for Lent because Jesus is quoted as mentioning it in John 3:14-15. Snakes in the ancient world were a symbol of both death and danger and fertility, life, and healing.* Symbols remain important reminders of our source of faith. We now look to the empty cross as a symbol of Christ’s death and resurrection. I think it is interesting that these two verses in John lead up to another verse in which we all rest our hope:

And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

 For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. (John 3:14-16)

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for the gift of your Son Jesus Christ and the promise of eternal life. We pray that our lives reflect your love well. Amen.

*The New Interpreter’s Study Bible, New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha: Abingdon Press 2003, page 221, Special Note.

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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

God’s Wisdom

Christ CrucifiedLent
March 5, 2015

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:18-25

For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.’—1 Corinthians 1:18-19

Don’t we all want to be wise? Didn’t we learn as children that the wise man built his house upon a rock and thus was spared the ravages of the storm? (Matthew 7:24-27)  Didn’t Jesus, himself, tell us we must be as shrewd of serpents? (Matthew 10:16)

Put yourself in the disciples’ sandals as they run away from the garden when Jesus was arrested. Stand with Peter by the fire, and deny Jesus three times to the people who surround you. Even stand at the foot of the cross with John as Jesus asks John to take care of Jesus’ mother. Think how you might feel. You might experience a touch of doubt even though you had lived with him, been taught by him, and had learn to love him dearly.

Now put yourself in the shoes of one of the learned people of Jerusalem. A person of the world acquainted with other cultures, well educated, respected, sought out for your wisdom. What would you have thought about Jesus in those days of his death? You might not have even noticed him.  You might have even been glad the pesky preacher was gone. My guess is Paul then Saul was as cynical as the other learned people of Jerusalem about this itinerate preacher who in their eyes was a false prophet.

Some twenty years later Paul writes to a new church admitting that the world of wisdom thinks that Jesus crucified is only for the foolish but to Paul, it is now the only thing that matters. Ultimate wisdom comes from recognizing truth when one sees it.

Prayer: Lord, school me in the wisdom of your love. Help me grasp your truth. Amen.

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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

God’s Law

images8PY7HK9HLent March 4, 2015

Scripture Reading: Psalm 19

The law of the Lord is perfect,
   reviving the soul;
the decrees of the Lord are sure,
   making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right,
   rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is clear,
   enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is pure,
   enduring for ever;
the ordinances of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.— Psalm 19:7-9

Perfect, sure, right, clear, pure, and true are the words used to describe the law of the Lord. These words are a far cry from the status of our laws today. I once wrote policy regarding a program being implemented to help the unemployed gain work skills. In the law and in the regulations that resulted from the law there was a laundry list of services that could be provided. I honestly cannot remember much more about the actual program, but we implemented all of the items in the laundry list. When the federal auditors came to review our program, they cited us for being out of compliance because we should have only picked one service. The key word about which we wrangled for months was the word “or”. The auditors interpreted the word as meaning we could only implement one of the services, my counter was that the word “or” can also mean “and” and it certainly does not mean only one unless it is combined with the word “either”.  I was banking my response on my 7th and 8th grade teacher, Mrs. Gehring, who was a stickler for grammar. They were pulling out books of case law. As it turned out Mrs. Gehring was right.

While we do need rules and regulations to maintain order in society, we must recognize that they are not infallible and even God’s laws are opened to our very human interpretation. We must continually work toward being in touch with God so that our interpretations are guided by God and all of God’s laws are overlaid with love.

Prayer: Lord, teach me your way, help me always to try to understand the viewpoint of others from the point of your love for them. Amen.

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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

That Which Enslaves Us

Credit-Card-SlaveryLent March 3, 2015

Scripture Reading: Exodus 20:1-17 Then God spoke all these words:  I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me.  You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments. — Exodus 20:1-6

It is interesting that the first commandant relates God’s salvation of the Israelites from slavery to worship of other gods. Israel’s salvation from Egyptian slavery, as far as I can tell, was an act of pure grace on God’s part. God heard the people’s cries and God responded. In relation to Egypt, there are none of the stories about Israel’s sinning and being taken into exile that followed in later stories. No claim that the slavery was the result of any specific misdeeds.  Yet the Bible reminds the children of Israel many, many times of God’s saving the Israelites from their enslavement in Egypt and in most of those instances, I think, the Israelites had lost faith or took it for granted and were placing their trust in lesser gods.

Lent is a great time for us to dust off our faith that may have been stored in an honored place but left there for all practical purposes unattended.  What lesser gods are we serving? Most of us do not have little effigies to which we bow, but we do have other gods: the quest for power at any cost, the desire to control other people’s lives, greed in all its manifestation, addictions certainly to drugs and alcohol but to things also, and the need to be better than other people played out in self-righteousness.

Just as God groomed Moses and sent him to lead the Israelites out of slavery, God sent his son to bring us salvation, also a gift of pure grace. I know it is hard to take in our tit for tat world that such a thing could happen. It requires us to grasp an entirely new way of being. It demands our full commitment, our very lives. It is the way to God’s abundant life in Christ.

Prayer: God of Justice and Mercy, grant us the strength and courage to accept your gift of grace and may our receiving it be reflected in our lives. Amen.

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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

God’s Name

Love of GodLent
March 2, 2015

Scripture Reading: Exodus 20:1-17

You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. — Exodus 20:7

Growing up I memorized the Ten Commandments from the King James Version of the Bible where verse seven reads: Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. As a child I was definitely taught that that commandment included not using God’s name as a swear word. Now we toss it around casually, probably not even relating the reference to God. It has become slang, reduced to initials, OMG. I have used the phrase, Oh my God, when I have heard something extraordinarily good or bad, but I don’t have a clue what it means. It is just an exclamation that can be made when there is nothing else to say. Perhaps in some such instance it is a quick little prayer that incorporates God into a conversation of concern. When someone says something like “There was a 50 car pileup on the interstate, they don’t know how many people were hurt.” “Oh, my God” might be an appropriate response. I fear, most often, it is just a catchy, empty phrase.

While I think what I have just said does apply to this commandment, I do think it has a deeper meaning. I think we are being warned not to speak for God unless we are on very solid ground. Jesus put us on solid ground when he responded to the question, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” The second is this, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’(Mark 12:28b-34)

Just out of curiosity I Googled the phrase “In the name of God” and got 640,000,000 responses. I wonder how many of these responses are made on the solid foundation of loving God and loving our neighbors as we love ourselves. How many times do we cite God as our reference when we are actually the author of the thought?

Prayer: Lord, keep me based in your love and Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14) Amen.

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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Setting Our Minds on Divine Things

Hunger for righteousnessLent March 1, 2015

Scripture Reading: Mark 8:31-38 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’—Mark 8:31-33

The word, “exceptional” has been tossed about recently by politicians as being the word of choice to describe the history of the United States. It bothered me the first time I heard it, but I could not tell you why. And then it came to me. I think our founders started something to some extent based on the teachings of Jesus that is better viewed as the standard for all not the exception for the elite. To me that translates into more responsibility regarding our neighbors whom Jesus expanded to include even those living at the ends of the earth. Our founders declared that All men are created equal and are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights.* All are God’s children and God wants the very best for each of us.

Jesus did say: From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded. (Luke 12:48b) I do think that we citizens of the United States who are Christians need to take this to heart when we are practicing our citizenship, because there are millions of people throughout the world who do not have the opportunity to experience life as one who was created equal. Many of them live right here in the USA.

Perhaps our scripture today is telling us that we need to set our minds on divine things, too.

Prayer: Lord, remove the temptation from our lives that leads us away from your way. Guide us in applying the many resources that you have made available to us to help those who hunger for either food or righteousness or both. Amen.

*The Declaration of Independence, See at: http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/ 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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Bread of the World

Bread of life 2Lent
February 28, 2015

Scripture Reading: Mark 8:31-38

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? — Mark 8:34-36

Five years ago, I finally faced the question that had been hanging over my head for probably 20 years: “Do I eat to live or do I live to eat?” It is a tough question. Eating is such an integral part of our social structure, often the center of hospitality. Sharing the symbolism of a meal is actually the central point of Christian worship. Bread is called the staff of life. However, when food, or anything else, becomes our end rather than our means to an end it is as lethal as any weapon.

This is essentially what Jesus is describing in our scripture today. Anytime we invest our energy, efforts, and resources in random targets of self-satisfaction with no purpose, we are wasting ourselves and perhaps more importantly, damaging the synergy that results from the equitable investment of all God’s children in building a better world.

I still eat. In all honesty I actually enjoy my food more now than I did then, probably because I am no longer trying to meet a need with the wrong resource. Jesus called us to partner with him toward the rule of love in our world. Now that is a purpose worth pursuing with all our hearts, minds, strength, and souls.

Prayer:
Bread of the world in mercy broken,
wine of the soul in mercy shed,
by whom the words of life were spoken,
and in whose death our sins are dead:  

Look on the heart by sorrow broken,
look on the tears by sinners shed;
and be thy feast to us the token
that by thy grace our souls are fed.* Amen.

*Bread of the Word by Reginald Heber see at: http://www.hymnsite.com/lyrics/umh624.sht
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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Give me Patience Now!

God's willLent
February 27, 2015

Scripture Reading: Romans 4:13-25

No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Therefore his faith ‘was reckoned to him as righteousness.’ Now the words, ‘it was reckoned to him’, were written not for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification. – Romans 4:20-25

Do we have faith in God or not? I must confess I am stunned by legislation that is drafted, considered, and sometimes made into law that purports to do what the author seems to think God cannot do without the help of a civil law. Isn’t that interesting? Are we wasting precious moments of our time devoted to God doing futile things that may only cause more division? Is it more important to us to prove that God is on our side than to demonstrate that we are on God’s side?

Our scripture continues today Paul’s analysis of Abraham’s faith. Abraham was convinced that God was able to do what God had promised. Now that is faith. In all honesty Abraham did not live to see the culmination of God’s promise, but he knew it would happened. The sure and certain knowledge of God’s fidelity is the anchor we need in the chaotic seas of our world today.

This does not mean that we are to sit back and do nothing while we wait for God to make all our problems go away. Jesus instructed us to love God, love our neighbors as we love ourselves, and to go into all the world and make disciples. Let’s just commit ourselves to doing those three things over the next few years and see what God can do when we are on God’s side.

Prayer: Lord, I want to wave a magic wand and make all evil go away, I want to end poverty and child abuse, I want to bring justice to the oppressed and assure that mercy is made available for those who need it, I want to shut down the pipeline to prison, and open the doors of opportunity for all our children, and I want it now! Grant me the measure of the patience of Abraham, the persistence of Hannah, the courage of Esther, the vision of Isaiah, and the love of our Lord Jesus Christ I need to fulfill my role in loving you and my neighbors and making disciples. Amen.

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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.