Tag Archives: Discerning the right way

Relationship with God

Advent

December 1, 2020

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 40:1-11

A voice says, ‘Cry out!’
   And I said, ‘What shall I cry?’
All people are grass,
   their constancy is like the flower of the field.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
   when the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
   surely the people are grass.
The grass withers, the flower fades;
   but the Word of our God will stand for ever.
Get you up to a high mountain,
   O Zion, herald of good tidings;
lift up your voice with strength,
   O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
   lift it up, do not fear;
say to the cities of Judah,
   ‘Here is your God!’
See, the Lord God comes with might,
   and his arm rules for him;
his reward is with him,
   and his recompense before him.
He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
   he will gather the lambs in his arms,
and carry them in his bosom,
   and gently lead the mother sheep. –Isaiah 40:6-11

Discerning the Word of God is perhaps our greatest challenge as we scroll through the various Biblical translations and interpretations occurring during history stages. The Biblical book of John foresaw this dilemma when it defined the Word* as Jesus, the Christ, including Jesus indicating that the Spirit of God would always be present to guide us**. Jesus shorthanded God’s commandments by identifying loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves as the plumbline that all our actions must match. The stories provided by the gospel writers offer examples of how Jesus lived love.

Of course, we humans tend to want to make things more complicated. Even Jesus had to deal with that when the religious leader asked him to define exactly who his neighbor was. We always filter information through our life experiences and personalities. Since God created us, we can credit God with the complexities of who we are. God would not have created us with a brain if God did not expect us to use it.

I am led to conclude that God longs for a relationship with each of God’s children. Isaiah ends the above poem with God caring for us like a shepherd loving us deeply and completely, and desire that we choose to love God too.

*John 1:1-18
**John 14:15-31

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for the gift of your love. Thank you for granting us the freedom to enhance our lives by knowing you more nearly. 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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Going the Right Way

Kingdom Building

August 7, 2019

Scripture Reading: Psalm 50:1-8, 22-23

‘Hear, O my people, and I will speak,
   O Israel, I will testify against you.
   I am God, your God.
Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;
   your burnt-offerings are continually before me.
Mark this, then, you who forget God,
   or I will tear you apart, and there will be no one to deliver.
Those who bring thanksgiving as their sacrifice honor me;
   to those who go the right way
   I will show the salvation of God.’—Psalm 50:22-23

As a former child welfare worker, I testified in court numerous times as witness. Generally, child welfare hearings are just before the judge but on occasion a jury trial took place. In the scripture above the Psalmist writes that the Judge is testifying against the person on trial. Now, in our society, we could get into a legal discussion of the need for a judge who is a witness to a crime recusing herself or himself from also serving as the judge in the case. I am not sure that was true in Israel when the Psalm was written, and I do not question God’s impartiality. The one who loves each and every person is both totally partial and totally impartial. Only such a One who is omniscient can meet the standards for being both witness and judge. God works prospectively and retrospectively to help all of us go the right way.

The challenge is discerning what that right way is. Does our outward, structured worship reflect our way of being or are we just going through the motions? Do we live the love we sing about on Sunday? Do we seek God’s guidance regarding what is the right way? Do we turn around and change our ways when we realize we have gone the wrong way?

Working horses are often outfitted with blinders that limit their peripheral vision, so they are not distracted from plowing a straight row. We, too, need to protect ourselves from distractions that impact our going the right way. We also must consider that the blinders we protect ourselves with may not be in sync with God’s right way. For example, white privilege is certainly an area with which many of us must struggle as we attempt to assess the right way regarding racism.

Prayer: God of Love, Mercy, and Justice, guide us in understanding the full nature of your way, and your truth and our lives in you as we strive to do the right thing. 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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.