Living in the Spirit
June 17, 2015

Scripture Reading: Psalm 9:9-20

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,
   a stronghold in times of trouble.
And those who know your name put their trust in you,
   for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. –Psalm 9:9-10

As a part of our competitive natures, I suppose, we seem to be suffering from an epidemic of Christians racing to see who are being the most oppressed. If the laws of our land do not support our specific system of belief for everyone, we are being oppressed. Never mind, we still have the freedom to believe whatever we choose, we just are not able to force it on others. This probably arose from an accurate reading of the scripture that Jesus came to set the oppressed free.

If we, as partners in Christ service, are called to join him in setting the oppressed free than identifying our own life situations as oppressive, frees us from having to see much less deal with the true oppression spread throughout our earth. I particularly loved the logic of the people (not necessarily identified as Christians) I heard about on the news recently who feel they are being picked on by being fined for over use of water in a draught ridden area where farmers cannot produce the very crops we all need to eat without such conservation measures. It was these people’s opinion, if they are willing and able to pay the higher cost of the water, they should be able to use as much as they like.

We become oppressors when we succumb to worshipping our beliefs or an elevated self-worth rather than God. Idols are not all made of stone.

While we do our good works let us not forget that the real solution lies in a world in which charity will have become unnecessary.-Chinua Achebe

Prayer: Lord God, open our eyes to see the oppression in the world and our hearts to dong something about it so that all can know the fullness of life you desire for us. 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.