Tag Archives: Loving God

The Greater Good

Kingdom Building

July 13, 2019

Scripture Reading: Luke 10:25-37

Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. ‘Teacher,’ he said, ‘what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? What do you read there?’ He answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.’ And he said to him, ‘You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.’ –Luke 10:25-28

While I am no expert on the Hebrew Bible, my impression is that eternal life is not its primary focus. One source I looked at states Most Jewish ideas about the afterlife developed in post-biblical times*. The Hebrew bible plays with the idea of what happens after death, talks about the resurrection of the dead, leaves us guessing what happened to Moses, and describes Elijah being taken away into the heavens. In the NRSV translation the words eternal life occurs outside the New Testament only once at 4 Maccabees 15:3. There are 44 references in the New Testament. Is this the test the lawyer is presenting to Jesus?  Is he challenging Jesus to justify his teachings regarding eternal life? I also wonder about his use of the word inherit. If something is given by divine decision can it be earned by doing anything? Is an inheritance from God given by grace? Finally, the lawyers answer to Jesus when asked ‘What is written in the law? essentiallyquotes Jesus’ answer to the question which are the greatest of the laws as recorded in Matthew 22:36-40. It would be a whale of a coincidence if the lawyer independently drew together Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:9-18 as Jesus did in describing the greatest laws.

The conundrum here is that the lawyer seems to be concerned about self-preservation while Jesus is concerned about how we are relating one to the other. All four gospels quote Jesus as saying something to the effect that Those who try to gain their own life will lose it; but those who lose their life for my sake will gain it**.

We live in a culture, world, where decisions are made most days based on what is in it for me? We follow a Savior who prescribes a way of being that demands we consider what is good for all.  

Prayer: Lord, help us short out the parts of our thinking that limits us to self-service and short in the part of our thinking that opens wide the whole world to the wonders of your love. Amen.

*https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/life-after-death/
**See Matthew 10:39, Matthew 16:25, Mark 8:35, Luke 9:24, John 12:25

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.

Wisdom of God

Kingdom Building

June 10, 2019

Scripture Reading: Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31

The Lord created [Wisdom] at the beginning of his work,
   the first of his acts of long ago.
Ages ago I was set up,
   at the first, before the beginning of the earth.
When there were no depths I was brought forth,
   when there were no springs abounding with water.
Before the mountains had been shaped,
   before the hills, I was brought forth—
when he had not yet made earth and fields,
   or the world’s first bits of soil.
When he established the heavens, I was there,
   when he drew a circle on the face of the deep,
when he made firm the skies above,
   when he established the fountains of the deep,
when he assigned to the sea its limit,
  so that the waters might not transgress his command,
when he marked out the foundations of the earth,
then I was beside him, like a master worker;
and I was daily his delight,
   rejoicing before him always,
rejoicing in his inhabited world
   and delighting in the human race. –Proverbs 8:22-31

In the movie, Oh, God, George Burns playing the role of God, said something to the effect that he always wondered why humans did not ask him why he made the pit in the avocado so big. I actually have wondered that, but I have never inquired of God about it.  I guess it was not a big issue to me like wondering why some are cured of cancer while others are not or why some homes are struck by tornados and others are not or why cancer and tornados exists at all.

The poem above is telling us that wisdom was in place before the world was created, has always been, and will always be. Wisdom is innate in God. Our understanding of what is wise and what is not wise is a challenge requiring a deeper and deeper relationship with God. Our choosing wisdom over folly reflects our trust in God’s grand vision for Gods creation.

Perhaps the movie O, God is suggesting that we take God for granted most of the time until we find ourselves in the foxholes of life. I think God is saying that we can take God for granted because God is omnipotent—all powerful, omniscient—infinitely wise, and omnipresent—always near. It is, however, greatly to our advantage not to take God for granted. God longs for relationship, wants to love us, and wants to be loved. When we open ourselves to loving God we are empowered, learn wisdom, and are never alone.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for the depth and breadth of your love. Amen.

*For more information see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh,_God!_(film)

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.

Turning Away from Love

Jesus’ Ministry
February 3, 2019

Scripture Reading: Luke 4:21-30

Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, ‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’ He said to them, ‘Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, “Doctor, cure yourself!” And you will say, “Do here also in your home town the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.” ’ And he said, ‘Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s home town. But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.’ When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.

For this people’s heart has grown dull,
   and their ears are hard of hearing,
     and they have shut their eyes;
     so that they might not look with their eyes,
   and listen with their ears,
and understand with their heart and turn—
   and I would heal them.” –Matthew 13:15

Loss of interest in God seems cyclical. When things are going well loving God does not seem so important. In bad times, now that is a different story. The thing is God longs for good times for all God’s children all the time and the source of that happening is very simple, we need to love God and all of God’s children. Do we shy away from that because caring about others is not fun or exciting? Do we separate from God because we think we are responsible for the good in our lives but not the bad?

Jesus healed many, fed many, forgave many and yet he ran afoul of the religious leaders. I cannot image what runs through the mind of God as God sees the divisions among God’s children. What more could God give than God’s son to teach us how to love?

Prayer: Lord, forgive us again as we strive for abundance outside the circle of your love. Amen.

Love

Jesus’ Ministry
January 27, 2019

Scripture Reading: Luke 4:14-21

When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
   because he has anointed me
     to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
   and recovery of sight to the blind,
     to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.’
And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ –Luke 4:16-21

Change all starts at home. When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. Most of us invest a lot of energy in changing other people but not enough in changing ourselves. Faith based groups work hard at changing other groups or people without understanding that they will make more progress in meeting their goals by examining themselves and identifying what they might be doing that is counter productive to the attainment of their desired outcomes.

Getting on the same page regarding what our desired outcomes are might be a good place to start. Jesus had a very simple prime directive to help people love God and love our neighbors as we love ourselves. It remains the prime directive for those groups founded through the Abrahamic faiths and closely matches the purposes of many other faith groups.

I do not think it is possible to make anyone love anyone else. It certainly is not possible to legislate love. I do not think anyone would want to be loved because someone was made to love them, particularly God. I doubt many have ever taken the time to even determine what it means to love God or to love our neighbors or to love ourselves. I like the definition of love as wanting the very best for another. The problem arises in who gets to decide what the very best for another person is or even what the best is for ourselves.

Love is primarily a verb. Jesus modeled love as simple, straightforward, and immediate responses to the needs of others. His driving force was his dedication to meeting the immediate love need of God that all God’s children love one another.  He never took the time to discern who qualified as his neighbor; he did take the time to address the needs of those who required the answer to that question.

Prayer: Lord, help us to look inward to find how we love you and how our love of you is reflected in how we love one another. 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.

Salvation

Advent
December 13, 2018

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 12:2-6

Surely God is my salvation;
   I will trust, and will not be afraid,
for the Lord God is my strength and my might;
   he has become my salvation.
 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say on that day:
Give thanks to the Lord,
   call on his name;
make known his deeds among the nations;
   proclaim that his name is exalted. –Isaiah 12:2-4

Salvation:
1 a: deliverance from the power and effects of sin:  the spiritual saving of humankind especially from damnation
   b:  the means or agent of such saving or deliverance
2:  liberation from ignorance or illusion:  deliverance from clinging to the phenomenal world of appearance and final union with ultimate reality*

God’s rescue which delivers believers out of destruction and into His safety**

I wonder how many people who proclaim their faith in God and Jesus Christ believe they need to be delivered from the power and effects of sin. I recall two ways to salvation from my youth. One described by the phrase, “Once saved always saved.” Another was salvation by works, doing good and following Jesus’ teachings. There are, of course, dangers in both approaches.  People who subscribed to the “once saved always saved” viewpoint are tempted to take salvation for granted and fail to address their personal spiritual needs and their calling to help others. They may have a sense that they are elect people. We might identify white privilege in this category. People who invest all their energies in doing good works and following Jesus’ teachings may think they are the source of their own salvation. Of course, problems arise when they become selective or even judgmental about defining good works and the limitations of the love Jesus modeled. These are the folks who may ask, “who is my neighbor?”

Our scripture today is describing a higher plain ruled by love, absent self-interest because in God’s love we are made whole.

Prayer: Lord, help us to know the fullness of your love as we grow in faith and in loving you more dearly as we love our neighbors more nearly. Amen.

*http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/salvation
**https://biblehub.com/greek/4991.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.

Loving God

Living in the Spirit
November 3, 2018

Scripture Reading: Mark 12:28-34

One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘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.” –Mark 12:28-30

In my senior year in college, two of my friends and I lived off campus in a garage apartment. After getting settled, we all agreed there was one thing missing. We needed a dog and we got one. He was small and smart. With our diverse college and work schedules, he was rarely alone. Afternoons he often spent with our landlords’ children playing in the yard. My friends and I loved music thus he loved music. The neighbors enjoyed his Christmas caroling with us. He was an unconditional lover readily sharing licks and cuddling. Toward the end of the school year, I heard him barking ferociously in the front of the landlord’s house. Racing out to see what was happening, I came upon a tragic scene. The children were crying standing on the grass next to the street, a car was stopped in the street with our dog lying dead in front of one of the tires. The car owner with tears in his eyes said, “I can’t believe it. He saved these children’s lives.” The children were in the street rescuing a ball when the driver came up over a hill in heavy traffic and saw the little dog dart into the street snapping at the heels of the children forcing them back into their yard. He gave his life without a moment’s hesitation to save the kids he loved.

I am sure God loves dogs too, so I do not think God would mind if a story about a dog is used as an example of the way to share love with God since God’s son chose to give his life out of love for us. While we celebrate such unconditional love, I fear we do not give much thought to how God experiences our love of God. Spending quality time with God surely is paramount to loving God. God gets joy from seeing us share our love with one another. Since God created us, God expects us to take care of ourselves and work to fulfill our potential. God also must like it when we sing together in harmony.

Prayer: God of Grace, accept our attempts to love you as fully as we possibly can. Thank you for your saving grace and unconditional love. 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.

God is Faithful

Advent
December 1, 2017

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

  I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind— just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you— so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Merriam-Webster dictionary list four slightly differing definitions of the word faithful*.

1. true and constant in affection or allegiance
2. firm in adherence to promises, oaths, or undertakings
3. given with strong or solemn assurances
4. conforming to the facts or to an original

The second meaning most closely matches the meaning of the Greek word used by Paul in the scripture above. Strong’s indicates the meaning as God, abiding by his promises, ** I think all the definitions are accurate in defining the Faithfulness of God.

In a world that seems to be turned upside-down, we must cling closely to God’s forever promises and the examples of faithfulness he sets for each of us to follow. The problem lies in our being clearheaded enough to understand God’s faithful actions as compared to our responses. We seem to live in a world that grasps God’s words when they support the graspers purpose but sweeps God’s ways away when they do not. Our failure to love all of God’s children is an excellent example of that. I was appalled when I heard recently that our government is rescinding the protections offered to some 60,000 Haitians a few years ago when that island was hit by a huge earthquake. These people are not a burden to the USA. Indeed, many are hardworking taxpayers. Haiti has certainly not recovered enough to absorb this group for their good as well as the good of its current residents.

We show our love for God best to God when we live as God wills for us to love. The picture above taken this year shows Doctors without Borders staff treating a Haitian child whose illness resulted from unclean water.

Prayer: God, forgive us when we fail to be faithful to your love for us as we reflect it in our care for all your children. Amen.

*http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/Faithful
**As used in 1 Corinthians 1:9 the Greek pistos from Strong’s Concordance see at http://biblehub.com/greek/4103.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.

Are We Able

Living in the Spirit
November 20, 2017

Scripture Reading: Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

For thus says the Lord God: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord God. I will weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice. –Ezekiel 34:11-16

In times like these, we need to rise each morning read the above verses and perhaps review them again each evening. We have the greatest of Shepherd. Now is the time to hold tightly to that assurance letting our fears be turned into energy to emulate his goodness, mercy, and justice. God is greater than all evil. We are called to join with God in overcoming evil with good.

I mourn with the families who have lost loved ones through recent mass shooting. I celebrate with the school in California that was able to thwart the worst impacts of such an attempted shooting by implementing a timely lockdown. I join with the millions of people who champion enforcement of current gun laws, the creation of better systems to assure those banned from buying weapons don’t, and improved mental health systems across our country. While needed, these changes are not enough, and the answer lies in the hearts and minds of each person as we struggle to be God’s flock.

Would God recognize us as God’s sheep, when searching for us? Does our behavior set us apart as people of mercy seeking justice? Would the Great Shepherd find people full of hate and envy, fear and privilege, anger and hostility? Would the Great I AM know us by our love for God and our love for one another? Are we able to love as Jesus loves?

Prayer:
Lord, we are able, Our spirits are thine.
Remold them, make us, Like thee, divine.
Thy guiding radiance Above us shall be
A beacon to God, To love and loyalty.* Amen.

*Refrain from Are Ye Able by Earl Marlatt see at https://hymnary.org/text/are_ye_able_said_the_master

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.

Evil in Sight

Living in the Spirit
November 13, 2017

Scripture Reading: Judges 4:1-7

The Israelites again after Ehud died. So the Lord sold them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help; for he had nine hundred chariots of iron, and had oppressed the Israelites cruelly for twenty years. –Judges 4:1-3

When will we ever learn? I wonder how many times the Bible records something similar to The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. While theologians may debate whether God rains punishment down on God’s people, there is no question that we all must suffer the consequences of our own actions even when God forgives us. Are our memories so short that when good times abound we forget what we did to cause the bad times?

God gave us standards from the beginning to understand how to thrive in the world God created. The overall primary standard is to love God and love our neighbors as we love ourselves. God sent prophets to warn us of our misdeeds and ultimately sent Jesus Christ to redeem us. And still, our eyes glass over, only seeing what we want to see and doing only what we want to do. Many of us justify our actions projecting them as God-given. They may be self-righteous but do not meet God’s standard of righteousness. Racism will never pass God’s test of love.

We live in a time when some deep soul searching is needed. Some beautiful examples of sharing God’s love exist, caring for hurricane victims and the victims of recent gun violence, alongside some very ugly rhetoric. We need a lot more of the former and a lot less of the latter.

Prayer: Lord, guard our tongues to be uplifting now down-putting. Let the light of our love wash out the dark of hatred and bigotry. 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.

One True God

Living in the Spirit
November 7, 2017

Scripture Reading: Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25

But Joshua said to the people, ‘You cannot serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good.’ And the people said to Joshua, ‘No, we will serve the Lord!’ Then Joshua said to the people, ‘You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord, to serve him.’ And they said, ‘We are witnesses.’ He said, ‘Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.’ The people said to Joshua, ‘The Lord our God we will serve, and him we will obey.’ So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem. –Joshua 24:19-25

Who can serve the Lord who is holy? Set apart* is the English translation of the word holy. The Hebrew word translated holy could also be translated sacred**. Either suggest the singular, monotheistic nature of God.  Thus, if we worship other gods, we are not suited to serve the Lord. God demands that we get and keep our priorities straight.

What compels us to search for other gods particularly after having a long and rich history of relationship with the one true God? Is it a bit of the “what have you done for me recently” attitude? Perhaps it is a desire to test the success of God? We do that all the time with material things as people steeped in the scientific process. I grew disenchanted with my cable system and am experimenting with cutting the cable with mixed results. My changes solved most of the problems I had but created a few new ones. Are we shopping for a god that is just right for us? Raised in a time when marriage was a forever ideal, I watched the change to serial marriage or no marriage at all become the norm. Have we lost the value of lifelong commitments regarding God? Probably it is a little of all of these ideas, which seem to share the common denominator of not being satisfied with ourselves so finding the right god might help us find ourselves. In actuality accepting the love of the one true God and abiding in relationship with the Lord is the source of learning to love ourselves so we can love our neighbors as God loves us.

Prayer: God who is Love, help us to rest ourselves in your abiding loving and never to stray from its blessings. Amen.

*http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/holy
**http://biblehub.com/hebrew/6918.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.