Tag Archives: Loving One Another

Privilege for All

Lent
March 30, 2019

Scripture Reading: Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Then Jesus said, ‘There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.” So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and travelled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. But when he came to himself he said, “How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.’”                                                                                                                                                 –Luke 15:4-19

One of the hardest cultural realities that we must overcome is an abiding sense of privilege being special to only a few and not to all. Our Constitution does not say that:

no State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges and immunities of citizens of the United States — U.S. Constitution

For Example: any of various fundamental or specially sacred rights considered as peculiarly guaranteed and secured to all persons by modern constitutional governments (as the enjoyment of life, liberty, and reputation, the right to acquire and possess property, the right to pursue happiness)*

 Funny we seem to be so ensconced in privilege meaning, for a special few, that we consider whether something is a privilege or a right with right meaning that it is available for all.

The Prodigal son learned the hard way that privilege is not to be taken for granted. It is a precious gift from God and part of our job is to assure that all are privileged with enough—love, joy, food, clothing, health care, and so on. That is a picture of the Kingdom of God.

Prayer: Lord, save us from sparing privilege based on some false sense of superiority. Help us to see that all of God’s children are privileged. Amen.

*http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/Privilege

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.

How Do We Love?

Living in the Spirit
November 30, 2018

Scripture Reading: 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13

Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. And may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. –1 Thessalonians 3:11-13

 

How Do I Love Thee? (Sonnet 43)

By Elizabeth Barrett Browning

 How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.

How do we love one another? Browning’s poem never uses the word joy, but it seems to be laced through every phrase she wrote. Loving results in joy, in bad times and in good, when another’s mere presence nurtures our souls. The Greeks describe three types of love, sibling love, erotic love, and Godly love. All are a part of God’s great plan for us. We sometimes forget that love is a verb, an action word. Love requires us to invest part of ourselves in the wellbeing of others. I think joy results when Godly love intersects with all relationships. Godly love is particularly fundamental when we welcome the strangers in our midst.

Prayer: Lord, empower us to love as Jesus loved. 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.

Ruins

Living in the Spirit
November 17, 2018

Scripture Reading: Mark 13:1-8

As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!’ Then Jesus asked him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.’—Mark 13:1-2

I do not know what is so mesmerizing about ruins. I have stood among many with large stones some broken lying about suggesting the possible shape of a building that once was. Sometimes the stones have the remains of pictures or words in languages I cannot read. Parts of the words are worn or broken off. As I walked down the path at Ephesus, I tried to imagine how the buildings looked when they were new. I had a very real sense that I was walking in Paul’s steps and remembered the trials and experiences he described as occurring in Ephesus. That was two thousand years ago.

I went to graduate school in Denver during the late 1970’s. Loved the city. It did not take long for me to acclimate. I returned a couple of times over the next few years and noticed some change, but it was still the same basic place to me. In the late 1990’s, I flew to a meeting in Denver landing at the then-new airport that seems many miles away as I took a taxi to my hotel. Looking around as I entered the city, I recognized nothing except the capitol dome. It was a bit of a shock; different but still a great city.

Thousands of Californians have lost everything they had in recent fires. People are missing, and many are dead. We must do all we can to help the survivors deal with their losses. As was true two thousand years ago, God’s love never changes and our call to serve in his name does not change either.

Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart. You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God. For

‘All flesh is like grass
   and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
   and the flower falls,
but the word of the Lord endures forever.’
That word is the good news that was announced to you. –1 Peter 1:22-25

Prayer: Help us to love each other as you love 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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Faith Integrity

Living in the Spirit
October 2, 2018

Scripture Reading: Job 1:1, 2:1-10

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord, and inflicted loathsome sores on Job from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. Job took a potsherd with which to scrape himself, and sat among the ashes.

  Then his wife said to him, ‘Do you still persist in your integrity? Curse God, and die.’ But he said to her, ‘You speak as any foolish woman would speak. Shall we receive the good at the hand of God, and not receive the bad?’ In all this Job did not sin with his lips. –Job 2:9-10

I followed a dear friend out of church yesterday as he shuffled dragging uncooperative Parkinson’s afflicted feet behind a walker. I had just consulted him about an issue with my house and received his wise, expert recommendations.  We were leaving a dinner where I had arrived late finding the closest vacant chair. It was fortuitous for me to find a seat next to my friend as I had been intending to call him for advice about my house issue and just never thought of it when I could call. I did not think of that, however, as I joined the table of these friends. They were sharing a conversation about sports. They also were nearly finished eating as I began my lunch. While I ate, I observed the comradery of people who were comfortable with each other and who respected the insights and joy at favored teams winning games along with concern about the USA not doing well at the Rider Cup. There is much more to life than loathsome sores or Parkinson’s ravages. Loving one’s neighbor includes loving them in the good times and through the bad.

The Integrity to Be Friends
By John Tiong Chunghoo

put two stones
as close to each other
as you can.

 put two men too,
close to each other.

 what’s the similarity? 

if both do not have
the integrity to
really understand
each other for the
common good,
two million years
from now they
would still be as good
as – mere stones.

Prayer: Lord, grant us the integrity to really understand each other for the common good. 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.

Guard My Tongue

Living in the Spirit
September 13, 2018

Scripture Reading: James 3:1-12

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. –James 3:1-5a

What we say matters. Often how we say something matters. I get the angriest at myself when I think of what I want to reply to someone who is getting under my skin and I know immediately it is the wrong thing to say and I say it anyway. I then must pick up the pieces of our dialogue that severed creating any fruitful outcome and try to put the puzzle of the relationship back together again.

We kill people’s souls with our tongues. I overheard a conversation recently where two people were talking about another person who they believed had failed to do something. One of them said, “That is just one more thing to add to the list.” The person was not a part of their tribe. Tribalism is a word being bandied about regularly now. I used to call them in-crowds. Our world is being divided by our labels as we try to restrict who gets a seat at the welcome table*.

Tribalism will not end until and unless we intentionally look in the mirror and see it in ourselves and worked to erase it from our society.

Prayer: Lord, guard our tongues against being the cause of animosity and loss of self-esteem. Let the words of our mouths be pleasing to you**. Amen.

*From the song I’m gonna sit at the welcome table see at https://sifalyrics.com/southern-gospel-revival-welcome-table-lyrics
**Derived from Psalm 19:14

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.

 

Basic Needs

Living in the Spirit
July 28, 2018

Scripture Reading: John 6:1-21

After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias.  A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near. When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming towards him, Jesus said to Philip, ‘Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?’ He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, ‘Six months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.’ One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, ‘There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?’ –John 6:1-9

Healing the sick, feeding the hungry according to the stories in the gospels of Jesus was the way Jesus invested much of his time. There were plenty of sick and hungry in the first century. The sad thing is plenty still exists today. When Jesus noted that the poor will always be with us*, I think, he was observing more human failure to address the needs of others rather than describing a natural occurrence. According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need when people are in survival mode, their attention is grounded in meeting basic needs, and they are not easily distracted with great philosophical ideas or the threat of hell, fire, and damnation when as far as they can tell they are already there. What people in poverty lack is hope and hope is often born out of food for the belly and relief from pain accompanied by a healthy dose of love. The gift of hope lets them know they have a choice regarding their futures.

While to my knowledge Jesus never said it, the rich will always be with us also and those who invest much of their time and energy in becoming rich. They too sometimes live in the same survival mode as those in poverty, afraid that someone will take their wealth away or become richer than they are. The rich in many ways are as lost as those without food or health care. Some live behind walls of insecurity and gates of exclusion. The difference is the rich are there by choice. It does not have to be that way. We have great examples of wealthy people doing justice throughout the world.

Most of us fall somewhere between poverty and wealth, but we all must choose what kind of world in which we want to live. I for one like the idea of everyone having enough. Indeed, that includes enough to meet basic needs, but it also means enough safety and security, friendship and love, self-esteem, and reaching our full potential. I see that as becoming the people God created us to be and that requires all of us to work to assure that is the reality of all of us.

Prayer: God of Enough, you provided enough manna in the wilderness for each of those escaping the oppression of Egypt. As we are made in your image, help us to recognize our call to assure enough manna for everyone. Amen

*Matthew 26:11 and Mark 14:7

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.

Models of God’s Love

Living in the Spirit
July 8, 2018

Scripture Reading: Mark 6:1-13

He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. He said to them, ‘Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.’ So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them. –Mark 6:7-13

Jesus obviously taught that his disciples have a responsibility to share his way with those not acquainted with his love. People’s lives would be better if they changed from the harmful things they were doing to themselves and perhaps others and turn around and follow Jesus’ example of loving. The term, repent, used in the above scripture is a translation from Greek of a word that means to change: change our minds, change our inner being particularly with reference to acceptance of the will of God*. We are conduits of the Good News, the Gospel, not the Savior. Jesus Christ is the source of salvation.

Our culture has rather gotten this message muddled. Some seem to think that we not only must define the change needed, decide what the message is, tell the people whom we judge to need the message and condemn them if they do not follow the change we desire. We become so frustrated with our failure to make people change, we try to force the change by writing it into our civil laws. We forget to let Jesus be the Savior. God knows everyone’s hearts and minds and exactly what each of us needs and is working God’s will through relationships with all God’s children. God only asks us to model his love by loving one another.

Jesus is very specific about not trying to force people to follow him. That is bondage, and bondage often results in very negative reactions to the source of the bondage. In the case of spreading the good news of Jesus such enforcement literally turns people off to knowing the God of love.

We are blessed to live in a country that protects our freedom to exercise our faith or no faith at all. Many of our ancestors fled their home countries because their governments were trying to force them to follow religion as defined by the government. We cannot emulate that behavior and be true to the foundation of the USA.

Prayer:  Lord, we recognize that repentance is not a one-time experience but a part of our daily walk with you. Forgive us when we lose sight of our proper roles as your disciples and let your love flow through us when we find it difficult to love another, all others. Amen.

*http://biblehub.com/greek/3340.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.

Saving The World

Living in the Spirit
May 27, 2018

Scripture Reading: John 3:1-17

‘Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 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.

  ‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. –John 3:11-17

And this, in a nutshell, is the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ. So why are we not working as hard as possible to follow Jesus’ example? Why do we seem to work as hard as possible to circumvent the way of the Christ and follow the route of least resistance? Why are we such easy marks for the con of evil?

Our faith impacts all aspects of our lives. It would be much easier to carve out a percent of our beings and say this is God’s. Jesus, however, taught that all aspects of our lives are to be dedicated to God.

 ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others. (Matthew 23:23)

I do not think Jesus is telling us not to tithe or otherwise provide financial support for ministries. What he is saying is that is just a beginning. How we live our lives, treat one another, care for one another is the hallmark of a life in Christ. To accomplish that we must accept that all people are God’s children and their well-being is as much our responsibility as taking care of our own well-being.

What would a just world look like?

Prayer: God of Justice and Mercy, help us see clearly what your justice looks like and make us workers in your vineyards growing justice throughout our lands. 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.