Tag Archives: Oneness

They Will Know We Are Christians by Our Love

Eastertide

April 20, 2021

Scripture Reading: Acts 4:5-12
The next day their rulers, elders, and scribes assembled in Jerusalem, with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. When they had made the prisoners stand in their midst, they inquired, ‘By what power or by what name did you do this?’ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, ‘Rulers of the people and elders, if we are questioned today because of a good deed done to someone who was sick and are asked how this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that this man is standing before you in good health by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead. This Jesus is
“the stone that was rejected by you, the builders;
   it has become the cornerstone.”
There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.’

My heart breaks a little every time I see a social media post or other media linking Christianity to hate or privilege or prosperity. I find myself not using the word Christian instead choosing to use Christ-followers. I recently read an article, sorry I cannot cite it, that chastises those of us who are giving up on that word of identity. We do need to own who we are and whose we are.  If that is the case, we need to be who Christ calls us to be and do what Christ calls us to do. Every word and every deed playing out in our lives needs to reflect the image of God in us, the truth of God with us, and the hope of Christ’s vision of a world ruled by love. Micah 6:8 describes this attitude well:

He has told you, O mortal, what is good;
   and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
   and to walk humbly with your God?

Justice and kindness both have the quality of balance. Justice denotes equality and equity. Kindness* sometimes translated mercy, extends to the lowly, needy and miserable a hand up to bring them in sync with the fulness of life. Humility is the fulcrum that makes justice and kindness possible.

Prayer: Lord, help all know we are Christians by our love. Amen.

*https://biblehub.com/hebrew/2617.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.

Stepping Out of Our Comfort Zone

Eastertide

April 18, 2021

Scripture Reading:

Luke 24:36b-48

Then he said to them, ‘These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.’ Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. –Luke 24:44-48

The history of God is a cohesive whole recorded by God’s followers as it occurred in the development of cultures, societies, and nations over time. I do not think God would have created beings made in God’s image had God not intended for them to excel when they set their hearts to the right. Jesus’ example tells us that serving God would require a lot of intentional, righteous work. Jesus also assures us that he will be sharing our burdens and strengthening us for that work.

Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it. John 14:12-14

Our challenge as people of faith is discerning what is right and what is just for ourselves and everyone. Such efforts can only be successful if we make an effort to step out of our comfort zones and see the world through the eyes of others.

Prayer: Lord, open us to understanding the lives of all your children, finding our common threads, and seeking to understand our different perspectives while we grow together in the love of God. 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.

Simply Love

Eastertide

April 17, 2021

Scripture Reading: Luke 24:36b-48

While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. He said to them, ‘Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.’ And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, ‘Have you anything here to eat?’ They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence. –Luke 24:36-43

As children, my sister and I sang a duet of a song titled, It Is No Secret What God Can Do. The song was sung by everybody from Jim Reeves to Elvis Presley to Mahalia Jackson and my sister and me. I thought of that song when I read the above scripture. It may not be a secret what God can do, but for many, at least at times, God’s capabilities are undiscernible. I found it interesting that the disciples could believe in ghosts but not in a man resurrected, one they could touch and feel. We humans, I fear, try to make life more complicated than it is or needs to be. Jesus’ message was simple and straightforward, love God and love one another. The source of abundant life for all people is the very Creator of the world. Can we at least recognize God might know how he created the world to work well?

I awoke this morning to the news of another mass shooting, this time in Indiana. A reporter interviewed a man who had just learned his relative had not been killed or injured. The man was greatly relieved but noted he was among a group of people who had lost family members, and though overjoyed that his relative had survived, he mourned with those who had lost a brother or sister or child or parent. He added, “Why can’t we just love one another?”

The chimes of time ring out the news, another day is through
Someone slipped and fell, was that someone you?
You may have longed for added strength your courage to renew
Do not be disheartened, I have news for you
It is no secret what God can do
What he’s done for others he’ll do for you
With arms wide open, he’ll pardon you
It is no secret what God can do

There is no night for in his light you’ll never walk alone
You’ll always feel at home, wherever you may roam
There is no power can conquer you while God is on your side
Take him at his promise, don’t run away and hide
It is no secret what God can do
What he’s done for others he’ll do for you
With arms wide open he’ll pardon you
It is no secret what God can do*

Prayer: Creator of all, help us to love one another as you have loved us. Amen.

*It Is No Secret What God Can Do by Stuart Hamblen see at https://www.google.com/search?q=it+is+no+secret+what+god+can+do&rlz=1C1CHZN_enUS922US922&oq=it+is+&aqs=chrome.0.69i59j69i57j46j0l2j69i60l3.2684j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

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.

Preemptive Love

Eastertide

April 15, 2021

Scripture Reading: 1 John 3:1-7

See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. –1 John 3:1-3

God created the world and all that is in it and called it good. All people are God’s children. I think God chose not to make a puppet theater where God pulled all the strings. God had a great desire for the interchange of ideas and feelings, the same need of parents to reproduce their likeness for the furtherance of human life and the expansion of possibilities. When God created us in God’s image to attain that vision, we were also granted free will to follow the Lord’s path or not. Thus, the anti-God, we sometimes call evil, was allowed a presence.

The world has fallen far short of God’s glory as we become more and more divided. We are being played by evil which is the entity treating us like puppets. Evil tries hard to limit our choices to exclude that which is good and right. We see this when we and society care more about issues that rarely impact our lives while ignoring the teachings of Jesus to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the sick, reform the prisoner, and welcome the stranger. We pick and choose verses from the Bible that support our biases and promote self-righteousness while patently ignoring the Ten Commandments or the Sermon on the Mount or Romans 8.

We are not given the assignment of judging or condemning others. We are charged with loving them. Preemptive love fills the void in people’s lives that evil uses to its advantage. Preemptive love is God’s love, and we as Christ-followers are empowered to share it, replacing something of far greater value than evil could ever produce. After this year of tumult, violence, sickness, and death, perhaps we need to reconnect with God’s preemptive love.

Prayer: Lord, heal our weary souls and enable our witness of God’s 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.

Changing the World

Eastertide

April 13, 2021

Scripture Reading: Acts 3:12-19
When Peter saw it, he addressed the people, ‘You Israelites, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we had made him walk? The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our ancestors has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and rejected in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to release him. But you rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer given to you, and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. And by faith in his name, his name itself has made this man strong, whom you see and know; and the faith that is through Jesus has given him this perfect health in the presence of all of you.

‘And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out,

Peter’s words sting as I read them, you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. I have wondered what choices I would have made had I been one of those present moving from waving palms of welcome to crying out crucify him, crucify him. Would I have run home and hidden as he trudged toward Golgotha carry the cross, or would I have followed him? Only one of his closest disciples stood at the foot of the cross. The others probably feared for their own lives, but what about Thomas, who said let us go to Jerusalem to die with him. Women were there, but women did not matter among the male-dominant religious or political leaders. Secret followers came out of the woodwork to bury him.

The more critical issue is what I am doing today to fulfill the call to go into all the world and make disciples. I find more and more, my weak witness is defensive rather than welcoming, as actions are taken in the name of God that are foreign to my faith. How do we become the One Body of Christ in the tug-of-religious war in which we now find ourselves?

Peter takes us back to God when he assures the crowd that he did not heal the man. Peter was the conduit for the healing power of God. We, too, are called to be such a conduit. That role demands a closer walk with God and a clear understanding of our purpose, vision, and actions stripped of all self-righteousness and overflowing with God’s righteousness and grace. What happened to all those followers who did not show up at the cross? Through the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the overwhelming love of God, those initially week-kneed first disciples changed the world. We can do that, too.

Prayer: God grant us the courage to rise above our defensiveness and hesitancies to do our part in establishing the Kingdom of God through love in our world today. 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.

Overcoming Evil

Eastertide

April 11, 2021

Scripture Reading:
John 20:19-31

But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.‘—John 20:24-29

Thomas would have been an empirical scientist today. He wanted to see the facts of Jesus’ Resurrection. Jesus understood Thomas and responded by showing him the nail holes in Jesus’ hands and the place where the spear stabbed him in the side. Thomas gets a bad rap for wanting proof. We need to remember that upon receiving the news that Lazarus had died, Thomas was the one who said we must go and die with Jesus if necessary*. Thomas loved Jesus with all his heart.

God created diverse people because a wealth of wisdom is required to properly care for the earth while living together within a loving framework. I learned a lot from studying the Myers-Briggs personality types. Sixteen different types are identified from combining various traits. There are other such tests, but most conclude that it takes a wide range of skills working in harmony to maintain a peaceful society. I think that achievement is what Jesus promised and described as abundant life.

Living together in community requires us to learn to love and trust one another. Evil wins by divide and conquer. It studies our weaknesses and pounces on them. Jesus admonished us in Matthew 10:16, See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.  Jesus called us to be one. To do that, we must intentionally turn the energy of evil into a power source of love. Maintaining our relationship with God is fundamental in accomplishing that feat.

Prayer: Lord, fill us with your love and light as we work to replace evil with love. Amen.

*John 11:16

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.

Light for the Way

Eastertide

April 8, 2021

Scripture Reading:
1 John 1:1-2:2

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 15-10

Sin is defined as being separated from God or missing the mark. These definitions may be the same, for we most likely miss the mark when we are separated from God. Having enough light to clearly see our actions and reactions and ascertain whether they are on target with God’s ways is challenging. From birth to the grave, we develop what I call filters in our being that alter the way we view everything. Some of those filters are good. Babies learn not to touch a hot stove, and that filter is recorded in their brains. I love the song You’ve Got To Be Carefully Taught* from the musical South Pacific. It describes well the way our viewpoints about others are carefully shaped by our families and society over time, whether the image we take in is accurate or not. I am confident that most of us are some types of -ist—racists, sexists, classists—at some point in our lives.

Jesus taught us how to see the other through the bright light of God’s love, which dissipates the lesser filters that separate us from God, hopefully permanently burning the bad ones away. As we are called to be the Body of Christ in the world today, we must be intentional about both learning from the light of Christ and reflecting the light for others.

Prayer: Lord, help us clean out our dust-filled filters and be the light you have called us to be. Amen.

*https://www.google.com/search?q=you+have+to+be+carefully+taught+lyrics&rlz=1C1CHZN_enUS922US922&oq=you+have+to+be+caref&aqs=chrome.2.0i355j46j0j69i57j0l3j46j0l2.22796j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

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.

Oneness

Eastertide

April 6, 2021

Scripture Reading:
Acts 4:32-35
Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common. With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

God created a diverse world with all kinds of plants, animals, and people. God said that all of it was good. From the dawn of creation until today, our challenge is working together as a diverse people in one heart and soul. That one heart and soul is the Body of Christ in the world today, of which we are invited to become a part. Following Jesus’ bodily exit from the earth, we were blessed with the gift of the Holy Spirit that binds all creation together. God knows all of our skills and potential to use our talents to the Glory of God in actualizing God’s Kingdom. We mock the wisdom of the Spirit when we chose to fight among ourselves rather than investing in the energy needed to work together.

I have never quite understood Jesus’ warning that the only unforgivable sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit*. I think it somehow ties into our failure to be one heart and soul. I am also not sure how forgiveness relates to redemption. In pondering this, I remember John Newton’s story, the author of the hymn Amazing Grace. He was a slave runner delivering people removed from Africa to lives of bondage when circumstances led him to repent of this sin. He did turn around and spent the rest of his life in service to God. I doubt that he ever forgave himself, but he did recognize God’s amazing grace.

We, too, are called to turn around from anything that is limiting our work in creating a world where all live in one heart and soul.

Amazing grace! how sweet the sound,
  That saved a wretch; like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
  Was blind, but now I see.

‘ Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
  And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
  The hour I first believed**!

Prayer: Lord, you have told us that a house divided against itself cannot stand***. Empower us through your spirit to turn around from divisiveness and turn toward oneness to your glory.  Amen.

*See Matthew 12: 31-32, Luke 12:10, and Mark 3:29
**First and second verse of the hymn Amazing Grace by John Newton see all https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/h/313

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.

Dog on Ice

Lent

March 31, 2021

Scripture Reading:
Psalm 36:5-11
Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
   your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
   your judgments are like the great deep;
   you save humans and animals alike, O Lord.

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
   All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house,
   and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
   in your light we see light.

O continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
   and your salvation to the upright of heart!
Do not let the foot of the arrogant tread on me,
   or the hand of the wicked drive me away.

I had just watched the rescue of a dog from a floating piece of ice on the morning news when I sat down to consider the above scripture for today. I smiled when I read you save humans and animals alike, O Lord. We serve an awesome God who loves all creation including a dog running from a coyote, that got stuck on ice. God calls all of us to love all his creation, stirring the heart of one man to risk his own life to save that dog.

As our society is struggling with how to deal with a horribly dangerous and determined virus, we also are experiencing a pandemic of being out of touch with reality. We are learning the hard way that the idols of the world, such as pride, greed, lust, and envy ultimately have no power in a world created by God who is Love. Yet, we cannot recognize and accept that reality and invest our lives in saving others’ lives. Over 500,000 people in the USA have died from COVID, many needlessly because we will not wear masks, socially distance, and get vaccinations. We have lost the art of loving our neighbor as we love ourselves.

Holy Week is the best time of the year to reengage with God as we observe the sacrifice of God’s Son on a cross to save us from those very idols we cannot seem to let go. The love of God can and will sever those ties if we let it.

Prayer: Creator God, forgive us for turning to the idols of the world in our fear and reaction to things that threaten us. Surround us with your love enabling us to love you more dearly and to 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.

Ruled by Love

Lent

March 26, 2021

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 10:4-10

When he said above, ‘You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt-offerings and sin-offerings’ (these are offered according to the law), then he added, ‘See, I have come to do your will.’ He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. –Hebrews 10:8-10

Sanctified means to be made holy. Holy means to be set apart. Through the death of Jesus Christ, we have been set apart, but for what? The term Kingdom of God appears 53 times in the four gospels. Also, Matthew uses the interchangeable phrase Kingdom of Heaven 31 times. When we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, we were set apart to nurture and grown the Kingdom of God throughout our world toward the goal that God’s rule would be the rule and that rule is defined by love.

I was driving through the southeastern states a few years ago with a niece. We noticed a beautiful vine-like plant growing everywhere, covering trees and the ground. We learned it is called Kudzu. While it may look lush and healthy, it ruins the environment for other plants and animals to survive. Evil acts the same way. It wants exclusive use of resources until it has sapped the life out of everything. God created a world that is interdependent where care must be taken to assure that all parts of the world have enough to sustain them for their designated purposes. Humans were created to have dominion over the earth and ensure its vitality.

Our first step in nurturing the development of the Kingdom of God is to assure that all humans have enough love to embrace fully their ability to love one another. When we want the very best for everyone, we work together to make that happen. We do not, like the Kudzu, think we are the fairest in the land and try to claim it all for ourselves.

Prayer: Creator God, show us how to love one another 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.