Scripture: Mark 10:32-45
Back
on the road, they set out for Jerusalem. Jesus had a head start on
them, and they were following, puzzled and not just a little afraid. He
took the Twelve and began again to go over what to expect next. “Listen
to me carefully. We’re on our way up to Jerusalem. When we get there,
the Son of Man will be betrayed to the religious leaders and scholars.
They will sentence him to death. Then they will hand him over to the
Romans, who will mock and spit on him, give him the third degree, and
kill him. After three days he will rise alive.”
James and John, Zebedee’s sons, came up to him. “Teacher, we have something we want you to do for us.” “What is it? I’ll see what I can do.”
“Arrange
it,” they said, “so that we will be awarded the highest places of honor
in your glory—one of us at your right, the other at your left.”
Jesus
said, “You have no idea what you’re asking. Are you capable of drinking
the cup I drink, of being baptized in the baptism I’m about to be
plunged into?”
“Sure,” they said. “Why not?”
Jesus said, “Come to think of it, you will
drink the cup I drink, and be baptized in my baptism. But as to
awarding places of honor, that’s not my business. There are other
arrangements for that.”
When
the other ten heard of this conversation, they lost their tempers with
James and John. Jesus got them together to settle things down. “You’ve
observed how godless rulers throw their weight around,” he said, “and
when people get a little power how quickly it goes to their heads. It’s
not going to be that way with you. Whoever wants to be great must become
a servant. Whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That
is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not to be served—and
then to give away his life in exchange for many who are held hostage.”
Observation:
This is the second time Jesus has told his followers that their trip to Jerusalem is a mission that ends with his death. He knew the danger he was in. He knew that his work and words and way of living had attracted a lot of negative attention and resistance from the insiders--both political and religious. They do not like his use of power to lift up the outliers, the poor and dispossessed. They do not like that he uses power to empower and set free those who are the victims of injustice. Or that he accuses the ruling class of misusing their power for selfish gain and oppression. Maybe because empowering a large majority is threatening to the privileged minority. When the 99% realize their potential, their value, and their own power to claim justice, the 1% will fall.
But the disciples still don't understand that his mission involves his assassination. They are dreaming of corner offices and seats of power and privilege. They are vying for elite status as his campaign team, anticipating royal treatment. Jesus response is that those who want to be great and first must become servants and slaves. His own status and power were put to use to serve others. He puts himself in the place of the victim, receiving the unjust treatment he seeks to destroy. Maybe by doing so, he mocks them and reveals their weakness. When one goes willingly to the cross, your oppressors have no power over you. He is the example for them and for all who might follow.
Application:
The first mark of discipleship is service. Disciples of Jesus, Christians, do not use their power for selfish gain or for recognition. We use power to serve others, to heal and feed and endure suffering alongside our neighbors. Christian witness is not first about worship or prayer or or sacraments or doctrinal belief systems or morality. It is service. Love your neighbor as yourself. This is the commandment by which our love for God is made known in the world. Churches that do not serve the poor in their communities, that do not tend to the sick, the incarcerated, the underprivileged, they do not follow Christ. They follow their own lord. American Christianity has ignored the call to service on the streets and neighborhoods around us. We have isolated, insulated, and preserved ourselves while our neighbors suffered. No wonder churches are dying. The pulse of Christian community is service. Without exercising our heart, the heart of Jesus for the poor, we die.
The church of Jesus is first a serving community, characterized by humble hospitality. That's what Peter's Porch strives to be---a community of servants offering hospitality to our neighbors. We offer it freely, generously, without expectation or reward. We do it because it is right to share God's abundance with others. We do it because serving is its own reward. We do it because Jesus came as a servant and not an Emperor.
Prayer:
Lord, you came not to be served but to serve. Raise up a serving church with humble hearts and healing hands and hospitable arms reaching out with generosity. Amen.
Friday, March 18, 2016
Thursday, March 17, 2016
one thing you lack
Scripture: Mark 10:17-27
As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ 18Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19You know the commandments: “You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honour your father and mother.” ’ 20He said to him, ‘Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.’ 21Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money* to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ 22When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!’ 24And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, ‘Children, how hard it is* to enter the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’ 26They were greatly astounded and said to one another,‘Then who can be saved?’ 27Jesus looked at them and said, ‘For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.’
Observation
This seems to be a brief encounter between Jesus and this nameless rich man.
Notice Jesus first words: "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone." Doesn't the man suggest that Jesus has somehow earned his respect as a teacher and is therefore worthy to respond to a question? What does Jesus seem to think about that? Notice the rich man's question; "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Another way to ask it is this: How much good am I required to do in order to earn both worldly and heavenly blessings? An inheritance, after all, is bestowed by the deceased on a worthy loved one. What am I required to do to obtain the best possible life, now and for the future?
"I have kept all these since my youth": The man has decided that he has more than fulfilled his duty and can therefore expect to be rewarded. Also, his wealth is confirmed as a blessing or acknowledgment of his good character, right? Do the right things and you will be rewarded.
"You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." : A man with wealth is lacking one thing. What is it? Humility? Dependence on God alone? Compassion for the poor? Love?
Do we think of the poor as people who have done the wrong things and are, therefore, getting the life they've earned? Do we see the economy as a system in which everyone starts at 0 and you either go up or down based on your choices?
Application:
This man's greed, his insatiable appetite for more good stuff for himself, his deep inner selfishness is contrasted by Jesus' love. The rich man didn't come for transformation or to make amends. He came to be affirmed in his self-righteousness and his privileged prosperity. He wanted to be told that he earned God's favor and blessings by his goodness. He wanted to feel like he was entitled to his life.
Jesus invites and challenges this man, and us, to a changed life, a gospel life, a humble life, a generous life. And the man can't stomach it. He walks away. Not everyone can be a disciple! It's hard, says Jesus, for people addicted to prosperity, comfort, wealth, and privilege to be part of God's alternative economy---in which there is enough for all and no one is poor because everyone is rich. (In the way real love makes one rich!) It's hard because we feel that we've earned it. I have a masters degree, damn it.
I spent an hour at the Lancaster County Assistance office this morning with Mike and Jenna. There were a lot of people there. And the crowd was diverse. There were African Americans and Latinos, speakers of languages other than English, young adults, white senior citizens, and disabled people. I began to feel self-conscious. What more should I do for these neighbors? What am I lacking? I felt inadequate and ineffective. I was reading Shane Claiborne's book "The Irresistible Revolution" and thinking, "I'm no radical Christian. I'm too comfortable." So I invited Mike and Jenna to dinner church. Maybe God will save us all around that common table.
Prayer
Lord, teach us your way of love. You love rich and poor alike and invite all of us into your alternative world---in which the hungry are all fed, the naked are all clothed, the sick are healed, and the prisoners are truly set free. Help us to build that world one relationship at a time Amen.
As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ 18Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19You know the commandments: “You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honour your father and mother.” ’ 20He said to him, ‘Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.’ 21Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money* to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ 22When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!’ 24And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, ‘Children, how hard it is* to enter the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’ 26They were greatly astounded and said to one another,‘Then who can be saved?’ 27Jesus looked at them and said, ‘For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.’
Observation
This seems to be a brief encounter between Jesus and this nameless rich man.
Notice Jesus first words: "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone." Doesn't the man suggest that Jesus has somehow earned his respect as a teacher and is therefore worthy to respond to a question? What does Jesus seem to think about that? Notice the rich man's question; "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Another way to ask it is this: How much good am I required to do in order to earn both worldly and heavenly blessings? An inheritance, after all, is bestowed by the deceased on a worthy loved one. What am I required to do to obtain the best possible life, now and for the future?
"I have kept all these since my youth": The man has decided that he has more than fulfilled his duty and can therefore expect to be rewarded. Also, his wealth is confirmed as a blessing or acknowledgment of his good character, right? Do the right things and you will be rewarded.
"You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." : A man with wealth is lacking one thing. What is it? Humility? Dependence on God alone? Compassion for the poor? Love?
Do we think of the poor as people who have done the wrong things and are, therefore, getting the life they've earned? Do we see the economy as a system in which everyone starts at 0 and you either go up or down based on your choices?
Application:
This man's greed, his insatiable appetite for more good stuff for himself, his deep inner selfishness is contrasted by Jesus' love. The rich man didn't come for transformation or to make amends. He came to be affirmed in his self-righteousness and his privileged prosperity. He wanted to be told that he earned God's favor and blessings by his goodness. He wanted to feel like he was entitled to his life.
Jesus invites and challenges this man, and us, to a changed life, a gospel life, a humble life, a generous life. And the man can't stomach it. He walks away. Not everyone can be a disciple! It's hard, says Jesus, for people addicted to prosperity, comfort, wealth, and privilege to be part of God's alternative economy---in which there is enough for all and no one is poor because everyone is rich. (In the way real love makes one rich!) It's hard because we feel that we've earned it. I have a masters degree, damn it.
I spent an hour at the Lancaster County Assistance office this morning with Mike and Jenna. There were a lot of people there. And the crowd was diverse. There were African Americans and Latinos, speakers of languages other than English, young adults, white senior citizens, and disabled people. I began to feel self-conscious. What more should I do for these neighbors? What am I lacking? I felt inadequate and ineffective. I was reading Shane Claiborne's book "The Irresistible Revolution" and thinking, "I'm no radical Christian. I'm too comfortable." So I invited Mike and Jenna to dinner church. Maybe God will save us all around that common table.
Prayer
Lord, teach us your way of love. You love rich and poor alike and invite all of us into your alternative world---in which the hungry are all fed, the naked are all clothed, the sick are healed, and the prisoners are truly set free. Help us to build that world one relationship at a time Amen.
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
burning bushes
Scripture: Exodus 3
Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. 3Then Moses said, ‘I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.’ 4When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ 5Then he said, ‘Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.’ 6He said further, ‘I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. 7 Then the Lord said, ‘I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, 8and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. 10So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.’ 11But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’ 12He said, ‘I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain.’
Observation:
Before this, we have not heard God's perspective on the plight of the Hebrew slaves. Now we know. God has heard their cry. God "knows their sufferings". God intends to deliver them out of Egypt and into a good land. AND, God has come to Moses in the wilderness. God has interrupted Moses' ordinary life and work with a message. This is Moses' Kairos moment. It's the burning bush moment, in which Moses sees and hears God. Here's the thing about it: Moses has not seen, heard, or known this God before. He has not been a faithful Jew all his life. He has not read the bible. There was no bible to read! He is not a religious man, though his father-in-law was a priest. (That meant he offered sacrifices to a god in order to secure household blessings and avoid curses. It is not relational, but transactional religion. "If we do these rituals, the god will take care of us"). Moses teaches us that God will invite anyone into God's work---religiously faithful or not!
Now Moses has a new, spiritual experience---a vision and a voice. It is about the Israelites (an ancient tribe of people known in Egypt as the Hebrews.) These Israelites have a God who listens and speaks! And this God has chosen Moses to go to Pharaoh and orchestrate the Exodus! To which Moses says, "Why me"? He is denying his own story, a Hebrew with direct connection to Pharaoh's house. He is, of course, the ideal person to advocate on their behalf. But God does not convince him that he is the right man for the job, only that God will be with him until the Exodus is accomplished. In fact, God does not tell Moses HOW he will accomplish it, only that the people will worship their liberating God on that very mountain afterward.
Application:
Kairos is about finding yourself at the right place at the right time. It is the surprising intersection of your life and God's mission. That mission is to embody liberating love, setting people free from whatever prevents them from experiencing the goodness and joy of life. The Jews called it 'shalom'. The Christians called it "grace and peace". It is to live in a complete and healthy relationship with God and others. We call it justice---to set the upside-down world right-side up.
We see that there are many barriers, injustices both personal and systemic that prevent people from living. We could name them, but instead we need to name the burning bushes, the kairos moments. We need to pay attention, tune in, to the God who shows up and speaks to us. Someone reading this is Moses today. God is calling you out of your life to join in the greatest mission ever undertaken: A global revolution to restore humanity and all of creation to its right relationship to itself and the creator. How are you becoming aware, hearing the cries of the suffering, hearing the call to serve them? We are a Church that seeks to embody that liberating love together. If you're asking, "Why me"? I would say, "Why not you?" If you've noticed any burning bushes, then know that you are God's choice. Ready or not.
Prayer:
Lord, keep my eyes and ears open to your interrupting presence in my life. Show me the way to love those you love, and especially those who suffer. Amen.
Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. 3Then Moses said, ‘I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.’ 4When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ 5Then he said, ‘Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.’ 6He said further, ‘I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. 7 Then the Lord said, ‘I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, 8and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. 10So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.’ 11But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’ 12He said, ‘I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain.’
Observation:
Before this, we have not heard God's perspective on the plight of the Hebrew slaves. Now we know. God has heard their cry. God "knows their sufferings". God intends to deliver them out of Egypt and into a good land. AND, God has come to Moses in the wilderness. God has interrupted Moses' ordinary life and work with a message. This is Moses' Kairos moment. It's the burning bush moment, in which Moses sees and hears God. Here's the thing about it: Moses has not seen, heard, or known this God before. He has not been a faithful Jew all his life. He has not read the bible. There was no bible to read! He is not a religious man, though his father-in-law was a priest. (That meant he offered sacrifices to a god in order to secure household blessings and avoid curses. It is not relational, but transactional religion. "If we do these rituals, the god will take care of us"). Moses teaches us that God will invite anyone into God's work---religiously faithful or not!
Now Moses has a new, spiritual experience---a vision and a voice. It is about the Israelites (an ancient tribe of people known in Egypt as the Hebrews.) These Israelites have a God who listens and speaks! And this God has chosen Moses to go to Pharaoh and orchestrate the Exodus! To which Moses says, "Why me"? He is denying his own story, a Hebrew with direct connection to Pharaoh's house. He is, of course, the ideal person to advocate on their behalf. But God does not convince him that he is the right man for the job, only that God will be with him until the Exodus is accomplished. In fact, God does not tell Moses HOW he will accomplish it, only that the people will worship their liberating God on that very mountain afterward.
Application:
Kairos is about finding yourself at the right place at the right time. It is the surprising intersection of your life and God's mission. That mission is to embody liberating love, setting people free from whatever prevents them from experiencing the goodness and joy of life. The Jews called it 'shalom'. The Christians called it "grace and peace". It is to live in a complete and healthy relationship with God and others. We call it justice---to set the upside-down world right-side up.
We see that there are many barriers, injustices both personal and systemic that prevent people from living. We could name them, but instead we need to name the burning bushes, the kairos moments. We need to pay attention, tune in, to the God who shows up and speaks to us. Someone reading this is Moses today. God is calling you out of your life to join in the greatest mission ever undertaken: A global revolution to restore humanity and all of creation to its right relationship to itself and the creator. How are you becoming aware, hearing the cries of the suffering, hearing the call to serve them? We are a Church that seeks to embody that liberating love together. If you're asking, "Why me"? I would say, "Why not you?" If you've noticed any burning bushes, then know that you are God's choice. Ready or not.
Prayer:
Lord, keep my eyes and ears open to your interrupting presence in my life. Show me the way to love those you love, and especially those who suffer. Amen.
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
who am I?
Scripture: Exodus 2
One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and saw their forced labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his kinsfolk. 12He looked this way and that, and seeing no one he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13When he went out the next day, he saw two Hebrews fighting; and he said to the one who was in the wrong, ‘Why do you strike your fellow Hebrew?’ 14He answered, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?’ Then Moses was afraid and thought, ‘Surely the thing is known.’ 15When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses.
But Moses fled from Pharaoh. He settled in the land of Midian, and sat down by a well. 16The priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came to draw water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. 17But some shepherds came and drove them away. Moses got up and came to their defence and watered their flock. 18When they returned to their father Reuel, he said, ‘How is it that you have come back so soon today?’ 19They said, ‘An Egyptian helped us against the shepherds; he even drew water for us and watered the flock.’ 20He said to his daughters, ‘Where is he? Why did you leave the man? Invite him to break bread.’ 21Moses agreed to stay with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah in marriage. 22She bore a son, and he named him Gershom; for he said, ‘I have been an alien* residing in a foreign land.’
Observation:
Moses, born a Hebrew slave, is raised in the house of pharaoh's daughter, raised in privilege and wealth. Despite these circumstances, he identifies with the Hebrews and their plight of suffering. So much so that he defends a slave and kills an Egyptian. He is not accepted as a fellow Hebrew either, but seen as another violent abuser of power by the witnesses of the killing. So he flees and settles in a foreign country. He finds employment, marries, and has a child. His extraordinary life in Egypt is transformed into an ordinary life of herding in the mountains and tending a family. He is avoiding his life, ignoring his responsibilities, and forgetting his own people. Will he have a role to play in the drama between Pharaoh and the Hebrews? It seems inevitable, and yet he spends years as a resident alien far away from the problems of Hebrew slaves in Egypt.
Application :
Moses has privilege and power but identifies with the powerless and underprivileged. Who will Moses be? Hebrew or Egyptian? Will he retain his adopted status or will he accept his lot as a slave? Will he use his power and privilege to help the Hebrews? Or will he hide in Midian among the flocks and hills?
Vocation is an important part of the human experience. We ask ourselves, "What am I meant to do with my life?" It is an essential aspect of faith, too. Vocation comes from the latin 'vocare' to call. Moses' life points to a higher calling. For what or whom has Moses been born?
It is temping to ignore injustice, to choose comfort and safety over struggle and resistance. I am a white male and, as such, I experience invisible privilege. I can choose to ignore racial and economic injustice. Or I can accept my role to confront it. My life and yours are meant to be extraordinary. In the midst of ordinary callings, as spouses--parents, professionals---a higher calling awaits. Like Moses, we are free to choose whether we will live God's call or avoid it. Sometimes shame and our own sense of inadequacy stand in the way of embracing your true self and divine calling. Our flaws and failures tell us we're not good enough. Moses was a murderer. God calls broken, flawed, messed up people to embody God's liberating love. There are people depending on us to express our faith by surrendering to a calling to live justly and mercifully for others. To find out what God has made you to be and do, this is an essential act of faith. We took the five-fold survey (http://fivefoldsurvey.com/) to begin thinking about ourselves as called and sent by God with a mission or purpose. I'm still learning what God is calling me to do and be. Its a lifelong journey.
Prayer:
Lord, you have called us to an extraordinary life of public ministry with your children who suffer injustice. Help us to discover and embrace our calling to confront evil and give hope. Amen.
One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and saw their forced labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his kinsfolk. 12He looked this way and that, and seeing no one he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13When he went out the next day, he saw two Hebrews fighting; and he said to the one who was in the wrong, ‘Why do you strike your fellow Hebrew?’ 14He answered, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?’ Then Moses was afraid and thought, ‘Surely the thing is known.’ 15When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses.
But Moses fled from Pharaoh. He settled in the land of Midian, and sat down by a well. 16The priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came to draw water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. 17But some shepherds came and drove them away. Moses got up and came to their defence and watered their flock. 18When they returned to their father Reuel, he said, ‘How is it that you have come back so soon today?’ 19They said, ‘An Egyptian helped us against the shepherds; he even drew water for us and watered the flock.’ 20He said to his daughters, ‘Where is he? Why did you leave the man? Invite him to break bread.’ 21Moses agreed to stay with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah in marriage. 22She bore a son, and he named him Gershom; for he said, ‘I have been an alien* residing in a foreign land.’
Observation:
Moses, born a Hebrew slave, is raised in the house of pharaoh's daughter, raised in privilege and wealth. Despite these circumstances, he identifies with the Hebrews and their plight of suffering. So much so that he defends a slave and kills an Egyptian. He is not accepted as a fellow Hebrew either, but seen as another violent abuser of power by the witnesses of the killing. So he flees and settles in a foreign country. He finds employment, marries, and has a child. His extraordinary life in Egypt is transformed into an ordinary life of herding in the mountains and tending a family. He is avoiding his life, ignoring his responsibilities, and forgetting his own people. Will he have a role to play in the drama between Pharaoh and the Hebrews? It seems inevitable, and yet he spends years as a resident alien far away from the problems of Hebrew slaves in Egypt.
Application :
Moses has privilege and power but identifies with the powerless and underprivileged. Who will Moses be? Hebrew or Egyptian? Will he retain his adopted status or will he accept his lot as a slave? Will he use his power and privilege to help the Hebrews? Or will he hide in Midian among the flocks and hills?
Vocation is an important part of the human experience. We ask ourselves, "What am I meant to do with my life?" It is an essential aspect of faith, too. Vocation comes from the latin 'vocare' to call. Moses' life points to a higher calling. For what or whom has Moses been born?
It is temping to ignore injustice, to choose comfort and safety over struggle and resistance. I am a white male and, as such, I experience invisible privilege. I can choose to ignore racial and economic injustice. Or I can accept my role to confront it. My life and yours are meant to be extraordinary. In the midst of ordinary callings, as spouses--parents, professionals---a higher calling awaits. Like Moses, we are free to choose whether we will live God's call or avoid it. Sometimes shame and our own sense of inadequacy stand in the way of embracing your true self and divine calling. Our flaws and failures tell us we're not good enough. Moses was a murderer. God calls broken, flawed, messed up people to embody God's liberating love. There are people depending on us to express our faith by surrendering to a calling to live justly and mercifully for others. To find out what God has made you to be and do, this is an essential act of faith. We took the five-fold survey (http://fivefoldsurvey.com/) to begin thinking about ourselves as called and sent by God with a mission or purpose. I'm still learning what God is calling me to do and be. Its a lifelong journey.
Prayer:
Lord, you have called us to an extraordinary life of public ministry with your children who suffer injustice. Help us to discover and embrace our calling to confront evil and give hope. Amen.
Monday, March 14, 2016
mothers, sisters, daughters and God
Scripture: Exodus 2
Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman. 2The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him for three months. 3When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river. 4His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him. 5 The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid to bring it. 6When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him. ‘This must be one of the Hebrews’ children,’ she said. 7Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?’ 8Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Yes.’ So the girl went and called the child’s mother. 9Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages.’ So the woman took the child and nursed it. 10When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and she took him as her son. She named him Moses,* ‘because’, she said, ‘I drew him out* of the water.’
Observation:
Fearing a growing population of Hebrews, Pharaoh ordered that all firstborn male infants be destroyed at birth. The midwives of the Hebrews, Shiphrah and Puah by name, refused to obey the order. When questioned by authorities they said that the Hebrew women gave birth before they arrived on the scene.
In another family, a priestly family, a baby boy was born. After three months of hiding, the mother sealed the baby in a basket and placed him along the Nile river bank. Pharaoh's daughter found the basket and the crying baby and felt pity. Knowing he was a Hebrew child, she asked her servant to find a nurse mother. Moses' own mother was summoned to nurse the child and was then paid by Pharaoh's daughter to do so. Eventually she adopted Moses and brought him into Pharaoh's own household. A Hebrew enters Pharaoh's own household, not as a servant, but as an adopted son.
Application:
The bible is not the story of a male deity. God's will is revealed through women as often as through men. Exodus is the story of the liberation and empowerment of an oppressed people. Moses was never supposed to take a breath. He was supposed to be killed at birth, by order of the Pharaoh. Ironically, Pharaoh's own daughter rescues Moses and raises him as her own son. Moses' mother and sister were even allowed to care for the baby until he grew. Patriarchy and the power of a male ruler is undermined by these women---Hebrew midwives, mothers, sisters, and daughters. Their collaboration with the creator and each other seems to transcend their obedience to male authorities. This story shows how resilient and resourceful oppressed women are by showing them exercise the power to give life and nurture children. The God of the bible understands the role and importance of women in the ordering and nurturing and multiplying of life. Sometimes their resistance to patriarchy reveals the very will of God. Moses is drawn out of the water, a kind of second birth, from Hebrew slavery to Egyptian royalty. The implications of this plot twist will be significant. God's rescue plan needs these disobedient women, whose innate desire to save a baby will save Israel. I read this with thanksgiving for all the faithful women and mothers, doing God's will every day.
Prayer:
Thank you God for faithful women, who give and protect life. We pray for women in childbirth, for adopted children and their mothers, and for women who live in abusive households. Show mercy and bless them with your creative and nurturing powers. Amen.
Prayer
Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman. 2The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him for three months. 3When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river. 4His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him. 5 The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid to bring it. 6When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him. ‘This must be one of the Hebrews’ children,’ she said. 7Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?’ 8Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Yes.’ So the girl went and called the child’s mother. 9Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages.’ So the woman took the child and nursed it. 10When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and she took him as her son. She named him Moses,* ‘because’, she said, ‘I drew him out* of the water.’
Observation:
Fearing a growing population of Hebrews, Pharaoh ordered that all firstborn male infants be destroyed at birth. The midwives of the Hebrews, Shiphrah and Puah by name, refused to obey the order. When questioned by authorities they said that the Hebrew women gave birth before they arrived on the scene.
In another family, a priestly family, a baby boy was born. After three months of hiding, the mother sealed the baby in a basket and placed him along the Nile river bank. Pharaoh's daughter found the basket and the crying baby and felt pity. Knowing he was a Hebrew child, she asked her servant to find a nurse mother. Moses' own mother was summoned to nurse the child and was then paid by Pharaoh's daughter to do so. Eventually she adopted Moses and brought him into Pharaoh's own household. A Hebrew enters Pharaoh's own household, not as a servant, but as an adopted son.
Application:
The bible is not the story of a male deity. God's will is revealed through women as often as through men. Exodus is the story of the liberation and empowerment of an oppressed people. Moses was never supposed to take a breath. He was supposed to be killed at birth, by order of the Pharaoh. Ironically, Pharaoh's own daughter rescues Moses and raises him as her own son. Moses' mother and sister were even allowed to care for the baby until he grew. Patriarchy and the power of a male ruler is undermined by these women---Hebrew midwives, mothers, sisters, and daughters. Their collaboration with the creator and each other seems to transcend their obedience to male authorities. This story shows how resilient and resourceful oppressed women are by showing them exercise the power to give life and nurture children. The God of the bible understands the role and importance of women in the ordering and nurturing and multiplying of life. Sometimes their resistance to patriarchy reveals the very will of God. Moses is drawn out of the water, a kind of second birth, from Hebrew slavery to Egyptian royalty. The implications of this plot twist will be significant. God's rescue plan needs these disobedient women, whose innate desire to save a baby will save Israel. I read this with thanksgiving for all the faithful women and mothers, doing God's will every day.
Prayer:
Thank you God for faithful women, who give and protect life. We pray for women in childbirth, for adopted children and their mothers, and for women who live in abusive households. Show mercy and bless them with your creative and nurturing powers. Amen.
Prayer
Friday, March 11, 2016
the way out, part 1
Scripture: Exodus 1
6Then Joseph died, and all his brothers, and that whole generation. 7But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.
8 Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. 9He said to his people, ‘Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. 10Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.’ 11Therefore they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. They built supply cities, Pithom and Rameses, for Pharaoh. 12But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so that the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites. 13The Egyptians became ruthless in imposing tasks on the Israelites, 14and made their lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick and in every kind of field labor. They were ruthless in all the tasks that they imposed on them.
Observation:
Exodus is a word that literally means "The Way Out". The first chapter begins where the book of Genesis left off. Joseph was the great-grandson of Abraham and Sarah--the one's to whom God promised descendants as numerous as the stars and a land flowing with milk and honey as their home. God promised to be with them in times of trouble and to bless all nations on earth through their faithful obedience to God. (See Genesis 12-39). Joseph's story (Genesis 39-50) is a powerful story of sibling jealousy. His own brothers, envious of Joseph's special relationship with their father, sell Joseph into slavery and tell their father he was killed. Joseph becomes a servant in Egypt, but because God is with Joseph and gives him the gift of dream interpretation, Joseph rises to the rank of Pharaoh's assistant in charge of the whole agricultural economy of Egypt. He later reconciles with his brothers, who come to Egypt for food during a time of famine. Joseph rises from slavery to power, using his power to serve the nations--including both Egypt and Israel.
Now, the story continues several generations later. And the numerous people of Israel, now immigrant workers in Egypt, are enslaved for purposes of political control. Their status as respected foreigners is denied and they are forced to make bricks and build Egyptian walls. In spite of the ruthless Egyptians harsh treatment of the Israelites, they continue to multiply and spread. The population growth was alarming to the Pharaoh, who feared that they might become an opposing army and a threat to his rule.
Application: The fear politics of Pharaoh persist today in our own country. As we hear Presidential candidates talk about deporting hard-working immigrants from this country; as we hear Donald Trump say that as president he would force Mexicans to build a border wall; As we realize that the mass incarceration of people of color in the U.S. is a new form of white power and control over them; As we hear anti-Muslim rhetoric and the suggestion that a proper use of power would be to round up, identify, or even ban Muslims from the U.S., we hear this Exodus story and don't have to wonder whose side God will be on. Empire will protect itself at its own destruction. (As we will witness in the Exodus story). God provides a way out for those who are oppressed, enslaved, and abused. We see the growth in the Hispanic population in the U.S. over the last few decades right alongside the fear politics. Reading the bible alongside current events can reveal God's mind and intentions in the present day, as in the past. The bible is not a self-help book on personal growth, contrary to what many evangelical leaders might suggest (Joel Osteen, in particular). It has political stories in it that reveal divine justice. It tells these stories from the perspective of the marginalized, the oppressed, the bottom of the human pyramid. We see a God who lifts up those who are pushed down by the powerful and privileged. For us, the sign of God's grace is found in the multiplication of his people. Even in times of suffering, God's plan to spread his promised blessings persist and overcome. No ruler on earth can deny God's power. All we can do is surrender to it. So, do not be afraid. God will establish justice, sometimes with us and through us and sometimes in spite of us. May it come to us and through us and for us all.
Prayer: Lord, we pray for immigrants and their families; we pray for Mexicans and Muslims. We pray that you would raise up faithful leaders in this nation, who will treat all people with dignity and respect. Amen.
6Then Joseph died, and all his brothers, and that whole generation. 7But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.
8 Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. 9He said to his people, ‘Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. 10Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.’ 11Therefore they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. They built supply cities, Pithom and Rameses, for Pharaoh. 12But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so that the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites. 13The Egyptians became ruthless in imposing tasks on the Israelites, 14and made their lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick and in every kind of field labor. They were ruthless in all the tasks that they imposed on them.
Observation:
Exodus is a word that literally means "The Way Out". The first chapter begins where the book of Genesis left off. Joseph was the great-grandson of Abraham and Sarah--the one's to whom God promised descendants as numerous as the stars and a land flowing with milk and honey as their home. God promised to be with them in times of trouble and to bless all nations on earth through their faithful obedience to God. (See Genesis 12-39). Joseph's story (Genesis 39-50) is a powerful story of sibling jealousy. His own brothers, envious of Joseph's special relationship with their father, sell Joseph into slavery and tell their father he was killed. Joseph becomes a servant in Egypt, but because God is with Joseph and gives him the gift of dream interpretation, Joseph rises to the rank of Pharaoh's assistant in charge of the whole agricultural economy of Egypt. He later reconciles with his brothers, who come to Egypt for food during a time of famine. Joseph rises from slavery to power, using his power to serve the nations--including both Egypt and Israel.
Now, the story continues several generations later. And the numerous people of Israel, now immigrant workers in Egypt, are enslaved for purposes of political control. Their status as respected foreigners is denied and they are forced to make bricks and build Egyptian walls. In spite of the ruthless Egyptians harsh treatment of the Israelites, they continue to multiply and spread. The population growth was alarming to the Pharaoh, who feared that they might become an opposing army and a threat to his rule.
Application: The fear politics of Pharaoh persist today in our own country. As we hear Presidential candidates talk about deporting hard-working immigrants from this country; as we hear Donald Trump say that as president he would force Mexicans to build a border wall; As we realize that the mass incarceration of people of color in the U.S. is a new form of white power and control over them; As we hear anti-Muslim rhetoric and the suggestion that a proper use of power would be to round up, identify, or even ban Muslims from the U.S., we hear this Exodus story and don't have to wonder whose side God will be on. Empire will protect itself at its own destruction. (As we will witness in the Exodus story). God provides a way out for those who are oppressed, enslaved, and abused. We see the growth in the Hispanic population in the U.S. over the last few decades right alongside the fear politics. Reading the bible alongside current events can reveal God's mind and intentions in the present day, as in the past. The bible is not a self-help book on personal growth, contrary to what many evangelical leaders might suggest (Joel Osteen, in particular). It has political stories in it that reveal divine justice. It tells these stories from the perspective of the marginalized, the oppressed, the bottom of the human pyramid. We see a God who lifts up those who are pushed down by the powerful and privileged. For us, the sign of God's grace is found in the multiplication of his people. Even in times of suffering, God's plan to spread his promised blessings persist and overcome. No ruler on earth can deny God's power. All we can do is surrender to it. So, do not be afraid. God will establish justice, sometimes with us and through us and sometimes in spite of us. May it come to us and through us and for us all.
Prayer: Lord, we pray for immigrants and their families; we pray for Mexicans and Muslims. We pray that you would raise up faithful leaders in this nation, who will treat all people with dignity and respect. Amen.
Thursday, March 10, 2016
restored
Scripture: Psalm 126
Observation:
In 587 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (present-day Iran) led his army into Jerusalem and burned the city to the ground. Many Jews were slaughtered. Many were deported back to Babylon as forced labor. Those who remained were left to starve in the barren city streets. This initial crisis was followed by 70 years of exile for the Jewish people. Uprooted. No temple ( the location of their God and of their ritual religious sacrifices was destroyed). The question, "Why has God allowed this to happen to us, God's chosen people?" generated a lot of creativity. The Jews remained faithful apart from the temple by focusing on their sacred writings (the torah---1st five books of the Hebrew bible). Rabbis and synagogues were established in exile to remember God's promises and mighty deeds. Many of the prophets' writings (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel) and a lot of the book of Genesis came out of this period. Their hope was rooted in their history. God had rescued them before and God would rescue them again. They trusted God's goodness and mercy. And so they were resilient as they waited patiently for God. And after 70 years, they were freed and sent home---a new generation. They would be conquered and threatened again and again. In the 1st century world of Jesus. Even in the 20th century. But they remain because they have experienced God's faithfulness, power,and liberating intervention on their behalf.
Application:
I love this Psalm. The first line is poetry to me. Zion is another name for Jerusalem, the holy city. It is an endearing name for 'home.' Exile and return, deportation and homecoming, wandering and settling, slavery and freedom. These are major themes in the bible. Because the bible was written from the perspective of the losers and not the winners,the defeated and not the victors; the weak and not the great. These are people who have known suffering, oppression, traumatic violence, and despair. But they have the most powerful weapon of all---Hope. This Psalm is hopeful. A season of weeping will be replaced by one of laughter. Sowing seeds with tears will end with a harvest of joy. They will be restored. They will go home again. The hopeful yearning of these people made them resilient. The God of the bible doesn't prevent suffering, but shows compassion to those who suffer and brings justice to the oppressed by setting them free. Death and resurrection is the gospel's version of this perpetual story. Restoration and healing, justice and freedom don't always happen in a single life time. Generational change is the way God works. Dr. King said, "The moral arc of the universe is long and it is bent toward justice." When we get discouraged in our part of Jesus' mission to end poverty and the world's many injustices, we remember this Psalm, the stories of exile and return, the story of Jesus the healer who is wounded and killed and raised from the dead. His story will be ours. We are invited to keep the dream alive, the dream of a restored creation. Where do you see suffering and injustice? What brings you hope?
Prayer:
Lord we pray for refugees, and for any people separated from loved ones by war, incarceration, or borders. Give them hope to trust in your promise to restore their fortunes one day. Amen.
1When the Lord
restored the fortunes of Zion,
then were we like those who dream.
2Then was our mouth filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy.
3Then they said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
4The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are glad indeed.
5Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like the watercourses of the Negev.
6Those who sowed with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
7Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed,
will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves.
then were we like those who dream.
2Then was our mouth filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy.
3Then they said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
4The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are glad indeed.
5Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like the watercourses of the Negev.
6Those who sowed with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
7Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed,
will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves.
Observation:
In 587 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (present-day Iran) led his army into Jerusalem and burned the city to the ground. Many Jews were slaughtered. Many were deported back to Babylon as forced labor. Those who remained were left to starve in the barren city streets. This initial crisis was followed by 70 years of exile for the Jewish people. Uprooted. No temple ( the location of their God and of their ritual religious sacrifices was destroyed). The question, "Why has God allowed this to happen to us, God's chosen people?" generated a lot of creativity. The Jews remained faithful apart from the temple by focusing on their sacred writings (the torah---1st five books of the Hebrew bible). Rabbis and synagogues were established in exile to remember God's promises and mighty deeds. Many of the prophets' writings (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel) and a lot of the book of Genesis came out of this period. Their hope was rooted in their history. God had rescued them before and God would rescue them again. They trusted God's goodness and mercy. And so they were resilient as they waited patiently for God. And after 70 years, they were freed and sent home---a new generation. They would be conquered and threatened again and again. In the 1st century world of Jesus. Even in the 20th century. But they remain because they have experienced God's faithfulness, power,and liberating intervention on their behalf.
Application:
I love this Psalm. The first line is poetry to me. Zion is another name for Jerusalem, the holy city. It is an endearing name for 'home.' Exile and return, deportation and homecoming, wandering and settling, slavery and freedom. These are major themes in the bible. Because the bible was written from the perspective of the losers and not the winners,the defeated and not the victors; the weak and not the great. These are people who have known suffering, oppression, traumatic violence, and despair. But they have the most powerful weapon of all---Hope. This Psalm is hopeful. A season of weeping will be replaced by one of laughter. Sowing seeds with tears will end with a harvest of joy. They will be restored. They will go home again. The hopeful yearning of these people made them resilient. The God of the bible doesn't prevent suffering, but shows compassion to those who suffer and brings justice to the oppressed by setting them free. Death and resurrection is the gospel's version of this perpetual story. Restoration and healing, justice and freedom don't always happen in a single life time. Generational change is the way God works. Dr. King said, "The moral arc of the universe is long and it is bent toward justice." When we get discouraged in our part of Jesus' mission to end poverty and the world's many injustices, we remember this Psalm, the stories of exile and return, the story of Jesus the healer who is wounded and killed and raised from the dead. His story will be ours. We are invited to keep the dream alive, the dream of a restored creation. Where do you see suffering and injustice? What brings you hope?
Prayer:
Lord we pray for refugees, and for any people separated from loved ones by war, incarceration, or borders. Give them hope to trust in your promise to restore their fortunes one day. Amen.
Wednesday, March 09, 2016
the dogs
Scripture: Mark 7
24 From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre.* He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. 26Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ 28But she answered him, ‘Sir,* even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ 29Then he said to her, ‘For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.’ 30So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
Observation:
Jesus has basically left Israel and entered a predominantly Gentile territory. He is in what is now Lebanon. He has just finished teaching his position on Kosher cleanliness laws that set Jews apart from non-Jews. Jesus rejects these laws as the basis of morality and religious exclusivity. He says that what comes out of the human heart, not what one eats or does not eat,determines how faithful someone is. Its not how badly you eat that determines what kind of a person you are, but how badly you treat other people.
And then he meets a woman whose daughter is possessed. Think of her daughter as a heroin addict. Or struggling with severe schizophrenia. This woman somehow hears about Jesus (his message and mission precede him, he is known beyond the borders of Israel now). She comes seeking help. He flatly and rudely denies her. Because she is a "dog", a non-Jewish woman---a nobody to a righteous Jewish rabbi. He says, "the children are fed first." Jesus is prejudiced against her. But her humble and bold response lets him know that she believes he alone can and should help her. So he does. If he had rejected her, would his mission fail to expand and welcome Gentile women? And what would that have meant for the future of his movement? Jesus' teaching is put to an actual test. How far does inclusion in God's kingdom go? Who is eligible for help, for God's mercy, for Jesus' life-giving power? Who is ineligible?
Application:
Have you ever been ignored, rejected, or disqualified from anything because of your race, ethnicity, culture, language? If not, you experience privilege. Many people experience daily ineligibility and denied access because of those things. Because of skin color or metal illness. Prejudice and privilege seem to be natural expressions of the human condition. And yet, we are called to a higher way. Jesus' heart and mind was changed by a mother's tenacious, pride-swallowing insistence that Jesus help her daughter. Dorothy Day, activist, said "I really only love God as much as I love the person I love the least." Being on mission with Jesus will take us to new territory, outside of our safe, comfortable, suburban worlds. We will encounter people who are not like us. Will we embrace and help them? Or will we deny and reject them? Who do I love the least? Who are the "dogs" God intends for us to welcome and serve?
Prayer:
Jesus, as a Lebanese mother once challenged and changed your mind, so now challenge and change us so that we might see the person or people you need us to love and serve. Open our eyes to see and our arms to receive with mercy those who are suffering on the margins of community. Amen.
24 From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre.* He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. 26Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ 28But she answered him, ‘Sir,* even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ 29Then he said to her, ‘For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.’ 30So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
Observation:
Jesus has basically left Israel and entered a predominantly Gentile territory. He is in what is now Lebanon. He has just finished teaching his position on Kosher cleanliness laws that set Jews apart from non-Jews. Jesus rejects these laws as the basis of morality and religious exclusivity. He says that what comes out of the human heart, not what one eats or does not eat,determines how faithful someone is. Its not how badly you eat that determines what kind of a person you are, but how badly you treat other people.
And then he meets a woman whose daughter is possessed. Think of her daughter as a heroin addict. Or struggling with severe schizophrenia. This woman somehow hears about Jesus (his message and mission precede him, he is known beyond the borders of Israel now). She comes seeking help. He flatly and rudely denies her. Because she is a "dog", a non-Jewish woman---a nobody to a righteous Jewish rabbi. He says, "the children are fed first." Jesus is prejudiced against her. But her humble and bold response lets him know that she believes he alone can and should help her. So he does. If he had rejected her, would his mission fail to expand and welcome Gentile women? And what would that have meant for the future of his movement? Jesus' teaching is put to an actual test. How far does inclusion in God's kingdom go? Who is eligible for help, for God's mercy, for Jesus' life-giving power? Who is ineligible?
Application:
Have you ever been ignored, rejected, or disqualified from anything because of your race, ethnicity, culture, language? If not, you experience privilege. Many people experience daily ineligibility and denied access because of those things. Because of skin color or metal illness. Prejudice and privilege seem to be natural expressions of the human condition. And yet, we are called to a higher way. Jesus' heart and mind was changed by a mother's tenacious, pride-swallowing insistence that Jesus help her daughter. Dorothy Day, activist, said "I really only love God as much as I love the person I love the least." Being on mission with Jesus will take us to new territory, outside of our safe, comfortable, suburban worlds. We will encounter people who are not like us. Will we embrace and help them? Or will we deny and reject them? Who do I love the least? Who are the "dogs" God intends for us to welcome and serve?
Prayer:
Jesus, as a Lebanese mother once challenged and changed your mind, so now challenge and change us so that we might see the person or people you need us to love and serve. Open our eyes to see and our arms to receive with mercy those who are suffering on the margins of community. Amen.
Tuesday, March 08, 2016
majoring in the minors
Scripture: Mark 7
Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, 2they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3(For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands,* thus observing the tradition of the elders; 4and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it;* and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.*) 5So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, ‘Why do your disciples not live* according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?’ 6He said to them, ‘Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
“This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
7 in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.”
8You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.’ 9 Then he said to them, ‘You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition! 10For Moses said, “Honor your father and your mother”; and, “Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must surely die.” 11But you say that if anyone tells father or mother, “Whatever support you might have had from me is Corban” (that is, an offering to God*)— 12then you no longer permit doing anything for a father or mother, 13thus making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many things like this.’
Observation:
An initial read of this story suggests that there is some internal conflict or debate within first century Judaism having to do with interpretations of Scripture (the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament) and human-formed religious traditions or rules. Like most religions and cultures, there were purity rules that were followed to one degree or another. These cleanliness laws protected people from disease (thought to be related to evil spirits and the power of sin in the world). We know a lot more about the spread of infection now. And we know that washing hands is important for prevention. No one today would argue that purity rules are important in avoiding the spread of infection. So, what's Jesus' point? Apparently, Jesus' followers were not participating in the routine purity practices around meals. They were ignoring these traditions and eating with dirty hands. This disobedience marked them as "unclean" or "impure" and kept them outside the "safe community". But Jesus turns the matter onto their accusers, the religious leaders. He suggests that they are living as hypocrites, ignoring what truly matters in order to follow their "human traditions". They validate their own sense of "holiness" or "righteousness" as God's people, while excluding people who do not observe the way they do. Jesus is intolerant of traditions and routines that create insiders and outsiders. He's even angry about the way they use the rules to ignore greater responsibilities.
Application:
We can get stuck in routines, patterns, and habits that distract us from doing the things that truly matter. Churches (late 20th century American congregations) have too often "majored in the minors"---focusing energy and resources on things that matter only to a few "insiders" but mean nothing to the rest of the neighborhood, community, or world. Church buildings and pipe organs became religious idols that determined a congregation's financial stewardship. I have heard congregational leaders say, "We can't take care of the community until we take care of ourselves first". It's no wonder so many people have abandoned American religion.
But Jesus' movement did not have a building (not even the temple) or a fancy instrument. The only instruments were the voices and the healing hands of his followers. We need to be discerning and critical of any religious requirement that threatens to take us off mission and message The mission and message are reconciliation, forgiveness, healing, and inclusion of those who have been rejected, cast out, or marginalized in any way. We are called to embrace those as beloved children of the one God. And when routines, rituals, or religious activity gets in the way of the people we're supposed to care about, then we ought to stop doing them.
Prayer:
Lord, you are critical of religious people who care a lot about minor things, but are indifferent toward major things; congregations and churches that care about furniture and instruments, but do not care about racial or economic injustice. Keep us focused on the people and things that you care about. Give us hearts that beat like yours. Amen.
Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, 2they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3(For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands,* thus observing the tradition of the elders; 4and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it;* and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.*) 5So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, ‘Why do your disciples not live* according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?’ 6He said to them, ‘Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
“This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
7 in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.”
8You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.’ 9 Then he said to them, ‘You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition! 10For Moses said, “Honor your father and your mother”; and, “Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must surely die.” 11But you say that if anyone tells father or mother, “Whatever support you might have had from me is Corban” (that is, an offering to God*)— 12then you no longer permit doing anything for a father or mother, 13thus making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many things like this.’
Observation:
An initial read of this story suggests that there is some internal conflict or debate within first century Judaism having to do with interpretations of Scripture (the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament) and human-formed religious traditions or rules. Like most religions and cultures, there were purity rules that were followed to one degree or another. These cleanliness laws protected people from disease (thought to be related to evil spirits and the power of sin in the world). We know a lot more about the spread of infection now. And we know that washing hands is important for prevention. No one today would argue that purity rules are important in avoiding the spread of infection. So, what's Jesus' point? Apparently, Jesus' followers were not participating in the routine purity practices around meals. They were ignoring these traditions and eating with dirty hands. This disobedience marked them as "unclean" or "impure" and kept them outside the "safe community". But Jesus turns the matter onto their accusers, the religious leaders. He suggests that they are living as hypocrites, ignoring what truly matters in order to follow their "human traditions". They validate their own sense of "holiness" or "righteousness" as God's people, while excluding people who do not observe the way they do. Jesus is intolerant of traditions and routines that create insiders and outsiders. He's even angry about the way they use the rules to ignore greater responsibilities.
Application:
We can get stuck in routines, patterns, and habits that distract us from doing the things that truly matter. Churches (late 20th century American congregations) have too often "majored in the minors"---focusing energy and resources on things that matter only to a few "insiders" but mean nothing to the rest of the neighborhood, community, or world. Church buildings and pipe organs became religious idols that determined a congregation's financial stewardship. I have heard congregational leaders say, "We can't take care of the community until we take care of ourselves first". It's no wonder so many people have abandoned American religion.
But Jesus' movement did not have a building (not even the temple) or a fancy instrument. The only instruments were the voices and the healing hands of his followers. We need to be discerning and critical of any religious requirement that threatens to take us off mission and message The mission and message are reconciliation, forgiveness, healing, and inclusion of those who have been rejected, cast out, or marginalized in any way. We are called to embrace those as beloved children of the one God. And when routines, rituals, or religious activity gets in the way of the people we're supposed to care about, then we ought to stop doing them.
Prayer:
Lord, you are critical of religious people who care a lot about minor things, but are indifferent toward major things; congregations and churches that care about furniture and instruments, but do not care about racial or economic injustice. Keep us focused on the people and things that you care about. Give us hearts that beat like yours. Amen.
Monday, March 07, 2016
an adverse wind
Scripture: Mark 6:45-52.
45 Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray.
47 When evening came, the boat was out on the lake, and he was alone on the land. 48When he saw that they were straining at the oars against an adverse wind, he came towards them early in the morning, walking on the lake. He intended to pass them by. 49But when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought it was a ghost and cried out; 50for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’ 51Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, 52for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.
Observation:
After a day of teaching and feeding hungry people, Jesus spends time alone in the mountains in prayer. He sends the disciples on ahead of him. They experience an adverse wind on the lake. Without Jesus, they struggle to make headway. I always wondered about Jesus' intention to pass them by. But they do see him walking on the water and are afraid. As soon as he enters the boat, the wind stops. I also wonder about the last sentence; "they were utterly astounded for they did not understand about the loaves, but their heart were hardened". What did the mutliplication of loaves have to do with their astonishment about Jesus' power to walk on water? And what does hard heartedness have to do with this story? Are they struggling to comprehend his power? Are they failing to understand his identity as God's anointed messenger? They fail to perceive the truth about Jesus.
Application:
It's difficult to understand Jesus' actions and abilities. He is fully human like me and you; and he is somehow different. He is able to do things we cannot do. He walks on water. He calms waves. He multiplies loaves of bread. He has enough energy to teach, heal, and feed thousands of people and then abandons his disciples to remain alone on a mountain to pray. He causes fear and says "Don't be afraid." The disciples are entering D2, a season of conscious incompetence. They will fail to understand or believe Jesus, even while they watch and listen and experience him in action every day.
Think of a time when you struggle to comprehend something that was taking place; when you had a hard time learning something. We all have these challenges. They are part of any learning process. We hit a wall, a point of uncertainty, a moment of doubt when we fail to comprehend. Any life of faith that is real will encounter a D2 period, when one does not know or understand. God is gracious and patient with us when we do. It is necessary for growth to go through these times. We must face the harsh headwinds of uncertainty and ignorance, in order to experience the calm and peace of new understanding. This moment on the water will begin to prepare the disciples for another experience, in which they will see Jesus and not know how he is alive with them. Perhaps then they will remember this time and trust that what they are seeing is possible and real. Sometimes God gives us experiences we don't understand that will only become clear to us in the future.
Prayer:
Lord, sometimes we don't understand you, what you're doing or what you're teaching us. Be gracious and patient with us. Encourage us to keep following you, even when we fail to perceive your powerful presence. Amen.
45 Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray.
47 When evening came, the boat was out on the lake, and he was alone on the land. 48When he saw that they were straining at the oars against an adverse wind, he came towards them early in the morning, walking on the lake. He intended to pass them by. 49But when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought it was a ghost and cried out; 50for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’ 51Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, 52for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.
Observation:
After a day of teaching and feeding hungry people, Jesus spends time alone in the mountains in prayer. He sends the disciples on ahead of him. They experience an adverse wind on the lake. Without Jesus, they struggle to make headway. I always wondered about Jesus' intention to pass them by. But they do see him walking on the water and are afraid. As soon as he enters the boat, the wind stops. I also wonder about the last sentence; "they were utterly astounded for they did not understand about the loaves, but their heart were hardened". What did the mutliplication of loaves have to do with their astonishment about Jesus' power to walk on water? And what does hard heartedness have to do with this story? Are they struggling to comprehend his power? Are they failing to understand his identity as God's anointed messenger? They fail to perceive the truth about Jesus.
Application:
It's difficult to understand Jesus' actions and abilities. He is fully human like me and you; and he is somehow different. He is able to do things we cannot do. He walks on water. He calms waves. He multiplies loaves of bread. He has enough energy to teach, heal, and feed thousands of people and then abandons his disciples to remain alone on a mountain to pray. He causes fear and says "Don't be afraid." The disciples are entering D2, a season of conscious incompetence. They will fail to understand or believe Jesus, even while they watch and listen and experience him in action every day.
Think of a time when you struggle to comprehend something that was taking place; when you had a hard time learning something. We all have these challenges. They are part of any learning process. We hit a wall, a point of uncertainty, a moment of doubt when we fail to comprehend. Any life of faith that is real will encounter a D2 period, when one does not know or understand. God is gracious and patient with us when we do. It is necessary for growth to go through these times. We must face the harsh headwinds of uncertainty and ignorance, in order to experience the calm and peace of new understanding. This moment on the water will begin to prepare the disciples for another experience, in which they will see Jesus and not know how he is alive with them. Perhaps then they will remember this time and trust that what they are seeing is possible and real. Sometimes God gives us experiences we don't understand that will only become clear to us in the future.
Prayer:
Lord, sometimes we don't understand you, what you're doing or what you're teaching us. Be gracious and patient with us. Encourage us to keep following you, even when we fail to perceive your powerful presence. Amen.
Sunday, March 06, 2016
rebels, rule-followers, and rescuers
Based on Luke 15 and the story of the Father and his two sons.
Grace and peace from God the Father and the savior
Jesus Amen.
Two people.
Two very different worlds. The
rebel and the rule-follower. The rebel
resists authority; the rebel is self-indulgent, following his or her passions
or cravings; the rebel is not typically religious unless it benefits him or herself;
the rebel is not concerned with the law, sees himself as above the law, is
willing to break the law for selfish gain.
They are not interested in rewards or entitlements, they prefer to take
what they want; The rebel values personal freedom above all else, even if the exercise
of that freedom hurts others; The rebel likes chaos; the rebel is often not a
planner; The rebel takes risks, chooses adventure over stability; they want to
have fun; and thinks rule followers are hypocrites. The rebel lives excessively and love extravagance
and likes to share it with others; They think everyone should be a rebel.
The rule follower despises the rebel; they value
obedience above all else; they follow authority whether they agree or not; the
rule follower is self-righteous and judges others based on the rules they
follow; non-compliance is a betrayal, treasonous; rule-followers believe in
conditional rewards and entitlements, they expect to be rewarded for good
behavior; the rule-follower is religious
because it’s right to be so and because they anticipate a reward for fidelity; They
think you get what you deserve; they practice stability, consistency, hard
work, thoughtful planning, thriftiness, discipline. Think boy scout. They appreciate simplicity. They think everyone should be a rule-follower
and those who are not should be punished.
Now, a show of hands---who self-describes as a
rebel? A rule-follower? Neither?
Then you’re a rebel. Unless you
don’t think you are…then you’re a rule follower.
Some of you might think, I’m a little of both. These are generalized caricatures, to be
sure. And there’s a dark side and a light side to both, right? We can identify people who conform to these
persona though, can’t we? There are
people who rigidly follow the rules and people who go their own way. We admire people who are purists in both
camps. Superman is a rule follower. Batman is a rebel. You can be either of these and be rich or
poor, educated or uneducated, black or white, man or woman. These types cross cultural, social, economic
borders. Because they speak of the human
condition. Think of famous pairings; Cain
and Abel. Jacob and Esau. Laverne and
Shirley; Bert and Ernie.
The whole gospel is contained in the story we heard
this morning. It’s a story told to
self-righteous rule-following religious Pharisees and rebellious tax collectors
and sinners; It’s a story about these two brothers; the rebel and the rule
follower. The younger son demands his
inheritance, one third of the family property.
He wants it immediately, thus abandoning his place as a son, and
rejecting his father. You get an
inheritance after all when a loved one dies.
And his father divides it up. He
had to sell off a third of his livestock and land to pay off the younger son.
This will affect retirement and the elder son’s inheritance. No one in their
right mind does what the father does.
But people do. More often than we
care to discuss.
The younger son takes off to another country. Spends all the money on lavish living. He
goes broke and a famine strikes; when he runs out of everything, he gets a job
slopping pigs on a farm. This is rock
bottom for the Pharisees in the room. Can we get a collective “EW”? Thanks.
When he’s finally realized how bad things are, he comes up with a
plan. Highly unrebel-like. He rehearses
a speech. He doesn’t expect entitlements.
He’s willing to be hired as a laborer. He’s still not willing to be the
son.
He makes his way home. And then the father runs out to him. He does not wait for the son to come
groveling. He meets him on the
road. The son starts his routine. I wonder if he thought the father might beat
him. Instead he embraces and kisses
him. Go get the best robe in the house
(his own robe), the ring and prepare a feast.
The son is reinstated, restored, welcomed, received. He hardly apologizes. He shows up dirty and
broke. And the Father throws him a
party? What? No consequences? He says, “he was dead and is alive again, lost
and has been found.”
The elder son catches wind of it and refuses to join
the fun. Not sure this guy would know
fun if it bit him in the you know where.
He’s angry, bitter, indignant.
When the Father leaves the party to beg him to come in, the elder son
says, “All these years I have slaved for you and never disobeyed you but you never
gave me even a goat to have a party with my friends; but when this son of yours
(denying brotherhood) who spent all your money on prostitutes comes home, you
through him a party? He sees himself as
a slave, not a son. And he doesn’t want
a relationship with the father either, just enough reward to enjoy a dinner
with friends. Of course reinstatement
means the elder’s inheritance will be divided with the younger again, so he’ll
get less than 2/3 of the original estate.
The Father is concerned about only one thing; Coming
home. My sons are with me. He is willing to share everything with both
of them. He is mostly concerned about
the younger, who was dead and is alive, lost and is now found.” Will the elder son come around and embrace
his younger brother? Will they live happily ever after? What does this teach
us?
Jesus represents a third person, another way. The reconciling rescuer. He stands between the two groups, the two
brothers. He welcomes the younger rebels
home with open arms (he eats with them) and invites the elder rule followers to
open their hearts and do the same. Jesus
comes to rescue us from ourselves and to reconcile us to one another and to the
father who loves us all extravagantly, absurdly, and unconditionally. Jesus represents the rule-follower who loves to
be with the rebels. He restores the only condition of our humanity that truly
matters; we are one family to the God and Father who loves us all. Come home,
he says. Come home. Amen.
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