Category Archives: joy

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For Sunday, 12.15.19

Readings

Isaiah 35:1-10  •  Psalm 146:5-10  •  Luke 1:46b-55  •  James 5:7-10  •  Matthew 11:2-11

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Psalm 146:5-10 (Responsive Reading)

Psalm 146 has been called a summary of the entire Bible.  If you back up to the beginning of the chapter you see a call to worship God followed by an explanation why we worship the unseen God instead of a King, Prince, or any Person – because those humans are just like us….we/they all come from the dust and will return to the dust. Then we have an explanation what it means to us when our trust is in God and our praise is to God.  A preparatory statement about the coming Messiah (Jesus) rounds out the Psalm which ends where it starts – Praising God.

Isaiah 35:1-10

While most of Isaiah is a call to the people to turn back to God, chapter 35 seems to give them a glimpse of what is waiting when they return. Their eventual is described as a desert blooming after a long drought which will back every element of life that has been absent.  The prophet speaks of the return involving a ‘highway’ which is a holy path where there is no wickedness – a highway that will be clear and understandable for those who choose to travel on it.  While the ‘highway’ was a description of what was awaiting the people after their time of correction and return, it is an equally a portrayal of our salvation journey.

Luke 1:46b-55

Our Luke passage is a song penned, and sung, by the young teenager – Mary, as she settled into the reality of God’s radical plan for her life.  While this is often portrayed, and sung, in a very passive and sweet tone, it is actually very bold and a defiant message of a young girl as she sits at the intersection of God’s plan and the expectations of her world.  Mary, singing or voicing, her inward submission and acceptance of God’s will, is following a long tradition of defiant speaking/singing (see Exodus 15:1bc; 13, 1 Samuel 2:4-5, 7; and verses 7-9 of our Psalm for this week). In voicing her acceptance of God’s plan, Mary says that ‘God has done’ great things for me’ – a statement that is surely bizarre for a young teenager who is about to see her life turned upside down.  Facing rejection, isolation, loneliness, humiliation, judgement, condemnation, and hatred, Mary’s faith and acceptance of God’s path is based on what she knows of God and her trust in him.  Mary has an amazing grasp on God’s love and is able to surrender the entirety of her life to his will.

James 5:7-10

This passage from James may seem oddly placed in the middle of the Advent season.  James is calling the readers, a people who were clearly facing their own times of difficulty and trials, to wait patiently for the return of Christ.  While it may be odd, the message is very clearly a call to believers from the time of creation.  The question ‘where is my hope, where is by strength, where is my rescue?’ is the question of humanity.  It was the quest of the Israelites as they waited for God’s rescue from the exile and slavery, it was the quest as the faithful looked forward to the coming Messiah, and it is our quest as we await the return of Christ.  James’ call to the people is to be patient while they continue on with life, treat others with love and respect, and to trust God throughout their trials, victories, and life.

Matthew 11:2-11

Our gospel passage takes us over three decades beyond the nativity to John the  Baptist who is at an extreme low point.  A ruler (Herod) has imprisoned John and, unbeknown to John, will soon have him beheaded.  John is wondering about everything, doubt and desperation are present as he is asks if he was right to trust that Jesus was, and is, the promised Messiah.  In his own reality of exhaustion and fear, John, understandably, needs affirmation that he has not followed the wrong path; he needs to know that he has been on the correct highway (see our Isaiah passage).  The interesting response of Jesus Christ is not to proclaim the miracles he has performed, he does not point to the attention of powerful and rich people he has received, nor does he list the ways in which he has fulfilled the prophecies – instead, Jesus says ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.’  Jesus proves himself by reminding John of the life and acts of love, mercy, compassion, and grace.  Jesus then gives John a gentle affirmation in reminding him of God’s love that has been, in particular, directed at John throughout, and even before, his life, and in no lesser way; Jesus reveals to John that this love is even more at work during this time of isolation.  Sometimes we need a reminder of love when hope and peace seems fleeting.

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11.17.19

Readings

Psalm 98  •  Isaiah 65:17-25  •  Malachi 4:1-2a5  •  2 Thessalonians 3:6-13  •  Luke 21:5-19

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Psalm 98 (Responsive Reading)

Once again we are reminded that only God is truly God.  Last week we saw King David himself proclaim that an earthly King is not, and never will be, God. Psalm 98 takes that acknowledgement a bit further by proclaiming the fact that God is God is enough to call us to a joyful praise in the midst of every circumstance and situation.  Not only does our recognition of God bring us to praise but it also brings us to a joy filled trust in God as the one that judges each of us. A true knowledge of God brings us to a expectation of the new and renewed he brings to us.

Isaiah 65:17-25

In this third part of the book of Isaiah, the prophet begins to tell the people what God will do after the exile.  During the time in Babylon, the exiled Jews had been slaves, building houses for others to live in and basically never seeing the fruits of their labors.  In this look at the future, Isaiah tells the people that God is creating something new where they will see the fruits, experience health, and know freedom.  More importantly, the people will not remember the pain of their path and will experience forgiveness of their sin.  While this prophesy is often used by Christian eschatologist, it is directly written to the exiled Israelites to grab hold and prepare to be a part of this new work that God is doing.  It is a call to watch and work, mostly, however, it is a call to trust God.

Malachi 4:1-2a5

Malachi is the final book of the Old Testament addressing the people after the exile and after temple is rebuilt.  While being a prophesy of certain hope, Malachi is primarily pronouncing the sinful nature of the priests and people.  In the short time since the exiles have returned, rebuilt the temple and restored Jerusalem and Judah, they have also turned their backs on God once again. This short passage from Malachi confronts the sin of the people while reminding them, once again, of the healing and restoration that awaits at their return to God.

2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

The church at Thessalonica was a community of believers that truly needed each other.  They were considered an enigmatic group to the non-believers of the city and a threat to the political and religious leaders.  Most in the church at Thessalonica did not have a Jewish past and were susceptible to the false teachers traveling through the area.  They also were faced actual persecution and, sometimes, were not allowed the basic freedoms of purchasing food and needed goods for their own survival.  They needed each other to help navigate life and faith.  There were those in their midst who had a very questionable faith combined with a draining one sided manner of relating.  They were not really functioning members of the Christian community but rather were selfishly using the other believers.  Paul tells the church to treat these questionable believers with the love of a brother while, at the same time, not permitting them to cause an undue burden on, or a distraction to, the church.

Luke 21:5-19

Jesus is now in the temple at Jerusalem with his disciples during the week leading up to his crucifixion.  As they stand in the temple an elderly widow give all that she has in the offering but the followers of Christ only seem to notice the man-made beauty of the building and ornaments. Jesus confronts their inability to see the sacrifice of the widow and instead focusing on things that will soon be torn down and destroyed.  As Christ points out their failure to see God’s work he addresses their priorities and faith knowing that they are soon to face a loss that will challenge everything they see as valuable.

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Sunday, September 29, 2019

 

Lectionary Readings

Lamentations 1:1-6; 3:19-26  •  Psalm 37:1-9  •  Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4

2 Timothy 1:1-14  • Luke 17:5-10

 

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Jeremiah 32:1-15

The prophet Jeremiah is now in prison for not being nice and affirming to King Zedekiah and the leaders.  These men have quit listening to Jeremiah, the true prophet of God, and instead, begun to pay homage to the false prophets who are speaking a message in line with the deceptive words of the King and leaders.  King Zedekiah has continually postponed the execution of Jeremiah in hopes that he will ‘come around’ and be more ‘agreeable’.  Jeremiah, however, continues to line up with the prophesies of Isaiah telling the people that they need to turn back to God in order to avoid disaster.  The people are acting religious while rejecting God and all that he has instructed them.  They have destroyed their environment, as well as their protection and sustenance. The irony is that while Jeremiah is in prison for speaking truth, and the King and leaders continue to ignore his message, the prophecies are actually coming true.  The armies of Nebuchadnezzar are besieging Jerusalem, and Judah is on the brink of disaster.  Now, from the restraints of imprisonment, Jeremiah gives the people a glimpse of truth and hope through a ‘skin in the game’ illustration.

I Timothy 6:1-19

The books of First and Second Timothy are letters written to a young man named Timothy who was being mentored by the Apostle Paul.  Timothy was a ‘skin in the game’ person….in a literal and figurative sense.  Being born of a Jewish (now Christian) mother and a Greek father, Timothy was not raised Jewish and therefore not circumcised.  Since he was a leader in the church at Lystra, Timothy agreed to be circumcised in order to be more acceptable to the Jewish believers, even though it was not required.  Paul’s letters to Timothy led him to confront false beliefs and teach the church how to be the Christians and, collectively, the Church. Paul tells Timothy to not let his age get in the way of his position and message.  The letters to Timothy still cause tension and confusion in the church today as they speak to issues of women, slavery, and deep theological issues that can be confusing and alarming.  In this passage, the issue of choosing God over self is the primary focus but alarmingly begins by targeting a population of people – slaves who seem to have little choice in their own lives once they leave the church gatherings.

Psalm 146

Our responsive reading is the first of five ‘joyous’ songs each proclaiming praise as well as calling for followers to keep God at the core of their life.

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backstory headingFor Sunday, September 15, 2019

 

Lectionary Readings

Numbers 21:4-9  • Exodus 32:7-14  •  Psalm 51:1-10; 78:34-38  •  Jeremiah 4:4-9 

I Timothy 1:12-17  •  John 3:13-17  •  Luke 15:1-10 (C)

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A People, A Prophet, and God

Exodus 32:7-14 – After the people had experienced God’s act of freeing them from slavery in Egypt, parting the sea, constantly providing, naming them his ‘treasured possession’ and instructing them to be ‘a priestly kingdom and holy nation’, and, after he gave the commandments which began with ‘You shall have no other gods before me’, the people turned from God to other gods.  While Moses was on the mountain speaking with God, the people became impatient waiting for Moses and built an idol like they had in slavery. A heated debate between Moses and God, in response to the actions of the people, ensues.

Numbers 21:4-9 – Once again we see these same people failing to remember God.  This account takes place after the people have proven they did not trust God enough to enter the Promised Land and are now wandering in the desert until the next generation is grown.  Much like most of us, this group of humans are frequently unpleasant to be around – the become dissatisfied with Moses’ leadership and God’s provisions.  They complain about Moses and God.

Hopelessness with Hope

Jeremiah 4:11-28 – We have been looking at the persistent refusal of the people (centuries after entry into the Promised Land) to turn back to God.  Through the warnings of the prophet of Isaiah, and then Jeremiah, the people have refused to see and hear what God is communicating through these prophets.  Instead, they have continued a false Godless religion while progressively turning to the untruths of the politicians, religious leaders, and false prophets who who say things much more pleasant to hear.  Now, the time for cautions and warnings has come to an end.  It is the end of opportunities, and God is not changing his mind, however, his proclamation of doom comes also with a promised hope.

And then there is Joy

Luke 15:1-10 – Jesus is surrounded by religious leaders who are complaining and grumbling about the company that Jesus keeps.  They cannot grasp the fact that he is hanging around with ‘undesirables’.  Jesus responds to their negativity by pointing them to the Joy of God which he desires for us to have in our lives.

Joy Revealed

Psalm 51:1-10 – Our responsive reading this Sunday focuses on the personal experience of Joy that takes place in our own life when we turn back to God. In this Psalm, written by David, we see his recognition of his sin and need for reconciliation with God. It is an experience of repentance, joy, and hope.