"Open the eyes of my heart, Lord, open the eyes of my heart, I want to see you.....to see you high and lifted up, shining in the light of your glory, pour out your power and might, as we sing holy, holy, holy,...I want to see you."
I have had that praise chorus stuck in my head the last few days as I have been thinking about the Gospel text for this next Sunday, the Sunday we call "Transfiguration Sunday" in the Christian tradition. It is the last Sunday of the Season of Epiphany and the Sunday before the beginning of Lent. Each year we examine this supernatural revelation of who Jesus is, revealed to his disciples to help them know a bit about who he was for them. For modern Christians, this text speaks to us about our need to seek the God who announced how special his son was to the disciples who followed him and how this man can be revealed to our lives too, in many special ways.
Jesus took the three people closest to him up the mountain where he wanted to pray. Peter, James, and John were the "inner circle" of the disciples, the ones who were privy to many of the inside secrets of faith that Jesus would share with them. Perhaps he included them because he needed some of his followers to know what to pass on to future generations in the Jesus Tradition that makes up a large part of the Gospels we read. These three men were with him as he was on the mountain in prayer when suddenly something fantastic and incredible and unbelievable happened. Jesus' appearance was changed before them and he was joined by two figures from Hebrew history whose end of life on earth was different than others. Moses ended his life as he crossed into the countryside away from the people of Israel and was never seen again. Elijah was taken to heaven in a chariot of fire. Both men represent the Law and the Prophets, figures that the Israelites considered righteous and holy.
Peter was so awestruck with this divine revelation that he wanted to live on the mountain with them. He suggested that a "booth" or tent be built for each one of them so that they could remain there. Perhaps these dwellings were a bit like shrines so that these disciples could behold and adore the personages before them bathed in light.
Jesus could not answer Peter in regard to his suggestion because a voice from heaven spoke from the cloud around them words that Jesus had heard at his baptism. This time, however, the words were directed at the disciples who were present--"This is my Son, my Chosen, listen to him!" The disciples knew that Jesus was a special man and teacher and could work miracles but now they had been told directly that he was the Son of God. They were nonplussed and could not speak and told no one about this special experience they had. After all, who would believe them anyway?
How do you experience the presence of God in your life? Does God come to you in silence, in nature, in the power of the thunderstorm or in the silence of a snowfall? Does God make himself known to you in the face or voice of a child, in the last breath of a loved one? Can you "see" God in the world around you as you live among and with others and experience the range of experiences that are common in life? Can you hear God's voice speaking in response to God's commandment to "Listen to him!"as God spoke to the disciples?
We are the church of the Still Speaking God, in the United Church of Christ. We believe that God is still speaking and will always be speaking to those who want to hear God's voice. We believe that there is a continuing testament of God's Word that is given daily to those who are seeking to do justice, and love mercy, and walk humbly with God. That Word of God is not written on paper but is written on the hearts of those who seek to know and serve God and their neighbor daily.
Transfiguration is a word that means change of appearance. It is closely related to the word Transformation, which is about a change of being. Even as transfiguration was known by the way Jesus looked, transformation is revealed by the way a person acts or conducts oneself. We are being transformed daily as we look and listen and watch for signs that God is speaking to us. Then, when we act according to God's Will for our lives, we continue to be transformed, day by day, little by little, until finally we leave this life and experience the greatest transformation ever, one that grants us entrance into the eternal life prepared for those who seek to follow God in this life.
"From glory to glory he's changing me....his likeness and image to perfect in me, the love of God for the world." Another song from the past that speaks to our thoughts today. May God always be at work in you to bring about God's Will and Way for your life. And may God open your eyes so you will see Jesus in the world around you as you hear God's voice speak to your spirit.
Thursday, February 4, 2016
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Home Town Boy Comes Home
What is it like to grow up in a small town and have everyone know you? Many in Weimar can relate to this because some have never left the town they grew up in while others left for their working years and have returned to retire here. What is is like to be around people who knew you when you were growing up and have memories about the person you were then but cannot seem to accept you for the person you are now?
Perhaps that is what happened when Jesus went back to Nazareth after being baptized and tested in the wilderness. Luke 4 recounts the story about Jesus reading from Isaiah 61 during his turn to read in the synagogue in Nazareth. He stood to read the Isaiah passage and then sat down to talk about it, as was the custom with rabbis in his day. All of those present watched his intently as he began, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." With those words, Jesus proclaimed to them that the one whom Isaiah declared 800 years before stood before them. Jesus was saying that it was he whom Isaiah had predicted would come one day. Could he be the Messiah?
At first everyone spoke graciously about him. After all, this was the son of Mary and Joseph. They had watched him grow up in their village. They had seen him playing with the other boys and chasing about as children do. They had watched him as he had grown and perhaps had seen him in the synagogue regularly, as was his custom. He was Jesus, the boy they all knew who had been gone for a brief period of time but was not back in his village and expected to conform to their expectations of what he should be like.
Suddenly, they did not like what they heard him say. The words of Isaiah he read were not "fulfilled" in their hearing? Did he actually think that he was the one that Isaiah had written about so long ago? Surely not, he is just the son of a carpenter, the boy who belonged to the peasant family that they all knew well.
If that brief statement made them wonder about him, what would his longer explanation do to them? Jesus went on to explain that God worked miracles among the Gentiles as well as the Jews when he spoke of the stories in the Hebrew Scriptures that told about Elijah and Elisha doing works for the widow of Zaraphath and Namaan the Syrian leper. It was as if he was telling them that God loved Gentiles as well as Jews and would do the things for them that God had promised to his chosen people, Israel.
Suddenly, their graciousness turned to anger and wrath. Suddenly, they did not want him in their presence or anywhere for that matter. They wanted him dead. So, they led him to a cliff and were going to throw him off but somehow in the confusion of it all, he escaped their grip and their wrath. Jesus went on his way, and the angry mob somehow made their way back to the city to tell each other how wrong Jesus was to say that God accepted others outside of their faith.
How is it that people can be so gracious to others when they like what they say and approve of their views but suddenly become an "angry mob" when those people voice views that are not of their liking? How is it that seemingly rational people can be turned against others simply for not speaking words that are agreeable to them? It happened to Jesus and it happens to many of us in our lives.
There is a song played on Christian radio stations from the 1970s-80s that said, "Friends are friends forever if the Lord's the Lord of them, and a friend will not say never for the welcome will not end..." It is a wonderful sentiment but the truth is that for some, friends are friends as long as they agree on everything and if they do not, then the friendship ends.
Rejection can come about as an overt act in which persons demand and tell others what they want them to think and if they do not agree then the relationship is over. Rejection can also happen as a covert act in which persons simply stop talking to others or recognizing their presence. The Jews had a phrase for it...he's (or she's) dead to me. They would simply act as if that person does not exist.
Jesus suffered rejection from the ones who knew him best in his own hometown. They expected him to be Jesus, the son of Joseph, the boy who learned the trade of being a carpenter from his father. They did not expect him to be a self-proclaimed fulfillment of ancient scripture. That made them very uncomfortable, so much so that they wanted him silenced and dead.
How do we react when persons we know speak words that make us uncomfortable? How do we feel when we read words posted on social media or hear words that come out of mouths that we respect only to change our opinion because of the weight of the words in our minds? Do we react in anger and want the person silenced? Do we give that one the benefit of the doubt and attempt to discuss our feelings rationally with them? Do we respect them despite the weight of their words in our minds and allow them to think and let us think as we wish, knowing that sometimes we have to "agree to disagree" in order to preserve a relationship?
Last week we read from I Corinthians 12 in which Paul told the Early Church that God uses people in a variety of ministries for the good for the Church. He concludes chapter 12 with the sentence, "And I will show you a still more excellent way." With that sentence, Chapter 13 begins what we call "the love chapter" of the Bible, read at more weddings than any other scripture passage. Paul writes about love and its merits and qualities to tell the Church that none of what is done in the Church has value unless the meaning behind it is love. Work done in a loving way, respecting the feelings and integrity of others, is truly worthy. Without love, what we have done is worthless.
Jesus' friends and fellow Nazarites could not love him because they hated what he said so much. His words stung them to the point that they only wanted him out of their sight, for good. They could not see beyond their anger, prejudice, and fear of the change that God might bring about if Gentiles were given equal access to the God of Israel as they had so they had to silence the speaker of the words. Once he was gone, all would be good once again. What a chilling example of human nature...both in the ancient world and still happening in our world every day.
Perhaps that is what happened when Jesus went back to Nazareth after being baptized and tested in the wilderness. Luke 4 recounts the story about Jesus reading from Isaiah 61 during his turn to read in the synagogue in Nazareth. He stood to read the Isaiah passage and then sat down to talk about it, as was the custom with rabbis in his day. All of those present watched his intently as he began, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." With those words, Jesus proclaimed to them that the one whom Isaiah declared 800 years before stood before them. Jesus was saying that it was he whom Isaiah had predicted would come one day. Could he be the Messiah?
At first everyone spoke graciously about him. After all, this was the son of Mary and Joseph. They had watched him grow up in their village. They had seen him playing with the other boys and chasing about as children do. They had watched him as he had grown and perhaps had seen him in the synagogue regularly, as was his custom. He was Jesus, the boy they all knew who had been gone for a brief period of time but was not back in his village and expected to conform to their expectations of what he should be like.
Suddenly, they did not like what they heard him say. The words of Isaiah he read were not "fulfilled" in their hearing? Did he actually think that he was the one that Isaiah had written about so long ago? Surely not, he is just the son of a carpenter, the boy who belonged to the peasant family that they all knew well.
If that brief statement made them wonder about him, what would his longer explanation do to them? Jesus went on to explain that God worked miracles among the Gentiles as well as the Jews when he spoke of the stories in the Hebrew Scriptures that told about Elijah and Elisha doing works for the widow of Zaraphath and Namaan the Syrian leper. It was as if he was telling them that God loved Gentiles as well as Jews and would do the things for them that God had promised to his chosen people, Israel.
Suddenly, their graciousness turned to anger and wrath. Suddenly, they did not want him in their presence or anywhere for that matter. They wanted him dead. So, they led him to a cliff and were going to throw him off but somehow in the confusion of it all, he escaped their grip and their wrath. Jesus went on his way, and the angry mob somehow made their way back to the city to tell each other how wrong Jesus was to say that God accepted others outside of their faith.
How is it that people can be so gracious to others when they like what they say and approve of their views but suddenly become an "angry mob" when those people voice views that are not of their liking? How is it that seemingly rational people can be turned against others simply for not speaking words that are agreeable to them? It happened to Jesus and it happens to many of us in our lives.
There is a song played on Christian radio stations from the 1970s-80s that said, "Friends are friends forever if the Lord's the Lord of them, and a friend will not say never for the welcome will not end..." It is a wonderful sentiment but the truth is that for some, friends are friends as long as they agree on everything and if they do not, then the friendship ends.
Rejection can come about as an overt act in which persons demand and tell others what they want them to think and if they do not agree then the relationship is over. Rejection can also happen as a covert act in which persons simply stop talking to others or recognizing their presence. The Jews had a phrase for it...he's (or she's) dead to me. They would simply act as if that person does not exist.
Jesus suffered rejection from the ones who knew him best in his own hometown. They expected him to be Jesus, the son of Joseph, the boy who learned the trade of being a carpenter from his father. They did not expect him to be a self-proclaimed fulfillment of ancient scripture. That made them very uncomfortable, so much so that they wanted him silenced and dead.
How do we react when persons we know speak words that make us uncomfortable? How do we feel when we read words posted on social media or hear words that come out of mouths that we respect only to change our opinion because of the weight of the words in our minds? Do we react in anger and want the person silenced? Do we give that one the benefit of the doubt and attempt to discuss our feelings rationally with them? Do we respect them despite the weight of their words in our minds and allow them to think and let us think as we wish, knowing that sometimes we have to "agree to disagree" in order to preserve a relationship?
Last week we read from I Corinthians 12 in which Paul told the Early Church that God uses people in a variety of ministries for the good for the Church. He concludes chapter 12 with the sentence, "And I will show you a still more excellent way." With that sentence, Chapter 13 begins what we call "the love chapter" of the Bible, read at more weddings than any other scripture passage. Paul writes about love and its merits and qualities to tell the Church that none of what is done in the Church has value unless the meaning behind it is love. Work done in a loving way, respecting the feelings and integrity of others, is truly worthy. Without love, what we have done is worthless.
Jesus' friends and fellow Nazarites could not love him because they hated what he said so much. His words stung them to the point that they only wanted him out of their sight, for good. They could not see beyond their anger, prejudice, and fear of the change that God might bring about if Gentiles were given equal access to the God of Israel as they had so they had to silence the speaker of the words. Once he was gone, all would be good once again. What a chilling example of human nature...both in the ancient world and still happening in our world every day.
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Coming and Going
"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven...(Ecclesiastes 3:1)
There are beginnings and endings to every part of life. The writer of Ecclesiastes states that fact and then enumerates times for different life events. A time to be born, a time to die; a time to plant, a time to harvest; a time to kill, a time to heal; a time to week, a time to laugh; a time to mourn, a time to dance. Life is full of beginnings and endings. Each ending signals a new beginning of something else. An end to childhood brings a beginning to adulthood. An end to working years bring a beginning to retirement. An end of our days brings a beginning of eternal life.
Pastors know that their ministry has beginnings and endings also. When I worked as a pastor in the United Methodist Church, my ministry setting was dictated by the Bishop and his cabinet. They directed me where to go to be in ministry and how long I would stay there. My ministry in a certain place was determined by what was good for the entire conference in which I served. If I were needed 300 miles away, I was told to move at the next annual conference.
Jesus began his ministry at his hometown synagogue in Nazareth. People gathered on the Sabbath to hear the hometown boy read the scripture and preach from it. Jesus was the guest liturgist of the day and the preacher. He stood and read from the prescribed reading of the day, from Isaiah 61, where the prophet spoke of the servant who would bring good news to the poor, sight to the blind, and the news of God's favor for all. Jesus sat down after reading, which was what the preacher would do, and then he said, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." (Luke 4:21)
It was at that point that Jesus ministry to the world around him began. Jesus told those people who knew him best, his home town folk, what he would be doing for the rest of his life. It was not something that they wanted to hear but he told them what he believed was important that he do with his life and then began to do it.
Working to bring good news to others should be something that everyone would celebrate. There are some in the world, however, who do not want good news to be brought to everyone. They believe that some are more worthy of God's favor than others. After all, they surmise, some have brought misfortune upon themselves by the way they live for by bad choices they have made. Shouldn't they have to suffer for their actions? Isn't God's favor reserved for the righteous and holy in society? And shouldn't we be the ones to decide who is righteous or holy enough to deserve God's favor? That was the thinking of those who were listening to Jesus' read and talk about what he read. His declaration that Isaiah's words were being fulfilled in and through him did not sit well with many who heard his speak.
Ministry is done, many times, among and for the very ones who are totally undeserving of favor of humans or of God. Ministry is done on behalf of many who have made bad choices in life. It is done for some whose life choices have placed them in circumstances that are undesirable or pitiful. We often look down upon them because of the way they live. Declaring God's favor for them does not say that we condone or approve of the actions of others. It says that God's grace is enough to go beyond anything that humans may do or act or think. It says that God's love reaches out far beyond what humans are capable of doing. It says that if God can love us, despite our failings and faults, then perhaps God is calling us also to love others, despite their failings or faults or misfortunes.
Jesus' ministry began on that day he preached in Nazareth. Jesus' earthly ministry ended when he died on the cross and his life as a human ended. Jesus' resurrected ministry among humans continued until he ascended to return to live with God the Father. Jesus passed on to his followers what he had begun so that we who say we believe in Jesus will do his works and greater works even because he is empowering us through the Holy Spirit.
The Church is the Body of Christ on earth equipped by the Holy Spirit to work on behalf of others who need to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ. We are a community of faith working together to proclaim that the year of God's favor is here, that God loves everyone and that no one is excluded. We, in the United Church of Christ, believe and teach that whoever you are and wherever you are on the journey of life, you are welcome in our church. We teach and believe that God's love is for all and that we are the ones with the mission to tell others that Good News. That is why we exist.
There are beginnings and endings to every part of life. The writer of Ecclesiastes states that fact and then enumerates times for different life events. A time to be born, a time to die; a time to plant, a time to harvest; a time to kill, a time to heal; a time to week, a time to laugh; a time to mourn, a time to dance. Life is full of beginnings and endings. Each ending signals a new beginning of something else. An end to childhood brings a beginning to adulthood. An end to working years bring a beginning to retirement. An end of our days brings a beginning of eternal life.
Pastors know that their ministry has beginnings and endings also. When I worked as a pastor in the United Methodist Church, my ministry setting was dictated by the Bishop and his cabinet. They directed me where to go to be in ministry and how long I would stay there. My ministry in a certain place was determined by what was good for the entire conference in which I served. If I were needed 300 miles away, I was told to move at the next annual conference.
Jesus began his ministry at his hometown synagogue in Nazareth. People gathered on the Sabbath to hear the hometown boy read the scripture and preach from it. Jesus was the guest liturgist of the day and the preacher. He stood and read from the prescribed reading of the day, from Isaiah 61, where the prophet spoke of the servant who would bring good news to the poor, sight to the blind, and the news of God's favor for all. Jesus sat down after reading, which was what the preacher would do, and then he said, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." (Luke 4:21)
It was at that point that Jesus ministry to the world around him began. Jesus told those people who knew him best, his home town folk, what he would be doing for the rest of his life. It was not something that they wanted to hear but he told them what he believed was important that he do with his life and then began to do it.
Working to bring good news to others should be something that everyone would celebrate. There are some in the world, however, who do not want good news to be brought to everyone. They believe that some are more worthy of God's favor than others. After all, they surmise, some have brought misfortune upon themselves by the way they live for by bad choices they have made. Shouldn't they have to suffer for their actions? Isn't God's favor reserved for the righteous and holy in society? And shouldn't we be the ones to decide who is righteous or holy enough to deserve God's favor? That was the thinking of those who were listening to Jesus' read and talk about what he read. His declaration that Isaiah's words were being fulfilled in and through him did not sit well with many who heard his speak.
Ministry is done, many times, among and for the very ones who are totally undeserving of favor of humans or of God. Ministry is done on behalf of many who have made bad choices in life. It is done for some whose life choices have placed them in circumstances that are undesirable or pitiful. We often look down upon them because of the way they live. Declaring God's favor for them does not say that we condone or approve of the actions of others. It says that God's grace is enough to go beyond anything that humans may do or act or think. It says that God's love reaches out far beyond what humans are capable of doing. It says that if God can love us, despite our failings and faults, then perhaps God is calling us also to love others, despite their failings or faults or misfortunes.
Jesus' ministry began on that day he preached in Nazareth. Jesus' earthly ministry ended when he died on the cross and his life as a human ended. Jesus' resurrected ministry among humans continued until he ascended to return to live with God the Father. Jesus passed on to his followers what he had begun so that we who say we believe in Jesus will do his works and greater works even because he is empowering us through the Holy Spirit.
The Church is the Body of Christ on earth equipped by the Holy Spirit to work on behalf of others who need to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ. We are a community of faith working together to proclaim that the year of God's favor is here, that God loves everyone and that no one is excluded. We, in the United Church of Christ, believe and teach that whoever you are and wherever you are on the journey of life, you are welcome in our church. We teach and believe that God's love is for all and that we are the ones with the mission to tell others that Good News. That is why we exist.
Wednesday, January 6, 2016
Happy Epiphany Day!
Today marks the end of the Christmas Season....this is the 12th day after Christmas, also called Epiphany. It celebrates the coming of the Wise Men to see the child Jesus. They are often lumped in with the shepherds in the Nativity pageants and stand alongside them in our outdoor displays, but actually they did not see Jesus when he was an infant, more like a toddler.
The story from Matthew says that they were from "the East" and often we sing the song that says they are from "the Orient" but no one really knows who they were or where they were from, simply that they were "wise men" who had observed a star rising in the sky that they thought would indicate the birth of a great person. So, they began to watch that star and to follow it. They went on their journey, not knowing where they were going or who they were looking for, but they felt an urgency that made them continue their trek even when they were unsure why or where they were going.
Epiphany is a word we use that means "revelation" or "surprise" or "a-ha". It is one of those "light bulb" moments when suddenly "we get it". Epiphany is called the season of light because it is the light of God that reveals truth to all.
The wise men finally saw that the "star had stopped" and the result was that "they were overwhelmed with joy". They journey had ended, at last. They had found what they had been looking for.
Today is a religious day. Some churches have church services. People may pause and reflect upon what it means to them to have light shine in their lives and reveal the truth to them. Most people will have the day come and go without even thinking about it.
Today begins the Season of Epiphany which lasts until the beginning of Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday, February 10. It is a small, short season during which we hear the stories of Jesus' ministry on earth again--changing water into wine, preaching in his home synagogue only to be rejected by many present, being transfigured before his disciples high on a mountain. In each story, a little light is shown on Jesus revealing who he is and what he is about. That light then shines on us to help us understand what Jesus' life and ministry means to us.
Happy Epiphany Day! Let the light of Christ so shine that others will see your good works and give praise to God in heaven for God's wondrous love.
The story from Matthew says that they were from "the East" and often we sing the song that says they are from "the Orient" but no one really knows who they were or where they were from, simply that they were "wise men" who had observed a star rising in the sky that they thought would indicate the birth of a great person. So, they began to watch that star and to follow it. They went on their journey, not knowing where they were going or who they were looking for, but they felt an urgency that made them continue their trek even when they were unsure why or where they were going.
Epiphany is a word we use that means "revelation" or "surprise" or "a-ha". It is one of those "light bulb" moments when suddenly "we get it". Epiphany is called the season of light because it is the light of God that reveals truth to all.
The wise men finally saw that the "star had stopped" and the result was that "they were overwhelmed with joy". They journey had ended, at last. They had found what they had been looking for.
Today is a religious day. Some churches have church services. People may pause and reflect upon what it means to them to have light shine in their lives and reveal the truth to them. Most people will have the day come and go without even thinking about it.
Today begins the Season of Epiphany which lasts until the beginning of Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday, February 10. It is a small, short season during which we hear the stories of Jesus' ministry on earth again--changing water into wine, preaching in his home synagogue only to be rejected by many present, being transfigured before his disciples high on a mountain. In each story, a little light is shown on Jesus revealing who he is and what he is about. That light then shines on us to help us understand what Jesus' life and ministry means to us.
Happy Epiphany Day! Let the light of Christ so shine that others will see your good works and give praise to God in heaven for God's wondrous love.
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
The Light Overcomes the Darkness
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it." (John 1:5)
Each year the Queen of England presents a Christmas Message to the people of the Commonwealth of the United Kingdom. Her message is televised for all to see and hear. She tries to reflect upon the Christmas Season and to give the citizens some hope for the year to come. This year she quoted the verse above as part of her message. She talked about how even in the darkest of days we can find light to shine in our world. She concluded by saying that if we follow Jesus and try to love one another, the light will overcome the darkness.
I watched her message on Youtube and thought, "How remarkable that the leader of a country of the world would quote from the Bible and give a bit of Christian testimony in her remarks to her citizens." Wait, though, the United Kingdom does not have separation of church and state as we do in the United States. They have an official state church, The Church of England, and the Queen serves as the head of that church, along with the Archbishop of Canterbury. The intertwining of Christian faith into the comments of the Queen of England is not exceptional. It is expected.
You see...England has a plethora of religious institutions across its land, just as we do in the United States. Everyone has freedom of religion to worship as one chooses and everyone has the right not to belong to a religious group if one so chooses. The United Kingdom, however, has an official state church and it is the Church of England and the Queen represents that church so she can say as she wishes on television as she speaks for her country and this year she shared a bit of scripture and a bit of faith with those who were watching. They did not have to agree with her but she was speaking out of her own experience to those who would hear her.
Isn't that what sharing one's faith is about? Is it not testifying to what one believes without requiring that others also believe or agree with what one has said? You and I, as well as the Queen, can voice what we believe to others as we share our faith but we can also allow others to have the freedom to believe what they will without requiring that they think or believe as we do.
Our church denomination, the United Church of Christ, has similar beliefs when it comes to faith sharing. We do our mission work through our mission division, along with the Disciples of Christ church, in that same way, reaching out to all, but not trying to convert others who have their own faith tradition, making them think that their faith tradition is less authentic to our own. We believe in shining the light in the darkness but do not call what other believe as darkness if they see their faith tradition as a path to God as we see our own in that way.
John's Gospel begins with a section that gives a clue as to what the rest of the Gospel will present. Again and again, John's Jesus encounters people whose eyes are not opened and they live in darkness and suddenly because of the life and ministry of Jesus they can see, both naturally and spiritually. The light of Jesus shines in the darkness of the world and the darkness cannot overcome it.
We live in a dark world in many ways. There are some who would do violence against others and say they are doing the will of God. They are some who will advocate mistreating others and say they are Christians while doing it. The light shines in the darkness and points the way and the way it points to is the way of the man who called himself "the way, the truth, the life". God sent his son Jesus to be the light to shine in the darkness and the darkness will never overcome it or be able to put it out. We are the ones to testify to the light, even as John did, and what we say to others may shine light into the darkness they may be experiencing in life.
Each year the Queen of England presents a Christmas Message to the people of the Commonwealth of the United Kingdom. Her message is televised for all to see and hear. She tries to reflect upon the Christmas Season and to give the citizens some hope for the year to come. This year she quoted the verse above as part of her message. She talked about how even in the darkest of days we can find light to shine in our world. She concluded by saying that if we follow Jesus and try to love one another, the light will overcome the darkness.
I watched her message on Youtube and thought, "How remarkable that the leader of a country of the world would quote from the Bible and give a bit of Christian testimony in her remarks to her citizens." Wait, though, the United Kingdom does not have separation of church and state as we do in the United States. They have an official state church, The Church of England, and the Queen serves as the head of that church, along with the Archbishop of Canterbury. The intertwining of Christian faith into the comments of the Queen of England is not exceptional. It is expected.
You see...England has a plethora of religious institutions across its land, just as we do in the United States. Everyone has freedom of religion to worship as one chooses and everyone has the right not to belong to a religious group if one so chooses. The United Kingdom, however, has an official state church and it is the Church of England and the Queen represents that church so she can say as she wishes on television as she speaks for her country and this year she shared a bit of scripture and a bit of faith with those who were watching. They did not have to agree with her but she was speaking out of her own experience to those who would hear her.
Isn't that what sharing one's faith is about? Is it not testifying to what one believes without requiring that others also believe or agree with what one has said? You and I, as well as the Queen, can voice what we believe to others as we share our faith but we can also allow others to have the freedom to believe what they will without requiring that they think or believe as we do.
Our church denomination, the United Church of Christ, has similar beliefs when it comes to faith sharing. We do our mission work through our mission division, along with the Disciples of Christ church, in that same way, reaching out to all, but not trying to convert others who have their own faith tradition, making them think that their faith tradition is less authentic to our own. We believe in shining the light in the darkness but do not call what other believe as darkness if they see their faith tradition as a path to God as we see our own in that way.
John's Gospel begins with a section that gives a clue as to what the rest of the Gospel will present. Again and again, John's Jesus encounters people whose eyes are not opened and they live in darkness and suddenly because of the life and ministry of Jesus they can see, both naturally and spiritually. The light of Jesus shines in the darkness of the world and the darkness cannot overcome it.
We live in a dark world in many ways. There are some who would do violence against others and say they are doing the will of God. They are some who will advocate mistreating others and say they are Christians while doing it. The light shines in the darkness and points the way and the way it points to is the way of the man who called himself "the way, the truth, the life". God sent his son Jesus to be the light to shine in the darkness and the darkness will never overcome it or be able to put it out. We are the ones to testify to the light, even as John did, and what we say to others may shine light into the darkness they may be experiencing in life.
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
The Journey
When I was taking psychology in undergraduate school in preparation for serving as a school counselor, I learned that in the 1950s there was a psychological movement based on the power of positive thinking that instructed everyone to arise each morning, look into the mirror, and say to oneself, "Everyday in every way, I am getting better and better." If one did that each day and truly believed that what one said was the truth, then internally it was supposed to make a difference in the way one lived.
That idea reminds me of a skit that was on Saturday Night Live when Al Franken was part of the cast. He portrayed a character who was on television who also believed in the power of positive thinking and he would look into a mirror and say to himself, "I'm good enough, and I'm strong enough, and doggonit, people like me." It was always funny and at times he would have guest stars who would do this with him. Perhaps this was a parody on that earlier strain of pop psychology.
Whether or not it was based on pop psychology, thinking positively about life is a good idea. In this age of fear mongering by many in society, where isolationism seems to be promoted as the way to deal with the unknown, it is easy to become afraid of strangers or to want to close ourselves in and not enjoy life as we desire. Thinking in a positive way about life encourages new relationships and opens us up to new possibilities that we may not have expected in our lives. It offers us new enjoyment that we may give us a sense of fulfillment.
The book of Philippians offers advice on this very topic in chapter 4 when Paul wrote to the church at Philippi and told them, "Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." (4:8) In other words, fill your mind with good things and the negative things will not overwhelm you.
Life is a journey and as we travel along from birth to death we can become better human beings or ones that others would rather not be around. Our lives can be blessings or hindrances to others on their own journeys. We make choices to live so that others may be blessed with our joy and the good that we can do.
Every day in every way, we ARE getting better and better, as we walk the journey of life and attempt to make others on the journey also to experience the better in life. We will not always make the right choices and make unintentionally harm others. But our good intentions to continue to live in a constructive manner will outweigh our minor indiscretions now and then. Live in a way that is pleasing to God and helpful to neighbors and know that God will be with us as we travel daily.
That idea reminds me of a skit that was on Saturday Night Live when Al Franken was part of the cast. He portrayed a character who was on television who also believed in the power of positive thinking and he would look into a mirror and say to himself, "I'm good enough, and I'm strong enough, and doggonit, people like me." It was always funny and at times he would have guest stars who would do this with him. Perhaps this was a parody on that earlier strain of pop psychology.
Whether or not it was based on pop psychology, thinking positively about life is a good idea. In this age of fear mongering by many in society, where isolationism seems to be promoted as the way to deal with the unknown, it is easy to become afraid of strangers or to want to close ourselves in and not enjoy life as we desire. Thinking in a positive way about life encourages new relationships and opens us up to new possibilities that we may not have expected in our lives. It offers us new enjoyment that we may give us a sense of fulfillment.
The book of Philippians offers advice on this very topic in chapter 4 when Paul wrote to the church at Philippi and told them, "Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." (4:8) In other words, fill your mind with good things and the negative things will not overwhelm you.
Life is a journey and as we travel along from birth to death we can become better human beings or ones that others would rather not be around. Our lives can be blessings or hindrances to others on their own journeys. We make choices to live so that others may be blessed with our joy and the good that we can do.
Every day in every way, we ARE getting better and better, as we walk the journey of life and attempt to make others on the journey also to experience the better in life. We will not always make the right choices and make unintentionally harm others. But our good intentions to continue to live in a constructive manner will outweigh our minor indiscretions now and then. Live in a way that is pleasing to God and helpful to neighbors and know that God will be with us as we travel daily.
Monday, December 7, 2015
All Fired Up and Washed Clean!
The Prophet Malachi predicted that a messenger would come to prepare the way for what God wanted to do for the people of Judah and Jerusalem. The messenger would come, "but who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?" (3:2) This messenger would purify those who needed purification. He would be like "a refiner's fire" and "like fuller's soap" burning away every fault and sin and washing away every impurity. The ones who needed the most purification, according to Malachi, were "the son of Levi", the priestly tribe, the ones charged to process the rituals of the Temple, the ones that took the animal presented to atone for the sins of worshipers and slaughtered it on the altar in the area near the Holy of Holies. The priestly tribe was not always completely righteous themselves though and needed sacrifice given on their behalves to wash away their own sins.
So, Malachi predicts that one would come whose effect on them would be to purify their actions and cleanse their sins even as a fire hot enough to melt metal could do and a soap harsh enough to wash away a bit of skin along with the dirt as one used it to do the laundry as well as clean one's body. The messenger of the Lord would purify the priests along with those offering sacrifices until the sacrifice they gave would be pleasing to the Lord.
Fast forward 500 years or so, and up steps John the Baptist on the banks of the Jordan River, yelling out at all who would listen that they need to submit to his baptism for the purpose of repentance. Calling his listeners broods of vipers, he told them to change their ways as well as to be dipped in the water as a symbol of their new life to come. Their family heritage was not important to him. Instead, it was obedience to the message he preached that would bring a change in their lives.
Tax collectors and soldiers were among the crowd listening to John and they asked what they should do in order to escape the wrath of God that he said was coming. Share, give to others, do not cheat, be satisfied with what you have....good advice to live by. "So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people." (Luke 3:18)
Is being subjected to fire and soap good news for the masses? For John's crowd, it seemed to be what they needed to hear. Clean up your act, John would say, and your life will be much better.
Perhaps John's message to his First Century listeners is one that is relevant for today's world also. Many people seem to have no direction in life and go about in patterns of life that bring them and others misery and pain and confusion. Maybe what Malachi and John offered the ancient world is what continues to be needed in modern society in order for peace to truly be the order of the day.
The messenger that Malachi predicted would bring about righteousness through a purification process that would be painful or uncomfortable to say the least. Israel had experienced that purification again and again as their land was overrun by foreign armies and their citizens were killed or taken into exile. Each time they rebounded and began again in the land God had given them, they were faithful to the Covenant for a while and then began to stray away from what God had instructed them to do. Purification happened again and again and each time the People called Israel learned more about how God would have them to live.
We, as individuals, as members of a country and society, are much like the people that Malachi and John spoke to. We forget the lessons we learned in the past and go our own ways to do what we think is right. Time and again, experiences happen that provide purification and cleansing. They teach us how to live as we reflect upon them and compare them to what we know from our study of God's Word. John's advice to those in the First Century was simple....be kind and share what you have and treat others the way you would want to be treated. This Messenger spoke as the one he was preparing for would do. Jesus' words to the crowds who heard him were exactly this same message. Those words are ones we need to hear again today, in the complex, confusing world we live in also.
So, Malachi predicts that one would come whose effect on them would be to purify their actions and cleanse their sins even as a fire hot enough to melt metal could do and a soap harsh enough to wash away a bit of skin along with the dirt as one used it to do the laundry as well as clean one's body. The messenger of the Lord would purify the priests along with those offering sacrifices until the sacrifice they gave would be pleasing to the Lord.
Fast forward 500 years or so, and up steps John the Baptist on the banks of the Jordan River, yelling out at all who would listen that they need to submit to his baptism for the purpose of repentance. Calling his listeners broods of vipers, he told them to change their ways as well as to be dipped in the water as a symbol of their new life to come. Their family heritage was not important to him. Instead, it was obedience to the message he preached that would bring a change in their lives.
Tax collectors and soldiers were among the crowd listening to John and they asked what they should do in order to escape the wrath of God that he said was coming. Share, give to others, do not cheat, be satisfied with what you have....good advice to live by. "So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people." (Luke 3:18)
Is being subjected to fire and soap good news for the masses? For John's crowd, it seemed to be what they needed to hear. Clean up your act, John would say, and your life will be much better.
Perhaps John's message to his First Century listeners is one that is relevant for today's world also. Many people seem to have no direction in life and go about in patterns of life that bring them and others misery and pain and confusion. Maybe what Malachi and John offered the ancient world is what continues to be needed in modern society in order for peace to truly be the order of the day.
The messenger that Malachi predicted would bring about righteousness through a purification process that would be painful or uncomfortable to say the least. Israel had experienced that purification again and again as their land was overrun by foreign armies and their citizens were killed or taken into exile. Each time they rebounded and began again in the land God had given them, they were faithful to the Covenant for a while and then began to stray away from what God had instructed them to do. Purification happened again and again and each time the People called Israel learned more about how God would have them to live.
We, as individuals, as members of a country and society, are much like the people that Malachi and John spoke to. We forget the lessons we learned in the past and go our own ways to do what we think is right. Time and again, experiences happen that provide purification and cleansing. They teach us how to live as we reflect upon them and compare them to what we know from our study of God's Word. John's advice to those in the First Century was simple....be kind and share what you have and treat others the way you would want to be treated. This Messenger spoke as the one he was preparing for would do. Jesus' words to the crowds who heard him were exactly this same message. Those words are ones we need to hear again today, in the complex, confusing world we live in also.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)