It's Philip and the Brain!

Scripture:

Isaiah 1:18-20
18 Come now, let us argue it out,
says the Lord:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be like snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.
19 If you are willing and obedient,
you shall eat the good of the land;
20 but if you refuse and rebel,
you shall be devoured by the sword;
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Galatians 3:17-18

17 My point is this: the law, which came four hundred thirty years later, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise. 18 For if the inheritance comes from the law, it no longer comes from the promise; but God granted it to Abraham through the promise.

Observation:

I have often been struck by what I perceived to be a conflict alive in scripture. Case in point, Isaiah 1. There in the span of three short verses (and certainly not just there!) something is offered and then seemingly pulled back. Verse eighteen declares what will be in the future in a way that has power to achieve the declaration. We have a simple english word for such a type of speech that packs power to create: promise. (In Christian circles we might also say, "gospel".)

But, in the very next verses, the enacted promise seems to be unravelling through a series of qualifications: 
      "if ...then...shall".

I have struggled in the past to wonder how to reconcile such 

passages. Is our identity as "chosen-of-God" secure; or, is it 

conditional upon our "right-behaviour".

In a book called "Covenant and Kingdom", Mike Breen likewise identifies two major themes that run throughout scripture. However, rather than place them in competition with one another, he describes how they related to one another. He treats the tension between them as something to be upheld rather than as something to be resolved.

I have found these two "triangles" to be helpful in interpreting scripture. I wonder if you might too?

(Below - from "Covenant and Kingdom: The DNA of the Bible", Mike Breen, 2010, 3DM)


"Covenant is the way in which the Bible describes and defines relationship: first our relationship with God and then our relationship with everyone else."

Covenant:
Father(God) --> Identity --> Obedience

"Kingdom is the way in which the Bible describes and defines responsibility: first, our responsibility to represent God to the people we know and then to everyone else."

Kingdom:
King (God) --> Authority --> Power

Application: 

Today (just like every other day, Pinky!) 

I will let God tell me who I am; then, let my decisions and 

actions follow from that beautiful security and freedom. 

Having said all that, do you read/hear today's Moravian Texts 

prayer differently?

Prayer:

Father/King, you are ever patient with our inaction. Help us to drown out the noise so that we can hear your voice. Hold us in your arms so that we can let go of fears that hold us back. We look forward to following you. Amen.

There's a New Sheriff in Town

Today I read through all the assigned readings in my devotional and felt a giant "whoosh". I wish I could say it was the Holy Spirit moving powerfully into the neighbourhood of my brain and heart. Alas, the sound was numerous passages of holy scripture zooming over my head.

Does this every happen to you? You read the words on the page, but for whatever reason they fail to connect.

I find Paul's letters to be like that oftentimes - especially when I am reading them in smaller sections. The arguments are so involved and dynamic that it can be all-too easy to lose track of the forest through the trees.

When that happens, sometimes switching to a new translation can help. On days like today when I am feeling particularly dense, I turn to one of two favourites - The Message, or the Amplified version. Today I turned to The Message and I am so glad I did.

By the way, if you are not a raging church nerd with numerous Bible translations available in hard copy, you might want to check out this website:

https://www.biblegateway.com

It will let you search, study and read scripture in tons of translations for free! We like free.

Scripture:

Galatians 2:15-3:5 (The Message)

19-21 What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Observation:  

I grew up dreaming of being a cowboy. In the tales of the Wild West, the "Law men" were often the heroes who brought order to chaos with their strength and resolve. According to the rules of the "world as it is" "Law men" are esteemed and powerful. But the King of Heaven is not impressed by even the squarest jawed sheriff.

I am tired of "working my head off" to try and impress God and bring order to the chaos of this world and my own life. Thankfully, in Jesus Christ, there is a new Sheriff in town. This Sheriff has received authority to command the elements, cast out demons, heal the sick and forgive the sinful. And, although the Sheriff won't tolerate any challenges to his badge, he does seem to be looking for faithful deputies he can trust.

Application: 

Thanks to Eugene Petersen's knack for bringing the teachings of scripture into evocative language that connects to my reality, I am reminded today that faith is not about mastery. I do not need to master scripture any more than I can master a volcano. I do not have to grasp God's big plan for my life or yours. I am free to follow the marching orders of my Sheriff.

Wanna try it? Follow me as I follow Him.

Prayer:

Jesus, you are the Way and the Truth and the Light. Help me to follow obediently; to question humbly, and to see clearly. Amen.

Scripture:

2 Corinthians 1:21-22 21 "But it is God who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us, 22 by putting his seal on us and giving us his Spirit in our hearts as a first installment." 

Observation:

As followers of Christ of the Lutheran persuasion we posses this dogged, disciplined confession: that we receive salvation as God's gift freely offered. We have been given this gift to bear to the rest of the church universal and through it into the ends of the Earth. Our theology of justification is richly Christocentric; and that is almost unfailingly a good thing. Almost. 
I believe the shadow cast by this theological mountain darkens much of what God would otherwise bring to light for us about the invitation into life abundant (Sanctification) through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. 

Well, that's a mouthful, but what's my point?

 I wonder if paying more attention to the 

dynamic and expansive love travelling between the 

Father and the Son 

- gathering others in as She weaves back and forth - 

could enliven our experience of faith 

on a day to day basis.  

And, maybe that is the Holy Spirit's point too.

Passages like 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 invite and challenge us to move beyond our staid dogmatic assertions (even cherished ones like Justified by Grace alone through Faith alone) towards the messiness demanded to engage the real questions and problems of our neighbours and communities. 

Application: 

I am tempted to be an observer of faith, content to sit on the sidelines of life assured that salvation is a done deal. I cherish the security and humility of the faith tradition I have grown up in and I am not advocating throwing away this beautiful understanding of how God stoops to conquer and rescue. But, it seems to me that not too many people I know are wresting with a sense of insecurity with respect to salvation. Rather, the fundamental questions of our time are existential, asking not "how can I survive?" but, "what does it all mean?"
It's a move from head to heart that I sense God's Spirit of live inviting me to embark upon. Care to join me?

Prayer:

Veni sancte Spiritus! Catch me up in your grace and take me where you will. Amen.

What If?

I don't have a lot of time or energy for reading the "rapture-index" to see how close (or not) we are to the "end-times".  It seems a fools errand.  For thousands of years, people have looked at the "disasters of the world" and longed for God to intervene in a definitive way.

I get the longing.  I mean, the world can be a pretty brutal place, what with earthquakes ravaging Nepal, systemic racism and violence taking out people of colour in the US and Canada, loved ones suffering overtly or secretly from diseases of the body and of the mind ...  What else can we do but to cry out: "How long, Oh Lord!"?

But here's the thing: although scripture is full of promises -  including the promise that God will act to bring all of creation to its fulfillment in a mighty act of redemption, judgement and restoration - no where are we led to believe that we can know when or where this will take place.  It simply is not ours to know.

So, what if, rather than measuring the temperature of the disease and chaos of our surroundings to try and predict when God will finally have had enough, what if we choose to live like the kingdom of God is already here?  What would it look like for us to embrace and to enact the hope we have for ourselves, our loved ones, our neighbours ... the whole cosmos?

What if, instead of waiting on the rapture, we wait upon the Lord?  What if, instead of waiting to be rescued and delivered from this world, we lean into the hope that we have already been rescued from sin and death and all empty promises?  What if, we have been rescued in order to aide and abet the delivery of this world as its wise, servant mid-wives?

Lord,  what if I stop wondering when You will act?  Please, open my eyes to see that You have acted, and that Your actions of invitation (redemption) and challenge (judgment) are ongoing.

Amen.

Scripture:

Romans 4:20-25The Message (MSG)

19-25 Abraham didn’t focus on his own impotence and say, “It’s hopeless. This hundred-year-old body could never father a child.” Nor did he survey Sarah’s decades of infertility and give up. He didn’t tiptoe around God’s promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God would make good on what he had said. That’s why it is said, “Abraham was declared fit before God by trusting God to set him right.” But it’s not just Abraham; it’s also us! The same thing gets said about us when we embrace and believe the One who brought Jesus to life when the conditions were equally hopeless. The sacrificed Jesus made us fit for God, set us right with God.

Observation:

Paul's letters are so incredibly constructed; with meaning piled upon meaning, and interpretation piled upon interpretation. 
I am convinced they are better heard than read. And, again, when reading them aloud, attention to the details and the thrust of the argument being offered must be attended to. Even still, sometimes it is good to look to a more interpretive translation (like the Message, above). I find this often unlocks a new angle or dimension of the passage's meaning.

Throughout today's readings and prayers, I hear a distinct urging to follow Abraham's lead and to "dive in" to the promise we have, by God's grace.

In the last month or so, my daughter has begun to get brave about jumping off the diving board at the local swimming pool. Recently, she jumped off without a life-jacket for the first time. Now, she is a thoughtful and (thankfully!) cautious kid - not fearful, but cautious - and so, that leap was preceded by a long ... pause. During that time, I was imagining her brain spinning a thousand computations per second as she considered all the variables and unknowns. I suspect that if she had waited till she had all the information, she would not have jumped. In the end, what lead her to experience the joy of doing something new, alive and fun was a promise - two, actually. The promise from her friends that it was fun and worthy is what drove her to the end of the diving board. The promise that her mother was waiting - arms out-stretched - to protect her and cheer her on was what prompted her to jump.

Application:

In my experience, answering God's call and following God's lead always requires such a leap of faith. God may well have the divine plans all laid out in a comprehensive manner (though I personally doubt that), but rare is the human who glimpses God's plans in their fullness and gets to base their decision to follow - or not - upon a knowledge of all possible costs, outcomes and eventualities.

So, I wonder, what adventures are your brothers and sisters in Christ commending you to take up in this leg of your journey? 

What leap are you putting off until you make a few more calculations?

Will you settle for one more day with placing a tremulous toe in tepid water? 

Or, will you choose to trust more boldly in the ONE who is cheering you on, the ONE who promises to be right there when you come up from the depths gasping for air ... and filled with the joy of diving into the life abundant?

As for me, I am done playing small and safe.

Prayer:

Are you there God? Are you ready? I'm not. But here I come anyway ... cannonball! Amen.

So, where are you today? 

Did you stub your toe, stumble into the dog who bit you, yell at the kids only to be yelled at by your spouse? 

Is today a "terrible, horrible, no good, very bad..."? 

You know what that makes you?... Normal. 

In the midst of every turmoil, may we all know God is present and active in providential, sustaining love!

Scripture:

Acts 28 After we had reached safety, we then learned that the island was called Malta. 2 The natives showed us unusual kindness. Since it had begun to rain and was cold, they kindled a fire and welcomed all of us around it. 3 Paul had gathered a bundle of brushwood and was putting it on the fire, when a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand.

Observation:

Wow, what terrible luck! Paul survives a shipwreck, in a way that changes the way his captors perceive him; only to find that there are natives there friendly to his presence and survival; only to find that he can contribute to that survival in a meaningful way; only to find plentiful firewood; only to kindle a fire; only to have a snake leap out of the fire and bite him.

One way to look at this story is to say, "what terrible luck!". Another way to look is to say, "what incredible providence!" One assumes that our lives and safety are a given and then curses the gods or luck when things don't break our way; the other is steeped in a deep practice of gratitude that recognizes that all we have - in fact, all we are - is a gift of God's providential love.

I know which way is more lively and fun, do you? I mean, have you experimented with radical thankfulness? It has power to change your whole outlook. Paul might even say it has the power of anti-venom.

Application:

I am so thankful for the people in my life that have exposed me to the "shovel" of gratitude. It can be so much more than simply a fleeting feeling that overcomes us on our birthdays, or at the birth of a child. It can be an intentional practice that helps us to know God's presence with us, even in the most dire of circumstances.

It makes me think of that amazing film, "Life is Beautiful". A man and his son are sent together to a concentration camp in world war two. The son survives, because of his father's resolute will to practise joy based in gratitude.

So, where are you today? Did you stub your toe, stumble into the dog who bit you, yell at the kids only to be yelled at by your spouse? Is today a "no good, terrible, lousy day..."? You know what that makes you?... Normal. But, in the midst of every turmoil, may we all know God is present and active in providential, sustaining love!

Prayer:

We thank you today, Lord, for all your gracious gifts given to us upon this earth. We look forward to the day when, joyfully, we may join with you in our eternal home. Amen.

Scripture:

Acts 31:22 

I had said in my alarm, 
“I am driven far from your sight.” 
But you heard my supplications 
when I cried out to you for help.

Philippians 4:6

6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving 
let your requests be made known to God.

Observation:

One of the insights I appreciate about the 3DM approach to discipleship and mission is,
"Language creates culture."

Language is a strong carrier of common experiences and values. But in times of rapid cultural change some words can become empty. That is to say, words are not powerful in and of themselves. They are really only helpful to the degree they remain "meaning-full". Moreover, we need to be careful when building new cultures that the words we are using do not hold residual meaning that undercuts what we are trying to accomplish. 

I say all this because, today the word: "supplication" occurs twice in the Moravian texts. What does this word mean? More importantly, is it still a meaningful word in our context, or is it more of a leftover relic from the days of the culturally privileged church?

First, supplication is prayer; but, it connotes a certain type of prayer - one wherein a favour or mercy is asked (or begged) from ones superior. So, the word supplication helps us to understand that part of prayer is to humble ourselves, acknowledge our neediness and ask God to provide. It also seems to be a type of prayer that requires me to speak to God (verbally, or through the intercession of others). The promise of the action is that God is faithful and hears such prayers. 

Application:

This all makes the Philippians quote clearer.  

Do not be anxious (or worried) about anything. 

When I encounter struggle in this life (and I will, especially as I follow Jesus), I am not to turn inwardly trying to handle it on my own. Simple, but hard. 

Rather, "in everything by prayer (might this emphasize a prior move in prayer that is more passive in that it is focussed on listening to the Lord as opposed to talking to the Lord) and supplication with thanksgiving (here another dimension of prayer is added, perhaps to help us unlock the hopeful energy that is the fruit of the spiritual practice of gratitude) let your requests be made known to God."

Today I hear the Lord inviting me to a richer practice of abiding through prayer that is multidimensional. Too often I pray a litany of requests without taking time to listen. Too often I fail to give thanks for the many and various ways by which God is continuously revealing Godself to be faithful in my life. 

Prayer:

Dear God, I'm cashing in my anxiety chips. 

I want to spend my time in more fruitful endeavours. 

Grant me ears to hear You as I listen, 

gratitude to celebrate how you respond, and an open heart 

that is ready to intercede for my neighbours after the same 

fashion as Your Holy Spirit intercedes for us. 

Thanks for hearing. I anticipate your response. Amen.