Words of Comfort

2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:5
It is difficult at the best of times to comprehend a tragedy of the magnitude that struck in Connecticut today, but during the season of Advent the death of so many people—most of them children––is even more crushing. And while there is no easy word of comfort that can be spoken to those who grieve, we remember that we live in the presence of a God who has suffered the death of a Son and whose love for us is boundless. Today’s epistle reading includes these words: “Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word” (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17).

As we struggle with yet another act of intense violence may the dawning of God’s coming reign draw us closer to one another in our suffering even as it draws ever nearer in its proximity. And may the Christmas season be filled with genuine acts of kindness and humility as together we seek the blessings of God for ourselves and one another.

Prayer: Lord, be with people of Newton, Connecticut. Lift them through their grief and despair and give them hope in these days of pain. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

On “Gifting”

Malachi 1:1, 6-14
In the run-up to Christmas, a nationwide chain of department stores is advertising itself as the ideal place for “gifters.” If you want to give the very best presents this holiday season, this company is saying, you should shop in one of its stores. The prophet Malachi, however, has an more important word to say on that subject. “When you offer blind animals in sacrifice (to God), is that not wrong? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not wrong? Try presenting that to your governor; will he be pleased with you or show you favor? says the Lord of hosts” (Malachi 1:8). Apparently, there were those among the people of Israel who were willing to offer God second-rate gifts, while giving items of such low quality to other people was out of the question. Never mind whether the recipient of a gift is someone of power or prestige, is there really anyone who deserves more from us than God does? Is there anyone who ever lived who is worthy of our praise and adoration more than the God who has created and blessed us from the very beginning of our lives?

And yet, even in nations where a large percentage of the population loudly proclaims itself to be Christian, the biggest uproar often grows out of what we call our holidays, not our unwillingness to share with God and with those for whom God is most concerned. Holding back from God the very best parts of our lives while lavishing gifts on family members or friends, on co-workers or neighbors, calls our focus into question. “What does the Lord require of us but to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God?” (Micah 6:8). But God also deserves our time and our money, our talents and our insight, our skills and our wisdom. God deserves generous hearts tuned to service, open minds determined to find reconciliation, open hands exchanging unreservedly the warmth and community that we all need to live most fully. Our failure to do these things, to offer these gifts to our loving Creator, says more about us than we are probably willing to admit.

Would we give blemished or broken gifts to the people on our Christmas list? Perish the thought! Then how could we consider giving anything but our very best, first and foremost, to God?

Prayer: God of grace and glory, forgive us when we fail to give our very best to you and to those for whom you are concerned, and help us to become the generous, loving people you created us to be. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Laughter Like No Other

Psalm 126

One of the evening psalms for today is Psalm 126. It paints a wonderful picture of restoration and hope. “When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then it was said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’ The Lord has done great things for us, and we rejoiced” (Psalm 126:1-3).

We are hearing a lot of music these days because it’s that time of year. But the sentiment of Psalm 126 is about more than chestnuts roasting on the fire, or bells jingling on a sleigh, or even being home for Christmas. Psalm 126 is about more than a season of good cheer, it is about life set right and about the fulfillment of God’s promises. It is about laughter rising from the hearts of those who know beyond a doubt that the road ahead is filled with blessing, and that to journey on is to do so in the company of God’s people in a fellowship of gladness and praise. This is what the birth of a Savior is really about, and this is what the coming reign of God is about as well. If we really understand what Christmas means for us then we will allow the joy to fill us up and the laughter to come flowing out every day of our lives.

Prayer: Lord, fill us with your joy during this season and beyond. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

A Reason To Sing

Zechariah 2:1-13

There’s a lot of singing going on these days. Visit any shopping center in America, for example, and you are apt to hear music associated with Christmas piped through loudspeakers. Visit a congregation on Sunday in most parts of the world and I suspect you will hear special anthems and notice that the hymns are sung with extra zeal. Groups of carolers are making their rounds, and even families will break into song from time to time as they decorate their homes for the Christmas season.

I think that the prophet Zachariah would approve of most of the music, at least that of a religious nature. “Sing and rejoice, O daughter Zion!” we read. “For lo, I will come and dwell in your midst, says the Lord. Many nations shall join themselves to the Lord on that day, and shall be my people; and I will dwell in your midst…” (Zechariah 2:10-11b). What better reason to sing? What better reason to rejoice? The Lord is coming to be Emanuel, God with us. The nations will be drawn together on that day as God’s reign is finally and firmly established. All will be set right and grace will abound in fullness.

Reading the promise of Zachariah I am reminded of James Weldon Johnson’s powerful words:

Lift ev'ry voice and sing,

Till earth and heaven ring,

Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;

Let our rejoicing rise

High as the list'ning skies,

Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.

Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,

Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;

Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,

Let us march on till victory is won.

Here, too, I believe the prophet Zachariah would readily approve. Let every voice be lifted in glad rejoicing. After all, ‘tis the season!

Prayer: Lord, may our songs of praise bring glory to your name, today and all days. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Shocking News

Mark 10:17-31

When was the last time that you were actually surprised by something Jesus said or did? If you are new to the Christian faith then perhaps you have encountered something recently that actually amazed you. But if you are like me, a life-long Christian raised in a Christian home, it may have been years since Jesus did or said something you didn’t expect. Not so with the rich man from our gospel reading today. “When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions” (Mark 10:22).

I know that I’m not the first one to say this, but much about our world and our lives has served to “tame” Jesus, to remove the heart and soul of his teachings until it all sounds familiar. At the time he was ministering it certainly wasn’t that way. The things he did and said caused quite a stir. His teachings perplexed many, his healings were a revelation, his miracles were unexpected to say the least. When he appeared after the resurrection his followers were not sure what to believe. Now we come to church on Easter, not to be amazed by the news of a risen Savior, but because that’s what we do. Christmas isn’t so much about the birth of God’s Son as it is an economic indicator of how the next year is going to play out. And when Jesus says sell your possessions, give the money to the poor, and come and follow me, we hardly bat an eye. We’ve heard it before. That’s not really what he meant. There are other ways to explain that.

What has happened to us? Why don’t these things affect us anymore? Is it a lack of faith? Have we become too “sophisticated?” Or have we simply allowed ourselves to be lulled into a spiritual stupor? Whatever the case it’s time to wake up and let the gospel shock and amaze us. Did you hear what he said?! Sell your possessions and give the money to the poor! How can we pass that off as more of the same? The rich man was shocked by what Jesus told him because it completely changed his way of looking at things. I think it’s high time that we all began to look at Jesus differently and to let him surprise, shock, amaze, startle us. Otherwise, what are we doing here?

Prayer: Lord, open our hearts and our minds to your word so that it may surprise us and lead us to new ways of living in your name. Amen.

“Getting To Know You…”

1 John 3:1-10

“The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know God” (1 John 3:1). I wonder about this verse in light of our contemporary culture. I realize that when it was written there was an enormous majority of people who had never heard of Judaism, let along Christianity. But what does this passage mean today?

The fact is that there are few people who do not know something about the Jewish and Christian faiths, but the issue lies in how that knowledge the way people live. A list of the 10 best speeches in history ranked Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” as number 2 (right behind Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech). Jesus’ “speech” was ranked second purely because of it’s value as moral instruction, not because it was spoken by the Son of God. How many people in the western hemisphere do not know the significance of Easter and Christmas? Yet where is most of the emphasis placed? On gift giving and retail sales. When the Cadbury Co. can say “No bunny knows Easter like we do” it provides an interesting commentary. And the familiar Christmas song “Here Comes Santa Clause” includes the line, “Say your prayers to the Lord above, ‘cause Santa Clause is coming tonight.” How have those two concepts become related? I even remember a time when one of the major oil companies used Noah’s Ark as a promotional giveaway: fill up the tank and receive a set of two animal figures.

The world knows about God. But the world—and too many people of faith—seem content to allow a skewed version of the story of salvation to pass as truth. Easter and Christmas remain profoundly significant without gifts or major purchases. Jesus is the Word of God incarnate; what he says is life-giving not merely instructive. And the stories of faith should do more than prompt consumer choices. They should compel us to reexamine who we are and what we hold as essential. So maybe it isn’t that the world doesn’t know us, maybe it is that we do not know ourselves.

Prayer: Lord help us to live as your people and not according to the world’s version of who you are. Amen.

A New Commandment for Christmas

John 13:20-35

A quick trip to the mall yesterday turned out much better than I thought it would. It was the day after Christmas and there were hundreds of shoppers everywhere, but the stores were prepared and we were able to make our gift exchanges and buy our missing components and with little trouble. In some ways it seemed easier to shop the day after Christmas than it had been any day leading up to Christmas. Not only are we are still in the midst of the Christmas shopping season, we are still in the liturgical season of Christmastide. Yet our reading from John today puts us smack in the middle of Holy Week. Jesus is speaking to his disciples moments after Judas has left the room. “I give you a new commandment,” he says, “that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another” (John 13:34).

These words are the reason we call the fifth day of Holy Week “Maundy Thursday”. “Maundy” comes from the Latin word for commandment. But this is the second day after Christmas. Is this really an appropriate time to consider the days leading up to the crucifixion? Frankly, yes. On the one hand it is always appropriate to consider the crucifixion. As Christians we live our lives with the truth of Jesus’ sacrifice every day. But there is also an inherent connection between Christmas and Easter, between the birth and the death/resurrection that shapes the Christian life and experience. Without Christmas, the gift of “God with us,” there is no Easter, no demonstration of God’s love on the cross and at the empty tomb. In the same way, without Easter there is no significance to Christmas.

But finally, both Christmas and Easter give us ample reason and opportunity to “love one another” as Christ commands. Indeed there is never a season in which love is not God’s wish for us. So while we begin to pack away the decorations and take down the tree, it is already time to look ahead to the events of Holy Week and to focus on the love of God among us.

Prayer: Lord, help us to love one another as you command, that the light of your coming reign may be bright at all times in our world. Amen.

On Rendering

Luke 20:19-26

The commercials and the ads have been blasting for weeks already, all with the same message: it’s the “holiday season” and it’s time to spend money. It’s a well-known fact that a retail business can make or break its entire year based on its November and December sales. So the official start of the holiday shopping season creeps earlier and earlier up the calendar (Christmas carols in the mall just after Halloween!), and the number of special shopping days proliferates (Black Thursday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday), until Christmas seems to sink under the weight. You are expecting the usual “keep Christ in Christmas” appeal, I know, and that is a valid point. But I think Jesus casts this whole question in a new light in the words of Luke’s gospel.

You know the story. The religious authorities are trying desperately to discredit Jesus. On this occasion they challenge him on the issue of Roman taxes. Is it lawful for a devout Jew to pay them or not? Jesus can see the trap and astutely sidesteps it. “…Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Luke 20:25). Now it is awfully easy for us to hear that teaching and leave it comfortably where it lies, there in first century Palestine. But Jesus’ words will not remain still. They poke and prod at us. Only now it is not an emperor who seeks to control us, it is the commercial and economic pressures that insist that we “render unto” them our attention, our financial wherewithal, our sense of purpose at this time of year. What does Jesus say? Give them what is theirs, but reserve for God that which is God’s.

What might that mean for us? It reminds us to begin and end with God’s good news in Jesus Christ and let the other aspects of the season have what is left over, not the other way around. It reminds us that who we are, right down to our very core, is not consumers, but human beings who stand in relationship to their Creator and to one another. It reminds us that all of us have something to offer God, whether it be our time, our talents, our money, our hearts and minds, whatever, and that giving these things to God is far more important than giving the perfect gift to Aunt Beatrice (with apologies to Aunt Beatrice). And yes, it reminds us to keep Christ in Christmas.

Here’s a challenge. Each and every time you encounter an ad or a commercial or a newspaper insert hawking holiday specials, pause for a moment to give God thanks for the gift of Jesus Christ, and to ask what you might do that day of God. If you accept the challenge you’ll be doing a lot of thanking and praying. But really now, isn’t that the point?

Prayer: Thank you God for your gift of Jesus Christ. Help us to see and do your will today. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Clean Up Time

Isaiah 1:10-20

We have entered the season of Advent, that time when we await the coming of Christ. But as we wait there is much to be done. On the one hand there are plans to make, cards to mail, presents to buy, decorations to display, parties to attend; all the things that make the Advent and Christmas seasons both hectic and festive. But there are even more important tasks for us to be doing as well. Isaiah puts it this way: “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doing from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow” (Isaiah 1:16-17). It is not enough to clean our houses, we must also cleanse our hearts and minds; it is good to decorate for the season, but we must also dedicate ourselves to God’s will; and while we attend parties we should also attend to the word of God.

Somewhere along the way Advent got shoved aside for the sake of a longer Christmas season. The stores in our community have been ready for Christmas since just after Halloween. I know this season has profound economic consequences for the coming year, but we’ve got to reclaim its profound spiritual and moral consequences, too. If we need to slow down our pace in order to appreciate what God is saying, if we need to look away from the colored lights and massive displays in order to see the needs of the hungry and oppressed in our midst, then so be it. Christmas can wait. Indeed, waiting is what Advent is all about. What better time to begin getting things in order? What better time to do the will of God?

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we look past those in need, our attention stolen by the flash and glitter of our world. Help us to clean ourselves and to prepare for the coming of Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen.