Zephaniah 1:7-13
Revelation 14:1-13
Luke 12:49-59
The prophet Zephaniah uses an interesting turn of phrase in today’s reading. “…I will punish the people who rest complacently on their dregs, those who say in their hearts, ‘The Lord will not do good, nor will he do harm’” (Zephaniah 1:12). According to Elizabeth Achtemeier the expression, “to rest on one’s dregs,” comes from the process of making wine. New wine that is left to sit too long will become “thick and syrupy and too sweet and subject to mold” (Achtemeier, Nahum—Malachi, John Knox Press, 1986, p. 69.). In other words, such wine becomes good for nothing, as do the people who produce it. The prophet condemns this apathy among God’s people as growing out of the belief that “The Lord will not do good, nor will he do harm” (Zephaniah 1:12), or that God is apathetic, inactive, and “good for nothing” as well.
But our other two readings today give us a much different view of God. “Fear God and give him glory,” says the writer of Revelation, “for the hour of his judgment has come…” (Revelation 14:7). Jesus says, “I came to bring fire to the earth.…Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division!” (Luke 12:49, 51). God is anything put apathetic. God is anything but inactive. God is anything but worthless. We may be tempted to “rest on our dregs” with complacency, but God’s will is that we get up and get to work preparing for the coming kingdom, meeting the needs of the world, reaching out in God’s name to cure and to comfort and to console. God is holding us accountable so there is no time to waste.
What can we do today that will demonstrate active participation in the will of God? We can care for the hurting, we can give to the poor, we can share the good news with those who sit in darkness. We can pray for the church and for one another. In these ways we produce good fruit, wine suitable for its purpose, lives in tune with the will of God.
Prayer: Lord, help us to remain active in service to you and to others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Showing posts with label Luke 12. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Luke 12. Show all posts
Monday, November 1, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
R-Rated Scripture For an R-Rated World
Nahum 2:13-3:7
Revelation 13:1-10
Luke 12:13-31
When our daughter and son were small they had Bible storybooks written especially for children. I can assure you that neither our reading from Nahum with its bloodshed and carnage, nor from Revelation with its horrific monsters were to be found in those storybooks. I doubt that our passage from Luke was there either. These are examples of what we might call R-rated scripture: stacks of corpses in the streets, scary creatures running amok, a man who dies in his sleep. What are we to say about such things?
Yet, there in the midst of these very stories is a note of hope and of encouragement. “Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints” we read in Revelation (Revelation 13:10). “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,” says Jesus, what you will eat or wear. “Instead strive for (God’s) kingdom and these things will be given to you as well” (Luke 12:22, 31). Against a backdrop of violence and woe God is calling people of faith to stand firm, to hold fast to God’s word and the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Every day’s news brings word of another crisis, another atrocity, another horrific turn of events. How meaningful would scripture be if only contained material suitable for storybooks, easily grasped morals and lessons about shepherds and rainbows? How relevant would that be in the face of war, genocide, terrorism, torture, starvation, greed, despotism, bigotry, and hatred? But scripture DOES have a word from such circumstances because God’s people have faced such times before and were able to rely on God’s presence then. Even when Jesus Christ died a cruel death it did not defeat God’s will for humanity. God’s word to us today is to hold fast to the faith, especially in times of darkness and despair, the “R-rated” times of life. Stand firm, God tells us, and trust in what God will do. It’s a difficult lesson to be sure, but we can not deny that God has been this way before. Our God is a “real-life” God and not one stuck in a storybook for children. Thanks be to God.
Prayer: Lord, help us to stand firm in times of crisis and to trust in you always. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Revelation 13:1-10
Luke 12:13-31
When our daughter and son were small they had Bible storybooks written especially for children. I can assure you that neither our reading from Nahum with its bloodshed and carnage, nor from Revelation with its horrific monsters were to be found in those storybooks. I doubt that our passage from Luke was there either. These are examples of what we might call R-rated scripture: stacks of corpses in the streets, scary creatures running amok, a man who dies in his sleep. What are we to say about such things?
Yet, there in the midst of these very stories is a note of hope and of encouragement. “Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints” we read in Revelation (Revelation 13:10). “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,” says Jesus, what you will eat or wear. “Instead strive for (God’s) kingdom and these things will be given to you as well” (Luke 12:22, 31). Against a backdrop of violence and woe God is calling people of faith to stand firm, to hold fast to God’s word and the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Every day’s news brings word of another crisis, another atrocity, another horrific turn of events. How meaningful would scripture be if only contained material suitable for storybooks, easily grasped morals and lessons about shepherds and rainbows? How relevant would that be in the face of war, genocide, terrorism, torture, starvation, greed, despotism, bigotry, and hatred? But scripture DOES have a word from such circumstances because God’s people have faced such times before and were able to rely on God’s presence then. Even when Jesus Christ died a cruel death it did not defeat God’s will for humanity. God’s word to us today is to hold fast to the faith, especially in times of darkness and despair, the “R-rated” times of life. Stand firm, God tells us, and trust in what God will do. It’s a difficult lesson to be sure, but we can not deny that God has been this way before. Our God is a “real-life” God and not one stuck in a storybook for children. Thanks be to God.
Prayer: Lord, help us to stand firm in times of crisis and to trust in you always. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)