Joel 2:3-11
Revelation 19:1-10
There is a deafening roar rising from both Joel and Revelation today, but the sources of the sound are very different. In Joel a plague of locusts infests the land “as with the rumble of chariots,” “ and the crackling of a flame of fire,” causing the earth to quake and the heavens to tremble (Joel 2:5, 10). “Who can endure (such an onslaught)?” asks the prophet (v. 11). This is the day of the Lord, and it is terrible. In Revelation, however, the sound is very different. “Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a multitude, like the sound of many waters, and like the sound of mighty thunderpeals, crying out ‘Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns’” (Revelation 19:6).
The very loudest experience that I’ve had in my life was a rock concert I attended in 1985. My ears were ringing well into the next day. It was at a volume well beyond my comfort level. That sort of noise makes sense when we are talking about the passage from Joel, where comfort is far from the issue. But what about Revelation? There the sound grows out of praise, not judgment, yet it would seem to be just as loud. What then are we to say about these things? Frankly, I’m not entirely sure of what to make of all this noise except to say that perhaps praising God is outside the normal comfort level of humanity, too. After all, this was John’s experience there on the Island of Patmos, a living human being’s vision of the end times. In our current condition we are incapable of relating to God as we should, and the experience of God’s praise is bound to be as physically jarring as oceans and thunderpeals.
Clearly, God is someone we can never get entirely comfortable with––and certainly not someone we can control. Ever since Adam and Eve hid themselves in the Garden of Eden we’ve been ill at ease in the presence of our Creator. The good news is that God appears to be willing to remain in covenant with us, delivering judgment to be sure, but also accepting our feeble praise. And as long as God is with us, then I believe we will be able to handle being with God.
Prayer: O God, we thank you for your continual presence in our midst. May we learn to offer you praise and to live according to your will. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Compelled Into the Kingdom
Luke 14:12-24
Tucked in among today’s readings about God’s judgment and the fall of great cities is an interesting little comment from Luke. There Jesus tells a parable about someone who gave a dinner. When the time came, however, those whom he had invited declined to attend. So the one giving the dinner sent slaves out to bring in all the people that they could find: “the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame” (Luke 14:21). When this had been done there was still room left in the banquet hall. Then the master said, “Go out into the roads and lanes, and compel people to come in, so that my house my be filled” (v. 23). Compel them to come in? Really? In all the usual talk about who will be found worthy by God, about who has been elected for salvation, I don’t remember much talk about God forcing people to enter the kingdom. And yet, the ones for whom the banquet was prepared had opted out when it was time. They had made a choice not to come. This left the master in the parable—whom we may assume represents God—to look elsewhere for guests and to gather in even some who had never really thought about coming. Jesus’ story seems to muddle the whole idea of salvation.
And yet Jesus does make this much clear, that election is not just about salvation, it is also about service, about responding at the right time, about being ready for God’s call. The original invitees were distracted by their own interests. None were unable to come because they were working at a soup kitchen or helping a traveler found bleeding in a ditch. There were tending to personal property and to marriage. And the ones who were ultimately admitted were either the blind and lame, or ones who had to be shoved through the door, possibly because they had always been told that they didn’t belong.
I take this passage as a word to the wise. Salvation––a place at the great banquet––is a gift not to be taken lightly because it also is a responsibility. It precludes our self interests and forces us to consider those around us, our fellow guests, and the will of the host. It gives us choices and then urges us to make the right one. It lays claims to our time and talents. Most of all it surprises us because God surprises us.
Prayer: Lord, help us to live as your people, aware of both the gift and the responsibility of salvation, and eager to respond to your call. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Tucked in among today’s readings about God’s judgment and the fall of great cities is an interesting little comment from Luke. There Jesus tells a parable about someone who gave a dinner. When the time came, however, those whom he had invited declined to attend. So the one giving the dinner sent slaves out to bring in all the people that they could find: “the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame” (Luke 14:21). When this had been done there was still room left in the banquet hall. Then the master said, “Go out into the roads and lanes, and compel people to come in, so that my house my be filled” (v. 23). Compel them to come in? Really? In all the usual talk about who will be found worthy by God, about who has been elected for salvation, I don’t remember much talk about God forcing people to enter the kingdom. And yet, the ones for whom the banquet was prepared had opted out when it was time. They had made a choice not to come. This left the master in the parable—whom we may assume represents God—to look elsewhere for guests and to gather in even some who had never really thought about coming. Jesus’ story seems to muddle the whole idea of salvation.
And yet Jesus does make this much clear, that election is not just about salvation, it is also about service, about responding at the right time, about being ready for God’s call. The original invitees were distracted by their own interests. None were unable to come because they were working at a soup kitchen or helping a traveler found bleeding in a ditch. There were tending to personal property and to marriage. And the ones who were ultimately admitted were either the blind and lame, or ones who had to be shoved through the door, possibly because they had always been told that they didn’t belong.
I take this passage as a word to the wise. Salvation––a place at the great banquet––is a gift not to be taken lightly because it also is a responsibility. It precludes our self interests and forces us to consider those around us, our fellow guests, and the will of the host. It gives us choices and then urges us to make the right one. It lays claims to our time and talents. Most of all it surprises us because God surprises us.
Prayer: Lord, help us to live as your people, aware of both the gift and the responsibility of salvation, and eager to respond to your call. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Friday, November 5, 2010
The Language of God
Zephaniah 3:8-13
“What are words for, when no one listens anymore?” Those lyrics, from an ‘80’s pop song, seem apt in light of today’s passage from Zephaniah. Our world is full of words, most of which are dubious: marketing, politics, gossip, hate speech, crudeness, angry rhetoric, which flood our lives from all directions. We can’t possibly take them all in, and yet they do so much damage. Mercifully the prophet envisions a day when human language will be changed into something different.
“At that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve him with one accord” (Zephaniah 3:9). Frankly, the implications of this verse are a little overwhelming. For one thing it was God who first divided human speech at Babel (Genesis 11:7-9). Now God promises to reunite humanity in a common tongue, one that is pure and suitable for praising God. This “pure speech” echoes the work of God in many ways. Creation was brought into being by God’s speech, by God’s word covenants were made, prophets were called, and the law was established. Ultimately, according to John’s gospel, the Word of God became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1:14), and on Pentecost the Holy Spirit gave power to the apostles to speak in a way that the world could understand (Acts 2) and the church was born.
Today there are whispers of God’s word that can be found, the “pure speech” that the prophet foretold. It is heard when God is truly praised, when lives are truly enriched, when the Spirit makes plain some aspect of God’s will. Those of us who dare to preach strive to find bits of pure speech to share, and on occasion I’m sure we get close, but not always. The church mediates the sacraments as reminders of God’s word, but even here we fall short. The world’s harsh syllables still creep under the doors and compete for our attention. And all of us, without exception, are drawn away from God’s will at some time or other.
What limitless joy we will experience when our language is made pure and the world offers its praise to God. In the mean time (and perhaps the word “mean” is very appropriate here) we must do our best to resist the cacophony that the world offers and seek ways to listen for God’s pure tone, that we may learn what it means to speak in a way that really makes a difference.
Prayer: God, give us the words to say that we may serve you and the strength to resist the harsh divisiveness all around us. In the name of the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ. Amen.
“What are words for, when no one listens anymore?” Those lyrics, from an ‘80’s pop song, seem apt in light of today’s passage from Zephaniah. Our world is full of words, most of which are dubious: marketing, politics, gossip, hate speech, crudeness, angry rhetoric, which flood our lives from all directions. We can’t possibly take them all in, and yet they do so much damage. Mercifully the prophet envisions a day when human language will be changed into something different.
“At that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve him with one accord” (Zephaniah 3:9). Frankly, the implications of this verse are a little overwhelming. For one thing it was God who first divided human speech at Babel (Genesis 11:7-9). Now God promises to reunite humanity in a common tongue, one that is pure and suitable for praising God. This “pure speech” echoes the work of God in many ways. Creation was brought into being by God’s speech, by God’s word covenants were made, prophets were called, and the law was established. Ultimately, according to John’s gospel, the Word of God became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1:14), and on Pentecost the Holy Spirit gave power to the apostles to speak in a way that the world could understand (Acts 2) and the church was born.
Today there are whispers of God’s word that can be found, the “pure speech” that the prophet foretold. It is heard when God is truly praised, when lives are truly enriched, when the Spirit makes plain some aspect of God’s will. Those of us who dare to preach strive to find bits of pure speech to share, and on occasion I’m sure we get close, but not always. The church mediates the sacraments as reminders of God’s word, but even here we fall short. The world’s harsh syllables still creep under the doors and compete for our attention. And all of us, without exception, are drawn away from God’s will at some time or other.
What limitless joy we will experience when our language is made pure and the world offers its praise to God. In the mean time (and perhaps the word “mean” is very appropriate here) we must do our best to resist the cacophony that the world offers and seek ways to listen for God’s pure tone, that we may learn what it means to speak in a way that really makes a difference.
Prayer: God, give us the words to say that we may serve you and the strength to resist the harsh divisiveness all around us. In the name of the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Attention All Elected Officials
Zephaniah 3:1-7
Luke 13:18-30
According to Zephaniah, God has found Judah, and Jerusalem in particular, to be full of corruption and sinfulness. And according to the prophet it begins with those in positions of authority. “The officials within (Jerusalem) are roaring lions; its judges are evening wolves that leave nothing until the morning. Its prophets are reckless, faithless persons; its priests have profaned what is sacred” (Zephaniah 3:3-4). Those who should have known better, who should have lived lives of righteousness and fidelity to God have instead lived with complete disregard to God’s will. Jerusalem is condemned from the top down.
What God expects, what God promises in the coming kingdom, would appear to flow from the bottom up. At least that’s the impression Jesus gives us in our reading from Luke. The kingdom of God, says Jesus, is like a mustard seed (Luke 13:18-19), that smallest of seeds, and like yeast mixed by a women in a bowl of flour (vv. 20-21). These are humble, domestic images that, when set next to the power—and the corruption—described in Zephaniah offer a stark contrast. “Indeed,” adds Jesus, “some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last” (v. 30).
Here in the United States we have just held national and local elections. Those who have been chosen by voters to serve in various positions would do well to consider these things carefully. Power and authority can corrupt a person all too easily. What is needed is consideration for the least and last of our society, those whose activities or whose standing seem to best represent the coming kingdom of God. It is they for whom God is concerned, not the powerful and affluent. But make no mistake, God will bring about salvation. People will come from all directions and converge at table in God’s presence (v. 29). What can we do, not to secure our own standing in this life, but to provide for all God’s people now and thus prepare ourselves for the life to come? After all, God’s salvation is referred to as “election.”
Prayer: Lord, help us to resist the temptation of power and instead to concentrate on your will, living as your humble servants and ministering to one another. Amen.
Luke 13:18-30
According to Zephaniah, God has found Judah, and Jerusalem in particular, to be full of corruption and sinfulness. And according to the prophet it begins with those in positions of authority. “The officials within (Jerusalem) are roaring lions; its judges are evening wolves that leave nothing until the morning. Its prophets are reckless, faithless persons; its priests have profaned what is sacred” (Zephaniah 3:3-4). Those who should have known better, who should have lived lives of righteousness and fidelity to God have instead lived with complete disregard to God’s will. Jerusalem is condemned from the top down.
What God expects, what God promises in the coming kingdom, would appear to flow from the bottom up. At least that’s the impression Jesus gives us in our reading from Luke. The kingdom of God, says Jesus, is like a mustard seed (Luke 13:18-19), that smallest of seeds, and like yeast mixed by a women in a bowl of flour (vv. 20-21). These are humble, domestic images that, when set next to the power—and the corruption—described in Zephaniah offer a stark contrast. “Indeed,” adds Jesus, “some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last” (v. 30).
Here in the United States we have just held national and local elections. Those who have been chosen by voters to serve in various positions would do well to consider these things carefully. Power and authority can corrupt a person all too easily. What is needed is consideration for the least and last of our society, those whose activities or whose standing seem to best represent the coming kingdom of God. It is they for whom God is concerned, not the powerful and affluent. But make no mistake, God will bring about salvation. People will come from all directions and converge at table in God’s presence (v. 29). What can we do, not to secure our own standing in this life, but to provide for all God’s people now and thus prepare ourselves for the life to come? After all, God’s salvation is referred to as “election.”
Prayer: Lord, help us to resist the temptation of power and instead to concentrate on your will, living as your humble servants and ministering to one another. Amen.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
God In the Second Or Third Person
Zephaniah 2:1-15
Revelation 16:1-11
Luke 13:10-17
I’m no grammarian, but as I understand it there are three forms of pronouns in English. In the singular, the first person refers to me: I am running behind schedule. The second person refers to you: You are late for work. The third person refers to he or she: He is slow, but she is very prompt. Our three readings today each include one of these forms, and how they are used is insightful.
The prophet Zephaniah offers this exclamation. “Is this (Nineveh) that lived secure, that said to itself, “I am, and there is no one else’?” (Zephaniah 2:15). What initially caught my attention in this verse is the near-blasphemous way that the citizens of Nineveh refer to themselves. “I am,” says the city, making a claim that scripture reserves for God alone (See Exodus 3). The most sacred name of God is to be found in forms of “I am.” When Nineveh makes this claim it has transgressed badly.
By contrast the voices of heaven (as heard by John on Patmos) speak of God in the second person. “You are just, O Holy One,” they say, “who are and were…Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, your judgments are true and just” (Revelation 16:5, 7). And in Luke’s gospel we find an implied third person. “When (Jesus) laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God” (Luke 13:13).
In his song, “Within You, Without You,” George Harrison says,
When you’ve looked beyond yourself,
You may find peace of mind is waiting there.
That’s an oversimplification of course, but it comes close to the truth. When the Ninevites spoke about themselves it was in glowing terms. They were all that mattered. But when the angels of heaven and the woman whom Jesus healed spoke either to God or about God it was with praise and honor. By looking “beyond themselves” they gained a better understanding of who God was and is. In other words, it isn’t about me, it’s about God and God’s relationship with me…and with you, and with him and her, and with them. The challenge is whether or not we can “look beyond ourselves” to find that the peace that surpasses all understanding is waiting there, and that God is its source.
Prayer: Gracious God, help me to be concerned about more than myself and my own needs, so that in praising you I may stand in fuller community with all your people. Amen.
Revelation 16:1-11
Luke 13:10-17
I’m no grammarian, but as I understand it there are three forms of pronouns in English. In the singular, the first person refers to me: I am running behind schedule. The second person refers to you: You are late for work. The third person refers to he or she: He is slow, but she is very prompt. Our three readings today each include one of these forms, and how they are used is insightful.
The prophet Zephaniah offers this exclamation. “Is this (Nineveh) that lived secure, that said to itself, “I am, and there is no one else’?” (Zephaniah 2:15). What initially caught my attention in this verse is the near-blasphemous way that the citizens of Nineveh refer to themselves. “I am,” says the city, making a claim that scripture reserves for God alone (See Exodus 3). The most sacred name of God is to be found in forms of “I am.” When Nineveh makes this claim it has transgressed badly.
By contrast the voices of heaven (as heard by John on Patmos) speak of God in the second person. “You are just, O Holy One,” they say, “who are and were…Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, your judgments are true and just” (Revelation 16:5, 7). And in Luke’s gospel we find an implied third person. “When (Jesus) laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God” (Luke 13:13).
In his song, “Within You, Without You,” George Harrison says,
When you’ve looked beyond yourself,
You may find peace of mind is waiting there.
That’s an oversimplification of course, but it comes close to the truth. When the Ninevites spoke about themselves it was in glowing terms. They were all that mattered. But when the angels of heaven and the woman whom Jesus healed spoke either to God or about God it was with praise and honor. By looking “beyond themselves” they gained a better understanding of who God was and is. In other words, it isn’t about me, it’s about God and God’s relationship with me…and with you, and with him and her, and with them. The challenge is whether or not we can “look beyond ourselves” to find that the peace that surpasses all understanding is waiting there, and that God is its source.
Prayer: Gracious God, help me to be concerned about more than myself and my own needs, so that in praising you I may stand in fuller community with all your people. Amen.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Faith v. Faulty Towers
Zephaniah 1:14-18
Luke 13:1-9
The prophet Zephaniah offers this warning to the people of God: “Neither (your) silver nor (your) gold will be able to save (you) on the day of the Lord’s wrath…” (Zephaniah 1:18). It is a familiar idea in scripture, that wealth is no guarantee of salvation, and anything can be turned into an idol. But when set beside today’s reading from Luke Zephaniah’s words, as emphatic as they are, still take on a heightened meaning.
In Luke, Jesus is told about a group of Galileans murdered by Pilot as they offered sacrifices in the temple. “What do you think about this?” Jesus asks his listeners. “Was this God’s judgment on them because they were worse sinners than others? And what about the 18 people killed by a collapsing tower? Were they any worse than others living in Jerusalem at the time?” No, says Jesus, neither they nor the Galileans were worse sinners than anyone else. But unless you repent (literally “turn around” in your living) you can expect to perish just as they did (Luke 13:1-5).
It all has to do with our relationship to God. To invest hope in wealth or comfort, to treat any other aspect of life as though it were a god, is to be separated from the one true God. You might as well have a tower fall on you for all the good it will do. Instead, trust in God, live to God, be focused on God and God’s will. Then falling towers will become nothing to fear. As the apostle Paul writes in his letter to the Romans, “We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s” (Romans 14:7-8). Perhaps it is all about perspective. Those who count on their own wealth or abilities in life have no hope. But those who trust in God live in hope and, when the time comes, die in hope as well. And that is something that no amount of money in the world could ever buy.
Prayer: Gracious God, help us to live our lives in the hope that you alone can offer, trusting in you and your merciful grace. Amen.
Luke 13:1-9
The prophet Zephaniah offers this warning to the people of God: “Neither (your) silver nor (your) gold will be able to save (you) on the day of the Lord’s wrath…” (Zephaniah 1:18). It is a familiar idea in scripture, that wealth is no guarantee of salvation, and anything can be turned into an idol. But when set beside today’s reading from Luke Zephaniah’s words, as emphatic as they are, still take on a heightened meaning.
In Luke, Jesus is told about a group of Galileans murdered by Pilot as they offered sacrifices in the temple. “What do you think about this?” Jesus asks his listeners. “Was this God’s judgment on them because they were worse sinners than others? And what about the 18 people killed by a collapsing tower? Were they any worse than others living in Jerusalem at the time?” No, says Jesus, neither they nor the Galileans were worse sinners than anyone else. But unless you repent (literally “turn around” in your living) you can expect to perish just as they did (Luke 13:1-5).
It all has to do with our relationship to God. To invest hope in wealth or comfort, to treat any other aspect of life as though it were a god, is to be separated from the one true God. You might as well have a tower fall on you for all the good it will do. Instead, trust in God, live to God, be focused on God and God’s will. Then falling towers will become nothing to fear. As the apostle Paul writes in his letter to the Romans, “We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s” (Romans 14:7-8). Perhaps it is all about perspective. Those who count on their own wealth or abilities in life have no hope. But those who trust in God live in hope and, when the time comes, die in hope as well. And that is something that no amount of money in the world could ever buy.
Prayer: Gracious God, help us to live our lives in the hope that you alone can offer, trusting in you and your merciful grace. Amen.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Are We Resting On the Dregs?
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.
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.
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