A Word to the Wise

Isaiah 59:15b-21
Perhaps you’ve heard the expression, “You took the words right out of my mouth.” It means that someone has said what you were thinking but had not had time to express for yourself. Our reading from Isaiah today offers the opposite perspective, literally along the lines of, “You put the words right into my mouth,” and God is the one doing the putting. “And as for me, this is my covenant with them, says the Lord: my spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouths of your children, or out of the mouths of your children's children, says the Lord, from now on and forever” (Isaiah 59:21). What does it mean for God to put words in our mouths? And what does it mean that these words will not depart the mouths of three or more generations of God’s people? Good questions.

I think of it this way, that there are many positions we might take in life on a variety of issues, a number of perspectives we might embrace and then share with others. Like quasi celebrity endorsers, we might pass along all types of information to our friends and our neighbors, and all manner of rumors or pieces of gossip sometimes stated as fact. According to the prophet, however, God’s word is to become our word, God’s glory the subject of our speaking, God’s actions the topic of our conversations. The days are coming when we, our children, and our children’s children, will speak the truth of God’s love and be known by that speaking and no other.

The charge to speak God’s word, of course, removes from us the opportunity to share the half-truths and hurtful innuendos that pass for communication in much of our world. I suspect were this to come to pass in a literal sense that Twitter and Facebook would become vastly different places and that reality TV would die a quick and ignoble death. What replaced them would not be the stodginess of what too often passes for religious talk, but the grace-filled and life-giving words of hope and peace that God has always used to create and to restore. Here’s hoping.

Prayer: Lord, may we learn to speak your truth in all we do. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Face to Face

2 John 1:1-13

There is something about personal contact that cannot be duplicated by any other means. We may value the convenience of talking on the phone, or of texting or e-mailing, or of “following” one another on Facebook or Twitter, or of connecting via Skype or another form of video conferencing, but it simply is not the same as meeting someone in person and spending time in her or his company. The same idea is expressed in pre-technological terms by the author of 2 John. “Although I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink; instead I hope to come to you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete” (2 John 1:12). The church is a community of faith built on relationships, those among individuals and between Jesus Christ and humanity. To participate fully, then, we must be present with and to one another as we seek to serve our Lord. There is a time and a place for “paper and ink.” But only when we stand together do we find complete joy and fulfilled purpose.

Like virtually all congregations the one I serve celebrated Christmas Eve with a worship service. Attendance that evening was higher than at any time during my brief tenure. I suspect that when we reach Easter Sunday we will have a similar turnout. I’m not complaining. It is ALWAYS a blessing to worship God, no matter how many are present, and I am delighted whenever people are willing to participate. But it is essential for us to understand that we are not fully God’s people when we are not fully engaged with one another, and that means face to face.

The author of 2 John longed for the opportunity to put down his pen and instead to visit face to face with his sisters and brothers. That need still exists and can never be replaced – not even by a blog based on the daily lectionary!

Prayer: Lord, bring us together in the faith that we may serve you fully. In Jesus’ name. Amen.