The Way of Peace — A Lectionary Meditation

Isaiah 11:1-10

Romans 15:4-13

Matthew 3:1-12

The Way of Peace

This second Sunday of Advent is known to many as Peace Sunday.  Peace is, of course, difficult to come by.  The world is certainly not at peace, and if truth be told the same can be said of our communities and even families.  Peace is in the minds of many a utopian dream that will never see fruition.  The realist in me recognizes that peace is not something that can be easily attained and that perhaps there will be interim measures to keep order, if not peace, in the land.  But that’s the realist in me, but that realism must be tempered by God’s vision of peace.  It is a vision that is clearly espoused in Isaiah 11.  But even if a direct appeal to peace is not as clearly present in the Romans and Matthew passages, what all three share is a vision of the Way of the Lord, which according to Matthew, John the Baptist has been called to prepare for.

As we continue our Advent journey, we hear this powerful vision proclaimed:  From the stump of Jesse (Jesse being, of course, David’s father), comes a shoot, and upon him will rest the Spirit of the Lord.  This Spirit brings wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and the fear of the Lord.  Rather than judging by what he sees and hears, this Spirit-filled leader will judge according to righteousness.  He will judge the poor and decide with equity on behalf of the meek of the earth.  When we hear judgment, justice, and righteousness, too often what we hear is retributive justice, or punishment.  But that’s not what the prophet has in mind.  No, the word of the prophet concerning righteous judgment, speaks to God’s decision to act on behalf of the poor and the meek of the earth, what some call distributive justice – making things right for those who the world tramples upon in its eagerness to get ahead in life.  Yes, righteousness and faithfulness are the qualities that form the best around the waist of God’s anointed, the true heir of David’s throne.  And on that day of the Lord, when justice will be known in the land, then there will be peace – the wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard with the kid, the lion with the calf – and a “child shall lead them.”  Or as another prophet said to a governor:  “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the LORD Almighty (Zechariah 4:6 NIV).  Then there will be peace on earth.  On that day, when the Root of Jesse stands among the people, the nations will enquire of him and his dwelling shall be glorious.  It is a messianic vision, which the Christian faith has tapped into and applied to Jesus, seeing in him the hope of peace.  We may not live out the vision with any consistency, but it lies before us, calling us to embrace God’s vision for the world.  May we be led by the child of God!

If Isaiah lays out the vision, Paul calls on us to be instructed by what has been written in former days (Isaiah 11, perhaps), so that we might live steadfastly, encouraged by the Scriptures, in such a way that there would be harmony.  And why harmony?  So that we might with one voice, glorify the God and Father of Jesus Christ.  Paul, whom we know to be the evangelist to the Gentiles, looks back into the biblical story, and finds promises made to the Patriarchs of old, that suggest that the Gentiles were to be welcomed into the family.  Welcome one another, he says, as Christ has welcomed you, all so that the Gentiles might glorify God on account of God’s mercy.     Yes, as Isaiah promised, in the root of Jesse, the Gentiles will find hope, and the God of hope will bring to all both joy and peace.  It is for this cause, Paul says, that Jesus became a servant to the circumcised, which I take to mean, that it is through this particular first century Jew, that God has fulfilled the promise made to the Patriarchs, that there would be complete harmony in the world.

If Isaiah offers the promise of what God intends, in this powerful text from Matthew’s Gospel, we hear the message of John the Baptist, whom God sent into the world to prepare the way for the Lord, to make the pathways straight, to get things ready for the coming of the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and Fire.  For John, this call to prepare the way and make the paths straight is accomplished through a baptism of repentance – that call to change one’s life in the pursuit of God’s design.  Matthew’s portrayal of John’s ministry includes a word towards the religious establishment, reminding them that they should bear fruit worthy of their repentance.  Of course, you may be joining me in wondering why members of the religious elite would even bother to be baptized by John.  Matthew doesn’t give us any explanation, but even if John is less than receptive, it suggests that even the elite seem to understand that things need to be upended.  God is at work, changing things, clearing the threshing floor so that the wheat can be separated from the chaff, so that the chaff, that which keeps us from experiencing the fullness of God’s vision.  The chaff may be burnt away, but what remains is God’s glorious intention for the creation.  Peace on earth, good will to all!

By Bob Cornwall

Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

A Candle of Hope — A Lectionary Meditation

Isaiah 2:1-5

Romans 13:11-14

Matthew 24:36-44

A Candle of Hope

We begin the Advent journey by lighting a candle of hope, and hope is in the biblical scheme of things more than wishful thinking.  The hope that the season of Advent holds out to us as we light this first candle is rooted in the promises of the God who is ever faithful.  It is rooted in the covenant relationship that exists between God and humanity.  Therefore, we can gather and sing with a sense of purpose the final stanza of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”:  O come, Desire of nations, bind all peoples in one heart and mind; bid envy, strife and quarrels cease; fill the whole world with heaven’s peace.  Rejoice, Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!”  (Chalice Hymnal, 119).  And so as we begin the journey we do so in the company of Isaiah, Paul, and Matthew’s Jesus.  Each of these texts for the first Sunday of Advent speak to the hope that is present in us, and reminds us that we should continue to stay awake and live according to the promises of God.

The journey begins in Isaiah, where the prophet speaks in wondrous terms of the day that will come when the nations will stream to Zion, to God’s holy mountain, so that they might encounter the Lord, the God of Jacob.  And the reason they will come is so that they might receive instruction (Torah).  Yes, they’ll come in the hope that will learn of the ways of God so that they might walk in his paths of righteousness.  Upon this basis God will judge, that is, God will rule over the nations.  And as a result, the nations will commit themselves to peace.  The fourth verse of Isaiah 2 is one of the most beautiful and promising of all texts of scripture, for it promises a war torn world a vision of peace.  When God rules over the nations and therefore is the one who will arbitrate among them, then the nations will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks.  That is, in the days to come, instead of devoting our time, our energy, and our resources on keeping afloat a “military industrial complex,” the people will devote themselves to more productive work, such as providing food for their tables.  It may sound utopian, and yet it stands before us as God’s promise, and it is a promise in which we have been called upon to place our hopes – not wishful thinking, but trusting our futures to the covenant-making God.  Our lection ends with verse 5, which calls upon the house of Jacob to “walk in the Light of the Lord.”

Isaiah’s wondrous vision is paired with two texts that lack the grandeur of the Old Testament lesson, and yet they too speak to us in our day.  Both remind us of the importance of being awake and living as people of the light.   In his letter to the Romans, Paul rings the alarm and reminds the recipients of his letter that their salvation is nearer to them than when they first believed.  The night is drawing to a close and day is at hand.  Therefore, they are now to live as in the light, laying aside the works of darkness.  The image here is clear, the criminal does his or her work under the cover of darkness so that they will not be seen, and such, the implication here is, once this was true for them.  But now the light has dawned, the candle is lit, and so they’re to live honorably, putting aside the works of darkness including revelry, drunkenness, debauchery, licentiousness, quarreling (remember that in Isaiah, as a result of the Lord’s instruction in Zion the nations will cease their quarreling), and jealousy.   Instead, they (us) are to put on Jesus Christ and make “no provision for the flesh.”  There is in this word to us, that our hope in Christ should affect the way we live, especially as we move into God’s future.

Finally we come to the Gospel.  With Advent we begin a new lectionary cycle, one that focuses on the Gospel of Matthew.  And in this first gospel lesson of the new church year we find ourselves near the end of the Gospel, in Jesus’ eschatological discourse that comes near the end of his own earthly journey.  It is a rather strong and even harsh word, one that even speaks in terms of eternal punishment.   In this word about the future, Jesus lets the disciples know that the time and place of God’s judgment is known only to the Father – neither Angels nor the Son of Man know this information.  And just as a word of warning, in case they get complacent (remember that Matthew is writing a half century following the death/resurrection of Jesus), on the day of his revealing, the people will be living rather normally.  Indeed, the people will be eating and drinking (not necessarily in excess, just normally) and they’ll be planning weddings, just like normal.  That’s the way it was when the flood hit in the days of Noah.  Since they didn’t heed Noah’s warnings, they were caught unawares, and were swept away.   The moral – you don’t want this to happen to you.  To reinforce this message Jesus speaks enigmatically of pairs of individuals, one of whom will be taken and the other left doing their normal work – men in the field and women at the grinding stone.  As to who is the one receiving judgment – that’s unclear.  A recent book series might suggest that it’s the ones left behind, but it could easily be that the ones who suffer judgment are the ones being pulled out.  There’s really way to know for sure.  What is for sure, Jesus says, is that if a thief were planning to break into the house, and the owner knew the time of his coming, he would have been awake and would have foiled the attempt.  Be awake at all times, Jesus says, for you never know when the thief is coming.

There is hope to be found in this life.  We can live into the vision of God that Isaiah lays out for us, but we must be awake and attentive to the movement of God, and then live in ways that are in tune with this vision of the future.  Therefore, we can affirm that Christian eschatology, that vision of God’s future, does have ethical implications, and so does the candle of hope that we light this first Sunday of Advent.

By Bob Cornwall

Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

Envisioning the Reign of God — Lectionary Meditation

Jeremiah 23:1-6
Colossians 1:11-20
Luke 23:33-43

Envisioning the Reign of God
There are very few true monarchs left in the world.  Most are of the sort that “rule” in England.  They’re mainly
figureheads who are trotted out on special occasions.  True power is held by someone else, whether Parliament or the Prime Minister.   Americans don’t very much like monarchs, whether constitutional or not, though we seem to have an interest in things royal, as long as we don’t have to support them with our taxes.  So, for moderns, the idea of proclaiming Christ the King Sunday might seem rather odd.   Yet, this is the Sunday in which we proclaim Christ as King, as the one in whom and through whom God creates, sustains, and rules the universe.  In observing this particular Sunday, we conclude another liturgical cycle.  When the church gathers a week later, it will begin the cycle once more with a season of waiting, a season waiting for a king to be born.  These two realities – the hope and the fulfillment can be found present in these three texts that hail God’s king, the one who according to Jeremiah will execute justice and righteousness.  One of the things that we must realize as we observe this particular event is that God’s idea of a realm or a kingdom often differs from what we might have in mind.

We begin with Jeremiah.  His is the prophetic word that offers us a vision of what God desires.  As we open to Jeremiah 23 we hear God cry out against the shepherds who have destroyed the flock and scattered the sheep.  The identity of these shepherds isn’t revealed, but context suggests the rulers and authorities of Judah.  It is their choices that have led to this day, when the nation will be destroyed and the people scattered.  But God is not finished with this people, and so despite the realities of the day, God promises to gather up the remnant from the many lands to which they’ve fled, and then bring them back into the fold.  There in the safety and security of God’s reign, the people will be “fruitful and multiply,” a promise is rooted in the very act of creation (Gen. 1:28), suggesting that what is promised is a day of new creation.  In this new creation in which God will regather the people of God, there will be new shepherds, so that none will live in fear.  Yes, the day is coming when God will raise up a righteous branch, whose reign will be marked by wisdom, justice, and righteousness.  In that day Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety (yes, this is in this context a parallelism).  And the one who will reign shall be known as “The Lord is our Righteousness.”  That is, this one who will rule will rule according to the dictates of God’s covenant with the people.

From Jeremiah we move to that second generation Christian leader who writes to the churches in the name and out of the community that knew Paul as its founder and leader.  If Jeremiah points us forward into time, offering a vision of God’s chosen representative, this passage from Colossians offers the reader a vision of enthronement.  What was hoped for has now come to pass.  In a word to people, whom the author believes, had been rescued from darkness so that they might live in the light that is found in the “kingdom of his beloved Son.”  It is this beloved Son of God who provides redemption and forgiveness – or to put this in terms of Jeremiah’s vision, he is the one who will provide salvation and safety.  Here in this letter we experience one of the great hymns of praise, a hymn that declares that Christ is the “image of the invisible God, the first born of creation.”  In him everything is created, including the thrones and kingdoms of this world.  Everything is created through him and for him.  He is the agent of God’s creation and recreation.  In him, the fullness of God has dwelt, and so it is in Christ that we may know God’s grace, mercy, justice, and righteousness.  It is a most triumphant scene, worthy of setting to powerful music.  By the end of this hymn you’re ready to tack on Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus.  But there is another text to which we must give our attention – Luke’s account of the crucifixion.

Luke’s account of the crucifixion isn’t a text that we might expect hear on a Sunday before Thanksgiving, especially when the Christmas shopping cycle has already begun in earnest.  Spending time contemplating Good Friday doesn’t seem appropriate.  Indeed, the Colossian letter seems more appropriate than does this one.  And yet, this is the text for the day.  Like the other two texts, however, it speaks to the question of kingship and kingdoms.  But, the way in which this passage wrestles with the reign of God reminds us that God’s ways may be different from ours.  Jeremiah envisioned a righteous and just ruler, a Messiah who would gather the people and save them.  The passage raises the question – what kind of King will this Messiah of God be?  The answer is found on the cross.  Jesus is crucified at a place called the Skull, situated between two criminals.  There are a number of onlookers.  Some are gawkers, the kind that are attracted to spectacles, and public executions have always seemed to fill that need for entertainment.  Others who have gathered are the religious leaders, who come to scoff and remind him that his path to messiahship has taken a rather wrong turn.  Instead of glory, it is death and humiliation.  So, if you thought you could save others, why not try to save yourself – that is, if you’re the Messiah.  Finally, there are the soldiers, and they too join in the derision.  So, they say, this is the “King of the Jews”?  Not all that impressive is he, can’t even save himself!  Yes, here he is the one who would be king, and all that we can say for him, is that he will die a failure in his task.   Therefore, in the spirit of mockery they place above his head, a sign that reads “King of the Jews.”   Such is the fate of Pretenders to the Throne!

I forgot to mention that there are two other characters in this story – men hanging to the left and the right of Jesus.  One joins in the mockery, and why not?  A bit of gallows humor might seem appropriate, would be a suitable distraction from the agony of crucifixion.  That is one voice from the hill called the Skull.  There is another voice, which comes from the other condemned criminal, and this voice first scolds the other victim of Rome’s “justice system,” admitting some guilt, but also insisting that Jesus did not deserve his fate.  We could debate the reasons why Jesus may have gone to the cross, but that would miss the point of the hour.  This man, experiencing the same agony as Jesus, offers a different assessment, declaring Jesus to be innocent.  He offers God’s judgment upon Jesus, and then turns to Jesus and asks to be remembered in the Kingdom.  Here from the lips of a condemned man comes Luke’s enthronement psalm.  And Jesus responds: “Today you will be with me in paradise.”  Yes, you will enjoy the blessings of God’s reign, for your understand the truth.  You understand that the kingdom of God differs from human kingdoms, which are built upon terror, fear, coercion, and injustice.

As we gather this Sunday, may we consider the true nature of God’s reign.  It’s not a democracy, which can easily turn into the tyranny of the majority.  Nor is it the tyranny of the one.  Instead, it is a commitment to justice and righteousness – and the one who reigns will be called “the Lord is our Righteousness.”
By Bob Cornwall
Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

 

Stand Firm — A Lectionary Meditation

Isaiah 65:17-25

2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Luke 21:5-19

Stand Firm

We hear complaints here and there that Christians in the United States face persecution.  Usually the complaints center on rules prohibiting crèches or Ten Commandment monuments on civic property, or maybe the inability to have Christian prayers at high school football games.  Most of these complaints have to do with loss of power and market share.  Rarely, if ever, do Americans face true persecution.  That is, their lives are not on the line, in the way that, for instance, the Chaldean Christians of Iraq are facing persecution at this very moment.  In the lectionary texts for this week, believers are called upon to stand firm and to keep true to their faith in the midst of difficult circumstances.  The passage from Isaiah speaks to post-exilic Jews who are facing difficult prospects for the future, while both the epistle and gospel speak directly to the reality of persecution.  Where then does faith fit in this equation?

We start with the message from Isaiah – or more precisely – the third prophetic voice in the book of Isaiah.  The Jewish people are living in the midst of ruin and despair.  Their city lies in ruins and their Temple is no more.  They build homes only to see others move in and farm land to see others eat of it.  But a new day is coming; a day of new creation, when the old will be gone and the people will again rejoice and be a delight to God.  In that day they will not “labor in vain” or bear children only to see them face calamity.  Their days will be long in the land and they will prosper.  Indeed, in that day the lion and the lamb will lie down together in peace, for in that day the lion will eat straw like the ox.  Don’t give up hope, the prophet says to the people, a new day is coming.  Live out the dream – build homes and plant vineyards, because a new day is coming.  It is a beautiful vision, one we should grab hold of.  It is a message of God’s blessings, for which we may give thanks.

But, even as we seek to live out the vision of God, we must remember that there are forces that would seek to prevent this vision from being implemented.  In both the New Testament passages the topic of persecution is front and center.  In the passage from 2 Thessalonians, which may or may not be written by Paul we hear encouraging news – the Thessalonians are faithful and loving.  They long to see Paul, even as he longs to see them.  As they face opposition and persecution, they draw strength from the fortitude that the Thessalonians have shown in the face of their own experiences of opposition.  They have stood firm and therefore, Paul can rejoice in this.  At the same time, Paul prays day and night for them, hoping to be with them face to face so that he can encourage them in their times of troubles.  At the same time, Paul prays that they would increase in their love for one another and be strengthened in holiness, so that in the end, they will blameless before God, when Jesus comes with all the saints.  This would seem to be a reminder that even as we stand firm in faith, we would not lose sight of our relationships with another.

If the Thessalonian letter encourages us to stand firm in the face of persecution, even as we are encouraged to increase in love and holiness, the Gospel text reminds us that this call to stand firm may not just be for a season, but be a perennial issue.  Don’t be led astray, Jesus tells the disciples if you hear someone come in my name and say “I am he” or “The time is near.”  Don’t follow them.  If you hear about wars and earthquakes, famines and such, don’t be too concerned, such things will happen.  There is this strong appeal to an apocalyptic sense – things are likely to get worse not better, but God will, in God’s time, intervene to bring order to disorder.  So don’t be too concerned about what you see and hear – that’s just the way life is.

But, the word you need to hear is that when you face persecution – when you get hauled before religious and secular authorities because of my name, take the opportunity to testify.  Give your testimony – tell the authorities about your faith – stand firm in the face of persecution.  As I read this, I picture Martin Luther, standing before the authorities, both religious and secular, saying to them in those famous words:  “Here I stand, I can do no other.”  Jesus tells us in this text not to prepare a defense, but to trust him for the words.  Let the Spirit move, because in doing so, the testimony will be all the more powerful.

As I read these texts, I hear in them both a vision of God’s future and a warning.  God’s future won’t come into existence without a struggle.  There are forces that would seek to prevent God’s reign from coming into existence.  Like Dietrich Bonhoeffer, we may have to follow this path to our deaths, giving witness to the ways of God, knowing that in God’s time God’s realm will break through and there will be a new creation and the lion and the lamb will lie down together in peace.

By Bob Cornwall

Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

 

Take Courage

Haggai 2:1-9

2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17

Luke 20:27-38

Theologian Paul Tillich believed that courage and being were inextricably related.  He writes:

Courage as a human act, as a matter of valuation is an ethical concept.  Courage as the universal and essential self-affirmation of one’s being is an ontological concept.  The courage to be is the ethical act in which man affirms his own being in spite of those elements of his existence which conflict with his essential self-affirmation.  (Tillich, Courage to Be, Yale University Press, 1952, pp. 2-3).

Tillich’s definition may sound a bit abstract, but he reminds us that courage is something that is expressed from the very center of our being in the midst of trying circumstances.  We go on with life, despite the realities that press against us.  As the Spiritual puts it:  “Like a tree planted by the water, I shall not be moved.”

The theme of courage filters through our three texts, though the word isn’t always used directly.  It is, however, stated quite clearly in the word that comes to Haggai the prophet.  God sends the prophet to give a word of encouragement to the governor of Judea and the High Priest.  It is the post-exilic period.  The people have returned to the land and have begun rebuilding the Temple, but the times are difficult, the challenges many, and the memories of another day, a day of glory, still linger in the minds of some.  This people is, by the prophet’s own estimation, no more than a remnant, a runt of what once was a people of importance.  It would be easy for them to slip away and let the world pass them by.  But the Lord of Hosts says to the leaders of the people:  “Take courage . . .; work for I am with you, says the Lord of hosts, according to the promise that I made you when you came out of Egypt.  My Spirit abides among you; do not fear” (vs. 4-5).    The prophet goes on to declare that God will do great things and restore them to glory, but the very fact that he encourages them to get to work now is important, for it takes courage to continue on when all the signs seem against you.  The pundits say it can’t be done, but the promise is there – God says, I am with you, so don’t be afraid!

As we move to the reading from the epistle we again encounter a people who are afraid, people who aren’t sure of the future.  Could it be that the end has come and they’ve been left behind?  More importantly, in the face of difficult times, be strong, don’t be alarmed – these things will happen.  But, as for you, “give thanks to God.”  Why, because you are the first fruits of salvation.  You’ve been called by God to proclaim the good news.  That’s your purpose – so “stand firm, hold fast.” To what are they to hold fast?  It is to the tradition passed on to them by the founders of the church in Thessalonica.  It is in this word that they shall find comfort and hope and strength.  Take courage, because God will strengthen your hearts with every good work and word.   Yes, stand firm – “like a tree planted by the water.”

And why should we take courage?  Why should we stand firm in the face of adversity and opposition?  According to Luke, we are a resurrection people.  The passage from Luke tells of Jesus’ encounter with the Sadducees, a rather conservative, traditional party that one could say is “religious without being spiritual.”  They are tied to the institution, for there really is nothing else.  They find the idea of resurrection folly and seek to deride Jesus (and the others in the community, including the Pharisees, who take hope in the resurrection).  Jesus goes into some detail refuting their charges, taking them into the Torah, those first five books of the Hebrew Bible that the Sadducees embraced, and showed them clearly that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, is the God of the living and not the dead.”

And what word can we take from Luke’s summation of this encounter?  It is, I believe, in the reminder that we can take courage, we can stand firm, because God is the God of the Living and not the Dead.  It is the power of the resurrection that stands as a witness to us that we’re not alone in this world.  Therefore, we need not fear, no matter what waves crash against us, “I shall not be moved.”

By Bob Cornwall

Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

 

The Coming of the Lord — Lectionary Meditation

Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4

2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12

Luke 19:1-10

The Coming of the Lord

Whenever preachers look at the week’s lectionary texts they tend to look for any common threads.  Sometimes, in our eagerness to find the threads, we push the envelope, and I suppose that I could be accused of that in titling today’s meditation.  Except that each of the texts, even the Gospel text, speaks of the coming of the Lord.  It is true that in Luke’s gospel, the Lord is simply inviting himself over for dinner at Zacchaeus’s house, but it still has that “eschatological flavor” that is present in the other two texts.  In the Lord’s coming, there is salvation.  And salvation involves or leads to righteousness – a word that needs defining.

The Habakkuk text closes with the phrase “The righteous shall live by faith,” a phrase that is repeated in Romans 1:17 (not the lectionary reading for the week).  This phrase proved troubling to Martin Luther, who saw in it the possibility of “work’s righteousness,” and so he wanted to emphasize the faith part of it, and insist that whatever righteousness is involved, that righteousness comes from Christ and not our own works.  But that doesn’t seem to be the concern of Habakkuk.  In these two brief selections from this so-called Minor Prophet, we hear the cry of a suffering people, who were witnessing in their midst violence, wrong-doing, and trouble-making.  Indeed, considering the political bickering of the moment, these words stand out:  “strife and contention arise.”  The prophet is wondering when God will respond, going as far as declaring that he would stand at his watch post and keep watch until God answers his complaint.  It is then that the Lord responds, telling him to write down a vision on a tablet that the runner can take around to the people.  And the word that came to the people was this:  “If it seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come.  It will not delay.”  And then comes the kicker – be sure to look at the proud, for their spirit isn’t right – but “the righteous will live by faith.”  And what is faith?  It is living by trusting God?  What is righteousness?  It is God’s justice – God’s commitment to the poor and the marginalized of society.  It may not have been what Luther had in mind at the time, but that seems to be what was on Habakkuk’s mind.

The second text, the one that comes from 2 Thessalonians serves as a response to concerns that the “parousia” or the return of Christ had already come.  To use the title of a recent series of “apocalyptic themed books” they were afraid they had been “Left Behind,” and so the author (presumably Paul, but there are questions about authorship) offers a word of assurance.  Don’t worry, because before anything like that happens you’ll start seeing the signs of rebellion and the rise of the lawless one, who will seat himself on God’s throne in the Temple, declaring himself to be God.  But, don’t get too concerned, and don’t be alarmed by any “spirit, word, or letter” claiming to be from us declaring that the “day of the Lord” is already here.  The Lord is coming, but don’t believe everything you hear.  But the word that we need to hear comes at the end, in verses 11-12, which offers a word a judgment against those who take “pleasure in unrighteousness.”  That is, those who fail to believe the truth and follow the Lawless One by living lives of unrighteousness.  And what is meant by unrighteousness?  Surely the definition is rooted in the message of the prophets, who call on the people of God to act justly toward those who are poor, to the widow, and the orphan.

Finally, we come to the story of Zacchaeus, one of the best known stories in the New Testament.  We know this story because Zacchaeus seems to always be the butt of “short-people” jokes.  He’s so short, he has to climb a tree to see Jesus.  But it should be noted that this story falls on the heels of the previous week’s lectionary text where the attitudes of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector are compared.  The Pharisee is sure of his own righteousness and needs no help from God; while the tax collector humbly asks that God take mercy on him, for he is a miserable sinner.  Now, in this text, which follows on that parable, we meet up with a real tax collector who is keen on seeing Jesus.  And, as a result the Lord decides to come to his house.  Although the “righteous” folks in town are scandalized that Jesus would hang out with a sinner, Zacchaeus, the chief tax agent in Jericho, is so pleased by Jesus’ willingness to come to his house that he vows to change his life.  And how might he do this?  He commits himself to giving half of his possessions to the poor (an act of righteousness) and will repay those he has defrauded four times the amount that he had taken from them (considering that this is how he made his money – the profit that lies beyond what he had to give to Rome, he was essentially doing what Jesus asked of the rich young man (Luke 17:18ff) – he committed himself to giving everything he had and in return Jesus says that salvation had come to this house.  He had committed himself to live by faith and doing so had become righteous.

The two messages that are embedded in these texts are these:  First, the day of the Lord is coming, so keep watch, because God is faithful and will come at the appropriate time.  And second the “righteous shall live by faith,” which means that if we’re trusting our lives into the care of God, we should live in the interim period in such a way that the righteousness of God will be on display – a righteousness that is illustrated by the decisions made by Zacchaeus.

By Bob Cornwall

Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

 

An American Church That Might Have Been (via Keith Watkins Historian)

The Disciples have long been at the forefront of the ecumenical movement. While we weren’t officially present on the day that what became the Consultation on Christian Union in 1960, we were quickly a part of the effort.  Keith Watkins has begun a series of posts at his blog that is worth attending to. On that Sunday in 1960, at Grace Cathedral (a church, by the way, that my parents were members at the time), Eugene Carson Blake, the leader of the United Presbyterian Church (the northern branch that would later form part of the PCUSA) and James Pike, Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Northern California, called on the churches to join together as one body.

As a community of Disciples, readers of [D]mergent might wish to keep watch over this series.

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On Sunday December 4, 1960, a sermon preached in San Francisco seized the imagination of people across the United States and much of the English-speaking world. Two of the highest profile Christian leaders in the nation—Eugene Carson Blake, Stated Clerk of the United Presbyterian Church, and James A. Pike, widely-known Episcopal bishop—conducted worship at Grace Episcopal Cathedral high atop Nob Hill. As bishop of the Diocese of San Francisco, Pi … Read More

via Keith Watkins Historian

Poured Out — A Lectionary Meditation

Joel 2:23-32

2 Timothy 4:6-18

Luke 8:9-14

Poured Out

Each week, as I sit down to write this lectionary meditation, I look at the text to see if there is something that connects them in one way or another.  After all, the creators of the lectionary have tried to some extent to bring some thematic unity to their choices.  It doesn’t always work, but often something sticks out, something catches the imagination.  As I looked at these three texts, which in some ways are quite distinct, a phrase stood out in two of the passages – the words “pour[ed] out.”   In the Joel passage, the Spirit is poured out on the whole people, empowering and equipping them to bear witness to the things of God.  In the passage from 2 Timothy, the author (assumed to be Paul in the text) claims to have been “poured out as a libation.”  That is, he is being offered up as an offering to God.   The words don’t appear in the Lukan parable, but consider the cry of the tax collector, he pours out his heart before God, seeking forgiveness.  It could be that the Spirit is being poured out upon us, or it may be that the calling of God has led to our being poured out as an offering, or perhaps it is the need to pour out the heart to God so as to receive God’s gracious offer of forgiveness.  Whatever is the case, we are being called upon to rest our lives in the hands of God.

If there is this common word usage, the passages themselves take us in different directions.  Each is well known to many people of faith.  The Joel passage has long been familiar to me as it has been used as a basis of Pentecostal theology.  The second half of the passage serves as a foundation for Peter’s sermon in Acts 2, where he interprets the events of the Pentecost experience in light of this very text.  In Peter’s mind (as presented by Luke), Joel’s promises of the coming of the Spirit upon the people of God so that young and old, male and female, slave and free might bear witness to God’s grace is being fulfilled.  The first half has been used by Pentecostal preachers to suggest that the renewed Pentecostal experience of the 20^th century is itself a fulfillment of Joel, and thus is a sign that God is winding things down.  What had been lost, as Aimee Semple McPherson, declared in a famous sermon, has now been restored.  Now is the time of the Latter Rain.  Whatever our sense of the Pentecostal interpretation, there is a strong promise here that God is at work restoring that which is broken.

In the letter to Timothy, the author (named here as Paul) is reflecting on his own life, and acknowledging that the end is near.  He has fought the good fight and has finished the race.  He did what God had called upon him to do.  He has no regrets, for he now awaits the “crown of righteousness,” which awaits all those who long for the appearing of Christ Jesus.  Yes, it has been difficult at times – witness the report of the opposition and even abandonment by friends and supporters.  But in the end, it doesn’t matter, because even if his human friends abandoned him – I picture the author identifying himself with Jesus on the night of his betrayal – the Lord has stood with him.  Yes, the Lord has stood with him so that the message of God might be proclaimed to the Gentiles.  He has been rescued from attacks by those who would do him evil, but now the heavenly realm awaits him, he is content, and so he can stop and offer praise to God for his glory.

The Lukan Parable is brief, powerful, and requiring a bit of caution as we approach it.  The point of the parable is to address those who put their trust in their own righteousness, and not only that but treat others with contempt.  Yes, this is a parable that challenges our tendency toward self-righteousness.  “But, by the grace of God, goes me,” we might like to say.   We think of this sentiment as giving praise to God, but does it really?  Are we not suggesting that God somehow loves us more than the other, which is why we’re not down on our luck?

The person in this passage who goes home forgiven, after going to the Temple to pray, is a Tax Collector.  As we all know, tax collectors have been despised since the beginning of time.  For a tax collector to refer to the self as a “miserable sinner” would be deemed appropriate by most of us.  This man, who has gone to the Temple, acts in a manner appropriate to one who has sinned.  He dare not look up into the heavens, for that would be the height of arrogance.  No, he bowed his head low, as a sign of his contrition for his misdeeds.  He beats his breast as a sign of his grief at his actions in life, and asks that God would be merciful to him for he is a mere sinner.

The moral of the story is that those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.  Or as Jesus says elsewhere, the last shall be first, and the first last.  So, where is the problem?

Ah, yes, the problem with this text is that Luke contrasts the unrighteous, but forgiven Tax Collector with the self-righteous, but unforgiven, Pharisee.  How often do we use the Pharisee as the example of the self-righteous, stuffed shirt, sort?  Even with the best of intentions, we can slip into such usage, when in fact, despite the animus seemingly present in the gospels, the Pharisees were devout, broadminded, faithful, tithers even (who wouldn’t want a few of those in a church?).  But, by focusing our attention on the “Pharisee,” as a member of a religious party, we might miss something much more important.  As Ron Allen and Clark Williamson note in their lectionary commentary, this passage uncovers an attitude that is potentially present in all of us, “the ease with which we turn the love of God into self-adulation, the pride we take in our humility” (Williamson and Allen, Preaching the Gospels without Blaming the Jews, WJK, 2004, p. 243).  The parable then confronts us with an attitude that marks many of us, in which we turn God’s unconditional love into “a condition apart from which God is not free to love, a condition that, presumably, we have met but others have not.”  The Tax-Collector, on the other hand, had no such allusions that he was the beneficiary of God’s unconditional love, and therefore he didn’t take it for granted or assume that he was on the inside already.  Jesus commends him for his willingness to honestly pour out his heart before God, making himself more receptive to God’s unconditional love.  May such be true for each of us.

By Bob Cornwall

Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

Being Persistent in the Faith — a Lectionary Meditation

Jeremiah 31:27-34

2 Timothy 3:14-4:5

Luke 18:1-8

Being Persistent in the Faith

“In those days,” is a phrase that sticks out from Jeremiah’s vision of God’s intention to bring into being a new community, one that is bound together not by a covenant written on stone tablets, but on human hearts.  “In those days” carries a future tense, a sense that God is up to something, and that God will bring this “plan” to fruition.  Theologians call this kind of talk “eschatology.”  Eschatology has to do with so-called “last things,” but it entails much more than wrapping up things at the end.  Instead, it is a conversation about the promise that stands out front of us as people of God.

As I read these three texts together, seeking a sense of what they might have to say to us today, the word “persistence” stands out.  You will find the word explicitly used in the 2^nd letter to Timothy, a letter written by an experienced pastor to a younger one, seeking to offer a word of encouragement to someone who is struggling with the demands of guiding a community of faith in the direction he (I’m assuming the pastor is a male due to the times) believes God is leading.  Jeremiah has a similar job – announcing to a people living in exile that God is with them, and that God is going to do a new thing in and for them.

God will, Jeremiah says, “sow the house of Israel and the hose of Judah with the seed of humans and the seed of animals” (Jeremiah 31:27).  Yes, the God who plucked up and destroyed will replant the houses of Israel and Judah.  But, the time is not yet present, because the message remains “in those days they shall no longer say.”  The time is coming, but is not yet.  The unstated request is that they remain persistent, until that time in which the new covenant is established, and then they shall again be God’s people.  Then, they’ll no longer have to teach one another to know the Lord, for everyone will know the Lord and their “iniquity” will be forgiven and they shall sin no more.  The time is coming, but is not yet, and yet, that the word is announced is suggestive that the recipients of this word should start living as if the promised age has already been established.

In Luke’s gospel, we have this parable, in which a woman comes to a judge seeking justice against her opponent.   We don’t know what the issue is.  Perhaps the opponent is seeking to evict her from her home, because as a widow with no visible means of support she’s unable to pay her rent.   Maybe the opponent is a family member who has taken control of her assets and is robbing her.  The judge, whose tenure on the bench seems so secure that he is unconcerned about how the public deems him, sees no point in acting on her request.  After all, she’s just a widow.  Why bother?  But the woman is persistent.  She keeps knocking on his door, perhaps even camping out in front of his office, until the judge finally relents and grants her requests.  The judge doesn’t act because it’s the right thing to do or because he’ll gain greater respect from the community or even God, but so that the widow will go away.  Well, Jesus says, if a judge will do such a thing due to the persistence of this widow; then surely God, who is just and merciful, will grant us justice without delay.  Of course, there’s a caveat at the end – one that again points to the future – when the son of Man arrives, will he find faith present in those who claim to be the children of God?  In other words, is their persistence in the things of God?

All of this leads to the text I’ve decided to focus on in my preaching this coming Sunday – the piece from 2 Timothy.   In this passage, the older pastor, the mentor of the younger pastor, writes a word of encouragement to one who is struggling to lead a beleaguered community of faith into God’s future.  The word is “be persistent whether the time is favorable or not.”   Indeed, the pastor writes that the younger leader should keep in mind the impending appearing of God and God’s kingdom, and so in that spirit be consistent in proclaiming the message of God, convincing, rebuking (oh a word that we’d just as soon leave out of the conversation), and encourage the people – with patience!  Persistence is needed because not everyone is ready to hear the word that the pastor had learned from the scriptures, a word passed on not only by this pastor, but others who understood the things of God, and had offered this guidance, so that this young pastor might be proficient and equipped for every good work.

Yes, be persistent in the things of God and carry out your ministry fully.  Do so knowing that God is at work in the world, bringing into existence the realm of God, the place in which people will in due time know God and thus no longer need instruction (including those rebukes mentioned in 2 Timothy).

By Bob Cornwall

Bob Cornwall is Pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of Troy, MI and Editor ofSharing the Practice, the journal of the Academy of Parish Clergy. Holder of a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, he loves to write, having authored several books, with a book on the Lord’s Prayer due out in November.  Besides contributing to this blog, he writes nearly every day at his personal blogPonderings on a Faith Journey, as well as contributing regularly to the Christian Century blogTheolog.

 

Lamentations 1:1-6

2 Timothy 1:1-14

Luke 17:5-10

Rekindling the Fire

            Over time a person’s faith can begin to grow cold.   One’s sense of calling can diminish as well.  The difficulties of life and ministry can become overwhelming, and maybe you’d just as soon give up.  Perhaps, the context of life has become challenging and you wonder what will come of one’s future.  It is in the midst of this sense of doubt and questioning of one’s purpose in life, that we hear two words of encouragement – one stands as a call to “rekindle the calling” and the other suggests that if only we have faith the size of a mustard seed we can replant a mulberry tree in the sea.  Luke’s rendition might not suggest casting mountains into the sea, but maybe planting trees in seas is sufficient for the day.  But we need to remember the context, the situation we find ourselves in. 

            As I read the opening line of Lamentations – “How lonely sits the city that once was full of people,” I couldn’t help but thinking of Detroit.  Like many industrial cities, it has suffered a steep decline in population.  But even more troubling than the decline of people, who once filled the city, is the sense of its change in status.  A half century ago it was the sixth largest city in the country, but now it is barely in the top 20.  The princess is now a vassal.  Indeed, her friends have dealt treacherously with her.  Yes, I know that Jeremiah is weeping over Jerusalem and the exiles from Judah, but does not this text speak so clearly to once mighty American cities?  And no city has become a by-word for despair more than Detroit.  It is in the shadow of this once great city that I do ministry.  I may not live nor do I serve a church in the city, but the city casts its shadow, and I feel its pain.

            It is in the context of situations such as this that we must hear the letter to Timothy.  Yes, I know that Paul likely didn’t write this letter, nor did Paul’s companion probably receive it.  But the message remains true – we have been given a gift through the laying on of hands, a gift that needs rekindling every once in awhile.  When we become discouraged it is good to hear the message – God didn’t give us a spirit of cowardice or timidity, but instead God has given us a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline.  We have what we need to go forward into the world, to bring healing to where there is woundedness and brokenness.  We may experience suffering.  I’ve just finished reading a biography of Dietrich Bonheoffer, and it again reminds us of the suffering he endured because of what he thought was the right thing to do.  It was his calling, which was stirred up and rekindled, so that he might have courage.  We have a holy calling, which this letter suggests was given to us before “the ages began.”  Before there was time, there was a calling, a calling that comes to us in Christ.  Like the author of this letter, we have been appointed as heralds, apostles, and as teachers.  And there is no shame in this calling.  As a result, we may entrust our lives, our futures, and our faith, to the one who will guard this faith with the help of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us.

            After reading the powerful tones of the 2^nd letter to Timothy, this passage from the gospel seems to fall flat.  In response to a request that Jesus would increase their faith, Jesus says all you need is the faith of a mustard seed, and then you plant trees in the sea.  That seems okay and encouraging, but then Jesus tells this parable about tending sheep and plowing fields.  Who would, Jesus asks, offer the servant a place at the table.  No, the servant, after doing all the other work in the field, is expected to come home and cook dinner.  Only then, after everyone else has eaten, then he or she can eat and relax.  And then when all is done, we can sit back and say of ourselves:  We are worthless slaves; we’ve done only what we should have done.”  I find it hard to receive this word, for how can I be a worthless slave, when I have been entrusted with the gospel and with eternal life? 

            I struggle with the gospel text, because it seems overly pessimistic and derogatory, but I understand the feeling of “woe is me.”  But as I think of my struggles with this text, I’m drawn back to Lamentations and wish to know how this text speaks to Detroit, a once great city that has lost so many of its people, who now stand in exile.  That exile might take them into the next county, they maybe the ones who inhabit the church I serve, or maybe they’ve left for places far away.  I don’t know, but I hear the cries and I wonder about the future.  I wonder about the friends who have turned into enemies, those who take some glee in the decline of the city – not just Detroit, but definitely including Detroit. 

            May we discern God’s gifts and message for a time such as this.