STONE and stones ...
As you come to him, the living Stone - rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him - you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in Scripture it says:
"See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame."
Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,
"The stone the builders rejected
has become the capstone,"
and,
"A stone that causes men to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall."
They stumble because they disobey the message - which is also what they were destined for.
This passage brought to mind when I was new in the faith. I remember pastor Dr. Lin taught us, as a Christian you are a "Christ Junior." My first reaction was that sounds strange. He would elaborate: since he was the ultimate prophet, priest and king, we are small prophets, priests and kings too.
He would explain what that should mean.
As a priest, we need to be praying for people and bringing them to God.
As a prophet, we need to be sharing God's message with people.
As a king, we need to be exerting rulership over the areas of life God has given us responsibility for.
And so in this passage in Peter, we get to see that Jesus is the STONE and we are living stones... stone and stone juniors!
What about THE STONE?
He is living. What a crazy metaphor, eh? Stones are as dead and inanimate as anything we know. And yet, Jesus is the LIVING stone. He is risen from the DEAD!
He is chosen and precious and the one who can be trusted!
What about us, the little stones?
We are living too! We were once dead but Jesus has given us life. So we too are living... living stones.
For what purpose?
built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ ...
Thus, as stone juniors, we are being built into collection of priest juniors.
This imagery must have been very encouraging for people in the congregations who heard this letter from Peter.
But aside from this positive image there is a parallel negative response.
Take a look again ...
As you come to him, the living Stone
... a chosen and precious cornerstone
......... you who believe
......... those who do not believe
... stone the builders rejected
A stone that causes men to stumble
The message of Jesus is a powerful message of life and hope. Yet, he was rejected in his time and his followers over the centuries since have been rejected.
In some cases, the adage, the biggest hinderance to Christianity has been Christians, applies. Sad to say, there is truth to that.
But is the message itself and Jesus himself a hinderance?
As beautiful a life and message that was and is, people stumble because of it.
Lord, have mercy. Help me be a priest that lifts up to you the needs of people around me. I pray for compassion for a chaplain intern as he stands alongside the person in the hospital bed and the family in the waiting room and shows the love of Christ. I pray for strength and wisdom for the doctors in Haiti who minister with their gift and training of medicine in the face of overwhelming need. I pray for us in the USA who have so much that we would give to help those who have so little. I pray for those who in the world who seek to destroy life for you ask us to pray for our enemies. May you break through the darkness that shrinks their hearts. And is it wrong for me to ask that if they do not turn, that the hammer of justice would fall upon them ending their ability to inflict evil and suffering? Lord have mercy. Amen
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Saturday, January 16, 2010
I Peter 2:1-3
The news from Haiti remains grim.
President Obama has mobilized the resources of the US Government to help and is to be applauded for the swiftness and scale of the effort.
When it comes to disaster relief, politics must always be set aside and indeed, Former President's Clinton and Bush have teamed up to spearhead efforts.
Here is one list of agencies on the ground in Haiti.
Here is another list of groups working to assist Haiti.
There are many agencies doing work there and I hope you will pick one to support.
Please give to any reputable organization you trust. When people need help, we need to step up to the plate and give.
President Bush put it simply, "The most effective way for Americans to help the people of Haiti is to contribute money. That money will go to organizations on the ground and will be -- who will be able to effectively spend it. I know a lot of people want to send blankets or water -- just send your cash. One of the things that the President and I will do is to make sure your money is spent wisely."
And so now, I will go to an organization I have supported on many occasions in the past, World Vision, to donate.
Find one you want to support and please do so!
###
I Peter 2:1-3 ...
Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
Sometimes, the Bible has complicated stuff.
Sometimes, it is as plain as day.
Don't need to over think this one, eh?
If we have truly tasted the Lord's goodness in our lives, we have no option but to make every effort to set aside the old ways and grow in the newness of life and salvation He has given us.
Pretty much everything I Peter has been saying thus far has been along these lines.
Perhaps, it will do well to re-cap the ground we have covered in 1 Peter ...
Introduction 1:1-2
Reflection on the grand scope of the new birth and salvation
1. Its future inheritance, 1:3-5
2. Its present suffering, 1:6-9
3. Its anticipation by prophets and angels, 1:10-12
Living life in the Now - Four rounds of exhortation in action/motive pattern
1. Action (prepare your minds...)
motive - God is holy, 1:13-16
2. Action (live in reverent fear...)
motive - Precious blood of Christ, 1:17-21
3. Action (love...)
motive - Born through the living and enduring word of God, 1:22-25
4. Action (rid yourselves of all malice...)
motive - Tasted the Lord's goodness, 2:1-3
Lord, please work in my heart so that I would be your hands and feet in this world. Not only help me to set aside the old ways but make me bold and willing and empowered to live in a new way of love and reverence and alertness to what you are doing. Amen.
President Obama has mobilized the resources of the US Government to help and is to be applauded for the swiftness and scale of the effort.
When it comes to disaster relief, politics must always be set aside and indeed, Former President's Clinton and Bush have teamed up to spearhead efforts.
Here is one list of agencies on the ground in Haiti.
Here is another list of groups working to assist Haiti.
There are many agencies doing work there and I hope you will pick one to support.
Please give to any reputable organization you trust. When people need help, we need to step up to the plate and give.
President Bush put it simply, "The most effective way for Americans to help the people of Haiti is to contribute money. That money will go to organizations on the ground and will be -- who will be able to effectively spend it. I know a lot of people want to send blankets or water -- just send your cash. One of the things that the President and I will do is to make sure your money is spent wisely."
And so now, I will go to an organization I have supported on many occasions in the past, World Vision, to donate.
Find one you want to support and please do so!
###
I Peter 2:1-3 ...
Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
Sometimes, the Bible has complicated stuff.
Sometimes, it is as plain as day.
Don't need to over think this one, eh?
If we have truly tasted the Lord's goodness in our lives, we have no option but to make every effort to set aside the old ways and grow in the newness of life and salvation He has given us.
Pretty much everything I Peter has been saying thus far has been along these lines.
Perhaps, it will do well to re-cap the ground we have covered in 1 Peter ...
Introduction 1:1-2
Reflection on the grand scope of the new birth and salvation
1. Its future inheritance, 1:3-5
2. Its present suffering, 1:6-9
3. Its anticipation by prophets and angels, 1:10-12
Living life in the Now - Four rounds of exhortation in action/motive pattern
1. Action (prepare your minds...)
motive - God is holy, 1:13-16
2. Action (live in reverent fear...)
motive - Precious blood of Christ, 1:17-21
3. Action (love...)
motive - Born through the living and enduring word of God, 1:22-25
4. Action (rid yourselves of all malice...)
motive - Tasted the Lord's goodness, 2:1-3
Lord, please work in my heart so that I would be your hands and feet in this world. Not only help me to set aside the old ways but make me bold and willing and empowered to live in a new way of love and reverence and alertness to what you are doing. Amen.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
1 Peter 1:22-25
Happy New Years! Okay, am about 10 days late...
Anyway, back to the lifetime project of blogging through the Bible...
Coming up on the end of Chapter 1 ...
The Bible does contain elements of "deep thought." But I think foremost there is a linkage between theology and living life.
Here in the latest part of chapter one is a very practical challenge:
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
There is the truth of a holy God and what God has done in sending Jesus.
Then there is a response that is called for ... love.
This isn't intellectual rocket science!
But it does require a transformation ...
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever." And this is the word that was preached to you.
Do we naturally love without God changing us?
Parental love for children is real. The love of friends is real.
These are beautiful expressions of love and reflect God's desire for how we are to live.
But of course, we have a connection in both cases ... a family tie and some common ground that provides emotional affinity for our friends.
How hard is it love a stranger?
This is where the church as a community can rise or fall. The people listening to this letter from Peter might have some family ties to each other. Some might have friendship connections from daily life. But I would guess that some (many?) would be strangers to each other.
Will they live up to this call to love?
Will having the desire to follow Jesus in common spur a love beyond family and friends?
And, of course, will the call to love extend beyond their own church community?
Indeed, one can marshal evidence of how Christians have failed to love. All too true.
But one must also look at the schools, hospitals, orphanages, support groups and other things that people of faith have started.
And hopefully, my transformed life will be evidence that God is alive as well.
Lord, thank you for Jesus and the transformation he has brought. Help me to live out the command to love. Clear out the hardness of my heart and replace it with a new heart that sees with your eyes and hears with your ears. Amen.
Anyway, back to the lifetime project of blogging through the Bible...
Coming up on the end of Chapter 1 ...
The Bible does contain elements of "deep thought." But I think foremost there is a linkage between theology and living life.
Here in the latest part of chapter one is a very practical challenge:
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
There is the truth of a holy God and what God has done in sending Jesus.
Then there is a response that is called for ... love.
This isn't intellectual rocket science!
But it does require a transformation ...
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever." And this is the word that was preached to you.
Do we naturally love without God changing us?
Parental love for children is real. The love of friends is real.
These are beautiful expressions of love and reflect God's desire for how we are to live.
But of course, we have a connection in both cases ... a family tie and some common ground that provides emotional affinity for our friends.
How hard is it love a stranger?
This is where the church as a community can rise or fall. The people listening to this letter from Peter might have some family ties to each other. Some might have friendship connections from daily life. But I would guess that some (many?) would be strangers to each other.
Will they live up to this call to love?
Will having the desire to follow Jesus in common spur a love beyond family and friends?
And, of course, will the call to love extend beyond their own church community?
Indeed, one can marshal evidence of how Christians have failed to love. All too true.
But one must also look at the schools, hospitals, orphanages, support groups and other things that people of faith have started.
And hopefully, my transformed life will be evidence that God is alive as well.
Lord, thank you for Jesus and the transformation he has brought. Help me to live out the command to love. Clear out the hardness of my heart and replace it with a new heart that sees with your eyes and hears with your ears. Amen.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
1 Peter 1:17-21
Continuing on ...
Since you call on a Father who judges each person's work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
What jumps out at you?
For me ...
"foreigners here in reverent fear"
and
"chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
I think one of the struggles of living out the Christian faith is finding the healthy tension between recognizing a higher calling (we belong to God) which leads us to be foreigners yet not become isolated from this present life in the process.
As an ethnic minority, I have experienced some of that "foreign-ness" in that there is sometimes not full acceptance by the majority culture. Some differences are innocuous and fall into the realm of mere "taste" or "preference." But some differences are real values clashes.
If we are living out the Christian faith, there will be times we feel like "foreigners." For example, today, there is a very aggressive strand of atheism that views Christians as intellectually deficient and the source of many problems in society. For less aggressive atheists, they view Christians as odd people but tolerable as long as they don't say too much.
Because of this, it will be easy to retreat to one's own enclaves.
But, of course, the life of Jesus and his message calls us to influence the lives of others by demonstrating love, calling people to turn back to God and building bridges. Thus, the temptation to retreat to a private precinct is to be resisted.
Its mind blowing to consider "chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
The mission of Jesus was planned before the creation of the world? Whoa.
As humans, we think in linear time: creation of world --> fall of humanity --> Jesus.
This passage says that Jesus was chosen to the sacrificial lamb before the creation... before the fall ... before it was necessary (in our sense of linear time)!
Jesus, as the sacrificial lamb, at that moment in human history, is effective not just for those in the first century but for us in the 21st century and for that matter for all time?!
And in God's time line, Jesus' revelation is "the last times."
People sometimes object to the Christian faith because it isn't rational.
In most people's mind, people believe that means Christianity is irrational and thus not true.
I propose for your consideration that that is inaccurate.
Rather, I consider Christianity supra-rational.
Is that a real word?
Yes.
Love cannot be comprehended by reason alone. It involves reason in that we observe the beloved and interact with words and deeds. But the choice of love, the commitment to love, the cherishing of the beloved requires more than reason.
Christianity posits that God is a person who is seeking to reconcile wayward creatures to himself and each other. Since this existentially is about relationships it cannot be exclusively a rational endeavor.
Do you buy it?
Lord, thank you for redeeming me. I was stuck in a futile path. I was alienated. I was without hope. But you have paid a price to transfer me from that lost life. Through Jesus' life, example, teaching, death and resurrection, there is hope and life and love. Help me to live in this truth with reverence. Amen.
Since you call on a Father who judges each person's work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
What jumps out at you?
For me ...
"foreigners here in reverent fear"
and
"chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
I think one of the struggles of living out the Christian faith is finding the healthy tension between recognizing a higher calling (we belong to God) which leads us to be foreigners yet not become isolated from this present life in the process.
As an ethnic minority, I have experienced some of that "foreign-ness" in that there is sometimes not full acceptance by the majority culture. Some differences are innocuous and fall into the realm of mere "taste" or "preference." But some differences are real values clashes.
If we are living out the Christian faith, there will be times we feel like "foreigners." For example, today, there is a very aggressive strand of atheism that views Christians as intellectually deficient and the source of many problems in society. For less aggressive atheists, they view Christians as odd people but tolerable as long as they don't say too much.
Because of this, it will be easy to retreat to one's own enclaves.
But, of course, the life of Jesus and his message calls us to influence the lives of others by demonstrating love, calling people to turn back to God and building bridges. Thus, the temptation to retreat to a private precinct is to be resisted.
Its mind blowing to consider "chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
The mission of Jesus was planned before the creation of the world? Whoa.
As humans, we think in linear time: creation of world --> fall of humanity --> Jesus.
This passage says that Jesus was chosen to the sacrificial lamb before the creation... before the fall ... before it was necessary (in our sense of linear time)!
Jesus, as the sacrificial lamb, at that moment in human history, is effective not just for those in the first century but for us in the 21st century and for that matter for all time?!
And in God's time line, Jesus' revelation is "the last times."
People sometimes object to the Christian faith because it isn't rational.
In most people's mind, people believe that means Christianity is irrational and thus not true.
I propose for your consideration that that is inaccurate.
Rather, I consider Christianity supra-rational.
Is that a real word?
Yes.
Love cannot be comprehended by reason alone. It involves reason in that we observe the beloved and interact with words and deeds. But the choice of love, the commitment to love, the cherishing of the beloved requires more than reason.
Christianity posits that God is a person who is seeking to reconcile wayward creatures to himself and each other. Since this existentially is about relationships it cannot be exclusively a rational endeavor.
Do you buy it?
Lord, thank you for redeeming me. I was stuck in a futile path. I was alienated. I was without hope. But you have paid a price to transfer me from that lost life. Through Jesus' life, example, teaching, death and resurrection, there is hope and life and love. Help me to live in this truth with reverence. Amen.
Friday, December 25, 2009
1 Peter 1:13-16
Its Christmas!
Can we get an Advent perspective on this reading from 1 Peter?
Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy.
When is "when Jesus Christ is revealed?"
At one level, when Jesus came to be born in a manger, he was revealed!
Most didn't notice.
But Jesus will come again ...
Some think this passage describes Jesus return, At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens. If so, there will be no missing it!
And so Peter appears to be encouraging us to set our hope on that future event. But suffice to say, hope and grace has already begun breaking into the world with the arrival of the Christ child!
The hearers of 1 Peter didn't live to see the day of Christ's return. And 2000 years later, we wonder when Jesus will return. Will it happen in our lifetime?
Mark 13:32-36 tells us no one except God knows when Jesus will return.
And what advice did Jesus give while we wait?
Be on guard ...
Be alert ...
Be about our assigned task ...
And Peter echoes Jesus words:
Prepare your minds for action
Be self-controlled
Set your hope on grace
Do not conform to evil desires
Be holy
Thank you Lord for Christmas! Grace has been given in the Christ child, grace is given each day and grace will be given to your people when you return. But for today my prayer is as the words of the Christmas Carol ...
Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"
Amen.
Can we get an Advent perspective on this reading from 1 Peter?
Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy.
When is "when Jesus Christ is revealed?"
At one level, when Jesus came to be born in a manger, he was revealed!
Most didn't notice.
But Jesus will come again ...
Some think this passage describes Jesus return, At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens. If so, there will be no missing it!
And so Peter appears to be encouraging us to set our hope on that future event. But suffice to say, hope and grace has already begun breaking into the world with the arrival of the Christ child!
The hearers of 1 Peter didn't live to see the day of Christ's return. And 2000 years later, we wonder when Jesus will return. Will it happen in our lifetime?
Mark 13:32-36 tells us no one except God knows when Jesus will return.
And what advice did Jesus give while we wait?
Be on guard ...
Be alert ...
Be about our assigned task ...
And Peter echoes Jesus words:
Prepare your minds for action
Be self-controlled
Set your hope on grace
Do not conform to evil desires
Be holy
Thank you Lord for Christmas! Grace has been given in the Christ child, grace is given each day and grace will be given to your people when you return. But for today my prayer is as the words of the Christmas Carol ...
Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"
Amen.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
1 Peter 1:10-12
Continuing in I Peter ...
Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Jesus changed everything.
The prophets of old pointing were pointing to that change. But they didn't get to see it in their lifetimes.
The angels "long to look ..." I wonder what does that really mean?
image source: http://www.binoculartips.com/
Imagine if you will, angels in the presence of God and God speaks to them of His plans to initiate a salvation plan through Jesus. The angels wonder, what is going to happen?
God, being God, can see how it will unfold ... down to the details of ...
people sneering at a pregnant Mary...
Joseph feeling the cold shoulders of people who think he's clueless...
Jesus experiencing the joy of people responding...
and the pain of people rejecting...
the agony of bearing the cross...
the power and glory of the resurrection...
the birth of the church...
and how the church will sometime embody the grace God wants to extend to God's delight...
and how the church will all too often fall into self-righteousness and cold heartedness grieving God...
the culmination of all things when God turns the kingdoms of this world into his kingdom...
But the angels, not being God, can't see how the future unfolds.
They wonder what is going to happen?
They know something wonderful is going to happen and so they in their own way, in ways we don't understand, do as God directs them and participate with us in the unfolding of what God is doing?
Thank you Lord that grace has come. Reconciliation with You and our fellow human beings is unfolding. The suffering of Jesus has opened the gates of salvation and that glory flows out and the angels watch with awe and wonder. May this Christmas season see a renewal in my own heart of the amazing thing you have done and a renewal of my commitment to take part in what you are doing in this world. Amen.
Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Jesus changed everything.
The prophets of old pointing were pointing to that change. But they didn't get to see it in their lifetimes.
The angels "long to look ..." I wonder what does that really mean?
image source: http://www.binoculartips.com/
Imagine if you will, angels in the presence of God and God speaks to them of His plans to initiate a salvation plan through Jesus. The angels wonder, what is going to happen?
God, being God, can see how it will unfold ... down to the details of ...
people sneering at a pregnant Mary...
Joseph feeling the cold shoulders of people who think he's clueless...
Jesus experiencing the joy of people responding...
and the pain of people rejecting...
the agony of bearing the cross...
the power and glory of the resurrection...
the birth of the church...
and how the church will sometime embody the grace God wants to extend to God's delight...
and how the church will all too often fall into self-righteousness and cold heartedness grieving God...
the culmination of all things when God turns the kingdoms of this world into his kingdom...
But the angels, not being God, can't see how the future unfolds.
They wonder what is going to happen?
They know something wonderful is going to happen and so they in their own way, in ways we don't understand, do as God directs them and participate with us in the unfolding of what God is doing?
Thank you Lord that grace has come. Reconciliation with You and our fellow human beings is unfolding. The suffering of Jesus has opened the gates of salvation and that glory flows out and the angels watch with awe and wonder. May this Christmas season see a renewal in my own heart of the amazing thing you have done and a renewal of my commitment to take part in what you are doing in this world. Amen.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
I Peter 1:3-9
1 Peter 1:3-9 launches into a uplifting reflection of the end of our stories and how that helps us in the day-to-day.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
image source: http://www.callbox7.com/a-complete-guide-to-ambulance/
2000 years separate us in the USA from the recipients of this letter from St. Peter. In some ways, we are quite different from those people. I think that the shadow of death hung over them much more than it does today. In a time with no medicine or hospitals, death was probably something the average person saw quite often. A trauma on the street with no ER to rush them too, an infection with no antibiotics and on goes the list of things that could strike someone down that today we could do something about was a potential death sentence for the hearers of St. Peter's letter.
And so the living hope of Jesus would be very powerful. The idea that something that would not perish, spoil or fade would be immensely re-assuring.
How about us today?
Though we have banished many causes of death with medicine and technology, our essential mortality remains.
And so suffering is still as real today as it was then ... maybe here in the USA we can push it from our minds a little more easily ... but it still lingers and haunts in moments ...
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
... and so suffering remains a fact of life ... but rejoicing is possible ... how?
These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
image source: http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/eduoff/vt-2004/Background/Infol2/EIS-D1.html
Pain, suffering, grief, death ... these remain constants in the human story. The slave in ancient Egypt worked to near death, the farmer in the early church seeing a loved one dying for reasons he does not know, John Donne wondering for whom the bells were tolling ...
And so we believe that this can be gone through and redeemed.
Humility, compassion, gratitude, trust ... these can come from suffering. These things, worth more than gold, could be won from the dark nights of despair.
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Lord, through a glass darkly, I see. But I see. And I await the full dawning of the salvation you have begun. Help me to get a taste of the inexpressible and glorious joy. Amen.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
image source: http://www.callbox7.com/a-complete-guide-to-ambulance/
2000 years separate us in the USA from the recipients of this letter from St. Peter. In some ways, we are quite different from those people. I think that the shadow of death hung over them much more than it does today. In a time with no medicine or hospitals, death was probably something the average person saw quite often. A trauma on the street with no ER to rush them too, an infection with no antibiotics and on goes the list of things that could strike someone down that today we could do something about was a potential death sentence for the hearers of St. Peter's letter.
And so the living hope of Jesus would be very powerful. The idea that something that would not perish, spoil or fade would be immensely re-assuring.
How about us today?
Though we have banished many causes of death with medicine and technology, our essential mortality remains.
And so suffering is still as real today as it was then ... maybe here in the USA we can push it from our minds a little more easily ... but it still lingers and haunts in moments ...
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
... and so suffering remains a fact of life ... but rejoicing is possible ... how?
These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
image source: http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/eduoff/vt-2004/Background/Infol2/EIS-D1.html
Pain, suffering, grief, death ... these remain constants in the human story. The slave in ancient Egypt worked to near death, the farmer in the early church seeing a loved one dying for reasons he does not know, John Donne wondering for whom the bells were tolling ...
And so we believe that this can be gone through and redeemed.
Humility, compassion, gratitude, trust ... these can come from suffering. These things, worth more than gold, could be won from the dark nights of despair.
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Lord, through a glass darkly, I see. But I see. And I await the full dawning of the salvation you have begun. Help me to get a taste of the inexpressible and glorious joy. Amen.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
I Peter 1:1-2
It took quite a while to work through Job. The subject of suffering is both a theological and existential concern.
In this life long project of blogging through the Bible, I thought I'd continue to examine suffering.
As far as I can tell, there is no other Bible book that deals with suffering as directly as Job. But I think 1 Peter and 2 Peter do touch on the subject a bit more than many other writings of Scripture. These two books discuss many other topics as well.
So buckle up and let's continue the ride ...
Let's get to the introduction.
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
image source: http://saintpetersbasilica.org/Exterior/StPeterStatue/StPeter-Apos.jpg
I hope someday to visit St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
I would venture to say that Peter was probably the most famous of the 12 disciples as he was the most outspoken of the bunch sometimes to his detriment!
It is generally believed by scholars that the Gospel of Mark was influenced strongly by Peter's preaching. The Book of Acts which chronicles the growth of the early church has much material about Peter (Chapters 1-12). The Book of Acts eventually followed the role of Paul in the advancement of the church (Chapters 13-28).
Some scholars question whether Peter could have written I and II Peter because he was a plain old fisherman from Galilee.
Though Peter would not have had the high level of education of a Jewish rabbi, being a good Jew, he would had a solid knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures. He would also, of course, have had the benefit of sitting at the feet of Jesus!
It should be noted also that he give up the fisherman's life and would have spent much more time contemplating the teachings he heard from Jesus, re-examining the Hebrew Scriptures in that light, discussing with the other Apostles and the Holy Spirit was promised to the disciples to help them.
We can also speculate on the role Silas may have had in helping him craft this letter.
To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia,
image source: http://www.bible-history.com/maps/asia_minor.html
Today, Turkey is an almost exclusively Muslim country with a small number of Christians. But way back at the beginning of the church, Jesus followers could be found there, a small number also, in what was probably a society dominated by Greek and Roman polytheism.
who have been chosen
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through the sanctifying work of the Spirit,
for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Isn't this re-assuring?
These believers, whom Peter called strangers in the world, were chosen according to the foreknowledge of God!?
Won't delve into the philosophical implications of that here! 8-)
But it is re-assuring to know that God knew!
There is also the sanctifying work of the Spirit ... we are being made holy and pure.
This work was begun by the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus for the purpose of our being obedient to Jesus.
All three persons of the Trinity are involved in our lives!
Thus, abundant grace and peace can be available to us.
Thank you Lord that you were not content to see us lost in this world alienated from you and living in turmoil. Instead you sent Jesus. Instead you sent the Spirit. You have called us to something better... to yourself. Thanks be to God! Amen.
In this life long project of blogging through the Bible, I thought I'd continue to examine suffering.
As far as I can tell, there is no other Bible book that deals with suffering as directly as Job. But I think 1 Peter and 2 Peter do touch on the subject a bit more than many other writings of Scripture. These two books discuss many other topics as well.
So buckle up and let's continue the ride ...
Let's get to the introduction.
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
image source: http://saintpetersbasilica.org/Exterior/StPeterStatue/StPeter-Apos.jpg
I hope someday to visit St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
I would venture to say that Peter was probably the most famous of the 12 disciples as he was the most outspoken of the bunch sometimes to his detriment!
It is generally believed by scholars that the Gospel of Mark was influenced strongly by Peter's preaching. The Book of Acts which chronicles the growth of the early church has much material about Peter (Chapters 1-12). The Book of Acts eventually followed the role of Paul in the advancement of the church (Chapters 13-28).
Some scholars question whether Peter could have written I and II Peter because he was a plain old fisherman from Galilee.
Though Peter would not have had the high level of education of a Jewish rabbi, being a good Jew, he would had a solid knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures. He would also, of course, have had the benefit of sitting at the feet of Jesus!
It should be noted also that he give up the fisherman's life and would have spent much more time contemplating the teachings he heard from Jesus, re-examining the Hebrew Scriptures in that light, discussing with the other Apostles and the Holy Spirit was promised to the disciples to help them.
We can also speculate on the role Silas may have had in helping him craft this letter.
To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia,
image source: http://www.bible-history.com/maps/asia_minor.html
Today, Turkey is an almost exclusively Muslim country with a small number of Christians. But way back at the beginning of the church, Jesus followers could be found there, a small number also, in what was probably a society dominated by Greek and Roman polytheism.
who have been chosen
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through the sanctifying work of the Spirit,
for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Isn't this re-assuring?
These believers, whom Peter called strangers in the world, were chosen according to the foreknowledge of God!?
Won't delve into the philosophical implications of that here! 8-)
But it is re-assuring to know that God knew!
There is also the sanctifying work of the Spirit ... we are being made holy and pure.
This work was begun by the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus for the purpose of our being obedient to Jesus.
All three persons of the Trinity are involved in our lives!
Thus, abundant grace and peace can be available to us.
Thank you Lord that you were not content to see us lost in this world alienated from you and living in turmoil. Instead you sent Jesus. Instead you sent the Spirit. You have called us to something better... to yourself. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Job 42:7-17
The Epilogue to Job ...
After the LORD had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, "I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has." So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the LORD told them; and the LORD accepted Job's prayer.
After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the LORD had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.
The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters. The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job's daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.
After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so he died, old and full of years.
And so after all the turmoil and shouting and questioning and arguing, we do reach, "and they lived happily ever after ..."
Did Job know he was on the center stage in a spiritual battle described in Job 1-2?
We don't know.
If he did know, he didn't appear to make any comment about it. If he did know, God's "answer" of I am the Creator and you are not was enough for Job.
And so what if Job never knew about the spiritual battle?
God showing up was enough.
Each of us faces struggles in life. In my humanity, I know I have sometimes, often times, asked WHY?
Yancey in his book, Disappointment with God suggested getting an answer to the WHY question might not actually help us because God's perspective is so much larger than ours.
And so our WHY question is washed away when we sense we are not alone. God "showing up" through Jesus. God "showing up" by the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. God "showing up" when we are loved by family and friends. And indeed, God "shows up" in the kindness of strangers.
Is the story of Job true?
It is definitely true in the existential sense that all of us struggle with suffering and that we can argue ourselves into knots trying to explain it to ourselves and each other.
It is definitely true in that God "showing up" makes all the difference in the world.
But was the story "literally" true?
Will we meet Job in the afterlife?
If Job is a moral story than Job may or may not be a literal person. He could be a stand-in everyman for all who have faced suffering. The power of this tale doesn't rest on Job existing as is.
But, if Job was a literal person, did the story happen as literally described?
Job as a book has literary style. It is Hebrew poetry.
We do not talk to our friends in poetry. We talk in prose. We can reflect on life in poetry.
And so perhaps Job was a real man who suffered and his story was memorialized in the poetry of this book.
Another hint of "editing" or "stylizing" in Job was the speeches of Elihu.
Job was visited by his three friends and Job prayed for them.
As a side point, isn't it interesting how in life we go to comfort the sufferer and the sufferer winds up comforting the comforters?
But back to the idea of literary forms... Elihu isn't mentioned as one of the three friends yet he spoke in chapters 32-37 in pretty strong terms!
He was younger than the other three and held back until the end.
Yet, he isn't mentioned in any other way with the three friends.
Was he there all along and omitted in the friends list? Maybe he wasn't really close at all?
Or perhaps those chapters were added later?
Elihu's comments do have elements in common with God's speech at the very end. Maybe it was added by the editors of Job to foreshadow what God would say?
Don't know.
But whether Job's story is more or less as it was in here, underwent some editing or was a moral tale, I think the message stands regardless: suffering is real and our only comfort is having God show up not so much to explain it but to show us he cares for us as individuals.
"God with us" ... Immanuel = Heb. God with us. Jesus the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Lord, thank you that you invite me to bring my complaints to you. You hear my prayers. Thank you that you were not content to allow the world to continue in its course and so sent Abraham, Moses, the Prophets and most significantly Jesus. Though things seem lost now, you are at work restoring. Help me to receive that restoration and be an agent of it. Amen.
After the LORD had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, "I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has." So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the LORD told them; and the LORD accepted Job's prayer.
After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the LORD had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.
The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters. The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job's daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.
After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so he died, old and full of years.
And so after all the turmoil and shouting and questioning and arguing, we do reach, "and they lived happily ever after ..."
Did Job know he was on the center stage in a spiritual battle described in Job 1-2?
We don't know.
If he did know, he didn't appear to make any comment about it. If he did know, God's "answer" of I am the Creator and you are not was enough for Job.
And so what if Job never knew about the spiritual battle?
God showing up was enough.
Each of us faces struggles in life. In my humanity, I know I have sometimes, often times, asked WHY?
Yancey in his book, Disappointment with God suggested getting an answer to the WHY question might not actually help us because God's perspective is so much larger than ours.
And so our WHY question is washed away when we sense we are not alone. God "showing up" through Jesus. God "showing up" by the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. God "showing up" when we are loved by family and friends. And indeed, God "shows up" in the kindness of strangers.
Is the story of Job true?
It is definitely true in the existential sense that all of us struggle with suffering and that we can argue ourselves into knots trying to explain it to ourselves and each other.
It is definitely true in that God "showing up" makes all the difference in the world.
But was the story "literally" true?
Will we meet Job in the afterlife?
If Job is a moral story than Job may or may not be a literal person. He could be a stand-in everyman for all who have faced suffering. The power of this tale doesn't rest on Job existing as is.
But, if Job was a literal person, did the story happen as literally described?
Job as a book has literary style. It is Hebrew poetry.
We do not talk to our friends in poetry. We talk in prose. We can reflect on life in poetry.
And so perhaps Job was a real man who suffered and his story was memorialized in the poetry of this book.
Another hint of "editing" or "stylizing" in Job was the speeches of Elihu.
Job was visited by his three friends and Job prayed for them.
As a side point, isn't it interesting how in life we go to comfort the sufferer and the sufferer winds up comforting the comforters?
But back to the idea of literary forms... Elihu isn't mentioned as one of the three friends yet he spoke in chapters 32-37 in pretty strong terms!
He was younger than the other three and held back until the end.
Yet, he isn't mentioned in any other way with the three friends.
Was he there all along and omitted in the friends list? Maybe he wasn't really close at all?
Or perhaps those chapters were added later?
Elihu's comments do have elements in common with God's speech at the very end. Maybe it was added by the editors of Job to foreshadow what God would say?
Don't know.
But whether Job's story is more or less as it was in here, underwent some editing or was a moral tale, I think the message stands regardless: suffering is real and our only comfort is having God show up not so much to explain it but to show us he cares for us as individuals.
"God with us" ... Immanuel = Heb. God with us. Jesus the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Lord, thank you that you invite me to bring my complaints to you. You hear my prayers. Thank you that you were not content to allow the world to continue in its course and so sent Abraham, Moses, the Prophets and most significantly Jesus. Though things seem lost now, you are at work restoring. Help me to receive that restoration and be an agent of it. Amen.
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