Deuteronomy 30:19-20

“Choose life so that you and your descendants may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him…” vss. 19b-20a

Our decision to respond to the love of God with obedience is a turning point in our lives, and is probably the most important choice we will ever make. It has a profound effect on all that we say or do for the rest of our lives. And not only will it touch our lives, it will also influence those who come after us. Our children and grandchildren, all of our descendents, become the inheritors of God’s promises. At least that’s what will happen if we bother to raise our children in the context of God’s love. It’s amazing to see how many parents who spend thousands of dollars on colleges do virtually nothing in caring for their children’s spiritual lives. They seem to have the notion that they are actually giving their children a gift by rearing them with no instruction in faith and no knowledge of their loving God. There’s an assumption that spiritual instruction is something they can pick up on their own when they’re older. Of course that seldom happens and the world quickly ensnares them with its confusing promises of wealth and privilege. Blessed are those families where children are instructed in faith and learn devotional practices. Of course even such persons wander off to see where demons dwell, but at least they know that God is merciful and full of compassion–and that means everything!

Thought for the Day: How does it go with my children?

Deuteronomy 30:15-18

“If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I am commanding you today, by loving the Lord your God, walking in his ways, and observing his commandments, decrees, and ordinances, then you shall live and become numerous, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to possess.” vs. 16

People who live by grace are often puzzled by the conditional descriptions of God’s love that figure so prominently in our scriptures. There was no mystery about Israel’s relationship to the Lord! If they were obedient to the commandments, decrees, and ordinances of God they would be blessed. If they were disobedient they were told in no uncertain terms that they would be punished. Their decision was quite literally a matter of life or death. But, balancing that word from the law, Israel was also reminded regularly that God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love. Taken together these two great truths seem to indicate that God’s love is both conditional and unconditional. And indeed, that’s the way it always is with love, whether it comes from the Lord or from a fellow human being. Love is mysterious and powerful and its dimensions exceed the limits of our understanding. It can be easily lost and impossible to lose, all at the same time, and we regularly experience both sides of that great paradox. And the good news is that in our relationship with God it always has the last word!

Thought for the Day: In what ways is love conditional?

Matthew 5:17-20

“For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” vs. 20

Jesus wasn’t interested in having his followers be “law-abiding citizens.” He wanted them to be better than that! There were already plenty of scribes and Pharisees in the land, and they were obsessed with keeping every commandment of law. They were known for their righteousness. There was no need for more people like them. Instead Jesus told his disciples to let their light shine and fill up the world with the fruits of the Spirit. Among them love, joy, and peace would abound and the wounds of the hurting would be bound up and healed. This kind of living would result in a higher righteousness than mere obedience to the law, but it didn’t mean that the disciples would be free to do as they pleased. The law wasn’t being abolished, it was being fulfilled! That’s been a hard concept for some to figure out and the record of the Church through the years is replete with folks who thought being in Christ was an invitation to profligate living. Sometimes through prayer and the inspiration of the Spirit we will walk in new ways–new wine does require new wine skins–but the core of the law will remain the same. Always we are called to love the Lord with our heart, mind, and strength, and our neighbors, as ourselves. And the light will be our guide.

Thought for the Day: What’s the difference between the spirit and the letter of the law?

Matthew 5:13-16

“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” vss. 14, 16

There is a power in these words from Jesus that goes beyond human understanding, and we can only begin to grasp their significance as we realize that Jesus is talking about the light that exploded into the world in God’s act of creation. That same light that was present in the beginning and that shone brightly in Jesus now shines in his chosen ones. And we are commanded to let it shine! This light is different from what we see in the sun. Instead of lighting up the sky it lights up our eyes and is seen most clearly in our words and deeds. It roots out falsehoods, searches out lies, and exposes the ugliness of human greed. This little light of ours brings hope to those in darkness, love to those abused, and kindness to every hurting soul. It’s not a set of rules or doctrines–it’s not a new law. Rather it’s the power that changes lives and that flows directly from the heart of God. Humans have done all they can to hide or even extinguish the light, but its laser-like qualities keep it shining, and we are blessed when it shines even through us. Oh what a privilege it is to be the people of light. We are the hope of the world.

Thought for the Day: Why would anyone want to hide the light?

1 Corinthians 2:6-12

“Yet among the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to perish. But we speak God’s wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.” vss.6-7

Even though Paul did not use lofty terms and eloquent language in talking with the Corinthians, he was a learned man and nobody’s fool. But he wasn’t interested in the trendy religious candy that was rolling through Corinth to attract and distract believers. He believed that his message was an ancient wisdom, secret and hidden, and that it came directly from God through the Holy Spirit. It’s hard for us to put our heads around that kind of language and most people seem more interested in the psychobabble that dominates the religious scene in our day. Instead of digging deep and probing the mysteries of God, our tendency is to align ourselves with the Church of What’s Happening Now and add a little bit of Jesus talk to trending sociological or political movements. When it comes to swimming in religious waters there’s no doubt that most folks prefer the shallow end. Paul had learned at the feet of the most learned rabbis in Israel–in our day some don’t even care if their leaders are biblically literate, as long as they can draw a crowd on Sunday morning. The good news is that the secret wisdom of God will not go away and when the Spirit gives insight, transformation is sure to follow.

Thought for the Day: What is the hidden wisdom of God?

1 Corinthians 2:1-5

“For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” vs. 2

Corinth was the San Francisco of its day, a bustling seaport full of immigrants from all over the Mediterranean area, and new religions were popping up about every other day. People were jaded, sophisticated, and wise in the ways of the world. When Paul showed up and connected with the fledgling Christian community he decided to put the crucified Jesus Christ as the center of his message. He didn’t tell the story of Jesus’ life or recount any of his teachings–he wasn’t interested in making Jesus into a great moral example. Instead he focused on the cross, convinced that its contrary message revealed the steadfast love of God and would bring hope for all humanity. Enduring the scorn of both Gentiles and Jews he doggedly proclaimed Christ crucified as the essence of the gospel. Ever since then religious folks have struggled with the mystery of Paul’s message and many have proposed more palatable expressions of the faith. Some have decided to virtually skip Good Friday and center everything on Easter–in their triumphant version of Christ’s mission praise and joy abound, and death is sugar-coated. But others hang with Paul, sensing that the road to new life will move through suffering and pain. Only when tears have been shed can they really be wiped away! And with him they sing that our glory is all the cross!

Thought for the Day: What’s the attraction of sad movies?

Psalm 112:1-9

“It is well with those who deal generously and lend, who conduct their affairs with justice. For the righteous will never be moved; they will be remembered forever.” vss. 5-6

Life goes well with people who are righteous and generous, their love of justice and mercy will be remembered forever. That’s the way it’s always been, the psalmist assures us, and that’s the way it will always be. Some would call this ancient observation a universal truth, a guide, which if followed, could bring unity and harmony to men and women in every land. Yet, even though this wisdom has been available for millenia, people have always seemed disinclined to put it into practice. Instead we have worshiped power and acquisition, and that’s never been more true than in our time. We cut corners, abandon truth-telling, embrace the most outrageous lies, and seem willing to sacrifice the bounty of the earth at the altar of profit and riches. And it’s not that we’re being asked to live in poverty–the psalmist assures his readers that they will be blessed with wealth. There are material blessings for righteous living. We don’t have to worry about missing out on a thing when we stand up for justice and make provision for the poor. The Lord does take care of us, and there is plenty of stuff for all, but only if we make generosity the cornerstone of our livelihood. Living by the golden rule does not mean that those with the gold make the rules!

Thought for the Day: What is the connection between wealth and power?

Isaiah 58:6-9a

“Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your  house?” vss. 6-7a

In the last couple of weeks authorities have been conducting homeless counts. Volunteers scatter across the Valley and seek out the people living in the streets, parks, river beds, and alleys. Initial reports indicate that the numbers are increasing. Too many people, for one reason or another, can’t find affordable housing. Imagine Isaiah being asked to write a guest editorial in the Arizona Republic on the problem. What would he say? It’s not hard to figure out. “Share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house.” Could that be a solution to the problem? Of course! There is plenty of room in our big empty houses to take in the street people. Would we be willing to do that? Of course not! It would be too scary for most of us. These people are addicts, mentally unstable, dirty, and dangerous–or so we believe. In reality every one of them is a beloved child of God with a sad, sad story, and rather than help them, we’d rather they just went away. It is true that there would be many difficulties with Isaiah’s solution–but there are ways of getting the homeless into adequate housing, and it’s our responsibility as their brothers and sisters to make it happen!

Thought for the Day: What are some myths about homelessness?

Isaiah 58:1-5

“Why do we fast, but you do not see? Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?” Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day, and oppress all your workers.” vs. 3

The prophet lived among people who had carefully preserved all the trappings of religiosity. They worshiped regularly and kept all of the prescribed fasts. Their external piety was beyond approach–yet God remained remote to them. So the prophet tells them in no uncertain terms that their faith practices are self-serving and have nothing to do with what God desires. His words were echoed by Jesus and deserve to be regularly proclaimed from the pulpits in every Christian congregation. We too fall in love with the externals of faith, regularly worshiping, reading scripture, praying, and maintaining a pious attitude in the course of daily living. And at the same time many of us support the oppression of workers and defend the privileges of the rich. Under our watch the number of homeless people is steadily increasing and for many the number one concern is keeping them out of the public view. Admittedly these are difficult issues and simple solutions elude even our best efforts, but there is no way that we can even imagine that we can separate our Sunday behaviors from the concerns of those who live in poverty. God is blessed more by our work with asylum seekers than by any of our fasting and praying.

Thought for the Day: Why are so many reluctant to help the poor? 

Matthew 5:7-12

“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” vs. 11

Most servants of Jesus have the expectation that they will be appreciated and loved as they walk in his way, especially if they treat others with kindness and maintain a spirit of humility in their interactions. So they wonder why he implied in this beatitude that at least some of his followers would be reviled and persecuted. That’s not anything that we aspire to–we would in fact much rather be liked by everyone. The problem arises because Jesus, like the prophets before him, expected that the faithful would do justice and proclaim liberty to those who were oppressed. If it weren’t for that expectation Christians could easily float under the radar in carrying out their mission. But the “do justice” part of our call virtually guarantees that we are going to offend people. The rich and the powerful will always act to defend the status quo. They want the systems that have brought them wealth to continue to function even when they mean the continuation of poverty and oppression. It has been said that “no good deed goes unpunished,” and we’ve seen the explosion of that kind of harassment in this new age of demonic social media. Those trying to do the right thing, i.e. do justice, quickly catch the attention of internet trolls and falsehoods of every kind are leveled against them. And Jesus says to them, “Blessed are you! Your reward will be great!”

Thought for the Day: What’s scary to me about “doing justice”?