Psalm 104:24-30

“When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.” vs. 30

The psalmist believed with all his heart that God had given the spark of life to all living things from leviathans to creeping, crawling things…nothing was excluded. And God wasn’t only the creator, God was the sustainer! All flesh was dependent on God for all things…apart from the Spirit of God there could be no existence. This knowledge was overwhelming for the psalmist…he could hardly find words to declare the wonders of God. Some of us have lost that sense of awe for the created world. Our minds are abuzz with bits and pieces of scientific explanations for natural processes, and before we know it God has been shoved out of the picture. There’s no room for a Creator anymore…everything has just happened! The universe becomes like a giant domino experiment with one thing naturally leading to another. The psalmist would be appalled…a world without God’s creative and renewing spirit was unthinkable for him. And so it should be for us. The problem is not scientific research, it’s our own puny superstitious notion of God! God is more than we can even imagine and God can’t be shoved out of the picture…God is the picture! Discerning believers regularly see God’s spirit at work wherever they look…and rejoice with the psalmist!

Thought for the Day: What part do humans have in this picture?

Acts 2:14-21

“In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” vs. 17

The disciples were living in heady times…changes were multiplying and tensions increasing. There were rumors of rebellion and insurrection. The Roman armies were flexing their muscle. And they were convinced that the Day of the Lord was at hand…these were the last days and they looked to their scriptures for affirmation and direction. The prophet Joel had spoken of such times…and now it was happening. The Spirit of God would transform the world and all flesh would be touched. This was going to be something different…it would be an inclusive time with young and old, male and female all playing a part. And that’s how it was in those early days of the church. Old barriers were taken down. The Spirit could not be contained by patriarchal systems and cultural expectations. Of course it didn’t take long in the church for the old order to reassert itself and for stifling traditional practices to be reestablished…practices that have hung on for centuries. In our day some are seeing the signs of a new pentecostal movement…there’s a sense that a new day is dawning, a time for the renewal of the Spirit. Visions and dreams abound…both men and women are leading. And all flesh is waiting to be transformed!

Thought for the Day: How is the Spirit changing the Church?

Acts 2:1-13

“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.” vs. 1

Both John and Luke have accounts of the coming of the Holy Spirit: in John Jesus breathed on his disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit!” In Luke’s version the disciples are gathered on the day of Pentecost and the Spirit comes like the wind to fill them. The differences are not surprising…that’s how scripture is, but there is one similarity that deserves notice. In both instances the disciples are all together in one place…special note is made in John that Thomas was not there. This is no accident! It’s when we come together in the name of Jesus that the presence of the Spirit is particularly strong and beautiful things can happen. It’s in the company of the gathered saints that we are energized and empowered. Often this happens in the context of worship: in the confession of sins, the singing of praises, and the proclamation of forgiveness and hope. In our gathering we see and experience the unity that Jesus desired for his followers. No wonder he made such a big deal of it as he said his goodbyes…this is where the power is! And as the Spirit fills our souls we become a sanctifying force in this troubled world. In the unity of the Spirit we bear fruit and change lives. Alone we are isolated and impotent, plagued by doubts and anxious about everything. Together we are the presence of Christ!

Thought for the Day: How am I energized by community?

John 17:11-17

“I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.” vs. 15

In his High Priestly prayer Jesus expresses concern for his disciples…he’s going to be leaving them behind and he wants them to be safe. Even though he knows that God loves the world, there’s also a sense that the world can be a dangerous place. Most of us know what he meant. There’s a lot of stuff going on all around us as we do our best to stay on the Jesus Way, and some of it is distracting and confusing. We can easily be diverted by politics and culture…and we can quickly be led to embrace that which is hateful and immoral. Every day we see people abandoning the simple truths of Jesus for the sake of money, sex, or power. In that atmosphere it’s tempting to simply abandon the world and retreat into some form of asceticism or extreme piety…but that’s not the answer either. The best alternative for us is to focus more clearly on Jesus’ radical teachings and trust that the Spirit will make us holy even in the face of multiple temptations. God has not abandoned us, nor has God stopped loving the world…with prayer and discernment we can find our way and live safely under the protection of God’s Holy Spirit, even in this decidedly unholy world!

Thought for the Day: What temptations do I find most beguiling?

John 17:9-13

“And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.” vs. 11

While we often speak of Jesus living among us in this world it is also true that we live apart from him. John speaks of Jesus’ absence and the fact that he is no longer in the world. We know what he means…often it feels like we’ve been left on our own. For that reason John makes sure his readers know that Jesus wants them to be safe while he’s away; in his prayer he asks God to protect them. And his biggest concern is that we might be one, that we would really focus on the relationships that we have with our brothers and sisters in the faith and not allow differences to divide us. This really is a big deal for us as followers of Jesus. There will be times when the vertical dimension of our faith, the relationship we have with God, is obscured and we don’t feel the spiritual certainty that we might desire. In those moments our horizontal connections, the ones with have with fellow believers, are crucial and it’s essential that we be at peace with one another. We may not feel the love of God all the time…but it’s disaster when we feel disconnected from our neighbors. No wonder Jesus prayed so fervently that his followers would be one.

Thought for the Day: Why can’t we just get along?

John 17:6-8

“for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.” vs. 8

As John tells his Jesus story he wants his readers to know that Jesus has come from God and that his words are God’s words. In fact the abiding principle of the entire gospel is that Jesus is the Word of God. In this section Jesus offers a prayer on behalf of his disciples and thanks God that they have received and believed the words that he passed on to them. This is really the first step in the ongoing mission. First came Jesus, and now the disciples will also be sent. They know all they need to know…Jesus has passed on God’s words to them…and, most importantly, they have believed them. The future of the mission will be secure in their hands. This good news that Jesus is the Word of God is crucial to the passing on of the mission in our time too. The message is clear. In Jesus the word has become flesh. If we want to know God, the path leads through Jesus. Apart from Jesus God remains virtually unknown…all we can know comes through observation of the creation. It’s through Jesus that we glimpse the heart of God and can begin to know God’s loving purpose for us. In that sense the mission of Jesus was an incredible success. Because of him we have abundant life now and forever…and that’s really all we ever need to know!

Thought for the Day:  What do we learn about God from Jesus?

1 John 5:9-13

“And this is the testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” vs. 11

About the end of the first century when John was doing his writing there was considerable controversy about the content of the gospel message. Already there was division within congregations about various issues and alternative wisdom was being proposed. John is calling his readers back to the essence of the testimony that the Spirit of God had given to him. It wasn’t complicated. As he saw it, eternal life was a gift from God and all who were connected to Jesus through faith would experience it. In his estimation anyone who rejected Jesus would not have that gift of life. We like the first part of what he says…we like it that eternal life is a gift from God, but many don’t like thinking that unbelievers don’t have eternal life. But the problem is not with God. The gift is for all people…no strings attached. It’s just that those who reject the gift (Jesus) can’t enjoy its benefits…at least not in this life. They will never know that in Jesus there is abundant and unconditional love…that in him there is total forgiveness. John was unapologetic in laying out his testimony…but he really didn’t want anyone to miss out on life. Very likely he prayed that in some way all people might come to know Jesus…and that’s still our prayer. None of us want anyone left out!

Thought for the Day: How can unbelievers find life without faith in Jesus?

Psalm 1:4-6

“for the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” vs. 6

The psalmist’s world was a bit more black and white than we’re sometimes comfortable with. We tend to see people as more of a grey, a mixture between good and bad, and when our scripture paints a more decisive picture we want to protest. Some solve the issue by ignoring the passages in question and focusing on those whose perspective more closely represents their world view. There’s a cost to that kind of censorship though, and those sanitized scriptures will lack depth and perspective. Even if we don’t agree with this psalmist there is much truth in what he says. No matter how we might parse human behavior, in the end we are left with two possibilities: either we serve God or we don’t! The psalmist says there is no middle ground, and he firmly believes that those who serve God will be protected by God, and those who don’t serve God are doomed. We can call him simplistic if we wish, and come up with all kinds of exceptions to his rule, but he has a point. Sooner or later as we move through life there come moments for decision…will we choose to stand on the good or evil side? We won’t always be able to waffle in the middle, new occasions will force our hand and we’ll have to declare ourselves. And with our decision will come a consequence, whether we like it or not.

Thought for the Day:  When forced to take a stand, what did I decide?

Psalm 1:1-3

“They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper.” vs. 3

So who are these folks who prosper in all that they do? According to this psalmist they are those who love the law of the Lord and who meditate on it both day and night. Jesus said nearly the same thing at the close of the sermon on the mount when he said that anyone who heard his words and acted on them would be blessed. Their house would stand because it had been constructed on a rock foundation. There is great wisdom in such teachings! When we put down our roots into the rich, fertile soil of the gospel of grace our lives will be full of joy and even happiness. Watered by forgiveness and hope, tended by the Holy Spirit, we’ll bring forth fruit that will enrich and prosper our community. On the other hand those who have planted themselves in the shallow, self-serving, amoral trends of popular culture are bound to be disappointed and miserable. Oh they can survive for a time by putting on happy faces and immersing themselves in the superficial, and maybe even fool themselves, but in their hearts there is deep sadness and despondency. In the words of Jesus, they’ve gained the whole world and lost their lives. And as he might have put it, “What’s the point?”  

Thought for the Day: When am I in my “happy place”?

Acts 1:15-17, 21-26

“And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.” vs. 26

It seems like there should have been a better way for the disciples to find a replacement for Judas. They had the sense that the number 12 was important, mostly for its symbolic value. They had all been called so it wasn’t a job for a volunteer. Finally after weighing the obvious credentials they managed to get the number of candidates down to two. At that point, wanting to give God the final choice, they cast lots, and Matthias was picked. It sounds almost superstitious but we can easily understand their action. We still do it! Often in the course of a lifetime we face decisions that could easily go one of two ways…a move, a job, a movie, maybe even a date…and we flip a coin or draw straws. We have the sense that there will be divine direction in whatever comes up, but mostly what it means is that either of the choices probably would be okay. In reality these situations are all  about us and our decision making. Sometimes we’re just afraid to make that final choice and casting lots is one way of avoidance. Perhaps it would be better to weigh evidence and make the tough call ourselves…and not blame God or a higher power. The good news is that God’s work will get done through us…even when we make poor choices.

Thought for the Day: When is flipping a coin necessary?