The Law

Psalm 119:57-64 (NRSV) The LORD is my portion; I promise to keep your words. I implore your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to your promise. When I think of your ways, I turn my feet to your decrees; I hurry and do not delay to keep your commandments. Though the cords of the wicked ensnare me, I do not forget your law. At midnight I rise to praise you, because of your righteous ordinances. I am a companion of all who fear you, of those who keep your precepts. The earth, O LORD, is full of your steadfast love; teach me your statutes.  I am a big fan of television.  Back in the day, when reruns of "I Love Lucy," "Gilligan's Island," and the "Dick van Dyke" show were on in the afternoon, I'd happily plop myself in front of the TV after school and watch them as if they were the best, brand new shiny things around.  So it's been increasingly sad for me to notice how depressingly nihilistic much of TV has become.  I can't lie and say I haven't watched or even enjoyed some of the post-modern dramas on TV, but I am starting to feel the weight of them.  They are beginning to be overwhelming.  And sadly I think the world they paint is a world I think a lot of people are believing in. Yet everything I know shouts at me that the earth IS full of God's steadfast love.  I see it all the time.   People putting meals together to be shipped to areas of the world that need it most.  People bringing food to the homeless on Thanksgiving.  People sheltering those who have been impacted by nature's force or fleeing an homeland that is falling apart.  People reaching out in relationship to those who are alone, abused, frightened, outcast.  People standing up for the rights of their neighbor. God's steadfast love is everywhere regardless of how it seems to be portrayed in film, TV, and even in the news. When you see the law as something that was given to keep us together, to build relationship, to foster community, then suddenly you don't see the law as something to box us in, but instead as freedom to love as deeply and profoundly as God loves us.  The law keeps us "companions" on the journey and show us what life can richly offer when we jump into relationship and share this life together in love. God of law and grace, write your will on my heart so that I can see your steadfast love everywhere and always, regardless of how the world is portrayed.  Help me to proclaim that love from the top of my lungs and with the depth of my being.  Amen.

Tantrum

Romans 12:9-21

 Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honour. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.

 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

I'm returning to my devotional after over a week of feeling like my enemy - the flu - was definitely getting the upper hand by heaping hot coals on my head! (although hot coals also would have come in handy during our big power outage here in PA!)

Actually, I've always loved that imagery.  Maybe that seems odd to love it, but it's just so visceral, that I know exactly what Paul is describing here.  He's actually quoting Proverbs as well - they also talk of heaping hot coals on an enemies head by giving them water to drink when they are thirsty.

I mean, I've felt that heat of "burning coals heaped" on my head.  Has there ever been a time when you knew you were in the wrong and someone shows you grace and mercy and in that moment you just know exactly what Paul is talking about.  I know have a tendency to flush bright red from my neck to my chest - as if hot from those coals! - when I've been embarrassed or my wrong has been put on display.

There is however, a different kind of heat that is felt when you are the one showing grace and mercy.  When you repay a wrong with a right.  When you quench the thirst of the enemy.

That heat radiates from the heart.  It's the kind of heat that heals.  It's the kind of heat that can heal even the pain of feeling like burning coals have been heaped on you.  The thing about the mortification of feeling mercy being given to you when you've done your worst is that after it's over, that mortification gives way to the grace and takes away the power of the anger.  The healing heat of heart-given mercy spreads and cools your anger and wounds.

What do you do with a toddler throwing a tantrum - a wild, whirling dervish of a tantrum?  You pull them into your arms and let the mercy and grace flow until slowly the tears give way to peace.

Patient and loving Lord, throw your arms of grace around us when we throw our tantrums large and small.  And help us to do the same, stopping conflict always with love and mercy.  Amen

Agape

1 John 2:7-17 (NRSV)

Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word that you have heard. Yet I am writing you a new commandment that is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says, “I am in the light,” while hating a brother or sister, is still in the darkness.Whoever loves a brother or sister lives in the light, and in such a person there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates another believer is in the darkness, walks in the darkness, and does not know the way to go, because the darkness has brought on blindness.

I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven on account of his name. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young people, because you have conquered the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young people, because you are strong and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; for all that is in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches—comes not from the Father but from the world. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever.

It's really quite simple.  The song makes it pretty clear: "they will know we are Christians by our love."  Loving isn't something we do to become right with God.  Loving is something we do just like breathing.  Because it is part of who we are in God.

Can't you tell it or feel it when you are "walking in darkness" because you are "hating" someone and not living in the love you were designed for?  I can.  There's a reason being angry feels so rotten.  It isn't the state we are meant for.

I wish the English language had as many words for love as the Greek.  Agape, the full, selfless love that Christ calls us to, isn't the same as the "eros" love we celebrate today on Valentine's Day.  It's more also that the "philo" love of friendship or the "storge" or loving affection that parent's feel for a child.

It's the love that is complete.  It's the love of neighbor.  Of the other.  Of those in need.  Of the lonely.  Of the alien.  Of our enemy.

Oh, yeah.  And it's hard.  Hard because even though we are designed for it, we've got a lot of things that get in the way of it.  Including the ways in which anger, mistrust, and fear slip in and mess things up.

But the good news is that God abides in us and loves us first. Forgives us first.  Frees us first to love as completely as God can.

It's who we are meant to be.  Free in perfect love.

Loving God, help us strip away the things that keep us from the perfect love you call us to so that we can walk in confidence of that love, extending it to all. Amen.

Alien

Genesis 26:1-5 (NRSV) Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar, to King Abimelech of the Philistines. The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, "Do not go down to Egypt; settle in the land that I shall show you. Reside in this land as an alien, and I will be with you, and will bless you; for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will fulfill the oath that I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven, and will give to your offspring all these lands; and all the nations of the earth shall gain blessing for themselves through your offspring, because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." Reside in this land as an alien.   Reside in this land as an alien. I think it might need to sink in a little bit.  God blessed Abraham.  And Isaac.  And as part of that blessing?  He told Isaac to go be an alien. There is a consistent theme in God's story.  We are used to Jesus talking in the Gospels about the "least of these."  But that wasn't anything new.  God was always looking out for the outcast.  The widows.  The orphans.  The alien. And here...being an alien is actually part of the blessing. Who is the alien in my life?  Who is the alien in your life?  Who are the groups of aliens in our country? What does that God call us to do for them?  How are we meant to care for them? You can't read the news most days without some story about immigration in our country.  Aliens.  We've labeled them "legal" or "illegal."  Do those labels mean anything to God?   Or is the proper label for them "blessed." God of the stranger, the outcast and the discarded, move me to love my neighbors - all of them, especially those who have come from far away seeking a home and safety.  Help me to be a blessing to them.  Amen.

Heart

Proverbs 6:6-23 (NRSV) Go to the ant, you lazybones; consider its ways, and be wise. Without having any chief or officer or ruler, it prepares its food in summer, and gathers its sustenance in harvest. How long will you lie there, O lazybones? When will you rise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want, like an armed warrior. A scoundrel and a villain goes around with crooked speech, winking the eyes, shuffling the feet, pointing the fingers, with perverted mind devising evil, continually sowing discord; on such a one calamity will descend suddenly; in a moment, damage beyond repair. There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that hurry to run to evil, a lying witness who testifies falsely, and one who sows discord in a family. My child, keep your father's commandment, and do not forsake your mother's teaching. Bind them upon your heart always; tie them around your neck. When you walk, they will lead you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; and when you awake, they will talk with you. For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,  Who knew the word "lazybones" was in the Bible?  That's a hard word to read right now I think for some in the Northeast.  After the last ice storm and another storm coming, I don't know many who have been lazy.  In fact, I rather feel like an ant today - knowing it's time to make preparations and be busy as I get ready for what's coming. In all of this though is really the familiar theme we see over and over again in the Hebrew Scriptures:  keep your father's commandment...bind them on your heart always. Bind them on your heart. It always comes back to the heart for God.  Where is our heart?  Who owns it?  Who has control of it?  Who do we entrust it to?  God knows where it should be. Again we see that the commandment and God's ways - and scripture - are light to guide us.  Light that shines to show our heart the way home. God's looking for our hearts.  Not just our minds - believing the right thing or saying or doing the right thing.  Not just the words from our lips.  But our whole hearts.  Our selves. God of love, change our hearts so that they may always yearn for home.  For you.  Amen.

Scripture

Psalm 119:105-112 (NRSV) Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. I have sworn an oath and confirmed it, to observe your righteous ordinances. I am severely afflicted; give me life, O LORD, according to your word. Accept my offerings of praise, O LORD, and teach me your ordinances. I hold my life in my hand continually, but I do not forget your law. The wicked have laid a snare for me, but I do not stray from your precepts. Your decrees are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart. I incline my heart to perform your statutes forever, to the end.  There are many ways we read scripture.  These days there are even many arguments about how we read scripture. Here we see it is a light to our path.  It is through scripture that we are able to see things in a way that is clarifying or edifying.  It is a lens through which we see life. That's different than being a rule book we take off the shelf to answer our questions or problems.  A lens is the thing we see through that guides us to the answer. That isn't to say the Bible doesn't have answers.  But as a Book of Faith the Bible clarifies and instructs.  It also provides comfort and joy.  And poetry and love.  And history and caution.  And hope. It does that by pointing us to the true Light.  Christ, the Light of the World.  The word shows us the Word. Luther called the Bible the cradle for Christ.  It leads us to the heart of the matter.  To the saving work of God through Christ. It lights our way and leads us to the Light. Jesus - light our path and open up scripture to us so we can find you always.  Amen.

A Stumbling Block

Romans 11:2-10 (NRSV) God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars; I alone am left, and they are seeking my life. But what is the divine reply to him? "I have kept for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal." So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace would no longer be grace. What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, "God gave them a sluggish spirit, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day." And David says, "Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them; let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and keep their backs forever bent."  In describing a stumbling block here, I think Paul presents us with our own possible stumbling block.  It's a trap that has snared many: trying to decide who is and who is not among the "elect."  Who grace does or does not work for.  Who does or does not have a sluggish spirit.  I'm not sure about you, but the moment I begin to try to do that - setting myself apart from someone or assuming I'm in but they are out, then I begin to feel that it is myself who is out. We do it all the time.  We don't agree with someone's religion or theology.    We don't think they act like a good Christian.  We see them as sinful or arrogant or mean or just plain bad.  It's a slippery slope then to assuming God's grace doesn't apply to them. Sometimes it happens only in an instant and is gone.  They cut us off in a moment of road rage.  They told us they don't like us.  They acted in a way that we don't believe is Christ-like.  We had an argument with them.   Sometimes it is a longer term stumbling block for us.  They are Muslim.  They are an atheist.  They are gay.  They are another race.  They are an illegal immigrant.  They are another gender.  They are a criminal. This text can itself become a snare or a trap if we become caught up in Paul's use of the word "elect."  If we forget this text has context.  If we forget that Paul is instead describing the active and amazing nature of grace: "it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace would no longer be grace." Michael W. Smith sings: "Your mercy flows like a river wide...I could search for all eternity and find there is none like you."  Imagining ourself as elect, but others not, shows a forgetfulness that God's grace works beyond our imaginings.  It flows wider than we can envision.  When we do begin to envision it - when we allow for the awesome mystery of God's expansive grace, we ourselves begin to fully live into the promise of that grace and begin to truly experience its life giving nature. God of grace and mercy, forgive me when I try to decide who is in and who is out.  Who is elect and who is judged.  Help me to expand my own mercy and forgiveness so that I can be an instrument of your love and grace.  Amen.