Spiritual Accountability

1Samuel 2:27  A man of God came to Eli and said to him, "Thus the LORD has said, 'I revealed myself to the family of your ancestor in Egypt when they were slaves to the house of Pharaoh. 28  I chose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to offer incense, to wear an ephod before me; and I gave to the family of your ancestor all my offerings by fire from the people of Israel. 29  Why then look with greedy eye at my sacrifices and my offerings that I commanded, and honour your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel?' 30  Therefore the LORD the God of Israel declares: 'I promised that your family and the family of your ancestor should go in and out before me forever'; but now the LORD declares: 'Far be it from me; for those who honour me I will honour, and those who despise me shall be treated with contempt. 31  See, a time is coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your ancestor's family, so that no one in your family will live to old age. 32  Then in distress you will look with greedy eye on all the prosperity that shall be bestowed upon Israel; and no one in your family shall ever live to old age. 33  The only one of you whom I shall not cut off from my altar shall be spared to weep out his eyes and grieve his heart; all the members of your household shall die by the sword. 34  The fate of your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, shall be the sign to you--both of them shall die on the same day. 35  I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in my heart and in my mind. I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out before my anointed one forever. 36  Everyone who is left in your family shall come to implore him for a piece of silver or a loaf of bread, and shall say, Please put me in one of the priest's places, that I may eat a morsel of bread.'"

Here is a story that is recorded twice – once in Chapter Two, and then again in Chapter Three.[1] Clearly this is of tremendous importance for the people of God.  The guardian of the faith proved to be unfaithful with the things of God, and has been called to account by God:  “See, a time is coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your ancestor's family, so that no one in your family will live to old age.”

We, who have responsibility for spiritual matters, are held to a greater spiritual accountability. The enduring lesson is this: those who handle holy things need to hold themselves to standards that are more holy than all others.

Ordinary 27 / Pentecost +20

49 Faithfulness

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 298.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

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[1] One is the earlier story and the other is the later – both are included when the narrative is written.

Psalm 107:1

Ordinary 26 / Pentecost +19

48 God Supplies Our Every Need

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 292.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

“Boast in the Lord”

2Corinthians 10:12  We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another, and compare themselves with one another, they do not show good sense. 13  We, however, will not boast beyond limits, but will keep within the field that God has assigned to us, to reach out even as far as you. 14  For we were not overstepping our limits when we reached you; we were the first to come all the way to you with the good news of Christ. 15  We do not boast beyond limits, that is, in the labours of others; but our hope is that, as your faith increases, our sphere of action among you may be greatly enlarged, 16  so that we may proclaim the good news in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in someone else's sphere of action. 17  "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord." 18  For it is not those who commend themselves that are approved, but those whom the Lord commends.

Paul writes to a church riven by personality and status rivalry. He points out that humility is key to serving God, because all achievement is the work of God:  "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."  Followers of Jesus do well to remember that our only standard of comparison is Jesus. All else is vanity.

Ordinary 26 / Pentecost +19

48 God Supplies Our Every Need

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 292.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

We take nothing out of this world

1Timothy 6::7  ...for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it; 8  but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. 9  But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10  For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. 11  But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. 12  Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. .....

1Timothy 6:17  As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18  They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, 19  thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.

Here is a letter to a church that is in disarray and in need to correction. The leadership is embroiled in dispute and “godless chatter”[1] and so renewal is required. An essential step towards this is the renunciation of the pursuit of wealth: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith.”  This is not a denunciation of wealth, but is rather the invitation to use wealth “to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share”.

Why invest time and energy in the pursuit of the uncertainty of riches when there is a better option: Jesus-followers choose to trust Jesus’ call to a simple lifestyle as offering certain hope for spiritual renewal.   

Ordinary 26 / Pentecost +19

48 God Supplies Our Every Need

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 292.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

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[1] 1Ti 6:20

Strive for God’s Kingdom

 Luke 12:22  He said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. 23  For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. 24  Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! 25  And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? 26  If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? 27  Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. 28  But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you--you of little faith! 29  And do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. 30  For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31  Instead, strive for his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. 32  "Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Luke writes about Jesus at a time when people judged each other’s value as human beings based on their possessions, their clothing, and their social location...... oh wait – this seems to be the world we live in today! For this reason the words of Jesus resonate across the centuries: “do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things”     

The challenge of every generation is to move our trust from the temporary security of material possession, to the eternal security of a spiritual connection with our Creator.

Ordinary 26 / Pentecost +19

48 God Supplies Our Every Need

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 292.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

    

On Being Truly Rich

Luk 12:13  Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me." 14  But he said to him, "Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?" 15  And he said to them, "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions." 16  Then he told them a parable: "The land of a rich man produced abundantly. 17  And he thought to himself, 'What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?' 18  Then he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19  And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.' 20  But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?'21  So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God."

The underlying ideology that informs much of our world’s culture is consumer capitalism. This results in never ending pursuit of possessions as the sign of achievement in life. In resisting this Jesus warns that “one's life does not consist in the abundance possessions." Instead we are invited to become “rich toward God” which Jesus calls “true riches” (Luke 16:11).  Later the Christian Church would refer to ‘true riches’ as being the kindness of God[1], the riches of His Glory[2], the riches of the knowledge of God[3],  the riches of God’s Grace[4] the spiritual inheritance of faith[5] and the assurance of faith[6]. All of these describe a relationship with our Creator which is greater than temporary material possessions. This is best summed up in the words of the writer of the First Letter to Timothy:

1Timothy 6:17  As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18  They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, 19  thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.

Ordinary 26 / Pentecost +19

48 God Supplies Our Every Need

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 292.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

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[1] Romans 2:4

[2] Rom 9:23 Eph 3:16 Phil 4:19 Col 1:27

[3] Rom 11:23

[4] Eph 1:7 & 2:7

[5] Eph 1:18

[6] Colossians 2:2

Trusting our Creator

1Kings 17:1  Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, "As the LORD the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word." 2  The word of the LORD came to him, saying, 3  "Go from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. 4  You shall drink from the wadi, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there." 5  So he went and did according to the word of the LORD; he went and lived by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. 6  The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the wadi. 7  But after a while the wadi dried up, because there was no rain in the land. 8  Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 9  "Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you." 10  So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, "Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink." 11  As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, "Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand." 12  But she said, "As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die." 13  Elijah said to her, "Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. 14  For thus says the LORD the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the LORD sends rain on the earth." 15  She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. 16  The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah. 17  After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18  She then said to Elijah, "What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!" 19  But he said to her, "Give me your son." He took him from her bosom, carried him up into the upper chamber where he was lodging, and laid him on his own bed. 20  He cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?" 21  Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, let this child's life come into him again." 22  The LORD listened to the voice of Elijah; the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. 23  Elijah took the child, brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and gave him to his mother; then Elijah said, "See, your son is alive." 24  So the woman said to Elijah, "Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is truth."

We are told that Elijah the Tishbite fled for his life from King Ahab and his wife Jezebel. The royal couple were riding the crest of popularity: their marriage, which has been described by historian Israel Finkelstein as a "brilliant stroke of international diplomacy",[1]  had secured the peace between the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the powerful Phoenician empire – leaving the people satisfied that they were safe. Then Elijah delivers a rebuke from God to the effect that their security did not reside in the treaty, but in trusting the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

It is often tempting to think that our security needs are to be found in good planning: we put our trust in a police force that has orders to eliminate criminals; or in a military that is better armed than our neighbours; or in trade agreements that will ensure our domination of our economic footprint; or in politicians who can out-think the opposition. The fact is that all of these are fragile arrangements that can unexpectedly fail. The one enduring truth is that life is unstable, and change is inevitable.  When the systems we trust begin to fail us, our only security is that God will carry us though the storms of life.  The challenge of life is to shift our trust away from thinking that we have everything under control, to choosing to trust the One who gives us life each day: “he went and did according to the word of the LORD” (1 Kings 17:5).

Ordinary 26 / Pentecost +19

48 God Supplies Our Every Need

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 292.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

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[1]  Finkelstein, Israel; Silberman, Neil Asher (2001). The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts. Simon and Schuster. pp. 169–195. ISBN 978-0-684-86912-4.

Psalm 79

A Psalm of Asaph.

 A communal lament over the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem.

Psa 79:1   O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;

they have defiled your holy temple; they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.

Psa 79:2  They have given the bodies of your servants to the birds of the air for food,

the flesh of your faithful to the wild animals of the earth.

Psa 79:3  They have poured out their blood like water all around Jerusalem,

and there was no one to bury them.

Psa 79:4  We have become a taunt to our neighbors,

mocked and derided by those around us.

Psa 79:5  How long, O LORD? Will you be angry forever?

Will your jealous wrath burn like fire?

Psa 79:6  Pour out your anger on the nations that do not know you,

 and on the kingdoms that do not call on your name.

Psa 79:7  For they have devoured Jacob

and laid waste his habitation.

Psa 79:8  Do not remember against us the iniquities of our ancestors;

let your compassion come speedily to meet us, for we are brought very low.

Psa 79:9  Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name;

 deliver us, and forgive our sins, for your name's sake.

Ordinary 25 / Pentecost +18

47 Wise Stewards

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 287.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

An (Un)successful Pastor

2Corinthians 6:1  As we work together with him, we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. 2  For he says, "At an acceptable time I have listened to you, and on a day of salvation I have helped you." See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation! 3  We are putting no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4  but as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way: through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5  beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6  by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love, 7  truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8  in honor and dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9  as unknown, and yet are well known; as dying, and see--we are alive; as punished, and yet not killed; 10  as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

2 Corinthians was written after Paul left Ephesus, probably in late A.D. 55 or very early A.D. 56. He had struggled with the Corinthian Christians, who had been confused by opponents of Paul’s teaching on the Grace of God, and who had also exhibited some questionable moral and ethical traits. Paul was anxious to discover how his previous “stern letter” had been received, and at the same time he was determined to defend his reputation as a disciple of Jesus.

What is deeply challenging is the way Paul lists his credentials. Paul lists his “afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labours, sleepless nights, hunger”; he describes himself as “unknown, punished, sorrowful and poor”.   We are so accustomed to the way modern Christian leaders describe themselves as ‘successful’, ‘popular’, wealthy’, and ‘anointed’ pastors to thousands of adoring fans that Paul’s credentials are quite startling.

A Christ-follower cannot use the language of success as defined by our post-modern culture. The only sign of success that defines a Christian is that, despite our weaknesses, the Grace of God was seen. All else is vanity.

Hymn:

 And are we yet alive,
And see each other's face?
Glory and thanks to Jesus give
For His almighty grace!

Preserved by power divine
To full salvation here,
Again in Jesus? praise we join
And in His sight appear.

What troubles have we seen,
What mighty conflicts past,
Fightings without, and fears within,
Since we assembled last!

Yet out of all the Lord
Hath brought us by His love;
And still He doth His help afford,
And hides our life above.

Then let us make our boast
Of His redeeming power,
Which saves us to the uttermost,
Till we can sin no more.

Let us take up the cross
Till we the crown obtain,
And gladly reckon all things loss
So we may Jesus gain.

Charles Wesley

Ordinary 25 / Pentecost +18

47 Wise Stewards

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 287.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

A God beyond limits

Ephesians 3:16  I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, 17  and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. 18  I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19  and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20  Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, 21  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

A prayer for the people: to “know the love of Christ”.  And that this would lead to the realization that the power of God – its breadth, length, height and depth – “surpasses knowledge”. Anyone who claims to be able to ‘explain God’ shows in this claim their own lack of knowledge of God. God is beyond explanation – able to “accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine”.  

We serve a God of surprises who will never be fully explained by human language and experience.   Our Creator therefore constantly invites us to be surprised / to be perplexed / to be bewildered by the many new things we do not yet know…. but can learn because God reveals them to us.  

Ordinary 25 / Pentecost +18

47 Wise Stewards

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 287.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

Who is wise?

James 3:13  Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. 14  But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. 15  Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. 16  For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. 17  But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. 18  And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.

This letter was written in AD49 (just before the Council of Jerusalem described in Acts 15) to Jewish Christians living in Gentile communities. It was written to challenge the hypocrisy of those who thought that they spiritually were superior but in fact displayed un-Christian behavior.

The writer of this letter invited the “wise and understanding” to demonstrate their faith through “works…done with gentleness”. Those who truly have “wisdom from above” show this in being “peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits”. This is an invitation to abandon the hypocrisy born of spiritual arrogance, and instead become peacemakers.

The challenge of our era is for Jesus-followers to abandon the notion that this makes us spiritually superior, and instead to cultivate a gentle spirit of service to our community.

Ordinary 25 / Pentecost +18

47 Wise Stewards

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 287.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

An understanding mind….

1Kings 3:3  Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of his father David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places. 4  The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place; Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5  At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, "Ask what I should give you." 6  And Solomon said, "You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today. 7  And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8  And your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted. 9  Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?" 10  It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. 11  God said to him, "Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, 12  I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you. 13  I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you. 14  If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life."

Solomon has large shoes to fill: He succeeds two warrior kings – Saul and David. These were the leaders who used their warrior prowess to carve out a new national pride for the people of the Covenant. Now Solomon takes over the throne of David and offers prayers for his success. But instead of asking to become a mighty man of military skill and bravery, he asks for “an understanding mind” to govern the people well. God grants him “a wise and discerning mind”, adding that this can lead to many other attributes as well – including “riches and honour”.    

I am struck by how many of us choose to spend our time and energy in the pursuit of riches, honour and fame rather than in cultivating understanding minds. In fact it seems that wealth and success arises from a single-minded determination not to be distracted by anything else but one’s own goals. The purpose-driven life excludes values like understanding and empathy for the needs of others.

Those who follow Jesus can learn from King Solomon: to desire “a wise and discerning mind”, that we might walk in the ways of God.      

Seek the words of a wise man

Ecclesiastes 9:13  I have also seen this example of wisdom under the sun, and it seemed great to me. 14  There was a little city with few people in it. A great king came against it and besieged it, building great siege works against it. 15  Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city. Yet no one remembered that poor man. 16  So I said, "Wisdom is better than might; yet the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heeded." 17  The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouting of a ruler among fools. 18  Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one bungler destroys much good.

Wisdom is an elusive quality that many admire, but few achieve. The writer of Ecclesiastes aptly reminds us that we are all too easily dazzled by the grand words and visionary promises of the rich and the powerful – while the words of the wise often call us into the unpopular and uncomfortable path. And even when the words of a wise man are heeded, they are claimed by the powerful, while “no one remembered that poor man”.

The invitation for today is to push past the clamorous words and the noisy distractions of powerful people to listen for the quiet words of the wise.

Ordinary 25 / Pentecost +18

47 Wise Stewards

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 287.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

Transformative Grace

Rom 6:1  What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? 2  By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? 3  Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4  Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5  For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6  We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. 7  For whoever has died is freed from sin. 8  But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9  We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10  The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11  So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12  Therefore, do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. 13  No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness. 14  For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

The Grace of God is a recurring theme in the teaching of St Paul. But while Paul insists that we are “saved by grace through faith”,[1] he is at pains to show that this is not a grace without consequences. The Grace of God is a transformative process that results in change: grace allows us to move from brokenness to healing, from instability to stability, from sin to righteousness.  God’s Grace does not confer instant perfection in a person’s life, but it is expected to help that person move away from sin.

Pray for the Grace of God to transform your life into a closer pattern of what God intended you to become.         

Ordinary 24 / Pentecost +17

46 Beyond Forgiveness

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 282.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.

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[1] Ephesians Chapter 2

We do not find God!

Eph 2:8  For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God--9  not the result of works, so that no one may boast.10  For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.

......

Eph 2:17  So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near;18  for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father.19  So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God,20  built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.21  In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord;22  in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.

I am tired of people claiming to have “found Jesus”. This is theological nonsense. As the writer of Ephesians reminds us: our relationship with God is “not your own doing; it is the gift of God”.  The fact is that we do not find God – but rather “he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off”. 

Let us give up the search for the newest spiritual experience, and accept that we are already loved by God: We do not find God – instead God finds us.   

To sing:

1.      And can it be that I should gain

        an interest in the Savior's blood!

        Died he for me? who caused his pain!

        For me? who him to death pursued?

        Amazing love! How can it be

        that thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

        Amazing love! How can it be

        that thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

2.      'Tis mystery all: th' Immortal dies!

        Who can explore his strange design?

        In vain the firstborn seraph tries

        to sound the depths of love divine.

        'Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;

        let angel minds inquire no more.

        'Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;

        let angel minds inquire no more.

3.      He left his Father's throne above

        (so free, so infinite his grace!),

        emptied himself of all but love,

        and bled for Adam's helpless race.

        'Tis mercy all, immense and free,

        for O my God, it found out me!

        'Tis mercy all, immense and free,

        for O my God, it found out me!

4.      Long my imprisoned spirit lay,

        fast bound in sin and nature's night;

        thine eye diffused a quickening ray;

        I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;

        my chains fell off, my heart was free,

        I rose, went forth, and followed thee.

        My chains fell off, my heart was free,

        I rose, went forth, and followed thee.

5.      No condemnation now I dread;

        Jesus, and all in him, is mine;

        alive in him, my living Head,

        and clothed in righteousness divine,

        bold I approach th' eternal throne,

        and claim the crown, through Christ my own.

        Bold I approach th' eternal throne,

        and claim the crown, through Christ my own.

Text: Charles Wesley, 1707-1788 

Ordinary 24 / Pentecost +17

46 Beyond Forgiveness

The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 282.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.