Thursday, June 02, 2005
Daily Office, Year One, Proper 4, Wednesday
Today's Readings:
Psalm 119:71: "It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn your statues." It's almost as if the Psalmist is saying that we can only know God through our broken ness. Deuteronomy teaches us to beware of false prophets, they are tests from the Lord. Kill them. Jeepers! One interesting aside is the family structure hinted at in Deut. 13:6. Do not be deceived by your brother, the sons or daughter of your father, or the son and daughter of your mother. It's good to remember when people talk about how family life was instituted in the Bible. This passage is sounding more like a clan than a family. The "nuclear family" of 20th century America is not Biblically based, we should remember that as we fight over the definition of family.
Back to the readings: Paul teaches that we should rejoice when grief leads to repentance. 7:10: "Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regrets." Again, God is found through brokenness. Paul is referring to grief that we cause others. This week I was insulted. Deeply insulted. I'm sure the person who insulted me has no idea I was insulted. I have been hurt by their statement. Yes, an error of mine led to the insult, and the pain I'm feeling from the insult is mine. I have to ask for forgiveness and repent from the ways I've thought of to get back at this person. I should not return the insult. I should not return pain. I need to forgive that person. It is not an easy thing to do.
Luke tells us an interesting story. It almost sounds like Jesus is describing the 'rapture' made famous in the 19th century and the "Left Behind" series, but that may not be what Jesus is talking about. He tells the Pharisees that "The Kingdom of God is among you" then describes something different, something in the future, to his disciples. If the Coming of the Kingdom is the Judgement Day or the modern-mythological 'rapture', then we have caught Jesus in a lie. I didn't understand the last line when I first read it: "Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather." But then I reread the sectoin. Jesus is describing people being taken away suddenly, and we've also read recently that the bad weeds will be taken away first, before the harvest of good wheat. Is is possible that the 'rapture' event, people disappearing, are those who do not pass muster? Those found wanting? And is this act of disappearing different from other tragedies? Jesus refers to the Flood and the destruction of Sodom in this passage. Could this purging of people refer to the destruction of the Temple and the deaths of many Jews during their rebellion? Is Jesus somehow telling Judas that a military leader is not what humanity needs, because we have to get out of the cycle of death and resurrection? Hmmm... probably not, because life attuned to God is constant death and ressurection. More questions, less answers. Good theology. ¶ 12:41 PM
- Psalm 119:49-72
- Deut. 13:1-11
- 2 Cor. 7:2-16
- Luke 17:20-37
Psalm 119:71: "It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn your statues." It's almost as if the Psalmist is saying that we can only know God through our broken ness. Deuteronomy teaches us to beware of false prophets, they are tests from the Lord. Kill them. Jeepers! One interesting aside is the family structure hinted at in Deut. 13:6. Do not be deceived by your brother, the sons or daughter of your father, or the son and daughter of your mother. It's good to remember when people talk about how family life was instituted in the Bible. This passage is sounding more like a clan than a family. The "nuclear family" of 20th century America is not Biblically based, we should remember that as we fight over the definition of family.
Back to the readings: Paul teaches that we should rejoice when grief leads to repentance. 7:10: "Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regrets." Again, God is found through brokenness. Paul is referring to grief that we cause others. This week I was insulted. Deeply insulted. I'm sure the person who insulted me has no idea I was insulted. I have been hurt by their statement. Yes, an error of mine led to the insult, and the pain I'm feeling from the insult is mine. I have to ask for forgiveness and repent from the ways I've thought of to get back at this person. I should not return the insult. I should not return pain. I need to forgive that person. It is not an easy thing to do.
Luke tells us an interesting story. It almost sounds like Jesus is describing the 'rapture' made famous in the 19th century and the "Left Behind" series, but that may not be what Jesus is talking about. He tells the Pharisees that "The Kingdom of God is among you" then describes something different, something in the future, to his disciples. If the Coming of the Kingdom is the Judgement Day or the modern-mythological 'rapture', then we have caught Jesus in a lie. I didn't understand the last line when I first read it: "Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather." But then I reread the sectoin. Jesus is describing people being taken away suddenly, and we've also read recently that the bad weeds will be taken away first, before the harvest of good wheat. Is is possible that the 'rapture' event, people disappearing, are those who do not pass muster? Those found wanting? And is this act of disappearing different from other tragedies? Jesus refers to the Flood and the destruction of Sodom in this passage. Could this purging of people refer to the destruction of the Temple and the deaths of many Jews during their rebellion? Is Jesus somehow telling Judas that a military leader is not what humanity needs, because we have to get out of the cycle of death and resurrection? Hmmm... probably not, because life attuned to God is constant death and ressurection. More questions, less answers. Good theology. ¶ 12:41 PM
