A Convenient Time

/ JJS / Leave a comment

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 130; 148, 2 Samuel 19:24-42, Acts 24:24-25:12, Mark 12:35-44

Governor Felix of Caesarea, where Paul stood trial for accusations made by Jewish leadership of Jerusalem, was familiar with and curious about the Way (an early name for Christianity). He invited Paul to speak with him about faith in Christ. Notoriously cruel and lusty, Felix grew afraid when Paul spoke of “righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come.” He dismissed Paul until a more convenient time. Two years later after Paul had failed to offer a bribe and Felix was replaced as governor, Paul remained in prison

Apparently a “convenient” time for faith never presented itself. Felix was neither ready nor willing to embrace the Way, and Paul suffered for it. Procrastination is a trait that not only harms the procrastinator, but can result in unfair, unpleasant consequences for others. Perhaps this is most apparent in a work environment, where one person’s procrastination causes delays, difficulties, and stress further down the line. But what of spiritual procrastination? Who does it harm?

Maybe we can think about it like cleaning a closet – a task most of us put off as long as we can. Findings things becomes increasingly difficult. Eventually the closet may cease to be useful, and becomes storage for things we vaguely recollect but never use again. The longer we put off following (or more fully following) the call of God, the less likely we are to answer it later. We tell ourselves we’ll get around to it after we put other lives in order, but we never quite do. When we’re desperate we might rummage around for that thing we need that we think is in there, but because we haven’t tended it properly, it’s just more frustrating mess. In the meantime, the hungry stay hungry, the lonely stay lonely, and we spiritually flounder.

Consider the widow whose offering of two small coins Jesus called “more […] than all the others.” She didn’t wait until she had enough money saved to make those two coins convenient, yet her gift was an enormous blessing. Let us do what we can right now, for the convenient time may never arrive.

Comfort: Today is exactly the right day to draw nearer to God.

Challenge: Start something you’ve been putting off. Don’t just plan to start; actually do it.

Prayer: God, I surrender myself to you today, and trust you will provide tomorrow. Amen.

Discussion: Felix was waiting for a bribe from Paul. When we effectively tell God “I’ll get around to that after [fill in the blank]…” is that like demanding an unearned favor before doing the right thing?

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Grieving our Enemies

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 135; 145, 2 Samuel 17:24-18:8, Acts 22:30-23:11, Mark 11:12-26

After David won back the throne of Israel, it was a case of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

With master strategy and a bit of luck, David’s forces defeated the forces of his son Absalom, who had forced his father off the throne and into the wilderness.  David had instructed his soldiers to let Absalom live, but as with all violence the consequences were unpredictable and Absalom was killed. David was distraught and retreated into isolation to mourn. Joab, the captain of his army, eventually approached him to say, “Look, we saved your life and won you your kingdom back and now you’re acting like we’re nothing. Acknowledge your troops or they’ll abandon you by morning.”

David was deeply experiencing an inescapable truth: any victory through violence is also a failure. A failure of life, a failure of love, and a failure of peace. David felt this because Absalom was his child,  but every slain enemy is somebody’s child. Every slain enemy is still God’s child. Does that feel like something to rejoice about? While it’s natural to celebrate victory, we should remember we are called to do good to those who would persecute us. Demoralizing our foes doesn’t eliminate them; it alienates them further. Had the Allies not been so punitive following World War I and allowed all of Europe to recover economically, who knows how things might have turned out?

Seeing our as enemies as fellow children of God, let alone grieving for them, makes it much harder to justify violence against them. The people knew David had lost his beloved son, but even that relationship was not reason enough to allow grief to exist alongside victory. Its very acknowledgment offended them into claiming David would have preferred them all dead if it meant Absalom could have lived. Allowing someone to humanize the enemy forces us to face uncomfortable truths, so David had to be dragged from his mourning chamber.

Doing violence, even when it seems necessary, damages us. If we must contemplate it, let’s also remember every one of our enemies is loved by Christ.

Additional Reading:
For thoughts on today’s reading from Mark, see Our Neighbors, Our Selves.

Comfort: Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God. 

Challenge: Pray for your enemies – personal, national, and global.

Prayer: How precious is your steadfast love, O God! All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings. (Psalm 36:7)

Discussion: Have you ever learned to see an enemy as more than just an enemy?

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Persons of Interest

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 15; 147:1-11, 2 Samuel 18:19-33, Acts 23:23-35, Mark 12:13-27

Psalm 15 begins by asking who may abide in The LORD’s tent, and who may dwell on The LORD’s holy hill. The answers include those who do not slander, who do no evil to their friends, who stand by their word, and who speak truth. And tucked into the list is those “who do not lend money at interest.”

If that last one seems a little oddly specific or out of place, perhaps a little context will help. This verse isn’t referring to a bank making a small business loan so someone can double the available seating in their coffee shop. It’s about loaning money to friends, family, or neighbors in need.

The LORD, it seems, is not a fan of people profiting from other people’s distress.

In a society which identifies so strongly with capitalism (and conflates capitalism so strongly with Christianity), we can forget not every opportunity to make a legal buck is morally justified. Take the payday loan industry, for example. It advertises itself as a friend to people in need of quick cash, but its business model depends on lending to people who are not able to pay their loans back. The profit is in the exorbitant interest and late fees, which in short order can add up to many times the amount of the original loan. All perfectly legal, but predatory and financially devastating to many families in an already precarious financial situation.

There are of course many other ways, both legal and illegal, to exploit people in financial, physical, or emotional need. In this age of self-identified Christian businesses, we might want to consider that Psalm 15 suggests The LORD cares less about whether we flaunt a cross or Bible next to the cash register than about whether we treat our customers, vendors, and partners as Christ would have us do.  In our personal lives, holding ourselves accountable to Christ should be a higher priority than forcing others to be accountable.

As Christians, we are called to ask ourselves not “How much can I get away with?” but “How much can I give away?”

Comfort: Your generosity, even if exploited, is a strength. 

Challenge: Read about predatory lending.

Prayer: Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer. (Psalm 4:1)

Discussion: Have you ever felt someone exploited you when they purported to help you?

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Cornered

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 123; 146, 2 Samuel 18:9-18, Acts 23:12-24, Mark 11:27-12:12

Have you ever heard the phrase “paint yourself into a corner?” It means to unwittingly trap yourself in a no-win situation, like a person who, while painting a floor, ends in a corner where they can neither finish the job nor exit the room without making a mess.

The forty or so Jewish men of Jerusalem who were committed to killing Paul painted themselves into a kind of reputational corner. They publicly took an oath not to eat or drink until they’d killed him. Unfortunately for them (though fortunately for Paul), Paul’s nephew overheard their plot and arranged to have Paul removed to Caesarea before they could act. Scripture doesn’t tell us what the forty-plus men did next, but oaths were serious business so they couldn’t break one lightly. Given the undesirable and unlikely outcome of letting themselves die of hunger and thirst, we might wonder how long it took each of them to break down and take that first bite after realizing they faced the choice of dying or becoming an oath-breaker.

Remember Galileo? The Church convicted him of heresy for promoting the idea that the earth revolved around the sun. They clung to a vision of the cosmos with the earth at the physical center, despite clear evidence to the contrary. The paint on the church floor dried for centuries before they managed to escape the corner of pride and willful ignorance.

When a cherished or comforting belief conflicts with undeniable reality, clinging to that belief doesn’t demonstrate strong faith; it illuminates a fear that God does not dwell in the truth. A round earth and a heliocentric orbit may have once felt like threats to the Christian worldview, but scientists of the church like LeMaitre and Mendel, who advanced the fields of physics and genetics, understood the discovery of new truths – even if they conflict with our current beliefs – leads us to greater understanding of God.

Let us never be so closed-minded that our thoughts and words conspire to trap us into a corner where our instinct to be defensive overrides our willingness to expand our understanding.

Comfort: Wherever the truth leads you, God is there. 

Challenge: Read this article about scientists who were also Christians.

Prayer: Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. (Psalm 86:4)

Discussion: Have you ever been afraid of the truth?

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Divide and Concur

/ JJS / Leave a comment

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 135; 145, 2 Samuel 17:24-18:8, Acts 22:30-23:11, Mark 11:12-26

Paul was a shrewd man. When he was arrested and brought before the council in Jerusalem, he noticed some of them were Pharisees like himself, and others were Sadducees. The Pharisees believed in the resurrection, spirits, and angels but the Sadducees did not. This was an ongoing point of contention. By mentioning that he himself was a Pharisee on trial concerning the resurrection of the dead, Paul accomplished a couple things.

First, he managed to gain some sympathy from the Pharisees. Instead of outright condemning him, they began to wonder “What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?” Second, he moved the focus off himself and onto the ongoing theological quarrel between the two sects. Their dissension became so heated that the tribune, fearing for Paul’s life, had him removed to the barracks.

For such supposedly smart men, the council members were easily led into unnecessary conflict. Maybe that’s because we are so easily swayed by people who we believe to be part of our “tribe” and so suspicious of people who are not. We tend to assume friends and colleagues who agree with us on one controversial issue – abortion, for instance – will also agree with us other issues – such as same-sex marriage. When we discover they disagree, it may be difficult to reconcile. Conversely if someone disagrees with us on one topic we may presuppose they will disagree with us on others, and when they don’t we have to adjust our thinking about them. If we are unable or unwilling to make those adjustments, we can end up turning a blind eye to the faults of those we initially agree with, and an equally blind eye to the virtues of people we first disagree with.

The good news is, we aren’t required to pigeon-hole anyone.

We don’t have to divide into tribes, and we don’t have to agree on every point to be one body. Yitzhak Rabin said, “You don’t make peace with friends. You make it with very unsavory enemies.” If we are to be blessed as peacemakers, loving through disagreement is an absolute necessity.

Additional Reading:
For thoughts on today’s reading from Mark, see Faith and Figs.

Comfort: Agreement is not necessary for peace. 

Challenge: Watch, listen to, or read something from a point of view you generally disagree with, but listen for points where you might be able to agree.

Prayer: Every day I will bless you, and praise your name forever and ever. (Psalm 145:2)

Discussion: When is the last time you found yourself surprised to agree with a person or group?

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Silence: Golden or Fool’s Gold?

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 19; 150, 2 Samuel 17:1-23, Galatians 3:6-14, John 5:30-47

The phrase “silence speaks volumes” can have different meanings. There’s an active silence when we refuse to speak, leaving others to draw their own conclusions. Ask a child, “Are those your crayon drawings all over the wall?” and silence probably answers the question for you. This silence gives us a slight sense of control when speaking would be difficult.

Then there’s a passive silence, like when we hear gossip among friends, or racist remarks in the cafeteria. In that silence we relinquish control, and those who hear it – or rather, don’t hear it – are more free to interpret it as they will. Declining to participate may send a message that we don’t agree or approve, but it is just as likely (and arguably more so)  to be heard as indifference, assent, agreement, or possibly fear.

As far as we know, David’s trusted counselor Ahithophel kept his silence after David arranged for the death of Uriah so he might marry Uriah’s wife Bathsheba – who was Ahithophel’s granddaughter. (Yes, the book of Samuel should come with a scorecard.) Perhaps this is why, when David’s son Absalom took his father’s throne, Ahithophel so easily swapped allegiances and began to counsel Absalom. It’s not hard to imagine David never saw this betrayal coming.

Whether it’s in business meetings, friendly conversation, or important debates, we should be careful not to make assumptions about people’s silence. Doing so can lead to serious miscalculations. We should also be careful about our own silence, because people will fill in the blanks for us. We don’t need to weigh in with an opinion on everything (Proverbs tells us “Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue”), but there are times when an assumption of agreement or neutrality is dangerous. Consider this quote from writer and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel:

Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim.
Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.

There is no such thing as “no news”; there is what people hear, and what they assume. Let’s be wise using both our words and our silence.

Additional Reading:
For thoughts on today’s reading from John, see Two Point Perspective.

Comfort: Your words can affect the world for the better. 

Challenge: Pray about when to speak and when to keep silent.

Prayer: Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)

Discussion: When do you feel most free to speak up? When do you feel least able?

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Invitation: Preemptive Strike

/ JJS / 2 Comments

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Earlier this week, I had a brief exchange with a stranger on Facebook.

He’d made a comment claiming that he couldn’t talk to liberals because as soon as they learned he was a Republican, they accused him of being a racist, anti-gay, hateful, gun nut. I responded that I am a liberal Christian and didn’t make any of those assumptions about him.

He replied, “Good for you for not being like all the rest of them.”

I don’t think he saw the irony of defending himself against stereotyping by promoting more stereotyping.

I’ve had similar online and face-to-face exchanges with people who claim Christians do nothing but promote intolerance and then dismiss countless examples of charitable and loving efforts as “exceptions that prove the rule” – which, by the way, isn’t really what that phrase means.

Right now we live in an atmosphere that promotes division. It encourages us to assign one label to a person – conservative, liberal, Christian,  atheist, feminist, socialist, capitalist, whatever – and assume they possess all the attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs of the most extreme people who claim those labels.

That there is some lazy thinking, and even lazier loving. It gives us permission to stereotype and perceive ourselves as victims of stereotyping at the same time. It even recycles language formerly associated primarily with racism, such as “That Joe is one of the ‘good’ ones.”

This kind of thinking is not fair or welcoming. We can’t express it in our churches and homes and expect anyone to take us seriously when we say all are welcome at Christ’s table.

On the flip side, we shouldn’t assume others are thinking that way. If you suspect someone may want to judge or stereotype you because they identify as liberal or conservative, don’t preemptively do their job for them by being pre-offended. Let them do their own dirty work of exclusion. Or – better yet – be pleasantly surprised that they don’t hate you because you’re different.

There will always be some people who want to deliberately exclude or oppress others, and we will stand up to such injustice.  There will be many more people – myself included – who will always be in a state of learning about how we can better relate to and learn from our fellow human beings.

At Christ’s table, we manage to put our differences on hold for the duration of a single, communal meal. One bite, one sip. Whatever else is going on in our lives, we find common purpose and need at Christ’s table. Can we take that moment and expand it? Throughout the week, can we preemptively assume we will accept and be accepted? We very well might do so and be wrong, but otherwise we will miss every chance to be right.

May the peace of our lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

Just Like Us

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 104; 149, 2 Samuel 16:1-23, Acts 22:17-29, Mark 11:1-11

Political intrigue. Royal infighting. Double agents. Unchecked lust. Questioned loyalties. Revenge killings.

The story of David and his family could be the plot of a bestselling summer beach novel or a hit Netflix series. At any given point in the narrative, it’s hard to draw a firm line between the good guys and the bad guys. Sometimes they don’t even know themselves. When David’s bodyguards want to kill someone for cursing him, he stops them and says:

“If he is cursing because the LORD has said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’ […] My own son seeks my life; how much more now may this Benjaminite! Let him alone, and let him curse; for the LORD has bidden him.”

David is tragically flawed. So is Absalom, the son who betrays him. Both have complex motivations for their behavior. We can in turn find both of them completely sympathetic and utterly disappointing.

In other words, Bible Stars: They’re Just Like Us!

Past or present and undoubtedly into the future, humanity is what it is.

We can bemoan the state of the world and its inhabitants, or we can be grateful for a God who loves creation enough to work with us as we are. We will misstep; we will falter; we will do horrible things; but God will not give up on us – even when we give up on ourselves. For all his flaws, David remained a willing servant. Even during the time of his exile, he considered not that God had let him down, but that his desires might not be God’s will.

If God loves, accepts, and works through the frustrating brood that is humanity … so must we. No matter how much we anger and dumbfound one another, there really are no alternatives. Christ challenges us to do good to the people who are unlike us, the people who hurt us, the people who have nothing to offer us. Rather than denigrate others for their flaws and sins, let us embrace and uplift each other as God will always do with us.

Additional Reading:
For thoughts on today’s reading from Acts, see Citizenship.

Comfort: God loves us as we are and calls us to be more. 

Challenge: Try praying for your enemies, not to defeat them, but to bless them.

Prayer: Loving and righteous God, teach me to love as Christ loved. Amen.

Discussion: Does it comfort or trouble you that giants of the faith are very much like us?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group. You’ll be notified of new posts through FB, and have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!

Usurpers

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 51; 148, 2 Samuel 15:19-37, Acts 21:37-22:16, Mark 10:46-52

Absalom’s seizure of his father David’s throne was what we might call a bloodless coup. In the nine years between the rape of Absalom’s sister Tamar by David’s other son Amnon (the event which effectively destroyed their relationship), their father-son dynamic went from estranged, to distant, to cool, and finally to enmity. Absalom used much of this time to win the favor of the people of Israel and quietly plot against his father, whom he knew would be reluctant to do him harm. By the time David and his court realized the inevitability of Absalom’s usurpation, they could do little more than  flee to the countryside.

Both small changes and veritable revolutions can catch us unawares – especially when we don’t want to believe they’re happening. Surely David, steeped as he was in a lifetime of political intrigue, should have seen the warning signs. Perhaps his desire to be reconciled with a son he loved clouded his judgment. That same fatherly love had caused him to stay the hand of judgment when Amnon did the unthinkable to Tamar.

None of us have a kingdom at stake, but we should always be alert for those who would usurp the Kingdom.   Who are these people? Politicians who pay lip service to Christianity to further unrelated – sometimes contrary – agendas. Religious leaders who for personal gain exploit our desire to be generous and charitable. Cultural figures who use their Christianity – conservative, liberal, or moderate – as a sword instead of a plowshare.

Absalom won the love of the people before dethroning their God-anointed king. Like the proverbial frog boiled so gradually it didn’t notice, they probably didn’t realize when or why they were in hot water. Our church, our community, and even our nation can shift around us if it does so by nearly imperceptible degrees which we find easy to ignore because of love and loyalty.

Our own well intended perceptions can be skewed by many factors. If Christ remains our benchmark – our plumb line – we will be able to spot intentions and actions which claim the gospel but do not square with it.

Additional Reading:
For thoughts on today’s reading from Mark, see Stop! Collaborate and Listen.

Comfort: Christ is our most reliable standard. 

Challenge: When you love or are loyal to something, don’t be afraid to be critical of it.

Prayer: Loving and righteous God, make your ways clear to me. Amen.

Discussion: Have you ever been part of a community group whose character changed, or wasn’t who you thought they were?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group. You’ll be notified of new posts through FB, and have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!

I Will Follow You (Wherever You May Go)

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 97; 147:12-20, 2 Samuel 15:1-18, Acts 21:27-36, Mark 10:32-45

Jesus wanted the disciples to be prepared for what was to come. In very plain language he predicted his death three times, yet the disciples did not seem to understand. On the third occasion he said:

See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death; then they will hand him over to the Gentiles; they will mock him, and spit upon him, and flog him, and kill him; and after three days he will rise again.

In the very next paragraph, “James and John […] said to him, ‘Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.’” They asked to sit at his right and left hands in paradise.  Jesus had to decline, but it seems gracious that he humored them at all considering what he’d told just them. One paragraph following the next doesn’t mean quite a bit of time couldn’t have elapsed between them, but asking favors after that seems a little … self-involved.

Yet we can all be self-involved. Our calling is to follow Christ and share him with others, but some of the most popular Christian books and preachers focus on the “name it and claim it” gospel which teaches what Jesus can do for us. Church is for worshipping our God, but we often choose one based more on how good it makes us feel than how it challenges us to grow in the radical love and humility Christ requests of his disciples.

We don’t find that “peace which passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7) by praying for trouble-free lives, but by following Jesus wherever he leads, including enemy territory. And that “perfect love which casts out fear” (1 John 4:18)? It doesn’t sprout in hearts that play it safe; we first must face the fear of loving those we find unlovable.

Following Christ is its own reward. Step by step we are transformed and grow less concerned about what Christ can do for us, and more about how we can serve him.

Comfort: Following Christ transforms us. 

Challenge: Keep a journal about how following Christ changes you.

Prayer: Loving God, I set my face towards Christ. May my discipleship glorify your name. Amen.

Discussion: What’s the difference between a selfish prayer, and a prayer for yourself?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group. You’ll be notified of new posts through FB, and have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!