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Reflections on the Expository Lectionary, September 19-25, 2011
Monday Morning
Psalm 27:12-14 G. K. Chesterton once answered a London Times query that was put to a number of authors: “What’s wrong with the world?” Replies of a variety of lengths were offered but none so brief or profound as Chesterton’s. His answer was simply, “I am.”
This fine, English gentleman had cut to the quick of the human condition. With all of the evil so apparent in the world, the worst thing he could see was himself. The world would perhaps be a better place if we all thought of self so perceptibly and honestly. But it is difficult to see so clearly when wickedness so abundantly surrounds us. And this wickedness often comes from the religious camp.
In today’s world we see it as clearly as ever: no one is more cruel than a religious fanatic bent on the physical destruction of those who do not think like himself. And no zealot was more murderous than Saul of Tarsus, by his own later admission. (1Tim 1:15) Yet God can and does call the wicked to righteousness. Thank God for Paul’s sake — as well as yours and mine.
Gratitude comes effortlessly when one realizes oneself is what is wrong with our world. Only then may one be used of God to help others see the truth. Until then, our efforts at changing the world will be thwarted because it is not the world that is in desperate need of changing.
Monday Evening
Luke 12:11-12 Who had more reason to fear opening his mouth than Ananias of Damascus? We all fear sharing our love of and faith in Jesus Christ, at least one time or another. Yet few of us who ever read this will be asked of God to witness to someone who would murder us for our words. Ananias was told by God to do exactly that, go and share with Saul of Tarsus the love of Jesus. Ananias went and called the murderer, “brother,” and became God’s avenue of healing for Saul’s blindness. I take this to be both physical and spiritual healing.
Our fear today is not so much to whom we might be speaking but instead, what in the world we would say to them. Indeed, this has become a chronic and paralyzing fear. This points to two factors in the modern Western Church. One, our faith is so mediocre that we know our witness is inadequate. Two, we really do not have faith that God will keep up his end of the faith-sharing bargain.
Whenever God would have you testify before others, he only asks two things of you. First, open your mouth. Second, trust me for the words to say. I contend that if we would do the first, we would find God doing the second.
Tuesday Morning
Luke 21:10-19 We do not want God to speak through us. What we really want is for God to protect us from whatever words we might say. God does not make that promise. In fact, he promises otherwise. If you rise up and go and speak for the Name, you will become a hated and persecuted person. Oh! that there were more hated Christians in America.
Tuesday Evening
Ezekiel 3:22 Some folks never get anything more out of the Christian life than they did when they went to the altar. They get saved but they never grow into their faith; they fail to work out the salvation that was put into them. (Phil 2:12) In order to grow in the Christian faith, one must get up and head out into the desert valley. There, in the trial of life, is where the Lord speaks more. One must go a little further with God, even when it does not make sense. Arise and go when and where he speaks. It is on the plain, not the mountain top, that one receives Spirit power.
Wednesday Morning
Daniel 10:1-9 When God gave his visions to Daniel and to Saul, he gave each vision to them and not to the others accompanying them. God’s visions are always to the person. He has something he wants that individual to do. Only that one person was chosen by God to work out the vision. The danger of a group vision would be to form a committee and decide what God really meant and what should be done about it. As is the risk with group decisions, two things are almost bound to happen. Either the vision will be indefinitely put on hold since the group will not be able to determine what to do with the vision that was meant for the one person, or because the understanding of the vision is given to the recipient of the vision, the group will respond wrongly.
If God tells you to do something, you are the one who must be sure to do it, whether the group “sees” or not.
Wednesday Evening
John 12:27-30 If you know what God wants you to do, you need no conforming voice. For example, the voice of Scripture is sufficient. If the word says to rise up and go into all the world, the next step is not to wait for a messenger with news of what country you should go to as a missionary. You might do well to listen for such a word but the next step is to rise up and go to your neighbor next door.
Thursday Morning
- Genesis 22:1 Oh! the testing of Abraham was especially difficult. The old man had waited a long life to have a child by his beloved Sarah. Finally, Isaac is born after a century of waiting. And then God commands him to sacrifice the child. We might well claim that this is what the pagans do and far be it from us to be so unholy. Instead, Abraham recognizes the holy voice of God in the command to rise up and go. He leaves the rest to God.
Thursday Evening
Isaiah 6:8 When one is in the presence of God, as Isaiah was, it should impossible to deny God. Moses had a similar experience but stammered about why he could not do what God asked. (Exo 6:12) Jeremiah also deferred, claiming that no one listen to a lad. (Jer 1:6) Isaiah did not see himself, as Moses and Jeremiah did; he saw God. The result was that he cried out, “Send me!”
Friday Morning
Mark 5:21-23 Ananias was told to go and lay his hands on the murderer, Saul. (Acts 9:12) In that instance, he must have thought of how Jesus healed the centurion’s servant with a word from a distance. (Luke 7:1-10) Indeed, that was a way that Jesus himself could work. But we must go. If the gospel is to have an effect through us, it is always because we have laid our hands to the task.
Friday Evening
Romans 15:25-26 The early church was concerned for the welfare of the saints in Jerusalem. That is where the church had begun and thus, there were many Christians there. Additionally, the Jerusalem Christians were persecuted and poor. Paul and the other apostles were concerned that their physical needs be met. Ananias is concerned about their emotional needs. How would they deal with him going to help the man who had murdered so many of them? And with that thought, he may have given some thought to his own well-being. Yet, his response was to rise and go assist the murderer.
Saturday Morning
Romans 1:1 If Paul thought he had made the church suffer, he had seen nothing yet. He was chosen to go to the non-Jewish world with the gospel. There he would suffer much at everyone’s hands — Jews, Gentiles, and Christians alike. (Acts 9:15-16)
Saturday Evening
Galatians 2:7-9 Paul was entrusted with the gospel to the non-Jew. That word entrusted is compelling. It is from the Greek word “pisteuo.” The noun in this word family is “pistis” and means faith or belief. It may be extended that when God entrusted the gospel to Paul, he believed that Paul would actually rise up and go.
Sunday Morning
“Time to Die,” an audio Reflection based on my translation of Acts 9:1-19a:
9:1 But Saul, still making strong threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 9:2 and demanded of him letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any in the Christian way of life, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 9:3 And as he traveled, he drew near to Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 9:4 And he fell to the earth and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 9:5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, 9:6 but stand up and enter the city and you will be told what you must do.” 9:7 And the men traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but observing no one. 9:8 And Saul got up from the ground and his eyes were opened. He saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9:9 And he was without sight and neither ate nor drank for three days. 9:10 Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias, and the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 9:11 And the Lord said to him, “Stand up and go to the street that is named Straight and look in the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying. 9:12 And he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in and laying his hands on him so that he will be able to see.” 9:13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. 9:14 And he has authority here from the chief priests to bind all who call upon your name.” 9:15 But the Lord said to him, “Depart, for he is a chosen person for me, the bearer of my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. 9:16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” 9:17 And Ananias departed and entered into the house, and laying his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you in the way by which you came has sent me so that you may find your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 9:18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes and he found his sight. And he arose and was baptized, 9:19 and receiving food, he was strengthened.
Sunday Evening
Ephesians 3:7-8 Picking up on Saturday evening’s Reflection, God had faith (pistis) in Paul. And his faith was well-grounded. He did not simply expect a fallen man to bear his name to the rest of the world; he graced and empowered him to do so. Though Paul was the least worthy, and the last one we would entrust to do it, “grace was given” to him by God to accomplish the task. We may expect to less favor or faith.