A Lenten Reading of Matthew - Day One - Ash Wednesday

Scripture Reading: Matthew 1:1-17 (NRSVUE)

As we enter into another season of Lent, we may think about our own ancestry that have passed into death on Ash Wednesday as we hear the words said to us, "Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return."

In opening the Gospel, Matthew places Jesus firmly within Judaism as a son of Abraham who was seen as the father of the faith.  He is also seen as a son of David who was the king with which Israel measured greatness.  

Note that Matthew narrates fourteen generations between Abraham and David which were important markers in history.  Then we have fourteen generations between the height of the monarchy and the exile to Babylon which would have been seen as the low point.  Now we have fourteen generations between the deportation and Jesus.  As we think of cycles moving back and forth in history, Matthew seems to be saying that we are returning to a new crest.

The Messiah would be seen as the one to reclaim the Jewish people for a new age.  They supposed that it would be a new age of independence and self-governance.  They would be able to worship God without any foreign interference.

But this Gospel is also written following the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by Rome in 70 CE.  It is apparently clear that there's not going to be any self-governance as an independent country anytime soon.  

What does it mean to have a Messiah that leads us out of exile even while we may be living as strangers in a strange land?

When the world turns upside down, what does it mean to claim faith in God even when the deck seems stacked against you?

Matthew is positioning Jesus as a Messiah who will speak to a changing world but is rooted in the faith that has stood the test of time.  

As we move into Lent and as we attend Ash Wednesday services today, how do we allow our history to anchor us in our faith?  How does acknowledging our own mortality free us from many of the pressures of life?  And how do the ashes imposed in the sign of the cross point to a Messiah that will go the distance on behalf of love?

Prayer for the day:

O God, maker of every thing and judge of all that you have made, from the dust of the earth you have formed us and from the dust of death you would raise us up.  By the redemptive power of the cross, create in us clean hearts and put within us a new spirit, that we may repent of our sins and lead lives worthy of your calling; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Prayer by Laurence Hull Stookey, Pennsylvania-Delaware Conference of The United Methodist Church, 20th Century

Photo from John via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Preparing for the Season of Lent

The sign of the cross deepens
its impact when we
add a spiritual discipline.

As we move into the season of Lent, this is the forty days (not including Sundays) prior to Easter Sunday.  It always begins on Ash Wednesday but because Easter is tied to the lunar cycle, the calendar date moves around each year. 

Many Christians give up something during the season of Lent as a spiritual discipline.  It might be a fasting from soda, desserts, or television.  One year I tried fasting from food on Fridays during Lent.  Lately, I’ve seen people give up certain entertainment apps on their phones. 

Rather than give something up, some people prefer to adopt a new spiritual discipline during Lent.  In the latter part of my life, I’ve discovered the discipline of journaling through a book or section of the Bible.  Last year, I took the Sermon on the Mount (in Matthew) and the Sermon on the Plain (in Luke) and looked at parts of these each day and wrote about them.

This year, I’m going to be working through the book of Job from the Hebrew Bible.  Since it contains 42 chapters, it is fairly easy to divide for daily reading (I don’t post on Sundays).  The book will be helpful during Lent as we examine the overarching theme of suffering and how our faith intersects with it.  This corresponds nicely with the journey of Jesus to the cross during these forty days.

I will post these to my blog (precedinggrace.blogspot.com) and each day’s piece will hit the web at 3 am in case there are some really early risers out there!  I will also post these to my Facebook and X accounts at a more reasonable hour of the morning each day.    Boston Avenue UMC will feature these as their Daily Devotions and you can signup for a daily email if you prefer.

Each post will include a link to the day’s reading.  At the end of Lent, you will have read through the entire book of Job.  Some people include as a part of their discipline to comment on something that relates specifically to them.  This also has the added advantage of circulating the post to a wider audience.

As we look toward Lent starting on Ash Wednesday, what might you consider for your spiritual discipline this year?

Photo by Ahna Ziegler on Unsplash

Daily Devotion for Lent 2024, Day 1 Ash Wednesday

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he began to speak and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

                       Matthew 5:1-3 (NRSVue)

Matthew records Jesus teaching this sermon on the mountain while Luke records it being preached on a level place.  Matthew wrote his gospel to a Christian community that was birthed out of Judaism.  The adherents to the faith would have been raised in the Jewish tradition and so Matthew uses a lot of soft comparisons of Jesus with Moses.  Just as Moses receives the 10 Commandments on a mountain, Jesus gives the beatitudes on one as well.

The first blessing shows that the poor in spirit inherit the kingdom of heaven.  

This child probably doesn't feel blessed.

I was always confused by this as a child in that it reminded me of a poor sport which I knew wasn't a good attribute.  The Common English Bible translates it as hopeless which is a little better than poor sport but it is still pretty negative.

How can someone without hope - poor in spirit - receive the kingdom of heaven?

This is one of the reversals of Jesus' teaching that is so common in his parables.  Normally, people in Jesus' day that had it all together were thought to have God's blessing.   I would say that even though we know better, a large majority people operate as if those who have it all together have been blessed by God.

The opposite conclusion of this thinking is that some people who are living in difficult circumstances are somehow cursed by God.  I think that the beatitudes are trying to reverse this philosophy.  

The hope we retain from this is that even in the midst of tragedy, God remains with us.  This reminds me of the Mark Miller (a good United Methodist) song, "I Believe" which states, "I believe in love even when I don't feel it."

How do we share with people that God is with them even when bad things are happening?

I believe that the Christian ethic is to step up and be the hands and feet of Jesus in the world today.  Because every human being has experienced doubt in the midst of pain, we can offer faith and light in the midst of darkness.

Prayer for the day: 

Gracious God, we believe that you love all the children of the world.  But we also realize that not all children feel love or even security.  As we encounter people in the world, remind us that each person is somebody's child.  And as we increase our faith, may we also recognize you are this "somebody."  May we be a witness to your love to someone today so that your blessing may be true.  Amen.

Photo by UnknownNet Photography via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotions for Lent 2024

As we approach another season of Lent, I have decided to once again embrace the discipline of journaling my thoughts through this blog as reflections on scripture.  In the past, I have chosen a book of the Bible to read through but this year, I've decided to do a deeper dive into the Sermon on the Mount and the Sermon on the Plain.

This material is found in the Gospels, specifically, Matthew for the former and Luke for the latter.

The Sermon on the Mount is longer and covers chapters five through seven of Matthew's Gospel while the Sermon on the Plain is shorter, documented in Luke 6:20-49.

I will begin posting these devotions to the blog on Ash Wednesday and they will post in the early hours of the morning around 3 am in case there are any who rise early and wish to begin their day with the reading and devotion as their Lenten discipline.  And just to be clear, I do schedule these to post - I'm not up at this hour!

I will also post these to my Facebook and X social media accounts in case you prefer to comment and engage with a larger community.  Of course, you may also leave comments on this blog but that has never had the traction or responses of the social media platforms.

I will be utilizing the text from the New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition found on biblegateway.com but there are many translations available here and you may wish to look at more than one since the readings will be shorter.  

These will post for the 40 days of Lent (I won't post on the six Sundays of Lent) ending with a final post for Easter Sunday on March 31.  If you haven't decided on a Lenten discipline this year, I would invite you to read along with me through this important material.  It may be that you would also like to set a discipline of commenting with your own thoughts about where the material took you as well!

And of course, if you would like to share the blog on social media, this helps distribute it to a wider audience.

I pray that your Lenten season is contemplative and fruitful for your spiritual growth in Christ!

Photo by George Bannister via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

 

Daily Devotion for Lent 2023 - Ash Wednesday

Job took a potsherd with which to scrape himself and sat among the ashes.

                                                                      Job 2:8 (NRSV)

 

Normally, one of my Lenten disciplines is to daily walk through one of the books of the Bible and to publish my thoughts on it as a daily devotion.  Usually, this provides some good conversation with others as they comment with their own thoughts or reflections.

This year, my position as a district superintendent has brought a stressful workload regarding disaffiliation.  I recognized that even if I didn't have the time to offer some daily biblical analysis and devotion, I did (more than ever) need to have a Lenten discipline.  So this year, I will be writing a daily offering of gratitude for the connection.  Being United Methodist shapes who I am in fundamental ways - as I grew up, as I participated as a lay person, as I answered my call to ordained ministry and as I have served as an Elder in the church.

As we begin the season of Lent, I am thankful for The United Methodist Church in recognizing the value of the Ash Wednesday service.  This is a relatively recent addition to our liturgical practice as the order of service didn't appear in our United Methodist Book of Worship until it was published in 1992.  I don't have any memory of it growing up.

It is possible that the first time I experienced this service was under the leadership of Rev. Ken Tobler when I was on staff as a youth minister at New Haven UMC in Tulsa.  I was there from 1990 until 1994 so this is my best guess!

Since that time, I have participated annually and for most of my ministry, I have not only received the ashes on my forehead, but I have also imposed them upon others.

The metaphor is actually fairly morbid.  The practice of sitting in sackcloth and ashes certainly predates Christianity (see the quote from Job).  It was also practiced outside of  Judaism in the ancient world.  It was an act of penitence that advertised to others, "I might as well be dead!"

What is the value in acknowledging our own mortality?  

Sometimes this can be sobering - especially in light that our current culture is often in denial about the reality that all of us will someday die.  When confronted with this brutal fact, it does allow us to recognize our pettiness or even silliness within our conflicted relationships.  

Sometimes the ashes remind us, "Who do I need to forgive?"  

Ash Wednesday and Lent in general hopefully lead us to ask, "What am I paying attention to that is really minor in the grand scheme of things?"

I've been blessed from this practice through the years.  I'm grateful to The United Methodist Church for bringing me this annual reminder.

Here's a worship service for today but you'll need to bring your own ashes!