Running a Marathon

Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost, Year A

Lectionary Reading: Genesis 45:1-15 (NRSV)

In most races, it seems there is always
someone younger and more energetic
that is going to pass me by!

I’ve never been a long-distance runner but I remember doing some longer runs in my youth.  As a child, I sprinted out ahead and tried to get in front of the pack only to exhaust my energy and get passed by other kids that were normally slower than me.  I figured out that you had to pace yourself and conserve your energy – measure it out for the whole race.

It may be that many of us have hit that initial wall.  The majority of us knew rationally that COVID-19 could last into the fall.  It was communicated quite a bit.  But how many believed last March that we would be facing these kinds of issues with re-opening schools in the fall?  Somewhere in the back of my head, I had convinced myself that things would be back to normal after the summer.  And so, did I conserve enough mental or emotional energy to deal with the reality?

There are so many industries that are facing difficulties because of the changes.  It is hard to fathom how deeply this has affected the economy.  Of course, this impacts the church.  We don’t think about the church as a business but it has utility bills and salaries as well as other ministry costs to operate.  The mission behind our business is not to make profit but to make the world a better place by introducing people to the Way of Jesus Christ.  Most of the churches that I know operate financially with very little margin for error.

For our church, we have grown and been able to offset the normal losses due to death and moving through new people finding us and eventually joining our church.  For a healthy church, this should be normal in the life of the congregation.  But what happens if we can’t worship without taking safety precautions?  When we first re-opened worship in the Christian Activity Center, we wondered if we would have enough room to safely distance everyone who would come.  We quickly realized that this would not be a problem!  

Most of the congregation continues to engage online which is the safest option.  The majority have stayed away because of health reasons.  Others have remained absent while we insist on masks for worship because they choose not to wear them for likely a variety of reasons.  But for the most part, visitors are not coming in person with the same frequency or percentage that they did before the change.

So church continues to adjust to the difficulties.  We still believe in our mission.   In fact, it may be more crucial with all of the turmoil going on.  So how do we reach people today?

We are going to invite our church to continue to participate.  Our church has done an outstanding job engaging with our online worship on social media.  I mentioned that as people like, comment or share the video, this allows us to “see” who is joining us at church!  And so, if you are a lurker (someone who merely observes but doesn’t engage through liking, commenting or sharing on our church’s worship post), this may be foreign or even uncomfortable for you.  It may be something you are not willing to do.  But your presence is important and this is the way we show up today.  I would invite you to prayerfully consider responding in some way this week.

We are looking at spending a small amount of money (around $20) this week to “boost” our worship post to see if we might reach others in our community.  If you find this distasteful, for comparison, many churches used to spend much more than this on weekly newspaper ads.  But the best way for us to reach more people (and it’s free) is for people to “share” the post through your social media account.  If you need help doing this, please email us at info@fumcedmond.org and we’ll have someone walk you through it!  Evangelism looks different to each generation and we are not going to shy away from it just because it continues to evolve and we find the changes uncomfortable.  Our mission is more important than our discomfort.

I like how Joseph saw his own sense of mission in today’s reading.  He suffered.  He went through a lot of difficulty – betrayal, slavery, accused falsely, imprisonment in a foreign land.  And yet, he saw God’s hand in his life and it buoyed him through the turmoil.  We are going through a lot as well.  Maybe if we see how we are working with God to help others know the love of Christ, it will help us too.  

We’ll continue to explore this scripture on Sunday in worship (online and in person).  If you join us online, I hope to “see” you this week!  May God bless you as you adjust to our marathon.  We’re running this together!

In Christ,

Sam

Photo by Brian Cribb via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Easter Sunday

Scripture Reading: Acts 28:23-31 (NRSV)

And here we see the journey complete.  We started out in the first chapter of Acts with the disciples receiving the mission to be witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus "to the ends of the earth."  As I mentioned yesterday, the establishment of the church in Rome becomes a launching place for the entirety of the Roman empire which was their known world at that time.

Paul was not one of those who initially receives this instruction but he discovers it as the story of the church unfolds.  We are reminded of the exponential nature of the Christian witness.  At some point, it is likely that one of the original apostles baptized Ananias who initially received Paul and baptized him. 

We see Paul continue with his witness to both Jews and Gentiles.  Even though he has continually found opposition (sometimes violent) within the Jewish populations, enough have evidently been convinced that he continues to pursue conversations with them. 

We do see his frustration as he quotes from Isaiah 6:9-10 as does Jesus in Matthew in 13:14-15.  But we find that this applies to all people.  There will always be people whether Jew or Christian that do not follow through with the teachings that are laid out before them.

It is fitting that we see Luke describing that Paul shares the gospel boldly and without hindrance.  We don't see anything about Paul's martyrdom in Rome.  There's not even any hint of it.  While some scholars think that there was a sequel in the works by Luke, I'm not sure that Luke doesn't end the story here as a nod to the resurrection.  All of us eventually die be that by violence such as Paul or by old age which is how we would prefer.  But Paul is never more alive here than when he is sharing the gospel in the capital city of the world in which he lived!

And on Easter Sunday, we remember that the resurrection does give us life!  It reminds us to look past our current troubles and to remember that all things renew.  We see God at work in bold as well as subtle ways that lift our spirits and restore our souls. 

As you are a beneficiary of the early work of the apostles, what witness will you bear to the resurrection faith?  How will your story be a part of the larger story of God in the world?  What lives will you touch in a positive way that will look back to you with thankfulness that your paths crossed?

It doesn't take large actions but rather a sense of transformation.  One that bids us to pay attention to those things that build up rather than tear down.  And in this, Christ is alive - in you, in me and in the world.

Prayer for the day:

Gracious God, through the cross, you recognize the frailty of humanity.
In raising Christ from the dead, you move past any limits of frailty and finality.
May we too be raised with Christ.
Free us from the hindrance of sin.
Move us in the Holy Spirit to the freedom of love,
that our very being would be born anew,
and that our witness would emerge from our identification with this marvelous resurrection faith!
Amen.

Photo by Peter Roome via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 33

Scripture Reading: Acts 23:23-35 (NRSV)

Paul is being evacuated from Jerusalem for his own safety.  The number of soldiers listed by Luke seems a little exaggerated.  It would be economically unfeasible to give this kind of attention to every citizen of Rome that was threatened across the empire.

I think it is important when we read this today to realize that we experience it from a totally different context.  As Paul experienced persecution from Jewish rioters in Jerusalem, this was done in the circumstance where Christians were a minority among a Jewish majority.  Today, in the United States, there are around 6 million Jews as compared to Christians at around 213,000,000.  This difference equates to a power differential concerning life in our country.  For instance through much of the 20th century, blue laws shut down American life on Sundays (the Christian sabbath) rather than Saturday (the Jewish sabbath).

If we don't understand the power differential, tragedies like the Holocaust can occur. 

Paul understands both sides.  Prior to his baptism, he was a persecutor himself.  He experienced all of the privilege of being in the religious majority.  Now he is on the other side and yet his privilege this time is coming from his Roman citizenship.  This may have further enraged the Jewish population in Jerusalem because they would have preferred to self-govern.   

This dismissive slogan is insulting to a generation
but it also speaks volumes to how they are received
by those entering adulthood.

Christians in the United States today are finding a shifting population as far as how they are being received.  There is more skepticism these days concerning organized religion.  Things that we took for granted such as couples returning to church after they started having children are no longer the norm.  Nevertheless, we are still the majority in this country.  The danger is that Christianity may be seen as something quaint or outdated by younger generations. 

How do we speak as a majority to a generation that finds much of the majority tedious?  How do we share our faith in ways that can be heard rather than dismissed?  I'll take my cue from Paul.  It seems that he was going to be authentically himself.  He would speak to those who would hear and move on from those who wouldn't.  But his interest was in giving everyone a shot no matter where they showed up on the social status radar.

Prayer for the day:

O God, who has bound us together in this bundle of life,

give us grace to understand how our lives depend on the industry,

the honesty and integrity of our fellows;

that we may be mindful of their needs,

grateful for their faithfulness,

and faithful in our responsibilities to them;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr, Union Theological Seminary, 20th Century 

Photo by Trending Topics 2019 via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 31

Scripture Reading: Acts 22:17-30 (NRSV)

Paul has been addressing the mob that wanted to kill him, first identifying with them and then relating his conversion story.  In verses 17-21, we have an interlude of a flashback to Paul's arrival in Jerusalem.  He tells of receiving a vision of Jesus where Paul is given instruction to leave Jerusalem.  Paul actually argues with Jesus (similarly to how Ananias reacts to being instructed) by telling him, "They'll listen to me because I was just like them!"  Jesus doesn't respond to his line of reasoning but just exclaims, "Go!"  Paul is going to the Gentiles.

Paul is arguing with Jesus because he wants his Jewish audience to believe.  He wants the message to ease their anger so that they can be transformed as he has been transformed.  His compassion may remind us of Abraham bargaining with God on the fate of Sodom.  After Abraham continues to bring down the number he needs to instigate their salvation, I like when he finally says, "Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak just once more."  But just as Abraham doesn't find the ten righteous that he needs, Paul is about to find out that he should have listened to Jesus.

We discover that the crowd is ready to kill Paul.  Jesus should know what he is talking about because he had faced a similar crowd some years earlier.  Luke 23:20-23 seems to resonate here:

Pilate, wanting to release Jesus, addressed them again; but they kept shouting, “Crucify, crucify him!” A third time he said to them, “Why, what evil has he done? I have found in him no ground for the sentence of death; I will therefore have him flogged and then release him.” But they kept urgently demanding with loud shouts that he should be crucified; and their voices prevailed.

Sometimes you get a better deal
if you are local or know the culture.

Here the tribune is about to have information beaten out of Paul but Paul's citizenship once more comes to his aid.  We see that while his foreign status (being from Tarsus) was not necessarily helpful to a Jewish audience, his Roman citizenship was beneficial for where Jesus was sending him.  It reminds me of Moses being raised as an Egyptian and then is able to later negotiate with Pharaoh likely because he knows the ways of the court.  Martin Luther King, Jr. was educated in Boston but returned to his people in the south to lead them to freedom.  Similarly, Mahatma Gandhi was educated in England and then brought freedom to his people first in South Africa and then in India.  Here we see Paul being sent to the Gentiles - people of an empire which was familiar to him.

If you were to examine your background, would you find experiences and commonalities that would help you relate to certain people today?  How can you bring this to light?  Do you ever argue with Jesus about what you are to do or say?  Who do you know - with whom are you familiar - that needs to hear a good word from you today and might receive it well?

Prayer for the day:

For a clearer vision of the work you have set before us and for a better understanding of your gospel, Lord direct us.
For a deeper commitment in your service and a greater love for all your children, Lord direct us.
For a fresh understanding of the task before us and for a sense of urgency in our proclamation, Lord direct us.
For a greater respect and acceptance among Christians of different traditions and for a common goal in evangelism, Lord direct us.
Amen.

Prayer from liturgy of the Anglican Province of the Indian Ocean

Photo by Graham Milldrum via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 26

Scripture Reading: Acts 19:1-20 (NRSV)

It may be surprising to some that John the Baptist still had disciples that were following in his way.  Paul encounters them in Ephesus and they seem very amenable to becoming Christians.   So Paul baptizes them and they receive the Holy Spirit.  Interestingly enough, there were twelve of John's disciples who convert to Christianity.  Could this be allegorical as a reference to the twelve disciples of Jesus?

For United Methodists, we ask the question, "Is this re-baptism?"  We are clear that we do not re-baptize those who have already been baptized as Christians.  Specifically, the 2016 Book of Discipline states in paragraph 341.7:

No pastor shall re-baptize. The practice of re-baptism does not conform with God’s action in baptism and is not consistent with Wesleyan tradition and the historic teaching of the church. Therefore, the pastor should counsel any person seeking re-baptism to participate in a rite of reaffirmation of baptismal vows.

Here I am baptizing a youth at someone's pool.
The rest of the congregation is gathered with the photographer.
The owners of the pool later claimed that they were swimming
in Holy Water!

But what our polity is talking about is Christian baptism that resonates with our theology of the Trinity.  Since John's disciples had no understanding of the Holy Spirit (at least from the perspective of the early church), we would say that they were not really baptized as Christians and so this doesn't count as re-baptism.

Some traditions that emphasize adult baptism may wonder at the United Methodist prohibition on re-baptism.  We do not think that those in other traditions who re-baptize are sinning, we are just putting the emphasis on different things.

Adult baptism or Believer's baptism is where someone makes their own repentance of sin and profession of faith in Jesus Christ.  In infant or children's baptism, this is done by parents or guardians and the newly baptized will complete this for themselves at their confirmation.  For those who re-baptize, the emphasis is on the decision the individual is making publicly for Jesus Christ.  It is a commitment of the individual in faith to God through Jesus Christ.

A United Methodist understanding places the emphasis in baptism on God's commitment to that individual.  If God has committed to us, God remains faithful to us even though we may stray.

Our United Methodist understanding of Baptism, By Water and the Spirit makes this point clearly:

The claim that baptism is unrepeatable rests on the steadfast faithfulness of God. God’s initiative establishes the covenant of grace into which we are incorporated in baptism. By misusing our God-given freedom, we may live in neglect or defiance of that covenant, but we cannot destroy God’s love for us. When we repent and return to God, the covenant does not need to be remade, because God has always remained faithful to it. What is needed is renewal of our commitment and reaffirmation of our side of the covenant.

We also see the sons of Sceva, Jewish itinerant exorcists, using the name of Jesus to cast out demons.  This may remind us of Luke's gospel story in 9:49-50:

John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him; for whoever is not against you is for you.”

Moses had similar feelings for those who are doing good things for God.  However, the effectiveness of these would-be exorcists in Acts is less than they would desire.

Both of these stories - the baptism of John's followers and the ineffectiveness of the Jewish exorcists - point toward an authority that is found in the early church.  Luke is making clear that God is working through this new thing and if you want to really be connected with God, you will get on board!

How do we ascribe authority to the church today?  How is our prayer life more effective when we join with other believers?  How does our knowledge and understanding of scripture increase?  I believe that these latter two questions are two of the ways that we see the Holy Spirit at work in our lives today.  And as we pursue these things, we live out our baptismal covenant and try to be as faithful to God as God is to us.

Prayer for the day:

God, with your help, we will proclaim the good news
   and live according to the example of Christ.
God, with your help, we will surround the others in our congregation
    with a community of love and forgiveness,
    that we all may grow in our service to others.
God, with your help, we will pray for the others in our congregation
  that we all may be true disciples who walk in the way that leads to life.
Amen.

Prayer based on the congregational baptismal response of The United Methodist Church.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 25

Scripture Reading: Acts 18:1-28 (NRSV)

This quilt hangs in the entryway of the
National Council of Churches USA office in NYC.

We see Paul on the move again and strengthening the church throughout the Mediterranean.  He founds the church at Corinth and we get to see several names of people that Paul mentions in his letters such as Aquila and Priscilla, Crispus who Paul mentions that he baptized, Sosthenes and Apollos.

We see Paul's standard movement to engage Jews in the synagogue to convince them that Jesus was the Messiah.  He also gets fed up as he states in verse six, "Your blood be on your own heads!  I am innocent.  From now on I will go to the Gentiles."

We see Sosthenes beaten for the faith - he must have left at some point with Paul because Paul includes him as writing to the church at Corinth at the beginning of 1 Corinthians.

We also see how there was not necessarily one doctrine of following Jesus in that time period.  It was so new and communication would be so limited that various movements could pop up without the knowledge or consent of the apostles.  Apollos knows of Jesus but had only received the baptism of John which was for repentance but did not include receiving the Holy Spirit.  Luke mentions as much:

As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.                   Luke 3:15-16

This will become more apparent in the next chapter of Acts.  Division over who had the proper teaching would happen soon enough across the church.  When you think about how many different denominations (or non-denominations as if you could somehow move yourself outside of Christian history) there are today, you can see how easily it comes to humanity.  Paul seeks to curb this in the Corinthians when he writes in 1 Corinthians 3:3-4:

For as long as there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving according to human inclinations? For when one says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apollos,” are you not merely human?

This begs the question that if the Holy Spirit unifies rather than divides, is it a lack of the Holy Spirit within the church or are we merely not paying attention to its witness among us?  When we are divided physically and unable to meet with one another (as has been the case recently), there is often a longing to gather regardless of our differences.  Can arguments or disagreements be put in proper perspective of the greater work of the Holy Spirit?  Does this move us to greater love for our brothers and sisters even when they occupy a different place on a particular interpretation of scripture?

Prayer for the day:

From the cowardice
   that does not face new truths,
from the laziness
   that is content with half-truths,
from the arrogance
   that thinks it knows all the truth,
deliver us today, good Lord.
Amen.

Prayer from the church in Kenya

Photo by Scott Lenger via Fickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 24

Scripture Reading: Acts 17:1-34 (NRSV)

Paul's stay in Thessalonica doesn't seem to have been very fruitful from Luke's description but we know that a church was indeed planted there as we have two of Paul's letters to them.

The fact that Luke states that "the Jews became jealous" give us an idea that by Luke's time, we have seen a clear separation from Judaism.  Paul argues in the synagogue for three weeks over the scriptures.  He was giving them his Christian interpretation of how the Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament) point toward Jesus as the Messiah.  So we see that the first seeds Paul and his companions attempt to plant in new cities were among people holding to the Jewish faith.  It is not surprising that some would embrace this understanding while others would be more conservative in their thinking and reject this new way of understanding God's work in the world.

While Paul and Silas leave the conflict behind, there were believers that stayed behind and likely had a lot of persecution for maintaining in this new faith.  Paul says as much in 1 Thessalonians 1:6-8:

And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it.

We see that in spite of persecution, the new believers have not only embraced the faith but have become witnesses to it.

The Porch of the Maidens in Athens shows
some of the artistic expression devoted
to religion in Paul's day.

Paul eventually ends up in Athens.  We see Christian "philosophy" on stage with Epicureanism and Stoicism.  We can see how these views would conflict while they also might share some commonalities.  Epicurus did not believe in life after death and so the resurrection would have seemed to be babbling as verse 18 states.  Stoicism looked for moral and intellectual achievement rather than emotional passions for happiness and may have appreciated some of the teachings of Jesus that Paul would have passed along.

Paul begins to intertwine his understanding of God within their current culture as he defines for them the "unknown god" that they are worshiping.  Rather than cast this down as pagan worship, he re-imagines that this is God whom they are already worshiping.  Later Wesleyans would identify this as Prevenient or Preceding Grace - where God is already present in the world prior to Paul's arrival or their knowledge of Christianity.

As we think about how we relate our faith to the world around us, it may be helpful for us to see where God is already at work in "secular" culture.  Adopting Paul's graciousness, "I see how extremely religious you are in every way," would be helpful.  When we point out the virtues of the people we see, we are more likely to create good-will than if we start off with judgments of where they are failing.

If you are to look at news of events in the world today, where do you see God's presence?  As we see the difficulties the coronavirus is causing, where do you see places where people are being selfless?  Finally, how can we allow God to work through our lives during all the changes going on?  Sometimes it may be as simple as choosing to be positive rather than let our fears shape our reactions toward the negative.  In this way, we might be like those Thessalonians who not only endured persecution but witnessed to all the world while doing so.

Prayer for the day:

O Lord my God,
   teach my heart where and how to seek you,
   where and how to find you.
   Lord, if you are not here but absent,
      where shall I seek you?
   But you are everywhere, so you must be here,
   why then do I not seek you?
Lord, I am not trying to make my way to your height,
for my understanding is in no way equal to that,
but I do desire to understand a little of your truth
   which my heart already believes and loves.
I do not seek to understand so that I may believe,
   but I believe so that I may understand;
      and what is more,
I believe that unless I do believe I shall not understand.
Amen.

Prayer by Anselm of Canterbury, 11th-12th century

Photo by Alex DROP via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 23

Scripture Reading: Acts 16:16-40 (NRSV)

As far as we know, this is Silas's first time behind bars.  He's also beaten with a rod - enough to require his wounds to need washing a half a day later.  I wonder if he was thinking, "Who is this that I've gotten mixed up with?"

Did your parents ever tell you to watch out for who your friends are?

Their trouble starts when Paul gets annoyed by a slave-girl who keeps saying good things about them.  He seems to exorcise her of her outside spirit as a casual aside.  Unfortunately, her owners get upset and have Paul and Silas beaten and thrown into prison.

We see another miracle jail break except that Paul and Silas don't take the clue.  They remain imprisoned and save the life of their captor.  It seems that Paul doesn't ever miss an opportunity to witness.

It is likely that his jailer and family were some of the first members of the church at Philippi.  And so when Paul writes to them they would understand that he knows what he's talking about:

More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith.    (Philippians 3:8-9)

How many guards think about receiving
grace from their inmates?

We see some of Paul's brashness when he is released from prison and refuses to go!  He knows that Roman citizens were not permitted to be scourged.  I wonder at this point if Silas was thinking, "how many times does God have to free us before we are going to go?"  It must have given him great confidence in Paul's sense of wisdom when the magistrates actually come and apologize!

Then they ask them to leave the city.  Silas may be thinking, "We'll be happy to go!" but Paul makes a final stop back at Lydia's so that he can make sure the witness - the fellowship of the church - will continue after they are gone.  We have Paul's letter to the Philippians to know that he was successful in this enterprise.

When have you experienced blessing after hardship?  Sometimes we don't see them together but it may be that we need to look back at our lives to see what we can discover.  My guess is that you'll see your own comforters that pop up at odd times and places in your review.  How might we help to ease someone else's burdens?  In this we open ourselves to the workings of the Spirit that seeks to intercede for the good in all people's lives.

Prayer for the day:

Almighty God,
give us wisdom to perceive you,
intellect to understand you,
diligence to seek you,
patience to wait for you,
eyes to behold you,
a heart to meditate upon you
and life to proclaim you,
through the power of the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.

Prayer by Benedict of Nursia, Italy, 6th Century

Photo by Jobs for Felons Hub via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Fourth Sunday in Lent

Scripture Reading: Acts 16:1-15 (NRSV)

Here we have the first appearance in Acts of Timothy who accompanies Paul on his journeys.  It may seem a bit like a double-standard when Luke mentions that Paul had Timothy circumcised.  This comes right after the Council of Jerusalem stated that Gentiles need not be circumcised.  Paul writes a pretty clear statement about it to the church at Corinth in 1 Corinthians 7:17-20:

However that may be, let each of you lead the life that the Lord has assigned, to which God called you. This is my rule in all the churches. Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision.  Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing; but obeying the commandments of God is everything.  Let each of you remain in the condition in which you were called.

It could be that because Timothy's mother was Jewish, other Jewish people they encountered would not be able to hear the message because of their preoccupation with Timothy's status.  Paul does later state in the same letter in 1 Corinthians 9:20:

To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. 

This reminds us of how contextual the gospel message can be.  We have already seen James the son of Zebedee and Stephen killed and so we also recognize that this is a dangerous business.   This is likely why Luke records in verse six that the Holy Spirit forbid them to speak the word in Asia.

They cross into Europe coming to Philippi.  We have Paul's letter to the Philippians in which he includes Timothy in his by-line in the first verse.  While they are there to find a man from a vision, they encounter women down by the river on the sabbath.  Paul seems ready to preach the word as opportunity provides.  Lydia is a business woman who is the head of her household.  Paul and Timothy indulge in her hospitality.

Luke reminds us that women play an important role in the church leadership including financial assistance beginning in the ministry of Jesus.  Luke 8:1-3 records:

Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.

Brooke Williams and Jana Green at church camp
when in high school in 2002.  They led Bible study
together in their youth group.  Both are in ministry today -
Brooke in lay ministry in Kingfisher and Jana in
ordained ministry in Little Rock.

The fact that Luke lifts up women in multiple places may have been needed at the time for while it would have been more acceptable in some of the Gentile cultures the church was moving into, the Jewish patriarchy would still have been resistant.  Today women in ministry within United Methodism serve in all areas of leadership.  We don't differentiate how the Spirit calls us by gender.  But there are also encounters that our clergy and lay female leaders still have today that are hostile.  We are not yet where we need to be as far as our overall acceptance within our local churches but we have made great strides toward this. 

As you think about your own attitudes concerning female spiritual leadership, do you ever find yourself hesitant or dismissive of women in ministry?  If so, does this align with how the Holy Spirit was moving in the beginnings of the church in tearing down barriers?  And if you don't have issues around God and gender, what female pastor has shaped you that might appreciate a cheerful word of encouragement as she ministers today?

For today's prayer, I really liked this poem by Teresa of Avila and thought we could meditate on it in prayer.

Prayer for the day:

Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.

Prayer by Teresa of Avila, 16th Century

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 22

Scripture Reading: Acts 15:1-41 (NRSV)

We see in this chapter the council of Jerusalem that formally develops a doctrine surrounding circumcision.  Were Christianity only to remain a sect of Judaism, this would never come up as the circumcision of males would be assumed.

The covenant that God makes with Abraham is very clear in Genesis 17:9-14:

God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. Throughout your generations every male among you shall be circumcised when he is eight days old, including the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring. Both the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money must be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

This seems pretty direct.  Even foreign slaves should submit to this covenant which would speak in favor of Gentiles being circumcised if they want to be a part of the people of God.

But the more Christianity moves into the Mediterranean, the more push back we see regarding this issue.  The Greeks thought that circumcision was barbaric and there was prejudice in this culture against males who were circumcised.  The inter-Testamental book of 1 Maccabees 1:11-15 shows that there was even Jewish resistance to circumcision:

In those days certain renegades came out from Israel and misled many, saying, “Let us go and make a covenant with the Gentiles around us, for since we separated from them many disasters have come upon us.” This proposal pleased them, and some of the people eagerly went to the king, who authorized them to observe the ordinances of the Gentiles.  So they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem, according to Gentile custom, and removed the marks of circumcision, and abandoned the holy covenant. They joined with the Gentiles and sold themselves to do evil.

So there is precedent in Jewish tradition in how they were to deal with this incursion of Greek culture: resist and continue to be faithful to God's covenant!

The difference here seems to be that the Gentile converts to Christianity have received the Holy Spirit just as Jewish believers, showing that God "has made no distinction between them and us." (Acts 15.9).  If the Holy Spirit is a gift from God, then God seems to declare that circumcision is inconsequential with regards to this new covenant in Jesus Christ. 

What is fascinating is that in Acts, Peter is shown as the early adopter of sharing faith with Gentiles while in Galatians, Paul states that he is now the authority of Gentile evangelism:

On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel for the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel for the circumcised (for he who worked through Peter making him an apostle to the circumcised also worked through me in sending me to the Gentiles), and when James and Cephas and John, who were acknowledged pillars, recognized the grace that had been given to me, they gave to Barnabas and me the right hand of fellowship, agreeing that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.      (Galatians 2:7-9)

Many scholars seem to think that Galatians 2:1-10 is Paul's version of the Council of Jerusalem but others dispute this because it disagrees with much of Acts 15. 

Within Acts, this council seems to end peacefully enough with allowances to the uncircumcised as long as they continue to observe some purity laws around diet and sexuality.  Paul does seem to ignore the dietary laws while observing those concerning immorality in 1 Corinthians 10.

I'm not sure this shirt is accomplishing its intent!

While we may think they escaped without much contention, Luke does acknowledge that Paul and Barnabas split ways here.  Should Paul have been more forgiving of John Mark who he saw as a deserter?  It just goes to show us that the Christian fruit of the Spirit that Paul lifts up such as patience, kindness and generosity are sometimes easier to display in theory rather than in practice.

As Christians looking back on this ancient history, we may appreciate both Paul and Barnabas and wonder why they couldn't have worked things out.  In the moment, things can burn so hot!  In situations that may cause a split or arguments so sharp that we part company, how can we fast forward to a time of peace where we can look back and find greater love for one another?

It may be that we allow each other to go in ministry each to our own context.  But might we go with one another's blessing rather than a curse?

Prayer for the day:

God, let us mean it when we sing together,
When we all get to heaven,
what a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
we'll sing and shout the victory!
Help us to live out this assumption more each day.
Amen.

Prayer based on lyrics by Eliza E. Hewitt, 1898.

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

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 21

Scripture Reading: Acts 14:1-28 (NRSV)

Change is so hard.  Paul and Barnabas are putting forth changes that are difficult for the Jewish communities where they are preaching.  If we think about that setting, it is understandable.  They are still in the Galatian region where Jews would be a minority that suffered all of the things that would be standard for a religious minority in the first century.  

There can be a lot of emotion in a crowd.
Sometimes it can become dangerous.

The push against your religion from outside forces would be constant.  You would have Gentiles either making fun of you, ignoring you or outright persecuting you.  What's fascinating (if you can distance yourself to the pain the apostles were facing) is that Jews and Gentiles were stirred up against them.  Is this the case that some Gentiles felt like, "We're the only ones that can mess with the Jews" or were they God-fearers who had already adopted the Jewish faith?

Whatever the case, this didn't stop Paul and Barnabas from preaching the life-altering story of Jesus.

Later in Lystra, Paul heals a man crippled from birth.  Ironically, Paul who was Saul was named after the first king of Israel.  The original Saul had a grandson, Mephibosheth, who was crippled in his feet since he was five.  He was shown mercy by King David who might have seen Mephibosheth as a political threat (he would have had his own claim to the throne).

Following this miraculous healing, Paul and Barnabas are mistaken for the Greek gods, Hermes and Zeus.  This would not be surprising for a Gentile crowd since they would relate miracles to their own faith experience.  How else would we make sense of something supernatural than to relate it to what we know?

Paul and Barnabas have the appropriate apprehension to this misnaming.  Earlier in Acts when Herod Agrippa is mistaken for a god, he lets people assume what they want and we see a different outcome:

On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat on the platform, and delivered a public address to them.  The people kept shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a mortal!”  And immediately, because he had not given the glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.                                                                            Acts 12:21-23 (NRSV)

We see the fickleness of the crowd as people like a good stoning as much as adoration.  Paul miraculously lives through people throwing rocks at him with the intent to kill after the crowd assumed him dead.

It is out of persecution that the church actually grows.  The apostles are beginning to appoint elders in each church to oversee the local work there.   If you were putting together a marketing plan to attract leadership, I would not put "likelihood of getting strung up" as a selling point.

When we see something true that moves us beyond ourselves, we are willing to die for it.  This is a part of the spirituality of humanity.  We are called to connect beyond ourselves.  To do so when we can see it provides deeper meaning for people's lives is worth the risk.  We say, "Sign me up."

Where do you encounter deeper meaning in your life?  What would an effective witness to this meaning from you look like in the world today?  Who might be opposed to it?

Prayer for the day:

O Lord, who seest that all hearts
are empty except Thou fill them,
and all desires balked except they crave after Thee;
give us light and grace to seek and find Thee,
that we may be Thine and Thou mayest be ours forever.  Amen.

Prayer by Christina G. Rossetti, England, 19th Century

Photo by Mike Lowe via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 20

Scripture Reading: Acts 13:26-52 (NRSV)

Paul continues his preaching to the Galatians of Antioch in Pisidia.  Note that he is speaking primarily to Jews living in that region along with God-fearers - Gentiles who have adopted the Jewish faith.  He speaks of the ignorance of those religious leaders in their faith in Jerusalem.  Some might not take offense at this (being so far away) but others likely would. 

Paul speaks of the resurrection of Jesus.  He lifts up various Hebrew scriptures to show that this already aligns within their belief structure.  First he lifts up Psalm 2:7 to declare that this was actually talking about Jesus.  Psalm 2 was originally used as an enthronement hymn - likely used in the coronation ceremony of Israel's kings.

Next Paul turns to the release from corruption (as a corpse) by quoting Isaiah 55:3:

Incline your ear, and come to me;
    listen, so that you may live.
I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
    my steadfast, sure love for David.

This indicates the Messianic line that will emerge and which Christians see fulfilled in Jesus.  Then Paul continues with the resurrection from Psalm 16:10 which states:

For you do not give me up to Sheol,
    or let your faithful one see the Pit.

This psalm first expressed the idea that the faithful will not perish in the current turmoil they are experiencing.  Paul relates it specifically to Jesus.

Finally Paul recognizes that this may be incredulous to many.  This evidently isn't the first time God has worked in the world only to be ignored.  Paul quotes Habakkuk 1:5:

Look at the nations, and see!
    Be astonished! Be astounded!
For a work is being done in your days
    that you would not believe if you were told.  

The fact that these scriptures originally referred to other points or contexts is more of a 21st Century critique that wouldn't have held water in the first century.  For Paul, all things point to Christ.  It is something he doesn't have to justify, rather this lens justifies everything else.

As predicted, Paul encounters significant opposition.  While some Jews would have adopted this new lens as well, Paul recognizes that it may be the Gentiles that actually have less reservations to this new turn in God's story.  With this split, we may see how God continued to work with the Jews who remained in their faith and also with the Christians who were starting something new.

Paul turns once again to Isaiah, quoting 49:6:

(God) says,
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
    to raise up the tribes of Jacob
    and to restore the survivors of Israel;
I will give you as a light to the nations,
    that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”  

This "light to the nations" theology continues to push the church into new territories.  If there are places that won't listen, we must move forward.  As Paul and Barnabas shake off the dust of their feet, it reminds us that Jesus told his disciples to do this if they were not appreciated in Luke 10:11 when they were going from town to town:

But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.’

Some places take more clapping off than others!

This custom comes from those Jewish people re-entering the Promised Land.  Because the dust from a foreign country was considered unclean, they were to shake it off their sandals before tracking it into God's holy region.  So by doing this, the disciples are making a point that those who did not receive them are not real Jews and have more in common with heathens.

This last response (leaving) may be challenging to us.  There are many places or times when we want to stay and fight.  Certainly, we need to make our point.  But if it is not being regarded, could it be that we need to shake the dust off our feet and move on?  Where have I stayed too long in argument?  When have I stayed not to change minds or convey my point but rather to get as many barbs in as possible?  If the lens of Christ is our primary reality, how do we not only share the resurrection but also live out the resurrection in the everyday?

Prayer for the day:

Lord God almighty, open my heart and enlighten by the grace of your Holy Spirit, that I may seek what is well-pleasing to your will;
direct my thoughts and affections to think and to do such things as may make me worthy to attain to your unending joys in heaven;
and so order my doings after your commandments that I may be ever diligent to fulfill them, and be found everlastingly rewarded from you.  Amen.

Prayer by Bede, England, 8th Century

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

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 17

Scripture Reading: Acts 11:19-29 (NRSV)

We see the scattering of the devout that was first referenced in chapter 8. 

The Jewish diaspora that was ongoing prior to these events put pockets of Judaism on the map throughout the known world.  The early Christians meant to share their faith with those communities because they would be the natural recipients of a perspective that could be seen as essentially Jewish at the time.  Of course, some argued that it broke too far from Judaism and so there was persecution.

But even though the original recipients of the faith may have seen that sharing it to the ends of the earth meant for it to move among the Jewish populations already present, it begins to go beyond their expectations and understanding.

Persecution seems to do the opposite of the intended suppression.  It breaks out into the wider world and becomes unstoppable.

Here I'm enjoying a meal in Mexico outside of
a home we were building.  I was there to provide
bread and life for the community and found that
the woman who fixed this meal gave it to me instead! 

We see the faith travel to Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch among the Jewish communities there.  Then in Antioch which is the third largest city in the Roman Empire, we see it jump to the Hellenists.  These were likely Greek-speaking Jews which shows some distance between them and their fellows who could still speak their native tongue.  One could see how this would quickly jump to other Greek-speaking non-Jews. 


Truth is truth, no matter the language or culture.  People will share truth.

As our routines are disrupted from the Coronavirus, we may have a variety of responses.  We might be afraid or irritated or annoyed.  We simply may be unsure about what will happen. 

What does the truth of the Christian witness say to those who are infected?  We see the early church respond to a famine that was worldwide to them (in their knowledge).  How do we make a difference even in our attitude toward one another in this time of crisis?

Prayer for the day:

God, we cannot love you unless we love each other, and to love we must know each other.  God, we know you in the breaking of the bread, and we know each other in the breaking of the bread, and we are not alone anymore.  We see that Heaven is a banquet and life is a banquet, too, even with a crust where there is companionship.  Help us to live out this faith in Christ.  Amen.


Prayer adapted from the Postscript of The Long Loneliness, the Autobiography of Dorothy Day, (Harper and Row, 1963).

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Third Sunday in Lent

Scripture Reading: Acts 11:1-18 (NRSV)

Is this little outsider how Peter saw
Cornelius and the other Gentiles?

Peter has some explaining to do.

Notice that his fellow apostles aren't immediately enthused about the success Peter has had in spreading the faith.  Rather, they criticized him for interacting and eating with Gentiles.

The fact that Luke retells the story that he just shared in the previous chapter should give us a clue as to how controversial this remained in Luke's church.

Leviticus 11 gives a long outline on which animals are considered clean and unclean.  It summarizes the discourse by ending with this idea in verses 46-47:

This is the law pertaining to land animal and bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms upon the earth, to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean, and between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten.

In other words, basic to their cultural identity was to be discriminating.  In fact, you had stories such as Daniel who lived in the royal palace in Babylon but refused to eat anything but vegetables so that he wouldn't defile himself. 

Is it any wonder that Peter would receive some hostile feedback on his missionary journey?

After Peter relates everything that happened, I like how Luke records that "they were silenced."  Then they praised God but I wonder if "praised" fully encompassed all that they felt in that moment.

Experience reminds us that it is one thing to be transformed by the people we encounter but it is distancing to hear about it from someone else.  Doubts are more likely to creep in, especially when something fundamental to our identity is being dismissed.

Within my lifetime, one cultural change that seems minor today (in comparison to what Peter was trying to do) is eating and drinking in the sanctuary.  It was considered at one time the height of disrespect to even bring any drinking cup or glass into the sanctuary.  This still bothers some Christians and there seems a direct correlation between the age of the person to the amount of irritation it causes.  When I was appointed at Piedmont, we built the sanctuary to also double as a fellowship hall.  Chairs could be rearranged and tables brought in to provide meals for the congregation and community.  Many older members were disturbed by this multipurpose use of the sanctuary.

While no one came to blows over this, it wasn't near as ingrained as the dietary laws were in Peter's time.  His story today reminds us to reassess our own resistance to change.  Where is the next generation of Christians moving us that seems uncomfortable?  What do we hear that silences us?

Prayer for the Day:

Psalm 67

May God be gracious to us and bless us
    and make his face to shine upon us,
that your way may be known upon earth,
    your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
    let all the peoples praise you.

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
    for you judge the peoples with equity
    and guide the nations upon earth.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
    let all the peoples praise you.

The earth has yielded its increase;
    God, our God, has blessed us.
May God continue to bless us;
    let all the ends of the earth revere him.


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

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 16

Scripture Reading: Acts 10:24-48 (NRSV)

Peter meets up with Cornelius in today's reading and I find it interesting that he begins to worship Peter.  If he really thought he was divine, it seems a bit presumptuous to have those under you to fetch him to you rather than go to him.  This makes me re-evaluate how I treat God on a daily basis.

It may be surprising to see how Jews really thought of Gentiles.  The sense of separation that they were supposed to have was from one school of thought within Judaism.  That was the sense that they were set aside as a holy people.  To interact with Gentiles would profane them and thus their ability to be God's covenant people.

Deuteronomy 7:1-6 lines this out quite clearly with lines that stand out when interacting with outside tribes like, "you must utterly destroy them", "show them no mercy", and "do not intermarry with them".  Of course, this reads differently if you are a minority, persecuted people.

Another school of thought was the idea that God's people were to be a light to the nations.  This occurs within the Suffering Servant passages in Isaiah that many Christians reinterpret to represent Jesus.  So it is no surprise that Christianity tends to fall more along the lines of this philosophy.  We see it as we are to witness to the ends of the earth.

Isaiah 42:6-7 reads:

I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
    I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
    a light to the nations,
       to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
    from the prison those who sit in darkness.

Of course, this sounds like the ministry of Jesus.  Would it be that much of a stretch to see the Gentiles as a people imprisoned "who sit in darkness"?

So when you have two schools of thought that sometimes clash, something has to give.  For Peter, it is their separation from Gentiles.  When he states that "God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him" in verses 34-35 of chapter 10 of Acts, we see him putting the controversy over God-fearers to bed.  There must have been some who would have questioned whether God would even hear the prayers of a Gentile in that day.  There always seems to be this limiting of God as we have had prominent Christian pastors question whether God receives the prayers of Jews today.

This understanding that God is universal is a part of the theology of prevenient or preceding grace.  It is a generosity of spirit and allows for God to be present in places that may be foreign to you. 

Jesus reminds us, "I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold."

So when Peter asks the question, "Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" it reminds us of the similarly loaded question that the Ethiopian eunuch asked of Philip.  Luke includes these questions in Acts because they are still being worked out practically in the churches of that day.  Some people would say "No, of course not" but others would undoubtedly say, "Yes, they are heathens and undeserving of baptism."

This would have us ponder the entire idea of grace.  Who does deserve baptism?

I do like the wonderful reminder as a United Methodist within our doctrinal document, By Water and the Spirit, which states, "There are no conditions of human life that exclude persons from the sacrament of baptism." 

While this may be aspirational for us today, I do think it is good to lift up what we're striving for and see that it comes from our very beginnings as a church.

Prayer for the day:

Gracious God, 
it is through the Sacrament of Baptism
that you initiate us into Christ's holy Church.
We are incorporated into your mighty acts of salvation
and given new birth through water and the Spirit.
All this is your gift, offered to us without price.
May we reaffirm our faith and renew the covenant declared at our baptism,
acknowledging what you are doing for us,
and affirming our commitment to Christ's holy Church.
Amen.

Prayer adapted from The United Methodist Church's Introduction to the Baptismal Service.

Photo by Jeff Ashton via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 15

Scripture Reading: Acts 10:1-23 (NRSV)

Luke has really been softening us up in the previous chapters.

We see Samaritans who are admitted into the fellowship.

The the Ethiopian eunuch.

Now, we have this Cornelius who is a Roman Centurion.  He was an officer who would have been in charge of 100 men.  Christian or Jewish zealots would have been opposed to ministry with any Roman soldiers and probably the higher the chain of command, the worse the opposition.  This would have been due to the fact that Roman soldiers were instrumental in their oppression rather than freedom.

Luke seems to have positive interactions with other centurions in his Gospel. 

In chapter 7, we see the story of Jesus not only healing a centurion's servant, but praising him for his faith.

Then at the crucifixion, Luke reports in a similar fashion to Mark and Matthew that a centurion speaks favorably of Jesus after his death:

When the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God and said, “Certainly this man was innocent.”  (Luke 23:47)

In any event, we see Cornelius having a vision at three o'clock.  I wrote in an earlier blog about a healing happening at this time and how this time was associated with the death of Jesus.  Cornelius is portrayed as a righteous Gentile - a God-fearer.  Will there be a place for him in the new fellowship?

There is often more freedom from today's
dietary laws at the kids' table.

Peter has his own vision prior to the arrival of the men from Cornelius.  It seems to be a vision that grants permission to the eating of unclean animals.  I wrote yesterday about Peter staying with a tanner who would have been considered unclean himself.  Now he is having this permissive dream concerning the Jewish dietary laws.  For many in his day, this would be too much. 

Rather than a vision from God, they would likely say that if his vision is contrary to scripture, you better check its source.

The greater commission seems to come from Jesus.  We are to be witnesses to the end of the earth.   

If this is the prime directive, it seems that other competing claims may be in jeopardy.  What are the things that may stand in our way today?  What is difficult to let go in order to reach the next generations? 

Prayer for the Day:

Jesus, my feet are dirty. Come even as a slave to me, pour water into your bowl, come and wash my feet. In asking such a thing I know I am overbold, but I dread what was threatened when you said to me, “If I do not wash your feet I have no fellowship with you.” Wash my feet then, because I long for your companionship.  Amen.

Prayer by Origen of Alexandria, 3rd Century

Photo by Greg Walters via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.