Daily Devotion for Lent 2021 - Day 11

Scripture Reading: Galatians 6 (NRSV)

As Paul wraps up his letter today, he reminds us of our accountability to one another.  Those who transgress are not kicked to the curb but rather restored to the community "in a spirit of gentleness."  We see where this particular Fruit of the Spirit comes into play.

But even as we restore those who have fallen short, we must take care not to be tempted ourselves.  This is where faithfulness and self-control from the Fruit of the Spirit enter into the equation.  

As we help one another along the journey of life, I agree with Paul that we do reap what we sow.  

Later Christians saw the dual language that Paul often uses of flesh and spirit and some took it to an extreme.  The gnostic belief that the the spiritual realm was good while the material realm was evil crept into Christianity as it did with other belief systems of the day.  You can see how gnostics found fodder in Paul's theology as he talks about reaping corruption from the flesh and eternal life from the Spirit.  Gnosticism was later declared heretical in early church councils.  The Apostles' Creed states, "I believe in God the Father Almighty, creator (maker) of heaven and earth (emphasis mine)."  Notice this statement of faith includes God's handiwork as both heaven (spirit) and earth (material) which is not gnostic teaching.

Jewish theology prior to this time kept flesh and spirit much more in concordance.  The beginning of life had God forming people from the dust of the ground and breathing life into the human being.  Of course, breath and spirit are the same words in Hebrew.  

A homeless man who knows hunger
feeds the birds and lifts his spirit.

We see Paul making the sharper distinction of flesh and spirit as part of his argument against circumcision as a pointer toward salvation.  Instead, Paul sees Christ as that pointer which naturally leads one to a greater emphasis on the spiritual.

Today, we find that our health may be impacted by spiritual malaise.  At the same time, when we help bear the burdens of others as Paul indicates, this may help our spirits as we tend to the physical needs of others such as hunger and health. 

As Paul indicates to conclude his letter, it is the grace we receive in Christ that help us to achieve the peace we need to stay confident in the faith.

How do you recognize peace in your life?  Peace of mind, spirit and body as they are in harmony, help to influence one another.  Is there an area where you need this peace?

Prayer for the day:

Loving God, we may find our irritation against others defeating our peace. We recognize that this comes when we are stressed by fears or anxieties.  Give us your peace.  Let us rest in your grace.  May we understand the greater melding of flesh and spirit that allows us to restore who we are in Christ.  It is in Christ's name we pray.  Amen.

Photo by cyril4494 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 2021 - Day 10

Scripture Reading: Galatians 5 (NRSV)

There are many times when I've preached about greed or hypocrisy or love or forgiveness and then have failed to live up to the standards I proclaim.  But I don't quit preaching them because they are true regardless of our abilities to fulfill them daily.  

Like an Olympic high jumper, we are raising the bar past our ability to easily leap over it so that we push ourselves to greater heights.  But an athlete in training knocks the bar off so many times before they are able to make the new mark.  They don't stop trying and continue to have a goal they are working toward.

With this in mind, we see Paul continue to share with the churches of Galatia concerning the Christians from Jerusalem who believe that they should conform to Jewish religious custom such as circumcision.  Paul is disregarding this ancient sign not because he thinks it is evil but rather because he doesn't want it prioritized over Christ.  It is in Christ that we embody the discipline of love.  

Just as the prophets of old despised the outward appearance of religious adoration (when it was false or self-serving), this teaching was epitomized within what it means to live "in Christ."  

So Paul lists today what is to be avoided and he lists what is to be followed.  I find that I try to emulate the Fruit of the Spirit through daily prayer to begin my day.  I don't always get them right but when I set the bar higher, I make strides to get there.

So as Paul continues in his arguments against those teaching the Galatians to capitulate to their traditions, we see his frustration erupt in verse twelve where he states, "I wish those who unsettle you would castrate themselves!"  

Hmm.

It is almost that he recognizes his own slip as he writes in verse 15, "If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another."

He speaks of avoiding the works of the flesh like enmities, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, and envy.  One might say, "Do as I say, not as I do."

Then he speaks of emulating patience, gentleness and self-control.

Rather than see Paul as a hypocrite, I find it helpful.  Paul got frustrated just like I do!  But he still holds to a better way.  He reminds us, "let us be guided by the Spirit."

This is a reminder we may need daily as we seek to be the best Christians we can be.

Prayer for the day:

Gracious God, make me more loving today - in both giving and receiving love. Give me the ability to find and sow joy each day. May I have peace of mind, body and spirit, such that I become a peacemaker to conflict I encounter. Help me to be kinder to my neighbor in my thoughts and deeds. Grant me a more generous spirit in my perceptions of others so that I may be more ready to share the resources you have entrusted to me. May I be faithful in my daily walk with you, O God, as I seek to love you and my neighbor more fully as Christ has bid me. And as I do trod upon this earth, may I do so gently, leaving places and situations better than I found them. And when those things that are adverse to your Spirit rise up in me, give me the self control to pause and find a better path. I pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ, who breathed the Holy Spirit upon us. Amen.

Photo by Paula R. Lively 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 2021 - Day 9

Scripture Reading: Galatians 4 (NRSV)

Within this part of the letter, Paul is continuing to make the appeal to Gentile Christians that they need not adopt Judaism in order to be faithful to Christ.

Paul speaks of being heirs through the Holy Spirit and uses the image of slavery and freedom.  When he speaks of "observing special days, and months, and seasons, and years" in verse ten, he is speaking of the practices of Jewish fast-days among other seasons that observant Jews followed.  

Halloween costumes are not harmful to
Christians (maybe to dogs - see Batman above)
if they are not used as ways to make faith
in Christ conditional on them!

These are not harmful to the Christian unless they are seen as primary for the faith prior to their commitment to Jesus Christ.  Some Christians avoid secular holidays like Halloween or Thanksgiving out of a more strict reading of this passage.  Others may even avoid secular celebrations of Christian holidays like Christmas or Easter.  As we look at this passage within its context, Paul would likely say that these observations would not help or hinder one's faith necessarily.  If they began to replace our faith in Christ or if they were prioritized over our faith in Christ (such as these observations must come first), then Paul would tell us to throw them out.

When Paul makes the allegory of children of the covenant coming through Hagar (the slave girl) and Sarah (where Jewish people claim their lineage), he switches common understanding and claims that Hagar represents Mount Sinai which is where Moses received the Law.  Paul is trying to say that those who remain under the Law are children of the slave Hagar.  Because Sarah is a free woman, her children come through the promise.  Paul references Sarah through Isaiah 54:1 in verse 27 since Sarah was barren for so much of her life before she bore Isaac.  The Isaiah verse originally referred to the Jewish people who were in exile as the "barren."  

It was originally meant as a comfort to those lost in exile.  Their descendants would eventually thrive.  Now Paul suggests that the Gentiles have become the children of Sarah through faith in Christ.

He is likely making this argument to refute the Judaizing Christians who made the claim that the Gentiles were children through Hagar and thus, subservient to they who claimed their descendance through Sarah.  

This is a further movement of assurance to the Gentile Christians that leaps from the previous chapter's declaration that "there is no longer Jew or Greek" in Christ.  

For us today, it continues to call us to humility.  We are to look at the world and see how God values all people.  For those of us in Christ, we may subtly prioritize ourselves above others from a spiritual sense.  We may not consciously think ourselves superior but it may come through in our interactions with others.  

How do we extend the grace we have received to others?  As we see Paul's radical argument of assurance to a people that were not raised with this understanding of God, we may see that he understood grace only to be effective if you were willing to give it away to others.

This is always a check against current power structures within the church.  They should always be serving those who are not yet in Christ.  When they begin to be self-serving, we are losing the urgency and passion that we see in Paul.

Prayer for the day:

Loving God, we give thanks for the love we have in Christ.  It gives us assurance of your forgiveness of our sins.  Help us to see this as a gift that we do not use up.  May we remember that we are not diminished by others claiming this gift but rather we find greater clarity of identity.  We open ourselves today to re-examine our motives for faith.  We pray these things through this same love of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

 

Photo by Mike McCune 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 2021 - Day 8

Scripture Reading: Galatians 3 (NRSV)

One of the things I've been involved with on and off during my career as a pastor has been ecumenical work. I've served on the Ecumenical Relations Committee of the World Methodist Council which seeks to strengthen the ties between Wesleyan denominations and other Christian bodies.  

In ecumenical work, you must find the similarities - what are the things on which we agree?

If we go quickly to the things in which we disagree, we will likely weaken the ties that bind!

As we look at today's reading, Christianity at this point in history would still be a Jewish sect.  It has not broken off into something distinct in the faith but we see the beginnings of this break in today's chapter.

Paul is not asking Gentiles to become Jewish in order to follow Christ.  He is saying that both Gentile practices and even the Jewish Law are subservient to Christ.  It is a new way of defining oneself.

As we see Paul continue to prioritize Christ over the Law, it is hard for us to understand just how radical it was for the first century Mediterranean world.  It was changing our worldview.

Verse 28 may be one of the most important verses in the Bible and we still struggle with it today:

There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

This is not to be used to diminish those things that make us unique.  We can still celebrate all of our diversity.  But what it does is establishes our common ground with all of the diversity in the world.  Paul is prioritizing Christ over every category that we could come up with.

For ecumenical work, we start with Christ.  We end with Christ.  We recognize that we are both "in Christ."

Sometimes we find common affection
for those very different from ourselves.

How can we apply this to conflicts in today's world?  While Christianity is not universally adopted, there are Christians involved in most conflicts within the United States.  There are Christians within both major political parties in our country today.  There are Christians within the various factions involved in the debates over race in the United States.  There are Christians within the push and pull over gender issues and how we deal with human sexuality.  

So as we live out our lives in this complex world, we have to ask ourselves, "What does it mean that I am baptized in Christ?"  What is this common understanding of how I relate to God with others.  We often will imagine that "when we all get to heaven" we will discover a harmony with one another.

What Paul seems to be asking is that when we are baptized, shouldn't we be cutting to the chase?

Prayer for the Day:

Blessed God, we value so much our individualism.  Sometimes we may hold it up to such a great value that we lessen who we are in Christ.  We value personal faith in Jesus Christ that comes to us and reaches out to us.  But we may forget that Christ is moving toward us all.   Let us think more deeply about what it means to be "in Christ."  We pray these things in the name of the One who Opens the Hand to us.  Amen.

Photo by Katriona McCarthy 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 2021 - Day 7

Scripture Reading: Galatians 2 (NRSV)

We see the drama accelerate as the story unfolds.  Earlier Titus as a Greek (and thus, a Gentile) was not circumcised.  Furthermore, he was not compelled in the faith in Jesus Christ to submit to the knife.  

And so, we see the controversy within the first twenty-five years of our faith.  

In order to be a Christian, do you need to be circumcised?

Certainly if you were originally Jewish, the matter was decided for you prior to your awareness.  But if you were an adult Gentile, like Titus, there were some claiming your illegitimacy before God.  They would have pressured any men to be circumcised - especially if they wanted to pursue any leadership opportunities.

Paul is struggling against this faction and according to his letter, even Peter (Cephas) is wavering on his commitment to inclusion.  This shows us how difficult change would have been.  Circumcision was the original sign of the covenant, commanded by God.  In fact, in Genesis 17:4, we hear God's direct teaching on the subject:

"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.”

How does Paul disregard this obvious teaching?

He has prioritized the faith of Christ as what justifies us before God even over circumcision.  This is consistent with the prophetic tradition from Jeremiah 4:4 which reads:

Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, remove the foreskin of your hearts, O people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or else my wrath will go forth like fire, and burn with no one to quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

Do you think God ever mistakes us for ducks?

An outward sign is not as meaningful to God as changed behavior.  So Gentiles or Jews could move forward in this faith.  But it was enough to make many of the faithful sick.  Paul could sympathize in a way because he used to be one of them!

Maybe this is why he gets so worked up - he sees himself in his opponents.

Sometimes we get angry with others because we may feel guilty about the fact that we remember how we used to believe or behave.  It may not even be that the act itself was so bad, but because we have moved away from that position, it seems anathema to us.

We may ask them, "Why can't you see like I see now?"

Prayer for the day:

Blessed God, we give thanks that you measure our lives along a continuum rather than a specific moment of weakness.  We give thanks for this faith of Christ that justifies us.  Yet, we still find ourselves casting a wary eye on others - they may be lacking in some way.  Give us patience as we listen to one another.  Have patience with us as we grow in maturity.  We pray these things in Christ's holy name.  Amen.

Photo by Veit 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 2021 - Day 6

Scripture Reading: Galatians 1 (NRSV)

If we were to begin to blindly read Galatians without any foreknowledge of the controversy present in the early church, we might be scratching our heads and wondering where all the drama was coming from!

Paul feels that he must start with an immediate defense of his credentials.  We get the sense that there have been people slandering Paul to these churches of Galatia.  He lets them know that he means business with the image of an angelic messenger presenting a different message and becoming accursed for it!

While he doesn't state it yet, Paul is prioritizing Jesus Christ over circumcision as the sign of God's favor.

Of course, circumcision was not a practice among Gentile males and could be seen as a stumbling block for growing the church.  But it was also a deal breaker for Jews of that day and time.

Paul's own passion about the subject is evident in his reminder that he sought to destroy the early church.  

After Paul is converted, he doesn't go immediately to Jerusalem where the church headquarters were located.  Only after three years of activity does he confer with Peter (Cephas) and the brother of Jesus, James the Just.  

He relates this to show his independence from Jerusalem.

Could we do more to prioritize
Christ in our lives today?

Paul has prioritized Christ and he is unwilling to debate the matter.  In his mind, even if those that would have a greater claim on Jesus through greater proximity of relationship (such as a disciple or a biological brother) - if they would dilute the gospel message, they would be wrong.

He is convinced of the lawfulness of his own theology and is willing to stand up to anyone to proclaim it.  He wants the Galatians to be convinced as well.

Have you ever been convinced of something in your bones and had people tell you that you were wrong?  It can be very frustrating and people can get violent over such passion.

Paul is zealous over as many coming to know Christ as possible.  This is a zealousness that eclipses his previous urgency for the Law.  

If we were to prioritize Christ for people today with similar passion, are there stumbling blocks that the current generation would claim Christians put in their path?

Prayer for the day:

Eternal God, we seek to love you, do your will and follow your commandments.  But we also believe that you are trying to reach others - and probably through our actions.  Help us to look long at what we do and say.  Lead us to discover if our priorities line up with yours.  And where we have grown too hard-headed to consider alternatives, give us new eyes to see.  We pray these things in Christ.  Amen.

Photo by David Smith 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.