Daily Devotion for Lent 2017 - Day 7 Wednesday

Today's Reading: John 4:1-42 (NRSV)

The Samaritan woman that encounters Jesus at Jacob's Well was likely shunned. Women in that day would journey to the well together in the morning during the cooler hours of the day.  Carrying heavy water at the noon hour as John identifies for us in verse 6 would make a hard chore more difficult.

We find out from her conversation with Jesus that she was living with a man and had already had five husbands.  She had her own heavy burden to carry and it was not water. Likely, the other women did not want to associate with her.  It could be that some were fearful that she might try to take their husbands.  I doubt that she felt very good about herself.

Jesus could have shamed her but he doesn't.

He waits by the well while she becomes an evangelist back in her town.  What would the townsfolk have thought at this woman imploring them to follow her to the well in the middle of the afternoon?

Sometimes the chains that isolate us
are of our own making.  Sometimes they
come from how others see us.

She uses the now-familiar "Come and see" which is a call to meet Jesus in this instance.  Many do indeed see Jesus and he stays with them for two more days.  We may be surprised to find out that Samaritans know how to show hospitality just as the Jews do.  In fact where the Pharisees approach Jesus at night or the authorities overcharge for money changing at the temple, the Samaritans are shown to get this part right.

This would have been a head-scratcher for a Jewish audience.  It is harder for us to see.

The disciples are certainly puzzled by the association of Jesus with this woman.

What does this say about our own expectations when it comes to people?  Certainly God doesn't have to follow our pre-conceived notions.

Who do you know that you would be surprised to find God working through?  If you examine their life, where would you say God is at work?

Sometimes we put ourselves in the place of the woman at the well and that may be appropriate.  But other times, this story reminds us that redemption is available to outsiders.  This is between them and God - they don't need our permission.  And God certainly doesn't need it.

Some days the biggest thing we might do as Christians is to take our disbelief and get out of the way.

Prayer for the day:

God, we believe clinically that you do love everyone.  We believe that redemption is available to all people.  We may have even been surprised by it.  But too often, we are looking for actions in others that meet our high standards and find them lacking.  It becomes easier to see the bad than the good.  God, we may find ourselves saying like the father of the epileptic boy, "I believe!  Help my unbelief!"  Amen.


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

Daily Devotion for Lent 2017 - Day 6 Tuesday

Today's Reading: John 3:22-36 (NRSV)

Here we have John the Baptist once again testifying to his lesser status in comparison to Jesus.  Today, this seems like overkill because we don't have any competing churches with John as the centerpiece.  Since John's gospel as well as the Book of Acts continue to report about disciples of John the Baptist and they were written over fifty years later, there must have been some type of competing movement that lasted into the second century.

Not all baptism in the world is Christian baptism.

Interestingly enough, a form of this sect may still exist among those known as the Mandaeans who have complex baptism rituals and look at John the Baptist as their chief prophet.

But for the majority of Christians in North America, there is more competition from being non-religious than becoming a Mandaean.  What do we glean from this in the 21st century?

During Lent, this might be helpful for us to ask if anything is usurping Jesus Christ in our lives in matters of importance?  We know that we are supposed to put God first in our list of priorities but is this actually reflected in our practice?

Verse 32 sounds out rather ominously, "He (Jesus) testifies to what he has seen and heard, yet no one accepts his testimony."  Well, obviously someone accepted it or we wouldn't be reading this gospel.  But the exaggerated point may be that we tend to ignore Jesus far too often.

What is something that you are reluctant to put into practice from Jesus today?

Prayer for the day:

Grant, we beseech thee, O Lord, that by the observance of this Lent we may advance in the knowledge of the mystery of Christ, and show forth his mind in conduct worthy of our calling; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

                     Gelasian Sacramentary, 5th century
  

Photo of Mandaean rituals by University of Exeter via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2017 - Day 5 Monday

Today's Reading: John 3:1-21 (NRSV)

Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night.  As a Pharisee, Nicodemus may not want to have to explain to his brethren what he was doing hanging around this suspect rabbi.  And yet, at the same time, his curiosity cannot be quelled.  He is drawn to Jesus.

Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be born from above.  The King James Version uses the phrase, "born again" which became a very popular charismatic movement in the U.S. in the 70's and 80's.  This re-birth imagery is used in baptism which Jesus refers to when he declares that people must be born of water and the spirit to enter the kingdom of God.

The reference to Moses and the serpent in verse 14 refers to a rather obscure story of the Exodus found in Numbers 21:4-9.  The idea of looking on the lifted serpent in order to survive the poison transfers to Jesus being lifted up on the cross and then resurrected. All who look upon Jesus through profession of faith will find life.

The pinnacle of the church may draw the eye
to faith and remind one of being
born from above.

Jesus then speaks of light and darkness as of good and evil.  Those who do what is true come to the light (to Christ).  This is said to Nicodemus who has come to Jesus in the dark of night.

This reminds us of Adam and Eve who seek to hide from God in the garden after they disobeyed.

What things in our lives would we be hesitant to expose before the light of Christ?  Are there behaviors or habits that would shrivel if exposed to the truth?  While it might be easy to throw stones at Nicodemus for coming to Jesus at night, we might all have times when we do the same.


Prayer for the day:

Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night:
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As darkness falls you renew your promise
to reveal among us the light of your presence.
By the light of Christ, your living Word,
dispel the darkness of our hearts
that we may walk as children of light
and sing your praise throughout the world.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit:
Blessed be God for ever.  Amen.


Prayer from The Church of England.

Photo by Andrew Schaeffer, director of music at First United Methodist Church of Edmond.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2017 - First Sunday in Lent

Today's Reading: John 2:13-25 (NRSV)

Within the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke), Jesus drives out the money changers shortly before he is arrested.  It is at the end of his public ministry.  One gets the idea that this was the final straw for the authorities who seek to put a permanent end to his ministry.

In contrast, John has this story at the beginning of Jesus's ministry.  John's gospel is a little more violent in that Jesus makes a whip of cords to drive out the money changers where this device is left to the imagination in the synoptics.

We see in John that the temple becomes overshadowed by the resurrection.  Of course, this was actually written after the temple was destroyed in the year 70 by the Romans after the Jewish revolt.  This would have been nearly 40 years after the earthly ministry of Jesus.

Putting money in the offering plate would feel very different
 if the government declared that Ben Franklin was a god we
were to worship.  

Jesus was likely not upset about the changing of the money.  Most Roman coinage would feature pagan deities or even earthly emperors identified as divine.  This would have been inappropriate to offer to God in the temple and so the common coinage could be exchanged for Jewish money. The difficulty for Jesus likely comes in the profiteering against Jews traveling from around the known world to come to worship at the temple in Jerusalem.  Many would have planned at great expense to make this trek.  If one is fleeced right before trying to enter the temple to worship, this might have a fairly negative impact on one's faith.

Jesus becomes upset because rather than making worship accommodating for those from out of town, the authorities were allowing the opposite to happen.

As we continue in Lent, what does your house of worship practice?  Does it cater more toward the insiders or is a generous hospitality practiced for those coming from the outside?  Having a periodic assessment is important because people naturally tend to group with those they already know.  If we are not careful, church policies can also benefit the membership rather than those who may be wondering for whom the church really exists.

Prayer for the day:

God, help us to open your house of worship for all.
Remind us that the stranger may be coming with a great spiritual yearning.
Move in us to re-enact the hospitality of Abraham and Sarah.
Forgive us when we have placed our own comfort ahead of your mission for the world.
We pray these things in the name of the One who drove out the money changers, Amen.



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

Daily Devotion for Lent 2017 - Day 4 Saturday

Today's Reading: John 2:1-12 (NRSV)

This is the first miracle of Jesus recorded in John's gospel.  The sharing of the abundance of wine sounds different to the ear of those in the 21st century.  Although many people enjoy drinking wine, it is not the beverage of choice for the majority of Americans.  The Hebrew scriptures spoke against alcoholic excess but the culture of Jesus would not have understood the temperance movement of the 20th century largely because of the lack of a healthy alternative.

Carrie Nation  who physically attacked
drinking establishments, wielded a
hatchet in one hand and a Bible in the other!

There was the old anecdote of the Christian teetotaler who abhorred any alcoholic beverage.

Her friend reminded her, "Well, Jesus drank wine.  In fact, making wine was his first miracle!"

And then the teetotaler responded, "Yes, and I've never really forgiven him for it!"

This focus on the subject of the miracle may distract us from the importance of the abundance of the gift.  Such a large extravagance would remind readers of the miracle of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath when she is supplied with meal and oil that would provide through the drought.  It also is reminiscent of Elisha's miracle of the abundance of oil to keep a widow's children from slavery.

The miracle of wine reminds us of the abundant grace we receive during Holy Communion.  John's gospel doesn't have any recount of the Eucharist but this gift of wine is also accompanied later by a miracle of bread.  Bread and wine remind us that the basic need of food and drink are provided by God.  Christians reflect that we receive fulfillment in Jesus Christ.

Rather than seek an explanation for the miracle or write it off as implausible, it is much better to seek to reflect on times of abundance in our own lives.  Sometimes it is surprising.  Other times it may be confounding.  If we can't see abundance or if we refuse to see it in our lives, we miss out on the miraculous grace that is so often present.  Our unbelief may be keep us from participating in the party!

Prayer for the day:

God our Creator, our center, our friend,
we thank you for our good life,
for those who are dear to us,
for our dead,
and for all who have helped and influenced us.
We thank you for the measure of freedom we have,
and the extent to which we control our lives;
and most of all we thank you for the faith that is in us,
for our awareness of you and our hope in you.
Keep us, we pray you, thankful and hopeful
and useful until our lives shall end.  Amen.

       Prayer by the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia



Photo by Philipp Kester (German photojournalist, 1873-1958), Public Domain.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2017 - Day 3 Friday

Today's Reading: John 1:35-51 (NRSV)

This particular passage plants in our heads the image of Jesus as the wise, mystic teacher.  As John's presentation unfolds, we see the disciples are called in a way that seems to show that Jesus knows them better than they know themselves.

There is something archetypal about the wise sage willing to put up with the ignorance of the young disciple in order to train him or her so that they will mature.

Nathanael's response to Philip, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" gives the gospel's author the tool to address what others would be wondering.  Nazareth was the sticks.  Think of your most prejudiced image of a rural area of the country in which you live and you'll then understand what people would have thought about Nazareth.

"Come and see" is Philip's answer to this question.  It is an invitation to see for yourself.

Jesus has already used this phrase earlier in the passage in response to a disciple's inquiry.

This is our invitation to follow Christ as well.  We are to "come and see" what Jesus may have in store for us.

The gate of heaven also seems mystical and inspiring.
How does following Jesus put us in this state?

This final verse recalls for the reader the Jewish patriarch Jacob who had a dream of angels ascending and descending on a ladder to heaven (Genesis 28:10-17). Except that in John, Jesus takes the place of the ladder. This is our clue that Jesus is the "gate of heaven" which will be proclaimed later in the story.

During Lent, we are trying to examine ourselves so that we might let the light of Christ shine into those places we've tried to keep hidden.  Today's reading reminds us that God already sees us better than we see ourselves.  This is daunting but also gives us hope.

Prayer for the day:

O God of beginnings, as your Spirit moved over the face of the deep on the first day of creation, move with me now in my time of beginnings, when the air is rain-washed, the bloom is on the bush, and the world seems fresh and full of possibilities, and I feel ready and full.

I tremble on the edge of a maybe, a first time, a new thing, a tentative start, and the wonder of it lays its finger on my lips.

In silence, Lord, I share now my eagerness and my uneasiness about this something different I would be or do; and I listen for your leading to help me separate the light from the darkness in the change I seek to shape and which is shaping me.  Amen.


Prayer by Reverend Ted Loder from his book, Guerrillas of Grace, (c) 2005 Fortress Press, Inc.

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

Daily Devotion for Lent 2017 - Day 2 Thursday

Today's Reading: John 1:19-34 (NRSV)

John the Baptist is baptizing many people from all walks of life.  We know this because we've read it in the Bible.  Only this information really comes from the other gospels. Here, we see the story of John fixate entirely upon pointing toward Jesus.

All four gospels as well as the Book of Acts have John attest that he is not worthy to untie the sandals of Jesus.  This is a phrase that we don't think about today.  Our footwear covers our feet so that they don't need washing when we come into our homes. We don't trod in sandals down dusty roads.  We don't share these paths with domesticated animals.

We don't often encounter dirty feet
with the regularity they would
have in the first century.

In the day of Jesus, the subordinate washed the feet. If a slave were present, this would his or her job.  In the Hebrew Bible, when Abigail becomes David's wife, she shows her subservience by stating, "Your servant is a slave to wash the feet of the servants of my lord."  Later in John's Gospel, we will see Jesus surprising the disciples by washing their feet.

John is stating in today's reading that he is not even worthy to wash the feet of Jesus.  His glory comes in pointing to the glory of Jesus.

In John's version, we never actually see John baptize Jesus.  You can read it again if you need to.  This may be because the baptizer would be seen as superior to the baptized in that culture.  This gospel makes no confusion as to where Jesus falls in the hierarchy of the narative.

Within modern culture, we have become so comfortable with Jesus that we may not share the kind of respect portrayed in today's reading.  In fact, some may be uncomfortable with the subservience.  How do our actions point toward the Christ?  How do our lives reflect the honor we would place upon Jesus today?

Prayer for the day:

You alone are unutterable,
from the time you created all things that can be spoken of.
You alone are unknowable, from the time you created all things that can be known.
All things cry out about you;
those which speak, and those which cannot speak.
All things honor you;
those which think, and those which cannot think.
For there is one longing, one groaning, that all things have for you...

All things pray to you that comprehend your plan and offer you a silent hymn.
In you, the One, all things abide, and all things endlessly run to you who are the end of all.

                                        Gregory of Nazianzus, Archbishop of Constantinople, 329-389




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