"The words 'it was reckoned to him" were not written for Abraham alone, but also for us, to whom God will reckon righteousness - for those who believe in the One who raised Jesus from the dead. Jesus was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life that we might become righteous."
Our faith is in "the One who raised Jesus from the dead." Abraham is seen as the pioneer of faith, the one who hoped in the bare promise of God, a promise made when hope seemed impossible. A promise of a child to a couple where the man was very, very old, and where the woman was barren. But, Abraham is said to have trusted in this promise of God, and somehow catching on in the depths of his soul that God is the one who brings hope out of hopelessness, who brings life out of death - as Paul says, we know him as the God who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. This God was the one at work in Jesus, even in his death and in his raising up.
God turned the rejection of his Son by humanity into the means of our redemption. What humanity meant for evil, God turned to good. And, God also showed that his way of mercy and peace and truth in Jesus would not be defeated, not even by death at the hands of human beings. And, in raising Jesus, God showed that he indeed is God, and that he will not abandon this world to unholy authority, as God raised Jesus up as the head of humanity, the first born among a new creation through him. And, God showed that Jesus was right, true, good, and holy above all others, and he vindicated Jesus by raising him from the dead to the highest place of all - the right hand of God. Whatever that exactly means I don't know. I believe it means more than we can understand: more about Jesus, and more about the place of humanity in the life of God because of Jesus.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
The Calm of the Morning and the Tyranny of Time
I give you thanks, O God, for another morning and for an hour before all other hours of the day begin, an hour where time stands still for just a while in your presence, before time begins to move and push me along. But, this morning, I think I am going to linger in this calm for a good part of the day.
Who rules, O God, in my life: you or time? You are not the one pushing me along. And, what is time anyway except a drivenness in the human mind?
Grant me freedom from that compulsion to keep time and restore me to live at peace and in rhythm with the creation around me.
Amen.
Who rules, O God, in my life: you or time? You are not the one pushing me along. And, what is time anyway except a drivenness in the human mind?
Grant me freedom from that compulsion to keep time and restore me to live at peace and in rhythm with the creation around me.
Amen.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Faith and Works
Paul says plainly that righteousness comes through faith and not through works, which is another way of saying: "IT IS THE INITIATIVE OF GOD'S LOVE THAT BRINGS RIGHTEOUSNESS; NOT THE INITIATIVE FROM OUR EFFORTS TO ATTAIN RIGHTEOUSNESS."
In response to God's initiative in Christ, it is our realization that we are loved, and our celebration of God's sheer goodness that brings about a righteousness and, yes, good works, that we would have never dreamed of or expected.
In response to God's initiative in Christ, it is our realization that we are loved, and our celebration of God's sheer goodness that brings about a righteousness and, yes, good works, that we would have never dreamed of or expected.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
The End of Romans 3 and the beginning of Chapter 4
As the third chapter of Romans ends, and the fourth chapter starts, Paul focuses in on the meaning of faith and he uses the figure of Abraham to demonstrate the nature of faith, and the way of faith that has been revealed and given in Jesus Christ.
Paul seems to be talking to Jews as he says: "Is God the God of the Jews only?" As John Calvin says, Paul is not just saying that God is the creator of the Gentiles also. Of course, any Jew would acknowledge that, since God is the only Creator. Paul is saying that "God is the saviour of the Gentiles, just as God is the saviour for the Jews." That was the new word in Jesus Christ.
God's will to save was revealed as covering the whole earth, not just his special people, the Jews.
Now, in chapter 4, Paul wants to make very sure that the readers know that God's blessings came through Abraham - not because of some work that Abraham accomplished - but, simply because he trusted in God's goodness and mercy and promise. In short, Abraham was reckoned righteous because he trusted in God's promise.
Luther used to speak of the "naked promise that is believed in faith." Kierkegaard spoke similarly of the 'leap of faith.' Luther and Kierkegaard both believed that faith began as this wild trust, this risk that the other was true and faithful. That other for us is God. Jesus believed in the promise of God, even as Jesus faced death by execution. Jesus believed in the goodness of God even when the goodness of God had disappeared from the face of the earth as he was crucified.
Abraham is used as the example of faith. "When he was as good as dead, he believed God's promise to give him a son through his wife Sarah." Paul speaks of Abraham as "one who hoped against hope." That is faith. Paul speaks also of this reality of faith in 2 Corinthians 1:8-11, when he says "in Asia we despaired even of life itself, but that was so that we would trust, not in ourselves, but in the God who raises the dead."
When all hope is gone, this hope which we call faith, arises. It is that "light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
Faith, seems, then to come from beyond us, not from within us. That is where I think the Bible points. Those who are all into talk about the immortality of the soul, and the unshakeableness of faith, and the superiority of the soul over the body. Well, that is all well and good. But, when it comes down to it, the Bible and the experience of God says something different. It says what Paul says. To paraphrase, he says in 2 Cor. 1 and in 2 Cor. 4:
"We come to points in our lives where we are completely empty and feel defeated, and, again and again, something new comes from God - just as it came to Abraham when he least expected it, to Zechariah and Elizabeth when they least expected it, to Samson's mother and father when they least expected it, to Mary when she least expected it, to Hannah and Elkanah when they least expected it, and to the grieving disciples of Jesus when they least expected it - this is the way of God in human life. God is the one who brings new life amidst the experience of death, brings new love in the midst of hatred, brings joy in the middle of sorrow. This is the experience of faith, which is to say, this is what happens if you can just open your lives to the coming of God's Spirit. But, it comes from without, from beyond. The greatest comes from beyond us, not from within us."
Paul seems to be talking to Jews as he says: "Is God the God of the Jews only?" As John Calvin says, Paul is not just saying that God is the creator of the Gentiles also. Of course, any Jew would acknowledge that, since God is the only Creator. Paul is saying that "God is the saviour of the Gentiles, just as God is the saviour for the Jews." That was the new word in Jesus Christ.
God's will to save was revealed as covering the whole earth, not just his special people, the Jews.
Now, in chapter 4, Paul wants to make very sure that the readers know that God's blessings came through Abraham - not because of some work that Abraham accomplished - but, simply because he trusted in God's goodness and mercy and promise. In short, Abraham was reckoned righteous because he trusted in God's promise.
Luther used to speak of the "naked promise that is believed in faith." Kierkegaard spoke similarly of the 'leap of faith.' Luther and Kierkegaard both believed that faith began as this wild trust, this risk that the other was true and faithful. That other for us is God. Jesus believed in the promise of God, even as Jesus faced death by execution. Jesus believed in the goodness of God even when the goodness of God had disappeared from the face of the earth as he was crucified.
Abraham is used as the example of faith. "When he was as good as dead, he believed God's promise to give him a son through his wife Sarah." Paul speaks of Abraham as "one who hoped against hope." That is faith. Paul speaks also of this reality of faith in 2 Corinthians 1:8-11, when he says "in Asia we despaired even of life itself, but that was so that we would trust, not in ourselves, but in the God who raises the dead."
When all hope is gone, this hope which we call faith, arises. It is that "light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
Faith, seems, then to come from beyond us, not from within us. That is where I think the Bible points. Those who are all into talk about the immortality of the soul, and the unshakeableness of faith, and the superiority of the soul over the body. Well, that is all well and good. But, when it comes down to it, the Bible and the experience of God says something different. It says what Paul says. To paraphrase, he says in 2 Cor. 1 and in 2 Cor. 4:
"We come to points in our lives where we are completely empty and feel defeated, and, again and again, something new comes from God - just as it came to Abraham when he least expected it, to Zechariah and Elizabeth when they least expected it, to Samson's mother and father when they least expected it, to Mary when she least expected it, to Hannah and Elkanah when they least expected it, and to the grieving disciples of Jesus when they least expected it - this is the way of God in human life. God is the one who brings new life amidst the experience of death, brings new love in the midst of hatred, brings joy in the middle of sorrow. This is the experience of faith, which is to say, this is what happens if you can just open your lives to the coming of God's Spirit. But, it comes from without, from beyond. The greatest comes from beyond us, not from within us."
Monday, November 9, 2009
Reflecting on the Day
I was thinking today about a woman I was trying to get out of jail, a man in jail whose sister had just died, and a man I had coffee with yesterday who doesn't have a place to live. I felt tired as I considered these people. The woman I was able to get out of jail, the man I haven't even been able to get a furlough for the funeral, the other man I am going to try to work on a social security disability claim for him. These are just a few of the people I considered today.
I wondered about my family, my friends, my church, even my dog today, as I seemed to be taking stock of whether I was giving to others what I needed to give. The question comes again and again: "Am I bearing those responsibilities that are given to me to bear?" There is a feeling inside when it seems I am, and a feeling inside when it seems I am not.
And, another day has come to an end. I turn to God in my thoughts. I surrender the swirl of my thoughts and feelings and let them drown in his grace.
I wondered about my family, my friends, my church, even my dog today, as I seemed to be taking stock of whether I was giving to others what I needed to give. The question comes again and again: "Am I bearing those responsibilities that are given to me to bear?" There is a feeling inside when it seems I am, and a feeling inside when it seems I am not.
And, another day has come to an end. I turn to God in my thoughts. I surrender the swirl of my thoughts and feelings and let them drown in his grace.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
confession and Psalm 32
I am looking to another section of scripture this morning: Psalm 32. "When I was silent," means "when I was hiding in my sin, or trying to conceal my sin."
The idea that we hide from God is a strange idea. Adam and Eve hiding in the Garden of Eden from God is a striking image. After they had disobeyed God's command, they felt they needed to hide.
It is easy to imagine a scene in which we have done wrong and are trying to conceal it from someone else we know. But, it is harder to imagine trying to conceal our sin from God. This is the state of mind and soul the Psalmist is talking about. What does it mean?
I guess it is like pretending God is not involved with us, is not concerned with us, or to pretend that God does simply not exist.
The idea that we hide from God is a strange idea. Adam and Eve hiding in the Garden of Eden from God is a striking image. After they had disobeyed God's command, they felt they needed to hide.
It is easy to imagine a scene in which we have done wrong and are trying to conceal it from someone else we know. But, it is harder to imagine trying to conceal our sin from God. This is the state of mind and soul the Psalmist is talking about. What does it mean?
I guess it is like pretending God is not involved with us, is not concerned with us, or to pretend that God does simply not exist.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Thinking about new church development at 4th United Presbyterian
One thing about doing something new is that you get to make it up as you go along. And, in a new church development, there is really some of that “making it up as you go along.” But, there is always something very “old” in every genuine “new” church development. What we hope to develop has a living tradition almost 2,000 years old. And, with our connection to the faith of Israel, an even longer living tradition. Those of us who seek to follow the way of Jesus of Nazareth do so as the “contemporaries” of the first disciples. That “old” tradition is experienced as “new” and relevant in our lives. So, this vital connection to the tradition of faith means there is something very old and deeply embedded in any true new church development. As we hear the Word of the Living God: “Behold, I make all things new,” we are humbled and hopeful, realizing that it is God who is creating and redeeming in our lives and through our lives and in this “development” of a new mission.
Paul speaks of “the faith of Jesus Christ,” which may also be translated as “the faithfulness of Jesus Christ.” This is that wonderful union of humanity with God as a human being shows complete faithfulness to God, the Creator, and as God reveals his faithfulness to that human, Jesus, by raising him from the dead to be the head of humanity, the Lord of the earth, and declared for all the world as “the Son of God,” one with the very being of God. But, the revelation of God’s faithfulness to humanity goes even deeper than that. Because in Jesus, God is made known in human flesh. Both God’s will for humanity and God’s character are made known in Jesus. And, what is revealed is that Jesus came from God as the love and redeeming will and power of God on earth. “God so loved the world that he sent his only Son . . . ."
The “faithfulness of Jesus Christ” opens a way, a way of human beings living in peace and joy with God and each other. That is the way of Jesus Christ on earth. It was a way revealed in his life, suffering and death. It was a way that was shown to be undefeatable in his resurrection. When humans are reconciled with God, they are given to share in God’s eternal love and life.
So, this way of Christ is not something we are ‘making up as we go along.’ Nor, are we proclaiming some “new” gospel of God. What we are doing is bearing witness to this way in our midst. What we are doing is bearing witness to the ways of God which are always new among us. This old and living tradition is not primarily a set of beliefs passed down from generation to generation, nor is it primarily a set of rituals or precepts for living. No, it is a living allegiance and love for our God who remains faithful to human beings and to all the creation. It is an old way, but in this way, we attend to the ONE who makes all things new. It is the character of God to create new amidst the old, to bring life out of death, hope out of hopelessness, light out of darkness. It is our “attendance” to this living, moving Spirit of God that causes us to declare this a “new church development.” It is the newness of God’s Spirit moving among us. It is the fact that we have awakened to God’s calling that makes this a “new thing.” And, as we continue to experience God as the “God who raises the dead” and “the One who makes all things new,” we respond and realize a certain newness in our own spirits.
But, in taking part in a “new thing,” we are joining with all who are “attending” to the movement of God’s creative Spirit in the world. If we do something truly new, then it will reverberate in the faith of those other church’s around us. We will be mutually strengthened by each others faith. For, the truly new will ground us in the truly old. For, in the end, what we want to be is not so much a “new” church development, but a “true” church development.
The “newness” in our situation is that we have been shaken, turned around, displaced, so that we are seeing those around us in a new way, seeing the church’s mission in a new way, seeing ourselves in a new way. This is a “new” church development because we have departed from the old ways of “doing church” and are willing to learn from God a new way of “being church.” We are coming to understand this divine disruption of our lives as the coming of God’s costly grace into our lives and through us into the lives of others. Aren’t so many of the most wonderful gifts initially experienced as “disruptions” in our lives?
Paul speaks of “the faith of Jesus Christ,” which may also be translated as “the faithfulness of Jesus Christ.” This is that wonderful union of humanity with God as a human being shows complete faithfulness to God, the Creator, and as God reveals his faithfulness to that human, Jesus, by raising him from the dead to be the head of humanity, the Lord of the earth, and declared for all the world as “the Son of God,” one with the very being of God. But, the revelation of God’s faithfulness to humanity goes even deeper than that. Because in Jesus, God is made known in human flesh. Both God’s will for humanity and God’s character are made known in Jesus. And, what is revealed is that Jesus came from God as the love and redeeming will and power of God on earth. “God so loved the world that he sent his only Son . . . ."
The “faithfulness of Jesus Christ” opens a way, a way of human beings living in peace and joy with God and each other. That is the way of Jesus Christ on earth. It was a way revealed in his life, suffering and death. It was a way that was shown to be undefeatable in his resurrection. When humans are reconciled with God, they are given to share in God’s eternal love and life.
So, this way of Christ is not something we are ‘making up as we go along.’ Nor, are we proclaiming some “new” gospel of God. What we are doing is bearing witness to this way in our midst. What we are doing is bearing witness to the ways of God which are always new among us. This old and living tradition is not primarily a set of beliefs passed down from generation to generation, nor is it primarily a set of rituals or precepts for living. No, it is a living allegiance and love for our God who remains faithful to human beings and to all the creation. It is an old way, but in this way, we attend to the ONE who makes all things new. It is the character of God to create new amidst the old, to bring life out of death, hope out of hopelessness, light out of darkness. It is our “attendance” to this living, moving Spirit of God that causes us to declare this a “new church development.” It is the newness of God’s Spirit moving among us. It is the fact that we have awakened to God’s calling that makes this a “new thing.” And, as we continue to experience God as the “God who raises the dead” and “the One who makes all things new,” we respond and realize a certain newness in our own spirits.
But, in taking part in a “new thing,” we are joining with all who are “attending” to the movement of God’s creative Spirit in the world. If we do something truly new, then it will reverberate in the faith of those other church’s around us. We will be mutually strengthened by each others faith. For, the truly new will ground us in the truly old. For, in the end, what we want to be is not so much a “new” church development, but a “true” church development.
The “newness” in our situation is that we have been shaken, turned around, displaced, so that we are seeing those around us in a new way, seeing the church’s mission in a new way, seeing ourselves in a new way. This is a “new” church development because we have departed from the old ways of “doing church” and are willing to learn from God a new way of “being church.” We are coming to understand this divine disruption of our lives as the coming of God’s costly grace into our lives and through us into the lives of others. Aren’t so many of the most wonderful gifts initially experienced as “disruptions” in our lives?
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Time to Move On
Romans 3:21-26, that I have worried over, because I didn't trust any of the translations I have read. Well, when I got to this point in Romans 1:16-17, I felt I could offer a reliable translation, but not only do I not find any of the translations convincing of Romans 3:25, I cannot offer one on my own. I simply do not have the level of knowledge of ancient Greek necessary for this problem. So, I leave it as a problem. I don't trust the renderings of Romans 3:25 by our translators - whether they be the King James group or those of the RSV group. But, I trust in my experience of God and my reading of the rest of scripture. And, I trust in my reading of the rest of Paul's letters and the rest of this letter to the Romans.
I am zealous to proclaim the wonderful goodness of God whose grace was poured out through Christ, who has always worked at saving humanity, and who was so intent on saving us and our whole world that God, our Creator, took on our flesh - which means, took on our vulnerabilty in this flesh and blood life - and, God be praised, somehow has gone to the depths of our pain and suffering and hopelessness and created a new way - a way of purpose and love and hope that cannot be defeated.
That's what Jesus Christ means. He means something unbelievable about the Creator of the world. He means that God is with us, God is for us, against all odds, against all expectations, God is our redeemer and for some reason will not give up on us.
And, I'll get back to Bible Study next time, with some real attention to detail in vv. 25-26.
I am zealous to proclaim the wonderful goodness of God whose grace was poured out through Christ, who has always worked at saving humanity, and who was so intent on saving us and our whole world that God, our Creator, took on our flesh - which means, took on our vulnerabilty in this flesh and blood life - and, God be praised, somehow has gone to the depths of our pain and suffering and hopelessness and created a new way - a way of purpose and love and hope that cannot be defeated.
That's what Jesus Christ means. He means something unbelievable about the Creator of the world. He means that God is with us, God is for us, against all odds, against all expectations, God is our redeemer and for some reason will not give up on us.
And, I'll get back to Bible Study next time, with some real attention to detail in vv. 25-26.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
