From the First Lesson for this day, Micah 4:1-5, 5:2-4
On the grounds of the United Nations in New York City there is an artistic staircase with black granite walls on which are mounted the words of Micah 4:3, "...they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more."
This aspiration to peace echoes the chorus of the angels on the night Christ Jesus was born: "Peace on earth, goodwill to men."
What a high hope, a noble thought. The efforts of war transformed into the life of peace; a prosperous land tilled; a fruitful harvest reaped. Not only will war be absent, it will not be "learned." There can be little faulting the U.N. for aiming at these lofty ideals.
However, like so many ideals, the U.N.'s walls are void of the balance of reality. I know this because I am idealist. My favorite dessert is 'pie in the sky.' I relate to that ant who tries to move the proverbial rubber-tree plant - but he has high hopes. It takes a balance of reality to truly understand ideals.
In the case of the U.N.'s wall, the rest of the passage is gone and the missing reality is God. Read what is clear about the swords-turned-plowshares and spears-turned-pruning hook:
Verse 1 - the House of the Lord will be established on the highest mountain
and it will be exalted over all others
Verse 2 - the nations will come to the House of the Lord to learn His ways and walk in His paths
Verse 3 - God Himself will be the judge of the people and there are nations and people who will be rebuked by Him
Verse 4 - The nations will understand God as the provide of all things
Verse 5 - There will be people who follow their own gods, but those who find the peace of verse 3 are those who follow the Lord God
This is some reality, isn't it? The peace desired by the U.N., and by many idealists in life, is unattainable without the God who brings the same peace.
How often do people seek peace in life through means that exclude God! We want peace at home but we don't pray at home. We want love in relationships, but we leave God out of our morals. We want the serenity of a saved soul, but we continue to war with God over who is in control of our hearts.
Often people find fault with the U.N. for its artificial ideals and pluralistic mentality. I find those same faults. In the pursuit of lifting women from oppression, they promote the slaughter of innocents through abortion. In efforts to relieve the poor, they accuse and blame the wealthy. In settling disputes between nations and peoples, they treat all parties as morally equal without recognizing God's judgment and rebuke of those who are clearly evil.
Where can this peace be found? Micah the Prophet proclaims the Truth: "out of thee [Bethlehem] shall He come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel... And He shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God; and they shall abide: for now shall He be great unto the ends of the earth."
The peace of the world can only be found in Christ, who is the Ruler of the World. An old cliche seems to sum it up best:
"Know Christ, know peace. No Christ, no peace."
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Jan. 1, 2011 - The Circumcision of the Lord
From the Gospel Reading for this day, Luke 2:15-21
When the Christmas wrap is all recycled and the new things from Christmas begin losing their novelty, and there isn't another corner left in the stomach for another piece of fudge, we are left with a stark Christmas reality: we still have a Baby to contend with.
In keeping the Jewish Law, Joseph and Mary did what they were required to do: they had the Christ Child circumsized. A most mundance operation, circumcision was the mark of the Covenant of Abraham, kept by Jews for centuries as their participation in that same covenant.
There is more to it than that. The Circumcision is one more testimony of the fact that God became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). Jesus Christ was no phantom or mysterious philosopher from the east: He was (and is) God Incarnate. As such, His Divine Flesh was subject to the Law, and subject to circumcision.
The Circumcision is also testimony that Jesus Christ was a normal baby boy. There may have been times when "the little Lord Jesus, no crying He made," however, there are also likely times when the little Lord Jesus cried His eyes out for His mother's milk or to notify His holy stepfather of his dirty diaper. As a normal boy, He would grow through the scrapes and scuffs of childhood, as Luke later avers in Luke 2: "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man."
The Circumcision tells us that all flesh is yet under the Law. Certainly, in the Church we understand that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Law. However, as St. Paul reminds us in Romans, the Law remains valid for the man who remains in the flesh. The Law shows us where sin is, in the world and in ourselves. The Law is a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ (Galatians 3). Without Christ, there is judgment; with Him there is grace and peace. If the flesh of the Christ Child was subject to the Law, why should I expect that my flesh would not be?
Circumcision was also the "naming event" of the time. In Jesus Christ's case, the naming event was almost anticlimatic. Prophets had anticipated Him for generations. He would be the One Who Saves (Y'shua or Joshua), the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace, Emmanuel. Yet, as a human baby, the Baby of Bethlehem was to be named on the eighth day, as were all other Jewish babies of the time. No Name the Baby books in the stable, only the name the Angel game to Mary and Joseph: Jesus.
Finally, the Naming of the Savior on the eighth day reminds us of our own "eighth day," the era of the Resurrection. The "first day of the week" and its Resurrection are like the eighth day of Creation: a new era has arrived and in that new era, that eternal "eighth day" we are named as well. We are named as co-heirs of Christ, His brethren, His friends, His children, His people.
There is still a Baby to contend with. As the year progresses, may this be a time of watching Christ grow in our own hearts and lives.
When the Christmas wrap is all recycled and the new things from Christmas begin losing their novelty, and there isn't another corner left in the stomach for another piece of fudge, we are left with a stark Christmas reality: we still have a Baby to contend with.
In keeping the Jewish Law, Joseph and Mary did what they were required to do: they had the Christ Child circumsized. A most mundance operation, circumcision was the mark of the Covenant of Abraham, kept by Jews for centuries as their participation in that same covenant.
There is more to it than that. The Circumcision is one more testimony of the fact that God became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). Jesus Christ was no phantom or mysterious philosopher from the east: He was (and is) God Incarnate. As such, His Divine Flesh was subject to the Law, and subject to circumcision.
The Circumcision is also testimony that Jesus Christ was a normal baby boy. There may have been times when "the little Lord Jesus, no crying He made," however, there are also likely times when the little Lord Jesus cried His eyes out for His mother's milk or to notify His holy stepfather of his dirty diaper. As a normal boy, He would grow through the scrapes and scuffs of childhood, as Luke later avers in Luke 2: "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man."
The Circumcision tells us that all flesh is yet under the Law. Certainly, in the Church we understand that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Law. However, as St. Paul reminds us in Romans, the Law remains valid for the man who remains in the flesh. The Law shows us where sin is, in the world and in ourselves. The Law is a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ (Galatians 3). Without Christ, there is judgment; with Him there is grace and peace. If the flesh of the Christ Child was subject to the Law, why should I expect that my flesh would not be?
Circumcision was also the "naming event" of the time. In Jesus Christ's case, the naming event was almost anticlimatic. Prophets had anticipated Him for generations. He would be the One Who Saves (Y'shua or Joshua), the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace, Emmanuel. Yet, as a human baby, the Baby of Bethlehem was to be named on the eighth day, as were all other Jewish babies of the time. No Name the Baby books in the stable, only the name the Angel game to Mary and Joseph: Jesus.
Finally, the Naming of the Savior on the eighth day reminds us of our own "eighth day," the era of the Resurrection. The "first day of the week" and its Resurrection are like the eighth day of Creation: a new era has arrived and in that new era, that eternal "eighth day" we are named as well. We are named as co-heirs of Christ, His brethren, His friends, His children, His people.
There is still a Baby to contend with. As the year progresses, may this be a time of watching Christ grow in our own hearts and lives.
Daily Thoughts from the Bible
I have failed.
Each year I make a commitment to read the Bible in a systematic way and each year, around February, my reading tapers off into random proof-texting and sermon preparation.
Hence this new blog. I hope it will accomplish a little bit of what my other blog, The Country Parson, does, but in a more regular and systematic way.
Here's how it will work: Using the daily lectionary from the Book of Common Prayer of the Reformed Episcopal Church, I will share a few perspectives on one of the day's texts. If I were to follow this as I envision it, the whole process could take up to six years with the different passages available... one year each in the Psalms, First and Second Lessons for both Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer.
I've chosen the name "Piety and Devotion" for this blog from the Preface of the BCP, that it should "[excite] piety and devotion in the publick worship of God."
My spiritual perspectives?
I would call myself a "classical Protestant." I appreciate and understand the roots of Protestantism, however, I see the movement as part of the larger Church. The Church of Luther, Calvin, and Huss is also the Church of St. Francis, St. John Chrysostom, and St. Anthony of the Desert. The Church of Wittenberg, Canterbury, and Geneva is integrally joined to the Church of Rome, Constantinople, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Alexandria, in the power of the Holy Ghost, if not in structure and organization.
Spiritually, I am somthing of a mutt. I was reared an Episcopalian, went to an evangelical college, worked for two para-Church organizations, served as a denominational staffer for the Religious Society of Friends and as a Quaker pastor, and I am now employed in a Church of the Brethren retirement community and I am pastor of a non-denominational Church that used to be United Methodist. I try to keep my perspectives balanced with the Bible in one hand and the Church Fathers and tradition in the other, using the brain the good Lord gave me to parse things out.
I am most influenced by St. Francis of Assisi when it comes to lifestyle and world view, although I am neither poor nor ascetic, neither Catholic nor celibate. I read theology and devotions that pre-dates the rise of higher criticism of the late 19th century and I have little to do with what I call "pulp theology" of the mid to late 20th century. I am not a liberal.
I hope my thoughts inspire you. And I hope they inspire me enough to keep this up daily - past February, at least! :-)
Each year I make a commitment to read the Bible in a systematic way and each year, around February, my reading tapers off into random proof-texting and sermon preparation.
Hence this new blog. I hope it will accomplish a little bit of what my other blog, The Country Parson, does, but in a more regular and systematic way.
Here's how it will work: Using the daily lectionary from the Book of Common Prayer of the Reformed Episcopal Church, I will share a few perspectives on one of the day's texts. If I were to follow this as I envision it, the whole process could take up to six years with the different passages available... one year each in the Psalms, First and Second Lessons for both Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer.
I've chosen the name "Piety and Devotion" for this blog from the Preface of the BCP, that it should "[excite] piety and devotion in the publick worship of God."
My spiritual perspectives?
I would call myself a "classical Protestant." I appreciate and understand the roots of Protestantism, however, I see the movement as part of the larger Church. The Church of Luther, Calvin, and Huss is also the Church of St. Francis, St. John Chrysostom, and St. Anthony of the Desert. The Church of Wittenberg, Canterbury, and Geneva is integrally joined to the Church of Rome, Constantinople, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Alexandria, in the power of the Holy Ghost, if not in structure and organization.
Spiritually, I am somthing of a mutt. I was reared an Episcopalian, went to an evangelical college, worked for two para-Church organizations, served as a denominational staffer for the Religious Society of Friends and as a Quaker pastor, and I am now employed in a Church of the Brethren retirement community and I am pastor of a non-denominational Church that used to be United Methodist. I try to keep my perspectives balanced with the Bible in one hand and the Church Fathers and tradition in the other, using the brain the good Lord gave me to parse things out.
I am most influenced by St. Francis of Assisi when it comes to lifestyle and world view, although I am neither poor nor ascetic, neither Catholic nor celibate. I read theology and devotions that pre-dates the rise of higher criticism of the late 19th century and I have little to do with what I call "pulp theology" of the mid to late 20th century. I am not a liberal.
I hope my thoughts inspire you. And I hope they inspire me enough to keep this up daily - past February, at least! :-)
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