God pitches a tent... and is always with us

Scripture: Jeremiah 31:7-14 or Sirach 24:1-12  •  Psalm 147:12-20 or Wisdom of Solomon 10:15-21  •  Ephesians 1:3-14  •  John 1:(1-9), 10-18 

This week of Christmas, we read another account of the Christ coming into our world. This time it is not as a babe in a manger with shepherds and wise men. In the first chapter of the gospel of John, we are presented with a cosmic account being with God from the very beginning. He is the Word made flesh. God tabernacled in the flesh in Jesus, and chose to live with us, and within us. Read The Rev. James Liggett's perspective on John's gospel in "The Same Story."

Moses was not allowed to see God. He hid in the cleft of a rock while God passed. God was not in the fire, the wind, or the quake of the earth. He was to be found in the sound of sheer silence, or as Father Paul Bresnahan would tell us, in the "daughter of a sound." Jesus told his disciples that "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father." And he told us  he is always with us. What is it to see a "Permanent Glimpse of God," as The Rev. Dr. Thomas Lane Butts tells us? 

The Rev. Dr. Janet H. Hunt tells us that the Fourth Gospel, the Gospel of John, tells us that in the life of Jesus, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” The English word “to dwell” is derived from a Greek word that literally means to “pitch a tent.” Though not particularly poetic, the Gospel of John actually reads, “The Word became flesh and pitched a tent among us.” What does pitching a tent among us, tabernacling with us mean? Consider The Rev. Dr. Hunt's "And pitched a tent among us..." and add your thoughts.

Joseph... What Good Men do...

Scripture: Isaiah 7:10-16  • Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19  •Romans 1:1-7  •  Matthew 1:18-25

As we await the birth of the Christ Child this Advent, we read Matthews account of Joseph's dream. Think of what Joseph must have been thinking and going through when learning that his betrothed was carrying a child not his own - especially at that time and place.

What did Joseph do? Look at what it takes to be able to do what he did. It is hard to put ourselves in another time, another culture, and we know "the rest of the story." What do you think you would have done? Consider The Rev. Dr. Janet H. Hunt's "Just What a Dad Does," and The Very Rev. Samuel G. Candler's "Believe in the Dreams of the Person You Love."

May God protect you and yours, and give us what we need to have faith, trust and to believe as we celebrate the coming of the Lord.

* All Sunday School Lessons may be viewed at http://chuckriffee.blogspot.com/?m=1

When expectations bring disappointment and grief

Scripture: Isaiah 35:1-10  •Psalm 146:5-10 or Luke 1:46b-55  •  James 5:7-10 

•  Matthew 11:2-11

What do you think when your idea of what God’s will is, or what should happen does not happen – when your expectations are not met? This week, while in prison, John the Baptist sends a messenger to Jesus to ask if he is the “one who is to come, or should we look for someone else.” As The Rev. Danae Ashley says in “The Unexpected” “We put a lot of hope in people, and when the circumstances do not measure up to our expectations, we need help in grieving the loss of those hopes. Navigating the loss of the goals we have for ourselves, our children, and especially our God, can rock the foundation of our beliefs about the world and our place in it.” She gives a beautiful example of how parents, who planned, with great hopes and joy, the birth of a child, dealt with the child being born disabled, and the new joys and hopes they were given, and nurtured. Read Ven Irene Egmalis-Maliaman's Expectations . 

How can we have hope and experience joy when things don’t work out the way we want, what we dreamed of? The answer may not be what we expect, or want, but maybe the Advent miracle is to turn our eyes from ourselves to what God is doing.  As the prophet Isaiah said, “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?"

What do we hope for? What are our expectations?  May we open our eyes to receive the hope and joy of the gifts of God when we let go of our expectations. We are not alone. John the Baptizer asks, "Are you the One?." May we look for, know, and receive the presence of God in our lives. Only then can we experience the joy which comes in the morning - in new beginnings.

Prepare and make straight the way of the Lord

Scripture:

Isaiah 11:1-10  • 

Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19  • 

Romans 15:4-13  • 

Matthew 3:1-12

The second week of Advent we always meet up with John the Baptizer in the wilderness. Some authors have noted we can't get to Jesus without going through John. We encounter him wearing the skin of a camel, eating locusts and honey, like Elijah. A firebrand, who calls Pharisees and Sadducees who have come to hear him, a brood of vipers, and calls for repentance. Like the apocalyptic vision Jesus gave us last week, we hear ominous words about gathering wheat and burning the chaff by someone greater than him, who, unlike John, will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire instead of water.

What do we make of the first two Sundays of Advent with images of wilderness, darkness, winnowing, fire, and light? Why do we get these passages in Advent? Is there more than apparent gloom and doom? A new light is coming into the world. A new hope, as we wait and prepare, the apostle Paul tells us in his letter to the church in Rome. Read The Rev. Marcea Paul's "Repent, Live Into God’s Dream," and Debie Thomas' "The Voice of One Crying," for thoughts on how to prepare and make straight the way of the Lord.

Advent Begins - Are We Alert, Ready? For What?

Scripture: Isaiah 2:1-5  •  Psalm 122  •  Romans 13:11-14  •  Matthew 24:36-44

We begin the new Lectionary Year A with the first Sunday of Advent, a time of waiting and preparation, a time of expectancy for the light which breaks through the darkness, a time of hope for the kind of peace which turns spears into plowshares, and swords into pruning hooks.  In  "Why Advent Is The Hardest Time For Faithful Christians" The Rev. Canon Catherine A. Caimano discusses what we must take off to put on the armor of light mentioned in Paul's letter to the church in Rome.

In " Like a Thief," Debie Thomas explores what Jesus means when he says we must be alert and awake for the life giving birth and coming of the Son of Man.  What is coming for us? What is life giving? What is not? 

Tired of all the talking heads giving us their  opinions and predictions, telling us what to think? What should we be doing now and for our future? Read Amy Frykholm's "Our Hidden Future - The First Sunday In Advent."

Christ the King - Like No Other

Scripture: Jeremiah 23:1-6 and Luke 1:68-79  •  Psalm 46  •  Colossians 1:11-20  •  Luke 23:33-43

This Sunday we celebrate Christ the King Sunday as we close Lectionary Year C and enter the Advent season in Lectionary A. What images come to mind when you think of "King of Kings?" Luke's gospel depicts Christ the King like no other. A king who is mocked, forgives those who are crucifying him, and receives a thief on another cross into paradise. Unlike any concept of royalty ever formulated.

What kind of King is Jesus? What does this mean for us? Read Debie Thomas' "A King Like No Other." Think about this as we enter the season of Advent.

When Temples Fall

Scripture: Isaiah 65:17-25 and Isaiah 12  •  Malachi 4:1-2a and Psalm 98

  •  2 Thessalonians 3:6-13  • Luke 21:5-19

This week as we hear Jesus tell us about the destruction of the temple, and what many have called the "end times," we learn to not invest ourselves, our lives, our hopes and dreams in transient things, but in that which endures, and lasts forever - even when and as "temples fall."

The passage from Isaiah tells of the creation of a new heaven and new earth. When no longer shall the sound of weeping be heard, or the cry of distress. When infants shall live longer than a few days, and the young shall live out a lifetime. When people will no longer labor in vain, but enjoy their work, and children will no longer be born only to face calamity.

These passages are truly apocalyptic, which means a "revealing" in Greek. They are not just about the end times. Why does Jesus tell his disciples, who are admiring the splendor and grandeur of the temple, that no stone will be left standing? In what, or whom, do we place, or misplace, our hopes, dreams, and aspirations? In what, or whom, have we given up, or  resigned ourselves into a malaise or cynicism? How can we realize what Jesus is telling us? What questions should we be asking?

Read Debie Thomas' "By Your Endurance," and Janet Hunt's "New Heavens, New Earth..."

Resurrection Living

Scripture: Haggai 1:15b-2:9 and Psalm 145:1-5, 17-21 or Psalm 98  •  Job 19:23-27a and Psalm 17:1-9  •2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17  •  Luke 20:27-38

As we continue our studies of "faith living," our Scripture readings speak of the resurrection. This week we will discuss "resurrection living."

The Sadducees in today's gospel do not believe in the resurrection. They try to trick and ridicule  Jesus with their absurd and extreme examples about marriage partners in heaven if people married more than once. Jesus did not treat them with scorn, but with patience and assurance in his answer. What was his answer? 

What do you think about resurrection? Especially in a post modern, empirical verification based age? How does that compare with life two millennia ago. Read Debi Thomas' "Children of the Resurrection."

Walter Brueggemann says the prophet Haggai energizes hope in a hopeless situation. Read Dan Clendenin's account of Haggai in the rebuilding of the temple in the midst of Israel's exile and captivity in  Haggai and the Politics of God . How does this relate to the gospel and the passage from Job?

When Salvation Comes

Scripture: All Saints Sunday Scripture

For Pentecost 21C:

Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4 and Psalm 119:137-144  • 

Isaiah 1:10-18 and Psalm 32:1-7  • 

2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12  • 

Luke 19:1-10

We have the latitude of celebrating All-Saints this Sunday, or following the Lectionary in the 21st Sunday after Pentecost.

In "Dead Sinners: Revised and Edited," The Rev. Cannon Frank Logue explores what makes a saint. 

Tamara Plummer expounds upon the All Saints gospel of Jesus' telling one to turn the other cheek when struck in " Paradox."

In "When Salvation Comes," Debie Thomas takes us on a journey with Jesus as he encounters the tax collector, Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus wants to see Jesus from his perch in  sycamore tree. He is delighted to be seen by Jesus. Jesus tells Zacchaeus that he wants to go to Zacchaeus' home. That day, Jesus announced that salvation has come to his house. How can salvation come to our homes? Do we want to be seen by Jesus? Does he see us? What does he see? How do we see others? Do we want salvation to come to our homes?

In "Zacchaeus: The Tale of a Tax Collector ," Dan Clendenin examines the Greek syntax and discusses two different interpretations of Zacchaeus' response to Jesus' calling. What is our response?

Self Righteous Judgment

Scripture: 

• Joel 2:23-32 and Psalm 65  • 
• Sirach 35:12-17 or Jeremiah 14:7-10, 19-22 and Psalm 84:1-7  • 
• 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18  • 
• Luke 18:9-14

The last few weeks we have considered lessons in "faith living." We have read and discussed scripture and articles which have provided things to consider in living out the gospel innately, so that it becomes so much a part of us that we manifest God's presence and love.

Some of the lessons we have learned are: (1) keep it simple, and go about our work and what is expected of us, with our "hand to the plow" - the reward will come; (2) go about our work with a spirit of humble and joyous thanks and praise for God's gift of a present hope and blessing; (3) and, as we considered last week, the lesson of keeping our faith through persistent prayerful relationship with God, which builds trust and assurance that God's will will be done in God's good time, and God's purpose for us will be fulfilled.

Last week we considered Jesus' parable of the unjust judge. This week, the next lesson in "faith living" concerns our judgment of others, and the trap of being self righteous in the process. What are the consequences? In our judgment of others how can we avoid being self righteous?

Consider Bruce Maples' article "Seeing Others as Zeros," and The Rev. Joseph Pagano's Modern Day Donatism and the Church  

Unjust Judges, Faith, Prayer, and Perseverance

Scripture: Jeremiah 31:27-34 and Psalm 119:97-104  •  Genesis 32:22-31 and Psalm 121  •  2 Timothy 3:14-4:5  •  Luke 18:1-8

The headlines have been full of negative political attack ads and corrupt, or dishonest politicians. This week Jesus continues "faith lessons" with a story of a widow who persists in calling on the unjust judge who gives her justice so she won't wear him out by continually calling on him. Jesus tells us how much quicker God will grant justice to those who call on him day and night.

We have had a series of lessons about faith the last few weeks. I have often thought how we can carry out God's call to us, to live in discipleship without having to think about it, or rationalize it, so that it is such an innate part of us, that God's compassion, love, mercy and justice are manifest in and through us in all we say or do.

Two weeks ago, part of that answer was given - keep it simple, like servants who know what is expected of them, and continue to work without regard for the reward. Last week, we were told to go on living our lives joyously, in thankfulness and praise, and not let the opportunity to hear God's call slip by, even in the midst of crisis, uncertainty - even in exile, and even when we need an exodus. Through all of this, Jesus tells us "Your faith has made you whole."

Drawing on the 2nd letter to Timothy and the gospel reading for this week, The Rev. Nils Chittenden in "Patina of Faith," discusses "tradition" and "reason" and building a trusting relationship with God through persistent calling on him.

The Rev. Kate Huey, in "Ask Boldly, Live Justly/To Speak and Be Heard,"puts this week's gospel in context when she tells us what the word "widow," in that ancient culture, meant and signified. God hears the persistent cries, and prayers of "the silent one," one who is unable to speak, because society considers them unworthy - people without a voice. Sound familiar? The very people Jesus associated with, healed, fed, and liberated by his teaching, love, compassion, and the grace and mercy of his sacrifice on the cross.

This third step of faith enabling us to act out God's love and faith innately, without a second thought, is praying and building a relationship with God which results in trust, and gives us hope that God's will be done in God's time.

Living in the Shadows and Thankfulness

Scripture: Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7 and Psalm 66:1-12  •  2 Kings 5:1-3, 7-15c and Psalm 111  •  2 Timothy 2:8-15  •  Luke 17:11-19

In this week's gospel Jesus heals ten lepers, outcasts living in isolation who cry out "Unclean!" to passers by, and who seek Jesus' healing. In "A Foreigner's Praise," Debie Thomas tells us that this story is much more than just thankfulness. Why did the one return to give thanks to Jesus, and the others didn't? What was missing in the leper's life? In our lives? What does it take to find what matters most? To be healed? To get on with our lives? How does this affect others we commune with, associate with, who we see as others or foreigners, who we include and exclude? Who of us misses the mark (ἁμαρτία - the Greek word for "sin")? Who is worthy of healing, love, forgiveness, acceptance? What stands in the way?

What is faith?

Scripture link.

What did Jesus just say? He's at it again. In Luke's gospel we have considered some hard stories to hear. Squandering, philandering sons, dishonest managers and beggars getting rewards! And this week, hard working slaves are told to come to the table only after they have finished their work, and rather than to expect to be commended for their work, they are to say "We have only done what we ought to have done!"

As Christopher Burkett says, it is no wonder the disciples said to Jesus, "Increase our faith!" What is the point of these parables? Consider The Rev. Rick Morley's "keeping it simple -  a reflection on Luke 17:5-10"; and Christopher Burkett's "Love bade me welcome." 

What is it to have faith? What does Jesus mean in his response to the disciples plea to oncrease their faith? Read  Debie Thomas' "If You Have Faith."

The Great Chasm

Scripture: Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15 and Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16  •  Amos 6:1a, 4-7 and Psalm 146  •  1 Timothy 6:6-19  •  Luke 16:19-31

In this Sunday's Scripture, the prophet Amos and Paul's first letter to Timothy warns us of the dangers of the inequitable gap between the lives of the rich and the poor, and that money is the root of all evil. This follows last week's lesson where Jesus tells his disciples that you cannot serve both God and wealth. But in Jesus' parable of the rich man and Lazarus, and the great chasm between the two in the afterlife, is the parable really just another parable about money or wealth?

Read Debie Thomas' incisive "The Great Chasm" for her thoughts on the matter. Why is there, and who is responsible for "the great chasm?" What can be done about it? How can we see as Jesus sees? What is involved in seeing as Jesus sees?

Wealth and Serving God

Scripture: 

Jeremiah 8:18-9:1 and Psalm 79:1-9  • 

Amos 8:4-7 and Psalm 113  • 

1 Timothy 2:1-7  • 

Luke 16:1-13

This week Jesus gives his disciples the parable of the dishonest manager. Scholars, preachers and teachers have a myriad of difficulties with this text. Why did the master of the dishonest manager commend him? Some say it has to do with being shrewd in times when shrewdness is needed. What if the dishonest manager is otherwise a good husband, father, or mother? Are we to write the person off as a bad person? What about the teaching that one who is dishonest in a very little is dishonest in much? Or, the flip side, one who is faithful in a very little is faithful in much? How do we reconcile these teachings? How are we reconciled in conflicts within ourselves, and with others? Humans are complex, not just simply one thing or another.

What about forgiveness? Can one serve both wealth and God?  

Consider Debie Thomas' honest grappling with this Sunday's gospel in "Notes to the Children of Light."

The Rev. Marshall A. Jolly in "Shrewdness," calls attention to our tendency to label people, saying, " We have labels...: a person who commits a crime ceases to be a person and instead becomes a criminal or an inmate. A person who enters the country illegally is reduced to an illegal immigrant. A person caught in the cycle of addiction disintegrates into the lexicon of addict or user or pill head. The language we use to refer to people whose behavior we find morally or ethically objectionable betrays us. They become something less than a person; something unworthy or unfit for our care and concern." Words matter.  How often do the rich blame the poor for their poverty? How often do we blame the victim? For a comprehensive look at Jesus' parable see Dan Clendenin's "Lovers of Money"

What is it to be Lost... and Found?

Scripture: Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28 and Psalm 14  •  Exodus 32:7-14 and Psalm 51:1-10  • 1 Timothy 1:12-17  • Luke 15:1-10

Jesus tells the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin to the tax collectors and sinners who were coming near to hear him, and to the scribes and Pharisees who were grumbling and disdainfully saying that Jesus welcomed and ate with sinners. 

The lesson is about being lost, and then found. Who are the lost in these parables? We have all suffered loss. How do we deal with loss.  How many ways can, or do we, get lost? What is it like to be found, to find someone or something of value? How do these parables help us when we become lost? What do these parables have to say about what we value, how we are valued? About our relationship with God, each other, and our church?

Debie Thomas has an excellent article "On Lostness," which helps put things into perspective.  Kirk Kubicek has some surprising things to say about the God who throws a party for those or that which was lost in his The Wrath of God

The Potter and the Clay

Scripture:  Jeremiah 18:1-11 and Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18  •  Deuteronomy 30:15-20 and Psalm 1  •  Philemon 1:1-1:21  • Luke 14:25-33

This week we have images of artistry and sacrifice, and learn more about the nature of God and ourselves, and our relationship with God and each other. Is God a controlling master, dispassionate, unchanging and without regard to the clay, or the "condition" of the clay?  What is the relationship between this potter and the clay? Between the God who knows our innermost being and us in the poetry of the psalmist? Between master and slave in Paul's letter to Philemon? Are we really supposed to hate our family, give up all our possessions, and carry a cross?  What is going on here?

For thought and discussion consider Dr. Bruce Epperly's "Sacrifice and Artistry: Human and Divine," and Debie Thomas' "What It Will Cost You."

For a reflection on the life of Frederick Buechner and Psalm 139, read Dan Clendenin's Listen to Your Life .

Hospitality and Entertaining Angels

Scripture: Jeremiah 2:4-13 and Psalm 81:1, 10-16  •  Sirach 10:12-18 or Proverbs 25:6-7 and Psalm 112  •  Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16  •  Luke 14:1, 7-14

This week's letter to the Hebrews and gospel account are lessons in humility and hospitality. Jesus was invited to a Sabbath meal at the home of a leading Pharisee, and tells us where to sit - not in the place of honor, but in the lowest seats where we may be exalted and asked to move up, rather than embarrassed and asked to move down. his lesson, and the real heart of the lesson, is to have the heart of a servant. "The next time you throw a party, don’t invite your rich friends and neighbors, so that they might return the favor some day and invite you to one of their nice parties. Rather, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind. Then you will be blessed, because they can’t repay you. For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” 

Jesus challenges, and sometimes provokes, the status quo, but always based in compassion and understanding of vulnerability. Ultimately, Jesus is the grace, love and mercy of God. The gracious host who shows us God's kingdom, and appropriate "table manners." There's a whole lot of watching going on. Read Ven. Irene  Egmalis-Maluaman's "Watching."  In our zeal to get ourselves situated, we can begin to look like we are playing a game of musical chairs with a complete emphasis on getting in the right chair on time. Let us not be afraid of where we are seated."

Read Steve Goodier's wonderful story about Booker T. Washington, and lesson in humility and spirit in "A Humble Spirit ."

Finally we have that beautiful passage from the letter to the Hebrews,"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it." Who are angels who may have shown us hospitality? What is it to be hospitable?