Devotion.al

Tag: church

  • Divided Beauty Multiplied

    Divided Beauty Multiplied

    Psalm 104:24–34; Genesis 11:1–9; 1 Corinthians 12:12–27

    The US is not the biggest country in the world, not by landmass, not by population. Just like other countries our size and bigger, there are some weird things that happen as you states, regions, and sometimes even counties. There is a certain section of Washington that adds an “r” so that Washington becomes Warshington or washing becomes warshing. It’s an oddity that has even others of those born and raised in Washington confused.

    There are certain things one can say in the Western states that one avoids saying in the Eastern states. There is definitely a divide between the Northern states and the Southern states in regards to language. Sometimes the differences are functional, sometimes they are just some differences that bubbled up as languages and peoples came together or divided.

    Sometimes, even more strangely, is that when a number of people come together and form a new language, that becomes even more confused and nuanced. The , and all things connected through it, is like that now. New ways of communicating (emojis and abbreviations) are being used and often very misunderstood. There are even manufactured languages (Esperanto, Klingon, for example). We are constantly looking for new ways to communicate.

    The fall of the Tower of Babel echoes this need but in reverse. Humanity had this universal language. Humanity could communicate apparently quite well. Humanity, however, had lost its praising of God and now wanted to become God. Perhaps, even more than the story of the Fall in the Garden of Eden, this short story of the Tower of Babel illuminates the fallen human heart.

    As with many things in the , though, still breaks through. Paul comments that the church (the Body and Bride of Christ) is made of many parts. Humanity is made of many parts and many languages. God is not limited by “the many”.

    Arguably, God is actually more glorified by the many differences that make up humanity and its languages. There are a few (sadly, too few) songs that can cross language barriers, where one can translate the original language into a different one, and still keep the meter and rhythm. Hearing a song you know sung in a different language and still being able to sing along is a beautiful sign of what God can do.

    It is humanity that is divided by language, people, skin color, nation, or ideology. The speaks through all of God’s people that they can sing praises to God from the depths of their hearts the best way they know how.

    ※Reflection※

    • Where are places you have seen the of humanity bring glory to God?
    • How do you see divided humanity overcome its divisions?
    • Do you think artistic activities are better able to overcome the differences than non-artistic? Why are why not?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, we recognize that we are divided. Through the Holy Spirit we are not called to be , we are united through. Transform our lives so that they match what the Spirit has done. Amen.

  • Little Pieces Together

    Little Pieces Together

    Psalm 104:24–35; Joel 2:18–29; 1 Corinthians 12:4–11

    Before churches had stained glass, there were two ways the church would decorate and—more importantly—tell the stories of the Bible (and the church) in pictures. The first was primarily on the wall and ceilings, and that was paintings. The second was primarily on the floor, but also sometimes on walls, and was mosaics.

    Many ancient sites were discovered to be churches often because of the mosaics. As they were made of stone and/or ceramic, they would withstand dirt, mud, and being buried. If you have the chance to check out YouTube, you should be able to find videos where you can watch archaeologists unbury and then restore the beautiful mosaics to their former (in time-lapse, of course). Symbolic of we humans restored by the blood of Christ from messy and dirty (and buried in death and ) to the beauty of God’s child.

    As an art form, mosaics are often made from broken pottery and put into a larger picture. Whether it is the church, humanity as a whole, or Creation as a whole, they are made up of smaller pieces that are often broken or damaged and are a beautiful bigger picture. One could even say that each is greater than the sum of its pieces.

    Within the respective circles of church, humanity, and Creation, there is a cycle of death, birth, and growth. The psalmist says that God makes the face of the earth new again (Psalm 104:30). The cycle of is both renewal and change. Nothing is ever quite the same.

    Through Joel, God tells the people that things will be good again in regard to land, crops, security. Even so, underlying that is the reality that things will never be exactly the same. Things certainly won’t be as they were in David’s and Solomon’s time (especially as David and Solomon’s time would have grown into mythic proportions).

    The between the people and God would be restored. The Promised Land would be restored. The people’s place in the Promised Land would be restored. Still, things would not be exactly the same. Other prophets also told the people that they would be restored, but it would be different and in a good way.

    ‘ was even more so a new way of things that the world needed to adjust to (and is still adjusting to). With Jesus’ departure, the coming would change things all the more. People had had their roles to play. Some were moved by the Holy Spirit. This new coming, however, was different. Roles were one thing (still are), but gifts were a new thing.

    Now everyone had a gift. Each of those gifts had a purpose and place in the of God here on earth. All the gifts together (the mosaic) make Jesus’ beautiful bride, the church.

    ※Reflection※

    What makes a gift “spiritual” versus “natural” or “trained”? Do you know which spiritual gifts you have? If so, what are they, and what are they doing? If not, God to guide you in searching, that you may have a greater effect for the kingdom (Don’t worry. It can take time.)

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, may we be renewed and empowered to do your will. Amen.

  • Sackcloth and Ashes

    Sackcloth and Ashes

    Psalm 115; Ezra 9:5–15; John 16:16–24

    Collective has been on the top of many lists in the last year. Regardless of your political, philosophical, or religious perspective of the collective guilt issues, it does allow us to better understand the pressure that Ezra felt…somewhat.

    Ezra was trying to make up for generations of sin against God. Granted, with the wages of slavery, it’s not as if the US doesn’t have its own weight to bear. Yet, it is not the same insofar as the US is not Israel (whether ancient or modern). There were expectations of ancient Israel that they chose not to follow. The were clear. They forgot God and disregarded God so much that they followed false gods made of metal and/or wood.

    Ezra knew that there really was no way to “make up” what had occurred. The order of Ezra’s actions should be noted. Ezra “ended” his penitential acts and THEN prayed to God, asking for forgiveness and acknowledging that it would only be by God’s will, , love, mercy, and grace that the Israelites could be forgiven.

    While many reject the US guilt-debt, the guilt-debts are really quite small in comparison to all the guilt and shame we bear because of our personal, , and corporate sin (this is not to belittle them). As an overly individualistic culture, we object to being held to account for something we think we have no responsibility for. Perhaps it is not the US collective guilt that will be the big turning point for the US and the church. Perhaps it will be the recognition that scripturally we do have corporate responsibilities, and it is our individualistic framework that has led us to ignore them.

    This continues to be a cultural time of learning. We are learning about ourselves (both good and bad). We are learning about others (again, both good and bad). It’s not as if this is particularly different than how it should be. The exception is that the world is holding a mirror to the church, and the church doesn’t like what it sees. One might argue that the world is holding up a distorted mirror, except that much of the church sees the same distortion as the world.

    This pain that we are feeling is one of and birth. The old self must die. The new one must come alive.

    Out of pain, despair, and being overwhelmed, many are understandably asking God, “what next?” It could be regarding finances. It could be about loving and serving your neighbor. It could be about what’s next for “the church”. It could be how to be more like Jesus.

    Jesus told his disciples that they wouldn’t ask for anything from God when Jesus left. This is the true gift of the . When we are fully in tune with God through the Spirit (rather than wants, desires, and even needs), then we don’t need to ask for anything for we will already be in the midst of God’s will, plan, and action.

    The most dangerous thing to both our individualistic notions and our corporate notions is when we pray to be in God’s will. When we ask that in Jesus’ name and mean it from the heart, we begin to surrender our will to God’s…and that truly is only the beginning.

    ※※

    What is your perspective of collective guilt? What brings you to that?How are collective and personal guilt different? How are they the same?

    ※※

    Lord, our initial turn to you included our repentance. We know that as fallible beings, repentance needs to be a constant companion. Guide us into perseverance and to be people who pursue your righteousness in the face of our unrighteousness. Amen.

  • Hand Power

    Hand Power

    Psalm 115; Numbers 8:5–22; Titus 1:1–9

    In Numbers, the outline for priestly behavior is pretty minimal. Do your job. They also have an date, 50. Yes, there were other concerns (as the children of Eli showed in 1 Samuel). By and large, though, the duties of the priests were what set them apart, not their character. However, there is an aspect of their installation (i.e., becoming priests) that is well worth looking at. The people laid their hands on the priests.

    This might sound kind of strange, and even unrelated, to us. In “priestly” circles, laying on of hands has long been a tradition. In non-Evangelical circles, it is an expected rite and theologically necessary. Traditions such as the Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Anglican hold to an unbroken chain of laying on of hands since Peter. Based upon the tradition of Levitical priests and the laying on of hands, it actually is pretty reasonable from a Jewish and .

    The of the Nazarene doesn’t particularly hold to the “unbreakable” aspect of the laying on of hands, but it does hold on to the tradition itself, as each ordained person has hands laid on them during their ordination by both the presiding Superintendent, but also all those who are ordained within the confines of the district (except in weird times as now).

    When a pastor is called to a church, during the installation, the Church board will lay hands (and often the congregation). Often, when a board is elected by the membership of church, hands are laid upon them by the congregation.

    There are multiple meanings within the laying on of hands. For the Israelites, there was an aspect of confession and there was an aspect of commission. The priests were set apart for the direct ministerial work of God on behalf of all of Israel. They were God’s “portion” (or “tithe”) of the people of Israel. So, the laying on of hands was integral to their mission for the people.

    With ordination, it is different. This is in recognition of the laying on of hands in the New Testament which would be accompanied by the imbuing of the Holy (correlation, not causation). While it is important both as legacy and ceremony, it really is an “inside” thing.

    However, the interaction between the pastor, board, and congregation is significant. What it isn’t is an abdication of responsibility. What it is is a bestowal of authority and a recognition of submission to the designated ( upon) authority.

    And it is that last piece that is the rub for so many. We all are more than willing to all the “grunt” work to , but we often don’t want to recognize the submission aspect. Of course, coming from a pastor this may seem self-centered. Honestly, I have others do “my” grunt work, too. We all do, to some degree.

    As fellow members of the and family of God, we all need to be willing to dig in for others, for the benefit of others and not ourselves, and ultimately produce fruit worthy of God’s children.

    ※Reflection※

    • Have you ever experienced have hands laid on you? Why? What was your feeling resulting from it?
    • Have you ever laid your hands on someone? Why? What was your takeaway from participating in that?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, we minister to each other through touch. We cannot always answer how or why, but we know that the is present. May our touch bring others closer to you. Amen.

  • Inside Fruit

    Inside Fruit

    Psalm 115; Exodus 28:29–38; Philippians 1:3–11

    The Holy as gift can often lead us to wonder if the Israelites ever had the Holy Spirit or spiritual gifts of any sort. The answer is some did and some didn’t. The Urim and Thummim were used by the high priest to make decisions regarding the will of God. They were devices of some sort. Some think similar to coins that you tossed. Yep, so-called chance items.

    In the Scriptures, they aren’t even mentioned as being used until…the from exile. It wasn’t until Ezra and Nehemiah were working with the priests that the Scriptures mentioned the Urim and Thummim actually being used. Does this mean they weren’t used? Probably not by those in a prophetic role. It makes sense, as those in a prophetic role moved by the power of the Holy Spirit.

    One of the other oddities of the priestly uniform is the flower ornament with the engraving of “Holy to the Lord.” The of the Nazarene has a similar saying on its seal, “ unto the Lord.” This seal (whether the Israelite or the Nazarene) is to remind us (or the people) that we are sealed to God (which means something different to Israelites and to Christians). In both situations, it is God who calls us to holiness and it is God who declares us holy and sanctified (set apart) for God’s work.

    As the Psalmist says, it is all to bring glory to God. The Lord remembers his people. Those that honor and the Lord will receive .

    And when writes to the Philippians, he observes that they are being blessed as God continues working on them from the inside out. Paul knows that God will continue this good work.

    God does the good work through all those who follow God, as long as they are receptive to it. Paul says, “…sincere and blameless…,” and our sincerity in regard to being changed is crucial to our being transformed into being more like Christ. Paul continues on with being filled with the fruit of . Note that it isn’t producing fruit, but being filled with it. It is an odd turn of phrasing, but it is a reframing of being transformed, just a different image to convey the same message.

    Fruit can also be filling and sweet. So, perhaps Paul is implying that the sweetness of God’s righteousness can fill us spiritually, keeping us from succumbing to temptations. For if we truly filled, then we will not hunger. If it is sweet, we will not be tempted by those things that seem sweet at the beginning but are truly only bitter fruit.

    ※Reflection※

    • Why do you think the fruit of righteousness is internal, rather than external such as we expect with spiritual gifts?
    • How might internal versus external fruit affect our lives differently?
    • How might our internal and external fruit affect the lives of others differently?

    ※Prayer※

    Holy Spirit, us from the inside out to be more like . Amen.

  • The Next

    The Next

    Psalm 47; Deuteronomy 34:1–9; John 16:4–11

    Who will come next is part of the “calculation” of many things. Psalm 78:4 speaks of telling the next generation about God. Proverbs 13:22 tells of leaving an inheritance for grandchildren. In 1 Timothy 1:2, tells Timothy that he (Timothy) is his (Paul’s) true child in the .

    The last chapter of Deuteronomy reminds Moses (and the Israelites) that God did marvelous things from the beginning (before the Israelites became the Israelites), and that the next step is coming. It also reminds us that while God worked miracles through Moses, there was a consequence for certain behaviors, even though their seems not to have otherwise changed.

    The person to follow Moses (the “next”) was Joshua. While Joshua is often raised up almost to Moses’ level, Joshua missed the biggest lesson that Moses taught him, the next. This, of course, is inferred from the lack of Scriptural mention of a successor to Joshua, and the Scriptural mention that everyone forgets with the next generation. The next is really a form of individualized, focused, mentoring, and discipleship. Part of the whole process is further illustrated by Jesus. When we realize that all we have for him covers 3 years of his ministry (yes, plus a few childhood vignettes), he really did spend most of his time with the 12 that would train them to walk in his ways and footsteps. It is these words that we should pay particular attention to, as these were the words that struck his disciples as important.

    This is deeply illustrated by John 16:4. He flat out tells them that he didn’t tell them everything in the beginning. It may well have taken years to get the ground (the disciples) for the entirety of Jesus’ message. It was revolutionary, after all.

    We live in a world that wants everything now. We may not be looking for instantaneous, but certainly quickly. In comparison, the early church would usually 3 YEARS to baptize a convert (this is after Paul). Yes, there was probably some filtering out of bad apples. There was also theology that was deeply placed on hearts.

    Our baptize them now thought process—and this is only one of many such things in general, not just Christianity—would not be able to withstand waiting. Truly, not only would the person being baptized likely not have the , but many of the leaders, elders, pastors don’t either.

    Perhaps being more like Jesus means leading 12 for 3 years to a deeper with Christ.

    ※Reflection※

    • What do you think makes a discipling relationship?
    • Why might mentoring be different than ?
    • Who is discipling you?
    • Who are you discipling?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, help us find those who will us, and help us find others to disciple. For we know that we must be purposeful in both to bring your here on earth. Amen.

  • Up and Away

    Up and Away

    Psalm 47; Ephesians 1:15–23; Luke 24:44–53; Acts 1:1–11

    If you’re of a certain , you’ll probably know the source of, “Up! Up! And away!” (Superman). If you’re of another age or particular family/church origin, you’ll probably know the song, “I’ll Fly Away”. Then there is the airline advertising slogan, “Wanna’ get away?” If none of these strike a chord, then perhaps Prince Hamlet’s soliloquy from Shakespeare’s Hamlet that talks about escaping the “mortal coil”.

    Regardless, there is a constant desire to “escape” or “get away.” Sometimes it’s couched in heroic language (Superman). Sometimes it’s couched in resonative religious language (“I’ll Fly Away”). Sometimes it’s couched in depressing or dismal language (the soliloquy of Prince Hamlet).

    Often, that desire to escape is the outpouring of emotions that seem to have no place to go when massive change comes. It might be only with a larger emotional event that we can move beyond our desire to fly away.

    No matter what, the disciples knew that the tension between Jesus’ and whatever was coming next (as Jesus promised) would , somehow. They were still living in that uncomfortable and awkward in-between. Then Jesus takes them out to the mountain…and up he went.

    While Jesus’ Ascension is an important part of the story in the Scriptures, Jesus’ Ascension is also the sign that the disciples must go .“…why are you standing here, looking toward heaven?” In other words, Jesus is gone. Time to do your end of the mission.

    Sometimes, even if the tension is uncomfortable, we rather stay with it, because moving forward means leaving something behind, and emotionally it may feel like . We can see this in the seasons (at least in the less temperate climates). Fall has these bursts of beauty, but the tension is that the bursts are leading to endings.

    Then winter comes and the land is not-so lively anymore. The question for us is do we want to remain in a spiritual winter? Whether the disciples were in a spiritual Fall or Winter is probably more for the poets to determine. Spring is coming, however. As Paul says, “I pray that the eyes of your heart will have enough to see what is the of God’s …”I don’t know what spiritual season of you are in. In fact, different aspects of your life may have different spiritual seasons, so you may not even be able to tell.

    ※Reflection※

    What endings are you seeing that you need Paul’s prayer for your life?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, many of us feel completely out of sorts, and we can’t figure out why. We try to name and analyze, but we will likely fail. Help us to stop looking back, and help us to look forward, and that our hearts will seek, see, and embrace the light that is you. Amen.

  • Places for Scripture

    Places for Scripture

    Psalm 93; Deuteronomy 11:18–21; Mark 16:19–20

    “Place these words…on your heart” and then to “…they went out and proclaimed the message everywhere.”One of the little truths about this passage in Deuteronomy is the very simple tool given that many turned into a soulless rule or merely room decor. God directed that God’s word be placed everywhere in our lives, even on door frames! You can go to places like Michael’s and Hobby Lobby and find the Scriptures available for room decor. You can do it simply with a piece of paper and tape.

    Honestly, I used to disparage the use of Scripture as decor, mostly because I saw it in too many homes and places that seemed anything but filled with God’s love. However, it is certainly not fair to God’s Word that I should be that way. As we read, it’s actually bad that I thought that way. I have found and redemptive actions in simply reading a verse of Scripture or that which reminds me of the Scriptures as I walk around my home.

    At my paying job (purchasing manager in manufacturing), I’ve been told that my workspace is too white (white walls, no decor). Over the last few days (before this devotion), I’ve been thinking that I need some of the Scriptures in my work . Will it be visible? Yes. Will it be there for others to see? If they wish. I’m going to put it there for me so that I —when that really irritating person walks through my door for the umpteenth time that day—whose I am, and who I am to reflect. It won’t be there to provide the appearance of a warm and cozy home. It is for me to remember.

    Remember. The whole point of Moses’ directive is so that the Israelites (and we) remember. For a number of years, I heard the same passage from 1 John 1 read at the beginning of every Sunday service as part of the opening corporate confession of . Then we left that church , we stopped hearing it. I can still quote it. It gives me great peace, too, and gives direction to grace to others. It’s a whopping four verses.

    So, if you remember and share the words, what about the signs? That is a great question! How do you know a Christian? How they speak? How they dress? How they spend? How they give? How they receive? Yes, to all of these and more! It’s not very easy. That is one of the pitfalls of our post-Enlightenment world. The world, and we, want an easy answer to determine who is in and who is out.

    Except, as we read the Scriptures when can that when we “know” who is in and who is out we stop loving God and loving others…which may mean we’re out.

    ※Reflection※

    • What ways are you open to bring the Scriptures regularly into your life? What ways are you currently using? Which ones are you thinking about adding?
    • What are some reasons that we should have some of the Scriptures deep within us as we share the Gospel of Jesus?

    ※Prayer※

    Spirit, quicken our hearts and mind to want more of you and the Word inside of us, that we may be emboldened and encouraged to go into the world seeking to transform it by your love coming through us. Amen.