Devotional Reading from the Daily Common Lectionary: John 3: 16-21

Text: Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. (v. 17)

When I was a child the church that I grew up in gave us memory verses. John 3: 16 was among the first, if not the first.

I never have been good at memorizing things. I can remember small insignificant useless details in life experiences, but memory verses, lines in a play or even names, but that is a  different story. The bible verses that I have memorized have been those that spoke to my spirit. John 3:17 is one of them.

When I became a minister I realized that John 3: 16 is only half of God’s story, even though too many people would have you believe that it is the whole story.  John 3:16 doesn’t give us the “Why”;  Why did God send the Son?  “Why” is the most important life-changing thing that anyone can ever know! It is the reason that God does everything in this world. God sent the Son in order to save the world, broken though it is.

Martin Luther once wrote that God can carve the rotten wood and ride the lame horse. It’s not about being good enough but about God reaching out to us to save us from our self-destructive humanity. It is about God’s goodness, not ours. It is about God’s Grace rather than our works. Everything in Life is always first and foremost about God and what God is doing in this world, often in spite of us!

Lord, in this season of Advent preparation, help me to “get out of Your way” and into the flow of what You are doing in this world. Let me, in Your name and to Your glory, bind up the wounds of this world and be a healing balm to soothes broken spirits. Amen.

Devotional Reading: Matthew 23: 1-12

Text: The greatest among you will be your servant. (v. 11)

Servant leadership. The phrase gets bandied around a lot, at least in religious circles. The truth of the matter is that it is seldom taken to heart. I often see signs posted that say “Reserved for Pastor”, or Organist or Staff or whatever. The truth of the matter is that the leader often gets the largest bonus while those who made the leader who she is, are not nearly as valued. The truth of the matter is that, as in Jesus’ day, leaders received perks and privileges that others don’t. it still happens.

I can’t help but to remember that Jesus pointed to another way of life and living. In John’s gospel, on his last night with the twelve, he took a servant’s towel, wrapped it wound his waist and proceeded to wash the disciples’ feet. He stooped to the humblest of jobs to show those who would take Him seriously that servanthood was the only way to Life. Paradoxically, giving ourselves away is the only way to find our true selves.

In this season of Advent lower your wants and discover the joy of giving. Be the the glimpse of grace you long to receive.

Lord God, ingive myself to You. Do with me what You will. Amen.

Matthew 22: 23-33

Text: Jesus answered them, “You are wrong, for know neither the scriptures nor the power of God. (v. 29)

It was once said of John Calvin that when he was lecturing on the Creation story of Genesis 1, a heckler shouted, “If you’re so smart, what was God doing before He created the heavens and the earth?!” Without missing a beat ol’ Calvin replied, “He was creating hell for overly curious people like you!!” The story may be apocryphal but it makes a point.

Too many people who say that they are Jesus followers are more judgmental than the Almighty they profess to know! When I was younger I thought that I knew all of Life’s answers. But then Real Life happened. My preconceived notions and easy answers crumbled like a graham cracker pie crust. It was then that I understood something else that Calvin was purported to have said; we should speak when the Bible speaks and be silent when the Bible is silent.

I no longer try to understand the ways of God. I don’t know what God is really doing. I tell Him that often. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, God’s ways are not my ways nor are God’s purposes my purposes.

But God is at work in this world. It is best to try to get in the flow of what God is doing, to “ride” God’s wave for it is then that we see glimpses of Grace all around us.

Lord, give a humble heart that listens more than it speaks and has the wisdom to know when to be silent. Amen

Daily Reading: Matthew 21: 23-32. Text: “Which of the two did the will of his father?” (v. 31a)

The parable Jesus told is familiar to any parent. You asked your children to straighten up their room or put their toys away. The “good” child says they will but somehow never gets around to doing it. Meanwhile the “strong-willed” or “defiant” child may throw a fit saying that they will not do and that you can’t make them. But later, when you check back you find that the second child actually did what you asked!

I imagine that the situation is as old as Time, or at least Jesus’ Time. It was one that his listeners would have been quite familiar with, and they may have even knowingly nodded to one another.

Jesus’ Long is simple; there are far more pseudo-followers or “fans” of Jesus than there are people who take him seriously. In Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, when Scrooge told his ghostly late night visitor Jacob Marley that he always was a good man of business, an anguished Marley cried out, “Business! Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence were all my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

In Advent we would do well to ask ourselves if we are willing to take Jesus seriously no matter what or only when taking him seriously fits into our plans and agendas. Are we like the son who says “Yes, Mom or Dad” but never gets around to doing it, or are we like the child who may protest, but who does it anyway. Only of the two sons is a glimpse of grace.

Lord, give me a willing and courageous heart. Let me listen to Your voice and do what You ask me to do. Amen.

Lord