George Love, Pastor of Hebron Presbyterian Church, continues sharing his thoughts on the Daily Lectionary Series of Bible readings. You will find his most recent comments at the top, with earlier ones below. See earlier ones in January by following this link.
We have also added daily links to Presbyterian Church (USA) website where you will find the Scripture readings for that day. We hope you will find this a helpful way to join us in seeking God's message for our daily lives.
February 24
First Reading:
Genesis 37:12-24
Psalm: Psalm 34
Second Reading:
1 Corinthians 1:20-31
Gospel: Mark 1:14-28
"Consider your own call, brothers and sisters; not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth." - 1 Corinthians 1:26
I am experiencing the gift of a silent retreat at the Abbey of Gethsemani in New Haven, Kentucky. It was the Abbey of Thomas Merton, whose grave is here. It is less than an hour from my home, but it feels a place all its own somehow set apart from everywhere. This morning I was reading Paul write about how not many of the folks in the Corinthian church were this or that sort of societally privileged person. Asserting that God hadn't chosen or called them out for any of the reasons their culture might choose to call and recognize someone. It's not that God couldn't call a person who might meet that criteria; it was instead that God doesn't make use of any of that filtering process. God can and will call anyone and everyone.
This retreat is a mostly silent retreat. You will hear the occasional voice for some necessary purpose, but no one is intentionally striking up conversations. The monks obviously know the drill, and the retreatants knew what we were signing up for. A result of that is that we are a bit of a mystery to one another. We are always, probably, a mystery to one another, but removing the capacity to speak feels like it highlights that truth. We don't know the backstory of the monks. Or the folks who work here. Or the other folks on retreat. We are here because for these few days, this is the community that God has formed in this place.
There are practical implications of this. We lack clues as to who we should be intimidated by, who we should be impressed by, who we should be suspicious of and so on. What we can assume is a basic commonality of seeing something in what is offered here that has drawn us together. Which I think is some of what Paul is getting at in his description of the Corinthian community and what it means for the body of Christ in any time and place. God hasn't called the brightest and the best by whatever measure one might use for such a qualification.
God has called us. Thanks be to God.
February 23
First Reading:
Genesis 37:1-11
Psalm: Psalm 6:
Second Reading:
1 Corinthians 1:1-19
Gospel: Mark 1:13
"So his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind." - Genesis 37:11
Here are the stories of the young Joseph. Favored by his father, Jacob. The favoritism does not sit well with his brothers as you would expect. Then it turns out Joseph is a dreamer. In a dream that he shares with his brothers, sheaves are being bound in the fields. The sheaf that is Joseph stands and the sheaves that represent his brothers bow to Joseph's. The brothers are not impressed. Next he has a dream where the sun, moon, and eleven stars, (Joseph's father, mother and brothers it seems) all bow down to him.
This much telling other people how your dreams indicate they will bow down to you is going to make for tough family dynamics. In v.8 we are told his brothers hate him, in v.11 they are jealous of him, and v.10 even his doting father rebukes him.
It's the last bit that catches my eye this morning. In summation of everything, it's clear the brothers know what they think of Joseph. Jacob though is in a different place. "His father kept the matter in mind." He didn't forget about it. He didn't do anything about it. He did what we often do when trying to figure out the course of action in an impossible situation - he kept thinking about it. It can be a tricky thing, this keeping the matter in mind. It can appear we are indifferent or that we are unaware, when neither is true. Sometimes we are entirely focused on an issue/problem - it's not lack of awareness, it's not that we don't care mightily – it's simply that we don't have any idea what to do. What is weighing heavily in your mind? Where are you not able to see resolution? What are you keeping in mind?
February 22
First Reading:
Daniel 9:3-10
Psalm: Psalm 32
Second Reading:
Hebrews 2:10-18
Gospel: John 12:44-50
"'Ah Lord, great and awesome God, keeping covenant and steadfast love with those who love you and keep your commandments, we have sinned and done wrong,...'" - Daniel 9:4
"'I have come as light into the world so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in the darkness.'" - John 12:46
A day for connections. Preached this morning on confession as a key part of the worship service, and come to this passage from Daniel this evening which is written as a confession by the people to God who has been faithful. It's a timeless dynamic. God keeps God's covenant promises, the people struggle to be faithful. Confession, honesty with God about our brokenness, is a gift and making use of the gift is essential to the health of our faith journey.
Then a Lenten study this evening. The passage was Matthew quoting Isaiah referencing the people who walked in darkness seeing a great light. And then here is Jesus in John 12 stating that he came "as a light to the world." As surely as we as humans continue to need confession to tend to our relationship with God, we also continue to be vulnerable to darkness, and in need of God who sends light into the world.
These are the kind of connections where we can see the Spirit at work. The more scripture we take in, the more it has the opportunity to be in conversation with itself, elaborating, illuminating, and expanding our spiritual vocabulary.
February 21
First Reading:
Ezekiel 39:21-29
Psalm: Psalm 43
Second Reading:
Philippians 4:10-20
Gospel: John 17:20-26
"I can do all things through him who strengthens me." - Philippians 4:13
Paul shares with the Philippians a foundational belief that with Christ he can meet whatever life may have in store. He is wrapping up his letter with a word of thanks to them for the way they have supported him, often, he says, when no one else has come to his aid. This gratitude is also a lesson. He is helping the Philippians to understand their support of his ministry is God working through them. They are participating in God's divine plan.
Paul's "I can do all things" is not meant to be understood as specific to Paul. We all can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Like the Philippians we can support others when they are in need. Like Paul we can recognize God's hand on the events of our lives, and see that even when there seems to be no way, God will make a way.
This is not Paul endorsing magic thinking. This is Paul stating that whatever the circumstance, God is with us in it. "I have learned to be content with whatever I have," writes the apostle. (4:11) On some days, doing all things, may simply be finding the strength to keep moving forward, trusting that others share the journey with us, and that however things appear God will not abandon us.
February 20
First Reading:
Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32
Psalm: Psalm 22
Second Reading:
Philippians 4:1-9
Gospel: John 17:9-19
"...Turn, then, and live."
- Ezekiel 18:32
"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." - Philippians 4:8
"Think about these things." Meditate on these qualities. Whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable; whatever is excellent and worthy of praise. It's not easy, but it's not mysterious. There are ways of being in the world that do not reflect these attributes and there are ways that do. It is interesting in Philippians that Paul's instruction is not, at first, to do these things. It is to think about these things.
So... think first. I suspect this is because in the absence of reflection, we can convince ourselves that a wide variety of suspect behaviors are just fine. If we just skip thinking about the level of selfishness in a particular action – if we can set aside the harmful implications of certain choices for others – if we can avoid thinking about it, we can imagine we are acting with good intent and pure motivation.
Thinking about our actions gives us the space to ask challenging questions of ourselves that demand honest reflection and perhaps offer momentarily disheartening answers. I may find that I am more selfish than I imagine and more callous than I know. But notice I said momentarily disheartening. Momentarily, because when I take that moment to examine and ask God to help me with a sincere evaluation, I have the opportunity to do better and to move towards that more excellent way that God desires.
February 19
First Reading:
Habakkuk 3:1-18
Psalm: Psalm 126
Second Reading:
Philippians 3:12-21
Gospel: John 17:1-8
"But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ." - Philippians 3:20
Central to Lent is repentance. Repentance may not be pleasant work, but I think it's important to not categorize it as punitive. Repentance is not trudging out to the woodshed to get what's coming to us. Repentance is the work of honest examination of our lives. It's being attentive to the brittle, broken, irritating, rough spots that we would rather ignore. It's seeing the things we might believe we prefer not to dwell on, and having conversation with God about how we can move forward into more life-giving practices and relationships.
When Paul writes "our citizenship is in heaven," he is giving us a way of examining problematic areas of our lives. If our faith does mean that our citizenship is in heaven, does it translate into how we are living our lives? What does having our citizenship in heaven mean? Perhaps it begins with understanding that our choices and actions are governed first and foremost by God. Do our lives look like our citizenship is in heaven?
Paul also invites us to orient our hope towards the place of our citizenship, reminding us that our expectation for a Savior is an expectation of the Christ of heaven who came to us and who will return. I profess this, but do I act, make decisions, appear to be anchored in this hope or do I often flail about looking for hope in material things that promise security? These are the kinds of questions that populate the season of Lent.
February 18
Ash Wednesday
First Reading:
Amos 5:6-15
Psalm: Psalm 51
Second Reading:
Hebrews 12:1-14
Gospel: Luke 18:9-14
"Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me." - Psalm 51:2-3
"Seek good and not evil, that you may live…." - Amos 5:14
It's Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the season of Lent. Lent is the forty days, not including Sundays between Ash Wednesday and Easter. It's a time of looking inward and taking stock. An invitation to be honest with ourselves, about where we are missing the mark - the literal definition of sin - and as a result have a need to repent, to seek to change our lives in ways that more align with God's intention for our world and for us in our world.
Psalm 51 is always a staple in our Ash Wednesday Service. The Psalmist has the clear-eyed honesty Lent asks of us. "I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me." Beginning in this place of honesty allows the Psalmist to move further on in the chapter to the words I repeat at the imposition of ashes in our church, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me." (v.10)
The beauty of this day is it's not just a day - it's the introduction to a season. We don't have to do this work tonight to have it ready for tomorrow. Mirroring Jesus' forty days sojourn in the wilderness, we enter into an extended time of reflection with the express purpose of not being in a hurry. The journey begins today. Let's get to work.
February 17
First Reading:
Proverbs 30:1-4, 24-33
Psalm: Psalm 102
Second Reading:
Philippians 3:1-11
Gospel: John 18:28-38
"My days are like a lengthening shadow;
I wither away like grass.
But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever;
your name endures to all generations."
- Psalm 102:11-12
Life in a congregation is life among folks of a wide variety of ages. When we are in a congregation for an extended period of time we have the opportunity to experience the effects of the passage of that time. The children grow into young people. The young people grow into adults. The adults grow into older adults. Each stage of life comes with its own delights and its own concerns. In a world that has very often divided us up into groups that largely relate to people our own age, a congregation with a wide spectrum of ages offers us a unique opportunity to see all of that growing and changing taking place across the joys and challenges of each phase of life.
The psalmist in Psalm 102 is taking a hard look at the brief expanse of a human life and the forever nature of God. Noticed, are the lengthening of the days for a human, alongside the Lord who endures to all generations. There is a clue here to one of the most powerful aspects of our faith: the connection to God, who is larger than us, timeless in fact. Our God is beckoning us to follow, find, and participate in something larger than ourselves. We are invited to see meaning for each of our lives in the fabric of the larger work being put together by our Creator.
We have several skilled quilters in our church. One shared with me before our prayer group this morning that she had leftover bits of fabric that she had saved and was planning to use for a quilt. I've seen her finished work. They won't look like leftovers. It will look like art. That's what God is doing in our lives and in our world. Some days it may feel like the shadows are lengthening and we may imagine that we've become leftover fabric. The psalmist would have us understand that in God's kingdom there is no leftover fabric. There are only quilts in the process of becoming.
February 16
First Reading:
Proverbs 27:1-12
Psalm: Psalm 5
Second Reading:
Philippians 2:1-13
Gospel: John 18:15-27
"...work on your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure." - Philippians 2:12-13
The call to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling is a wonderful call to journey with God and to do so with a humble heart. I am drawn to the idea of what it means to "work on" salvation. It does not mean to accomplish what Christ has accomplished, it means to fashion a life lived within the framework of following Christ. Such a framework is necessarily humble and oriented to faithful service.
"Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus" says Paul earlier in this passage. (18:5) What a daunting and inspiring challenge. It's not a call to an exalted position that comes complete with great recognition. It's a call to love and to service and to compassion as we work out what it means to live in fidelity to Christ.
February 15
First Reading:
Malachi 4:16
Psalm: Psalm 103
Second Reading:
2 Corinthians 3:7–18
Gospel: Luke 9:18-27
"'Who do the crowds say that I am?' They answered, 'John the Baptist; but others, Elijah; and still others, that one of the ancient prophets has arisen.' Then he said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?'" - Luke 9:18-19
Both of Jesus' questions are worth pursuing. Who do people say that Jesus is? What do people believe about him? It's valuable to listen to the way other people, Christians and non-Christians alike, speak of Jesus. Who do we say that Jesus is? Even if our answer seems simple and straightforward to us, it's useful to ask how simple and straightforward it might seem to someone else. If my answer, like Peter's, is that Jesus is the Messiah, how do I explain the Messiah to someone who has no context for the word or the idea? If I say something like "Jesus is the son of God," it may well be that a phrase like that, which may seem at first clear to us, may need some unpacking as we communicate with another person.
One of the takeaways from today's lectionary readings for me is how they demonstrate the utility of reading scripture through a tool like the lectionary. I preached this morning on a passage from Matthew that tells the story of Jesus' transfiguration, a story that always comes around on the last Sunday before the beginning of Lent. In this story Jesus is joined briefly on a mountain by Elijah and Moses, two people whose stories are told in the Old Testament. It was interesting to me then when Elijah and Moses showed up in the Malachi passage for today. Moses also makes an appearance in the 2 Corinthians passage. Neither of these has a direct relationship to the transfiguration story, but it does emphasize how much both Elijah and Moses were present in the thought processes of Jewish people in both the Old and New Testaments. Reading in different parts of God's word will reveal connections that deepen our appreciation of the larger story being told in the totality of the Bible.
February 14
First Reading:
Genesis 29:1-20
Psalm: Psalm 104
Second Reading:
Romans 14:1-23
Gospel: John 8:47-59
"Let us therefore no longer pass judgment on one another, but resolve instead never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother or sister." - Romans 14:13
Paul is teaching the Roman church not to stand in judgment of each other. Usually, if you are teaching something like this, it's because someone is passing judgment on someone. Even from its earliest days then the church has not been immune to the temptation of judging each other. Paul is pointing out that judging is not our work in relation to each other - we aren't helping anyone along the way on their faith journey by emphasizing our judgment. In fact, we are more likely to be creating "stumbling blocks."
This didn't stop being a thing back in the day of Paul and the early Roman church. We still clearly are very capable of looking on one another and seeing the flaws and what we perceive to be the shortcomings of others. It's worth reiterating Paul's words to our present time - we don't further the journey of faith in helpful ways by leading with judgment. The Roman Christians were in disagreement over dietary habits. Paul was basically not having it. "Do not for the sake of food, destroy the work of God." (14:20)
Our default setting should be to encourage one another. If there is to be evaluation and criticism, the place to begin with such thoughts is inward. And even there, not in a way that is destructive or harmful, but one that aims to help us be more of what Christ wants us to be, removing our own stumbling blocks and barriers to right relationship with God.
February 13
First Reading:
Genesis 27:46-28:22
Psalm: Psalm 148
Second Reading:
Romans 13:1-14
Gospel: John 8:33-47
"For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone; the day is near." - Romans 13:11-12
There is a saying that goes something like, we are older now than we've ever been and also as young as we will ever be from this moment on. These verses from Romans 13 are working that territory. In our journey with Jesus we are presently as close to whatever comes next as we have ever been, regardless of how near or far away that future turns out to be.
There is a tension in faith where I believe our focus can become so much on the future that is waiting, that we lose sight of the present in which we are living. My trust in God's future is strong, but my belief that God values what we are about right now, today, is also strong.
Over the past week we've been watching a lot of the Winter Olympics, currently taking place in Italy. There are some events where the athletes are used to lots of attention and to be in the spotlight. And there are others where the competitions really only get a big stage when they are featured in the Olympic Games. Those athletes must work very hard in relative obscurity, trusting that the work will lead to an opportunity on that Olympic stage. Without the work, day after day, there is no Olympics at the end of the rainbow. The work has value in and of itself. Here, in Romans, Paul is exhorting the Jesus followers in Rome to keep doing the work, by reminding them that the everyday work of faithfulness, is drawing them day by day closer to the dawn of God's grand future.
February 12
First Reading:
Genesis 27:30-45
Psalm: Psalm 147:12-20
Second Reading:
Romans 12:9-21
Gospel: John 8:21-32
"If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free." - John 8:31-32
"Let love be genuine, hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good..." - Romans 12:9
It feels to me like Paul's words about letting love be genuine, hating evil, and holding fast to good could be understood as an excellent working explanation of what Jesus means when he invites us to continue in his word. You can't let love be genuine once. Or once a week. Or even once a day. It's an ongoing effort. It's continual. Jesus isn't calling us to a momentary stance. Jesus is calling us to a way of life. A way of life oriented around him and the truths he lives and teaches.
As long as we draw breath we are to continue in his word. As we are truly able to do this we begin to experience what he promises, an awareness of what is true, a freedom that comes with that knowledge.
Genuine love is an end in itself. Genuine love is not something we attempt to take up in hopes of using it to gain something else. As soon as we start trying to use it as a catalyst for something beyond itself, it stops being genuine love. Continuing in Christ's word does not mean being perfect and staying that way. It means our orientation becomes love, living an ethic of love. If we fall short, it's not over, there is a mechanism, repentance and forgiveness to keep us moving forward. Christ has loved us. Christ wants us to know and to share that love.
February 11
First Reading:
Genesis 27:1-29
Psalm: Psalm 147:1-11
Second Reading:
Romans 12:1-8
Gospel: John 8:12-20
"...present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable act of worship." - Romans 12:1
What does it mean to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice? To sacrifice means to make holy. We offer our first and best selves to God. We don't hope that God will settle for whatever is left in the tank after we do whatever we imagine to be essential. We give ourselves as fully as we are able to God.
The last of the above verse says this sacrifice is our "reasonable act of worship." It is reasonable. It is an understandable response when we contemplate the fullness of God's mercy, grace and love. God offers all of this, how can we not be overwhelmed and wish to respond with our all to God.
Perhaps we have it somewhere in our mind that offering our lives as a sacrifice before God will result in a life of unhappiness as we prioritize God over our own desires and choices. The truth of it is that we can look to Christ, who offered the perfect sacrifice of himself, from which came the perfect victory of Easter. When we aim to live as living sacrifices, seeking to sanctify our lives, we will discover a fullness of life that only comes from fidelity to our Creator God.
February 10
First Reading:
Genesis 26:1-33
Psalm: Psalm 146
Second Reading:
Hebrews 13:17-25
Gospel: John 7:53-8:11
"Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground." - John 8:6
There is so much happening so quickly in the story from John's Gospel. We are told the scribes and the Pharisees bring a woman caught in adultery before Jesus to put him to some sort of test as to what he thinks should be done. We are told they did this to test Jesus. Not to arrive at a just outcome, but to test Jesus.
As they wait for Jesus' response, Jesus bends down and starts writing in the dirt on the ground. It doesn't say what he wrote. It doesn't say how long he spent doing it. We are just told he bends down and writes on the ground. After some amount of time has passed he stands up and tells them that the one without sin should throw the first rock to stone the woman. Then he bends back down and goes back to his writing.
As he writes, the accusers all slink away. Jesus hasn't just saved the woman from harm, but done so in a way that shamed the accusers. But what was he writing on the ground? I've actually heard different theories, which is all they can possibly be - theories. It just doesn't say. But it's still valuable to think of him kneeling down and pausing. Sometimes it's useful simply to pause. Jesus could have snapped back at them, met the intensity of the accusers with equal intensity. Instead he did a calming thing. He paused and let everyone take a moment and think about what was happening before he spoke his word of truth for all to hear. How much might we deflate the energy of a conflict simply by not contributing to it? How much might we benefit at times from not rushing headlong into the next statement or the next action? How much good might be served sometimes by simply collecting ourselves, kneeling down, and doodling in the dirt?
February 9
First Reading:
Genesis 25:19-34
Psalm: Psalm 145
Second Reading:
Hebrews 13:1-16
Gospel: John 7:37-52
"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers..." - Hebrews 13:1
"Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have..." - Hebrews 13:16
A community of faith should be a blessing to the area where it is located and beyond that to the world. These directives from the author of Hebrews give two clear reasons why. Hospitality to strangers and doing good, while sharing what we have; these are to be hallmarks of our faith. If we do these things there will necessarily be a positive impact beyond ourselves.
Yesterday the Super Bowl was played, and because of that our congregation participated with many others around the country in the Souper Bowl of Caring. The Souper Bowl of Caring is a program of a group called Tackle Hunger that was created by a youth group in a local church in 1990. Since it began the program has used the day of the big game to promote a big response to hunger, collecting money and food to support and supply food to alleviate hunger all around our country. Their website reports: "Through grassroots action, youth leadership, and the iconic Souper Bowl of Caring campaign, Tackle Hunger has generated over $220 million in food and funds — helping to ensure no one goes without a bowl of soup to eat."
There are so many things a congregation can do to impact the world. When we create change for the better in even a small portion of our neighborhood, we are indeed changing the world. Hospitality, doing good, and sharing are not peripheral parts of our faith; these are our core values finding expression, teaching us to love and to meaningfully share that love.
February 8
First Reading:
Genesis 24:50-67
Psalm: Psalm 103
Second Reading:
2 Timothy 2:14-21
Gospel: Mark 10:13-22:
"'Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.'" - Mark 10:14
It's great that we have Jesus on record this way, making clear that he does not want any interference with children having access to him. The church can be a beautiful gathering of folks of all ages. I think it's truly at its best when there is the opportunity for children and adults to interact together. The best gift children can receive in the church is to experience it as a place of welcome, a place where there are people who are interested in them and glad to see them.
Jesus says that it is "to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs." Perhaps this is why there are times when the presence of children in worship enables all who are present to experience a bit of God's kingdom. Our children at Hebron are such a blessing, taking regular active roles in worship and sharing their gifts in a variety of ways.
I love the sound of children in worship. There is very little as reassuring and joyful as the sound of the children's voices blending in as we say the Apostles Creed or the Lord's Prayer. In most instances they aren't reading. They know the words. It is the sound of faith taking root, the powerful words of the past, spoken in the present, providing hope for tomorrow. And the kingdom of God does indeed draw a bit closer.
February 7
First Reading:
Genesis 24:28-51
Psalm: Psalm 63
Second Reading:
Hebrews 12:12-29
Gospel: John 7:14-36
"Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed." - Hebrews 12:12-13
I'm preaching tomorrow and the text is from Matthew 5, the Sermon on the Mount. The piece that is the heart of the sermon is Jesus proclaiming that the people hearing his message are salt and light. Christians who are about the work of following Jesus are challenged by these words. Be salt! Be light! Sometimes my capacity for seasoning seems minimal and my light is flickering.
The Hebrews passage is a good one to have on hand when the ongoing project of being salt and light and following Jesus in all the ways faithfulness calls for is feeling more like burden than joy. "Lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees." It's something of a pep talk for when the fatigue sets in.
Scripture is a deep well. Dip down the bucket in one place and find challenges that push us to discover our gifts and put them to work in living out our faith. But don't dip just once. Keep dipping. Dip again and find encouragement to sustain us when we have grown tired. Sometimes the drooping hands and weak knees are ours. Even then, God sees us and encourages us to keep stepping forward, trusting that through it all, Jesus walks with us.
February 6
First Reading:
Genesis 24:1-27
Psalm: Psalm 84
Second Reading:
Hebrews 12:3-11
Gospel: John 7:1-13
"Even the sparrow finds a home and the swallow a nest for herself where she may lay her young..." - Psalm 84:3
In our gospel lesson, Jesus is making decisions about where he feels safe carrying out his work. He is discerning what risks he is ready to take and what should wait for another day. Should he stay in the Galilee or go to Judea? Attend the Festival of Booths or not? Jesus understands himself to be near a transitional moment in his ministry and mission.
We know that in the Sermon On The Mount in Matthew 6:26, Jesus teaches, "Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them." I wonder if, as he shared this, he was thinking of the passage above from Psalm 84. They share a similar idea - God's attention to detail is such that God attends to the needs of birds for home and sustenance. If God cares in this way for the birds, how much more for us?
And perhaps Jesus, in the uncertainty of the John 6 passage, drew strength and comfort from this same Psalm. He would need to make a decision about going to Judea. He decided to go, but to go, in this instance, in secret. In the future he would not be keeping a low profile and things would become increasingly difficult. Perhaps as he continued to follow his path of fidelity to his mission, he thought of God's care even for the birds, and knew that God's hand was surely on him as well.
February 5
First Reading:
Genesis 23:1-20
Psalm: Psalm 116
Second Reading:
Hebrews 11:32-12:2
Gospel: John 6:60-71
"This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?" - John 6:60
In my book Through The Bible in 365 Days With A Friend, I wrote a pretty thorough valentine to the twelve core disciples - particularly Peter - because of their profession of loyalty and faith in Jesus and his mission in this passage. I still want to emphasize that as my first response to this passage from John 6. When Jesus asks if they want to leave, Peter responds "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life." (6:68) Powerful words of support and I have to think Jesus was encouraged.
Since I've already said that though, I think it's worth giving a moment of thought to the would-be followers who decided to walk away. We should be attentive to them. What they say is not wrong. "The teaching is difficult; who can accept it?" Notice they did not say it was impossible. They said it was difficult. Recognizing its difficulty they decided they had gone far enough with Jesus.
What we as followers of Jesus can learn from them is the reality that much of what Jesus asks of us is indeed difficult. It's challenging. Jesus does not set the bar low for us. Jesus wants us to be fully engaged, but Jesus does not lower his expectations of us in order not to scare us off. If we hear it, as those would-be followers did, and think it will be difficult, we are right and we need to not be surprised when sometimes the road of faith is bumpy. Sometimes very much so.
At the end of the day, Peter has the right response though. Once we've encountered Jesus, where else will we experience these words of life?
February 4
First Reading:
Genesis 22:1-18
Psalm: Psalm 96
Second Reading:
Hebrews 11:23-31
Gospel: John 6:52-59
"He said these things while he was teaching in a synagogue at Capernaum." - John 6:59
Jesus is engaged in this profound theological conversation about himself as the living bread that comes down from heaven. It's a path thick with meaning and lots to unpack. And then comes the last line of today's passage, which locates the conversation in Capernaum's synagogue. I have stood on the foundation of that synagogue.
The archaeological site of the biblical village of Capernaum is, as you would guess, located right on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. You can stand in the ruins of the synagogue and look to one side and see the Sea of Galilee and then another and see the hills as they sweep up from the Sea. You can imagine the teaching and the interactions that went on in and around that synagogue. It's one of the locations in the Holy Land where it is most easy to imagine that you are walking today where Jesus walked.
The synagogue was of course a gathering place for the Jewish community of Capernaum. A place to worship. A place to learn. A place to have all sorts of conversations, likely ranging from the everyday concerns of the community to, on the day in this passage, profound considerations of how Jesus feeds his followers.
It is at least in part because it holds the possibility of these conversations that our churches still pull us together on common ground. They are gathering places for our communities of Jesus followers. They are a place to worship. A place to learn. And, yes, a place to have all sorts of conversations. Conversations of mutual care and concern; and questions of what it means to walk with God, to live in the world as God's people, and to experience the nurture and sustenance of God.
February 3
First Reading: Genesis 21:1-21
Psalm: Psalm 12
Second Reading: Hebrews 11:13-22
Gospel: John 6:41-51
"All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them." - Hebrews 11:13
The promises of God are trustworthy. That is what I see in scripture and what I believe I have witnessed throughout my life of faith. The promises of God are also completely on God's timetable. I have also witnessed this along the way in my faith journey. Both of these things are important to hold together, because the tension between them is quite similar to the tension that arises when my idea of what God's timing should be is different then God's.
Hebrews is telling the story of God's activity in the history of the great stories of the Hebrew people. God makes promises to Abraham and then to subsequent generations. They all participate. They all play a role. None of the names listed in Hebrews 11 see the totality of the promise play out in their lifetimes. They are all held up as examples. They saw the promises "from a distance and greeted them."
We may experience some long days, but the reality for all of us is that given the broad canvas of human history, we have a moment. God's promises are trustworthy. Some of them we will experience and see them come to fruition. Some, we will put our trust in God and live in faith, and see the promises from a distance and greet them.
February 2
First Reading:
Genesis 19:1-29
Psalm: 62
Second Reading:
Hebrews 11:1-12
Gospel: John 6:27-40
"Jesus said, 'I am the bread of life.'" - John 6:35
Jesus did things like define himself in terms of what he was making available to us or that to which he was (and is) providing access. He didn't point to himself and simply stop there and demand praise and worship. In the face of questions, and in some instances opposition, he was determined to share what he could do in our lives. What his presence could make possible.
He also doesn't force it on everyone. He shares himself and he allows the people in the Gospel stories, and again also us today, to listen and consider and make our decision about how we will respond to what he is offering. "I am the bread of life." It's so basic. Here, not long after he offered the Samaritan woman "living water," he now offers "the bread of life."
These are not flashy, high profile, luxury items. Water. Bread. Fundamental necessities of life. When we truly embrace him, when we listen to what is being offered, and gratefully receive, it is our most basic need that is being met.
February 1
First Reading:
Genesis 18:16-33
Psalm: Psalm 108
Second Reading:
Galatians 5:13-25
Gospel: Mark 8:22-30
"Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn." - Psalm 108:2
For most of the first forty or so years of my life I was not a morning person. My preference was being up late, reading, holding on to the last of the day. I wasn't too concerned about welcoming the sunrise. And then for some reason I can't explain, things shifted. I didn't stop enjoying being up late, but I also began to enjoy the mornings. This had been true for awhile, but became clear to me during the first year or so of COVID. There was a space in the morning, before it felt like most of the world was awake, that began to feel very special to me. So much seemed out of control in those days that there was a comfort in the stillness before the day could get cranked up and set life in unpredictable motion.
That said, while I would say I am a morning person now, I don't think I'm an "awake the dawn" person. I'm more an edge quietly into the dawn sort of person, ideally in a quiet spot with a Bible, a cup of coffee and a couple of New York Times puzzles.
The psalmist is bringing a little more energy to the moment. Awakening the soul, calling for harp and lyre, awakening the dawn! Not edging into the day, but leaning in with thanks to God with songs of praise.
I don't think I have it in me everyday to awake the dawn. But maybe it would be worth a try, to see what it's like. To meet the day, not tentatively, but joyfully, eyes wide open, thanking God for the day that has not yet unfolded. How might an orientation of praise as the first sunlight comes into view prepare us to be alert to opportunities to serve and to experience God?