Galatians 1:1-24
Friday, 6 June 2008
I am privileged to serve on the Advisory Board of The African American Pulpit, the premier journal for reflecting on preaching in the Black Church. During the Hampton Ministers Conference earlier this week, the Advisory Board met over lunch. Included at the table were some of the most prominent and gifted pastors and preachers in the nation, including Hampton's outstanding, anointed Morning Preacher for this year, Rev. Dr. Gina Stewart. On the board, but not present at lunch, are a veritable "Who's Who" within the Black church. After lunch upon reflection, I asked myself, "How did I get here?"
Anyone who pays attention to the writings of Paul will notice that the title by which he refers to himself is that of "apostle." While it may now seem obvious to us that he would consider himself an apostle, since the word literally means "one who is sent" and Paul's life in ministry consisted of a series of journeys orchestrated and plotted by the God, Paul's apostleship was constantly under attack by people who couldn't figure out how he got so much play. As Paul himself notes in our lesson, his identification with the gospel of Jesus Christ came unexpectedly, since he began his career as an ardent persecutor of the church. Nevertheless, the question of his right to preach and of his position as an apostle was not one that could be answered by a resort to any human authority. In a word, Paul established the source of his life and his apostleship not in the will of other apostles in Jerusalem, but in the will of Christ. Paul says, I got here because God sent me.
Beloved, it seems to me that the whole challenge of life is to recognize in ourselves and honor in others the activity of the Spirit, even when it defies human logic or wisdom. Often, I am made to wonder at what God has done and is doing in my own life. Sometimes God sends us into situations that we would rather avoid. Sometimes God send us into situations and others wonder how we got in. And sometimes God opens doors, such as the Advisory Board, that represent unimaginable blessing. The point for us is to understand that in all things, all spaces, all times, and most importantly all of us, God is to be glorified.
Sing, "Glory to His Name"
Let us pray:
Sovereign God, we do not always understand why or how you work with us, but we are grateful for your kindness and grace. When we say that you have brought us a mighty long way, we are not just engaging in idle talk. Now we ask only that we may cease from asking you how we got here and begin in earnest to seek your will for us in this present time and space. Allow, we pray, our lives to redound to your praise. Yes, God be glorified in us, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Heavy Lifting
1 John 5:1-12
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
Occasionally, I go through fits of exercise mania, usually for the purpose of losing weight. For as little as a few days or as long as a few weeks, I faithfully build stamina and strength by applying myself to a regimen of physical activity. And even though I struggle to maintain that regimen over time, I still learn or re-learn something crucial about working one's body, namely, that pushing oneself builds strength. Raising the standard incrementally leads to the wondrous blessing of greater stamina, flexibility, and strength. I can always go farther, stand straighter, and lift heavier things when I build up.
Perhaps the most radical assertion of 1 John is found in today's lesson when the writer informs us not only that our love for God is demonstrated in our obedience to God's commandments, but also that those commands do not constitute a burden for us. Much of the time when we think of God's commandments, we recognize our duty to obey them but we miss much of the joy that comes through that obedience. We assume that God's laws are the curfew meant to disrupt and cut short the party of our lives. In reality, we only think that because we have not been in the practice and habit of obeying God. If we were, then we would realize that God's instruction builds us up, increases our stamina, and enhances our flexibility. In obedience, we become overcomers and victors.
Human life is filled with trials and burdens. Obedience to God's commandments functions as the exercise regimen that tones and hones us so that we can do the heavy lifting of life. Loving God with our obedience builds us up and makes us victorious. Indeed, it is through faith-filled obedience to Christ that we discover what life is really about. For whoever has the Son has life.
Sing, "Trust and Obey"
Let us pray:
We confess, Lord, that we do not always remember that your commandments are for our good. Like unwise children or lazy adults, we drag ourselves along lamenting that your "rules" inhibit our "fun." Forgive us for our folly. Lead us into obedience to your word and way, and thus to the victory that overcomes the world and to abundant and eternal life, in Jesus' name. Amen
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
Occasionally, I go through fits of exercise mania, usually for the purpose of losing weight. For as little as a few days or as long as a few weeks, I faithfully build stamina and strength by applying myself to a regimen of physical activity. And even though I struggle to maintain that regimen over time, I still learn or re-learn something crucial about working one's body, namely, that pushing oneself builds strength. Raising the standard incrementally leads to the wondrous blessing of greater stamina, flexibility, and strength. I can always go farther, stand straighter, and lift heavier things when I build up.
Perhaps the most radical assertion of 1 John is found in today's lesson when the writer informs us not only that our love for God is demonstrated in our obedience to God's commandments, but also that those commands do not constitute a burden for us. Much of the time when we think of God's commandments, we recognize our duty to obey them but we miss much of the joy that comes through that obedience. We assume that God's laws are the curfew meant to disrupt and cut short the party of our lives. In reality, we only think that because we have not been in the practice and habit of obeying God. If we were, then we would realize that God's instruction builds us up, increases our stamina, and enhances our flexibility. In obedience, we become overcomers and victors.
Human life is filled with trials and burdens. Obedience to God's commandments functions as the exercise regimen that tones and hones us so that we can do the heavy lifting of life. Loving God with our obedience builds us up and makes us victorious. Indeed, it is through faith-filled obedience to Christ that we discover what life is really about. For whoever has the Son has life.
Sing, "Trust and Obey"
Let us pray:
We confess, Lord, that we do not always remember that your commandments are for our good. Like unwise children or lazy adults, we drag ourselves along lamenting that your "rules" inhibit our "fun." Forgive us for our folly. Lead us into obedience to your word and way, and thus to the victory that overcomes the world and to abundant and eternal life, in Jesus' name. Amen
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
How Deep is Your Love?
1 John 3:18-4:6
Tuesday, 20 May 2008
Many of the worst things that can happen to a car's mechanics happen slowly and silently. By the time the oil gauge lights up on your car to tell you that you're low on oil, most of the time you have been low for long enough to cause real damage to the engine. The same is true for our relationships. By the time the red light appears in them, neglect has already undermined the foundations, and it is often too late for repair. Look under your hood; check your oil. Look into your heart; check your relationships.
Reading 1 John 3, one notices that the church's significant concerns have not changed much in the last two millennia. The relationship with God and with other believers remains at the center. The instruction jolts us. Let us love in truth and in action, not just in word and speech. Much is at stake in this instruction, since the well-being of our entire spiritual life is determined by the depth of the love that we have for each other. If we do not love in action, then our hearts are condemned. If we do not love in action, then our prayers are hindered. If we do not show love, then our spirits are wrong. Only through a life of love can we have the power to discern false spirit. Only when we live in love do we have the confidence that the One who is in us is greater than all that is in the world.
Too often we allow a good show or an eloquent speech to turn our heads. We forget that the test of spiritual vitality is found in our actions not in our words. What we should be asking of ourselves and others is not "how deep is your voice" or "how deep are your pockets" but "how deep is your love"?
Sing, "Bind us Together with Love"
Let us pray:
Loving God, your command that we should love one another is clear. Our failure to live in that love continuously is also apparent. We confess that we have not love one another as we ought, and, therefore, that we have not love you as we ought. Forgive us, Lord, and allow that the power of love in us will show itself to be greater than the power of hatred that is in the world. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, whose love is unfathomable. Amen.
Tuesday, 20 May 2008
Many of the worst things that can happen to a car's mechanics happen slowly and silently. By the time the oil gauge lights up on your car to tell you that you're low on oil, most of the time you have been low for long enough to cause real damage to the engine. The same is true for our relationships. By the time the red light appears in them, neglect has already undermined the foundations, and it is often too late for repair. Look under your hood; check your oil. Look into your heart; check your relationships.
Reading 1 John 3, one notices that the church's significant concerns have not changed much in the last two millennia. The relationship with God and with other believers remains at the center. The instruction jolts us. Let us love in truth and in action, not just in word and speech. Much is at stake in this instruction, since the well-being of our entire spiritual life is determined by the depth of the love that we have for each other. If we do not love in action, then our hearts are condemned. If we do not love in action, then our prayers are hindered. If we do not show love, then our spirits are wrong. Only through a life of love can we have the power to discern false spirit. Only when we live in love do we have the confidence that the One who is in us is greater than all that is in the world.
Too often we allow a good show or an eloquent speech to turn our heads. We forget that the test of spiritual vitality is found in our actions not in our words. What we should be asking of ourselves and others is not "how deep is your voice" or "how deep are your pockets" but "how deep is your love"?
Sing, "Bind us Together with Love"
Let us pray:
Loving God, your command that we should love one another is clear. Our failure to live in that love continuously is also apparent. We confess that we have not love one another as we ought, and, therefore, that we have not love you as we ought. Forgive us, Lord, and allow that the power of love in us will show itself to be greater than the power of hatred that is in the world. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, whose love is unfathomable. Amen.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Now What?
Matthew 28:16-20
Sunday, 18 May 2008
Life is filled with climactic, mountaintop moments that are followed by anticlimactic or underwhelming aftermaths. I remember when I finished my doctorate and after all of those years of hard work, they gave me a piece of parchment. I wondered, "Now what?" Then there are the people who pray for years to get married and have the wedding of the year only to wake up a couple weeks later and look at their spouse and say, "Now what?"
Earlier in Matthew 28, the greatest feat in human history is accomplished in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Now on the mountain, his disciples are wondering what comes next. Jesus' words to them remind us of the continual, perpetual purpose of the believer. First, "Go." You cannot stay where you are. You cannot even remain where you are comfortable. Second, "Make disciples." You cannot remain with the group you're in or even with those with whom you are comfortable. God is commissioning you to reach out to every kind of person and to entreat them to follow the Christ. Third, "Baptize." God wants everyone to be initiated into the family. Thus, you are not to baptize them in your own name, nor in the name of your church or denomination. They are to be baptized into the name and the authority of the Godhead. Fourth, "Teach." Everything you have learned from Christ, you are to teach others. Most importantly, "Remember." Remember that Jesus the Powerful One is also Present. Wherever you are, wherever you go, Jesus goes with you, before you, and behind you - even to the end of the world.
The spiritual life is filled with high moments, singular and memorable moments. Baptism, ordination, joining the church, becoming an officer, to name a few. But high moments are often followed by the question, "Now what?" Now that I am saved, what? Now that I am a church member or officer, what? Now that I am ordained, what? The good news is that the what never changes. Better even than that, is the news that Jesus is always the same.
Sing, "If Jesus Goes With Me"
Let us pray:
In the intense moments of your presence, O Lord, everything seems clear to us. But when we leave the mountaintop, we often forget what we are supposed to do and who we are supposed to be. Unsettle us from our places of complaceny and from our comfort zones. Remind us that as we go, disciple, baptize, and teach, we live fully in your call and commission. As we go, make us to remember that you are with us. Amen
Sunday, 18 May 2008
Life is filled with climactic, mountaintop moments that are followed by anticlimactic or underwhelming aftermaths. I remember when I finished my doctorate and after all of those years of hard work, they gave me a piece of parchment. I wondered, "Now what?" Then there are the people who pray for years to get married and have the wedding of the year only to wake up a couple weeks later and look at their spouse and say, "Now what?"
Earlier in Matthew 28, the greatest feat in human history is accomplished in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Now on the mountain, his disciples are wondering what comes next. Jesus' words to them remind us of the continual, perpetual purpose of the believer. First, "Go." You cannot stay where you are. You cannot even remain where you are comfortable. Second, "Make disciples." You cannot remain with the group you're in or even with those with whom you are comfortable. God is commissioning you to reach out to every kind of person and to entreat them to follow the Christ. Third, "Baptize." God wants everyone to be initiated into the family. Thus, you are not to baptize them in your own name, nor in the name of your church or denomination. They are to be baptized into the name and the authority of the Godhead. Fourth, "Teach." Everything you have learned from Christ, you are to teach others. Most importantly, "Remember." Remember that Jesus the Powerful One is also Present. Wherever you are, wherever you go, Jesus goes with you, before you, and behind you - even to the end of the world.
The spiritual life is filled with high moments, singular and memorable moments. Baptism, ordination, joining the church, becoming an officer, to name a few. But high moments are often followed by the question, "Now what?" Now that I am saved, what? Now that I am a church member or officer, what? Now that I am ordained, what? The good news is that the what never changes. Better even than that, is the news that Jesus is always the same.
Sing, "If Jesus Goes With Me"
Let us pray:
In the intense moments of your presence, O Lord, everything seems clear to us. But when we leave the mountaintop, we often forget what we are supposed to do and who we are supposed to be. Unsettle us from our places of complaceny and from our comfort zones. Remind us that as we go, disciple, baptize, and teach, we live fully in your call and commission. As we go, make us to remember that you are with us. Amen
Friday, May 16, 2008
What We Shall Be
1 John 3:1-10
Friday, 16 May 2008
There are lots of reasons to love babies, and anyone who knows me knows that I do. They are for our families both the continuation of what has been and the expression of possibility of what we will be in future. Parents hold their children and look into their lovely little faces and project decades into the future, imagining them in their 20s and 30s and on, seeing them as doctors, lawyers, and other noble professions. We don't know what they shall be, but we love it that they exist.
John's epistle focuses on the love of God that we experience in Jesus Christ and the victory it brings. In today's lesson, we are reminded of three matters that should bring us comfort and compel in us righteous service. First, we are God's children. Since 1 John 1 discusses universal human sinfulness, the fact that chapter 3 asserts that God has bestowed on us the love of a Parent and the privileges of being God's children should leave us grateful and in awe. Second, we are not all that we will be and we don't even know yet what that is. We are a work in progress. Finally, whatever we become when Christ is revealed, we should be comforted by and confident in the fact that we shall be like him.
Although we are far from being babies and most of us have become most of what we imagined ourselves to be, it is needful for us to embrace the reality that in Christ we are still becoming what we shall be. That we have not yet arrived, as old as we are and as hard as we have tried, should not discourage us. Even in our journeying, as we recognize that we have not yet reached our destination, we are always fiercely and wonderfully loved. We always have an enduring hope in Christ. And that love and hope are actually reproducing in us the image of Christ as we consecrate ourselves.
Sing, "Jesus Loves Even Me"
Let us pray:
Amazing and Wonderful God, how privileged we are to be called your children. How grateful we are that you see in us more than we see in ourselves and that you are making us over into what pleases you. As we consider the blessed hope of your glorious appearing, renew in us a commitment to pure and faithful living, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Friday, 16 May 2008
There are lots of reasons to love babies, and anyone who knows me knows that I do. They are for our families both the continuation of what has been and the expression of possibility of what we will be in future. Parents hold their children and look into their lovely little faces and project decades into the future, imagining them in their 20s and 30s and on, seeing them as doctors, lawyers, and other noble professions. We don't know what they shall be, but we love it that they exist.
John's epistle focuses on the love of God that we experience in Jesus Christ and the victory it brings. In today's lesson, we are reminded of three matters that should bring us comfort and compel in us righteous service. First, we are God's children. Since 1 John 1 discusses universal human sinfulness, the fact that chapter 3 asserts that God has bestowed on us the love of a Parent and the privileges of being God's children should leave us grateful and in awe. Second, we are not all that we will be and we don't even know yet what that is. We are a work in progress. Finally, whatever we become when Christ is revealed, we should be comforted by and confident in the fact that we shall be like him.
Although we are far from being babies and most of us have become most of what we imagined ourselves to be, it is needful for us to embrace the reality that in Christ we are still becoming what we shall be. That we have not yet arrived, as old as we are and as hard as we have tried, should not discourage us. Even in our journeying, as we recognize that we have not yet reached our destination, we are always fiercely and wonderfully loved. We always have an enduring hope in Christ. And that love and hope are actually reproducing in us the image of Christ as we consecrate ourselves.
Sing, "Jesus Loves Even Me"
Let us pray:
Amazing and Wonderful God, how privileged we are to be called your children. How grateful we are that you see in us more than we see in ourselves and that you are making us over into what pleases you. As we consider the blessed hope of your glorious appearing, renew in us a commitment to pure and faithful living, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Share the Spirit
Numbers 11:24-30
Pentecost and Mother's Day
Sunday, 11 May 2008
Pentecost is for me one of the most important days of the year. It was on Pentecost Sunday in 1997 that I was ordained and the authority to preach and preside over the holy ordinances, such as communion and baptism, was invested in me through the laying on of hands. In that service, other ministers and even lay members extended their hands to signify their belief that God had called and gifted me for ministry. In that service, they share the Spirit.
For many, the text from Numbers may seem an obscure choice for Pentecost. Acts 2 with its description of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the 120 disciples who gathered in Jerusalem following Jesus' ascension is the obvious choice. But the Old Testament lesson expresses something important about the underlying meaning of Pentecost. Moses the servant of the Lord has spent time in God's presence. And the Lord decides to spread the anointing of the Spirit to other elders and they prophesy. Eldad and Medad prophesy in the camp, and some supporter of Moses reports them. Moses in a moment of prophetic utterance expresses his desire and God's desire simultaneously: I wish that all of God's people were prophets and that the Lord would place God's Spirit on all of them. At Pentecost, that is exactly what God did. They were all filled. They all spoke.
Although we do not all share the same offices in the church, we are all supposed to share in the same Spirit. Each of us should drink of the Spirit and be filled. All of us should be clothed in the Spirit and covered. When I see you moving in the Spirit, I know that the reach of God's power is being extended. And I rejoice!
Let us pray:
Holy Spirit, we invite you to work in us and in all who surround us. Pour out you anointing so that we might be filled. Let your power overflow so that even our environment is transformed. Let your glory fill us, in Jesus' name. Amen
Today, I want us to sing "He Looked Beyond My Fault" in tribute to the late gospel singer Dottie Rambo, who was killed this morning in a bus accident on her way to do a Mother's Day performance.
Pentecost and Mother's Day
Sunday, 11 May 2008
Pentecost is for me one of the most important days of the year. It was on Pentecost Sunday in 1997 that I was ordained and the authority to preach and preside over the holy ordinances, such as communion and baptism, was invested in me through the laying on of hands. In that service, other ministers and even lay members extended their hands to signify their belief that God had called and gifted me for ministry. In that service, they share the Spirit.
For many, the text from Numbers may seem an obscure choice for Pentecost. Acts 2 with its description of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the 120 disciples who gathered in Jerusalem following Jesus' ascension is the obvious choice. But the Old Testament lesson expresses something important about the underlying meaning of Pentecost. Moses the servant of the Lord has spent time in God's presence. And the Lord decides to spread the anointing of the Spirit to other elders and they prophesy. Eldad and Medad prophesy in the camp, and some supporter of Moses reports them. Moses in a moment of prophetic utterance expresses his desire and God's desire simultaneously: I wish that all of God's people were prophets and that the Lord would place God's Spirit on all of them. At Pentecost, that is exactly what God did. They were all filled. They all spoke.
Although we do not all share the same offices in the church, we are all supposed to share in the same Spirit. Each of us should drink of the Spirit and be filled. All of us should be clothed in the Spirit and covered. When I see you moving in the Spirit, I know that the reach of God's power is being extended. And I rejoice!
Let us pray:
Holy Spirit, we invite you to work in us and in all who surround us. Pour out you anointing so that we might be filled. Let your power overflow so that even our environment is transformed. Let your glory fill us, in Jesus' name. Amen
Today, I want us to sing "He Looked Beyond My Fault" in tribute to the late gospel singer Dottie Rambo, who was killed this morning in a bus accident on her way to do a Mother's Day performance.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
And I Mean It
Ephesians 4:17-32
Thursday, 8 May 2008
Most of us grew up in homes where our parents' instructions were not in any way optional. When we were given orders, we knew that we were expected to comply. Still, the intensity of the expectation varied from circumstance to circumstance, such that while all commands were to be followed, some of them had a greater urgency. My mom signified this by adding the words "and I mean it" to the most serious of her rules.
While the tone of the letter has be instructive and cajoling up to now, in today's text the message is firmly given. This firmness is indicative of the seriousness with which we ought to take the insistence that the believer must not live any longer in the former way, the way of people who do not know God. Whether we understand all of the intricacies of the theology of redemption or not, we must endeavor earnestly to put off the old way of live, even the old self, and to embrace the renewal of the mind and the new self, which God created in holiness. This theme has dominated Ephesians since chapter 1, which informed us that God chose us to be holy and blameless. Although the grace of God extends abundantly to us, God employs grace as a tool to lead us to the righteous, new life not as an excuse for our remaining as we always have been.
Change is never easy, especially when the change seems fundamentally to alter us. Nonetheless, it is impossible to live as a believer and please God if we are unwilling to be transformed. God is not playing with us. God means it.
Sing, "He Brought Me Out"
Let us pray:
Gracious God, we invoke your holy presence in our lives to effect the work of transformation in us. And we gratefully yield ourselves to the reordering of our priorities and the re-forming of our characters. May we never return to who we once were, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen
Thursday, 8 May 2008
Most of us grew up in homes where our parents' instructions were not in any way optional. When we were given orders, we knew that we were expected to comply. Still, the intensity of the expectation varied from circumstance to circumstance, such that while all commands were to be followed, some of them had a greater urgency. My mom signified this by adding the words "and I mean it" to the most serious of her rules.
While the tone of the letter has be instructive and cajoling up to now, in today's text the message is firmly given. This firmness is indicative of the seriousness with which we ought to take the insistence that the believer must not live any longer in the former way, the way of people who do not know God. Whether we understand all of the intricacies of the theology of redemption or not, we must endeavor earnestly to put off the old way of live, even the old self, and to embrace the renewal of the mind and the new self, which God created in holiness. This theme has dominated Ephesians since chapter 1, which informed us that God chose us to be holy and blameless. Although the grace of God extends abundantly to us, God employs grace as a tool to lead us to the righteous, new life not as an excuse for our remaining as we always have been.
Change is never easy, especially when the change seems fundamentally to alter us. Nonetheless, it is impossible to live as a believer and please God if we are unwilling to be transformed. God is not playing with us. God means it.
Sing, "He Brought Me Out"
Let us pray:
Gracious God, we invoke your holy presence in our lives to effect the work of transformation in us. And we gratefully yield ourselves to the reordering of our priorities and the re-forming of our characters. May we never return to who we once were, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen
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