Good afternoon friends,
In our passage for today the writer imagines wisdom in human form. It's worth noticing that wisdom is female, and she calls out offering her blessings to everyone who seeks her. The other thing to notice here (and basically everywhere the Bible talks about wisdom) is that wisdom is closely connected with seeking God and doing the right think. Ethics and wisdom are inseparable, and both are available to everyone.


God bless,
Sam


Proverbs 8:1-13

Does not wisdom call, and does not understanding raise her voice?
2On the heights, beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand;
3beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries out:
4“To you, O people, I call, and my cry is to all that live.


5O simple ones, learn prudence; acquire intelligence, you who lack it.
6Hear, for I will speak noble things, and from my lips will come what is right;
7for my mouth will utter truth; wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8All the words of my mouth are righteous; there is nothing twisted or crooked in them.
9They are all straight to one who understands and right to those who find knowledge.
10Take my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold;
11for wisdom is better than jewels, and all that you may desire cannot compare with her.
12I, wisdom, live with prudence, and I attain knowledge and discretion.
13The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.

a new commandment?

Good afternoon friends,
I hope you're finding some way to enjoy this beautiful weather. Today's reading introduces an interesting paradox in John's writing. This isn't the only place he says it, but here he tells his readers that he is giving them a commandment that is at the same time "from the beginning" and new. That commandment is the same commandment Jesus gave his disciples at the last supper: "Love one another." There's nothing new about love; it's been our calling from the beginning, and it is the foundation of faith and of ethics. At the same time, if we truly love others, that always leads us into new understanding and new areas for action. Without loving others, we can't follow Jesus, because he was all about love in his life.


God bless,
Sam

1 John 2:1-11

My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; 2and he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 3Now by this we may be sure that we know him, if we obey his commandments. 4Whoever says, “I have come to know him,” but does not obey his commandments, is a liar, and in such a person the truth does not exist; 5but whoever obeys his word, truly in this person the love of God has reached perfection. By this we may be sure that we are in him: 6whoever says, “I abide in him,” ought to walk just as he walked.


7Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8Yet I am writing you a new commandment that is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9Whoever says, “I am in the light,” while hating a brother or sister, is still in the darkness.10Whoever loves a brother or sister lives in the light, and in such a person there is no cause for stumbling. 11But whoever hates another believer is in the darkness, walks in the darkness, and does not know the way to go, because the darkness has brought on blindness.

the cost of judgment

Good afternoon friends,

Today's reading reminds us of the double edged sword of judgment and empire. In this passage the merchants and business people mourn over the fall of the great empire. Empire has an evil drive to power that includes persecution, violence and suppression of opposing voices. At the same time, the economic power of empire brings wealth and success to many. That means when empires collapse, many people, including some who are innocent, suffer too. That suggests that we need to be careful how we invest our resources and our time. Are we intwining ourselves with oppression or are we supporting justice?

This passage also resonates with the political arguments that are made about the risks to economic growth of X, Y or Z program. Of course economic growth is important, but if we're asked to chose between economic growth and justice, for Christians the choice should be clear.

God bless,
Sam

Revelation 18:11-24

¹¹And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, ¹²cargo of gold, silver, jewels and pearls, fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet, all kinds of scented wood, all articles of ivory, all articles of costly wood, bronze, iron, and marble, ¹³cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, choice flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, slaves—and human lives. ¹⁴“The fruit for which your soul longed has gone from you, and all your dainties and your splendor are lost to you, never to be found again!” 

¹⁵The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud, ¹⁶“Alas, alas, the great city, clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet, adorned with gold, with jewels, and with pearls! ¹⁷For in one hour all this wealth has been laid waste!” And all shipmasters and seafarers, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off ¹⁸and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning, “What city was like the great city?” ¹⁹And they threw dust on their heads, as they wept and mourned, crying out, “Alas, alas, the great city, where all who had ships at sea grew rich by her wealth! For in one hour she has been laid waste.

²⁰Rejoice over her, O heaven, you saints and apostles and prophets! For God has given judgment for you against her.” ²¹Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, “With such violence Babylon the great city will be thrown down, and will be found no more; ²²and the sound of harpists and minstrels and of flutists and trumpeters will be heard in you no more; and an artisan of any trade will be found in you no more; and the sound of the millstone will be heard in you no more; ²³and the light of a lamp will shine in you no more; and the voice of bridegroom and bride will be heard in you no more; for your merchants were the magnates of the earth, and all nations were deceived by your sorcery. ²⁴And in you was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slaughtered on earth.”

let the same mind be in you

Good morning sisters and brothers,
Today's reading is a great example of thinking theologically about life. Paul urges his readers to base their lives and the way they treat others on Jesus' life. In this case, he's especially thinking about how we use power and how we approach others. Some scholars believe that the second paragraph was taken from a hymn the congregation would have known. Whether that is the case or not, it's certainly one of the most powerful images of Christ's ministry and one I hold dear and hope to live.

God bless,
Sam

Philippians 2:1-11

If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, ²make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. ³Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. ⁴Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. 

⁵Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, ⁶who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, ⁷but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, ⁸he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. ⁹Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

living for the future

Good evening friends,
Today's reading is a difficult one, but the point Paul emphasizes several times is that in Christ we have redemption. By this he means not only that our sins are forgiven, but also that we become God's children by adoption and get a new start in that way as well. While we already have this new life as children of God, we also look ahead to an even better future, what Paul calls "a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in [Christ], things in heaven and things on earth..." When things have run their course we will be part of the redemption of the whole world. We see that future now in the love we know in Jesus and we hope for God's plan to be fulfilled. 


Knowing that future guides us in our actions. God calls us to fit in not with the twisted world around us now, but with the redeemed future we hope for. God calls us to love other people as Chris has loved us, to live like the blessed future is here already. In hope, we follow Christ each day.

God bless,
Sam

Ephesians 1:3-14

³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, ⁴just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. ⁵He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, ⁶to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 

⁷In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace ⁸that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight ⁹he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, ¹⁰as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. ¹¹In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, ¹²so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. 

¹³In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; ¹⁴this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.