welcome for all

Good evening friends,

Today's reading comes from Isaiah, written either during Judah's exile or on their return home to a devastated land. Isaiah prophesies a time when the nations will come to Jerusalem to worship God. We hope for a day of unity and peace when Christ returns. We also know that in Jesus, this hope is fulfilled because in Christ all are welcome. May we always be ready to welcome others with God's love.

God bless,

Sam

Isaiah 60:1-8

Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. ²For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. ³Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. ⁴Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms.

⁵Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you. ⁶A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord. ⁷All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered to you, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; they shall be acceptable on my altar, and I will glorify my glorious house. ⁸Who are these that fly like a cloud, and like doves to their windows?

a futre with hope, even in exile

Good evening friends,
First, I'd like to remind or let you know about an opportunity to say goodbye to a beloved member of our church, Betty Dennis. Betty died in Florida last month and her memorial service will be at Laurelton tomorrow, October 19 at noon. I'm sure her family would love the support of seeing folks from Laurelton; your prayers are welcome as well whether or not you can be there.

Our reading for today is a reminder that even when God's path is tough, we are not alone. The people of Judah were conquered and exiled from their home because they had turned away from God. God has the Prophet Jeremiah write to them that God is still watching out for them and that God is calling them to make a life full of blessing even in Babylon. Even if we're not where we feel like we should be, even if we are facing detours or tough times, God has not left us alone. There are always opportunities to seek the welfare of the city and be a vessel for God's blessing.

God bless,
Sam

Jeremiah 29:1-14

These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. ²This was after King Jeconiah, and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. ³The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It said: ⁴Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: ⁵Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. ⁶Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. ⁷But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

⁸For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let the prophets and the diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, ⁹for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, says the Lord. ¹⁰For thus says the Lord: Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. ¹¹For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. ¹²Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. ¹³When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, ¹⁴I will let you find me, says the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

mourning and rejoicing

Good morning sisters and brothers,
I hope the weekend was a good one for you. When the people of Judah returned from exile in Babylon they rebuilt the temple in Jerusalem. In this passage we see the people celebrating and praising God for the blessing of bringing them home and allowing them to rebuild the temple. At the same time, we also see the older members of the community weeping because the new temple wasn't the temple they remembered. This moment speaks volumes to the church today. Many of the younger members of the church rejoice at the new things God is doing in our community: deepening spirituality that's evident in our prayer vigils, strong growth and new members in our Bible study, and some new energy for New Beginnings. At the same time, many of us remember the "good old days" when there were more people in the church and life seemed simpler.

The truth is there is much to rejoice over and much to lament. What is lost is gone: the 1960's are not coming back. But God is doing something exciting at Laurelton and beyond. Jesus promises that even the gates of hell won't defeat the church, so we can trust the future to God's hands. We who are excited about the future need to remember that many are also mourning the past; we who mourn the past can also look to the future with hope because God is in charge: "His love endures forever!"

God bless,
Sam

Ezra 3:8-13

⁸In the second year after their arrival at the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak made a beginning, together with the rest of their people, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity. They appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to have the oversight of the work on the house of the Lord. ⁹And Jeshua with his sons and his kin, and Kadmiel and his sons, Binnui and Hodaviah along with the sons of Henadad, the Levites, their sons and kin, together took charge of the workers in the house of God.

¹⁰When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments were stationed to praise the Lord with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, according to the directions of King David of Israel; ¹¹and they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.” And all the people responded with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.

¹²But many of the priests and Levites and heads of families, old people who had seen the first house on its foundations, wept with a loud voice when they saw this house, though many shouted aloud for joy, ¹³so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted so loudly that the sound was heard far away.

the end of exile

Good morning brothers and sisters (good evening night owls),
We've heard how God was with the people of Judah during the exile. Now we turn to the end of the exile. King Cyrus of Persia (which took over the Babylonian Empire) received a revelation from God that he should let the people of Judah return home. The passage mentions this fulfills Jeremiah's prophecy, which stated that Judah would be in captivity for 70 years. If there was any doubt that God uses people who aren't part of the "right" religion, this passage clears that up. God can work through anyone, at any time. How will God work through you today?

God bless,
Sam

Ezra 1:1-11

In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the Lord stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia so that he sent a herald throughout all his kingdom, and also in a ² written edict declared: ³Any of those among you who are of his people—may their God be with them! —are now permitted to go up to Jerusalem in Judah, and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem; ⁴and let all survivors, in whatever place they reside, be assisted by the people of their place with silver and gold, with goods and with animals, besides freewill offerings for the house of God in Jerusalem.” 

⁵The heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites—everyone whose spirit God had stirred—got ready to go up and rebuild the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. ⁶All their neighbors aided them with silver vessels, with gold, with goods, with animals, and with valuable gifts, besides all that was freely offered. ⁷King Cyrus himself brought out the vessels of the house of the Lord that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his gods. ⁸King Cyrus of Persia had them released into the charge of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. ⁹And this was the inventory: gold basins, thirty; silver basins, one thousand; knives, twenty-nine; ¹⁰gold bowls, thirty; other silver bowls, four hundred ten; other vessels, one thousand; ¹¹the total of the gold and silver vessels was five thousand four hundred. All these Sheshbazzar brought up, when the exiles were brought up from Babylonia to Jerusalem.

Daniel's reward

Good morning sisters and brothers,
Today's reading is a short one to follow up on yesterday's long reading. Daniel revealed the mystery of the king's dream to him and the King rewards him. As we know, prophets are not always appreciated for their wisdom. This king will prove fickle, but for the moment, the thing to note is that God makes Daniel thrive in exile.

God bless,
Sam

Daniel 2:46-49

⁴⁶Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, worshiped Daniel, and commanded that a grain offering and incense be offered to him. ⁴⁷The king said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery!” ⁴⁸Then the king promoted Daniel, gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. ⁴⁹Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king’s court.

exile is the beginning

Good afternoon friends,
We read on Sunday about the defeat of Judah and the exile of the people. Scripture has a bunch of lamentations about that defeat; in many ways it was a devastating ending to the dream that had been Israel. Today we read the story in a different light, as the introduction to the Book of Daniel. God didn't abandon his people in exile. Things changed, but God didn't change. Daniel is a fascinating book that starts with six chapters of mostly funny stories about how God blessed and used Daniel and his friends to testify to God's love and power in Babylon. It ends with six chapters of visions that are often understood as visions of the end of time. Today's story has a special place in my heart as a vegetarian too. I hope you enjoy.

God bless,
Sam

Daniel 1: 1-13

In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. ²The Lord let King Jehoiakim of Judah fall into his power, as well as some of the vessels of the house of God. These he brought to the land of Shinar, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his gods. ³Then the king commanded his palace master Ashpenaz to bring some of the Israelites of the royal family and of the nobility, ⁴young men without physical defect and handsome, versed in every branch of wisdom, endowed with knowledge and insight, and competent to serve in the king’s palace; they were to be taught the literature and language of the Chaldeans.

⁵The king assigned them a daily portion of the royal rations of food and wine. They were to be educated for three years, so that at the end of that time they could be stationed in the king’s court. ⁶Among them were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, from the tribe of Judah. ⁷The palace master gave them other names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego.

⁸But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the royal rations of food and wine; so he asked the palace master to allow him not to defile himself. 

⁹Now God allowed Daniel to receive favor and compassion from the palace master. ¹⁰The palace master said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king; he has appointed your food and your drink. If he should see you in poorer condition than the other young men of your own age, you would endanger my head with the king.” ¹¹Then Daniel asked the guard whom the palace master had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: ¹²“Please test your servants for ten days. Let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink. ¹³You can then compare our appearance with the appearance of the young men who eat the royal rations, and deal with your servants according to what you observe.”

letter to the exiles

Good morning brothers and sisters,
We've been following the story of Israel and Judah. Sunday we talked about the defeat of Israel and Judah (722 and 597 BCE, respectively) and the exile of the people to Assyria and Babylon. Today's reading is a letter God inspired Jeremiah to write to the exiles in Babylon. It's a great message about making a life under God's calling, no matter where we are. God is with us everywhere, all the time.

God bless,
Sam

Jeremiah 29:1-14

These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. ²This was after King Jeconiah, and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. ³The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It said: ⁴Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: ⁵Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. ⁶Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. ⁷But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. 

⁸For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let the prophets and the diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, ⁹for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, says the Lord. ¹⁰For thus says the Lord: Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. ¹¹For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. ¹²Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. ¹³When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, ¹⁴I will let you find me, says the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

exile

Good morning friends,
Today's reading is the follow up to Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden. God sends them out of the Garden to make their own way in the world since they have chosen independence rather than continuing intimacy with God. The result is that we no longer stroll in the Garden with God and we have to work hard to make our living. We are dust, taken from the earth and returning to the earth at the end of our lives. Not only are we separated from God, we are also separated from each other: God talks about the man ruling over woman as he struggles for food. Authority, power, struggle with nature and more are the marks of our separation from God. Fortunately, God hates being separated from us, so God sent Jesus to bring us back home.

Blessings,
Sam

Genesis 3:14-24

¹⁴The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you among all animals and among all wild creatures; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. ¹⁵I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”

¹⁶To the woman he said, “I will greatly increase your pangs in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.” ¹⁷And to the man he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; ¹⁸thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. ¹⁹By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

²⁰The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all living. ²¹And the Lord God made garments of skins for the man and for his wife, and clothed them. ²²Then the Lord God said, “See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— ²³therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. ²⁴He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a sword flaming and turning to guard the way to the tree of life.

seek the welfare of the city

Good morning friends,
This reading is a classic passage for those of us who love urban ministry. God has sent his people Israel into exile in Babylon, into a big city. It would be tempting for the people to withdraw into their own cocoon, depressed about their defeat and the challenges around them. God calls them to do something different; even though they are far from home, even though they are in the land of a nation that conquered them, God calls them to work to make the city better. We too can be tempted to retreat, but instead God calls us to invest in community, to seek the welfare of our city. In that work God brings about wholeness and blessing for us and for others.

God bless,
Sam

Jeremiah 29: 1-14

These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. ²This was after King Jeconiah, and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. ³The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.

It said: ⁴Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: ⁵Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. ⁶Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. ⁷But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

⁸For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let the prophets and the diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, ⁹for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, says the Lord. ¹⁰For thus says the Lord: Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.

¹¹For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. ¹²Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. ¹³When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, ¹⁴I will let you find me, says the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

hope and judgment

Good morning friends,
Today's reading begins with hope and ends with warning. This progression raises the question Jeremiah voices as an accusation against God at the end of the passage: is there any hope for Israel or is God just offering an impossible promise while the sword of judgment is at Israel's throat? I think God is offering Israel true hope, but a hope they will not take advantage of. God calls his people to turn back to him, but the nation does not.

The good news is that even after judgment and exile there is hope because God's love never ends. Judah is conquered and forced into exile during Jeremiah's ministry. Even in exile, God is there. The exilic period ends up being a critical part of Israel's reformation and the time during which much of the Old Testament took the shape we know today. That time of hardship strengthened Israel's identity in God and prepared Israel for the diaspora that has continued to be the situation of many Jews today. Israel did return to their land as God promised. The temple was rebuilt and worship restored. God's promise and God's story continue through all our twists and turns. God is always faithful, even when we are not.

God bless,
Sam

Jeremiah 4:1-10
If you return, O Israel, says the Lord, if you return to me, if you remove your abominations from my presence, and do not waver, 2and if you swear, “As the Lord lives!” in truth, in justice, and in uprightness, then nations shall be blessed by him, and by him they shall boast.

3For thus says the Lord to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns. 4Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, remove the foreskin of your hearts, O people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or else my wrath will go forth like fire, and burn with no one to quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

5Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say: Blow the trumpet through the land; shout aloud and say, “Gather together, and let us go into the fortified cities!” 6Raise a standard toward Zion, flee for safety, do not delay, for I am bringing evil from the north, and a great destruction. 7A lion has gone up from its thicket, a destroyer of nations has set out; he has gone out from his place to make your land a waste; your cities will be ruins without inhabitant. 8Because of this put on sackcloth, lament and wail: “The fierce anger of the Lord has not turned away from us.” 9On that day, says the Lord, courage shall fail the king and the officials; the priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded. 10Then I said, “Ah, Lord God, how utterly you have deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘It shall be well with you,’ even while the sword is at the throat!”