horses and judgment

Good morning sisters and brothers,

Tomorrow evening at 7 we are joining in a worship service for Christian Unity. The service will be co-led with folks from our North East Church Cluster neighbors (Episcopal, Methodist, Lutheran and Catholic Churches) and will focus on how we are one church even though we are different. The service takes place at St. Mark's and St. John's Episcopal Church on the corner of Culver and Rosewood. I hope you can make it.

Today's passage continues the judgment of the world. As we read these pretty horrifying passages I think about how much in our world stands against God's desire for a loving, peaceful world. We are so tied to greed and selfishness that only drastic measures can bring about a new government of peace. 

God bless,
Sam

Revelation 9:13-21

¹³Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God, ¹⁴saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” ¹⁵So the four angels were released, who had been held ready for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, to kill a third of humankind.

¹⁶The number of the troops of cavalry was two hundred million; I heard their number.  ¹⁷And this was how I saw the horses in my vision: the riders wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur; the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths. ¹⁸By these three plagues a third of humankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths. ¹⁹For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they inflict harm. 

²⁰The rest of humankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands or give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk.²¹And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their fornication or their thefts.

Solomon's wisdom

Good afternoon friends,
Today we read probably the most familiar story from King Solomon's reign. He asked God for wisdom, and God provided. We also read just briefly that Solomon led Israel to great prosperity. In itself, that's wonderful, but we also hear that Solomon himself was very rich. If we remember back to Deuteronomy when Moses told the people God's law for the king, God warns the people that the king shouldn't exalt himself over the rest of his people. It also said the king shouldn't acquire many horses. So, even though the text isn't explicit about it, we can take this passage as a warning that Solomon is treading on dangerous ground.

May we be wise in our living as well,
Sam

1 Kings 3:16-28, 4:25-28

¹⁶Later, two women who were prostitutes came to the king and stood before him. ¹⁷The one woman said, “Please, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house; and I gave birth while she was in the house. ¹⁸Then on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. We were together; there was no one else with us in the house, only the two of us were in the house. ¹⁹Then this woman’s son died in the night, because she lay on him. ²⁰She got up in the middle of the night and took my son from beside me while your servant slept. She laid him at her breast, and laid her dead son at my breast. ²¹When I rose in the morning to nurse my son, I saw that he was dead; but when I looked at him closely in the morning, clearly it was not the son I had borne.”  

²²But the other woman said, “No, the living son is mine, and the dead son is yours.” The first said, “No, the dead son is yours, and the living son is mine.” So they argued before the king. ²³Then the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son that is alive, and your son is dead’; while the other says, ‘Not so! Your son is dead, and my son is the living one.’” ²⁴So the king said, “Bring me a sword,” and they brought a sword before the king. ²⁵The king said, “Divide the living boy in two; then give half to the one, and half to the other.” ²⁶But the woman whose son was alive said to the king—because compassion for her son burned within her—“Please, my lord, give her the living boy; certainly do not kill him!” The other said, “It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.” ²⁷Then the king responded: “Give the first woman the living boy; do not kill him. She is his mother.” ²⁸All Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered; and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him, to execute justice.

^4:25During Solomon’s lifetime Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, all of them under their vines and fig trees. ²⁶Solomon also had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. ²⁷Those officials supplied provisions for King Solomon and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, each one in his month; they let nothing be lacking. ²⁸They also brought to the required place barley and straw for the horses and swift steeds, each according to his charge.