Good afternoon friends,

I hope you're staying safe, warm and dry. With the roads and weather as they are, we are canceling supper and scripture tonight. Sorry to do it, but it's better to have everyone safe. Today's reading is kind of a doozy. We've talked about how both the woman and the beast symbolize Rome; but here we see the beast and other powers turn on the woman. I wonder if that suggests that the powers of empire eventually turn on each other? At any rate, here we see the judgment of God happening through human conflict. Empires destroy others and then ultimately destroy themselves. God's call to peace is constant, even when violence surrounds us.

God bless,
Sam

Revelation 17:7-18

⁷But the angel said to me, “Why are you so amazed? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. ⁸The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the inhabitants of the earth, whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will be amazed when they see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. 

⁹“This calls for a mind that has wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; also, they are seven kings, ¹⁰of whom five have fallen, one is living, and the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain only a little while. ¹¹As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. ¹²And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. ¹³These are united in yielding their power and authority to the beast;

¹⁴they will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.” 

¹⁵And he said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the whore is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages.¹⁶And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the whore; they will make her desolate and naked; they will devour her flesh and burn her up with fire. ¹⁷For God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by agreeing to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled. ¹⁸The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”

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.

redemption and peace

 Good afternoon friends,

Today's reading continues the theme of redemption for the oppressed people of Israel. It's a lovely image, not just for Israel, but for a world at peace. These powerful redemption images from Isaiah keep us tuned to hope, even when things are troubled.

God bless,
Sam

Good afternoon friends,

Today's reading continues the theme of redemption for the oppressed people of Israel. It's a lovely image, not just for Israel, but for a world at peace. These powerful redemption images from Isaiah keep us tuned to hope, even when things are troubled.

God bless,
Sam

Isaiah 60:15-22

¹⁵Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, with no one passing through, I will make you majestic forever, a joy from age to age. ¹⁶You shall suck the milk of nations, you shall suck the breasts of kings; and you shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. ¹⁷Instead of bronze I will bring gold, instead of iron I will bring silver; instead of wood, bronze, instead of stones, iron. I will appoint Peace as your overseer and Righteousness as your taskmaster.

¹⁸Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise. ¹⁹The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you by night; but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. ²⁰Your sun shall no more go down, or your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended. ²¹Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever. They are the shoot that I planted, the work of my hands, so that I might be glorified. ²²The least of them shall become a clan, and the smallest one a mighty nation; I am the Lord; in its time I will accomplish it quickly.

church and state, part 1

Good evening/morning friends,
In today's reading we enter an interesting part of Paul's journey, which we've had hints of before. Rome is a background player in most of the story. At this point, Roman authority enters the story as peacekeeper between Paul and the Jewish leaders who want to kill him. Like many religious conflicts, this phase of the conflict between Paul and the Jewish leaders begins with a misunderstanding. Paul tried to smooth things over with his fellow Jews by entering fully into religious ritual. They have already seen him with a gentile Christian in Jerusalem and they assume Paul has brought him into the temple, even though he hasn't. In this section Paul does everything he can and it still doesn't work out. Then the Roman military leader steps in to keep the peace. In the pages to come we'll see this develop into an interesting story, but at this point, it's just an officer breaking up a disturbance. Once again, we see that many in the crowd are just there for excitement and don't really know what's going on.
May your weekend be peaceful and joyous,
Sam

Acts 21:27-36

27 When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, who had seen him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd. They seized him, ²⁸shouting, ‘Fellow-Israelites, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against our people, our law, and this place; more than that, he has actually brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.’ ²⁹For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. ³⁰Then all the city was aroused, and the people rushed together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut.

³¹While they were trying to kill him, word came to the tribune of the cohort that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. ³²Immediately he took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. When they saw the tribune and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. ³³Then the tribune came, arrested him, and ordered him to be bound with two chains; he inquired who he was and what he had done. ³⁴Some in the crowd shouted one thing, some another; and as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks. ³⁵When Paul came to the steps, the violence of the mob was so great that he had to be carried by the soldiers. ³⁶The crowd that followed kept shouting, ‘Away with him!’

into battle

Good morning friends,
As David's son Absolom's conspiracy gained strength, David and his court fled from Jerusalem along with many others. Today's reading leads us to the battle between David's troops and Absolom's troops. Like any civil war, there's heartbreak in the battle as people fight against those they have grown up with. David's heart is torn too; he must fight to preserve his rule, but he also feels the fear of a father as he sends men into battle against his son. I can't imagine how painful that must have been.

Blessings,
Sam

2 Samuel 18:1-8

Then David mustered the men who were with him, and set over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. ²And David divided the army into three groups: one third under the command of Joab, one third under the command of Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and one third under the command of Ittai the Gittite. The king said to the men, “I myself will also go out with you.” ³But the men said, “You shall not go out. For if we flee, they will not care about us. If half of us die, they will not care about us. But you are worth ten thousand of us; therefore it is better that you send us help from the city.”

⁴The king said to them, “Whatever seems best to you I will do.” So the king stood at the side of the gate, while all the army marched out by hundreds and by thousands. ⁵The king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders concerning Absalom.

⁶So the army went out into the field against Israel; and the battle was fought in the forest of Ephraim. ⁷The men of Israel were defeated there by the servants of David, and the slaughter there was great on that day, twenty thousand men. ⁸The battle spread over the face of all the country; and the forest claimed more victims that day than the sword.

learning wisdom

Good evening friends,
Happy March to you all. This week's theme is parenting, and many of the Bible's Book of Proverbs (in fact many cultural proverbs in general) were written to instruct young people in the right way to live. This section from Proverbs talks specifically to a son about the dangers of getting in with the wrong crowd. In this case, wrong doesn't mean people who dress the wrong way or listen to the wrong music, but rather those who prey on the weak for profit. Blessings on your wise choices today,
Sam


Proverbs 1:7-19
⁷The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.
 ⁸Hear, my child, your father’s instruction,
and do not reject your mother’s teaching;
⁹for they are a fair garland for your head,
and pendants for your neck.
¹⁰My child, if sinners entice you, do not consent.
¹¹If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood;
let us wantonly ambush the innocent;
¹²like Sheol let us swallow them alive and whole,
like those who go down to the Pit.
¹³We shall find all kinds of costly things;
we shall fill our houses with booty.
¹⁴Throw in your lot among us; we will all have one purse”—
¹⁵my child, do not walk in their way, keep your foot from their paths;
¹⁶for their feet run to evil, and they hurry to shed blood.
¹⁷For in vain is the net baited while the bird is looking on;
¹⁸yet they lie in wait—to kill themselves!
and set an ambush—for their own lives!
¹⁹Such is the end of all who are greedy for gain;
it takes away the life of its possessors.

saving the people

Good evening friends,
I hope your Sunday evening is relaxing and enjoyable. Tonight we finish the story of Esther. Haman, who tried to kill all the Jews in the empire is dead. The trouble is that his plot was already set in motion through letters instructing people everywhere to kill the Jews on a certain day. So Esther, Mordecai and the king have to figure out what to do. In typical fashion, the king gives Mordecai authority to do whatever seems best. Mordecai issues and order for Jewish self-defense. As it turns out, the Jews are victorious over their enemies and the people are saved, all because God worked through Esther's courage and Mordecai's wisdom. The violence of the story is disturbing, but Esther's courage is still an inspiration. What is your calling "for such a time as this?"

God bless,
Sam

Esther 8:1-13

On that day King Ahasuerus gave to Queen Esther the house of Haman, the enemy of the Jews; and Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had told what he was to her. ²Then the king took off his signet ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. So Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.

³Then Esther spoke again to the king; she fell at his feet, weeping and pleading with him to avert the evil design of Haman the Agagite and the plot that he had devised against the Jews. ⁴The king held out the golden scepter to Esther, ⁵and Esther rose and stood before the king. She said, “If it pleases the king, and if I have won his favor, and if the thing seems right before the king, and I have his approval, let an order be written to revoke the letters devised by Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote giving orders to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king. ⁶For how can I bear to see the calamity that is coming on my people? Or how can I bear to see the destruction of my kindred?”

⁷Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and to the Jew Mordecai, “See, I have given Esther the house of Haman, and they have hanged him on the gallows, because he plotted to lay hands on the Jews. ⁸You may write as you please with regard to the Jews, in the name of the king, and seal it with the king’s ring; for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king’s ring cannot be revoked.” ⁹The king’s secretaries were summoned at that time, in the third month, which is the month of Sivan, on the twenty-third day; and an edict was written, according to all that Mordecai commanded, to the Jews and to the satraps and the governors and the officials of the provinces from India to Ethiopia, one hundred twenty-seven provinces, to every province in its own script and to every people in its own language, and also to the Jews in their script and their language.

¹⁰He wrote letters in the name of King Ahasuerus, sealed them with the king’s ring, and sent them by mounted couriers riding on fast steeds bred from the royal herd. ¹¹By these letters the king allowed the Jews who were in every city to assemble and defend their lives, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack them, with their children and women, and to plunder their goods ¹²on a single day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. ¹³A copy of the writ was to be issued as a decree in every province and published to all peoples, and the Jews were to be ready on that day to take revenge on their enemies.

renewal

Good afternoon sisters and brothers,
We've been reading about how Hannah and Elkanah gave their son Samuel to God at the temple of Shiloh. Today we hear about the state of worship at the sanctuary. While Eli was a faithful priest, his sons were not. As the story continues from there we'll see that Samuel is God's instrument for renewal and reform in Israel's faith.

God bless,
Sam

1 Samuel 2:11-21
¹¹Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, while the boy remained to minister to the Lord, in the presence of the priest Eli. ¹²Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord ¹³or for the duties of the priests to the people. When anyone offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come, while the meat was boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand, ¹⁴and he would thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is what they did at Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there.

¹⁵Moreover, before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the one who was sacrificing, “Give meat for the priest to roast; for he will not accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.” ¹⁶And if the man said to him, “Let them burn the fat first, and then take whatever you wish,” he would say, “No, you must give it now; if not, I will take it by force.” ¹⁷Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the Lord; for they treated the offerings of the Lord with contempt.

¹⁸Samuel was ministering before the Lord, a boy wearing a linen ephod. ¹⁹His mother used to make for him a little robe and take it to him each year, when she went up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. ²⁰Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, “May the Lord repay you with children by this woman for the gift that she made to the Lord”; and then they would return to their home. ²¹And the Lord took note of Hannah; she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. And the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.

light in darkness

Good afternoon brothers and sisters,
First, please keep the community of Webster and the families of the firefighters killed and injured today in your prayers. Senseless violence seems even more shocking on Christmas Eve, but the truth is that Jesus came to be right in the middle of our craziness. As John's Gospel reminds us, the light shines in the darkness and the dark could not overcome it. Tonight we'll gather to worship our amazing God and to hear together songs and stories of Christmas. Worship begins at 7 and I look forward to seeing many of you there.
God bless,
Sam


John 1:1-14
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was in the beginning with God. ³All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being ⁴in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. ⁵The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.


⁶There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. ⁸He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. ⁹The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.


¹⁰He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. ¹¹He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. ¹²But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, ¹³who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God. ¹⁴And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.

redo

Good morning sisters and brothers,
I hope your week is off to a good start. Our story today is a strange one about God being sorry that he made people because we are so messed up. The story also mentions Nephilim, an odd type of being that seems to be a cross between "sons" of God and women. The Bible doesn't explain that any further, but you'll notice further along when Israel gets close to the Promised Land, that some of their enemies are said to be descended from Rephadim, which seem to be related. They take on an almost giant-like quality in the later story. This passage is a reminder that there are stories and events that surround the Bible story and that the authors knew about but didn't write down. Most of those surrounding stories are lost, so we're left guessing the whole story from the fragments left in scripture.

Blessings,
Sam

Genesis 6:1-10

When people began to multiply on the face of the ground, and daughters were born to them, ²the sons of God saw that they were fair; and they took wives for themselves of all that they chose. ³Then the Lord said, “My spirit shall not abide in mortals forever, for they are flesh; their days shall be one hundred twenty years.”

⁴The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went in to the daughters of humans, who bore children to them. These were the heroes that were of old, warriors of renown. ⁵The Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually.

⁶And the Lord was sorry that he had made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. ⁷So the Lord said, “I will blot out from the earth the human beings I have created—people together with animals and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.”

⁸But Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord. ⁹These are the descendants of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God. ¹⁰And Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

lamenting for Jerusalem

Good morning friends,
Yesterday's reading was a continuation of the "Woes" against the Pharisees and scribes. The passage ended with Jesus asking the religious leader provocatively, "How can you avoid being condemned to hell?" Today's reading picks up with God's attempt to do just that, "Therefore I sent you prophets..." God continually sends us prophets to warn us when we're on the wrong path. The trouble is that the leaders along the wrong path are often committed to that path so they don't want to hear God's correction. That makes being a prophet a dangerous calling.

Jesus gives examples of prophets God has sent but the leaders have rejected and killed. Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom Jesus mentioned is probably really the son of Jehoida, who was killed in the temple for speaking against King Jehoash's idolatry. Jesus also must have John the Baptist in mind, who was also killed for criticizing a leader's sin. And, of course, Jesus is getting closer to the same fate each day.
May God give us ears to hear and hearts to respond,
Sam

Matthew 23:34-39

³⁴Therefore I send you prophets, sages, and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town, ³⁵so that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. ³⁶Truly I tell you, all this will come upon this generation.

³⁷“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! ³⁸See, your house is left to you, desolate. ³⁹For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

righteous anger

Good morning brothers and sisters,

We saw Moses plead with God for mercy on behalf of Israel, now Moses sees Israel's sin for himself. His anger is understandable, but even so God written word is destroyed in Moses' rage. Jesus warns his hearers that anger is closely related to murder. Anger is part of being human, but a part we need to watch carefully. May we always be angry with injustice, but may we use our anger in just ways.

Blessings on your day,

Sam

Exodus 32:15-20

15Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain, carrying the two tablets of the covenant in his hands, tablets that were written on both sides, written on the front and on the back. 16The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved upon the tablets. 17When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.”18But he said, “It is not the sound made by victors, or the sound made by losers; it is the sound of revelers that I hear.”

19As soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses’ anger burned hot, and he threw the tablets from his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. 20He took the calf that they had made, burned it with fire, ground it to powder, scattered it on the water, and made the Israelites drink it.

baptism and inclusion

Good morning friends,
As we begin our day this morning we keep the families of the victims of violence in Tuscon in our prayer. Events like that remind us that we are all responsible for building a better, more peaceful world.

Our reading from Acts continues the story of Cornelius's journey to Christ. As his ambassadors approach Peter's temporary home, Peter has a vision from God that changes the church's future. Our reading from Matthew tells the story of Jesus' baptism by John, which began Jesus' ministry. We read in Advent about John's ministry of preparing the way for Jesus; here we see him passing the torch.

God bless,
Sam

Acts 10:9-18

9About noon the next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. 10He became hungry and wanted something to eat; and while it was being prepared, he fell into a trance. 11He saw the heaven opened and something like a large sheet coming down, being lowered to the ground by its four corners. 12In it were all kinds of four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds of the air. 13Then he heard a voice saying, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat.” 14But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is profane or unclean.” 15The voice said to him again, a second time, “What God has made clean, you must not call profane.” 16This happened three times, and the thing was suddenly taken up to heaven. 17Now while Peter was greatly puzzled about what to make of the vision that he had seen, suddenly the men sent by Cornelius appeared. They were asking for Simon’s house and were standing by the gate. 18They called out to ask whether Simon, who was called Peter, was staying there.


*Sunday

Matthew 3:13-17

13Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. 14John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" 15But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness." Then he consented. 16And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased."