The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. from The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States "The apostles preached the gospel to 'enemies'” for Friday, 20 January 2017Acts 8:5 Now Philip went down to a city in Shomron and was proclaiming the Messiah to them;
25 Then, after giving a thorough witness and speaking the Word of the Lord, Kefa and Yochanan started back to Yerushalayim, announcing the Good News to many villages in Shomron.
10:9 The next day about noon, while they were still on their way and approaching the city, Kefa went up onto the roof of the house to pray. 10 He began to feel hungry and wanted something to eat; but while they were preparing the meal, he fell into a trance 11 in which he saw heaven opened, and something that looked like a large sheet being lowered to the ground by its four corners. 12 In it were all kinds of four-footed animals, crawling creatures and wild birds. 13 Then a voice came to him, “Get up, Kefa, slaughter and eat!” 14 But Kefa said, “No, sir! Absolutely not! I have never eaten food that was unclean or treif.” 15 The voice spoke to him a second time: “Stop treating as unclean what God has made clean.” 16 This happened three times, and then the sheet was immediately taken back up into heaven.
17 Kefa was still puzzling over the meaning of the vision he had seen, when the men Cornelius had sent, having inquired for Shim‘on’s house, stood at the gate 18 and called out to ask if the Shim‘on known as Kefa was staying there. 19 While Kefa’s mind was still on the vision, the Spirit said, “Three men are looking for you. 20 Get up, go downstairs, and have no misgivings about going with them, because I myself have sent them.”
21 So Kefa went down and said to the men, “You were looking for me? Here I am. What brings you here?” 22 They answered, “Cornelius. He’s a Roman army officer, an upright man and a God-fearer, a man highly regarded by the whole Jewish nation; and he was told by a holy angel to have you come to his house and listen to what you have to say.” 23 So Kefa invited them to be his guests.
The next day, he got up and went with them, accompanied by some of the brothers from Yafo; 24 and he arrived at Caesarea the day after that. Cornelius was expecting them — he had already called together his relatives and close friends. 25 As Kefa entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell prostrate at his feet. 26 But Kefa pulled him to his feet and said, “Stand up! I myself am just a man.”
27 As he talked with him, Kefa went inside and found many people gathered. 28 He said to them, “You are well aware that for a man who is a Jew to have close association with someone who belongs to another people, or to come and visit him, is something that just isn’t done. But God has shown me not to call any person common or unclean;
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Jesus’ example made a difference, and Acts reported that the apostles preached in many Samaritan villages. But even after what happened at Pentecost, Peter still felt the reluctance he’d learned all his life about mixing closely with Gentiles, especially Romans. God had to propel him dramatically, using a startling vision, to break down some of those inner barriers. (This is a great story—if you have time, read the whole thing in Acts 10:1–11:18.)
• Peter’s vision struck him so hard because, like all devout Jews, he carefully followed the laws (especially in Leviticus 11) which forbade eating “unclean” meat. Those laws were not about kitchen hygiene, but about an approach to ceremonial “cleanness” before God. Entering a Gentile dwelling also brought ceremonial impurity (cf. John 18:28). What made Peter’s mission “clean”? Are there any places or people you avoid because you fear they might make you “unclean”?
• Even after his vision came three times, Peter didn’t fully get the point. Verses 27-28 of the story suggest that meeting a large group of Gentiles eager to hear the gospel was his “aha!” moment. Have you ever had a particular contact or experience that broke through some prejudice of yours, and opened your eyes to God’s inclusive mission in the world?
Prayer: Lord God, it feels so natural, in so many ways, for me to divide the human family into “us” and “them.” Teach me what you taught Peter—that in your eyes, there is only “us.” Amen.
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Our GPS today asks us to reflect upon something that helped you release prejudice and “opened your eyes to God’s inclusive mission in the world.” When I read that, I immediately thought of a course I just finished in seminary: The Theology and Practice of Islam. This opened my eyes and affirmed to me that God has an inclusive mission in the world.
I am in a Christian seminary studying Islam as part of my theology and divinity master’s degree. We study other religions so that we are prepared to address our congregants' concerns and speak accurately about other religions from a place of understanding. After four months of studying Islam, meeting with Muslims, and doing lots of research, I have come to see that Islam is a faith of peace and love.
Muslims believe many of the same things we Christians do. Just as we would not want Westboro Baptist or the KKK to represent what we know to be true of Christianity, Muslims don’t want extremists as the defining image of the Islamic faith. But few of us ever have opportunity to go deeper than our media's messages to learn more. So I feel part of my calling is to share with you what I have learned…here are a few things to know about Islam and share in your conversations:
We all believe in and worship the same God. The Jewish, Christian, and Islamic God is all the same God. We call God Yahweh, God, Jesus, Allah, Father, Son of God, God of Abraham…it’s all the same God that we are talking about. And we all hold the most important teaching in our faiths to be the same commandment – love God and love others.
The Holy Book of Islam is the Quran. The expectation of Islam is that the Quran supplements a reading of the Torah and Bible. The Quran was written hundreds of years after the New Testament. The three religions are called “People of the Book” because we all read the same sacred texts. Actually, it’s the Muslims that do the most work to understand the other faiths…in Judaism most stop with the Torah, in Christianity most stop with the New Testament, and yet Muslims read all three. I think they probably have the best grasp of all of our sacred texts.
There are five Pillars of Islam, five things that they are expected to do as part of their faith. They are to pray five times a day, give to the poor, visit the holy land, fast during Ramadan to honor dependence upon God (similar to us giving up something at Lent), and worship only one God. They believe Muhammad is the prophet to whom God revealed expectations and teachings because the Christians, Jews, and tribes at the time had strayed from the teachings of the other prophets like Moses and Jesus.
Muslims believe in Moses and Jesus as great prophets. In fact, Moses is the most mentioned prophet in the Quran. And, they believe Jesus will return someday just as we do. Mary is the “mother of Heaven” in Islam and has an entire chapter dedicated to her in the Quran. There is much more about Mary in the Quran than in our Bible. In fact, women are seen as equals throughout the Quran. Muhammad was married to a businesswoman who was 15 years older than he was. Islam is a faith built on strong women, not submissive, like we have been led to believe.
Women wear their hijab (headscarf) out of reverence to God. Just like we may put on a cross necklace every morning as our commitment to faith, Muslim women can choose to wear a headscarf. In talking to Muslim women, they all said it was their choice to wear a hijab and they will allow their daughters to decide if they want to wear one. Isn’t it interesting how we think of holiness and purity when we see a nun with a habit or a picture of Mother Theresa, but when we see a woman in a hijab we might think differently? As my professor pointed this out to me, I was struck by how the same attire could appear as holy, submissive, or threatening in our country.
A summary of what I have learned of Islam is this:
Islam is a religion of love, compassion, and kindness. Muslims believe God knows our intentions, the motivations of our heart, just like we believe. They are called to always act with the purest of intentions as a servant of God. And, from the Muslims I know, they live into that much better than some Christians I know. All of us are called to think, speak, and act from the intention of being an instrument of God’s love. I pray we are live into that, no matter our worldview. Muslim prayers focus on surrendering fully to God’s will. Isn’t that what we should all be praying and let God take it from there?
GINGER ROTHHAASGinger Rothhaas will graduate from Saint Paul School of Theology in May 2017. She is currently serving as a pastoral intern in Congregational Care and for the Saturday 5 pm worship service while Pastor Katherine Ebling is on maternity leave. She loves to learn, teach, and meet our congregants for coffee and spiritual conversation!
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"No fear in love"
Saturday, 21 January 2017
Galatians 3:26 For in union with the Messiah, you are all children of God through this trusting faithfulness; 27 because as many of you as were immersed into the Messiah have clothed yourselves with the Messiah, in whom 28 there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor freeman, neither male nor female; for in union with the Messiah Yeshua, you are all one.
1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love. On the contrary, love that has achieved its goal gets rid of fear, because fear has to do with punishment; the person who keeps fearing has not been brought to maturity in regard to love.
19 We ourselves love now because he loved us first. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar. For if a person does not love his brother, whom he has seen, then he cannot love God, whom he has not seen. 21 Yes, this is the command we have from him: whoever loves God must love his brother too.
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At the foundation of all Christian faith is the trust that God loves us, that God created human beings out of love and for love. This was (and is) quite extraordinary. Egyptians, Canaanites, Greeks or Romans—none of them believed their gods loved them. But Christians believe Jesus embodied that belief, and showed us how it shapes life for the better. And that belief makes a real difference in how we relate to all other people, those who are close to us and those who are “other.” Paul told the Galatians that in Jesus ethnic, economic/social and gender distinctions all lost their power to divide us and cause fear and separation.
• Why would perfect love drive out fear? Have you ever experienced a situation in which as love developed for another person, fear of that person decreased and disappeared? 1 John 4:20 got blunt, and may make us uncomfortable: “If anyone says, I love God, and hates a brother or sister, he is a liar.” To what extent do you agree that hate for human beings rules out genuine love for God? Why would that be the case? Can you think of practical steps that move you in the direction of caring about “others,” about people that you may see as dangerous enemies, as deserving of fear and distrust rather than of love?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, sometimes I find your ways appealing. Sometimes I find them hard. I need your grace to guide and energize me to more and more see everyone as a person you love, even the ones who frustrate or scare me. Amen.
Family Activity: Jesus served and shared God’s love with others in many ways. Martin Luther King, Jr. followed in the footsteps of Jesus and sought to do the same. How does your family work together to share God’s love with others? Select a way to serve others together. Ask an older child or youth to research some volunteer opportunities in your area. He or she could explore the church website (cor.org/serve) for activities in which your family can participate. Consider brainstorming about some less-structured ways you can serve others with God’s love, such as helping others in your neighbor or at school. At a family gathering, ask the child or youth to present these opportunities to the rest of the family. Pray for God’s guidance as you discuss the possibilities. Choose one or two ways your family can share God’s love with others.
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Prayer Requests – cor.org/prayer Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
• Tom Schmidt and family on the death of his mother Vernetta Schmidt, 1/6
• Katherine Van Horn and family on the death of her father Thomas Cosgrove, 1/5
• Jay Beller and family on the death of his father Jack Lee Beller, 1/5
• Ann Phillips and family on the death of her brother Richard Woods, 1/5
• Phyllis Moore and family on the death of her brother Jay Johnson, 1/5
• Kelly Williams and family on the death of her uncle Jay Johnson, 1/5
• Courtney Vialle and family on the death of her mother Trellis Howell, 1/4
• Brian Linnan and Joni Sliefert and families on the death of their sister Colleen Rabenberg, 1/4
• Friends and family of Marsha Kintzle on her death, 1/4
• Randy Denzin and family on the death of his father Everett Denzin, 1/4
• Michael Malone and family on the death of his sister Patty Malone, 1/2
• Gail Mealman and family on the death of her sister Betty Bailey, 1/1
• Joe Sevart and family on the death of his father Tom Sevart, 12/28
• Friends and family of Billee “Bee” Haley on her death, 12/24
• Gary and Tony Erisman and families on the death of their father Bob Erisman, 12/6
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The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224, United States
913.897.0120
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