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add other discussion questions, or substitute other questions for the marked ones, at their discretion.
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"Lukewarm, poor, blind—and proud"
Wednesday, 25 October 2017
Revelation 3:14 “To the angel of the Messianic Community in Laodicea, write: ‘Here is the message from the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the Ruler of God’s creation: 15 “I know what you are doing: you are neither cold nor hot. How I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth! 17 For you keep saying, ‘I am rich, I have gotten rich,[Revelation 3:17 Hosea 12:9(8)] I don’t need a thing!’ You don’t know that you are the one who is wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked! 18 My advice to you is to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich; and white clothing, so that you may be dressed and not have to be ashamed of your nakedness; and eyesalve to rub on your eyes, so that you may see.
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Rome proudly claimed many religious relics. They included 28 steps, supposedly from Pontius Pilate’s palace. A papal decree said anyone climbing the steps on hands and knees released a soul from purgatory. “[Luther] was climbing Pilate’s stairs on hands and knees repeating a Pater Noster [Latin—“Our father”] for each one and kissing each step for good measure in the hope of delivering a soul from purgatory…. At the top Luther raised himself and exclaimed....’Who knows whether it is so?’ That was the truly disconcerting doubt.” *
Ø Few churches today, especially in North America, have “relics,” and they don’t tend to make excessive spiritual claims for any they do have. Nearly every church, however, includes some members who respond to every new idea with “We’ve always done it this way” or the like. How can your congregation honor its history and traditions without turning them into “relics” that compromise and cripple its ability to minister to today’s world?
• Historian Roland Bainton noted, “Catholic historians recognize candidly the scandal of the Renaissance popes.” ** The purpose of studying the history of Luther’s Reformation is not to condemn those who honestly serve God in the Roman Catholic faith. It is to remind all Christians, in all denominations, of the ways in which we individually and corporately can stray from God’s ideals. Are there any areas in which your faith has grown lukewarm? What steps can you take (with God) to “re-heat” it?
Prayer: Lord God, it’s all too easy to drift into habits and patterns that grow detached from your
purposes. Keep me attuned to you, so that I never coast into spiritual lukewarmness. Amen.
* Roland H. Bainton, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1950; paperback edition by
Mentor Books, p. 38.
** Roland H. Bainton, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1950; paperback edition by
Mentor Books, p. 38.
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Jennifer CreagarJennifer Creagar is the Financial Care Program Director in Congregational Care at Resurrection Leawood. She is married and loves spending time with her family, and she enjoys writing and photography.According to The Harper Collins Study Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Student Edition ©2006, the “Amen” referred to in the passage is “used here as a title of Christ. Origin of God’s creation, a title of Christ.” (p 2093).
So, in the Scripture reading in today’s GPS, believers are being called out by Jesus, and he is, to use a phrase from my Oklahoma childhood, “mad enough to spit.” What terrible sin motivates the Origin of God’s Creation to speak so strongly to his followers? Being “lukewarm.” They are feeling rich and prosperous and comfortable. In their actions, they aren’t cold or hot.
Jesus never promised comfort to his followers. C. S. Lewis said in God in the Dock, “if you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.” Jesus promised us abundant life, peace, and a place with him in eternity. He did not promise us an easy time, popularity or a thousand “likes” on our Facebook posts.
As 21st century American Christians, we have a daily, minute-by-minute opportunity to feel like we are being hot or cold, but in truth be lukewarm about everything. From religion to politics to food to puppy videos, we feel like we are hotly supporting what is right and turning a publicly cold shoulder to what is wrong with some lovely Scripture memes thrown in. But are we really doing anything more than typing on a keyboard and clicking “Post”? When we see wrong, we can post a strongly worded entry on Twitter, but do we also step in and put our hands and lives to making it right? Do we have in-person conversations with people who are different from us in lifestyle, economic position, race, religion or politics? Do we know the areas of human pain and suffering in our own city, and do we visit those areas regularly with the good news of God’s love for humanity and our own loving hearts, hands, and listening ears?
I realize as I write this that I am as guilty of lukewarm faith as any of us, and that, as a part of Church of the Resurrection I have no excuse to hide behind my keyboard. A less than 5-minute search of the cor.org website found these opportunities to move past the lukewarm in our own community, and there are many, many more, including engaging in real time, in-person conversations about important issues and getting to know our neighbors so we can love them better.
- JOY in Serving
- Education Ministry Opportunities
- Hunger Ministry Opportunities
- Beds Ministry Opportunities
- Faithwork
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"Shepherds enriching themselves at the expense of the sheep"
Thursday, 26 October 2017
Ezekiel 34:1 The word of Adonai came to me: 2 “Human being, prophesy against the shepherds of Isra’el. Prophesy! Tell them, the shepherds, that Adonai Elohim says this: ‘Woe to the shepherds of Isra’el who feed themselves! Shouldn’t the shepherds feed the sheep? 3 You eat the choice meat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, and you slaughter the best of the herd; but you don’t feed the sheep! 4 You don’t strengthen the weak, heal the sick, bandage the broken, bring back the outcasts or seek the lost; on the contrary, you tyrannize them with crushing force. 5 So they were scattered, without a shepherd, and became food for every wild animal — they were scattered. 6 My sheep wandered around aimlessly on every mountain and hill; yes, my sheep were scattered all over the land, with no one to search for them or look after them.
7 “‘Therefore, shepherds, hear the word of Adonai: 8 “As I live,” Adonai Elohim swears, “because my sheep have become prey, my sheep have become food for every wild animal, since there was no shepherd, since my shepherds didn’t look for my sheep, and instead my shepherds fed themselves but not my sheep,”
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A big reason Luther posted his 95 Theses in 1517 was the sale of “indulgences.” The pope would “pardon” some or all of a person’s time in purgatory (itself an extra-Biblical idea), and sell the pardons to finance various projects. Salesmen urged peasants to buy indulgences to release their loved ones from purgatory. Luther boldly challenged them: “Why doesn’t the pope build the basilica of St. Peter’s out of his own money? He is richer than Croesus…. If the pope knew the exactions of these [indulgence] vendors, he would rather that St. Peter’s should lie in ashes than that it should be built out of the blood and hide of his sheep.” *
• Luther was trying to be generous. Pope Leo X knew clearly what was going on. Historian Bainton said he was “as elegant and as indolent as a Persian cat.” He quoted Catholic historian Ludwig von Pastor as saying Leo X’s papacy “was one of the most severe trials to which God ever subjected his church.” ** Yet few people, even those who saw clearly the spiritual hollowness of the medieval church, were at first willing to stand with Luther to say Scripture should be valued more highly than deference to a wealthy, powerful pope. This isn’t a simple black-and-white issue. When, or on what kinds of issues, should we honor and defer to leaders even if we disagree with them? When is it worth saying, like Luther later did, “Here I stand. I can do no other”?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, your brother James wrote that you will give me wisdom when I ask (cf. James 1:5). Help me to know, with your wisdom, when and where to give my allegiance. Amen.
* Roland H. Bainton, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1950; paperback edition by
Mentor Books, p. 61.
** Roland H. Bainton, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1950; paperback edition by
Mentor Books, p. 56.
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"God gives us more grace—submit to God"
Friday, 27 October 2017
James 4:4 You unfaithful wives! Don’t you know that loving the world is hating God? Whoever chooses to be the world’s friend makes himself God’s enemy! 5 Or do you suppose the Scripture speaks in vain when it says that there is a spirit in us which longs to envy? 6 But the grace he gives is greater, which is why it says,
“God opposes the arrogant,
but to the humble he gives grace.”[James 4:6 Proverbs 3:34]
7 Therefore, submit to God. Moreover, take a stand against the Adversary, and he will flee from you.
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Luther didn’t merely protest poor church practices. His deeper concern was that indulgences, relics, confession and the like led people to trust in their own activity instead of God’s grace. “He began to hear a new voice in the very texts of Scripture he was poring over…Luther was surprised to find what he called ‘the gospel,’ as something apart from ‘the law.’ Christ alone makes sinners right with God through faith only…. Then he was quickly led to a series of amazing conclusions about the church practices he grew up with.” *
Ø One crucial principle at Resurrection, of which Pastor Hamilton frequently reminds us, is that Jesus is the head of the church. Jesus called it “my church,” (cf. Matthew 16:18), and Ephesians clearly identified Christ as “the head” (cf. Ephesians 4:15-16). So James, like Luther, called Christfollowers to “submit to God,” rather than pursuing the ways of the world. In what ways have you
faced that choice during your spiritual journey?
• James, who is sometimes misread as saying we can try to earn God’s favor by being good, said God “gives us more grace.” The actions to which he called his readers (cf. James 2:14-18) were active expressions of gratitude for God’s saving grace, not in any sense a means of earning God’s favor. How can you use your gifts actively in God’s service, while never slipping into a belief that your service earns God’s grace rather than growing out the abundance of grace?
Prayer: God, when I need it, you always give me more grace. Thank you for your amazing patience
and forgiveness. Help me to live out your gift by blessing others in any ways you give me the gifts to do so. Amen.
* Steven Paulson, Luther for Armchair Theologians. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2004, p. 7.
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"A plea to return to God’s ways"
Saturday, 28 October 2017
Hosea 14:1 (13:16) Shomron will bear her guilt,
for she has rebelled against her God.
They will fall by the sword,
their little ones will be dashed to pieces
and their pregnant women ripped open.
2 (1) Return, Isra’el, to Adonai your God,
for your guilt has made you stumble.
3 (2) Take words with you, and return to Adonai;
say to him, “Forgive all guilt,
and accept what is good;
we will pay instead of bulls
[the offerings of] our lips.
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As Luther more fully internalized his understanding of God’s gracious ways, he became more prophetic in challenging medieval practices like selling indulgences to release souls from purgatory. At one point, he wrote, “If the pope does have the power to release anyone from purgatory, why in the name of love does he not abolish purgatory by letting everyone out? If for the sake of miserable money he released uncounted souls, why should he not for the sake of most holy love empty the place?” * It was unimaginable that the gracious God would sell spots in heaven to raise money. How, then, did the church, called to be the body of Christ, dare to act in ways God would not act?
Ø God’s people have needed to listen to Hosea’s heartfelt plea (“Return, Israel, to the Lord your God”) many times through the centuries. As we remember Luther’s powerful living out of that plea
500 years ago, we are challenged to look at our own lives, and those of the churches in which we worship God. Are we living lives that share the light of God’s grace with everyone with whom we come in contact? Are we organizing and sustaining our church activities in ways that express God’s wonderful grace?
Prayer: Great God, you always stand ready to flood our hurting world with your grace. Keep me and my church open and receptive to living out that grace in all we do and say about you. Amen.
* Roland H. Bainton, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1950; paperback edition by
Mentor Books, p. 62.
Family Activity: What is your family’s experience of going to church each week? Are you excited, joyful and gracious to one another? Do you complain about the weather and the walk from the parking lot? Are you struggling to get dressed and out the door on time? Is your home filled with words of encouragement, or frustrated, hurried words? To remind yourselves that you are going to worship our
gracious God, consider playing some praise music as you prepare. Maybe you could say a prayer for a soft heart and positive spirit the afternoon or evening before you go. Read a story from the Bible to help center your mind on God. Nothing works perfectly in family life, but choose one way to try this week to help all of you appreciate a more grace-filled experience in God’s house!
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Prayer Requests – cor.org/prayer
Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
• Carol Beasley and family on the death of her mother Evelyn Spangler, 10/15
• Bill Walters and family on the death of his father Robert W. “Bob” Walters, 10/11
• Jason Orenzoff and family on the death of his mother Pauline Quickel, 10/11
• Roxanne Petter and family on the death of her mother Madge Broz, 10/9
• Patsy Shipley and family on the death of her mother Mary Lee Lockard, 10/5
• Christal Heier and family on the death of her grandmother Mary Lee Lockard, 10/5
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©2017 Church of the Resurrection. All Rights Reserved.
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224, United States
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©2017 Church of the Resurrection. All Rights Reserved.
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224, United States
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