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Interview: Bishop Mike Lowry
By J. Michael Lowry 
Paul Franklyn
Paul Franklyn interviews United Methodist Bishop Mike Lowry about the conversation surrounding same-sex marriage, homosexual practice, and how The United Methodist Church can move forward constructively through these issues. Bishop Lowry is a contributor to the book “Finding Our Way: Love and Law in The United Methodist Church.” LISTEN (20:15)Also available on: iTunes | Stitcher | TuneIn
Paul Franklyn interviews United Methodist Bishop Mike Lowry about the conversation surrounding same-sex marriage, homosexual practice, and how the UMC can move forward constructively through these issues. Bishop Lowry is a contributor to Finding Our Way: Love and Law in The United Methodist Church.
http://www.spreaker.com/embed/player/standard?autoplay=false&episode_id=4730316#
J. Michael Lowry
J. Michael Lowry is the resident bishop of the Central Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church, where he is the spiritual leader for about 164,000 United Methodists in 320 congregations and developing faith communities.
At the time of his election and consecration as bishop in July 2008, he was serving as executive director of New Church Development and Transformation in the Southwest Texas Conference in San Antonio, Texas. Prior to that, he was senior pastor at University United Methodist Church, a 5,800-member congregation in San Antonio that grew from 4,800 to 5,700 members during his tenure.
His previous appointments were to United Methodist churches in Austin, Corpus Christi, Harlingen, Kerrville and, while a student, serving the Plymouth Park congregation in Irving, Texas. Churches under his leadership have received a number of awards and recognitions including Habitat for Humanity, the President’s Award from Huston-Tillotson College, the Churchmanship Award from San Antonio Community of Churches, and the Arthur Moore Evangelism Award three times while he was pastor at Asbury United Methodist Church in Corpus Christi. Bishop Lowry is a regular contributor in The Abingdon Preaching Annual, and his “Generous Living” sermon was published in Best Stewardship Sermons of 2005. He was awarded the B’nai B’rith Award in Social Ethics by Perkins School of Theology.
A 1972 graduate of Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, Bishop Lowry earned his Master of Theology from Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University and his Doctor of Ministry from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Jolynn, have a son and daughter. Family time over the years has also included trekking in the national parks, an adventure Bishop Lowry enjoys whenever time and schedule permit. If you want to keep up with Bishop Lowry - what he's doing, where he's travelling, what's bouncing around in his episcopal brain, etc. - make sure that you are follow his blog.
Paul Franklyn
Paul Franklyn is Associate Publisher and Project Director for the Common English Bible in Nashville, TN. He earned the PhD in Old Testament from Vanderbilt University. Since 1983 Paul has acquired, edited, or produced more than 550 books, CD-ROMs, DVDs, and commercial web sites. He specializes in planning and launching new business ventures, and his product development emphasis is in Bible, reference, and resources for leaders of congregations.
Live “Revival” webinar with
Adam Hamilton August 7
FREE — Sign up now!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1o1NwGGvG3vmVGEEFQcqGQHty1MScULKjtt7dRvEQB3I/viewform
We'll be interviewing Pastor Adam Hamiton live on August 7 at 3pm ET about his latest project, Revival. We'll discuss his travels to England where he followed the life of John Wesley, and we'll talk about the defining characteristics of a Wesleyan Christian. We'll also include some of your comments and questions from social media. The webinar is free, but you can sign up in advance to reserve a spot and receive updates and reminders before the event.
Introverted pastors: Be extroverted on Sunday by Ron Edmondson
I have a strong word of encouragement to the introverted pastor.
Be extroverted on Sunday.
You can do it.
Every time I post about introversion I hear from pastors and church members who talk about how introversion negatively impacts the ministry of the church.
I get it. I really do. In fact, I am it. On a scale of 1 to 10 of introversion — if there were such a scale — I’m probably a 7 or 8. And, I can be a 9 some days. So, I understand.
But, the interaction we have with people is a key role we play in growing and leading the church. I’ve written in numerous posts that just because I’m introverted doesn’t mean I don’t love people. There may be some pastors who don’t really love people — and I personally don’t see how they can be very successful if that’s the case — but introversion is a personality trait. It’s not an indicator of how deeply a person loves people.
I love people. Really. Especially people who are excited about what God is doing in their life. That motivates me. My introversion, however, if I’m not careful, can keep me from interacting even with people I love.
If you asked most people in the churches where I have served as pastor, other than those who know me really well, they are surprised I am an introvert based on my Sunday interactions with people. I’m very extroverted on Sundays.
So how do I do it?
Here are a few thoughts.
You have to be intentional. You have to work at it. I’m not saying it will be easy, but is anything worthwhile ever easy? I realize that Sunday is coming. I plan my week around it. I have lots of introverted time during my week. For example, I am very careful what I plan for Saturday night, because I know I need to be at my best for Sunday. It is rare for me to schedule a large social gathering on Saturday nights, for example. In fact, I’ve found that Cheryl and my Saturday date days are the perfect preparation for an extroverted Sunday. (Obviously that’s easier for us now as empty-nesters, but I was equally protective of my Saturday nights when we had children at home.)
Your family will have to cooperate. This is the hardest one, because it obviously involves other people. The key for us is that my family knows me as I know them. They understand that Sunday takes so much out of me mentally and physically. They realize I need time to recover from a very extroverted Sunday. The ride to the restaurant for Sunday lunch is usually pretty quiet. Over the years, when the boys were home, and now that it’s just Cheryl and me, my family has learned that if I have my introverted recovery time I’m more engaging with them the rest of the day. It is a way they partner with me in ministry. (I sense a need to clarify. My family understands my introversion — but I don’t think they ever feel slighted because of it. That takes intentionality too.)
Realize it’s for a purpose. When I taught a very large Sunday school class (over 100 people), every week I’d leave the room as I was praying at the close of my lesson. It seemed the humble thing to do, and I was sincere in that, but honestly, it was the “safest” approach for this introvert. When I came into ministry and was in my first church, I continued this practice. I would “escape” during my prayer to the back of the sanctuary. A dear older deacon pulled me aside one day. He gently, in a very helpful way, said, “Ron, if as you’re praying you’ll walk to the vestibule and be there to shake people’s hands as they leave, they’ll be more likely to return the next week.” I’ve been doing that ever since — and how right he was. One of the most frequent comments I receive from visitors is how they enjoyed meeting the pastor. I can’t imagine it any other way now. It fuels me and them. I remain thankful for the wisdom of that deacon.
Rely on Holy Spirit help. The pastor that inspired me most in my spiritual walk when I was a twenty-something year old trying to figure out my life direction emailed me recently. He had read one of my introversion posts and wanted to echo the sentiments in it. He said he has always marveled at how many introverted pastors he has seen God call to lead in the church — even very large churches. He wrote, “I’ve been an introverted pastor of large churches for 39 years now. Before every service I’m saying the same thing, ‘God, I can’t do this—now what are you going to do about that?!’” His humble surrender to God’s hand has shaped some powerful ministries under his leadership. I loved being able to email back to one of my mentors that I’ve had a similar prayer every Sunday — for a few less years.
Just as Moses, Gideon, and others led through what they felt would handicap them in following God’s call, introverted pastor, you can do this. With God’s help, an understanding family, and some hard, purposeful, intentional work – if God has called you to it, he will equip you. Surrender to his strength and will.
And, the reward is worth it!
You must choose what is most important
by Len Wilson 
When everything is a good idea, nothing is a good idea. You must choose which things are most important.That’s a tweet I shot off the other day. Us idea people have to be careful. We can be like the dog from “Up”: Walking along, eating our bone, then all of a sudden — “Squirrel!” The allure of the new thing annihilates the good thing we already had. In dogs, a constant attraction for new things can be mildly annoying. In life, it can be disastrous. Without sufficient commitment and follow through, good ideas are beautiful drives we keep firing off the first tee, without developing the wedge or putting skills necessary to sink the ball in the hole.
The same results happen in our organizations and in our personal life. In organizations, staff get jerked around from emergency to emergency. In life, we jump from interesting hobby to interesting hobby. In neither place do we experience much traction or progress — just a never ending tyranny of tasks.
My organizational environment is a large church. Like many large churches, Peachtree is a 24/7 communacopia of activity. There is always something going on that needs programming and promotion.
As the new guy, I got tired of being run over by someone else’s freight train of freak out. I never knew exactly what to do. Beyond the advice of my boss and a few colleagues, I had no filter by which to figure out what to support and how much.
I was constantly asking the question:
Which of these many seemingly worthy things is most important? The problem is not simply a logistical issue related to managing time and being productive, but a fundamental question: What are we about, anyway?
The same thing has happened to me on my blog. I have more passions than time to pursue them.
Ideas need a filter. There are only so many resources, and when everything is a good idea, nothing is a good idea. This is true whether you’re leading an organization or leading your own life.
So I began asking lots of questions, and with my colleagues’ help I began to figure out how to filter more strategic things from less strategic things.
But while advice helped, my colleagues and I also wanted something more formalized, to survive the onslaught of demands and ultimately to provide better leadership. So with the help of a branding firm, we developed a new brand.
The wow factor is the new logo and color scheme, but the good stuff is what we were able to achieve with the brand statement.
A brand statement is the expression of your core beliefs. It is a way to formalize and apply leadership and direction to activities and goals.
In a church or company, a brand statement relieves a staff from complete dependence on a leader’s vision for decision making. It builds leaders throughout the organization by giving them a filter mechanism to make their own decisions for the benefit of the organization.
In personal life, a brand statement becomes what Jeff Goins calls a “manifesto” – the one named passion that drives everything else you do. I believe finding a personal brand is both worthy and an extremely difficult task to accomplish. I’ve begun work on my personal brand, and it’s going to take a while. But it could become a game changer for me.
If you’re struggling with freight trains of freak out at work or in your own life, perhaps you need to look into the power of a brand statement.
5 things I learned in seminary
by Randall Hardman
I had a few friends recently pass through town and stay for a night. All three of these individuals were considering seminary as a future possibility and wanted to ask some questions about my time in school, what I had learned, what my experience was like, and so forth.Many of my readers will be able to resonate with those questions, as you recall your own seminary training. I have met those who look back on their time with utter fondness and I have met others who look back at it with a great deal of criticism. While I never pursued an M.Div (like most seminary graduates), I did pursue two Master's degrees, one in Biblical Studies and one in Theological Studies. I do not recall my answers to my friends, but I have spent a great deal of time reflecting on their question since then. I hope that these five points will be of benefit, not just to them as they consider their future, but to anyone considering the vocation of ministry and what the time in training might look like:
Expect to realize how much you don't know. The "I know it all" attitude isn't just a teenage fad. It's a human habit and even those — perhaps especially those — in seminary are prone to it. It's always fun to watch a freshman seminarian argue with a scholar over something the scholar has been immersing himself in for decades! It's not that the professor is always right; you're just more likely to be wrong! But that's okay. The point of a teacher-student relationship is to be mentored and to participate in that immersion. Enjoy it; relax. You're probably wrong, but that's the first step in actually beginning to understand something.
Expect to read... A LOT. It takes a certain person to want to go to seminary: a reader. Unfortunately, that gets exorcised out of a great many of us by the time we're done. But you will read. Oh, you will read. My general semester ranged from a good 15-20 books. Indeed, in one class during my second semester I had to read 11 books, two of which were over 800 pages each. You better love to read. But don't let that intimidate you: you will become better for it. As a friend said to me years ago, "If you want to become a leader, you need to become a reader." Perhaps a tad cheesy, but it's completely true.
Expect to struggle. In a lot of ways. Sin will still crouch at your door, and likely it will roar louder. Seminary is not easy on anyone, at least if you're going about it the right way. For many of us, however, it's not just a personal burden — it's a burden on family. I have seen marriages break up over seminary. I have seen children grow through formative years with having one parent always away. Money gets difficult, and if you are one who holds a job, expect that everything else will get ten times more difficult. For a few, seminary seems to be a vacation of sorts — I don't get that. For most of us, however, there will come a point where you wonder why in the world you even got on this track in the first place (it certainly isn't for money!). Make sure to keep your priorities straight. Seminary is, of course, important. But there are priorities that stand above it. Do not get them confused and your struggles will never harm you.
Expect that seminary is not the real world. It is the supreme danger. We close ourselves off to the world, or at least significantly so, for years on end. The majority of the people we talk with, work with, eat with, and live with believe what we believe, at least to a large degree. We call each other "brothers" or "sisters" and we worship together, take communion together, and pray together. But it's not the real world. As Bonhoeffer noted in his book Life Together, this is the "ideal" community but it is not the real one. Seminary is meant to be temporary and it is meant to be a blessing. But it is not where you are supposed to stay. You will be confronted with the real world again. But this is what we're called to.
Expect to be a different person when you leave. This is probably the most important thing I could say. Unfortunately, many people have this notion that seminary is more or less a mandatory red light on the way to one's vocation. I did. I needed the credentials; I needed to learn more. But I didn't really expect to be a much different person than I was when I came in. Many of us have preconceived notions about what our character is going to be like after seminary, what our ministry will look like and so on. We assume we'll remain static. The truth is, we have no idea. At the same time, seminary doesn't guarantee that you'll be a better person for it. I have seen those who deconstruct in seminary. Indeed, I might even argue that if you walk out of seminary the same as when you walked in, you've done nothing but worsen yourself. The fact is, you won't be the same.
This Sunday, 20 July 2014
Sixth Sunday After Pentecost - Genesis 28:10-19a; Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24; Romans 8:12-25; Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Genesis 28:10-12 Jacob left Beersheba and went to Haran. He came to a certain place and camped for the night since the sun had set. He took one of the stones there, set it under his head and lay down to sleep. And he dreamed: A stairway was set on the ground and it reached all the way to the sky; angels of God were going up and going down on it.
13-15 Then God was right before him, saying, “I am God, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. I’m giving the ground on which you are sleeping to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will be as the dust of the Earth; they’ll stretch from west to east and from north to south. All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants. Yes. I’ll stay with you, I’ll protect you wherever you go, and I’ll bring you back to this very ground. I’ll stick with you until I’ve done everything I promised you.”
16-17 Jacob woke up from his sleep. He said, “God is in this place—truly. And I didn’t even know it!” He was terrified. He whispered in awe, “Incredible. Wonderful. Holy. This is God’s House. This is the Gate of Heaven.”
18-19 Jacob was up first thing in the morning. He took the stone he had used for his pillow and stood it up as a memorial pillar and poured oil over it. He christened the place Bethel (God’s House). The name of the town had been Luz until then.
Psalm 139: A David Psalm
1-6 God, investigate my life;
get all the facts firsthand.
I’m an open book to you;
even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
I’m never out of your sight.
You know everything I’m going to say
before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you’re there,
then up ahead and you’re there, too—
your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—
I can’t take it all in!
7-12 Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?
to be out of your sight?
If I climb to the sky, you’re there!
If I go underground, you’re there!
If I flew on morning’s wings
to the far western horizon,
You’d find me in a minute—
you’re already there waiting!
Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark!
At night I’m immersed in the light!”
It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you;
night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.
23-24 Investigate my life, O God,
find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
get a clear picture of what I’m about;
See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
then guide me on the road to eternal life.
Romans 8: 12-14 So don’t you see that we don’t owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There’s nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God’s Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go!
15-17 This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him!
18-21 That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what’s coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.
22-25 All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it’s not only around us; it’s within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We’re also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don’t see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.
Matthew 13: 24-26 He told another story. “God’s kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn. When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles showed up, too.
27 “The farmhands came to the farmer and said, ‘Master, that was clean seed you planted, wasn’t it? Where did these thistles come from?’
28 “He answered, ‘Some enemy did this.’
“The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?’
29-30 “He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you’ll pull up the wheat, too. Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I’ll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the barn.’”
The Curtain of History
36 Jesus dismissed the congregation and went into the house. His disciples came in and said, “Explain to us that story of the thistles in the field.”
37-39 So he explained. “The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil, and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels.
40-43 “The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act. The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom, pitch them in the trash, and be done with them. They are going to complain to high heaven, but nobody is going to listen. At the same time, ripe, holy lives will mature and adorn the kingdom of their Father.
“Are you listening to this? Really listening?
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John Wesley’s Notes-Commentary:
Genesis 28:10-19a
Verse 11
[11] And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.
The stones for his pillow, and the heavens for his canopy! Yet his comfort in the divine blessing, and his confidence in the divine protection, made him easy, even when he lay thus exposed: being sure that his God made him to dwell in safety, he could lie down and sleep upon a stone.
Verse 12
[12] And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
Behold a ladder set upon the earth, and the top of it reached heaven, the angels ascending and descending on it, and the Lord stood above it — This might represent 1. The providence of God, by which there is a constant correspondence kept up between heaven and earth. The counsels of heaven are executed on earth, and the affairs of this earth are all known in heaven. Providence doth his work gradually and by steps; angels are employed as ministering spirits to serve all the designs of providence, and the wisdom of God is at the upper end of the ladder, directing all the motions of second causes to his glory. The angels are active spirits, continually ascending and descending; they rest not day nor night. They ascend to give account of what they have done, and to receive orders; and desend to execute the orders they have received. This vision gave seasonable comfort to Jacob, letting him know that he had both a good guide and good guard; that though he was to wander from his father's house, yet he was the care of Providence, and the charge of the holy angels. 2. The mediation of Christ. He is this ladder: the foot on earth in his human nature, the top in heaven in his divine nature; or the former is his humiliation, the latter is his exaltation. All the intercourse between heaven and earth since the fall is by this ladder. Christ is the way: all God's favours come to us, and all our services come to him, by Christ. If God dwell with us, and we with him, it is by Christ: we have no way of getting to heaven but by this ladder; for the kind offices the angels do us, are all owing to Christ, who hath reconciled things on earth and things in heaven, Colossians 1:20.
Verse 14
[14] And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed — Christ is the great blessing of the world: all that are blessed, whatever family they are of, are blessed in him, and none of any family are excluded from blessedness in him, but those that exclude themselves.
Verse 15
[15] And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
Behold I am with thee — Wherever we are, we are safe, if we have God's favourable presence with us. He knew not, but God foresaw what hardships he would meet with in his uncle's service, and therefore promiseth to preserve him in all places. God knows how to give his people graces and comforts accommodated to the events that shall be, as well as to those that are. He was now going as an exile into a place far distant, but God promiseth him to bring him again to this land. He seemed to be forsaken of all his friends, but God gives him this assurance, I will not leave thee.
Verse 16
[16] And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.
Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not — God's manifestations of himself to his people carry their own evidence along with them. God can give undeniable demonstrations of his presence, such as give abundant satisfaction to the souls of the faithful, that God is with them of a truth; satisfaction not communicable to others, but convincing to themselves. We sometimes meet with God there, where we little thought of meeting with him. He is there where we did not think he had been, is found there where we asked not for him.
Verse 17
[17] And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
He was afraid — So far was he from being puffed up. The more we see of God, the more cause we see for holy trembling and blushing before him. Those whom God is pleased to manifest himself to, are laid and kept very low in their own eyes, and see cause to fear even the Lord and his goodness, Hosea 3:5.
And said, How dreadful is this place! — That is, the appearance of God in this place is to be thought of, but with a holy awe and reverence; I shall have a respect for this place, and remember it by this token as long as I live. Not that he thought the place itself any nearer the divine visions than any other places; but what he saw there at this time was, as it were, the house of God, the residence of the Divine Majesty, and the gate of heaven, that is, the general rendezvous of the inhabitants of the upper world; as the meetings of a city were in their gates; or, the angels ascending and descending were like travellers passing and repassing through the gates of a city.
Verse 18
[18] And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.
He set up the stone for a pillar — To mark the place again, if he came back, and erect a lasting monument of God's favour to him: and because he had not time now to build an altar here, as Abraham did in the places where God appeared to him, Genesis 12:7, he therefore poured oil on the top of this stone, which probably was the ceremony then used in dedicating their altars, as an earnest of his building an altar when he should have conveniencies for it, as afterwards he did, in gratitude to God, Genesis 35:7. Grants of mercy call for our returns of duty and the sweet communion we have with God ought ever to be remembered.
Verse 19
[19] And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.
It had been called Luz, an almond-tree, but he will have it henceforth called Beth-el, the house of God. This gracious appearance of God to him made it more remarkable than all the almond-trees that flourished there.
Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24
Verse 2
[2] Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
Afar off — Thou knowest what my thoughts will be in such and such circumstances, long before I know it, yea from all eternity.
Verse 3
[3] Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
Compassest — Thou discernest every step I take. It is a metaphor from soldiers besieging their enemies, and setting watches round about them.
Verse 5
[5] Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
Beset me — With thy all-seeing providence.
And laid — Thou keepest me, as it were with a strong hand, in thy sight and under thy power.
Verse 6
[6] Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
I cannot — Apprehend in what manner thou dost so presently know all things.
Verse 8
[8] If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
Hell — If I could hide myself in the lowest parts of the earth.
Verse 9
[9] If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
The wings — If I should flee from east to west: for the sea being the western border of Canaan, is often put for the west in scripture. And wings are poetically ascribed to the morning here, as they are elsewhere to the sun, and to the winds.
Romans 8:12-25
Verse 12
[12] Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
We are not debtors to the flesh — We ought not to follow it.
Verse 13
[13] For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
The deeds of the flesh — Not only evil actions, but evil desires, tempers, thoughts.
If ye mortify — Kill, destroy these.
Ye shall live — The life of faith more abundantly here, and hereafter the life of glory.
Verse 14
[14] For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God — In all the ways of righteousness.
They are the sons of God — Here St. Paul enters upon the description of those blessings which he comprises, Romans 8:30, in the word glorified; though, indeed, he does not describe mere glory, but that which is still mingled with the cross. The sum is, through sufferings to glory.
Verse 15
[15] For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
For ye — Who are real Christians.
Have not received the spirit of bondage — The Holy Ghost was not properly a spirit of bondage, even in the time of the Old Testament. Yet there was something of bondage remaining even in those who then had received the Spirit.
Again — As the Jews did before.
We — All and every believer.
Cry — The word denotes a vehement speaking, with desire, confidence, constancy.
Abba, Father — The latter word explains the former. By using both the Syriac and the Greek word, St. Paul seems to point out the joint cry both of the Jewish and gentile believers. The spirit of bondage here seems directly to mean, those operations of the Holy Spirit by which the soul, on its first conviction, feels itself in bondage to sin, to the world, to Satan, and obnoxious to the wrath of God. This, therefore, and the Spirit of adoption, are one and the same Spirit, only manifesting itself in various operations, according to the various circumstances of the persons.
Verse 16
[16] The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
The same Spirit beareth witness with our spirit — With the spirit of every true believer, by a testimony distinct from that of his own spirit, or the testimony of a good conscience. Happy they who enjoy this clear and constant.
Verse 17
[17] And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Joint heirs — That we may know it is a great inheritance which God will give us for he hath given a great one to his Son.
If we suffer with him — Willingly and cheerfully, for righteousness' sake. This is a new proposition, referring to what follows.
Verse 18
[18] For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
For I reckon — This verse gives the reason why he but now mentioned sufferings and glory. When that glory "shall be revealed in us," then the sons of God will be revealed also.
Verse 19
[19] For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
For the earnest expectation — The word denotes a lively hope of something drawing near, and a vehement longing after it.
Of the creation — Of all visible creatures, believers excepted, who are spoken of apart; each kind, according as it is capable. All these have been sufferers through sin; and to all these (the finally impenitent excepted) shall refreshment redound from the glory of the children of God. Upright heathens are by no means to be excluded from this earnest expectation: nay, perhaps something of it may at some times be found even in the vainest of men; who (although in the hurry of life they mistake vanity for liberty, and partly stifle. partly dissemble, their groans, yet) in their sober, quiet, sleepless, afflicted hours, pour forth many sighs in the ear of God.
Verse 20
[20] For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
The creation was made subject to vanity — Abuse, misery, and corruption.
By him who subjected it — Namely, God, Genesis 3:17; 5:29. Adam only made it liable to the sentence which God pronounced; yet not without hope.
Verse 21
[21] Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
The creation itself shall be delivered — Destruction is not deliverance: therefore whatsoever is destroyed, or ceases to be, is not delivered at all. Will, then, any part of the creation be destroyed? Into the glorious liberty - The excellent state wherein they were created.
Verse 22
[22] For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
For the whole creation groaneth together — With joint groans, as it were with one voice.
And travaileth — Literally, is in the pains of childbirth, to be delivered of the burden of the curse.
Until now — To this very hour; and so on till the time of deliverance.
Verse 23
[23] And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
And even we, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit — That is, the Spirit, who is the first-fruits of our inheritance.
The adoption — Persons who had been privately adopted among the Romans were often brought forth into the forum, and there publicly owned as their sons by those who adopted them. So at the general resurrection, when the body itself is redeemed from death, the sons of God shall be publicly owned by him in the great assembly of men and angels.
The redemption of our body — From corruption to glory and immortality.
Verse 24
[24] For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
For we are saved by hope — Our salvation is now only in hope. We do not yet possess this full salvation.
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Verse 24
[24] Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
He proposed another parable — in which he farther explains the case of unfruitful hearers. The kingdom of heaven (as has been observed before) sometimes signifies eternal glory: sometimes the way to it, inward religion; sometimes, as here, the Gospel dispensation: the phrase is likewise used for a person or thing relating to any one of those: so in this place it means, Christ preaching the Gospel, who is like a man sowing good seed - The expression, is like, both here and in several other places, only means, that the thing spoken of may be illustrated by the following similitude.
Who sowed good seed in his field — God sowed nothing but good in his whole creation. Christ sowed only the good seed of truth in his Church.
Verse 25
[25] But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
But while men slept — They ought to have watched: the Lord of the field sleepeth not.
His enemy came and sowed darnel — This is very like wheat, and commonly grows among wheat rather than among other grain: but tares or vetches are of the pulse kind, and bear no resemblance to wheat.
Verse 26
[26] But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
When the blade was sprung up, then appeared the darnel — It was not discerned before: it seldom appears, as soon as the good seed is sown: all at first appears to be peace, and love, and joy.
Verse 27
[27] So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
Didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? Whence then hath it darnel? — Not from the parent of good. Even the heathen could say, "No evil can from thee proceed: 'Tis only suffer'd, not decreed: As darkness is not from the sun, Nor mount the shades, till he is gone."
Verse 28
[28] He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
He said, An enemy hath done this — A plain answer to the great question concerning the origin of evil. God made men (as he did angels) intelligent creatures, and consequently free either to choose good or evil: but he implanted no evil in the human soul: An enemy (with man's concurrence) hath done this. Darnel, in the Church, is properly outside Christians, such as have the form of godliness, without the power. Open sinners, such as have neither the form nor the power, are not so properly darnel, as thistles and brambles: these ought to be rooted up without delay, and not suffered in the Christian community. Whereas should fallible men attempt to gather up the darnel, they would often root up the wheat with them.
Verse 38
[38] The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
The good seed are the children of the kingdom — That is, the children of God, the righteous.
Verse 41
[41] The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
They shall gather all things that offend — Whatever had hindered or grieved the children of God; whatever things or persons had hindered the good seed which Christ had sown from taking root or bearing fruit. The Greek word is, All scandals.
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Adopted by God by Chris J. Hayes
Romans 8:12-25 Romans 8: 12-14 So don’t you see that we don’t owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There’s nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God’s Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go!
15-17 This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him!
18-21 That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what’s coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.
22-25 All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it’s not only around us; it’s within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We’re also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don’t see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.
Romans 8:12-25
Verse 12
[12] Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
We are not debtors to the flesh — We ought not to follow it.
Verse 13
[13] For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
The deeds of the flesh — Not only evil actions, but evil desires, tempers, thoughts.
If ye mortify — Kill, destroy these.
Ye shall live — The life of faith more abundantly here, and hereafter the life of glory.
Verse 14
[14] For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God — In all the ways of righteousness.
They are the sons of God — Here St. Paul enters upon the description of those blessings which he comprises, Romans 8:30, in the word glorified; though, indeed, he does not describe mere glory, but that which is still mingled with the cross. The sum is, through sufferings to glory.
Verse 15
[15] For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
For ye — Who are real Christians.
Have not received the spirit of bondage — The Holy Ghost was not properly a spirit of bondage, even in the time of the Old Testament. Yet there was something of bondage remaining even in those who then had received the Spirit.
Again — As the Jews did before.
We — All and every believer.
Cry — The word denotes a vehement speaking, with desire, confidence, constancy.
Abba, Father — The latter word explains the former. By using both the Syriac and the Greek word, St. Paul seems to point out the joint cry both of the Jewish and gentile believers. The spirit of bondage here seems directly to mean, those operations of the Holy Spirit by which the soul, on its first conviction, feels itself in bondage to sin, to the world, to Satan, and obnoxious to the wrath of God. This, therefore, and the Spirit of adoption, are one and the same Spirit, only manifesting itself in various operations, according to the various circumstances of the persons.
Verse 16
[16] The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
The same Spirit beareth witness with our spirit — With the spirit of every true believer, by a testimony distinct from that of his own spirit, or the testimony of a good conscience. Happy they who enjoy this clear and constant.
Verse 17
[17] And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Joint heirs — That we may know it is a great inheritance which God will give us for he hath given a great one to his Son.
If we suffer with him — Willingly and cheerfully, for righteousness' sake. This is a new proposition, referring to what follows.
Verse 18
[18] For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
For I reckon — This verse gives the reason why he but now mentioned sufferings and glory. When that glory "shall be revealed in us," then the sons of God will be revealed also.
Verse 19
[19] For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
For the earnest expectation — The word denotes a lively hope of something drawing near, and a vehement longing after it.
Of the creation — Of all visible creatures, believers excepted, who are spoken of apart; each kind, according as it is capable. All these have been sufferers through sin; and to all these (the finally impenitent excepted) shall refreshment redound from the glory of the children of God. Upright heathens are by no means to be excluded from this earnest expectation: nay, perhaps something of it may at some times be found even in the vainest of men; who (although in the hurry of life they mistake vanity for liberty, and partly stifle. partly dissemble, their groans, yet) in their sober, quiet, sleepless, afflicted hours, pour forth many sighs in the ear of God.
Verse 20
[20] For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
The creation was made subject to vanity — Abuse, misery, and corruption.
By him who subjected it — Namely, God, Genesis 3:17; 5:29. Adam only made it liable to the sentence which God pronounced; yet not without hope.
Verse 21
[21] Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
The creation itself shall be delivered — Destruction is not deliverance: therefore whatsoever is destroyed, or ceases to be, is not delivered at all. Will, then, any part of the creation be destroyed? Into the glorious liberty - The excellent state wherein they were created.
Verse 22
[22] For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
For the whole creation groaneth together — With joint groans, as it were with one voice.
And travaileth — Literally, is in the pains of childbirth, to be delivered of the burden of the curse.
Until now — To this very hour; and so on till the time of deliverance.
Verse 23
[23] And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
And even we, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit — That is, the Spirit, who is the first-fruits of our inheritance.
The adoption — Persons who had been privately adopted among the Romans were often brought forth into the forum, and there publicly owned as their sons by those who adopted them. So at the general resurrection, when the body itself is redeemed from death, the sons of God shall be publicly owned by him in the great assembly of men and angels.
The redemption of our body — From corruption to glory and immortality.
Verse 24
[24] For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
For we are saved by hope — Our salvation is now only in hope. We do not yet possess this full salvation.
Romans 8:12-25
I do not think there is a more beautiful image of God’s love for us than the image of adoption. I have a friend, Tina, who was adopted. She tells me of her experience growing up with the confusion of what it means to be adopted. One day, while at school in the second grade, Tina began to be teased about being adopted. When children do not understand something, it seems natural to make fun of it as a coping mechanism. (Perhaps children are not the only ones who react this way to misunderstandings.) Tina went home in tears not knowing how to react to the other children telling her that her parents were not her real mom and dad. With large tears flowing down her cheeks, Tina walked in the back door of her home and was greeted by a worried mother. “What is wrong?” her mother asked. Tina told the story of being teased at school about not having real parents and not being as good as the other children because of it. Tina’s wise mother took Tina into her loving arms and told her that all of those other children were born into their families and their parents had absolutely no choice about the kid they got, “But we got to pick you because you were so special,” her mother said.
Romans 8 reminds us that we too are special enough to God to be chosen and claimed as God’s very own child. We are not born into that righteous family, but adopted into it by God’s choice in Jesus Christ. The Romans text acknowledges that there will be pains and troubles, but through the spirit of adoption we are to have a hope in the inheritance of Christ. Being a part of the family of God opens up the future glory of God’s kingdom to us. Therefore, when the pains of this life seem to be overwhelming, Romans tells us that we cannot even compare those pains to the future we have promised in God through Christ Jesus.
Hope can be a tricky part of life. No one likes a true pessimist who sees everything as negative all the time, but in some ways the opposite is true as well. Overly optimistic people are not the most popular to be around in our daily life. Life is too frustrating and difficult, at least at times, to always hear that everything will be fine. The difference between this overly optimistic stereotype and the hopeful nature of the Christian life is the time frame. “Humanly” optimistic people believe that everything will be taken care of soon, in this life. Hopeful Christians know that things may never seem quite right on this side of God’s kingdom, but in God’s timing, perfection will come. This hope does not downplay the agony and pain of life’s experiences, but it offers a perspective on that pain. When we are adopted into God’s family, through the actions of God through Jesus Christ, then we find ourselves hoping in God’s glory, which transcends the human experience and speaks to something larger than any one person’s problems.
Part of the Romans message is that trial and even suffering will be part of the Christian life. This is not said to frustrate us or make us worry about life, but rather to prepare us for the realities that come with being a faithful Christian. Even in our world today, there are times when Christian people must stand up for what is right according to God, over and against what seems right to the world. For the early Christian church, this often meant putting your life on the line; for most of us today, it means putting our reputation and the way others think about us on the line. We must find the courage, through the hope in the future glory of God, to stand up when the word of God must not be silent. When this happens, it will not always be popular, and it certainly will not always be easy, but we must be faithful and hold on to our hope in God.
Without hope in the future, there is little motivation to take action in the present. For Christian people, Romans describes a hope in the future that must be primary in our lives. This hope must come from a firm understanding of our adoption into God’s family and our trust in God’s eternal plan. When we have been offered such a gracious acceptance, and given such an awesome hope, we must not waste our lives living silently without joy. We must become a people who live out our hope and proclaim the adoption spirit of a loving God who wants to redeem all of God’s children.
This is not a false optimism, because we balance the realities of human suffering with trust in God’s ultimate plan. We must not be pessimists, and not optimists, as the world might define these two camps. Rather we are called to understand the reality and pain of human suffering, while having a greater hope than can be found by humanity alone. Romans 8 invites us to combine the realities of the human life (including the unique pressures of the Christian life) with a hope that comes from being loved and adopted into God’s family.
Worship Connection: July 20, 2014 by Nancy C. Townley
Sixth Sunday After Pentecost COLOR: Green
SCRIPTURE READINGS: Genesis 28:10-19a; Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24; Romans 8:12-25; Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Genesis 28:10-12 Jacob left Beersheba and went to Haran. He came to a certain place and camped for the night since the sun had set. He took one of the stones there, set it under his head and lay down to sleep. And he dreamed: A stairway was set on the ground and it reached all the way to the sky; angels of God were going up and going down on it.
13-15 Then God was right before him, saying, “I am God, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. I’m giving the ground on which you are sleeping to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will be as the dust of the Earth; they’ll stretch from west to east and from north to south. All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants. Yes. I’ll stay with you, I’ll protect you wherever you go, and I’ll bring you back to this very ground. I’ll stick with you until I’ve done everything I promised you.”
16-17 Jacob woke up from his sleep. He said, “God is in this place—truly. And I didn’t even know it!” He was terrified. He whispered in awe, “Incredible. Wonderful. Holy. This is God’s House. This is the Gate of Heaven.”
18-19 Jacob was up first thing in the morning. He took the stone he had used for his pillow and stood it up as a memorial pillar and poured oil over it. He christened the place Bethel (God’s House). The name of the town had been Luz until then.
Psalm 139: A David Psalm
1-6 God, investigate my life;
get all the facts firsthand.
I’m an open book to you;
even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
I’m never out of your sight.
You know everything I’m going to say
before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you’re there,
then up ahead and you’re there, too—
your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—
I can’t take it all in!
7-12 Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?
to be out of your sight?
If I climb to the sky, you’re there!
If I go underground, you’re there!
If I flew on morning’s wings
to the far western horizon,
You’d find me in a minute—
you’re already there waiting!
Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark!
At night I’m immersed in the light!”
It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you;
night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.
23-24 Investigate my life, O God,
find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
get a clear picture of what I’m about;
See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
then guide me on the road to eternal life.
Romans 8: 12-14 So don’t you see that we don’t owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There’s nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God’s Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go!
15-17 This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him!
18-21 That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what’s coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.
22-25 All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it’s not only around us; it’s within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We’re also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don’t see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.
Matthew 13: 24-26 He told another story. “God’s kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn. When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles showed up, too.
27 “The farmhands came to the farmer and said, ‘Master, that was clean seed you planted, wasn’t it? Where did these thistles come from?’
28 “He answered, ‘Some enemy did this.’
“The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?’
29-30 “He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you’ll pull up the wheat, too. Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I’ll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the barn.’”
The Curtain of History
36 Jesus dismissed the congregation and went into the house. His disciples came in and said, “Explain to us that story of the thistles in the field.”
37-39 So he explained. “The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil, and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels.
40-43 “The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act. The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom, pitch them in the trash, and be done with them. They are going to complain to high heaven, but nobody is going to listen. At the same time, ripe, holy lives will mature and adorn the kingdom of their Father.
“Are you listening to this? Really listening?
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John Wesley’s Notes-Commentary:
Genesis 28:10-19a
Verse 11
[11] And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.
The stones for his pillow, and the heavens for his canopy! Yet his comfort in the divine blessing, and his confidence in the divine protection, made him easy, even when he lay thus exposed: being sure that his God made him to dwell in safety, he could lie down and sleep upon a stone.
Verse 12
[12] And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
Behold a ladder set upon the earth, and the top of it reached heaven, the angels ascending and descending on it, and the Lord stood above it — This might represent 1. The providence of God, by which there is a constant correspondence kept up between heaven and earth. The counsels of heaven are executed on earth, and the affairs of this earth are all known in heaven. Providence doth his work gradually and by steps; angels are employed as ministering spirits to serve all the designs of providence, and the wisdom of God is at the upper end of the ladder, directing all the motions of second causes to his glory. The angels are active spirits, continually ascending and descending; they rest not day nor night. They ascend to give account of what they have done, and to receive orders; and desend to execute the orders they have received. This vision gave seasonable comfort to Jacob, letting him know that he had both a good guide and good guard; that though he was to wander from his father's house, yet he was the care of Providence, and the charge of the holy angels. 2. The mediation of Christ. He is this ladder: the foot on earth in his human nature, the top in heaven in his divine nature; or the former is his humiliation, the latter is his exaltation. All the intercourse between heaven and earth since the fall is by this ladder. Christ is the way: all God's favours come to us, and all our services come to him, by Christ. If God dwell with us, and we with him, it is by Christ: we have no way of getting to heaven but by this ladder; for the kind offices the angels do us, are all owing to Christ, who hath reconciled things on earth and things in heaven, Colossians 1:20.
Verse 14
[14] And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed — Christ is the great blessing of the world: all that are blessed, whatever family they are of, are blessed in him, and none of any family are excluded from blessedness in him, but those that exclude themselves.
Verse 15
[15] And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
Behold I am with thee — Wherever we are, we are safe, if we have God's favourable presence with us. He knew not, but God foresaw what hardships he would meet with in his uncle's service, and therefore promiseth to preserve him in all places. God knows how to give his people graces and comforts accommodated to the events that shall be, as well as to those that are. He was now going as an exile into a place far distant, but God promiseth him to bring him again to this land. He seemed to be forsaken of all his friends, but God gives him this assurance, I will not leave thee.
Verse 16
[16] And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.
Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not — God's manifestations of himself to his people carry their own evidence along with them. God can give undeniable demonstrations of his presence, such as give abundant satisfaction to the souls of the faithful, that God is with them of a truth; satisfaction not communicable to others, but convincing to themselves. We sometimes meet with God there, where we little thought of meeting with him. He is there where we did not think he had been, is found there where we asked not for him.
Verse 17
[17] And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
He was afraid — So far was he from being puffed up. The more we see of God, the more cause we see for holy trembling and blushing before him. Those whom God is pleased to manifest himself to, are laid and kept very low in their own eyes, and see cause to fear even the Lord and his goodness, Hosea 3:5.
And said, How dreadful is this place! — That is, the appearance of God in this place is to be thought of, but with a holy awe and reverence; I shall have a respect for this place, and remember it by this token as long as I live. Not that he thought the place itself any nearer the divine visions than any other places; but what he saw there at this time was, as it were, the house of God, the residence of the Divine Majesty, and the gate of heaven, that is, the general rendezvous of the inhabitants of the upper world; as the meetings of a city were in their gates; or, the angels ascending and descending were like travellers passing and repassing through the gates of a city.
Verse 18
[18] And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.
He set up the stone for a pillar — To mark the place again, if he came back, and erect a lasting monument of God's favour to him: and because he had not time now to build an altar here, as Abraham did in the places where God appeared to him, Genesis 12:7, he therefore poured oil on the top of this stone, which probably was the ceremony then used in dedicating their altars, as an earnest of his building an altar when he should have conveniencies for it, as afterwards he did, in gratitude to God, Genesis 35:7. Grants of mercy call for our returns of duty and the sweet communion we have with God ought ever to be remembered.
Verse 19
[19] And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.
It had been called Luz, an almond-tree, but he will have it henceforth called Beth-el, the house of God. This gracious appearance of God to him made it more remarkable than all the almond-trees that flourished there.
Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24
Verse 2
[2] Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
Afar off — Thou knowest what my thoughts will be in such and such circumstances, long before I know it, yea from all eternity.
Verse 3
[3] Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
Compassest — Thou discernest every step I take. It is a metaphor from soldiers besieging their enemies, and setting watches round about them.
Verse 5
[5] Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
Beset me — With thy all-seeing providence.
And laid — Thou keepest me, as it were with a strong hand, in thy sight and under thy power.
Verse 6
[6] Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
I cannot — Apprehend in what manner thou dost so presently know all things.
Verse 8
[8] If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
Hell — If I could hide myself in the lowest parts of the earth.
Verse 9
[9] If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
The wings — If I should flee from east to west: for the sea being the western border of Canaan, is often put for the west in scripture. And wings are poetically ascribed to the morning here, as they are elsewhere to the sun, and to the winds.
Romans 8:12-25
Verse 12
[12] Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
We are not debtors to the flesh — We ought not to follow it.
Verse 13
[13] For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
The deeds of the flesh — Not only evil actions, but evil desires, tempers, thoughts.
If ye mortify — Kill, destroy these.
Ye shall live — The life of faith more abundantly here, and hereafter the life of glory.
Verse 14
[14] For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God — In all the ways of righteousness.
They are the sons of God — Here St. Paul enters upon the description of those blessings which he comprises, Romans 8:30, in the word glorified; though, indeed, he does not describe mere glory, but that which is still mingled with the cross. The sum is, through sufferings to glory.
Verse 15
[15] For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
For ye — Who are real Christians.
Have not received the spirit of bondage — The Holy Ghost was not properly a spirit of bondage, even in the time of the Old Testament. Yet there was something of bondage remaining even in those who then had received the Spirit.
Again — As the Jews did before.
We — All and every believer.
Cry — The word denotes a vehement speaking, with desire, confidence, constancy.
Abba, Father — The latter word explains the former. By using both the Syriac and the Greek word, St. Paul seems to point out the joint cry both of the Jewish and gentile believers. The spirit of bondage here seems directly to mean, those operations of the Holy Spirit by which the soul, on its first conviction, feels itself in bondage to sin, to the world, to Satan, and obnoxious to the wrath of God. This, therefore, and the Spirit of adoption, are one and the same Spirit, only manifesting itself in various operations, according to the various circumstances of the persons.
Verse 16
[16] The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
The same Spirit beareth witness with our spirit — With the spirit of every true believer, by a testimony distinct from that of his own spirit, or the testimony of a good conscience. Happy they who enjoy this clear and constant.
Verse 17
[17] And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Joint heirs — That we may know it is a great inheritance which God will give us for he hath given a great one to his Son.
If we suffer with him — Willingly and cheerfully, for righteousness' sake. This is a new proposition, referring to what follows.
Verse 18
[18] For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
For I reckon — This verse gives the reason why he but now mentioned sufferings and glory. When that glory "shall be revealed in us," then the sons of God will be revealed also.
Verse 19
[19] For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
For the earnest expectation — The word denotes a lively hope of something drawing near, and a vehement longing after it.
Of the creation — Of all visible creatures, believers excepted, who are spoken of apart; each kind, according as it is capable. All these have been sufferers through sin; and to all these (the finally impenitent excepted) shall refreshment redound from the glory of the children of God. Upright heathens are by no means to be excluded from this earnest expectation: nay, perhaps something of it may at some times be found even in the vainest of men; who (although in the hurry of life they mistake vanity for liberty, and partly stifle. partly dissemble, their groans, yet) in their sober, quiet, sleepless, afflicted hours, pour forth many sighs in the ear of God.
Verse 20
[20] For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
The creation was made subject to vanity — Abuse, misery, and corruption.
By him who subjected it — Namely, God, Genesis 3:17; 5:29. Adam only made it liable to the sentence which God pronounced; yet not without hope.
Verse 21
[21] Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
The creation itself shall be delivered — Destruction is not deliverance: therefore whatsoever is destroyed, or ceases to be, is not delivered at all. Will, then, any part of the creation be destroyed? Into the glorious liberty - The excellent state wherein they were created.
Verse 22
[22] For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
For the whole creation groaneth together — With joint groans, as it were with one voice.
And travaileth — Literally, is in the pains of childbirth, to be delivered of the burden of the curse.
Until now — To this very hour; and so on till the time of deliverance.
Verse 23
[23] And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
And even we, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit — That is, the Spirit, who is the first-fruits of our inheritance.
The adoption — Persons who had been privately adopted among the Romans were often brought forth into the forum, and there publicly owned as their sons by those who adopted them. So at the general resurrection, when the body itself is redeemed from death, the sons of God shall be publicly owned by him in the great assembly of men and angels.
The redemption of our body — From corruption to glory and immortality.
Verse 24
[24] For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
For we are saved by hope — Our salvation is now only in hope. We do not yet possess this full salvation.
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Verse 24
[24] Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
He proposed another parable — in which he farther explains the case of unfruitful hearers. The kingdom of heaven (as has been observed before) sometimes signifies eternal glory: sometimes the way to it, inward religion; sometimes, as here, the Gospel dispensation: the phrase is likewise used for a person or thing relating to any one of those: so in this place it means, Christ preaching the Gospel, who is like a man sowing good seed - The expression, is like, both here and in several other places, only means, that the thing spoken of may be illustrated by the following similitude.
Who sowed good seed in his field — God sowed nothing but good in his whole creation. Christ sowed only the good seed of truth in his Church.
Verse 25
[25] But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
But while men slept — They ought to have watched: the Lord of the field sleepeth not.
His enemy came and sowed darnel — This is very like wheat, and commonly grows among wheat rather than among other grain: but tares or vetches are of the pulse kind, and bear no resemblance to wheat.
Verse 26
[26] But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
When the blade was sprung up, then appeared the darnel — It was not discerned before: it seldom appears, as soon as the good seed is sown: all at first appears to be peace, and love, and joy.
Verse 27
[27] So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
Didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? Whence then hath it darnel? — Not from the parent of good. Even the heathen could say, "No evil can from thee proceed: 'Tis only suffer'd, not decreed: As darkness is not from the sun, Nor mount the shades, till he is gone."
Verse 28
[28] He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
He said, An enemy hath done this — A plain answer to the great question concerning the origin of evil. God made men (as he did angels) intelligent creatures, and consequently free either to choose good or evil: but he implanted no evil in the human soul: An enemy (with man's concurrence) hath done this. Darnel, in the Church, is properly outside Christians, such as have the form of godliness, without the power. Open sinners, such as have neither the form nor the power, are not so properly darnel, as thistles and brambles: these ought to be rooted up without delay, and not suffered in the Christian community. Whereas should fallible men attempt to gather up the darnel, they would often root up the wheat with them.
Verse 38
[38] The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
The good seed are the children of the kingdom — That is, the children of God, the righteous.
Verse 41
[41] The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
They shall gather all things that offend — Whatever had hindered or grieved the children of God; whatever things or persons had hindered the good seed which Christ had sown from taking root or bearing fruit. The Greek word is, All scandals.
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CALLS TO WORSHIP
Call to Worship #1
L: In the midst of strife, God is with us!
P: Come, O Lord, and pour your word into our hearts.
L: In the anguish and grief of everyday living, God is with us!
P: Hear our cries, O Lord, and quiet our spirits!
L: Come, let us open our hearts and spirits to the Lord.
P: We come, with confidence and hope in the presence of God. AMEN.
Call to Worship #2
L: Has it been a tough week?
P: So much has happened; some of it good, other things that are hurtful.
L: The Lord has been with you in all that has happened.
P: We need to see the loving presence of God.
L: Open your eyes and see God’s wondrous love active in your life.
P: Lord, help us to take our focus away from our strife and place it on you. AMEN.
Call to Worship #3
[Using THE FAITH WE SING, p. 2172, “We Are Called,” offer the following call to worship as directed. ]
L: God has scattered the seed of love and compassion lavishly to the world.
P: But some of the seed is wasted. It has fallen into ruin and decay.
L: There will always be enough seed that falls into the good soil.
P: But how will we know? Help us, Lord, discern the goodness that has been poured out to us.
Congregation: singing “We Are Called” [Note: If you do not have the pew edition of THE FAITH WE SING, have your choir sing this song.]
L: AMEN
P: AMEN!
Call to Worship #4
L: The Lord knows each and every one of us and loves each one dearly.
P: Sometimes it feels as though God has drifted away from us.
L: Be strong! Look for the ways in which God is present to you.
P: Given all the troubles of the day, we often look more closely at them.
L: Come, open your hearts and spirits to God’s love and presence
P: Lord, help us to see your presence in all of life’s circumstances. AMEN.
PRAYERS, READING, BENEDICTION
Opening Prayer
God of Jacob, who rested his head on a stone pillow and saw visions of your angels, be with us this day. Give us a vision of your presence in the midst of our strife. Give us courage and confidence that you are with us, calling us to be your loving people in the world. For we ask these things in Jesus’ Name. AMEN.
Prayer of Confession
Patient Lord, it is so easy for us to focus on all the things that are wrong. We spend much time and energy in anger and sorrow, leaving behind the possibilities of hope and service to you. Ease our hearts, O Lord. Forgive our willingness to get caught up in the negative. Direct our steps toward positive actions that will produce growth and peace. We offer this prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. AMEN.
Words of Assurance
God’s seeds of love have already been sown in your midst. Come and see the love of God outpoured for you. You are God’s beloved ones. Come, live in the light of God. AMEN.
Pastoral Prayer
Lord, we wonder about you. We look around us at the mighty power and majesty of nature, and it is easy for us to sing songs of praise for your creation. But then we look at the ways in which people treat one another. Too often, lying and cheating are touted as the ways in which we should live. We see deceit and anger, hostility and hatred, and we wonder where the visions of the angels descending and ascending are today. We long for times of peace and joy yet are drawn into the horrors of the world. Be with us, Lord. Help us see and feel your presence in our lives. Help us place our trust in you. For there is much work to be done in your world, and you have called us to this work. Guide our steps and guard our lives. For we ask this in Jesus’ Name. AMEN.
Reading
Voice: The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, the weeds appeared as well.
Reader 1: Some gardener! He should have been more careful. You’ve got to watch out for enemies all around you.
Reader 2: Yes. You can never tell when something you have done will be corrupted.
Reader 1: Let me tell you, if I was that gardener I would have built a big wall around the garden and stationed guards on all four sides. I would have guard dogs patrolling, making sure that nothing gets through. I wouldn’t take any chances.
Reader 2: I know what you mean! Vigilance! That’s the ticket. In this day and age, you have to be watchful and careful. You can’t trust anyone.
Voice: When the gardener’s helpers told him about the weeds and asked him if they should pull them up, he responded, “No, for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers: Collect the weeds first and bind them into bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”
Reader 1: I don’t get it. This gardener is letting the weeds grow with the wheat. What’s his problem? Doesn’t he know that he should just grab those weeds and yank them out of the garden?
Reader 2: So you lose a few good plants. What’s the problem with that?
Voice: Your care is commendable. Your job is to nurture the good plants. In the strengthening of the good plants, lies the hope for the world. God is with you, even in the midst of the weeds.
Benediction
Go into God’s world with confidence and hope. God’s presence is with you in all that you do. Be those people who plant seeds of comfort and hope. God will bring about the harvest in due time. AMEN.
ARTISTIC ELEMENTS
The traditional Color for this Sunday is: GREEN
[Note: This is an interesting Sunday for the worship artist. You could focus on making an arrangement of weeds and good plants. You will need lots of help with this, so look to the gardeners in your parish for assistance. I have suggested landscaper‘s burlap as the main fabric for the worship center. It comes in a large roll and will need to be aired out before you use it on the worship center. This is a wonderful fabric to have. You may cut it to fit or leave it and double it up, which is what I do because I use this fabric in many settings.]
SURFACE:
Place five risers on the worship center: one riser, about 10” tall, should be at the center back; the other risers, of varying heights, may be placed randomly on the worship center. Place a riser in front of the worship center. Cover all the risers with a clear plastic painter’s drop cloth to help protect the surfaces from the moisture and soil of the plants.
FABRIC:
Cover the entire worship center with burlap (I prefer to use landscaper’s burlap, which can be found at most garden stores or plant nurseries. It comes in a 50-foot roll and will need to be unrolled and laid outside to air out; it has an interesting aroma.) This burlap can be woven back and forth across the worship center, puddling on the floor in front of the worship center.
CANDLES:
No candles are necessary for this setting.
FLOWERS/PLANTS:
Here’s where you can have some fun. Get some lovely healthy plants, very robust, preferably in terra cotta pots. They should be green and very leafy. Place these plants on the risers on the worship center and in front of the worship center. If you have some taller plants, you may place them on the floor in front of the worship center, to the sides of the floor riser. Also get some weeds, the scragglier the better, and pot them in smaller terra cotta pots, some of them can be falling over and spilling out of the pots. Place them on the main level of the worship center, near the other potted plants, and on the riser in front of the worship center. Be careful not to overplant this setting. Give the impression of the strong plants growing among the weeds.
ROCKS/WOOD:
I would place some clusters of rocks near the weed plants both on the main level and on the riser in front of the worship center. It breaks the dominance of the green and gives a little texture to the setting.
OTHER:
Place a brass cross on the center riser on the worship center. It should be easily seen amid the plants and weeds.
Genesis 28:10-19a; Psalm 139: 1-12, 23-2; Romans 8:12-25; Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Genesis 28:10-12 Jacob left Beersheba and went to Haran. He came to a certain place and camped for the night since the sun had set. He took one of the stones there, set it under his head and lay down to sleep. And he dreamed: A stairway was set on the ground and it reached all the way to the sky; angels of God were going up and going down on it.
13-15 Then God was right before him, saying, “I am God, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. I’m giving the ground on which you are sleeping to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will be as the dust of the Earth; they’ll stretch from west to east and from north to south. All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants. Yes. I’ll stay with you, I’ll protect you wherever you go, and I’ll bring you back to this very ground. I’ll stick with you until I’ve done everything I promised you.”
16-17 Jacob woke up from his sleep. He said, “God is in this place—truly. And I didn’t even know it!” He was terrified. He whispered in awe, “Incredible. Wonderful. Holy. This is God’s House. This is the Gate of Heaven.”
18-19 Jacob was up first thing in the morning. He took the stone he had used for his pillow and stood it up as a memorial pillar and poured oil over it. He christened the place Bethel (God’s House). The name of the town had been Luz until then.
Psalm 139: A David Psalm
1-6 God, investigate my life;
get all the facts firsthand.
I’m an open book to you;
even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
I’m never out of your sight.
You know everything I’m going to say
before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you’re there,
then up ahead and you’re there, too—
your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—
I can’t take it all in!
7-12 Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?
to be out of your sight?
If I climb to the sky, you’re there!
If I go underground, you’re there!
If I flew on morning’s wings
to the far western horizon,
You’d find me in a minute—
you’re already there waiting!
Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark!
At night I’m immersed in the light!”
It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you;
night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.
23-24 Investigate my life, O God,
find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
get a clear picture of what I’m about;
See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
then guide me on the road to eternal life.
Romans 8: 12-14 So don’t you see that we don’t owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There’s nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God’s Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go!
15-17 This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him!
18-21 That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what’s coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.
22-25 All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it’s not only around us; it’s within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We’re also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don’t see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.
Matthew 13: 24-26 He told another story. “God’s kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn. When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles showed up, too.
27 “The farmhands came to the farmer and said, ‘Master, that was clean seed you planted, wasn’t it? Where did these thistles come from?’
28 “He answered, ‘Some enemy did this.’
“The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?’
29-30 “He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you’ll pull up the wheat, too. Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I’ll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the barn.’”
The Curtain of History
36 Jesus dismissed the congregation and went into the house. His disciples came in and said, “Explain to us that story of the thistles in the field.”
37-39 So he explained. “The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil, and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels.
40-43 “The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act. The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom, pitch them in the trash, and be done with them. They are going to complain to high heaven, but nobody is going to listen. At the same time, ripe, holy lives will mature and adorn the kingdom of their Father.
“Are you listening to this? Really listening?
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John Wesley’s Notes-Commentary:
Genesis 28:10-19a
Verse 11
[11] And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.
The stones for his pillow, and the heavens for his canopy! Yet his comfort in the divine blessing, and his confidence in the divine protection, made him easy, even when he lay thus exposed: being sure that his God made him to dwell in safety, he could lie down and sleep upon a stone.
Verse 12
[12] And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
Behold a ladder set upon the earth, and the top of it reached heaven, the angels ascending and descending on it, and the Lord stood above it — This might represent 1. The providence of God, by which there is a constant correspondence kept up between heaven and earth. The counsels of heaven are executed on earth, and the affairs of this earth are all known in heaven. Providence doth his work gradually and by steps; angels are employed as ministering spirits to serve all the designs of providence, and the wisdom of God is at the upper end of the ladder, directing all the motions of second causes to his glory. The angels are active spirits, continually ascending and descending; they rest not day nor night. They ascend to give account of what they have done, and to receive orders; and desend to execute the orders they have received. This vision gave seasonable comfort to Jacob, letting him know that he had both a good guide and good guard; that though he was to wander from his father's house, yet he was the care of Providence, and the charge of the holy angels. 2. The mediation of Christ. He is this ladder: the foot on earth in his human nature, the top in heaven in his divine nature; or the former is his humiliation, the latter is his exaltation. All the intercourse between heaven and earth since the fall is by this ladder. Christ is the way: all God's favours come to us, and all our services come to him, by Christ. If God dwell with us, and we with him, it is by Christ: we have no way of getting to heaven but by this ladder; for the kind offices the angels do us, are all owing to Christ, who hath reconciled things on earth and things in heaven, Colossians 1:20.
Verse 14
[14] And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed — Christ is the great blessing of the world: all that are blessed, whatever family they are of, are blessed in him, and none of any family are excluded from blessedness in him, but those that exclude themselves.
Verse 15
[15] And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
Behold I am with thee — Wherever we are, we are safe, if we have God's favourable presence with us. He knew not, but God foresaw what hardships he would meet with in his uncle's service, and therefore promiseth to preserve him in all places. God knows how to give his people graces and comforts accommodated to the events that shall be, as well as to those that are. He was now going as an exile into a place far distant, but God promiseth him to bring him again to this land. He seemed to be forsaken of all his friends, but God gives him this assurance, I will not leave thee.
Verse 16
[16] And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.
Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not — God's manifestations of himself to his people carry their own evidence along with them. God can give undeniable demonstrations of his presence, such as give abundant satisfaction to the souls of the faithful, that God is with them of a truth; satisfaction not communicable to others, but convincing to themselves. We sometimes meet with God there, where we little thought of meeting with him. He is there where we did not think he had been, is found there where we asked not for him.
Verse 17
[17] And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
He was afraid — So far was he from being puffed up. The more we see of God, the more cause we see for holy trembling and blushing before him. Those whom God is pleased to manifest himself to, are laid and kept very low in their own eyes, and see cause to fear even the Lord and his goodness, Hosea 3:5.
And said, How dreadful is this place! — That is, the appearance of God in this place is to be thought of, but with a holy awe and reverence; I shall have a respect for this place, and remember it by this token as long as I live. Not that he thought the place itself any nearer the divine visions than any other places; but what he saw there at this time was, as it were, the house of God, the residence of the Divine Majesty, and the gate of heaven, that is, the general rendezvous of the inhabitants of the upper world; as the meetings of a city were in their gates; or, the angels ascending and descending were like travellers passing and repassing through the gates of a city.
Verse 18
[18] And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.
He set up the stone for a pillar — To mark the place again, if he came back, and erect a lasting monument of God's favour to him: and because he had not time now to build an altar here, as Abraham did in the places where God appeared to him, Genesis 12:7, he therefore poured oil on the top of this stone, which probably was the ceremony then used in dedicating their altars, as an earnest of his building an altar when he should have conveniencies for it, as afterwards he did, in gratitude to God, Genesis 35:7. Grants of mercy call for our returns of duty and the sweet communion we have with God ought ever to be remembered.
Verse 19
[19] And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.
It had been called Luz, an almond-tree, but he will have it henceforth called Beth-el, the house of God. This gracious appearance of God to him made it more remarkable than all the almond-trees that flourished there.
Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24
Verse 2
[2] Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
Afar off — Thou knowest what my thoughts will be in such and such circumstances, long before I know it, yea from all eternity.
Verse 3
[3] Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
Compassest — Thou discernest every step I take. It is a metaphor from soldiers besieging their enemies, and setting watches round about them.
Verse 5
[5] Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
Beset me — With thy all-seeing providence.
And laid — Thou keepest me, as it were with a strong hand, in thy sight and under thy power.
Verse 6
[6] Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
I cannot — Apprehend in what manner thou dost so presently know all things.
Verse 8
[8] If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
Hell — If I could hide myself in the lowest parts of the earth.
Verse 9
[9] If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
The wings — If I should flee from east to west: for the sea being the western border of Canaan, is often put for the west in scripture. And wings are poetically ascribed to the morning here, as they are elsewhere to the sun, and to the winds.
Romans 8:12-25
Verse 12
[12] Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
We are not debtors to the flesh — We ought not to follow it.
Verse 13
[13] For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
The deeds of the flesh — Not only evil actions, but evil desires, tempers, thoughts.
If ye mortify — Kill, destroy these.
Ye shall live — The life of faith more abundantly here, and hereafter the life of glory.
Verse 14
[14] For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God — In all the ways of righteousness.
They are the sons of God — Here St. Paul enters upon the description of those blessings which he comprises, Romans 8:30, in the word glorified; though, indeed, he does not describe mere glory, but that which is still mingled with the cross. The sum is, through sufferings to glory.
Verse 15
[15] For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
For ye — Who are real Christians.
Have not received the spirit of bondage — The Holy Ghost was not properly a spirit of bondage, even in the time of the Old Testament. Yet there was something of bondage remaining even in those who then had received the Spirit.
Again — As the Jews did before.
We — All and every believer.
Cry — The word denotes a vehement speaking, with desire, confidence, constancy.
Abba, Father — The latter word explains the former. By using both the Syriac and the Greek word, St. Paul seems to point out the joint cry both of the Jewish and gentile believers. The spirit of bondage here seems directly to mean, those operations of the Holy Spirit by which the soul, on its first conviction, feels itself in bondage to sin, to the world, to Satan, and obnoxious to the wrath of God. This, therefore, and the Spirit of adoption, are one and the same Spirit, only manifesting itself in various operations, according to the various circumstances of the persons.
Verse 16
[16] The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
The same Spirit beareth witness with our spirit — With the spirit of every true believer, by a testimony distinct from that of his own spirit, or the testimony of a good conscience. Happy they who enjoy this clear and constant.
Verse 17
[17] And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Joint heirs — That we may know it is a great inheritance which God will give us for he hath given a great one to his Son.
If we suffer with him — Willingly and cheerfully, for righteousness' sake. This is a new proposition, referring to what follows.
Verse 18
[18] For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
For I reckon — This verse gives the reason why he but now mentioned sufferings and glory. When that glory "shall be revealed in us," then the sons of God will be revealed also.
Verse 19
[19] For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
For the earnest expectation — The word denotes a lively hope of something drawing near, and a vehement longing after it.
Of the creation — Of all visible creatures, believers excepted, who are spoken of apart; each kind, according as it is capable. All these have been sufferers through sin; and to all these (the finally impenitent excepted) shall refreshment redound from the glory of the children of God. Upright heathens are by no means to be excluded from this earnest expectation: nay, perhaps something of it may at some times be found even in the vainest of men; who (although in the hurry of life they mistake vanity for liberty, and partly stifle. partly dissemble, their groans, yet) in their sober, quiet, sleepless, afflicted hours, pour forth many sighs in the ear of God.
Verse 20
[20] For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
The creation was made subject to vanity — Abuse, misery, and corruption.
By him who subjected it — Namely, God, Genesis 3:17; 5:29. Adam only made it liable to the sentence which God pronounced; yet not without hope.
Verse 21
[21] Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
The creation itself shall be delivered — Destruction is not deliverance: therefore whatsoever is destroyed, or ceases to be, is not delivered at all. Will, then, any part of the creation be destroyed? Into the glorious liberty - The excellent state wherein they were created.
Verse 22
[22] For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
For the whole creation groaneth together — With joint groans, as it were with one voice.
And travaileth — Literally, is in the pains of childbirth, to be delivered of the burden of the curse.
Until now — To this very hour; and so on till the time of deliverance.
Verse 23
[23] And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
And even we, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit — That is, the Spirit, who is the first-fruits of our inheritance.
The adoption — Persons who had been privately adopted among the Romans were often brought forth into the forum, and there publicly owned as their sons by those who adopted them. So at the general resurrection, when the body itself is redeemed from death, the sons of God shall be publicly owned by him in the great assembly of men and angels.
The redemption of our body — From corruption to glory and immortality.
Verse 24
[24] For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
For we are saved by hope — Our salvation is now only in hope. We do not yet possess this full salvation.
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Verse 24
[24] Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
He proposed another parable — in which he farther explains the case of unfruitful hearers. The kingdom of heaven (as has been observed before) sometimes signifies eternal glory: sometimes the way to it, inward religion; sometimes, as here, the Gospel dispensation: the phrase is likewise used for a person or thing relating to any one of those: so in this place it means, Christ preaching the Gospel, who is like a man sowing good seed - The expression, is like, both here and in several other places, only means, that the thing spoken of may be illustrated by the following similitude.
Who sowed good seed in his field — God sowed nothing but good in his whole creation. Christ sowed only the good seed of truth in his Church.
Verse 25
[25] But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
But while men slept — They ought to have watched: the Lord of the field sleepeth not.
His enemy came and sowed darnel — This is very like wheat, and commonly grows among wheat rather than among other grain: but tares or vetches are of the pulse kind, and bear no resemblance to wheat.
Verse 26
[26] But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
When the blade was sprung up, then appeared the darnel — It was not discerned before: it seldom appears, as soon as the good seed is sown: all at first appears to be peace, and love, and joy.
Verse 27
[27] So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
Didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? Whence then hath it darnel? — Not from the parent of good. Even the heathen could say, "No evil can from thee proceed: 'Tis only suffer'd, not decreed: As darkness is not from the sun, Nor mount the shades, till he is gone."
Verse 28
[28] He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
He said, An enemy hath done this — A plain answer to the great question concerning the origin of evil. God made men (as he did angels) intelligent creatures, and consequently free either to choose good or evil: but he implanted no evil in the human soul: An enemy (with man's concurrence) hath done this. Darnel, in the Church, is properly outside Christians, such as have the form of godliness, without the power. Open sinners, such as have neither the form nor the power, are not so properly darnel, as thistles and brambles: these ought to be rooted up without delay, and not suffered in the Christian community. Whereas should fallible men attempt to gather up the darnel, they would often root up the wheat with them.
Verse 38
[38] The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
The good seed are the children of the kingdom — That is, the children of God, the righteous.
Verse 41
[41] The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
They shall gather all things that offend — Whatever had hindered or grieved the children of God; whatever things or persons had hindered the good seed which Christ had sown from taking root or bearing fruit. The Greek word is, All scandals.
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Jacob’s father sent him to Paddan Aram to find a wife. This may seem extraordinary in our culture where marriage is often entered into without direction from anyone. Jacob obeys his father and sets out on a journey not realizing that his journey will be interrupted by angels.
Jacob camps for the night without the benefit of room service. In this ordinary setting he dreams of a stairway going from earth to heaven. Angels are on the staircase and if that were not enough, the God of Abraham is just above the stairway with a message for our traveler. After identifying himself, the Lord promises Jacob that his family will multiply. They will bless other people. I once had a retired minister tell me that he was going to bless me. He then proceeded to pray God’s blessing on my ministry. I still think of that prayer when the journey becomes difficult.
As if the promise is not enough, God reassured Jacob that he would be with him and never leave him. One would think Jacob’s worries were behind him. When he awakens he is afraid. His fear may have been based on a sense of God’s Holiness or perhaps he was insecure and wondered what to do next.
Jacob erects a crude structure to God that he promises is the beginning of a house for God. Then he makes a vow to God promising to follow him. God has already promised care but Jacob needs reassurance. He can’t be satisfied with the free gift of God’s grace. He must add to it.
Like Jacob we have difficulty taking God at his word. We insist on adding to the gift of grace when God has already assured us he loves us. Much of our religious work may be for our benefit rather than the Creators. God had already promised to be with Jacob. His faith story included a gift of grace as does ours.
The words of Romans reminds us that we are led by the Spirit of God. As Jacob was so we are the recipients of God’s promises and guidance.
From a Child's Point of View
Old Testament: Genesis 28:10-19a. Children need help to understand this seemingly simple story. First, the context needs elaboration. Jacob, on his mother's advice, has run away from his angry brother. Totally alone for the first time in his life, he is sleeping in the desert on his way to the home of his unknown uncle. Scared and alone, he meets God in a dream. The ladder to heaven is God's way of telling Jacob that he is not alone. There is always communication between heaven and earth—between God and people. The vision is reinforced by God's words, promising to be with Jacob, to protect him, and even to get him back home. The story invites children to claim for themselves God's promise that no situation is so bad that God will not be with them.
Psalm: 139:1-12, 23-24. Jacob might have prayed this psalm in the desert. It invites children to bask in God's complete knowledge of them and God's constant, caring presence. Some children can expect such care from no one, even in their own family. But children from secure homes also sometimes feel (rightly or wrongly) that they are overlooked, underloved, and unappreciated. So God's constant presence provides important security to all children.
Epistle: Romans 8:12-25. Paul describes the powerful work of the Spirit, which adopts us into God's family, is working toward the re-creation of the world, and prays for us. The most child-accessible image in Paul's complex argument is that of adoption. Most children have read about or have met children who were adopted. Most children have wondered what it would be like to be adopted and at times have wished that they could be adopted into another family.
So they are ready to explore Paul's idea that though all of us are born into a human family, we may be adopted into God's family. In this adoption, we gain the privilege of calling God our father and mother and of sharing in the hopes, joys, and sufferings of God's family. We look forward to the new world God is creating, we suffer with the rest of the family while we work and wait for the creation of that world (just as Jesus, our older brother, did), and we enjoy the protection and loving care of God's Spirit. Do not expect children to gather any of this from the reading of the text.
Gospel: Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43. The unstated problem in this parable is that the roots, stems, and leaves of the good plants and those of the weeds become so tangled that the weeds cannot be pulled out without damaging the good plants. This problem needs to be explained in detail for nongardening children. Even with this explanation, children will not comprehend the subtle entanglements of good and evil. They simply need to accept Jesus' claim that the good and evil must exist together for now. To children for whom next month seems like the distant future, the promise of harvest remedies means little.
Watch Words
Spirit is God at work in the world and in our lives. Speak of weeds rather than tares.
Let the Children Sing
Conclude each verse of "We Are Climbing Jacob's Ladder" with the words "children of the Lord," rather than "soldiers of the cross."
"Come, Ye Thankful People, Come" is based on Jesus' parable. Explore it verse by verse in the sermon before the congregation sings it.
For Jacob and the writer of Psalm 139, sing the version of Psalm 23 most familiar to your congregation.
If Communion is celebrated, sing "I Come with Joy to Meet My Lord," to emphasize that this is the table of God's family.
The Liturgical Child
1. Ask that the floral display illustrate Jesus' parable by including both weeds (perhaps thistles or thorny branches) and garden flowers. Refer to the display.
2. Lead a responsive prayer based on God's promise to Jacob. The congregation's response is that promise: Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go.
When we are frightened by new places, new jobs, new responsibilities, new people, or hew ideas, remind us of your words to Jacob. (RESPONSE)
When we feel trapped by problems we cannot solve and stuck with people with whom we cannot get along, let us hear what you said to Jacob as he ran from his angry brother. (RESPONSE)
When we feel as totally alone as Jacob felt when he was alone in the desert, when we feel abandoned by our friends, when we feel lost, help us remember your words. (RESPONSE)
When we lose hope that anything will ever be any better than it is now, when our own problems seem too big to ever be solved, when hunger and injustice and war seem unavoidable, when it looks as though the evil always wins and the good loses, speak quietly to us. (RESPONSE)
Speak quietly to us, Lord, and give us the courage to rise up as your children. Make us constantly aware of your loving, powerful presence with us. Teach us to depend upon that power to do surprising things in your name. We pray, remembering Jacob, and in the name of Jesus. Amen.
3. If Communion is part of your worship today, present it as the dinner table of God's family. Mention the dream which promised a banquet at which God's children of all places and times will gather. Invite people to think of that feast as they eat and drink at the Lord's Table today.
4. Invite children (either all the children in the congregation, or a class that has received a prior invitation) to sit with you in the chancel. Explain that Jesus once told a story to a big crowd. Read Matthew 13:24-30. If children are comfortable with such conversation, talk briefly about what they think Jesus' story meant. Then point out that Jesus' friends were puzzled by the story too, and later when they were alone, they asked Jesus to explain it. Read Matthew 13:36-43 and make one of Jesus' points briefly before the children return to their seats.
5. To give worshipers an opportunity to pray Psalm 139 in the first person, as it is written, line it out (read one line at a time, the congregation repeating each line as it is read). The words and phrases of the Good News Bible are easiest for this.
Sermon Resources
1. At the bottom of the ladder from heaven, Jacob, running away from his angry brother, slept in the desert, frightened and lonely. Invite children to draw their own pictures of the ladder from heaven to earth and, at the bottom of that ladder, draw a situation in which they feel as frightened and lonely as Jacob did. Discuss their pictures with them briefly as they leave the sanctuary, and remind them that God will be with them in the situation they drew.
2. Tell the story of a person who was adopted into God's family. Tell how the person was adopted in baptism, what s/he did as part of God's family, how s/he suffered as part of God's family, and who knew and loved that person as a Christian brother or sister. The story of Nelle Morton, who lived as a member of God's family in the South, participating in civil-rights movements and caring for people with mental disabilities, is available on video or film from many church libraries. Her story speaks to people of all ages.
Sermon Options: July 20, 2014
DREAMING GOD'S DREAM
GENESIS 28:10-19a
Helen Keller was asked what would be worse than being born blind. She responded, "To have sight and no vision." One of the essential keys to success in life is a dream, a vision, something to drive us to greater things. Jacob needed a dream! His possessive mother, Rebekah, had schemed with him to take his brother's birthright away, resulting in Esau's wrath beginning to pour out. Before Esau could kill him, Jacob ran away. He had no dream; he had only the moment. Many people today are attempting to escape from their Esaus. They have no dreams; they see only today. Like Jacob, they need a Bethel where they can dream God's dream.
I. Great Dreams Must Begin Somewhere (vv. 10-12)
It was a dream that would change Jacob's life. His dream began in a routine way. After running all day, he was exhausted. Using a rock for a pillow, he stretched out for a night of slumber, never expecting to experience such a dream.
Our dreams start right where we are, in the routine of life. John Maxwell says there is a natural sequence to beginning our dreams. A dream whizzes by. He calls it the "I thought it" stage. He says it progresses to the "I caught it" stage; the individual gets excited about the dream and talks about it. The natural progression then leads to the "I bought it" stage; an investment of time, talent, effort, or money is put on deposit. The "I sought it" stage allows the dream to possess the person until it finally becomes the "I got it" stage, where the dream belongs to the individual. He is satisfied that the price paid was not too high. But it all starts with the beginning of the dream.
II. Great Dreams Come from God (vv. 13-15)
Jacob saw God in his dream, and he heard the Lord's plan for his life. God has a big dream or plan for the entire human race. God's dream is that we be saved (2 Pet. 3:9) . God's dream is that his people be holy (1 Thess. 4:3) . God's dream is that his people share the good news of the gospel (Matt. 28:19-20).
But you want to know God's specific portrait for your life. There are some principles for discovering God's dream in your life. One is that God's dream will probably use the innate talents and gifts God has already given you. The exciting thought is that God often conveys his plans through natural talents. Scripture is also important in finding God's dream. The Lord may provide insight from a specific verse, or the Bible may bear out the circumstances of your life at the moment.
Another principle involves your own attitude. Are you genuinely honest about wanting to know and follow God's will? Are you willing to be led by the Holy Spirit, whatever the result may be?
III. Great Dreams Demand Action (vv. 16-19a)
There is a time to dream, think, and plan, but there is also a time to act. An anonymous writer observed, "The vision to see, the faith to believe, and the will to do will take you anywhere you want to go." Are you willing to act on your dreams today? (Derl G. Keefer)
ALL IN THE FAMILY
ROMANS 8:12-25
As a small child, did you ever threaten to run away from home? I remember once that I became angry at my parents—I was all of six or seven years old—and told my mother that I would be running away. She offered to help me pack my bag, and I suspect that was what started my reconsideration of the entire process! If I had managed to get away, however, it wouldn't have been long before I would have missed my own bed, my place at the dinner table, my parents. I would have missed being part of my family.
In the verses just prior to our text, Paul has been talking about the wonderful freedom we receive through life in the Spirit, as we walk day by day with Christ. In this passage—particularly verses 12-17—he proceeds to demonstrate a further blessing that comes our way as believers: we become part of the family of God.
We are not naturally God's children, though we are God's creation. Membership in God's family is a gift of divine grace and becomes realized as we walk in the Spirit as Christian believers. Paul makes it clear that we have received a great gift as God welcomes us into his family. What does it mean to be in God's family?
I. We Receive the Gift of Life (vv. 12-13)
True life, authentic living, comes only through relationship with the Author and Creator of life. Apart from membership in God's family, we are destined for death.
Living according to the flesh leads to death, because the flesh binds; it destroys; it kills. The flesh demands self-gratification and self-glorification yet offers no ultimate satisfaction. By contrast, the Holy Spirit within the believer helps us recognize that only in walking according to God's will do we discover true satisfaction and true glory.
When Paul talks about putting to death "the deeds of the body," he uses a word for a continuing action. Overcoming the flesh is not a one-time event, but a continuing effort in the life of the believer. And the same Spirit that empowers us to holy living also empowers us to experience real life in Christ.
II. We Receive the Gift of Adoption (vv. 14-17)
What does it mean to be adopted into God's family? Paul uses an image from Greek and Roman society (adoption was not a Jewish practice), in which an adopted child is given full rights and privileges of sonship in a family in which he was not a natural member. The child had no natural or legal claim on membership in the family, but received a gift of family membership through adoption.
Likewise, we have no natural claim on God's family. Through our own sin, we have turned or rebelled against the God who created us. Yet in divine love and grace, God extends a hand to us and brings us into his family. As members of God's family, we receive all the rights and responsibilities of family membership.
As children, we are also heirs. Paul does not use this in a material sense; since God does not die, there is no material inheritance to receive. Rather, as heirs we are recognized as occupying a privileged position within the family. Though we have no dignity in and of ourselves, God has bestowed upon us a unique dignity that comes from being a member of his family.
III. We Receive the Gift of Future Glory (vv. 18-25)
Some historians in the early 1990s talked of the world having reached "the end of history," in the sense that we were achieving the culmination of human achievement through the spread of democracy around the world. Quite a few million people might question that judgment, as would those still affected by war, conflict, disease, famine, and other evidences of a corrupted world. But a day is coming when all of history will reach its climax, as God redeems history and creation and ushers in a true new age. And as members of God's family, we have been provided a unique, unmerited opportunity to share in that future glory. What an amazing gift! (Michael Duduit)
REALITIES OF THE KINGDOM
MATTHEW 13:24-30, 36-43
David's wife plays the piano at one of the area churches, but he does not attend and has never accepted Christ. When the pastor visited him, David told the pastor that he lived as good a life as any of the church members and he saw no reason to change. He was right about living a good life. Many people who become Christians will need to change very little of what they do in their daily routines, but the focus of their lives and their eternal destiny have been totally changed.
Jesus deals with the issue in his own special way in the parable of the wheat and weeds. This passage is often understood to refer to the church, but Jesus said that the field in the parable refers to the world (v. 38a ). Understanding the realities of Kingdom life should provide us help to focus on what is most crucial: being citizens in God's kingdom. What are the realities of Kingdom life?
I. Christians and Non-Christians Must Coexist in the World (v. 30a)
Jesus makes it clear in this passage that the people of the church and the people of the world are going to progress through this life together. Knowing this is instructive for both groups. First, it is a warning for the church to avoid two extremes: the church must avoid compromise with worldly philosophies that are unacceptable to God; and the church must avoid seeking isolation from worldly people. The idea is to be in the world but not of the world, just as Jesus modeled with his own life.
Second, it is a wake-up call for the people of the world. There needs to be understanding that togetherness does not mean sameness. It is clear from the text that although coexistence is a reality, people of the world and the Kingdom are very different.
II. Christians and Non-Christians Often Look Alike (vv. 38-39)
Externally, the Christian and the non-Christian often look alike. They may work at the same office or factory. They may live on the same street and be involved in many of the same community activities. This is true because both groups are affected by the norms of their culture.
But internally, they are totally different. In verse 38, we see that in spite of their similarity in appearance, one has a Kingdom relationship, and the other has a relationship with the evil one. Therefore, external appearance can be very deceptive. We need to look into our own hearts to discover with whom we have a relationship.
III. Christians and Non-Christians Are Destined to an Eternal Difference (vv. 41-43)
It is clear from the apocalyptic text that Christians and non-Christians will not coexist and look alike forever. A separation is sure to come. The wicked will suffer eternal destruction while Christians will "shine like the sun." The final reality of Kingdom life helps one realize that what is most crucial is a new citizenship that comes through a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
It seems to me that there are two urgent admonitions in this text. First, it is not enough to just look like a Christian; you must surrender your life to Jesus. Second, do all that you are able to share Christ with as many as you can. It is the greatest gift you can give to anyone! (Douglas Bunch)
The growth of intention
By Jerrod Hugenot
Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23Farmers and other food growers worry a lot about crop failure. They might not look it, standing there with a cup of coffee in their overhauls, but when the weather forecast comes on the early morning news, the house grows silent as they listen for any bad weather predicted. Hail, too much rain, too little rain, heavy winds, early frosts, deer treating your fields like a buffet, bugs, you name it. In the mind of any farmer I have known, there is a fear deep down of crop failure.
So you buy the best seed you can afford, you hope to have a good season of the right mix of rain and sun, you hope for a decent price when it’s time to sell to the grain elevator. You go to extraordinary lengths trying out the latest techniques (or locally, the latest cannon). But deep down, even the most religiously indifferent farmer will say muttered prayers, “Please, O Lord, no hail. No floods. No drought. No grain price crash. That’s all I ask. Amen.”
The parable of the seed scattered is not a good one to tell. It gets worse before it even thinks about getting better. New Testament scholar Warren Carter points out that of all the seed scattered, three-quarters of that seed “will come to naught.” This is not a story I pick up the phone and call my retired farmer dad to say, “Have you heard this one?” The seeds that “come to naught”, besieged by birds, thorns, stony ground, none of that really makes for delightful conversation with dad. Instead, the parable reminds a farmer about those times when you glumly survey the dashed dreams of a bumper crop just disappearing before your very eyes.
It makes that one quarter of seed, the seed that produces considerable crops, that much more important. Go down to the grain elevator and listen to the old timers, retired from running combines, but not from running their mouths, holding court over greasy glazed doughnuts and stout coffee in mugs marked “John Deere.” Then you will hear of the “little seed that could”: “Oh yeah? Well, I put in that seed in the worst land I had, Roy, and I came away with the best yield ever.” “Earl, you got eighty bushels an acre? Try ninety two!”
The parable goes from bad (birds, thorns, rocks) to overwhelming (100 fold, 60 fold, 30 fold). The parable adds an unexpected plot twist to end the story of harsh reality (the likelihood of crop damage, low yield, and crop failure) on a much different note. The seed that could have failed just as easily as all the rest, but it did not. Instead, the retired farmers drop their doughnuts on the floor as the young whippersnapper shows up with a truck overloaded with seed. “How many fields did you cut to get all that?” one asks. “About half of the first one. I’ve got three more fields just like it.” With that, the John Deere coffee mugs clink together like champagne glasses on Wall Street.
The parable of the seed reminds me of the concept of “euchastrophe.” You have heard of “catastrophe,” where everything that can go wrong goes wrong. The British writer J.R.R. Tolkein, author of "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, suggested that there are stories that end on unexpected but abundantly good notes. The parable plays out the story of a sower who scatters the seed, the unfortunate reality that not all seed takes root or really has a chance of growing, let alone being harvested. Then there is the seed that literally hits pay dirt. An abundant harvest is the last thing that you are prepared to hear when everything else is a tale of woe. Then “euchastrophe” strikes, and you couldn’t be happier!
In the words of parables scholar Bernard Brandon Scott, the parables of Jesus offer the listener a chance to “reimagine the world.” You know the world of crop failure all too well, but this notion of an abundant crop, even with the odds against you, well, that seems to require a bit more engagement on our part. We have to take what we know as “how the world works” and see God in the middle of that world, pretty much disrupting it. Abundance in times when there ought to be not much at all is not the stuff of reality. This parable presumes that with God in the fray, things will go according to an altogether different plan!
Hence, we have the conversation after the parable. The parable itself could have been just there to hear and interpret, but Jesus offers a bit more insight about this parable. He tells the crowds who gather that you might think you have listened to the parable, but many of you have not heard it. If you have to ask, you might not get it at all. Then, he whisks away to talk with his inner circle, leaving the crowds to mull what he has said.
The parable of “a sower goes out” appears in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, however, each one of them puts their own spin on the parable. Here, Matthew adds quite a bit of interpretation about this seed and the mostly bad, save one, places where it was sown. Jesus tells the disciples to pay attention to where the seed never took root. The seed is “the word of the kingdom,” in other words, Jesus’ message of the Kingdom of Heaven, this vision of what Jesus’ ministry was bringing into the world. Those who take it deep into their hearts, the results are amazing. Jesus says, “ But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”
Have you met someone who lives out this parable?
We can name the saints, great and small, who have contributed greatly to the cause of the Gospel and the mission of the Church. Scattered with astonishing liberality, the seed works in mysterious ways. You see it germinating as that person who has “no time” makes time to ladle soup at a homeless shelter. The seed takes root when a retiree finds that it’s kind of fun to read to kids down at the library. The seed buds when that youth on a mission trip becomes less of a vacation and more a summons to a vocation.
Just like scattered seeds, the Word does not flourish everywhere it is given. Whether it is sin, apathy, or temptation, some folks simply will not hear the Word and take it to heart. We can also name some folks that we know who have not lived out this parable, who, for a variety of reasons, have very little interest in the faith, keeping it, living it out, or confessing it. For every baptism, every confirmation class, every parish record book known to be on file throughout the Church universal, it might seem that this parable’s mulling over crop failure seems a bit apropos.
Then I recollected a sermon I heard years ago given by Fred Craddock. Craddock turned this parable into a very careful reminder that we should not get too caught up in labeling folks as to whether or not they were likely to be crop failure. He reminds us that it is God doing the work, not us, so we would best leave things alone. What looks like crop failure instead might turn out differently, might be the seed that caught on and created a good yield by the time that the harvest rolls around.
Fred Craddock observes, “No farmer puts a seed in the soil and then screams at it, ‘Now, come on, get up!’” Instead, we take a step back and let the growing process happen. It is not for us to question whether the crop will fail or show a big yield. We could try to shout at the seed and the soil to perform, but again, it’s that curious mystery where we cannot predict the yield, only to take Jesus at his word that with attentiveness to God, great things become possible.
Some folks might want to prejudge the crop even before the seed is scattered. Others might think that the soil will never be good enough, or there are always too many birds and rocks and thorns to contend with. Instead, let the sower do her work.
On immigration (and why some Christians should be ashamed)
by David Dorn
Immigration is a touchy issue right now. With the advent of tens of thousands of children who have made their way into the U.S., a lingering issue has been thrust to the headlines once again. And as with any issue, there arrives a Republican side and a Democratic side, a conservative side and a liberal side. From what I’ve seen, heard and read, Christians are landing all over the place on this issue.But Jesus transcends political factions. For those of us who are concerned about the issues at the border, for national security, for human rights, and who call ourselves Christians, perhaps we too should transcend political allegiances just this once before we claim Jesus is towing our party line. There is more going on here than simply ideologies of government. In fact here are three (I think biblical) ideas that need to be involved in how we approach this issue. If we fail to address these, we will be the ones giving account for our actions or inactions to a God we call “just.” Inevitably, there will be some of us who find ourselves ashamed of how we approached this issue… approached these people.
Here we go.
1. God says…
In Leviticus God very specifically commands the people of Israel to act a certain way toward people. While many Christians are quick to consign the Old Testament to being for a particular time and culture, God doesn’t change. Leviticus 19:10 says, “Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God.” Leviticus 23:20 further says, "When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the LORD your God.” God is concerned with showing mercy to those who need it and to those who are not one of you. Borders change, but God’s concern for people doesn’t.
"But they are here illegally!" Yes they are. That needs to be addressed. Everything about our system needs to be addressed. Still God’s concern for people is always paramount. When Jesus hung on a cross between two thieves, he showed mercy without discrimination in regards to legal status. Thank God for that! As Christ followers, we have an example to follow.
2. Who these people are…
In 2013, Pew Research Center did some research (hence their name) and found that 83% of undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. are Christian. Who is sneaking across the border illegally? The same very people whom you will presumably spend an eternity with. American Christians are just a fraction of the number of Christians worldwide, many of whom live in developing countries. How awkward will it be when these people come to us in eternity and ask how we treated them and their families in this life? How much more awkward will it be when God calls us out for our actions or inactions toward our brothers and sisters in Christ? Yikes. “Gladiator” got it right: “What we do in life echoes in eternity.” Thanks Russell Crowe!
Not to mention Paul. Have you read Paul recently? He speaks over and over about how Christians are to behave with one another. Romans 12:10 says, “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.”
Even if the vast majority of these folks weren’t Christians, as Christians we have a different level of accountability to those who are in need and fleeing poverty. If you’ve been outside the U.S. recently, you’ll find that in many countries in our hemisphere, life comes with no guarantees of clean water, food or safety. I’ve been to Haiti earlier this year and to Mexico in years past. If I lived there, I’d risk life and limb for my family to have a chance of life. Wouldn’t you?
3. Keep in mind the future...
This idea isn’t inherently Christian as much as it is common sense. Mistreating and forcibly deporting millions of people, in particularly children may seem appropriate to some today. But tomorrow, I assure you it will be a terrible idea. History repeats itself, and history is always connected. Sending a generation back to miserable conditions where crime, drugs, and gangs run rampant and where they now are angry at the country they once held in high esteem is a recipe for disaster. Quick fixes have a tendency to turn into long term problems. To fight the Soviets, our country armed the Taliban. To save Kuwait in the 90’s we placed troops in Suadi Arabia, further radicalizing Al Qaeda. Every action has a consequence; some consequences are worse than others.
Let’s not mistreat people coming to us for help. Let’s find a better solution. And FYI they’ve already found a way to get into our country once, and that was without ill contempt!
…
Perhaps some of us should be ashamed of the way we've handled this issue. I know I am. The more I open my heart to Jesus, the more I open my eyes are to what Jesus concerns himself with, and the less I hold on to preconceived political ideas. I’m not advocating for permanent amnesty for everyone—what I am saying is that we need to do things better. God couldn't care less that we are Americans and they are Mexican, Honduran, etc. People are people and they always need to be seen and treated as such. God loves people, shows mercy to people and seeks justice for people. As Christians, let’s do that too and also recognize that the government doesn’t have the same mandate that we have as Christians. This is too important an issue to be divided on or to mess up.
Living prayerfully
by Rueben P. Job
Scripture SentenceHe was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him; "Lord, teach us to pray." Luke 11:1
Scripture Readings
*Luke 11:2-13; Acts 4:23-31
Luke 18:1-14; Romans 12:9-21
John 17:6-19; 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13
John 17:20-26
* Asterisk indicates text recommended for preaching and teaching.
Silence for Meditation
Reflections
Most of us have a strong desire to deepen and strengthen our sense of living with God in the daily activities of life. In our better moments we want a more intimate relationship with God. We really do want to experience God’s companionship in all of life because we know that life is incomplete without this central experience of God. We want to claim and to enjoy our full inheritance as children of God. And yet, more often than not our desires are snuffed out in their infancy, and we are captured by the pressures, enticements, and false rewards of our culture.
John Wesley saw and experienced what we see and experience. It is impossible to live as a Christian if we are un-attached to God. Our spiritual and even our physical lives become a shambles without the constant companionship with God that prayer alone can make possible. Consequently, Wesley determined to be a man of ardent and consistent prayer. An exact replica of his disciplined life of prayer may not be possible for us, but it can be instructive as we fashion our own way of living with God in the world.
Wesley knew that a life of prayer was not an accident or a natural consequence of just living. He was convinced that a life of prayer was the result of a determined and disciplined effort. He knew from personal experience that without this disciplined effort, prayer would become secondary and our relationship with God left to suffocate under the cares and delights of the world. So, the disciplined life of prayer became a priority that he honored for his entire lifetime.
Even a casual acquaintance with his journal will reveal that this disciplined life of prayer did not diminish his commitment to or involvement with the world of everyday cares and affairs. As a matter of fact, it seems clear that his involvement in the affairs of life received direction and power from the priority given to prayer.
John Wesley taught and lived a life of private, public, family, and community prayer. His earliest publishing venture was to provide direction and example for the person seeking to live a life of prayer. Prayers for families, children, clergy, the poor, prisoners, the sick, governmental and ecclesiastical authority, and prayers for self are found throughout his journal and sermons. Prayer was integral to his life.
When we read Wesley’s journal and reflect upon his disciplined life, we can easily be convinced that such a life of prayer is impossible in our time and in our situation. Life is more complex and is changing more rapidly now than in the eighteenth century. The pressures on our time and life are different and more varied than the pressures John Wesley experienced. On the other hand, this kind of reflection on Wesley’s life makes it clear that he often lived in a time squeeze and felt himself to be in a pressure cooker just as we do. Looking back over two centuries it is easy to see that this pressure cooker was, for the most part, self imposed and fueled by his sense of mission. He was able to live creatively within this pressure because he continued a disciplined life of prayer.
Prayer is a natural part of our human experience. All of us pray. Sometimes we pray only when we are at the peak of our powers and simply must thank someone; and sometimes we pray when we are at the very depth of despair and we simply cry out to God in our agony. Both of these times of prayer are natural and appropriate. But they are not enough to sustain us or to nurture our relationship with God.
Therefore we, as Wesley before us, Luther before him, Augustine before him, and Jesus before them all, need to establish a disciplined life of prayer. Since each of us is a unique creation of God, our life of prayer will be unique as well. We may each pray at different times, use different resources, pray for different lengths of time, pray more in solitude or pray more in community. It is important to recognize our differences as we fashion our way of living prayerfully.
Prayer is God’s greatest provision for our spiritual life. Our relationship with God is impossible without prayer. We cannot know God’s mind or heart without prayer. We cannot receive God’s direction, hear God’s voice, or respond to God’s call without prayer. Since this is true, prayer is also God’s greatest provision for all of life. It is the supreme means of grace given to all humankind.
Prayer was so very important for Jesus that he left even the needy crowd to pray (Mark 6:31). It was so important to Wesley that he established a rigorous discipline of prayer, lest this lifeline to God be broken and life itself be lost. How important is this means of grace to you?
Spiritual Reading from John Wesley's Sermons
Sermon 46, The Wilderness State, Vol. 6, p. 86
If, upon the closest search, you can find no sin of commission which causes the cloud upon your soul, inquire next, if there be not some sin of omission which separates between God and you.... Do you walk in all the ordinances of God? In public, family, private prayer? If not, if you habitually neglect any of these known duties, how can you expect that the light of his countenance should continue to shine upon you?... When you hear a voice behind you saying, “This is the way, walk thou in it; harden not your heart: be no more disobedient to the heavenly calling. Till the sin, whether of omission or commission, be removed, all comfort is false and deceitful. It is only skinning the wound over, which still festers and rankles beneath. Look for no peace within, till you are at peace with God; which cannot be without fruits meet for repentance.
Sermon 92, On Zeal, Vol. 7, p. 60
In a Christian believer love sits upon the throne which is erected in the inmost soul; namely, love of God and man, which fills the whole heart, and reigns without a rival. In a circle near the throne are all holy tempers; longsuffering, gentleness, meekness, fidelity, temperance: and if any other were comprised in the mind which was in Christ Jesus. In an exterior circle are all the works of mercy, whether to the souls or bodies of men.... Next to these are those that are usually termed works of piety; reading and hearing the word, public, family, private prayer, receiving the Lord’s Supper, fasting or abstinence. Lastly, that his followers may the more effectually provoke one another to love, holy tempers, and good works, our blessed Lord has united them together in one body, the Church.
Sermon 43, The Scripture Way of Salvation, Vol. 6, p. 51
But what good works are those, the practice of which you affirm to be necessary to sanctification? First, all works of piety; such as public prayer, family prayer, and praying in our closet; receiving the supper of the Lord; searching the Scriptures, by hearing, reading, meditating; and using such a measure of fasting or abstinence as our bodily health allows.
Sermon 16, The Means of Grace, Vol. 5, p. 192
If it be possible for any direction to be more clear, it is that which God hath given us by the Apostle, with regard to prayer of every kind, public or private, and the blessing annexed thereto…If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally.
Sermon 94, On Family Religion, Vol. 7, p. 81
May we not endeavour, Secondly, to instruct them? to take care that every person who is under our roof have all such knowledge as is necessary to salvation?... and you should take care that they have some time every day for reading meditation, and prayer; and you should inquire whether they do actually employ that time in the exercises for which it is allowed. Neither should any day pass without family prayer, seriously and solemnly performed.
Sermon 4, Scriptural Christianity, Vol. 5, p. 51
May it not be one of the consequences of this, that so many of you are a generation of triflers...triflers with God, with one another, and with your own souls? For, how few of you spend, from one week to another, a single hour in private prayer! How few have any thought of God in the general tenor of your conversation! Who of you is, in any degree, acquainted with the work of his Spirit, his supernatural work in the souls of men?
Closing Affirmation
The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven....The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. James 5:15-16
excerpt from: A Wesleyan Spiritual Reader by Rueben P. Job Copyright © 1998 by Abingdon Press. Used with permission.
Space to breathe
by Joseph Yoo
In "God Was In This Place and I, I Did Not Know" Rabbi Lawrence Kushner writes about the holiest part of the Temple — a room so sacred that only the High Priest could enter and only enter it once a year on Yom Kippur. The High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies with a rope tied around his leg so that if he were ever to pass out or drop dead, someone could drag him out because no one could enter to retrieve the body.Once inside, the High Priest had only one thing to do, something he had prepared to do for months. He would say the ineffable four-letter name of God: Yod. Hey. Vav. Hey.
Rabbi Kushner tells us that the reason God's name is unpronounceable is because the name of God is the sound of breathing. The High Priest went into the holiest of room in the Temple and simply breathed.
For months, the High Priest would prepare to simply breathe in the presence of God in the innermost part of the sanctuary.
I find myself wanting to do more than just breathe in the presence of God. Confess. Explain. State my case. Plea. Ask. Bargain. Complain. I’m too neurotic to just breathe in the presence of God. Silence is often awkward and deafening in its own sense.
But it’s something I need to learn to do more. It’s amazing how ministry saps out the human being in you. We who are to take care of others often forgo taking care of ourselves. Breathing with God can become a nuisance, an obstacle, something easily ignored or forgotten. When our plates get too full, the first thing that falls off is our relationship with God. Ironic. But it’s the truth. And the last thing we think about doing is reconnecting with God. Maybe we tell ourselves the lie, “I can do anything. With God.” Only the truth is, we add “with God” because of the nature of our profession. What we really mean is, “I can do anything.”
And soon enough we find ourselves like the Hebrew slaves in Egypt. Meeting the quota brick by brick by brick by brick. There’s no joy. Just obligations. There’s no passion. Just a job. And we know we don’t have to live like this. But there’s a meeting tonight. A counseling session tomorrow. Meeting with a family to plan a memorial tomorrow afternoon which forces you to miss your child’s play at school. We’ve become slaves ourselves. Slaves to the office of the pastor. We’ve lost the art of being a human being and we’ve transformed to some sort of heartless robot — a human doing — that meets its daily quota brick by brick.
The High Priest would spend months of preparation not for an elaborate ritual, not to recite an lengthy liturgy, but to just simply say God’s name, which is the sound of breathing. To just breathe. And be.
I think it’s nice to remind ourselves that we are human beings once in a while. As pastors, it’s important to realize that we are not in control, God is. When I’m getting tense, when I’m getting moody, when I find less joy in the work I’m doing, when things start to feel like a job — I know something within me is not right. I’ve dragged on too long thinking it’s me against the world.
When I was growing up, I vividly remember my dad taking me to a beach and asking me to listen to the sounds of the waves. He told me that the waves crashing are the sounds of God breathing. (He also once told me that the rain is God’s tears over the sadness of the bad thing I had done).
Now I go to the beach (a blessing of living in Santa Barbara) and just stare into the horizon to hear the crashing of the waves. I am reminded to breathe. To let God be in control. God is bigger than my aspirations and my failures. It’s not about me. It’s about God.
And when I give myself the space to breathe in the presence of God, I feel my soul coming back to life.
Wrestling God
by Paul L. Escamilla
Genesis 32:22-31
Let’s get something straight. So far as the biblical witness would suggest, angels are not dainty. In Genesis 18, three of them are eating enough for fifty people. In the New Testament, they routinely scare the living daylights out of people, including tough-as-nails Roman soldiers. And in Genesis 32, an angel is more than a match for Jacob, a man who has proven he can hold his own in the worst of situations.
Rather than thinking of angels as perfumed, cherubic, light-on-their-feet ballerinas, we might do better to imagine them as nightclub bouncers, roughnecks, or heavy equipment operators, with names on their birth certificates like Mack, Bulldog, and Bruno.
They are God’s professional movers—they never leave a scene without having changed people, moving them from here to there, from one way of looking at the world to another. “Your life was moving in this direction before; now you’re going to be heading a different way.” And the response they are likely to elicit in thanks for their efforts is probably not, “Oh, you’re such an angel,” but something more like, “You angel, you!”
This angel doesn’t disappoint. Jacob is on his way to success, on the fast track of patriarchal ascendancy, and nothing is going to get in his way. Jacob’s brother didn’t. His father didn’t. His twisted uncle Laban didn’t. So far, Jacob has always grabbed or finessed his way successfully toward achieving his goals. At this point in his life, he has hit his stride, and is only going up from here. Except Jacob hasn’t reckoned on angels.
Two things I’ve found to be true in the spiritual realm: No matter how small we are feeling, how broken, how low, how discouraged or disheartened, how much grief or illness we have suffered, there’s always a force great enough to lift us to life again. And it will. It may be to the skies at the end of our days, but lift us it will.
The other truth, or so it seems to me, is that no matter how big we are feeling, how powerful, successful, brilliant, clever, how much of a shaker and mover we have become in our field, how celebrated and congratulated by others and ourselves, there is always a force great enough to bring us down to earth again. It may be six feet under at the end of our days, but bring us down it will.
In Jacob’s case, the force was of the down-to-earth variety. An angel wrestles with this can-do, win-at-all-costs guy who’s at the top of his game, and hobbles irreversibly his winning stride. By the end of the encounter, Jacob is mud-drenched, limping, and branded with a name that could almost qualify as playground teasing: Israel, which translates, “one who strives with God.”
A star patriarch striving with God? Nonbelievers we would expect to strive with God. Pagans. The heathen. Antagonists to the faith. Francis Thompson in his early life was one of those, his epic poem describing that hound of heaven whose pursuit was relentless: “I fled him down the nights and down the days . . .” Surely those who resist God’s purposes strive with God. But God’s chosen people?
I like the bumper sticker, “God will not let you go to hell in peace.” That’s fair enough. But God will not let you go to heaven in peace? Evidently not.
How was it Teresa of Avila put it? “If this is how you treat your friends, is it any wonder you have so few of them?” In some ways, to be part of the Christian community is to choose a life of extending the history of Israel, a history of struggling with God. It is to choose a life in which we raise questions, wrestle with doubts, with trust, with lifestyle, and with sacrifices called for by compassion or justice.
If there are not aspects of God that scare the living daylights out of us, then we’ve probably skipped some pages of the good book. To trust in a God whose blessings are such that they sometimes leave our hip out of joint is a dare all its own, because there are times when the journey of faith involves wrestling with God—unanswered questions, unresolved dilemmas, unlit valleys, irreconcilable differences. In such times, the only reason we cling to God is because the alternative is to cling to nothing. “I will not let you go,” Jacob says—whether from sheer panic or steel resolve, we can’t be sure—“unless you bless me.”
And so the angel does. Which is, if you twist the logic just so, what we might call good news: This mysterious stranger in the night, with power to wound but also to heal, blesses Jacob, Israel, the one who strove with God.
Therein lies the promise of this story, and of the Christian faith: There will be struggle in the walk with God—dark nights, confusion, feeling forsaken— but there will also be blessing. From the struggle itself emerges a new way of defining blessing: Blessing isn’t always poise and polish, sweetness and light. Sometimes blessing bears the satin scars of struggle, and walks with a discernible limp. Ministry Matters Radio
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