Daily Scriptures:
Isaiah 1:13 Stop bringing worthless grain offerings!
They are like disgusting incense to me!
Rosh-Hodesh, Shabbat, calling convocations —
I can’t stand evil together with your assemblies!
14 Everything in me hates your Rosh-Hodesh
and your festivals;
they are a burden to me —
I’m tired of putting up with them!
15 “When you spread out your hands,
I will hide my eyes from you;
no matter how much you pray,
I won’t be listening;
because your hands are covered with blood.
16 “Wash yourselves clean!
Get your evil deeds out of my sight!
Stop doing evil, 17 learn to do good!
Seek justice, relieve the oppressed,
defend orphans, plead for the widow. (Complete Jewish Bible).
Matthew 5:38 “You have heard that our fathers were told, ‘Eye for eye and tooth for tooth.’[Matthew 5:38 Exodus 21:24; Leviticus 24:20; Deuteronomy 19:21] 39 But I tell you not to stand up against someone who does you wrong. On the contrary, if someone hits you on the right cheek, let him hit you on the left cheek too! 40 If someone wants to sue you for your shirt, let him have your coat as well! 41 And if a soldier forces you to carry his pack for one mile, carry it for two! 42 When someone asks you for something, give it to him; when someone wants to borrow something from you, lend it to him.
43 “You have heard that our fathers were told, ‘Love your neighbor[Matthew 5:43 Leviticus 19:18] — and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! 45 Then you will become children of your Father in heaven. For he makes his sun shine on good and bad people alike, and he sends rain to the righteous and the unrighteous alike. 46 What reward do you get if you love only those who love you? Why, even tax-collectors do that! 47 And if you are friendly only to your friends, are you doing anything out of the ordinary? Even the Goyim do that! 48 Therefore, be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect. (Complete Jewish Bible).
Reflection Questions:
Angry because T’Challa’s father abandoned him, Killmonger seized the throne of Wakanda, and tried to make it a war-like, destructive kingdom. T’Challa said to his father’s memory, “All of you were wrong…. No more…. He’s a monster of our own making. I must take back the mantle. I must right this wrong.” God’s people, too, have had to honestly face corporate as well as personal wrongs, and change course. That’s often scary, difficult—and vital.
- Isaiah said on God’s behalf, “Stop bringing worthless offerings” (1:13). Read the rest of the passage, and ponder what made their offerings “worthless.” With identity theft and Internet scams, we know technology can make doing wrong more efficient. Are there ways technology can also empower those who seek justice? What can you do in the United States in 2018 to “help the oppressed; defend the orphan; plead for the widow”?
- Jesus challenged even the standard of proportional revenge taught in the Law of Moses. He called his followers to live in bigger ways than anyone had dreamed of, to love their enemies and pray for those who harassed them. (He did that for Roman soldiers who crucified him—cf. Luke 23:34.) How can we do that? For example, an Army reserve chaplain runs a website called “Adopt a Terrorist for Prayer” (https://atfp.org/). Consider accepting Jesus' call to live out God’s grace toward all people by praying for a terrorist or some other “enemy” you identify.
Maddy is a summer intern with KiDSCOR at Church of the Resurrection Leawood. She grew up in the church and is enjoying being back this summer. Maddy is a junior at Kansas State University studying Elementary Education, and she loves hanging out with family and friends and watching movies.
I went on my first mission trip with the church in 6thgrade. One night, we came back from serving at our different sites and did an activity to help us better understand the people we were meeting and serving with throughout the week. Our leaders handed everyone a note card and told us to write down things that we thought affected us and our identity. As middle schoolers, this might have included issues like school, strained family relationships, worries about money, or feelings of not fitting in. Instead of sharing what we wrote down, we were told to put the cards in our back pockets and continue the night as normal. I remember wondering what my friends might have written on their cards and really wanting to know what all the people I was meeting on the mission trip were going through.
Later that week our leaders explained that these note cards were meant to be our “hurt cards.” They taught us that everyone has difficult things in their life and that sometimes we have no idea what others are going through.
I don’t always know why people make the choices that they make. I don’t get why someone would cut me off in traffic or push past me in the store. I don’t understand why someone would make fun of other people for being different. I don’t know why people commit horrible crimes. However, what I do know is that God calls us to love like He does: crazy, unconditional, perfect love.
Today’s Scripture reminds me to love the people who don’t look like or act like me, the people who make me mad, and the people who I just do not understand. It’s not always easy, but I think this is what it really means to love your neighbor.
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You might also like:
- Confronting Communion
- “You get to decide”
- Grace: the environment for growing
- Prayer Tip: Hiding in Plain Sight
- “Powerful, loving, and self-controlled,” not timid
- Or download this week's printable GPS.
©2017 Church of the Resurrection. All Rights Reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224, United States
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