Monday, March 11, 2019

Monday Thoughts on the Readings for Sunday, March 17th, 2019

We are now on the road to Holy Week.  This past Sunday, Jesus was tested by the devil and proved that he truly is the Son of God.  As we study the Gospel of Luke, Jesus' journey is, in large part, an intentional journey to Jerusalem...and Jesus knows exactly what Jerusalem is.

I have a lot of first thoughts and impressions regarding this set of readings assigned by the Revised Common Lectionary.  You can find my first thoughts in the italicized text below.  If you have any questions about what I have written or if you want to share your thoughts and questions about these passages, I invite you to share them in the comments below!


Genesis 15:1 - 12, 17 - 18

1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great."  2 But Abram said, "O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?"  3 And Abram said, "You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir."  4 But the word of the LORD came to him, "This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir."  5 He brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your descendants be."  6 And he believed the LORD; and the LORD reckoned it to him as righteousness.

 7 Then he said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess."  8 But he said, "O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?"  9 He said to him, "Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon."  10 He brought him all these and cut them in two, laying each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds in two.  11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

 12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and a deep and terrifying darkness descended upon him.

 17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.  18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates..."


- This is the second time that the Lord has appeared to Abram and promised many descendants and a land to call their own.  The first occasion happened 15 years prior (Genesis 12).  Also, this will not be the last time (Genesis 17 – 18).

- This ritual to seal the covenant was common in those days.  By walking through the trough filled with blood, the ones agreeing to the covenant were symbolically saying “I pledge to fulfill my obligations within this covenant.  If I fail to uphold my obligations, my blood may be spilled and my life may be forfeited.”

- What are Abram’s obligations under the covenant?  As far as we can tell, he has not pledged to do anything.


Psalm 27

The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
 2 When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh-- my adversaries and foes-- they shall stumble and fall.
 3 Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident.
 4 One thing I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple.
 5 For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will set me high on a rock.
 6 Now my head is lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the LORD.
 7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud, be gracious to me and answer me!
 8 "Come," my heart says, "seek his face!" Your face, LORD, do I seek.
 9 Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger, you who have been my help. Do not cast me off, do not forsake me, O God of my salvation!
 10 If my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will take me up.
 11 Teach me your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
 12 Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries, for false witnesses have risen against me, and they are breathing out violence.
 13 I believe that I shall see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
 14 Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!
 
- In the face of any and all opposition, the psalmist remains confident in the Lord’s protection.

- The psalmist professes a belief that he will see “the goodness of the Lord” in this lifetime.  In much of the Old Testament, there is no mention of an afterlife, and death meant both the end of life and our separation from God.


Philippians 3:17 - 4:1

 17 Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us.  18 For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears.  19 Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things.  20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.  21 He will transform the body of our humiliation that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, by the power that also enables him to make all things subject to himself. 4:1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved. 

- If I recall correctly, the belly was believed to be the source of desires.  Therefore, “their god is the belly” means that they are ruled by their desires, whether desires for food or for other material goods.

- Paul claims that our citizenship is in heaven even as he took advantage of his citizenship in the Roman Empire on several occasions.  Though he was a Roman citizen, Paul places his citizenship in heaven over and above his citizenship in the Roman Empire.  We may be citizens of one of today’s nations, but for Christians, this citizenship should mean less to us than our citizenship in heaven.

- Here is another occasion where Paul emphasizes the resurrection of the body.  Our bodies that can be (and are) corrupted will be transformed into bodies that cannot be corrupted.


Luke 13:31 - 35

 31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, "Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you."  32 He said to them, "Go and tell that fox for me, 'Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.  33 Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.'  34 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!  35 See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.'"

- It may be true that Herod wants to kill Jesus, but it’s easy to read between the lines and see that the Pharisees are invoking Herod for their own desires to kill Jesus.

- Jesus’ accusation that Jerusalem kills the prophets sent to it reminds me of the story of a landowner sending servants to ask for his cut of the harvest from the people renting and tending to the land.  The people assault the servants, killing some of them.  In response, the landowner sends his son, thinking the renters will respect his son; instead, the renters kill the son, hoping to inherit the land when the owner dies (or perhaps is killed by the same renters.

- This comparison of Jesus to a mother hen is significant as it is one of a few feminine images of God.

- “Your house is left to you” takes on new meaning when we remember that the Gospel of Luke was written around 85-90 AD, 15-20 years after the destruction of the Temple.

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