Proper 12
Devotional
Streams of Living Water
Lectionary Devotional for Cycle B
Object:
2 Samuel 11:1-15
So David sent messengers to get her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself after her period.)
-- 2 Samuel 11:4a
David is one of the key figures of our faith. So central was he that it became critical to the completion of God's intention that the Christ be born from the line of David. Yet here is the story of David's adultery displayed for the entire world to see. In addition to adultery, he commits several other sins, as well. Since he involves messengers to bring Bathsheba to him, it is clear that it is David's power as king that not only commands Bathsheba's presence but also involves others in a conspiracy of silence. While we are not told what Bathsheba is feeling about all of this, we do see that David is perfectly willing to bring Uriah, her husband, back to sleep with her to cover up his sin. Both Bathsheba and Uriah become mere pawns in the political maneuvering to protect the king's reputation.
As if this were not bad enough, we discover that Uriah, a foreigner, has more respect for the faith and simple human decency than David, the leader. We are told that out of respect for both the Ark and the soldiers, Uriah is unwilling to take advantage of his trip home to sleep with his wife. Even when he is drunk, he has more honor than King David. So finally, in order to protect his reputation, David engages his commander, Joab, in a conspiracy to have Uriah killed in battle. This is God's chosen one, the anointed, or in Greek, the Christ. It is from David's family line that Jesus the Christ will be born.
Sexuality is a powerful and good gift of God, but it can also be extremely destructive to the faithfulness of relationships. In our denial of its power in our lives, we often engage in deception that is more concerned with protecting our reputation than with the pain in other people's lives. Like the larger society, we engage in hot debates about homosexuality when the major problem threatening the integrity of our faith is how to deal with sexuality in all our lives. David's story does suggest that God is not defeated by adultery, but it also challenges us to recognize our need for help from beyond ourselves to maintain the integrity of our relationships.
Psalm 14
Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon the Lord?
-- Psalm 14:4
Tradition suggests that the psalmist was thinking of the Hebrew children as slaves in Egypt as he prayed this psalm. When God looked down upon the Egyptian society that had enslaved the Hebrews, God saw evidence of the denial of the existence of God. When a society denies there is a God to whom they are accountable, then their actions toward others become corrupt (v. 1). From God's viewpoint, like the Egyptian's treatment of their slaves, in such a society people lack the necessary impetus to do good when doing good requires any sacrifice of personal comfort and security (vv. 2-3). Such a society eats up people like they eat bread (v. 4). We cannot treat the poor and the needy in society with disdain or neglect without experiencing the terror of God who is the refuge of the weak (vv. 5-6 and Matthew 25:31 ff).
The lectionary places this psalm in relation to the story of David's adultery with Bathsheba. David was behaving as if there were no God when he treated Bathsheba like an object for his pleasure. After this act, Uriah became a problem to be solved rather than a person with integrity. Both Bathsheba and Uriah became the poor whose only refuge was God. Like the slaves in Egypt whose cry was heard by God, their only hope in the face of royal power was God. In a world in which many people are treated as mere economic resources, our prayer is that deliverance would come out of Zion (v. 7), that people would look again to the source of God's revelation for a way out of the morass in which they find themselves. The great struggle for the church is how to be a witness to such a faith in an increasingly secular society. If the fool says in his heart there is no God, how do we demonstrate by our lives that God indeed reigns?
Ephesians 3:14-21
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.
-- Ephesians 3:20-21
Stop and think for a moment about the state of the church in our present day. What is your hope for the church? What confidence do you have that the church will be able to contribute to God's transformation of the world? Can you think of any sin or failure of the present church that Paul did not have to confront in the early church? As you read the letters of Paul, it is clear that the early church faced problems dealing with greed, sexuality, division, envy, doctrinal disputes, immorality, persecution, and the list could go on. He constantly had to both correct the church and pray that they not lose heart. But his source of hope was not in their progressive morality or wisdom, although he clearly urged improvement in both areas. He prayed to God that they "may be strengthened in [their] inner being with power through [God's] Spirit" (v. 16). He also prayed that they might be granted all knowledge (3:18). But the center of his hope was that "Christ may dwell in [their] hearts, as [they] are rooted and grounded in love" (v. 17).
As Paul would say in 1 Corinthians 13, you can have all those things that we strive for in this world, but if they are not shaped by love, they are worthless. Think of all the disputes, divisions, and corruptions that have occurred in the history of the church or are present in our contemporary church. Which of those could have been avoided if the church was "rooted and grounded in love" as is made possible when we allow Christ to dwell in the heart of the church? It is this power of Christ's love, which dwells within us, that is capable of accomplishing "far more than all we can ask or imagine." Reflect again concerning your hope for the church and your confidence that the church will be able to contribute to God's transformation of the world. If you consider the future of the church in light of your faith in God, are you not filled with more hope than before?
John 6:1-21
But he said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid."
-- John 6:20
The gospel of John placed the stories of the feeding of the five thousand and Jesus' walking on water next to each other. Both of them were miracles. In both cases, Jesus was demonstrating the power of God to overcome the threat of nature to the human species. In the first story, it was the threat of hunger and in the second, the chaos of a storm at sea. Both events took place near the time of Passover when Jews celebrate the liberating power of God to triumph over human suffering (slavery) and the forces of nature (the crossing of the Red Sea). The response of the crowd to the first event was to want to make him king. The response of the disciples to the second event was the experience of terror.
The juxtaposition of the two stories engages us in a reflection on what we seek from our faith. Do we simply want a faith that meets our most basic needs? Many of the cults in our contemporary society make their appeal through addressing our strong physical and communal needs. Even our churches design their programs to respond to the felt needs of the community. It is certainly true that Jesus addressed those needs in his ministry. Yet there was something more to Jesus that confounded and even terrified his closest followers. In Jesus they experienced a mystery that they could neither control nor fully understand. What does it mean for a church to truly worship Christ who sometimes withdraws from their felt needs (vv. 3, 14) but is present in the most unexpected ways when they are really threatened? Can we face the rough and stormy seas resting in the assurance of Jesus, "It is I, do not be afraid"? Would not such a faith alter the context of many of our churches' discussions?
So David sent messengers to get her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself after her period.)
-- 2 Samuel 11:4a
David is one of the key figures of our faith. So central was he that it became critical to the completion of God's intention that the Christ be born from the line of David. Yet here is the story of David's adultery displayed for the entire world to see. In addition to adultery, he commits several other sins, as well. Since he involves messengers to bring Bathsheba to him, it is clear that it is David's power as king that not only commands Bathsheba's presence but also involves others in a conspiracy of silence. While we are not told what Bathsheba is feeling about all of this, we do see that David is perfectly willing to bring Uriah, her husband, back to sleep with her to cover up his sin. Both Bathsheba and Uriah become mere pawns in the political maneuvering to protect the king's reputation.
As if this were not bad enough, we discover that Uriah, a foreigner, has more respect for the faith and simple human decency than David, the leader. We are told that out of respect for both the Ark and the soldiers, Uriah is unwilling to take advantage of his trip home to sleep with his wife. Even when he is drunk, he has more honor than King David. So finally, in order to protect his reputation, David engages his commander, Joab, in a conspiracy to have Uriah killed in battle. This is God's chosen one, the anointed, or in Greek, the Christ. It is from David's family line that Jesus the Christ will be born.
Sexuality is a powerful and good gift of God, but it can also be extremely destructive to the faithfulness of relationships. In our denial of its power in our lives, we often engage in deception that is more concerned with protecting our reputation than with the pain in other people's lives. Like the larger society, we engage in hot debates about homosexuality when the major problem threatening the integrity of our faith is how to deal with sexuality in all our lives. David's story does suggest that God is not defeated by adultery, but it also challenges us to recognize our need for help from beyond ourselves to maintain the integrity of our relationships.
Psalm 14
Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon the Lord?
-- Psalm 14:4
Tradition suggests that the psalmist was thinking of the Hebrew children as slaves in Egypt as he prayed this psalm. When God looked down upon the Egyptian society that had enslaved the Hebrews, God saw evidence of the denial of the existence of God. When a society denies there is a God to whom they are accountable, then their actions toward others become corrupt (v. 1). From God's viewpoint, like the Egyptian's treatment of their slaves, in such a society people lack the necessary impetus to do good when doing good requires any sacrifice of personal comfort and security (vv. 2-3). Such a society eats up people like they eat bread (v. 4). We cannot treat the poor and the needy in society with disdain or neglect without experiencing the terror of God who is the refuge of the weak (vv. 5-6 and Matthew 25:31 ff).
The lectionary places this psalm in relation to the story of David's adultery with Bathsheba. David was behaving as if there were no God when he treated Bathsheba like an object for his pleasure. After this act, Uriah became a problem to be solved rather than a person with integrity. Both Bathsheba and Uriah became the poor whose only refuge was God. Like the slaves in Egypt whose cry was heard by God, their only hope in the face of royal power was God. In a world in which many people are treated as mere economic resources, our prayer is that deliverance would come out of Zion (v. 7), that people would look again to the source of God's revelation for a way out of the morass in which they find themselves. The great struggle for the church is how to be a witness to such a faith in an increasingly secular society. If the fool says in his heart there is no God, how do we demonstrate by our lives that God indeed reigns?
Ephesians 3:14-21
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.
-- Ephesians 3:20-21
Stop and think for a moment about the state of the church in our present day. What is your hope for the church? What confidence do you have that the church will be able to contribute to God's transformation of the world? Can you think of any sin or failure of the present church that Paul did not have to confront in the early church? As you read the letters of Paul, it is clear that the early church faced problems dealing with greed, sexuality, division, envy, doctrinal disputes, immorality, persecution, and the list could go on. He constantly had to both correct the church and pray that they not lose heart. But his source of hope was not in their progressive morality or wisdom, although he clearly urged improvement in both areas. He prayed to God that they "may be strengthened in [their] inner being with power through [God's] Spirit" (v. 16). He also prayed that they might be granted all knowledge (3:18). But the center of his hope was that "Christ may dwell in [their] hearts, as [they] are rooted and grounded in love" (v. 17).
As Paul would say in 1 Corinthians 13, you can have all those things that we strive for in this world, but if they are not shaped by love, they are worthless. Think of all the disputes, divisions, and corruptions that have occurred in the history of the church or are present in our contemporary church. Which of those could have been avoided if the church was "rooted and grounded in love" as is made possible when we allow Christ to dwell in the heart of the church? It is this power of Christ's love, which dwells within us, that is capable of accomplishing "far more than all we can ask or imagine." Reflect again concerning your hope for the church and your confidence that the church will be able to contribute to God's transformation of the world. If you consider the future of the church in light of your faith in God, are you not filled with more hope than before?
John 6:1-21
But he said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid."
-- John 6:20
The gospel of John placed the stories of the feeding of the five thousand and Jesus' walking on water next to each other. Both of them were miracles. In both cases, Jesus was demonstrating the power of God to overcome the threat of nature to the human species. In the first story, it was the threat of hunger and in the second, the chaos of a storm at sea. Both events took place near the time of Passover when Jews celebrate the liberating power of God to triumph over human suffering (slavery) and the forces of nature (the crossing of the Red Sea). The response of the crowd to the first event was to want to make him king. The response of the disciples to the second event was the experience of terror.
The juxtaposition of the two stories engages us in a reflection on what we seek from our faith. Do we simply want a faith that meets our most basic needs? Many of the cults in our contemporary society make their appeal through addressing our strong physical and communal needs. Even our churches design their programs to respond to the felt needs of the community. It is certainly true that Jesus addressed those needs in his ministry. Yet there was something more to Jesus that confounded and even terrified his closest followers. In Jesus they experienced a mystery that they could neither control nor fully understand. What does it mean for a church to truly worship Christ who sometimes withdraws from their felt needs (vv. 3, 14) but is present in the most unexpected ways when they are really threatened? Can we face the rough and stormy seas resting in the assurance of Jesus, "It is I, do not be afraid"? Would not such a faith alter the context of many of our churches' discussions?
