Proper 16
Devotional
Streams of Living Water
Lectionary Devotional for Cycle B
Object:
1 Kings 8:(1, 6, 10-11) 22-30, 41-43
But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Even the heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built!
-- 1 Kings 8:27
There is always a need for particular places to remind us of what is true in all places. We build churches hoping that by setting aside special places to worship God, we will be reminded of his presence in all places. We recognize the human need of the particular to remind us of the universal. If we simply said that God was everywhere, we might forget that he is anywhere. Yet, there is always the danger that in building a particular place, we might develop the illusion that we can contain God in that building and hide from him when we are far from the building.
In the story of Israel, there was a clear tension between the God who dwelt in a tent and therefore moved from place to place and the God who dwelt in a temple. From a human standpoint, we can understand why David might have been embarrassed to build himself a beautiful palace but to have the ark, which represented the presence of God, residing in a tent. We build beautiful cathedrals in order to broadcast our praise of God.
Yet, scripture continues to remind us that the true praise of God is revealed by how we live our lives. In Solomon's prayer, he both recognized the transcendence of God and the power of having a place toward which people can focus their attention. He pleaded "... that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you said, 'My name shall be there,' ..." (v. 29). We build our churches and lift our spires so that the name of God may be made visible to the community around us. As Solomon prayed, so we pray that when people are caught in distress, they will turn to the place where God is named. We believe that God, who dwells everywhere, will hear such prayers and respond.
Psalm 84
My soul longs, indeed it faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.
-- Psalm 84:2
The psalmist recognized the centrality of worship in the fulfillment of the restlessness of his soul. As he gazed on the temple, he was drawn to the very presence of God that completed his joy in life (v. 2). This was not something unique to the priest but was so much a part of creation that even the sparrow found a home within the temple (v. 3). All of creation was meant to live a life that gave praise to its maker. Those who found a place of praise in their lives discovered that it went with them as they journeyed through life. "As they go through the valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools. They go from strength to strength; the God of gods will be seen in Zion" (vv. 6-7).
Much of our population has lost their connection with the purpose or meaning that gives their lives value. People learn how to live for fleeting pleasures or even just to survive, but they lack the zest derived from knowing that their lives make a real difference in the unfolding of the universe. It is central to the truth of the psalms that the Lord reigns and that the truth of our lives is discovered in relationship to the God of the universe. "For the Lord God is a sun and shield (protection); he bestows favor and honor (purpose and respect). No good thing does the Lord withhold from those who walk uprightly" (v. 11) -- (ethics is important). A life worth living is continually buffeted by the forces of society and can only stay connected with the truth at the center of life through regular gathering together with the community to offer worship and praise.
Ephesians 6:10-20
Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
-- Ephesians 6:11
It is one of the illusions of Western society that evil is the result of ignorance or misunderstanding. We continue to believe that we can educate ourselves out of the evils that beset us. For those who believe in a society of progress, it is difficult to accept that we are confronted with real forces of evil. "For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places" (v. 12). This is more than individuals with mistaken ideas. Paul asserted that the capacity for evil was inherent in the institutions and cosmic structures that shaped people's lives.
If we are going to resist the power of evil in our lives, we need truth, but we also need a commitment to righteousness and a willingness to proclaim "a gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (vv. 15-17).
Western society has tended to emphasize the rational at the expense of the spiritual. This was perhaps in reaction to the Middle Ages that tended to lean in the opposite direction. The "armor of God" includes both truth and spirit in its struggle against the evil that exists in this world. Churches that emphasize the intellectual side of faith often run the danger of quenching the Spirit and becoming rather bland echoes of the larger society that also uses the intellect to combat the evils of society. Churches that have their emphasis on the purely spiritual side of faith often run the danger of denying the gifts of intelligence that God has granted so that we can bring order to our world. Neither seems to have the full armor of God with which to combat the evil that besets us. When people of faith take evil with its full seriousness, they have resources that the world dearly needs to combat that evil.
John 6:56-69
So Jesus asked the twelve, "Do you also wish to go away?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life."
-- John 6:67-68
Jesus had been pressing the larger group of his disciples to move from an understanding of faith as a means to acquire the necessities of life (bread) to an understanding that the meaning of life was drawn from the word of God. The gospel of John made very clear that Jesus was the Word of God made flesh (1:14). Here in the physical life of this man, Jesus, is the true expression of God. In the intimate connection between Christ and the believers we are to discover the eternal truths of life. Jesus' suggestion that they would eat his flesh and drink his blood was too offensive for many of them to comprehend, and they began to complain. He said to them, "Does this offend you? ... The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life" (vv. 61, 63). Many of his followers turned away because they could not accept what he was asking of them.
The church is filled with people who come because they want what the church offers them. Yet they wish to be the one who establishes the criteria of what is and is not acceptable. When they are asked to accept that Jesus is the criterion of all truth, this confronts them with a different canon than they wish to accept. Now there is a criterion of truth outside of themselves to which they are answerable. It is interesting to note that when Jesus confronted the twelve and said, "Do you also wish to go away?" they did not deny that they had had such thoughts. Still, they recognized that in Jesus they had encountered "words of eternal life." In this person of Jesus they had experienced the connection between their finite lives and the eternal truth of the universe. In Jesus their lives had meaning that extended beyond their earthly existence. "We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God" (v. 69).
It is instructive for the church, however, to recognize that there is a shadow side to this discovery as well. Among the twelve, the foundation of the new community of hope, resided the betrayer as well. The church must never grow so confident of their grasp of the truth that they forget that within their own understanding the seeds of betrayal are also present.
But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Even the heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built!
-- 1 Kings 8:27
There is always a need for particular places to remind us of what is true in all places. We build churches hoping that by setting aside special places to worship God, we will be reminded of his presence in all places. We recognize the human need of the particular to remind us of the universal. If we simply said that God was everywhere, we might forget that he is anywhere. Yet, there is always the danger that in building a particular place, we might develop the illusion that we can contain God in that building and hide from him when we are far from the building.
In the story of Israel, there was a clear tension between the God who dwelt in a tent and therefore moved from place to place and the God who dwelt in a temple. From a human standpoint, we can understand why David might have been embarrassed to build himself a beautiful palace but to have the ark, which represented the presence of God, residing in a tent. We build beautiful cathedrals in order to broadcast our praise of God.
Yet, scripture continues to remind us that the true praise of God is revealed by how we live our lives. In Solomon's prayer, he both recognized the transcendence of God and the power of having a place toward which people can focus their attention. He pleaded "... that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you said, 'My name shall be there,' ..." (v. 29). We build our churches and lift our spires so that the name of God may be made visible to the community around us. As Solomon prayed, so we pray that when people are caught in distress, they will turn to the place where God is named. We believe that God, who dwells everywhere, will hear such prayers and respond.
Psalm 84
My soul longs, indeed it faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.
-- Psalm 84:2
The psalmist recognized the centrality of worship in the fulfillment of the restlessness of his soul. As he gazed on the temple, he was drawn to the very presence of God that completed his joy in life (v. 2). This was not something unique to the priest but was so much a part of creation that even the sparrow found a home within the temple (v. 3). All of creation was meant to live a life that gave praise to its maker. Those who found a place of praise in their lives discovered that it went with them as they journeyed through life. "As they go through the valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools. They go from strength to strength; the God of gods will be seen in Zion" (vv. 6-7).
Much of our population has lost their connection with the purpose or meaning that gives their lives value. People learn how to live for fleeting pleasures or even just to survive, but they lack the zest derived from knowing that their lives make a real difference in the unfolding of the universe. It is central to the truth of the psalms that the Lord reigns and that the truth of our lives is discovered in relationship to the God of the universe. "For the Lord God is a sun and shield (protection); he bestows favor and honor (purpose and respect). No good thing does the Lord withhold from those who walk uprightly" (v. 11) -- (ethics is important). A life worth living is continually buffeted by the forces of society and can only stay connected with the truth at the center of life through regular gathering together with the community to offer worship and praise.
Ephesians 6:10-20
Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
-- Ephesians 6:11
It is one of the illusions of Western society that evil is the result of ignorance or misunderstanding. We continue to believe that we can educate ourselves out of the evils that beset us. For those who believe in a society of progress, it is difficult to accept that we are confronted with real forces of evil. "For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places" (v. 12). This is more than individuals with mistaken ideas. Paul asserted that the capacity for evil was inherent in the institutions and cosmic structures that shaped people's lives.
If we are going to resist the power of evil in our lives, we need truth, but we also need a commitment to righteousness and a willingness to proclaim "a gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (vv. 15-17).
Western society has tended to emphasize the rational at the expense of the spiritual. This was perhaps in reaction to the Middle Ages that tended to lean in the opposite direction. The "armor of God" includes both truth and spirit in its struggle against the evil that exists in this world. Churches that emphasize the intellectual side of faith often run the danger of quenching the Spirit and becoming rather bland echoes of the larger society that also uses the intellect to combat the evils of society. Churches that have their emphasis on the purely spiritual side of faith often run the danger of denying the gifts of intelligence that God has granted so that we can bring order to our world. Neither seems to have the full armor of God with which to combat the evil that besets us. When people of faith take evil with its full seriousness, they have resources that the world dearly needs to combat that evil.
John 6:56-69
So Jesus asked the twelve, "Do you also wish to go away?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life."
-- John 6:67-68
Jesus had been pressing the larger group of his disciples to move from an understanding of faith as a means to acquire the necessities of life (bread) to an understanding that the meaning of life was drawn from the word of God. The gospel of John made very clear that Jesus was the Word of God made flesh (1:14). Here in the physical life of this man, Jesus, is the true expression of God. In the intimate connection between Christ and the believers we are to discover the eternal truths of life. Jesus' suggestion that they would eat his flesh and drink his blood was too offensive for many of them to comprehend, and they began to complain. He said to them, "Does this offend you? ... The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life" (vv. 61, 63). Many of his followers turned away because they could not accept what he was asking of them.
The church is filled with people who come because they want what the church offers them. Yet they wish to be the one who establishes the criteria of what is and is not acceptable. When they are asked to accept that Jesus is the criterion of all truth, this confronts them with a different canon than they wish to accept. Now there is a criterion of truth outside of themselves to which they are answerable. It is interesting to note that when Jesus confronted the twelve and said, "Do you also wish to go away?" they did not deny that they had had such thoughts. Still, they recognized that in Jesus they had encountered "words of eternal life." In this person of Jesus they had experienced the connection between their finite lives and the eternal truth of the universe. In Jesus their lives had meaning that extended beyond their earthly existence. "We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God" (v. 69).
It is instructive for the church, however, to recognize that there is a shadow side to this discovery as well. Among the twelve, the foundation of the new community of hope, resided the betrayer as well. The church must never grow so confident of their grasp of the truth that they forget that within their own understanding the seeds of betrayal are also present.
