Proper 28 / Pentecost 26 / OT 33
Devotional
Water From the Well
Lectionary Devotional For Cycle A
Object:
... let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.
-- 1 Thessalonians 5:8
Paul challenged those who like to engage in speculation about the end time. He insisted that there was no way to calculate the timing of such an event. While Jesus would come "like a thief in the night," his coming would not catch believers by surprise because "you are all children of light and children of the day...." While Paul clearly challenged the silly speculations that are made by the "Left Behind" series, he also encouraged Christians to live as if that day would come at any time. He contrasted those who are drunk with those who are sober. The implication is that a sober person is alert and responsible in how they live. Paul was fully aware that the life of faith was a struggle against an enemy and required an alert and active response. We protect ourselves with faith and love. Faith requires us to trust in the God who calls us, and love guides our actions toward others. While the battle may seem endless, we are sustained by the hope of salvation. We do not have an inside knowledge of when God will act decisively to reconcile the world to Godself. We do trust, however, that all acts of faith and love contribute to God's consummation of the plan of salvation that God intended from the beginning.
-- 1 Thessalonians 5:8
Paul challenged those who like to engage in speculation about the end time. He insisted that there was no way to calculate the timing of such an event. While Jesus would come "like a thief in the night," his coming would not catch believers by surprise because "you are all children of light and children of the day...." While Paul clearly challenged the silly speculations that are made by the "Left Behind" series, he also encouraged Christians to live as if that day would come at any time. He contrasted those who are drunk with those who are sober. The implication is that a sober person is alert and responsible in how they live. Paul was fully aware that the life of faith was a struggle against an enemy and required an alert and active response. We protect ourselves with faith and love. Faith requires us to trust in the God who calls us, and love guides our actions toward others. While the battle may seem endless, we are sustained by the hope of salvation. We do not have an inside knowledge of when God will act decisively to reconcile the world to Godself. We do trust, however, that all acts of faith and love contribute to God's consummation of the plan of salvation that God intended from the beginning.
