Proper 5
Devotional
Streams of Living Water
Lectionary Devotional for Cycle B
Object:
1 Samuel 8:4-11 (12-15) 16-20 (11:14-15)
... and the Lord said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them."
-- 1 Samuel 8:7
Every pastor knows of the experience of having the congregation insist that they be allowed to do something that the pastor knows in his or her heart is displeasing to God. In this case, the people wanted to be like other nations. "They said, 'No! but we are determined to have a king over us, so that we also may be like other nations' ..." (vv. 19-20). More often than not the demand of the people is based on what is happening in their culture. The issue is particularly sensitive when the demand has to do with the people's sense of nationalism. To oppose them at such times appears to be unpatriotic. It is then that this instruction by God to Samuel is very instructive. "Now then, listen to their voice; only -- you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them" (v. 9). God is urging Samuel to accommodate to the people's demand. At the same time, he is instructing Samuel to warn them about the danger of their actions.
Whether it be a pastor or the ruling body that is trying to accommodate the demands of the membership, there may well be times when it is wiser to accommodate their demands. However, the responsibility of the leadership is to at least warn the people of the practical and spiritual danger that is facing them. Samuel was to warn the people of the burden that having a king would place on the people. At the same time, God did not insist on a purest stance of opposition from Samuel. It is strange to hear God instructing Samuel to allow the people to rebel against God. It does demonstrate that God recognizes our human limitations and is willing to continue to work through the people of God even when they make a less than faithful response.
Psalm 138
I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart.
-- Psalm 138:1
Psalm 138 is a personal prayer of thanksgiving that teaches us of the power and importance of shaping our lives by thanksgiving. When we thank God with our whole heart or being, it becomes a witness against all of the other powers or gods that seek to rule our lives (v. 1). Our bowing down in thanksgiving causes us to recall that the true source of our blessing is the steadfast love and faithfulness of God (v. 2).
In our prayers, we recall how God has been faithful to us in the past and sustained us in times of need (v. 3). In addition, our thanksgiving is in anticipation of the time when all the powers on earth will recognize and praise God as the source of blessing (vv. 4-5). There is a confidence that when the nations are aware of the character of God, the rulers of earth will humble themselves because they know God responds to the lowly (v. 6). Even as we engage in such a prayer, we increase our assurance about the future as we rehearse how God responded to us when we were lowly and in need (v. 7). Our thanksgiving is completed when, having acknowledged how often God has been there for us in the past, it suddenly dawns on us that God's faithful activity in our lives suggests that God holds our life as of value. We are the work of God's hands and, therefore, we can pray with confidence: "Do not forsake the work of your hands" (v. 8).
2 Corinthians 4:13--5:1
So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day.
-- 2 Corinthians 4:16
How often do Christians feel discouraged by the apparent lack of effect on the society that their witness for the faith has? There are times when a member of a church will feel worn down by the bickering and pettiness that is experienced even within the church. At such times, it is good to hear Paul's words. Paul recognized that the church was a very human community that daily reflected the frailty of our humanity. In his own life he suffered rejection, imprisonment, beating, and failure. Yet even as his demanding and not always successful ministry was taking its toll on his physical body, Paul recognized that those very trials were met by God's gift of an inner strength. He was very aware of the constant temptation of human success on our faith.
Paul's life was a commentary on Moses' instructions in Deuteronomy: "He humbled you by letting you hunger, then by feeding you with manna, with which neither you nor your ancestors were acquainted, in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord" (Deuteronomy 8:3). Even as he suffered in worldly terms, he was constantly fed by manna from God that renewed his spirit. "For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure ..." (v. 17). This is not an invitation to seek suffering but an awareness of the constantly nurturing presence of God in one's life. As that is repeatedly experienced, one is enabled to look on even the negative experiences of life as an opportunity to grow closer to God.
Mark 3:20-35
When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, "He has gone out of his mind."
-- Mark 3:21
Mark is more explicit about the reason that Jesus' family wanted to take Jesus home than are the other gospels. Jesus' teaching so contrasted with the acceptable norms of society that the word was passed that he was crazy. His mother and brothers came to take him home so that he could "get straightened out." Given the clear commandment that we are to honor our father and our mother, what is Jesus, or any Christian whose family thinks he is carrying his beliefs too far, to do? In a society that is so fearful of families falling apart that they have made the family unit sacred, it is an important question to ponder. Jesus responds by redefining the meaning of family. " 'Who are my mother and my brothers?' And looking at those who sat around him, he said, 'Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother' " (vv. 33-35).
In our culture, where there are a variety of configurations that seek to be family, this is good news. Now family is not defined by bloodline but by behavior. A single parent, a set of grandparents, adoptive parents, one or more adults who accept the responsibility of parenting and, most importantly, the church become the true definition of family when they practice parental behavior. When we dare to oppose any of these configurations that demonstrate the Spirit of God in their behavior, we find ourselves opposing God. The covenant love that God demonstrates for us is offered as the true criteria for that which makes up the meaning of family. Of course, those who are fixated on legal definitions, be they religious or civil, may think that you are crazy to think this way.
... and the Lord said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them."
-- 1 Samuel 8:7
Every pastor knows of the experience of having the congregation insist that they be allowed to do something that the pastor knows in his or her heart is displeasing to God. In this case, the people wanted to be like other nations. "They said, 'No! but we are determined to have a king over us, so that we also may be like other nations' ..." (vv. 19-20). More often than not the demand of the people is based on what is happening in their culture. The issue is particularly sensitive when the demand has to do with the people's sense of nationalism. To oppose them at such times appears to be unpatriotic. It is then that this instruction by God to Samuel is very instructive. "Now then, listen to their voice; only -- you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them" (v. 9). God is urging Samuel to accommodate to the people's demand. At the same time, he is instructing Samuel to warn them about the danger of their actions.
Whether it be a pastor or the ruling body that is trying to accommodate the demands of the membership, there may well be times when it is wiser to accommodate their demands. However, the responsibility of the leadership is to at least warn the people of the practical and spiritual danger that is facing them. Samuel was to warn the people of the burden that having a king would place on the people. At the same time, God did not insist on a purest stance of opposition from Samuel. It is strange to hear God instructing Samuel to allow the people to rebel against God. It does demonstrate that God recognizes our human limitations and is willing to continue to work through the people of God even when they make a less than faithful response.
Psalm 138
I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart.
-- Psalm 138:1
Psalm 138 is a personal prayer of thanksgiving that teaches us of the power and importance of shaping our lives by thanksgiving. When we thank God with our whole heart or being, it becomes a witness against all of the other powers or gods that seek to rule our lives (v. 1). Our bowing down in thanksgiving causes us to recall that the true source of our blessing is the steadfast love and faithfulness of God (v. 2).
In our prayers, we recall how God has been faithful to us in the past and sustained us in times of need (v. 3). In addition, our thanksgiving is in anticipation of the time when all the powers on earth will recognize and praise God as the source of blessing (vv. 4-5). There is a confidence that when the nations are aware of the character of God, the rulers of earth will humble themselves because they know God responds to the lowly (v. 6). Even as we engage in such a prayer, we increase our assurance about the future as we rehearse how God responded to us when we were lowly and in need (v. 7). Our thanksgiving is completed when, having acknowledged how often God has been there for us in the past, it suddenly dawns on us that God's faithful activity in our lives suggests that God holds our life as of value. We are the work of God's hands and, therefore, we can pray with confidence: "Do not forsake the work of your hands" (v. 8).
2 Corinthians 4:13--5:1
So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day.
-- 2 Corinthians 4:16
How often do Christians feel discouraged by the apparent lack of effect on the society that their witness for the faith has? There are times when a member of a church will feel worn down by the bickering and pettiness that is experienced even within the church. At such times, it is good to hear Paul's words. Paul recognized that the church was a very human community that daily reflected the frailty of our humanity. In his own life he suffered rejection, imprisonment, beating, and failure. Yet even as his demanding and not always successful ministry was taking its toll on his physical body, Paul recognized that those very trials were met by God's gift of an inner strength. He was very aware of the constant temptation of human success on our faith.
Paul's life was a commentary on Moses' instructions in Deuteronomy: "He humbled you by letting you hunger, then by feeding you with manna, with which neither you nor your ancestors were acquainted, in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord" (Deuteronomy 8:3). Even as he suffered in worldly terms, he was constantly fed by manna from God that renewed his spirit. "For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure ..." (v. 17). This is not an invitation to seek suffering but an awareness of the constantly nurturing presence of God in one's life. As that is repeatedly experienced, one is enabled to look on even the negative experiences of life as an opportunity to grow closer to God.
Mark 3:20-35
When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, "He has gone out of his mind."
-- Mark 3:21
Mark is more explicit about the reason that Jesus' family wanted to take Jesus home than are the other gospels. Jesus' teaching so contrasted with the acceptable norms of society that the word was passed that he was crazy. His mother and brothers came to take him home so that he could "get straightened out." Given the clear commandment that we are to honor our father and our mother, what is Jesus, or any Christian whose family thinks he is carrying his beliefs too far, to do? In a society that is so fearful of families falling apart that they have made the family unit sacred, it is an important question to ponder. Jesus responds by redefining the meaning of family. " 'Who are my mother and my brothers?' And looking at those who sat around him, he said, 'Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother' " (vv. 33-35).
In our culture, where there are a variety of configurations that seek to be family, this is good news. Now family is not defined by bloodline but by behavior. A single parent, a set of grandparents, adoptive parents, one or more adults who accept the responsibility of parenting and, most importantly, the church become the true definition of family when they practice parental behavior. When we dare to oppose any of these configurations that demonstrate the Spirit of God in their behavior, we find ourselves opposing God. The covenant love that God demonstrates for us is offered as the true criteria for that which makes up the meaning of family. Of course, those who are fixated on legal definitions, be they religious or civil, may think that you are crazy to think this way.
