Faith

A prescription accompanied by a description – Wednesday, 3rd Week of Lent – Deuteronomy 4:1,5-9/ Matthew 5:17-19

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/revisiting-the-commandments-stepping-away-from-traditions/ based on the Gospel of today. Please click the link

If you read the Bible and cover the story of the people of Israel right up to the time of Jesus you will readily condemn the fickle and disobedient people of Israel and even feel a sense of ‘sorrow’ for their loving God. But why stop at the time of Jesus, humankind has changed little and has ‘forgotten the wonders of God that they have seen. They have let it slip from their minds and have failed to pass on this message to their children and their children’s children.’ (Verse 9)

The narrative of today takes us to point where Israel as a nation is poised to exit the desert, depart from the land of a king who seeks their death, and enter a land flowing with milk and honey, where rain falls from the sky. God wants Israel to attack a strong nation and to push them out of the Promised Land.

It is at this pivotal moment that Moses communicates to the people the statutes and ordinances of God that they are to observe in the land they will soon occupy. Clearly, God does not get into a negotiation with the people of Israel. They don’t have a ‘healthy debate’ over which statutes and ordinances they are to follow nor are these up for subjective interpretation.

Today, there is too much discussion about the subjective interpretations of God’s commandments. There is a growing clamour for the Church to keep up ‘with the times.’ It must be said and said clearly, the commandments of God are timeless; they are for all generations and peoples. G.K Chesterton once said, “I don’t want a church that moves with the world, I want a Church that moves the world.”

In the text of today, God clearly tells his people that the law he gives them must be observed diligently. This word ‘diligently’ is opposed to casually or even worse, indifferently. Central to the word diligent, is one’s effort that has to be put in. Commandments are not easy to keep, it requires effort on our part and God makes no bones about this to his people. But keeping his commandments diligently is not some choice given to the people of Israel for God says, “you MUST observe them diligently.” (4:6). There is a prescription accompanied by a description.

Diligent observance of God’s laws makes other sit up and take notice. Remember, keeping God’s commandments is hard work and this struggle to keep God’s commandments is a universal fact. It is easier to give up and give in but when someone goes against the grain, goes against the tide, it draws the world to ask, ‘how does he or she do it?’

Christians must be the exception not the norm. By its very nature, Christianity is counter cultural; the values of Christ stand in direct opposition to the values of the world but sadly when Christians do not live these commandments the world does not and will not sit up and say, “this is a great people that are wise and discerning” (4:6). It is ironic that we want to appear good to the world rather than be a good before God.

Finally, God reminds his people to “take care and watch themselves closely.” They were asked not to “forget the things their eyes saw or let them slip from their minds.” God commands the people to make known his commandments ‘to their children and their children’s children.’ (4:9). Satan’s great strategies is to make us remember what we should forget and forget what we should remember.

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Faith

Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us – Tuesday, 3rd Week of Lent – Daniel 3:25, 34-43/ Matthew 18:21-35

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/seven-or-seventy-seven-3/ based on the Gospel of today. Please click the link

Most of us are familiar with the Biblical narrative of Daniel in the lion’s cage. Perhaps few are aware that Daniel was not the only young man to be taken into the Babylonian captivity. The first reading of today highlights the lesser known three young men; Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. These were their Babylonian names which was changed by the palace master (Daniel 1:7).

By chapter three, the three young men and Daniel had found favour with King Nebuchadnezzar. While Daniel is retained as the king’s advisor in his court, the three young men were appointed administrators over the affairs of the province of Babylon. What one needs to know at this point of time is that while this book appears to have been written in the 6th century BC ,during the time of the Babylonian captivity, in reality it was written in the second century BC during the Maccabean revolt against the Greek King, Antiochus the IV Epiphanes.

King Antiochus had decreed (Read Maccabees) that the Jewish people should worship the Greek gods by offering them incense and demanded that they eat pork which was forbidden by Jewish dietary law. Many of the Jews had succumbed to the Kings decree but a few chose to die than deny their faith.

The book of Daniel was written to give hope and encouragement to the Jews of the second century. By highlighting the examples faith such as those of these young men from a bygone era; young men who were faced with a similar situation and who did not succumb, the author of the book of Daniel hopes to revive a great zeal and fidelity for God in the midst of this second century BC persecution under another cruel king Antiochus the IV Epiphanes.

The narrative of today tells us that King Nebuchadnezzar wanted the three young men of Jewish descent to worship a statue of gold that he had set up on the plains of Dura in Babylon (Daniel 3: 1). These three devout Jewish men who by now held posts of great importance in Babylon would rather die than betray their faith (apostasy).

So enraged is Nebuchadnezzar that he orders a furnace to be heated seven times more than was customary for such an execution. The text of today is a prayer of one of the three young men, Azariah, who standing bound with his companions in the fire sing hymns of praise to God, blessing his holy name. The text of today is part of that long and moving prayer of testimony. It is a prayer of supplication, a prayer of trust, a prayer of praise and a prayer of petition. The three young men emerge unscathed and Nebuchadnezzar confess the power of Yahweh.

Nebuchadnezzar is amazed by God, not merely by the faith of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. The latter are promoted, but not deified. Looking into the fire, Nebuchadnezzar is undone. He had sought total control. He unleashed all his destructive powers but at that very point he lost control. In addition, the officials who gathered before the king’s statue now gather to observe the failure of the king’s fire. God succeeds; Nebuchadnezzar fails and here in lies our Lenten message for today.

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The orange Brinjal – Monday, 3rd Week of Lent – 2 Kings 5:1-15a/ Luke 4:24-30

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/miracle-or-messiah/ based on the Gospel of today.

We seem to be a generation that is disdainful of the mundane, ordinary and simple. But throw a challenge, make the mole hill seem to look like a mountain or paint a Brinjal in the colour orange and every one sits up and takes notice.

We seem to attach too much importance to the spectacular; to that which is lit up in bright lights and to powder and paint. Yet much of life is simple and its truth stands out even though it may appear ordinary.

Sadly, even God is sought after only in his glorious splendour. His presence in the Eucharist is often not enough for many of us and so we seek him in miracles and great signs. Yet the Son of God, the King of Kings was born in an ordinary manger, a helpless babe, a refugee at birth. He left us ordinary signs of bread and wine as a memorial of his eternal presence. Ironically, faith is still sought after in the spectacular.

Naaman the commander of the king of Aram was clearly desperate. Leprosy was not something that you took lightly. This silent death was made even more silent by the isolation that one had to be subjected to; away from family and friend. It reduced a person to a thing and left one despised and shunned.

Naaman now comes to the King of Israel with a hope that the prophet of the people of Israel would heal him as suggested by his captive Jewish slave girl. It is clear that the heart of Naaman is tuned towards the spectacular. We are told that Naaman goes to see Elisha, but instead of meeting with him, Elisha sends a messenger to him with instructions to wash seven times in the Jordan River. Two things stand out in this series of events: first, Naaman comes to Elisha with the trappings of his greatness, “his horse and his chariot” (5:9). Second, Naaman is “at the door of the house of Elisha” (5:9), but even so, Elisha does not come out.

Naaman gets angry at this apparent snub, and the text reveals his reasons: “I thought he would come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and remove the skin disease” (5:11). To top it all he scoffs at the Jordan river as a source of his healing.

If you see the river Jordan, you would be greatly disappointed too. At several spots this river is more like a muddy brook of water and Naman wondered what was so miraculous in this river that the great rivers of Aram, the Abana and the Pharpar could not do. Because his expectation of how the God of Israel should work, he was crushed and Naaman wanted nothing to do with Elisha.

Naaman’s analysis is correct, except for one thing. They do have rivers where he lives, and he could have washed in them. But if he had done so, he would not have been healed, because he would not have been submissive to Yahweh’s will. It is not the water of the Jordan that restored his health, but submission to the will of Yahweh. It is not through the might of a flowing river but in the faith of a little heart that God often works.
At a time when Naaman is riled, it is his lowly servants who possess great love and wisdom challenging Naaman’s belief system, “If the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult would you not have done it?

Naaman’s physical submersion of his body into what he deems the deficient waters of the Jordan is what restores his flesh to that of a young boy. But this was also for Naaman an immersion in faith.

We are told that Naaman now goes back to the prophet. In this, he becomes for us a fine example of how gratitude needs to be lived. Naaman was like the one leper out of the ten Jesus healed who came back to thank Jesus (Luke 17:12-19). He was also a foreigner, like the one thankful leper of Luke 17. As his physical body was restored and made clean, he declares his revelation about the God of Israel, “Now I know there is no God in all the earth except in Israel” (2 Kings 5:15).

PRAYER
Healing God, you healed your servant Naaman of his affliction when he came to you, through Elisha, for help. Heal our afflictions, and make us faithful servants. We pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord. Amen.

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Faith

Who is like our God? Saturday, 2nd week of Lent – Micah 7:14-15,18-20/ Luke 15:1-3,11-32

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/prodigal-son-2/ based on the Gospel of today.

In the final recorded words of the prophet Micah, we read his prayer to the Lord. In it, Micah asks the Lord to be the Shepherd of His people and care for them.

The Babylonian invasion was no longer a threat, it was imminent and the people who allowed themselves to be swayed by bad shepherd’s now had more than just a fractured relationship with God. There was a time when God’s people enjoyed a close relationship with Him. The prophet prays that God’s people will be brought back to the place they belong and the relationship which was in tatters will be restored. Micah was praying past the circumstances for a closer relationship with the shepherd and hoped it would result in great wonders in their life

Micah whose name means “who is like God” now uses his very name in verse 18 to extol God and to glorify him. He asks, “who is like our God”? The simple and most accurate answer is…No one! Micah glorifies God for his great forgiveness. He has pardoned sin and will pass over the transgressions of the remnant that will emerge from exile. Micah saw that God’s forgiveness was so great, that it can’t even be compared to what often passes for forgiveness among men.

Why does God have such great mercy and forgiveness to His people? The reasons are in Him, not in His people. It is simply because He delights in mercy. So, one is bound to ask that If God delights in mercy, then why are some men lost? God opens His hand of mercy to all who will receive it, but those who will not receive His mercy can blame only themselves.

Even so, some may ask; If God delights in mercy, then why is He not always, on every occasion merciful? Because there comes a time when the guilty must be punished. God’s judgments are in themselves expressions of mercy because they are like the cutting away of cancer. The surgery hurts but it must take place or the whole body will die.

We are also told of Gods compassion (verse 19). His compassion is shown when he treads our sins and casts our sins into the depths of the sea. This means there is no probation with God’s forgiveness. He doesn’t forgive our sins just to leave them around to hang over our head. In His compassion, He does away with our sins, casting them to the depths of the sea and then He puts a “No Fishing” sign there! He loves us as sinners but loves us too much to leave us in our sin. His compassion saves us from our sin.

– Do leave your comment or your reflections on this passage

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Dealing with the green-eyed monster – Friday, 2nd Week of Lent – Genesis 37:3-4/ Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/blood-in-the-vineyard-not-written-by-agatha-christie/ which is based on the Gospel of today.

In Just two lines, scripture strikes at our very heart. This is not some plot that has to be unraveled over a two-hour murder mystery. This is the matter of hearts; not one but several. Clearly, we are told that Jacob’s heart loved and in the same breath we are told that the hearts of Josephs’ brothers were filled with hate. The fact that his brothers hate Joseph is repeated in verses 5 and 8. They really, really hate him.

Jealousy is deadly. We call it the green-eyed monster. Jealousy is the emotion we feel when we feel fearful of losing someone or a relationship that is very important to us. Maybe we start to fear a relationship is becoming less sacred in the other person’s eyes. Maybe we fear that someone else is going to take away a connection we have with someone else.

Jealousy is not be confused with envy; many people make that mistake. Some think that they are two sides of the same coin. Envy or covetousness is when you want what someone else has, but jealousy is when you’re worried someone’s trying to take someone that you have. In any case, it’s no fun to feel envy or jealousy because both make you feel inadequate.

The story of Joseph and his brothers in Genesis 37 is a story of jealousy and sibling rivalry. The Joseph story has clear echoes back to the Cain and Abel story at the beginning of Genesis. There is discord in Jacob’s house. It is typical sibling behaviour to think a parent likes one child better than another, but Jacob proves his preference with a gift. While the brothers see only their father’s favouritism Joseph adds fuel to the fire with his youthful boasting.

Joseph’s brothers’ jealousy and hatred of Joseph grow until they feel that they must get rid of Joseph: “And they took him, and cast him into a pit” (Gen 37:23, 24). Then they sell Joseph into slavery, tricking their father into believing Joseph has been killed by an animal. His brothers seem glad to finally get rid of their little brother. Their hate consumed their lives. If Joseph’s brothers had loved and appreciated Joseph, instead of focusing on their hate and jealousy, they would have been much happier.

While most of us are naturally hard wired with jealousy it does not have to define us. Pay attention to the self-talk about how you feel about others especially those you think make you insecure. It’s hard to talk about feelings of jealousy to others because it may make you seem petty but talk about it with people you trust. Remember that jealousy snatches love away. You can’t be jealous and still love.  Jealousy always opens a new door to hate.

Finally, this is also a story of a family feud. Families are difficult. It is the rare family where there is not an estrangement of some kind or the other. Jacob’s family story offers us in the season of Lent an opportunity to speak of estrangement and the consequences of rash acts. The story lets us see all the characters and their involvement in this drama and to evaluate choices we have at hand.

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