When they bleed, He bleeds…

Foes will fall on their knees before God, his enemies lick the dust. Kings remote and legendary will pay homage, kings rich and resplendent will turn over their wealth. All kings will fall down and worship, and godless nations sign up to serve him, Because he rescues the poor at the first sign of need, the destitute who have run out of luck. He opens a place in his heart for the down-and-out, he restores the wretched of the earth. He frees them from tyranny and torture— when they bleed, he bleeds; when they die, he dies. (Psalm 72:9-14 MSG)

All will fall before the Lord our God and pay Him homage. Some of us will do this willing, others may not do it so willingly but the bible tells us every knee will bow and every tongue confess…

I think what this passage in the psalms tells us is money and power do not mean you are exempt from being in the need to pay homage to God, nor will you get what you want just because you think you might deserve it. God rescues the poor at their first sign of need. He frees them from tyranny and torture, He helps them to have a place to call home and restores the down and out. Did you who are rich and in power ever think that God helped you to have more so that you can help those around you? Not to rule it over those around you?

We all are the same in the eyes of God. When will we see with the eyes of God?

be wise…

Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 5:15-20 NRSV)

It is easy to say you have wisdom… When there is black and white and one way to do things that is right and moral and one way that is wrong and is immoral… But is that really the case with our lives and our world?

For instance, is it wrong to drink alcohol? Some religious people say that it is, some denominations say that this is sin because the Bible says it is. Like the passage above says do not get drunk. So we should stay away from alcohol because it is evil. The above passage does not say do not drink alcohol. If we are going black and white it says wine, which maybe why some congregations do not use wine for Holy Communion even though that is what Christ Himself used… But that is a different study and shows the depth of how far this goes. The above passage does not say do not drink alcohol or wine, it says do not become drunk. For that is debauchery… which is an extreme indulgence in sensuality. But is that wrong when done with your spouse? (Read Song of Solomon….)

The above passage also says to not be foolish but “understand what the will of the Lord is.” If this was spelled out plainly most of us would not feel like fools most of the time probably. We search and struggle to find the will of the Lord. We pray daily, hourly, every quarter hour or even more frequently to God for Him to make His will clear to us. But we still struggle and seem to be the fool…

We are also to be wise and use our time productively because the days are evil and pull us away from Him. This means do not be lazy and keep trucking away trying to do the work God has set before you, not being a fool and following after something which is not the will of God and so not be sensual about it…

Is that clear? So now we know how to be wise… or do we? It is not clear cut and needs to be interpreted every time in every situation. We need to discern what God’s will is all the time and live in tune with Him so that His will flows through us. And even when we are fools, we will be fools for Christ!

imitators…

Now this I affirm and insist on in the Lord: you must no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their ignorance and hardness of heart. They have lost all sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. That is not the way you learned Christ! For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus. You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil. Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, (Ephesians 4:17-5:1 NRSV)

When people look at you who do they see?

Are you saying one thing and acting another way?

Do you say you love God and give your money to your congregation, and pray to God to help people, but then on Monday turn around and talk trash about so and so for the way they are dressed, or talk down about the person walking the streets that looks like they haven’t bathed in weeks?

Simon in his revelation of who Jesus was said that the hearts of all would be revealed, that our inner most desires and motives would be made known. Jesus called the Pharisees white washed tombs, because they did all of the right things at the right time so they looked really good on the outside, but their motive were all about them selves… They did not truly care for the other.

We are to put away “bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander,” these things do not build up God and our relationships with His body, but work to tear it apart. “Together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted,” we need to lay aside our differences and be kind to each other. Not talking bad about someone because they dress in a way or look a way we do not think is acceptable. We do not know the circumstances of their lives and can not judge them. We need to be “forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.” You see God did not ask you to dress a certain way or act a certain way before He loved you. He did not need for you to be perfect in order fro Him to come and die for you. He died for you when you were worthless and had done everything wrong, yet He still loved you. And He still loves you. He forgave you and made you a better person, one who can be a light to the nations and an imitator of Him.

therefore be imitators of Christ

light

20121229-101437.jpgArise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms. Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you. A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord. (Isaiah 60:1-6 NRSV)

Your light has come! Even though we are surrounded by darkness, the light is here, and we will never have to walk in darkness again!

Easy words to say, but what is the darkness that is surrounding you? What is your dark night of the soul that is troubling you?

I can say in this Epiphany that I had hoped to be in a call. It has been almost 11 months since I resigned from my previous call and I have talked to congregations about being their called leader. It has been a long road and dark because it makes you wonder if you are doing the right thing… Did I understand what God told me to do? Did I do this on my own? Am I missing something here? It is a dark night of the soul. The experience of Mother Teresa who showed the world the love of Christ but felt that God had left her…She felt like God was no where near her…

What is your dark night? I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God is with me, as the foot prints poem says, that at our lowest times that is when God is carrying us. I may not see God by my side because He is carrying me through this darkness, He is there to light the way and I can guarantee that He is there with you!

darkness

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. (John 1:1-18 ESV)

The spirit became flesh and dwelt among us, and the darkness could no longer over come the light. The light came into the world and dwelt with us, He tented with us, and because of this the darkness can no longer take a hold of us!

That is good news! Darkness is every where and is trying to over take us, but if your life has been infused with Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit  then the darkness will never over take you. The light will never go out or away and the darkness will not over take it.

We are full of grace and mercy because our lives are filled with light and love. Jesus revealed to us the face of God and allows us to live in this place where the darkness fights to over take us but will never win!

So no matter how dark it seems to be getting just focus on the light and it will have to fade…

Woe is me…

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” (Isaiah 6:1-5 ESV)

Woe is me for I am a man of unclean lips and I have come to find myself in the presence of the Lord… I have seen God and now I must die…

What other way is there for me to continue? To look upon the face of God means death. When God passed by Moses for him to see God, Moses had to see the back side of God. Even Moses who spent time with God on the mountain did not see God’s face… So Isaiah has looked upon the face of God, and so have we…

“When did I look upon the face of God?” you might be asking yourself or me…

This morning when you looked in the mirror, when you looked at the faces of your children (I know sometime you wonder about this but it is true!), when you looked at your spouse, the stranger that cut you off in traffic, who have you seen today? Upon looking at the face of another you are looking upon a child of God, one who is inhabited by the Holy Spirit  and is the dwelling place of God, and is therefore the face of God. So you have seen the face of God and therefore you must die…

Thankfully through, as Isaiah discovers, that may not be the case… Isaiah in the following verses is cleansed, and so are we. The one who makes us the face of God is the one who allows us to see the face of God and live, Jesus, cleansed you and made you able to stand before God!

So go and be the face of God to the world, just remember later when you are cut off in traffic or pushed out of place at the coffee shop, that is also one who bears the face of God…