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Archive for the ‘Christmas Through Epiphany’ Category

30-60-100 Fold

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , on January 17, 2010| Leave a Comment »

I think the multiplication principle noted in Matthew 13:8 which is based on “good seed and good soil” is the same for “bad seed and good soil.”

Romans 1:29a
They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, …

The list of evil in Romans 1:29-31 is pretty overwhelming: wickedness, evil, greed, depravity, envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, gossip, slander, God-hating, insolence, arrogance, boastfulness, disobedience, senselessness, faithlessness, heartlessness, and ruthlessness. One evil runs into another. One sin breeds the next. One sorrow bleeds into another.

Most people put their emphasis on the sexual depravity that is described in the verses that precede this list and that implies, it’s those who participate in non-traditional sexual activities who will dive bomb into the list of evils. In fact, however, I believe the sexual sins are just one more in the list. Really, the list, including “sexual behaviors” is the result of the “suppression of the truth.” This is the first sin that plants the seed and changes the relationship that people have with God and the Christ.

There are no easy answers.

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Wickedness Suppresses Truth

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 14, 2010| 1 Comment »

People will often say, “what is truth?” And perhaps that can be debated, particularly in philosophical or academic circles. But I will hold to this: wicked (corrupt, evil, unethical) people will suppress whatever truth there is.

Romans 1:18-19
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.

Truth is dangerous. Truth is in your face. Truth demands justice. Truth is messy.

One of my children has perfected the art of the lie. He actually believes the lie simplifies his life (at least at first). A quick lie will delay explanation. A clever lie will satisfy curiosity. A believable lie will delay consequences.

The biggest problem with lying is that if one does it regularly, pretty soon, the lie becomes one’s personal truth. This is the lie that births wickedness. And at this point, actual truth is much more difficult to discern.

It’s not just children who metamorphose lies into a manufactured truth. Adults do it all the time. Couples do it. Leaders do it. Companies do it. Governments do it.

Anything that “man” has not made, is God’s handiwork. God is in nature. God is wind. God is sun and moon and stars. God is dirt and insects and animals. God is energy. God is light.

God is truth.

People can try to suppress God, but in the end, truth is always revealed (sometimes sooner, sometimes later).

Give way to truth. Give way to God. And the knots of wickedness will be untied by the power of Spirit. Today.

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Roots of Righteousness

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 13, 2010| 3 Comments »

What is it about this word, “righteousness,” that makes me recoil? Surely it must be the other word: “self-righteous” that jumps up into my mind instead. But they are actually direct opposites.

Romans 1:17
For in the Gospel a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith]. As it is written, The man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith. [Amplified]

The thesaurus is most revealing for the word righteousness: devotion, devoutness, godliness, holiness, piety, reverence, sacredness, saintliness, spirituality, worship, zeal. These synonyms make more sense when Paul says that righteousness is revealed and springs forth from faith.

Faith is the roots of the tree and righteousness the growth above ground. As the tree grows up, the roots grow down deeper into the soul. The entire tree grows stronger and healthier. Both the roots and the trunk are needed for a healthy tree. They strengthen each other.

I think the self-righteous are those who have no roots. They are only concerned with the trunk and the branches of their tree. They have the appearance of righteousness, but it’s really only form, a skeleton. With the first storm, this type of tree will fall.

Over and over again, the tree image keeps coming back to me as a word picture for my life. My maiden name, Berzins, means “little birch tree.” In years past, I have planted many trees as a testament and thanksgiving for “place.” I have prayed under certain trees near the Susquehanna and found peace there. I had God-inspired visions and warnings of my life as a tree that had moved away from the living water. I am deeply grieved when trees are cut down nonchalantly or broken by wind and lightning. I am grateful for the trees in the woods behind our home. They are sources of beauty all year round from buds in the spring to full foliage in the summer, autumn rainbows, and skeletons in winter outlined by the sun that sets behind them each day. Trees are symbols for many faiths and beliefs.

Today, the tree is my personal symbol for uniting my faith with my actions. Amen.

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Wholeheartedness

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on January 12, 2010| 1 Comment »

In Paul’s time, wholeheartedness meant more than just enthusiasm or sincerity. It was a single minded devotion; it was the whole spirit in focus. Only God knows if we are wholehearted in our faith.

Romans 1:9-10a
God, whom I [Paul] serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you in my prayers at all times…

As the information age took over the past decade, one of the initial assumptions was that everyone would have to be able to multi-task. There is so much to see and so much to read. The only way to capture it all was to have lots of “views” and “tabs” and “screens.” It was not uncommon for a computer owner to have multiple monitors or a monitor so big that a number of images could be displayed simultaneously. Time management was the buzzword and the goal was to eke out productivity from every available second. We were like teenagers convinced we could listen to music, watch television, play a video game, and do homework all at the same time. Good grades were the proof it worked.

Interestingly enough, this trend is actually abating. Some of the latest productivity gurus are now advocating single focus. They say, do one thing completely and with full attention, and work gets done faster and more accurately. A divided mind is like “RAM” in a computer, only so much can be allotted to each task. The brain’s computing power does have limitations.

How often do people say they cannot pray or meditate effectively because of a racing mind that continues to juggle a vast array of responsibilities, plans, and duties. We are actually losing the ability to be single-focused.

Currently, one of my spiritual disciplines is praying the hours (Morning, Midday, Vespers, and Night). This practice is only four times a day when I am to shut out everything else to read, chant, and pray. Ten minutes. And yet, my day gets sucked up into “busy-ness,” and I miss my time. There is no condemnation for missing. There is just loss of what God was ready to give in that moment.

Wholeheartedness and single focus is a time investment. It’s a discipline. It’s a commitment to whatever is before me. Today has potential for wholeheartedness… if I give way.

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Called to Belong

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on January 11, 2010| Leave a Comment »

As much as we hate to admit it, most of us want to belong–to something or someone. I think we’re wired that way. We’re just waiting for the invitation, the opening, the opportunity.

Romans 1:6
And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

Historically, I have always been the joiner. Even as far back as high school, my participation index in the yearbook was longer than anyone else. I haven’t changed much. I still join clubs, I join groups, I join movements, I join sororities, I join churches, and I join associations. But what I really want to join is a relationship. The difficulty is that relationships are two-way streets. To join a relationship, there has to be give and take, mutual agreement, and growth. In a group situation, I can join and then I can be a good member of the group or a lazy member of the group, but basically, I’m still a member. Being lazy in a relationship is the kiss of death.

In a relationship, there has to be commitment and contact and communication. There has to be transparency and authenticity. There has to be a willingness to work through the rough spots. There has to be a desire to actually be in the relationship. It takes energy to start and stay in a relationship.

In the epistle to the Romans, Paul is telling his readers and listeners that they are ALL called (invited) to be in a particular relationship. That relationship begins with the Christ and then manifests in koinonia (fellowship with others). That’s how we can really gauge our progress in this relationship: how we relate to others.

Once I enter into relationship with Christ, there’s also a benefit package, just like belonging to an organization. Those benefits are laid out in the scriptures. Among the benefits is a promise that Christ Jesus will be with me always, through everything. Once committed to this particular relationship, nothing can separate me from Christ [Romans 8:38-39].

And if I fear, I can call out, “I am yours, save me!” [Psalm 119:94].

I am yours. Save me. I am yours. Help me. I am yours. Draw me. I am yours… and no other.

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Holiness is Within

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »

The holiness of Jesus was ultimately proven by his resurrection. That’s the first leap, the real miracle, in believing on this man-God. But what about us? Where is our holiness?

Romans 1:4
…and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.

There were many prophecies in the Judaic texts that foretold of the Messiah, his birth, his suffering, his Godhead, his eternity. For Paul, this was the point. By his resurrected life, Jesus proved himself that Messiah and now, we are invited into this life with Him.

Before the day comes when our spirits are released from our bodies and we are joined with the Holy Spirit in that non-dimensional, non-time-anchored place, there is a promise that we can be more like Jesus on earth. I think some people translate that into outward behaviors only. And of course, behaviors can reveal the heart. But the focus, surely, should be on the spirit within. It is from there that the outward self manifests.

This is why we “ask Jesus into our hearts”… into our interior lives, so that we might experience holiness and transformation.

There is a place in Catonsville, Maryland called the All Saints Convent where I sometimes go for personal retreat. Some of the sisters there are blessed with artistic talent and create illuminated prayer cards, greeting cards, book marks, and the like. One of my favorites is a card that simply says, “Holiness is Wholeness.” This speaks volumes to me about the interior life.

This is the true goal of the united spirit to transform the soul and thereby, direct the body.

There are people who are working on holiness in a variety of ways, through a variety of religions, through a variety of practices. But, it is only the Christ, who guarantees the transformation, who guides without condemnation, who leads with grace and love, who unites with us on the way.

The human spirit longs for wholeness… for holiness. That is part of our nature.

But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal … [Philippians 3:13b-14a]

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If there’s a kingdom…

Posted in Christmas Through Epiphany, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 9, 2010| Leave a Comment »

If there’s a kingdom, then there’s a king. And the verso must also be true: if there is a king, there is a kingdom. Even if the king is in exile, there is a place, whether we accept it or not.

Acts 28:23b
…From morning till evening he [Paul] explained and declared to them [the Roman Jews] the kingdom of God and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets.

I guess this is the thing that captured my thoughts today. It doesn’t matter if people believe or don’t believe. The kingdom still exists. The kingdom endures.

There is an old “zen” question about a tree that falls in the woods; does it make a sound if no one hears it? Yes it does. It’s prideful to think that we are the only ones to hear, to acknowledge what is. We are limited in our understanding of the universe. We are limited in what we hear and see. We are limited in our own ability to engage the kingdom of God.

But, Jesus invited us to hear, see, taste and touch the kingdom. Jesus gave us entree.

There was no pushing or shoving or demanding. Jesus did not cajole. Jesus offered himself as a door and choice.

It’s a mystery.

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