I get an unbelievable number of emails from acquaintances feeling sorry for the days that are past and gone. Nostalgia is OK, but many of the things we “remember” weren’t all that good, or else didn’t happen. I enjoy modern plumbing, computer assistance and push-button ignition. Yet there are many who will hear us this weekend who struggle to let the Good Old Days yield to the strengths of the present. These readings call the Back to Egypt folks to the real joy of letting God be THE god of the Present.
The Hebrew writings are from JOSHUA 24:14-18, a pep-talk from the valued leader to those who will mentor The People in their own corner of the Promised Land. “…put away the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve The Lord (Yahweh)” And the assembly responded by an affirmation of the great deeds done by YWHW and pledged themselves to God alone. But it’s hard. Most of the People longed for the safety and abundance remembered (?) from before: “Make ____ Great Again” Those were the days… What are the names of the ancestral gods we worship?
The author of the book addressed to the EPHESIANS 6:10-20 is often remembered for “the whole armor of God”, tools we can use to keep Evil at bay. But just before that, we read, “For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” “We discover the frequent fallenness of money, sex, fashions, sports and religion in our culture.” (Peter Rhea Jones, in FEASTING on the WORD, B 3:337) Admirable captains of industry are now unmasked as alternative gods as they try to sell hatred through military might, pollution by Big Pharma, and breathing obstacles through pesticides. Investment in companies which pander to human frailties could bring us big returns…. Whom do we serve?
The teachings of Jesus remembered by the writer of JOHN, about eating his flesh and drinking his blood are capped off in JOHN 6:56-69. Some unpleasant choices are the separation points between the Jesus of Now and the Old Virtues of What Used to Be (the gods beyond the River). Many who had been followers began to slink away because they weren’t ready to make that choice. Jesus’ question to the twelve was, “Do you also wish to go away?” Still asks, ’cause the decision is difficult. Good News to this United Methodist is that a forgiving and gracious God will keep coming by to reissue an invitation to recall the glorious deeds already accomplished, and to give us a chance to reject the gods of prosperity to which we’ve sold our souls…
This following of Jesus is HARD! I may have sold out to the gods of this world, trying vainly to keep one foot based on the firm shore of ancestral gods and the other foot on the bobbing boat of Jesus. How much of my comfort level am I willing to give up; and do I have to, to remain a disciple? Pray for me, and I’ll pray for you…
In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King
My encounter with scriptural readings assigned to the upcoming weekend can be viewed every Tuesday at horacebrownking.com
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