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Just when I think I know where my edges are, just when I’m comfortable in the borders of my life, God stretches these parameters to have me go farther. But, say I, there are certain things I cannot/will not do; some things are just unacceptable. “Oh really?” says God. Scripture readings to be heard on the upcoming weekend remind us all that even though God allows “things” to happen, God neither abandons us nor refutes our “bad luck” (which may have happened as result of our neglect or apathy).

Some of the Jewish leaders have been removed from Jerusalem to Babylon. The prophet JEREMIAH sends them a strange letter, 29:4-7, encouraging them to Bloom Where You’re Planted. Yes, things are strange. No, you can’t lead worship at the Temple. But God is in Babylon, too, and needs you to keep on keeping on. Even pray for these awful people! He claims that God has sent them there for a purpose; not only have they ignored real worship (with Justice and Righteousness), but they are demonstrating to the rest of the world that God is here, too.

St. Paul is writing to TIMOTHY from prison: he doesn’t want to be there, yet “the word of God is not chained.” Here in II 2:8-15 he’s enduring a lot of unacceptable stuff, as have all those who work for God. BUT there’s no need for Timothy to be ashamed, because Christ has already walked that path and ultimately triumphed. “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen, nobody knows but Jesus.”

Pollsters tell us that a 10% return is about expectable; so Jesus couldn’t have been surprised when only one of the ten lepers in LUKE 17:12-19 came back to thank him. “What else can we say to what God gives us but to stammer praise?”–C.S.Lewis, in REFLECTIONS on the PSALMS, 78. Who can explain leprosy, especially in Biblical times? Yet in all things God calls us through and beyond. YOU are God’s beloved, and the Creator extends the Grace we need to deal with life.

These are hard lessons to learn–and to preach. Why doesn’t God sit on a cloud in heaven and let us alone? But Divinity doesn’t work that way: God is always stirring history in order to make a Holy Name even more holy. Many occasions find us happily doing Our Thing–but there are other times… Has God called you beyond your comfort-zone to upholster the Kingdom?

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Every Tuesday some of us gather to look more closely at Scripture to be heard on the upcoming weekend… Invite your pals to horacebrownking.com

Psychologists say that there can be no healing until you name the pain. Say where it hurts. Readings for the upcoming weekend give us both example and occasion for naming our pain–and then understanding that God is with us even when it hurts.

The prophet Jeremiah mourned over the city of Jerusalem/Zion as he began his LAMENTATIONS, 1:1-6. But the City was an analogy for the People who disregarded their God and thus reaped the rewards of their callousness. And God let it happen. PTSD was rampant among those formerly of Judah, now deported wherever and missing the Old Neighborhood. Can the preacher read between the lines and help those who are struggling to see even this calamity as part of God’s steadfast love?

What were the circumstances that caused Timothy’s mentor to urge him to “rekindle the gift of God that is within you”? We’ll never know. (II TIMOTHY 1:1-14) Maybe he was so busy administering the congregation that he lost sight of the Good News? It happens… “The question is”, says Lewis R. Donelson, “whether Timothy will remain faithful to his calling in spite of the suffering and shameful aspects of the Christian Life.” (FEASTING on the WORD, C 4:135) Will YOU? It may not be easy.

LUKE 17:5-10 doesn’t really stand by itself. Jesus is on his way to the Crucifixion, and his Disciples ask for more faith. Jesus tells them that they can move big trees with the little faith they have. I like the Reformers’ idea that Faith is a response to Grace: it’s not something we DO, it’s something we ARE. The Disciples’ faith was increased as they saw the teachings of Jesus enfleshed in the responses of those around him. “Faith” goes beyond mere knowledge into the land of TRUST. What do you believe? Is God really for us?

“This is the Day that the Lord has made: he calls the hours his own. Let Heaven be glad, let earth rejoice: with Joy (faith?) surround God’s throne!”

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Join us each Tuesday as we explore and are confronted with Scriptures to be read on the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.co

Wouldn’t it be nice to climb into our DeLorean and zoom into the Future? God would still be God; but our toys and shiny objects would’ve tarnished. Scriptures to be heard on this upcoming weekend are to encourage us to have hope: whatever battles may loom, we still claim that God is and will be in charge.

The prophet JEREMIAH was in trouble most of his life–he persisted in calling back the People of God into some sort of observable holiness. Not just mouthing the tradition, but actually holding out for Justice and Loving the Neighbor. Here in 32:1-15, the Babylonian forces were at the gates of Jerusalem and it looked as though Judah would be dissolved. Why in the world would he buy a field, using all the proper rituals, when disaster was so obvious? “Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.” Note especially Baruch: he was to keep the story, to remind the new residents, the “new Israel”, that God was still in charge.

Paul’s FIRST LETTER TO TIMOTHY 6:6-19 concludes this epistle of hope in the same way it began: trust in God, don’t worry about (or covet) the toys that will depreciate. But how can I be content when TV ads show me shiny cars & trucks doing wheelies in the desert and beautiful people enjoying life after they dose themselves with snake oil? Wealth is not condemned, but Timothy and I are enjoined not to seek it for itself. Rather, we are to be fully engaged in following the way of Christ.

LUKE has been busy describing the travels of Jesus to Jerusalem, and the stories he tells to folks he met along the way. Here in 16:19-31 Jesus tells the story of a rich guy who never saw or recognized the desperately ill man right in front of him, “at his gate”. You know the story: the rich guy goes to hell (Jesus figured anyone rich much be on the take), while Lazarus (not Mary & Martha’s brother from Bethany) is taken to the bosom of Abraham, where all good Jews aim to go. Looks like Paul was right: the rich man’s money couldn’t buy him Life Eternal.

So how long will our visions of Hope last? HOPEfully some time after we get to the parking lot. The Future begins now! It’s not too late to re-prioritize our quest for The Good Life, and to claim our hope in God alone for the things we really need.

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Come join us each Tuesday as we explore–and are explored by–readings from the revised Common Lectionary for the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.com

Now, if I can stop singing that song in my head–“I’ll Get By”, sung when I was a teenager by Brook Benton… But scriptures to be heard on the upcoming weekend bring it back so fluidly, reminding pew-sitters that humans tend to treasure what they have/will get over treasures “in heaven”. Turns out that our race has taken seriously the old maxim “Go Along to Get Along”. I mean, if everyone else is careless about their spiritual ethic, why should I be different from the crowd?

The Hebrew Bible reading comes from the Book of JEREMIAH, 8-18-9:!, where God weeps over the People who have turned away towards false idols: the Baal, Astarte; shiny cars & strong trucks, faster than sound jet fighters. How do we obey the rules yet live in the way of old, pleasing everyone? Even in Gilead, where healing balm is common, there is no health. The Temple has been rebuilt, the Law (Deuteronomy) has been re-discovered; yet the People of Israel Go Along with the crowd… Sharon Peebles Burch writes in FEASTING on the WORD (C 4:78), “Self-interest blinds people to the harm done to others….How does the Church teach people about the way God makes and keeps human life human?”

Paul, Timothy’s mentor, writes the Epistle lesson, I TIMOTHY 2:1-7. He urges intercessory prayers for EVERYONE, recognizing that God is interested in us wherever we are. We United Methodists are currently feeling the fallout from recognizing LGBT members as real people. Some congregations have left us because they don’t want to pray for those unlike the majority! But “All means All”, and we and Timothy embrace these brothers and sisters wherever they are…

The Gospel, LUKE 16:1-13 can be puzzling. Does Jesus really commend the cheating manager? I think he’s being sarcastic, for he concludes his story saying that “the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light”. He’s right: to get along with your friends, especially when you’re down and out, you have to cut some ethical corners. Is this “right”? Of course not; but it is the way of the world. Helen Montgomery deBevoise writes, “They had lost their vision of who God had called them to be. They had traded their call to be God’s People to become servant of the treasures of the present day. Controlled by wealth, by money, even complacency, they had blended into society and lost their vision.” (ibid.,96)

A god other than YHWH has claimed the People, then and now. We have the choice of giving In, of Going Along–or embracing the person of Jesus the Christ in thought, word and deed.

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Scripture to be read on the upcoming weekend, according to the Revised Common Lectionary, confronts us every Tuesday at horacebrownking.com

The Hebrew/Aramaic word HESED is usually translated “steadfast love”. Scriptures expected to be heard on the upcoming weekend will speak about this steadfast love of God for all Creation. Hearers are reminded that God is still in charge, no matter where our wanderings may take us–and also that God will actually seek the lost and the misplaced, wonderful news! In all of it, we’re reminded that Gods Will prevails, no matter what….

JEREMIAH 4:22-28 bemoans the fallen and tawdry state of the world and its inhabitants: “For my people are foolish….They are skilled in doing evil, but do not know how to do good.” The Prophet pictures God giving up on the world: “Because of this the earth shall mourn…” His message is that God is always present, despite the rejection of The People. Not much has changed, has it, between Jeremiah’s day and our own?

St. Paul writes some letters to TIMOTHY, his lieutenant in the field. They speak of his feelings under house-arrest in Rome, aware that his salvation is not contingent upon his right actions, but due to God’s grace alone. In I, 1:12-17 we read about his awareness of God’s mercy: “Even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. (But) I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief…” We who search for wholeness of body, mind and spirit recognize that only through the presence of Christ can we find this wholeness.

In the Gospel lesson, LUKE 15:1-10, we find Jesus telling two stories–the Lost Sheep, and the Lost Coin. In each, the God-figure spares no time or involvement to find what was lost, and then to restore these to the whole remainder. ( We don’t know how the other sheep who stayed safe felt about their comrade who strayed.) But we come to the understanding that God wants ALL, even those neighborhood folks who never darken the door of the church. Will we make a place for them, welcome them back?

I’ve been reading Francis Thompson’s 1893 poem, “The Hound of Heaven”, which I commend to you. For a while, I was gonna name this blog “Found By the Hound”. But Helen Montgomery deBevoise writes (in FEASTING on the WORD, C 4:72), “When one in our community goes missing, we are all affected. When one is restored, we are all better off for it. That is how it is in the household of God.”

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Come along on Tuesdays to get a preview of scriptures to be heard on the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.com

Scripture to be heard on the upcoming weekend has to do with God’s reworking the community ethic–and your own–as the craftsman would continue to improve this work until it’s perfected. There’s a long way to go. But God is persistent; God hangs in to re-perfect our lives (together and individually), hoping that THIS time the humans in God’s image might have fewer flaws… How long, O Lord, will you have patience?

We begin with the famous story by JEREMIAH (18:1-11) about the potter who keeps crafting the clay until it turns out just right. So God’s Creation is in the process? Does our human activity influence God’s immediate plans? I worry (and so do you) that the painful things in life are a consequence of our own imperfection. Where do we see God reshaping who we are into an ethical stance more in tune with the Covenant? The central message of Jeremiah is to change our corporate behavior before we get reworked!

Paul’s pastoral letter to PHILEMON (“Phil” is the prefix for “brotherly love”) is a guilt-heavy intercession for one Onesimus, a scarpered slave. Here Paul asks no more of Philemon than Christ asks of ALL believers: to forgive, to restore, even to go against what the rest of The System follows. E. Elizabeth Johnson says that “Paul is convinced that God is indeed overturning social structures.” (FEASTING on the WORD, C 4:42) This really reworks the prevailing attitude of punishment and perhaps death…

In the Gospel, LUKE 14:25-33, Jesus is exhorting his disciples to rework their traditions of family loyalty in favor of prioritizing his ethic over “Theirs”. (“Hate” is much too strong a translation. What is meant here is giving over to God the traditions which would tie us to earthly responsibilities.) Jesus is telling disciples then and now to get on with it, to give over to God what they value and what might keep them from complete service. Talk about overturning social structures!

When I was in college and considering seminary/the ministry, my parents were non-plussed. They had raised their only son to be a Musician, not a pulpit-pounder! Yet when I actually enrolled in Seminary and took on a student parish, they were among my strongest supporters! I hope that since that far-away day my life has been continuously reworked and that my ethic has gradually moved toward that of Jesus. Yours too….

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Every Tuesday we explore the scriptures assigned to be read on the upcoming weekend; come join us at horacebrownking.com

Well, she did it again. Vicky of Nashville–who organizes the Revised Common Lectionary–is talking about me and my toys again. Most people know that all that glitzy stuff that’s marketed on TV will fade and get tarnished, even though we’ve spent a lot on them. Scriptures to be unveiled this upcoming weekend remind those who will hear them to choose wisely the things that endure.

JEREMIAH 2:4-13 continues God’s rant about the People who have disobeyed the Covenant. “What wrong did your ancestors find in me…? My people have changed their glory for something that does not profit…” This parent is upbraiding the children for scatterbrained actions: “they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters; AND they have dug out cisterns for themselves.” Jeremiah speaks about the Baalim and other local gods; we can address militarism and consumerism–all are worth nothing, in the long run. The reason the People of the Covenant felt so empty and unfulfilled is that they’ve put their money on the wrong horse! Who among us would do that?

The author of HEBREWS 13:1-8 offers a list of righteous behaviors: hospitality, remembrance of the imprisoned and the tortured, respect for marriage, not loving money… “Do not neglect…” the worthwhile while filling any empty spaces with our love of earthly prosperity and prestige. How many times have we “entertained angels unaware”? We usually recognize these in hindsight, but they’re everywhere!

Jesus speaks about these things to guests at a banquet, all scrabbling for the best seats (LUKE 14:7-14). “Always stand at the end of the line at the covered-dish supper, and maybe someone ahead of you will have you come ahead of them.” “All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” But sometimes the head of the line isn’t all that great, and those who get first pick may well get filled before dessert! Ronald F. Byars says that “the One who has already invited those who do not take an invitation for granted,” is the host. (FEASTING on the WORD, C 4:25)

The silverware in the house in which I grew up was not real silver. After my parents died, my wife and I inherited this flatware, among other things. The other day I saw a butter-knife from the set: the stainless steel blade was fine, but the silver-plate had all come off the now rusty and rough base-metal handle. Once it glittered, but now was essentially worthless. A story of Life, if I care to see.

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Come along every Tuesday to hear a preview of Scriptures assigned by the lectionary to the upcoming weekend; and bring a friend! horacebrownking.com

As a relatively sound human being, I can find an excuse for almost everything. “It’s too late…too early…too old…” “I’ll do it tomorrow…” but tomorrow never comes. Scriptures to be heard on the upcoming weekend will try to jazz up our lazy lives and incorporate the urgency of God’s Word. Not much has changed, has it? We proclaim, with our hands over our hearts, “liberty and justice for all (white men)”, and don’t worry much about the homeless and others who beg on street corners.

JEREMIAH 1:4-10 tells of a Divine Appointment to “pluck up and to pull down…to build and to plant”. In other words, to be a prophet. Jeremiah tries to change God’s mind: “I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy”. But God is tenacious in this ordination: “you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you.” Yep. You can run, but you cannot hide. BUT the One who calls also sustains. God continues to be engaged with God’s People, who have worth and dignity. The role of a prophet is to speak for God–is that you??

The woman who wrote HEBREWS 12-18-29 says, “See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking…” God’s call is so persistent that all the earth and heavens shake until we accept the challenge. The One who lives at Mt. Zion is very serious about claiming The People for telling the news and ordering justice, not just as a covenant of Sinai, but as an ongoing duty for the created ones.

The Call comes often, until you respond. God doesn’t take “No!” for an answer, as I’ve found out. oundmot

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And the Gospel, LUKE 13:10-17, reminds us that the opportunity to heal is not limited to certain days, but is always present. The leader of the synagogue–who probably was once called to speak God’s Presence–has equated Jesus’ healing with “work”…but Jesus presents healing as God’s good pleasure. It’s to be noted that the woman (how’d she get in here? This is a men’s-only gathering) didn’t ask to be healed, nor did she appear to recognize Jesus. He did it because God told him to. Is Wholeness just for the in-crowd, or does God touch everyone? Let Tradition be seen for what it is.

God doesn’t take “No!” for an answer, God keeps hunting us down wherever we may run, as I’ve found out. Are we Too Young, or Too Old? Are we listening to voices of The System, or our friends? Do we protest our pretend ignorance? What is God calling you to say??

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Come join us every Tuesday to help explore the lessons assigned to the upcoming weekend by the Revised Common Lectionary; at horacebrownking.com

We continue our Summer exercise of contrasting life in the System with life anticipating God’s Kingdom. One of the problems (we think) of being The Creator is that letting humans take over is asking for imperfection. A story, an exhortation and a history lesson all comprise the readings assigned to the upcoming weekend. We need to hear them as they speak to the surrounding culture and our own malaise.

ISAIAH 5:1-7 is often known as The Song of the Vineyard. It’s a love song, and a complaint: God has done everything right for this vineyard, even planting it in person, and is now asking “Why?” Isaiah portrays the Creator as resignedly saying, “OK, try it your way. But don’t come running to me when everything blows up…!” Stacey Simpson Duke reminds us, “we do not have to look far for examples of bloodshed where justice should be, or cries of pain in place of righteousness.” (FEEDING on the WORD, C 3:342) Does God really give up on us? Or can we loaf through our morals knowing that Grace will cover over our sin…?

The unknown writer of the Letter to the HEBREWS speaks to her mainly Jewish readers about the Faith of the Old Heroes. Gideon, Barak, Sampson & Co. did mighty deeds against impossible odds because they trusted in God and not their own calculations. So don’t be discouraged: we’re not alone! “Faith allows people to see beyond what is right in front of them…to see what God is doing in their midst.” (David E. Gray, op.cit.,354)

LUKE 12 seems to be a chapter in Jesus’ travels where he runs thin on patience and tells things as they are. Especially verses 49-56, our reading for the day. He hasn’t come to validate human institutions, but to unleash a cleansing fire, even in our families. (Take THAT, James Dobson) Not those other households, but our own. Jesus’ hearers are urged away from the hypocrisy–bad acting–of saying one thing yet doing the opposite.

Scripture lessons today confront us with our own lack of endurance and our unwillingness to see what God has done/is doing/will do. “The good news is that Someone still sings, plows, plants, guards, and looks for good fruit.”–Paul Simpson Duke, op.cit., 345

Invite your friends to discuss these things, attend worship and join our merry band each Tuesday, as we meet the Revised Standard Lectionary readings for the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.com

Lessons to be read this weekend will hit us squarely–and also bring a measure of comfort to those who can rid themselves of distractions. But there’s so much to hear and do and buy and promise! The readings say that God isn’t pleased with The Way Things Are, and challenges each of us to stop the idolatry and get on with TRUE worship and service.

ISAIAH 1:10-20 is a rant by God. (Let the reader be worked up.) “I have had ENOUGH…I do not delight in the blood of animals, incense is an abomination to me…who asked THIS from your hands?” Seems like folks in the time of Isaiah were no different from the folks of today, making a big show of worship yet abusing the poor and vulnerable. “If you are willing (to seek justice and be obedient) you shall eat the good of the land–BUT…” Stacy Simpson Duke observes that “our inattention to injustice deligitimates our praise.” (FEEDING on the WORD, C 3:318) Do you have blood on your hands?

The Letter to the HEBREWS (11:1-3, 8-16) tells of Faith, and of Abraham’s journey which is ours. Reformed Theology maintains that our Faith is a response to God’s Grace. (John Godsey, lecture notes) No one can imagine the finality of things not (yet) seen, but if we trust in God, it’s sure to happen. In God’s time, not ours. Abraham is cited for his willingness to pull up stakes from the familiar and go to an unknown land, following God’s direction. Are we?

It’s good to read the whole chapter of LUKE 12; but vocalization focuses on verses 32-40. This deals with our fear: headlines proclaim disaster, social media loves to spread gossip. But hang in there, for “it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” What’s Really Important in the greater scheme of things is to hear and do God’s work above everything else. Our future rests upon the promises of a restorative God. The imperishable things of Heaven ace out the moth-eaten stuff we have here.

There are a lot of things in contemporary life to fear–some days we feel like hiding under the blankets. But our faith is in a triumphant God, who (when everything is said and done) wants to make all things right if only we hear what God says to us. And do something about it.

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Every Tuesday we explore the scripture passages assigned by the Revised Common Lectionary to the upcoming weekend; come join us at horacebrownking.com