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The song from the show that I remember says, “Where ya going?” “I don’t know.” “When will you get there?” “I ain’t certain; all that I know is I am on my way.” And aren’t we all on our way? Scripture lessons for this Second weekend in Lent are to remind us that we don’t know just where we’re going–but we do know that God goes with us! From the Wilderness to Jerusalem–or whatever the name of our Holy City.

GENESIS (the Book of Beginnings) 15:1-12 tells us the story of Abraham preparing to journey to the Promised Land. Like us, he’s full of questions, mostly about his yet-unborn descendants. Who’s gonna inherit this “Promised Land”? But yet he goes, trusting in the God who said, “Don’t be afraid”. What are the costs to Abraham? What are the costs to US? For what dare we hope?

Paul’s Letter to the PHILIPPIANS 3:17-4:1 compares those who follow Christ to the Rest of the System. “Their minds are set on earthly things.” There’s part of us which WANTS to question, which WANTS to be rational. Our community, our selves are engaged in the messy part of living, clinging to injustice, pride and all that goes with it. “But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior…” What do we expect? Dare we expect a Savior who gives us his own life to model?

Last week we found Jesus in the Wilderness; and this week we read that he’s on his way to Jerusalem! The intervening text will tell us of his healings, his miracles and his teachings about God’s Kingdom. Not even the threats could keep him from the site of the Temple, of government, of tradition. Just as the prophets before him, he wanted to lovingly protect the People, “How often have I desired to gather your people together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!”, still forseeing the destruction and dispersal of the Jews. Were they too stubborn to accept God’s shelter? Are WE?

All of these–Abraham, Jesus and the Philippian community–are on their way with God. It’s to be pointed out that none of these knew exactly where this was, or where they were going. But they did leave every- thing behind, no easy job. Where are you going? Paint your wagon and come along!

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

You’re invited every Tuesday to grab an advance look at Scriptures to be heard on the upcoming weekend–at horacebrownking.com…Tell your friends!

Vicki of Nashville has done it again. Try as I might, I can’t find any thread linking the lectionary-assigned readings. Can you? This is, of course, the first weekend in Lent, where believers look inward at their own foibles and simultaneously outward at what God is creating. We expect a roller-coaster ride of spirituality, both the rapid descent into the despair of the World System as reported in the news headlines, and the painfully slow ascent of the Mountain of God where we hope–know?–there will be a Peaceable Kingdom revealed.

DEUTERONOMY 26:1-11 outlines a formula for bringing and dedicating the first “fruit” of the land which God has given. The writer knows that over time people forget the agonies of Egypt and the long, hot sojourn in the desert. Here then is a pattern for acknowledging both the riches God has provided in the Promised Land and the way in which we all are accepted no matter where we’ve wandered. We–ancient Hebrews or contemporary Americans–are strongly reminded that goods and places are gifts of God, wherever the journey has led.

ROMANS 10:8b-13 brings us to an affirmation that “the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on [God]”. Through the life and proclamation of Christ, our faith is accessible to all, wherever they have been. “The Lenten season invites us to self-examination regarding the extent to which God’s generosity is written upon our hearts.” (Robert W. Prim, in FEASTING on the WORD, C 2:43) To which I would also add “God’s mercy”.

LUKE 4:1-11 is the tale of the Temptations of Jesus. We notice in this narrative (as opposed to that of Matthew) that Jesus was LED to the wilderness by the Spirit, evidently for further training in holiness. Here the devil (wait a moment–was this Satan, the Tempter, or the little devil which sits on our shoulders?) gave Jesus three possible scenes for his ministry. Henri Nouwen gives them current names: to be Relevant (“turn these stones to bread. Imagine how food deprivation would cease!”); Powerful (“if you worship me, all glory will be yours!”); and Spectacular (“throw yourself from the Temple and astound the people with your protection!”). To all of these, Jesus maintained that God continues to be generous and faithful. “We must be tested, often by being led to places of hunger and despair. Only then do we learn dependence on God, who graciously provides for all of our needs in all of life’s seasons.” (Jeffery L. Tribble, Sr.,ibid., p.44)

So maybe the thread here is the constant providence of God, who meets us in whatever desert we live with reminders of generosity and mercy. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Please pass this writing to your friends and join us every Tuesday for an exploration of scripture lessons expected to be heard on the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.com

Transfiguration is the culmination of Epiphany, that Season of “AHA!” This season is to present the holiness of Jesus in the many ways in which he revealed himself to his disciples. Only when we’ve gone to the extremes of the Mountaintop are we ready to embark on Lent, a traditional time of turning our lives around by seeing where we’ve made mis-steps. Stories to be told this weekend deal with the radiance of faces that are glorified in the presence of God.

EXODUS 34:29-35 is the story about Moses’s shining face when he had been with God. His people still in the desert couldn’t take being that close to God, so they made Moses veil his face–not realizing that they too could have shining faces if they just got near the Divine Presence. Proximity to God causes our faces to shine and gives us the aura of friends and creatures of God’s love. With that aura, we can go about our world Doing Good and walking humbly with our God.

Paul, in II CORINTHIANS 3:12-18, tells us that Old Testament folks still have a veil when they hear the Good News of Christ. Those who read only The Law (Moses) will be veiled until they turn to Christ. And he says that those who perceive the glory of the Lord are being “transformed into the same image”! Thus he urges the Corinthians (and us) to welcome those moments of glory, to let our faces be changed. Callista S. Isabelle reminds us that “as we acknowledge our spiritual blindness and turn toward God, Paul assures us that God is present in this very turning.” (FEASTING on the WORD, C 1:450)

LUKE, in 9:28-36, tells the familiar (?) story of Jesus taking Peter, James & John up a mountain, where they saw Jesus’ face and garments changed into glory. They also saw Moses & Elijah–the Law and the Prophets–talking with Jesus, presumably about the end of his earthly ministry & sojourn. Here is God, again & again, STILL trying to redeem God’s world, coming to provide greater & greater moments of revelation. Have our congregations celebrated ways however small in which God has brought glory into tired lives? Where have you seen God today?

Meister Eckhart is reported to have said, “We should not think that holiness is based on what we do but rather on what we are, for it is not our works that sanctify us, but [The One] who sanctifies our works.” (As quoted op. cit.) I’ll try not to veil my shining!

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Join us every Tuesday as we examine (and are examined by) scripture lessons assigned to the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.com

Sometimes I feel as though I’m from Mars, speaking a totally alien language. The Church is meant to be counter-cultural; but I sure do miss the Old Days when everyone claimed an allegiance, or at least went through the motions. Somewhere we learned to again confront the System, preaching still the doctrines of forgiveness, sharing and love. Scriptures heard in worship during the coming weekend reflect the tension between believers and the System.

GENESIS 45:3-15 tells the story of Joseph, now a high muckety-muck in Egypt, receiving his unknowing brothers who were looking for relief from the famine. The irony, of course, is that the brothers once wished to harm Joseph, and now were dependent upon his largess. What goes ’round comes ’round. Could the brothers ever forgive themselves? Is Joseph being God-like in his extreme forgiveness? What part of ego did Joseph and his brothers have to override?

I CORINTHIANS 15: 38ff is one of my favorites to use at funerals: it deals with our questions about what we’ll look like in Heaven. The verse, “If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body” always jumps out at me. Everyone believes in the after-life, just read the obituaries. But if we truly believe in the resurrection bye ‘n’ bye, it should change our moral behavior in THIS life. Or should we just go along to get along? Is there something controversial in our attitude that doesn’t kow-tow to business-as-usual?

LUKE 6:27-38 continues last week’s exploration of the Sermon on the Plane: those who still stayed to hear Jesus were given a list of how their behaviors might change to embrace Christianity. (I have my own problems of giving cheerfully to those who ask.) How do we respond to others with kindness, which may be a strange commodity for the downtrodden? Those who embrace this alternative lifestyle are embarking on disaster: the System has no room for those who are sensitive to need or wishing to change the world! These teachings call the hearer to live in a way contrary to human nature–which is impossible without a Holy Presence to undergird and comfort…

It’s scary, and sometimes I regret having a conscience. Thank Heaven we’ve been given these occasions to swim upstream against the current; and also thank Heaven that there have been much more recent demonstrations of faith even though no hope seems secure. Keep on believing! (It may be our only way out…)

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Join us each Tuesday to be confronted by the holiness of scripture expected to be read on the upcoming weekend: at horacebrownking.com

There’s a song in “Porgy & Bess” in which a guy–Sportin’ Life?–sings, “I God Plenty of Nuthin’ and Nuthin’s Plenty for Me”. I admit to a bit of ambivalence: my Franciscan side tells me that all things are from God, and therefore good; yet this weekend’s scriptures insist that we need to rid ourselves of all things superfluous. Or at least not value them so highly. Ah, NOW we’re getting at it…

JEREMIAH 17:5-10 makes me a bit uncomfortable. It’s a matter of trust, isn’t it? If we trust in God, our roots will find the water of life in the river; otherwise we’re like a dried shrub in a seasonal desert, enjoying–maybe thriving in!–the occasional shower. But in desert days, we grow weak; we have no resources upon which to fall back. Jeremiah calls each of us to ready our hearts for regular searching: our fickleness again demands that we trust the heart of GOD more than our own.

St. Paul goes to great lengths to tell the CORITHIAN Church that Christ has really been raised from the dead (I 15:12-20). Does God really value physical existence when so many people have died from war or starvation or some other malady? For Paul, the resurrection of Jesus (and ourselves) is central to our belief system, otherwise Christianity would be reduced to only a morality suggested by Jesus. Perhaps this is where Martin Luther is coming from when he espouses the doctrine of Sola Fide.

LUKE 6:17-26 remembers some uncomfortable teachings of Jesus, the “Blessings” and the “Woes”. These contrast the attitude of God towards those that have everything and those who have nothing. The passage sees to tell us not just to eliminate things that clutter our lives, but also to devalue and give away things that are important to us! Even my stamp collection? It’s evidently not our THINGS that separate us from God, it’s the value we ascribe to them! “God is turning the world upside down, and taking discipleship far beyond a simple ‘follow me’ to a level of sacrifice that is nothing less than daunting.” (David L. Ostendorf, in FEASTING on the WORD C 1:358)

Therein is our woe. God doesn’t accept our partial housecleaning. How much can I empty myself, turn away from the System and have nothing but God? Do I need anything more?

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Those wishing to continue a tour of the Biblical passages laid out for the upcoming weekends in the Revised Common Lectionary are invited to join us on Tuesdays at horacebrownking.com

Everyone has something to tell–about themselves, about their family, about what the cat did… Readings for the upcoming weekend are stories about how some of our spiritual forbears met God. We who hear them are reminded of our own encounters with the Holy, whether for the first time or during a continued awareness of God’s Presence.

ISAIAH 6:1-13 tells the story of how Isaiah was accosted in a “vision” of the High Holy Place in the last year of normalcy, the “year that King Uzziah died”. Realizing his mortal imperfection, Isaiah protested his sinfulness. But God’s angel touched his mouth, and now he could prophesy. Some will wish to read beyond the 8th verse, where Isaiah volunteers to go to the people with God’s message: here is a puzzling lack of opportunity to turn it around, an acknowledgement that the world really is going to hell in a handcart.

I CORINTHIANS 15:1-11 gives Paul opportunity to recall his own meeting with God on the road to Damascus. The key verse in this recitation is #10, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and [God’s] grace toward me has not been in vain.” He’s encouraging the Corinthian folks to tell their stories about God, accepting the idea that our own meeting the Holy is predicated on someone else telling about it. Who told you? Are there persons who not only told the story but lived it out in your background? “Consider the ways in which we are a continuation of the gospel story, the ways in which the risen Christ has appeared to us and transformed our living.” (Jeffrey D. Jones, in FEASTING on the WORD, C 1:331)

LUKE 5:1-11 tells the story about Jesus preaching on the lakeside, and how he moves on to Peter’s fishing boat. Please note that the miracle here isn’t the large catch of fish, but is Peter’s confession, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man”. No arguments from Jesus, just the affirmation that from now on Peter would be catching People. And so would James & John. God is moving toward new horizons: the fisher-folk thought that their lives were set, but God called them beyond…

So in my old age, I wonder where I’m going next. I can’t accept that God is done with me; the world still pushes in on us in many ways. Will there be another encounter? For me? or even for you… Just you wait!

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Come share with you own thoughts as we’re encountered by the Scripture every Tuesday; at horacebrownking.com

Everyone wants to see God, right? But not today. And not too close, lest we be called on to do something. Lessons to be read from Scripture on the upcoming weekend tell the stories of how God DOES appear, and what God DOES expect us to do… Are you ready? This may involve you…

We find JEREMIAH as a “boy”–whether young in years or young in faith–being instructed by God to be a prophet to the nations (1:4-10). Gulp! Who, me? But I don’t know what to say… God tells Jeremiah and us, “Don’t be afraid! I am with you to deliver you.” (Read the whole book to see how this works out.) Even the most idealistic of us find a new role, a new place, which can be scary. But we don’t choose God, God chooses US–and prepares us to live out the Holy Conviction within us. The reading concludes on a positive note: the prophet is to build and plant, as well as be disruptive to the power system.

The CORINTHIAN Church was a diverse and eclectic group, contending with one another as to whom the Spiritual Gifts were best seen. And so Paul wrote an insert to his letter (13:1-13) about loving and caring for each other. This love, this respect, is the best gift of all; and their actions need to show this acceptance. Love is patient and kind, bearing all things, and believing, hoping, and enduring. Sometimes being correct is a lesser virtue. Although very nice, the passage is not about romance, so don’t use it for your wedding!

LUKE’s gospel continues the story about Jesus in his hometown synagogue: in last week’s narrative, Jesus amazed them all by announcing his messiahship–and in 4:21-30, we read how his fellow citizens rose up against him and were going to throw him off the cliff! This God thing is very nice in a book someplace, but Not In My Backyard! No, keep God confined to a scroll, in antiquity, but don’t ask me to welcome him today! Besides, we know this guy: he helped build our house. Can it be that the Good News has come so close? And what does that mean for me??

Gerhard Tersteegen, in the early 1700’s, wrote “God calling yet! Shall I not hear? Earth’s pleasures shall I still hold dear? Shall life’s swift passing years all fly, and still my soul in slumber lie?” Well??

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Come with us every Tuesday to wrestle with scripture passages to be shared on the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.com

The Season of Epiphany–“There’s God Now!”–continues to tell the story of God’s attempts to meet with us, the Creator’s creations. Stories to be heard on this upcoming weekend are not only nice remembrances, but remind today’s persons that we too are important.

The people of Israel returned from the Babylonian Exile and rebuilt the Temple around 520 BC. NEHEMIAH 8:1-10 tells about the occasion of re-finding the Law (probably the Book of Deuteronomy) and making susre all the people heard it and would adopt it. (It was this Law that Jesus came to exceed, although he was careful to respect it.) The core of this passage is the word “all”: the Deuteronomic virtues were’nt just for individual observation, they came to the PEOPLE, to re-establish their countercultural stance. From now on (?) this People will shine “as a light to the nations”.

The passage of I CORINTHIANS 12:12-31 is famous for building the Church as a human body. Paul’s analogy of each part having its own special function is to reassure each one of their worth and importance to the wholeness of the community. No matter how insignificant we feel, the health of the body is contingent upon us! That Body is healthy/whole not from what it did yesterday, but because of what it’s doing TODAY.

LUKE 4:14-21–the neighbors of Nazareth thought Jesus to be a Nice Boy, a Regular Guy, and they welcomed him into their synagogue. They had heard of his marvelous doings even in the beginning of his ministry; and, who knows? He may even do something for them! So he read from the scroll Isaiah’s words to the returned Exiles: “The Spirit has anointed me to bring Good News, to release the captives, to restore sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free…” Yes, yes, very nice. But then he said, “TODAY this scripture has been fulfilled.” What!! God’s here today?? Didn’t we tuck God away somewhere with the Christmas lights? Don’t we think of God as happening in our distant past??

What is Real? What is True? Where is your God today? And what are you doing, for Heaven’s sake??

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Come every Tuesday to get a preview of what God will say on the upcoming weekend: at horacebrownking.com

These few weeks after the Epiphany are well-placed to reveal God: winter has set in, “earth stands hard as iron”, heating bills and illness seem to accumulate more quickly. This is the Season for seeing God, the “AHA!” moment, the time to say, “Oh! NOW I get it!” Scripture passages to be explored lift up the Good Things that God has provided, reminding those of us overwhelmed by Winter that we do have an extravagant God, a God of abundance who can and does provide us with Hope.

The mysterious Third ISAIAH is writing to those returned from Exile, saddened by the realization that the homeland won’t look like they remembered or were told. Once hopeful, the People of the Return NOW have to address the reality of a ruined Temple and half-Judaized neighbors. Will YHWH change things, or will they have to be content with the World’s agenda? Some of us (the apostle Paul/Saul, for one) need a new Name to signify a fresh start. From Forsaken to My Delight, from Desolate to the loving acceptance of Marriage. Will we shine like a burning torch in the ashes of World & National News? Do we speak for the ones whose light has been only smoldering?

St. Paul tells the CORINTHIANS in chapter 12 about the plethora of holy gifts which God alone can–and does!–give. The humblest can now be proud of her new showing of God for the common good. “…there are a variety of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.” All of which is to say that TODAY God still blesses us with these gifts, given to YOU! Now how will you discover what immensity you have, and how will you use it in partnership with God? Students at Hogwarts have the Sorting Hat; church-members on the way have Prayer…

Why does St. JOHN include the story of the Marriage at Cana (2:1-11) in his Gospel when the other writers don’t? I think it’s to develop a sense of the process of Jesus’ awareness of divinity, beginning with Baptism and moving toward his ultimate Resurrection. At any rate, it’s a good remembrance of the special abundance of God’s gifts: when you’re touched by Jesus, the result is all Good Stuff! The old dry same-old same-old has now been filled to the brim!

These stories bring up the old question of Theodicy, which is a way of asking, “If God is so good, then why is so much wrong?” Ernest Hess writes, “In a world where many suffer from poverty, disease, injustice and hunger, how do we understand [these] stories of extravagant abundance?….life in this world, with its painful limitations, has been unpredictably invaded by grace…” (FEASTING on the WORD, C 1:265) Where have you seen God, today?

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Join us every Tuesday as we’re touched by the Scriptures to be read and heard on the upcoming weekend; at horacebrownking.com

The Baptism of the Lord is traditionally observed on the weekend after Epiphany. Jesus was baptized by his cousin, John, probably around 30 CE. It’s a time in which Believers remember their own commitments–or those made by others on their behalf–to accept God’s grace in growing their lives, and to reject the presence of sin. This weekend’s readings remind us that grace is sufficient for all of life, both the good and the bad.

ISAIAH 43:1-7 is a reminder to the Jews now living in exile in Babylon that God is still operative in a “strange” land. Just as YHWH has created, so YHWH continues to love and redeem the People wherever they are. Caution: this passage could be read as favoring the Zionists over the Gentiles, with music from “Exodus”! The water and the flame from v.2 could be seen as agents of purification, elements used by God for refining the dross out of our true natures.

ACTS 8:14-17 are a few obscure verses which tell how the Samaritans–the despised “tarnished” Jews–were accepted into the fold of the Baptized. Please notice that Peter and John, two “big guns” of Christianity, went THEMSELVES to show the Samaritans that the community cared! (Peter & John, the Disciples racing to see the Resurrection, were often paired by Luke: the Old and the Young, the gruff and the outspoken, EVERYone of EVERY age…)

LUKE 3:15-22 is yet another account of Jesus’ baptism, differing only slightly from Mark & Matthew. Jesus evidently identified with the persecuted and sin-sick, getting in line to receive what is now seen as a Sacrament. Please note that the dove/Holy Spirit descended upon him WHILE HE WAS PRAYING, a result(?) of the baptism. Evidently the Epiphany comes to us as we prayerfully begin the holy journey. Is it limited to special sacramental moments? By no means!

The World Council of Churches, meeting in Geneva in 1982, has written “The Holy Spirit is at work in the lives of people before, in, and after their baptism….[Baptism] marks them with a seal and implants in their hearts the first installment of their inheritance as sons and daughters of God.” Let the journey continue! “Remember your Baptism, and be glad!!”

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Join us each Tuesday to see and enjoy what pops out at us from the Scripture lessons for the upcoming weekend: at horacebrownking.com