Daily Bible Reading: Acts 2:37-42 Baptism

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, "Brothers, what should we do?" Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him." And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Comments: The life of a Christian is about transformation. But transformation—becoming a better person because of the love of Christ does not come without recognizing that there is a need to reform. If we see something wrong either in our lives or in society, it is our joy to be about changing. It isn’t a duty. It isn’t a matter of if I don’t change I won’t be saved. We are already saved by the act of our Lord on the Cross. But in order to have a deeper knowledge of the One who gave himself for us, we must clear the baggage out of our way. We must prepare our lives to receive him.

Baptism is generally the beginning of our lives in Christ, but there are those who have never been baptized who know the Lord in their hearts. Baptism is not only the sign of our submission to the way of the Lord, it is a sacrament—it confers the grace of God. It makes it possible for the baptized to be about the acts of transformation throughout their lives.

Daily Bible Reading: Mark 11:27-33 Christian Authority

Again they came to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to him and said, "By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority to do them?" Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin? Answer me." They argued with one another, "If we say, 'From heaven,' he will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?' But shall we say, 'Of human origin'?" -- they were afraid of the crowd, for all regarded John as truly a prophet. So they answered Jesus, "We do not know." And Jesus said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things."

Comments: All too often I am confronted with problems of authority in matters of faith. Even Jesus was confronted with those who questioned how he could say the things that he said about God. The author of my faith relationship with God is God. No one has greater authority in my life. Those who need footnotes to their faith have not "got it." The have not had that encounter with the Divine that makes all other authority pale.

I am told in the Church that scripture is the authority, or the teachings of the Church, or perhaps a specific “orthodox” teaching is the authority. But when all is said and done, it is the relationship with God that the faithful must turn to as the final say in matters of faith. This means that others are going to hear God much differently than I. I need to be willing to trust the relationship with God that others have that guides them because ultimately it is by their fruits that they are known. It is by the fruits of my living that my faith is known. God’s authority must show forth in my life if I am going to have any authority to my preaching or teaching.

Daily Bible Reading: Jeremiah 1:4-10 A Prophet for the People

Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations."
Then I said, "Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy." But the Lord said to me,
"Do not say, 'I am only a boy';
for you shall go to all to whom I send you,
and you shall speak whatever I command you,
Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,
says the Lord."

Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me,
"Now I have put my words in your mouth.
See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to pull down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant."

Comments: Jeremiah was just a youth when he heard God’s call to be a prophet of the Most High in 628BCE. He was of the priestly family of Kohen and went to the Temple in Jerusalem to proclaim God’s will for the people of Judah. He warned of the coming destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. He was not accepted by the people in Jerusalem but his prophecy ran true.

Often we are called to be prophets—to our children, families, church. Most of the time, we are only making suggestions that can help others to live out their lives with God more fully. Sometimes we don’t even know where the words come from. But God told Jeremiah where the words would come from.

In the effort to serve God, I believe that God gives us the words and the ability to endure the reactions of those who would rather not listen in love. It matters not if we are young or old. God provides us with the words to speak God’s love all the time.

Daily Bible Reading: Hosea 6:1-6 Sacrifice of the Heart

"Come, let us return to the Lord;
for it is he who has torn, and he will heal us;
he has struck down, and he will bind us up.
After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will raise us up,
that we may live before him.
Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord;
his appearing is as sure as the dawn;
he will come to us like the showers,
like the spring rains that water the earth."

What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
What shall I do with you, O Judah?
Your love is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that goes away early.
Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets,
I have killed them by the words of my mouth,
and my judgment goes forth as the light.
For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

Comments: The theme of Judgment continues in this reading. Hosea’s prophecy in the 7th century BCE was to show how Israel, the Northern Kingdom had strayed into worshipping other gods. The imagery he uses is that of a marriage fraught with infidelity. The resurrection motif catches the eye of Christians but the most important words to the present day are the last ones in this passage.

God desires steadfast love—hesed (Hebrew). It is the kind of love that goes through thick and thin. All too often we find ourselves trying to save ourselves through good works rather than offering to God the humble heart of gratitude. Sacrifice can be mindless. What God desires is a willingness to be present to the Holy at all times, open to the always present Divine love. A difficult task, to be sure, but one worthy of our effort.

Daily Bible Reading:

Psalm 79
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple;
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the bodies of your servants
to the birds of the air for food,
the flesh of your faithful to the wild animals of the earth.
They have poured out their blood like water
all around Jerusalem,
and there was no one to bury them.
We have become a taunt to our neighbors,
mocked and derided by those around us.

How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealous wrath burn like fire?
Pour out your anger on the nations
that do not know you,
and on the kingdoms
that do not call on your name.
For they have devoured Jacob
and laid waste his habitation.

Do not remember against us the iniquities of our ancestors;
let your compassion come speedily to meet us,
for we are brought very low.
Help us, O God of our salvation,
for the glory of your name;
deliver us, and forgive our sins,
for your name's sake.
Why should the nations say,
"Where is their God?"
Let the avenging of the outpoured blood of your servants
be known among the nations before our eyes.

Let the groans of the prisoners come before you;
according to your great power preserve those doomed to die.
Return sevenfold into the bosom of our neighbors
the taunts with which they taunted you, O Lord!
Then we your people, the flock of your pasture,
will give thanks to you forever;
from generation to generation we will recount your
praise.

Comments: Psalm 79 sounds as though it was written by those who were not carried off into slavery following the Babylonian invasion in 58b BCE. It tells of Jerusalem in ruins. The song of the psalmist does not deny the sinfulness that led to the punishment of Israel. The psalmist merely promises that the people will continue to be steadfast in its praise. This is not a personal prayer. It is the plea for a nation that is in total disarray. They no longer have a center for their lives. God alone must be the center.

I appreciate the honesty of this psalm. There is no trying to hide past sins. There is no equivocating, but merely the plea, “how long, O Lord?”. God is never angry forever at our sinfulness. It is our return and constant prayer that reminds us that the relationship with God is what makes life full and whole despite the destruction around

Daily Bible Reading: Revelation 18:1-10

After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority; and the earth was made bright with his splendor. He called out with a mighty voice,
"Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
It has become a dwelling place of demons,
a haunt of every foul spirit,
a haunt of every foul bird,
a haunt of every foul and hateful beast.
For all the nations have drunk
of the wine of the wrath of her fornication,
and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,
and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxury."
Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,
"Come out of her, my people,
so that you do not take part in her sins,
and so that you do not share
in her plagues;
for her sins are heaped high as heaven,
and God has remembered her iniquities.
Render to her as she herself has rendered,
and repay her double for her deeds;
mix a double draught for her in the cup she mixed.
As she glorified herself and lived luxuriously,
so give her a like measure of torment and grief.
Since in her heart she says,
'I rule as a queen;
I am no widow,
and I will never see grief,'
therefore her plagues will come in a single day --
pestilence and mourning and famine --
and she will be burned with fire;
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her."
And the kings of the earth, who committed fornication and lived in luxury with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning; they will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,
"Alas, alas, the great city,
Babylon, the mighty city!
For in one hour your judgment has come."

-Comment: In Revelations, John’s name for Rome is Babylon. The dream of John longs for a day when Rome’s influence is over. The people of God are called out of her because Rome is a place of iniquity. Recent fires in Rome show God's denouncement of Rome.

John is warning his followers of the powerful but insidious influence of the Roman Empire. He forecasts a day when Rome will fall just as Babylon did. In this case, there is no Jerusalem for the people of God to return to. It had been destroyed in the year 70 by Rome. A new Jerusalem will have to be built—a new home for the faithful will have to grow up in the hearts of the faithful.

Daily Bible Reading: Revelation 15:1-8

Then I saw another portent in heaven, great and amazing: seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is ended.

And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb:
"Great and amazing are your deeds,
Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
King of the nations!
Lord, who will not fear
and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship before you,
for your judgments have been revealed."

After this I looked, and the temple of the tent of witness in heaven was opened, and out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues, robed in pure bright linen, with golden sashes across their chests. Then one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever; and the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were ended.

-

Comments: Just like the People of Israel who sing a song of God's praise following their deliverance after crossing the Red Sea dry shod, the followers of Jesus are the ones who have crossed the glass sea. This liturgy of praise is the song of those who have championed over the evils of life and entered into the realm of God. "Those who have been victorious over the beast" is a metaphor for non-conformity--the refusal to accept the dominion of the beast and its way of life.

For us today, we too are liberated from following the ways of consumerism, egoism, and mindlessness when we refuse to follow the way of a society that would steal us away from the way of Christian love and fellowship. I find the Christmas rush has a tendency to steal away the love of Jesus so I avoid Black Fridays and Christmas sales as best I can so that I too can sing this liturgy of God's praise.