December 20, 2020, Matthew 2:1–2, 7–15, ISSL Reflections Post 1

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I.
As we approach the fourth Sunday of Advent, we have as our Scripture focus the arrival of the “wise men.” While we have Christmas hymns that call these men “kings,” they were more likely of a class of scholars or priests who were astrologers.

We also encounter King Herold in this week’s passage.

As you spend time with the Scripture, pay attention to what you can discern about the wise men and about King Herold.

II.
Matthew 2:1-2

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.”

Matthew 2:7-15

Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”

III.
What is the purpose of the wise men from a foreign country in seeking out Jesus’ location?

What is the purpose of King Herod in seeking where he can find Jesus?

After we notice something of what motivates these folk, what might we begin to notice about those who seek Jesus today. Do some want to align with Jesus? Do some want Jesus to align with them? Do some want Jesus out of view?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

December 13, 2020, Matthew 1:18-25, ISSL Reflections Post 3

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Here is this week’s Scripture passage for you to read again –
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%201%3A18-25&version=NRSV;CEB;MSG

VI.
As you considered these past several days when and where did Emmanuel become more real for you?

I know there are times (days, weeks, even more) when such glimpses are hard to come by. Maybe you are convinced there are no such sightings.

If that is where you find yourself, then maybe you can place a prayer deep in your consciousness such as, “Jesus, help me see where you are walking about today.”

Wouldn’t hurt anything, would it?

VII.
Before we close this week, I want to ask you to consider one more thing.

When might you be the vehicle of Emmanuel for another?

Doesn’t even mean you are trying to make it happen. It just does.

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

December 13, 2020, Matthew 1:18-25, ISSL Reflections Post 2

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You will find three translations of this week’s Scripture passage here –
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%201%3A18-25&version=NRSV;CEB;MSG

IV.
In the previous post I asked us to focus on the phrase, “God with us.”

We noticed how God’s arrival caused changes in the lives of Mary and Joseph.

How does it impact our daily lives?

V.
Think over the past two days. Can you think of a time, an experience, an event that speaks to you of Emmanuel – God with us – God with you?

Was there a word, a person who brought that to you?

What are you remembering?

VI.
For the next couple of days be on the lookout.

As you enter each day let yourself be open to Emmanuel.

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

December 13, 2020, Matthew 1:18-25, ISSL Reflections Post 1

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I.
Let’s focus this week on the phrase, “God with us.”

The Gospel writer presents to us in these few sentences how the lives of three people intersect. He recounts that one is to be named “Emmanuel” and tells us that means, “God with us.”

Notice how the presence (or maybe invasion?) of the one called “God with us” impacts the others lives.

II.
Matthew 1:18-25

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:

“Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,”

which means, “God is with us.” When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.

III.
Who is he? Emmanuel or Jesus?

As God shows up, how do the lives of Mary and Joseph change to adapt to God’s presence?

How might our lives “change” as we encounter Emmanuel?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deu ibi est}

December 6, 2020, Matthew 1:1-6, 16-17, Hebrews 1:1-5, ISSL Reflections, Post 3

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You can read again this week’s Scripture passage here,
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%201%3A1-6%2C%2016-17%2C%20Hebrews%201%3A1-5&version=NRSV,CEB

VIII.
Matthew tells us of 52 generations, in his counting, that preceded the coming of Jesus on the scene. Those generations can help us think of the history that preceded Jesus’ birth, ministry, and death. And they take us past the history of the previous generations to the “day” of Jesus.

They give us a context for the life, teaching and way Jesus lived his life.

Every call has a context, it seems to me.

IX.
And a call comes in a specific time to a specific person.

Oh, it may be heard by many people, in a town or in a congregation, but it is heard by a specific person, you or me or the person beside us.

So it has a context and a recipient

X.
A call has content, and that content, it seems to me, requires response/action.

The passage in Hebrews spotlights some of the content of the call on Jesus’ life.

Read over our scriptures for this week and notice, the context, the recipient (or recipients), content, and the response/action asked of the one(s) hearing the call(s)

What do you hear today calling you?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

December 6, 2020, Matthew 1:1-6, 16-17, Hebrews 1:1-5, ISSL Reflections, Post 2

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This week’s Scripture is given in three translations here –
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%201%3A1-6%2C%2016-17%2C%20Hebrews%201%3A1-5&version=NRSV,GNT,MSG

V.
Spend some time reading these words from Hebrews 1:1-5,

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

For to which of the angels did God ever say,
“You are my Son;
today I have begotten you”?
Or again,
“I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son”?

VI.
In classic works of systematic theology you usually saw a chapter devoted to the “Person of Christ” and another devoted to the “Work of Christ.”

Read again the Hebrews passage above and look for what it tells you about who Jesus is, and what he did.

Does that give you any thoughts on the “call” on his life, work, and path that you encounter in the Scripture?

VII.
As you reflect on Jesus’ call, what comes to you about what “calls” you?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

December 6, 2020, Matthew 1:1-6, 16-17, Hebrews 1:1-5, ISSL Reflections, Post 1

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I.
The Scripture for these next weeks has as their theme “Call in the New Testament.” We start with the genealogy of Jesus Matthew presents and with the genealogy of Jesus the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews presents.

As you listen to these two passages, be aware of what each might have to say about the “call” on Jesus’ life.

II.
Matthew 1:1-6

An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Aram, and Aram the father of Aminadab, and Aminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,

Matthew 1:16-17

and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.

So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the Messiah, fourteen generations.

Hebrews 1:1-5

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

For to which of the angels did God ever say,
“You are my Son;
today I have begotten you”?
Or again,
“I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son”?

III.
So, Matthew’s genealogy sets Jesus in the history of the Jewish people. A people “called” to be a blessing and a light to the nations (Genesis 12:1-2, Genesis 22:19, Isaiah 42:6).

Seems to be a long history of “calling,” doesn’t it?

What does one’s background, one’s genealogy, have to do with one’s “calling”? We might take some time to notice what groundwork for Jesus’ “calling” was laid in by the people identified in his genealogy.

Then, we might also consider the history behind whatever “calls” exist on our lives.

IV.
The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews also speaks of history. The history of God’s word to the people. Can we also see that as God’s “call” to the people?

And Jesus is named as “my Son.” He is “called” to live out of the sonship. To speak out of that sonship.

What name does God “call” you by?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

November 29, 2020, James 2:1-13, ISSL Reflections, Post 3

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Here is this week’s Scripture from the Common English Bible translation –
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James+2%3A1-13&version=CEB

VII.
The Scriptures we have read during the last months have all, one way or another, focused on how we love, or don’t love, one another. How we put into practice Christian love, concern and value for one another.

The focus began with the reflections on Joseph’s life ( https://lectio.discipleswalk.org/september-6-genesis-372-11-23-24a-28-issl-reflections/ ) and continued to this week’s passage.

Do any of the passages draw you to rereading them today?

VIII.
Several days a week I receive a quote from the writings for Frederick Buechner in my inbox. Last week these words on “love” came my way –

“THE LOVE FOR equals is a human thing—of friend for friend, brother for brother. It is to love what is loving and lovely. The world smiles.

“The love for the less fortunate is a beautiful thing—the love for those who suffer, for those who are poor, the sick, the failures, the unlovely. This is compassion, and it touches the heart of the world.

“The love for the more fortunate is a rare thing—to love those who succeed where we fail, to rejoice without envy with those who rejoice, the love of the poor for the rich, of the black man for the white man. The world is always bewildered by its saints.

“And then there is the love for the enemy—love for the one who does not love you but mocks, threatens, and inflicts pain. The tortured’s love for the torturer. This is God’s love. It conquers the world.”

-Originally published in The Magnificent Defeat

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

November 29, 2020, James 2:1-13, ISSL Reflections, Post 2

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IV.
Here is how this week’s Scripture is translated in The Message –
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James+2%3A1-13&version=MSG

James 2:1-13 (The Message)

My dear friends, don’t let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith. If a man enters your church wearing an expensive suit, and a street person wearing rags comes in right after him, and you say to the man in the suit, “Sit here, sir; this is the best seat in the house!” and either ignore the street person or say, “Better sit here in the back row,” haven’t you segregated God’s children and proved that you are judges who can’t be trusted?

Listen, dear friends. Isn’t it clear by now that God operates quite differently? He chose the world’s down-and-out as the kingdom’s first citizens, with full rights and privileges. This kingdom is promised to anyone who loves God. And here you are abusing these same citizens! Isn’t it the high and mighty who exploit you, who use the courts to rob you blind? Aren’t they the ones who scorn the new name—“Christian”—used in your baptisms?

You do well when you complete the Royal Rule of the Scriptures: “Love others as you love yourself.” But if you play up to these so-called important people, you go against the Rule and stand convicted by it. You can’t pick and choose in these things, specializing in keeping one or two things in God’s law and ignoring others. The same God who said, “Don’t commit adultery,” also said, “Don’t murder.” If you don’t commit adultery but go ahead and murder, do you think your non-adultery will cancel out your murder? No, you’re a murderer, period.

Talk and act like a person expecting to be judged by the Rule that sets us free. For if you refuse to act kindly, you can hardly expect to be treated kindly. Kind mercy wins over harsh judgment every time.

V.
“… don’t let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith.”

Does “public opinion” determine how we interpret and apply the “Christian faith”?

I guess we might ask, “Which public?”

That’s fair. There are certainly competing opinions on what is the right way and wrong way to act toward one another. And the “public” we identify with surely impacts those interactions.

VI.
Reread this Scripture and pay attention to how James contrasts the right way and the wrong way to act toward one another.

What one thing does he say that you want to accompany you in your interactions with those you meet today?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}

November 29, 2020, James 2:1-13, ISSL Reflections, Post 1

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I.
The very first sentence in this week’s Scripture assumes we act with “favoritism.” I guess in some circumstances “favoritism” might be a good way to act, but the passage makes it clear that is not what is in consideration here.

As you read the passage, pay attention to the ways in which “favoritism” and “partiality” is described.

II.
James 2:1-13

My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Have a seat here, please,” while to the one who is poor you say, “Stand there,” or, “Sit at my feet,” have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?

You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. For the one who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.

III.
James described ways he saw favoritism and partiality in Christian communities of his time.

How do you notice it today?

Can you think of a time or place you noticed such? What was your reaction?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}