pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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Give Unto God…

Reading: Matthew 22:15-22

Matthew 22:21 – “Give unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”

Photo credit: Ryan McGuire

In this week’s gospel lesson an odd collection of folks come to Jesus. These religious leaders and political envoys both feel threatened by Jesus. Both groups see Jesus as a threat to their power. They come with a question designed to trap Jesus, lessening his power and/or popularity. The spokesperson(s) butter Jesus up first, speaking of how “honest… truthful… impartial” Jesus is. Then they ask the question: “Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” What a loaded question!

Jesus’ response begins with, “You hypocrites!” He sees the trap. Then he asks for a coin. The snarky side of me envisions a Pharisee pulling a Roman coin from his robe pocket. As if seeing the coin for the first time, Jesus asks whose picture and title are on the coin. In other words, whose coin is it? Then, as only Jesus could do, he says, “Give unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” The odd collection of co-conspirators is amazed. They go away.

While the coin belonged to Caesar, the question that we are left with is this: Who do we belong to? Created in the image of God, woven together in the womb by God’s hands, it should be clear to whom we belong. All that we are and all that we have truly belongs to God. But how we prioritize, how we allocate our resources, how we spend our time – they all reveal who or what we actually worship and love. When we give to God and to our neighbors generously and freely, we honor God and we bring God the praise and glory. When we do not live in these ways, might Jesus utter the “h” word in our direction too?

Prayer: Lord God, each day, as we decide who or what we will worship and what we will chase after, whisper words of love into our hearts. Draw us towards your heart and create in us a heart like yours – one that loves unconditionally and forgives always. Amen.


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Spend Yourselves

Reading: Isaiah 58: 6-12

Verse 8: “Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear”.

In today’s passage, God begins to help the Israelites and us to understand what kind of fast is pleasing to the Lord. It is not the type of fast that matters. What matters is how the fast affects the condition of the heart. The fast God chooses is one that draws the participant closer to God. This closeness leads to loosening the chains of injustice, to breaking the yokes of oppression, to feeding the hungry, to sheltering the wanderer, to clothing the naked. A heart aligned with God’s heart also deters us from “turning away from your own flesh and blood”. A heart attuned to God is a heart attuned to the needs of our neighbor and of the world.

Great things happen when this is how we love God. In verse eight we read, “Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear”. Our faith will become a light that shines out into the world, lighting the path to Jesus. The light will shine into the darkness, revealing sin and injustice and oppression and need. Not only will our own hearts be healed, but God’s healing power will move out into the world through us. Isaiah proclaims that our “righteousness will go before you and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard”. This makes it sound like we can do about anything in the name of the Lord. In fact, this is what Jesus also promises in John 14:12.

Again, speaking to the Israelites and to us, God promises to hear the faithful when they call and to answer when they cry out. When his people pray, God draws near. The passage closes with the same call – to “spend yourselves” on those in need of food, shelter, justice, peace… It is in caring for and loving one another that redemption and renewal occur. When we do so, God will strengthen our foundation and will repair our brokenness. Isaiah is casting a vision for a future filled with love and mercy and compassion. God invites us to be a part of that reality. May it be so as we work to build God’s kingdom here on earth.

Prayer: Loving God, as I read these words of Isaiah the life and teachings of Jesus jump out of the words. His love and obedience led to a ministry of healing and hope and restoration. Lead me to give my all, spending myself, as I seek to walk in his footsteps today. Amen.


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Do We Glow?

Reading: Exodus 34: 29-35

Verse 29: “… his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord”.

Moses has something none of us will probably ever have – a face to face encounter with God. Each time that Moses goes “up the mountain”, he comes back down and his face glows with God’s presence. Our closest connection in a physical sense would be the times we spent too much time (unprotected) in the sun – our skin glows with a redness that reveals our exposure to the sun’s rays.

Although initially afraid, the leaders and then the people come to understand that it is still safe to be around Moses. The glow reveals a connection to God and to God’s authority. One could not but help to listen a little closer to what this man that has obviously been in God’s presence has to say. You just couldn’t help it.

Even though we do not see God face to face in a physical sense, we can meet God intimately and personally in a very real way. We do not necessarily have to go up a mountain or to any specific place, but for some the location can help. Right now, at my desk in our home office, I feel that this is a God space. I feel it in the sanctuary at church. I feel it in many other spaces and places as well. But the bigger question are these: Do others see that I have been in God’s presence? Because of the time that I spend with God, do others see that evidenced in my life? Do they see the glow?

Moses exited each encounter with God with an obvious glow on his face that told others he had been in the presence of God. Do our hearts cast out a glory and radiance from God so that others can tell we have been in God’s presence? May we glow.

Prayer: God of light, may your radiance shine forth in my life today. May the love of Christ simply be on display in all I say and do and think today, all for your glory. Amen.