OCTOBER 12-18, 2020
Below are our lectionary passages for this week in the Church calendar. For those unfamiliar, the lectionary is a resource that churches all over the world use to consistently and uniformly read through the scriptures every week as we gather for worship. The lectionary passages typically consist of a combination of Old Testament readings, a Psalm, a New Testament letter, and a Gospel reading.
We dwell on these passages throughout the week so that when we gather together on Sunday we may proclaim these truths together in worship. We encourage you to find some rhythm of reading and meditating on these passages throughout the course of the week, whether that’s reading through all of the passages daily or reading a single passage a day until you’ve read them all. We have included below some commentary and thought for guided prayer and reflection.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. - Psalm 119:105
EXODUS 33:12-23 (click here for passage)
As we continue on in the story of Exodus, God has prompted Moses and the people of Israel to move from Sinai on towards the land of promise. But because Israel had been unfaithful to God in constructing and worshipping the idol of the golden calf, God tells Israel that an angel will accompany them on their journey but that He will not. This is the context for where we find ourselves in this week’s reading. In verses 12-23, Moses intercedes on behalf of Israel. He reminds God that he has been righteous and by not leading him would be to ignore that righteousness. Moses also reminds God that Israel is His people and that if God’s presence weren’t to go with them on this journey that God would not be demonstrating his faithfulness to His people. In short, Moses argues with God and God hears the plea of His righteous servant. In ways this passage is very reminiscent of Genesis 18 when Abraham pleads for Sodom and Gomorrah. In both cases, the righteous few are interceding on behalf of the whole and God actually listens! Theologically, this is a difficult concept; that the God we so often presume to be unchanging might subject Himself to the prayers of His people. If God is unchanging in some sense, how can He have a change of heart or mind? One of the big ideas that we are presented with in this story is that God hears and responds to the prayers of the righteous.
How does this account affect the ways in which we pray and the ways in which we live our lives?
PSALM 99 (click here for passage)
Psalm 99 affirms what we have learned in the account of Exodus with Moses. The Psalmist says, “They cried to the Lord, and he answered them.” And later, “ O Lord our God, you answered them, you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings.” This Psalm is a song of praise to God for His holiness and there is a facet of holiness that necessitates separation. Holiness is being set apart from that which is profane. This is, in a sense, how we understand God. God in His holiness is altogether other from that which is profane, and yet, despite this separation, He still hears the prayers of His people.
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 (click here for passage)
In this passage from 1 Thessalonians, Paul is writing a letter of encouragement to the Church in Thessalonica. I think that one of the important features in this verse ties into our theme on prayer from our first two readings. Paul starts by writing, “We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” And I get the impression that he actually means it. We are reminded from our first two readings that if God actually hears and responds to our prayers then what and how we pray actually matters to God because he indeed listens to us. Here Paul begins by reminding the church in Thessalonica that he is interceding on their behalf. Like the church in Thessalonica, so many of us are the products of those that have prayed for us and interceded on our behalf throughout the years. Maybe it has been parents or grandparents, friends or church communities; whoever it is Paul reminds us that we ought to be in prayer and interceding for those that God has entrusted us with.
Who is it that the Holy Spirit may be putting on your heart to be in prayer for today?
MATTHEW 22:15-22 (click here for passage)
Many of the stories chronicling the life of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel revolve around the power dynamics between Jesus and the Pharisees, chief priests, and scribes. So often it seemed that Jesus was perpetually upsetting the status quo of the religious people. Here they come to him and ask if it is lawful for Jews to pay taxes to the Roman emperor. Considering Roman taxation was a demanded of Israel, the Pharisees and Herodians were trying to put Jesus in a situation that was either treasonous to Rome or offensive to Israel, in effect forcing Jesus to pick a side. So Jesus asks to see a Roman coin and upon seeing the emperor’s face upon it he responds, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” Jesus is primarily concerned with the establishment of God’s kingdom on Earth. We are reminded that God’s kingdom functions entirely differently from the state systems that we have imposed throughout history. Yet we live in the tension of two different kingdoms; God’s kingdom and the kingdom of this world.
What does it mean in our own context to render unto the emperor that which is the emperor’s and to God that which is God’s?
REFLECTION
This week we have focused much on the power of prayer. We have been reminded that God hears the prayers of His righteous people and that we ought to be interceding on behalf of others. As you go about your week may you be reminded of those that have been in constant prayer for you throughout your own life. And might you also begin or continue praying for those in your life that need your intercession.
As you dwell and meditate on these scriptures, would they also inform your prayer life. Might these scriptures of the revelation of the Triune God shape how you experience and interact with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
As a church we also support many local, domestic and international ministries that are serving as the hands and feet of Christ. Not only do we support these Faith Promise Partners financially, we have also committed to supporting them in prayer. This week, would you be in prayer for The Lima Rescue Mission, a downtown mission providing emergency housing to homeless men in the Lima area.
For more information on our Faith Promise partners, click here.