Gen. 49:29-50:14; 1 Cor. 11:17-34; Mark 8:1-10

Rituals fill our readings this morning.

In our Epistle reading, Paul discusses the Lord’s Supper, speaking of abuses, factions, and the importance of examining your motives as one comes to eat the body and blood.

In our Gospel reading, Mark tells of the feeding of four thousand.

But this morning I want to spend a little time with our Old Testament passage.  In Genesis Jacob has given his final words to each of his sons.  The legacy of God’s double promise of land and progeny is expanded greatly as he passes it off to the next generation.  Now we recount his death and burial in Canaan at the Machpelah cave.

Mourning and lamentation fill this passage.  Joseph throws himself over his father’s face and wept over him and kissed him.  He instructed his physicians to have his father’s body embalmed.

Connecting this to the other two passages today, all involve the ritual of coming together.  Here it is not for miraculous food or heavenly togetherness, but it is close!  To embalm the body is thoroughly Egyptian, not an Israelite practice, and yet it becomes an opportunity for all these different people to come together – the servants of Pharaoh, Pharaoh’s family, the elders of Joseph’s household, the elders of the land of Egypt, as well as all of Joseph’s brothers and their household.

In a strange encounter that foreshadows Moses’ repeated requests to depart to Israel, Joseph goes to Pharaoh to ask for permission to ritually bury Jacob all the way back in his homeland.  In their grief and loss, the community is able to come together.

Not surprisingly, after this time, Joseph is able to purge his own soul and forgive his brothers.

The power of ritual should not be overlooked.  Ritual has the power to capture imagination and transform perspectives.  It allows God to work in our lives and knit together a new story for our future.

Whether it is the feeding of many thousands, the mystical union of the Lord’s Supper, or the burial of a loved one, it gives us time with one another and with God.  It is where the mystery of faith and the reality of God’s presence become more real.

What rituals do you have in your daily life?  Family?

Need one?  See you at church Sunday.  We have lots and can help you connect with the mystery of faith and with God.

-Matt

Gen. 47:1-26; 1 Cor. 9:16-27; Mark 6:47-56

Today Jesus walks on water.

Jesus has just lived through a good bit of trauma: he was rejected at Nazareth, practically run out of town, his cousin is murdered and his head ends up on a plate, the disciples go get his body and I assume they have a funeral, and then Jesus feeds the 5,000.  I am imagining if this guy is an introvert, just the feeding of the 5,000 is “people overdose.”  So he retreats.  He escapes from the world for a moment.

The disciples get in the boat while Jesus dismissed the crowd.  Then after saying farewell he goes up on a mountain to pray.  We are told “Jesus was alone on the land when he saw that they were straining.”

Mark’s themes of messianic secret and the suffering servant have intrigued pastors like me for years.  I love Mark!  And the flow of story is just one great aspect.  In the Marcan version there are no details about Peter or anyone else walking on the water out to Jesus.  The focus is not on the water walking at all.  It is the tension between being alone and togetherness.

Jesus sees they are in trouble, and realizes it is easier to encounter things together.  They saw him walking out there and thought he was a ghost; they cried out; he spoke to them and said “Don’t be afraid.”  And that is the end of it.  He got into the boat with them and the wind ceased.

The church today has its fears too.  Some worry only of division.  Others worry only about the past, trying to reclaim the 1960s.  Others worry only about purity.  These groups want to wave a magic wand and have people magically come together in peace and harmony.  Jesus walking on the water, and then entering the boat, flies in the face of all that.  He is implying togetherness is the most essential piece, even if it means getting in the boat with these monkeys I disagree with.

Perhaps you have had a job that could be summed up with: “We spend a lot of time and energy trying to throw one another out of the boat!”  Perhaps it is a toxic work environment, or a bad boss.  Perhaps it is that one person in the other department who is always jealous of what you all accomplish in your department.  However you have experienced it, it can often undermine company morale or make the whole system feel strange.  It is easy to feel like quitting.  It is our natural instinct to get away from the smelly garbage.

To all of us, in whatever situation, Jesus call comes to us.

Jesus enters right in the midst of chaos and confusion, and that was precisely the time to get in the boat with them.  It was not the time to bail, but the opposite.  Right when our instincts say it is time to bail, Jesus comes along and points to a different reality.

We follow a savior who demands that we think clearly, not panic, and stay in the boat.

And so we continue on.

-Matt

Gen. 46:1-7,28-34; 1 Cor. 9:1-15; Mark 6:30-46

God’s ways are not always the ways of humanity.  Time and time again we are reminded of this fact in scripture.  The Old Testament is a place where this is rich and well developed.

In today’s OT passage, Jacob brings his entire family to Egypt after drought and famine had ravaged Israel.  Just the name of “Jacob” is a reminder of how God’s ways are not the ways of humans.  If you remember, Jacob was the younger brother of Esau.  They tangled at birth, and then later Jacob and his mother helped deceive his father into thinking that he was Esau, stealing the blessing.  Esau was set to inherit it all – and the double blessing of progeny and land would pass to Esau.  Well, God had other plans, and chose Jacob, despite human tradition about the first born.

Now Jacob has 12 sons.  Again we see reversal.  Joseph is by no means the eldest son.  In today’s reading, we see more than just birth order reversed.  In fact, the entire generation is turned on its head.  God has to reassure Jacob, “I am God, the God of your father; do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there.”

There is reason to be nervous!  This trip puts his entire linage in jeopardy.  And he is now leaving the land that was promised to his grandfather.  What is going on?

We see God’s blessing coming from Joseph – who has taken on the persona of a foreigner.  Son blesses father.  Son becomes foreigner.  Foreign land blesses the Chosen land people.

What does this tell us about God?  We are shown a God who does not follow the rules, and yet his blessings are made known.  Trust and faith seem paramount.  Land and progeny are secondary, and are automatically taken care of if one trusts in God’s upside-down world.

This all makes for good reading.  Genesis is chuck full of colorful and transformative stories of God’s goodness – stories in which we become the heirs of that goodness.

-Matt

Gen. 45:1-15; 1 Cor. 7:32-40; Mark 6:1-13

Rather than grand announcements, sometimes we see faith quietly working behind the scenes of our lives, guiding, directing.  Today we see a dark undercurrent of our faith at work – the messianic secret in Mark – the hidden revelation of our Lord.

Jesus, after many healings, teachings, and miracles, he makes his way back to Nazareth.  The people there were in disbelief, “Where did this man get all this?  What is this wisdom that has been given to him?  What deeds of power are being done by his hands!  Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?”

Jesus finds out that prophets are not generally welcome at home.  But what I love about Mark’s version of these events is the focus on disbelief.  They know it looks like Jesus.  But what is this wisdom that has been given to him?  He looks and acts different.

One of Mark’s themes is this messianic secret, with demons and people finding out about his power and him silencing them to keep the secret.  During this time, evidently the power of God was growing in him and taking root in the world.  Because now, even the people that know and love him best barely recognize him.  He is rejected by his own people.

No need to silence them!  They don’t even believe.  “And he was amazed at their unbelief.”

In revealing himself, Jesus also reveals the mission to the twelve disciples.  They are to go around and shake the dust off their feet at the places that do not welcome them.  It is an odd form of evangelism, to say the least.

There are no flashing banners, ads in papers, youth on corners doing car washes.  There are no efforts to cajole or entice.  They go, and share in the messianic secret.  And those who don’t care or listen, the disciples are to shake the dust off and move on.  They are to focus their attention on those who need or want their attention.

As the church of today works to reveal itself, and the Lord they follow, I only hope we can retain the DNA of this passage.  Sometimes we are not called to put on a show, but quietly live our faith.  So often I see churches putting all this energy into building programs for which there is no interest among the members, in hopes someone will show up.  Burnout occurs.  They go out of their way to welcome visitors, but then ignore the message behind the welcome.

Call me a crusty old Presbyterian, but I believe in the power of God’s Word.  I believe if we preach the Word and truly hear it, we will naturally end up “kingdom-building” – feeding the hungry, giving money to the poor, and reaching out to the afflicted and destitute.  The kingdom will grow.  It’s amazing what happens when the power of God is unleashed and miracles are allowed to break forth.

So rest in God’s power today.  Let the rest come, with time.

-Matt

Gen. 44:18-34; 1 Cor. 7:25-31; Mark 5:21-43

Another week of Lent begins, and so do the themes of spring cleaning – making room in your life for God to do new things.

In 1 Corinthians today, we see folks struggling to do the right thing.  In response, Paul declares two interesting things: 1) “I have no command of the Lord, but I give my opinion….” and 2) “the appointed time has grown short”

In one respect, Paul lays a foundation for church governance here.  Despite Paul having a lack of scriptural warrant for such beliefs, he gives his opinion as someone in Christ’s loving embrace.  The church would do well to take a cue from this.  I speak daily to people who believe scripture says one thing or another, and are entrenched in their beliefs, when often there is no scriptural warrant behind it.   I would rather we be honest about that, and then begin the discussion.  That doesn’t mean their ideas are less valid.  But it also means there can be many interpretations.  Healthy discussion could be more easily achieved in these instances.

The second phrase roots Paul in a time when the church was focused on the end of times.  They believed the second coming was very, very soon.  They were making preparations for that, and not getting bogged down in the acts of daily living.  They were instead living for Christ alone.

I don’t hear many in our churches today making preparations of this kind.  Perhaps we should.  Do we believe Christ is coming again?  Perhaps we should.  Because the fact is, he is coming.  We are called only to lay a foundation for his reign now.  Easier said than done!

As I think about worship in today’s churches, which from some peoples’ perspectives can seem boring or uninventive.  These are often people not looking to praise God but looking for a show.  I am sorry, but I am looking for the people to offer their praise to God – best they can – and be vaulted to heaven.  As a former church musician, I take great care in encouraging congregational song.  These times are dress rehearsals.  We are preparing each other for the praise of the heavenly choirs.  We are preparing and rehearsing for a celebration beyond comprehension.  This is the church at its best, living life for the praise of the Almighty.

It is also a reflection of a church that has come to the realization that the second coming has not happened quite yet.  But in the mean time, we will rehearse and perfect the art of divine worship, and do it to the best of our ability.

-Matt

Gen. 42:29-38; 1 Cor. 6:12-20; Mark 4:21-34

It has become difficult in this culture of plenty to be satisfied with what we have.  Often we focus on what we don’t have.  We become obsessed by it, and by things in general, so much so that often we are going into debt to buy more things we don’t truly need.

Today the story of Joseph continues, and we have a remarkable story of the “haves”.

The gang of brothers return to Canaan today, explaining the intriguing events of their trip to Egypt.  Jacob is upset by the news, “I am the one you have bereaved of children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you would take Benjamin!”

Jacob is not amused by Reuben’s request to return to Egypt with Benjamin, the youngest.

If you remember Jacob was the one who as a boy stole his brother’s birthright.  Things have always been topsy-turvy for Jacob.  His name in Hebrew refers to “heel” hearkening back to his birth when he grabbed onto Esau’s heel in the womb to try to beat him out.

And yet, Jacob has been showered with God’s blessing.  He had many children, many wives, and was “favorable in the eyes of his father” as well as God, whatever that means.  Now, in Egypt he has a source of food.  But he doesn’t see that.  Woe is Jacob.  But, he IS blessed.

It is easy for us in America to feel like Jacob.  God has blessed us so richly, and yet it is easy to take that for granted, and become obsessed by what others have.  It was not long ago, I was at a seminar where the speaker said: “The rich people in the room will know what I am talking about….”  I began thinking to myself, “From the world’s perspective, especially the Third World’s perspective, EVERYONE in this room is rich.”

Focusing on blessing is not always easy.

I would encourage you to spend 5 minutes in prayer with God, thanking God for the all the things you DO have in your life.  It is amazing what a little Prayer of Thanksgiving can do to help God reframe your day.

-Matt

Gen. 42:18-28; 1 Cor. 5:9-6:8; Mark 4:1-20

As I gripped the steering wheel and drove through the fog last night, my cry went up to God: “Could I just please make it home in one piece so I have the opportunity to continue to serve you tomorrow?  That would be swell, God.”  Last night’s dinner party was wonderful, and it is always good to party with friends, but the dew point made for a foggy, slow drive home.  I am thankful just to be writing today’s reflection.

Grace and Travel are the order of the day in Genesis too.  And God’s grace begins to spill uninhibitedly through Joseph.

Today he sends his brothers on their way home, in order to retrieve Benjamin.  He sends them with grain.  And to top it all off, he returns their money too – literally topping the bag off with the bag of money.

The brothers don’t see this as grace yet.  They are filled with fear and trembling.  “What is this that God has done to us?”

They had decided going back to their land to fetch Benjamin was a penalty for what they had done to Joseph (and they still don’t know the secret of who Joseph is in Egypt).  Now the penalty must be more!

What looks like grace to me (a big bag of money out of nowhere!), they take as a compounding penalty.  Part of this has to do with the rules of indebtedness during ancient times.  These men are trying to get out of this famine alive.  All they want is to just make it.  Instead now, they are wracking up more debt to the Egyptians.  By giving them their money back, the Egyptians now have more to hold over their head, when it comes time to collect the debt.  These brothers are putting their very livelihood in jeopardy.  They may end up being indentured servants to Joseph and the Egyptian gang.

This is all part of the trajectory of grace which we see throughout this story.  Heavens, that we see throughout the Bible!  The whole trajectory of grace is upon us today, tracing God’s providential hand, guiding, directing, and caring for us.

Ultimately this will lead to a Savior who guides us out of the fog of this world into the glorious light.  The ride isn’t over yet!  We have much more grace coming.

-Matt