Today’s Readings: Psalm 122 & 122; Ezekiel 43:1-12; Luke 11:14-26; Revelation 21:1-8
There was a theme that ran through two of today’s readings that I found particularly comforting given the challenge of the last couple of days. The first came from today’s reading from Revelation, and it had to do with the vision of the new city. The passage contains one of my favorite images of promise in verses 3-4: “Now the dwelling of God is with [humanity], and [God] will live with them. They will be [God’s] people, and God [Godself] will be with them and be their God. [God] will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Most folks experience this sense of hope only in the future tense: usually in conjunction with either the afterlife and/or end days. The Gospel of Luke picks up this theme of hope and moves it from one tense (the future) to another tense (the present). In reflecting on his healing of a possessed man, Jesus challenges his critics with these words in verse 20 of chapter 11: “…if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you [ emphasis added].” This shift from the past to present tense is significant for me because it invites me to live not only in anticipation for the future but in a place of joyful experience - in the here and now! Today I invite you to stop for a moment and reflect on your experience of God’s Reign. Is it something that you hope for in the future? Or is it something that you get a taste of in some shape or form in the present? In other words, in what tense is your sense of hope located? Til next time…
There was a theme that ran through two of today’s readings that I found particularly comforting given the challenge of the last couple of days. The first came from today’s reading from Revelation, and it had to do with the vision of the new city. The passage contains one of my favorite images of promise in verses 3-4: “Now the dwelling of God is with [humanity], and [God] will live with them. They will be [God’s] people, and God [Godself] will be with them and be their God. [God] will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Most folks experience this sense of hope only in the future tense: usually in conjunction with either the afterlife and/or end days. The Gospel of Luke picks up this theme of hope and moves it from one tense (the future) to another tense (the present). In reflecting on his healing of a possessed man, Jesus challenges his critics with these words in verse 20 of chapter 11: “…if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you [ emphasis added].” This shift from the past to present tense is significant for me because it invites me to live not only in anticipation for the future but in a place of joyful experience - in the here and now! Today I invite you to stop for a moment and reflect on your experience of God’s Reign. Is it something that you hope for in the future? Or is it something that you get a taste of in some shape or form in the present? In other words, in what tense is your sense of hope located? Til next time…
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