Today’s Readings: Psalm 122; Esther 3:1-4:3; John 9:1-7; 2 Corinthians 1:12-20; Psalm 125
Featured Reading: Esther 3:1-4:3. In the early days of the church, there was a debate among the early disciples about what would be asked of those who claimed to follow Jesus. The pillars in Jerusalem (Peter, James & John) took a hard line position regarding the maintenance of religious practices that started while many of the early believers were still Jews (i.e. dietary restrictions, circumcision, etc.). Paul was an advocate for inclusivity and advocated that such practices should not be required since they would prevent many Gentiles from coming into the faith. For many years, I was a critic of Peter, James, and John’s position since it seemed awfully rigid. The older I get, however, the more I am able to understand the concerns that lay behind Peter, James and John’s position: namely, that if the new Christians didn’t maintain distinctive practices their faith would get lost as the Christians moved among other members of society. In many ways, that is what’s happened (at least in the Western world); we’ve lost a sense of how our faith makes us different. Please note here that I’m saying “different from everyone else” – not “better than everyone else”. There is a huge difference between those statements. So why am I thinking about this ancient debate? Well, in reading today’s passage from Esther, I couldn’t help but notice the distinctive presence the people of faith had in King Xerxes’ kingdom. Their presence was so distinctive that Haman noted: “There is an odd set of people scattered throughout the provinces of your kingdom who don’t fit in. Their customs and ways are different from those of everybody else” (Esther 3:8 from The Message). My question for you to consider today is this: does your faith cause you to stand out in any way from “everybody else”, or do you fit in? Til next time…
Featured Reading: Esther 3:1-4:3. In the early days of the church, there was a debate among the early disciples about what would be asked of those who claimed to follow Jesus. The pillars in Jerusalem (Peter, James & John) took a hard line position regarding the maintenance of religious practices that started while many of the early believers were still Jews (i.e. dietary restrictions, circumcision, etc.). Paul was an advocate for inclusivity and advocated that such practices should not be required since they would prevent many Gentiles from coming into the faith. For many years, I was a critic of Peter, James, and John’s position since it seemed awfully rigid. The older I get, however, the more I am able to understand the concerns that lay behind Peter, James and John’s position: namely, that if the new Christians didn’t maintain distinctive practices their faith would get lost as the Christians moved among other members of society. In many ways, that is what’s happened (at least in the Western world); we’ve lost a sense of how our faith makes us different. Please note here that I’m saying “different from everyone else” – not “better than everyone else”. There is a huge difference between those statements. So why am I thinking about this ancient debate? Well, in reading today’s passage from Esther, I couldn’t help but notice the distinctive presence the people of faith had in King Xerxes’ kingdom. Their presence was so distinctive that Haman noted: “There is an odd set of people scattered throughout the provinces of your kingdom who don’t fit in. Their customs and ways are different from those of everybody else” (Esther 3:8 from The Message). My question for you to consider today is this: does your faith cause you to stand out in any way from “everybody else”, or do you fit in? Til next time…
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