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Good News - Week of 4/22/2018

4/24/2018

The Vineyard Keeper

NOTES ON THE SCRIPTURES

Acts 8:26-40: Philip is instructed to go to a certain road where he encounters an Ethiopian eunuch on his way home after worshiping in Jerusalem. Philip finds him reading Isaiah’s scroll, and explains what the Scriptures say about Jesus. Then he baptizes the eunuch

Psalm 22:25-31: A psalm of praise and commitment in which God is celebrated for God’s provision and authority, and all people are challenged to worship God, to fulfill promises to God, and to proclaim God’s righteousness to unborn generations.

1 John 4:7-21: An exhortation to love one another, because God is love. If we cannot love our brothers and sisters whom we have seen, we cannot love God whom we do not see, but, as God has loved us, inspiring love for God in our hearts, so too, we should love one another. Such love drives out fear.

John 15:1-8: Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. God desires us to bear fruit, and to do so we must remain in Christ.

Reflection
On a local and personal level, Philip’s example is a good one for us to follow as we seek to love God and others, and bear fruit for Christ. A number of factors stand out in this “fruit-bearing” moment of Philip’s. He was willing to be driven out of his way by his love for and obedience to God. He was willing to engage someone who was very different from him, and who would usually have been marginalised by his people. The eunuch was a foreigner, a Gentile and a man who had been castrated and was therefore, in one sense, unclean. He was also willing to meet the man where he was, beginning the conversation from the questions and reading of the eunuch. He did not impose his own agenda on the man, but listened and responded graciously and gently. Finally, he welcomed the eunuch into the community of faith by baptising him without question. All of these loving acts are the ones Jesus calls all his followers to perform in order to bear fruit. Our love for God is truly revealed as we act in these loving ways toward one another, and to the “outsiders” we encounter. And, as we welcome, listen to, serve, and love others, the impact of that on their lives can have healing, transforming, and empowering effects that can flow out to touch others and make a real difference in the world. To change the world, and manifest God’s Reign we don’t need to do “great” or dramatic things. We simply need to love the people God sends across our path genuinely, humbly and sacrificially.

Ubi Caritas (Where love is)

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Good News - Week of 4/15/2018

4/18/2018

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PRAYER OF THE WEEK
Open my ears to hear your words, and my heart to follow where you lead, Jesus. Amen

A flock of sheep following the shepherd

NOTES ON THE SCRIPTURES

Acts 4:5-12: Peter and the other disciples are put on trial by the religious leaders, who ask them by which name or power they have healed the lame man. Peter, in response, tells them that it is by the power of Jesus that the healing has happened. Though they rejected Jesus, he has become “the cornerstone” and is the name through which humanity is saved.

Psalm 23: David celebrates God as his shepherd who provides for him, cares for him, protects him, and in whose house he will live forever.

1 John 3:16-24: As Jesus laid down his life for us we should lay down our lives for each other. We are called to follow God’s command to love one another – in action, not just in word.

John 10:11-18: Jesus proclaims himself as the good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep, and takes it up again.

Reflections
If the Easter season is about anything, it’s about restoration, life, and God’s compassionate care for God’s people. These are the themes that come through the readings for this week. In Acts the disciples, who are put on trial for healing the lame man outside of the Temple, proudly proclaim Jesus as the name by which the healing has happened, and by which humanity is to be saved. In David’s famous Psalm, God’s care as shepherd is celebrated, and in John’s letter the love of God that is revealed in Christ’s sacrifice is to be passed on through those who are Christ’s disciples as they choose to love one another and lay down their lives for one another. Finally, in John 10 Jesus proclaims himself as the Good Shepherd who cares for the sheep with commitment and courage, and who lays down his life for the sheep. But, in this loving sacrifice lies the hope of resurrection – Jesus confidently asserts that he will take up his life again. The message is an important one as we reflect on the resurrection over the next few weeks. Resurrection can easily be seen as an individual experience of life beyond the grave, but the Gospel reveals that it is so much more than that. As much as it does offer personal renewal through God’s life, and the promise of eternity, resurrection also calls us to be life-carriers – shepherds who, like Jesus, lay our lives down for others. It is the hope of resurrection that makes sacrifice possible, and that gives us the strength and courage to risk loving and serving others even when it hurts.

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Good News - Week of 4/8/2018

4/9/2018

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PRAYER OF THE WEEK
Teach me, Good Shepherd to trust you and to offer your care to others. Amen.

A picture of a bronze sculpture of Jesus' nail scarred hand reaching out.

Jesus' hand reaches out to children

NOTES ON THE SCRIPTURES

Acts 3:12-19: Immediately after the healing of the lame man, Peter addresses the crowds, explaining that the power to heal the man came from the same Jesus that they had crucified. Peter then calls the people to turn back to God.

Psalm 4: A plea for God to remember God’s faithful servant, and an affirmation of how God cares for those who trust in God. Finally, a call for people to stop chasing lies and turn back to God.

1 John 3:1-7: Because of God’s love, we are God’s children, and we have hope that when we see Christ we will be like him. Therefore, we resist sin and seek to live in righteousness as Jesus is righteous.

Luke 24:36b-48: Jesus appears to the disciples, showing them his hands and feet, and eating a piece of bread to prove that he is not a ghost. Then he shows them how he has fulfilled the Scriptures, and he calls them to proclaim repentance and faith in Christ as his witnesses.

Reflections
If there was ever any doubt that God expects the resurrection to have an impact on how we live, this week’s Lectionary readings should lay it to rest. All of the readings are very clear that, because of God’s work in our lives, we should live differently, and we should be witnesses to God’s grace and love. The Acts reading describes how Peter, after healing the lame man at the Temple, bears witness to Christ and calls his listeners to turn back to God. The Psalm speaks about God’s goodness to God’s faithful ones, and exhorts people to turn back to God. John’s letter teaches, in a clear and direct way, that following Christ has to change how we live, with sin no longer being welcome in our lives, and Christ’s righteousness being the pattern by which we now live. Finally, in the Gospel reading from Luke, Jesus challenges his disciples, who are now witnessing him as the Risen One, to believe and to be witnesses that call others to repent and believe and find life in Christ. The implication this week is that, as all of these biblical witnesses teach, we are also called to become witnesses to Christ, changing our own lives to live as true Christ-followers and calling others to repent, believe, and find life.

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Good News - Week of 4/1/2018

4/3/2018

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PRAYER OF THE WEEK
Let me see you, know you, and together with others, believe with my whole being. Amen.

Painting of hand prints in different colors.

Unity in Diversity - Anek Rang, Ek Sang

NOTES ON THE SCRIPTURES

Acts 4:32-35: The early disciples of Christ bear witness to the resurrection through their generosity and care for one another, ensuring that no one among them had any need.

Psalm 133: A song of celebration for the blessing of living in unity.

1 John 1:1-2:2: John writes to testify to Jesus and to open the door to fellowship for the believers with one another and with God. However, if we claim to be in fellowship but live in “darkness” – denial and sin – we lie. But, if we confess our sin, and live in the light we do, indeed, have fellowship with God and others.

John 20:19-31: Jesus appears to the disciples in the closed upper room, giving them a gift of the Spirit, and sending them just as he was sent. Then, Thomas who wasn’t at this appearance, is encountered by Jesus, and his doubts are removed.

Reflections
The surprising message of this week’s lectionary is one that is deeply needed in our world and our Church at this time. This second Sunday of Easter continues the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection, but it adds a facet to the story that is not often spoken of – the way Christ’s gift of life brings us into a unified, life-giving, faith community. In the Acts reading, the early church is described as a caring, loving and serving community in which all things were held in common and no one had need. The famous Psalm 133 celebrates the joy and life that is found in a united community. In John’s letter the testimony about Jesus connects with the call to live “in the light”, with honesty and integrity, and explains how living like this, in Jesus’ resurrection life, brings us into fellowship with God and one another. Finally, in the Gospel, the first appearance of Jesus includes both the sending of the disciples as Jesus was sent to welcome, forgive and heal – proclaiming God’s Reign – and the call to be people of forgiveness, which of course, is a key facet to reconciliation. In the Thomas story, the isolation that is felt by one who has not yet come to faith in Christ’s resurrection life is poignantly described, and then the joy when he finds faith and a place in the worshiping, faith community is expressed. The simple and obvious message is that the resurrection is not a personal, individual gift, but is also about reconciliation and community. Because of Christ’s life we find connection with one another and with God, and we are able to live out of this sense of belonging, welcoming others, as John does in his letter, into the joy that we have found. The truth is that life is always found and enjoyed together.

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