Psalm 69, Deuteronomy 28. Luke 14.25-15.10

from Charles Glenn

Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:25-27)

I’ve been struggling for weeks with what to say about these verses, and how to say anything concisely, yet I could not in conscience put them aside and focus on other and less challenging assigned texts. So herewith some (inadequate) bullet points:

• Jesus was not anti-family. One of his criticisms of the religiously hypocritical was that they failed to obey the commandment to honor their parents (Mt 15:5), and even on the cross he showed special care for his mother (Jn 19:26f). Paul echoes this concern: ““Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with a promise: “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth” (Eph 6:2).

• Jesus was proclaiming and summoning to a new Creation, a rebirth, telling Nicodemus that “no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (Jn 3:3), and his disciples that “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 18:3). He demanded a radical break with our old ways and whatever holds us back from giving him our hearts and our lives.

• This should not be confused with the fashion of self-creation for the sake of “authenticity” which is so prevalent in our culture (and in educational theory, my own field). No, we are not to invent ourselves, but to “put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph 4:24). Christian families and the family of the Church have a key role in helping us, as children but also as adults, to grow into the fulness of what God intends us to be, on the model of our Lord.

• It can seem as though Jesus wanted to discourage people from becoming his followers; more accurately, he wanted them to count the cost. He was acknowledging also that not all would agree to pay it. Indeed, only those called by him were and are today enabled to become his disciples: “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit” (Jn 15:16; see also 2 Thes. 2:13; 1 Peter 2:9). We have been called “from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners” (Is 41:9) and empowered by God’s love to answer that call.

• Why us? That is a great mystery, and lives in tension with the fact that Christ died for all and that his common grace blesses all of Creation. It is not for us to judge God’s intentions toward others, only to rejoice in the knowledge that “God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor 1:9).

God has blessed me with seven children and ten grandchildren, and with many small friends at Church of the Cross!

Monday: Psalm 48, 49, Deuteronomy 21, Luke 11.1-28

from Rebecca Lefroy

We clearly live in an incredibly money-driven society. We see it in different ways: from the vast array of apps you can use to gain store discounts, to the glorification of high-earning celebrities and their lifestyles which we're to aspire to, to the giant highways that cut through precious and wonderful natural beauties and, in Boston, to the extraordinarily expensive housing market. If you’re rich, the narrative tells us you’re all set and if you’re poor, it’s often tough luck. Now it’s clearly not just America that’s like this. I enjoyed a hugely thought-provoking time at the creation care weekend at l’Abri in which I was struck, once again, by how humans across the world exploit the environment in horrendous ways for short-term financial gain. Think of neonicotinoids. We live in a money-obsessed world.

However, Psalm 49 calls us to remember in many ways the obvious: death, not riches, is the great leveler. “Both low and high, rich and poor” are called by the psalmist to remember that, in the end, all die (“but man, despite his riches, does not endure”). So we are not to be overawed by riches for ultimately we are all alike.

And so the psalmist leaves us with the question, where does our trust lie? If riches and short-term financial gain are our goal, we are totally blinded to reality. Eternity is real and the question is not who has riches, but who has understanding? Who knows and loves the resurrected Christ, the one who conquered the grave, and who lives their life in anticipation of their own resurrection?

Monday: Psalm 30, 32, 33, Deuteronomy 14, Luke 8.1-21

from Jessica Patton

My absolute favorite verses in all of today’s readings are Psalm 32.1-2: “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.”

Did you catch that? The one who is blessed is not the one who is sinless and somehow manages to be perfect on their own. The one who is blessed is the one who rightly sees just how bad their sin really is, confesses it, and receives God’s forgiveness. I think the part where it says “in whose spirit there is no deceit” could be taken to mean that the one who is blessed clearly see the ways in which they have fallen short. They’re not deceiving themselves about the dreadfulness of their sin or attempting to minimize the size or the severity of their transgression.

The Deuteronomy passage is a great reminder of how impossible it was for people to fulfill the law on their own: eat this, don’t eat that, do this every year, do this every three years, don’t forget these people, and on and on with all the things required to meet God’s standards. Even the Luke passage shows how difficult it is for us, who are not under the law, to be right with God. One of the requirements to be children of God, according to Jesus, is that we must “hear the word of God and do it.”

But that’s why those first two verses of Psalm 32 fill me with so much joy. There is absolutely no hope for me to be righteous on my own. When I am honest with myself and God, it is abundantly clear that my transgressions are manifold and severe. Yet the Lord hears our cries when we come to Him with confession and repentance, and He stands ready to forgive. And He doesn’t just forgive begrudgingly, either - He blesses us, teaches us, counsels us, watches over us, and surrounds us with His love. Thanks be to God!

I am absolutely thrilled it is finally spring, and am enjoying spending as much time as possible outside.