Good Morning Friends,
I imagine that some ministers and priests will preach today about the Holy Spirit being given to all of us who love Jesus Christ, and how the Holy Spirit as a person empowers us for the Lord’s work, to teach us all things, and to give us a real and lasting peace in the knowledge that Jesus has overcome the world. The nature of the Holy Spirit is perhaps the most difficult of the Trinity to relate to our lives, so I am not sure it will be received well with so few if any in the pews. We do need encouragement from each other. However, I am sure that God can encourage the Spirit in us even though it is hard during the pandemic, it is not impossible. In the reading and hearing of today’s text the bulb might just go on with a little divine light. You see, we are not orphaned by God. We are never really alone, and the darkness is only temporary. The war goes on. But we have the Holy Spirit working though us. The called out assembly of God, whether militant, suffering or triumphant has members in need of being reforged in the fire of the Spirit of baptism for a divine purpose. So, in the battle, Do You Feel Like A Sword Of A Spiritual Family That Is Sometimes Joyous and Sometimes Sorrowful?
Scripture: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”
John 14:15-21 (NRSV)
Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah to them. The crowds with one accord listened eagerly to what was said by Philip, hearing and seeing the signs that he did, for unclean spirits, crying with loud shrieks, came out of many who were possessed; and many others who were paralyzed or lame were cured. So there was great joy in that city. Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. The two went down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit (for as yet the Spirit had not come upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus). Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
Acts 8:5-8, 14-17 (NRSV)
but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God’s will, than to suffer for doing evil. For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit,
1 Peter 3:15-18 (NRSV)
For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.
Jeremiah 29:11 (NRSV)
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.
Ephesians 6:10-18 (NRSV)
Message: Today we explore something that eventually takes us all in, the problem of when death takes someone we love and when we have lost that which we love. It is a bit of a battle and in my mind, I liken it to a sword fight for it gets a bit personal and it carries with it the image of a perfect sword that wealds royal power. Today we hold some scriptural truths before us as we explore how to live victoriously even as so many face losses from economic problems, fires and illnesses. Jesus preached about those things which had been lost: the lost coin, the lost sheep, the lost son…even his lost country and in today’s scripture we follow up on this theme that includes a response from God. Jesus says that He is not going to leave us orphaned. Jesus made it clear that He was willing to sacrifice his very life to make it a reality. Friends, sooner or later we all experience sorrow and sometimes it is a collective sorrow. To prepare for it we need the message of Jesus Christ and the hope so that we might be surprised by joy in the face of sad events. Here we might learn that sorrow is the price we pay for love. Here we might learn that we need to accept sorrow when it comes. Cursing God and hoping to die in our sorrow serves no purpose. We must learn to accept the inevitable that bad things happen to relatively good people. It is crazy to rebel against things we cannot do anything about. The battle is not external but internal. You have heard it said and I will say it again, that we need the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, and the courage to change the things we should and are able to change. Moreover, we need the wisdom to know the difference, especially so we do not change something within our ability that God had other plans for. And friends, know this: there is wisdom in learning that there may be sin in whining but that there is no sin in weeping. Ask Jeremiah. And still even the weeping prophet had a glimmer of hope for Israel. Friends, Jesus wept too. The sword cuts both ways.
And So, we too need to accept the battles of life and even sorrow when it comes, but we also need to receive comfort when it comes as well. Jesus realized that scripture never comes back void and he used it as a weapon of peace typically, but it can be used as a weapon of war too. It has too edges both offensive and defensive. So often is hard to tell the difference sometimes between a harsh word and the truth spoken out of love. Jesus realized our need for the Word made flesh to be in us so we might be filled it with the gift of the Holy Spirit which scripture refers to as the Sword of the Spirit to help us with this challenge. There are many symbolic uses for the word sword in the Bible. The word was used as a metaphor for war and as an instrument of divine justice or even as rash words and though swords are not used much today in warfare as a metal weapon they are used as a symbol of power and nobility as a word of truth. Whether it is a light saber or Excalibur, or the broken and reformed sword of Aragorn in the Tolkien Trilogy called the Flame of the West, we have a bit of fascination with the sword. Kings and queens have them. Even some religious orders carry them. The sword is for many the Bible itself. Here the void in what we need during the conflict is filled with the wonderful assurance that in Christ there is eternal life. Even as we mourn that which has been lost, we can experience the joy of something even greater. For out of a foundation of Jesus’ prayer that we would be one with him and the Father we are as a Communion of Saints to share the new covenant as a fellowship. We are to be united to Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit in the hope of sharing. The message of this communion is found in the Apostles’ Creed and includes the hope we have in sharing the glorified state of Jesus. It is as a collective act of sharing in response to God’s love with victory in Jesus. It is about belonging. For everyone yearns for peace. People have always yearned for peace. But the notion that we can achieve peace without divine assistance is a grave error. The communion of the saints in the power of the Holy Spirit gives us a means of sharing the peace of Christ as part of the royal family of God. We are not alone in the fight.
Pray we have an identify with the family of God. Pray we do things together and in unity for a common purpose that glorifies Jesus. Pray we nurture the good things in our life and with thanksgiving. Pray we are victors in those things that we should value most complemented by a sense of self-discipline and repentance that is sanctifying us. Pray for an environment of inner peace when it comes to the theology we embrace. Pray we practice being positive. Pray that our sorrow, when it comes be turned into joy. Pray that when we turn to Jesus, we receive fresh and strong comfort. Pray we fill our lives with memories of gratitude not sorrow. Pray we fill our voids with wonderful activities. Pray that when we are outgunned and out manned that we move beyond what has been lost to discover what might be found. Pray we commit ourselves to a revolutionary ministry of reconciliation as we share and help those who experience sorrow to discover the truth that Jesus spoke of…the truth that sets us free. Pray the Sword of Truth in us be reforged and reformed and made whole.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 