Good Morning Friends,
Today we explore the lectionary readings for a little wisdom from the stories of Joseph being sold into slavery and the parable of the wicked vineyard tenants. They tell the stories of life not always seeming fair and the reality of people living in pain and what happens when we feel separated from God. Sometimes it works out and sometimes not. The reality is that many people this very moment are at risk because they feel that separation and are experiencing physical, or emotional pain. The hope is that we will be like Joseph and despite the challenge remain faithful to God. The hope is that whatever our circumstances we will produce Kingdom fruits and outcomes. Today we explore the serious business of bearing the fruit of joy when our situation is bleak, and we might not feel the presence of God at all. We face up to the reality that our Lord might find our desires too weak. We face up to the reality that we fool around with the joys of drink and sex and ambition when even in our pain God offers us infinite joy. But we also face that reality that when we are offended and even needlessly inflicting pain on ourselves, it is hard to be productive, but regardless of this, we still might be surprised by joy. And so, we contemplate today’s question. How Do We Produce Fruit When We Have Been Suffering?
Scripture: “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way. Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.” So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.” Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’? Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom. The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.” When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.
Matthew 21:33-46 (NRSV)
Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he had made him a long robe with sleeves. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him. Now his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near Shechem. And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” He answered, “Here I am.” The man said, “They have gone away, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.'” So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them at Dothan. They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired to kill him. They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams.” But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him” —that he might rescue him out of their hand and restore him to his father. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the long robe with sleeves that he wore; and they took him and threw him into a pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it. Then they sat down to eat; and looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels carrying gum, balm, and resin, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers agreed. When some Midianite traders passed by, they drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.
Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a (NRSV)
When he summoned famine against the land, and broke every staff of bread, he had sent a man ahead of them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. His feet were hurt with fetters, his neck was put in a collar of iron; until what he had said came to pass, the word of the Lord kept testing him. The king sent and released him; the ruler of the peoples set him free. He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possessions,
Psalm 105:16-21 (NRSV)
Message: Today’s message is about pain and suffering and no it is not simple, but make no mistake about it, sometimes God uses people to help other people in their pain. Sometimes pain opens doors of opportunity that we would never have walked through otherwise. A classic example of God using man’s evil/inflicted pain for good is of Joseph being sold into slavery. Joseph’s brothers abandoned him, but God never did. Another example is of Jesus on the cross. Both have surprising outcomes. Friends, sometimes God will use our lives to rescue others even though we do not see God in the experience at the time. Of course, one of the biggest challenges to understanding God can be our own experiences with pain and suffering. These hurts may stem from a long list of encounters. Eventually we all hurt. At times, the hurts are met with comfort and at others our cries for help seem to go unanswered, testing our faith. The main problem is our perspective. We are not God. The story of Job makes that particularly clear in its honest look at the issue of pain. Here we might just discover that the greatest pain is feeling that God has abandoned us. Gone to another land as it were. But here we might just discover that there is a hidden purpose in our suffering as well. Here we might just discover that a good way to help forget our troubles is to help others out of theirs. Job had to wait. So too Joseph waited for his time in power. Jesus waited for His time to be fulfilled. Friends, what man meant for evil…what the devil designed… God can use for good…what man uses for harm, what the devil would use to destroy us… God can use for His glory. It is the story of the vineyard. It is the story of Jesus on the cross. Harvest time is coming friends.
And So, we need God’s help to produce fruit and as such we are not to settle for good instead of great. We are to realize that disappoint can become God’s appointment. So, we are not to be pleased with the wrong harvest. We are to bear fruit even when it is out of season. We are to bear fruit of the Holy Spirit with love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, and self-control. The focus of many people has been to acquire wealth and property and enjoy worldly pleasures thinking that is all there is. But during the pandemic our focus began to change. Perhaps in the future we can have more outward actions that results in a healthier inward condition of our hearts. We are to prepare for a time of being fruitful for through endurance comes a harvest of joy.
Pray we begin with love. Pray our fruit is not so wild as to be useless. Pray we discover a whole new way of worship in Christ. Pray we do it God’s way instead of our own way. Pray we are not so rebellious and envious. Pray our worship never bears the fruit of hate, injustice, oppression, and idolatry. Pray we realize that God has provided what we need to produce fruit for the Kingdom of God. Pray we choose the joy of Christ. Pray we bear fruit of love, holiness, justice and righteousness and joy for the Kingdom of God.
Pray we be prompted by God, even in and through our pain, to make positive changes in our lives so we might produce Kingdom fruit. Pray we yield our will to God’s. Pray we realize that God might just act through another person to help us…that we might act to help another. Pray we realize that God maybe rescuing others through our pain. Pray that in our interactions with others our love is genuine. Pray that we are aware of those who hurt and understand the nature of their pain. Pray therefor for those in broken homes. Pray for those who are lonely, feeling unwanted. Pray that our faith makes us whole. Pray that the plight of others disturbs us. Pray we believe that sometimes our faith can contribute to another’s health. Pray we are willing to show that we care. Pray we never minimize another’s pain. Pray we realize that the little pain we are in may be there to keep us from experiencing even greater pain. Pray we do not get disillusioned when things do not work out as we planned. Pray we know the importance of being sincere, considerate, prayerfully patient, and understanding when we are confronted with pain and those who have it.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 