Good Morning Friends,
The world is filled with faithful and unfaithful servants. Thankfully we have been set free to be slaves of righteousness instead of slaves to sin. We have been chosen for a purpose but also can choose to ignore it. You see, the purpose of being freed is to bring us into closer relationship with God as agents and stewards until Jesus returns. And so, we are required to wait for the ruling on the wisdom of most of our decisions. The warning in today’s lectionary is that you and I had better learn how to do it right and do it well. Whether the language is portraying us as slaves, stewards, or servants the question must still be answered. Who Rules Our Lives?
Scripture: Therefore, do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted, and that you, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.
Romans 6:12-18 (NRSV)
“But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.” Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for everyone?” And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and prudent manager whom his master will put in charge of his slaves, to give them their allowance of food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. But if that slave says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and if he begins to beat the other slaves, men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk, the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and put him with the unfaithful. That slave who knew what his master wanted, but did not prepare himself or do what was wanted, will receive a severe beating. But the one who did not know and did what deserved a beating will receive a light beating. From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.
Luke 12:39-48 (NRSV)
Message: If there is any evidence in scripture of ignorance being bliss today’s Gospel passage is probably it. But even then, it is no excuse for doing the wrong thing. Authentic followers of Jesus live with the light on learning how to do it right and do it well. In contrast to the faithful, the unfaithful, in today’s text, take advantage of the masters’ delay by using the master’s resources and grace for selfish gain rather than kingdom gain. If we do not get it right, instead of being rewarded, we risk being punished. The message is that when Christ returns, all people will be judged justly according to their relationship to the King and their knowledge of the King. Those who know better and who blatantly disobey taking personal advantage of God’s grace will be judged most severely. Those who consciously disobey and did not prepare for what is required will be judged less severely and those who are ignorant and disobey the least. Judgment is measured out in proportion to the knowledge received and rejected. And because you have accepted Jesus, the good news is that you are no longer under the law. You are blessed by God’s grace and sin is no longer your master. But to whom much is given much is required. Our role is for continuous improvement of the Kingdom to the glory of God. We are to be faithful each day to the possibility of Christ’s return.
And So, we have been chosen for a purpose but also can choose to ignore it. Unfortunately, the world is filled with unfaithful servants and from time to time even the best of us can fail separating us from God. So, know this, the purpose of being freed is to bring us into closer relationship with God as faithful agents and stewards until Jesus returns. And so, even though we are required to wait for the ruling on the wisdom of most of our decisions and sometimes even our felt presence of God, we must still acknowledge God’s rule. Here we learn that whoever we serve is the one who rules our lives. We cannot have two masters. Being dead to sin and alive in Christ is the goal. We are to yield ourselves to God and not let sin reign in our mortal bodies. Here it becomes clear that we cannot separate the truth we know about God and our application of this in our own behavior. We have been brought from death to life for a purpose. Thankfully we have been set free to be slaves of righteousness instead of slaves to sin.
Pray our hearts are softened to the necessity of helping others by being good models of faith. Pray we find meaning in a life of service honoring God’s plan. Pray we have the right priorities. Pray that even though much of our lives will be lived without the conscious experience of Christ’s presence in us that we be watchful and faithful and obedient. Pray we realize that despite the story, God is always with us helping us to continue to improve and is ever present even though we might not feel the peace of Christ in us all the time. Pray therefore we light the way for the Gospel to be shared and make a way for further advancement of God’s Kingdom by showing forth the power of the Holy Spirit in us. Pray we keep alert for doing good. Pray we remain faithful. Pray we realize that every saint has a past and every sinner a future. Pray we choose to obey God. Pray we rejoice this day because we have been bought with a price. Pray because sin no longer controls us. Pray because we belong to God and realize that God has our best interest at heart.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 