Good Morning Friends,
Today’s scripture combines in an interesting way that may prompt us to look in the mirror at our own behavior. We have the story of Elisha becoming Elijah’s Disciple in the book of 1 Kings with the backdrop of Elijah’s emotional rollercoaster ride from the pinnacles of success to the pits of fear and loathing. We have would be followers of Jesus not being moved to receive him and a passage from a letter of Paul to the Galatians reminding them and us that we have been set free and need to stand firm in the faith. Finally, we have a passage from the book of James telling us to be doers not just hearers of the Word. Twice in the scripture selections we have the image of the yoke and twice in the scripture selections we have the request to follow. Here we have a case of scripture interpreting scripture. Together they prompt us to consider what God is telling us about the Word made flesh. Though mixing scripture does have its pitfalls, today’s selection might well prompt us to ask of God, what God asked of Elijah. And so, we ask, as the Samaritans were undoubtedly thinking about Jesus even as they rejected him, What Are You Doing Here?
Scripture: When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; but they did not receive him, because his face was set towards Jerusalem. When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, ‘Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?’ But he turned and rebuked them. Then they went on to another village. As they were going along the road, someone said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’ To another he said, ‘Follow me.’ But he said, ‘Lord, first let me go and bury my father.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.’ Another said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.’ Jesus said to him, ‘No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’
Luke 9:51-62 (NRSV)
At that place he came to a cave, and spent the night there. Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’
1 Kings 19:9 (NRSV)
Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place. So he set out from there, and found Elisha son of Shaphat, who was ploughing. There were twelve yoke of oxen ahead of him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle over him. He left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said, ‘Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.’ Then Elijah said to him, ‘Go back again; for what have I done to you?’ He returned from following him, took the yoke of oxen, and slaughtered them; using the equipment from the oxen, he boiled their flesh, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out and followed Elijah, and became his servant.
1 Kings 19:16b, 19-21 (NRSV)
For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law.
Galatians 5:1, 13-18 (NRSV)
But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing. If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
James 1:22-27 (NRSV)
Message: Charles Spurgeon once told of sitting in a nice restaurant. As he ate, he kept noticing a rather angry looking man across the dining room who scowled at him every time he looked his way. Finally, Spurgeon decided to go over and speak to the man to see what his problem was. However, as he stood, he realized that what he had been seeing was his own reflection in mirrors that lined the walls across the room. We may not always like what we see in the mirror of God’s Word but, if we interpret rightly, what we see there is always better for us than our own devices. We may well ask how to approach scripture even as we ask how we approach the person in the mirror. It may seem like a contradiction in terms but sometimes people have a conscious forgetfulness of scripture they read and the same with what they see in the mirror. The goal is to respond to what we see in the mirror of God’s Word and stay focused on it long enough to do some good. The initial challenge is to read scripture at all, for some do not even do that. The second challenge is to stay focused and to not have a disconnect between what we know is right and what we do. Jesus is the example of how we are to focus. Elijah had this same challenge. But Elijah actually responds to today’s question by telling God all that he has done for him with a sort of expectation of what he is going to get in return. But that is not the answer God is looking for, and so He asks Elijah again. I think God wants Elijah to realize that God is not there for Elijah’s own personal gain. He is not there because God is in his debt and needs to reward him. God asks him this question, that we might well ask of scripture in order to get us to rethink the expectations we have of God. We need to realize that God is not in Elijah’s debt, but that he is so much more in God’s debt. And we too need to remember that life is not about what we can get from God, but what we can give to God, and do for God by investing in the lives of others. Here we discover the life of abundance.
And So, there is a proper and improper way to deal with rejection and the reading of scripture. Jesus was rejected but he was the Word made flesh. In fact, the way the Samaritans rejected Jesus and scripture foreshadows all the rejection that would follow. The Jewish people would reject Jesus, even calling for his crucifixion in Jerusalem. The Jewish leaders would reject Jesus, ensuring his crucifixion. And the Gentiles would also reject Jesus, physically carrying out his crucifixion. The widespread rejection of Jesus leads us to ask ourselves whether we reject Jesus too. There is no neutral ground when it comes to Jesus. We are either for him or we are against him. We either receive him by hearing and doing or we reject him. Friends, we are to learn from scripture and ask where God is in it and in us working. We are to take a look in the mirror of our reflection of scripture in our lives, stand firm in the faith, so we do not also reject what is good. Because Jesus the teacher sees scripture clearly and as a whole, the Spirit, he gives us can help us to piece together the reflections of scripture relevant for our lives. Scholars in the selection of liturgical scripture reflect the connections they have made but we personally need to look in the mirror of scripture and seek the message God has for us to become whole. Here we learn that we only stay in the pit as long as we are focused on ourselves. So, keep your eyes on Jesus.
Pray we are never too busy to focus on God and what God is doing. Pray we apply scripture in our conversations. Pray we apply God’s Word through our concerns for others. Pray we apply God’s Word with a continuing faithfulness. Pray we apply God’s Word in the process of our Sanctification, blessing others in Worship and actions as we grow together for God’s good purpose in us. Pray we are willing to see ourselves in God’s Word. Pray we apply God’s Word in our lives in a way that glorifies God. Pray we invest in other people’s lives. Pray we realize we are healthier when not focused only on ourselves. When we take the time to invest in someone else’s life, so our lives become bigger than ourselves. Pray we are leaving a legacy that reflects the love of Jesus, the Word made flesh. Pray we keep moving forward guided by and reflecting the Spirit of the Word.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 