- Joshua 24: 1-2a, 15-17, 18b
- Psalms 34: 2-3, 16-17, 18-19, 20-21
- Ephesians 5: 21-32
- John 6: 60-69
- Quo vadis?
- Why is it that you're following God? Is it because you just don't know where else to go, or maybe you don't want to disappoint some saintly relative, force of habit, ...?
- Has that motivation for following God changed through the years?
- If you really think about it, are you following a person, or a set of guidelines, dogmas, prescriptions?
- Does it matter?
- Taste and see (again)
- What is so good about God? Is He sort of like the Wizard of Oz, characterized by the wonderful things he does, or is there something deeper?
- When was the last time that you started a conversation with "God has been so wonderful to me ..." or even "I'm so thankful to God for ...".
- Does that say more about the sort of people that you spend your time talking to, or your attitude towards God?
- A new model of authority
- We are all pretty familiar with the notion of being in and under authority. That model permeates just about every aspect of our lives. Normally it's a hierarchy, or at worst (and believe me, matrix management can get rough) a network of sorts. But what does it mean to be subordinate to each other?
- What if the other person is just completely wrong in their opinion of how things ought to be done?
- How does that square with the manifestly hierarchical nature of the leadership that we see in the Church today?
- Jesus, you're killing me
- I'm willing to bet that Jesus had to pull on all of his Toastmaster's training to deliver this "bread of life" discourse that we've been reading the past few weeks in John. No one knows whether it was really all one long speech, or whether John pulled it together from various teachings of Jesus, but regardless, Jesus had to have had butterflies in his stomach as He delivered these messages.
- Why do you think that Jesus had to tell the crowds this? He could have just had a private chat with his disciples and let them try to help everyone else with the concept after He was gone. Probably a good thing God never asked me to be the savior of the world, now that I think on it.
- Jesus comes across as harsh and demanding in this chapter. My experience has always been that God is very gentle in His leading, always drawing me to that next step just outside my comfort zone. How about you?
- What does that say to you about God and the way He leads us?
- When was the last time that I made a decision one way or the other because I'm a follower of Jesus?
- When I think about my life in God, is there joy there?
- Do I trust God to really work through the others in my life?
- What am I looking for in my relationship to God?
Street Corner Preacher
You don't see them too often anymore,
But I remember as a child growing up,
The occasional street corner preacher,
Cradling their Bible in one hand,
While they tried to rouse passers by.
The message was pretty much the same.
Death, judgement, Hell to you all,
Unless you pay attention to God's love.
Repent now, while there's still time,
Trust in God to take care of you.
True words all, but spoken in a way
That misshapes the message,
Paints an angry, judgmental picture,
Of a God who ultimately wants
Wants a loving relationship with us.
Of course, trying to get people's attention
While preaching that message is a tough sell.
"Turn aside from the grasping, acquiring
That consumes you. Let me tell you
About what really satisfies!"
Or maybe, our mythical preacher would say:
"I know you think that you know
Know the meaning of life. But there's more.
Infinitely more. Become indifferent to all this,
Then you can come and find what you've missed."
"All of this, all of it, was designed
To point beyond this world, this life, this universe
Show us the glory of the star maker,
Bedazzle us with the painter of butterflys.
But we've been led astray, come home."
Maybe I'll try that message from the local street corner.
And see how many stop to ask for a pamphlet.
But then, where would they go?
Where is the community to foster these seekers?
Where indeed.
But I remember as a child growing up,
The occasional street corner preacher,
Cradling their Bible in one hand,
While they tried to rouse passers by.
The message was pretty much the same.
Death, judgement, Hell to you all,
Unless you pay attention to God's love.
Repent now, while there's still time,
Trust in God to take care of you.
True words all, but spoken in a way
That misshapes the message,
Paints an angry, judgmental picture,
Of a God who ultimately wants
Wants a loving relationship with us.
Of course, trying to get people's attention
While preaching that message is a tough sell.
"Turn aside from the grasping, acquiring
That consumes you. Let me tell you
About what really satisfies!"
Or maybe, our mythical preacher would say:
"I know you think that you know
Know the meaning of life. But there's more.
Infinitely more. Become indifferent to all this,
Then you can come and find what you've missed."
"All of this, all of it, was designed
To point beyond this world, this life, this universe
Show us the glory of the star maker,
Bedazzle us with the painter of butterflys.
But we've been led astray, come home."
Maybe I'll try that message from the local street corner.
And see how many stop to ask for a pamphlet.
But then, where would they go?
Where is the community to foster these seekers?
Where indeed.
Shalom!
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