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Some thoughts on some of the lectionary texts for Sunday -
Genesis 9.8-17 God’s Promise(Covenant) after the Flood
+ God promises “never again” to destroy the earth by flood. “Never again” – does that suggest that God made a mistake the first time and learned from it? “By flood” – does that preclude other means? Most people seem to think essence of the passage is that God will not destroy by any means. (How does this square with the “earth-battering God” of Ps 29?)
+ the story of the Flood is the next to last of the “pre-history (pre-patriarchal) stories” of Israel. The last one is the story of the Tower of Babel. Is the scrambling of the language a means of salvation or destruction?
+ “God gave Noah the rainbow sign, no more water but fire next time” – the fire is a “cleansing, healing flood”, not a destructive one?
+ note the covenant is with all generations, all creation, with the earth itself. One writer puts it – “the creatures can depend on a stable creation”. Tell that to the dinosaurs, tell that to the sea turtles that had to be rescued in Texas, tell that to coastal (and island) communities facing sea-level rise. Another short fiction -
She stood at a crossroads, paralyzed with worry that the path
she chose would lead her to disaster.
Meanwhile, from above, came the meteor…. (James Mark Miller)
+ the rainbow, the sign. But who is the rainbow for? The language clearly says it is to remind God. So we can see the rainbow and be glad that God has tied it to her/his finger to be a reminder, and I guess that’s good, but does God really need reminding? That’s a disturbing thought! I guess there are a certain number of psalms that kind of say “Hey God, remember who you are,” but still…..
Psalm 25.1-10
+ note that vs 1-7 are a prayer, spoken to God; vs 8-10 are proclamation, spoken about God.
+ and the whole psalm is another of these “alphabetical psalms”, each verse starting with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. A clever device to enjoy the craft of writing? A memory aid? A way of giving the psalm a universal quality? Which seems most likely this time. (And the weekly challenge of writing an acrostic psalm – not gonna happen!)
+ vs 1-7 a prayer for forgiveness and guidance in face of worshiper’s sinfulness and ignorance. Psalmist asks for forgiveness on the basis of God’s mercy and love, not because he or she in any way deserves it.
+ Vs 8-10 a good part of salvation is in knowledge (and trust).
+ “paths”, “ways” A good psalm to turn to when we feel we have “lost our way”.
1 Peter 3.18-22
+ salvation through Jesus (baptism) compares to salvation of Noah and family in the Flood.
+ eight people were saved through the flood and this is the reason some baptismal fonts have eight sides. Without looking (and that’s pretty much an impossibility today) how many does your church’s have?
+ Baptism is not so much just like washing your hands but more like getting the vaccine – and even getting the second dose?
Mark 1.9-15 Baptism, temptation, preaching
+ does the fact that Mark does not give us any of the details Matthew and Luke provide make his story more or less dramatic, intense? We almost have to work at hearing Mark without Matthew and Luke “spilling in”.
+ the spirit/dove and the voice at the baptism are a private vision that apparently only Jesus experiences. Do you have private experiences that shape or have shaped your life?
+ the Spirit “drove him out/cast him out” – how does that work to have one part of the Trinity treating another part that way?
+ tempted/tested by Satan – still blocking out Matthew and Luke, what do you imagine that might have been like? If it was you, what would it be like? Remember the stories Jesus told about how difficult/impossible it is to combine power and love in one entity. Did that awareness maybe have it’s beginning from this time?
+ the “wild beasts” – threats that God protected Jesus from? Or examples of innocence that Jesus learned from? Was this the Peaceable Kingdom? Were the lion and the lamb lying down together?
+ and finally, the angels “took care of him”, just like Peter’s mother-in-law did!
+ vs 14-15 we just looked at these. We noted that “after John was arrested” is not an auspicious beginning, or maybe not really a selling point that would encourage people to become Christian. I don’t know – Four Shillings Short sings a song by Anne Feeney
Have You Been to Jail for Justice? Part of it goes
No matter who your mentors are it pretty plain to see,
If you’ve been to jail for justice, then you’re in good company.
And
Have you sung a song for freedom or marched that picket line?
Have you been to jail for justice? Then you’re a friend of mine?
+ and “the kingdom of God” (“the time of God’s peace”) is now; come to your senses and believe it. What helps you believe? What keeps you from it?
Challenge for this week -
Write the story of the gospel as “a short fiction” – ie, 280 characters or less, more of a “wind up and push start” with just a suggestion of where it might go than a detailed spelling it all out. Example -
Jostling up against me, the ragged stranger asked, “You know what time it is?”
“Yeah,” I said, irritated. “7:23.”
“Oh”, the stranger said. “I was thinking it was something else.”
Only you can do lots better than that!
That’s what I got for now...
Updated 2.19 to include author of first short fiction, and alter the first line of the second!Comments are moderated – by me – and may take a day to appear
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