Sunday, April 27, 2008

Receiving May 3, 2008, worship scriptures

To make the most of this post, begin by receiving the Word as spirit and life for yourself. Suggestions for doing this are at http://charistis.blogspot.com/2008/03/receiving-word-as-spirit-and-life.html
Whether or not you attend a church that will focus on the following scriptures May 3 (or 4) you can receive these scriptures and compare notes with others who are doing the same.

Scriptures for May 3, 2008
Acts 1:6-14
Psalm 68:1-10, 32-35
1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
John 17:1-11

April 26 prayer for receiving
Blessed is the one whose heart is set on pilgrimage (Psalm 84:5). And the one whose heart is set on pilgrimage goes from strength to strength. Through today's circumstances, this blessing is renewed and it also speaks to me today about receptivity. The strength of my Spirit-born desire to receive becomes the strength of actually receiving. The strength of actually receiving becomes fuller receptivity. Please God, let my receptivity go from strength to strength today.

Acts 1:6-14 (selections and reflections)
"When they had come together, they asked Him, saying, 'Lord will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?'" (vs. 6)
What does a person say to, or ask, the risen Christ?! What question would I have asked? Be with their question and what it says about them and the kingdom--the kingdom God promised through the Old Testament and proclaimed in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

"It is not for you to know..." (vs. 7)
"But you shall receive power... and... be witnesses to Me..." (vs. 8)
Consider the move from knowledge (or relying on knowledge) to power. Consider how that movement (from knowledge to power) affected early and all subsequent Christianity. How does the movement from knowledge to power affect us individually? Have I ever wanted knowledge and been given power instead? Have I, or my church, ever insisted on knowledge instead of receiving power?

"But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you;" (vs. 8)
Some people seem to excel at power dynamics, that is at "getting" or claiming power, and using and keeping it. Other people seem quite clueless about how to get, use, or keep power. The clueless sometimes feel superior to, or at least more humble than (!), people with power. Power can attract, repel, or trick us.
At this last meeting with His disciples before the Ascension, Jesus told them a soon-coming fact about power: you shall receive power... Ponder how receiving power differs from achieving power.

"...when the Holy Spirit has come upon you." (vs. 8)
Be, as far as possible, one of the disciples hearing that just before the cloud received Jesus, and they no longer saw Him. What happens in your heart and mind? What desire, fear, hope, or hesitancy do those words stir up?

"This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven." (vs. 11)
The word and works of God and the responses of the people of God prepared the way for Jesus' life, death and resurrection.
Anticipation and preparation before Jesus was born an infant.
Anticipation and preparation before Jesus comes in the clouds and in glory.
How are these two times of anticipation and preparation similar; how are they different?

Psalm 68:1-10, 32-35 (selections and reflections)
"Extol Him who rides on the clouds" (vs. 4)
"The earth shook;
the heavens also dropped rain at the presence of God;
Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel" (vs. 8)
"To Him who rides on the heaven of heavens...
...His strength is in the clouds." (vss. 33, 34)
Letting these words from Psalm 68 "settle in" with Acts 1:11 blesses me!

1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11 (selections and reflections)
These verses from 1 Peter 4 and 5 include the following disturbing words: Fiery trial, sufferings, reproached, cares, adversary the devil, roaring lion, sufferings
Ponder (always!) how the crucified and risen Christ comes before these words of suffering, and the glorified returning Christ follows these words of suffering. Life as we know it, with terrible suffering included, is meant to be connected with the Word already spoken, and the Word to come in glory. Consider how the crucified and risen Christ and the returning, glorified Christ are the past and future that enter and affect the present, and all its sufferings.

"But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen." (vss. 10,11)

John 17:1-11 (selections and reflections)
"Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You..." (vs. 1)
"And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was." (vs. 5)
These words from Jesus' prayer, combined with the other scriptures this week, invite a person to realize again, or perhaps for the first time, that the glory of God, and being glorified, are (1) extremely important, and (2) worked out, or realized, in the very worst, yet best, possible outcomes--the crucifixion and resurrection.
Glory isn't just something we're supposed to give to God, being careful not to take any to ourselves. How do I really catch on to the glory of God--how immense, and how desirable it is? Also, Peter in this week's scriptures (and Paul in Romans 8:18) show me that it is shared glory. The God of all grace has called us to His eternal glory by Jesus Christ (1 Peter 5:10)
The other day I received and relayed some extraordinary photography by email. A friend, whose praise is weighty (it's not passed out recklessly or without good cause!) responded saying the photography is breathtaking. The times we see and recognize the breathtaking are windows into glory. How much we enjoy the glimpses! Consider how overwhelmingly much we will enjoy the encounter with the returning, glorified Christ. The glory of God is compelling--our hearts are drawn to it.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Receiving April 26, 2008, worship scriptures

Scriptures for April 26, 2008:
Acts 17:22-31
Psalm 66:8-20
1 Peter 3:13-22
John 14:15-21
Begin by receiving these scriptures as spirit and life--for yourself. Then learn from and grow with others who are doing the same. Ask a friend to join you in this weekly spiritual exercise. For simple suggestions about how to receive the Word as spirit and life see http://charistis.blogspot.com/2008/03/receiving-word-as-spirit-and-life.html

April 19 prayer for receiving
God, You are closer than my breath and also so far beyond all this. Comfort me with Your closeness and fill me with reverence by contact with Your infinite surpassing power. In comfort and reverence let my receptivity thrive.

Acts 17:22-31 (selections and reflections)
"...you are very religious;" (vs. 22)
"...as also some of your own poets have said, 'For we are also His offspring.'" (vs. 28)
This is a call from religion on to the Man ordained by God and raised from the dead (vs. 31). Paul met his listeners where they were and used their religious strength as the starting point. And Paul drew them on. He didn't stay with them where they were.

"...the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you:" (vs. 23)
Consider the confidence it takes to proclaim the One. What makes an individual or group convincing in doing this? How do individuals and groups proclaim the One, without becoming spiritually proud or in some other way obnoxious? How do individuals and groups respect diversity and still proclaim the One?

"...we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's devising." (vs. 29)
Does a belief in verse 31 prevent a person from falling into the sin of verse 29? I'm afraid not. The resurrected Christ can be shaped by art and man's devising. Destroying art doesn't destroy the sin of verse 29 either. It occurs to me that the sin of verse 29 is humans shaping or devising Divine Nature. There is something really simple here, but it's not always easy to recognize in ourselves or others. It's humans presuming to take control over the Divine Nature or some small part of it. This is a ridiculous thing no one would agree to, except that it is done in ways we don't always recognize. Maybe one way to notice when it's happening is to ask, "Am I telling or showing myself or others what God is like, or am I opening up to God more and more, and inviting others to do the same?" I might also ask, "Am I receiving what has been revealed about God, or am I shaping and devising what I think I or others need to know about God?"
From Paul's address at the Areopagus I'm encouraged to proclaim the One and never to shape or devise the One.

Psalm 66:8-20 (selections and reflections)
"Oh, bless our God...
Who keeps... and does not...
For You have...proved us... refined us... brought us into... laid affliction on... caused...
We went through fire and through water;
But You brought us out to rich fulfillment." (vss. 8-12)
"I will declare what He has done for my soul." (vs. 16)
"Blessed be God..." (vs. 20)
We bless God by receiving God and God's "doings" and then declaring what God has done. The movement is from God to us, the recipients. We receive, then tell what happened. That's much different than shaping and devising God.
That we can bless God is something I only partly "get." Of course it's not hard to see how parents are blessed when their children receive and respond to love with love. So of course we can bless God! Blessing isn't just a person in a position of power being kind to someone less fortunate!

1 Peter 3:13-22 (selections and reflections)
"But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you are blessed." (vs. 14)
"Christ also suffered...that He might bring us to God..." (vs. 18)
"Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been made subject to Him." (vs. 22)
See the link between suffering and blessedness.
See that suffering unites us with God.
See that suffering is surpassed--angels, authorities and powers are subject to the One who suffered.

"Sanctify the Lord God...
be ready (to 'answer for' hope)...
with meekness and fear;
having a good conscience..." (vss 15, 16)
Consider what it's like to do these things instead of being afraid of threats or troubled (vs. 14).
Sanctifying God happens in the heart; we could say it's a matter of letting God be holy to and in us. That is, God's holiness is realized in the heart. What we believe in, know or trust is to become a heart reality during suffering.
Being ready to "answer for" hope, with meekness and fear. What a picture. Consider how that readiness, and meekness and fear affect suffering; consider how much they are needed during suffering.

John 14:15-21 (selections and reflections)
"...He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever." (vs. 16)
"...the spirit of truth..." (vs. 17)
"...He dwells with you and will be in you." (vs. 17)

"...I will love him and manifest Myself to him." (vs. 21)
He manifests Himself to us. This is the opposite of Him being shaped or devised by us.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Receiving April 19, 2008, worship scriptures

Scriptures for April 19, 2008:
Acts 7:55-60
Psalm 31:1-6, 15-16
1 Peter 2:2-10
John 14:1-10
The first step is for you to receive these worship scriptures as spirit and life. See http://charistis.blogspot.com/2008/03/receiving-word-as-spirit-and-life.html for suggestions about how to do this. After you have your own notes, compare notes. The following can help you do that.

My April 12 prayer for receiving
Please, God, enable my heart to receive Your Word and be broken and strengthened by it. Make my eyes and ears ever better paths into my heart.

Acts 7:55-60 (selections and reflections)
"And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God..." (vs. 59)
The people who stoned Stephen were "cut to the heart" (vs. 54) when they heard what Stephen said. The people who heard Peter (Acts 2) were also "cut to the heart" (vs. 37). It wasn't a conciliatory, don't make anybody uncomfortable arrangement. They were cut to the heart. What followed was either repentance and baptism (Acts 2) or murder (Acts 7). When listeners were cut to the heart they didn't vacillate, compromise, or postpone. They decided, and acted.
How can I listen to God's Word so I am cut to the heart and repent and grow more fully into my baptism? Can, or should, I speak so others are cut to the heart? Do I want to? What if those I speak to are the kind of listeners who murder the messenger?

Psalm 31:1-6, 15-16 (selections and reflections)
"In You, O LORD..." (vs. 1)
It would be possible to read this Psalm and think Wow! too bad this Psalm didn't work for Stephen. Then I look again.
trust (vss. 1, 6)
never ashamed (vs. 1)
deliver... (vss. 1, 2, 15)
rock and fortress (2, 3)
my strength (vs. 4)
Into Your hand I commit my spirit (vs. 5)
My times are in Your hand (vs. 15)
You have redeemed me, O LORD God of truth (vs. 5)
Make your face shine upon Your servant (vs. 16)
I reflect on Stephen:
full of the Holy Spirit gazing into heaven and seeing the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. I see him calling on God and saying, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." I hear him say as he dies, "Lord, do not charge them with this sin."
As I reflect, Psalm 31 becomes beautifully and powerfully Stephen's Psalm. Trust, freedom from shame, and deliverance shine out of Stephen's story, especially his dying, all the way into our day. God was Stephen's rock, fortress and strength. Stephen committed his spirit to Jesus; and he was redeemed by the God of truth. How the face of God shined upon him; the glory from heaven was so bright and real that Stephen invited others to look and see it with him.

1 Peter 2:2-10 (selections and reflections)
"Coming to Him as to a living stone..." (vs. 4)
A living stone (ah, the rock in Psalm 31:2, 3 is also alive). It's not enough to have spring send green shoots up through the dirt; stones come to life. This is life so alive and vibrant even the stones "catch" it! Our God, our Redeemer, is a living stone; we are living stones (vs. 5). Stones crying out (Habakkuk 2:11; Luke 19:40).

"...rejected... chosen... precious..." (vs. 4, 6, 7)
Rejected and precious are not easy to keep together. The more rejected we feel, the less precious we feel. And, of course, we know the precious are chosen and the rejected are not chosen. Yet, the Living Stone is rejected, chosen and precious. So are the living stones of verse 5.

"...a holy priesthood..." (vs. 5)
"...a royal priesthood..." (vs. 9)
Peter's writing to the pilgrims of the dispersion (1:1). Pilgrims of the dispersion. How's that for describing what it's like to be a Christian today! The scattering and dispersion is getting downright geometric in an age described by one writer as the confetti age.
If there were a word that might help to unite the pilgrims of the dispersion, it probably wouldn't be priesthood. That may be good enough reason to look again. What if I could let go of what I do or don't believe about priesthood; what if I could let go of what my denomination does or doesn't believe about priesthood? What if I could just receive the spirit and life: you are a holy priesthood; you are a royal priesthood.

"...into His marvelous light." (vs. 9)
This takes me back to Stephen gazing into heaven and the glory of God.

"...now have obtained mercy." (vs. 10)
Psalm 31 appeals to God's mercy (vs. 9) for His mercies' sake (vs. 16) Ponder mercy as a word about God, and about our condition. Open to the size of that word. Love and respect mercy. Gratefully receive it and grow in appreciation of it.

John 14:1-10 (selections and reflections)
"Let not your heart be troubled..." (vs. 1)
Stephen's death must have troubled hearts. And, if some were not troubled by his death, they must have been troubled by seeing the crucified and risen Christ resisted and rejected. They must have been troubled that some did not choose what they loved supremely. Wouldn't they also be troubled that they didn't manage to somehow convey the message so that it would be accepted? In spite of all of this, and in the midst of all of this, "Let not your heart be troubled" can become spirit and life. As we actually receive the troubling experiences (instead of bypassing them, or somehow explaining them away), we can also actually receive the surpassing words: Let not your heart be troubled.

"...you believe in God, believe also in Me." (vs. 1)
"...you know Him and have seen Him." (vs. 7)

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Receiving April 12, 2008, worship scriptures

At http://charistis.blogspot.com/2008/03/receiving-word-as-spirit-and-life.html there are simple suggestions for how to receive the Word as spirit and life. The following notes will be more meaningful to you after you've made your own notes about the scriptures. Receive for yourself, then learn from and grow with others who are doing the same.

My April 5 prayer for receiving
This morning's worship was a time of love and closeness. Thank You, God. I cherish that. I seek more of the same and more beyond that. Tune all parts of my being to You now. Please clear the way so Your Word can be spirit and life in me.

Acts 2:42-47 (selections and reflections)
"Then fear came upon every soul..." (vs. 43)
Fear followed, was an outgrowth of, their steadfastness in doctrine and fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayers (vs. 42), and fear preceded or produced wonder and signs (vs. 43), sharing (vss. 44, 45) gladness and simplicity of heart (vs. 46), praising God (vs. 47) favor with people (vs. 47, and people being added to the church (vs. 47).
I'm drawn to fear like this. It prompts me to realize there is fear that is the healthy opposite to destructive fear. This passage draws me to life-giving fear that results when I begin to realize I'm actually in touch with God--with power and heart so far beyond my control. Perhaps one way to imagine life-giving fear is this: It's the result of losing control and entering into frightening proportions of order, peace, love and fruitfulness.
This fear relates to, or involves, "Simplicity of heart" (vs. 46). Simplicity of heart--what potential here! Ponder how simplicity of heart shapes community and depth for Christians. Consider how simplicity of heart serves the eternal unfolding of every wonder in the universe. Ponder how simplicity of heart benefits those who are strongest and weakest in every way--physically, mentally, socially, emotionally, spiritually. Simplicity of heart is something to admire and desire very much.
Consider how simplicity of heart and life-giving fear increase each other.

Psalm 23 (selections and reflections)
"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want." (vs. 1)
I shall not want for lack of life-giving fear or simplicity of heart!
"He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake." (vs. 3)
Maybe this is not an assurance that I will manage to say it right, or that they will, as I so much hope, "get it." But vs. 3 is an assurance the Shepherd leads me in the paths of righteousness. He leads each of His sheep in the paths (that is plural) of righteousness. It's not up to me to try to make their path and mine the same. It's up to me to be led by the Shepherd. The best hope of having all things in common (Acts 2:44) is to have the same Shepherd.

1 Peter 2:19-25 (selections and reflections)
"For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully." (vs. 19)
"When you do good and suffer for it, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God." (vs. 20)
"Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps..." (vs. 21)
Here is something we "know" and yet keep avoiding. Focusing on peace and joy, many Christians turn away from suffering. Yet, of course, suffering is everywhere around and in us. But we keep treating it as an anomaly. Something we're supposed to make go away if we just pray long, hard, or right enough. In various ways we say, or hear, that if we had just prayed better, loved harder, believed more intensely, then this suffering would not have happened. But Christ suffered and we will too if we follow His steps.

"when He suffered, He... committed Himself to Him who judges righteously." (vs. 23)
Maybe there is no good way to be sure I did everything possible to prevent suffering. There comes a time to quit trying to figure that out. (I also need to let go of being frustrated or hurt when Christians try to take the peace-and-joy route around suffering!) Verse 23 is exactly what I need. It brings a sigh of relief to my heart. Doing verse 23 is simplicity of heart in action.

"...that we having died to sins, might live for righteousness..." (vs. 24)
There's that word righteousness again--it's something to live for! There's a lot of anxiety, stress and struggle that goes with trying to "get it right," "do it right," and "be right." But we can let go of that in favor of living for righteousness. There is a righteousness to be immersed in--that causes great and always-deepening joy.

"For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls." (vs. 25)
The sheep and Shepherd are in three of this week's scriptures.

John 10:1-10 (selections and reflections)
"...the sheep follow him, for they know his voice." (vs. 4)
Animals recognize and respond to human voices. It's a wonder-filled phenomenon. That wonder translates into something so much bigger when it's Christ's followers recognizing and responding to His voice. The tone and inflection in a word can profoundly affect how the word is received. Imagine, for a huge example, how that word "Mary" was received on resurrection morning from the One she thought was the gardener. It's not enough to just see words on a page, we need the tone and inflection, we need to recognize the voice. That does happen now because the Holy Spirit conveys the tone (not very often audibly) simply and directly into our heart, the center of our whole being.

Becoming a receiver

How do I receive? If I consider this question, it can help me become the receiver I need and want to be. It's a question that helps me look at how I already am receiving. It's also a question that helps me look at the kind of receiver I can become.

From time to time I'll add some notes that help a person grow into receiving.

When I am receiving the Word as spirit and life, I don't come as a problem-solver. I don't come for the purpose of "figuring out" what I don't understand. I come to receive what the Spirit of God highlights for me. A highlight may be in the form of a big new realization, or it may be, as it more often is, a gentle awareness. Whether bold and unavoidable, or gentle and inviting, the awareness is recognized for its light and potential. I gladly take in those highlights and let them brighten and lead to related highlights. This kind of receiving goes from light to additional light; from meaning to fuller and fuller meaning.

The highlights happen in my heart--the center of my whole being. I ponder the highlights in my heart where feeling, thinking, will and every other aspect of my being are most keen and concentrated. That pondering takes me into the spirit and life of the Word more and more.