WRideout
06-09-2016, 06:28 AM
If we are to be humble, in right relationship with God, and have faith, the final requirement is submission to the will of God. This is a lot harder than it sounds. I personally have trouble with submission, because God may ask me to do or bear things that are extremely difficult, or even painful. We are to love our enemies, bear one another’s burdens, and give up everything we hold dear to follow him.
Submission is not a passive event. It is not sitting on the couch, waiting for God to come along and arrange my life for me. In submission to the will of God, there is a tension between what I know, and the uncertainty of a future that is still to come. Submission requires us to be active participants, vigorously taking part in the work of the Kingdom, and continually seeking God’s guidance. In those moments when guidance is unclear, or our role is undefined, continue to take loving actions for the benefit of others, just as Christ would have done.
In the Gospel of Mark, just before our reading of today, Jesus is tested by his opponents. In response to the question, which commandment is greatest, he quotes from Ecclesiates, one of the most important prayers of the Jewish faith the Shema Israel. “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a] 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” In other words, there should never be a time when one is not aware of the love of God. But Jesus follows that with a quote from Leviticus, “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.” Love is not a feeling although we frequently think of it that way. Romantic love can make one a bit intoxicated, and it can be a delightful feeling, but that is not the love that Jesus talked about. True love for others is a sustained set of actions that benefits someone else, regardless of what it does for me.
The Lord that I serve was a homeless man who lived on the charity of others. He was convicted of a crime he did not commit, and was executed. He had nothing that this world would consider valuable, yet people flocked to see him, and still do. He went about healing the sick, feeding the hungry, and casting out demons. He loved people without limit. In the end, he gave his two coins, his cup of flour; everything he had. He gave his very life to redeem God’s people. We also have our lives to give; not necessarily all at once. We give our lives daily serving God and our neighbors, just as Jesus did. Amen.
Submission is not a passive event. It is not sitting on the couch, waiting for God to come along and arrange my life for me. In submission to the will of God, there is a tension between what I know, and the uncertainty of a future that is still to come. Submission requires us to be active participants, vigorously taking part in the work of the Kingdom, and continually seeking God’s guidance. In those moments when guidance is unclear, or our role is undefined, continue to take loving actions for the benefit of others, just as Christ would have done.
In the Gospel of Mark, just before our reading of today, Jesus is tested by his opponents. In response to the question, which commandment is greatest, he quotes from Ecclesiates, one of the most important prayers of the Jewish faith the Shema Israel. “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a] 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” In other words, there should never be a time when one is not aware of the love of God. But Jesus follows that with a quote from Leviticus, “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.” Love is not a feeling although we frequently think of it that way. Romantic love can make one a bit intoxicated, and it can be a delightful feeling, but that is not the love that Jesus talked about. True love for others is a sustained set of actions that benefits someone else, regardless of what it does for me.
The Lord that I serve was a homeless man who lived on the charity of others. He was convicted of a crime he did not commit, and was executed. He had nothing that this world would consider valuable, yet people flocked to see him, and still do. He went about healing the sick, feeding the hungry, and casting out demons. He loved people without limit. In the end, he gave his two coins, his cup of flour; everything he had. He gave his very life to redeem God’s people. We also have our lives to give; not necessarily all at once. We give our lives daily serving God and our neighbors, just as Jesus did. Amen.