Lectionary Readings for August 22, 2021
Reading One: Joshua 24:1-2a,14-18 (NRSV)
Song: Build My Life (lyrics here)
Reflection
Our first Old Testament reading this week is a well-known passage where Joshua places a choice before the people of Israel:
“…choose this day whom you will serve…” (v. 15)
The question is (seemingly) simple—will the people follow after foreign gods, or will they join Joshua in saying, “…as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord?” (v.15)
As the story of Israel plays out we see how this choice is one they come up against time and again, and we see how time and again they choose poorly. The enticement of false gods proves too much for them, and just as their ancestors did with the golden calf, they bow their knee to someone other than the One who brought them out of Egypt and formed them into a nation.
This is a theme that echoes through all of our readings this week: the intentional commitment behind our faith, the choice we make to follow God alone, even when other options seem tempting. It’s a choice we face every day, because every day the voices of other would-be gods call to us and ask for our allegiance. Some days, our weakness finds us kneeling before those false rulers, and our worship is diverted away from the only One worthy to receive it.
As we enter into this week, it’s very likely that you can look ahead into the coming days and anticipate some of the voices that will tempt to pull you off course. Others will catch you surprise. Let’s spend some time before God, then, asking the Spirit to search our hearts and show us what has the power to pull us away. Let us then offer those things to the Lord in acknowledgement of both our weakness and his strength. And before those voices even begin their assault, let us find in worship a fresh offering of ourselves to the only God worthy of our devotion. In his strength we can declare “we will not be shaken,” not because of our own defenses, but because of the sure foundation he offers in Christ.
I will build my life upon Your love
It is a firm foundation
I will put my trust in You alone
And I will not be shaken
Reading Two: Psalm 34:15-22 (NRSV)
Song: Dear Refuge of My Weary Soul (lyrics here)
Reflection
The psalmist is very aware of the two paths that lie before all of us: the path of trust, or the path of rebellion. And he makes it very clear that only one choice brings health and wholeness:
“The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry.
The face of the LORD is against evildoers, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.” (vv.15-16)
God hears and responds to the cries of those who trust in him. As the psalmist declares, when those who trust in him cry for help, the Lord responds, for he is close to the brokenhearted. He saves those who feel crushed by the weight of this world.
A cursory reading of this psalm could lead the reader into thinking that God miraculously intervenes to immediately end the suffering of those who choose to follow him. But that’s not what the psalmist is saying. In fact, he states without hesitation that those who follow God will encounter turmoil and hardship:
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD rescues them from them all.” (v.19)
I think it is in the word “rescue” that we often get confused. True, sometimes our deliverance comes from a change in our circumstances. But sometimes our deliverance comes in the midst of the storm. As songwriter Scott Krippayne puts it: “Sometimes he holds us close, and lets the wind and waves go wild. Sometimes he calms the storm, other times he calms his child.”
The temptation to take a path other than the one God offers us can grow stronger when life hits a turbulent season. In those times, we need a “refuge for our weary soul".” We need to remember that “[God’s] mercy seat is open still.” Running after false solutions and easy fixes will lead nowhere, but as the psalmist reminds us,“none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.” (v.22)
As you look back on your journey of faith, can you see times when the storms of life led you to make unhealthy choices that affected your relationship with God? What particular storms have the ability to turn your attention away from him and towards false gods and false solutions? What can you do when those particular clouds appear on the horizon to ground yourself more firmly in his love?
Reading Three: Ephesians 6:10-20 (NRSV)
Song: His Strength is Perfect (lyrics here)
Reflection
The Apostle Paul doesn’t mince any words when it comes to talking about the voices and temptations that assail us as followers of Christ, enticing us to run after other desires or priorities:
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power.
Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (vv.10-11)
Whenever we encounter the “wiles of the devil,” we find ourselves in a very similar place to the ancient Israelites. Each of those moments becomes a “choose this day”-type moment. And so often the reason we make poor choices at those times is that we try to deal with it in our own strength. Maybe it’s pride—maybe we think we’ve been following Jesus long enough that we should know what to do on our own. Or maybe it’s shame—perhaps we’ve bought into the lie that temptation itself is tantamount to sin, and we’re too embarrassed to turn to God in our moment of choice. Whatever the reason, what we need is a reminder of this important fact: by ourselves we don’t have what it takes to live the life God would have us live. We need to continually lean on him, yielding to the Spirit in our weakness so that God’s strength might be made real in our lives.
In the end, what we need to remember is that the armor is God’s, not ours. He offers it to us out of his love, mercy, and grace. And we make the choice to put it on, so that his strength can “carry us when we can’t carry on.”
How often do you attempt to confront temptation on your own? When facing a choice to trust in God or yourself, what pulls you in the direction of self-reliance? What practices or reminders can you build into your life to bring to mind that “his strength is perfect?”
We can only know
The power that He holds
When we truly see how deep our weakness goes
His strength in us begins
Where ours comes to an end
He hears our humble cry and proves again
His strength is perfect when our strength is gone
He'll carry us when we can't carry on
Raised in His power, the weak become strong
His strength is perfect, His strength is perfect
Reading Four: John 6:56-69 (NRSV)
Song: Christ is Enough (lyrics here)
Reflection
In our gospel reading, Jesus puts a choice before his disciples. In face of difficult truths, many of those who have been following him have left, and Jesus asks his closest friends:
“Do you also wish to go away?” (v.67)
The response of the Simon Peter is one that has echoed in my own heart many, many times:
"Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life.
We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." (v.68-69)
As we reflected on earlier, the choice comes to us every day. In fact, it often comes to us many times in the course of a single day. And when it comes, Peter’s response is a good one: he reflects on who Jesus has shown himself to be. He speaks to the supernatural power of Christ’s words. The faith that is engendered by our experience with Jesus is a powerful reminder when other voices beckon. As we lean on God’s strength, as we trust the Spirit’s presence in our life, we can ask him to bring us to a fresh realization of who Jesus is. We can ask him to remind us how “Christ is enough.”
Take some time in prayer to sit with the lyrics of this song and how they have been true in your life. Ask God to root them even deeper in your soul. Ask him to help you with the daily decision to follow Jesus, no turning back.
Christ is my reward and all of my devotion
Now there's nothing in this world
That could ever satisfy
Through ev'ry trial my soul will sing
No turning back I've been set free
Christ is enough for me
Christ is enough for me
Ev'rything I need is in You
Ev'rything I need
Christ my all in all, the joy of my salvation
And this hope will never fail
Heaven is our home
Through ev'ry storm my soul will sing
Jesus is here to God be the glory
Christ is enough for me
Christ is enough for me
Ev'rything I need is in You
Ev'rything I need
I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back, no turning back
I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back, no turning back
The cross before me the world behind me
No turning back, no turning back
The cross before me the world behind me
No turning back, no turning back