Lectionary Readings for November 7, 2021
Preparation Song: The Perfect Wisdom of our God (lyrics here)
Reflection
This week’s lectionary readings offer us images of surprise and subversion, reminding us that God does not see things the same way we do. In these passages we see that what we perceive as lack, God can use as provision. They invite us to re-evaluate our understanding of earthly wisdom and power. They contrast the inadequacy of human religious ritual with the sufficiency of Christ. And our gospel reading cuts to the quick to summarize it all, pointing to Jesus’ observations that religious actions count for little if offered for show, and offerings to God count for much if offered out of sacrifice.
How often we harness human wisdom in a failed attempt to understand the things of God. No wonder Jesus said we needed to come as children—because as adults we tend to think we know it all. We need to ask God to give us, by the Holy Spirit, his view of things. Let’s spend some time as we prepare for the readings by asking God to give us his wisdom as we set aside our own.
Spend some time before God asking for him to transform your perspective on the world and your own circumstances. Ask him to show you his perfect wisdom, which surprises us and has a way of often turning something on its head. Ask the Holy Spirit to keep you open to those ways of God which don’t always line up with your understanding and expectations.
Reading One: 1 Kings 17:8-16 (NRSV)
Song: Even If (lyrics here)
Reflection
Elijah’s visit to the widow Zarephath is a story that reminds us of other feeding miracles, such as the manna in the wilderness or Jesus’ feeding of the great crowds. But there’s something about this one that stands out for many people because of the sheer despair of Zarephath when first asked by the prophet to provide something to eat:
“As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” (v. 12)
It is absolutely heartbreaking to picture a widow who is gathering some small sticks in order to prepare a fire so she can cook a final meal for her and her son. And yet we know, as the reader, that Elijah has been sent there specifically by God. We can anticipate that God is about to demonstrate, once again, his abundant mercy and provision, which of course he does.
This is one of God’s most delightful subversions—when he takes circumstances where we see nothing but despair, but turns them into a powerful demonstration of his love for us. The God who cares for widows and orphans and all those for whom life seems empty…this same God comes to all of us in our emptiness and offers a gift of presence and fullness.
How has God met you in your own seasons of emptiness? Are you experiencing one of those seasons even now? What practices and prayers might help you hold close even in those times? Come to God in prayer and offer any fear or despair that tempts to pull you under, and ask him to show you his great mercy and provision. If you know someone who is going through a season like that right now, spend some time praying for them as well.
Reading Two: Psalm 146 (NRSV)
Song: What Joy (lyrics here)
Reflection
The psalmist reminds us, in no uncertain terms, that systems of earthly wisdom and power are fleeting at best, dangerous at worst. And yet how often we, even those of us who claim faith in Christ, place our trust in them. Frustrated by what we see around us, we turn to “princes and mortals” who we think will make things better for us. But sure enough, they ultimately amount to nothing. Their breath is just vapor on the wind, and will one day return to the place it began. “Trust in God alone,” the psalmist pleads, and these are good words for us today.
In a view rooted in God’s kingdom, it is the oppressed who will find justice. It is the hungry who will find food. It is the prisoners who will find freedom. It is the blind who will find sight. It is those who are humbled who will be lifted up. And in all these things, God will be glorified.
Earthly systems of power say “no” to this. They mock the weak. They blame the hungry for their own starvation. They say that the prisoners received what they deserve. They don’t even see the blind stranger, because they can’t offer what we need to get ahead. Earthly systems seek glory for themselves, but will never find it.
The kingdom of God subverts all this and offers a radically different view of the world. They question is, will we have eyes to see it? In which kingdom will we place our trust?
Spend some time with God asking the Holy Spirit to do a deep and honest search of your life. Ask him to bring to the surface any misplaced trust or earthbound wisdom, so that you might offer to God. Look at what the Spirit reveals and ask yourself what it is that draws you away from God into such misplaced trust. How might you find ways to keep your eyes fixed on God’s kingdom instead of the kingdoms of this earth?
Reading Three: Hebrews 9:24-28 (NRSV)
Song: Your Cross Changes Everything (lyrics here)
Reflection
The death of Jesus is, in a way, the ultimate subversion. A cruel Roman execution becomes the place of salvation. An instrument of torture becomes an instrument of redemption. The darkest day in human history gives way to the light of God’s eternal plan fulfilled.
It is also, like this week’s psalm, a testimony to the impermanence of human power. God graciously gave to the Hebrew people a system whereby they could find atonement, but the sacrifices of the High Priest were not enough to permanently erase the stain of sin. The system was imperfect because those who implemented it were imperfect.
But now Jesus, the perfect Son of God, the spotless Lamb of God, has offered his own life as sacrifice, and the wisdom of God is shown once again to be greater than any human wisdom. Paul pointed this out so powerfully in his first letter to the Corinthians:
“Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.” (1 Cor. 1:20-25, NRSV)
We proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles…
We need to be reminded of this truth, because we who have walked in the shadow of the cross for many years can often lose sight of its power because we’ve lost an appreciation for its radical nature. From time to time, we need to be reminded just how shocking, unbelievable, astounding, and amazing it is that Christ would die for us. And we need to be shown anew how the sacrifice of Jesus subverts the power of sin in our lives, so that we can express the unbelievable love of God to the world around us.
If your view of the cross of Christ has become dimmed by familiarity, spend some time before God asking him to take you back to Calvary, where he can show you again the radical depth of his love. How might you keep the cross before you in your daily walk, letting the Spirit of God remind you again and again of how amazing and subversive God’s love for you really is?
Reading Four: Mark 12:38-44 (NRSV)
Songs: God is God (lyrics here)
Reflection
In our gospel reading, Jesus takes the message of Psalm 146 and puts a religious spin on it. The psalmist warns us of putting trust in earthly powers, and Jesus extends that theme to our trust in religious powers-that-be and the empty practices that can overtake us if we’re not careful.
“Beware the scribes,” he says, pointing out their hypocrisy. “Watch out for the rich,” he also implies, pointing to the gift of a poor widow. He’s warning us to not fall prey to leaders or practices that are all about “the show,” when it is actually the unseen sacrifice of the humble which God will honor.
How often we in the church today put our trust in charismatic leaders and “successful” Christians, only to discover all too painfully just how human they really are. When that happens, the inherent emptiness of the systems we often place too much trust in is mercifully exposed. It should humble us and remind us of the words of King David in Psalm 51:
“You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” (Ps. 51:16-17, NIV)
The subversive love of God humbles us. It brings us to our knees and robs us of all pretense. And in that place of humble acknowledgment, we can do only one thing: raise our hands and voices in worship to the God who loves us enough to transform us. We lay all that we are, all that we trust, all in which we hope at his feet, and he meets us there and reveals new depths of who we are in him, how trustworthy he is, and he is our only hope.
Spend some time in worship before God. Use the lyrics of Steven Curtis Chapman’s “God is God” to stir in you a posture of humble prayer and submission to God’s work in your life. And watch for how he surprises you.tral in your life?
And the pain falls like a curtain
On the things I once called certain
And I have to say the words I fear the most
I just don't know
And the questions without answers
Come and paralyze the dancer
So I stand here on the stage afraid to move
Afraid to fall,Oh, but fall I must
On this truth that my life has been formed from the dust
God is God and I am not
I can only see a part of the picture He's painting
God is God and I am man
So I'll never understand it all
For only God is God
And the sky begins to thunder
And I'm filled with awe and wonder
'Til the only burning question that remains
Is who am I
Can I form a single mountain
Take the stars in hand and count them
Can I even take a breath without God giving it to me
He is first and last before all that has been
Beyond all that will pass
Oh, how great are the riches of His wisdom and knowledge
How unsearchable for to Him and through Him and from Him are all things
So let us worship before the throne
Of the One who is worthy of worship alone
God is God and I am not
I can only see a part of the picture He's painting
God is God and I am man
So I'll never understand it all
For only God is God