Daily Scripture Readings
Lent Year One
February 18, 2013
Sons of Korah - Psalm 52: Why do you boast
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Published on Aug 20, 2012
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Old
(Hebrew) Testament Deuteronomy 8:11-18 A Warning Not to Forget God in
Prosperity (*p. 227)
Israel
faced severe hardship in the desert during the forty years they wandered. They
had to depend daily on God for food, for water, for shelter, for life itself.
Now
they have crossed over into the land of milk and honey. The fertility of the
land is in marked contrast to the barrenness of the wilderness. “The plenty of
the land poses the threat that Israel will forget the Lord and exalt itself. “
(*p. 227)
“We
live as a blessed people, created in the image of a gracious and merciful God.
God calls us to a life of blessing, through love and obedience.
“For
Wesleyan Christians this is the call to a life of sanctification and holiness;
as we walk in the ways of the Lord, we are on the path that leads to life.
“Along
the way the roads will diverge and important decisions will loom before us. In
these moments, we pray for wisdom and courage to choose life, holding fast to
the disciplines that will keep us close to God’s purposes for us.” (*p.254)
Epistle
Hebrews 2:11-18 “Exaltation through Abasement”
“Christ’s
entrance into the heavenly realm announces the glorious destiny of all
disciples. But Christ is also the bridge, as it were, by which we cross over to
that goal.
“His
own experiences of pain and shame assure us that our path of discipleship,
though filled with experiences of loss and suffering, will also lead to
‘glory,’ and that our high priest knows from personal experience what we need
to arrive there securely….
“God
led Jesus through a path of hardest testing and deepest loss so that Christian
disciples would be confident of Jesus’ sympathy and help in their own trials.
“Wesley
observed that suffering incurred for the sake of obeying Christ helps ‘[to
wean] us from sin causing our affections to be set on things above.’
“When
people think that death is the final word, fear of death will keep them from
fully obeying God and seeking God’s justice. Fear of death diverts their
energies [from being obedient to God’s will] toward worldly achievement,
amassing wealth, and seeking pleasurable distractions to ‘make the most out of
life’ while they can.
“Because
Jesus faced death and emerged victorious from the grave, we can be freed from
this fear for joyful, unrestrained, undistracted obedience.” (*pp. 1485, 1486)
Gospel
John 2:1-12 The Wedding at Cana (*p. 1288)
“Jesus
is the bringer of God’s overflowing grace and end-time salvation, which the
prophets depicted as a wedding feast and a time of abundant wine. In Jesus,
God’s future salvation and abundant life are present now.” (*p.1288)
Abba,
Father
Keep
me humble. Let me feel my pain as a reminder of the barrenness of the
wilderness, as a reminder of the “path of hardest testing and deepest loss”
walked by your only begotten son. May my energy be freed from the distractions created by pain, and
turn to “joyful, unrestrained, undistracted obedience.” Amen.
The
daily readings are adapted from The Book of Common Prayer, Daily Readings for Year One. http://www.crivoice.org/lent1.html
*My personal study
bible for this Liturgical Year is The
Wesley Study Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Abingdon Press, 2009
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