Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, May 12, 2013.
Paul and Silas during the earthquake in prison in Philippi.
Last week, we saw Paul meet the wealthy Lydia in Philippi, and she became an active supporter of the church. This week’s encounter with another woman doesn’t go so well, even though she seems to be proclaiming their mission at first. Things get out of control when a frustrated Paul throws out the woman’s noisy demon. There’s trouble with the authorities, and Paul and Silas end up in jail. But the story line ends up well, after an earthquake scares them all, and in the end Paul overcomes many obstacles to bring the good news to more new Christians.
Psalm: Psalm 97
Here’s another Psalm of thanks and praise, but this one is difficult because we are confronted with loud, chest-thumping language of Bronze Age warriors that makes it difficult to find context for our modern times. As with any complicated story, sometimes it’s best to peek and see how it comes out. The happy ending here reminds us that God brings light and joy for the righteous and the upright in heart. Practice righteousness: Insist on justice for the weak, not just the strong; resist evil, and give thanks that God loves us.
Second Reading: Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21
We come now to the closing verses of Revelation. Many in the early church were quite certain that the Lamb – Jesus – would return very soon, perhaps during their own lifetimes. Now we accept that life and eternity and God’s kingdom aren’t that simple. But the message of the Lamb still brings us hope: “Let everyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who wishes take the water of life as a gift. … Come, Lord Jesus!”
Gospel: John 17:20-26
This is John’s version of Jesus’s farewell talk with his apostles, after he washed their feet and celebrated his last supper with them, just before Judas and the soldiers came to take him away for trial and crucifixion. We hear Jesus asking God to love everyone just as God has loved Jesus. Yes, everyone: Jesus prays not only for his friends in the room then and there, but asks God to love all the people of the world, promising that all who believe in him “may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me.”