Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, May 12, 2013.

First Reading: Acts 16:16-34
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.”

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, May 5, 2013.

First Reading: Acts 16:9-15
Our reading from the Acts of the Apostles, the story of the early church and how it grew, shows us Paul and his company carrying the good news from ancient Turkey into northern Greece. In this lesson he makes a convert of Lydia, a leading woman of her community and a wealthy merchant who will become a benefactor of the church. Man or woman, Jew or Greek, slave or free, everyone was welcome in Paul’s church … and still should be.

Psalm: Psalm 67
Just as Paul opened the doors of the church to everyone, today’s joyous Psalm calls all the nations of Earth and all their people to sing together in peace and praise. God has blessed us, and through God the earth has given forth its bounty, the Psalmist sings. When we read the lines with care, we see that we’re not called to praise God only in thanks for our personal gains but to make God’s grace and salvation be known to all people, all nations. We’re called to share God’s good news.

Second Reading: Revelation 21:10, 22 – 22:5
Revelation depicts in vivid images the New Jerusalem, heaven come down to earth, a city so brilliant in the graceful glow of the Lamb that it needs no other light. The old hymn, “Shall we gather at the river,” echoes these images of the city’s crystal stream and tree of life. All earthly kings will worship at God’s throne, it promises, in words politically radical for their time; and the city’s pure waters and luscious fruit will nourish all nations and everyone.

Gospel: John 14:23-29
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” In these familiar, loving words, the resurrected Jesus is saying farewell to his disciples, telling them that he is going away, but that God remains present with them, and with us, in God’s Holy Spirit. God’s peace, which surpasses all understanding, means peace among nations and no more war, of course. But remember always that it also stands for peace in our nation, in our cities and towns, and just as important, peace in our minds and in our hearts.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, April 28, 2013.

First Reading: Acts 11:1-18
Through Eastertide our First Readings, which usually offer us verses from the Old Testament, turn instead to the Acts of the Apostles, the story of the early church attributed to the evangelist Luke. In today’s reading we see a critical turning point, when Peter and the apostles realize that the message of Jesus was not intended only for their faith, Judaism, but for all humankind. God chooses us all!

Psalm: Psalm 148
This is one of the last five songs in the Book of Psalms, a concluding trio that rings out thunderous praise for the glory of God. It echoes the message of Acts in glorious harmony: All God’s host stands up in praiseful chorus, praising God from the heights and heavens, sun and moon and shining stars. Sea monsters and crawling things, kings and rulers, youngsters and old folks. We join our voices, too, as we chant this Psalm of praise today.

Second Reading: Revelation 21:1-6
The Easter readings offer us another change of pace, turning to Revelation, a book that many nowadays find more than a little strange. We shouldn’t try to find modern predictions in these ancient lines, but the underlying idea speaks to all ages: Jesus lived among us as Son of God. God will wipe away our tears and will conquer mourning, pain and death. God comes to us. God makes all things new.

Gospel: John 13:31-35
“And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love … Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.” This beloved hymn echoes today’s Gospel, when Jesus at his last supper – just after Judas had sneaked out to betray him – gives his disciples a new commandment: “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” Knowing that he is about to die a horrible, painful death on the cross, Jesus calls his disciples – and us, too – to love one another, and to love everyone, living as Jesus would have us live.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, April 21, 2013.

First Reading: Acts 9:36-43
Peter is out in the world, filled with the Holy Spirit, and to the amazement of the disciples and perhaps even to his own surprise, he brings a dead woman back to life. These verses from Acts, the apostle Luke’s report of the early church, give us a vivid picture of the weeping women in the room, remembering their friend by looking at the clothing she had made. Imagine the excitement they must have felt at seeing Peter showing powers that they had only seen in Jesus.

Psalm: Psalm 23
Many Christians know this beautiful Psalm so well – perhaps in the cadences of King James – that we could recite it from memory. But sometimes familiarity robs us of the beauty of rediscovering the details. Try reading it today with fresh eyes and mind, taking it slowly, one verse at a time. Breathe deeply and visualize yourself and your loved ones in each line; walking with God through the green pastures, past the still waters and through the dark valley, then sitting down at God’s table for an unforgettable banquet. God loves us all, always. What could be more comforting than that?

Second Reading: Revelation 7:9-17
We are again in the strange land of Revelation, a book written in symbolic language for a persecuted first century church. But there is hope written here for all ages. First, the multitude worshiping the Lamb is not exclusive but worldwide, of all colors, languages and nations. Everyone is included! And then look at the final verses: The Lamb will be our good shepherd, guiding us beside the still waters, protecting us from danger and delivering us from hunger and thirst. How does it feel to find the comfort of Psalm 23 again in Revelation?

Gospel: John 10:22-30
We know that John’s Gospel reflects life during a time of conflict between early Christians and Jews, but we can look past the harsh verses that open this Gospel to find love and hope for all nations in Jesus. The Good Shepherd will protect the flock, caring for the sheep through Christ’s body on earth, and provide us our safe dwelling in God’s big house.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, April 14, 2013.

First Reading: Acts 9:1-20
“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” If you persecute those who follow Jesus, you are persecuting him. Does this remind you of something? If we feed the hungry, attend to the sick and care for the oppressed, Matthew reminded us, we do those things also for Jesus. As the body of Christ on earth, we are all called to care for one another. When Saul gets this, finally, he turns from enemy of the church to become Paul, one of its greatest advocates.

Psalm: Psalm 30
According to tradition, this ancient hymn offers thanksgiving for recovery from a serious illness. There is faithful optimism in the lines that remind us that while sadness and anger are short-lived, the joy of God’s favor lives forever. This idea fits in with today’s lessons about Paul’s conversion from enmity to life in Christ and Peter’s mission to tell the world about Jesus after having denied him three times.

Second Reading: Revelation 5:11-14
In last week’s reading from Revelation, early Christians heard that Christ would supplant the Roman emperors as “ruler of the kings of the earth.” Today’s lesson is filled with more symbolic language, and it reveals an unexpected surprise: Jesus’s kingship is not that of a roaring lion or any earthly ruler, but a lamb, a vulnerable creature, symbol of the Passover; a slaughtered victim now raised and glorified for us.

Gospel: John 21:1-19
Jesus appears to some of the disciples, shows them where to find a net-load of fish and cooks them dinner … and then he asks Peter three times, “Do you love me?” Peter is offended that Jesus has to ask this repeatedly. Do you think that Peter could have forgotten the terrible night when he denied Jesus three times before the cock crowed? This doesn’t seem to matter now, as Jesus directs Peter, “Feed my lambs. … Feed my sheep.”

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, April 7, 2013.

First Reading: Acts 5:27-32
Jesus has died, Christ has risen, and tension continues between the Christ-followers and the Temple establishment. The apostles are carrying on for Jesus, teaching, preaching and healing, and all the excitement has the authorities worried. All this uproar is going to bring trouble. They locked Peter and the apostles in jail, but an angel set them free. Now they try to persuade, but the apostles have a higher mission. God has called them to spread the Word, and that mission trumps any human authority.

Psalm: Psalm 118:14-29
Do some of these words sound familiar? Today we hear again some of the same verses as we sang in Easter Sunday’s psalm. Again we promise to practice justice in our lives, to serve God, our neighbor, the poor and the stranger, seeking through righteousness to enter the glory of God. Then in today’s verses we go on to address God directly, giving thanks for God’s abundant love, our lives and our salvation.

Alternate Psalm: Psalm 150
Throughout the year, in Sunday liturgy and daily prayer, we turn to the Psalms every time we gather to worship. Some Psalms cry out in lamentation; some ask God’s blessing. Psalms beg forgiveness and express hope; a few even call down God’s wrath. The most joyful Psalms sing God’s praise. Psalm 150, the last in the book, rings out God’s glory with flutes and harp, strings and praise and plenty of loud, clanging cymbals. Sing out loud as we celebrate the resurrection today.

Second Reading: Revelation 1:4-8
Despite the popular “Left Behind” stories, Revelation, a sort of First Century sci-fi and fantasy, wasn’t really written for our modern ears. In its time it was addressed to the Christians of seven cities in what is now Turkey – churches oppressed by Roman power – reassuring them in symbolic language that the Reign of Christ will come and set them free. Christ is “the ruler of the kings of the earth,” it promises, and knowing readers understood that Christ would eventually dominate even the Emperor of Rome.

Gospel: John 20:19-31
Thomas got a reputation as a doubter because he had to see Jesus before he could accept that Christ was risen. But let’s not be too quick to judge Thomas. Remember the Easter Gospel of Luke, when none of the apostles believed the women who came running back from the empty tomb to tell them that Christ was alive. Today’s message is not about doubt but fear: Don’t stay locked up indoors. With the power of the Holy Spirit, spread the word of Jesus in the world!