READ IT! - Gentle in Our Time (week 4)

If we are to treat others gently, then we need to see them as God sees them. We need to value them. We need to care about them. We need to pray for them. As God has loved us, so we must love others. It’s not about being nice to people. It’s about letting the love of God live in and through you. “We love because he first loved us.”

Here are seven passages that show how God’s love for us causes us to love others.

From the Torah: Deuteronomy 24:1-22 (NIV)

From the Former Prophets: 2 Samuel 9:1-13 (NIV)

From the Latter Prophets: Hosea 3:1-6 (NIV)

From the Books of Wisdom and Poetry: Psalm 36:1-12 (NIV)

From the Late Books: 2 Chronicles 6:12-42 (NIV)

From the Gospels: Matthew 11:26-30 (NIV)

From the Epistles: Ephesians 1:15-23 (NIV)

From the Torah

When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbor, do not go into their house to get what is offered to you as a pledge. Stay outside and let the neighbor to whom you are making the loan bring the pledge out to you. If the neighbor is poor, do not go to sleep with their pledge in your possession. Return their cloak by sunset so that your neighbor may sleep in it. Then they will thank you, and it will be regarded as a righteous act in the sight of the Lord your God.

Do not take advantage of a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether that worker is a fellow Israelite or a foreigner residing in one of your towns. Pay them their wages each day before sunset, because they are poor and are counting on it. Otherwise they may cry to the Lord against you, and you will be guilty of sin.

Parents are not to be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their parents; each will die for their own sin.

Do not deprive the foreigner or the fatherless of justice, or take the cloak of the widow as a pledge. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. That is why I command you to do this.

When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this.

Deuteronomy 24:1-22

From the Former Prophets

David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

Now there was a servant of Saul’s household named Ziba. They summoned him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”

“At your service,” he replied.

The king asked, “Is there no one still alive from the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?”

Ziba answered the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is lame in both feet.”

“Where is he?” the king asked.

Ziba answered, “He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.”

So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.

When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor.

David said, “Mephibosheth!”

“At your service,” he replied.

“Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.”

Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”

Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s steward, and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.

Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.

2 Samuel 9:1-13

From the Latter Prophets

The Lord said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.”

So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley. Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way toward you.”

For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or household gods. Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.

Hosea 3:1-6

From the Books of Wisdom and Poetry

I have a message from God in my heart
    concerning the sinfulness of the wicked:
There is no fear of God
    before their eyes.

In their own eyes they flatter themselves
    too much to detect or hate their sin.
The words of their mouths are wicked and deceitful;
    they fail to act wisely or do good.
Even on their beds they plot evil;
    they commit themselves to a sinful course
    and do not reject what is wrong.

Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the skies.

 Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
    your justice like the great deep.
    You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.
How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
    People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house;
    you give them drink from your river of delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
    in your light we see light.

Continue your love to those who know you,
    your righteousness to the upright in heart.
May the foot of the proud not come against me,
    nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
See how the evildoers lie fallen—
    thrown down, not able to rise!

Psalm 36:1-12

From the Late Books

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands. Now he had made a bronze platform, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high, and had placed it in the center of the outer court. He stood on the platform and then knelt down before the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven.  He said:

“Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today.

“Now, Lord, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me according to my law, as you have done.’ And now, Lord, the God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David come true.

“But will God really dwell on earth with humans? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! Yet, Lord my God, give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence. May your eyes be open toward this temple day and night, this place of which you said you would put your Name there. May you hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place.  Hear the supplications of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place; and when you hear, forgive.

“When anyone wrongs their neighbor and is required to take an oath and they come and swear the oath before your altar in this temple, then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, condemning the guilty and bringing down on their heads what they have done, and vindicating the innocent by treating them in accordance with their innocence.

“When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you and when they turn back and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication before you in this temple, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to them and their ancestors.

“When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place and give praise to your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land you gave your people for an inheritance.

“When famine or plague comes to the land, or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers, or when enemies besiege them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come, and when a prayer or plea is made by anyone among your people Israel—being aware of their afflictions and pains, and spreading out their hands toward this temple—then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive, and deal with everyone according to all they do, since you know their hearts (for you alone know the human heart), so that they will fear you and walk in obedience to you all the time they live in the land you gave our ancestors.

“As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm—when they come and pray toward this temple, then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.

“When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray to you toward this city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name, then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

“When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to a land far away or near; and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captivity and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong and acted wickedly’; and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their captivity where they were taken, and pray toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and toward the temple I have built for your Name; then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their pleas, and uphold their cause. And forgive your people, who have sinned against you.

“Now, my God, may your eyes be open and your ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.

“Now arise, Lord God, and come to your resting place,
    you and the ark of your might.
May your priests, Lord God, be clothed with salvation,
    may your faithful people rejoice in your goodness.
Lord God, do not reject your anointed one.
    Remember the great love promised to David your servant.”

2 Chronicles 6:12-42

From The Gospels

At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.

“All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:26-30

From the Epistles

For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

Ephesians 1:15-23

HOPE! - Days of Future Present

The death of Christ is the ultimate example of God’s deep love for humanity, and His desire that everyone should be saved. When Christ did for us, he did so in humility. He was not weak – he was God after all. But he chose weakness. He became weak for our sake.

Why?

Because he wanted to redeem us. And not only us, but the entire cosmos as well. That which Christ assumed – he redeemed. He became the lowest of the low in order to save the lowest of the low.

Think about that.

God must really love us in order to show that kind of gentleness to us. God became a baby. God became a refugee. God became a boy doing what his parents told him to do. He was a brother to siblings who didn’t always believe in him. He showed up at weddings. He showed up at funerals. He worked a trade. He became homeless. He chose ordinary people and drop-outs to be his disciples. He befriended prostitutes and tax collectors. He showed compassion to his tormentors as he died on the cross – forgiving them. He died as a criminal, between two criminals, in order to redeem criminals. He “carried our diseases.”

What kind of a God would do all this?

A God who is gentle.

A God who comes along side us and suffers with us.

A God who gives us hope of the future age in the midst of our present suffering.

The pledge and guarantee of the age of the future is seen in the Christian message of hope and is written on our hearts by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit inside of us is the evidence we have of what is to come. We have become united with God through his Spirit which is in Christ, and in the future, at the final consummation, we will be fully united with God.

We have hope that this Kingdom that is breaking into the here and now will someday reach its fulfillment on earth as it is in heaven in completeness. Paul writes about this hope of the future age in many of his letters. In Romans he writes that the entire creation will be “liberated from its bondage to decay.” Paul indicates that we taste the coming age in the present through the Holy Spirit living inside of us.

He writes in Ephesians, “For he has made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth” (Eph. 1:9-10).

Living on Mission – The Gentle Act of Prayer

Living on Mission – The Gentle Act of Prayer

Prayer for others may be the gentlest act on earth. In heartfelt prayer we take our own strength, abilities, desires, plans, and needs and lay them aside as we focus on God’s will, His power, and His ways.

Will you join me right now and pray specifically for all those involved in our Encounter@PoC? Let’s use the words of this gentle, beautiful prayer in Ephesians to ask God to intervene in their lives in His mighty power.

“Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself.” (Ephesians 1:15-23)

Let’s practice Living on Mission through the Gentle Act of Prayer.

Pastor Angela

pray it: gentle in our time - ephesians 1:15-23

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers (Ephesians 1:15-16)

Scott Jackson leads the special focus of the month prayer group at PoC|Coverage.  Every month there is a new focus.  Once when we were talking, Scott mentioned how difficult it was as the new month rolled around, to say goodbye to the who and what we had been praying for, and hello to someone/something new.  You see, as we prayed for _______, we became endeared to them.  Thankful for them.  We wanted to keep praying for them.  God grew our love for them as we prayed.

I have found this to be true when I have prayed for PoC'ers extended family members.  When I finally meet them, it's like I'm greeting long-lost friends.  Because I had spent so much time in prayer for them, I felt like I knew them.  I loved them.

Today, we continue to put into practice what Jesus called his kids to do, and the very thing he modeled for us while on the cross:  prayer for those who antagonize us, while they are antagonizing us.  In addition to praying “from the cross,” which was our challenge last week, this week, we add a new challenge. 

This week’s prayer challenge:  while praying from the cross, pray for blessing.  Pray for “big picture blessing.”  In Luke 23:34, Jesus’ prayer is “Father, forgive them…” 

Do you have your eye on the biggest picture?  Drawing near to God… Salvation… Jesus certainly had his eye on the biggest picture of what really mattered.  Even in the midst of awful pain. 

Perhaps if we start our prayers there, all of the other stuff we’d like to see fall into place (such as less antagonizing behaviors) will decrease as the Holy Spirit takes up residence. 

Again, I just want to reiterate what I wrote last week.  Prayer for our "enemies" does not mean we "approve" of ______.  Our prayer speaks more about what we think of our Almighty, Grace-and-Mercy-Bestowing, Ever-Present, Saving, Forgiving, Transforming, and Restoring God.

Our God who is listening.

Our God who is in control.

Prayer endears people to us.  How do you feel about praying for “big picture blessings” for your antagonists?  Does it leave you unsettled or feeling less-than-gentle that people who have hurt you have the same forgiveness extended to them through Jesus as you do?  How do you feel that as you pray, you “run the risk” of becoming endeared to the very people who antagonize you?  Talk to Jesus about that now.  He’s listening.


Dear Jesus,
Please help us not be withholders of prayer, but instead to be fervent in prayer for those who are hurting us.  Please change our hearts so that we truly do want what you want, which is for everyone to come to know you, love you, and follow you with all their heart.
Amen.

PoC|Coverage is tonight at 6pm.  Join us! 

Pastor Celia