Freedom & Glorification
Tuesday, April 3, 2007 -- Holy Week
"Morning Reflections" is a brief thought about the scripture readings from the Daily Office of Morning and Evening Prayer according to the practice found in the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church.
Morning Prayer begins on p. 80 of the Book of Common Prayer.
Evening Prayer begins on p. 117
An online resource for praying the Daily Office is found at www.missionstclare.com
Another form of the office from Phyllis Tickle's "Divine Hours" is available on our partner web site www.ExploreFaith.org at this location -- http://explorefaith.org/prayer/fixed/index.html
Today's Readings for the Daily Office (p. 956)
Psalms 6, 12 (morning) 94 (evening)
Jeremiah 15:10-21
Philippians 3:15-21
John 12:20-26
"The hour has come," says Jesus.
John's Gospel consistently speaks of Jesus' death as his glorification. The time for Jesus' glorification has now come. "Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." Such an approach to death is the counterintuitive gift of Jesus. His perspective also becomes a life-giving approach to living. When we no longer cling possessively to life, we experience a liberation that allows us to live freely responsibly and defenselessly compassionate.
Paul speaks of similar things. "Our citizenship is in heaven," he says. Therefore he trusts that his experience of earthly humiliation "may be conformed to the body of (Christ's) glory." He offers an alternative, confident way of life -- no longer burdened by anxiety or consumed by exaggerated need, but free to serve and to love.
We see the anguished struggle of faithful living in Jeremiah's second complaint today. He lives in hard times and he is the bearer of bad news. His calling has caused him to be shunned by his community.
He pours out his heart to God with honest frankness: "Woe is me, my mother, that you ever bore me, a man of strife and contention to the whole land! ...I did not sit in the company of merrymakers, nor did I rejoice; under the weight of your hand I sat alone, for you have filled me with indignation. Why is my pain the unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed?" Then Jeremiah accuses God, "Truly, you are to me like a deceitful brook, like waters that fail."
Jeremiah does not protect God from his unseemly thoughts, and he does not fashion proper words to express to God the emotion of his heart. He speaks with direct honesty in prayer.
We hear the answer God gives Jeremiah. It has an element of scolding and an element of encouragement. "If you turn back, I will take you back, and you shall stand before me. If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall serve as my mouth." God promises to protect him from his enemies. He is given the strength he needs to live in hard times and be the bearer of bad news. He is given the freedom to serve and to love, to be freely responsible and defenselessly compassionate, to experience personally God's glorification.
Life is difficult. God is with us. Pain and struggle can be glorification.
Lowell
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posted by Lowell @ 7:19 AM
1 comments
1 Comments:
Jeremiah is modeling good prayer here. He is expressing his heart to God. God wants us to express our inner thoughts, though he already knows them.
Now the answer is interesting. "If" seems to be most important. It says "if not" then i will not take you back. God wants a faithful servant. He wants our hearts to truth him and not question him. Here is where we depart. You seem to think we should be faithful to something, whatever that is. I say we must be faithful to God and God alone.
As you said, God is with us, but in Jeremiah's case, it seems that God was not with him at this time or God would not have to take him back. Maybe there is a standard, a truth if you will. Reg
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