Ordinary Time Week 2

Psalm: Psalm 138 or Psalm 130
Old Testament: 1 Samuel 8:4-11, 12-15, 16-20,
  11:14-15 or Genesis 3:8-15
Gospel: Mark 3:20-35
Epistle: 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1

Today marks the second week of Ordinary Time, but since last Sunday was Trinity Sunday, it feels like the proper start to Ordinary Time. For some of you it may also feel like summer has begun, but here on the coast we are still mild and nice. I must confess that after reading our 4 passages today there is very little connection between them. One the one hand we have the finding and anointing of King Saul and then in the Gospel reading Jesus embarrassing his family and his teaching about where his authority comes from. Then a Psalm about the Lord's favor and Paul's words about being more concerned about the inward unseen things then the outward visual things. So at first reading, my question was why these 4 passages? I have been thinking about this for a few days and I still haven't come up with an answer so I would love some insight into the matter if any of you have any.

So I think this week we will just discuss the Old Testament reading because it is pretty interesting. In 1 Samuel we have the demand by the people of Israel for an earthly king. They wanted someone to rule them like the other nations around them had. Up until this point the people had judges, priests and the high priests who all acted as agents of the covenant and under the Law set down my Moses. God was their true King and Lord. The Covenant barely makes a provision for an earthly king over Israel. In Deuteronomy chapter 17 Moses says:

Moreover, he [the king] shall not multiply horses for himself, nor shall he cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, since the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall never again return that way.’ He shall not multiply wives for himself, or else his heart will turn away; nor shall he greatly increase silver and gold for himself.

Compare that to some of the words that Samuel says when he tries to persuade the people from demanding a king:

 ...he will take your sons and place them for himself in his chariots and among his horsemen...He will take the best of your fields and your vineyards and your olive groves and give them to his servants. He will take a tenth of your seed and of your vineyards and give to his officers and to his servants...He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his servants. 

 The words of Moses and Samuel seem more like a prescription or manual for the kings to follow than the warning they were intended to be. The kings of Israel and Judah would do pretty much everything the Lord commanded them not to do. One thing I noticed in reading these passages was that the kings took the place of the Lord in terms of the people's tithe. The king demanded 10% of the people's wealth like the Lord's tithe. The kings basically took the place that the Lord had previously. They became the commander of the Army, whereas previously Yahweh was the Divine Warrior and Deliver in the conquest of the land. The tithe was prescribed to the priests and the Lord; now an additional tithe was owed the king. The tabernacle was the center of Israelite worship and it moved around the land; now the kings would build a palace and temple located in Jerusalem.

I don't know to what extent we should say that the monarchy was not God's original purpose and to what extent it was his plan for Israel from the beginning. Clearly God, and Moses, knew it was coming. But it also seems like God would have liked to remain as the sole King of his people. I haven't worked through all the implications of either option yet, but one thing is clear to me: In Jesus, the Kingship of Israel was restored back to God. Jesus is the descendent of David and in him the Kingship became all that God intended it to be from the beginning. This is partially what is happening with the Kingdom of God/Heaven language in the Gospels. God is bringing his Kingdom to earth with Jesus as the King. It will fulfill and perfect all of the original purposes and plans of God's Kingdom in Israel. To begin with, it will be a light to the nations and draw other people in. No longer will Jew or Greek, male or female, slave or master matter. In the new Kingdom God is setting up, all will be under the rule of Jesus and his love will be what rules it.

I wish our Gospel reading this week had a direct reference to the Kingdom of God, but really all of Jesus' teaching touched on what Jesus' Kingdom is like. In our reading today Jesus redefines what it means to be a part of his family. loyalty, privilege, responsibility, and all the other things we think about when we think about family no longer apply just to one's biological family. In God's Kingdom, family is redefined as those who are following the King--Jesus. I think we all understand this in principle, but that doesn't mean it isn't hard in practice, like so many other things Jesus teaches about his Kingdom.

So to wrap this up somehow, I guess the message is to let God be King of our lives. Don't try to put anything else in his place. As preachers sometimes say in holiness sermons, "Make God Savior and Lord (King)" of your life! Allow God to not only save you, but also have reign over all that you are. May God's Spirit help us as we seek first his Kingdom.

Grace and Peace.