Old Testament: 1 Samuel 16:1-13 Gospel: John 9:1-41
Epistle: Ephesians 5:8-14
I Hope this Lenten season continues to be a time of reflection for you and a time to draw closer to the Lord. I was thinking as I write this how at least in my evangelical church, we had an Ash Wednesday service and we will do a Good Friday service, but there has been no mention of Lent on the Sundays between the two. There is no recognition or any attempt to carry the themes of Ash Wednesday and Lent throughout the season. In my mind, this does a disservice to the season of Lent, and makes me wonder why we bother with an Ash Wednesday or Good Friday service to begin with. It's not like the church doesn't know how to celebrate a season! It may be securulaized in some churches, and it may not always be called Advent, but most churches celebrate the Sundays between Thanksgiving and Christmas as something special. So we can sustain a season beyond just one Sunday. That is enough of a rant for today, but after the forth Sunday in Lent in my church, I for one am wondering what the point of the Ash Wednesday service even was.
Turning towards our reading this week, I am struggling to find any connections between the four passages, especially as they relate to Lent. Three years ago when we read these passages I talked about the idea of anointing: David is anointed as king and Jesus is anointed as Messiah. Of course that idea still carries weight and the question of that week was what or how is God anointing, or calling, us to.
I want to reflect on the story of David as well this year. The narrative of God's people as told in the Old Testament is really a fascinating story. I know there was a movie made about Jesus called The Greatest Story Ever Told, but nothing can beat the plot twists, false starts, unexpected side stories, and quite honestly the sometimes bizarre things that happened in the Old Testament and the story of Israel (of which Jesus is the surprise culmination).
One such strange development is the calling of David. We have in our mind Kind David as the giant slayer, the musician, the perfect body as idealized by Michelangelo. He is immortalized, as the archetypal king from whence the Messiah would come to restore Israel to its former glory as under David. But our story today happens way before that, when David is just a poor shepherd boy that doesn't even get invited to the party. We are probably all familiar with the story. Saul, the first king of Israel, has been rejected by God for disobedience and the Lord sends Samuel to the house of Jesse in Bethlehem to choose the next king. This in itself is noteworthy for the very fact that it is not noteworthy at all. Bethlehem is a not to important town at the time. Jesse isn't known for any reason before this and his ancestors weren't leaders or prophets in Israel. David's mother is never even mentioned in the whole Old Testament. So it is entirely unexpected that God would send Samuel to Jesse's house and then that he would pick the youngest of eight sons to be anointed as the new king of Israel. The events that follow this in the life of David are just as unexpected and provide much drama and fascination.
The "Story of God" at work in Israel --using human agents-- is remarkable. If anything we should be reminded that God can use anyone to accomplish his plans. Things may take a winding and unexpected route, but ultimately God's plan for his people and indeed all of creation will be brought about. God is just looking for obedient people. We don't have to be perfect or have it all together; we just have to be willing to say yes! Let us be willing to follow Christ wherever and however he calls us.
Grace and peace.
No comments:
Post a Comment