Daily Liturgy and Scripture

God wants to do what only God can do; he doesn't want us to try and substitute lesser things in his place. Jesus also wanted his disciples to learn the way that only he could show, and in today's reading they miss the point a couple times. He still entrusted them with his mission, as is the church still. Certainly we still miss the point, but our creator has not made a plan B, nor does he need to.

Remember what God has done for you, remember the legacy you're a part of as a member of his Kingdom. In today's Psalm, the writer remembers. In Isaiah, the prophet pours out volumes of God's faithfulness through the generation to his people. And in Luke, Jesus is handing over the work of ministry -- a legacy his church continues today -- by sending them out two by two, without ample supplies. In all of these cases, God provides. We must hold tight to what God has given us, remembering it especially in leaner times.

Today Jesus gives us a story of several types of seed growth, showing the different ways that the Kingdom impacts the lives of those who hear about it. Hearing these is a good opportunity for us to stop and consider whether we are receiving and growing.

The importance of hospitality shouldn't be understated. In Jesus' time, it was a cultural no-no to treat guests in your house badly, and yet that seems to be how Jesus was treated. Enter the penitent woman who makes an extravagant gesture, then humbles herself completely. Of course, we cannot always wipe our guests' feet with our hair, but we can certainly mirror the humility of the woman with the perfume instead of the carelessness of the host, Simon. To do so is to live in the Kingdom.

There are two interesting approaches to legacy between Isaiah and Luke. In Isaiah, Hezekiah sets the stage for the eventual downfall of his kingdom by bragging about his rich to Babylon. Eventually, Babylon would take all those riches for themselves. In Luke, the disciples of John the Baptist approach Jesus, who both affirms their belief that he is the Messiah and defends John to the critics. If we can manage to get over ourselves, honor what others have done, and remain humble, we have found the heard of God. If we choose to be braggarts, it may be that Babylon will eventually wreck our kingdom.

Today, the Psalmist and King Hezekiah are both crying out fervently to God. In Hezekiah's case, God answers. Years are added to Hezekiah's life not because of this one magic moment in prayer, but because Hezekiah's life had been defined by prayer. Knowing God well is the key to calling on God in your time of need. And then Jesus hears the cry of someone outside his Jewish circles to save someone close to him. Jesus also answers, commending him for his faith. We shouldn't be afraid to cry out to God in our time of need, but we must remember to stay engaged with God in times where life is normal.

Today in Isaiah, King Hezekiah comes through. God says, "Trust me, not the powers," and he does. God delivers his people. In Luke, Jesus is doing a different sort of delivery: he is pronouncing the castoffs, the left-outs and the rejects blessed, but the rich and prosperous as suffering. Surely people thought Jesus was crazy as he said this. And maybe that's the common thread in today's verses: two guys who probably made unpopular decisions (I can just hear Hezekiah's military yell in outrage as he said his strategy was to wear burlap and pray), but who nevertheless found God's blessing. May we be just crazy enough to trust God with our well-being also.

The connection between Sabbath and healing is no coincidence, they are deeply connected. Just as Jesus performed many healing miracles on the Sabbath, so are we still healed by it today. It is still a day to put ourselves in God's hands, allowing ourselves to be reformed and transformed.

It was a big deal for Jesus to claim to forgive sin. This raised the ire of the religious leaders; obviously this was something only God could do. But why wait to show that he was God? Why tell people so often to avoid revealing his divinity, and then choose to reveal it like this? Because Jesus chooses to be defined by making the broken whole again. This wasn't a God who showed up and started barking out orders, incinerating everyone who stood in his path. This was a God who became like us so that we could become closer to him.