Thursday, January 26, 2006

Good Morning

Today's Reading:  Revelation 2:1-7

-- long section today -- 16 pages -- about this letter. 

-- starting on the first of the seven letters to the churches.  Note that each letter is not that long, but they are all rebukes to the churches for something that they have done or failed to do.  Note that while these letters are written to specific churches that actually existed, the symbolism that surrounds these letters that we discussed makes it clear that these letters are to the whole church, up to our day.

-- along those lines, one of the things to imagine/project onto these letters to the churches is to imagine that they are addressed to us at Pleasant Hill, and how that might change how we would read them.

-- there were two thoughts from Barclay's commentary and the scripture that particularly stuck with me.

-- one was the idea that Christ is among the churches, and is intimately aware of what is going on.  In this letter (and I imagine in the others) Jesus is talking about specific events and problems and moods within a specific church.  When we talk about Christ being present in our church, this passage gives us a whole new perspective on what that really means -- he really knows what is going on at every church, and at our church.

-- the second is the idea that the church at Ephesus had "forsaken your first love" - that was what Jesus was rebuking them for.  Barclay's analysis says that he thinks that this could have two meanings -- one, that they had lost their initial zeal for the faith; the second, that they had lost their love for each other.  It just seems to me that there is a simpler, more obvious meaning -- I think that they had lost their love of Christ -- they were still working as a church, but they had lost their love of, and their focus on, Christ.  I think that they had failed to keep Christ first in all they were doing, and they were caught up in the other distractions that come with a church -- the social networks, the building, the organization, etc.  Our first love as Christians is Christ, and we need not forget him, which is what Jesus is saying to Ephesus and to all of us.

Today's Scripture

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.

Ephesians 5:8-10

Today's prayer requests:     Margaret Rose Severance

Brigette's grandmother, who has been battling complications from a fall last summer that resulted in a broken leg.  She went back to the hospital this week as part of her recovery, but she needs our prayers to help her recover more fully from the broken leg and the complications and the immobility that has resulted.

Today's class member prayer:

Susanne Russell

Have a great day.

Jay