Seeing with different eyes
Luke 1:68-79
Malachi 3:13-18
Philippians 1:18b-26
Sometimes it is difficult to remember that what is right before our eyes is not all there is. Looking solely at the society Malachi was writing to, it would seem things were not so great. From yesterday's reading, sorcerery, adulterery, lying, oppressing hired workers by not paying them fairly, not caring for widows and orphans, and denying foreigners justice was common practice. God explicitly states that these are all things that will be subject to His judgement. Today we read that the arrogant (read those who see themselves above God or without need for God) prospered and were called blessed by those around them. As a result, the general society collectively wondered why it was worth following God. Why try to live a holy life if it didn't pay off? Where was this god anyway?
Sound familiar? Frankly, I think it sounds a lot familiar.
Jumping to Philippians, we find Paul in jail, from where he is writing his letter to the Philippians. He has been imprisoned for preaching the Gospel, and a Roman jail is not a pleasant place to be. There is more than enough reason for Paul to believe this is it; he may very well die there. From the outside looking in, this seems pretty dire.
Paul sees things with different eyes; everything is not as it appears. Paul tells the Philippians that there have been good things happening because he is in jail. Contrary to what one would expect, this has been helpful for sharing the Gospel and not the other way. Paul doesn't even see his potential death as something negative. Paul has met Jesus on the road to Emmaus, and Paul cannot wait to be back in Jesus' presence. He is clear that being in Jesus' presence is actually what he prefers.
Paul sees things with different eyes. The small group of faithful in Malachi's time saw things with different eyes. Malachi says they feared the LORD. Fearing the Lord is so much more than just shaking in your boots and hoping that you won't be noticed. Fearing is more understanding the scope of who God is... His holiness, power, righteousness... and also understanding how we compare to that. Fearing the Lord reorders the universe into its correct order.
So much of what is going on we don't see or perceive. It's like one of my favorite stories about the prophet Elisha in 2 Kings 6. Elisha and his servant are in a city surrounded by a beseiging army. Elisha's servant is dismayed and wondering how on earth they are going to survive. Elisha tells him that there is so much more going on and prays that he (his servant) will see what's really going on. Elisha's servant then sees things he didn't see before... the mountains around the city was surrounded by horses and chariots of fire. God's horses and chariots of fire. Elisha and his servant were not alone.
The faithful in Malachi's time were not alone.
Paul was not alone.
We are not alone.
And there will be a day when the right order of things is reestablished. The process has been started. It started with a baby born in Bethlehem.
Malachi 3:13-18
Philippians 1:18b-26
Sometimes it is difficult to remember that what is right before our eyes is not all there is. Looking solely at the society Malachi was writing to, it would seem things were not so great. From yesterday's reading, sorcerery, adulterery, lying, oppressing hired workers by not paying them fairly, not caring for widows and orphans, and denying foreigners justice was common practice. God explicitly states that these are all things that will be subject to His judgement. Today we read that the arrogant (read those who see themselves above God or without need for God) prospered and were called blessed by those around them. As a result, the general society collectively wondered why it was worth following God. Why try to live a holy life if it didn't pay off? Where was this god anyway?
Sound familiar? Frankly, I think it sounds a lot familiar.
Jumping to Philippians, we find Paul in jail, from where he is writing his letter to the Philippians. He has been imprisoned for preaching the Gospel, and a Roman jail is not a pleasant place to be. There is more than enough reason for Paul to believe this is it; he may very well die there. From the outside looking in, this seems pretty dire.
Paul sees things with different eyes; everything is not as it appears. Paul tells the Philippians that there have been good things happening because he is in jail. Contrary to what one would expect, this has been helpful for sharing the Gospel and not the other way. Paul doesn't even see his potential death as something negative. Paul has met Jesus on the road to Emmaus, and Paul cannot wait to be back in Jesus' presence. He is clear that being in Jesus' presence is actually what he prefers.
Paul sees things with different eyes. The small group of faithful in Malachi's time saw things with different eyes. Malachi says they feared the LORD. Fearing the Lord is so much more than just shaking in your boots and hoping that you won't be noticed. Fearing is more understanding the scope of who God is... His holiness, power, righteousness... and also understanding how we compare to that. Fearing the Lord reorders the universe into its correct order.
So much of what is going on we don't see or perceive. It's like one of my favorite stories about the prophet Elisha in 2 Kings 6. Elisha and his servant are in a city surrounded by a beseiging army. Elisha's servant is dismayed and wondering how on earth they are going to survive. Elisha tells him that there is so much more going on and prays that he (his servant) will see what's really going on. Elisha's servant then sees things he didn't see before... the mountains around the city was surrounded by horses and chariots of fire. God's horses and chariots of fire. Elisha and his servant were not alone.
The faithful in Malachi's time were not alone.
Paul was not alone.
We are not alone.
And there will be a day when the right order of things is reestablished. The process has been started. It started with a baby born in Bethlehem.
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