Thursday, March 12, 2009

Lenten Devotional 3-12-09


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Here is your daily Lenten meditation devotion. If you find it inspirational, we hope you will pass it along to your family and friends.

Thursday, March 12
John 5:19-29

Jesus said to them, 'Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise. The Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing; and he will show him greater works than these, so that you will be astonished. Indeed, just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whomsoever he wishes. The Father judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son, so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgment, but has passed from death to life.

'Very truly, I tell you, the hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself; and he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not be astonished at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and will come out-those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.

The Jews are outraged because Jesus is breaking Sabbath rules and is, in their perception, making himself equal to God. The readings for today and tomorrow are an answer to that outrage. In them, Jesus is addressing the following questions: Who am I? And Who are you (human beings) in light of me?

Who Jesus is can be answered by better understanding Jesus' relationship to God. Jesus is the child. God is his parent (Father for the point of this story). As the Son, Jesus is incapable of doing anything apart from the model of the Father's own work. This apprentice relationship of father and son are common in the Near Eastern culture of Jesus' time. Jesus makes it clear that he now shares in the life giving work of the parent and has complete freedom in the enactment of that work. The truth of this is seen in yesterday's story when Jesus healed the paralyzed man because he chose to, not because the man requested it.

Jesus is in the family business of giving life, whether that life is physical or spiritual. Who then are we in the light of who Jesus is? We are the apprentices to Jesus' own life. We are being "called" (or "asked") to join Jesus in making all of the small choices to love people unconditionally.

You and I are physical beings with a physical life that we can easily see is limited and often difficult. But Jesus is very clear that you and I are also spiritual beings with both limitless potential and eternal life. You and I are invited to live our lives by figuratively sitting at the feet of Jesus, learning the same lessons that his heavenly parent taught him. We are asked to choose to identify with our heavenly, eternal parent just as Jesus did, so that our relationship with our eternal parent can grow. We are called to both spiritual and physical action so that we, too, can apprentice others who will, by following our example, choose to do as we did, and strive to do as only Christ could do perfectly, bringing justice, love and peace to a world that sorely needs it.
cw

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