Luke 4:9-12
The devil brought Jesus into Jerusalem and stood him at the highest point of the temple. He said to him, “Since you are God’s Son, throw yourself down from here; for it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you’ and ‘they will take you up in their hands…’”
Jesus answered, “It has also been said, ‘Do not test the Lord your God.’”
This is the scripture that links with today’s reflection for this first Sunday in Lent, taken from our daily reading booklet, Into the Deep, from the God is Still Speaking devotional. Today’s reflection was written by Chris Mereschuk, a UCC pastor and consultant in church vitality. We’re going to read some of his thoughts on the meaning of these verses, then we’ll read a bit of reflection from someone else, and then, at our in-person church, we’ll talk a bit about what these thoughts and verses might mean to us. This will be our basic pattern for the Sundays through Lent.
Here is the beginning of Mereschuk’s meditation:
But the question is not always, “Will God catch me?” There is also the more present question, “Will we catch others at those times when they are falling down?
There was a piece posted on Facebook last week. A friend had reposted it but it was unclear who had been the original poster.
Anyway…there were two people involved here—one, to whom the initiating event had happened, and a second, who spoke about how the first person’s involvement affected them. I’m trying not to be too specific because I don’t want to get tangled up in the politics of the story, even though politics is what initiated the story. You’ll probably figure it out anyway – it’s fairly obvious.
So – one person—the storyteller’s next-door neighbor-- was a hard-core fan of a powerful political person – signs all over their yard, and flags, and very vocal about their support. But recently this same person was dropped-kicked out of their long-time job – with no warning--by the orders of the one they had supported for so long. They were in shock and mourning that this could have happened to them.
The storyteller had several friends (not the political person’s fans) who had also had their jobs cancelled and their lives turned upside down, so they were finding it difficult to scratch up any sympathy for the erstwhile fan who they felt had “brought it on themself.” (This would all be so much easier if I didn’t have to tip-toe around the politics!)
What does the Christian believer do in this situation? Jesus makes our expected response painfully clear several times in the bible:
We ask God to catch us when we are falling, but God doesn’t always do all the catching by God’s self. Sometimes other people are assigned the task of doing the catching. Sometimes we are given the job of catching someone else when they are falling. Even when we might just enjoy watch them fall because “they deserve it!”
We don’t have to act as if what they did was OK. We just need to do something to catch them when they are falling. Some bit of humanity that says “Yeah, we’ve all been known to screw up once in a while.” We don’t have to like them for it – that’s God’s part of the deal. The right or wrong of their actions is not up to you or me – only God-- and God wants all of us to be caught. And God wants them to be caught so they can be healed, just as any one of us was at some time in our lives caught and allowed time to learn to be better.
As our opening reading puts it, sometimes we, like Jesus, can find ourselves on that high place, teetering on the edge. We can choose the soul-death of hanging on to our fear or hatred or we can choose the life giving Kin-dom that is God’s gift for us when we allow ourselves to choose love, and our role in sharing it with others.
As I hope always to be caught when I’m falling, so I choose to play any part that God assigns me in helping to catch others. There is more than enough love to go around. There's no need to be stingy with it.
Here is the beginning of Mereschuk’s meditation:
- About 40 days from now in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus will beg God to spare him from death. God will be silent. Suffering on the cross the next day, Jesus will cry out in anguished abandonment. No angels will be commanded.
- What if Jesus knew from the start that’s how it would go, and that’s why he didn’t leap? Didn’t test God, not from obedient faith, but because of deep doubt that God would send angels to catch him? It’s painful—almost blasphemous, heretical—to think about. But maybe slightly relatable? (end quote)
But the question is not always, “Will God catch me?” There is also the more present question, “Will we catch others at those times when they are falling down?
There was a piece posted on Facebook last week. A friend had reposted it but it was unclear who had been the original poster.
Anyway…there were two people involved here—one, to whom the initiating event had happened, and a second, who spoke about how the first person’s involvement affected them. I’m trying not to be too specific because I don’t want to get tangled up in the politics of the story, even though politics is what initiated the story. You’ll probably figure it out anyway – it’s fairly obvious.
So – one person—the storyteller’s next-door neighbor-- was a hard-core fan of a powerful political person – signs all over their yard, and flags, and very vocal about their support. But recently this same person was dropped-kicked out of their long-time job – with no warning--by the orders of the one they had supported for so long. They were in shock and mourning that this could have happened to them.
The storyteller had several friends (not the political person’s fans) who had also had their jobs cancelled and their lives turned upside down, so they were finding it difficult to scratch up any sympathy for the erstwhile fan who they felt had “brought it on themself.” (This would all be so much easier if I didn’t have to tip-toe around the politics!)
What does the Christian believer do in this situation? Jesus makes our expected response painfully clear several times in the bible:
- You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. (Matt. 5:43-45)
- But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. (Luke 6:27-28)
We ask God to catch us when we are falling, but God doesn’t always do all the catching by God’s self. Sometimes other people are assigned the task of doing the catching. Sometimes we are given the job of catching someone else when they are falling. Even when we might just enjoy watch them fall because “they deserve it!”
We don’t have to act as if what they did was OK. We just need to do something to catch them when they are falling. Some bit of humanity that says “Yeah, we’ve all been known to screw up once in a while.” We don’t have to like them for it – that’s God’s part of the deal. The right or wrong of their actions is not up to you or me – only God-- and God wants all of us to be caught. And God wants them to be caught so they can be healed, just as any one of us was at some time in our lives caught and allowed time to learn to be better.
As our opening reading puts it, sometimes we, like Jesus, can find ourselves on that high place, teetering on the edge. We can choose the soul-death of hanging on to our fear or hatred or we can choose the life giving Kin-dom that is God’s gift for us when we allow ourselves to choose love, and our role in sharing it with others.
As I hope always to be caught when I’m falling, so I choose to play any part that God assigns me in helping to catch others. There is more than enough love to go around. There's no need to be stingy with it.
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