Category: Year B

All Saints Day (John 11:32-44)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
The Forerunners of Christ with Saints and Martyrs, by Fra Angelico, 15th century

When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone.

And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” (New Revised Standard Version)

Every year on the Christian Calendar, the Church commemorates the saints who have gone before us. This day provides an opportunity to acknowledge the spiritual reality that contemporary believers stand on the shoulders of those who lived and died before us. Those saints of yester year deserve our recognition.

Since many believers know little about Christian history, it is good to take the time and reflect on the contributions of our spiritual ancestors. Our own personal spiritual growth isn’t just something we did on our own; we owe a lot to the saints who preceded us, and made it possible for us to know Christ.

In our Gospel lesson for today, Mary’s brother Lazarus had died. She was distraught and mourned her loss. Jesus reminded Mary that physical death is not the end; it is a temporary move to a higher plan of existence, until we all share in the final resurrection of the dead together as believers.

Although dead, the saints we recognize and remember can still speak to us, making significant contributions to our lives. All sorts of books, including Holy Scripture, have timeless reminders of how to live in this world. And, for some Christian traditions, the saints of long ago still maintain a real interaction with us in the present.

Times may change, yet the basic nature of people does not. The saints of the past have incredible wisdom for us, if we will but listen.

The Raising of Lazarus, by John Reilly (1928-2010)

In this way, Lazarus serves as an example of one who has a unique, powerful, and compelling testimony. He speaks, not only actually in his post-resurrection awakening by Jesus, but also virtually in speaking to us through the text and from his historical and heavenly place.

The presence and testimony of Lazarus was incredibly real enough for the religious leaders to begin plotting Christ’s demise; and even planning to kill Lazarus, because of his powerful testimony.

There is a place for grief and tears, and a place for joy and celebration. It seems that too much of our present time is given to the lament which comes from loss. The death and then resurrection of Lazarus by Jesus is a foretaste of Christ’s return.

We, along with all of the saints of bygone eras, will share together in a great resurrection at the end of time.

The author of Hebrews understood this, and spoke about the saints’ anticipation. Even though their lives were often characterized by adversity and suffering, they were able to exercise patience and perseverance, knowing there is something better ahead, along with us:

Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were put to death by stoning; they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated—the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.

These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect. (Hebrews 11:36-40, NIV)

Death is our enemy. Each one of us will succumb to it. Even Lazarus, although dead and then raised to life, ended up dying again. Yet he, along with us, shall be raised immortal.

Until that glorious time, we need to keep going and enduring in this life. We are mortals, subject to all that mortality means for us. Death is that ever-present specter that continually lingers in the background of everyone’s life. The reality of death can upend us, either through the bereavement of loved ones, or through anxious thoughts of our own impending death.

Although Christ has won the war against our old enemy, the fight, however, is not yet over. We need to keep up a future orientation, as Jesus did, and as the faithful saints of the past did.

The risen Lord shall not only cry with us, but shall wipe away every tear, and make it so that we will never be put to shame.

This makes the Christian recognition of All Saints Day not only a remembrance of the past, but also a way of viewing the future. Let us, then, join with all the saints in looking forward to the day of Christ, and letting that perspective shape how we live today.

Beloved God, you deal with us kindly and in steadfast love. You lift up those bent over with heavy burdens, and sustain the weak and oppressed. Release us from our present anxious fears, so that we who hold fast to your commandments, may honor you with faith and patience for all that you have done for us, and will do for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Almighty Has Dealt Bitterly with Me (Ruth 1:18-22)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Statue of Ruth and Naomi, by Leonard Baskin (1922-2000)

When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.

So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women said, “Is this Naomi?” She said to them,

“Call me no longer Naomi;
    call me Mara,
    for the Almighty has dealt bitterly with me.
I went away full,
    but the Lord has brought me back empty;
why call me Naomi
    when the Lord has dealt harshly with me
    and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”

So Naomi returned together with Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, who came back with her from the country of Moab. They came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest. (New Revised Standard Version)

A famine in Judah had brought Naomi and her husband Elimelech to the country of Moab. While there, they had two sons who eventually married two Moabite women: Orpah and Ruth. Over time, each of the husbands died, leaving Naomi and her two daughters-in-law as widows.

Naomi heard that things were finally better in her native Judah. So, she decided to go there, alone. Naomi encouraged her daughters-in-law to remain with their own people and remarry. Orpah did so. Ruth, however, wasn’t having it.

Ruth was determined to stay with her mother-in-law – which meant that she would enter Judah as a foreigner. Despite Naomi’s insistence that Ruth do what is best for herself, Ruth stuck with Naomi.

Once they arrived, the people of Naomi’s hometown were surprised to see the two of them. Naomi was not shy about communicating her bitterness in losing a husband and two sons. She commented that God had turned against her and made her life hard and bitter.

In saying that the Lord had emptied her and brought calamity, Naomi was not speaking against God. Rather, Naomi was expressing some significant theology that has become lost to many modern day Christians around the globe.

Ruth and Naomi, by Morris Nathanson (1927-2022)

I believe that Ruth was not expressing something malevolent about God, but rather made a statement of faithful recognition, not unlike what Job had to say when he lost his family and his health:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Job 1:21, NRSV)

No one can escape the dark side of life. Yet, we can deal with that darkness intelligently. It is most necessary to be aware that light creates a shadow that was not there before. The bigger and brighter the light, the bigger and darker the shadow.

There is a centuries old idiom which says, “You can’t have your cake, and eat it, too!” This is a proverbial way of saying that we cannot expect everything to always be good in this life; we must also accept that we cannot always have our way, and that we will go without, experiencing loss.

Whether we want to acknowledge it, or not, an integral part of life is receiving some bad things from God. The Lord does not just go around dispensing everyone’s wishes and making everything a utopia of unicorns and butterflies.

God is most certainly benevolent; yet God also brings darkness to people. We cannot have the Light of the world without experiencing the world’s darkness. Another way of stating this is that a very big God creates quite a large shadow.

In Christianity, the predominant symbol is the cross. The Cross of Christ is both light and dark. Christians may reflexively associate the cross with salvation from sin, while forgetting that the cross is an instrument of torture and death, a tool of execution, like an electric chair.

We must honor the axis crossing at the center of the cross. It is the place of equilibrium, the place of wholeness, where we have the opportunity of integrating all of that unwanted grief and loss into our lives. Failing to do this, let alone neglecting to acknowledge the shadowy places of our hearts, brings harm and hurt to ourselves and to the world.

Naomi acknowledged the shadow. She accepted the darkness, which enabled her to return to her homeland of Judah, the very place where the God of light and dark is worshiped.

I’m not talking about the sort of darkness that is malevolent and mean-spirited, the darkness which comes from Satan. I’m talking about the darkness which weans us away from all things and the ways that hinder us from knowing God.

This is what St. John of the Cross was referring to in naming the dark night of the soul. In our quest to experience union with God, we journey through the darkness, and learn that purification isn’t simply putting something impure away. Purity of heart comes through joining with the God who is pure love itself.

“In the dark night of the soul, bright flows the river of God.”

St. John of the Cross

God loves us so much as to be nailed to a cross and suffer darkness. The Christian is to take up their cross and follow Jesus. That is, we embrace the darkness with an honest engagement of God and God’s world, and through a vulnerable assessment of our own shadow.

For if we fail to acknowledge our shadow, we shall fail to be in union with God.

Not only do many people disown the parts of themselves they don’t like, but they do the same with God – thus making God into their own image of how God should be, instead of taking God as God is.

If you have ears to hear, take this to heart: To accept and honor your own shadow is a profound and necessary spiritual discipline. By “shadow” I mean all of the characteristics of myself that I withhold from others, so that they will only see what I want them to see.

We often put a false self out into the world, for others to see. It is a sort of psychological clothing we wear, much as we have actual clothing. Whether the clothes are real or metaphorical, we dress ourselves in the particular way we want to be seen.

Naomi was a true Israelite, showing her honest true self. There was no separation or division between the inner self and the self she presented to others.

I tend to think that Naomi knew something about God that many don’t know today – and was therefore able to be faithful to both her people and her God.

It is no wonder, then, that Ruth wanted to remain with her mother-in-law Naomi, who was a real person acknowledging the real God.

Almighty God and Father, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen: You are the God of light who illumines our way. And You are the God of darkness who is shadowed in mystery. In knowing You, may I know myself; and in knowing myself, may I more fully know You. Amen.

Accountability Is Real, and It Matters (Ezekiel 14:12-23)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, if a country sins against me by being unfaithful and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its food supply and send famine upon it and kill its people and their animals, even if these three men—Noah, Daniel and Job—were in it, they could save only themselves by their righteousness, declares the Sovereign Lord.

“Or if I send wild beasts through that country and they leave it childless and it becomes desolate so that no one can pass through it because of the beasts, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if these three men were in it, they could not save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved, but the land would be desolate.

“Or if I bring a sword against that country and say, ‘Let the sword pass throughout the land,’ and I kill its people and their animals, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if these three men were in it, they could not save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved.

“Or if I send a plague into that land and pour out my wrath on it through bloodshed, killing its people and their animals, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if Noah, Daniel and Job were in it, they could save neither son nor daughter. They would save only themselves by their righteousness.

“For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: How much worse will it be when I send against Jerusalem my four dreadful judgments—sword and famine and wild beasts and plague—to kill its men and their animals! 

“Yet there will be some survivors—sons and daughters who will be brought out of it. They will come to you, and when you see their conduct and their actions, you will be consoled regarding the disaster I have brought on Jerusalem—every disaster I have brought on it. You will be consoled when you see their conduct and their actions, for you will know that I have done nothing in it without cause, declares the Sovereign Lord.” (New International Version)

Stained glass of the three righteous men: Daniel, Job, and Noah

No person, group, institution, or nation can act unjustly forever. The prophet Ezekiel made it clear that everyone will be held accountable for injustice and wickedness, for crimes against humanity and against God.

Furthermore, there is no nation or group which can rely on a few persons who do right, while the rest of the people swim in injustice and unrighteousness. Righteous persons save only themselves; they cannot make decisions and take over the life of another person.

Ezekiel wanted to make sure his listeners got the message of individuals only saving themselves, and not riding on the coattails of others. The prophet went out of his way to communicate that each individual person will be held responsible for their own actions; they will be judged on what they themselves have done, and not what another has or has not done.

Even the family of a righteous person will not be spared divine judgment because of that individual’s righteousness. One shall be held accountable for what that one has done, period.

Specifically, in the text, God was ready to execute judgment on Jerusalem. War, wild animals, famine, and disease would come upon them because of unfaithfulness, injustice, and unrighteousness.

Just because the city had the temple, this would not save them. Just because there are a few righteous persons in the city, they would not save it. Just because a close loved one is faithful and righteous, will not mean that God would spare the city.

A few good works of a few people, do not cancel out pervasive and consistent evil which is perpetrated by many people. Each person is responsible for their own behavior. No one gets a pass, simply because they know certain people and are well-connected.

Evil is evil, no matter whether it is perpetrated by believers or unbelievers. No nation, and no person, is off the hook; all persons will be held accountable for doing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God.

Even if three of the most righteous persons show up – Noah, Daniel, and Job, who were famous for their moral integrity – their combined righteousness and faithfulness would not keep away divine judgment from happening in an immoral and unethical society. Only those three alone would be delivered.

There is no such thing as salvation by proxy. Each individual person must work on themselves, without blaming others, inordinately depending on others, nor ignoring God and wishing God did not see, or does not exist at all.

Evil persons do not get any preferential treatment from God, just because they have a prominent position or are famous. The Lord, as Sovereign of the universe, has every right to exact divine retribution. And God will do it without showing favoritism.

Just as God shows mercy without prejudice, so will God extend judgment without any prejudice.

The presence of great light means that there is also the presence of great darkness. If we want a great God of love and mercy, then we must also accept the God of wrath and judgment; and vice versa.

We are made in God’s image, and not the other way around. It is our task to submit to the high, holy, and sovereign Lord of all. It is not God’s job to be the divine Santa Claus who submits to us. The Lord is no divine genie who we can keep in a bottle, and summon whenever we so desire.

No matter one’s theology or spirituality, everyone discerns that they are to be responsible in this life, and are accountable to forces greater than themselves.

This is one of those universal realities that all of us need to sync our lives with – or suffer the consequences.

Almighty God and Sovereign Lord of all, I embrace my accountability to you. Forgive me for when I live as though I need not give an account of what I said and did. I affirm that I am accountable for how I treat others; and I realize that what I do to others, positive or negative, I am doing to you, their Creator. Sustain me in faith and patience, I pray. Amen.

I Am Responsible and Accountable (Ezekiel 18:1-32)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

The word of the Lord came to me: “What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel:

“‘The parents eat sour grapes,
    and the children’s teeth are set on edge’?

“As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. For everyone belongs to me, the parent as well as the child—both alike belong to me. The one who sins is the one who will die.

“Suppose there is a righteous man
    who does what is just and right.
He does not eat at the mountain shrines
    or look to the idols of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife
    or have sexual relations with a woman during her period.
He does not oppress anyone,
    but returns what he took in pledge for a loan.
He does not commit robbery
    but gives his food to the hungry
    and provides clothing for the naked.
He does not lend to them at interest
    or take a profit from them.
He withholds his hand from doing wrong
    and judges fairly between two parties.
He follows my decrees
    and faithfully keeps my laws.
That man is righteous;
    he will surely live,
declares the Sovereign Lord.

“Suppose he has a violent son, who sheds blood or does any of these other things (though the father has done none of them):

“He eats at the mountain shrines.
He defiles his neighbor’s wife.
He oppresses the poor and needy.
He commits robbery.
He does not return what he took in pledge.
He looks to the idols.
He does detestable things.
He lends at interest and takes a profit.

Will such a man live? He will not! Because he has done all these detestable things, he is to be put to death; his blood will be on his own head.

“But suppose this son has a son who sees all the sins his father commits, and though he sees them, he does not do such things:

“He does not eat at the mountain shrines
    or look to the idols of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.
He does not oppress anyone
    or require a pledge for a loan.
He does not commit robbery
    but gives his food to the hungry
    and provides clothing for the naked.
He withholds his hand from mistreating the poor
    and takes no interest or profit from them.
He keeps my laws and follows my decrees.

He will not die for his father’s sin; he will surely live. But his father will die for his own sin, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother and did what was wrong among his people.

“Yet you ask, ‘Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?’ Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live. The one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against them.

“But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live; they will not die. None of the offenses they have committed will be remembered against them. Because of the righteous things they have done, they will live. Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?

“But if a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked person does, will they live? None of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness they are guilty of and because of the sins they have committed, they will die.

“Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear, you Israelites: Is my way unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust? If a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin, they will die for it; because of the sin they have committed they will die. But if a wicked person turns away from the wickedness they have committed and does what is just, and right, they will save their life. Because they consider all the offenses they have committed and turn away from them, that person will surely live; they will not die. Yet the Israelites say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Are my ways unjust, people of Israel? Is it not your ways that are unjust?

“Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live! (New International Version)

Every single one of us is accountable to one another for what we say and how we conduct ourselves. Above all, we are accountable to God for our motives, words, and actions in this life.

The flipside to stating that we are accountable, is saying that none of us are responsible for another person’s intentions, words, or actions.

Other people may influence us. We may be either participants in or victims of another’s actions. Some folks might take credit for something another person said or did. Yet, ultimately, we are responsible for our own life.

Whatever I think, say, or do is on me, period.

What’s more, one’s past actions do not replace our current actions. The prophet Ezekiel emphasized individual responsibility and accountability. All of the other Old Testament prophets addressed whole nations, and not individuals. They denounced the social, economic, and political systems and institutions, upholding communal ideals of justice.

Ezekiel communicated that children shall not be punished for their parent’s sins. Only the person who sins will face judgment.

A person ought only to pay for their own sins; punishment should not carry forward to future generations. The prophet also insisted that each individual person has the opportunity to change their behavior, and so, avoid their deserved penalty.

Every individual has the opportunity to change their personal ways of injustice or unrighteousness. For those who refuse, there is a and right and just Judge who knows how to dispense what is needed for each person – whether it is judgment to the arrogant, comfort to a victim, or justice for the underprivileged.

God cares that every person on earth receives what they need to thrive and flourish in this life. And to those who don’t give a wit about others, the Lord gives an opportunity to turn from arrogance and change.

Refusing to change, however, will end badly for the stubborn person.

The prophet Ezekiel calls on individuals to speak and act in ways that are helpful, not harmful. And whenever one harms another, that one must acknowledge the irresponsibility, because I am held accountable for what I say and do.

All words and actions come with consequences. It would do us a lot of good to consider how what we say and do (or fail to say and do) impacts the next generation of people. Everyone leaves a legacy of some sort – whether good or bad – so we need to be aware of how we live.

Each person must take up the mantle to do good, not evil; and to live righteously, not wickedly. Living selfishly with impunity leads to divine judgment. Yet, mercy is always there, if we seek to amend our ways.

Conversely, living righteously, and then resting on my laurels and living however I want, does not inoculate me from divine judgment.

You and I must live one day at a time, trusting God and seeking the welfare of others. And when I mess up, I am to keep a short account with God by admitting my fault and receiving grace.

We humans have quite enough responsibility in our lives without taking on the extra job of exacting judgment on another person. If we live a righteous life to begin with, then there is no need for a new heart and life.

Yet, if I need it, a new existence is there, through a change of direction which humility grants us.

Almighty God, help me to prioritize your values, and put my faith into action. Enable me to use the talents, resources, and time with which I have been blessed. Empower me to serve my community and my world. May I serve you always, and pray with a joyful spirit. Amen.