2 January 2011

Psalm 66, 67; Ecclus. 3:3-9,14-17; 1 John 2:12-17; John 6:41-47

The commandment to honor your father and mother is the only commandment with a blessing attached to it and it is the only one of the commandments concerning our neighbors that is based in a positive and not a negative. Malachi prophesied that Elijah would come before Messiah and part of his work would be to turn the hearts of the children to the parents and the parents to the children. Jesus, however, said that because of Him there would be enmity between children and parents. I am thankful that both my parents and Suzanne’s parents were/are Christian parents who made sure that we were in church among God’s people as children. The best way we can honor them is to do what they did with our children and raise them in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. His promises have always been to be faithful through many generations of those who revere His Name. How much more blessing we will receive by being faithful to Him.

Jesus honored both His earthly father and His heavenly Father in all His life. It was His one aim to bring glory to the Father. His mission was to glorify Him in all that He did and sometimes that made Him a pariah here on earth and likely caused people to further question Joseph and Mary. Here we see the Jews grumbling against Him as He refused to do their bidding in feeding them as He had done the day prior. Jesus refuses to do the bidding of any but the Father in spite of what it cost Him in popularity. He had a crowd of 5000+ the day before but His insistence on pleasing the Father and not the crowd cost Him all these with the exception of the twelve this day. His failure to live up to Judas’ expectations for Him would cost Him that one as well. Are we still asking Him to prove Himself to us and for us? Is our mission and aim to please and glorify the Father?

John warns against the love of the world. He writes to three sets of men, little children, fathers and young men. I don’t believe that he is speaking to these men in terms of their chronological age so much as in their spiritual maturity. He encourages those children by reminding them their sins are forgiven and they know the Father. The young men are encouraged to fight on as they have overcome the evil one. The fathers because they know Him who was from beginning, they are to remain steadfast in their faith. He also calls us to a spiritual existence, not fixing our eyes on the things of the world, the things that are passing away, but on those things eternal. It is difficult to live in the midst of abundance as we do and not allow our lives to be dominated and ruled by these things. The prayer today is actually one of our collects.

O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom
nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon
us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so
pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.