So is my job as pastor, devoted to the word of God, better
than any other? It certainly sounds so
in this passage from Ecclesiasticus or the Wisdom of Sirach, whichever you
prefer. All it truly means is that we
need people who are given to the work of understanding the Word of God if we
are to recognize the kingdom of God and differentiate it from the world. The writer acknowledges that there is a
purpose for all the other work that is done, if it is not done there is no
human society as we know it. For the
people of God, however, there is a need for a different type of society, one
that expresses the will of God for human society. When Martha fussed at Jesus about her sister
Mary not helping her with the chores that needed to be done to provide
hospitality, Jesus said that Mary had chosen the one thing needful, learning
the wisdom of God. In the older Prayer
Books, including the one I chose for my ordination to the priesthood, the
candidate is asked, " Will you be diligent in Prayers, and in reading the
Holy Scriptures, and in such studies as help to the knowledge of the same,
laying aside the study of the world and the flesh?" The most recent Prayer Book asks the
following, " Will you be diligent in the reading and study of the Holy
Scriptures, and in seeking the knowledge of such things as may make you a
stronger and more able minister of Christ?" Not quite the same is it? Which one fits better with the passage today?
Why division? Jesus
says he came to bring not peace but division and so He has. We believe that Jesus is the only way to
salvation, that we can "coexist" in this world but that if you don’t
put your faith in Jesus alone we won't coexist in the new creation because we
will be in different places. That is
called the scandal of particularity and it divides people. We should neither be surprised nor alarmed by
that truth, but simply pray for those who don't receive Him and stand firmly on
the truth. Part of interpreting the time
is the wisdom of sharing the Gospel truth in ways that connect with our
culture, knowing where the culture is looking for truth and answers, even in an
age that asks, "What is truth?"
That truth is a person actually fits that cultural question. Truth is not pragmatic, it didn't
"work" for Jesus, pragmatism wasn't His concern, eternity was. If we live consonant with truth we will be
salt and light.
It seems simple doesn't it?
One angel proclaims, “Fear God and give him glory,
because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and
earth, the sea and the springs of water.” The next proclaims the
destruction of Babylon due to sexual immorality (I thought that didn't really
matter - it seems that we may be out of step with culture here if we go with
the Word on what constitutes sexual immorality). The third proclaims that those who worship
the beast and accept His mark are doomed for all eternity. Simple choice to make except that it means,
potentially, starvation and death. Jesus
chose truth and says we are to follow Him.
The choice is plain, we are to "keep the commandments of God and
their faith in Jesus." That is
wisdom.
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