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Sir 27:30—28:7, 1 Tm 2:1-8
I have been examining my conscience about a few things and I’d
like to share. Every day in my life and
in social media I see people of all faiths and creeds up in arms about, well,
everything. I see priests and pastors of
all denominations lashing out about politics and dogma at each other. I see
people protesting one thing or another and fighting. It happens so much, and by people I respect,
that I began to feel like perhaps I was wrong-even sinning- by not participating
as well. It’s not like I don’t think things that are happening are wrong, I
do. I don’t agree with all government or
religious teachings. That said, there
are a few things that have prevented me from joining the culture of outrage,
and some of those are brought up in the first two readings from yesterday and
today, the other I will share after we examine the scripture.
Sir 27:30—28:7
Wrath and anger are
hateful things,
yet the sinner hugs
them tight.
The vengeful will
suffer the LORD's vengeance,
for he remembers their
sins in detail.
Forgive your
neighbor's injustice;
then when you pray,
your own sins will be forgiven.
Could anyone nourish
anger against another
and expect healing
from the LORD?
The first part of reading of Sirach slaps me in the face
every time I read it for many reasons.
It’s VERY human of us to be instantly angry whenever we see something we
perceive as wrong or unjust, yet this scripture spanks us. It’s not the only warning in the Holy
Scripture about this either. The Our
Father directly says, “Forgive us our trespasses AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO
TRESPASS AGAINST US.” Jesus taught us
that. He said directly, ask the Father
for forgiveness, but only to the level we forgive others. For ETERNAL reasons,
this is not something we can just pay lip service. To make this understanding a reality I
suggest an exercise. Write down
everything/person you hold anger against, and then circle the things you feel
you can’t forgive. Those are what you
are willing to go to hell for. Those
would be the things you’d be willing to hand over all your power and help you separate/cut/sever
your relationship with the Eternal God.
This is not because God desires it, He’s told us in a thousand different
ways, and shown us in the ultimate way, that He does not. This is because we consciously choose to
cling to what we have been told not to, and in doing so are disobedient. Meditating on that, kicks me in every tender
spot on my body, mind, and soul. Then I
see this connection….
1 Tm 2:1-8
Beloved:
First of all, I ask
that supplications, prayers,
petitions, and
thanksgivings be offered for everyone,
for kings and for all
in authority,
that we may lead a
quiet and tranquil life
in all devotion and
dignity.
This is good and
pleasing to God our savior,
who wills everyone to
be saved
and to come to
knowledge of the truth.
For there is one God.
There is also one
mediator between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus,
who gave himself as
ransom for all.
This was the testimony
at the proper time.
For this I was
appointed preacher and Apostle
(I am speaking the
truth, I am not lying),
teacher of the Gentiles
in faith and truth.
It is my wish, then,
that in every place the men should pray,
lifting up holy hands,
without anger or argument.
Timothy starts off instructing us to pray for EVERYONE. Pray for the kings and all people in any
authority. He encourages a life of tranquil devotion and dignity, and hints
that prayer and living the truth aid in leading people to salvation, because of
knowledge and truth. At the end he would
like to see us all lifting holy hands without anger or argument. Let’s put some historical context on
this. In Timothy’s time, Rome ruled and Caesar
was literally setting himself up to be worshipped as a god. They had temples to pagan gods. They had everything we had now, plus public “entertainment”
which included the slaughter of real people.
This was the time of all the apostles.
Not one of them encouraged anyone of the converts to go to the temple of
Ares and hold a sign telling the worshippers they were going to hell. Take it back a step, and Jesus himself didn’t
do that either. Jesus didn’t protest
Caesar, or Herod, or the pagan god makers.
Jesus did, because he had ultimate authority, deal with the internal
matter of people who claimed to be His Father’s people (the money changers in
the temple), but to every other injustice that was happening, He didn’t waste a
single word of protest. So how did He
and the apostle change the world? They changed it in love, forgiveness,
compassion in action, prayer, obedience, humility, love, and most of all….by
speaking, in all those ways, only what was true.
Wow.
That’s a far cry from how we handle our world most of the
time isn’t it? We share and re-share the
local/political/religious “idiot” and make no bones about call him/her out
about what an idiot they are. (Matthew
5:22 has something to say about that.) We
live in a culture of calling people out, when we should be the culture of
lifting people up. We have lost the understanding
that people won’t be pro-life (babies, themselves, elderly, sick, addicted,
disabled, black, white, red, yellow, Jewish, Gentile, slave, free, and all)
until they understand that EVERY life is precious to God, through God, and with
God. You can’t protest your way to that
understanding, you can only pray, teach, forgive, and love them there. The philosophy of “the beatings will continue
until moral improves” is the worlds, and we must be people of healing, truth,
love, and forgiveness, that is the Eternal.
One way, we are putting our will and ego on display, the other way we
are surrendering our will to give God control.
It’s an important difference.
Just some food for thought and prayer….
Almighty, and Heavenly
Father, I lay my ego and desires at the foot of the cross and ask that you
redeem them so that I may be obedient to your every wish and become a truth
spreader in this world in need of Your light.
In Jesus precious name, AMEN.
Here I am, Lord, send me!
Lisa Brandel
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