Contemplations

2007-03-12T08:49:00.001-07:00

Contemplation #253
Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men, to be seen by them. Matthew 6:1

After this instruction Jesus mentions giving to the needy, prayer, and fasting. These are acts out of righteousness rather than acts which bring or earn righteousness. If anyone wants to imagine what righteousness means, it certainly includes these practices. Giving to the needy, prayer, and fasting are tied together in the Christian tradition of Lent. First, we must be careful to truly do our acts of righteousness and to not neglect the very daily works that God's righteousness in us calls us to do. Let us be careful to do them as well as heeding Jesus' warning about how not to do these good works.

Contemplation #254
Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men, to be seen by them. Matthew 6:1

The warning to not do our good works before men should make us think of the One before whom they should be done. Again, as Jesus assumes we will be doing these practical expressions of of the righteousness of God, he assumes that we know to do them unto God. To be blind to human praise or ridicule, and to care only for the will of God, this is walking in faith. We must free ourselves from dependency on the judgments of others. God's righteousness is a gift that he gives for our benefit and we respond readily to it when we allow that righteousness to work in and through us, for only the pleasure of the One who gave it.

Contemplation #255
Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men, to be seen by them. Matthew 6:1

The 'men' here are not all people, but only the select group in whose eyes one wants to be exalted. There may be many whose opinion matters little to us, but others who we allow to have power over us. This may differ from person to person. Perhaps it is one's peers, or one's family. It might even be the poor and needy, that we desire to be elevated in their eyes. We need to be particularly aware of those before whom we would like to be honored. Acts of righteousness must be founded in humility and selfless devotion to God. The desire to be 'seen' is a form of devotion to ourselves, rather than to God.

2007-03-05T08:50:00.001-08:00

Contemplation #250
Someone asked him, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?" Luke 13:23

We can only guess at the intent of the questioner in this account. Better yet, we should reflect on how we might pose this question. Do we ask despairingly, afraid that only few will be saved and we might not be among them? Do we ask hopefully, wanting there to be only few so that all those evil people, unlike us, will receive their due and our righteousness will be affirmed? Do we ask in full confidence of our own reception of grace, and longing for such to be the blessing of many others? To hope for universal salvation is to share in the hope of God, who is not willing that any should perish. To be like God, must hope for all to be covered in grace and none to be excluded, though only God will make that choice.

Contemplation #251
Someone asked him, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?" Luke 13:23

Jesus seldom seems to feel compelled to answer the question that is asked. He responds truthfully despite the assumptions of the questioner. Here, if you read verses 24-30, you see that Jesus never answers the question of how many will be saved. He does say that many will try to enter incorrectly, leading us to think perhaps the answer is "few will be saved". But then he counters that people will come from all points of the compass, which leads us to think that many will be saved. In fact, instead of giving a number, Jesus' response to the question is that those who will be saved are not those whom the questioner expects. Instead of thinking about numbers, Jesus calls us to the inverted "last will be first" thinking about the Kingdom of God.

Contemplation #252
Someone asked him, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?" Luke 13:23

By ignoring the question of "How many will be saved" Jesus would have us turn from such unprofitable speculation. He draws us instead to see the surprising way that God works. Grace is astonishingly improbable, by it's very nature. Grace is unpredictable because it is extended to where goodness and blessing ought not to go. Despite well-meaning people who have tried to delineate exactly where God's grace will be given and to whom it will not, such restriction would rob grace of being grace. Paul said that though he was the worst of sinners, yet he was shown grace. Grace will always make the last first, and salvation will appear where we least expect it. Let us see ourselves as recipients of unexpected grace.

2007-02-26T09:32:00.001-08:00

Contemplation #247
For many are invited, but few are chosen. Matthew 22:14

These words conclude a parable that compares the Kingdom of God to a king giving a wedding feast for his son. This is the third parable in a series of stories that talk about God extending an invitation (Matthew 21:8-22:14), and in each story some choose to refuse it. The chosen are the willing, the willing are made righteous, and the righteous are the people of God. We must continue to oppose the idea that the righteous are chosen because of their goodness, and that the people of God are those who make themselves worthy and are invited because of who they are. In each of the three parables, the ones who eventually are the chosen are not the ones who started out looking like the most likely to be "in".

Contemplation #248
They gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad . . . Matthew 22:10

In our eyes, and in the eyes of God, there are people who are both good and bad. There are none who are perfectly good, nor any who are completely and perfectly bad. The meanest person has some good, and the best person some meanness. Maybe those who are good and bad in our eyes are not exactly the same ones God would identify, which is why we should refrain from judging. What we do see is that God gathers both the good and bad to the wedding feast of the Son. We should not be surprised who we find ourselves sitting beside at the table of God. It is not the feast of God and his Kingdom unless both the good and bad are sitting down together in the grace of God.

Contemplation #249
Friend, he asked, how did you get in here without wedding clothes? Matthew 22:12

The one who despised the occasion and had no answer to explain his insult against the king, was addressed as friend. Such is the disposition of God that even those who show no regard for Him, are to God, friends. Perhaps, we should remember that Jesus addresses Judas as friend when he comes to betray him in the garden (Matt. 26:50). Jesus knew that to be like his Father he would need to see Judas as a friend though he was not acting as one. This parable of the Kingdom teaches us much about God, and the disposition that in us would most emulate Him: invite all, expect both good and bad to come, and call all friends.

2007-02-19T13:48:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #244
Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom . . . James 2:12

Usually when reminding someone that they will be judged, you expect the reminder to be a warning of impending harsh and strict measures. You would expect there to be a threat of how hard the judgment will be. Yet here, James reminds us to live as those who will be judged by a law that gives freedom. That certainly does not sound like a threat. In fact, it is not a threat, but an encouragement. We are not to fearfully live under the specter of condemnation, but live in a way consistent with the law or instruction that we have been given - one that is about freedom. Our actions and speech are to be measured against a standard that frees us.

Contemplation #245
Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. James 2:12

If there is a threat in James' words, it is not found in being judged by a law that gives freedom, but in failing to show mercy. The law that gives freedom, the one that should shape our actions and words, is to be identified with having mercy on others. To not be merciful to others will result in an unfavorable judgment by the law of freedom that will ultimately be our measure. The freeing law perhaps should be equated with James' "royal law" of loving one's neighbors (2:8) and his instructions to show no favoritism (2:1ff). To be merciful, to love others, and to treat even the least with as much dignity and respect as the greatest, all seem to be parts of this law that gives freedom.

Contemplation #246
But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, . . . he will be blessed in what he does. James 1:25

We might wish that James had in a short sentence or phrase defined exactly what he meant by a law that gives freedom. But then, maybe reducing it to a few words would have been too restrictive. James does tell us that there is a law that is to guide and shape us. We may think of it as a perfect law that gives us freedom. It demands that we be merciful, treat others fairly, love our neighbors, and speak and act with holiness and godliness. Whatever else we may say about this law, it is wholly consistent with who God is and how God lives in love with his creation. This law, this life of God, is what we must look into intently. Our concentration and effort is to grasp and live according to this perfect and freeing law.

2007-02-12T08:24:00.000-08:00

Contemplations #241
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Romans 12:14

The will and love of God is captured in this simple and yet profound statement. Should we want to know what it means to be Christian, a person close to God, this instruction is sufficient on its own to reveal godliness to us. Jesus' blessing, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing, is a perfect expression of this love of God. If we are to bless even those who persecute us, who is not to be blessed? By showing us that we should pray goodness on our most vile enemies, those most opposed to us, we know that the same should be given to all who are closer. None may omitted from our love in God.

Contemplations #242
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Romans 12:14

Many are willing to pray for their enemies and those who persecute them. They pray that these wicked people might come to their senses, that they might come to know God. They pray for their conversion. This is good work, but it falls short of what Paul is saying. To pray that my enemy will stop being my enemy is not the same as praying for blessing for my adversary. The first prayer is still for me and what would benefit me, but I am to pray for what would benefit my persecutors. Sure, their conversion who benefit them, but let me pray for their blessing right now even while they are my enemies. Absolutely unthinkable, if I am in God and his love in me, should I wish for the destruction of my enemies.

Contemplations #243
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Romans 12:14

We are always overwhelmed by the apparent impossibility of learning to truly love our enemies. To bless those who hurt us, and to not curse them, seems more than we can hope to achieve. And yet, we are not considering the burden and cost of living with hate. Greater is the cost of anger, bitterness, cursing, and opposition than simply turning to God's love. Little else consumes us like hate. There is a transcendent freedom in love, to bless every person without respect to their conduct toward me, whether it be good or evil. What is truly impossible, though we do not perceive it, is living in constant anger and cursing. Such living keeps us far from God and his peace.

2007-02-05T08:12:00.001-08:00

Contemplations #238
So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:11

Until this day Peter and his companions had wanted nothing but to catch fish. They had worked through the night, as they had likely done many nights before, laboring hard with all their skill and knowledge to net fish. And yet when Jesus blesses them with an astounding haul of fish, they immediately leave everything on the shore. The way the text reads, they pulled the boats up on shore and left it all. The boats were full of the fish that they had dreamed of catching, but now their interests were no longer in fish. They didn't ask Jesus to come back tomorrow to help them catch more fish.

Contemplations #239
So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:11

Peter and his companions were fishermen. They listened to Jesus teach, not their area of expertise, but they were the ones who knew how to fish. It was not after Jesus' teaching that they left all and followed him, but after the miraculous catch. Had Jesus not astounded them in their own area of expertise they might not have been so receptive. Sometimes where we believe ourselves to be the most competent is where God must appear, showing us that we are not so skillful and capable as we think. Where do we think we need the least amount of help? Maybe that is exactly the place in our lives where God will grab our attention.

Contemplations #240
So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:11

One can hardly imagine that Peter or the others had any clear idea of what Jesus meant when he said that from now on they would catch men. However, they did recognize that what had happened was potentially world-changing for them. Their commitment at that moment when they left everything was to the person of Jesus and not to some vision of the future. The future he was talking about must have been a complete mystery. What did he mean 'fishers of men'? They didn't leave their boats, nets, and fish for a brighter future that Jesus was promising, but to follow a man who clearly knew the God of their fathers.

2007-01-29T09:10:00.001-08:00

Contemplation #235
So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. 1 Peter 4:19

To 'suffer according to God's will' does not have to mean that God plans for us to suffer, that he designs and ordains such, though we know suffering is inevitable. Perhaps this passage should be read as saying that there is a way to handle suffering that is God's will for us. To suffer according to the will of God is first to suffer not for unrighteousness, but for fidelity to God. Second, it means that we should respond to suffering in faith and according to God's ways so that he is glorified. We are to respond to all of life, and certainly the hard times, according to the will of God as shown to us in Christ.

Contemplation #236
So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. 1 Peter 4:19

We should find it interesting that Peter speaks of God as Creator in this passage. He turns our thoughts to God as the One who made us while talking about how we handle suffering. In the midst of suffering we are often at a loss to know what to do, and feeling most vulnerable. Knowing that we have a faithful Creator means that God, knowing us because he is the One who has formed us, can guide us through our most trying times. We must trust the One who is closer to us than we are to ourselves to show us how to deal with suffering.

Contemplation #237
So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. 1 Peter 4:19

Ultimately Peter says that our response to suffering is to continue to do good. When we are suffering because of doing good, the greatest temptation is to stop doing the good that has brought us trouble and pain. Nothing is more natural than to alleviate our own pain. However, the One who formed us assures us that we will be able to persevere in doing good despite our doubts. We feel and often believe that we cannot continue, that we have been overcome, but God proclaims that more is possible than we know or believe. He has made us, and he knows. We have been created more in God's image than we realize.

2007-01-22T08:31:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #232
Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 2 Corinthians 9:10

Paul says that the way we see God working in the physical world is consistent with the way he works in unseen matters. God is the Provider of both our physical needs and spiritual lives. First, we must be thoroughly convinced that God is the supplier of our daily bread or we have scant confidence in receiving what we need spiritually. Evidently the Corinthians had faith already in God giving seed and bread, and so Paul was able to simply suggest that God would do the same in enlarging their harvest of righteousness. May we begin with a trust in God's power and love to give us our daily bread, and then realize that our daily spiritual food will also be given just as surely.

Contemplation #233
Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 2 Corinthians 9:10

The store of seed and harvest of righteousness that Paul speaks of has nothing to do with rewards that come to us for our own good. In this part of the letter Paul is calling on the Corinthian Christians to be generous in giving to help poor believers in Judea. However, the Corinthians are wondering how will we be able to do this? Paul knows that generosity is a spiritual gift that is one aspect of a life of righteousness, and he knows that God supplies us with what we need to reap an abundant harvest of righteousness. He encourages the Corinthians that God will give them the spiritual gift to be generous because he supplies our daily bread. May we trust God to give us the spiritual gifts to live more righteously than even we would expect.

Contemplation #234
You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion . . . 2 Corinthians 9:11

To be generous on every occasion requires that we receive from God the material possessions for us to share with others, and the inner heart of generosity that cares for others and sees their needs. The first is much easier for God to provide because it requires no willingness on our part, but we may resist God's inward gifts to make us generous. Certainly Paul is correct when he says "God is able to make all grace abound in you" (9:8) which speaks to God's willingness and sufficiency, and yet the human selfish heart may deny God all access and refuse any gift. Let us be open to not only receiving our daily bread, but the daily gifts of God that bring an abundance of grace into us, and bear the fruit of complete righteousness.

2007-01-15T08:43:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #229
Who hopes for what he already has? Romans 8:24

The very nature of hope is to look forward to something in the future. However, we also have statements such as "Christ in you, the hope of glory" Col. 1:27. Christ in us is a present reality. So we hope for more than we experience now, but that hope is based on a taste of the future that we presently enjoy. Without any present experience our hope would simply be wishful thinking. Without any better future our present circumstances would be cause for despair. Our hope is in what we now have by grace, and yet also for blessings to come.

Contemplation #230
But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. Romans 8:25

When true hope is in us by grace, we are able to have patience. Impatience is a reaction of desperation when hope is absent. When God is present with us and assuring us of his faithfulness and promises, we enjoy a peaceful patience through our we hope in God. When we have no assurances, and no confidence in the future, we become impatient to have immediately some comfort. Hope comforts us in the present even in the expectation of what we do not yet have.

Contemplation #231
But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Romans 8:24

Christian hope is known only through faith. Paul's distinction that there are two ways - walking by faith and walking by sight - clearly sets at odds how life may be lived. Walking by sight puts us in control, but hope only exists for those who walk by faith. They see by faith what cannot be seen with eyes, and so all the life of God becomes theirs. Anything that we can see is insufficient to give us hope, though many still place their hope is what can be seen.

2007-01-08T09:07:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #226
"When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too." Luke 3:21

The incarnation shows us the extent of God's love because the Creator chooses the lowly state of his own creatures in order to bring us peace. The incarnation is so much more than the birth of Jesus by the virgin Mary. It is also being tempted in all ways like us. The incarnation is expanded by every way Jesus participates with us. By taking on our flesh God involves himself in our lives so we might learn to join God is God's life. Jesus is immersed with everyone else, joining his creatures in this pursuit of the life of God. The One who holds that life finds common ground with those desiring the divine life of love. In this way Jesus' baptism in another aspect of the incarnation, God taking on our flesh to find us for himself.

Contemplation #227
"And as he was praying, heaven was opened . . ." Luke 3:21

Jesus was praying at his baptism. He was making the same intentional commitment to the way of God as everyone else who was coming to John. He welcomed that type of living under God's reign which he would describe as entering the Kingdom of God. Although he had no sin to repent of, no sin to be forgiven, Jesus was joining in this pledge of fidelity to God's holy ways. We can imagine that Jesus' prayer at his baptism was the expression of this direction for his life, the obedient choice to dedicate himself to the service of God. To this pledge of faith heaven opened, receiving the humble obedience of Jesus and affirming the eternal love of God. Heaven is open to us all, affirming love and grace to encourage our every step of faith.

Contemplation #228
"The Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove . . ." Luke 3:22

At Jesus' baptism the Holy Spirit comes on him to lead him into the desert for 40 days of struggle. What a beginning to his pledge to accept the way of God! The words of affirming love are soon put to the test in personal deprivation and temptation. Would Jesus hold faithfully to the promise of God's love even as the hunger set in? How quickly he could have doubted the love of God. And yet, it was when God's love was shown to Israel by bringing them out of slavery in Egypt, that they were led immediately into the wilderness. The history of Israel was repeated and redeemed in the life of Jesus as he lived faithfully where even his ancestors had not. Surely he has taken on himself our sins, and redeemed our lack of faith in his perfect faith.

2006-12-11T08:58:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #223
God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life. Acts 11:18

To truly reorient our lives toward God, the essence of repentance, is an act “unto life.” We often think of repentance as turning away from sin, evil, and an existence of self-will. Indeed, we turn away from living by our own desires, which leads to ruin, and but it is equally and more significantly a turn toward life as offered, defined, and sustained by God and in God. Each day and in many instances we are faced with the decision of which way we will turn, toward our own selfish desires, or to the way of God. Repentance occurs constantly as we persist in our seeking of God.

Contemplation #224
God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life. Acts 11:18

The Jewish believers affirmed a mystery in this statement when they acknowledged that God was granting or giving repentance to the Gentiles. We may be unable to explain how our repentance is both a gift of God, given to us in mercy and the strength of grace, and yet is also our own turning toward God. God’s gift is not simply the offer of an opportunity, but the repentance within us. As we constantly live in repentance and seek God, we praise God for the gift of this turning rather than boast in our own choice. When we know that repentance is a gift, we look to God for the grace to turn toward Him . . . and He gives it without restraint.

Contemplation #225
God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life. Acts 11:18

Though these Jewish believers had witnessed only one family of Gentiles, the household of Cornelius, turning toward God, they recognized that God was giving repentance to the non-Jewish nations. On the one hand they are surprised that even the Gentiles are receiving grace, and yet they are perceptive enough to know that this is something much greater than one family. The fact that we have received grace, if we understand how undeserving we are, should lead us to not be surprised when that same grace is given to others. There should be no even on these in our own thinking.

2006-12-04T08:35:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #220
May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you. Psalm 25:21

Hope is a precious inward blessing that is the fruit of knowing God. God gives us hope by simply being Himself. Because God is who He is, we do not despair of our existence but have a reassurance and confidence that is more certain than any trying circumstance or frightening possibility about the future. Our hope grows the more we know God, his goodness, mercy, love, and faithfulness. Truly we find that our hope is in God and God alone.

Contemplation #221
May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you. Psalm 25:21

Whose integrity and uprightness does the psalmist refer to, his own or God’s? Perhaps we should say both. The primary integrity and uprightness that protects one who has hope in God is the integrity and uprightness of God Himself. By far our hope is in God’s good and gracious nature. That God is true and righteous is our assurance. In a much lesser way, our own integrity and uprightness, to whatever extent these are cultivated in us by God’s grace, lead to our well-being. Our fidelity to God and participation in God’s own nature become assurances of God’s protection.

Contemplation #222
May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you. Psalm 25:21

Though the psalmist may speak of both God’s integrity and uprightness and our participation in those virtues, the protection afforded is God’s alone. God is the One who protects even though we may speak of our own integrity and uprightness, as derived from God, as assuring us of the blessing. It is much like the Holy Spirit serving as our guarantee . . . the Spirit of God in us but not from us. Our own submission to and reception of the gifts of God, as we embrace intentionally these formative blessings, give us confidence of protection and care. Let us not forget to practice integrity and uprightness, knowing how God wills these for our protection in divine love.

2006-11-27T10:49:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #217
Fear the Lord and the king, my son, and do not join with the rebellious. Proverbs 24:21

The fear of God is a subject that often makes us uncomfortable, and for good reason. Too frequently human distortion has caused us to associate the fear of God with a circumstance where we terrified of God; where there is a lack of love, security, peace, and goodness. However, the real meaning of fearing the Lord is defined in this wise saying as the opposite of rebellion. To have fidelity and loyalty to the Lord, as the king, is to live in fear of the Lord. Let us fear the Lord as submissive and true subjects who live obediently rather than rebel against our King.

Contemplation #218
Fear the Lord and the king, my son, and do not join with the rebellious. Proverbs 24:21

The enticing invitation of the rebellious is constantly before us. Our first defense must be the recognition of rebellion for what it is. There are so many ways in which we may leave our submission to God: through willfulness, through ambition, by our plans and devices, and in all types of disobedience. Persistence in any of these constitutes a rebelliousness against God. Often the counsel of others, given as prudent advice, is actually an invitation to join the rebellious . . . who live by their own wits rather than in submission to God.

Contemplation #219
Fear the Lord and the king, my son, and do not join with the rebellious. Proverbs 24:21

The fear of the Lord is not primarily a feeling or emotion we have toward God, but a way of living. We typically think of fear as a cold dread in the pit of our being, or a sense of fright that sweeps over us as a shudder. The counsel of wisdom is about a fear that is expressed not in the feeling of dread or fright, but in a manner of willing what is good, thinking what is holy, and acting in obedience and humility toward God. To fear the Lord is to live in a specific way of respect toward the will of God.

2006-11-20T08:11:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #214
Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Thankfulness comes out of humility. To be grateful for anything requires a lowliness of spirit and heart, for the proud always chafe over how they deserve more than they have. Constant gratitude is possible only by those who truly believe they are owed nothing, and therefore are exceedingly joyful and thankful over whatever they receive in life. If being thankful in all circumstances will not be a bitter chore for us, then we must first be humble in all circumstances.

Contemplation #215
Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Many times when we seek to discover the will of God in our lives we are searching for a direction such as what job, what decision, or what direction with regard to choices we face. Much more important than finding God’s will in those matters is realizing that God’s will for us is clearly identified in the shaping and direction for our hearts. The will of God for each one of us is to cultivate thankfulness, a pure and simple gratitude toward God for being God to us. When we know this will of God for us, we learn how to make all the other life choices within that will.

Contemplation #216
Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

In Christ Jesus. When we are brought into Christ, all circumstances are redeemed and given new meaning. Conditions under which we would not have been able to give thanks are transformed, because we are ourselves transformed, so that in all circumstances we can give thanks. We are brought into Christ so that we can come to place where gratitude is possible in all things. For what purpose has God brought us into Christ? So that we might give thanks continually.

2006-11-13T10:48:00.000-08:00

Contemplations #211
At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. Mark 5:30

This very interesting verse seems to indicate that Jesus did not ‘control’ the power of God that worked through him. Jesus was unaware of the woman’s approach, but the Father knew what was happening. The Father healed the woman, seeing her come in faith, and Jesus was only aware of what had happened after the event. The power of God that worked through Jesus was not subject to Jesus’ will, but his will was subject to the Father’s. Even at his arrest, Jesus clearly stated that he could ask his Father for 12 legions of angels (Matt. 26:53) . . . which is entirely different than having those angels to call by himself. If we are to be like Jesus, our only work is to desire to be submissive to God. God will work as he chooses to his glory through those who are humbly submissive.

Contemplations #212
At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. Mark 5:30

Is it hard for us to imagine that Jesus lived sometimes in ignorance of what his Father was doing? If even the Son of God in this life did not know what God willed to do in every moment for his glory, how much less should we. Since we cannot expect to know how God will work, our best course is to cultivate a constant submission to him . . . and so we will find ourselves caught up in his working through power. The more we accept our own powerlessness the more we experience the power of God in us and through us. The power of God comes on those who have no power, seek no power, and desire only God himself.

Contemplations #213
At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. Mark 5:30

There is a distinct blessing and joy in being caught up in the work of God in a surprising way. We should eagerly anticipate such events, rather than be disturbed that we are not going to have advance knowledge of what God is doing. Through humble submission we make ourselves available, and through attentiveness to the constant presence of God we can become aware of ways in which God is moving in us, through us, and around us. Jesus’ disciples were amazed that he could sense a specific touch in a jostling crowd, but he was attuned to what God was doing and how he moved in that crowd. Our lives are like a crowd of distractions, with very distinct divine events hidden within.

2006-11-06T10:15:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #208
Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:19

This request of Simon may be easily dismissed by us as patently and obviously wrong. We might think that we could never err in so gross a manner. Yet, the essence of Simon’s request is the desire for spiritual power. How many times have we yearned to pray more effectively, with more power and results? Have we wished that great and godly works could be done through us – our words, actions, touch, and prayer? Through ‘our’ ministry? When we desire the power of God to be in us, for whatever good of the kingdom that we might envision, do we really have a request different from Simon’s on our hearts?

Contemplation #209
When they arrived, the prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:15

Simon observed that the Spirit came upon the Samaritan believers when Peter and John laid their hands on them, but evidently he concluded incorrectly that this power was subject to the will of the apostles – that they could bestow the Spirit, and that he too could receive this power to wield. This was consistent with his understanding of sorcery which is all about harnessing power. However, Peter and John first prayed before laying their hands on anyone. The Spirit goes where the Spirit wills, and no power of God is subject to human will. We ought to forget every impulse toward desiring the power of God working through us, and instead seek to be humbly submissive to God’s will. The desire for power is too tempting, particularly for us, some of the most powerful people in the world.

Contemplation #210
I see that you are full of bitterness . . . Acts 8:23

Peter, in correcting Simon, diagnoses the source of his aspiration for power . . . bitterness. He was a man who’d trafficked in power, reveled in the amazement of people, and enjoyed their accolades. He still desired the prestige, and mourned the loss he’d suffered by the arrival of Philip. He was no longer the center of the attention of others, and with this new power he could see himself returning to the privileged status he’d lost. Our own desire to experience the power of God may be rooted in a bitterness about our own insignificance, even though we may not be consciously aware of it. This is precisely why we should seek only the life of a servant, and embrace the insignificance of the lowly. Our work is to humble ourselves.

2006-10-30T09:33:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #205
Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God . . . Romans 11:22

Out of the love of God there is both kindness and sternness, for kindness is not all there is to love, and sternness does not exist without love. In this passage Paul is speaking of how God grafted in the Gentiles though they were not originally part of Israel. This was the kindness of his love. The sternness of God’s love led him to break off those who do not believe, though Paul is confident that they can be grafted in once again if they will not persist in unbelief. Both God’s kindness and sternness are expressions of his love, and we do well to consider the fullness of divine love so that we know we are loved through both God’s kindness toward us and his stern correction.

Contemplation #206
Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God . . . Romans 11:22

We are enjoined to consider the kindness and sternness of God’s love so that first we learn to recognize God’s love and respond to all that he lovingly does. However, there is room also to consider how our love, when it is God’s love in us, will be both kind and stern . . . merciful and corrective. The fullest expression of love to our neighbor has both aspects. However, we are not kind for our own sake, for any reward or compliment, or sense of fulfillment. We are also not stern out of ourselves: arrogance, self-righteousness, vindictiveness, or malice. Apart from divine love we can be both kind and stern, but these are not fruits of love. To learn to be kind out of love and to discover how to be stern as an expression of love means changing our kindness and sternness into love.

Contemplation #207
Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God . . . Romans 11:22

In considering the nature of God’s love we must learn to desire to be truly cherished in the fullness of divine charity. Out of our self-centeredness we can easily prefer to be treated kindly, rather than to be loved. When I want only what pleases me I do not want to be loved both mercifully and sternly. I want God to do what benefits me and meets my selfish desires. When we learn to desire to be loved and not simply satisfied, then the “no” of God will become as sweet as his “yes”. We will be grateful for great corrections, which are another form of kindness and mercy to us.

2006-10-23T08:36:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #202
Do everything in love. 1 Corinthians 16:14

The simplest of measures is this one from Paul. What we are doing, can we say that it is an expression of love? Every action, thought, word, and ambition that is not love must be abandoned and replaced by works that convey love. While this rule of life is pure in bringing us to the imitation of God, it is very impractical. As long as we choose to be practical and reasonable the way of God will remain beyond us. The love of God is extravagant, radical, and totally at odds with any notion of what is prudent. It is not advisable to love one’s enemies and insane to treat all others better than oneself, for who will look out for me if I don’t protect my own interests? To love in an unloving world is to invite disaster, and any who choose this path put themselves at risk.

Contemplation #203
If anyone does not love the Lord—a curse be on him. 1 Corinthians 16:22

The anathema or curse has been taken by Jesus so that it might be removed from us (Galatians 3:13). However, so strong is the injunction to love, so crucial and essential the practice of love for God to the life of all who would be a disciple of Jesus, that the curse remains on those who do not love. We cannot imagine that Paul is vindictively or eagerly pronouncing a curse as an act of religious spite or censure born out of malice. He is, however, clearly and pointedly reminding us of the importance of love for God, which of course leads to the love of all that is God’s, all people, our enemies, life, and creation. We must be soberly warned not to neglect the cultivation of love in all things.

Contemplation #204
My love to all of you in Christ Jesus. Amen. 1 Corinthians 16:24

Paul’s final word of this letter is a blessing of love which he extends to all the Corinthians. To be in the fellowship of God’s Spirit as believers is to share in love in Christ Jesus. To say that our love is in Christ Jesus is more than to simply declare that we are members of the same group, that we are loving each other because we are all “in Jesus” as Christians. Our love for one another is not a love of those like ourselves or who have similar aspirations. Then our love would be of no different in nature from the affinity that Rotarians might share for each other. Our love is a divine love, modeled by Christ, gifted to us in Christ, both through and by the incarnate Son. Our love is a divine incarnation which is mediated only by Christ. As our lives are caught up in him, our love becomes his love.

2006-10-16T09:26:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #199
Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:17

When we are caught in the morass of self-righteousness and legalism we think that we will be saved if we do what Jesus instructs. Such thinking is a terrible trap and obscures the work of God. We must avoid turning every teaching into a matter of salvation. Another way to say it is that we must stop making all instruction about being acceptable to God or about pleasing God. We are not learning how to appease God, how to make God happy with us, or earning some divine reward. Jesus shows us how to enter into God’s way . . . a style of living that shares in God’s nature, creates oneness, and results in our being blessed.

Contemplation #200
Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:17

When we are caught in the morass of intellectualism we think that we will be blessed if we understand the teachings of Jesus. Such intellectualism doesn’t discount action, but believes that right thinking is the beginning. However, living a life of obedience to Christ is not following our understandings, but being true to the teachings of Jesus as communicated to us in word and deed. Often our understanding lags far behind our practice. Truly, we struggle to understand how we will be blessed by practicing self-humiliation as Jesus exemplified in washing his disciples’ feet. Knowing that we will be puzzled as to the point of humbling ourselves, Jesus reassures us that we will experience blessing in the practice of faith.

Contemplation #201
Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:17

The “knowing” that Jesus is referring to is the simple knowledge of what we are to do. Jesus showed and told his disciples how to treat one another. This is what they knew. We do not see the larger picture or understand all the ways in which we will be blessed. We know what to do even if we do not see the purpose of design of this teaching. Too often we want to see the end results definitively, and to be assured that we will be blessed is not enough. We want to know more. The way of a disciple is to emulate the master, to speak his words, emulate his actions, and so learn his heart. We will be blessed in ways we cannot understand, but to be disciples we must choose voluntary humiliation.

2006-10-09T10:29:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #196
The man took Jesus at his word and departed. John 4:50

We are reading the story of a royal official who comes to Jesus because he fears that his child is dying. Jesus reassures him that he may go because his child will live. The gospel then says, that the man “took Jesus at his word.” Undoubtedly the official has some faith or confidence. He accepts and trusts the word that Jesus speaks to him, and leaves as Jesus told him. We should also note that when his servants meet him on the way and tell him that his boy is living, and he finds that the time of his recovery was the exact time that Jesus reassured him, scripture says that he “believed.” There are times when we take Jesus at his word and yet we are not yet in true belief.

Contemplation #197
The man took Jesus at his word and departed. John 4:50

We should not disparage the way in which this royal official accepted the words of Jesus even without the later belief that he would experience. In fact, this is a most necessary step in how God builds faith in us by his grace. As the psalmist challenges us to “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34: 8), so strong belief grows out of the experience of God’s grace and goodness. Taking the Lord at his word, even in doubt, is the first step toward vibrant faith. Accepting and acting on God’s word to us will often lead us into a powerful belief that can be received no other way. We begin in imperfection so that God may bring us to greater perfection.

Contemplation #198
The man took Jesus at his word and departed. John 4:50

Perhaps this official left the presence of Jesus supposing that he’d been reassured about what the future would hold, when in fact he was being told about what was happening in the present. While he thought that Jesus was telling him that his son would get better, he did not understand that Jesus was saying that his son was better. The divine blessing was given without his unawareness, and before he believed. We do not have to believe in order for God to work, but we do often need even the most minimal willingness to act on his word if we are to ever see what God is doing. If we take Jesus at his word, we will come to have faith.

2006-10-02T10:23:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #193
Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life.” John 6:35

When we respond to God’s call to come into the blessing that is offered in His Son, Jesus himself becomes our source of all spiritual nourishment. Jesus is not only the bread of a heavenly life which we will experience beyond our existence here and now, but he becomes the basic food of life as we now live it. Bread is a symbol of the staple of existence. It is the daily food that sustains. Christ has become to the believer the sole means of living. Without Christ life is not possible. We choose to reject all other sources and be devoted to the One who is our spiritual food.

Contemplation #194
Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life.” John 6:35

This simple and yet powerful statement of Jesus makes clear that the life of God will only be received and sustained through the Son who has descended from God to bring close this blessing. In our affection, our desire, and the deepest part of our hearts, we must seek Christ. He must be received daily. There is only one source for us: the person of Christ who showed us God in human form. The gift and the Giver are intertwined. The gift of life cannot come without receiving the Giver completely and continually through humble confession of our dependence and need. We do pray “Give us this day our daily bread” with our desire for Christ being the greatest meaning we can give to these words.

Contemplation #195
Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life.” John 6:35

How do we receive Jesus as the bread of our daily life? We have all received Jesus as Savior in repentance from all other ways of living and a confession of faith, but how is Jesus to be received daily? The answer is that Christ comes to us in many different ways. Because creation was made by him and through him, and he is the One who fills everything in every way, Christ can be found in every aspect of life and received as the Bread of Life. But he is not automatically received this way, for it is very easy for us to neglect Christ in all things. Our desire daily must be for Jesus, our willingness to receive him and him alone.

2006-09-18T09:52:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #190
May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance. 2 Thessalonians 3:5

Frequently we hear discussions about seeking God’s leading. Looking for the guidance of the Spirit is a constant concern of zealous believers, but it is revealing that often those discussions revolve around making decisions – what job to accept, whether to chose this or that, or what path to take. Perhaps God’s direction in our lives is less about the decisions we make and more about the inward orientation and disposition of our heart, mind, will, and spirit. While we seek direction over matters of employment, finance, marriage, career and numerous other choices, perhaps we are neglecting the direction that is of greater importance. However, many times we want God to be the wise Orchestrator of our lives rather than the Former of our inward person.

Contemplation #191
May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance. 2 Thessalonians 3:5

God’s direction that is most important for us is the guidance into the love of God and the faithfulness of Christ. These are to be experienced, contemplated, and ultimately brought into our own selves through submission to the Spirit’s working. The path into the love of God and perseverance of Christ will be manifested in our personal transformation so that these become the source of our own lives. We must have the expectation of what is the real working of God’s guidance and direction. Too many believe that God’s guidance will be primarily used as a way to navigate through life’s choices as they divine the plans that God has for them. The plans that God has for us have much less to do with the company one works for and much more to do with being led into love and steadfastness.

Contemplation #192
May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance. 2 Thessalonians 3:5

Both the love of God and perseverance of Christ are most clearly revealed in the passion of Christ. The cross brings both love and faithfulness to the fore, demonstrating the fullest expression of divine love and human fidelity. As we contemplate deeply the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ in holding to that love, God directs us into the mysteries of our own recreation into the image of Christ. Let us seek first God’s inward formation of our lives, trusting that he will take care of everything else such that all our seeking may be directed toward love and perseverance.

2006-08-28T08:34:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #187
Like newborn babes, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation. 1 Peter 2:2

Peter says something notable about our salvation – that it is a state of being, but not a static condition. The believers he is writing to are saved, but they are encouraged to grow up in the salvation which they have received. Having received the gift of redemption from our hopeless condition as sinners, lost and without meaningful direction in this life, we are now saved and set on a clear course of godliness. To realize that we need to grow in our salvation is not to dispute the sufficiency of the gift through Christ, but we acknowledge that being brought into a state of salvation is not the same as becoming mature in that grace.

Contemplation #188
Like newborn babes, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation. 1 Peter 2:2

Peter’s encouragement is for us to strongly desire spiritual nourishment. But what is this spiritual food? Because we are children of the Age of Reason it is easy for us to associate instruction, learning, and knowledge with spiritual food. Yet when we read Peter’s words which precede and follow this encouragement, he seems to be talking about “being obedient children” (1:14), “obeying” (1:22), or “disobeying” (2:8) the “word of the Lord” which stands forever (1:25). He doesn’t look at God’s message to us as a matter of understanding, but of practice and action. To strongly crave spiritual food is not to have an intellectual hunger for knowledge, but a personal desire to be nourished in the practice of God’s Word.

Contemplation #189
Like newborn babes, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation. 1 Peter 2:2

The imagery of a newborn baby craving milk is powerful for us. A newborn has few other waking desires, except to receive milk. We should be as ardent in craving only one reality. Having received salvation, we are to be singularly focused on aligning ourselves to the way of God in all things. According to Peter, we have two complementary but opposite practices: to rid ourselves of all types of evil such as malice, deceit, hypocrisy, and slander (2:1), and to develop a sincere love for others, a deep love from the heart (1:22). Our spiritual food is the way of God, as spoken to us and practiced by us.

2006-08-21T08:06:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #184
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. 1 Peter 4:7

To speak about the “end” can bring different thoughts to our minds. Perhaps we think about a cataclysmic end to be feared, one involving destruction and judgment. If we think of end in this sense, then Peter is warning his readers about dangerous times. However, the end can also be understood as the completion, or fulfillment of history. We are drawing nearer toward the purpose to which everything is moving. With this understanding, the end is not something to be feared, but what we anticipate with great joy . . . the realization of the will of God on earth as it is in heaven. The glorious culmination is near, because the Christ has come and the Spirit has been poured out!

Contemplation #185
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. 1 Peter 4:7

Prayer is encouraged as a way of anticipating and embracing the end of all things. Perhaps this does not mean that we pray because everything is so evil, so corrupt, and destruction is at hand. Maybe we pray because the glorious conclusion of all God’s working is near, and this new reality we enter and join through prayer. Praying out of fear and praying out of eagerness are two entirely different prospects. It is clear that Peter’s readers were enduring suffering, and Peter points not dismally at impending doom, but hopefully toward the end or goal of all history. The nearness of this beautiful end was what would move his hearers to pray.

Contemplation #186
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. 1 Peter 4:7

Two inward disciplines are encouraged as important to the practice of prayer: clear mindedness and self-control. Our clearness of thought must be directed by God, so that our own foolish and misguided ideas are discarded and we focus on the ways of God. A correct understanding of life begins with the realization that there is an end to which our world is headed, and this end is in all being united in perfect communion with God. All which is not in harmony with God, ultimately will be removed, and all that is oriented toward God will be perfected. Being self-controlled is really allowing the self to be controlled, not by our will, but our willfulness submitted to the Spirit within. When we are focused and submitted, are prayers become the discipline that prepares us for God’s end.

2006-08-14T10:44:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #181
I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes. 2 Corinthians 2:10-11

Paul’s way of fighting Satan, in this instance, was to forgive. Aware that Satan is trying to entrap us, and knowing how he can do this through anger, bitterness, resentment, and grudges, Paul disarms his spiritual enemies through the humble act of forgiveness. To engage in spiritual warfare one ought to understand the nature of the conflict, and the means of victory. Fidelity to the simple and humble way of Jesus, of love, peacemaking, humility, mercy, forgiveness, and grace is how the battle is won. Our preparation for this task is most readily achieved through prayer – not the prayer that asks God to act as much as the prayer that shapes us to the way of Christ.

Contemplation #182
Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. 2 Timothy 1:14

Paul seems to be speaking in reference to the gospel, urging Timothy to keep what he’d been taught. As in all things, what we are instructed to do cannot be done on our own strength. We should always remember, as Paul is quick to add in this passage, that even holding to what gospel that saves us and calls us to a holy life (1:9) requires the work of the Holy Spirit of God. We are dependent on God to strengthen us to be true to what we have received. Combating Satan, or even guarding what we’ve been given, must be an act of submission and reliance on God. The practice of faith is the essence of spiritual warfare.

Contemplation #183
The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and he will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. 2 Timothy 4:18

Paul speaks with a confidence that is astounding for a man who’d been through so much, and now sits in prison expecting to be executed. Some confidence is born out of foolishness. The secular mindset that reduces our struggle to a conflict of ideas and rationalities is hopelessly naïve about spiritual realities. This confidence is a boldness based on the denial that evil attacks are anything real. Paul’s confidence is based on faith in God. He knows that there are evil forces that attack him, and yet his trust in God through faith keeps him from falling prey to the fear of what is arrayed against him.

2006-08-07T09:31:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #178
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart. 1 Peter 1:22

The goal of obedience, and the purpose of purification, is love for others. We obey so that we learn to participate in God’s nature of love. Obeying the truth is summed up and fulfilled in loving one another deeply, from the heart. This also redefines ‘truth’ to be all that leads us to and culminates in the love we have for others. Obeying the truth of God will never lead to anything other than love for others. No one can claim to have obeyed the truth who does not love others deeply, for whatever they are imagining to be the truth is not the truth that comes from God.

Contemplation #179
But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. 1 John 2:5

Obedience to what God teaches means that one grows to share in the completeness of God’s love. We can only conclude that God’s instructions and commands are all designed to usher us into the experience of his love and the practice of the same to others. What God is telling us it how to love – even though sometimes we do not see the connection. We should look at every instruction from God and practice each as a way of coming into the divine love of God. Those who obey, love . . . not in some mechanistic way but as the fruit of where obedience has led them into communion with God.

Contemplation #180
and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. 1 John 3:22

So often people seek to know the meaning of verses that promise that God will bless . . . that He will respond to our requests. They look diligently for a key to what assures us of answered prayer. John makes it clear that God will do whatever we ask because we are obeying, and in the next verse he identifies that obedience with believing in Jesus and loving one another. Obedience leads us into lives that are shaped by God’s love. We become people of his love. When we are people of love, then whatever we ask will be done because our requests will be in tune with God’s own will, for God is love.

2006-07-31T08:14:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #175
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Galatians 5:1

Paul seems to believe that all would accept, at least by this point in his letter, that Christ set us free. However, the question is to what end we were liberated. This he answers clearly: it was for freedom. To not live in the freedom that Christ won for us is to undo what was done for us. This freedom is not simply a freedom from one set of laws so we might live under another, but a freedom from living under the burden of regulations to soaring with and within the way of the Spirit. The use of that freedom within God’s Spirit does not lead us back into catering to sinful desires for the practice of love to one another (Gal. 5:13).

Contemplation #176
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17

The very presence of God’s Spirit ushers us into a free existence. In this passage Paul speaks about a veil covering Moses’ face so the people could not see the glory of God that radiated from him because he’d been in the presence of God, and a veil therefore also covered the hearts of the people. The Israelites who were afraid to see the vestiges of God’s glory on Moses’ countenance also missed out on seeing the glory of God. Paul is saying that the barrier to seeing God’s glory is removed, and to see God in his beauty is to live in a new freedom of the Spirit. Our freedom is not from instructions (laws) per se, but from a life defined solely by them and where God is hidden from us.

Contemplation #177
Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. 1 Peter 2:16

Peter’s instruction is that these believers who were being maligned by unbelieving neighbors live as free people. Why is that necessary? There is a powerful testimony to God’s grace and the presence of His Spirit when we live as free men and women. If we live as slaves to rules and burdened by regulations we give witness to a small god. When we live from within the Spirit as people of freedom and inner guidance, God is glorified. So radical is our freedom that is has been and will always be misinterpreted as an excuse for evil. Our witness is that while totally free, our love for God draws us to what is good, righteous, and pure. God’s magnificent work is seen by others in us because while radically free we do good.

2006-07-24T08:14:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #172
For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lrod Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:8

Peter knows that it is very possible to know Jesus and yet be ineffective and unproductive. He is not speaking about simply possessing intellectual information, though that is a real danger in our "information age." He wasn't afraid of people knowing about Jesus and yet not knowing him. The apostle is warning against a relationship with Jesus which is sterile . . . discipleship without transformation. The possibility he saw was that though God "has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him" (2 Peter 1:3) we could still be sterile in this knowledge unless we are growing. The danger is complacency.

Contemplation #173
Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. 2 Peter 1:10

Has anyone ever been eager to do that which is burdensome? We are eager to do that which we desire, which is exciting and enjoyable, good and helpful. There is good that is difficult and which we do not approach with excitement. Jesus was not eager to go to the cross. However, this matter of growing in our knowledge to be changed more and more into having these virtuous qualities is a matter of joy. The prospect of escaping the corruption in this world (1:4) and receiving a rich welcome into the kingdom of Jesus Christ (1:11) should make us eager to do all that confimrs our calling and election by God.

Contemplation #174
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 3:18

Peter ends this letter on the same subject he began: growing in our relationship with Christ. We know that the actual nature of knowing Christ implies growing, just as James argues, what should be obvious, that faith implies doing something. We can no more know Christ and not be continually involved in being changed than we can believe and do nothing out of faith. Both are nonsensical impossibilities. Peter wants us to grow in the merciful working of God and in our connectedness with Christ. These are works of humble submission on our part, and active pursuit of what God gives us freely.

2006-07-18T11:51:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #169
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Romans 16:20

This is a remarkable statement by Paul particularly because it is made to the Christians in Rome. This is the city where Paul, according to tradition, would be beheaded. The persecution had not even begun as it would under Nero, starting in the city of Rome. Was Paul completely wrong about God soon crushing Satan? In the years following the writing of this letter, Satan seemed stronger, not weaker, and no where was that more apparent than in Rome. The crushing of Satan must not have been something that was observable by those looking at day to day events. Paul was not wrong, even though he wasn’t talking about an event that would lessen the Christians’ experience of trouble in this world.

Contemplation #170
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Romans 16:20

The crushing of Satan under the feet of these Roman Christians did not mean that Satan would disappear from their world. Instead, in some way they were going to experience a triumph over Satan. Perhaps Paul’s reference first to God as the God of peace and to the abiding presence of Christ’s grace give us insight into the type of victory Paul was imagining. A victory to peace through living in grace may be a triumph that occurs despite circumstances. If Paul could promise impending victory to those who would soon face more persecution for their faith than had occurred previously, perhaps even in today’s world Satan will be crushed under our feet though wars and rumors of wars continue.

Contemplation #171
But I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. Romans 16:19

Paul's prediction of the crushing of Satan by the God of peace, as he wishes the grace of Jesus to be with these Christians, follows his wish that they be wise regarding goodness and innocent regarding evil. Perhaps what we see is that as these Christians continue to become wiser about good, and more innocent of any participation in evil, they are moving toward the time when Satan will be crushed under their feet in a victory through their lives of faith. Maybe the victory he foresees is not one where he expects the world around them to change, but for them to be changed with respect to the world. Though Satan continues to work, they are on the path to being truly free from him and alive to what is good. The promise of Paul remains true to all people who long to become wise to God’s ways, and innocent of Satan’s – he will be crushed beneath their feet.

2006-07-10T12:57:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #166
But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Luke 10:29

The one bringing this question is the expert in the law who asked Jesus about how to inherit eternal life. Jesus had simply questioned him about how he read the law, and the expert had answered with the commands to love God and one’s neighbor. Jesus remarked he had responded correctly – so why did he need to justify himself? If Jesus had complimented him on his knowledge and answer, why the desire to justify himself? How would this further question justify him? He was hoping that the definition of “neighbor” would indicate that he was righteous. How often we want the answer to correspond to what we have already been practicing! We want to be justified rather than indicted. Perhaps the two commands of loving God and his neighbor created a sliver of doubt in his own mind about his justification. He hoped that his neighbor was each person he treated well, and none that he did not.

Contemplation # 167
Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers? Luke 10:36

Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan in order to arrive at this question. It is a much different question than the expert in the law had asked. “Who is my neighbor” is very different from “who was a neighbor to the beaten man.” The first is who is a neighbor to me, and the second to whom am I to be a neighbor. When the focus of “neighbor” ceases to be what makes others those to whom I am obligated, and rather what makes me a person who is obligated to care for others, then we have captured the essence of how Jesus reformulates the question. It is not “who is my neighbor”, but “will I act as a neighbor to others?”

Contemplation # 168
The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Luke 10:37

His answer causes us to admire this expert. He does not reply that the one who was neighbor to the beaten man was the one who took him to the inn, paid for his care, bound up his wounds, or anything like that. He goes beyond the actions to identify what was truly different about the Samaritan: he was a man of mercy. There is no indication in Luke’s account that this expert questioned Jesus in order to trap or test him, as we know happened on other occasions. The man’s insight into the centrality of mercy in the parable was so powerful that Jesus did not need to elaborate, but only to encourage him to practice this way of life. The question that began with how do I inherit eternal life is answered in love God and be merciful to others.

2006-07-03T08:41:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #163
Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:5

The question John raises can be answered in several ways depending on what is meant by “overcome the world”. But John, because he has only one idea in mind about what it means to overcome, identifies the only way this occurs. John talks about escaping, not from the world, but from its enticements and ways (1 John 2:15-17). While living very much in the now, to overcome the world is to break free from the dead end and downward paths of satisfying the physical senses, of only meeting fleshly cravings, and to have hope for life which is much more fulfilling. It is to find the larger and richer story which is being told by God, and to discover our place in it.

Contemplation #164
Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:5

If we are to have horizons beyond those dictated by the limited perspective of a physical existence, entrapped within a world defined by our sensual desires, the way will be opened up to us only through trusting in Jesus as the Son of God. Why is this? To place our whole confidence in the divinity of Jesus, to trust that Jesus was God Himself walking, eating, sleeping, working, and living in this world is to see a way not to escape this world, but to live like God within it. Jesus lived out a story written by God, a story that echoed Israel’s (another story composed by God) and shows us that this greater narrative is possible. Trusting Jesus as God in the flesh means living out a different kind of existence that is beyond, that overcomes, that has purpose far greater than simply this world’s mandate that we satisfy our flesh.

Contemplation #165
Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:5

John is not telling us that we will go to heaven because we believe in Jesus, though this is true. John is saying that when we believe that in Jesus God was present, then we see how to live in a way that exceeds the world’s destructive self-centeredness. We have to trust the life of Jesus that is presented to us in the gospels. We have to believe the teachings of Jesus about how to live – about loving our enemies, giving without expecting in return, blessing and not cursing; about doing good, about loving God above all while not seeking the necessities of the body. We have to believe that Jesus is the Son of God and so live the life that he taught and modeled if we are to overcome this world. This is no mere mental belief, or conviction of the heart, but a belief that is expressed in daily discipleship to the way of Christ.

2006-06-26T08:11:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #160
Her leaders judge for a bride, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes for money. Yet they lean upon the Lord and say, “Is not the Lord among us?” Micah 3:11

The prophet is describing the conditions that prompted God’s people to come under the purifying judgment of God. They had a type of faith in God, a trusting in God, but not that led the people to imitate God. They were trusting God to help them though they chose to live contrary to his nature. When everything has a price and is done out of a profit motive, all that is left is selfishness. God becomes the pursuit of what we can acquire, and the accumulation of wealth. What is “right” becomes “what makes money”. Jesus admonishes us to adopt the proper perspective of seeking to live according the God’s reality (kingdom) while trusting God to provide for our needs. We do what is consistent with who God is – what is just, righteous, and holy – to which no price can be attached.

Contemplation #161
. . . who think that godliness is a means to financial gain. But godliness with contentment is great gain. 1 Timothy 6:5-6

Paul’s teaching here turns on the importance of the deep motivations of the heart. The question is whether godliness is a means to another end, or an end in and of itself. Some believed even in Paul’s day that godliness was simply the best and most logical route to financial gain. What moved them was the desire for wealth. Following God was simply an expedient way to get to their real god. Paul turns this quite nicely on its head: godliness is the end to which we strive. To discover godliness itself, and be content with the imitation of God, this is what is great gain. All thoughts of financial advantage must be put aside lest we simply use the Lord as a means to Mammon.

Contemplation #162
People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. 1 Timothy 6:9

We want to soften Paul’s words by adding “may” so he says “may fall”. However, he is not suggesting what might occur but announcing what is happening. As soon as we set for ourselves the goal of accumulating wealth, we fall into temptation and a trap which ends in ruin and destruction. Of course, to the person seeking wealth he sees no ruin and destruction – for all that would qualify in his eyes as disaster is financial ruin and destruction. No, such a person may succeed in becoming rich, but the ruin and destruction is entirely unrelated to the financial security he covets. Rich in his own pursuits, he remains impoverished toward God – a ruin he neither recognizes nor fears.

2006-06-19T13:28:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #157
Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm. 2 Corinthians 1:24

Why does Paul say he wants to work with others for their joy? His own joy in Christ was rooted in faith (2 Corinthians 2:3), and he continually wanted others to share in that same joy of the faith (Philippians 1:25-26). He knew from personal experience that his own standing firm in faith wasn’t based in being lorded over by any religious leaders. The opposite is actually true. Coercion and forced submission to human authorities does not lead us to joy in the faith. Understanding that joy cannot exist under authoritarianism, and that having joy in the faith is crucial to standing firm, will then lead us to work with others for their joy.

Contemplation #158
And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. Acts 13:52

This statement follows the story of how persecution was stirred up against Paul and Barnabas and they were expelled from the city. In other words, the existence of the disciples’ joy is without any explanation except the presence of the Spirit. Despite their circumstances, in the face of opposition, and without any logical reason . . . the believers were joyful. Only something transcendent, beyond the rational and physically tangible, could be the source of such joy. The Spirit is joy and the source of joy. People of faith can anticipate receiving this joy as a grace from God.

Contemplation #159
He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their season; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy. Acts 14:17

These words from Paul and Barnabas were addressed to idolatrous, pagan, heathen people. Those to whom they were speaking were ready to offer sacrifice and worship the disciples as gods. But even to these who had no faith in God nor belief in Jesus the disciples testify to God’s work among them. God’s work was not only in the external blessings of rain and food, but also the inward blessing of joy in their hearts. Though the gift of joy from God through the Spirit is the expectation of those who believe, by God’s mercy even those who do not believe receive a gift of joy that testifies to God’s kindness and grace.

2006-06-12T11:38:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #154
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love. (1 Corinthians 16:13-14)

What does it mean to be on our guard? Often we assume that the greatest dangers come from without us, but truly we must be on guard first against ourselves. If I focus on what I suppose to be great external enemies, and neglect the more real inner dangers, then I am on guard in the wrong way. If I view others or situations as the threat to my spiritual condition I am blind to the fact that it is me, and how I respond and live toward others and within circumstances, that is key. The potential is inner, as is the danger.

Contemplation #155
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love. (1 Corinthians 16:13-14)

The fact that the danger is inward is illustrated by Paul’s admonitions which follow his call to be on guard. Our stand in the faith, our finding courage and strength, and our living in love are all inward disciplines. We guard ourselves through holding close to the faith – our trust in the good news of God’s kingdom come near and given to us by Christ. We protect our own lives by seeking courage against fearfulness, and by looking for strength to oppose out weakness. When all this is done in selfless love, we are guarding ourselves well.

Contemplation #156
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love. (1 Corinthians 16:13-14)

Our final contemplation on these verses involves recognizing the source for what Paul advocates. Where does faith, courage, strength, and love come from but God himself? We guard ourselves against our inward dangers by thorough reliance on God for the gifts of his grace. We must be close to God, dependent on God, and certainly not on ourselves, if we want to guard our lives against all the dangers that lie within. To do everything in love is to do everything in God.

2006-06-05T11:02:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #151
“Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophecy.” Acts 2:18

In quoting Joel to explain the Spirit’s descent on Pentecost, Peter chooses a passage that speaks about “prophecy” and not “tongues.” The emphasis is not on that the disciples were speaking other languages, but what they were saying- “we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own language.” Being “Pentecostal” should be about the message, and not the method. In the tradition of the disciples on Pentecost we become those who explain the world from the viewpoint of faith. We reinterpret the criminal conviction of a peasant carpenter as the divine purpose that won the redemption of humanity. We show how the hand of God is at work in what seems meaningless, and without faith, will remain so.

Contemplation #152
“Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.” Acts 2:33

The descent of the Spirit on the people of God is a gift of the Son to enable us to be what we could never become without this grace. This gift comes with purpose and our responsibility. Our work of receiving the Spirit with all humility is the proper response of thankfulness. But we ask, what will receiving this Spirit mean? Repentance. The first place that the Spirit calls us to is to abandon all that we have been, have trusted in, have hoped for, and how we have thought of ourselves, so to prepare and open us to the ways of God. The Spirit has been poured out on us to make us like God by filling us with God.

Contemplation #153
“Those who accepted his message . . .” Acts 2:41

The message was simple: Jesus is the messiah, and now raised from the dead has poured out the Spirit of God to change us into people of his messianic reign. Those who accepted this message adopted a new lifestyle defined by the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, holy communion, and prayer. We should note that these practices are the very core of spiritual formation. The Spirit shapes us through apostolic teaching, communal life, communion with Christ, and the discipline of prayer. Our persistent participation in these shaping-activities is how we continue in the way of Pentecost.

2006-05-29T09:52:00.000-07:00

Contemplations #148
He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.” Matthew 13:52

In continuing our look at Matthew 13 and Jesus’ teaching about the kingdom of God, we have this verse which concludes the parables. It is assumed that a good teacher would bring out old treasures, well-founded, and familiar – but why new? Why isn’t what was good enough in the past, now sufficient for the present? Why did Jesus have to bring anything new, and why would Matthew record this saying for the church? The truth we need to hear is that the very nature of God’s world or reality is that there is constantly more to discover, and that it will always be fresh and new. Thinking that God’s reality is only found in old treasure is a sure way to miss it.

Contemplation #149
He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.” Matthew 13:52

It is interesting that Jesus actually talks about a “scribe” who has been instructed about God’s kingdom. Scribes were the experts in the Old Testament scriptures, and would be consulted for anything regarding their meaning or interpretation. That a scribe would bring not only the old, but the new as well, is about as revolutionary as one could imagine. Such is the power of becoming aware of the nature and essence of God’s kingdom, that even those known as experts in teachings of the past will begin to bring out the new as well as the old. Living in God’s reality entails an orientation toward the new God will present— always a challenging prospect.

Contemplation #150
I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world. Matthew 13:35

Matthew is quoting Psalm 78:2, a psalm of Asaph that recounts the mighty works of God in the history of Israel. Matthew sees Jesus engaged in the same work as Asaph, of pointing out how God has been active in the life of his people. One could say that showing this is revealing the kingdom of God, his reality, which co-exists within and among our realities. The story is old, the insight is new, and the call is to switch our world for God’s— entering and accepting the kingdom of God. Asaph’s work was Jesus’ work as well, and we too have been called to become those who seek and find God’s kingdom.

2006-05-22T07:03:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #145
From Brokenness to Community by Jean Vanier, p. 30-31, the book from which one passage was read on Sunday.

Community is a place of conflict: conflict inside each one of us. There is first of all the conflict between the values of the world and the values of the community, between togetherness and independence. It is painful to lose one’s independence, and to come into togetherness—not just proximity—to make decisions together and not all alone. Loss of independence is painful, particularly in a world where we have been told to be independent and to cultivate the feeling that “I don’t need anyone else.”

Contemplation #146
From Brokenness to Community by Jean Vanier, p. 48, the book from which one passage was read on Sunday.

There is only the possibility of real growth in a community if people are deeply respected in their personal development. We continually need to have before us the challenge of our mission. We are not in a community just to protect ourselves. We are not even there just to protect our own little spiritual lives. We’re there for the church, for people in pain. We have a message to give, and we have a message to receive. We have a mission, and if we are not a people of mission, then the community is in danger of closing up, and of dying.

Contemplation #147
From Brokenness to Community by Jean Vanier, p. 50-51, the book from which one passage was read on Sunday.

To have a mission means to give life, to heal, and to liberate. It is to permit people to grow to freedom. When Jesus sends people off, he sends them to liberate and to heal others. That is the good news. And we can become people of liberation and of healing because we ourselves are walking along that road toward inner healing and inner liberation. Jesus calls his disciples to bear much fruit. “If you bear much fruit, you shall be my disciples, and bring glory to the Father.” To bear much fruit is to bring life to people. Not to judge, not to condemn, but to forgive. Remember those last words of Christ: “Father, forgive.” Essentially, a community is based on forgiveness and signs of forgiveness. It is not a group of people condemning or judging outsiders.

2006-05-15T10:30:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #142
“A people who continually provoke me . . . who say, ‘Keep away ; don’t come near me, for I am too sacred for you!’” Isaiah 65:3,5

The end of Isaiah’s prophecies picture a new reality that God is creating – that is, His Mission. Some of the prophetic words contrast the people of old with the nature of the new people who will be formed out of God’s work. One of the ‘old’ traits that will be cleansed in God’s new reality is arrogant self-righteousness. The deluded sense of being morally superior, more worthy, and set apart from others by our religiosity is reprehensible to God. The new reality will be like the tax-collector who prayed ‘have mercy on me, a sinner.” Rather than an aloof society who see themselves as better than their neighbors, people who are truly of the new order of God consider themselves the least of all and those among whom no person would be unwelcome.

Contemplation #143
“This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word.” Isaiah 66:2

Why should we ‘tremble’ at what God’s speaks? To understand the meaning here, it is best to recognize how in the very next verse it is said that ‘he who sacrifices a bull is like one who kills a man.’ Perhaps it surprises us, but obedience to God’s commands can become a sin. The contrast is between the arrogance of confident religious actions versus humble dependence on and reverence for God’s direction. We can depend our actions more than the One who instructed us to perform them, and at that point we sin gravely. The new reality of God has no room for trusting in anything but the person of God, and listening intently to whatever he speaks. Our humility is so complete that we shake when our Lord speaks . . . so in awe of God are we.

Contemplation #144
“Hear the word of the Lord, you who tremble at his word: Your brothers who hate you, who exclude you because of my name . . .” Isaiah 66:5

In a world where people admire religious performance and equate arrogant self-righteousness with spirituality, those who listen reverently to God find themselves excluded and reviled. They are not maligned because of what they do, but in how it is perceived. Ironically, their non-participation in what is considered the height of devotion so they might have genuine affection for God, is interpreted as a lack of godliness. Let us choose listening to God, trembling at His word, over any form of religious practice. The new heavens and new earth – the Kingdom of God – is populated by people who choose the unpopular way of humility.

2006-05-08T10:49:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #139
“I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me.” Isaiah 65:1

We often think of the reassurance that if we seek, we will find. This promise is true primarily because we were being sought by God. The burden is not on us to seek, because even the slightest attempt on our part will be met quickly. God has been called the ‘Hound of Heaven’ because he tracks us, pursues us, and runs us down though we are fleeing. God is not passively waiting for us to move toward Him, but hot on our heels after us even when we are running away. How much more will we find and be found if we turn toward him! We discover that he is the One who has been near all along. This is the Misseo Dei . . . God’s eternal mission.

Contemplation #140
“Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth.” Isaiah 65:17

God says that he is going to do something so different that it is best described as a whole new creation . . . a brand new world which gives a new reality. The Misseo Dei is that God is turning our world right-side up, recreating it to be filled with godliness, joy, peace, and oneness. In the verses that follow Isaiah describes God’s people as being completely attuned to God, their lives reflecting the blessings of such harmony, and the old ways being left behind. Since this is God’s Mission, the eternal purpose that God is working out through history, our work is to adopt this new reality and live it even while it is coming. We become the vanguard of the new heavens and earth, the ambassadors of God’s Kingdom come.

Contemplation #141
“This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word.” Isaiah 66:2

Isaiah declares that God has regard for those who have been formed in humility and submission. In the beatitudes Jesus affirms what Isaiah says, for he is talking about the new heavens and new earth of Isaiah using the language of the Kingdom of God. Whatever the terminology, the Misseo Dei (Mission of God) has been God’s work to share with us a reality which embodies his nature so that we become like him and live as God lives. Our participation in the Mission of God is both that we live within this new God-defined world, and that we invite others to enter into this realm which is so close to them.

2006-05-01T08:10:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #136
"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" - but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. 1 Cointhians 2:9

Do you notice how Paul quotes Isaiah 64:4 and then contradicts it? Some biblicists would, standing on the immutable nature of scripture, try to argure that no one knows . . . and well, it simply means what it says. Isaiah doesn't hint that God's people would know some day, or that the "knowing" he is talking about excluded the "knowing" of divine revelation. How reckless of Paul to reflect on what God is doing and proclaim that Isaiah's words no longer hold true! When we work on scripture through our logic alone and fail to discern the current working of God, we may conclude that what was will always be . . . and entirely miss the new things that God does.

Contemplation # 137
We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. 1 Corinthians 2:12

Nothing is quite as dangerous to institutional Christianity as the Spirit of God. Little is as threatening to those who would exercise religious authority over others as the indwelling Spirit ordaining all to understand the gifts of God. We have often rejected the Spirit in favor of the Bible so that we might have a manageable God. We often trust the Spirit in "me" but not in "you". I have good judgment and can handle freedom, but you can't. However, our confidence in God is that he does lead us all to understanding through the Spirit what we have been freely given. Learning to follow . . . that is walking by the Spirit.

Contemplation #138
We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. 1 Corinthians 2:12

The Spirit of God may lead us in many ways, but let us consider for now the one leading Paul mentions here. Often we think of the Spirit's guidance as primarily about making decisions according to God's will. But the work that Paul is speaking of in this verse is probably more fundamental: his leading into understanding the gifts of grace. Knowing what we've been freely given sets us right in the attitude of humility and explains to us who we are as new creatures. More than needing to know how to make a decision about some matter today, we need the leading into understanding the work of grace. May we seek to be led here first.

2006-04-24T09:59:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #133
“We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers.” 1 John 3:14

If there is a sign which indicates that we have been transformed by the resurrection of Christ, that his newness of life has taken true root in us, it is that we have become people who love others. John’s use of “brothers” here is not like the sectarian usage so prevalent in Christian circles, where this is a term only given to select people that we deem are worthy because of religious belief and practice to be called “brothers.” Our participation in the resurrection of Jesus is not seen in how we love only those who believe like us, for how would that be an imitation of Christ’s love? If my love is simply favoritism for my “Christian brothers” it is not much of a sign that I have passed from death to life, for any pagan loves those who are like himself.

Contemplation #134
“If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.” Romans 6:5

There is a promise and hope in Paul’s words which assure us that choosing to die with Christ, in a baptism of selflessness and faith, destines us to his resurrection. But he also goes on to point out in this passage that he is speaking not only of looking forward to a resurrection of the last day, but to a new life now. The transformation from old life to new life that is symbolized in the going down and coming up of baptism, must be intentionally pursued in a life that both puts to death the now foreign sinfulness that persists, and seeks to nurture the beginnings of holiness. This work is most difficult, but we can be certain that we will be united with Christ in this newness.

Contemplation #135
“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:10-11

Resurrection can only come after the suffering of death. Here Paul tells us that we must with determination plunge ourselves into the sufferings of Christ, if we want to enjoy the mysteries of his resurrection. If we concentrate on the work of embracing the death of Christ within our hearts and being, the resurrection of a new person in the image of Christ will occur quite naturally. The part of this that lies within my grasp, and to which I must conform, is the suffering and death. Just as Jesus was raised not by his own power but by the Father, so we cannot raise ourselves but only lay our lives down for God to raise us.

2006-04-17T09:31:00.000-07:00

For Easter we have contemplations on the resurrection.

Contemplation #130
“If only we have only hoped in Christ in this life, we are of all men most to be pitied.” 1 Corinthians 15:19

Paul is speaking about what would be our case if truly Christ had not been raised from the dead. We would have placed all our confidence in nothing and would be miserable people indeed. Consider also Paul’s assumption: that we are placing all of our hope in Christ. This is such a basic idea, but also so lacking in Christianity. Many who believe in Jesus place some hope in Christ, some in their church, their denomination, their obedience, their traditions, or their goodness. They have not one hope. Before God they are hoping in many things religious, and so cling to all of these instead of Christ alone. Those who hope in many things are others to be pitied for they do not know Christ.

Contemplation #131
“I declare to you brothers that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God . . .” 1 Corinthians 15:50

How do we read this passage? Paul is talking about the necessity and reality of the resurrection, so we may conclude that he is saying that physical humanity cannot enter heaven. If we think this, then we equate the kingdom of God with heaven rather than with God’s rule into which we are able to enter here on earth. Let us realize that even here and now we do not enter God’s existence by flesh and blood, but by the Spirit and the way of the inward life. The resurrection of the dead which gives a new spiritual body is a necessary conclusion to the way we live now under the sovereignty of God. Our bodies will be transformed to match the transformation of our inward self which now is the work of God in us.

Contemplation #132
“The sting of death is sin . . .” 1 Corinthians 15:56

We probably think more of death as the wages or payment for sin, and this is not a wrong idea. However, the death that is the result of sin is a soul-death, or death of a being completely as that person is cut off from God, the One who gives and sustains life. In speaking here about physical death, Paul says that it’s “sting” is sin. Where there is no sin, by grace through Jesus Christ, there is no “sting” to it. Physical death under grace not a entrance into soul-death, but the transforming process of growing into greater perfection. We can only grow so far in this world through the inward changes God brings, and then we must move on to greater godliness by leaving the restrictions of this existence.

2006-04-10T09:07:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #127
“ . . . so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” Hebrews 2:9

We are always more comfortable with the teaching concerning what Jesus does for us, than with what we might experience in him. That he is our substitute is a comforting thought. He takes on himself the penalty for our sin and we receive his righteousness. But this text also shows us that it is the grace of God active in the life of Jesus that makes him the bearer of death for the sake of others. If we recognize that this same grace of God is what will animate our lives in Christ, giving us direction, purpose, and ministry, then we must acknowledge that we too may be called to bear what is not ours in order to lighten the burden of others.

Contemplation #128
“ . . . so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” Hebrews 2:9

The grace of God that brought Jesus to taste death for us was not God’s grace to and for us only, but grace to Jesus as well. Is it the merciful action of God that leads us into situations where we suffer for the sake of others? If this is the grace of God, what is the purpose of this grace? The Hebrew writer reminds us that even Jesus learned obedience from the things that he suffered and that he was made perfect (5:8). We have no path to perfection other than the one opened for us by Jesus. Learning to die to ourselves means becoming willing to die for others, and this is only “by the grace of God.”

Contemplation #129
“ . . . so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” Hebrews 2:9

The first part of this verse says, “But we see Jesus . . . now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death . . .” The following verse speaks of another of Christ’s works for us, “In bringing many sons to glory . . .” Do we not see that we share in the death of Christ, not purely by proxy but also in reality, so that we may share in the reality of his glory? Who wants glory by proxy only! Jesus tasted death, and enjoys glory. We must taste death to receive glory . . . though only through him and the grace of God given us in Christ. So often we want to come down from the cross, hoping to skip the death and move straight to glory. The grace of God allows no such shortcut, but takes us through death to glory in Christ.

2006-04-03T10:23:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #124
“ . . . his grace to me was not without effect.” 1 Corinthians 15:10

Paul knew that grace is not only a gift that is received, but that it effects change within the recipient. The grace of God in our lives works profound differences in who we are, how we live, what we say, how we treat others, how we see the world, and how we relate to God. Grace enables us to become what we could not be. As Paul says earlier in this verse, “by the grace of God I am what I am.” One way to describe the “effect of grace” is that it so thoroughly permeates our being that we become people of grace. Grace changes us into the new humanity, which is the image-of-God humanity we have always been meant to be.

Contemplation #125
“ . . . his grace to me was not without effect.” 1 Corinthians 15:10

While we can speak of the common effects of grace, there are also individual effects – where the grace of God intersects with our personal stories. Paul could talk about the way in which God’s grace had redirected his life, and rewritten the story of his life, from persecutor to evangelist. We may profitably reflect on the impact that grace has had and is having on the direction of our lives. What is different because of grace? What will be altered by the influence of divine grace? How am I being remade into a new person by the persistent work of grace?

Contemplation #126
“ . . . his grace to me was not without effect.” 1 Corinthians 15:10

The effect of grace can be associated with the purpose of God. When God gives grace it is the means to accomplishing his will. What God wills, he does; what he does, he does by grace. We could say “his work in me was not without effect” or “his purpose for me was not without results”. This is the faithfulness of God in immanent and immediate involvement in our daily lives. The gift of God’s grace is a subtle promise that his purposes are at work, and that his ends will be accomplished. Grace never lacks for effect in the same way God’s word never returns void.

2006-03-27T09:47:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #121
“Set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:13

The grace of forgiveness replaces our distress over past failures with the comfort of being cleansed. Grace transforms what has been that we are powerless to change. But grace is so much more. It so envelopes our life that is speaks not only to our past, but our future as well. Our confidence moving forward through life is the hopeful and sustaining expectation that there is more of God’s merciful action to be enjoyed. We are walking forward into a life that has become, because by faith we embrace God’s grace, the pursuit of grace. The grace which we have experienced makes us hunger for more and more grace. We live between the grace which we have received and grace which we will receive.

Contemplation #122
“Set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:13

Peter encouraged his readers to look to the fullest revelation of Jesus, one which will be so clear and startling that the entire world will acknowledge him. This is the ultimate revealing of Christ in which mercy will be poured out in a new experience. Today, as followers of Jesus, we bring the future into the present— believing now what all will believe later. We know that the grace we have tasted is not the fullness of grace but only a beginning. Each time Christ is revealed more through our humble willingness to be instructed by God, we find new experiences of grace. Knowing the richness of grace, we look forward to more. We long for more. Our full hope is in grace yet to come.

Contemplation #123
“Set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:13

Peter directs us to hope in grace and nothing more. There is nothing else in which we can hope as we look to the return of Jesus. We cannot hope in ourselves, our understanding, our accomplishments, our obedience, our religious traditions, or anything else. True and pure hope is fully centered on the merciful activity of God which is directed toward us in Christ. This hope defines us as people of grace through and through.

2006-03-20T08:51:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #118
“My grace is sufficient for you . . .” 2 Corinthians 12:9

There is so much curiosity into the exact nature of Paul’s ‘thorn in the flesh’ though perhaps it is God’s will that it remain a mystery. If we knew that Paul was speaking about a physical illness, or a temptation toward sin, or an inward struggle of the soul, we could easily conclude that grace is sufficient only in the area of his particular trial. However, since the nature of his thorn is unknown, the truth that grace is sufficient for all things is made clear. When I read Christ’s reassurance, my own struggle becomes the matter for which grace will suffice. Whatever my situation, I am reminded that God’s grace is enough, and that I will find life through depending on Him.

Contemplation #119
“My grace is sufficient for you . . .” 2 Corinthians 12:9

Sufficient. Grace alone, the merciful activity of God, provides all that is needed to address the difficulties of life. This is not forgiveness alone, but the work of God alone. It is like saying God is enough . . . nothing else is needed. Our insufficiency is made all the more apparent, the illusion of our capability swept away by the stark realities of what we encounter in life, and we come to see the only reassurance we can have – God’s grace. A life in grace, by grace, through grace, and sharing grace is the life of a Christian.

Contemplation #120
“My grace is sufficient for you . . .” 2 Corinthians 12:9

For you. God’s grace is not an impersonal divine activity that sweeps over us anonymously, but which comes to us directly, individually, and personally. In this way our particular struggles are addressed and strength is given for the exact nature of what we face. God in all his vastness and majesty is still very capable to give sufficient grace to each one of us. This is a tremendous source of comfort and joy, because in the rank aloneness we feel in times of distress, God comes near with merciful and loving help, the grace of Presence.

2006-03-20T07:35:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #115
“From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.” John 1:16.

A God-driven perspective on life reveals that grace is the source of every blessing. The series of blessings that John mentions, culminating in the incarnation of the Divine Word as a human being, and the rebirth of sinful people to become children of God, has all emanated from the grace of God. In the very next verse he speaks of the law of Moses, itself a vehicle of grace which explains how those chosen by mercy are to live within a grace-given relationship with God, is not contradicted but even more fully enacted in the life of Jesus. The grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ was another blessing, like the law of Moses, that has come to us from the fullness of God’s grace.

Contemplation #116
“From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.” John 1:16.

These words of John remind us that the grace of God comes to us not all at once, but in blessing after blessing. Every good and merciful act of God is not received at one instant, because actually it would be more than we could bear. Instead, God gives us grace for each moment, strength and endurance, patience and perseverance, and all according to his wisdom. It is a grace when God shows me my sin, but I cannot handle the grace of that revelation all at once. So God gives blessing after blessing, a steady stream of grace flowing into our lives appropriate to our journey, and sufficient for the moment.

Contemplation #117
“From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.” John 1:16.

John speaks about the ‘fullness’ of God’s grace because there is so much more than the commonly accepted grace of salvation. Grace that forgives our sin is but one blessing from the fullness of God’s grace, though the other ‘graces’ have received less attention whenever Christianity has been presented as “what I will get” instead of “what I will give up.” God’s grace instructs, reforms, and molds us into the likeness of Jesus. In seeing the fullness of grace we understand how an instructive code like the law of Moses is full of grace, not of forgiveness, but of the reformation of our daily life so we learn to love God and our neighbor. Let us not only think of grace as that which forgives, but as the source of every action of God to instruct, discipline, heal, comfort, and forgive.

2006-03-06T10:44:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #112
“Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly . . “ 1 Timothy 1:13-14

Grace is thoroughly undeserved. Our difficulty in understanding this fact leads us to read this autobiographical reflection of Paul as saying that his ignorance and unbelief were somehow facts in his favor that were the basis on which he was given grace. In other words, God knew that he was really a good guy despite his actions, and so God was gracious to him. On the contrary, Paul is not giving excuses but naming the exact nature of his failures. He was a violent man, a blasphemer of God who persecuted the faithful . . . and in addition he was ignorant and in living in unbelief. None of these are virtues to be admired, but statements of his own unworthiness. His failures were why grace was given – because he was ignorant and in unbelief. Grace is poured out on unbelievers so they might believe. We don’t deserve grace, and there is no reason to be merciful. We have no goodness to boast about.

Contemplation #113
“Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly . . “ 1 Timothy 1:13-14

To see how grace is given to us precisely because we don’t deserve it, we have to only read Paul’s repetition of how he received grace: “. . . Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy . . .” 1 Timothy 1:15-16. He received grace because he was the worst of sinners. Paul never cites a reason why God should have been merciful to him. On the contrary, he is clear in saying that grace is never deserved, and is the action of God toward us because of who He is and not because of who we are. The only qualification for grace is to be wholly undeserving . . . and that we all are!

Contemplation #114
“Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly . . “ 1 Timothy 1:13-14.

Ignorance and unbelief cannot be used as excuses, as Paul himself states in Romans 1:20 when he says all men are without excuse. Paul knew that his own “ignorance and unbelief” were not excuses but evidence of his unwillingness to see or hear God in anything around him. Paul, as a Jew and Pharisee, was even more responsible than the pagans, for the light which he was resisting shown more brightly around him than many others. By grace, God increased its intensity until he was blinded and knocked from his horse. Paul was shown mercy because he was stubbornly refusing God by living in the rebellion of ignorance and unbelief despite all God’s revelation. Grace is what we in no regard deserve.

2006-02-27T09:43:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #109
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ . . .” Galatians 1:6

God’s call to us, that we might become reunited with God and enjoy the love and blessing of divine life, is accomplished through the merciful action done in Christ. Grace is the action God takes out of mercy and love, and this work in Christ for us is the grace of Christ. We are not speaking solely of the cross, but of the birth in the manger, the holy life of selflessness, the example of goodness and holiness, the righteousness lived to God, and the death that gives us what we do not deserve. The grace of Christ’s birth, life, and death is a gift of mercy and the means of God bringing us to himself. This grace of Christ is what calls us and into which we are called . . . so that we live by grace, through grace, and unto grace.

Contemplation #110
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ . . .” Galatians 1:6

Why would anyone desert the grace of Christ? What could be more appealing, more compelling, more filled with hope than Christ’s grace? The answer is simple . . . self. The grace of Christ has nothing to do with us, but is all about God through Christ accomplishing the work of God. To be called by the grace of Christ is to lose any place for self, and to be enter of life that is centered on God because it is life by and in grace. To live with self-respect, self-esteem, self- concern, self-confidence, selfish ambition, and self-sufficiency is always more desirable than grace.

Contemplation #111
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ . . .” Galatians 1:6

The grace of Christ tolerates no rivals and no exceptions. God’s grace is so all-consuming that it leaves no room for any other way of living. Therefore, any move to live by means other than grace is a desertion of God’s merciful action in Christ. This is why our abandonment of grace can come quickly. We do not slide gradually from living by grace, but at the first turn to something other we immediately abandon God and the way of grace. The nature of grace means, though, that my quick desertion of it is not the same of God’s removal of it. Paul instructs us to return to the grace that we so quickly leave, living intentionally once again in that which we left, though which did not leave us.

2006-02-27T09:42:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #106
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” Philemon 25

Paul’s benediction to Philemon invoked a prayer for the abiding presence of grace. To find that one’s spirit is accompanied constantly by grace, is for us to live in, to be nourished by, and to ultimately administer God’s merciful action. Grace is not what we receive at only specific moments such as in forgiveness or some blessing, though we do experience events of gracious outpouring, but we are to live in the company of grace. To live with grace is to live a new life from a divine source.

Contemplation #107
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” Philemon 25

The “grace of the Lord Jesus Christ” recalls to our minds the historical, on-the-earth, and in-specific-places stories of Jesus as found in the gospels. We could talk of the grace of God to the Israelites, or the grace poured out over the centuries of the church. Grace is not theoretical, but concrete as experienced by the people of God. Paul reminds us that the grace that accompanies us and shapes our lives is the same grace seen in the gospel stories. We live in the presence of the grace of Christ. Both that he enjoyed and that he gives.

Contemplation #108
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” Philemon 25

Grace with our spirits. The human spirit, which has been renewed and gifted to us by God, our spirits with which we commune with God’s Spirit . . . this is particularly where Paul speaks about us living in grace. When my spirit lives in grace, so does my mind, my will, my emotions, my actions, and every last part of my being. My spirit is the essence of life that God gives, and here grace accompanies and renews me.

2006-02-13T09:50:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #103
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:10

Our lives in Christ become, through God’s gift, the means of grace to others. To be people of God we must be gracious, for God from the beginning reveals himself as the “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God . . .” (Exodus 34:6). So let us ask ourselves how we are to become the administers of grace to others, and we will see that grace gives birth to grace. We are “graced” so we might “grace” others. We inherit the Abrahamic promise of being blessed so we might be a blessing.

Contemplation #104
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:10

Grace necessitates the death of self. There is nothing self-seeking or self-serving about grace. The nature of being recipients of the gracious gift of God teaches us to think only of others and to forget ourselves. Grace is the action born out of mercy and compassion, the selfless concern for the welfare of others. To contemplate God’s grace, to reflect on what we have received, will lead us away from selfish concerns into giving ourselves for the sake of God to be blessings in the lives of others.

Contemplation #105
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:10

Peter teaches us that grace has many forms. As we reflect on the grace of God to us, we begin to see how many ways God’s compassion is experienced as a gift and we begin to understand the numerous ways we are to live gracious lives. Mercy, acceptance, forgiveness, kindness, peacemaking, generosity, love, and every good thing is a gift, unearned by us and which others do not have to deserve to receive from us. These are graces, or the many forms of God’s grace. As those being formed into the image of Christ we administer all these.

2006-02-08T07:02:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #100
The fruit of mercy is gentleness and the ability to nurture the hurting. Mercy gives us the capacity to restore the fallen and direct them lovingly back toward God. Spiritual direction is impossible without mercy. If another person has some weakness, concerning which we have the strength of grace, without mercy we will judge and despise his or her failure. At the same time we are forgetting that we stand only by grace. When we have the mercy of God, we are enabled to lift up lovingly and without condescension all others who are not resting in the grace we presently have received. At the same time, we honor the grace of God and are thankful.

Contemplation #101
Mercy and legalistic thinking are incompatible. Confidence in one’s ability to keep God’s laws righteously leads to soaring pride, harsh judgment of others, and the rejection of all who do not perform according to one’s personal standards. Mercy strikes a death-blow to legalism, undermining its whole foundation because mercy is tied to grace. It is impossible to be legalistic about mercy, being merciful in a dutiful and obedient way. Mercy is not an action, but the actions of a compassionate heart. In mercy we are called to abandon any thought of confidence in careful obedience and to become wholly people of gracious hearts.

Contemplation #102
When we combine personal humility, acceptance of grace, selfless love, and faith in God, we have all the ingredients for becoming merciful people. The process, though, is not entirely linear – that is, progressing orderly from one godly virtue to another. The Spirit may give one person greater impulses to mercy in a very direct way, which then enriches his love, while another experiences a deep sense of God’s love quite purely through some experience, which brings about in her greater mercy. Be assured that God will direct us all to hearts of astounding compassion, but the manner or way we cannot predict. However, seek and cultivate the other graces as well, and mercy will find its place.

2006-01-30T09:16:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #97
How do I know if I am growing into the mercy of God? One question to ask is do I hurt when those deserving punishment receive it? Our Father of all mercies takes no pleasure in the death of anyone, even those who choose it (Ezekiel 18:30-32). If we feel satisfaction when the guilty are judged, when people reap what they sow, then we have yet to learn the mercy of God. We have all received mercy because God chooses to give us what we do not deserve. Learning to be merciful means having compassion on the guilty.

Contemplation #98
Mercy is one aspect of the love of God. We are called into the love of God, to be shaped and formed in love and through love. God is teaching us the nature of his love, and his love is expressed in mercy. The love of God is a love for righteousness, and also having mercy on the thoroughly guilty. In fact, there is no shade of difference between the love of the Father for the sinless Son and God’s love for the vilest sinner. This is why the love of God can work forgiveness through the Son to the most wretched person. This is hard to imagine, but we are loved in all with the same love Jesus has for the Father, and the Father for the Son. When I am in full rebellion against God, his love is not diminished, and his mercy is poured out on me. And this . . . changes me.

Contemplation #99
Spiritual, mystical union with God’s love is what forms us and heals all our wounds. Being immersed in the mercy of God personally and inwardly will not leave us in our former states of pride and selfishness. Meditating on the mercy of God, keeping the cross of love before us constantly so that our lives are interrupted by its presence, leads to an inner transformation that shares in divine love. We must open ourselves, renounce our judgmental impulses, our self-righteous gloating, and welcome God’s love and mercy unto the remaking of our being. May the Father of all mercies have children of all mercies.

2006-01-23T07:32:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #94
Bringing mercy into our relationships is where we must do some of our hardest work. Are we only pleased with our spouse because he or she does right? Can we be only as happy with this closest of persons as she or he acts in pleasing ways? Is this not only self-love . . . and where is mercy?

Like love for our neighbor which comes from who we are in God and is not dependent on the actions or disposition of the neighbor, mercy is compassion on our neighbor. Mercy will treat another with all the tenderness of forgiveness as if this person were the most deserving friend, despite who that person might actually be. Being merciful will infuse life into a struggling relationship, if only we have the humility to be merciful.

Contemplation #95
Mercy is possible only through humility. Pride demands judgment and is unrelenting in insisting that all requirements be met . . . often in the name of righteousness and holiness. Prideful people are hard on themselves and everyone around them, but through humility and lowliness of heart we learn to be gracious and merciful. Let us err, if we must, in mercy rather than judgment . . . for God has promised to judge where necessary. A humble person is exceedingly merciful, knowing how necessary mercy is to his or her own life in God. Until we become fluent in humility, mercy will remain an elusive virtue which seems to go too far.

Contemplation #96
Do we have the faith to be merciful? Faith is our trust in God, and mercy is our choice to do the opposite of condemn. Sometimes we fear that if we do not judge, or if we are too merciful, others will get away with what they should not. Being merciful when we have this inclination to see evil punished takes complete trust in God. When we have faith in God we are able to be merciful, as we have been instructed, and know that God will judge. This is God’s Word to us, and we must believe it, and live according to it. Not only is mercy related to love and humility, it is only as mature as our faith in God. Because God is faithful and holy, we can be merciful to everyone.

2006-01-16T07:01:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #91
When we learn even a little of the mercy of God, we rightfully desire to be wholly compassionate with others. The first people we would have been previously quick to condemn, those with ‘obvious’ sin or wickedness that we find personally foreign and repulsive, become subjects of our tender concern. Sometimes those who were engaged in the very same actions as ourselves received the sharpest criticism, but acceptance of mercy allows us to let mercy triumph over judgment. However, the ones who would have stood with us in our previous way of condemnation, heartily agreeing with us, now become our greatest tests for mercy. Having mercy on the blatant sinner is sometimes easier than being merciful with the unmerciful . . . particularly if we were once as self-righteous.

Contemplation #92
David answered Gad, "I have great anxiety. Please, let us fall into the Lord's hands because His mercies are great, but don't let me fall into human hands." (2 Samuel 24:14)

When David sinned as king, he believed that God would be more merciful than any human being. David knew the compassion of God even on someone undeniably guilty. Recognizing where there is guilt is not too difficult, but knowing how to be like God toward the guilty is immensely challenging. Mercy is not the ignoring of guilt, but a loving and forgiving way of treating all who are mired in sin. By mercy we act to foster their escape from the spiritual shackles that hold them, rather than condemning them for being in prison.

Contemplation #93
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort.” (2 Corinthians 1:3)

God is the Father of mercies who pours forth tender compassion and grace. God is also the One who judges and punishes rebelliousness and wickedness. Though we have been instructed to be merciful and not to judge, in our sinfulness we prefer to judge rather than to show mercy . . . often claiming fidelity to God in the process. God has told us to emulate his mercy, and to refrain from assuming to judge. We misperceive reality when being radically merciful is seen as unfaithful to God, and judging is interpreted as careful adherence to His way. According to what God has told us to do, the exact opposite would be true.

2006-01-09T08:21:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #88
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.”

What does it mean for us to be merciful? Mercy is a gentle desire for the healing, comfort, well-being, and restitution of even the guilty who deserve nothing but harsh judgment. We are merciful when our love for the person negates any desire for us to see them “get what they deserve.” The humble love for others that we have been contemplating, which results from our love for God, creates such a tenderness of compassion that we would prefer the loss of ourselves for even our enemies. This is mercy.

Contemplation #89
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.”

If, when we contemplate how mercy prefers healing of the guilty over their punishment, what jumps to our minds are objections, exceptions, and how truth, justice, and rightness countermands this definition of mercy, then we see how far from true mercy we are. It is easy to refuse the essence of mercy because of a so-called noble desire for purity, or rightness, but what is revealed is how much we have yet to learn about humility, love of God, and the love of others. Aspire not to find the limits of mercy, under what conditions we must no longer be merciful, but rather to practice being merciful especially where mercy seems inappropriate. Here we begin to taste true mercy, because if it is anything, it is thoroughly undeserved.

Contemplation #90
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.”

Being merciful and receiving the same is more than a series of transactions, between us and others, and God and ourselves. Jesus says blessed are the merciful and not blessed are those who do merciful acts. The latter would make mercy a work instead of a lifestyle. The merciful are people who live a certain way, and not just who do or think in merciful ways at certain times. Mercy is a disposition toward others that is loving and desiring of their blessing no matter how much they deserve evil. Being merciful people leads to innumerable actions and thoughts because it is a new nature combining both humility and love.

2005-12-26T10:47:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #85
Only God can teach us to love. It is not enough to understand that we need to love others, for if we endeavor to do this from our own sense of love we will act out of self-love, the need for acceptance, out of condescension, or some other flawed substitute for charity. We will definitely not love with God’s love unless we learn from him. The first lesson of God’s love is that we die to ourselves. Putting to death self-love will do more to move us to the divine love of others than all attempts to focus our concern and care on our neighbors while staying alive to ourselves.

Contemplation #86
The more we see our self-concern dying, the more we discover others – their needs and the gifts they bring to us. We cannot love others because they have needs, or we may become enthralled with how we might supply what they are lacking, and this is love of self as “useful”. We cannot love others because of what they give to us, for this is simply the love of ourselves and our own needs. Even though dying to self makes us alive to the lives of others, our love for all others must be rooted only in God – which allows neither delusions of self-competence nor room for self-gratification. God will teach us love which is selfless.

Contemplation #87
What will loving others be like? Think of Jesus. Love for others will come out of oneness with God, but such love will not always be understood by the world. Such love will know what to say to encourage the struggling, and to rebuke the confident. This love will defend the oppressed, and denounce the oppressors; provide for the needs of the deprived, but refuse to allow that provision to become a fixation. This love will suffer abuse, and resist not injustice to itself. So selfless is this love that death itself is no barrier to relationship with God or sharing that with others. Only God teaches this love.

2005-12-19T09:17:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #82
From the writings of St. Augustine concerning John 13:34.

Let us, therefore, be holding fast to this precept of the Lord, to love one another; and then all else that is commanded we shall do, for all else we have contained in this. But this love is distinguished from that which men bear to one another as such; for in order to mark the distinction, it is added, “as I have loved you.” And wherefore is it that Christ loveth us, but that we may be fitted to reign with Christ? With this aim, therefore, let us also be loving one another, that we may manifest the difference of our love from that of others, who have no such motive in loving one another, because the love itself is wanting. But those whose mutual love has the possession of God Himself for its object, will truly love one another; and, therefore, even for the very purpose of loving one another, they love God. There is no such love as this in all men; for few have this motive for their love one to another, that God may be all in all.

Contemplation #83
From the writings of St. Augustine concerning John 13:34.

For what was it but God that He loved in us? Not because we had Him, but in order that we might have Him; and that He may lead us on, as I said a little ago, where God is all in all. It is in this way, also, that the physician is properly said to love the sick; and what is it he loves in them but their health, which at all events he desires to recall; not their sickness, which he comes to remove? Let us, then, also so love one another, that, as far as possible, we may by the solicitude of our love be winning one another to have God within us. And this love is bestowed on us by Him who said, “As I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” For this very end, therefore, did He love us, that we also should love one another; bestowing this on us by His own love to us, that we should be bound to one another in mutual love, and, united together as members by so pleasant a bond, should be the body of so mighty a Head.

Contemplation #84
From the writings of St. Augustine concerning 1 John 4:4-12.

For many things may be done that have a good appearance, and yet proceed not from the root of charity. For thorns also have flowers: some actions truly seem rough, seem savage; howbeit they are done for discipline at the bidding of charity. Once for all, then, a short precept is given thee: Love, and do what thou wilt: whether thou hold thy peace, through love hold thy peace; whether thou cry out, through love cry out; whether thou correct, through love correct; whether thou spare, through love do thou spare: let the root of love be within, of this root can nothing spring but what is good

2005-12-12T08:01:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #79
“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.” 1 John 4:7

We may find ourselves reading passages that use the term “one another” and conclude that because the statement is from a letter written to Christians that it means believer to believer. Or perhaps because this is addressed to “dear friends,” we might assume this admonition is describing love among companions. If this were true, then the love described here would not be the love one has to one’s neighbor – any neighbor. But God has one love, of one nature, and does not love one way to some and another way to others. Human love is preferential.

Instead, in the use of the endearing term friends we recognize the fruit of a love for our neighbors. Out of love for our neighbors we graciously call them friends, not because of who they are to us or what they may have done for us, making it a term reserved for those who feed our “self-love”, but because of how we love for God’s sake. Passages about living “one to another” are not restricted to the community of believers, but speak to how the world is transformed to us through our looking at everything in love.

Contemplation #80
“We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers.” 1 John 3:14

Love is the evidence that the Reign of God, his Kingdom, is in us and we are living with its realities. Through the practice of the love God teaches, we see proof that He is transforming us from a life of separation and death into life eternal in Him and through Him. In the new life, that is true existence, everyone becomes our brothers; there are no enemies for so-called enemies are the subjects of our love. Though we may be called ‘adversaries’ by others, we do not reply in kind. Having enemies is the life of death. We know all people as only brothers.

Contemplation #81
From My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers

When love, or the Spirit of God, strikes a man, he is transformed, he no longer insists upon his separate individuality. Our Lord never spoke in terms of individuality, of a man’s “elbows” or his isolated position, but in terms of personality – “that they may be one, even as We are one.” If you give up your right to yourself to God, the real true nature of your personality answers to God straight away. Jesus Christ emancipates the personality, and the individuality is transfigured; the transfiguring element is love, personal devotions to Jesus. Love is the outpouring of one personality in fellowship with another personality.

2005-12-05T08:59:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #76
“If we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” 1 John 4:12

Loving all others for the sake of Christ is a personal care and affection for each person simply because I am to be neighbor to all. This love is evidenced in a compassionate and heart-felt “going out” of emotion to each and every person. Prejudice, envy, distain, hatred, competitiveness, condescension, and every other dividing, belittling, and sinful urge to “use” others for our own benefit is replaced by giving, sacrificing, listening, honoring, respecting, helping, and merciful actions. As God-followers we cannot claim to love God and not be submitting ourselves to learning this love of others.

Contemplation #77
“If anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him.” 1 John 2:5

Many times obedience is misunderstood as the way in which we make ourselves pleasing to God. We wrongly imagine that we should follow God’s commands because then he will be pleased, or more often appeased, and so we will be saved. We treat God like a pagan deity of wrath and hatred whose favor must be won. However, in relationship with our loving God obedience is the way in which we submit ourselves to God’s formation of our heart, mind, spirit, and body – not how we find grace. This verse is not saying that when we obey then God loves us completely, for John is not talking about God’s love for us but God’s love in us. The path to learning the love of God and having his love grow to completeness in us is to follow his instructions humbly. When our faith is expressed in obedience to God, we will grow to have godly love.

Contemplation #78
“If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” 1 John 2:15

We must read John’s words as instruction for how a godly love, that of the Father himself, dwells in us. John is not saying that if we love the world the Father doesn’t love us, for he is not talking about God loving us but how we come to live out a divine love in our lives. On this subject he says that there is absolute incompatibility between the selfish nature of fleshly desires and having God’s love. We must become detached from our affections for this world and an existence of self-indulgence if we are to be renewed with the perfect love of God. We cannot love ourselves, our own comforts, our own ambitions, and our own pleasures and others for God’s sake. We must choose to die to loving the world for ourselves in order to learn to love all God’s creation as the Father does.

2005-11-28T08:40:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #73
We must ‘throw ourselves’ into loving others. Though our love is not action devoid of feeling, this love will often start in a will to act with care and affection while we offer up prayers for God to give us heart-felt concern for others. We cannot make the mistake of waiting to act with love until our hearts have feelings of care. Learning love is a discipline which we must engage forcefully and with purpose even against our natural desires. If we follow only our selfish emotions, we will continue to love as pagans . . . loving only those who love us. There is no hypocrisy in spiritual disciplines in which we seek to become what God wills, acting beyond our present state. If we long for our hearts to catch up to our obedience of faith in love then we are not hypocrites when we act more loving than we truly feel. Only in this way will we love others for the sake of Christ.

Contemplation #74
“Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.” 1 Thess. 4:9.

The brotherly love that Paul was talking about is this love for our neighbor for the sake of Christ. This was no natural human affection. Since the Thessalonians had to be taught this love by God it was not a natural human affection of the type that is human and essentially self-love. God does not teach us to be self-absorbed and to love others who offer us something we want. The bond of love that we share as brothers and sisters in Christ is unnatural, unless we restrict our fellowship to those brothers and sisters we can love selfishly. Brotherly love among believers is the work of God that enables us to be a fellowship of Jews and Greeks, male and female, slave and free, civilized and barbarian, and yet all loving each other in a way explained only by God’s intervention.

Contemplation #75
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.” 1 Thess. 1:4.

Paul and his companions had seen the love of God poured out on the people of Thessalonica. God’s power was at work among them, and the Holy Spirit created a deep conviction in them. This was evidence of God’s favor on them, and proof of His love. Loving others for the sake of Christ is what happens when our love for God becomes love for all God loves. Paul and his companions loved these people because of God. He continues, “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.” (1 Thess. 3:12). We see how God loves everyone, and he makes us to share in that love. Who is it that God does not love? Who is it that I may not love?

2005-11-21T07:57:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #70
We love others with our eyes fixed on Jesus. This is a ‘detached’ love because we are oblivious to who it is we are loving for the sake of Christ. If I try and search into others to find a reason to love them, an appealing part of their nature or a pleasing action toward me, I may very well find something to draw my love. But I am loving myself for I am finding in them something I love selfishly in order to love them. A detached love is what we give to others because we love God. There are no conditions . . . no way in which our love is related to who others are or what they do.

There are numerous people that we love in an attached way . . . because of who they are to us. Our family, our friends, fellow believers with whom we share common faith, and many others. These we ought to love also in a detached way irrespective of the human joys we share with them. The real test of our Christian love is whether we have love for others with whom we find nothing personally satisfying.

Contemplation #71
Isn’t such a detached love, loving others in whom we find nothing personally appealing, often called ‘agape’ and defined as the loving action we take toward others? Yes, agape has to do with action and differs from eros (passion) and phileo (brotherly affection). . . but let us not believe that by simply doing good to others we have fulfilled the work of agape.

By speaking of agape as the highest form of love and describing it as a choice to do good for others, sometimes we let ourselves ‘off the hook’ of having to feel kindly, true compassion, and real emotion toward those who do not appeal to us naturally. It is certainly godly to choose to do good to others and agape them in this way, but we have not truly learned love if we do so grudgingly, disdainfully, and without affection. We err when we make agape strictly an action which can be legalistically fulfilled and call that the highest love. Agape is a love of choice and like all love is proved through action, but it is also a love of the heart just as sure as eros and phileo . . . though for a different reason. Let us not settle for acting good toward others as being love for the sake of Christ, but let us seek heart-felt love that weeps over the city where live our executioners.

Contemplation #72
How do we learn detached love? Only God can teach us to love as God loves. When does God teach us this love? When we intentionally seek his teaching. How do we seek this teaching? By placing ourselves where God can do this work. And where is that?

I do not learn to love like God when I am with those whom I love naturally, humanly. When I am with family and friends my human affections will be tested, but even then there are still often selfish reasons to love when there are difficulties in those relationships. Often, when the selfish reasons disappear, divorce occurs and friendships end because there was no godly love.

A love toward others for the sake of God is learned not by watching the evening news when we see others who are far from us, but by being face to face with those with whom we have no human affection. By purposefully putting ourselves before others, and seeking in that moment God’s work in teaching us to have love where there is no earthly reason for love, we will learn to love for the sake of God. Unfortunately, many carefully control their associations so as to never come face to face with anyone but those they can love humanly. They are careful even in church to stay with those with whom there is a natural affection. Love for the sake of Christ is learned when we are with those who can be loved no other way.

2005-11-14T10:11:00.000-08:00

Our contemplations will move now from love of God to the love of others.

Contemplation #67
We have heard some say love the sinner and hate the sin – but is that the way of love? Do we love well by starting with boundaries so we don’t love too much? Do we need to be worried about loving too much?

Obviously, the motivation behind this saying is based on a desire to maintain holiness, purity, and righteousness. The problem is that the first act of holiness, purity, and righteousness is to love. Love is not one thing, and purity another. To love is to be pure, and ultimately holy and righteous. To say that we want to love in a way that maintains our moral holiness, is to say that being morally untainted is our first concern and that being loving may conflict with it. Instead, let us love dangerously, for in love Jesus took on himself the sins of us all, sacrificing moral purity in order to love.

Contemplation #68
We have heard some say love the sinner and hate the sin – but is that the way of love? Can we truly separate a person from how he or she acts, speaks, thinks, or lives life? If others tell me they love me, while hating what I do, how I live, the thoughts I have, or my lifestyle, what will their profession of love mean? Nothing.

We cannot dissect others to remove the ‘lovable’ from the ‘unlovable’. We cannot love only certain parts of others. To love our neighbor is to love that soul – the person who is the inseparable combination of mind, will, emotions, body, experiences, spirit, choices, actions, personality, and such. This is who my neighbor is, a mix of inconsistencies, goodness and rebelliousness, righteous and wicked actions . . . a person just like myself. This is the neighbor I am to love. Not the good parts of my neighbor, but simply my neighbor.

Contemplation #69
We have heard some say love the sinner and hate the sin – but is that the way of love? Isn’t this what God does, loving the world and yet condemning sin and all types of wickedness?

Let us be clear, we are called to be like God, but we are not like God. Too many seek to be like God in his judgment more than to be like God in his love. Or they seek a balance of the two. In fact, we should seek first to learn the love of God, and to refrain from judgment. Without perfect love, we are not able to judge righteously. We have so much to do in learning God’s love that we dare not assume to judge. We must learn to love others and judge rightly for ourselves, instead of loving ourselves and judging others.

2005-11-07T12:36:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #64
We may talk and write about love for God, what true adoration is, and why we should center our affections on God. But loving God, the actual cherishing of our God deep within our hearts, this is something which cannot be arrived at by explanation, instruction, or direction. Telling me why I should love God will not lead to true love, even if the reasons are valid, when I have no will to love. Love for God is what God puts into our hearts by grace. May God give us a desire for love, and may we pray earnestly that God teach us to love as He loves.

Contemplation #65
When Jesus declares that love is the sum of all that the law and prophets taught, he is not telling us that the lesson of love is last we learn after having studied through the law and prophets, all of God’s other revelation, but that love is the first lesson. We begin with love and strive toward love. Love is not for those advanced in spirituality, but for the novice. Every word of God through the law and prophets is commentary on divine love, how we have received it, and how we are to embrace and live out our lives through it. We begin with love, a foreign love that comes to us from God, unknown and strange, because it is selfless. We begin and we strive toward love, from start to finish.

Contemplation #66
There is no spiritual progress in Christ that is apart from love. No righteousness, no holy actions, no morality, no faithfulness, no obedience, no correctness in doctrine or practice . . . is possible without love. All these without love are devoid of Divine Presence and empty. Love purifies our actions and connects every spiritual discipline to God. Though our love is not perfect, we dare not do anything without even the imperfect love which we might possess now. God will make up what is lacking in our love as we attempt to love.

2005-10-31T10:48:00.000-08:00

Contemplation #61
From Abide in Christ by Andrew Murray (1828-1917).

As the Father hath loved me, I also have loved you: abide ye in my love – John 15:9.
Blessed Lord, enlighten our eyes to see properly the glory of this wondrous word. Open to our meditation the secret chamber of Your love, that our souls may enter in and find there their everlasting dwelling place . . . Lord Jesus Christ! Here I am. From now on, Your love will be the only home of my soul; in Your love alone will I abide.

Contemplation #62
Love divine, all loves excelling
Joy of heaven, to earth come down;
Fix in us thy humble dwelling;
All thy faithful mercies crown!
Jesus thou art all compassion,
Pure, unbounded love thou art;
Visit us with thy salvation;
Enter every trembling heart.
- Charles Wesley

Contemplation #63
From St. Augustine.

Suppose brethren, a man should make a ring for his betrothed, and she should love the ring more wholeheartedly than he who made it for her? Certainly, let her love his gift: but, if she should say, “The ring is enough, I do not want to see his face again,” what would we say of her? The pledge is given her by the betrothed just that, in his pledge, he himself may be loved. God, then, has given you all these things. Love Him who made them.

2005-10-24T06:24:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #58
From Autobiography of Madam Guyon by Jeanne Guyon (1648-1717).

O thou Source of Love! Thou dost indeed seem so jealous of the salvation Thou hast purchased, that Thou dost prefer the sinner to the righteous! . . . How full of self-love are the self-righteous, and how void of the love of God! They esteem and admire themselves in their works of righteousness, which they suppose to be a fountain of happiness. These works are no sooner exposed to the Sun of Righteousness, than they discover all to be so full of impurity and baseness, that it frets them to the heart. Meanwhile the poor sinner, Magdalene, is pardoned because she loves much, and her faith and love are accepted as righteousness.

Contemplation #59
“May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ.” 2 Thess 3:5 (NASV)

Let us make this petition our way of seeking God today – looking for the Lord to move our inner affection from the love anything else to a single love of God characterized by the perseverance of Christ. Walking by the Spirit is abiding in the love of God, and we must allow God to show us this way.

Contemplation # 60
From The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis, book 2, chapter 8.

Jesus Christ must be loved alone with a special love for He alone, of all friends, is good and faithful. For Him and in Him you must love friends and foes alike, and pray to Him that all may know and love Him.
Never desire special praise or love, for that belongs to God alone Who has no equal. Never wish that anyone's affection be centered in you, nor let yourself be taken up with the love of anyone, but let Jesus be in you and in every good man. Be pure and free within, unentangled with any creature.

2005-10-17T07:13:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #55
From Ignatius to the Ephesians written about 100 AD.

None of these things is hidden from you, if ye be perfect in your faith and love toward Jesus Christ, for these are the beginning and end of life – faith is the beginning and love is the end -- and the two being found in unity are God, while all things else follow in their train unto true nobility. No man professing faith sinneth, and no man possessing love hateth. The tree is manifest from its fruit; so they that profess to be Christ's shall be seen through their actions. For the Work is not a thing of profession now, but is seen then when one is found in the power of faith unto the end. (14:1-2).

Contemplation #56
From The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus written about 200 AD.

And loving Him thou wilt be an imitator of His goodness. And marvel not that a man can be an imitator of God. He can, if God willeth it. For happiness consisteth not in lordship over one's neighbours, nor in desiring to have more than weaker men, nor in possessing wealth and using force to inferiors; neither can any one imitate God in these matters; nay, these lie outside His greatness. But whosoever taketh upon himself the burden of his neighbour, whosoever desireth to benefit one that is worse off in that in which he himself is superior, whosoever by supplying to those that are in want possessions which he received from God becomes a God to those who receive them from him, he is an imitator of God. (10:4-6).

Contemplation #57
From The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians written about 110-140 AD.

For neither am I, nor is any other like unto me, able to follow the wisdom of the blessed and glorious Paul, who when he came among you taught face to face with the men of that day the word which concerneth truth carefully and surely; who also, when he was absent, wrote a letter unto you, into the which if ye look diligently, ye shall be able to be builded up unto the faith given to you, which is the mother of us all, while hope followeth after and love goeth before--love toward God and Christ and toward our neighbor. For if any man be occupied with these, he hath fulfilled the commandment of righteousness; for he that hath love is far from all sin. (3:2-3).

2005-10-10T12:51:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #52
Like humility, love for God is a virtue that has no extreme. We should have no moderation in love, but pursue love with complete abandon and without reservation. If we err in loving God, it is always that our supposed love for God is only a version of our love for ourselves. Instead, let us love only God, and all others, including ourselves, for His sake. There is no room for anything in love for God except God. Let our love for God be jealous of any other affection.

Contemplation #53
Deep affection for ourselves is the most natural state for us. To love God, whose immediate presence is unseen, seems unreasonable. To love God more than oneself appears to be reckless. To love only God, and not oneself at all, looks like madness. And yet, this is Christian love – the love spoken of and promised by our faith. Do not expect to understand it, unless you have experienced it. If you have not experienced it, simply ask for God to give it and trust the Spirit to teach you this love.

Contemplation #54
Christian love for God ultimately resides in the will, and yet becomes more than intentional choice. As love defines the very nature of God so that there is no aspect of God that is not love, our love for God fills and consumes us, and ultimately defines all of who we are. This change begins in the will and its choices, but spreads to the mind and its thoughts, the heart and its desires, the body and its actions, and throughout all we are. The love that is the nature of God will by grace become our nature as well. This is the will of God for us in Christ through the Spirit.

2005-10-03T08:46:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #49
God is love. To adore and love the One who is love comes naturally to those who no longer are consumed with the nature of our physical existence, but who seek the purity and beauty of our true life. If we struggle to love God, to feel real affection and longing for the One who is love, let us identify our selfish and worldly concerns that are distracting us. Shedding our obsession for the temporal will open us to the tender, sweet, and deep love for He who is All in all.

Contemplation #50
To love God is to be free. The chains of fear, guilt, shame, and self-criticism are loosed. We no longer live by oppressive obligations that create burdens none can bear and standards none can meet. The Word of God interpreted and practiced by love is joyful, every instruction a blessing, and each warning a message of care that reassures rather than terrifies. Through love we are emancipated from every tyranny created by the misguided religious systems of men, and we discover the goodness of God in ways that create an unreasonable love in us to mirror the incomprehensible love of God.

Contemplation #51
Our love for God should not be a worry for us, especially if we feel that we lack real love. It is more important that we are willing to love God than for us to be concerned over whether we do that well. If we are open to loving God, and honest with where we may feel we do not love God, God Himself will move us on the path to greater love. The love for God that we are moving toward is more than respect, appreciation, honor, obedience, trust, or any other form of esteem. We are being drawn into an adoration, longing, and eagerness for God that is the richest and deepest emotion. A consuming and powerful love for God expressed from our whole being is our goal, though if we seem to follow short we need only to continue to trust God.

2005-09-26T11:42:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #46
From Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945).

When God was merciful, when He revealed Jesus Christ to us as our Brother, when He won our hearts by His love, this was the beginning of our instruction in divine love . . . What God did to us, we then owed to others. The more we received, the more we were able to give; and the more meager our brotherly love, the less were we living by God’s mercy and love. Thus God Himself taught us to meet one another as God has met us in Christ.

Contemplation #47
From Practicing His Presence by Brother Lawrence (1611-1691).

The whole substance of religion is simply faith, hope and love. By practicing these we become united to the will of God. Everything else is immaterial and is simply a means of arriving at our end – to be swallowed up in our unity to the will of God through faith and love.

Contemplation #48
From Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ by Jeanne Guyon (1647-1717).

Do you know what God’s will is? His will is that his children love Him. Therefore, when you pray, “Lord, Your will be done,” you are actually asking the Lord to allow you to love Him. So begin to love him! And as you do, beseech Him to give you His love.

2005-09-20T07:21:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #43
From Letter 30 of Forty Spiritual Letters by François Fénelon (1651-1715).

God is, at the same time, the Truth and the Love. We can only know the truth in proportion as we love - when we love it, we understand it well. If we do not love Love, we do not know Love. He who loves much, and remains humble and lowly in his ignorance, is the well-beloved one of the Truth; he knows what philosophers not only are ignorant of, but do not desire to know.

Contemplation #44
From Abide in Christ by Andrew Murray (1828-1917).

"As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: abide ye in my love."--John 15:9.
Blessed Lord, enlighten our eyes to see aright the glory of this wondrous word. Open to our meditation the secret chamber of THY LOVE, that our souls may enter in, and find there their everlasting dwelling-place. How else shall we know aught of a love that passeth knowledge?

O Infinite Love! Love with which the Father loved the Son! Love with which the Son loves us! I can trust thee, I do trust thee. O keep me abiding in Thyself.

Contemplation #45
Spiritual maxim attributed to Pere La Combe, spiritual director of Madame Guyon.

To take and receive all things not in ourselves, but in God, is the true and excellent way of dying to ourselves and living only to God. They who understand the practice of this, are beginning to live purely; but, outside of this, nature is always mingled with grace, and we rest in self instead of permitting ourselves no repose, except in the Supreme Good, who should be the center of every movement of the heart, as He is the final end of all the measures of love.

2005-09-12T12:01:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #40
From My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers (1874-1917).

The springs of love are in God, not in us. It is absurd to look for the love of God in our hearts naturally, it is only there when it has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. If we try to prove to God how much we love Him, it is a sure sign that we do not love Him. The evidence of our love for Him is the absolute spontaneity of our love, it comes naturally.

Contemplation #41
From The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis (1379-1471), book 3, chapter 27.

The voice of Christ: MY CHILD, you should give all for all, and in no way belong to yourself. You must know that self-love is more harmful to you than anything else in the world. In proportion to the love and affection you have for a thing, it will cling to you more or less. If your love is pure, simple, and well ordered, you will not be a slave to anything.

Contemplation #42
From The Sacrament of the Present Moment by Jean-Pierre de Caussade (1675-1751).

As soon as their heart is willing, souls come under the influence of divine action, whose power over them depends on the extent to which they have surrendered themselves. Love is the way to this surrender. Love always prevails, is never denied. How can it be since it only asks for love in return for love? May not love long for what it gives? Divine action cares only for a willing heart and takes no account of any other faculty. Should it find a heart that is good, innocent, honest, simple, submissive, obedient and respectful, that is all it looks for. It takes possession of that heart, controls all its faculties and everything turns out so well for souls that they find themselves blessed in all things.

2005-09-06T10:43:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #37
From The Sacrament of the Present Moment by Jean-Pierre de Caussade (1675-1751)

The doctrine of perfect love comes to us through God’s action alone and not through our own efforts. God instructs the heart, not through ideas but through suffering and adversity. To know this is to understand that God is our only good. To achieve it it is necessary to be indifferent to all material blessings, and to arrive at this point one must be deprived of them all. Thus it is only through continual affliction, misfortune and a long succession of mortifications of very kind to our feelings and affections that we are established in perfect love.

Contemplation #38
Four degrees of love from On Loving God by Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Love is one of the four natural affections, which it is needless to name since everyone knows them. And because love is natural, it is only right to love the Author of nature first of all. Hence comes the first and great commandment, ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God.’ But nature is so frail and weak that necessity compels her to love herself first; and this is carnal love, wherewith man loves himself first and selfishly, as it is written, ‘That was not first which is spiritual but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual’ (I Cor. 15.46) . . . So then in the beginning man loves God, not for God’s sake, but for his own.

But when tribulations, recurring again and again, constrain him to turn to God for unfailing help, would not even a heart as hard as iron, as cold as marble, be softened by the goodness of such a Savior, so that he would love God not altogether selfishly, but because He is God? . . . Thereupon His goodness once realized draws us to love Him unselfishly, yet more than our own needs impel us to love Him selfishly.

Contemplation #39
Four degrees of love from On Loving God by Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Whosoever praises God for His essential goodness, and not merely because of the benefits He has bestowed, does really love God for God’s sake, and not selfishly. The third degree of love, we have now seen, is to love God on His own account, solely because He is God.

How blessed is he who reaches the fourth degree of love, wherein one loves himself only in God! In Him should all our affections center, so that in all things we should seek only to do His will, not to please ourselves. And real happiness will come, not in gratifying our desires or in gaining transient pleasures, but in accomplishing God’s will for us: even as we pray every day: ‘Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven’ (Matt. 6.10). O chaste and holy love! O sweet and gracious affection! O pure and cleansed purpose, thoroughly washed and purged from any admixture of selfishness, and sweetened by contact with the divine will! To reach this state is to become godlike.

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2005-08-29T08:10:00.000-07:00

2005-08-29T08:09:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #34
François Fénelon, from Letter 28 of Forty Spiritual Letters (1651 – 1715)
Please understand about love. I am not asking from you a love which is tender and emotional. All I ask is that your will should lean towards love, that you should make up your mind to love God, regardless of your feelings. And no matter what corrupt desires you should find in your heart, if you will make a decision to love God more than self and the whole world, he will be pleased.

Contemplation #35
Deuteronomy 30:19-20 RSV
“Choose life, that you and your descendants may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice, and cleaving to him; for that means life to you.”

Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)
The reason for loving God is God himself and how he should be loved is to love him without limit

Contemplation #36
Madame Guyon (1648-1717)
I love my God, but with no love of mine
For I have none to give;
I love Thee, Lord, but all that love is Thine,
For by Thy life I live.
I am as nothing, and rejoice to be
Emptied and lost and swallowed up in Thee.

2005-08-22T07:49:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #31
From The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis, book 2, chapter 6.
It is characteristic of a humble soul always to do good and to think little of itself. It is a mark of great purity and deep faith to look for no consolation in created things. The man who desires no justification from without has clearly entrusted himself to God: "For not he who commendeth himself is approved," says St. Paul, "but he whom God commendeth."[

Contemplation #32
“When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” Proverbs 11:2
Some Questions for Contemplation:
What type of disgrace follows pride?
Why do the humble gain wisdom?
What wisdom have I gained through these meditations?

Through our 32 meditations on humility we have focused on where our journey must begin. Our move toward God is possible only in letting go of our inflated and stubborn pride, a type of self-love that leads to self-death. Now, let us move in our meditations to the adoration of God, the love of God which replaces our self-infatuation.

Contemplation #33
From The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis, book 2, chapter 7.
BLESSED is he who appreciates what it is to love Jesus and who despises himself for the sake of Jesus. Give up all other love for His, since He wishes to be loved alone above all things.

2005-08-14T11:21:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #28
Humility and Peace
So much dissatisfaction in life can be traced to our unmet expectations. When we are not treated well, in the way we deserve, it causes us to be hurt and resentful. Often we become angry over how we are mistreated. There is no peace in life but only a much too long record of injustices suffered.

Humility necessitates that we be mindful of our lowliness and consider mistreatment to be our rightful lot. Anything good is an undeserved grace. In this way humility introduces peace into our lives, not through changing our circumstances or what we experience, but in helping us to be thankful for the underserved good we receive rather than resentful regarding the lack of what we think we are owed.

Contemplation #29
How do we become humble? It is only through the work of God in our lives – and this work is a breaking of our pride. Our stubbornness, willfulness, rebellious nature, and desire for self-direction are all the natural fruits of pride and these God will remove through breaking our pride.

How do you suppose you will become humble except by being humbled? This is the part we resist. Is there not another way? Can we not learn humility in a classroom? Is it learned only through humbling experiences? Yes, only in being brought low does God make us familiar with humility, and so we begin to experience an affinity with Christ. The humble savior, servant of all, is the One we meet in humbling circumstances.

Contemplation #30
“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.” Proverbs 16:18-19.

Prayer: O Lord, teach us the way of humility so that we will see the wisdom of these words. May we so value humility that we would choose it in oppression rather than to share in wealth with those who are proud.

2005-08-08T12:37:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #25
Humility and the Affairs of Others
Our human nature leads us to an inordinate interest in the lives of others. This curiosity is not the way we express love for our neighbors, but a prideful desire to know everyone else’s affairs, and often to assume we have the knowledge to evaluate their life, actions, and motives. This interest in the life of another is not godly, but prying, invasive, and ultimately hurtful both ourselves and others.

Humility teaches us to look only on our own sinfulness, to confess that to God, and to abstain from inquiry into the lives of others. When humility keeps us focused on our own desperate need for the forgiveness of grace, and strength of God’s power, and the reformation of our selves into the image of Jesus, we will then be prepared to love our neighbors while letting God be their Master.

Contemplation #26
Humility and Living in Harmony
When each considers others better than himself, each seeks to be the Christ-imitating servant of all others. What is it that often threatens our relationships? Is it not competition? Is it not how we seek the places of prominence and the satisfaction of our own desires? But this is not the humble way of Christ.

The body of Christ is a community that becomes what God intends through selflessness, and this cannot be manufactured by determination or instruction. Concern for others must be the genuine fruit of humility. No one will be able to live considering others more worthy than himself because he was told to do so. For secretly in his heart he will still think himself worthy, though he may try to outwardly act otherwise. Humility will lead to genuine and unforced service, and through that, to the community of the body of Christ.

Contemplation #27
Humility and Love
To love is to treat another as one would treat oneself. In doing this, one loses oneself. There is no longer a distinction between “self” and others when we love our neighbors as ourselves. To love as God is to die to love of oneself, because it means giving that same care and concern to all others.

What hope is there of embracing God’s love and expressing it to all others without having humility? The proud cannot love their neighbors as themselves, because they must be first. The proud can only love others less than themselves, for loving others as themselves is contrary to their pride. Only the humble can have the love of God. To be Christian is to be humble and to love.

2005-07-31T14:13:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #22
The Essential Ingredient of Faith
We enjoy our relationship with God through faith – a desperate trust in God born out of sober recognition of our personal poverty. Established with God by faith, we live out this relationship through love for God, and for His sake, we love others and creation. But what is the foundation of this faith which is essential to communion with God? Upon what is faith built? It is humility.

The arrogant trust in themselves, and cannot depend on another. Pride has no room to admit weakness. Wherever pride lurks in us, there we do not experience faith, for we are self-assured or at least unwilling to ask for the help we desperately need. What does God require? That we walk humbly with him. Out of humility faith grows as we put all of our confidence in God. Without faith it is impossible to please God; and without humility, we can never have faith.

Contemplation #23
Is it possible to be too humble? Certainly we can be falsely humble, of which there are two types: pretending to be meek and contrite when we are not, or acting humble by disowning what we should affirm. But can we be too humble?

As with any godly virtue, the problem is not with extremism, but corruption. We cannot be too loving or too faithful. We can be permissive and claim that we are loving, but we are not. We can act legalistically strict and call it faithfulness, but it is not. Neither can we be too humble. Confessing the depth of our own inadequacies, considering others better than ourselves, esteeming God as high and lifted up, being gentle and meek, and every other manifestation of humility cannot be taken to an extreme. Rather than worry about having gone too far, we should be wary of having stopped far short of what humility demands.

Contemplation #24
Is God humble?
Our first reaction to this question might be to say that we are to be humble, but not so God. However, the incarnation of God in being born of Mary shows us the humility of God, not only in Jesus as the baby on earth, but of God in heaven in willingly taking on human form. When God considers our desperate and pitiful condition from his lofty and high place, he is being humble. When God does what is for our good and yet it causes him pain, as his love for us as expressed in the cross, we see the attribute of humility. When God is gentle and kind, revealing himself in a constrained way so that his presence does not slay us all, he is being humble.

The only way in which our humility differs from God’s is that when in humility both God and we confess what is true, he rightly declares his holiness and we admit our sinfulness. But this difference is not about humility itself, but in what we do out of our humility. The humility of God teaches as to live honestly with who we are, and to consider first the needs of others.

2005-07-18T07:16:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #20
From Humility by Andrew Murray (1828-1917)

It is easy to think we humble ourselves before God: humility towards men will be the only sufficient proof that our humility before God is real; that humility has taken up its abode in us; and become our very nature; that we actually, like Christ, have made ourselves of no reputation. When in the presence of God lowliness of heart has become, not a posture we pray to Him, but the very spirit of our life, it will manifest itself in all our bearing towards our brethren.

Contemplation #21
From On the Christian Life by John Calvin (1509-1564)

Many bear about with them some measure of mildness so long as all things go smoothly and lovingly with them, but how few are there who, when stung and irritated, preserve the same tenor of moderation? For this there is no other remedy than to pluck up by the roots those most noxious pests, self-love and love of victory. This the doctrine of Scripture does. For it teaches us to remember, that the endowments which God has bestowed upon us are not our own, but His free gifts, and that those who plume themselves upon them betray their ingratitude. “Who maketh thee to differ,” saith Paul, “and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1 Cor. iv. 7.) Then by a diligent examination of our faults let us keep ourselves humble. Thus while nothing will remain to swell our pride, there will be much to subdue it.

2005-07-11T08:18:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #17
Continuing the degrees of humility from the Rule of St. Benedict for monks:
The sixth degree of humility is, when a monk is content with the meanest and worst of everything, and in all that is enjoined him holdeth himself as a bad and worthless workman, saying with the Prophet: "I am brought to nothing and I knew it not; I am become as a beast before Thee, and I am always with Thee" (Ps 72[73]:22-23).

The seventh degree of humility is, when, not only with his tongue he declareth, but also in his inmost soul believeth, that he is the lowest and vilest of men, humbling himself and saying with the Prophet: "But I am a worm and no man, the reproach of men and the outcast of the people" (Ps 21[22]:7). "I have been exalted and humbled and confounded" (Ps 87[88]:16). And also: "It is good for me that Thou hast humbled me, that I may learn Thy commandments" (Ps 118[119]:71,73).

The eighth degree of humility is, when a monk doeth nothing but what is sanctioned by the common rule of the monastery and the example of his elders.

Contemplation#18
The ninth degree of humility is, when a monk withholdeth his tongue from speaking, and keeping silence doth not speak until he is asked; for the Scripture showeth that "in a multitude of words there shall not want sin" (Prov 10:19); and that "a man full of tongue is not established in the earth" (Ps 139[140]:12).

The tenth degree of humility is, when a monk is not easily moved and quick for laughter, for it is written: "The fool exalteth his voice in laughter" (Sir 21:23).

The eleventh degree of humility is, that, when a monk speaketh, he speak gently and without laughter, humbly and with gravity, with few and sensible words, and that he be not loud of voice, as it is written: "The wise man is known by the fewness of his words."

Contemplation #19
The twelfth degree of humility is, when a monk is not only humble of heart, but always letteth it appear also in his whole exterior to all that see him; namely, at the Work of God, in the garden, on a journey, in the field, or wherever he may be, sitting, walking, or standing, let him always have his head bowed down, his eyes fixed on the ground, ever holding himself guilty of his sins, thinking that he is already standing before the dread judgment seat of God, and always saying to himself in his heart what the publican in the Gospel said, with his eyes fixed on the ground: "Lord, I am a sinner and not worthy to lift up mine eyes to heaven" (Lk 18:13); and again with the Prophet: "I am bowed down and humbled exceedingly" (Ps 37[38]:7-9; Ps 118[119]:107).

Having, therefore, ascended all these degrees of humility, the monk will presently arrive at that love of God, which being perfect, casteth out fear (1 Jn 4:18). In virtue of this love all things which at first he observed not without fear, he will now begin to keep without any effort, and as it were, naturally by force of habit, no longer from the fear of hell, but from the love of Christ, from the very habit of good and the pleasure in virtue. May the Lord be pleased to manifest all this by His Holy Spirit in His laborer now cleansed from vice and sin.

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2005-07-04T12:41:00.000-07:00

2005-07-04T12:38:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #14
From “Humility” in Book 2, Chapter 2, The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis.

It is the humble man whom God protects and liberates; it is the humble whom He loves and consoles. To the humble He turns and upon them bestows great grace, that after their humiliation He may raise them up to glory. He reveals His secrets to the humble, and with kind invitation bids them come to Him. Thus, the humble man enjoys peace in the midst of many vexations, because his trust is in God, not in the world. Hence, you must not think that you have made any progress until you look upon yourself as inferior to all others.

Contemplation #15
In Chapter 7, Of Humility, in The Rule of St. Benedict, a guide for the monks of his order, Benedict describes 12 degrees of humility, or stages, through which one grows toward God.

Hence, brethren, if we wish to reach the greatest height of humility, and speedily to arrive at that heavenly exaltation to which ascent is made in the present life by humility, then, mounting by our actions, we must erect the ladder which appeared to Jacob in his dream, by means of which angels were shown to him ascending and descending (cf Gen 28:12). Without a doubt, we understand this ascending and descending to be nothing else but that we descend by pride and ascend by humility. The erected ladder, however, is our life in the present world, which, if the heart is humble, is by the Lord lifted up to heaven. For we say that our body and our soul are the two sides of this ladder; and into these sides the divine calling hath inserted various degrees of humility or discipline which we must mount.

The first degree of humility, then, is that a man always have the fear of God before his eyes (cf Ps 35[36]:2), shunning all forgetfulness and that he be ever mindful of all that God hath commanded, that he always considereth in his mind how those who despise God will burn in hell for their sins, and that life everlasting is prepared for those who fear God.

The second degree of humility is, when a man loveth not his own will, nor is pleased to fulfill his own desires but by his deeds carrieth our that word of the Lord which saith: "I came not to do My own will but the will of Him that sent Me" (Jn 6:38). It is likewise said: "Self-will hath its punishment, but necessity winneth the crown."

Contemplation #16
Continuing the 12 degrees of humility as taught by St. Benedict:

The third degree of humility is, that for the love of God a man subject himself to a Superior in all obedience, imitating the Lord, of whom the Apostle saith: "He became obedient unto death" (Phil 2:8).

The fourth degree of humility is, that, if hard and distasteful things are commanded, nay, even though injuries are inflicted, he accept them with patience and even temper, and not grow weary or give up, but hold out, as the Scripture saith: "He that shall persevere unto the end shall be saved" (Mt 10:22

The fifth degree of humility is, when one hideth from his Abbot (the spiritual director of the monastery) none of the evil thoughts which rise in his heart or the evils committed by him in secret, but humbly confesseth them. Concerning this the Scripture exhorts us, saying: "Reveal thy way to the Lord and trust in Him" (Ps 36[37]:5).

2005-06-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #12
Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, book 2, chapter 2.
It is often good for us to have others know our faults and rebuke them, for it gives us greater humility. When a man humbles himself because of his faults, he easily placates those about him and readily appeases those who are angry with him.
It is the humble man whom God protects and liberates; it is the humble whom He loves and consoles. To the humble He turns and upon them bestows great grace, that after their humiliation He may raise them up to glory. He reveals His secrets to the humble, and with kind invitation bids them come to Him. Thus, the humble man enjoys peace in the midst of many vexations, because his trust is in God, not in the world. Hence, you must not think that you have made any progress until you look upon yourself as inferior to all others.

Contemplation #13
Satan’s Pride and Fall, Ezekiel 28:13-17
"You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your covering:
The ruby, the topaz and the diamond;
The beryl, the onyx and the jasper;
The lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald;
And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets,
Was in you.
On the day that you were created
They were prepared.

14. "You were the anointed cherub who covers,
And I placed you there.
You were on the holy mountain of God;
You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.

15. "You were blameless in your ways
From the day you were created
Until unrighteousness was found in you.

16. . . .
Therefore I have cast you as profane
From the mountain of God.
And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub,
From the midst of the stones of fire.

17. "Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;
You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.

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2005-06-22T15:21:00.000-07:00

Post your comments to this message about humility, or any of the readings to this point.

2005-06-22T11:49:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #10
From Humility by Andrew Murray (1828-1917).

The humble man seeks at all times to act up to the rule, "In honor preferring one another; Servants one of another; Each counting others better than himself Subjecting yourselves one to another." The question is often asked, how we can count others better than ourselves, when we see that they are far below us in wisdom and in holiness, in natural gifts, or in grace received. The question proves at once how little we understand what real lowliness of mind is. True humility comes when, in the, light of God, we have seen ourselves to be nothing, have consented to part with and cast away self, to let God be all. The soul that has done this, and can say, So have I lost myself in finding Thee, no longer compares itself with others. It has given up forever every thought of self in God's presence; it meets its fellow-men as one who is nothing, and seeks nothing for itself; who is a servant of God, and for His sake a servant of all. A faithful servant may be wiser than the master, and yet retain the true spirit and posture of the servant. The humble man looks upon every, the feeblest and unworthiest, child of God, and honors him and prefers him in honor as the son of a King. The spirit of Him who washed the disciples' feet, makes it a joy to us to be indeed the least, to be servants one of another.

Contemplation #11
From sermon by Charles Spurgeon, The Meek and Lowly One, delivered July 31st, 1859.

Christ is no egotist; he takes no praise to himself. If ever he utters a word in self-commendation, it is not with that object; it is with another design, namely that he may entice souls to come to him . . . Nobody was afraid of Jesus. The mothers brought their little babes to him: whoever heard of their doing that to Moses? Did ever babe get a blessing of Moses? But Jesus was all meekness—the approachable man, feasting with the wedding guests, sitting down with sinners, conversing with the unholy and the unclean, touching the leper, and making himself at home with all men . . .
Ye may say your little prayer,
"Gentle Jesus, meek and mild,Look on me, a little Child;Pity my simplicity,Suffer me to come to thee."
He will not cast you away, or think you have intruded on him. Ye harlots, ye drunkards, ye feasters, ye wedding guests, ye may all come; "This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them." He is "meek and lowly in heart." That gives, I think, a still fuller and broader sense to the term, "meek."

2005-06-22T11:47:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #7
Psalms 34

1. I will bless the LORD at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

2. My soul will make its boast in the LORD;
The humble will hear it and rejoice.

3. O magnify the LORD with me,
And let us exalt His name together.

4. I sought the LORD, and He answered me,
And delivered me from all my fears.

5. They looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces will never be ashamed.

6. This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him
And saved him out of all his troubles.

7. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him,
And rescues them.

8. O taste and see that the LORD is good;
How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

9. O fear the LORD, you His saints;
For to those who fear Him there is no want.

Contemplation #8
St. John Chrysostom (347-407), Archbishop of Constantinople.
From Homily VI on Philippians

What then is humility? To be lowly minded. And he is lowly minded who humbles himself, not he who is lowly by necessity. To explain what I say; and do ye attend; he who is lowly minded, when he has it in his power to be high minded, is humble, but he who is so because he is not able to be high minded, is no longer humble. For instance, If a King subjects himself to his own officer, he is humble, for he descends from his high estate; but if an officer does so, he will not be lowly minded; for how? he has not humbled himself from any high estate. It is not possible to show humble-mindedness except it be in our power to do otherwise. For if it is necessary for us to be humble even against our will, that excellency comes not from the spirit or the will, but from necessity. This virtue is called humble-mindedness, because it is the humbling of the mind.

Contemplation #9
Meditate on the words of Jesus: "Learn of me, because I am meek, and humble of heart: and you shall find rest to your souls" (Matt., 11: 29).

Questions to open oneself to Jesus’ Words:
1. How do I ‘learn of Jesus’?
2. What does Jesus teach me?
3. How does this learning lead to rest?

2005-06-22T11:45:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #4
This reading is taken from The Summa Theologica by Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). In this work Aquinas responds to a series of questions. This is not easy to read, and you will need to move through his thoughts slowly and carefully to understand what he is saying. You may devote several days to this until you feel that you have mastered his teaching. We will take part of his answer to the following question:

Whether one ought, by humility, to subject oneself to all men?
We may consider two things in man, namely that which is God's, and that which is man's. Whatever pertains to defect is man's: but whatever pertains to man's welfare and perfection is God's, according to the saying of Hosea 13:9, "Destruction is thy own, O Israel; thy help is only in Me." Now humility, as stated above properly regards the reverence whereby man is subject to God. Wherefore every man, in respect of that which is his own, ought to subject himself to every neighbor, in respect of that which the latter has of God's: but humility does not require a man to subject what he has of God's to that which may seem to be God's in another. For those who have a share of God's gifts know that they have them, according to 1 Cor. 2:12: "That we may know the things that are given us from God." Wherefore without prejudice to humility they may set the gifts they have received from God above those that others appear to have received from Him; thus the Apostle says (Eph. 3:5): "(The mystery of Christ) was not known to the sons of men as it is now revealed to His holy apostles." In like manner. humility does not require a man to subject that which he has of his own to that which his neighbor has of man's: otherwise each one would have to esteem himself a greater sinner than anyone else: whereas the Apostle says without prejudice to humility (Gal. 2:15): "We by nature are Jews, and not of the Gentiles, sinners." Nevertheless a man may esteem his neighbor to have some good which he lacks himself, or himself to have some evil which another has not: by reason of which, he may subject himself to him with humility.

We must not only revere God in Himself, but also that which is His in each one, although not with the same measure of reverence as we revere God. Wherefore we should subject ourselves with humility to all our neighbors for God's sake, according to 1 Pt. 2:13, "Be ye subject . . . to every human creature for God's sake";

Contemplation #5
For this contemplation you ought to think about the following questions, and may add other questions you may have come upon. You may decide to take one question a day, or more if you choose.
1. How is pride manifest in my daily life of activities, my perception of myself in my opinion of myself, and in my relationships with others?
2. In what ways is God’s Spirit convicting me to abandon my pride and seek true humility?
3. How will humility be formed in me? By what means will God do this work?

Contemplation #6
There is one vice of which no man in the world is free; which every one in the world loathes when he sees it in someone else; and of which hardly any people, except Christians, ever imagine that they are guilty themselves. . . There is no fault which makes a man more unpopular, and no fault which we are more unconscious of in ourselves. And the more we have it ourselves, the more we dislike it in others.

The vice I am talking of is Pride or Self-Conceit: and the virtue opposite to it, in Christian morals, is called Humility . . . According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, book 3, chapter 8 – “The Great Sin.”

2005-06-22T11:41:00.000-07:00

Contemplation #1
Letter 1 from Forty Spiritual Letters by François Fénelon 1651 - 1715.

The Advantages of Humility
I pray often to God that He would keep you in the hollow of his hand. And this He certainly will do if you remember to keep a humble and obedient spirit. Humility is good in every situation, because it produces that teachable spirit that makes everything easy. And you, of all people, would be more guilty than many others if you made any resistance to the Lord on this point. For on the one hand, the Lord has taught you so much on the necessity of becoming like a little child; and on the other, few people have had an experience more fitting to humiliate the heart and destroy self-confidence. The good that comes from any experience of personal weakness is the realization that God wants us to be lowly and obedient, So may the Lord keep you!

Contemplation #2
Chapter Two of Thomas A Kempis’ Imitation of Christ

HAVING A HUMBLE OPINION OF SELF
EVERY man naturally desires knowledge; but what good is knowledge without fear of God? Indeed a humble rustic who serves God is better than a proud intellectual who neglects his soul to study the course of the stars. He who knows himself well becomes mean in his own eyes and is not happy when praised by men.
If I knew all things in the world and had not charity, what would it profit me before God Who will judge me by my deeds?
Shun too great a desire for knowledge, for in it there is much fretting and delusion. Intellectuals like to appear learned and to be called wise. Yet there are many things the knowledge of which does little or no good to the soul, and he who concerns himself about other things than those which lead to salvation is very unwise.
Many words do not satisfy the soul; but a good life eases the mind and a clean conscience inspires great trust in God.
The more you know and the better you understand, the more severely will you be judged, unless your life is also the more holy. Do not be proud, therefore, because of your learning or skill. Rather, fear because of the talent given you. If you think you know many things and understand them well enough, realize at the same time that there is much you do not know. Hence, do not affect wisdom, but admit your ignorance. Why prefer yourself to anyone else when many are more learned, more cultured than you?
If you wish to learn and appreciate something worth while, then love to be unknown and considered as nothing. Truly to know and despise self is the best and most perfect counsel. To think of oneself as nothing, and always to think well and highly of others is the best and most perfect wisdom. Wherefore, if you see another sin openly or commit a serious crime, do not consider yourself better, for you do not know how long you can remain in good estate. All men are frail, but you must admit that none is more frail than yourself.

Contemplation #3
Read the words of St. Paul in Philippians 2:5-11.

If you are still finding benefit in the previous contemplations, then set these aside until you are ready to reflect on them. As always, listen while you think about the words.

Introduction to Our Contemplations

2005-06-22T11:36:00.000-07:00

I am glad that you have requested to be part of this spiritual exercise. Each week I will suggest some readings on a subject, but don’t expect us to be moving quickly. The process of inner formation cannot be rushed, and must be according to the Spirit’s rhythm.

Consider each reading one at a time, and spend the number of days that seem to be good to you, reading and opening yourself to hearing whatever thoughts the Spirit might bring through your mind.

Although I will send out a suggested contemplation each week, I haven’t given a time limit. Take these at your own pace. If you do all three before the week is finished, go back and spend time with them again. If you are not ready to move on after one week, then continue on with these three readings.

You may find yourself wanting to journal some thoughts, write a prayer, pray through the passage, or whatever. We need to get into a rhythm of meditation and each one find what that is right for him or her.