onewhoponders

On this 10th Day of Christmas our Scripture brought to us The Way in and out of life Readings For 3 January  AM Psalm 68; PM Psalm 136 Gen. 28:10-22; Heb. 11:13-22; John 10:7-17   “So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.” (John 10:7) As Jesus uses the gate metaphor in self-identifying who he is, I am reminded yet once again about the opening is this same Gospel where it is says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (John 1:3) All creation came into being through Jesus, the Gate, the entry (and exit) point into and out of creation. I remember having a simple fish tank. In the tank I had a variety of fresh water fish with various toys or things to look at in the water.  Daily I dropped some flaky fish-food (manna) from the top of the tank.   It is also from the top of the tank that I would add a new fish and take out those who had swam their course. So I imagine the top of that tank itself re-shaping itself into a fish and residing in the tank with the others. This strange fish’s job is to explain to the rest of the fish that they are appreciated for just being, that’s all!  He lets them know that there is pleasure in just seeing them from one who lives outside the tank provides all their needs. And then this strange fish returns to being the opening at the top of the tank, through which they are fed and pass through in their beginning and in their ending. So what does this mean for us? We are all here at the will and pleasure of God who enjoys our multicultural, multi-color, multi-ethnic existence and our beauty is in our variations.  Therefore we should live into being as diverse as we can be. Our contrasting variety pleases God who feeds us through Jesus Christ with the bread of life. While I know that the fish symbol did not originate from what I just framed, I do like the fish symbol because it reminds me of who we are and how we are intended to live together.

So, be it gate for the sheep or top of the tank, Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6) and is the only Way to the One outside of the tank who takes great pleasure in our co-existence and harmony.  Therefore we should be doing all we can to live lives of supporting more different cultures, ethnicities, languages and even different ways of worship – of different ways of appreciating the One outside the tank who takes pleasure in our collective beauty.

Merry Christmas in thanksgiving for the birth of the Gate.

Readings For GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS Psalm 19:7–14  Wisdom 7:7-12 John 8:25-32 On this 9th Day of Christmas our Scripture brought to us The Leadership of Jesus John 8: 31-32

Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, ‘If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.

In seminary I learned that Gregory of Nazianzus was one of three Cappdocian Fathers that we were asked to do a short paper on and I chose him.  What amazed me most was his articulation of God creating everything from nothing!  Still does. However, Gregory’s greatest challenge was probably defending our Christian faith that holds the belief that Jesus the Logos, is God in every sense of its meaning and that Jesus is not some afterthought from God. This is where our Church is today in our Nicene Creed crafted in the year 325. It’s who we are still.

This continued challenge with many offshoots of Arian theology is present today in many of our Christian faiths, many of whom are not familiar with the history or theology of what our Christian faith has suffered.  But nothing declares more about who we are than how we treat the less fortunate among us.  If people want to fuss and fight about who Jesus really is rather than care for the needy in our midst we have already lost sight of Who Jesus really is.

As I write this I am preparing to meet with fellow parishioners and members of Cedar Creek Baptist Church and feed the less fortunate.  All of us, both congregations, are trying to live into who Jesus wants us to be. We say who we are in God by our actions.  I know that when God brings the poor before us, it is not the poor God is watching, but us! 

Therefore, in the words of Richard Hooker, we are blessed with the gifts of Scripture, Tradition and reason. This is our Gold, frankincense and myrrh.

Merry Christmas in our Church Traditions ;\lsdsemihidden

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton