Matthew 21:28-32
“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
“‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.
“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
“Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The first,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him."
• Something feels deceptive in the misdirection of the second son, who says, “I will go” but then never goes. Perhaps he fully intended to go, but then was distracted by other things that came up. More likely, though, he never intended to go and only wanted to appease his father.
• We live in what some have called a “post-truth world,” where we advance “alternative facts,” where we can say whatever we want – true or not – in order to create our own reality.
• Spirituality has to do with living in connection with the Really Real, discovering the truth about God, ourselves, others, and the world in a way that makes a difference in how we engage life. All of us live in some state of deception all the time (we don’t perceive things as they are, but as we would like them to be), but to be intentionally deceptive is a stumbling block to ourselves and others in the quest to live true with God.
• Be aware of your words today . . . your “yes” and your “no” . . . your promises and your claims . . . your opinions stated as facts and your beliefs stated as absolute reality. Simply go through the day conscious of your words.
• At the end of the day, do a quick review of your words, your conversations, your online exchanges. What did you actually say today? And did your words line up with the person you hope to become in God? Bring whatever you learn into your prayer.
Showing posts with label truth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label truth. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
Monday, December 16, 2019
Third Monday of Advent - December 16, 2019
Matthew 21:23-27
When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
• People who are caught up in hierarchies, ranks, and differentiating people (by any number of criteria) tend to overplay authority. They tend to love outer authority. “Who said you could do that?” Or, “You can’t touch THAT!” Or, “No one gave you permission.” Outer authority always originates from some power outside. Someone may grant it, or they may withhold it.
• Inner authority, on the other hand, is something you know to be true from the inside of yourself. Spirit touches spirit . . . God’s Spirit confirming to your spirit a thing's veracity. You don’t need an outside agent to tell you it’s true or right or wise. You know from your own inside.
• Jesus had both kinds of authority. His outer authority came from his Father. But he also had inner authority. He didn’t need the religious leaders and legal authorities to tell him what was right and wrong. He knew truth from the inside.
• Think of a time you knew from within yourself that something was true, even when it flew in the face of what those around you were saying. What courage did you have in your inner authority? Did you have anyone in your life at that time who could affirm your inner wisdom?
When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
• People who are caught up in hierarchies, ranks, and differentiating people (by any number of criteria) tend to overplay authority. They tend to love outer authority. “Who said you could do that?” Or, “You can’t touch THAT!” Or, “No one gave you permission.” Outer authority always originates from some power outside. Someone may grant it, or they may withhold it.
• Inner authority, on the other hand, is something you know to be true from the inside of yourself. Spirit touches spirit . . . God’s Spirit confirming to your spirit a thing's veracity. You don’t need an outside agent to tell you it’s true or right or wise. You know from your own inside.
• Jesus had both kinds of authority. His outer authority came from his Father. But he also had inner authority. He didn’t need the religious leaders and legal authorities to tell him what was right and wrong. He knew truth from the inside.
• Think of a time you knew from within yourself that something was true, even when it flew in the face of what those around you were saying. What courage did you have in your inner authority? Did you have anyone in your life at that time who could affirm your inner wisdom?
Thursday, December 15, 2011
The Third Thursday of Advent -- December 15, 2011
Luke 7:24 - 30
After John’s messengers left, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear expensive clothes and indulge in luxury are in palaces. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:
“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’
I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
(All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been baptized by John. But the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.)
Who in your life will speak the truth to you? Who can you turn to for an honest assessment of what the shape of life looks like? Who can hear your truth and speak back to you in honesty?
These are not easy questions. And coming upon people who can be our personal "prophets" is not simple. Not everyone in our life-world does this for us.
We each need "prophets." Prophets, at least the Old Testament-style, were not fortune-tellers or prognosticators. They were those with special gifts of perception and intuition, those who were able to read the times. They surveyed the landscape, taking into account real-life events and shifts, then spoke into people's lives with blunt honesty. Always the intent of the prophet was to redeem, not to "bash-and-burn."
But because they spoke so forthrightly, they were often despised by the people who desired a softer, gentler word. I suppose if you interpret the line I just wrote, you could say that most people wanted -- and continue to want in our day -- someone to lie to them about life as it is, rather than tell them the truth.
Our human dilemma is that we so easily deceive ourselves. While that self-deceit may be a part of our wounded humanity, it also means that we will never be fully aware of ourselves, of the pulls and tugs that are the hidden motivations within us . . . the subtle impulses to power and control . . . the manipulative words we use to get affirmation in certain key relationships . . . our own emotional landscape that is very often unknown to us. We drop emotional landmines all around and then explode when someone unknowingly bumps into one of them.
Emotional and spiritual maturity are so very difficult and taxing. They are such hard work!
For that reason I need people in my life who see me from the outside, not pulled by my manipulations and hidden motivations, people with whom I can be honest about those tugs and who can help guide me through the terrain of my own spiritual and emotional being.
I see a person regularly -- once a month -- for spiritual direction. I invite her honesty. I don't go to her in order for her to "guide" me by making decisions for me or telling me what to do or where to turn. I ask her to help me see, to help me be aware of God and my life. I ask her to be honest with me. I may sometimes need a soft and comforting presence, but mostly from her I need honesty and help in seeing more clearly.
If this text is an indication, I sense that John the Baptist was this kind of honest, no-frills, shoot-straight presence. I need him in my life.
After John’s messengers left, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear expensive clothes and indulge in luxury are in palaces. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:
“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’
I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
(All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been baptized by John. But the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.)
Who in your life will speak the truth to you? Who can you turn to for an honest assessment of what the shape of life looks like? Who can hear your truth and speak back to you in honesty?
These are not easy questions. And coming upon people who can be our personal "prophets" is not simple. Not everyone in our life-world does this for us.
We each need "prophets." Prophets, at least the Old Testament-style, were not fortune-tellers or prognosticators. They were those with special gifts of perception and intuition, those who were able to read the times. They surveyed the landscape, taking into account real-life events and shifts, then spoke into people's lives with blunt honesty. Always the intent of the prophet was to redeem, not to "bash-and-burn."
But because they spoke so forthrightly, they were often despised by the people who desired a softer, gentler word. I suppose if you interpret the line I just wrote, you could say that most people wanted -- and continue to want in our day -- someone to lie to them about life as it is, rather than tell them the truth.
Our human dilemma is that we so easily deceive ourselves. While that self-deceit may be a part of our wounded humanity, it also means that we will never be fully aware of ourselves, of the pulls and tugs that are the hidden motivations within us . . . the subtle impulses to power and control . . . the manipulative words we use to get affirmation in certain key relationships . . . our own emotional landscape that is very often unknown to us. We drop emotional landmines all around and then explode when someone unknowingly bumps into one of them.
Emotional and spiritual maturity are so very difficult and taxing. They are such hard work!
For that reason I need people in my life who see me from the outside, not pulled by my manipulations and hidden motivations, people with whom I can be honest about those tugs and who can help guide me through the terrain of my own spiritual and emotional being.
I see a person regularly -- once a month -- for spiritual direction. I invite her honesty. I don't go to her in order for her to "guide" me by making decisions for me or telling me what to do or where to turn. I ask her to help me see, to help me be aware of God and my life. I ask her to be honest with me. I may sometimes need a soft and comforting presence, but mostly from her I need honesty and help in seeing more clearly.
If this text is an indication, I sense that John the Baptist was this kind of honest, no-frills, shoot-straight presence. I need him in my life.
Friday, December 9, 2011
The Second Friday of Advent -- December 9, 2011
Matthew 11:16 - 19
“To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:
“‘We played the pipe for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her actions.”
The immediate setting of these Jesus-words is a playground or a marketplace where children are playing a variation of "follow-the-leader." But the game is not getting off the ground because the "followers" are not following the "leaders." The leaders are giving the cues, but the followers -- who are peers, or playmates -- are not responding.
John the Baptist gave cues, inviting people to repentance, but many did not respond.
Jesus gave cues, offering a heavenly feast, but many did not like the company he kept, and were offended that if they "attended" the feast they would have to sit at the table with ne'er-do-wells.
So the cues were rejected, the implicit rejection of those who may not have said "no" with their lips, but who said "no" because of their refusal to participate.
Thus, it is the last sentence of the saying that stands out to me today: "Wisdom is proved right by her actions," or "Wisdom is vindicated by her deeds."
Truth is not determined by its number of adherents, by the number of people who give ascent to its propositions. Truth is not determined by how many people follow the leaders cues.
Truth is truth, and ultimately it is witnessed in what it does.
In other words, the truth of God is not determined by how many people follow or do not follow along . . . it is not determined by who follows. The witness of Truth is what it does, how it operates in the world. It is not determined by the ones who follow (or do not follow).
I'll make this more personal. Who God is, is not determined by my response to God. Who God is, is not determined by who I think God is. God's Being is not contingent on whether or not I listen to God, follow God, obey God, link my life to God. . . .
It is human hubris, for instance, to think that debate or theological inquiry has any ultimate benefit. I get it that our lives are shaped in some respects by what we believe; but does the fact that I believe some doctrine or theological concept ultimately make that concept more valid? Does my belief -- or non-belief -- change its truth?
Whether I follow or not, Truth is truth.
Whether I believe or not, Truth is truth.
What is wise and true is borne out in actions and deeds, whether I go with it or not.
“To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:
“‘We played the pipe for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her actions.”
The immediate setting of these Jesus-words is a playground or a marketplace where children are playing a variation of "follow-the-leader." But the game is not getting off the ground because the "followers" are not following the "leaders." The leaders are giving the cues, but the followers -- who are peers, or playmates -- are not responding.
John the Baptist gave cues, inviting people to repentance, but many did not respond.
Jesus gave cues, offering a heavenly feast, but many did not like the company he kept, and were offended that if they "attended" the feast they would have to sit at the table with ne'er-do-wells.
So the cues were rejected, the implicit rejection of those who may not have said "no" with their lips, but who said "no" because of their refusal to participate.
Thus, it is the last sentence of the saying that stands out to me today: "Wisdom is proved right by her actions," or "Wisdom is vindicated by her deeds."
Truth is not determined by its number of adherents, by the number of people who give ascent to its propositions. Truth is not determined by how many people follow the leaders cues.
Truth is truth, and ultimately it is witnessed in what it does.
In other words, the truth of God is not determined by how many people follow or do not follow along . . . it is not determined by who follows. The witness of Truth is what it does, how it operates in the world. It is not determined by the ones who follow (or do not follow).
I'll make this more personal. Who God is, is not determined by my response to God. Who God is, is not determined by who I think God is. God's Being is not contingent on whether or not I listen to God, follow God, obey God, link my life to God. . . .
It is human hubris, for instance, to think that debate or theological inquiry has any ultimate benefit. I get it that our lives are shaped in some respects by what we believe; but does the fact that I believe some doctrine or theological concept ultimately make that concept more valid? Does my belief -- or non-belief -- change its truth?
Whether I follow or not, Truth is truth.
Whether I believe or not, Truth is truth.
What is wise and true is borne out in actions and deeds, whether I go with it or not.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
The Fourth Thursday of Advent -- December 23, 2010
Malachi 3:1 - 4; 4:5 - 6
“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.
But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.
“See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”
Reading this text from Malachi, I feel like breaking out my bass part for a line or two from Handel's "Messiah." No, I won't subject you to that . . . though in my uninitiated observation, that has to be one of the toughest solos around.
In our canon of Scripture, Malachi's words are important because they are among the final words of the Hebrew Scriptures before the New Testament begins. As is the case very often with prophets, the words sound a warning. You can find little that is gentle and consoling in Malachi's words.
I'm grinning to myself as I write . . . so often the Hebrew prophets act like that drill sergeant-turned-therapist in the car insurance commercial. When the fellow on the couch sheepishly says something about "yellow makes me sad," the therapist with the burr haircut yells back, "MAYBE WE OUGHT TO TRUCK ON OVER TO MAMBY-PAMBYLAND WHERE MAYBE WE CAN FIND SOME SELF-CONFIDENCE FOR YOU, YOU JACK-WAGON!!!" Granted, it's not very pastoral, but I find it funny.
So I wince when I hear Malachi's words. But I understand that prophets intend to shock. They mean to shake us from our stupor. They speak with blunt and direct images. They want to move us out of our complacency and comfort. In the end, they want us to consider God again after we have been busy closing too many God-doors. Like other Old Testament prophets, Malachi overstates his case in order to get our attention, in order to elicit from us a reaction. Prophets tend to call for us to get in or get out. They don't leave many middle options.
The biblical prophets did not foretell the future. Dr. Dan Kent, my mentor in all things Old Testament, used to say that prophets were not fore-tellers, they were forth-tellers. In other words, they didn't predict the future; rather, they spoke forth the truth of what they saw at the moment, which often had long-range consequences into the future.
I might say it a little differently. Prophets were truth-tellers, at least to the extent they could see and had experienced truth. It is not easy to see the truth about ourselves, God, others and the world, much less speak it out. Truth-seeing is one of the difficult exercises of our lives. We all see life with tinted glasses, with foggy glasses which make it difficult for us to see what is real. To see life stripped of pretense, stripped of illusion, stripped of our own ego-centeredness is extremely difficult.
There is a sense, then, in which we are all called to be prophets. We are all called to the vocation of living more and more into the truth . . . the truth of God . . . the truth about ourselves . . . the truth of who we are in relation to others and the world. Old Testament prophets spoke of this in a way that was stark and sometimes abrasive. But you don't have to be abrasive to see and speak the truth.
In fact, the spiritual posture most required may be humility. Authentic prophets don't speak the truth because they enjoy seeing people plunged into the refiner's fire, but rather because they so deeply desire to see people healed and be made whole. True prophets don't delight in the misery of others. They do, however, celebrate the wholeness and healing others experience.
Malachi, echoing other prophets, says that when the day of the Lord comes, the day we see most fully God's intention for us and the day we hear most clearly God's invitation to step into the life for which God created us . . . that day will be "great and dreadful."
It will be great in that it will open up before us all the possibilities of who we can be, living into the purpose for which God made us and placed us on the planet.
But it will also be dreadful because for us to step into this invitation means laying aside our ego-driven agendas in order to take up a Divine agenda for live. And that letting go is always painful. None of us do it well. We dread being asked to change. Even more, we dread being forced to change. So the "day of the Lord" is great, but it is also dreadful.
That's the picture Malachi paints as we inch closer to Christmas. We're each invited into truthful and authentic living. To accept that invitation leads us to step into our prophetic vocation. But to do so means life-change, the shifting of frameworks and the reordering of alliances and allegiances. It is great work, but also work we dread.
The child born on Saturday, the Christ whose birth we celebrate, bears Good News in his life and in his very being. The angels announce as much to the shepherds . . . good news which shall be for everyone, everywhere.
But this Good News is also bad news for us and for the part of us which wants to hold onto life as we know it -- and perhaps life as we want it! That is the life we must slowly release, so that we may take into ourselves his life.
“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.
But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.
“See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”
Reading this text from Malachi, I feel like breaking out my bass part for a line or two from Handel's "Messiah." No, I won't subject you to that . . . though in my uninitiated observation, that has to be one of the toughest solos around.
In our canon of Scripture, Malachi's words are important because they are among the final words of the Hebrew Scriptures before the New Testament begins. As is the case very often with prophets, the words sound a warning. You can find little that is gentle and consoling in Malachi's words.
I'm grinning to myself as I write . . . so often the Hebrew prophets act like that drill sergeant-turned-therapist in the car insurance commercial. When the fellow on the couch sheepishly says something about "yellow makes me sad," the therapist with the burr haircut yells back, "MAYBE WE OUGHT TO TRUCK ON OVER TO MAMBY-PAMBYLAND WHERE MAYBE WE CAN FIND SOME SELF-CONFIDENCE FOR YOU, YOU JACK-WAGON!!!" Granted, it's not very pastoral, but I find it funny.
So I wince when I hear Malachi's words. But I understand that prophets intend to shock. They mean to shake us from our stupor. They speak with blunt and direct images. They want to move us out of our complacency and comfort. In the end, they want us to consider God again after we have been busy closing too many God-doors. Like other Old Testament prophets, Malachi overstates his case in order to get our attention, in order to elicit from us a reaction. Prophets tend to call for us to get in or get out. They don't leave many middle options.
The biblical prophets did not foretell the future. Dr. Dan Kent, my mentor in all things Old Testament, used to say that prophets were not fore-tellers, they were forth-tellers. In other words, they didn't predict the future; rather, they spoke forth the truth of what they saw at the moment, which often had long-range consequences into the future.
I might say it a little differently. Prophets were truth-tellers, at least to the extent they could see and had experienced truth. It is not easy to see the truth about ourselves, God, others and the world, much less speak it out. Truth-seeing is one of the difficult exercises of our lives. We all see life with tinted glasses, with foggy glasses which make it difficult for us to see what is real. To see life stripped of pretense, stripped of illusion, stripped of our own ego-centeredness is extremely difficult.
There is a sense, then, in which we are all called to be prophets. We are all called to the vocation of living more and more into the truth . . . the truth of God . . . the truth about ourselves . . . the truth of who we are in relation to others and the world. Old Testament prophets spoke of this in a way that was stark and sometimes abrasive. But you don't have to be abrasive to see and speak the truth.
In fact, the spiritual posture most required may be humility. Authentic prophets don't speak the truth because they enjoy seeing people plunged into the refiner's fire, but rather because they so deeply desire to see people healed and be made whole. True prophets don't delight in the misery of others. They do, however, celebrate the wholeness and healing others experience.
Malachi, echoing other prophets, says that when the day of the Lord comes, the day we see most fully God's intention for us and the day we hear most clearly God's invitation to step into the life for which God created us . . . that day will be "great and dreadful."
It will be great in that it will open up before us all the possibilities of who we can be, living into the purpose for which God made us and placed us on the planet.
But it will also be dreadful because for us to step into this invitation means laying aside our ego-driven agendas in order to take up a Divine agenda for live. And that letting go is always painful. None of us do it well. We dread being asked to change. Even more, we dread being forced to change. So the "day of the Lord" is great, but it is also dreadful.
That's the picture Malachi paints as we inch closer to Christmas. We're each invited into truthful and authentic living. To accept that invitation leads us to step into our prophetic vocation. But to do so means life-change, the shifting of frameworks and the reordering of alliances and allegiances. It is great work, but also work we dread.
The child born on Saturday, the Christ whose birth we celebrate, bears Good News in his life and in his very being. The angels announce as much to the shepherds . . . good news which shall be for everyone, everywhere.
But this Good News is also bad news for us and for the part of us which wants to hold onto life as we know it -- and perhaps life as we want it! That is the life we must slowly release, so that we may take into ourselves his life.
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