Musings for Pentecost 7

Sunday, July 15, 2012
Lectionary 15
Proper 10
Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

Midweek Musings

Reflection by Joshua Brown

INTRODUCTION
When Amos told what he saw when God held up the plumb line of justice next to Israel—that the poor were being trampled—he was a threat to the power of priests and king. John the Baptist also spoke truth to power, and Herod had him beheaded. In Herod's fear that Jesus is John returned from the dead, we may hear hope for the oppressed: that all the prophets killed through the ages are alive in Jesus. We are called to witness to justice in company with them.

Prayer of the Day (ELW)

O God, from you come all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works. Give to us, your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, that our hearts may be set to obey your commandments; and also that we, being defended from the fear of our enemies,
may live in peace and quietness, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

First Reading

Amos 7:7–15

Amos was not the kind of prophet attached to temples or royal courts. Rather, he was an ordinary farmer from Judah (the southern kingdom) called by God to speak to Israel (the northern kingdom). God’s word of judgment through Amos conflicted with the king’s court prophet Amaziah, whom Amos encountered at Bethel.

⁷This is what he showed me: the LORD was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. ⁸And the LORD said to me, "Amos, what do you see?" And I said, "A plumb line." Then the LORD said,
"See, I am setting a plumb line
in the midst of my people Israel;
I will never again pass them by;
⁹the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,
and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste,
and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword."
¹⁰Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to King Jeroboam of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the very center of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. ¹¹For thus Amos has said,
'Jeroboam shall die by the sword,
and Israel must go into exile
away from his land.'"
¹²And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there; ¹³but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom."
¹⁴Then Amos answered Amaziah, "I am no prophet, nor a prophet's son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, ¹⁵and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'

Psalm (ELW)

Psalm 85:8–13

I will listen to what the LORD God is saying. (Ps. 85:8)

⁸I will listen to what the LORD ^| God is saying;

for you speak peace to your faithful people

and to those who turn their ^| hearts to you.

⁹Truly, your salvation is very near to ^| those who fear you,

that your glory may dwell ^| in our land. R

¹⁰Steadfast love and faithfulness have ^| met together;

righteousness and peace have ^| kissed each other.

¹¹Faithfulness shall spring up ^| from the earth,

and righteousness shall look ^| down from heaven.

¹²The LORD will indeed ^| grant prosperity,

and our land will ^| yield its increase.

¹³Righteousness shall go be- ^| fore the LORD

and shall prepare for ^| God a pathway. R

Second Reading

Ephesians 1:3–14

In Jesus, all of God’s plans and purposes have been made known as heaven and earth are united in Christ. Through Jesus, we have been chosen as God’s children and have been promised eternal salvation.

³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, ⁴just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. ⁵He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, ⁶to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. ⁷In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace ⁸that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight ⁹he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, ¹⁰as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. ¹¹In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, ¹²so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. ¹³In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; ¹⁴this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God's own people, to the praise of his glory.

Gospel

Mark 6:14–29

As Jesus and his disciples begin to attract attention, Mark recalls the story of John the Baptist’s martyrdom. Like John, Jesus and his disciples will also suffer at the hands of those opposed to the gospel of salvation.

¹⁴King Herod heard of it, for Jesus' name had become known. Some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him." ¹⁵But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." ¹⁶But when Herod heard of it, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."
¹⁷For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because Herod had married her. ¹⁸For John had been telling Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." ¹⁹And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, ²⁰for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. ²¹But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. ²²When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it." ²³And he solemnly swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." ²⁴She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." ²⁵Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." ²⁶The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, ²⁸brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. ²⁹When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.

Reflection

For summer reading I’ve picked up George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, an epic fantasy series on which HBO has based the series Game of Thrones. The saga, set in a medieval land of kings, knights, queens and lords, unfolds like a tragic soap opera as brides are bought and sold to gain land or power, brother battles brother and infidelity abounds. Coincidently, as I read this week’s gospel, I experienced a parallel passage in Martin’s book. Like Mark’s accounting of the death of John the Baptist, a central character in Martin’s book suffers death by beheading because he chooses to speak the truth. He exposes the incestuous relationship between the powerful queen and her brother and the illegitimate claim their resulting offspring have on the throne. The concurrent reading of these passages caused me to reflect on the cost of speaking truth to power. Whether one seeks to maintain honor or demands repentance from immoral behavior, speaking the truth often extracts a very high price.

I empathized with the protagonist in Martin’s story because he sought to act honorably. I also desire to have the strength of John’s conviction to speak God’s truth regardless of the consequences. However, I know that I often choose the path taken by Herod or Martin’s evil queen. I hide God’s holy way in the corners of my life comforted by all I have made myself. I carry on perplexed and fearful of how taking God’s call seriously challenges me to change.

How many people really want to change? More often than not the easier path clings to status quo and ignores or perhaps beheads any challenge along the way. Yet even as people of God fight against God’s call and fear the price of speaking truth to power, God never gives up. Saint Paul reminds us that as God’s people we “were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God's own people, to the praise of his glory.”

O God, open my mouth to speak your truth, open my ears to hear your call, open my mind to understand your way and open my heart to accept the love you have for all your people through your son Jesus Christ, Amen.

Quote:

“God loves you just the way you are. And God loves you too much to let you stay that way.” - Ellenita Zimmerman missionary, organist, choir director and church worker

If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin, and in the end, despair. – C.S. Lewis