Advent – Hope

In a world filled with uncertainty and darkness, we find ourselves journeying through the season of Advent. This sacred time of waiting and anticipation reminds us of the profound significance of hope.

Isaiah 64:1-3 in the New Revised Standard Version reads:

“O that you would tear open the heavens and come down,

so that the mountains would quake at your presence—

as when fire kindles brushwood

and the fire causes water to boil—

to make your name known to your adversaries,

so that the nations might tremble at your presence!”

As we look around, we witness the struggles of our world—a world yearning for divine intervention, just as Isaiah did. We see nations in turmoil, hearts in despair, and lives shattered by adversity.

But Advent whispers a promise—a promise of hope. It calls us to prepare our hearts and open our eyes to the light breaking through the darkness. The hope that transcends our circumstances and points us to a Savior who comes to heal, redeem, and lead us into wholeness.

In this season of Advent, let us kindle the flame of hope in our hearts. Just as the prophets of old cried out for God to rend the heavens and come down, we too cry out for God’s presence to be known in our midst.

In our gatherings, in our prayers, and in our actions, let us be bearers of hope. Let us be the hands and feet of Christ, demonstrating love and compassion to a world desperately in need.

Isaiah reminds us that even in the darkest of times, we have a God who hears, a God who cares, and a God who brings hope. This season, let us embrace the message of Advent and let the hope of Christ’s coming fill our hearts with joy and expectation.

As we journey through Advent together, may we be the living embodiment of hope, shining God’s light into the world’s darkness.

As we await and long for Christ’s arrival, may hope be our guiding star, illuminating our path and filling our hearts with the promise of a love that knows no bounds.

Amen.

Speaking of Life 3005 | The Twist Ending
Greg Williams

There are almost 7000 movies on Netflix. And that’s only one of the dozen or so streaming services available. Right now, we are awash in stories, narratives, and characters. As human beings, we’ve always loved stories, and technology transforms our living rooms into home theaters.  

Personally, I enjoy movies that make me think, and allow me to be the ride along detective. The twist ending is a favorite device these days. That last act/scene where the bad guy turns out to be the good guy or the poor character turns out to be royalty. The move included an avalanche of scenes that gave clues you simply didn’t see.

The whole story, through all it’s twists and turns, comes together in a new light suddenly. You may not have seen it coming, but when the twist comes it makes sense of everything else.

Much of Paul’s writing explains the twist ending of the gospel—which is Jesus. Paul connects the story of Jesus with the story of Israel and the rest of the world, showing how the gospel ties everything else together.

Look at Galatians 4:

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children.
Galatians 4:4-5 (NRSV)

The fullness of time. The long story of Israel — God setting one nation apart, then one family line, then one family, then one person who represents all of humanity.

Jesus didn’t come because the law failed. He didn’t scrap all that had gone before to start a new story, he completed the story begun in Adam and Eve. In fact, the real beginning isn’t Genesis, it’s John 1, where we see that Jesus, the Father and Spirit have always existed in perfect relationship. John tells us that Jesus became flesh to enter the story at the appointed time. He is the twist ending that makes history—his story—make sense.

Do we recognize Jesus as the twist ending for us? Is that part of the story that was missing in your life and mine that makes everything come together? Think of those places where Jesus is described as the capstone or cornerstone—not the stone that everything stands on, but the piece that makes all the others come together, makes everything neatly fit into place.

He completes not only your story, and mine, but the grand narrative of all of humanity—all the wars and dynasties and joy and pain in all of history. Jesus is not the ghost in the machine who comes from nowhere, but the twist ending the story was building to all along. And it is good news.

I am Greg Williams, Speaking of the good news of Life.

Speaking of Life 5053│The Why of Praise
Jeff Broadnax

Many people are familiar with Psalm 100. It’s called a “psalm of thanksgiving,” and it encourages the entire earth to “make a joyful noise.” That sounds like a good time to me! But what I want to focus on today is the why – why should we “make a joyful noise?”

Let’s set the stage by reading what we should be doing:

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing.
Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him; bless his name.
Psalm 100:1-4 (NRSVUE)

Notice all the things we “should” be doing – making a joyful noise, serving with gladness, singing, knowing that God is our Creator, and giving thanks and blessings to the Divine. While these verses can be instructional, if you’re like me, you often want to know “why” you need to do something. And by knowing why, it connects the head with the heart. Our actions become linked to heartfelt emotion, and what might have been routine, mindless acts suddenly become infused with meaning.

Let’s look at the last verse of Psalm 100 to understand why we would even consider making a joyful noise, serving with gladness, or any of the other actions the first four verses tell us we should do:

For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever and his faithfulness to all generations.
Psalm 100: 5 (NRSVUE)

The reason we respond with a joyful noise and thanksgiving is because God is good, but verse 5 does more than leave the definition of “good” up to our human imaginations. It defines God’s goodness as “steadfast love” and “faithfulness.”

The phrase “steadfast love,” can be more expansively defined as “kindness or love between people” or the idea of giving yourself fully to another. God gives steadfast love fully to each one of us, and we know this by Jesus’ crucifixion, where God’s Son endured the hatred and mistreatment of humankind so that we could be brought into the triune relationship. We also have evidence of the fullness of God’s steadfast love through the gift of the Holy Spirit, our Helper and Comforter, who lives in us.

The word “faithfulness,” refers to trustworthiness in relationships. God’s way of moving in the world reflects his loyalty and commitment to humanity. This trustworthiness in relationships was demonstrated by Jesus’ commitment to people who were often marginalized in his culture, like women, children, and Gentiles. Jesus went out of his way to encourage, hang out with, and even heal those who had no power or money to offer him. This is God’s way of showing his trustworthy commitment to people while pointing out the problems with man-made systems and cultures.

God’s complete commitment and loyalty to all of humanity is what inspires our praise. When we make that “joyful noise,” it’s because we understand the goodness of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

May we make a joyful noise, knowing the fullness of our triune God’s steadfast love and faithfulness.

I’m Jeff Broadnax, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5052 | The Heart of the Father
Greg Williams

Do you ever notice how often we are drawn into the negative rather than the positive? You give a presentation and several people comment on how helpful it was, but one person tells you it was a waste of his time. Which comment do you spend the most time thinking about? For many of us, we allow the negative to outweigh the positive. We can look at Scripture the same way. Rather than see the blessings of what is being said, we focus on what we perceive as the negative. The parable of the talents in Matthew 25 is a good example of this.

In this parable, Jesus talks about a man who is preparing to go on a journey. He calls his servants in and entrusts part of his property to each one. To one servant he gives 5 talents, to another he gives 2 talents and to the third, he gives 1 talent.

When he returns, the one who had 5 invested wisely, doubled the value and now has 10 talents for the owner. Likewise, the one who has 2 doubled it and now has 4. But the one who had one talent didn’t do anything with the talent, he buried it and simply tried to return it because he implied he was afraid of the owner. I’ve heard many sermons focusing on the unprofitable servant – and certainly, there are lessons there. But we fail to see the good news in this parable. Note how the man responded to the other two servants. 

 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
Matthew 25:20-23 (ESV)

Jesus is showing through this parable that God wants to bless us. He wants us to enter into his joy. He gives us gifts and talents so that we can use them, investing them into relationships, service, and loving others. The result is greater blessings and living in his joy.

What is the Father’s joy? Among other things, being with us, listening to us, walking with us, and loving us because we are his beloved children.

Jesus uses this parable to show us the Father’s heart. He will never force us to love him or use the gifts and talents he gives us, but when we do, he multiplies them beyond our wildest dreams. That’s the heart of the Father.

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5051│You Don’t Have to Be a Girl Scout
Michelle Fleming

I was involved in Girl Scouts when I was younger. Maybe you were a Girl Scout or Boy Scout, too. The motto for Scouts is “Be Prepared.” This reminds me of the way Christians have been warned to be prepared for Christ’s return. One example that’s often cited is the parable of the Ten Bridesmaids where Jesus is telling his disciples what the kingdom of heaven is like.

The story goes like this:

Ten young women took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those young women got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet, and the door was shut. Later the other young women came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ Keep awake, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
Matthew 25:1-13

Passages like this one have often been plucked from scripture without thinking about them in the context of other direct commandments Jesus said or the way he behaved in the world. This story sounds out of character for Jesus who told us to love and serve others and put them first.

We don’t base theological doctrine on a parable because a parable wasn’t meant to be used that way. It’s a story that offers us the opportunity to consider truth from the point of view of different characters. In this parable, we see that the five bridesmaids who had plenty of oil believed that being self-reliant was more important than helping others. The five bridesmaids who didn’t prepare believed they deserved help from the ones who prepared. I mean, they had fallen asleep, waiting. But what if the parable isn’t about what the bridesmaids should have done or shouldn’t have done? What if it isn’t about the bridesmaids at all? Let’s consider a different perspective.

We assume that the five bridesmaids who ran out of oil are called foolish because they ran out of oil. But what if the reason they’re called foolish is because they listened to the other bridesmaids who told them to go buy more and then ended up missing the wedding? Maybe they were foolish because they forgot who the Bridegroom was and what he was capable of. This bridegroom was The Light of the World, and he didn’t need their lamps. They were foolish because they allowed their shame over running out of oil to drive them to try to fix it, and thus they missed the wedding banquet.

When the Bridegroom says, “I don’t know you,” he’s also saying that they didn’t really know him. And this is part of the lesson of this parable. When we focus on Jesus, we know he is the one who makes us enough. He is the light we need when our own lamps run low. He is sufficient.

May we be blessed with the understanding that we are made whole and enough in Christ.

I’m Michelle Fleming, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5050 | Expect the Unexpected
Greg Williams

We typically don’t like the unexpected. We don’t like it when our car unexpectedly refuses to turn over, or our computer unexpectedly crashes. Worse, an unexpected loss of employment creates great turmoil and loss of personal confidence. And we certainly don’t like unexpected health difficulties. But these are the realities we face, and we quickly learn to expect the unexpected along with all the frustration and heartache it can bring.

However, not all things unexpected are bad. An unexpected gift or raise can turn a sour day around in a hurry. I’m sure we can all remember with joy some unexpected blessing that came our way, large or small.

So, here’s a question. What should we expect from the Lord? Is he full of unexpected surprises?

The biblical witness seems to present… well, an unexpected answer to that question. We are presented with a God who is unchanging, yet, at the same time, full of unexpected surprises.

Listen to Psalm 107 the paradox of God’s unchanging nature described by images of unexpected natural events.

“Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants. He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in; they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield.”

Psalm 107:31-37 (ESV)

It’s interesting how the psalmist refers to the Lord’s steadfast love but then equates that steadfastness with images of great reversals. It appears that the Lord is steadfast in bringing the unexpected. But did you notice the direction of the unexpected? It was always for blessing. We can expect the rivers of evil to run dry, while also expecting the deserts of his children to become fruitful.

With God, there is always good news ahead. Rivers run dry, but he refills them. Deserts become springs of water. Sinners become believers and followers of Christ. It’s easy to look around and get discouraged at the state of the world, so Jesus tells us to lift our eyes and gaze upon him. He is the restorer of all things. He is the one who works his blessings in unexpected ways.

As we wind down the season of Ordinary Time and enter the season of Advent, let’s continually look to him and learn to expect the unexpected. Ordinary Time ends with Christ the King Sunday – and no one expected the King of kings to enter our world as he did. God loves to surprise with the unexpected – it’s part of the mystery of who he is. 

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5049│CliffsNotes About Love
Jeff Broadnax

You may have used CliffsNotes as a student to help you get a better grasp of your coursework. They are study guides that summarize different subjects, like organic chemistry, US history, and classic works of literature. If you had three classic novels to read in a short time, you probably used CliffsNotes to help you understand the most important points. You may have even unsuccessfully tried to get away with using CliffsNotes as a substitute for actually reading those classic works of literature. Guilty!

Distilling the most important concepts into easy-to-remember bites can help us learn. We read in Matthew 22 that the Pharisees were interested in what Jesus considered the most important points of the law, though their motives were to test him rather than to learn from him. Jesus’ response helps us to understand the role that love plays in the keeping of the law, and in our relationship with God and other people:

When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, an expert in the law, asked him a question to test him.  “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”  He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the greatest and first commandment.  And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 22:34-40 (NRSVUE)

 Jesus’ response comes from two sources, Deuteronomy 6:4-5, and Leviticus 19:18, and it highlights that the law is based on our response to God and to others. Jesus said all the law and prophets hang on these two commandments; they are the CliffsNotes to how to respond to God and how to respond to others – with love.

Jesus added to this in the Upper Room with his disciples when he told them he was giving them a new commandment – to love others as he loves us. In this case, it’s not about the law and the prophets, it’s about relationship.

This is another of God’s CliffsNotes; this one summarizes how to be in the right relationship with others.  

Where does this love come from? From the author of all love – God himself.
In another passage we are told, God is love. We can love because he first loved us.

Jesus’ new commandment, “Love others as I have loved you.” Moves beyond the law and the prophets and tells us to love without expectations. To walk alongside people, to encourage them, to provide healing and comfort for them, because we are connected to the Source, a God who is love. When we put others first – just like Jesus did for us – we are fulfilling the two great commandments and the new commandment.

 As we feel the love from God, for God, for others, and even for ourselves, may we be blessed with a greater understanding of Love’s embrace as we pursue a deeper relationship with the triune God and other people.

I’m Jeff Broadnax, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5048 | No Exception to the Rule
Greg Williams

The Main Ingredient was an American soul and R&B band best known for their hit song, “Everybody Plays the Fool.” Although the song is about unrequited love, its refrain alone speaks to us all.

“Everybody plays the fool sometime
There’s no exception to the rule”

That’s hard to argue with. I’m sure we can all remember some scenario of being played a fool. It comes with a feeling of shame and embarrassment along with the real cost we had to pay for falling for some deceitful scheme. An experienced con artist or unscrupulous salesperson has claimed many a victim with their devious tactics. Sooner or later, the song will prove to be true, “Everybody plays the fool sometime.”

However, for the Christian, we know the song is not completely true. There does stand among us one “exception to the rule.” And that exception is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus knew we would be no match for the deceit and fraud of the devil. So, he stands in for us as the one who does not play the fool.

One Gospel story illustrates this with Jesus being put in a no-win spot. It begins with the Pharisees and the Herodians conspiring together; these are two groups who are typically opposed to one another. They device a trick question about paying the Roman tax that will put Jesus walking a tightrope between the Roman authorities and the Jewish people.

After an attempt to butter Jesus up with flattery, they lay out their trick question. Let’s listen in to see how Jesus answers:

“Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.”
Matthew 22:17-22 (ESV)

Notice first that Jesus was not tricked. He was aware of their intent to trap him. We often only become aware by hindsight. He then calls them out for who they are, “hypocrites.” Jesus is not afraid to call out those who yield power and influence.

Jesus has answered in a way that avoids being accused of subversion to the Roman empire, while at the same time affirming the Jewish belief of the allegiance that only belongs to the One in whose image they are made.

And he does all this while presenting us with the choice we must all make. Do we give ourselves over to the manipulating, and deceitful ways of this world, or do we give ourselves to Jesus, God’s own Son who is our High Priest?

In the end, we can trust that our High Priest will walk back all the former times that we played the fool, redeeming us and leaving us in amazement as well. And on this note the song rings true: There’s no exception to the rule.

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5047 | Acknowledging God’s Faithfulness
Cara Garrity

Last year I adopted two golden retriever puppies, Bumi and Zuko. One of the most endearing things they do is greet me with all their excitement when I return home. They’ll run up to me wagging their tails, then run around looking for toys to bring me. Sometimes I’ll even let them be a little naughty and jump on me in their excitement.

On the flip side of their warm welcomes home, they struggled for many months whenever I left. Sometimes they would bark for up to ten minutes after I left the house before they settled down. Bumi would even start whining and barking if I walked into the other room. They became anxious when they couldn’t see me. It took them some time for them to learn that I would always return – I will never abandon them.

There is a story in the book of Exodus where Moses goes up to Mt. Horeb to meet with God. It seems to the Israelites that Moses is taking his sweet time and so they start to grow restless. Perhaps, something has happened to him, they wonder.

In the 106^th Psalm, the psalmist writes a song about this, highlighting the failure of the Israelites to trust God, despite all that he had previously done for them.

At Horeb they made a calf and worshipped an idol cast from metal. They exchanged their glorious God for an image of a bull, which eats grass. They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt, miracles in the land of Ham and awesome deeds by the Red Sea. Psalms 106:19-22

Rather than waiting for Moses to return, the Israelites decided to take matters into their own hands. They created a false image of God and his character rather than trusting in God’s unchanging continual care for them.

In times of uncertainty, we can become anxious. We may be tempted to trust in things that we find around us to give us comfort. We look to created things rather than to our Creator for hope and meaning but our true comfort comes from Christ and his continual commitment to us.

Have you possibly fashioned idols in your life while growing impatient in seeing God work in and through you?

Remember when God has shown himself faithful to you. Where you have seen his provision, his grace, and his deliverance from difficult circumstances.

Return to these altars as memorials that the Father sees you, he sees Christ in you, and you in Christ. You never have to fear his return as he has promised to never leave you in the first place, but promises to live with you, and in you, by his Spirit.

Go ahead, feel elated, and jump up on the Master of your soul. Let him know how glad you are to know that you can trust in his continual faithfulness.

I’m Cara Garrity, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5046 | Trash and Treasure
Greg Williams

You’ve heard the phrase, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. There are numerous stories of people purchasing something at a rummage sale that proved to be quite valuable. I collect coins, and I’ve been fortunate to find a few coins that someone else has discarded because they didn’t see the value in the coin.

Jesus tells a parable to a group of chief priests and Jewish elders about people destroying something valuable because they didn’t know its worth. In this parable, the thing of value is a person. The parable is in Matthew 21 , and Jesus talks about a landowner who built a vineyard and then leased the vineyard to some tenants. When harvest time came, he decided to send some servants to collect his portion of the harvest. The tenants killed the servants. He sent more servants, and they killed them as well. Finally, he decided to send his son, saying, “They will respect my son.” But the tenants killed the son as well. Jesus then asked these religious leaders the following:

Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.”

Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’? “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces its fruits. 

Matthew 21:40-43 (NRSVUA)

Jesus’ parable, of course, is a summary of God’s relationship with Israel and Judah. He sent a number of prophets to his beloved people to encourage them to return to him, and these prophets were often tortured and killed. The religious leaders were quite familiar with their history. Jesus was letting them know that he knew his future, that he would be killed by the very people God chose so many generations before. And shortly after delivering this parable, the Jewish leaders did just what the parable predicted, they killed the one sent to deliver them.

And the rest of Jesus’ words also came to pass. Killing Jesus did not bring them the victory they might have anticipated, instead, it started a kingdom work that is still going and still growing.

Beginning with Abraham, God gave the opportunity to a few to participate with him in showing others who he truly is – a Father who loves his children. Later he chose the nation of Israel and told them they were chosen to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. We know the history. They continued to rebel and disobey God to the point that they rejected the very Son of God and crucified him.  

In this parable, Jesus is telling them they are no longer the ones God entrusts to share his kingdom’s message of mercy and grace. Now the message has been entrusted to those who believe – Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female – all who believe and follow Jesus. 

Others may look down on us because of whom we follow; they don’t see the value of being a believer. They might see what they consider trash. But God sees treasure, and he has invited you and me to participate in his kingdom work – sharing the love and life of Jesus with others. May we live as the treasured of God and bear the kind of fruit that brings glory to him.

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5045│ Undercover Jesus
Michelle Fleming

There’s a TV show called Undercover Boss.  Maybe you’ve watched it before. The show revolves around a high-ranking executive or business owner who goes undercover as an entry-level employee in their own company, taking an alias, changing their appearance, and making up a back story. These undercover bosses work in different locations with their unsuspecting employees, and they learn a lot about their own business and their employees.

If we think about Jesus’ incarnation, we might compare it to God showing up in an unexpected way. No one would suspect a craftsman from Nazareth with his questionable parentage and birth story. In Matthew 21, an altercation between the chief priests, elders, and Jesus shows us  that they almost blew his cover:

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.”
Matthew 21:23-27 (NRSVUE)

It might be more accurate to say that they did figure out he was the Son of God undercover, but if they acknowledged that, they might lose their power and authority over the people. Undercover Jesus was not the Messiah they had expected. He didn’t look rich or powerful, and he certainly didn’t exert his authority over the common person as they did. Jesus went out of his way to disrupt their authority. So when Jesus asked them where John got his authority to baptize, they lied and said they didn’t know.

Jesus learned a lot about his people that day, just like undercover bosses learn what it is like to walk a day in their employees’ shoes – their joys and their struggles. The chief priests and elders let their expectations blind them to the Son of God standing right in front of them. Jesus taught that those who repented and turned back toward their Father would be first in the Kingdom of God, while those who stubbornly resisted divine love wouldn’t understand the peace and joy that was theirs all along.

Think about the expectations we have for the way God shows up in the world. Do we resist the peace God wants us to have because we think God should show up in our lives in a certain way? Holding fast to expectations doesn’t allow for the mystery of God to unfold in our lives in the way God deems best. We need to let God do his work in our lives because we can trust that whatever he is doing is for our good. God may be working undercover in ways that are far beyond anything we could imagine.

May we let go of expectations that keep us captive to unhelpful thoughts about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Instead, may we be open to the mystery, love, joy, and peace of God.        

I’m Michelle Fleming, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5044 | God’s Generosity
Greg Williams

I grew up in apple country. My grandparents and my parents owned apple orchards, and each year we would hire laborers during harvest time to pick and pack apples. We paid a fair wage, and we rarely had trouble finding laborers. Sometimes a worker had to leave early or start late for some unforeseen reason, and I sometimes saw my dad or my grandfather pay them a full day’s wage anyway. Still, I’m not sure I ever saw them do the practice we read about in the book of Matthew.

In chapter 20, Jesus tells an interesting parable to illuminate the kingdom of God. He spoke about a landowner who sought to hire workers to labor in his vineyard. Similar to when I was young, day laborers at that time would gather at a central location and wait to be hired. The landowner hired his first batch of apple-pickers early in the morning, around 6:00, and agreed to pay them a denarius, which was the typical daily wage for work like this. He went out and hired workers at 9:00, 12:00, 3:00, and 5:00. When evening came, the landowner decided to pay all of the workers, starting with the last hired. Seeing that the landowner paid those hired at 5:00 a denarius, those hired first expected to be paid more. When they also received a denarius, they began to complain. Those hired at 5:00 only worked one hour yet were paid the same wage as those who worked for 12 hours in the hot sun. In Matthew 20, we read the interesting response of the landowner in Jesus’ story: 

But he answered one of them, “I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?”
So the last will be first, and the first will be last.
Matthew 20:13-16

A lot is going on in this story. The one central lesson is that God, the landowner is good, gracious, and generous to all of his servants. This is the triune God’s nature, all the time.

The concept of human fairness is brought into question. How can a laborer who worked just one hour get the same pay as a laborer who worked 12 hours? The story is not really about labor laws and fair wages. It is about a personal God who offers grace and salvation to all.

Let me ask a strange question – “Are grace and salvation better for me than they are for you?” There are no degrees of separation, and Jesus’ teachings always deflate the notion of a competition or contest.

The landowner has space and rewards for all. As Jesus assured his followers, “In my house are many mansions.”

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5043│Too Good to Be True
Jeff Broadnax

You’ve probably experienced a situation that just didn’t make sense to you. It was too good to be true, and you weren’t sure if you should believe it. Well, you’re in good company because Jesus shared a parable in Matthew 18 about God’s way of moving in the world that definitely sounds too good to be true.

The story begins with a slave in debt to a king for a lot of money, and he couldn’t pay it back. When the slave acknowledged his inability to repay and asked for more time, the king had a surprising response. Let’s read it together:

The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him, and, as he could not pay, the lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions and payment to be made. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him by the throat he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt.
Matthew 18:23-30 (NRSVUE)

If we look at the context of this parable, we see it’s a response to Peter’s question about how many times he was required to forgive someone. Though we don’t know why the first slave behaved as he did, we might speculate that his reaction was selfish human nature, accepting the forgiveness of his own debt, but being unwilling to do that for others.

We also could speculate that the first slave was afraid and didn’t trust the king. The slave couldn’t believe the forgiveness was true, and so he reacted out of fear. He terrorized those who owed him money because he didn’t believe the king would treat him so graciously.           

From this story, we might deduce that this slave didn’t know the king’s character, and as a result, he didn’t trust him. He wasn’t sure the king would keep his word about the forgiven debt. As a result, he transmitted his fear about his financial matters to those who owed him money, and he behaved as if his debt was not taken care of.

This parable from Jesus gives us a chance to consider how we feel about forgiveness. Do we believe we’re forgiven for our sins and brought into a loving relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? If we do, then that belief will inform our relationships with others.

When we grasp that we’re known and loved despite our shortcomings, we’re more willing to love and accept others despite their shortcomings. Instead of acting selfishly or transmitting fear and behaving as if we have to earn the right to be forgiven, loved, and included, we can relax into the loving arms of God.

It might seem too good to be true, but if we believe Jesus came to show us God’s heart for humanity, we know we can trust that we’re forgiven and in the right relationship with God. And when something is that good, we have to pass it on to others. Rather than transmitting fear, we lovingly extend grace and forgiveness to others, trusting that there are some things that aren’t too good to be true. This helps them understand that they are also under the Father’s forgiveness.

May we believe in God’s goodness and love, trusting that it’s not too good to be true, knowing we’re forgiven, and extending the same grace to others.

I’m Jeff Broadnax, Speaking of Life.

Speaking of Life 5042 | Jesus Heals Relationships
Greg Williams

Human beings were created and designed for relationships. God made us not only with the capacity to relate to him and each other but with the need to connect to thrive. Despite these truths, human beings often do things that disrupt our relationships. Even when we have the best intentions, we can hurt each other. And we respond to that hurt in different ways. Some of those ways are healthy, and some of those ways can perpetuate a cycle of harm. It is no wonder that Jesus instructed his followers on how we are to respond when fellow believers cause harm. Let’s read from Matthew 18:

If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”
Matthew 18:15-20 (NRSV)

Jesus outlined a step-by-step process for how to deal with relational conflict that is very helpful from a practical standpoint. Additionally, Jesus’ teaching provides two spiritually important truths about God. First, person-to-person relationships are important to him. He is concerned about how we connect to each other. Second, God wants to see disrupted relationships restored and he takes an active role in healing our relational wounds. This does not mean that believers can expect every hurt to be healed and every broken relationship mended in this life. However, we can expect God to help us do our part to be at peace with all people.

This is good news for those of us who live in a world that often seems so divided. If we create room for him in our relationships, Jesus will show up in our squabbles, grudges, and estrangements and provide healing. He desires to be in our midst when we sit down to reconcile with a neighbor who has harmed us. In fact, when we prayerfully seek God’s help, the Holy Spirit will help us see our neighbor as Christ would see that person and treat that person as Jesus would treat them. This changes the dynamic of the relationship and puts the relational conflict in perspective. Jesus is the restorer of all things — even broken relationships.

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.