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Becoming

2 Cor. 3:12-18 NRSV

“Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. But their minds were hardened. Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the reading of the old covenant, that same veil is still there, since only in Christ is it set aside. Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds; but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.”

We are not who we used to be. We are being transformed daily. We are becoming. The veil was removed when we came to Jesus. The sad part is that many think that is all, or that joining a church is enough. It is the start of our journey. The start of our being spiritually transformed. The start of walking in our freedom with God. 

Verse 17 “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” That’s where we want to be. The glory of God is mirrored in Christ for all believers. It’s a spiritual birth that happens, the veil is gone. We can see, hear, understand a little better. 

We don’t have to go up a mountain but can get in God’s presence wherever we are. That is ours to hold.  We don’t have to figure it out alone. We can follow Holy Spirit’s guidance better. It frees us up to know more, do more, be more of who we really are in God. 

We are being transformed daily. What we know now- hmm think about what we will know in a month, a year. It’s the walking with him. When we commune with him we are changed. We can’t be with him and stay the same. It’s his transforming power of love. Blessings of peace and joy!  more later.

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What Do These Stones Mean?

Joshua 4:4-7 NRSV

“Then Joshua summoned the twelve men from the Israelites, whom he had appointed, one from each tribe. Joshua said to them, “Pass on before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, one for each of the tribes of the Israelites, so that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the Israelites a memorial forever.”

There are many times in scripture where stones are raised to commemorate an event of God’s intervention. These stones provoke conversation in order to tell the story of what God has done. 

What do these stones mean? Think about the times that God kept you from peril, when you went through trials unscathed, over the rivers of disappointment, of tragedy, and you made it unharmed and safe.  The times when you knew to bury the kings - the idols in your life as you trusted more what is doing. The times you are able to celebrate with your witness of God. 

When you look back, you find that you have many places to commemorate God’s faithfulness to you. And then you can share. It helps to keep the memory alive. It provokes more and more thanks to him. You must remember, in order to tell them what the stones mean.

As Joshua challenged the Israelites I encourage you to stay faithful.

Joshua 25:14&15 “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefather worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Tell them what the stones mean. enough for now.

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Can you Drink the Cup?

Matt. 20:20-23 NRSV

“Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked a favor of him. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” 

While we all want what’s best for children Salome took it a little farther. But a part of this was keeping herself elevated. In that patriarchal society if her sons were elevated, she would be elevated. Jesus asked, “Can you drink the cup I’m going to drink?”  Now that was clue to back off, to rethink what they were asking. But no, they answered yes. And Jesus said, “oh you will.” And they did. 

To drink the cup was not only about servanthood, but to  participate in the suffering. “Cup” is an Old Testament metaphor for “suffering.” Although the Sons of Thunder, James and John greatly helped to spread the gospel, James was martyred by the hands of Herod Agrippa, and John, the one who cared for Mary, was exiled to isle of Patmos.

The question, “Can you drink the cup?” Is loaded. We must be careful how we respond. Too often people want the power and glory they see, but don’t realize the pain and suffering it took to get there. Each of you - someone has looked at where you are and envied that. But they don’t know what it took to get there. They don’t know the time, the sacrifices, the lonely moments.  But you do.  None of us have a clue of what Jesus went through in his time on earth, but he did - for us. 

Yes, we too have a cup. We can’t be so brash to think that we can drink from his cup, but from  the one he has given us, in order to achieve our mission on this journey. enough for now

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