Tuesday September 10 Pentecost 16
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Psalm 47
God reigns over history and over the nations and has protected us. Praise to God!
Psalm 48
A song of praise for how Jerusalem has been blessed by God— the forces which would destroy us are overcome.
We might understand this psalm as rejoicing in the beauty of creation, and of our own self as a glorious city, made possible by God’s commitment to justice.
Job 29.1-20 What’s Job about?
Job begins summing up his argument with God by contrasting the way his life used to be with the way it is now. He starts by describing how he used to be the most respected person in the land and it was he who rescued those in distress and stood up for those who were being exploited. He was the model of success combined with generous care for any in need.
John 10.31-42 What’s John about?
Jesus has just said, “The Father and I are one.” Jesus insists that we when see him (healing or being executed) we are seeing God. But this is blasphemy for the leaders because it is inconceivable to them that God could go through such degradation and so Jesus is accused of blasphemy. Jesus quotes to them a verse from Psalm 82 “you are gods” which referred to the evil forces of the world being subject to God’s power of justice. Jesus quotes this verse to demonstrate that he can be the Son of God, a method of using scripture that doesn’t carry weight in our day, but is his way of proving that he can be God and that in seeing what happens to him we are seeing God. For this blasphemy the authorities attempt to arrest him, but Jesus escapes and returns to the location of John’s baptism, where he himself was baptized into commitment to God’s kingdom. Some people are convinced by Jesus’ “signs.” Another sign, the raising of dead Lazarus, is about to be given as demonstration that God’s kingdom of new life is arriving through Jesus.
This week’s collect:
Stir up, O Lord,
the wills of your faithful people,
that richly bearing the fruit of good works,
we may by you be richly rewarded;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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