Saturday September 28 Pentecost 18
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Psalm 136
God’s relentless love (‘mercy’ in the relentless refrain of this hymn) is seen first in creation, then in Israel’s rescue from Egypt as if that rescue was another part of creation, and finally for every creature.
Hosea 1.1-2.1 What’s Hosea about?
We now begin reading the shorter prophetic books.
Hosea wrote about 700 BC. when the northern part of the county was enslaved. Hosea attributes this disaster to the people and their leaders having abandoned the God of justice. But he insists that God does not abandon them.
Hosea uses a variety of symbolic actions to make this point. The book begins with God telling Hosea to marry a prostitute. The image is that the Jewish people have prostituted themselves to gods of injustice, but the true God remains absolutely committed to them. The children of this marriage all have symbolic names—”God sows consequences”, “I don’t care”, “Not my people” to illustrate the consequences of the country’s unfaithful actions. Nevertheless God will remain faithful and the message to the faithless people is that they will be re-named “My people”, and “I care.”
Luke 4.38-44 What’s Luke about?
Jesus continues to enact the kingdom by healing Peter’s mother-in-law and many other people. However he insists that he will travel to other villages—God’s desire for the new world extends beyond our immediate family. This is what enraged his fellow villagers when he read the scripture in the synagogue and said that God sometimes brings healing to others before them. The challenge to us is to be aware that in following Christ we aren’t to assume we come first.
This week’s collect:
Almighty God,
you have created the heavens and the earth,
and ourselves in your image.
Teach us to discern your hand in all your works
and to serve you with reverence and thanksgiving;
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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