Tuesday • 5/23/2023 •
Week of 7 Easter
This morning’s Scriptures are: Psalm 97; Psalm 99; Ezekiel 7:10–15,23b–27; Hebrews 6:13–20; Luke 10:1–17
This morning’s Canticles are: before the Psalm reading, Pascha Nostrum (“Christ Our Passover,” BCP, p. 83); following the OT reading, Canticle 13 (“A Song of Praise,” BCP, p. 90);following the Epistle reading, Canticle 18 (“A Song to the Lamb,” Revelation 4:11; 5:9–10, 13, BCP, p. 93)
Welcome to Daily Office Devotions, where every Monday through Friday we draw insights from that day’s Scripture readings, as given in the Book of Common Prayer. I’m Reggie Kidd, and I’m grateful to be with you. Today is Tuesday of the 7th (and final) week of Easter. “Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!”
During this week the Daily Office continues a quick trip through the main themes of the Book of Ezekiel and of the first half of the Book of Hebrews. Meanwhile, we are reading our way through the Gospel according to Luke.
Today, our meditation will key off of three different verses, one each from Ezekiel, Hebrews, and Luke. Ezekiel wants us to know that, despite appearances, God will bring justice to the earth. Pride and wickedness will not have the final say in human affairs. Hebrews would have us know that God’s promises for those who trust him are so sure, that his promises can serve as a secure anchor for our soul. And in Luke, Jesus urges us to be bold in speaking out on his behalf. He promises that he stands behind us, and that his Father stands behind him.
Ezekiel: “the rod has blossomed.” First, consider this thought in Ezekiel chapter 7, verse 11: “The rod has blossomed, pride has budded. Violence has grown into a rod of wickedness. None of them shall remain….”
Ezekiel writes from Babylon to Jews who remain in Jerusalem, and he does so not long before the puppet government in Jerusalem provokes the destruction of the city. Ezekiel presents one last rehearsal of Israel’s faults, one last plea for repentance. In chapter 6 verse 9 Ezekiel had said that the people’s “wanton heart” had turned away from Yahweh, and their “wanton eyes” had turned to idols. As a result, the exile and destruction that were upon them would make them “loathsome in their own eyes.” Here in chapter 7, he assures them that the prosperity acquired through violence and wickedness will be wiped out. Their military won’t save them, for “They have blown the horn and made everything ready, but no one goes to battle.” Nor will they be saved by delusional visions from prophets, manufactured instruction from priests, self-serving counsel from elders, or suicidal incitement to rebellion from the lackey “king” Zedekiah (2 King 25). The house of cards is coming down.
Yahweh had called Israel a people of his own possession, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:5,6). But God’s people had presumed that the mere occupation of sacred position made that position inviolable. They wrongly assumed that the mere stewardship of God’s holy words put them beyond being answerable for obeying those words. But God had called them to holiness so that they might be holy. He had given them precious truths that they might live by them. Instead, however, they worshiped profanely and treated one another profanely—and so they were bringing profanity upon themselves. Lord, have mercy.
Hebrews: an anchor for the soul. Second, there is this powerful word of assurance in Hebrews chapter 6, verse 9: “We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul…” (Hebrews 6:19).
Threats like Ezekiel’s can seem so final. They do bespeak God’s unchangeable resolve to liberate the world he loves from the grip of evil. But those threats are not the final word. The final and unchangeable word is a word of promise. Hebrews quotes the terms of God’s promise to Abraham from Genesis chapter 22 verse 17 (which reads powerfully and meaningfully in the more literal King James Version): “Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.” Despite the downward arc of Israel’s sinfulness, God had sworn by his own character that he would turn that arc. He had done so back in Genesis 22, when he substituted a ram for Abraham’s son Isaac on Mt. Horeb’s altar of sacrifice. God did so again in an ultimate and unimaginable way when he substituted his own Son for all the world’s sin on the cross of Mt. Golgotha.
Despite his people’s faithlessness, God ultimately remains faithful to his own promises. His promise had been to bless all nations through Israel, and through his Son Jesus, he has done just that. Hebrews makes the point that the arm of God’s promise is as long as his arm of justice. At the cross, promise and justice meet to enfold us in a divine embrace. And Hebrews promises us that if we will hold that promise in our hearts, it will serve as a strong anchor against all the currents of doubt and fear that try to shipwreck our souls.
Luke: “Whoever listens to you…” And third, in the certainty that God will bring justice to the earth and bring to himself those who truly belong to him, Jesus promises that we can speak confidently on God’s behalf. Here’s what he says in Luke chapter 10, verse 16: “Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects the one who sent me.”
Luke presents Jesus as being altogether cognizant of his mission: its purpose, process, and outcome. Thus far in Luke’s narrative, Jesus has explained twice to his uncomprehending disciples that he will be betrayed, killed, and raised from the dead. On the Mount of Transfiguration, he has spoken about his upcoming “exodus” with Moses and Elijah. Thus, he has “set his face” toward Jerusalem.
On this last journey to Jerusalem, Jesus gives his followers a taste of what their mission will be on the far side of his death and resurrection. He sends seventy (some ancient texts say seventy-two) on a brief missionary expedition. They go as “lambs among wolves,” that is, as innocents among the shrewd, as potential martyrs among potential persecutors. They can expect to be welcomed by some and rejected by others. Regardless, their message is “The kingdom of God has drawn near”—which nearness brings blessing or curse. The messengers aren’t in charge of making the kingdom happen; they are responsible only for telling the truth.
This purpose applies to you and me. In the face of lies, we tell the truth. Where there is sickness of soul, we offer the medicine of Jesus. Where the kingdom of self and sin are in apparent ascendancy, we declare the reality of the dominion of love and justice and holiness. The Lord takes care of the results.
May you and I take heart in today’s threefold truth. As Ezekiel says, evil will not have the last say. As Hebrews says, God’s promises are a firm anchor for our soul. And as Jesus says in Luke, our job is simply to tell the truth about the kingdom of God’s beloved Son and leave the outcome to the Lord himself.
Be blessed this day,
Reggie Kidd+