Food for Thought
This is the final interaction between Jesus and the religious leaders. They have been challenging his authority and peppering him with theological questions designed to entrap him and discredit him.
The final question comes from the Pharisees. “Which is the greatest commandment?” Jesus summarizes all 613 laws of Moses into two. First, Love the Lord your God with your whole heart (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). The second is like it, love your neighbor as yourself (Leviticus 19:18).
I invite you to check out A Cartoonist’s Guide to Deuteronomy 6:1-9 | The Shema for visuals on the first commandment.
I invite you to read this sermon in which I walk through chapter 43 of Brian McLaren’s book We Make the Road by Walking. I also invite you to read this post and this post and this post for more background on this sermon. This is an excellent commentary on the second commandment.
May we lead from this centered place of God’s love this week.
since last week…
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Food for Thought
We land this week on the story of David’s sin with Bathsheba. This is really, really bad. He seduces Bathsheba. Rapes her. Then, he has her husband killed in battle to cover it up.
David displays the way that power can corrupt the best of us. How can the boy who trusted God to face Goliath and humbly deferred to Saul grow up to commit such a heinous crime?
One word. Power.
I have good news and bad news. The good news is that God forgives. Always. David’s relationship was restored. Praise the Lord, that God’s mercies are new every morning.
David was considered a man after God’s own heart. It wasn’t because he lived a perfect life. That is obvious. It was because he admitted his mistakes, had a contrite heart, and truly sought forgiveness.
The bad news is that God does not remove the consequences of our sin. Bad actions almost always lead to a cascade of bad results. David spent the rest of his life living in the aftershock of his sin with Bathsheba and his violent lifestyle.
Those of us who stand in positions of leadership must take caution. Guard your heart. Stay humble before God and your neighbors. Lord, have mercy. May we live in the grace of God this week.
Every week I compile all the visual resources on cartoonistbible.com for the lectionary readings on both the Revised Common Lectionary and the Narrative Lectionary. Get them in your inbox every Monday morning.