John 3:31 The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks about earthly things. The one who comes from heaven is above all.
This verse is a great summary of a deep theological mystery: the dual identity of Christ... notice I didn't say the multiple personalities. That's a psychiatric diagnosis, not a theological mystery. By the dual identity of Christ I mean what Christians have affirmed since the very earliest group of Christians existed: Jesus Christ is fully human and, at the same time, fully divine.
Here we don't read so much proof of the fact, but an argument about why it's valuable to us as Christians. "The one who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks about earthly things." Our Savior is of the earth and speaks about earthly things. Jesus did not just come to tell us about God: Jesus came to tell us about ourselves. However, Oprah does a really good job of that. We don't need Jesus if we just want to hear about earthly things. We need One who comes from above and is above all. Jesus is both. The relevant earthly preacher/teacher who speaks real truth about real lives.... and the One who comes from above and reigns over all. Thanks be to God for the fully human and fully divine Christ.
In Christ,
Pastor Seth
Gather for worship and fellowship THIS evening at 7 pm at the home of Stan and Dotty Shearer (2309 Kingfisher Lane in Rolling Meadows). Then join us this weekend as we celebrate the birthday of the church on Pentecost... Saturday at 5 and Sunday at 9. Wear red!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
ASLC Devotions - Tuesday
Numbers 16:46-48 Moses said to Aaron, ‘Take your censer, put fire on it from the altar and lay incense on it, and carry it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them. For wrath has gone out from the Lord; the plague has begun.’ So Aaron took it as Moses had ordered, and ran into the middle of the assembly, where the plague had already begun among the people. He put on the incense, and made atonement for the people. He stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stopped.
Aaron was the first priest for the people of Israel. When a plague struck them, he got right there in the middle and did what priests do. He atoned for the people, he prayed for the people, he got in the middle of the muck and mire and helped. One way that we often think about the priestly role is to stand in the middle, between the people and God. The priest stands in the middle and mediates the conversation: translating, if you will, between God and the people.
In the Christian era, we think of the whole church as standing in that priestly role. You, church, are priests. You are priests standing in the middle between God and the whole world. Your job is to stand there in the middle, like Aaron. Your job is to stand there in the middle with plague and fire and yucky stuff (technical biblical term) going on all around you, and pray. For whom are you praying today?
In Christ,
Pastor Seth
Join us tomorrow (Wednesday) evening at 7 for Holden Evening Prayer at the home of Stan and Dotty Shearer. Call the church office at 847-991-2080 for directions. Then, celebrate Pentecost this weekend (Saturday at 5 and Sunday at 9) by wearing red.
Aaron was the first priest for the people of Israel. When a plague struck them, he got right there in the middle and did what priests do. He atoned for the people, he prayed for the people, he got in the middle of the muck and mire and helped. One way that we often think about the priestly role is to stand in the middle, between the people and God. The priest stands in the middle and mediates the conversation: translating, if you will, between God and the people.
In the Christian era, we think of the whole church as standing in that priestly role. You, church, are priests. You are priests standing in the middle between God and the whole world. Your job is to stand there in the middle, like Aaron. Your job is to stand there in the middle with plague and fire and yucky stuff (technical biblical term) going on all around you, and pray. For whom are you praying today?
In Christ,
Pastor Seth
Join us tomorrow (Wednesday) evening at 7 for Holden Evening Prayer at the home of Stan and Dotty Shearer. Call the church office at 847-991-2080 for directions. Then, celebrate Pentecost this weekend (Saturday at 5 and Sunday at 9) by wearing red.
Monday, June 6, 2011
ASLC Holden
The second Wednesday of each month, we gather as a congregation for Holden Evening Prayer at 7 pm. It's a great opportunity for prayer and singing. For the three events this summer (June 8, July 13, and August 10) we will be gathering for the same purpose, but away from the All Saints building.
At 7 pm on Wednesday, June 8 gather with us at the home of Stan and Dotty Shearer (2309 Kingfisher Lane E in Rolling Meadows). Bring a lawn chair or blanket to sit on. Bring a dish or drink to pass in some fellowship following the prayer service.
Click here for a Google map of Stan and Dotty's address.
Friday, June 3, 2011
ASLC Devotions -- Friday
2 Kings 2:11-12
11As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. 12Elisha kept watching and crying out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.
In the preceding verses Elisha has told Elijah three times, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” Even after Elijah has told him that he’s about to be taken by a whirlwind, after he’s been sent to Jericho and after he’s been sent to the Jordan – each time Elijah says, “Stay here.” And, Elisha goes along, pledging commitment and companionship. It is that depth of relationship that causes him to grasp his clothes and tear them in two when Elijah does get swept up by a whirlwind.
Before he gets swept away, though, he asks Elisha what he may do for him, and Elisha asks for a double share of his spirit. It makes me wonder whose spirit you would like a double-share – which of your friends or mentors would you continue to travel with to the end?
Peace,
Pastor Jenn
Thursday, June 2, 2011
ASLC Backyard Holden
The second Wednesday of each month, we gather as a congregation for Holden Evening Prayer at 7 pm. It's a great opportunity for prayer and singing. For the three events this summer (June 8, July 13, and August 10) we will be gathering for the same purpose, but away from the All Saints building.
At 7 pm on Wednesday, June 8 gather with us at the home of Stan and Dotty Shearer (2309 Kingfisher Lane E in Rolling Meadows). Bring a lawn chair or blanket to sit on. Bring a dish or drink to pass in some fellowship following the prayer service.
Click here for a Google map of Stan and Dotty's address.
ASLC Devotions -- Thursday
Acts 1:6-7
6So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7He replied, “It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.
Today is Ascension Day (worship at All Saints tonight at 7:00!), the day when we read: “When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.” It’s one of those scripture passages that feels surreal to even read it, let alone imagine being there, among the crowd of disciples. The disciples had been encountering the post-resurrection Jesus for about forty days now, and so it is that forty days after Easter we mark the ascension.
After he is lifted up, and as the disciples watch Jesus’ feet disappear into the clouds, two men in white robes (angels?) appear and ask the group, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven?” It might seem logical that the group would have been a little neck-stretched at that moment, but they again receive the reminder to get their heads out of the clouds. Are there times when we focus on things that aren’t where we should place our attention?
Peace,
Pastor Jenn
Join us for worship tonight at 7:00 -- followed by an Ice Cream Sundae pot-luck!
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
ASLC Devotions -- Wednesday
John 16:16-18
16”A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.” 17Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” 18They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.”
This exchange between Jesus and the disciples might be one of the most enlightening and amusing passages to me. Truly, if you read verse 16 apart from anything else, it does not make any sense. It’s almost as if Jesus is playing peek-a-boo – now you see me! Now you don’t! Oh, wait, now you see me again!
No wonder the disciples were confused.
What is important for us to remember, of course, is the context – especially for those bewildered disciples. Yes, Jesus had been telling them these things all along, and we could argue they should have been a little more clued in. However, we have the benefit of being steeped in the story from the other side of the tomb and we don’t always understand, either. We have the gift of generations of teachings and scholarship to provide insight, and yet the mystery often remains for us.
In those days and times when we feel weighted down with mystery (instead of delighting in it), we pray for trust, knowing that Jesus’ promises remain true – regardless of our understanding.
Peace,
Pastor Jenn
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