Lectionary readings: Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-18 Psalm 34:15-22 Ephesians 6:10-20 John 6:56-69
Choose this day whom you will serve…
Joshua 24: 15
We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.
John 6:69
Unconscious bias.
Whether we like it or not, and whether we are aware of it or not, we receive and assess every news item as well as much of what passes before us in the wider world, and we analyse it, in the light of past experience and what we think we know. This week we are presented with four great readings from scripture that take us from the Israelites in the desert making their choices, to the dawning recognition by the disciples about who Jesus really is. One writer suggests that the famous text from Joshua has been domesticated, and thereby loses some of its impact. Yet it still has resonance for the people of God desperate to hear a word of hope when everything known has the capacity to move form under the feet like desert sands. And there have been plenty of those of late: if not covid19, or the climate change emergency filling our screens with images of floods and fires around the world, then our shifting circumstances as I write, must surely include the situation in Afghanistan as the Taliban swept into Kabul.
What does the promise of God feel like today as ancient words draw us into a story that has its resonance with worship as we know it, but then challenges us to re-examine where we think we are before moving on? As we gather week by week to hear familiar stories, as we are invited to respond to our covenantal-God, we then depart to go and live out that calling during the week. Our prayer lives call for us to be people with a newspaper/ newsfeed/ news report in one hand and the bible in the other.
Constant worship
The Psalmist sums it up of course, with the invitation to continually praise God at all times. It is not some saccharine version of life from one whose life is carefree, but an expression of thanksgiving based on experience in the midst of the harsh realities of life. It is of course, poetry, so don’t try to take it all literally. For instance, we know that death comes to us all whether we are ‘wicked’ or not, yet constant indulgence in evil must surely leave its mark on the soul, which little by little erodes a person’s capabilities for good. Shams Tabrizi, wrote:
The real dirt is not outside,
but inside, in our hearts.
We can wash all stains with water.
The only one we can’t remove
is the grudge and the bad intentions
sticking to our hearts.
(See Christ’s words in Matthew 15:17-20)
On presence, preparation and protection
I’m not too sure how the words in Ephesians sit with you, or how helpful you find the image of warfare in a Christian context (it really will have been influenced by past experience and when you grew up!) But if it helps, I always imagine St Paul dictating his letters with an armed Roman guard – suitably attired – somewhere nearby (see verse 20). But what I most take from the passage is two things: first a sense of being well-protected in God’s presence, and secondly, being well-prepared. The list of ‘armour’ described here is about truth and righteousness; a deep sense of peace no matter what life brings, and the word of God to nourish us in difficult times. I remember hearing Terry Waite speaking of the times of his captivity, where it was the words of scripture and liturgy committed to memory that had sustained him through his ordeal. It begs the question of how much scripture and words of prayer and worship would be available to us in challenging times, with only personal memory for company.
So we come full circle, only to discover that the question posed in the wilderness, re-emerges as Jesus asks the twelve disciples about their own commitment. They have heard him speak, they have witnessed the response of the crowds and the religious leaders, many of the disciples have expressed their own doubts and fears, and now Jesus asks if they too would leave. Yet Peter answers with a statement that reveals his understanding of Jesus as the one with the words of life. And this conversation is set within the context of incarnational theology. Not just an issue of God come down, but a reminder that all human life is deeply fleshly, for we can only truly experience the world in our bodies. SSo, we experience God in our worship – which as the Psalmist helps us discover is about worship from the whole person, body, mind and spirit. And we experience God in our service to those around us, which involves practical, compassionate sharing with our neighbour. Because at the end of the day, we have come to know and believe that Jesus Christ is the Holy One of God.
Worship at home 