Sounding Gough

Daily readings for Friday, June 5, 2009

• Morning: Psalms 88; 148
• First Reading : Deuteronomy 26:1-11
• Second Reading : 2 Corinthians 8:16-24
• Gospel : Luke 18:9-14
• Evening: Psalms 6; 20

This daily lectionary blogging really forces me to stop and read scripture. It's great but I'd be lying if I said I don't have moments of regret. Press on!  I also realized it is weird to post about the previous day. So I'm attempting to change my schedule some. I like to write at night and so I will get ahead of the lectionary.  Having said that, I am not posting on Sunday's readings.  I may occasionally post a sermon on those readings, but not weekly.

Daily readings for Thursday, June 4, 2009

• Morning: Psalms 143; 147:12-20
• First Reading : Deuteronomy 16:18-20, 17:14-20
• Second Reading : 2 Corinthians 8:1-16
• Gospel : Luke 18:1-8
• Evening: Psalms 81; 116

What stood out yesterday about these passages was the concept of justice. God is just. In fact, God's justice is much more extreme than human justice because God's righteousness is beyond what we can achieve. 
Yet we always try to justify things. War, torture, inequitable economy, etc.  It's all a fallacy before God and exposed as such in the light of God's justice and love.  We forget that God's justice is born out of love. It is a love that is the same for every one of us. God's love for the tortured is the same as God's love for the torturer, for the rich as for the poor.
We often do not love those we justify hurting, punishing, using, or even killing.  I know I try to justify how I spend my money without love or a thought for those who are dying from hunger. 
God's justice, God's love, convicts us all.
Grace is always the answer but it does not erase justice. It does not mean we stop attempting to live in a way that is just for all. But it does mean we can do so knowing, even though we fall short, we are still loved more than we can ever imagine.It's that love that transforms us more and more into the likeness of Christ in all we say and do and even spend money on.

Daily readings for Wednesday, June 3, 2009

• Morning: Psalms 65; 147:1-11
• First Reading : Deuteronomy 13:1-11
• Second Reading : 2 Corinthians 7:2-16
• Gospel : Luke 17:20-37
• Evening: Psalms 125; 91

More interesting readings. Things that popped out, "But you shall surely kill them", godly grief, corpses and vultures.  Wow! Kill anyone who tries to entice you to follow other Gods?! Really? Well if all those so called Biblical literalists were really serious and consistent then they'd all be in jail and convicted felons.  At least they wouldn't be able to vote.