The Seventh Sunday of Easter, May 23, 2004
Acts 16:16-34 or 1 Sam. 12:19-24; Psalm 68:1-20 or 47; Rev. 22:12-14,16-17,20 or Acts 16:16-34; John 17:20-26
In all these lessons, the reliability and the promise of the kingdom of God are set forth in the context of human sinfulness. In the lesson from 2 Kings, the institution of the Jewish monarchy is followed not by rejoicing but by apprehension. When the people had asked for a king so that they might be like the other nations, Samuel, their prophet and judge, had warned them that by asking for a king they were rejecting the kingship of God. Nevertheless, God instructed Samuel to proceed with the selection of a king, and Saul was chosen.
Once the kingship became a reality, however, the truth of Samuel’s warning was realized: “We have added to all our sins the evil of demanding a king for ourselves” (1 Sam. 12:19b). Yet this assertion is prefaced by the plea, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants, so that we may not die.” Samuel affirms the truth of their confession: “You have done all this evil,” yet exhorts them not to “turn aside from following the Lord” (12:20). He then adds, “the Lord will not cast away his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself” (12:22). The promise that the Lord will not cast away his people does not in the least imply that their sin is of no consequence or will not be judged.
The lesson from Revelation begins with a note of judgment as the Lord promises to “repay according to everyone’s work” (Rev. 22:12), yet continues with an invitation to those who have washed their robes and are thirsty for the water of life to “enter the city by the gates” with the “right to the tree of life” (22:14). It is the washing of the robes that sets judgment aside and leads to salvation.
In Acts, as Paul and Silas are “praying and singing hymns to God” (Acts 16:25), they are set free by divine intervention from the shackles in which they had been imprisoned for their Christian testimony. As a result of that, the jailer is moved to receive their message and finds salvation.
Finally, in the gospel, Jesus is praying for his disciples that, in spite of the fact that they are all about to abandon him, they may make a powerful and effective testimony to the world.
Look It Up
In different ways, both psalm choices today match and extend the theme of the lessons. How do they do so?
Think About It
No one is ever given permission to sin, and God will not make any compromise with sin. Yet he can work even sin into the overall work of redemption. Can you think of a time when this has proven true in your own life?
Next Sunday
The Day of Pentecost, May 30, 2004
Acts 2:1-11 or Joel 2:28-32; Psalm 104:25-37 or 104:25-32 or 33:12-15,18-22; 1 Cor. 12:4-13 or Acts 2:1-11; John 20:19-23 or John 14:8-17
