Another week closer to Advent believe it or not.  As the liturgical season of Pentecost lingers, here’s what the lectionary has for us this week:

Deuteronomy 6:1-9
 Psalm 119:1-8
 Hebrews 9:11-14
 Mark 12:28-34

A lot of thoughts swimming around in my head as I go through the Old Testament lesson, let’s see if I can make something coherent out of them.  One way to think about this new law, is a new way of living.  If you’re going to live in the so-called promised land, there is a different way of living that comes with that.  We must live differently if we think of ourselves as part of the Kingdom of God.  We get a tough directive in this text, one many are probably familiar with and that is to, “love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.”  I thought of a pastor that I communicate with regularly and the signature on his emails is, “in Christ alone.”  It does make us ask ourselves what types of things are we most apt to through ourselves completely into?  What are we willing to become addicted to?  What is it that drives us?  Despite how we may have answered those questions in our heads, we were supposed to choose God.  The end of this text also reminds us to show our faith.  No, we are not to be flashy or loud, but people should be able to look at our hands, our face and our home and tell that we live under the new law, we live differently, that we live for the Lord.

Normally I would complain when a Psalm gets chopped off before the end, but its understandable in this case considering the 119^th Psalm goes for some 176 verses.  We get but just a crumb of the Psalm with the first eight verses.  The text not only goes perfectly with the OT lesson, but I like the humility of the Psalmist here.  It is almost like he is pining to be like others who he witnesses living the way that he knows he is supposed to live.  He is watching people (at least for the Psalm’s sake) who are living that new life we talked about previously.  Verses five and six are where we get relatable.  The prayer for God to guide his/our steps so that we may walk in the way that we’re called to as followers of Christ Jesus.  The Psalmist then talks about self-conviction when reading the Word or God’s law.  I’m not sure about you, but there are plenty of texts that cause me to feel convicted.   I like the “when I learn” part in verse seven.  The Psalmist may feel shame and self-conviction in the law, but he is not giving up.  His heart is where it needs to be, striving to follow God in the way that has been laid out for us all.

This section of Hebrews may be where some people point to Paul and James having a disagreement about works.  To me Paul is simply coming at the same thing, but from a different angle.  Works for the sake of works is dead.  Works combined with the pure worship of the living God will bring those works to life.  There’s a little too much emphasis from some to say that James was pushing for works-based salvation, where I think both he and Paul agreed that a true faith and worship of our Savior would bring about living works.  God is life and works done through him carry with them so much more power.   Perhaps a poor illustration, but I’m thinking of a live tree and a dead one.  In the summer, the dead tree still casts some shade, but it is a thin sliver of trunk and sparse branches.  The shade from a healthy and living tree in the summer is so much more expansive and has the ability to provide a sanctuary and respite from the harsh sun outside its protective branches.  Good stuff here in Hebrews this week and continues the train of thought on Jesus being the High Priest and the very different qualifications he has compared to earthly priests.

The Gospel has us back in Mark but skipping ahead to nearly the end of the chapter 12.  It does not take a rocket scientist to see why this, and the Old Testament lesson are together as one of the main thoughts is repeated here in mark about loving God with “all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.”  We also get the other greatest commandment to love one another as ourselves.  I’m especially thinking about how we love one another in the coming days, more specifically the lead up and what will follow the election.  With both sides certain that the other will destroy the country and their way of life, our ability to simply connect with one another is terrifically damaged.  How are we supposed to love with one another when we don’t even want to speak to or relate to the other.  It is impossible when we paint nearly everything black and white and leave no gray area to be colored in with love and understanding of our brothers and sisters.   I’ll likely preach on something to this effect Sunday because I am more worried than ever about the fabric of human relationships in general, being ripped apart more and more each day with polarizing issues laid before us in an effort to divide with the hope of unity more of a pipe dream than possible reality.  I love each of you and I pray that you love one another and as Paul write sin Colossians 3:13, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”   Let’s bear with one another, to love when it seems impossible, to hold those we want to push away.

These are my initial thoughts as I look at the lectionary texts for the first time.  These are thoughts without context and without study.   Spend time this week with me in these passages and see what it is that God is really trying to tell us.