Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“After the reading of the law and the prophets, the officials of the synagogue sent them a message, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, give it.” So Paul stood up and with a gesture began to speak…”
NL Daily Devotion for Tuesday, May 2, 2023
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
I wonder if the officials knew what they were inviting to happen in the synagogue that day. And I also wonder what would happen in our own congregations if the pastor were to read the gospel and invite whoever wanted to to get up and preach about it. Probably in most churches, the very idea would terrify everyone so much you could hear a pin drop. But there is always a risk when you invite someone to the mic that you’re not going to like what they have to say. What Paul had to say was radical—a new interpretation of current events in light of ancient scripture, a message that many in that congregation had been waiting to hear, and one many others were horrified to hear. It brought up big feelings and led to Paul being chased out of town after town after town. He did not give up, but just kept on to the next town, filled with the Holy Spirit and the urgency of the message.
How open are we to hearing new things about God? Why do so many Christians react with fear and anger when someone suggests that the way we’ve always thought about God might not actually reflect the way God loves or is active in the world? Why do we who proclaim that God is constantly creating the world new each day cling to the idea that our ideas about God must be as unchanging as God’s self? Are we open to the voices of modern day prophets, or are we more likely to run them out of town for asking us to question the status quo? Or, on the other hand, will we, who are called to be said modern day prophets keep our seats and our mouths shut when our leaders ask for “a word of exhortation?” Or will we, like Paul, stand up, and with a gesture, begin to speak?
Where do I see myself in this story and other stories of the early apostles?
