Readings (Track 1)

Dogs and cats: the dog thinks you’re god; the cat knows he’s god. After all, who cleans whose litter box? Likewise, when we say “so-and-so thinks he’s god,” we usually mean that he thinks everyone should serve him.

So what’s being God, being like God about? That’s where today’s readings get interesting.

At the center of our second reading there’s a striking hymn. Scholars tend to think it was already circulating among the churches when Paul wrote this letter. Paul uses it to ground his plea that his readers change their behavior: “be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.” Why? “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus…”

By the way, I’m focusing on this second reading not because I think you’re particularly in need of hearing this plea, but because it gives us an opportunity to step back to contemplate our mental pictures of God.

In the NRSV the hymn begins “who, though he was in the form of God.” That word “though” is supplied by the translators; the KJV reads simply “Who, being in the form of God.” It probably gets us off on the wrong foot, suggesting that Jesus did something unexpected of divinity. Rather, Jesus acts divinely precisely in treating divinity as something not to be exploited, and takes the form of a slave. Creation—recalling Paul’s words in Romans 8—“subjected to futility,” in “bondage to decay,” “groaning in labor pains until now” (vv.20-22), so, in the spirit of that sign on Truman’s desk (“The buck stops here”) the Holy Trinity through Jesus does what is needed to set things right.

And that, the hymn joyfully reminds us, is what being God is about. No wonder Paul writes “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,” because of the devil’s many lies, that living like the gods means doing whatever we want and letting others pick up the tab has perhaps sunk in the deepest. So working out our salvation is not first about additional hours at prayer, additional mortifications of the flesh, even increasing our giving, but about the work of actually hearing and responding to our neighbors, maybe particularly the ones we’d rather ignore.

And what this can do for our imaginations! Our first reading tells of God providing water in the desert. Toward the end of the text the Lord tells Moses to strike the rock, not a rock. The rabbis, who thought nothing in Scripture was accidental, wondered about that. They concluded that the text was talking about the rock that the Lord had provided, the rock that followed the people and continued to provide water during their trek. Paul, recalling that story in his first letter to the Corinthians, has an “ah hah” moment: “and the rock was Christ” (10:4). That’s the sort of thing God does.

Nothing more human than to desire to live like the gods. The Living God has no problem with that, as long as we’re clear on how God lives. In the New Testament today’s Philippians focuses on that. In the Old Testament the psalms celebrating God’s creating are a rich source for the healing of our imaginations. Those lines from Ps 104 for example:
“All of them look to you
to give them their food in due season.
You give it to them; they gather it in;
you open your hand, and they are filled with good things. (vv.18-19)

Each table grace is an opportunity to refocus.

Then there’s that pair of Psalms, 111 and 112. Both are acrostic, arranged by the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Psalm 111 celebrates God’s character, Psalm 112 the character of the righteous, common vocabulary highlighting the imitation. Let’s read them together (BCP 754):

Ps 111

1 Hallelujah!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, *
in the assembly of the upright, in the congregation.
2 Great are the deeds of the Lord! *
they are studied by all who delight in them.
3 His work is full of majesty and splendor, *
and his righteousness endures for ever.
4 He makes his marvelous works to be remembered; *
the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.
5 He gives food to those who fear him; *
he is ever mindful of his covenant.
6 He has shown his people the power of his works *
in giving them the lands of the nations.
7 The works of his hands are faithfulness and justice; *
all his commandments are sure.
8 They stand fast for ever and ever, *
because they are done in truth and equity.
9 He sent redemption to his people;
he commanded his covenant for ever; *
holy and awesome is his Name.
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; *
those who act accordingly have a good understanding;
his praise endures for ever.

Psalm 112

1 Hallelujah!
Happy are they who fear the Lord *
and have great delight in his commandments!
2 Their descendants will be mighty in the land; *
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches will be in their house, *
and their righteousness will last for ever.
4 Light shines in the darkness for the upright; *
the righteous are merciful and full of compassion.
5 It is good for them to be generous in lending *
and to manage their affairs with justice.
6 For they will never be shaken; *
the righteous will be kept in everlasting remembrance.
7 They will not be afraid of any evil rumors; *
their heart is right; they put their trust in the Lord.
8 Their heart is established and will not shrink, *
until they see their desire upon their enemies.
9 They have given freely to the poor, *
and their righteousness stands fast for ever;
they will hold up their head with honor.
10 The wicked will see it and be angry;
they will gnash their teeth and pine away; *
the desires of the wicked will perish.

When Paul came to Thessalonica, there was soon a crowd crying out “These people who have been turning the world upside down have come here also” (Acts 17:6). Continuing Jesus’ pattern of service, we get to contribute to that process. Amen.