Mail Archive of the old Santa Clara Valley Lutheran Parish

I adjure you by the Lord that this letter be read to all the brethren. (Thessalonians 5:27)
Subject: Re: Today's devotion
Date: Sat, 14 Nov 2009 11:15:31 -0800 (PST)
From: Joseph Leon <jleon1968@sbcglobal.net>
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Message-ID: <652261.94526.qm@web80403.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Date: Sat, 14 Nov 2009 11:15:31 -0800 (PST)
From: Joseph Leon <jleon1968@sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Re: Today's devotion
To: scvlp@googlegroups.com
In-Reply-To: <e4499451-f75b-44ab-ade0-14696d476c56@f18g2000prf.googlegroups.com>
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Hi David,
Great write up, have a great weekend.

paz
joseph

--- On Fri, 11/13/09, David Bonde <pastorbonde@gmail.com> wrote:

From: David Bonde <pastorbonde@gmail.com>
Subject: Today's devotion
To: "SCVLP" <scvlp@googlegroups.com>
Date: Friday, November 13, 2009, 12:57 PM


So I=E2=80=99m reading Psalm 52, =E2=80=9CWhy do you boast of evil, you mig=
hty man=E2=80=9DNIV
and it begins with that little note =E2=80=9CWhen Doeg the Edomite had gone=
 to
Saul and told him =E2=80=98David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.=E2=80=
=99=E2=80=9D

It=E2=80=99s a chilling story.=C2=A0 I remember that much.=C2=A0 I=E2=80=99=
ve written a note in
the margin that Doeg killed 85 priests of Nob along with the reference
to 1 Samuel 21:7 and chapter 22.=C2=A0 So now I=E2=80=99m rereading 1 Samue=
l 21 and
22.

David is on the run but tells Ahimelech he is on an urgent mission for
Saul.=C2=A0 He is given the bread of the presence from the previous day and
the sword of Goliath that had been placed =E2=80=9Cbehind the ephod.=E2=80=
=9D=C2=A0 =E2=80=9CThere
is no sword here but that one,=E2=80=9D says Ahimelech.

There is no sword here but this one that testifies to the triumph of
God over the might of armies, the one captured by David who armed
himself with the name of the Lord and five smooth stones.

And then the fateful words of 21:7 =E2=80=9CNow one of Saul=E2=80=99s serva=
nts was
there that day, detained before the Lord; he was Doeg the Edomite,
Saul=E2=80=99s head shepherd.=E2=80=9D

In a fight for his kingdom Saul rails against his officials accusing
them of conspiracy against him.=C2=A0 Doeg steps forward: =E2=80=9CI saw th=
e son of
Jesse come to Ahimelech...=E2=80=9D=C2=A0 When the priests have been hauled=
 before
him he orders their execution, but =E2=80=9Cthe king=E2=80=99s officials we=
re not
willing to raise a hand to strike the priests of the Lord.=E2=80=9D

Saul, however, has read Doeg accurately.=C2=A0 And Doeg strikes down not
just the 85 priests, but their whole town, men, women, children,
cattle, donkeys, sheep.

It puts our little church fights in context.

There were riots in Egypt over the doctrine of the Trinity at the time
of Athanasius, mobs fighting one another over who would be Bishop.

Being church is messy business.=C2=A0 We are messy creatures.=C2=A0 Somehow=
 in
this mess, despite all the wounds, all the harsh and even hateful
words that get spoken, all the stormy scenes and quiet desperation,
somehow the church lingers on like a woman I once knew, an alcoholic,
who lingered on life support from her failing liver.=C2=A0 I was angry at
the doctors for not letting her go.=C2=A0 But she lived.=C2=A0 And a few mo=
nths
later I was visiting her in her home.

Somehow the church lives.=C2=A0 Somehow it survives the political
infighting, the love of power, the lukewarm spirit or hardness of
heart.=C2=A0 Somehow the church survives.=C2=A0 Somehow the Word gets spoke=
n.
Somehow Gospel gets done.=C2=A0 Even if God has to use discarded paving
stones to sing Hosanna, it happens.

Along the way there are great saints like Obadiah who had hidden a
hundred prophets of the LORD from the murderous Jezebel (1 Kings 18.3)
and decidedly unsaintly =E2=80=98saints=E2=80=99 like Samson.

We are people who deal with ideals: what the world should be, what
Christians should be, what the church should be.=C2=A0 And we never are.

But God is.

God is what God =E2=80=9Cshould=E2=80=9D be.=C2=A0 God takes the wounds of =
the world on
himself rather than taking out his wounds on the world.=C2=A0 God witnesses
the Doegs and Sauls and Davids and Ahimelechs of the world and remains
God.

And with us, without us and in spite of us, God works God=E2=80=99s mercy.
And so David sings, =E2=80=9Cin your name I will hope, for your name is
good.=E2=80=9D (Psalm 52:9)



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<table cellspacing=3D"0" cellpadding=3D"0" border=3D"0" ><tr><td valign=3D"=
top" style=3D"font: inherit;">Hi David,<br>Great write up, have a great wee=
kend.<br><br>paz<br>joseph<br><br>--- On <b>Fri, 11/13/09, David Bonde <i>&=
lt;pastorbonde@gmail.com&gt;</i></b> wrote:<br><blockquote style=3D"border-=
left: 2px solid rgb(16, 16, 255); margin-left: 5px; padding-left: 5px;"><br=
>From: David Bonde &lt;pastorbonde@gmail.com&gt;<br>Subject: Today's devoti=
on<br>To: "SCVLP" &lt;scvlp@googlegroups.com&gt;<br>Date: Friday, November =
13, 2009, 12:57 PM<br><br><div class=3D"plainMail"><br>So I=E2=80=99m readi=
ng Psalm 52, =E2=80=9CWhy do you boast of evil, you mighty man=E2=80=9DNIV<=
br>and it begins with that little note =E2=80=9CWhen Doeg the Edomite had g=
one to<br>Saul and told him =E2=80=98David has gone to the house of Ahimele=
ch.=E2=80=99=E2=80=9D<br><br>It=E2=80=99s a chilling story.&nbsp; I remembe=
r that much.&nbsp; I=E2=80=99ve written a note in<br>the margin that Doeg k=
illed 85 priests of Nob along with the reference<br>to 1
 Samuel 21:7 and chapter 22.&nbsp; So now I=E2=80=99m rereading 1 Samuel 21=
 and<br>22.<br><br>David is on the run but tells Ahimelech he is on an urge=
nt mission for<br>Saul.&nbsp; He is given the bread of the presence from th=
e previous day and<br>the sword of Goliath that had been placed =E2=80=9Cbe=
hind the ephod.=E2=80=9D&nbsp; =E2=80=9CThere<br>is no sword here but that =
one,=E2=80=9D says Ahimelech.<br><br>There is no sword here but this one th=
at testifies to the triumph of<br>God over the might of armies, the one cap=
tured by David who armed<br>himself with the name of the Lord and five smoo=
th stones.<br><br>And then the fateful words of 21:7 =E2=80=9CNow one of Sa=
ul=E2=80=99s servants was<br>there that day, detained before the Lord; he w=
as Doeg the Edomite,<br>Saul=E2=80=99s head shepherd.=E2=80=9D<br><br>In a =
fight for his kingdom Saul rails against his officials accusing<br>them of =
conspiracy against him.&nbsp; Doeg steps forward: =E2=80=9CI saw the son of=
<br>Jesse come to Ahimelech...=E2=80=9D&nbsp; When the
 priests have been hauled before<br>him he orders their execution, but =E2=
=80=9Cthe king=E2=80=99s officials were not<br>willing to raise a hand to s=
trike the priests of the Lord.=E2=80=9D<br><br>Saul, however, has read Doeg=
 accurately.&nbsp; And Doeg strikes down not<br>just the 85 priests, but th=
eir whole town, men, women, children,<br>cattle, donkeys, sheep.<br><br>It =
puts our little church fights in context.<br><br>There were riots in Egypt =
over the doctrine of the Trinity at the time<br>of Athanasius, mobs fightin=
g one another over who would be Bishop.<br><br>Being church is messy busine=
ss.&nbsp; We are messy creatures.&nbsp; Somehow in<br>this mess, despite al=
l the wounds, all the harsh and even hateful<br>words that get spoken, all =
the stormy scenes and quiet desperation,<br>somehow the church lingers on l=
ike a woman I once knew, an alcoholic,<br>who lingered on life support from=
 her failing liver.&nbsp; I was angry at<br>the doctors for not letting her=
 go.&nbsp;
 But she lived.&nbsp; And a few months<br>later I was visiting her in her h=
ome.<br><br>Somehow the church lives.&nbsp; Somehow it survives the politic=
al<br>infighting, the love of power, the lukewarm spirit or hardness of<br>=
heart.&nbsp; Somehow the church survives.&nbsp; Somehow the Word gets spoke=
n.<br>Somehow Gospel gets done.&nbsp; Even if God has to use discarded pavi=
ng<br>stones to sing Hosanna, it happens.<br><br>Along the way there are gr=
eat saints like Obadiah who had hidden a<br>hundred prophets of the LORD fr=
om the murderous Jezebel (1 Kings 18.3)<br>and decidedly unsaintly =E2=80=
=98saints=E2=80=99 like Samson.<br><br>We are people who deal with ideals: =
what the world should be, what<br>Christians should be, what the church sho=
uld be.&nbsp; And we never are.<br><br>But God is.<br><br>God is what God =
=E2=80=9Cshould=E2=80=9D be.&nbsp; God takes the wounds of the world on<br>=
himself rather than taking out his wounds on the world.&nbsp; God witnesses=
<br>the Doegs and
 Sauls and Davids and Ahimelechs of the world and remains<br>God.<br><br>An=
d with us, without us and in spite of us, God works God=E2=80=99s mercy.<br=
>And so David sings, =E2=80=9Cin your name I will hope, for your name is<br=
>good.=E2=80=9D (Psalm 52:9)<br><br><br><br></div></blockquote></td></tr></=
table>
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