North Wilkesboro Presbyterian Church

I will surely gather all of you, O Jacob,

I will gather the survivors of Israel;

I will set them together

like sheep in a fold,

like a flock in its pasture;

it will resound with people. (Micah 2:12)

The prophet Micah writes (or preaches) this message of hope to a people reeling. The Northern Kingdom of Israel has been destroyed. The Southern Kingdom of Judah is being threatened. The people are mired in social, political, and economic turmoil. Micah speaks powerfully into this dark and dangerous time, assuring everyone that at the right time, God “will surely gather” everyone together again, just as a shepherd gathers the flock. This is a promise and a hope for our time as well, and yes, it will be good to be gathered together again. – rc

You brought a vine out of Egypt;

you drove out the nations and planted it.

You cleared the ground for it;

it took deep root and filled the land.

The mountains were covered with its shade,

the mighty cedars with its branches;

it sent out its branches to the sea,

and its shoots to the River. (Psalm 80:8–11)

This psalm predates the famous parable of the mustard seed in which Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a tiny seed. That tiny seed grows into the largest of bushes in which birds of every color, shape, and size find their home. Perhaps this psalm inspired Jesus in some way: this vine shades the mountains, this vine towers over the cedars, this vine extends its reach from river to sea, and in so doing, this vine, this people that God has planted, becomes a place of refuge and solace for everyone and everything. – rc

But as for you, return to your God, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for your God. (Hosea 12:6)

The prophet Hosea writes to a people who had lost their way; they had forgotten what it meant to be faithful and they had abandoned their God. But to those who still sought to follow God faithfully, Hosea directs their attention to love and justice, the two core disciplines around which all life must be ordered. According to Hosea, love and justice go hand in hand; love and justice make society work; love and justice are what bind us together. Without love, there can be no justice; without justice, there is no love. – rc

[Jesus] said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God . . .” (Luke 8:10a)

There are (at least) two great ironies at play here as Jesus explains the Parable of the Sower to his followers. First, it seems a little counterintuitive, but Jesus tells his disciples that he speaks in parables in order to let them in on “the secrets of the kingdom of God” (v. 10a) and so that others might neither perceive nor understand (v. 10b). It seems to me that it would make more sense for Jesus to let everyone in on the secrets of the kingdom so that everyone would perceive, understand, and work for the good of God’s ways. But that’s where the second irony comes into play. Jesus leaves it to us to continue to the work of scattering seed so that everyone might someday perceive, understand, and work for the good of God’s ways. We’ve been given the secrets of God’s kingdom so that we might share it with others. – rc

And all the people who heard this, including the tax collectors, acknowledged the justice of God . . . (Luke 7:29)

Today, in Jesus’ teaching, all the people within earshot “acknowledge the justice of God” (v. 29). While we oftentimes understand “justice” in terms of punishment, that does not appear to be what Jesus intends here. Instead, the justice of God represents perfect balance and harmony for all people so that everyone finds their home in God’s kingdom. It’s too bad that like the Pharisees and the lawyers, some refuse or reject this, God’s purpose for us (see v. 30), for in God’s kingdom, there is a place for everyone and everyone can find their place.                        – rc