Sunday Stretch: Vol. 43

Start off your week with a grounded take on Bible, prayer, the world, and your life ...

Hi Readers,

Just as I was about to start this newsletter by stating how overjoyed I am to be writing to you in all the glory of God’s creation, from our new table on a backyard deck, my neighbor pulled out the chainsaw. Ha! Nevertheless, I am thrilled to be able to spend so much time outdoors. We finally have a respite here in Minnesota from the wildfire smoke and extreme heat, and it feels so good - and grounding - to be outside. That being said, I know most places around the Northern Hemisphere and around the U.S. are facing a treacherous summer, especially in the South, and flooding in the Northeast. This world has never felt more precious, or more fragile, than it has this summer.

Climate change is incredibly daunting. The steps we can take as individuals seem so tiny and incremental. And yet - as I turn again to God’s word today - I am filled with awe at the world God has created, and filled with renewed energy to work toward solidarity in all of creation.

Let’s get to the texts …

Bible Stories

Isaiah 44:6-8

Is. 44:6    Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel,

and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:

I am the first and I am the last;

besides me there is no god.

⁷ Who is like me? Let them proclaim it,

let them declare and set it forth before me.

Who has announced from of old the things to come?

Let them tell us what is yet to be.

⁸ Do not fear, or be afraid;

have I not told you from of old and declared it?

You are my witnesses!

Is there any god besides me?

There is no other rock; I know not one.

In a world of religious pluralism, and in a country that currently trying to understand the future of the separation between church and state - it would be easy to read this Isaiah text triumphantly. It reminds me of that old Chris Tomlin song, Our God. But truly, I think if we read the text that way - it’s a warning sign that we have come instead to see ourselves as God. God does not say through Isaiah that there is no one like you, Christians. (Remember, Isaiah was speaking to a Hebrew/Jewish audience only). Instead God declares God’s own uniqueness. In context, this is a passage not about worldly uniqueness but instead a warning against idolatry.

Questions to Ponder

Why do you think God repeatedly describes Godself as being “the first and the last”?

Rock is another word that is often used to describe God. What about a rock describes an attribute of God?

Who is God warning in verse 7?

Romans 8:12-25

Rom. 8:12   So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—  ¹³ for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.  ¹⁴ For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.  ¹⁵ For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!”  ¹⁶ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God,  ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.

Rom. 8:18   I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us.  ¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God;  ²⁰ for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.  ²² We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now;  ²³ and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.  ²⁴ For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen?  ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Oh my goodness. Romans 8 is such a beautiful, encouraging chapter. I have read it before at the bedside of dying loved ones. There is such rawness in Paul’s words, you can feel that he has really deeply experienced “the sufferings of the present times.” I like too how he writes here about creation: knowing that suffering is not uniquely experienced by human beings but by the earth, the animals, the plants. And redemption is whole and inclusive of it all. Paul gives us