Friends, I am struggling with the passage this week. I struggled with the title of the blog post (it only changed 5 times) and especially the punctuation (should it be exclamatory or ... pensive?:-)! I believe this means I am finding a depth within the text that is inviting me to see something ... think something ... feel something ... be something ... do something ... Something? Yes ... something new, different, fresh, deeper! Have you ever felt this way? I once had a friend who said, "It is the passage that gets under your skin that you must pay special attention to." Indeed!
I'll share the journey I took to give us a little context for the prayerful reading of our lives. I think the first thing that attracted me in this passage was the various ways an extravagant sense of "joy" emerged from within the text as I read. And yet, suddenly in the midst of my contemplation the context of this joy bubbled up for me: sin and repentance. The verse I've had personally tucked away in my heart for some time (at one time, I was THAT sinner-now I am just THIS sinner) is:
I'll share the journey I took to give us a little context for the prayerful reading of our lives. I think the first thing that attracted me in this passage was the various ways an extravagant sense of "joy" emerged from within the text as I read. And yet, suddenly in the midst of my contemplation the context of this joy bubbled up for me: sin and repentance. The verse I've had personally tucked away in my heart for some time (at one time, I was THAT sinner-now I am just THIS sinner) is:
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who changes both heart and life than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to change their hearts and lives
I was using the Common English Bible which seems to mask the power of the word repentance. When I began looking at the words in Greek, I realized that this version chose to interpret the Greek concept of metanoeo/metanoia as "change" which really is a word more contemporary and recognizable in our own lives. We know what it means to change. We don't often like it but we understand it. For me this word change actually brought the passage closer to my life. A repentance kind of change is radical. When we change in the sense of repentance our whole life changes ... and yet most of the time in our reality this only happens in small changes of perspective and small steps, one day at a time, I think ...
In this passage 3 different Greek forms of the word "joy" are used, 5 times. Vs. 5-chairo {khah'-ee-ro} meaning to rejoice, to be glad and to be well. Vss. 6&9-sugchairo {soong-khah'-ee-ro} meaning to rejoice together with one another. And vss. 7&10-chara {khar-ah'} meaning the joy received from another. In this passage we see that "joy" is quite communal. The reason for joy in this passage: sin and repentance. The Greek word used for sin/sinners is hamartolos {ham-ar-to-los'}. In this passage the word is used 5 times and, especially illustrated by singling out the despised tax collectors, means devoted to sin and quite wicked. In fact, Luke articulates a marked distinction between sinners who need to repent and those who don't.
Into the context of "sin" highlighted as such by the religious and legal experts, Jesus uses 2 parables to introduce a new word. In Greek, the sheep and the coin representing the "sinners" are translated through the word apollumi {ap-ol'-loo-mee} ... loss! to perish, to be lost, ruined, and destroyed. At the same time, God is imaged as a shepherd and as a woman, 2 marginalized persons in the world of Jesus. While the religious and legal experts see no further than who a persons in/what a person is doing at the moment, which they label sin, God experiences their loss/our loss, searches for us until we are found and then rejoices with all!
At the end of my contemplation, I feel like Luke wants us to know that what he is writing about is a really BIG deal. People who are lost are VERY important to God. So important, in fact, that Luke uses these 2 parables to set up the Parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11b-32. In that story we are reminded that no matter how far you and I run, wander, or fall away ... God is waiting to embrace prodigals with open arms when we return, full of grace and agape love!
When you are ready to lean into our passage for lectio divina and struggle with me, take a few moments to center yourself by engaging in a simple breath prayer (6-8 syllables) like this one (or one that emerges from within yourself)
In this passage 3 different Greek forms of the word "joy" are used, 5 times. Vs. 5-chairo {khah'-ee-ro} meaning to rejoice, to be glad and to be well. Vss. 6&9-sugchairo {soong-khah'-ee-ro} meaning to rejoice together with one another. And vss. 7&10-chara {khar-ah'} meaning the joy received from another. In this passage we see that "joy" is quite communal. The reason for joy in this passage: sin and repentance. The Greek word used for sin/sinners is hamartolos {ham-ar-to-los'}. In this passage the word is used 5 times and, especially illustrated by singling out the despised tax collectors, means devoted to sin and quite wicked. In fact, Luke articulates a marked distinction between sinners who need to repent and those who don't.
Into the context of "sin" highlighted as such by the religious and legal experts, Jesus uses 2 parables to introduce a new word. In Greek, the sheep and the coin representing the "sinners" are translated through the word apollumi {ap-ol'-loo-mee} ... loss! to perish, to be lost, ruined, and destroyed. At the same time, God is imaged as a shepherd and as a woman, 2 marginalized persons in the world of Jesus. While the religious and legal experts see no further than who a persons in/what a person is doing at the moment, which they label sin, God experiences their loss/our loss, searches for us until we are found and then rejoices with all!
At the end of my contemplation, I feel like Luke wants us to know that what he is writing about is a really BIG deal. People who are lost are VERY important to God. So important, in fact, that Luke uses these 2 parables to set up the Parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11b-32. In that story we are reminded that no matter how far you and I run, wander, or fall away ... God is waiting to embrace prodigals with open arms when we return, full of grace and agape love!
When you are ready to lean into our passage for lectio divina and struggle with me, take a few moments to center yourself by engaging in a simple breath prayer (6-8 syllables) like this one (or one that emerges from within yourself)
Breathe in ... Seeking God (pause)
Breathe out ... I Seek You (pause)
_-_James_Tissot_-_overall.jpg) |
| James Tissot [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons |
Pray for illumination of the text: Spirit of the Seeking God, open my heart to the power of your Love in the written text. Speak to my heart as I listen to your gentle whispers. Amen.
Step 1: Lectio/Reading … Reading
Read John 15:1-10 (CEB) slowly and reverently, letting the words steep in your mind. Perhaps you might imagine yourself sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening to him challenge the Pharisees with the parables. Listen for a word or phrase that catches your attention. Gently focus on that word or phrase. Repeat it several times and allow it to be sifted through your heart and mind all the way to your soul. Step 1: Lectio/Reading … Reading
All the tax collectors and sinners were gathering around Jesus to listen to him. The Pharisees and legal experts were grumbling, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose someone among you had one hundred sheep and lost one of them. Wouldn’t he leave the other ninety-nine in the pasture and search for the lost one until he finds it? And when he finds it, he is thrilled and places it on his shoulders. When he arrives home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Celebrate with me because I’ve found my lost sheep.’ In the same way, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who changes both heart and life than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to change their hearts and lives. “Or what woman, if she owns ten silver coins and loses one of them, won’t light a lamp and sweep the house, searching her home carefully until she finds it? When she finds it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Celebrate with me because I’ve found my lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, joy breaks out in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who changes both heart and life.”
Step 2: Meditatio/Meditation … Receiving
Read the passage a 2nd time ...
Continue to focus on just a word or a phrase (it may be different on this reading)
Pay attention to the thoughts and feelings the passage evokes within you.
What images emerge in your imagination? What memories come to your mind?
Ask God to continue to speak to you through this word.
Listen for God’s reply as you move through your day
Step 3: Oratio/Prayer … Responding
Consider any thoughts or feelings or desires that have been awakened.
Perhaps you have found an area of your life that needs attention.
Do not rush ... wait and listen as God forms your prayers
Step 4: Contempatio/Contemplative Silence … Resting
Allow yourself to rest in the silence.
Allow your mind to settle into the silence.
Allow your heart and breathe with the silence
When you feel the time to move on ...
Pray: Spirit of the Seeking God, fill my heart with your love and the joy you feel as the lost are found and embraced by the communities in which they seek you with the passion that you seek us all. Amen.
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