Monday 13 March 2017

Psalm: Psalm 119:97-112

Background

Paul wrote a letter of pastoral concern to the Corinthianchurch, which he had been instrumental in establishing. But sincehe left them, the Corinthians had lapsed into competitive factionspreferring different leaders.

Paul told them to remember who they were: a community with onefoundation in Jesus Christ.

All their leaders had different perspectives but they wereinter-connected - one in Christ. They needed to live this out: makeit visible.

In verse 18 Paul asked the Corinthians to hold a mirror up totheir inner selves, to see their self-righteous over-confidence intheir right ideas. And to see how they were harbouring prejudiceand judgement against others.

Thoughts and judgemental hearts can never catch the fullness ofthe wisdom of God, which comes through participation in God andGod's creation (by paying attention and prayer). It enables us todraw on a different source of energy to that of will power,strategy, or herd identity.

In verse 19, Paul quotes from Job5:13, saying that the world's wisdom can make fools of us.

We might think of describing faith by means of reductivepsychological explanations:

• a social activism not rooted in self-implication andcompassion, or acting from wrong energy
• a fondness of church-speak, which does not connect to thecontemporary world
• an identification with the thoughts of a leader or writer.

But just as Jesus self-emptied himself, living a life ofservice, giving up his life out of love for the world, so we mustcontinually 'let go' of our confidence in our ideas and judgements,in order to participate daily in the fullness of the knowledge ofGod.

This fullness Paul spells out has cosmic scope.

All things belong to the Corinthians, their leaders, the world,life, death, present, future …  all things belong to Christ,who belongs to God.

Nothing is missing for the Corinthians, all is complete.

The only thing they must to do (and this is a big ask) is dailyto let go of their ego operating systems, and empty themselves toreceive the fullness of the life of the mind of Christ.

To Ponder

• "All things are yours" (v. 21). What inner and outer differencewould it make to you this day if you had the attitude that nothingwas missing, and if you already had all you needed to dealcreatively with whatever the day throws up (ie that you could 'letgo' and allow God's life to flow through you)?

• How do you deal with your own self-righteous tendency to thinkthat although you might not know it all, you are more on the righttracks than Mary and Joe over there?

• 'God is not unthinkable, but infinitely thinkable.' In whatways is it helpful to realise that we can never exhaust thevarieties of ways that God shows up? Naming some of the differentways can be wonderful fun - try it!