Worship as Commitment to God and Others

Devotional Reflection, Wednesday, December 1, 2021

The week of the first Sunday in Advent

The Rev. David W. Perkins, Th.D.

Key phrases for reflection from today’s reading:

28 ‘What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, “Son, go and work in the vineyard today.” 29He answered, “I will not”; but later he changed his mind and went. 30The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, “I go, sir”; but he did not go. 31Which of the two did the will of his father?’ They said, ‘The first.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you.

Daily Office Lectionary Readings (BCP, 937)

AM Psalm 119:1-24; PM Psalm 12, 13, 14

Amos 3:12-4:5; 2 Pet. 3:1-10; Matt. 21:23-32

Morning Prayer, Rite 2, page 75, Book of Common Prayer

Evening Prayer, Rite 2, page 115, Book of Common Prayer

Compline (Night Prayer), Page 127, Book of Common Prayer

Today we celebrate the Feast of Charles de Foucauld. (See below.)

Daily Office Gospel, Matthew 21:23-32

23 When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, ‘By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?’ 24Jesus said to them, ‘I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?’ And they argued with one another, ‘If we say, “From heaven,” he will say to us, “Why then did you not believe him?” 26But if we say, “Of human origin,” we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.’ 27So they answered Jesus, ‘We do not know.’ And he said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

28 ‘What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, “Son, go and work in the vineyard today.” 29He answered, “I will not”; but later he changed his mind and went. 30The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, “I go, sir”; but he did not go. 31Which of the two did the will of his father?’ They said, ‘The first.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.

David's Reflections

John Baille, a Scottish theologian, once said: "I have mismanaged by trying to manage instead of letting God manage." * Our most basic struggles with God sprout from a deep-seated desire to manage our own lives. Consistently letting go into God's love and relinquishing control of our lives seems so often beyond us. The way we have envisioned seems so much easier and more enjoyable. Our time, our beliefs, our expectations, our energies, our relationships, our possessions, our intentions--all suffer the effects of that mismanagement.

Jesus told a little parable to recalcitrant religious leadership about two sons. One refused to work in the vineyard and later changed his mind and went. The other agreed to work in the vineyard but never went. (In Hebrew Scripture and the New Testament, the vineyard symbolizes, among other things, Israel and the kingdom of God. See John 15 where Jesus speaks vividly of the vineyard as a symbol of Christian community.)

The son who changed his mind brings to mind the outcasts in Jesus' ministry, those whose lives had been misdirected and mismanaged but who now were responding to his ministry. The second son, the one who never got to the vineyard, speaks of the religious people whose religious commitment gave the impression of obedience to God but who were steadfastly refusing to respond to Jesus' ministry and message.

Karl Barth once said: "The church is not only the place where (we meet) man meets God; it is often also the place where (we make) man makes (our) his last stand against God." Religious observance, worship, and churchly service and activity can be a way of "staying out of the vineyard," a way of meeting the need to be religious without actually coming into contact with God or serving God and others.

Gathering with other believers can stimulate our faith, energize our prayers, inspire us, renew and transform us, and bring us into more profound awareness of our spiritual resources and into more profound, compassionate engagement with others. Yet, that is not automatic. Our response of faith is required as is our intent to love and serve God and others.

Archbishop of Canterbury, William Temple, once spoke of worship:

To worship is:

To quicken the conscience by the holiness of God,

To feed the mind with the truth of God,

To purge the imagination by the beauty of God,

To open the heart to the love of God,

To devote the will to the purpose of God.

All this is gathered up in that emotion which most

cleanses us from selfishness--because it is the most

selfless of all emotions--adoration. +

* John Baille, Invitation to Pilgrimage (New York: Scribner's, 1945), p. 54.

+ William Temple, The Hope for a New World, (New York: MacMillan, 1942), p 30.

Collect of the Day, First Sunday of Advent

Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (BCP, 211)

Today we celebrate the Feast of Charles de Foucauld, monastic and martyr (died 1 Dec 1916).

http://www.satucket.com/lectionary/charles_foucauld.htm

Collect of the Feast of Charles de Foucauld

Loving God, help us to know you wherever we find you and seek to serve you in all people, that with your servant Charles de Foucauld, we may be faithful even unto death; through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

A Collect for Grace

Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (BCP, 100)

de Foucauld’s Prayer of Abandonment to Love

The Prayer of Abandonment to Love Beloved of my heart, I abandon myself into Your hands; do with me what you will. Whatever You may do, I thank You; I am ready for all, I accept all. Let only Your will be done in me, And in all Your creatures - I wish no more than this, my Friend. Into Your hands, I commend my soul; I offer it to You with all the love of my heart, For I love You and so need to give myself, To surrender myself into Your hands, Without reserve, And with boundless confidence For You are the Heart of my heart, And the Life of my life. Amen — adapted by Nan Merrill from "Prayer of Abandonment" by Charles de Foucauld

Biography http://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20051113_de-foucauld_en.html

A Prayer for Light

Almighty God, we give you thanks for surrounding us, as daylight fades, with the brightness of the vesper light; and we implore you of your great mercy that, as you enfold us with the radiance of this light, so you would shine into our hearts the brightness of your Holy Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (BCP, 110)

A Collect for Mission

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen. (BCP, 101)