Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants.

 

Tuesday, September 12, 2023


Psalm 31

1 Kings 8:22-36

Acts 27:1-12


Observance: Ailbhe, bishop (d. c. 526)


Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants.


When it comes to heroes in the Bible, people of God whom we read about and look up to and try to emulate, we are not short of choice. But so many of them can seem holy to an unreachable degree. Moses had an inner strength to which we should aspire; but do any of us really have the bravery to wish to go through what he did? John the Baptist, the standard-bearer and herald of the incarnate Christ, had a job description higher than that of the angels; but how willing really would we be to throw out all our soft clothes for a tunic of goat hair, or swap a diet of meat and three veg for insects?


Solomon is one of those heroes that, if we look past his opulent wealth and position of authority, is actually quite relatable. He is a true renaissance man; someone who looked critically at himself, appreciated the potential he had, and did his best to fashion for himself a life under God, in the world, as best he could. He studied botany and zoology in his spare time; he was an architect and engineer; he wrote a treatise on spiritual philosophy in his book of Ecclesiastes. Clergy are stuck in houses of worship and ministering to the faithful; prophets are led day and night by direct instruction from heaven. The lay church member, the believer and lover of God, has all the freedom to spread his or her wings and discover what it means to live truly as a human being made by God.


And so Solomon is the one who leads the people in prayer at the official opening of the temple. He has had none of the theological training such as a Levite would receive, nor has he been given a script from God to read out as if he were a prophet. Rather, our ideal example of a lay believer prays this most important prayer. What does he pray for? What should we pray for?


Solomon has one thought on his mind; one attribute of God stands out for him above all others. In his walk with God, Solomon has found one thing about God that makes God more lovely than anything else, and that is God’s readiness to forgive. Can you hear the whispers of Calvary in Solomon’s personal theology? God truly is beautiful in His forgiveness. The cross of Christ, the tear in the fabric of reality through which a torrent of divine forgiveness poured into the world, is yet to come. But Solomon knew. And so do we.


“When is life ever more fragrant than when the kiss of forgiveness is fresh upon the cheek?”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Monday, September 12, 2022

  Monday, September 12, 2022 Psalm 33 Habakkuk 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:1-14 In Christ we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. The lectionary has taken us from the beloved disciple to one of the most beloved of Paul's epistles: Ephesians. Paul must have loved this church very much: we get a sense of his fondness for them and their shared sense of purpose and worship just from the introduction. In what is likely just an introduction to a letter in the style of the ancient Roman world, Paul has managed to squeeze in the entire, wondrous story of God's work of redemption. Paul has framed it the way it ought to be framed: in a pastoral, encouraging tone. He has three main points here (remember, Paul proceeds logically to build up an argument, unlike John who circles around his main point). First: God intended to save us before the world was formed. Think back to the first l
Read more

“Short time or long – I pray to God not only you but all who are listening become like I am, except for these chains.”

  Monday, September 11, 2023 Psalms 28; 29 1 Kings 7:51-8:21 Acts 26:19-32 Observance: Deiniol, bishop (d. 384) “ Short time or long – I pray to God not only you but all who are listening become like I am, except for these chains.” The great many blessings of being under the protection of the blood of the Lamb fill our hearts with joy and peace. To have the Almighty Creator of the universe, the One who sits above the flood, filling the temple of our being with the cloud of His presence is what it truly means to be human. Every day is filled with adventure; every night turns to the rest of the victor. Certainly there are chains: sometimes they are physical chains, the suffering of being a Christian among people who do not love the Lord. Sometimes they are spiritual; the attacks of the powers of the air who try to distract us from the One we love. But they always fall away. Our Rock of Ages always frees us; always brings us out of the pit of despair. A won
Read more

Monday, September 19

  Monday, September 19 Psalm 45 Nahum 1:15-2:9 Ephesians 4:17-28 ...be renewed in the spirit of your minds... It is far too easy to read some of these Pauline lists of virtues and vices and feel like we have gone back to the dark days before the Reformation. The idea that if we behave ourselves then we can call ourselves “good people” is pagan, not Christian. Paul feels very strongly about how Christians behave, he “affirms and insists” upon it. But it is because of what has already happened that we should mind our step, not because of where we are going. Christ's resurrection is many things, but one aspect relevant for Paul's teaching this morning is that it demonstrates to us the radical new reality in which we now live. We too have passed (spiritually) from death to life; therefore, we experience a “renewal of our minds”. Instead of treading water until we die, we live lives. Everything now makes sense: God has spoken, so we have logic. God made us in His im
Read more