Greetings!
Thank you for joining us in prayer and reflection during this season of Lent. We will travel through daily scripture, reflection and prayer. Additional people have been joining us each day. Please feel free to forward these reflections to others. We invite you to explore the other resources for the season found at the bottom of the page as we continue the journey together. Christian Formation Commission |
Scripture
"I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in the darkness."
John 12:46 |
For some people and churches, everyone includes those who believe exactly what I believe. For some people and churches, everyone includes the people like me - whether it is in race, class, education, family makeup, sexual orientation, etc.
In this season of repentance we remind ourselves that that Jesus didn't place any qualifiers on the phrase "everyone who believes in me." And then we need to ask ourselves, what qualifiers are we still putting on the word everyone.
Many, with justification, find the use of the language of light and darkness in this passage as images of salvation and loss very problematic. I want to suggest that there is another problematic word, and that is everyone. The word itself is not problematic, but what we do with the word. We often don't accept the word as it is. Many times there is an inclination to consciously and subconsciously qualify the word. |
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Prayer
Gracious God, the God of all people,
open our hearts and minds to the boundless reach
of the message of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Give us the grace and courage
to recognize and dismantle the limits
we place on the Gospel and
o welcome all who believe or
aybe don't nelieve into the grace and fellowship of
the Body of Christ. Amen. |
