Devotion for December 9 (LCMS Daily Lectionary)

Above:  A Homeless Man in a Vienna Sewer, 1900

The Intersection of the Spiritual and the Physical

DECEMBER 9, 2023

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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:

Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,

that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life,

which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ;

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

for ever and ever.  Amen.

—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236

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The Assigned Readings:

Isaiah 26:1-19

Psalm 24 (Morning)

Psalms 25 and 110 (Evening)

1 John 3:1-24

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Trust in the LORD for ever and ever,

For in Yah the LORD you have an everlasting Rock.

–Isaiah 26:4, TANAKH:  The Holy Scriptures

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We are all aware that we have passed from death to life

because we love our brothers.

Whoever does not love, remains in death….

Children,

our love must be not just words or mere talk,

but something active and genuine.

–1 John 3:14, 18, The New Jerusalem Bible

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How much do we really need?  Perhaps not nearly as much as we think.  Yes, we want a great many things.  And we might be addicted to certain substances.  But our needs are far more basic than our desires.  And we are far better off without addictions than we are with them.

Our most basic spiritual need is for God–the only one who exists, the Judeo-Christian one.  For thousands of years monks and other ascetics have lived this fact.  We cannot take our physical possessions and our money with us when we die, so they, although important, are temporal.  We all need adequate food, shelter, clothing, and money in the here and the now.  To give mere lip service to this fact when one can do more is inadequate and sinful.

If anyone is well-off in worldly possessions,

and sees his brother in need

but closes his heart to him,

how can the love of God be remaining in him?

–1 John 3:17, The New Jerusalem Bible

Here we see the intersection of the physical and the spiritual.  Categories such as “physical” and “spiritual” are like circles in a Venn Diagram; they overlap.  Spiritual values–good or bad–will find expression in he realm of the physical.

This is the season of Advent, the time of preparation for Christmas.  “Thou didst leave thy throne,” a hymn says.  Christ risked and sacrificed much for us; how can we, if we are truly Christian, not to do the same for others?  How can we make excuses for unjust and economically exploitative systems?

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

DECEMBER 11, 2011 COMMON ERA

THE THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT, YEAR B

THE FEAST OF OCTAVIUS HADFIELD, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF WELLINGTON

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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/the-intersection-of-the-spiritual-and-the-physical/

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