Re-Establishing the Covenant
A reading for Friday, November 4, 2016: 2 Chronicles 34:29-33.
Josiah took away "all the abominations from all the territory that belonged to the people of Israel, and made all who were in Israel worship the Lord their God." He was the ruler who re-established the covenant between God and God's people. In the ancient world, kings had the power to decide such things for the people they governed.
We no longer lived in such a world, and intentionally do not give our leaders such power. Today we trust our leaders, even church leaders, to give us the space to make our own decisions about faith and life. In the Presbyterian Book of Order it says that "God alone is Lord of the Conscious." F-3.0101 We call this part of our constitution the foundations of our faith.
That does not mean we are not expected to make commitments and re-establish the covenant of God today as Josiah did in his kingdom. We do this in our own lives and in our own families. We commit to partner with others in the church who feel similarly convicted for ministry. Each of us has the power, and the calling, to do our part. We are each granted a portion of leading faith and life in our churches, in our neighborhoods and beyond.
Some things change from generation to generation, and other things do not. Today we are grateful for leadership and the commitments we all share in Jesus Christ!
Josiah took away "all the abominations from all the territory that belonged to the people of Israel, and made all who were in Israel worship the Lord their God." He was the ruler who re-established the covenant between God and God's people. In the ancient world, kings had the power to decide such things for the people they governed.
We no longer lived in such a world, and intentionally do not give our leaders such power. Today we trust our leaders, even church leaders, to give us the space to make our own decisions about faith and life. In the Presbyterian Book of Order it says that "God alone is Lord of the Conscious." F-3.0101 We call this part of our constitution the foundations of our faith.
That does not mean we are not expected to make commitments and re-establish the covenant of God today as Josiah did in his kingdom. We do this in our own lives and in our own families. We commit to partner with others in the church who feel similarly convicted for ministry. Each of us has the power, and the calling, to do our part. We are each granted a portion of leading faith and life in our churches, in our neighborhoods and beyond.
Some things change from generation to generation, and other things do not. Today we are grateful for leadership and the commitments we all share in Jesus Christ!
Comments
Post a Comment