Friday, July 31, 2020
Living as the Beloved
“When we have claimed for ourselves the life of God’s Spirit, we can expect death to be the door to the fullness of life. Eternal life is not some great surprise that comes unannounced at the end of our lives; it is, rather, the full revelation of what we have been and have lived all along… With this vision, death is no longer the ultimate defeat. To the contrary, it becomes the final ‘Yes’ and the great return to where we can most fully become children of God.” page 137
Death doesn’t feel like fulfillment to those of us left to grieve the loss of someone we love. Death feels wrong. Death seems to go against everything that is good and right and true about life. All of those thoughts and feelings are true.
Because it is only in and through the work of Christ on the cross, removing the sting of death so that it no longer holds power over us, that what Nouwen says about death is true as well. God did not create us to die. The selfish choices we make (sin) bring about death–the death of relationships and the death of the good things that God created to flourish.
But God defeated death through the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. And God turned weapons of violence into tools for God’s work, like a bow hung in the sky to face the heavens (Genesis 9:12-17), or swords turned into tools for pruning (Isaiah 2:4, Joel 3:10, Micah 4:3). God is giving us opportunities to bear fruit. In how we love others, fruit that’s sweetness testifies to just how good our God is!
Pray for ears to hear the ways that God is calling you to bear fruit, fruit that helps others to taste the goodness of God.
Question to Ponder: How can I show God’s goodness to others in ways that engage all five senses (taste, smell, hear, see, touch)?
This week’s devotions are adapted from the book, Life of the Beloved: Spiritual Living in a Secular World by Henri J.M. Nouwen. Crossroad Publishing, New York. 2014.
Living as the Beloved
“When we have claimed for ourselves the life of God’s Spirit, we can expect death to be the door to the fullness of life. Eternal life is not some great surprise that comes unannounced at the end of our lives; it is, rather, the full revelation of what we have been and have lived all along… With this vision, death is no longer the ultimate defeat. To the contrary, it becomes the final ‘Yes’ and the great return to where we can most fully become children of God.” page 137
Death doesn’t feel like fulfillment to those of us left to grieve the loss of someone we love. Death feels wrong. Death seems to go against everything that is good and right and true about life. All of those thoughts and feelings are true.
Because it is only in and through the work of Christ on the cross, removing the sting of death so that it no longer holds power over us, that what Nouwen says about death is true as well. God did not create us to die. The selfish choices we make (sin) bring about death–the death of relationships and the death of the good things that God created to flourish.
But God defeated death through the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. And God turned weapons of violence into tools for God’s work, like a bow hung in the sky to face the heavens (Genesis 9:12-17), or swords turned into tools for pruning (Isaiah 2:4, Joel 3:10, Micah 4:3). God is giving us opportunities to bear fruit. In how we love others, fruit that’s sweetness testifies to just how good our God is!
Pray for ears to hear the ways that God is calling you to bear fruit, fruit that helps others to taste the goodness of God.
Question to Ponder: How can I show God’s goodness to others in ways that engage all five senses (taste, smell, hear, see, touch)?
This week’s devotions are adapted from the book, Life of the Beloved: Spiritual Living in a Secular World by Henri J.M. Nouwen. Crossroad Publishing, New York. 2014.
