An argument arose among them as to which one of them was the greatest.
But Jesus, aware of their inner thoughts, took a little child and put it by his side,
and said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me,
and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me; for the least
among all of you is the greatest.’ Jesus
To welcome a child means to accept a child in love. It means to see the child as a whole, not only what s/he appears to be now - childish behaviors, immature, "goofy," and learning adult games - but who s/he is as a person that will one day go to school, have a job, have children of their own, talk politics, share Christ with you, and be revealed in glory. When you welcome a child, you welcome her/him as a person of equal dignity and respect.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Monday, April 16, 2012
Thinking about family traditions that we didn't have
You must not eat with it anything leavened. For seven days you shall eat
unleavened bread with it—the bread of affliction—because you came out
of the land of Egypt in great haste, so that all the days of your life
you may remember the day of your departure from the land of Egypt.
Deuteronomy 16: 3
For a long time I had not thought about the reason why the bread for the Passover feast was unleavened. But when I read this passage a couple of days ago, I was reminded that the bread was unleavened because they were in a hurry. They couldn't wait for the bread to rise. I think the lesson is: when God saves you, move! Get out of your oppression - now! Don't wait.
Every year Hebrew families would reenact this event giving parents an opportunity to tell their children about what God had done for them, why they were eating unleavened bread, and how they escaped Egypt with their lives. Jesus saw the meaning of his own death in this event. Looking forward to his resurrection and the time of new creation before he returned as King, he told his disciples to remember their salvation in the celebration of this event.
I know that as Christians we go to church and "take the Lord's Supper" on a weekly basis to remind us what Jesus did for us, the new covenant of forgiveness that we enjoy, and the fact that we are now family in the Body of Christ. It is the celebration of our salvation, our escape from sin, and, most of all, it is the celebration of the love of our Savior, Jesus the Christ. But as good as all that is in church, I wish I had done something more "in family" - like the Hebrew people. I think that there must have been something particularly faith-strengthening in the family celebration of salvation that teaches children and reminds parents of the truths of their salvation.
What do you think? Do you think that we Americans who are not much for traditions - especially religious family traditions - can start traditions that teach and reinforce faith?
Deuteronomy 16: 3
For a long time I had not thought about the reason why the bread for the Passover feast was unleavened. But when I read this passage a couple of days ago, I was reminded that the bread was unleavened because they were in a hurry. They couldn't wait for the bread to rise. I think the lesson is: when God saves you, move! Get out of your oppression - now! Don't wait.
Every year Hebrew families would reenact this event giving parents an opportunity to tell their children about what God had done for them, why they were eating unleavened bread, and how they escaped Egypt with their lives. Jesus saw the meaning of his own death in this event. Looking forward to his resurrection and the time of new creation before he returned as King, he told his disciples to remember their salvation in the celebration of this event.
I know that as Christians we go to church and "take the Lord's Supper" on a weekly basis to remind us what Jesus did for us, the new covenant of forgiveness that we enjoy, and the fact that we are now family in the Body of Christ. It is the celebration of our salvation, our escape from sin, and, most of all, it is the celebration of the love of our Savior, Jesus the Christ. But as good as all that is in church, I wish I had done something more "in family" - like the Hebrew people. I think that there must have been something particularly faith-strengthening in the family celebration of salvation that teaches children and reminds parents of the truths of their salvation.
What do you think? Do you think that we Americans who are not much for traditions - especially religious family traditions - can start traditions that teach and reinforce faith?
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