Dearest e-votees-
Greetings from Portland!!! I have relocated to Resurrection Lutheran Church in Portland, OR. You might want to add pastor.karl.hester@rlcpdx.org to your address book to help avoid future e-vos being caught by your spam filter.
For this week we will look at the appointed second reading for this Sunday—Christ the King.
Peace,
Karl
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May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.
Greetings from Portland!!! I have relocated to Resurrection Lutheran Church in Portland, OR. You might want to add pastor.karl.hester@rlcpdx.org to your address book to help avoid future e-vos being caught by your spam filter.
For this week we will look at the appointed second reading for this Sunday—Christ the King.
Peace,
Karl
---------
May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.
Colossians 1:11-20, NRSV
This is a wonderful text to consider as we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving and as we wrap up our liturgical year this Sunday. December 2nd is the first Sunday of Advent as our liturgical year begins anew.
The idea of a visible bearing the invisible is potent. The word for image in the Greek is the root of our computer word icon. That clickable image on the desktop grants us access to an otherwise hidden program or a collection of information. Something visible and accessible opens the door to something otherwise invisible and inaccessible. Jesus serves as an icon for God the Father. Jesus comes into this world to touch and to speak. Jesus comes into this world to restore and rescue. Jesus comes to beckon and to engage. When we touch and hear we connect with God. When are restored and rescued we are reconnected with our compassionate God. When we respond and engage we are interacting with the living and loving God Jesus came to bear.
When you see a Thanksgiving feast before you this week, let it serve as an icon of the bounteous provisions from God of time, talent, treasure, grace, mercy, love and joy. Let the visible food bear the sometimes harder to see steadfast provision from God.
When you see water in the baptismal font as you worship this week and taste the wine and bread at the Lord’s table, let them serve as icons of the grace and mercy bought for us by Jesus. Let the visible tangible elements bear the sometimes harder to see faithful promises from a loving God.
When you are reminded of Jesus’ death on the cross in this Sunday’s gospel lesson let it bring to your mind the temple curtain that separated the people from the presence of the living God. Let the visible curtain tearing bear for you the sometimes harder to see reconciliation and restoration with God.
God, sometimes it is so hard to trust what we see with our own eyes much less what we can’t see. Give us signs, icons, of your steadfast love that we may trust and believe. Use us as icons of your love and mercy in this world full of skeptical eyes. Let us bear in visible forms your love that the world might see and honor you. Amen.
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