ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
September 5, 2021
Scripture: Jeremiah 10:1-5
Listen to the word that the LORD has spoken to you, people of Israel! The LORD proclaims: Don’t follow the ways of the nations or be troubled by signs in the sky, even though the nations are troubled by them. The rituals of the nations are hollow: a tree from the forest is chopped down and shaped by the craftsman’s tools. It’s overlaid with silver and gold, and fastened securely with hammer and nails so it won’t fall over. They are no different than a scarecrow in a cucumber patch: they can’t speak; they must be carried because they can’t walk. Don’t be afraid of them, because they can’t do harm or good.
Thought for the Day: “Don’t be like them!” How many parents have said those words? We want our children to behave in a certain way, and we recognize how easy it is to begin following others without even recognizing how we’re being changed. My concern is that too many parents might tell their kids, “Don’t be like them,” yet those same parents do not model what they are telling their children. I see it very clearly in the life of faith. Christians all over this country make grand statements about their believes, yet their behavior clearly communicates something other than a follower of Jesus. Maybe they don’t, as the scripture suggests, chop down a tree, carve an idol and cover it with silver and gold. What they do is idolize greed, violence, misogyny, bigotry, indifference and so many other values of a self-serving society. Such living undermines any parent who tells their child, “Don’t act like them!” As people who claim to follow in the ways of Jesus, we need to look dramatically different. People should notice, and many should feel rather uncomfortable.
Prayer: Don’t follow the ways of the nations! We hear those words, yet it is hard to live in this world and not be of this world. Help us, Lord God, as we strive to look different because we are different. If we desire the world to be transformed, then we need to be transformed ourselves. By your grace, may it be so! Amen.
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