Opening note. I am using the daily two year lectionary which was in Lutheran Worship and originally in the Book of Common Prayer. I am taking it directly from For All the Saints, a prayer book published by the American Lutheran Publicity Bureau. It will read through most of the OT in two years and most of the NT every year.
Todays Readings
Reading 1: Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 ESV
Reading 2: Galatians 2:11-21 ESV
Reading 3: Matthew 14:1-12 ESV
Meditation
When reading Ecclesiastes 3 it is hard not to think of the Byrds “Turn, Turn, Turn”. That is our experience. I’m not sure that the point of that song aligns completely with the point of the author of Ecclesiastes. Vanity, in the Hebrew “a breath” is what the teacher has labled everything. The “time to _____” verses end with What gain has the worker from his toil? He then contrasts this with eternity. When we focus overwhelmingly on the needs of the moment, they turn, and turn and turn from one thing to the next. And yet God has given us the thought of eternity. Whatever God does endures forever. Are we not God’s creation? Did not Christ rise from the grave? Resoundingly yes. We are God’s work. When we concentrate on that eternity, the turning of vanity, the stiring of a breath all find their purpose – delight in Lord and in his salvation.
May God bless your labor this day with enjoyment and eternity.
