Monday
Micah 6.8 “He has shown you, O Man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? RSV
This verse is not a statement; it’s a question. It lays out the threefold obligations of all who take seriously the commandments of God. They are personal requirements, but they have social consequences. Justice for the poor, mercy to the vulnerable, and a way of life that is neither selfish nor dismissive of other people. And of course, all this is in relation to God, under whose mercy and judgement we all live.
Tuesday
Amos 5.23-24 “Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”
These verses are about worship; the right kind and the wrong kind. Praise gatherings are when the church sings of the glory of God and celebrates God’s goodness, mercy, holiness, justice, faithfulness and love. How we live, whether we care about those without food, or look after those who arrive on our shores; our readiness to give voice to those who can’t speak for themselves, and stand up for those flattened by systems of power. These too are worship, giving God his place. Worship isn’t merely the songs we sing, it’s the love for others that we dare to practice in Christ’s name.
Wednesday
Matt 5.9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.”
We are living in a world where peace-making seems absent from political agendas, and is seen as weakness in political discourse. Christians believe God is revealed in his son Jesus Christ, and that, “In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself.” To be the lights of the world that reflect the Light of the world, we are called to demonstrate in our own lives God’s peace-making mission. That will affect how we speak, and how we conduct ourselves in all our relationships will be our witness.
Thursday
Matthew 6.24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” (RSV)
Mammon, is an old fashioned word for money, wealth, stuff. Elections are about choices, and they reveal what matters most to those who vote. But, as Christians, every day of our lives we are faced with choices about what matters most – God or money, my agenda or God’s call, my way of doing things or Christ’s call to self-giving love and service. To follow Jesus is to make a fundamental, life-changing choice between God and everything else. Luke tells us that decision is in fact a constant, continuous choice: “If anyone would come after me they must take up their cross daily, and follow me.” Every day, we choose who we will serve, and who we love!
Friday
Matthew 5.43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
I guess these words don’t appear anywhere in the guidance for Parliament or political parties. Jesus is telling his followers that their behaviour towards others who disagree with them, despise them, even hate them, will be counter-cultural and counter intuitive. In other words, you subvert hostility and drain hate of its toxins by being a peacemaker, by forgiving, and by praying for them instead of shouting insults back at them. These were never meant to be standing orders in political institutions. But they are absolutely intended to guide the words and actions of Christ’s followers.
Saturday
Matthew 6.33-34 “Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these other things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will look after itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Elections are fought on people’s anxieties and worries. That’s why political promises to make us better off are scattered as seeds to grow in the soil of hoped for security and prosperity. Jesus promises none of that. Instead he offers a different kingdom, lived under the rule of God, where compassion and mercy, forgiveness and peace, healing and help, are the policies of the Lord of life. The contrast between a self-interested, consumer culture, anxious and grasping, and the generous, grace-driven Kingdom Jesus proclaims couldn’t be more telling. So, which kingdom gets our vote?
Sunday
Revelation 22.1-2 “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.”
Jesus told Pilate his kingdom was not of this world. He taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” John ends his book with a vision of Eden restored, all enmities healed, and the luminous brilliance of God’s presence. Till then, we pray for the healing of the nations, and preach Christ the Light of the nations, and by His light, shine like stars in a darkened universe.
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