A Reflection on Lectionary Readings from this Week

By Jane Burkett, ‘13

RCL: Exodus 20:1-17; Psalm 19; 1 Corinthians 1:18-25; John 2:13-22

Exodus 20:1-17

This is one of the two Old Testament passages containing the Ten Commandments, the other being Deuteronomy 5:6-21. The text itself does not make clear how the verses are to be divided into ten, and so Jews and different Christian denominations have numbered them slightly differently. But regardless of how they are divided, the first few commandments (vv. 1-11) concern relation to God, and the latter ones (vv. 12-17) concern relations with other people. Hence Jesus could summarize the law as loving God and loving neighbor (Matt 22:37-39). 

The order in which the commandments are presented is important. First of all, God has the right to set these rules for the Israelites because he is the one who rescued them from slavery in Egypt; he has redeemed them, and so they are his. Second, the commandments about our obligation to God come before those to our neighbor, because how we treat our neighbor is based in God’s creation and ordering of the world. Every human being is made in the image of God, which means that how I treat my neighbor is intimately connected to my relationship with God.

• As Christians, God has rescued us, not from Egypt, but from the slavery of sin and death. How should we respond to that today?

• Does my behavior toward others recognize God’s image in them?

Psalm 19

Psalm 19 is a hymn glorifying God and the law that he has given. The first part of the psalm describes how the heavens silently declare the glory of God, and anyone who has ever looked up at the stars on a clear night can identify with the feeling of wonder and joy the psalm expresses.

The second part of the psalm concerns the law of the Lord. Although Christians frequently take a dim view of the law, seeing it as only leading to dead legalism, this psalm expresses joy at the gift of the law, because it makes wise, enlightens, warns, and revives the soul. The law, like the natural world in verses 1-6, reveals knowledge: it indicates how to live in harmony with God, each other, and all of creation. 

The last verse, a beautiful petition that is frequently used as a sermon opener, calls God “my strength and my redeemer.” The redeemer in ancient Israel was someone who bought back a family member from slavery. Thus, God is someone who loves us deeply, like family, and to whom we owe an enormous debt of gratitude for our rescue.

• Do you see the Law as a blessing or obsolete?

• What might “secret faults” (v. 12) be?

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

There’s an old saying, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.” It goes without saying that no one wants to look like a fool, and yet here is St. Paul encouraging us to believe something that is foolishness to the wise of the world. And once you discard your familiarity with the gospel story, it does sound like foolishness. What kind of God, rather than coming in power to make everything the way it ought to be, instead allows himself to be publicly humiliated and tortured to death? Against all expectations, God came in humility and transformed the world not through command but through the cross, saving us from our broken state while respecting our free will. How fortunate we are that God is patient and merciful, and deals with us in love rather than compulsion!

• Why didn’t Jesus come as an earthly king to set things right?

• If you were given infinite power for a day, what would you do?

John 2:13-22

The sellers and money changers were in the courtyard of the temple selling the items needed for the sacrifices prescribed in the law.  These merchants provided a convenient service since those who had travelled to Jerusalem could not bring along animals, and many of the poor did not have animals to sacrifice. 

Unlike the other three gospels, which refer to the merchants as robbers, the focus of this story in John is not about extortionary or dishonest practices or the impropriety of turning the temple into a marketplace.  Instead, John uses this event as a sign of who Jesus is and what he has come to do (this is the second such sign in John’s Gospel). The Jewish observers of this event were correct in perceiving Jesus’ actions as a threat to the sacrificial system of the temple: Jesus is telling them that he himself is the replacement of the temple. The temple’s purpose was to be the place of God’s presence among his people; Jesus is now that place. The temple was the place where sacrifices were performed, especially at Passover. Jesus will be the final, perfect Passover sacrifice. Jesus fulfills the purpose of the temple, rendering it obsolete. 

• How would you have reacted if you had been at the temple that day?  If you think you would have applauded Jesus’ actions, consider how you would react if someone started trashing the youth group’s bake sale in your church’s foyer.

• Where is God especially present today?

Jane Burkett holds an MDiv from Nashotah House (2013) and a ThM in Biblical Studies from Duke Divinity School (2015).  She resides in Northern Virginia with her hairless dog, who likes Virginia’s winters a lot better than Wisconsin’s.  She is employed as an analyst at a consulting firm and is a member of Church of the Epiphany Anglican.