Today’s Scripture Reading (December
22, 2012): 1 Samuel 23
I recently
watched the movie “The Road.” The movie is a post-apocalyptic vision of the
future and the story of a man and his son. Together the two face the realities
of life in a world that neither of them are prepared to live in. It was just
the two of them against the world in a place where everything was dangerous and
death seemed to lie around every corner. Early in the movie the boy asks his
father a question – Are we still the good guys? And after his father assures
him that they are the son has a follow-up question. Will we always be the good
guys?
What is it
that makes us good? Maybe our reality is summed up in the words of Jesus to the
rich young man - “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone” (Mark 10:18). No one is good, and
yet that is what we all try to achieve. And, I think, that each one of us
believes that we are the good ones. Even when we do something wrong, there are
always reasons for our actions – and we are still the good guys, we always will
be.
David goes
to Keilah with only one purpose in mind. He will deliver the city out of the
hands of the Philistines. It was something that the people of Keilah needed but
could not do for themselves. They needed a savior – someone like David. And so
he came and fought their battle. And now they were preparing to turn their
savior over to Saul to be killed. They would betray the one that had come to
them. They were still good people – but good people forced to do evil things
Betrayal is a
big part of our Christmas saga. In the Christmas story, the Savior comes to do
for us what we cannot do for ourselves. He comes to rescue only to be betrayed
by good people that felt that they had no other choice. But then again, there
is no one that is good; that was why he had to come in the first place. The
only thing that is good about Christmas is Christ – we have come to celebrate
him.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm
54
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