Grace Cathedral
Article | June 15, 2018
Lectionary Reflection – The Fourth Sunday After Pentecost
Blog|Benjamin Miralles
1 Samuel 15:34-16:13; Psalm 20; 2 Corinthians 5:6-10, 14-17; Mark 4:26-34
As if by divine coincidence, our set of readings this Sunday, which matches our current election cycle, examines this complicated notion of God’s Kingdom here on earth. From the Book of Samuel we hear about God electing Saul, and later David as his successor, to rule the Unified Kingdom of Israel. Election, in this Biblical sense, was God’s initiative and prerogative; but it also meant being appointed by God to a life lived outwardly in the service of others.
But while the electing and anointing by God was reserved for a select few, in his letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul emphasizes that whoever is “in Christ” is a new creation, and is anointed with Christ, chosen and appointed by Him to live no longer just for themselves. Being a new creation in the Kingdom of God is like a humble seed [humus: of the earth] which dies of itself only to become new in the form of a soaring tree, or a mighty shrub: fruitful, life-giving, welcoming, generous—it produces of itself even if it does not know how.
May our worship this Sunday strengthen our resolve to humbly live in Christ as His new creation, confident in the Kingdom of Heaven.
This reflection was written by Ben P. Miralles Jr, a member of the Congregation since 2010 and who currently serves on our Board of Trustees. Ben has been part of the Education for Ministry (EfM) program and participates in a wide range of ministries.