Above: The Destruction of the First Temple
Image in the Public Domain
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The Collect:
Stir up your power, Lord Christ, and come.
By your merciful protection alert us to the threatening dangers of our sins,
and redeem us for your life of justice,
for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 18
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The Assigned Readings:
Isaiah 1:24-31
Psalm 90
Luke 11:29-32
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So teach us to number our days
that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.
–Psalm 90:12, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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The readings for this day invite us to repent. Despite the clear testimony of scripture to the definition of repentance–changing one’s mind, turning around–the misconception that repentance is synonymous with apologizing continues. No, apologizing is much easier than repenting.
The text from Isaiah 1 is somewhat ambiguous. In verses 27 and 28 we read:
Zion shall be saved in the judgment;
Her repentant ones, in the retribution.
But rebels and sinners shall all be crushed,
And those who forsake the LORD shall perish.
—TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
(That passage fits well with texts for the previous two posts–1 and 2— in this series.)
The stern tone in verses 29-31 raises some questions. Verse 29 begins:
Truly you shall be shamed…
Who is “you”? Does “you” include the repentant ones? A note in The Jewish Study Bible–Second Edition (2014) proposes an answer:
The prophet leaves the answer unclear, perhaps intentionally; it will be given by the inhabitants of Jerusalem themselves through their behavior, and they will lead God to decide whom to punish.
–Pages 769-770
One will know a tree by its fruits. What kind of tree are you, O reader? Do you seek to love your neighbor as you love yourself? We all stumble, for that is the human condition. Moral perfectionism is unrealistic, but the expectation that one will trust God and strive to improve on one’s performance for the glory of God and the benefit of one’s family, friends, community, and society is realistic. Grace is free yet not cheap. We cannot purchase or earn it, but accepting it imposes certain responsibilities upon us. The details will vary from person to person, but the principles to love one’s neighbor as one loves oneself, to respect the dignity of others (as bearers of the image of God), and to avoid the error that Christianity is a solely individualistic matter are constants. We human beings, depend entirely upon God and partially upon each other. We are responsible to and for each other and to God. We live in community, not to ourselves. None of us is an island. Will we be responsible members of our communities, for the glory of God and for the common good?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
AUGUST 10, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM WALSHAM HOW, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF WAKEFIELD AND HYMN WRITER; AND HIS SISTER, FRANCES JANE DOUGLAS(S), HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF EUNICE SHRIVER KENNEDY, FOUNDER OF THE SPECIAL OLYMPICS
THE FEAST OF SAINT LAURENCE OF ROME, ROMAN CATHOLIC DEACON AND MARTYR
THE FEAST OF SHERMAN BOOTH, ABOLITIONIST
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Adapted from this post:
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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