Second Sunday in Lent A

The Lord called Abram (Abraham) to leave his home and go to a land that God would show him. He also promised to make of Abram “a great nation,” to bless him and make his name great as a blessing to “all the families of the earth” (Gen. 12:2–3). “Abram went, as the Lord had told him” (Gen. 12:4), and in Canaan “he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord” (Gen. 12:8). He “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness” (Rom. 4:3). Here the grace of God is manifested, that He “justifies the ungodly” (Rom. 4:5), not by works of the Law, but through faith in His promises. He removes all of our sins and lawless deeds through Jesus Christ, the offspring of Abraham in whom all the Lord’s promises are realized. This forgiveness of sins is the Word of the Gospel, the voice of the Holy Spirit, which “gives life to the dead” (Rom. 4:17). It opens the eyes of faith to behold Christ Jesus, the Son of Man lifted up on the cross, “that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14–15).

Our Victory and Transformation in Christ

Hymn of the Day: 708 Lord, Thee I love with all my heart

Liturgy:

Genesis 12:1–4a RSVCE

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves.” So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.

God calls Abram - Abram's journey

We need to add section headings to Gen-Exo, Exo may have them already but after 2014-16 I may have edited them. Someone had preached that the call was to Abram and not Terah and that Abram was wrong to let Terah "make the call" since he was an adult, he had to obey God rather than man. But reading the end of 11 and now the beginning of 12, it seems Terah decided to move to Canaan, he most likely did not have a call as such. And when the call came to Abram, his group was already far from Ur in Haran. It is then the call to Abram to leave Haran (or maybe a call not to go back now), a call to continue on to Canaan.

Psalm 121 RSVCE

A Song of Ascents. I lift up my eyes to the hills. From whence does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved, he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not smite you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and for evermore.

Futato says that God, because he is the creator, has all the power and help to give us to navigate the mountains and trips, the journey of our life. Where are you in the journey, a young couple with a baby? A soon-to-be-retired empty-nester? Fresh out of college? You can trust God to take you all the way, yes, but this is a word for right now, in the season of your life. Yahweh keeps us from all harm (7a) I can say that with confidence having landed on my feet at Bethany, encountering the wrong way guy in I-94.

Rom 4.1-5, 13-17

Romans 4:1–5 RSVCE

What then shall we say about Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.” Now to one who works, his wages are not reckoned as a gift but as his due. And to one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness.

Romans 4:13–17 RSVCE

The promise to Abraham and his descendants, that they should inherit the world, did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression. That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants—not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham, for he is the father of us all, as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

Connects to the Gen 12 passage, Paul says Abraham was counted as righteous because of his "faith in God who forgives sinners" (5b), and the Psa 32.1-2 quote which we just read (but which is not part of today's pericope). We skip down to 13-17, one amazing verse from this is 16b "we are certain to receive [the promise], whether or not we live according to the law of Moses." But remember that no one lives according to the law. Also 17 is notable, perhaps Abram/Abraham reaffirmed his faith by not sparing his own son, that seems to point to Isaac (also see Heb 11).

John 3:1–17 RSVCE

Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born anew.’ The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so it is with every one who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can this be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand this? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen; but you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.

As the account is recorded (meaning we can't say for sure) Jesus' first words "you must be born again" - you would think he would comment on Nicodemus, that he said "we all know that God has sent you to teach us."

Mat 17.1-9

Matthew 17:1–9 RSVCE

And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain apart. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is well that we are here; if you wish, I will make three booths here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” He was still speaking, when lo, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces, and were filled with awe. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Tell no one the vision, until the Son of man is raised from the dead.”

Van Harn notes (my condensed form of it) of this Sunday's readings

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Van Harn says that the wilderness stories form a genre - perhaps they were a separate book at one time - call "the wilderness traditions,"* and says that this incident is repeated** (a doublet) in Num 20.1-13. And yet they are not the same they have "different evaluations of the cause and result of Israel's murmuring." Sometimes the complaint is taken as a prayer and God answers, at other times it is seen as "wonton rebellion."

Just like Judges has its cycles, Childs/Hanson show one here, 1) recognition of a legitimate need, 2) a complaint, 3) miraculous intervention.

The darker cycle is 1) complaint 2) God's angry reaction 3) Moses' intercession 4) divine reprieve

*So VH thinks it is profitable to read these texts as a whole and then do analysis. That way you don't get interrupted by the last 40% of Exodus being the plan and rooms and objects of the Tabernacle but take all these texts together. Even other passages outside the Pentateuch are of this genre or speak of these times, (Psa 78, Heb 4.1-3, 1Co 10).

**I read and responded to VH too hastily. He is saying the Num 20 incident is a second occurrence, not a retelling. This occurred after Sinai and the giving of the Law so God is not lenient.

Rom 5.1-11 very in-depth verse-by-verse analysis of this passage in VH

Joh 4.5-42 Mary Pazdan in VH calls Joh 3-4 "The Book of Signs" and are meant to be if not read at the same time at least considered and analyzed side-by-side. Nicodemus-night, Woman at well-noon. Leader of Jews-Rejected woman of outcast Samaritans

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