Prepare
This week’s readings from Amos and Matthew are on the theme of the Lord’s coming. The former uses a dark and light metaphor while the latter returns to the image of the wedding banquet. What fascinating imagery to have right after a national election and the first week of standard time for many in the United States, making our evenings suddenly darker. Note that at the time of writing, the election has not yet happened; however, there are certain declarations that happen after every election. That of promises and, oftentimes, hatred made by politicians, whether they won or lost, that I trust will connect to our day’s readings for many of our students.
Amos is warning of the “Day of the Lord” or “judgement” that is coming. He does not think well of Israel’s chances of surviving God’s judgement because of their inauthentic worship and ways of living. His warning to Israel is that they have not been living as God commanded, or even in relationship with God. Therefore, things will go dark for them (and in some cases already have). If you do not associate with the light of the world, you have no light.
Gospel in God’s Judgement
In Matthew, we learn of different approaches to waiting for Christ. All of the bridesmaids are hoping to meet the bridegroom (Christ), but some expect this to happen much more quickly than others. Those who expect to meet Christ quickly are scrambling when they have to wait. Note that this is one of only a few stories in the gospels where the person who’s unprepared is in the wrong rather than the one who refuses to share. That’s because this text is not about how we are to approach our earthly resources, but rather about how we are approaching God. Those who expect God to come soon, and are not ready to be patient, are looking for a quick fix. In the end, they will not get to experience the glory of God’s justice in the world when it arrives.
Both of these scriptures meet us as we live into the promise of Jesus, the one “who was and is and is to come.” Yes, Jesus came, lived, died and was resurrected from the dead. We also continue to live in a broken world. So we read these texts assured of the promise of salvation from Christ who overcame death. We also recognize the reality that life can feel hard and cyclical, making it difficult to see what God is doing in the world.
Opening Exercise
If you were to run for class president, what would your platform be? If you have extra time and want a sillier exercise, make campaign signs or slogans. Consider these questions:
- What would you promise people? How would you get people motivated to vote for you?
- Do you think people are more motivated by hope or by fear?
Texts to Read Aloud
Where is the Gospel in God’s Judgement?
At some point, everyone sees the world for what it is—broken. It is only once we have seen our world as broken that we can work for change. Whether we like them or not, each political candidate who ran in this past week’s election did exactly that. They recognized something wrong in our society and decided that they are called to do something about it. And then, in our country, adults are able to vote for who they want to represent them. Ideally, this is the person whose vision for change best aligns with what they think God wants for our world. However, we all have seen that, sometimes, politicians can be tricky—dishonest even. That makes it difficult to know who is going to do what they say they’ll do or even if their vision for our future is as holy as it appears.
In our reading from Amos, the prophet warns against a similar disconnect between what people claim to believe and how they actually live. Amos is upset with how Israel claims to want God and yet they are not doing what God told them to do. Amos is distraught that their worship is insincere. So he is warning God’s people that when the “Day of the Lord,” or God’s judgement, comes, it will not be in their favor. They are acting dishonestly and not working towards justice for all people, which means when God works towards justice, God will not be on their side.
Gospel in God’s Judgement
In our gospel reading, Jesus uses the image of a wedding banquet to talk about God’s justice. Five bridesmaids don’t bring enough oil and do not get into the party. It isn’t that the bridesmaids are hypocrites like in Amos. Rather, they’re looking for a quick fix. They expect God to arrive on their timeline, without regard for how their impatience affects those who are prepared to take the more difficult road if it gets us closer to God’s hope for our world.
Christ is clear that God wants justice in our world, and he’s clear about what that looks like: the poor get what they need, the outcasts are welcomed back in, strangers become known, etc. And our texts today make it clear that if we aren’t on the side of Holy justice, then God is working against us. That is not the same as God not loving us. God loves all people. God’s grace is for all people. Yet, if we want to campaign for God in our world, then we must work for God’s justice, not our own.
In the aftermath of an election, the future of our communities can feel really intense— either really hopeful or really scary. Our faith reminds us that we are always waiting for God to do God’s work. In the meantime, it is our job to show up authentically with God and to God’s people.
Reflection Questions
- What do the Israelites do in Amos that he is warning will cause God’s judgement?
- What do the bridesmaids do to get left out of the banquet?
- What does that judgement mean for those people?
- Have you heard political candidates (or people talking about them) promise or threaten justice? Do you think the promises/threats were aligned with God?
- How do we participate in the world to perpetuate God’s justice, rather than oppose it?
Closing Activity
Create God’s campaign poster.
Have your youth work together to make a campaign poster for God. Not as though God would be governor or a congressperson or even president—those jobs are far too small and earthly for the Lord. Make a poster promoting God’s agenda in our world as God.
What are God’s promises? Does God have a plan to get God’s plan completed? Does God have a campaign slogan? What does God need from God’s supporters?
Closing Prayer:
Do a squeeze prayer of gratitude. Circle up and grab hands. Open the prayer with “Thank you God for all the ways you’re working towards justice in our world.” Then have each person share one gratitude of where they’ve seen divine justice. Once everyone has shared, close with “Lead us to sow seeds of justice this week. Amen!”
Biography
Lindsay Batesmith is the pastor of Rejoice Lutheran Church in Erie, CO. She is consistently in awe of the power of vulnerability to connect us to each other and invite the Holy Spirit to transform lives. When not at church or her favorite coffee shop, Lindsay is usually playing with her dog, Echo, or watching the Great British Bakeoff with her wife, Tillie.
