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Scripture
PSALM 50
1The mighty one, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. 2Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth. 3Our God comes and does not keep silence, before him is a devouring fire, and a mighty tempest all around him. 4He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people: 5“Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”
6The heavens declare his righteousness, for God himself is judge. Selah
7“Hear, O my people, and I will speak, O Israel, I will testify against you. I am God, your God. 8Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; your burnt offerings are continually before me.
9I will not accept a bull from your house, or goats from your folds. 10For every wild animal of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. 11I know all the birds of the air, and all that moves in the field is mine. 12“If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and all that is in it is mine. 13Do I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? 14Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and pay your vows to the Most High. 15Call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”
16But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to recite my statutes, or take my covenant on your lips? 17For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you. 18You make friends with a thief when you see one, and you keep company with adulterers. 19“You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit. 20You sit and speak against your kin; you slander your own mother’s child. 21These things you have done and I have been silent; you thought that I was one just like yourself. But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you. 22“Mark this, then, you who forget God, or I will tear you apart, and there will be no one to deliver."
23"Those who bring thanksgiving as their sacrifice honor me; to those who go the right way I will show the salvation of God."
The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Wisdom Poem
Let there be light, let there be understanding
let all nations gather, let them be face to face
Open our lips, open our minds to ponder,
open the door of concord, opening into grace
Perish the sword, perish the angry judgement,
perish the bombs and hunger, perish the fight for gain.
Your kingdom come, your Spirit turn to language
your people speak together, your Spirit never fade
Let there be light, open our hearts to wonder,
perish the way of terror, hallow the world God made.
-Frances W Davis, "Let There Be Light"
Music, Robert J. B. Fleming, 1967.
Comments
Christians over centuries have proposed differing, contradictory theories of the Porousia, or Second Coming [lit. Appearing] of Christ. The earliest Christians assumed a near return of Christ.
We are still on Earth two-thousand years after the apostolic Church. I think it best not to try to reconcile the varied theories of a Second Coming. But what hope does that leave us with?
The Psalm hymns a divine theophany, or Divine Appearing. The people sing: "God shines forth."
Where does God shine forth from? Not the sky. Not any heaven somewhere. No. God appears from Zion~a physical, historical site: the holy hill where stood, for all the people to see, the Temple~Palace of the Creating One.
I agree with theologians who speak of a continuous Porousia. Christ is always appearing, always coming, always meeting us. Lifting the temporal-linear language of Scripture into the God-language of eternity makes this sensible.
As reflected in the hymn "Let There Be Light" and Psalm 50, we can expect comings of Christ in the historical places and circumstances of our personal lives and larger world.
How does God shine forth? In the Psalm the Appearing is to judge and bless. The verdict deciding the sentence is based on practice of righteousness~"the heavens declare his righteousness" (v. 6)~or walking the right way (v. 23). This righteousness is implementation of fair relations in society.
To affirm a continuous Porousia is not to deny earth-existence is to come to some end~though, I think it hopeless to come to a concrete explanation of the details. But, focus on a future Second Coming seems to encourage lack of appreciation for salvation as a communal~historical process. In this immanent process, Pure Spirit is working among us, and we are to work together in consort with Spirit to embody and share righteousness in human relations, so that history and nature will become a New Creation for all peoples and creatures.
Luke 12 deals with the early Christians struggle with the delay of Christ's Coming. They are counseled:
32Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
So, the key for us is not when or how of a Second Coming. Rather, we live in the sense of God's continuous shining forth in our lives and world. We live in consciousness of God fully with us now in Christ. We affirm where God is heaven is. Our wills and hearts turn from attachment to temporal possessions. We do this not out of mere duty, means to get to some heaven later, or to impress God. We empty our purses, or grasping for possession, to prepare others and ourselves to receive God now. We know that to receive God is to receive heaven, and to receive heaven is to know the intimacy of love, joy, and peace in our relationships.
I, personally, have little or no interest in end time theories. I, personally, am very interested in being part of Christ Coming among peoples and nations to heal and shape a world gloriously reflective of Love, Joy, and Peace~and for all, not just some.
Suggested Reflection
How do you see your life participating with God shining forth in the world to increase good and transform harm?
How is God shining forth in and through your life?
Have you had a moment, or moments, when God did shine forth in the intimacy of personal relationship with Him, or Her? What was that like? Were you surprised? Did something prepare you to receive that shining forth? Was the shining forth preparatory for something God was calling you to do?
*Brian K. Wilcox lives in Port Charlotte, FL. Brian is Pastor of Christ Community United Methodist Church, Punta Gorda, FL. He is a vowed member of Greenbough House of Prayer, a contemplative Christian community. His passion is living a contemplative life and inspiring others to experience a deeper relationship with Christ through contemplative prayer and living.
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