JULY72023

The daily lectionary is set up in a two year cycle — 104 weeks of readings. We get exposted to a lot of the Bible just using the lectionary (90% of the gospels!) but the Bible is a big book so we read only 14% of the Old Testament.  You need to read the Bible on your own to capture some of the more interesting stories. For example, in Genesis 23 we read in the lectionary that Sarah had died and Abraham  addressed the Hittites: “Although I am a resident alien among you, sell me from your holdings a piece of property for a burial ground, that I may bury my dead wife.” The lectionary then skips fifteen verses and has Abraham seal the deal. In those fifteen verses we see Abraham cannily making sure that the Hittites understand that, although he is a “resident alien,” he and his descendents mean to stay. He overpays for the property so there will be no doubt that he has a rightful claim to it. Abraham’s business dealings are a reminder that how we conduct ourselves in the stuff of this world, business included, all must be guided by the values that we have as people of God.