11-22-19

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS

November 22, 2019

Scripture:Leviticus 7:15

The flesh of your communal thanksgiving sacrifice of well-being must be eaten on the day you offer it; you cannot save any of it until morning.

Thought for the Day: As we think toward Thanksgiving, and our Thanksgiving Meals, it is good to know that the Bible discourages leftovers. We need to clean up every dish, making sure there is not a morsel of meat left on the bone. This peace offering, or offering for well-being, was the only one where the family making the offering would receive a majority of the meat, while the priests would only take a small portion of this offering. Like so much of Leviticus, we simply do not know why they did some of the things they did. It was probably understood by those in that context, but time and culture has caused us to miss the meaning. But there are those who suggest that the command to not “save any of it until morning” was an encouragement, if not an outright expectation that they would share the meal with others. It is one thing to announce, “I am at peace with God,” and something very different to be at peace with family and the community around us. When we break bread and share a meal with others, there is an opportunity to live into and embody the spirit of reconciliation and shalom.

Prayer: It was centuries ago when things were very different, yet there is still truth being told. Provide me an awareness of your Gospel of Transformative Grace, O God, that is too often hidden in the rituals of an ancient culture. I so often become consumed with a custom I cannot fully understand, and miss all together your grace being delivered into the world. Amen.

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