The practice of truth-tellingWeek 5 – Thursday 7 April “Our transgressions indeed are with us, and we know our iniquities: transgressing, and denying the Lord, and turning away from following our God … Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands at a distance; for truth stumbles in the public square, and uprightness cannot enter.”
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ReadingIsaiah 59.1-15
Injustice and Oppression to Be PunishedSee, the Lord’s hand is not too short to save, Therefore justice is far from us, The Lord saw it, and it displeased him |
Reflection
Discerning the body goes hand-in-hand with honesty. In most churches, Holy Communion is preceded by a time of confession. Confession is an invitation to truth-telling, to acknowledge our need of God’s salvation in every possible area of our lives. In practice, however, confession is often reduced to those things we do that we have the power not to do, or do differently. But the truth of our humanity goes far beyond this. It encompasses those things we have no power over: the systems we are part of and condone or profit from. If we confess our sins together, then our truth-telling has to be more than the sum of our individual sin and brokenness. Confession together is an invitation to acknowledge the brokenness, injustice and sin of the world and its systems, of our nations, our churches and communities, and asking God to lead us into better ways. |
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Today’s family challengeRead the Lord’s Prayer and notice what each line is about
The Lord’s Prayer reminds us each day to praise God, to ask for what we need and to ask forgiveness for what we have done wrong. |