Luke 3:16 John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” 18 And with many other words John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them.
I missed sharing a reflection last week. I had it prepared and wanted to mentally mull the content overnight before sending it in the morning. I’ve done this before with no problem, but there was a glitch in saving it, and the reflection was lost when I went to retrieve it the next morning. I was honestly too discouraged to start over.
This was the scripture from Pastor Caroline’s sermon last Sunday, 1/12, on which I wrote my reflection. This particular section of scripture piqued my interest and has had me thinking ever since. In the past when I’ve heard this particular passage, my mental thought process took the words in a more “hellfire and brimstone” direction. Pastor Caroline, however, emphasized God’s grace and love in the sacrament of baptism. In our Christian walk, we are daily bathed with grace, love, and forgiveness. Our baptism is as fresh and relevant today as the day it happened.
But, what about the scripture portion that talks about burning up the chaff?How does that fit into the overall meaning? For whatever reason, the word chaff has stayed with me since the original hearing of this sermon last week. I looked up the definition and chaff is the worthless part of a harvest. It is separated from “the good stuff” in the harvesting process.
Oh, how I need to purge my life from chaff! In retirement, the concept of time has changed dramatically. So much time was previously spent on things I had to do! Now, the focus is on how God wants me to spend whatever time I have. As we daily renew our commitment to walk in the steps of Jesus, what chaff do we need to get rid of? What is essential to our faith walk – and what just gets in its way?
May you have a blessed week. Also, today may we reflect on the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. I pray our country, and each of us individually, will keep his “I Have a Dream” speech ever alive.
Diana
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