Psalm 15 NRSV

1 O Lord, who may abide in your tent?

    Who may dwell on your holy hill?

2  Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right,

    and speak the truth from their heart;

3 who do not slander with their tongue,

    and do no evil to their friends,

    nor take up a reproach against their neighbors;

4 in whose eyes the wicked are despised,

    but who honor those who fear the Lord;

who stand by their oath even to their hurt;

5 who do not lend money at interest,

    and do not take a bribe against the innocent.

Those who do these things shall never be moved.

REFLECTION:
I grew up in a denomination that rarely used liturgy as part of worship. One of the things that drew me to the Methodist church was the use of liturgy. I was drawn into a deeper worship experience by the back and forth exchange between the minister and the congregation. We do this at St. Luke’s every time we observe the sacrament of Holy Communion and occasionally in our worship services.

The people of Israel used it repeatedly in their worship. Psalm 15 is a perfect example. In verse one the priest asks all those getting ready to enter the Temple a genuine examine-your-heart question. And the people respond with the correct answer in verses two through five. And their response is more than just memorized words. It is a way to remind themselves of the lifestyle into which God invites them both inside houses of worship and out.

Maybe you and I need to look at our own lives carefully during this time of not being able to worship in our temple. The psalmist invites us to examine ourselves. Are we walking blamelessly? Are we doing what is right? Are we guarding our tongues and doing no evil to our friends? Is our speech and is our conduct pleasing to God? 

It makes me squirm a little to ask these questions, but this is a rare opportunity, this period of confinement, for us to spend some time in reflection. When we live in Christian community, worshiping together, studying together, praying together, and just doing life together, the choice to live holy and blamelessly is easier. It is more challenging for Christians to continue to carry out God’s commandments when we are in isolation, but not impossible. In this season of social distancing, let us become more sensitive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and commune with God. We are not cut off from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Through the community of the Holy Trinity, we are invited to thrive in the here and now.

My prayer for you and me is that, on the Sunday when we are back in God’s house of worship, whenever that comes, we return with renewed strength and vigor.

May every thought and deed be an act of worship to God, for God deserves no less.

CLOSING PRAYER
Loving and Eternal God,
Continue to create in us a clean heart. Let our words and actions be ones that affirm the reality: You are our Lord and Master. Let us be a reflection of you in all that we do.
We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.