December 22: The Righteous Shall Live by Faith I
♫ Music:
Day 20 - Friday, December 22
Title: The Righteous Shall Live by Faith I
Scripture: Romans 1:8-17
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine. I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Poetry:
Humility Is the Eye of the Needle
By Yelena Rubisova
Humility is the eye of the needle
And I am a camel, hulking, clumsy.
Go though! Go through! And suddenly everything
Is easy and simple and paradise for us, mortals, ordained.
In the sandy sea the waves are yellow,
Among them I am lost, a desert ship.
O God, let me go through! Let the Will of the Pilot
Henceforth change the set of the sail.
Let me become like thread, and put anxiety aside,
So the doorkeeper’s hand will lead
Me through the triumphal gates
Of the eye of the needle.
FAITH IN GOD ALONE…NOT IN OURSELVES OR HUMAN ENDEAVORS
Faith…a thought, a walk, a journey – whereby the destination may not be fully known. Faith is described as the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). The simple fact is that everyone lives by faith and with hope for a better day. They have faith that they will wake up each day, that the car will start, that the paycheck will arrive, that the traffic lights will work and on and on. The Christian lives by faith in these same ways and also possesses an abiding faith in a person they have never physically touched or seen with their eyes – Jesus Christ. We accept Jesus by faith; yet our faith is not without evidence. Jesus was born just as every infant is born, although under stark and supernatural circumstances. He grew from a boy to a man and died as a perfect sacrifice for the sins of mankind.
As parents, we acknowledge our faith has not always been placed in Christ alone. This became real to us when we were both 26, and our first child was born. She was born with immature lungs that collapsed with the pressure of her first breaths. She spent the first two weeks of her life in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The diagnosis unclear, the doctors perplexed, they decided to perform surgery on her lungs when she was just three days old. It was a crisis for us in many ways, not the least of which was a crisis of faith. As her life was held in the balance, it became clear to us that our faith had been placed in so many physical and intellectual factors. We had faith in the doctors, in technology, in education, in a variety of things (all good things), yet none of those things could save our infant child. We quickly came to realize that our faith needed to be in God alone. She recovered, and is a healthy woman, and we learned to focus our faith where it belonged – in God alone.
With it’s light and airy melody, “Watching the Stars” reminds us to be purposeful, intentional as we, “watch the stars and see where they run”….see where they lead…see what they announce. The Magi were faithful, they fully believed their journey would take them where they needed to go and as the sculpture The Dream of the Magi portrays, they journeyed and then they slept. The angel reminded them with a subtle and gentle touch that a star, THE STAR, would guide their walk…a walk of faith from which all would be revealed. And that gentle touch of the angel opened the eyes of the Magi.
Paul calls us to embrace faith, not to run from it or be ashamed because of it. We should expect to live by faith. As Martin Luther said, “Faith is well-founded confidence in the grace of God. Such confidence and personal knowledge of divine grace makes it possessor joyful [and] bold…” (D. Willard, 1999, p. 39).
Prayer:
Lord – Help us to live by faith in you alone and in what you do through others. You are the one on whom we can rely, and we fully trust in you.
Amen.
Clark Campbell, PhD
Dean of Rosemead School of Psychology
Senior Associate Provost at Biola University
Donell Campbell, R.N., M.S.
Associate Professor of Nursing
Associate Director of the Nursing Program
About the Artwork:
Dream of the Magi, c. 1120-1130
Gislebertus
Romanesque relief carving on pillar capital
Cathedral of Saint-Lazare, Autun,
Burgundy, France
Gislebertus carved four scenes from Matthew’s Gospel on the capitals at Autun Cathedral: The Wise Men Before Herod, The Adoration of the Wise Men, The Dream of the Magi, and The Flight into Egypt. This relief sculpture, The Dream of the Magi, shows three crowned magi sleeping together under a large, round cover. The embroidered blanket seems to move in harmony with the face, halo, sleeves and wing of the angel in one graceful, circular movement. Two of the magi are still asleep, but the third has been woken by the gentle touch of the angel who points above to the star, which will guide them to the Christ Child.
About the Artist:
Gislebertus (c.1120-1135) was one of the greatest sculptors of the Middle Ages, whose decoration of the Cathedral of Saint Lazare at Autun, France, represents some of the most original work of the period. Gislebertus’ name is the first ever found on stone work from the Romanesque period, as the sculptors before him believed that they were working for God. Gislebertus’ sculptures are some of the most human, expressive, and touching Romanesque sculpture that exists. Gislebertus’ influence can be traced to other French church sculpture, and his techniques helped pave the way for the Gothic style. The majority of the capitals in the interior of the Autun Cathedral are also ascribed to him. The original capitals were removed and are currently on display in the Musée Rolin near the Cathedral.
About the Music:
“Oh, Watch the Stars” from the album The Sounding Joy
Lyrics:
Oh, watch the stars,
See how they run.
Oh, watch the stars,
See how they run.
The stars run down at the setting of the sun.
Oh, watch the stars,
See how they run.
About the Composer:
“Oh, Watch the Stars” is an African-American spiritual first documented on St. Helena Island, South Carolina.
About the Performer:
Irish-American singer-songwriter Aoife O’Donovan (b. 1982) is most famous for her lead vocals in the progressive bluegrass band Crooked Still. She has performed with orchestras, folk groups, and famous musicians such as Chris Thile, Edgar Meyer, and Yo-Yo Ma. O’Donovan is a guest artist on Elizabeth Mitchell’s album The Sounding Joy: Christmas Songs In and Out of the Ruth Crawford Seeger Songbook.
About the Poet:
Yelena Rubisova (1910 - ?) was a Russian poet who lived in relative obscurity as an emigré in France. Little is known about her life or work.
About the Devotional Writers:
Clark Campbell is currently the Dean of Rosemead School of Psychology at Biola University. He holds degrees from Wheaton College (BA) and Western Seminary (MA, PhD). He is a widely respected psychologist with more than 25 years of clinical experience. In addition to his role as Dean and Professor, he oversees the operations of the Biola Counseling Center, a university and community-based counseling center that serves the clinical training needs of the doctoral programs. He and his wife, Donell, co-authored this devotion.
Donell Campbell is an Associate Professor in the Nursing Department as an Associate Professor. Her professional career includes over 35 years nursing experience in various settings including, Intensive Care, Medical, Surgical, Home Health and Community Services with more than 15 years in management of Medical, Surgical, Social Service, Cardiopulmonary Service, and Education departments. Donell and Clark have three adult children and one grandchild.