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Hear the devotional read here: https://bit.ly/3eKrbcL
11 Finally, brothers and sisters, farewell. Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. 12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you. 13 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all of you. (2 Corinthians 13:11-13 NRSV)
May this be a tremendous Tuesday for you, dear Friend! May the gracious presence and peace of the Lord be with you today is our prayer. Pray for one another. Pray for yourselves.
One of my heroes in ministry early on was my youth director when I was in high school. He was a student at University of Houston and was dating his future ex-wife. Okay, that sounds bad, but it's true. What I really liked was his bulldog style leadership where no was never an option. We had just moved to Houston and he approached me right after church and said, "We're having a youth picnic at San Jacinto park at two." He didn't say, "Do you wanna come?" I was reluctant to go with a group of kids that I didn't know (I was extremely shy). I said, "We don't have a phone yet." He replied, "You don't need a phone; you already know the time." I tried again, "I don't have a ride here." He laughed and said, "I'll go get you. Be ready at 1 pm." Uh. Okay. I had the time of my life. When I was in ministry, he was the Registrar of the Board of Ordained Ministry and he would write the most fantastic letters in Spanish I had ever read. He used abbreviations that I did not know what they were for, but figured them out! And the conclusions of his letters were masterpieces. Which bring us to today's passage.
It's been sometime since we had the sheep from agnusday.org visit us. I like their comments usually, and they don't disappoint with their remarks today. They're very right; this is the closing part of a letter where one usually in modern times does say, "Sincerely yours." This closing is awesome. Paul tries to wrap things up in a tidy way. Paul loved his audience almost as much as he loved Jesus. His instructions were loving, caring commands meant to better their walk and work with the Lord. "Put things in order"; means get everything correct and set up for the good of the work you do. "Listen to my appeal," read and re-read my letter and please comply with my request. Then, "agree with one another," means just what it says, get along in a loving, positive way. "Live in peace;" means quit fighting! And guess what happens when you do live in peace? "The God of love and peace will be with you." Then the phrase that was a discussion question among some of my friends, "Greet one another with a holy kiss." I suppose throughout all eternity certain people have felt the need to kiss other believers on the cheek. This is known as a "holy kiss." In a local church near here, in my opinion, it is not the friendliest church I have ever attended. Yet, there is one sweet, older lady who comes and kisses everyone. Well, this was before the Covid 19 crisis. And yes, I've served churches where folks do not take kindly to kisses, holy or otherwise. In fact, there was one gentleman who waited outside the sanctuary until we had greeted one another for he truly disliked shaking hands or having to greet others.
The closing power part is a reference to verse 13, where the Trinity is mentioned by name of each of the Trinity. Paul knows the characteristics of each Person and so as he closes this letter. "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ..." refers to that undeserved, free expression of love that comes so awesomely from Jesus. This is Who Jesus is, and how He's known. "The love of God." God is love. Love comes from God. What more can we say? "And the communion (fellowship) of the Holy Spirit be with all of you." It is the power of the Holy Spirit to bless us with His presence at all times. The Holy Spirit is the Sustainer and Counselor of all believers. It is He who can guide us if we so ask. And this coming Sunday being Trinity Sunday it's only logical that the Epistle be from this small part of 2 Corinthians.
You and I are children of the Most High, who holds nothing back to bless, protect, love, and guide His own. May God continue to bless you in whatever you may be facing. Receive His strength to win the battle over whatever it is that has come your way!
PRAYER: Loving God, I thank You for the life of this dear reader. Lord, You better than anyone knows what s/he is facing. Grant to them the fullness of Your presence and peace. Lift their spirits and defend them from all oppressions. Ours is the victory through You. May we glorify You in all things. This we pray in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Share a benediction of grace in whatever way the Lord may direct you today!
Receive my blessings of peace and joy,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
