Only Jesus: A Reflection on Psalm 52, Genesis 12:1-7, Hebrews 11:1-12 and John 6:35-42, 48-51

My Roth, Traditional IRA, and Annuity performed well in 2014. With retirement seventeen years away, I’m feeling good. I have a level of trust in and take refuge in those retirement tools. Yet, the psalmist reminds me to avoid trusting in abundant riches and seeking refuge in wealth. Abram was a simple man, a shepherd in fact. God promised to make him a great nation, bless him, make his name great, and bless all the families of the earth through him. Abram exercised faith. That is, Abram had assurance that God would do what God said, and the conviction that although he saw no results, God would do what God had said. Jesus said that he was the bread of life and the living bread. Neither Abram nor we were told to trust in riches and wealth. I have such a long way to go. As I step away from the false assurances and convictions that I rest in for my well-being, I am once again reminded that not to trust in abundant riches and wealth forces me to rest in the assurance and conviction that what God accomplished in Jesus for me (us), first, is all that ultimately matters. Only Jesus.

Scripture texts are taken from the two-year daily lectionary cycle which follows the liturgical calendar and begins on the First Sunday of Advent.