You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate....Luke 6:36
Though He introduced the Age of Grace, in reading through the New Testament we find that Jesus had a lot to say about the Law of Moses.
In the fifth chapter of the book of Matthew, Jesus taught His disciples His seemingly extreme views of what it meant to truly live up to the Law.
He started out by clarifying that He did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets, but to accomplish their purpose.
The purpose of the Law of Moses and the writings of the prophets is to make us aware of our sin and our desperate need of Christ -- our sinless sacrifice.
Jesus taught His disciples that if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God's laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:19).
God made us aware of our sinful nature for a reason. So that we would know to avoid sin as much as possible. So that we could live as clean and pure a life possible. So that we could share with others the wisdom and blessings of obedience to our Father.
As children of God, we are called to obey God and teach obedience to those within our sphere of influence.
The most effective teaching is accomplished by example. Jesus became our perfect example, and Christians are still learning from His teaching and His life today. It is our privilege as Christians to teach others in the same way. By becoming a living example of Christ.
No matter how clean a life we live, we could never live up to the Law of Moses. And just in case we ever think we could, Jesus, using examples from the Law, demonstrated His own awareness of sin.
The Law condemned murder. But Jesus said, if you are even angry with someone you are subject to judgement! (Matthew 5:22).
The Law condemned adultery. But Jesus said, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:28).
The Law, bent to the desires of the people, allowed divorce. But Jesus said, that a man who divorces his wife, unless she has been unfaithful, causes her to commit adultery (Matthew 5:32).
The Law condemned breaking vows. But Jesus said, do not even make any vows! (Matthew 5:34). Only God is truly capable of fulfilling every vow or promise He makes.
I don't believe that Jesus was trying to give an impossible standard that no one could possibly live up to. The Law had already done that.
I'm sure that scholars could probably point to a much deeper spiritual purpose for His teaching here. But I believe His purpose was, at least in part, to shock those who might think that they are living up to the Law.
My husband can hear this portion of scripture, particularly the verse about lust, read a million times in church and every time he will shake his head in conviction and say, Man, I'm in trouble. It hits home. He comes face to face with his own sin and his own need for Christ's redemptive blood.
He doesn't wallow in his guilt or beat himself up with shame. He is simply reminded of his sinful nature and his need for Christ.
The passage about anger does the same thing to me. Never would I consider murder, but if we're calling anger a sin, then I'm guilty as sin.
I don't believe for one moment that these scriptures are meant to weigh down believers who are walking hand in hand with God. They are meant instead to wake us up when we think we've got it all figured out. They are meant to remind us that living a good life does not equate to living a sinless life.
If we don't come face to face with our own sin and our own need for Christ every once in a while, it's easy for us to become half-hearted in our Christianity and complacent in our faith.
Furthermore, a continual awareness of our own sin and our own need for Christ keeps us from throwing stones at others. Christ demonstrated this truth in John 8 when the scribes and Pharisees brought Him an adulterous woman and asked whether they should follow the Law of Moses and stone her.
Jesus answered them, Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her (John 8:7). With their own sins before their eyes, they found it impossible to throw a stone at her.
Just as Jesus demonstrated compassion and mercy for the adulterous woman, His teaching to His disciples regarding the Law of Moses, encouraged compassion and mercy as well.
The Law instituted punishment equal to the crime. But Jesus said, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also (Matthew 5:39).
We are to grant mercy instead of punishing those who commit wrongs, even when the wrongs they commit are against us, personally. Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do...
The Law taught the Israelites to love their fellow countrymen and, at times, to completely wipe out their enemies. But Jesus said, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven...(Matthew 5:44-45).
Jesus is the true child, but we have been made true children through His sacrifice and our subsequent adoption. We are to strive to act as much like true children -- like Christ -- as possible.
Jesus said, But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect (Matthew 5:48). In Luke's telling of this same portion of scripture Jesus says, You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate (Luke 6:36).
We won't ever live up to the Law of Moses or the perfect example of Christ, but compassion for our fellow man is entirely possible. And I think it's a good place to start because if you put Matthew's telling with Luke's telling it seems that perfection in the Kingdom of Heaven translates to compassion for our fellow man on Earth.
I think that's what Jesus' teachings here all boiled down to -- compassion for those around us brought about by our own awareness of sin, and dependence on Him.
One day we will be perfect, but, for today, we can be compassionate.
That is the gift of faith in us.
(Journey: Matthew 5:17-48; Luke 6:27-36)
Monday, May 27, 2013
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Chosen
God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted (Matthew 5:4).
There is a song, currently playing on Christian radio stations, in which artist Jason Gray, pleads with God to remind him who he is.
The lyrics say: Remind me who I am. If I'm your beloved can you help me believe it. Tell me, once again, who I am to you, who I am to you. Tell me, lest I forget, who I am to you, that I belong to you. (Jason Gray, Remind Me Who I Am)
I can so deeply relate to the internal struggle the musical prayer brings to light. The spiritual battle to remember, continually, through good times and bad, through sorrows and sins, that I am God's chosen, adopted children -- His beloved.
It's so easy to wonder, when life doesn't go the way we expect it to, whether we really are beloved by God.
It's so difficult to remember, when the weight of our own sins pile up on our hearts, that we still belong to God.
It's easy to forget that we have each been chosen by God to play a specific role in His vast, magnificent plan for humanity.
But we are chosen. When we enter into relationship with God we become His chosen. Regardless of the mistakes we have made in our past. Regardless of the sins we will commit in our future. We belong to God. We are His beloved.
We are part of a Church family that began with twelve men -- apostles -- who were chosen by Jesus.
Scriptures tells us that, as the crowds around Him grew dramatically, Jesus chose twelve men, from his many disciples, to become His apostles. At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles...Luke 6:13.
Twelve men were chosen to become the first members of the Church family. They were chosen to become great in the Kingdom of God.
But, as we all learn as we draw ever nearer to God, greatness in the Kingdom of God doesn't necessarily equate to greatness in the world around us.
The chosen of God quickly became targets of men. Of the twelve, ten are believed to have died a martyr's death. One narrowly escaped the same fate. And the final one, lost in overwhelming darkness, took his own life.
We know they were chosen for greatness. But, as they walked the difficult journeys that lay ahead of them, I imagine that they too prayed for God to remind them who they were to Him.
As the world, very literally, beat them down, I imagine there were moments when they prayed for God to help them believe they were, indeed, His beloved children.
As they lay in prison cells, and met in hidden rooms, I imagine that they pleaded with God to remind them that they belonged to Him.
As soon as Jesus chose these men to become part of God's plan, He began to prepare them for the hazards of the road ahead and the upside-down nature of His kingdom. He foresaw their struggle....and ours as well.
The well-known teaching of the Beatitudes, follows Jesus' selection of apostles.
Jesus began the sermon, addressed specifically to His disciples, with the declaration that God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs (Matthew 5:3).
If the chosen twelve imagined that greatness in the Kingdom of Heaven equated to riches, and self-sufficiency, Jesus laid those thoughts to rest rather quickly pointing towards humility as a means of rising to greatness in God's Kingdom.
Jesus continued, God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted (Matthew 5:4).
We've done a lot of mourning in our house in recent years with the untimely loss of several loved ones. Through every tear we've cried, however, we've been comforted by God and His promise that we will be reunited with our loved ones again one day.
On the night of the crucifixion, I imagine the chosen twelve mourned in like fashion, but I don't believe that is the only type of mourning that Jesus referred to in His teaching.
Two of the twelve apostles, near the time of the crucifixion, mourned, not only their loss of Jesus, but their own betrayal of Him.
Scripture tells us that the Apostle Peter wept bitterly, after denying Jesus three times (Luke 22:62). On the night that Jesus was taken away from him, Peter clearly saw the weakness of his own humanity. He experienced the sting of his own betrayal. He felt the weight of his own sin.
And he mourned because of it.
Peter became poor in Spirit. He realized His own personal need for God, and His forgiveness. He mourned his own sin. And, we know, because of his continued role in the foundation of the church, that he was comforted.
I imagine that as Peter mourned, God reminded him of who he was to Him. I imagine that God helped Peter to believe that, in spite of his sin, he remained His beloved. I imagine that God reminded Peter that he belonged to Him, and had yet to fulfill his complete role in the Kingdom of Heaven.
I imagine that in his sorrow, God reminded Peter, that he was chosen.
Another one of the chosen twelve mourned his own betrayal of Jesus. Scripture tells us that Judas too felt the sting of his own betrayal, and that in his sorrow, he ended his own life (Matthew 27:5). Comfortless.
The saddest thing about Judas' death is that comfort was available to him as well. Forgiveness was available, even to him. But, he died without experiencing it. He died in the darkness of the pit he crawled into when he chose to betray Jesus.
Peter, on the other hand, went on to become what Jesus chose him to become -- a rock that He could build His Church upon.
Peter's letters to the early church, and to us, seem to spring forth from the Beatitudes and the teachings that follow them. Encouraging the church. Calling for endurance and rejoicing in the face of life's difficulties, and, above all else, humility.
Peter wrote to remind each member of the Church that we are chosen by God.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light (I Peter 2:9).
Not only did God call us into His marvelous light, but He has called us to be His marvelous light.
In the next passage of scripture, following the Beatitudes, Jesus said, You are the light of the world -- like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden (Matthew 5:14).
Each time we fall into the darkness of sin, we can choose to react like Peter did, by mourning our sins and turning to God for comfort, or we can choose to react like Judas did, by drowning in darkness and sorrow. Even as a chosen child of God we can become so overwhelmed by sin and darkness that our light is all but extinguished.
We can choose to live our lives as a beacon of light, pointing others toward the hope and comfort we have in God, even in the midst of our sinful human existence, or we can allow ourselves to swallowed up by the darkness around us.
Peter's light shone because, not because he was perfect, but because, when he lost his way, and darkness threatened to overwhelm him, he took his mourning heart to God for comfort.
And God reminded him who he was.
Peter remembered that he was God's beloved child. He remembered that he belonged to God.
He remembered that he was chosen.
We must do the same. We must remember who we are. And when we can't remember on our own, we can always ask God to remind us who we are. He will comfort us. He will help us to remember...
We belong to Him....even when we sin.
We are beloved....even when we fail.
We are chosen....even when we betray our Savior.
That is the gift of faith in us.
(Journey: Mark 3:7-19; Luke 6:12-26; Matthew 5:1-16)
There is a song, currently playing on Christian radio stations, in which artist Jason Gray, pleads with God to remind him who he is.
The lyrics say: Remind me who I am. If I'm your beloved can you help me believe it. Tell me, once again, who I am to you, who I am to you. Tell me, lest I forget, who I am to you, that I belong to you. (Jason Gray, Remind Me Who I Am)
I can so deeply relate to the internal struggle the musical prayer brings to light. The spiritual battle to remember, continually, through good times and bad, through sorrows and sins, that I am God's chosen, adopted children -- His beloved.
It's so easy to wonder, when life doesn't go the way we expect it to, whether we really are beloved by God.
It's so difficult to remember, when the weight of our own sins pile up on our hearts, that we still belong to God.
It's easy to forget that we have each been chosen by God to play a specific role in His vast, magnificent plan for humanity.
But we are chosen. When we enter into relationship with God we become His chosen. Regardless of the mistakes we have made in our past. Regardless of the sins we will commit in our future. We belong to God. We are His beloved.
We are part of a Church family that began with twelve men -- apostles -- who were chosen by Jesus.
Scriptures tells us that, as the crowds around Him grew dramatically, Jesus chose twelve men, from his many disciples, to become His apostles. At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles...Luke 6:13.
Twelve men were chosen to become the first members of the Church family. They were chosen to become great in the Kingdom of God.
But, as we all learn as we draw ever nearer to God, greatness in the Kingdom of God doesn't necessarily equate to greatness in the world around us.
The chosen of God quickly became targets of men. Of the twelve, ten are believed to have died a martyr's death. One narrowly escaped the same fate. And the final one, lost in overwhelming darkness, took his own life.
We know they were chosen for greatness. But, as they walked the difficult journeys that lay ahead of them, I imagine that they too prayed for God to remind them who they were to Him.
As the world, very literally, beat them down, I imagine there were moments when they prayed for God to help them believe they were, indeed, His beloved children.
As they lay in prison cells, and met in hidden rooms, I imagine that they pleaded with God to remind them that they belonged to Him.
As soon as Jesus chose these men to become part of God's plan, He began to prepare them for the hazards of the road ahead and the upside-down nature of His kingdom. He foresaw their struggle....and ours as well.
The well-known teaching of the Beatitudes, follows Jesus' selection of apostles.
Jesus began the sermon, addressed specifically to His disciples, with the declaration that God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs (Matthew 5:3).
If the chosen twelve imagined that greatness in the Kingdom of Heaven equated to riches, and self-sufficiency, Jesus laid those thoughts to rest rather quickly pointing towards humility as a means of rising to greatness in God's Kingdom.
Jesus continued, God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted (Matthew 5:4).
We've done a lot of mourning in our house in recent years with the untimely loss of several loved ones. Through every tear we've cried, however, we've been comforted by God and His promise that we will be reunited with our loved ones again one day.
On the night of the crucifixion, I imagine the chosen twelve mourned in like fashion, but I don't believe that is the only type of mourning that Jesus referred to in His teaching.
Two of the twelve apostles, near the time of the crucifixion, mourned, not only their loss of Jesus, but their own betrayal of Him.
Scripture tells us that the Apostle Peter wept bitterly, after denying Jesus three times (Luke 22:62). On the night that Jesus was taken away from him, Peter clearly saw the weakness of his own humanity. He experienced the sting of his own betrayal. He felt the weight of his own sin.
And he mourned because of it.
Peter became poor in Spirit. He realized His own personal need for God, and His forgiveness. He mourned his own sin. And, we know, because of his continued role in the foundation of the church, that he was comforted.
I imagine that as Peter mourned, God reminded him of who he was to Him. I imagine that God helped Peter to believe that, in spite of his sin, he remained His beloved. I imagine that God reminded Peter that he belonged to Him, and had yet to fulfill his complete role in the Kingdom of Heaven.
I imagine that in his sorrow, God reminded Peter, that he was chosen.
Another one of the chosen twelve mourned his own betrayal of Jesus. Scripture tells us that Judas too felt the sting of his own betrayal, and that in his sorrow, he ended his own life (Matthew 27:5). Comfortless.
The saddest thing about Judas' death is that comfort was available to him as well. Forgiveness was available, even to him. But, he died without experiencing it. He died in the darkness of the pit he crawled into when he chose to betray Jesus.
Peter, on the other hand, went on to become what Jesus chose him to become -- a rock that He could build His Church upon.
Peter's letters to the early church, and to us, seem to spring forth from the Beatitudes and the teachings that follow them. Encouraging the church. Calling for endurance and rejoicing in the face of life's difficulties, and, above all else, humility.
Peter wrote to remind each member of the Church that we are chosen by God.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light (I Peter 2:9).
Not only did God call us into His marvelous light, but He has called us to be His marvelous light.
In the next passage of scripture, following the Beatitudes, Jesus said, You are the light of the world -- like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden (Matthew 5:14).
Each time we fall into the darkness of sin, we can choose to react like Peter did, by mourning our sins and turning to God for comfort, or we can choose to react like Judas did, by drowning in darkness and sorrow. Even as a chosen child of God we can become so overwhelmed by sin and darkness that our light is all but extinguished.
We can choose to live our lives as a beacon of light, pointing others toward the hope and comfort we have in God, even in the midst of our sinful human existence, or we can allow ourselves to swallowed up by the darkness around us.
Peter's light shone because, not because he was perfect, but because, when he lost his way, and darkness threatened to overwhelm him, he took his mourning heart to God for comfort.
And God reminded him who he was.
Peter remembered that he was God's beloved child. He remembered that he belonged to God.
He remembered that he was chosen.
We must do the same. We must remember who we are. And when we can't remember on our own, we can always ask God to remind us who we are. He will comfort us. He will help us to remember...
We belong to Him....even when we sin.
We are beloved....even when we fail.
We are chosen....even when we betray our Savior.
That is the gift of faith in us.
(Journey: Mark 3:7-19; Luke 6:12-26; Matthew 5:1-16)
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
It's all about Relationship
Then Jesus said to them, "The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of the people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath..."Mark 2:27
In dealing with the religious leaders of His day, it seems Jesus was constantly trying to explain the difference between rigid religion and a disciplined relationship with God.
The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke share two such encounters between Jesus and the Pharisees that took place on two different Sabbaths.
In the first, Jesus' disciples, in hunger, broke off heads of grain to eat. The Pharisees accused them of breaking the Law.
Jesus, proclaiming them innocent, said The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of the people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).
The weekly day of rest was instituted by God to meet the needs of His children, by refreshing them, renewing their spirits and reminding them to connect with God. It was meant to draw God's children closer to Him -- to encourage relationship.
The Pharisees and other religious leaders had turned the Sabbath into something it was never meant to be. They had made the day of rest all about man's ability to follow rules rather than God's desire for man to honor Him with their hearts, minds, and souls -- their whole being.
They had made the Sabbath about religion rather than relationship.
The Pharisees had become so wrapped up in their own religious ideals that they had completely failed to foster a true relationship with God. In fact, they were so distant from God that they didn't even recognize Him standing in their midst.
They had failed to allow the Sabbath to meet their own need of a relationship with God.
They pointed condemning fingers at Jesus' innocent disciples, but they, themselves, were truly guilty of breaking the Sabbath.
They had completely missed the purpose behind the command of God....to meet the needs of the people...to draw them into a closer relationship with God.
Scripture is full of commands reminiscent of the institution of the Sabbath. Instructions and guidelines that are applicable to the New Testament church. Words of wisdom that are intended to meet our physical and spiritual needs and to help us draw closer to God.
The commands of God laid out in scripture, if we discipline ourselves to follow them, help us live a more clean and holy life despite our sinful nature. They help us to become more like Christ. They help us to build a relationship with God....if we are careful not to allow them to become a rigid religion instead.
When we seek to live a pure, righteous, holy life, we benefit from that discipline.
We enjoy a closer walk with God -- a true relationship.
Relationship, not religion, has always been the purpose behind God's commands to His children whether Old Testament children of Israel or New Testament believers.
When we forget that purpose -- to meet our need of relationship with our Creator -- we become like the Pharisees -- religious zealots, devoid of relationship.
And, without relationship, we can't hear God, even when He's standing right beside us. We can't follow Him even if He's walking right in front of us.
That's exactly what happened to the Pharisees. They were so entrenched in religious practices, and their hearts had become so hardened by pride in their own ability to keep the rules that Jesus' words were unable to penetrate deep within the core of their being where lessons of faith are learned by each individual believer in relationship.
They followed the rules. They even followed Jesus...from one town to another. But scripture portrays these religious leaders following from a distance, holding tight to their religion, and missing the magnificent opportunity to walk side-by-side with their own Messiah. They missed the relationship that they desperately needed.
We don't have to imagine how Christ's compassionate heart bled for those faux followers, scripture tells us that when He healed a lame man in their presence on another Sabbath, and their only concern was His perceived sin, in the midst of His anger, He was deeply saddened by their hard hearts (Mark 3:5).
He was angry at the Pharisees' true sin, but His heart was grieved for their unmet need of relationship.
Meanwhile, scripture says that the Pharisees left the scene wild with rage and plotting how to kill Jesus.
When religion is more dear to us than relationship, anger rages untempered by love and compassion and we become like the Pharisees, wild with rage...at the sin...at the sinner...at the lost and dying world around us.
On the other hand, when we develop a true relationship with God, His love for the world (John 3:16), spreads into our hearts as well. The grief that Jesus felt for the Pharisees, the grief that God feels over the hard hearts of every lost sinner, grieves us as well. Our anger is tempered by love.
When we come face to face with the sins of those around us, whether they are lost sinners or fellow Christians, do we feel anger mixed with a healthy dose of sorrow like Jesus did....or wild rage like the Pharisees? I believe the answer to that simple question says a great deal about our relationship with God.
Jesus asked a question of His own to the Pharisees that day: Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it? (Luke 6:9).
The Pharisees sought to destroy Jesus and His disciples, and all the while, He was trying to save them.
When our anger at sin is mixed with grief for the sinner, we, like Jesus, seek to save life. But when our anger at sin becomes a wild rage we destroy ourselves and everyone around us.
It's okay to be angry at the sinful state of the world around us, but if that anger doesn't stir up some sorrow in us for their lack of hope then it's a safe bet that there is something missing in our relationship with God....something missing in our religion....
Matthew capped off the telling of these two Sabbath stories by quoting the prophecy of Isaiah saying He (Jesus) will not fight or shout or raise his voice in public. He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Finally he will cause justice to be victorious. And his name will be the hope of all the world (Matthew 12:19-21).
Even in His anger, Jesus showed compassion and mercy to the righteous, the self-righteous and the lost alike.
He would not crush the weakest -- least disciplined Christian. He would not put out the flickering candle -- the dimmest light of one saved soul struggling in their faith.
He offered hope to all the world.
He offered Himself.
And that's what God has always done.
He has offered Himself to us....in relationship.
That is the gift of faith.
(Journey: Mark 2:23-28, 3:1-6; Luke 6:1-11; Matthew 12:1-21)
In dealing with the religious leaders of His day, it seems Jesus was constantly trying to explain the difference between rigid religion and a disciplined relationship with God.
The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke share two such encounters between Jesus and the Pharisees that took place on two different Sabbaths.
In the first, Jesus' disciples, in hunger, broke off heads of grain to eat. The Pharisees accused them of breaking the Law.
Jesus, proclaiming them innocent, said The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of the people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).
The weekly day of rest was instituted by God to meet the needs of His children, by refreshing them, renewing their spirits and reminding them to connect with God. It was meant to draw God's children closer to Him -- to encourage relationship.
The Pharisees and other religious leaders had turned the Sabbath into something it was never meant to be. They had made the day of rest all about man's ability to follow rules rather than God's desire for man to honor Him with their hearts, minds, and souls -- their whole being.
They had made the Sabbath about religion rather than relationship.
The Pharisees had become so wrapped up in their own religious ideals that they had completely failed to foster a true relationship with God. In fact, they were so distant from God that they didn't even recognize Him standing in their midst.
They had failed to allow the Sabbath to meet their own need of a relationship with God.
They pointed condemning fingers at Jesus' innocent disciples, but they, themselves, were truly guilty of breaking the Sabbath.
They had completely missed the purpose behind the command of God....to meet the needs of the people...to draw them into a closer relationship with God.
Scripture is full of commands reminiscent of the institution of the Sabbath. Instructions and guidelines that are applicable to the New Testament church. Words of wisdom that are intended to meet our physical and spiritual needs and to help us draw closer to God.
The commands of God laid out in scripture, if we discipline ourselves to follow them, help us live a more clean and holy life despite our sinful nature. They help us to become more like Christ. They help us to build a relationship with God....if we are careful not to allow them to become a rigid religion instead.
When we seek to live a pure, righteous, holy life, we benefit from that discipline.
We enjoy a closer walk with God -- a true relationship.
Relationship, not religion, has always been the purpose behind God's commands to His children whether Old Testament children of Israel or New Testament believers.
When we forget that purpose -- to meet our need of relationship with our Creator -- we become like the Pharisees -- religious zealots, devoid of relationship.
And, without relationship, we can't hear God, even when He's standing right beside us. We can't follow Him even if He's walking right in front of us.
That's exactly what happened to the Pharisees. They were so entrenched in religious practices, and their hearts had become so hardened by pride in their own ability to keep the rules that Jesus' words were unable to penetrate deep within the core of their being where lessons of faith are learned by each individual believer in relationship.
They followed the rules. They even followed Jesus...from one town to another. But scripture portrays these religious leaders following from a distance, holding tight to their religion, and missing the magnificent opportunity to walk side-by-side with their own Messiah. They missed the relationship that they desperately needed.
We don't have to imagine how Christ's compassionate heart bled for those faux followers, scripture tells us that when He healed a lame man in their presence on another Sabbath, and their only concern was His perceived sin, in the midst of His anger, He was deeply saddened by their hard hearts (Mark 3:5).
He was angry at the Pharisees' true sin, but His heart was grieved for their unmet need of relationship.
Meanwhile, scripture says that the Pharisees left the scene wild with rage and plotting how to kill Jesus.
When religion is more dear to us than relationship, anger rages untempered by love and compassion and we become like the Pharisees, wild with rage...at the sin...at the sinner...at the lost and dying world around us.
On the other hand, when we develop a true relationship with God, His love for the world (John 3:16), spreads into our hearts as well. The grief that Jesus felt for the Pharisees, the grief that God feels over the hard hearts of every lost sinner, grieves us as well. Our anger is tempered by love.
When we come face to face with the sins of those around us, whether they are lost sinners or fellow Christians, do we feel anger mixed with a healthy dose of sorrow like Jesus did....or wild rage like the Pharisees? I believe the answer to that simple question says a great deal about our relationship with God.
Jesus asked a question of His own to the Pharisees that day: Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it? (Luke 6:9).
The Pharisees sought to destroy Jesus and His disciples, and all the while, He was trying to save them.
When our anger at sin is mixed with grief for the sinner, we, like Jesus, seek to save life. But when our anger at sin becomes a wild rage we destroy ourselves and everyone around us.
It's okay to be angry at the sinful state of the world around us, but if that anger doesn't stir up some sorrow in us for their lack of hope then it's a safe bet that there is something missing in our relationship with God....something missing in our religion....
Matthew capped off the telling of these two Sabbath stories by quoting the prophecy of Isaiah saying He (Jesus) will not fight or shout or raise his voice in public. He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Finally he will cause justice to be victorious. And his name will be the hope of all the world (Matthew 12:19-21).
Even in His anger, Jesus showed compassion and mercy to the righteous, the self-righteous and the lost alike.
He would not crush the weakest -- least disciplined Christian. He would not put out the flickering candle -- the dimmest light of one saved soul struggling in their faith.
He offered hope to all the world.
He offered Himself.
And that's what God has always done.
He has offered Himself to us....in relationship.
That is the gift of faith.
(Journey: Mark 2:23-28, 3:1-6; Luke 6:1-11; Matthew 12:1-21)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)