pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: law


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Surrendering Control

Reading: John 3:1-3

John 3:3 – “I assure you, unless someone is born anew, it’s not possible to see God’s kingdom.”

Today and tomorrow we dive into Nicodemus’ conversation with Jesus. In verse 1 we learn that Nicodemus is a Pharisee, a leader amongst the Jews. As a Pharisee, he is set apart from others Jews. He knows the Law inside out and keeps it devoutly. He is also a part of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish ruling council. Nicodemus is a powerful man by cultural standards. Nicodemus would appear to be “on top of the world” when viewed through the lens of “success” in his day. And he comes to Jesus at night.

Nicodemus calls Jesus, “Rabbi” – a term for Jesus that in John’s gospel always implies incomplete faith. He acknowledges that Jesus is “one who comes from God.” The Pharisee is not referring to this in terms of a Jesus being the Messiah but a prophet. Yet he must be wrestling with this distinction. Nicodemus must be questioning his own faith somehow. Why else would he come under cover of night to ask Jesus some questions? Perhaps Nicodemus is sensing that there may be something more than a faith that is well within his control. Maybe he has seen from afar how following Jesus has changed people’s lives.

Jesus opens the conversation with this earth shaker: “I assure you, unless someone is born anew, it’s not possible to see God’s kingdom.” With these words, Jesus resets the direction and tone of the conversation. Jesus is the one with power and authority. Being “born anew” has nothing to do with following the letter of the Law or any other moral guideline. It has everything to do with surrendering the control of one’s life and faith to God. It is the only way to see God’s kingdom from the inside.

Prayer: Lord God, faith is so much easier when it is on our terms. Doing what we think is required is manageable. It is safe, comfortable. This happens when we think we’ve somehow “arrived” spiritually. And it falls short of seeing and being your kingdom here on earth. Open our hearts to the power of your love, mercy, and grace. Guide us out of our easy, gentle, static faith into a place where we are transformed daily, born anew again and again, each time closer to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Make it so, O God, make it so. Amen.


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Grace Unending

Reading: Romans 4:13-17

Romans 4:16 – “The inheritance comes through faith, so that it will be on the basis of grace.”

Turning again to Romans 4 today we read that the promise of God to “inherit the world” did not come through the Law. The Law was not even yet in existence when Abram was declared righteous because of his faith. So for Abraham’s descendants – those Paul was writing to then and to us now – the inheritance also comes through faith. One can work really hard to keep the Law (or to do any number of things that we think are pleasing to God), but we will always ultimately fail, bringing upon ourselves the “wrath” that Paul references in today’s reading.

On the opposite end of the scale, we find God’s grace. This free gift of grace is the “basis” for inheriting God’s promises: forgiveness of sin and eternal life. God does not weigh out our worthiness or keep track of how much good we need to do to settle our account. Salvation is not centered on a contractual relationship. There are no transactions needed between us and God in order for us to inherit the promises. There is a grace that washes away our sins and welcomes us back into connection with God and with one another. There is a transformation that occurs – again and again and again…

Paul speaks of this transformation at the end of our passage. This rebirth, this gift of new life over and over, it occurs when God “gives life to the dead.” Once dead in our sin, grace redeems and restores us to life in Christ. Rooted in God’s unconditional love, grace is unending. For the promises grounded in love and grace, we say, thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, living in this world, it can be easy to slip into doing and trying to earn. It is the way of the world: checklists, comparative analysis, judging, then self-doubt, shame, defeat. Your love offers a different way, a better way. Driven by love, you call and reach out in mercy. Fueled by mercy, your grace draws us back to you again and again. Standing there once again, in your love and grace, it feels like we never left. Thank you for loving us this completely, this unconditionally. How great is your love, O Lord. Amen.


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The Flawed and the Faulty

Reading: Romans 4:1-5

Romans 4:5 – “Faith is credited as righteousness… because they have faith in God who makes the ungodly righteous.”

Paul ends chapter 3 stating that through faith we “confirm the Law.” Here Paul is referring not to following the exact letter of the Law but to understanding the Law’s deeper purpose and meaning. We get a practical application of this in the Beatitudes, where Jesus dives deep and unpacks a handful of Laws. Moving into chapter 4, Paul centers in on the faith of Abraham, the founding father of the Jewish faith and the nation of Israel.

Paul reminds his readers that Abraham was declared righteous because of his faith. When Abram obeyed God’s open-ended call to “go,” he did so through a radical faith. God’s promises guided and empowered his decision to be obedient to the call of God. As Paul develops his line of thinking later in this chapter, he reminds his audience that Abram lived long before the Law was ever given to Moses and Israel. Therefore, Abram was declared righteous because of God’s grace, not because he kept the Law – just as the followers of Jesus are declared righteous through God’s grace.

We often think of those “pedestal people” as being perfect. A cursory glance reveals that Abram was anything but perfect. He doubted God and he took matters into his own hands. Remember Hagar and Ishmael? Remember sending them out into the desert to die? God isn’t looking for perfect people to work through. That’s because God didn’t make us that way. Instead, God uses imperfect people to accomplish God’s perfect plans and purposes. And like Abram, we are each called by God, flaws and all. God works in and through our flaws, responding to our faith with a grace that “makes the ungodly righteous.” For this transforming grace, we say, thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for choosing us, the flawed and the faulty. Through your love and mercy and grace you redeem us, refining us for your purposes. Through your guidance and direction you help us to fulfill your call upon our lives. With great patience and steadfastness, you redirect, forgive, and transform us to be your vessels of faith. Thank you for these many gifts. Amen.


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Love, Love, Love

Reading: Matthew 17:1-6

Matthew 17:3 – “Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Jesus.”

Photo credit: Clay Banks

Six days after Peter’s highest high and lowest low to date as a disciple, Jesus takes him and James and John up the mountain. Six days ago Peter had declared Jesus to be “the Christ” and then heard Jesus tell him that he’d be the rock upon which Jesus would build the church. Jesus then told the disciples of his coming death and raising on the third day. Peter spoke boldly, forbidding this to happen. That’s when Jesus called him “Satan” and a stumbling block. The high did not last long for Peter.

At the top of the mountain, Jesus is transformed or transfigured, depending on your translation. Calling to mind the words of Daniel 7, Jesus’ face shines like the sun and his clothes become dazzlingly white. Then we read, “Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Jesus.” Moses was the giver of the Law, the guide in the wilderness. Elijah was the greatest of the prophets – so great that he was taken up into heaven in the chariot of fire. In talking with these two, God is affirming the importance of both the Law and the prophets. Jesus held both of these traditions together in his ministry and witness.

In the middle of some fumbling words from Peter, God becomes part of the conversation, declaring God’s love for Jesus and God’s pleasure in Jesus. Speaking to Peter, James, and John, God gives this clear instruction: “Listen to him!” Jesus holds together the two core commands of the Law (to love God and neighbor) with the prophetic call to live out these commands in all areas of our lives. In Jesus we see that the law of love goes beyond just hearing its call to really living it out in the world. As we receive and live out our instructions to listen to Jesus, loving as he loved, may all that we do, say, and think be rooted in our love of God and neighbor.

Prayer: Lord God, we’ve heard that all written in the Law and told by the prophets hang on our ability to love you with all that we are and to love neighbor as Jesus first loved us. We ask that you would enable us to love first and foremost. We ask that you would empower us to love even and especially when it is hard to love. Through love, O God, may we be pleasing in your sight. Amen.


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Answer the Call

Reading: Matthew 5:17-20

Matthew 5:19b – “But whoever keeps these commands and teaches others to keep them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Turning to verses 17-20 today, Jesus connects being salt and light to fulfilling the words of the Law and the prophets. Jesus came as God in the flesh, as one who would model God’s heart being lived out in the world. In Jesus’ words and actions, we see the depth and breadth of God’s love, mercy, and grace. To get an idea of how Jesus teaches us to fulfill the Law, read the rest of chapter 5.

Returning to today’s reading, Jesus then declares that those who ignore God’s heart and who teach others to do the same, they will be “the lowest in the kingdom of heaven.” Later in our passage, we see that Jesus is speaking of the overtly religious of his day. The Pharisees and legal experts knew the letter of the Law inside out. The living out of the heart of the Law was where they struggled. In the context of yesterday’s reading, they knew what it meant to be salt and light, but they were not being salt and light.

Jesus then proclaims, “But whoever keeps these commands and teaches others to keep them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” To keep the heart of God as one’s guide in all of life, this is our call. We teach best by example. That was Jesus’ model. The Law is centered on love – God’s love for all of us, our love for God, our love for neighbor. It is love that guides us and leads us to be people of mercy, grace, forgiveness, hope, repentance, generosity, justice, humility… This is the righteousness that Jesus describes. It is the righteousness that God calls us to. May we answer the call every day.

Prayer: Lord God, help us to not just be hearers but also doers. Yes, we know we are to love you and to love neighbor. Move us beyond our head knowledge, out into the world. Shape and form us to be people who love practically and tangibly, who practice grace and forgiveness in every opportunity. Use us to restore broken relationships and to redeem unjust practices and systems. In these ways, may your righteousness and glory be revealed to the world. Amen.


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Grace and Mercy

Reading: Matthew 1:18-19

Matthew 1:18 – “When Mary his mother was engaged to Joseph… she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit.”

Today we enter into the miracle of the incarnation. Matthew’s gospel starts with a geneology, beginning with Abraham. Moving through three cycles of 14 generations each, we arrive at Jesus. Matthew’s birth story begins in verse 18. It is fairly succinct, mostly factual. In the opening verse we read, When Mary his mother was engaged to Joseph… she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit.” Pretty factual, until we get to the last four words: “by the Holy Spirit.” These words take us from factual to 100% mystery. This mystery and miracle is no better understood today than it was when it happened. Yet we can relate to this mystery. When a child is born, yes, we understand the process, the medical and physical facts of a birth. Even so, there is a mystery felt when a child draws that first breath and utters a cry.

In the next verse we learn a bit about Joseph, the “father.” First and foremost he is “righteous.” This designation is backed up in other gospels. Jesus is circumcised and named in accordance with the Law. Joseph and family travel to attend the requisite religious festivals. But righteousness is more than just checking off the correct boxes. Joseph’s decision to “call off their engagement quietly” is full of grace and mercy. Here is where Joseph’s true righteousness trumps his devotion to the Law. There is no asterisk in the Law about unwed pregnancies by the Holy Spirit. Joseph chooses grace and mercy, not humiliation and punishment. Although not physically Jesus’ father, here we see in Joseph two of Jesus’ greatest characteristics: grace and mercy. May we too choose grace and mercy.

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for the mystery of Jesus’ birth and for the mystery felt in all births. In these moments we sense and feel your holy presence. And thank you for your mystery working in us when we choose grace and mercy, even when norms or laws dictate otherwise. In this choice, you are revealed to us and to the world once more. Amen.


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But I Say to You…

Reading: Matthew 5:38-39

Matthew 5:38…39 – “You have heard that it was said… But I say to you…”

In Matthew 5, verses 21-48, Jesus offers a regiving of some of the ten commandments and the Law. These interpretations are stricter, more far-reaching than the originals. Each set of teachings begins with the same phrase: “You have heard that it was said… But I say to you…”

Our passage for today falls in the section subtitled “The Law of Retaliation.” Yes, once upon a time Moses said, “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” Originally this law also included a life, a hand, a foot, a bruise, and a wound. God, through Moses, was limiting retaliation to a one for one exchange. Jesus says, though, do better than that. He teaches his disciples not to even oppose or later try to get back at those who “want to hurt you.” For example, he says, if someone slaps you on the cheek, don’t slap or hit back. Instead, offer them the other cheek too. Here we see the seeds of the nonviolence common to some faith traditions.

This teaching also includes the idea of giving your shirt when that is being asked if you in court – and give them your coat too. Or if someone forces you to carry their load for a mile, go two miles instead. The practices of righteousness, humble service, and generosity are being extended beyond what many would say are the bare minimum.

Let us imagine what this might look like today. If a poor person asks you for $5, do we hear, “But I say to you, give them $20?” If your neighbor needs milk and bread, do we hear, “But I say to you, buy some cereal and PB&J too?” If another parents asks you to watch their kids one evening, do we hear, “But I say to you, go ahead and keep them overnight?” How might you hear the Holy Spirit speak this week as you seek to apply this idea to your context and life?

Prayer: Lord God , when we are tempted to get even or to plot our revenge, remind us of these words of Jesus. And when we want to hold too tightly to our time, to our stuff, to our talents, pry open our hearts and our hands. Thank you, generous and humble one. Amen.


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New Life in Christ

Reading: Romans 7:4-6

Romans 7:6 – “We have died with respect to the thing that controlled us, so that we can be slaves in the new life under the Spirit.”

As we begin this week focusing on having lips to speak and ears to listen, we begin in Romans 7. In our walk of faith, one of our greatest struggles is often choosing what voice(s) to listen to. For Christians this struggle often centers around what the world or our culture tries to tell us. This voice tells us that “things” matter most: wealth, power, status… Our inner being, “self,” can be drawn into this narrative because we are innately selfish, greedy, prideful…

In today’s passage Paul writes about choosing new life in Christ instead of trying to live under the Law of Moses. For devout Jews at this time following the Law was almost all that mattered: offer this sacrifice, say that prayer, attend the festival, give, worship. On the surface these can sound and can be good. But when one’s faithfulness to the rules leads to judging and rigidity in things like compassion, empathy, and service, then it can become a bad thing. And failing to uphold the Law led to a guilt and a shame that the Law could not remove.

Paul shares how this changes with the coming of Jesus Christ: “We have died with respect to the thing that controlled us, so that we can be slaves in the new life under the Spirit.” The religion of checking the boxes, the life that leads to death, has been superceded by faith in Christ. Living the new life in Christ, through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, tunes our ears to the will and way of God. This leads to a life that bears good fruit. Rooted in love, this fruit is peace, patience, joy, hope, forgiveness, self-control… Thanks be to God for the new life that we find in Christ!

Prayer: Lord God, as we die to self and to the ways of the world, what freedom we find. Instead of chasing after and worrying about accumulation, we become filled with content and peace, we practice presence and generosity. Instead of seeking to elevate self, we praise and glorify God as we lift others up. Thank you for the life of joy and hope, of love and grace found in Christ. Amen.


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Not Far

Reading: Mark 12:28-34

Mark 12:34 – “He said to him, ‘You aren’t far from God’s kingdom.”

The Pharisees and Sadducees have just taken turns trying to trap Jesus using questions based on the Law. Jesus has answered these questions that seemingly has no correct answer with answers that left these religious leaders stumped. Entering today’s passage we find a legal expert, impressed with Jesus’ previous answers, also asking Jesus a question. Based on the interaction that Jesus with the man, this seems like a legitimate question.

The religious expert wants Jesus’ opinion on the most important command. There are a lot of potential answers to this question but only one truly correct answer. I wonder, if someone asked this question of us and then examined our lives to find evidence for our answer, would the results match Jesus’ words? Observing our daily living for a few days, would our love of God and our love of neighbor be the guiding forces in our lives?

Jesus answers with the two great commands from Deuteronomy 6 and Leviticus 19. For all devout practicing Jews, this was the only answer: to live God with all that you are and to love neighbor as yourself. This should be our lives’ answer too. The legal expert appreciates and adds to Jesus’ answer. In response Jesus says, “You aren’t far from God’s kingdom.” May the evidence of our lives reveal the same.

Prayer: Lord God, your call is to love – to love you completely and then to allow this love to flow into the relationships we have with others. Love is to guide our decisions and actions, our words and our thoughts. Empower us this day and every day to be love lived out in the world. Amen.