The Pharisees had one big, monumental flaw; they thought they were the source of their own righteousness. They were convinced and comfortable with the understanding that their lives and their adherence to the law is what made them righteous.
Well. If Jesus and Paul don't have something to say about that...
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Paul makes a very influential and well-known distinction about righteousness in Romans. He goes back and talks about Abraham, the man who was willing to sacrifice his own son at the request of God. Paul explains that it was Abraham's faith that imparted righteousness to him.
Now, before we go any further let's really make sure we've wrapped our minds around that.
"Faith = Righteousness."
He does not say that "The Law = Righteousness." Nor does he say "Action = Righteousness"
"Abraham believed the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness." - Romans 4:3/Genesis 15:6
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And this is where the Pharisees had it all wrong. They didn't grasp the understanding that faith is what justifies a person. They didn't grasp that the law wasn't the tool which made a person righteous. In fact, the law does the exact opposite! If you read on in Romans you will see Paul explain what it is that the law actually does in terms of righteousness and being justified.
"The law was added so that the trespass might increase." - Romans 5:20
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Did you get that? How is it that The Law can be blamed for trespass? Well, it does this because it creates the potential for people to break the law, right? If there are no rules, then no punishment can come as a result of actions that have no consequences tied to them. But, if we have The Law and these lists of procedures of do's and don'ts then we have all these opportunities to do what The Law tells us not to or to not do what The Law says we should do.
The Law breeds trespass. It sets clear boundaries so that sin becomes categorically identifiable.
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So do you see why this left the Pharisees out in the cold? No person lacks the capability to live a sinless life. Only Christ did that. And here is a news flash for you: Christ didn't even always adhere to The Law! Check out Matthew 12:1-14 and you will see Jesus break The Law two times in one day and the Pharisees become so aggravated that they start plotting to kill Jesus.
That should send up all your red flags to make it clear that the Pharisees were completely invested in the wrong idea of righteousness! Following The Law, even to the tee, does not reconcile you with God. It doesn't impart righteousness to you the way you need it.
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And this is where all the, "well I'm a good person so I'm sure God and I are okay" is completely debunked. Doing or not doing certain things is far less important to God than the relationship you develop with God when you have faith.
That relationship through Jesus is the only way that true reconciliation is achieved. It is because of all our unrighteousness is taken from us and put on Jesus, who took it to hell for us. And that moment, not only have we handed over all these ugly and painful trespasses, sins, and transgressions against people and against God, but in that same moment that we gave it up, Jesus gave us His righteousness.
So in that moment, our faith is what has allowed Christ's righteousness to be imparted to us in exchange for our unrighteousness.
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Do you see the monumental difference between achieving righteousness like that and achieving it the way the Pharisees were trying to? The Pharisees were actually so caught up in this whole debacle that they believed and taught that if everyone would just simply keep to The Law and it's guidelines for one single day, the Messiah would come to earth and save everyone.
But these are night and day differences to how we become righteous. In one instance, it is all about what has been done for us. In the other, it is all about what we do ourselves. And as I'm sure we have all learned, doing things by ourselves is often hard and unsuccessful.
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I make this whole argument for one reason; I think today we may be walking a fine line of becoming Pharisees of a different kind. A kind that focuses on social justice instead of The Law.
I say that because sometimes amidst all of the Christian activism today, Jesus gets lost. I know I haven't been on the scene forever, but I've noticed that Jesus doesn't always gets the props He deserves in those settings.
I've seen it, instead, become more about people doing whatever they are doing because it is about them. It is about them doing these works to receive or maintain righteousness in their life. But that just isn't how it works.
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We really need to embrace and grasp the understanding that the good things which flow out of our lives and the good works we do are a product of our faith and the righteousness imparted to us by that faith.
We need to always remember that we are dead to ourselves, and it is Jesus living through us in those things we do and social justice issues we are addressing.
And we need to remember that "we walk by faith, not by sight." - 2 Corinthians 5:7
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I do nothing. I am weak. Jesus is strong. And it is in my weakness that He shows up and does things that wouldn't happen if it was just me and not Him. That is how I know that Jesus is the one working through me and doing things. It is because of Jesus that good works come out of me, because they are a product of my soul changing more and more into what He wants it to be and look like.
"The Lord said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." - 2 Corinthians 12:9
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The Law had us in chains, and it created trespasses because we are weak. But remember we are now free from The Law in that way.
"The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." - Romans 5:20-21
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Peace.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Anticipating Change
**A reformatted and reedited article I wrote**
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Transitions are always difficult; primarily because most of the time they are mandatory. In addition to the lack of choice we have when dealing with a transitional time, there is also a large amount of uncertainty. More so than usual.
Transitions always bring with them questions about what life will be like on the other side of this change. And whether or not we can even make it after that change.
And perhaps the questions we face that we are most invested in are these: Will I be happy in this new place or this next season of life? Will I be content? Will I be fulfilled? Will the things I’m doing be life-giving?
...
Some might be in the midst of one such life transition, but one large population (of which I am apart) has one coming right around the corner; right around the month of May.
Graduation.
...
We will be leaving our institutions, and most will probably be leaving their current locations altogether. So much of what has become familiar and comfortable over the past four or so years will be completely gone.
A season of life that most people in the world never experience, and that those who do almost never experience more than once, is over.
...
Even short breaks probably give some students, regardless of class standing, a taste of how odd transitions can be. They leave college and go home or they go visit someone/someplace we wouldn’t otherwise see and noticeably feel the difference of a life rhythm that exists in the college academic machine versus just about everywhere else. Obligations and priorities are vastly different during normal school times and during breaks, and sometimes I imagine if that break were permanent (which is essentially how it will be after graduation) what I would do with all that free time and freedom.
And that is a kind of exhilarating and exciting question! Until, that is, you factor in all the new responsibilities that come with that transition. The school loans, the rent, the groceries, and all the additional expenses that I'll be supplying for myself.
Then the question isn’t exhilarating. It’s just stressful.
...
And that may be where some of the apprehension of moving on really comes in. All transitions have us leaving something we know and have a good handle on into something less predictable. We know what it looks like to get food, have a place to live, drive a car, and handle finances (at least to an extent) while being in college. We've been doing it for almost four years.
But not only will we have to figure out how to juggle taking care of those things after the institution no longer does most of it for us, but we'll have to do it in a completely different social setting. I won’t live on a floor with some of my closest friends with the rest of the people I care about most only a couple hundred yards away in a different building. I will live somewhere very different from that, even if it is still in Canton.
A lot of the people I am around now will be in a lot of different places. And most of those places will probably be far away form me and each other.
...
As sad as it may be to leave or as uncomfortable as it might be to go, I can’t help but suggest that perhaps the most appropriate response to the whole experience is thankfulness. Thankful for the things we have been able to experience. Thankful for the time of our lives where we became (with or without our institutions) more of who we will be for the rest of our lives. Thankful for the relationships, thankful for the memories, thankful for the knowledge, and thankful for the ability to learn so much. Whether it is by seeing things done well or seeing them done poorly.
...
There is an aspect of trust that I think is appropriate for entering transitions, even with them being so riddled with uncertainty.
We can trust that we valuable and worth being taken care of. That those needs we have will be met.
...
One of the more interesting things to me in the Lord's prayer is that Jesus encourages us only to ask for our daily bread when it comes meeting our provisions. The rest of our desires and preferences are peripheral compared to having this world resemble how God would have it. His will before ours, right?
...
And if that is the case, regardless of all the anxieties, sadness, or uncertainty that follows us as some of us move into a different season of life, we can trust that if we pursue that with our lives, we will be taken care of. Not that it won’t be hard or maybe even uncomfortable, but we will know that we are doing what we were made to do.
And that is what will be most fulfilling.
...
Peace.
...
Transitions are always difficult; primarily because most of the time they are mandatory. In addition to the lack of choice we have when dealing with a transitional time, there is also a large amount of uncertainty. More so than usual.
Transitions always bring with them questions about what life will be like on the other side of this change. And whether or not we can even make it after that change.
And perhaps the questions we face that we are most invested in are these: Will I be happy in this new place or this next season of life? Will I be content? Will I be fulfilled? Will the things I’m doing be life-giving?
...
Some might be in the midst of one such life transition, but one large population (of which I am apart) has one coming right around the corner; right around the month of May.
Graduation.
...
We will be leaving our institutions, and most will probably be leaving their current locations altogether. So much of what has become familiar and comfortable over the past four or so years will be completely gone.
A season of life that most people in the world never experience, and that those who do almost never experience more than once, is over.
...
Even short breaks probably give some students, regardless of class standing, a taste of how odd transitions can be. They leave college and go home or they go visit someone/someplace we wouldn’t otherwise see and noticeably feel the difference of a life rhythm that exists in the college academic machine versus just about everywhere else. Obligations and priorities are vastly different during normal school times and during breaks, and sometimes I imagine if that break were permanent (which is essentially how it will be after graduation) what I would do with all that free time and freedom.
And that is a kind of exhilarating and exciting question! Until, that is, you factor in all the new responsibilities that come with that transition. The school loans, the rent, the groceries, and all the additional expenses that I'll be supplying for myself.
Then the question isn’t exhilarating. It’s just stressful.
...
And that may be where some of the apprehension of moving on really comes in. All transitions have us leaving something we know and have a good handle on into something less predictable. We know what it looks like to get food, have a place to live, drive a car, and handle finances (at least to an extent) while being in college. We've been doing it for almost four years.
But not only will we have to figure out how to juggle taking care of those things after the institution no longer does most of it for us, but we'll have to do it in a completely different social setting. I won’t live on a floor with some of my closest friends with the rest of the people I care about most only a couple hundred yards away in a different building. I will live somewhere very different from that, even if it is still in Canton.
A lot of the people I am around now will be in a lot of different places. And most of those places will probably be far away form me and each other.
...
As sad as it may be to leave or as uncomfortable as it might be to go, I can’t help but suggest that perhaps the most appropriate response to the whole experience is thankfulness. Thankful for the things we have been able to experience. Thankful for the time of our lives where we became (with or without our institutions) more of who we will be for the rest of our lives. Thankful for the relationships, thankful for the memories, thankful for the knowledge, and thankful for the ability to learn so much. Whether it is by seeing things done well or seeing them done poorly.
...
There is an aspect of trust that I think is appropriate for entering transitions, even with them being so riddled with uncertainty.
We can trust that we valuable and worth being taken care of. That those needs we have will be met.
...
One of the more interesting things to me in the Lord's prayer is that Jesus encourages us only to ask for our daily bread when it comes meeting our provisions. The rest of our desires and preferences are peripheral compared to having this world resemble how God would have it. His will before ours, right?
...
And if that is the case, regardless of all the anxieties, sadness, or uncertainty that follows us as some of us move into a different season of life, we can trust that if we pursue that with our lives, we will be taken care of. Not that it won’t be hard or maybe even uncomfortable, but we will know that we are doing what we were made to do.
And that is what will be most fulfilling.
...
Peace.
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