Monday, June 4, 2018

Laws Are Meant to Keep Our Focus

Laws Are Meant to Keep Our Focus 
2 Corinthians 4:5-12; Mark 2:23-3:6 

Human laws are understood to apply equally to people in the population. Human justice in the United States, theoretically, sees everyone as equal. When we detail the extent to which racial prejudice is documented in the application of our laws, we know that we have a long way to go to achieve equality. 

It becomes more of an issue, when the system of making laws is highjacked to give and preserve an advantage for those who have power and privilege. It happens. We know it happens. The situation we face in our “free” society is that the advantage is tipped towards money, and preserved by lies, fear mongering, and harsh voting restrictions. Power is preserving an advantageous position under the guise of law and order. 

These cultural issues are not new. They did not get invented today. And the love of law and order as a front, is time honored way of masking the preservation of the status quo. The laws of God are not immune. 

It is easy to be outraged every day at the variety of ways we manipulate ‘law and order’ to limit the freedom and free expression of people of color. The rich, white owners of the NFL making rules about how the mostly black players must “respect” the national anthem comes to mind. We are even more cruel if the people of color are also poor, and also have no or limited legal status as a citizen. We do not accept that undocumented immigrants have even human rights. 

Jesus of Nazareth, was an itinerant preacher. He did not have credentials from the Temple school in Jerusalem. While he was from the house of David, it would be hard to make a clear case that he had the correct genealogy to be a priest from the house of Levi. There are rules you know. 

The Herodians were folks who believed that the political arrangement between the family of Herod and the Roman occupying forces, provided the best means available for life in the land of Israel. Taxes were collected by Herod, and paid off the Romans, and maintained a sense of order in the economy for Herod and the Israeli people. And the priests in the Temple got their cut, too. 

The Pharisees were far less political. They were a religious people, deeply devoted to the law of Moses. They took great pride in being able to list and follow, hundreds if not thousands of the little rules, particularly in Leviticus. They were the forerunners of the Orthodox and Ultra-Orthodox Jews of our day. They have prayer outfits that carry the symbols associated with the priority each sect gives to the law. They can only be moved to political action, by demonstrating a threat to respect for the Law of Moses. 

In the gospel of Mark, the Herodians quickly assessed Jesus as a threat. There were a continuing string of would be Messiahs in the land, trying to raise a rag-tag army to confront the Romans and the forces of Herod who had sold out the people. The Herodians were vigilant in detecting threats, and heading them off before the Romans got tired of the elaborate balancing act that preserved their positions. 

In today’s story, the compassionate Jesus defends his disciples while they conveniently broke one of the 10 commandments. Can you believe it? A preacher condoned these would be disciples of a so-called holy man, when they overtly broke the commandment about the Sabbath. 

One of my favorite parts of this story is that the commandment respecting the sabbath is in near total disregard today. We all talk about how busy we are. We all talk about being tired and run down. We almost never even consider that there is a commandment to take a day off. Go home. Sit down. Say a prayer. Pay attention to the family. Leave the TV alone. Listen to you own heartbeat. Take the kids, and walk around the block. I cannot tell you how often people have complained that church “ran late,” as if 60 minutes is an absolute maximum God is allowed. Sabbath is supposed to be a whole day! This is not a suggestion from Pastor Chuck, it is one of the 10 commandments. 

The disciples pulled the heads off of, maybe wheat, and were chewing on the grains. The Herodians said, “see how uncouth this rural, undisciplined group is!” And the Pharisees said, “Oh, now I see. They do not even follow the 10 commandments. You are right. This must be a religious front for a terrorist group. We will help you get rid of this Jesus.” 

So is Jesus wrong for healing the sick, and having a snack on the Sabbath? Jesus tries to help people see that the Sabbath was intended by God to keep the lines of communication between God and humanity open. It is like, “Call your mother on Sunday afternoon.” It is good for you. It is not about assessing a penalty. It is not a measure of justice. It is doing what feeds the relationship. The Law of God directs us towards love, and is not designed to judge - even ourselves - as unworthy.  

The commandments of God feel like a burden, heck it feels like a logic puzzle, in the hands of those who obsess over rules. When we become obsessed by rules and the right way to do things, it becomes a burden. We all have stories about the matriarch who obsessively controlled the family dinners, or the church kitchen. 
An important thing to understand is that the generation of today will gladly never return to church or the family dinner, if they encounter their generosity confronted by mini dictators. This generation will not play the game twice. We need to be constantly aware of ourselves, and what pressure we put on others to conform. Is it necessary? Is it healthy? Can we do it in a way that makes new people feel welcome and included? If the answer to any of those questions is ”NO,” then get over it. 
The answer of course, is to live with love. To live with love is to extend grace to yourself and to others. Your relationship with God makes you Good Enough. Sometimes, I am not logical. I do things the same way, because it makes me comfortable. Some habits are useful, because there are efficiencies built in to my routines. If I do it the same way, I will have what I need, and I will not forget something now, that I will need later. 
When I give myself grace, I am free to be myself, and I do not set such high expectations that I am frozen by the fear of failure. I do not try too hard, so I am free to express myself in relationship to you. I ask how you are, and listen for the heart of your answer. I encourage you to share your concerns, and trust you will hear my reply. 
Rules are not wrong. But the self-inflated righteous who thunder about, “These are Commandments, Not suggestions,” need to take a little time with Jesus. This is one of any number of stories. Know the commandments, but love the heart of what God is trying to say, and then live with love leading the way. The biggest reason for the laws and rules on the Bible, is to think about God, talk to God, build your relationship. 

God is the creator of the universe. God has a quality lifestyle that does not include agonizing over your every little infraction of every rule. Instead, God looks into the hearts of the human family, and shares love. Let the laws of God help you draw a straight line, a line straight to the heart of God, and follow that path. May God’s peace and love surprise you this day, and every day, Amen. 

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