3rd Sunday
in Lent
March 4, 2018
Exodus 20:1-17; 1
Corinthians 1:18-25; John 2:13-22
1. God
has already done so much for them
a. God
has already brought them out of slavery in Egypt, thru Red Sea, sustained them
with manna in wilderness, and brought them to Mt Sinai
b. God
gave so many rules (613, more than just 10) to Moses on mountaintop that people
got restless and made golden calf, breaking 1st two commandments. Moses
broke tablets and later God made new set
c. Laws
keep going thru Exodus 23; confirmed and God gives Moses tablets in Exo. 24, Moses
on mountain 40 days & nights, more laws Exo. 25-31
d. Then
golden calf incident (Exo. 32) while Moses gone – Moses comes down mtn with
tablets from God, sees calf, and breaks tablets to pieces
e. Exo.
33 – Moses & Lord talk
f. Exo.
34 – God tells Moses to chisel out 2 stone tablets like the 1st ones and God
write the words of the covenant on them (get put in ark of covenant)
g. Torah
= law = direction = teaching
h. Not
rules/legalism/moralism but what God himself says about who he is and how he is
to be worshipped and honored (practices of those in covenant with him)
2. God’s
wisdom not same as human wisdom (1 Cor 1)
a. Contrast
with what society says (productivity is good, more important than sabbath;
advertising industry built on coveting; not self-made, we stand on the
shoulders of those who have gone before us)
1. You shall have no other gods
before me. You are your own boss. Do whatever you want to do
whenever you feel like it.
2. You shall not make any idols. Decide who and what is
important to you. Pay attention only to those people and things.
3. You shall not wrongfully use the
name of the Lord your God. It
does not matter when or how you say God’s name. You can use it to swear
or cuss or to get what you want (as in “God is on my side so you better do
things my way”) – not just cursing.
4. Remember the
Sabbath and keep it holy. It
doesn’t matter if you worship with God’s people on Sunday/regularly. If
there are other things you’d rather do, go do them.
5. Honor your father and mother. Parents don’t get it.
Ignore them whenever you can.
6. You shall not
murder. Kill
whatever or whoever gets in your way. The strongest live longest. Also
includes angry & hateful thoughts (commit murder in your mind)
7. You shall not commit adultery. Don’t worry about your
family. Think only about yourself and what you want.
8. You shall not steal. Finders
keepers! Toddler’s Rule of possession: I see it, I want it, it’s
mine! If you want it, figure out how to get it.
9. You shall not bear false witness. Lie if you have to get out of
trouble. Lie to get what you want. Lie to make yourself look good – even if it
makes someone else look bad.
10.You shall not covet. The one who dies with most toys wins. The world is full
of wonderful things. Get your share.
c. Unlike
the world’s wisdom, God’s wisdom about how to live as people who have already
received grace. God’s wisdom is about how to live in love with God and live with
each other
3. Jesus
sums up/fulfills law:
a. An
expert in the law tests Jesus in Matt 22, asking what’s the greatest
commandment. Jesus says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest
commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All
the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
i.
“Love God” from Shema in Deut. 6:5
ii.
“Love neighbor” from Lev. 19:18
b. This
is what it means to love God (1-5) & love neighbor (6-10)
c. Not
always easy; conflict is natural because of the diversity of creation and
because all of us who are created different try to live together and be in
relationship with each other.
d. Unity
in the early church isn’t a unity of opinion.
Instead, this is a unity of purpose and mission and values.
e. Working
towards transforming the conflict means that we’re committed to staying in
relationship no matter what, like a married couple for whom divorce is not an
option.
f. Baptismal
vows: “surround them with a community of love and forgiveness.” That means we
are united the midst of our diversity.
That means we don’t let our differences become barriers and walls
between us. That we forgive each other
when someone does us wrong. The last vow
includes a promise to increase their faith, confirm their hope, and perfect
their in love. We are all on this Christian journey together. We don’t do this alone.
Laws are gift to structure common life, to shape lives
worthy of God
·
“To be bound in covenant with God is to be set
free to live as God’s people” Feasting on
the Word, Year B, Volume 2, p. 76
·
The way we attend to God shapes the way we
attend to our neighbor
·
Faithful worship of God leads to proper love of
neighbor
·
Lent not about legalism or moralism, but journey
of deepening holiness
·
Not doing ok b/c keep 8 out of 10, but whenever
break any of them, fabric of relationship with God & each other torn apart
·
Opportunity to confess, renew, and increase in
faith
No comments:
Post a Comment