sin

The greatest commandment

by

“You are not far from the kingdom of heaven.” Mark 12:28-34

Now a scribe comes with a question for Jesus. He seems to have a different approach as Mark tells us he had been listening as the others asked their questions. He readily saw that Jesus had answered well. The scribes were the theologians. They were experts at interpreting the scriptures, so he asks a scripture-based question: “Which is the greatest commandment?”

Jesus answers without hesitation, “The first: The Lord our God is one Lord. You shall love Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.” But then Jesus implies that this is not enough. There needs to be more to make the command complete: “You must also love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.”

The scribe responds, “You have spoken well,” agreeing with his synopsis. “Such love is greater than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” Jesus saw that he spoke thoughtfully, “You are not far from the kingdom of heaven.”

Note that Mark mentions what the scribe thought of Jesus’ previous answers. How did he know this? Mark was not there and the scribe does not reveal his reasoning. Could he have been one of those Jewish leaders who later came to the Lord and believed on him? We do not know for sure, but it is nice to think that he might have. Such is the hope of the gospel. None are excluded, no matter what their previous state had been.

The answer of Jesus is deceptively simple. The scribe’s question boils down to this: “What must a person do to please God?” or, “What must I do to be saved?” It is easy to learn phrases and pat answers and then parrot them back when the subject comes up. It is a much different thing to actually live it. Which commandment would you choose? Would you pick one you thought no one could ever catch you breaking? Or one that God would pick?

The one Jesus picked is harder than it first appears. What does it mean to love the Lord with all your “heart, soul, mind and strength”? Does he really mean all of my affection, desires, thoughts and activity should be directed at him? How is that even possible? I think we all know, either by trying or by wishing, that none of us could even begin to achieve this kind of sustained devotion. That is the point of this and all Law. None of us are able. Our best and only response is to throw ourselves at the feet of Jesus and beg for his mercy. Only through his help and strength can we start to become the people God intends us to be.

Stumbling about

by

“Have salt in yourselves…” Mark 9:42-50

A hook for a hand, a pegleg or an eyepatch might make a good calling card for the likes of Long John Silver and Captain Hook, but can anyone say these injuries improved the morals and behavior of such scalawags?

Jesus is concerned with the root of sin within us. Do our words and actions cause those around us to stumble and fall? Whoever causes a little child to stumble will suffer the worst God can mete out in judgment. It would be better for that person to have a very large millstone hung around his neck and be cast into the depths of the sea.

An innocent might be easily deceived and manipulated to go astray, but what causes a mature adult to stumble and fall? Is it your hand, a foot, or an eye? If so, cut it off and throw it away! It is better to enter life maimed than to know the fires and sufferings of hell.

Jesus is emphasizing the seriousness of our bad influence on others, not recommending drastic (and useless) self-mutilation. It is not the hand which draws our heart to sin, nor do the feet hasten our souls toward evil. Though the eye is a powerful influence, it only does the bidding of another. That other is the heart. It is the source of the problem. “For a fool speaks nonsense, and his heart inclines toward wickedness: to practice ungodliness and to speak error against the Lord” (Isaiah 32:6 NASB).

Jesus offers a better way: to be seasoned with salt and help make the world around us taste better and be preserved from evil. But what happens when we run out of salt? How do we get “salty” again?

Our own strength will fail us whether we are trying to avoid sin or are trying to do well. We need outside help. Jesus hints at the coming solution: “everyone will be salted with fire.” What other good thing comes with fire? He will baptize us with the Holy Spirit and fire. It is the Holy Spirit’s job to comfort us, i.e. to strengthen, empower and encourage us. Though we are saved, it is only with his help that we are able to overcome the failings of our hearts and the evil tendencies of the world around us.

Copyright 2020 David J. Cooley

My rowdy friends

by

“…he was eating with the sinners…” Mark 2:13-17

We have a word today that does a good job of describing Jesus: he was politically and religiously incorrect. He never seemed to be doing the right thing at the right time or to be with the right people.

Jesus went out again to the seashore. Of course, the crowd followed and he began to teach them. While he was out there, he passed a tax office. There were probably no crowds surrounding Levi as he sat at his desk. Tax collectors worked for the Herods and the oppressive Romans. They were widely regarded as greedy traitors or worse. Levi’s position was not the sort to attract the attention of anyone desiring to win friends and influence people. Yet Jesus approached him, saying, “Follow Me.” And Levi did.

Later, Jesus and his disciples were dining with Levi, who is also known as Matthew. In attendance were many tax-gatherers and sinners. Probably not the best optics for Jesus’ growing ministry. But he wasn’t concerned about that. These were people whom Jesus had reached out to and touched in some way. They were following him because they knew he could change their lives and remove their sin, unlike the Pharisees with their rules and categories.

Speaking of Pharisees, some of their scribes crashed the party. They were having trouble dealing with how these people had escaped the pigeon holes they had put them in. Once a sinner, always a sinner, they might have thought. Instead of confronting Jesus directly, they pulled a couple of disciples aside and demanded to know “why is he eating with tax gatherers and sinners?”

Jesus saw what they were up to and answered them: “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, only the sick. I didn’t come for the righteous, but for sinners.” Which let the scribes off the hook. Sort of. Their sense of their own righteousness was duly appropriated by saying and doing the proper thing at just the proper time and in just the right measure. It completely hid their own inadequacy in God’s sight. As long as they considered themselves righteous, they would miss out on the true righteousness that Jesus brings, and with it the key to entering God’s kingdom.

Copyright 2019 David J. Cooley

Arm yourself

by

“…live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.” 1 Peter 4:2

Ever notice how a little pain immediately reasserts cold, hard reality? Maybe it didn’t bother you as a kid, but now walking across hot blacktop in your bare feet is definitely not a good idea. Sure, we’ve all done stupid things that we regretted or paid for dearly the day after. That’s part of life and having fun with your friends, right? Somehow the pain and discomfort is forgotten the next time the opportunity comes around.

But, have you ever made a decision knowing that all you’ll get out of it is pain and suffering? You might ask, why would I ever want to do that?

At some point we will all face a crucial moment when we realize that to continue following after the crowd or to indulge in our our cravings and lust will dishonor Jesus. We may not even be fully convinced that such behavior is actually sinful, yet we suddenly see that to proceed will cause Christ much sorrow. We have to make a choice: who is my friend? What is the right thing to do? The question of what will cause the least pain and bring the most pleasure recedes from view.

Anyone who has made such a decision to stick with the Lord and his ways while facing certain retribution – whether verbal taunting or physical violence – knows that the pull of sin loses a lot of its grip in the aftermath. We are not so easily deceived the next time. And we find ourselves strengthened by the Lord to endure.

For more details, see 1 Peter 4:1-6

Copyright 2019 David J. Cooley