Good Morning Friends,
God has made us an offer that is not based on what we can do but upon what Jesus did. By forgiving our sins God gives us a new heart and His Spirit that enables us to draw near in an intimate fellowship. The image is of a wedding. But we must say “Yes!” to the proposal of grace. The problem is that we would like to be in control of all the details, but the thing is that the Devil is in the details and sometimes we get unhinged from the door of peace. So, let us not pull any punches this morning. We all have a laundry list of transgressions, and we really do not want to be held to answer for them because we are not up to the rigorous moral inventory necessary to change. But we would like the Jesus way without so much shame. We may even realize that life is sometimes unmanageable but find it so difficult to forgive, So, How Do We Get Off Thinking That Life Is Sometimes Not Fair?
Scripture: But if the wicked turn away from all their sins that they have committed and keep all my statutes and do what is lawful and right, they shall surely live; they shall not die. None of the transgressions that they have committed shall be remembered against them; for the righteousness that they have done they shall live. Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord God, and not rather that they should turn from their ways and live? But when the righteous turn away from their righteousness and commit iniquity and do the same abominable things that the wicked do, shall they live? None of the righteous deeds that they have done shall be remembered; for the treachery of which they are guilty and the sin they have committed, they shall die. Yet you say, “The way of the Lord is unfair.” Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way unfair? Is it not your ways that are unfair? When the righteous turn away from their righteousness and commit iniquity, they shall die for it; for the iniquity that they have committed they shall die. Again, when the wicked turn away from the wickedness they have committed and do what is lawful and right, they shall save their life. Because they considered and turned away from all the transgressions that they had committed, they shall surely live; they shall not die.
Ezekiel 18:21-28 (NRSV)
For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. “You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
Matthew 5:20-26 (NRSV)
But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
Matthew 16:23 (NRSV)
He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”
John 21:17-19 (NRSV)
His lord said unto him, well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
Matthew 25:21 (KJV)
Message: In the beginning of Ezekiel’s ministry God said to him that He was sending the prophet to a stubborn and obstinate people. God said they may or may not listen to the words He gives him to say. And we have a similar problem today. The reality is that one of the reasons why so many people reject Jesus is because they feel that God is unjust. They feel as if God has done nothing to fix the problems in this world, or in their own lives or in the lives of their loved ones. They feel that it is all God’s fault and that they could do a better job in making things right if they were in control. Sometimes we think life is not fair because we are not in control of what is happening. And this false thinking is often applied when it comes to our salvation. The reality is that Christ did all the work, and we just basically must submit and follow in the Spirit of love, yet part of us wants to earn it. Thankfully part of us knows that God’s way is better. Of course, it is easy to get into focusing on how sour the grapes are. Sometimes we fight the wrong fight instead of the good one. We desire to fight our way to freedom even if it kills us. And certainly, God may have a better outcome for us and yet we still complain, deny God, and grieve the Spirit. Thankfully like Peter we might just learn that the sorrow of our sin can only be cured by love. Peter’s shame needed healing. And there is no other way but to be humbly joyful in our repentance as we pass on the love we have received.
I think Peter had that very same hope placed in him by Christ. Perhaps you have it too. Yes friends, there is a moral code … .one of love and relationships and we are not in control of them and ultimately that is fair because our control might well stifle the Holy Spirit and that does no one any good. What Jesus explains in today’s text is that there are sins of commission but also sins of omission and of our disposition. We are brought to the reality that we cannot legislate love. Friends, if we have love, good things will come to life. If we do not accept the offer of love our lives will be miserable. So, put down your animosity and shame and pick up your cross…. follow Jesus and love.
And So, life is not always fair but there is a God who is good and has made us an offer to give us a new heart. And even if we are responding to this relationship of submission and strategic action, and so often we do not, we still get tired or frustrated by results unseen. We might want to throw in the towel. But here in our power to seek a holy solution to life’s problems we have evidence of God’s justice in the face of the reality of what is unfair in the world. This Power rests in faith, but not in what our faith, courage and strategic action can do. Rather it rests in who our faith trusts. For in faith, we trust Jesus. Friends, there is no lack in Jesus. The resurrection is already woven into the fabric of life as a witness that our hope is not in vain. God is in charge, but we still have a part to play in response, not based on what we can do but upon what Jesus did and does though the gift of the Holy Spirit. Maybe the lure of legalism is still with us confusing the issue. The old covenant did an amazing job of revealing our sins and now the New Covenant is offered to us if we just accept the proposal to be at peace. The old covenant consists of rules and regulations and keeps us from focusing on seeking the love of our Lord. But there is no dual covenant in effect and God’s power cannot be denied, nor His mission frustrated. The thing is that the irresistible force here is the power of the resurrection, and it is not just an event of the past but of all time that permeates everything with hope. We have no right to complain about life being unfair when Jesus was treated so unfairly and still gave his life so we might live.
Pray we realize that we are changed by the love of grace not the law. Pray we realize that our sinfulness and the law’s inability to save us leaves us with only one option for salvation. Pray we clean up our anger and realize that the New Covenant is an offer we are not to refuse, for it is the one that God offers. Pray we believe in the power of resurrection. Pray we believe, no matter how mysterious it is, that God is capable of intervening and bringing good out of evil by the power of his infinite creativity. Pray we believe in signs of hope no matter how small they may be. Pray God’s love permeates us just as the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit infuses and invades all history. Pray we live to the glory of God in a Kingdom that never ends. Pray that we reconcile with God and reconcile with others. Pray the peace of God that passes all understanding keeps our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Pray we repent, receive forgiveness, and share the love we have received. Pray God restore in us a spirit of hope so that we do not give up when life seems unfair. Pray we open our hearts to a changed approach to help us stay positive. Pray we focus on good growth while advocating for loving justice. Pray that our priorities are in order. Pray that our activities are connected to Jesus. Pray that we work with Jesus for His purpose and glory.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 