Good Morning Friends,
On Sunday we had a sermon on the Samaritan Woman at the Well. And it raised some questions in the minds of some as to the claim in scripture of the woman to be in the lineage of Jacob and I surmise whether or not this was relevant to the modern-day conflict between Israel and Gaza . So I did some research and what I discovered was that as of 2024, the Samaritan community numbered around 900 people, split between Israel where some 460 live in Holon and the West Bank where some 380 live in Kiryat Luza. The Samaritans in Kiryat Luza speak Arabic and are not subject to mandatory military service while those in Holon primarily speak Israeli Hebrew are subject to conscription. Both groups have Israeli citizenship. It is all part of a very messy situation in the area but not to be confused with the larger Palestinian conflict. For recent DNA evidence suggests that the Palestinians were not always on the land as Islamic scholars allege, but were merely immigrants to the region from Europe, their claim of a “return” and their goal to expel Jews from modern-day Israel seems baseless given this evidence. But what is clear is that we all need forgiveness, for time is running out and we are still sinners even though we persist in the preparation of sanctification the best we can. Regardless of what we would like to control the waves that come like labor pains before the birth of a new creation. They come slowly at first and then increase in frequency and intensity. The reality is that the immense size and power of the coming storm is of epic portions over which we have absolutely no control and will make the earthly hurricanes even seem small. Of course, God is even more epic and perhaps you wonder, as I, how God can be so sacred and still be so forgiving in a way that extends beyond time. So, How Can A Perfectly Holy And Just God Accept Sinners?
Scripture: And you who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him— provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven. I, Paul, became a servant of this gospel.
Colossians 1:21-23 (NRSV)
One sabbath while Jesus was going through the grain fields, his disciples plucked some heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands, and ate them. But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?” Jesus answered, “Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and gave some to his companions?” Then he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.”
Luke 6:1-5 (NRSV)
But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8 (NRSV)
Your eyes are too pure to behold evil, and you cannot look on wrongdoing; why do you look on the treacherous, and are silent when the wicked swallow those more righteous than they?
Habakkuk 1:13 (NRSV)
john 4:12
Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank himself, and his children, and his cattle?
John 4:12 (KJV)
Message: Friends, sin separates us and just like you, I am blind to much of my sin, but Jesus knows all of them even the sins I have yet to commit. The reality is that I am not nearly good enough and neither are you. So, it concerns me that scripture says that God is too pure to look on evil and cannot allow any sin in his presence. The Bible clearly teaches that God is morally and perfectly holy and hates sin. But I do not think this is the whole story. In the Bible Satan and other demons are said to be in God’s presence. They know Jesus. But we also know that God is omnipresent and if God is present everywhere then it seems that the divine would also be in the presence of sinful creatures. So, what are we going to do with all this especially for those seeking power and purity? Maybe, for now, it is not so much about a physical presence, at least until God eventually quarantines evil from good and creates a New Heaven and Earth. Someday those who love God will no longer be in the presence of sin, but until then God tolerates sin to accomplish what needs to be done to save mankind and help us to believe in Jesus. If God truly could not be in the presence of sin, none of us would be here experiencing God. That is what the cross is all about. Thankfully there is the reconciling love of Jesus. Now reconciliation is the act of God to remove the chasm caused by our sins to restore a right relationship with us and others. Those are the most hopeful words to a believer. The harsh reality is that we deserve wrath because of our sinful estrangement. We are totally undeserving of forgiveness. We are divided. But instead of destroying us, God exercises merciful reconciling love to us. Think of the Samaritan Woman at Jacob’s Well and Jesus engaging her in conversation. Think of the Good Samaritan. Most Jews rejected the Samaritan’s claim to be descendants of the Hebrew tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. The woman at the well claims to be a descendant of Jacob but most Jews rejected this claim considering Samaritans colonists of a foreign country more akin to Islam than followers of the God of Israel. The identity and location of the Lost Tribes of Israel have been clouded over time after the Northern Kingdom of Israel broke with Judah during the Assyrian conquest 800 years before Jesus walked the earth. The tribes of Judah and Benjamin are considered the ancestors of the Jewish people today. Jacob, however, had twelve tribes. Some groups claim descent of these tribes which adds a contemporary dimension to the historical reality that sin continues to separate. The Samaritans and the Hebrew people share a common history. One has to wonder what the Middle East would look like if the Tribes were again united as one.
And So, God looks upon us with loving, compassionate mercy, withholding the judgement and fury that we justly deserve and He provides the payment…the atonement for Jew and Gentile. The purpose and the result of God’s perfect sacrifice, in the body of His flesh through death, was to allow Jesus to present us holy, and blameless, and above reproach in the Father’s sight. Friends, Jesus is our Creator, our Redeemer, and our Sustainer. Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ sacrifice and righteousness. So, persevere in the face of life’s storms. Have faith in the work of God in our Savior Jesus Christ. A new day will dawn, but it may take three thousand years before we see the light.
Pray that we repent. Pray we continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel. Pray that we realize that divine preservation presupposes human perseverance. Pray we accept Christ’s reconciling love. Pray we live in the hope that God owns us and has bought us and therefore will claim us before the Father as holy. Pray as a communion with God in the bread of Presence and wine of Salvation. Pray we believe that Jesus is Lord not just of the Sabbath but of all creation. Pray that people everywhere avoid the wrath of God.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 