March 4, 2018 – Lent 3
Bible Reading Selections from Psalm 19:1-11
The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship throughout the earth. The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living. Reverence for the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the Lord are true; each one is fair. They are more desirable than even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey dripping from the comb. They are a warning to your servant, a great reward for those who obey them. (NLT)
Message Exodus 20:1-17, Mark 12: 29-34 et. al. “Preparing on the Foundation”
God reveals himself in nature. Everyone can be awed by a deep starry night. God reveals himself through his law. Many people, when they think law, especially religious law, think about binding restrictions that were purposed to control us rather than protect us, to take away our pleasure instead of preventing our pain, and to eliminate our freedom rather than build our faith. These people long to rebel against them by claiming they are outdated and irrelevant and have no consequences.
How different is the attitude of our Psalmist who sees God’s law as joy-giving, insightful, pure and lasting, true and fair; Like the skies, they are so wonderful we should admire and chase after them even more than we chase after material wealth, they are more satisfying than (fill in your greatest food temptation). David understood that God’s law and will warns us away from consequences created by lawless living and leads us to abundant blessing.
Paraphrasing Immanuel Kant, The more we reflect in awe on the heavens above and the moral law within, I see them as clearly understandable and relevant – they immediately connect with the core or our existence. (Critique of Practical Reason)
So, you are going to help me present God’s foundational law for humanity. I have a few explaining sentences here and there; but you will mostly going to be hearing from Bible writers. Your part will be cued to read on the projection.
Bible quotes (all from the NLT) are in green, their references follow in parens.
(There may be minor word changes for a consistent sense of flow, tense and
grammatical number and pronoun usage; additional paraphrasing of the text
is indicated by brackets [ ] Commentary and transitional sentences are in black.
Congregational readings are bold and underlined, and colored black for a
commentary response, green if it is a Scripture quote. The candles to the left
were also lit as indicated in purple font.
Then God gave the people all these instructions: “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. (Exodus 20:1-2) Even before we had a relationship with God, he demonstrates the value of being in relationship with him. He initiates the offer of relationship by his wondrous works, and that never changes, or … Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20a)
We must honor God. (1 Corinthians 6:19:20b)
But how do God’s people establish and maintain that relationship with him? Through Moses, God gave ten foundational principles of how to live together as God’s people. Jesus, in a conversation with a law expert, summed them up in two commands. He said, No other commandment is greater than these.” (Mark 12:31b) The Law expert agreed, saying These are more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.” (Mark 12:33d) to which Jesus, realizing how much the man understood, said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” (Mark 12:34a)
The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments. (Matthew 16:40)
Jesus said, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord.
You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. (Mark 12:29-30) (Light big candle 1)
The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other. And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, (Mark 12:32-33a)
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, then God says
You must not have any other god but me. (Exodus 20:3) (Light little candle 1)
We are his first priority of love, and He is to be our first priority and nothing should compete for that place of supremacy in our life.
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, then God says
You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind. (Exodus 20:4a) (Light little candle 2)
or [make] an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God (we rightfully and exclusively belong only to each other, and I will not tolerate your affection for any other gods (or priorities).” (Exodus 20:4b-5a) For what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: “I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. (2 Corinthians 6:16) So I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. (Exodus 20:5b-6) We cannot not influence those closest to us by our actions or inactions, and future generations cannot help but be impacted by how we choose to live. You are reasonable people. God is faithful to us. He will not allow temptation to be more than you can stand… So, my dear friends, flee from the worship of idols. (1 Cor 10:15a,13a-14b)
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, God says
You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God. (Exodus 20:7a) (Light little candle 3)
The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. (Exodus 20:7b) When you love someone, you don’t needlessly call out their name. Imagine that when something bad happens and you call out the name of your spouse or child or parent. They come running, and you say, “Never mind, I wasn’t talking to you.” You don’t do that to people you love. And you certainly try not to do things in their name that are not worthy of their name. You want to make the family proud. Of course, it does happen. Jesus warned us, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. (Mark 13:5b-6) Peter also warns us that there will be false teachers among you. They will cleverly teach destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them. (2 Peter 2:1b) So instead of misusing God’s name, making it vane and empty, revere it. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be (set apart as holy, honored, and sacred) hallowed be your name. (Matthew 6:9)
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, God says
Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. (Exodus 20:8) (Light little candle 4)
You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work… For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy. (Exodus 20:9-11) In difficult days of unending hard labor just to survive, God designed for us a day to refresh our bodies and renew our spirits. Admittedly, by Jesus’ day this law had gotten so over-regulated and twisted that it was one of Jesus’ favorite points of contention with the religious elite. Lest we think it no longer applies, I see article after article about how Americans are over-stressed and under-rested. We need to get away from thinking that it was a day designed to exercise heavy handed control over every activity in the name of God, and get back to its spirit – that is, that The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. (Mark 2:27) So Jesus [invites us], “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest…for your souls. (Matthew 11:28,29b) and that those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him. (Romans 14:6a) and that there is a [Sabbath] rest still waiting for the people of God... So let us do our best to enter that rest. (Hebrews 4:9,11)
(Pause) We love God with all that we are is the greatest command. The second is equally important:
Love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12:31) (Light big candle 2)
The law expert agreed, I know it is important … to love my neighbor as myself. (Mark 12:33a,c) These—and other such commandments (as follows) —are summed up in this one commandment (Romans 13:9b). So, how do we love our neighbor? It begins at home.
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
Honor your father and mother. (Exodus 20:12a) (Light little candle 5)
Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do... This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, “things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth.” (Ephesians 6:1-3) But Jesus illustrates how we can fool ourselves. He said, For instance, God says, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ In this way, you say they don’t need to honor their parents. And so you cancel the word of God for the sake of your own tradition. [Your] worship is a farce, for you teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’” (Matthew 15:4b-6,9) But those who won’t care for their relatives, especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith. (1 Timothy 5:8) Instead, the church family should take care of any widow who has no one else to care for her. But if she has children or grandchildren, their first responsibility is to show godliness at home and repay their parents by taking care of them. This is something that pleases God. (1 Timothy 5:3)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not murder. (Exodus 20:13) (Light little candle 6)
Yes, …our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I, [Jesus], say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment!… go and be reconciled to that person. (Matthew 5:21-22a,24b) For a person who has no love is still dead. Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them. (1 John 3:14b-15) But if we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. (1 John 3:14a,16)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not commit adultery. (Exodus 20:14) (Light little candle 7)
For the believing wife brings holiness to her marriage, and the believing husband brings holiness to his marriage [resulting in holy children]. (1 Corinthians 7:14) so give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. (Hebrews 13:4a) For God made them male and female’ from the beginning of creation. ‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one. Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.” (Mark 10:6-9)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not steal. (Exodus 20:15) (Light little candle 8)
For the thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. [Jesus’] purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. (John 10:10) So, we must not … steal, but must show ourselves to be entirely trustworthy and good. Then we will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive in every way. (Titus 2:9b-10) So if you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. (Ephesians 4:28)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not testify falsely against your neighbor. (Exodus 20:16) (Light little candle 9)
You are not to be bought or otherwise pressured to twist the truth to benefit those who would manipulate lives and the legal system to benefit themselves. Near the end of Jesus’ ministry, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death. (Matthew 26:59) On the other hand, even Jesus’ enemies (though perhaps insincerely) recognized his integrity: “Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. You teach the way of God truthfully. (Mark 12:14a) Following Christ’s example then, Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. Stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body (Ephesians 4:24-25), always ready to do what is good, not slandering anyone and avoiding quarrels. We should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. (Titus 3:1b-2)
(Pause) Finally, if we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not covet. (Exodus 20:17a) (Light little candle 10)
anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17c) Craving what belongs to others to have as our own leads to the temptation to break all the other “loving neighbor” commandments. Therefore, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” (Luke 12:15) people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. (1 Timothy 6:9-10) So learn to be content with whatever you have. (Philippians 4:11b) For true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. (1 Timothy 6:6) We should be satisfied with what we have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” (Hebrews 13:5) And even more, if someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? (1 John 3:17) we should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others. (1 Timothy 6:18)
(Pause) So the highly valued, desirable, sweet, foundational, law is before us. Don’t misunderstand. Jesus did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, he came to accomplish their purpose. (Matthew 5:17) to return it from a religious system’s externally imposed legalism to, as David felt it – a heart-felt desire to know and do what is right in God’s eyes. Paul sums this up –
Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit. (Romans 7:6)
I died to the power of the law when I died with Christ [to sin]... The law showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, “You must not covet.” But sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power. (Romans 7:4b,7c-8)
Does that mean the law of God is sinful? (Romans 7:7a)
Of course not! When I learned the command not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came to life, and I died. So I discovered that the law’s commands, which were supposed to bring life, brought spiritual death instead. Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me. But still, the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good. (Romans 7:7b, 9b-12)
But how can that be? Did the law, which is good, cause my death? (Romans 7:13a)
Of course not! Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation to death. So we can see how terrible sin really is. It uses God’s good commands for its own evil purposes. So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. (Romans 7:13b-14) This is what the law points out to us: That we need an intervener to save us from our all too human (sinful) nature that separates us from our Father in heaven.
Communion Introduction: Which draws us to the Communion table – where we are offered a new or renewed covenant relationship with God through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. All who desire to live by the Spirit of the law are free to participate. Let’s prepare by a time responsively praying this Confession…
Confession: So, Lord, you see how it is: In our minds we really want to obey your law, but because of our sinful nature we are slaves to sin. We have discovered this principle of life—that when we want to do what is right, we inevitably do what is wrong.
We love your law with all our heart.
But there is another power within us that is at our minds. This power makes us slaves to the sin that is still within us. Oh, what miserable people we are!
Who will free us from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Assurance: Thank you God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.
There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. (Romans 7:25b, 21-25a, 8:1-2 adapted into a prayer form) Therefore, in the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.
P: In the name of Christ, you are forgiven.
ALL: Glory to God, Amen.
On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” [So pour out your Holy Spirit on these people and on this bread and cup, making them be for us the body of Christ, that we may become his presence doing his ministry in the world today.] For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again. You should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. so that we are being disciplined [and] not condemned along with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:23b-26,28b,31b) For God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him [and his work on the cross]. There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. (John 3:17-18)
It is in the cross of Jesus that we find our foundation in the wilderness. So now this is what we are going to do. Paula is going to play the first verse of our preparation song, Beneath the Cross of Jesus. And in that time, we can write on our special slips of paper our individualized answer to the day’s question – which foundational Judeo-Christian ethic (which command) may I need to work on more diligently? Or perhaps the struggle is not so much the commands but our externally legalistic reception of them. They have not yet become joyously internalized. Or maybe something else is going on in your life that supersedes the topic of the day that you need to bring to the Lord – or, lacking any of these things – let the paper simply represent you bringing your whole self to the living waters, POUR WATER INTO BOWL HERE where I will stir them and they will dissolve into a cloud of prayers to our God. Once you have placed your paper in the water you will stand or kneel along the rail on either side of the wilderness display, where the stewards will serve you from the opposite side of the rail. Once you have eaten the bread and drunk the cup, you can take your empty cup to the basket on the front pews and return to your seats and continue to meditate while the others are served. If you cannot process, raise your hand, and someone will bring communion to you. Remember that only the pre-cut bread is gluten free. Paula will now play as we consider the question and our response to God and God alone…
Hymn # 297 (vv 1,3) Beneath the Cross
Distribution
Closing Blessing Be done with lesser things so that you will be made holy; prepared to be God’s useful instruments for his good and special purposes at all times. Amen.
Rule of Life with Three Amens, Music
Bible Reading Selections from Psalm 19:1-11
The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship throughout the earth. The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living. Reverence for the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the Lord are true; each one is fair. They are more desirable than even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey dripping from the comb. They are a warning to your servant, a great reward for those who obey them. (NLT)
Message Exodus 20:1-17, Mark 12: 29-34 et. al. “Preparing on the Foundation”
God reveals himself in nature. Everyone can be awed by a deep starry night. God reveals himself through his law. Many people, when they think law, especially religious law, think about binding restrictions that were purposed to control us rather than protect us, to take away our pleasure instead of preventing our pain, and to eliminate our freedom rather than build our faith. These people long to rebel against them by claiming they are outdated and irrelevant and have no consequences.
How different is the attitude of our Psalmist who sees God’s law as joy-giving, insightful, pure and lasting, true and fair; Like the skies, they are so wonderful we should admire and chase after them even more than we chase after material wealth, they are more satisfying than (fill in your greatest food temptation). David understood that God’s law and will warns us away from consequences created by lawless living and leads us to abundant blessing.
Paraphrasing Immanuel Kant, The more we reflect in awe on the heavens above and the moral law within, I see them as clearly understandable and relevant – they immediately connect with the core or our existence. (Critique of Practical Reason)
So, you are going to help me present God’s foundational law for humanity. I have a few explaining sentences here and there; but you will mostly going to be hearing from Bible writers. Your part will be cued to read on the projection.
Bible quotes (all from the NLT) are in green, their references follow in parens.
(There may be minor word changes for a consistent sense of flow, tense and
grammatical number and pronoun usage; additional paraphrasing of the text
is indicated by brackets [ ] Commentary and transitional sentences are in black.
Congregational readings are bold and underlined, and colored black for a
commentary response, green if it is a Scripture quote. The candles to the left
were also lit as indicated in purple font.
Then God gave the people all these instructions: “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. (Exodus 20:1-2) Even before we had a relationship with God, he demonstrates the value of being in relationship with him. He initiates the offer of relationship by his wondrous works, and that never changes, or … Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20a)
We must honor God. (1 Corinthians 6:19:20b)
But how do God’s people establish and maintain that relationship with him? Through Moses, God gave ten foundational principles of how to live together as God’s people. Jesus, in a conversation with a law expert, summed them up in two commands. He said, No other commandment is greater than these.” (Mark 12:31b) The Law expert agreed, saying These are more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.” (Mark 12:33d) to which Jesus, realizing how much the man understood, said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” (Mark 12:34a)
The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments. (Matthew 16:40)
Jesus said, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord.
You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. (Mark 12:29-30) (Light big candle 1)
The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other. And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, (Mark 12:32-33a)
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, then God says
You must not have any other god but me. (Exodus 20:3) (Light little candle 1)
We are his first priority of love, and He is to be our first priority and nothing should compete for that place of supremacy in our life.
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, then God says
You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind. (Exodus 20:4a) (Light little candle 2)
or [make] an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God (we rightfully and exclusively belong only to each other, and I will not tolerate your affection for any other gods (or priorities).” (Exodus 20:4b-5a) For what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: “I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. (2 Corinthians 6:16) So I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. (Exodus 20:5b-6) We cannot not influence those closest to us by our actions or inactions, and future generations cannot help but be impacted by how we choose to live. You are reasonable people. God is faithful to us. He will not allow temptation to be more than you can stand… So, my dear friends, flee from the worship of idols. (1 Cor 10:15a,13a-14b)
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, God says
You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God. (Exodus 20:7a) (Light little candle 3)
The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. (Exodus 20:7b) When you love someone, you don’t needlessly call out their name. Imagine that when something bad happens and you call out the name of your spouse or child or parent. They come running, and you say, “Never mind, I wasn’t talking to you.” You don’t do that to people you love. And you certainly try not to do things in their name that are not worthy of their name. You want to make the family proud. Of course, it does happen. Jesus warned us, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. (Mark 13:5b-6) Peter also warns us that there will be false teachers among you. They will cleverly teach destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them. (2 Peter 2:1b) So instead of misusing God’s name, making it vane and empty, revere it. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be (set apart as holy, honored, and sacred) hallowed be your name. (Matthew 6:9)
(Pause) If we are going to love God with all that we are, God says
Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. (Exodus 20:8) (Light little candle 4)
You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work… For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy. (Exodus 20:9-11) In difficult days of unending hard labor just to survive, God designed for us a day to refresh our bodies and renew our spirits. Admittedly, by Jesus’ day this law had gotten so over-regulated and twisted that it was one of Jesus’ favorite points of contention with the religious elite. Lest we think it no longer applies, I see article after article about how Americans are over-stressed and under-rested. We need to get away from thinking that it was a day designed to exercise heavy handed control over every activity in the name of God, and get back to its spirit – that is, that The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. (Mark 2:27) So Jesus [invites us], “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest…for your souls. (Matthew 11:28,29b) and that those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him. (Romans 14:6a) and that there is a [Sabbath] rest still waiting for the people of God... So let us do our best to enter that rest. (Hebrews 4:9,11)
(Pause) We love God with all that we are is the greatest command. The second is equally important:
Love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12:31) (Light big candle 2)
The law expert agreed, I know it is important … to love my neighbor as myself. (Mark 12:33a,c) These—and other such commandments (as follows) —are summed up in this one commandment (Romans 13:9b). So, how do we love our neighbor? It begins at home.
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
Honor your father and mother. (Exodus 20:12a) (Light little candle 5)
Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do... This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, “things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth.” (Ephesians 6:1-3) But Jesus illustrates how we can fool ourselves. He said, For instance, God says, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ In this way, you say they don’t need to honor their parents. And so you cancel the word of God for the sake of your own tradition. [Your] worship is a farce, for you teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’” (Matthew 15:4b-6,9) But those who won’t care for their relatives, especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith. (1 Timothy 5:8) Instead, the church family should take care of any widow who has no one else to care for her. But if she has children or grandchildren, their first responsibility is to show godliness at home and repay their parents by taking care of them. This is something that pleases God. (1 Timothy 5:3)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not murder. (Exodus 20:13) (Light little candle 6)
Yes, …our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I, [Jesus], say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment!… go and be reconciled to that person. (Matthew 5:21-22a,24b) For a person who has no love is still dead. Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them. (1 John 3:14b-15) But if we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. (1 John 3:14a,16)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not commit adultery. (Exodus 20:14) (Light little candle 7)
For the believing wife brings holiness to her marriage, and the believing husband brings holiness to his marriage [resulting in holy children]. (1 Corinthians 7:14) so give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. (Hebrews 13:4a) For God made them male and female’ from the beginning of creation. ‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one. Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.” (Mark 10:6-9)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not steal. (Exodus 20:15) (Light little candle 8)
For the thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. [Jesus’] purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. (John 10:10) So, we must not … steal, but must show ourselves to be entirely trustworthy and good. Then we will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive in every way. (Titus 2:9b-10) So if you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. (Ephesians 4:28)
(Pause) If we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not testify falsely against your neighbor. (Exodus 20:16) (Light little candle 9)
You are not to be bought or otherwise pressured to twist the truth to benefit those who would manipulate lives and the legal system to benefit themselves. Near the end of Jesus’ ministry, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death. (Matthew 26:59) On the other hand, even Jesus’ enemies (though perhaps insincerely) recognized his integrity: “Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. You teach the way of God truthfully. (Mark 12:14a) Following Christ’s example then, Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. Stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body (Ephesians 4:24-25), always ready to do what is good, not slandering anyone and avoiding quarrels. We should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. (Titus 3:1b-2)
(Pause) Finally, if we love our neighbor as ourselves, then God says
You must not covet. (Exodus 20:17a) (Light little candle 10)
anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17c) Craving what belongs to others to have as our own leads to the temptation to break all the other “loving neighbor” commandments. Therefore, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” (Luke 12:15) people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. (1 Timothy 6:9-10) So learn to be content with whatever you have. (Philippians 4:11b) For true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. (1 Timothy 6:6) We should be satisfied with what we have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” (Hebrews 13:5) And even more, if someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? (1 John 3:17) we should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others. (1 Timothy 6:18)
(Pause) So the highly valued, desirable, sweet, foundational, law is before us. Don’t misunderstand. Jesus did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, he came to accomplish their purpose. (Matthew 5:17) to return it from a religious system’s externally imposed legalism to, as David felt it – a heart-felt desire to know and do what is right in God’s eyes. Paul sums this up –
Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit. (Romans 7:6)
I died to the power of the law when I died with Christ [to sin]... The law showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, “You must not covet.” But sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power. (Romans 7:4b,7c-8)
Does that mean the law of God is sinful? (Romans 7:7a)
Of course not! When I learned the command not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came to life, and I died. So I discovered that the law’s commands, which were supposed to bring life, brought spiritual death instead. Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me. But still, the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good. (Romans 7:7b, 9b-12)
But how can that be? Did the law, which is good, cause my death? (Romans 7:13a)
Of course not! Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation to death. So we can see how terrible sin really is. It uses God’s good commands for its own evil purposes. So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. (Romans 7:13b-14) This is what the law points out to us: That we need an intervener to save us from our all too human (sinful) nature that separates us from our Father in heaven.
Communion Introduction: Which draws us to the Communion table – where we are offered a new or renewed covenant relationship with God through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. All who desire to live by the Spirit of the law are free to participate. Let’s prepare by a time responsively praying this Confession…
Confession: So, Lord, you see how it is: In our minds we really want to obey your law, but because of our sinful nature we are slaves to sin. We have discovered this principle of life—that when we want to do what is right, we inevitably do what is wrong.
We love your law with all our heart.
But there is another power within us that is at our minds. This power makes us slaves to the sin that is still within us. Oh, what miserable people we are!
Who will free us from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Assurance: Thank you God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.
There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. (Romans 7:25b, 21-25a, 8:1-2 adapted into a prayer form) Therefore, in the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.
P: In the name of Christ, you are forgiven.
ALL: Glory to God, Amen.
On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” [So pour out your Holy Spirit on these people and on this bread and cup, making them be for us the body of Christ, that we may become his presence doing his ministry in the world today.] For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again. You should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. so that we are being disciplined [and] not condemned along with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:23b-26,28b,31b) For God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him [and his work on the cross]. There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. (John 3:17-18)
It is in the cross of Jesus that we find our foundation in the wilderness. So now this is what we are going to do. Paula is going to play the first verse of our preparation song, Beneath the Cross of Jesus. And in that time, we can write on our special slips of paper our individualized answer to the day’s question – which foundational Judeo-Christian ethic (which command) may I need to work on more diligently? Or perhaps the struggle is not so much the commands but our externally legalistic reception of them. They have not yet become joyously internalized. Or maybe something else is going on in your life that supersedes the topic of the day that you need to bring to the Lord – or, lacking any of these things – let the paper simply represent you bringing your whole self to the living waters, POUR WATER INTO BOWL HERE where I will stir them and they will dissolve into a cloud of prayers to our God. Once you have placed your paper in the water you will stand or kneel along the rail on either side of the wilderness display, where the stewards will serve you from the opposite side of the rail. Once you have eaten the bread and drunk the cup, you can take your empty cup to the basket on the front pews and return to your seats and continue to meditate while the others are served. If you cannot process, raise your hand, and someone will bring communion to you. Remember that only the pre-cut bread is gluten free. Paula will now play as we consider the question and our response to God and God alone…
Hymn # 297 (vv 1,3) Beneath the Cross
Distribution
Closing Blessing Be done with lesser things so that you will be made holy; prepared to be God’s useful instruments for his good and special purposes at all times. Amen.
Rule of Life with Three Amens, Music
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