The Letter or The Spirit?

Tension. It exists in many areas of our life. Tension can serve two purposes: it can promote fear and dread of impending events, or it can push us to examine and investigate the questions at hand.
The tension many face in their walk with Christ is, how do the laws and grace coexist within the same Kingdom?
In Deuteronomy, the last book of the Pentateuch, God chooses to reveal himself to a nation of people who would usher in the birth of a new King and this King would announce the construction of His Kingdom. All that from Deuteronomy? Well not exactly. At least not if we get bogged down in the laws contained there as so many do. God goes deeper than just re-quoting His laws, He goes behind the 10 commandments to address the reason of why He gave these laws. The Spirit of the law.
John Walton a professor of Old Testament Studies at Wheaton College in his article "Deuteronomy: An exposition of the Spirit of the Law" 1987 (http://www.wheaton.edu/Academics/Faculty/W/John-Walton) , helps us to understand this book's purpose and relieve some of the tension created as we struggle to reconcile OT laws and see God's grace in them.
There a method at work I've missed for years but becomes somewhat clearer as we begin to understand that, while Deuteronomy (which means second law) was being repeated to a new generation of people (the previous generation had passed away in the wilderness), God wasn't merely saying keep these laws or else! He was revealing His heart of compassion to His people in a way more which more deeply explains the motivation behind the laws. In short He was saying what Jesus would 3000 years latter repeat to others. "Love God and Love People". The letter of the law addresses our actions, the spirit addresses the motivation that prompts these actions. God has Moses repeat the 10 commandments in chapter four, but then in chapters 6-24, expounds in a deeper way the spirit behind the laws. Walton further dissects these chapters in 4 categories;
Authority-that God is due and that He gives us
Dignity-The honor God is due and the honor we bestow upon others because of His gift to us
Commitment-That which we have for God and he has for us, and that which we have for one another.
Rights and Privileges-What God can and will do, and what what is expected of us.

I have placed the letter beside each commandment which correlates with Waltons idea.

A     1       Duet: 6-11              D     6    Duet:  16:18-18:22

D     2     Duet:12                   D       7    Duet: 19-21

C      3     Duet: 13:1-14:21     D        8   Duet: 22:1-23:14

R&P  4  Duet: 14:22-16:17     C        9.  Duet: 24:8-16

A       5    Duet: 16:18-18:22    R&P  10. Duet: 24:17-26:15

I realize this isnt my usual blog, but understanding the OT as best we can, provides the foundation upon which to build any spiritual structure. As you read through these chapters, don't look for concrete comparisons, remember the Spirit of the law was God's concern, not verbatim repetition. Merely repeating the laws and then carrying out these laws robotically, is what Jesus preached against.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. Matthew 23:23

Our/OUR Past: A Stepping Stone or Quicksand

Understandably some parts of the Bible are more engaging than others. Stories and the exploits of others tend to peak our interest and hold our attention more than unending lists of do's and don'ts.  But these list when rightly understood reveal a rich and complex spiritual heritage which each believer can claim as his/her own. Psalms. Proverbs, The Prophets and even the historical books all  find their beginnings in the understanding of an agreement between God and His people.
Too many times we focus on our past instead of OUR past which God specifically orchestrated in order to present the world with a Savior which it so desperately needed.
Maybe a few short years ago (our past) you found yourself in an uneviable or even embarrassing circumstance(quicksand). But a few thousand years ago (OUR past) God was putting together a plan with you in mind (stepping stone). Maybe just yesterday (our past) you did or said something which weighs heavily in your spirit today (quicksand). The plan God put into motion (OUR past) and fulfilled in Christ allows us to move past those failures embrace his already promised forgiveness, turn our attention towards Him and do things differently( stepping stone).
In our Sunday service we often take questions by either text or sometimes a person will just ask during service. This past weekend this was one of the questions asked:
What if I don't think God will ever forgive me?
Well for one, it really doesn't matter what we think about God in this context. God doesn't act based on our opinions or (usually) feelings. He is rock solid in His word and He says we are forgiven in Christ. Period.Stepping Stone
The human problem still exists however. How we feel usually dictates our actions. Usually these feelings about God are guilty consciences because we have wronged a person. If that person can't or won't forgive us then surely God won't either. Or if I can't forgive then God won't forgive me. Either way, we make God in our fallen image, which is incapable of forgiving, or being forgiven on our own. Quicksand.
The Bible is God's gift to a fallen world in dire need of answers. Even those hard to understand books are part of these answers. The Bible shows humanity in fallen and broken state. The Bible also shows the perfect grace, mercy and yes, justice of God. If there is a time when you just can't think God would forgive you then read these words from God found in the book of Numbers, after the Israelites rebelled time and time again.
20 So the LORD said, "I have pardoned them according to your word;
21 but indeed, as I live, all the earth will be filled with the glory of the LORD.
22 "Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice,
23 shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spurned Me see it. Numbers 14.
After they refused to go into the promised land, God still pardoned. Moses interceded as does Christ for us. And while this pardon didn't gain them entrance to the promised land, God explicitly stated they were pardoned. I bet those people didn't feel too forgiven!
Which brings us to our closing point: Earthly consequences don't reflect heavenly forgiveness. We live in a world governed by laws, which is good! Imagine life where your neighbor could ransack your house at will. Break the law and there is a price to pay. Courts and our justice system usually see to this.
But in the Kingdom of God, He is the judge, the prosecution, the defence, the jury. We are the accused, but that guilty verdict was placed upon Christ on our behalf. How do we know this? The Bible. Our spiritual history (OUR past) shows the plan of God and how He never gave up on humanity, even when humanity had given up on itself (our past). It's a solid truth that can allow us to stand safely (stepping stone) and securely in His grace. The other choice is to focus on how bad we messed up and sink (quicksand).

My Love Autobiography

The Story

For most people reading the Bible from cover to cover is a huge undertaking. Over the next year I am studying the Bible book by book and then during our services speaking about the theme that emerges from each of these books. I have encouraged each member of our church to do the same.
So far we've covered Genesis, Exodus and Leviticus, halfway through the Pentateuch (first five books of the Bible).  In my Bible thats about 171 pages. So divide the amount of pages by days and you have about 8 pages to read a day. (throw in the snow days and that number of pages decrease).
Genesis and Exodus are both in a story form, which slowly dissolves when you reach the book of Leviticus. Laws abound, ceremonies and sacrifices take center stage. Admittedly the Bible does become harder to understand. But rather than dropping the whole plan, circle those hard to read texts as unread (like many of our emails) and come back to them. Underline those passages that God speaks to you through. What you may discover is that you understand more than you thought you would!
The Bible is a continuous account of God dealing lovingly with the human race. He shares His grace and mercy, makes and fulfills promises on every page. And then there are those places God shows us that His justice will prevail at the expenses of our comfort. Those may be the passages which cause us problems.
Understanding the Bible is not a prerequisite for our salvation, but learning about His ways and promises allows us to enjoy our salvation given by God. So keeping that idea in mind here are a couple of points which help me to stay the course while reading those "hard" passages.
1. There are no short cuts. God does not fast track anybody. College courses allow us to "clep" courses, but God doesn't. He wants us to "grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ"
2. We never arrive. The children of Israel began their spiritual decline as soon as Egypt was out of sight.  Their delivery from bondage was just a step in the direction of God's plan, not the final plan itself.
3. God knows us better than we do ourselves, no matter how much we self evaluate or read self help books. He created us and knows us.
4. God didn't call us out of bondage to sit on the sidelines to observe. The Children of Israel were chosen, as are we, to share the knowledge we are given by God to the world.

Focus

Over the last few months I've taken a break from blogging, writing and even stepped back in some areas of ministry around the church. A huge no no in the world of social media! Marketing specialist will tell you blog and blog often, paste yourself all over the place! I've never been a fan of self promotion, which is probably why I'll never make the big times! That's OK I really don't want that any way. I want Jesus to make the big time!
My new book, The Peter Perspective, is due out in a couple of weeks, which makes two books I've penned. But even with the new book coming out, I shy away from even mentioning that I've had two books published. I just can't get past the feeling that I am promoting me instaed of Jesus. Make no mistake, I want people to read the books and hopefully strengthen their walk with Jesus and I know that sooner or latter I will have to take the steps needed to promote those books, but I will do it prayerfully. Ego is often a quiet, unseen enemy of the Christian walk. But ultimately, some one will think that it's all about the books and less about Jesus, I can't help that. This is much like the new series I am undertaking at our Church, The Bible. It's all a matter of focus.
Every week I take a book of the Bible and go through it as much as time allows. It's not an in depth study but more of a look at important passages, themes and people which emerge from the pages of sacred text. This week I am in Leviticus, uh-oh! That's tough book considering Christians use certain passages from it to condemn actions of others and usually they end up condemning people. Too late! People are already condemned without Jesus and no amount of following rules will change that!
Much like my book, where I want people to focus on Jesus, the writer of Leviticus gave these rules to show people they should focus on the perfection of God. A few days under these rules set up by God for the people, should have shown the inability to keep all these rules. They needed a permanent solution. Jesus. Abraham back in Genesis was the first person to recognize the gospel promise, God was confirming this promise to the people he had chosen. The Holy nation He was building would be a testimony to His love and Grace.
Holy people live in a state of holiness because of God's gift of righteousness through His Son, not our efforts. But even with that knowledge Christians continue to quote the OT laws or throw them in the face of "sinners" rather than remember Jesus' words, "Love God and love people". Make no mistake running afoul of God's plans creates some strife among people. There are rules we must follow. The law was nailed to the cross and fulfilled by Jesus as payment between us and God. But a debt remains when people sin against one another. Yes God forgives, that is a done deal, but people aren't God. There will always be the need for reconciliation and repentance among people. And yes while forgiveness is promised by God, repentance allows us to live like forgiven people.
So when you read the OT and all it's laws, make sure your focus remains on the promise of Jesus, which God was proclaiming, instead of letting our ego proclaim our rightness because we keep these unkeepable laws.

Where You Are Determines What You see

Where you are determines what you see. That's a quote I heard long ago on a podcast by a Pastor named Gordon Venturella, but it has stuck with me ever since I heard it.
Where are you in your relationship with God and others. Where you are WILL determine what you see.
If our relationship with God is more of an acquaintance with Him, than a true relationship, His true nature and power will remain hidden.
If our relationships with others remains superficial, then we never experience the life changing power of community. We get lost in our own problems.
Where you are determines what you see, always.
Think of those twelve regular guys that walked and ministered with Jesus. They shared life's up's and down's. One of them even betrayed Him to the temple officials. Yet thousand of years later we see the effects of their ministry.
It's easy to lose focus in this life. Bills must be paid, schedules met, commitments fulfilled. Jesus doesn't ask us to lay all of those things aside, He asks us to include Him in all of those things. Allowing Jesus to lead our lives brings a much different perspective to our existence.
Sharing life with others, takes the focus off of our issues. Those issues remain, but somehow they don't seem as scary.

"For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." Matthew 18:20