It's technically post Lent, but I didn't write for a while... so last thoughts here. I think one of the most amazing things about Easter and Christianity that gets lost in translation, especially in Lent, is the freedom Christ gave us. There are over 600 Jewish laws. Imagine trying to keep all those. It's hard enough trying to keep the speeding law! Basically, you come to realize... it's absolutely impossible to keep the law. It's impossible to be nice every day, to not complain, to not be arrogant. We're going to make mistakes. Worrying about whether you're a good person and whether you've done all the right things will only make you an obnoxious, anxious person!
Frederich Buechner said:
Who is pure in heart? Only those who have completely given their hearts to Jesus, so that he alone rules in them. Only those who do not stain their hearts with their own evil, but also not with their own good. A pure heart is the simple heart of a child, who does not know about good and evil, the heart of Adam before the fall, the heart in which the will of Jesus rules instead of one’s own conscience. A pure heart is pure of good and evil; it belongs entirely and undivided to Christ; it looks only to him, who goes on ahead. Those alone will see God who in this life have looked only to Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Their hearts are free of defiling images; they are not pulled back and forth by the various wishes and intentions of their own. Their hearts are fully absorbed in seeing God. They will see God whose hearts mirror the image of Jesus Christ.
I love the image of a child who does not know good and evil. Why are children so happy and carefree? Maybe because they're not constantly worried about what they're doing and whether it is within the realm of good or evil. And we, who are older, look out for them - and correct them if they do slip into something harmful... how much more with the Father for us? In the end, it is not about what you do, but who you trust, cling to, and believe in. That is the power of Christ. Of course, as Paul would say - this does not give one license to do whatever one wants... but it does free you from being a straightjacket of laws. It frees you from loads of service without joy, it frees you from a yoke that is 613 laws impossible, it frees you from a life of anxiety, a life of competition, a life of trying to outdo the best. We boast in Christ and a message of the cross which is foolishness to the world of accomplishments. Hallelujah!
No comments:
Post a Comment