Chrissy's Day 12: Some answers!

Doing something a bit different today. Instead of the usual read a passage, summarise it, reflect on it and pray, I'm just going to write a reflection because I feel like God spoke to me today.

After writing yesterday's post I was talking about it with Mike. He asked me how I felt the lenten project was going and if I had learnt anything. I expressed how I felt that I was asking lots of questions but not getting any answers.

Well, God must have heard my frustration because he answered some questions for me today. God is good!

So yesterday I was saying that I was confused about what sin actually is. I'm not convinced that our focus on individual sin is what God is really concerned about. Did God die because I am impatient with my husband? There has to be more to it than that.

Today's sermon at church was on Romans 1:18-32.

Garry started the sermon by saying "today I'm going to talk about sin". (My paraphrase!)

I sat up in my seat. Really?

Garry said "I don't think God's primary concern is individual sin".

I almost jumped out of my seat. Wow! God's talking to me.

He went on to explain that he believes God is more concerned about corporate sin than individual sin.

Hallelujah! That's it. I knew that this sin business had to be bigger than me.

So what does that mean? Here's what I reckon.

Our culture views everything on an individual level. Everyone is responsible for their own actions and can have influence over others but can't be held responsible for bad stuff others do. According to our culture, salvation is individual too. Everyone must say the sinners prayer and have a personal faith in God.

Those concepts haven't sat right with me for quite some time but I haven't really known why or what I do believe.

I think God sees things differently from us. God is not confined by our culture.

There are things that we as a group - whether the family unit, local community, nation, human race - do that is sinful. Child abuse is one example, neglect of the environment is another.

Certainly we don't all abuse children physically, but we do contribute to a society and culture that allows people to live in poor housing, without education or adequate nutrition - all things that are associated with child abuse. We allow hopelessness and hurt to rule people's lives. You and I are responsible for child abuse.

Romans 1:18-20 says that the truth of God is plain but we suppress the truth. However, because the truth is plain to see we are without excuse.

I'm at the end of my thoughts for now. I realise I've cut it a bit short but I think I need to sleep on these ideas some more.

x
Chrissy

Chrissy's Day 11: "Sin no longer has dominion over me"

Summary of Romans 6: 1-14

So, should we willingly keep doing bad stuff so that God can be more gracious? Don’t be stupid! Sin no longer has a place in our lives so we can’t!

When we tied ourselves to Jesus, we tied ourselves to his death AND his resurrection. Our old sinful lives died when Jesus did so that we no longer have to be slaves to sin. We are free!

Jesus can’t die again (he’s already beaten it!) so death has no power over him.

So we too shouldn’t let sin have power over us. Don’t give yourself to sin – give yourself to God! Sin has no power over us because we live according to grace not according to the law.

Reflection

Sometimes I get myself all tied up in knots and get myself very confused. You’d think that after a lifetime (30 years tomorrow!) of being in the Christian church, I would have a handle on the basics. But I find them more confusing now than ever!

• What is sin?
• What does it mean to be a slave to sin?
• What does it mean to be free from sin?
• What does it mean to be alive in Christ?

 Is sin just doing bad stuff like lying, eating too much junk food, watching rubbish TV or being judgemental? Or is it more than that? Is it about attitudes of the heart? Or is it even more than that? Is it about the way we treat others? Or is it more than that?

I admit that I find the concept of sin hard to relate to. I’m a good person. Yes I do mean things sometimes and definately have a wrong attitude a lot of the time but is that really what Jesus was all about? Is this whole life really just about being ‘saved’ from bad thoughts and feelings? Surely there has to be more to this?

I guess one of my issues with this way of viewing things is that its so individualistic. Are my personal shortcomings really that important? Did God really make his only son a mortal and allow him to die just to ‘save’ us humans from our pride and subborness? Surely there has to be a bigger purpose to all this.

Perhaps its just the romantic in me but I much prefer the idea of Jesus coming to reconcile whole families, communities, nations. Humans with humans. Humans with nature. Humans with God. Nature with God. I want something bigger! Something grander! Surely my sin is too small and insignificant to be the main purpose.

Prayer

Dear Lord,

Thank you for the work of the cross.
Thank you that sin no longer has dominion over me.
Thank you that I have abundant life because of your reconciling work.

Please help me to understand what sin is and what your work on earth is all about.
Whatever it is, I want to be a part of it.

I want to be your servant, you vessel.

Amen

Chrissy's Day 9: "The aggressive force of grace"

I had trouble understanding this passage in both the NIV and NRSV but then I opened up The Message. Wow! The words just jumped out at me and grabbed my heart. So my summary will probably be more in the words of The Message than in my words...

Summary of Romans 5: 12-21

Sin came into the world through one person, and then sin and death spread to everyone. Sin and death separated us from God from the time of Adam to Moses. "But Adam, who got us in to this, also points ahead to the One who will get us out of it."

"If one man's sin put crowds of people at the dead-end abyss of separation from God, just think what God's gift poured through one man, Jesus Christ, will do!... The verdict on that one sin was the death sentence; the verdict on the many sins that followed was this wonderful life sentence."

"Here it is in a nutshell: Just as one person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it... One man said no to God and put many people in the wrong; one man said yes to God and put many in the right."

"But sin didn't and doesn't, have a chance in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it is sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and thats the end of it."

Reflection

Aren't those words cool?

• "One man said yes to God and put many in the right."
• "When it is sin versus grace, grace wins hands down."
• "All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that's the end of it."

In this passage Paul is comparing and contrasting Adam and Jesus. Adam did one thing wrong and put us all in the schtuck but Jesus did one thing right and got us out of trouble. But more than that, Jesus didn't just neutralise the situation, he gave us abundant life, everlasting life, free access to God!

And I love the idea of 'the aggressive force of grace'. How cool is that? Grace is so strong and all-encompassing that all sin does is threaten us. That's so affirming and reassuring.

Verse 20 puzzles me though "The law was added so that the trespass might increase." It sounds mean to me and is a concept I've always struggled with. Why does God allow sin? And why do we all have to pay the price of Adam's sin?


Prayer

Dear Lord,

Thank you for the aggressive force of grace.
Thank you for sending Jesus to rescue us.
I love the symmetry of your work Lord, it makes it easier to comprehend.

But Lord, there are still so many things I just don't get.
Why even allow sin in the first place?
Why did the rest of us have to be born sinful? Why didn't we get a chance?
Or am I misunderstanding?

Please continue to teach me throughout this lenten period.

I want to be your servant, your vessel.
Amen

Mike's Day 8: Be gracious to me ... for I am languishing

Summary: The Psalmist is waiting for God to show grace, to turn and deliver him from death and enemies (v.7). He is weary from crying and moaning. Finally, a declaration of victory as the LORD hears the Psalmist, and his enemies are put to shame.

Again, like Ps. 2, 3, 4, 5, in Pslam 6 there is a distinct narrative (could I say dramatic?) structure. The Psalmist is in some strife, asks for God to intervene (often against some form of enemy), and finally... God does! It would be interesting to compare the narrative of these songs to the dramatic structure of other songs, even modern pop songs.

In this Psalm again we have statement of the problem, and the problem in this case is: "Where is God?". There is also an acknowledgement that God is not passive in the face of evil (Ps. 5: 4-6), and the Psalmist seems to be aware that God's absence in this case may be a form of rebuke or discipline.

A take home might be: say it like it is. State your state before God. If you are 'languishing', 'shaking with terror' then this is the right Psalm for you.

Remind him of his steadfast love (actually, remind yourself of this). Finally, realise that God 'accepts' your 'prayer'.

Psalms of course are prayer. But they are also a state of being, a way of being before God.

Psalms set the music, the mood for the relationship between Israel and YHWH, or the LORD and his anointed, and the music often is raw and passionate cries for deliverance accompanied by the realisation that in the end God will deliver.

In the Psalmist coming to God with a frank mindset, we are reminded of the God who turns, delivers, hears and accepts for the sake of his steadfast love (v.4,9).

Chrissy's Day 7: Peace and Joy

Summary of Romans 5:1-11

Because we have been made right through faith, we have peace with God. We gained access to God through Jesus Christ.

We can celebrate the glory of God and we can also celebrate when we are suffering, because we know that suffering teaches and changes us. It teaches us to keep going on and teaches us to hope. And we won't be dissapointed because the Holy Spirit is pouring out love into our hearts.

Jesus died for us while we were still sinners. That's an unusual thing to do. Someone might die for a good person but a bad one? This shows how much God loves us.

Imagine how much more love and forgiveness God has for us! If he died while we were still bad, imagine how much more he will do for us now that we are on his side!

Reflection

I'm loving this idea of being at peace with God. Fully reconciled and restored. And I'm also loving the ideas in verses 9 to 11.  I like the way The Message puts it, "If, when we were at our worst, we were put on friendly terms with God... now that we're at our best, just think of how our lives will expand and deepen..." That sounds like a reason to celebrate!

The whole celebrating while we're down business, now thats a little tougher for me to get my head around. I guess the idea is that we shouldn't celebrate the bad stuff thats happening, rather we should praise God for hwat he has done and for his generous love. We should 'look on the bright side' and realise that 'what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger'. These sayings are a little glib but they do have some truth in them also.
But I think this is a lesson we have to learn through experience rather than just by reading it in on a page. I think that maybe the more tough stuff you face in your life the more you know that you'll grow because of it.

I now know, looking back that the toughest time in my life (when I lost my two precious babies through miscarriage), that I did grow and learn some stuff. I have those experiences now to draw on in the future both for myself and to help others cope with similar grief. And I do praise God for pouring out his love on me at that time. I have to admit that I didn't feel it then, but I know in retrospect that the Holy Spirit was there, helping me, comforting me and holding me together.

So perhaps thats what this passage is saying. That we praise God during our suffering because we know that the Holy Spirit will be with us, and we know that we will grow and learn through the experience and we know that God will have something great in store for us when it's all over.

Prayer

Lord,

Thank you for loving me when I was useless.
Thank you for making me useful!

It's exciting to think that you might have great things in store for me.
Prepare me Lord, may I be open to your leading.

Help me Lord to remember the lessons I've learnt in the past.
Help me to remember them when things are tough.
Help me to keep worshipping you no matter what.

I want to be your servant, your vessel.

Amen

Mike's Day 6: Psalm 5

The Psalmist asks God to consider his sighing, his cries for help, which he
brings before God on a daily basis. God does not take pleasure in evil, and
abbhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful. In contrast, the Psalmist's way will be
made straight as he worships God at the temple. He reminds God that the
wicket cannot be trusted and asks God to banish them for their rebellion.
Finally he asks God's blessing on the righteous.

This is one of the dualisms in the book of Psalms: the difference between the wicked and the righteous.

The wicked are right royal schemers, manipulators, liars etc., who create intrigues in which others fall like an 'open grave'. On the other hand, the righteous (or 'the godly' Psalm 4) are not only those who do the opposite of lie, take pleasure in evil, but, primarily, take refuge in God.

So, the difference is not only moral, it is theological, that is, it relates to the character of God - Psalms is defining God as the god who hates evil and loves righteousness, and a key feature of evil is that is that it is 'rebellion' against God.

I should add, there is not a hint of smug self-satisfaction. Instead, the approach of the Psalmist is one of reverence and humility in coming to God for salvation. Jesus would have known such Psalms well.

Like Ps. 4, Ps. 5 has an opening call or invitation/request to God, and ends with a declaration of his protection and the vindication of the righteous: "For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them with favour as with a shield."

Chrissy's Day 6: "Credited to him as righteousness"

Hmmm, I missed days 4 and 5. Felt guilty but hey, life happens all I can do is my best. I'm realising that as a mum, the best way to worship God is to love my girl the best I can. And thats what I've been trying to do this weekend. Phew. Exhausted.

Summary of Romans 4

The scriptures say that Abraham was made right with God because of his faith, not because of anything he did. If someone does a job, they receive wages. But when someone trusts God to do a job they can't do, they are given the gift of righteousness.

And this blessing is for the uncircumcised as well as the circumcised. In fact, Abraham received his gift before he was circumcised - the circumcision was a symbol and way of confirmaing what God had done. So that means that Abraham is the father of all those who are not circumcised. He's also the father of those who are circumcised and follow God.

Abraham didn't receive his promise from God because of anything he did. No, it was because God had made him right through faith.

The promise comes through faith so that it can be a gift to everyone.

Abraham became the father of many nations because he believed and had hope. He had faith even though he was old and his wife had been infertile for many years. He didn't waver in unbelief; rather his faith was strengthened because he believed God had the power to keep his promise.

That's why God made Abraham right with him. But this is also a promise for us! For us who believe in God who raised Jesus from death.

Reflection

I've really been struggling over the phrase 'credited to him as righteousness'. At first while writing my summary I decided to ignore it as I couldn't work out how to simplify the term. But unfortunately when I got to the end of the passage I realised that Paul repeats the phrase. In fact, I think it is the crux of the whole passage.

Bummer. I'm gonna have to try and work out what it means!

With a little help from some online dictionaries:

Righteous means 'free from guilt or sin'.
Credit means 'to consider that someone has a particular quality'.

So if Abraham was 'credited with righteousness' it means God considered him to be free from guilt or sin. That was the gift he received because he believed and trusted that God would keep his promise and make him a father.

Paul is trying to make it very clear that Abraham didn't earn his gift. It's not like wages for a job, because God did the work, not Abraham. What Abraham did was trust - even when all the evidence pointed to a negative outcome - that God could make him the 'father of many nations'.

The great thing is, and Paul really wants to point this out too, is that we can be considered free from guilt or sin (credited with righteousness) too!

What do we have to do? Nothing! Just trust God to do the work. Believe that he has the power. Believe that he raised Jesus from the dead.

I'm thinking of that worship song "It's all about you, it's all about you Jesus". It's so easy to think that salvation is all about us. "I've been saved, I've been made righteous." But that is missing the point I think. I think what we should be saying is "God saves, God is righteous".

Needs more thought I think.

Prayer

God,

It is you that saves.
It is you that is righteous.

Please help me to forget about myself and focus on you.

Amen