Perfect

Passage: Psalm 19

The Catechism’s treatment of the Ten Commandments ends with a meditation on the relationship between Christians and God’s Law. The authors of the Catechism as the question that should be on all our lips:
No one in this life can obey the Ten Commandments perfectly: why then does God want them preached so pointedly?
Seriously. Why have we gone to such great lengths to study the Ten Commandments if we’re only going to fail at them anyway?
The Catechism gives two answers; I’d add a third. First, we turn and return to the Ten Commandments because they remind us of our deep need for Jesus Christ. We need to be reminded of God’s standard and our utter inability to meet it. So doing we acknowledge that we are the recipients of God’s love only by God’s great mercy. Second, we pursue God’s Law because we sincerely desire to live according to God’s will. We believe that God’s Spirit is continually restoring God’s image in us. As we become more and more the people God created us to be, we will be naturally inclined to live according to God’s good order.

Finally, we embrace God’s Law because we love God. The closer we are to God the more we delight in who God is and what God wants. This desire for the things of God is beautifully expressed by David, the “man after God’s own heart”, in Psalm 19. David says this about God’s Law:
The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the LORD are firm,
and all of them are righteous.

When you love someone, you long to know their heart. God shows us his heart for the world and its inhabitants in the rules he gives his people. The more you love God, the more his rules make sense, and the more perfectly you want to live them.

Spin Doctors

Passage: Psalm 15; Lord’s Day 43

Psalm 15 captures what it means to be righteous. The psalm is attributed to David, who stands out in the Old Testament as “a man after God’s own heart.” Of course if you’re familiar with David’s story, you know he doesn’t always live up to the standard of righteousness outlined in his psalm. There are accounts of David using deception and dishonesty to get what he wants; accounts of David abusing his power and taking advantage of those more vulnerable than himself. It may be hard to take Psalm 15 seriously, knowing the ways its author failed to live up to his own standard.

The truth is, none of God’s people is able to live up to God’s standard of righteousness. In Romans 3:23 the Apostle Paul says, “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” All of us who seek to live as followers of Jesus are to some extent hypocrites. Faced with this knowledge, we have two choices. We can acknowledge the gaps between the way we live and the way we know we should; or we can do our best to hide them. We can spin the truth to make ourselves seem, to ourselves and the world, more righteous than we are.

It’s remarkable that the predominant ethic of the righteous person described in Psalm 15 is honest speech. The righteous “speak the truth from their hearts; they cast no slurs; they refuse to slander.” What sets the righteous apart is integrity – that is, consistency between inner character and outward conduct. The actions and words of the righteous person do not serve the purpose of masking insecurity or compensating for inadequacy. They are expressions of the deep-rooted peace, generosity, and compassion that arise from a heart that is in tune with the heart of God. A person who has adopted the practice of honesty is far better positioned to become righteous than someone who hides his sins from himself and the world. And a person who is righteous – that is, connected to God and committed to God’s will – has no need for spin. That person has nothing to hide – from herself; from the world; from God.

It's Not Really Stealing...

Passage: Lord’s Day 42

In 2005 Melody and I bought our first home. It was a beautiful four-bedroom ranch with a walkout basement and a big back yard that faced a ravine. And we got a great deal on it. We got a great deal because the retired couple we were buying it from had already purchased a condo and could no longer afford double home payments. They’d lived in the house more than twenty years; had raised their kids, and a number of foster kids there. Poured sweat and tears and dollars into improving it. It was a great house. They took a big hit when they sold it to us. And I could see the evidence of that in their faces when we signed the paperwork. Stress; fatigue; maybe even a hint of resentment, that our realtors had negotiated a deal that cost them so much. I didn’t care – or didn’t let myself care. I was too excited about the house I’d just acquired.

In 2011 we sold the house. We’d moved out of the house in December, 2008. It was a bad season for selling a house. And it was a bad year for selling a house in Michigan. Actually, it was the first of three bad years for selling a house in Michigan. This spring, after two years of double payments, two different renters, two basement floods and an Amityville-style bee invasion, a buyer came along. The buyer’s realtor negotiated a great deal for his clients. Melody and I just wanted to be done with the house. We signed off on a deal that cost us. And I remembered the couple we bought the house from. I remembered not thinking much about their mixed feelings signing their property over to us. The way they’d signed their money into our pockets because they had to sell. It felt different being on the other side of the deal.

Lord’s Day 42 of the Heidelberg Catechism explains God’s prohibition against stealing. Most church people are innocent of out-and-out theft, and so assume the eighth commandment doesn’t apply to us. Lord’s Day 42 doesn’t let us off the hook. The authors of the Catechism identify not only the act of taking that which doesn’t belong to us, but any act driven by the desire to capitalize on someone else’s loss. Fraudulent merchandising; excessive interest; greed. They conclude with this question and answer:
Q. What does God require of you in this commandment?
A. That I do whatever I can for my neighbor's good, that I treat others as I would like them to treat me, and that I work faithfully so that I may share with those in need.

The instinct that leads us to prioritize our financial needs over someone else’s is mistrust. Mistrust in God’s persistent promise to provide. The Bible contains far more references to greed and the idolatry of money than any other sin. And here’s why: we’re all guilty of it. When it comes to money and property few of us can honestly say we want for our neighbors that which we want for ourselves. When you resent your neighbor's brand-new car or your sister’s brand-new house or your friend’s brand-new job. When you can’t believe the steal of a deal you got on that piece of property the seller “just had to unload.” When you refuse to give to someone in need because “times are tight.” Each of these is an instance in which we choose self over neighbor. Each is an example of greed. And each expresses a fundamental mistrust in God’s generosity. We insist that God take care of us; we love it when God is generous to us. And we mistakenly think God should be more generous to us than the guy next to us. Not only does God challenge each of us to recognize that we are neither more important or entitled than anyone else. God also insists that his children adopt the family ethic. If you've benefited from God's generosity, pass it on. If you withhold it, who are you to expect more?

Let's Talk About Sex

Passage: Leviticus 18

In Leviticus 18, God presents his people with boundaries. Leviticus 18 is a list of prohibited kinds of sexual relationship. The list makes sense – it’s a set of prohibitions that are generally agreed upon even within our culture. But there’s a subtext to the list, presented in the very first prohibition, that introduces an ethic that we’re quick to overlook: You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices.

We don’t have too much difficulty eschewing the unusual or obscene acts detailed in Leviticus 18. What is difficult for God’s people today is adhering to a set of sexual ethics that is distinct from those of the culture in which we’re immersed.

A number of forms of sexual expression that are considered normal throughout our culture were identified as aberrant and forbidden for the people of God in the Old Testament. Homosexuality is one, and it gets an undue amount of press within evangelical circles. The church is tragically silent on sexual sins that are a much bigger problem for a far greater percentage of Christians. One is sexual intimacy before or outside of marriage. Another is the use of fantasy as a substitute for intimacy within marriage. For men this often takes the form of pornography, or sexually explicit imagery in magazines, TV shows, and movies. For women it can take the form of literature, media, or online relationships that may not seem overtly sexual, but offer an imagined intimacy that falls outside of the work and obligation of a real relationship.

At the heart of God’s prohibitions about sex is an exhortation to reserve sex for the purpose it was intended to serve: to deepen the intimate connection between a man and woman who have committed their lives to each other.
This sounds prudish – old-fashioned and confining. In some ways it is. Sex has the potential to be very pleasurable. And the pleasure of sex is a secondary benefit to its primary purpose. When treated primarily as means of pleasure, sex becomes something it wasn’t meant to be. And it does damage. It divides married couples. It produces relationships in which one or both parties are used or degraded. It diminishes people’s capacities to form and maintain lasting commitments. And it compounds the sinful tendency to see the world through the lens of one’s own desires and needs, whatever the cost to someone else.

God gave people the gift of making certain essential physical acts pleasurable. Each pleasurable act serves a greater purpose than pleasure itself. Sex is no exception. The primary purpose of sex is not just “for procreation only.” It’s intimacy. In the right context, sex both expresses and intensifies the connection between two people. But the right context is a committed, lifelong relationship in which both partners give, sacrifice, and do the hard work of making a life together. Within God’s design, there’s no such thing as “no strings attached” sex. It comes at a cost. Sex is costly whether you enjoy it within or outside of the context of marriage. God demands that we enjoy sex in such a way that we embrace the full cost: that is, responsibility to, and for, the person we’ve partnered with for life.

What we rarely talk about when we talk about sex and the Christian life is that sex itself is a temporary substitute. God in his grace gives us the possibility of intimacy here and now that is like a preview of the intimacy we’ll know in eternity. But our intimate union in eternity will not be with the husband or wife we’ve enjoyed on earth. It will be with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. It will also be with all those people who have entered glory through him. Our union in glory will not be sexual. But it will be a kind of soul connection that is only approximated by the closest marriages on earth. Marriage is one of the predominant metaphors the Bible gives for our relationship with God. Like marriage, God’s love for us is self-giving, self-sacrificial, and deeply intimate. God knows us through and through. God knows our flaws and weaknesses, the areas of our deepest hurt and shame and fear. And God embraces us with open arms. It costs God to love us this way. God sticks with us through the long haul, and continually opens his heart to us in spite of the ways we disappoint him. In the best marriages you can catch a glimpse of this kind of love. But the union of marital intimacy is only a shadow of the intimacy we’ll know in eternity.

Finally, it’s the promise of this perfect intimacy that gives us the patience and strength to live with any unrequited need we have now. For those who aren’t married and can’t imagine how to live without sex, God promises a future intimacy that’s far more complete. For those who are frustrated or unfulfilled within their marriages, God promises an ultimate fulfillment that will make up for any disappointment. It is on the basis of his promises that God demands that his people not give in to the instincts and pleasures and practices indulged by their neighbors. If you trust God’s promises, then you can wait; you can abstain; you can persevere. If you don’t trust God’s promises, then you’re on your own. Live however you want. But don’t keep coming back to God demanding the benefits of a relationship for which you’ve been unwilling to face the cost.

Closing the Door to Mercy

Passage: Heidelberg Catechism Lord’s Day 40

In the Battlestar Galactica episode “Collaborators,” the crew of the Galactica have reconvened after escaping the evil Cylons. During the Cylon occupation, a number of the humans sided with the Cylons as members of a secret police force. These collaborators served the cause of their enemies, believing this to be a better alternative than living with increasing poverty and the constant threat of death. Paradoxically, now that the humans have shaken off the bonds of their oppressors, the collaborators face precisely the fate they thought they’d escaped. A small group of the surviving humans has taken it upon themselves to track down their betrayers. One by one they bring them in to be executed. As the number of executions rises, members of the group begin to have second thoughts. Their appetite for revenge has been satisfied, and they’re tired of killing. Their leader faces them and says, “Don’t forget what we’re doing here. This isn’t about revenge. It’s about justice!”

Discussions about the Sixth Commandment (“You shall not murder/kill another human being”) inevitably lead to questions of justice. What about people who have committed murder? What about someone who’s about to kill me? What about someone who is a danger to society and shows no remorse? What about political enemies? Justice needs to be served! These challenges become more personal when we look at the ways the sixth commandment has been parsed out by other commentators. The Heidelberg Catechism argues
“By forbidding murder God teaches us that he hates the root of murder: envy, hatred, anger, vindictiveness. In God's sight all such are murder.”
This in turn is based on Jesus’ own teaching:
“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.” (Matthew 5:21-22)
As with each of his commands, God’s concern in the sixth is not only human action, but human attitude. What is your posture toward your neighbor – that is, any fellow human being? Is it hatred, or mercy? Do you want for them that which you want for yourself? "But wait a minute," you say. "What about justice? That person who hurt me deserves to hurt. That person whose stupidity ruined my plans deserves to suffer. That person who has threatened my way of life deserves punishment."

The question to ask is this: what treatment have you received at the hands of God? Justice or mercy? Jesus demands of us that which he has given to us. Whether you’re tempted to kill with your hands, or your words, or simply your thoughts, Jesus says, “Justice and vengeance are mine. Your job is to love.” This is one of the ways in which the life of a disciple is immensely costly – it may, in fact, cost you your life. Most of the situations in which we’d respond with lethal force are ones in which we’d be, in some way, protecting our own lives. Jesus actually invites his disciple to do what he did – that is, give up one's own life rather than take someone else’s. You may be called to give up your life all at once. Or you may be required to do it little by little - one word of forgiveness; one gracious thought; one merciful act at a time.