Lent 3, 2006 B 

      Author Doug Larson wrote some reflections on these two words: “Remember when…”

          There is a lot of confusion about the commandments. This is seen in a Sunday school exam that was given to some young children.

One student wrote: “Moses led the Hebrews to the Red Sea, where they made unleavened bread, which is bread made without any ingredients. The Egyptians were all drowned in the dessert.”  
Another wrote: “Afterward, Moses went up on Mount Cyanide to get the Ten Amendments.”  
Still another: “The First commandment was when Eve told Adam to eat the apple.”  
One boy wrote: “The Fifth Commandment is humor thy mother and father.”  
Finally one wrote, “The Seventh Commandment is thou shalt not admit adultery.”

      Our Old Testament Lesson from Exodus lists the 10 Commandments given to Moses by God. These commandments were intended by God to help his people live the best and most fulfilling life possible. Far from being a kill joy, God knows what is best for us. He didn’t say, “Thou shalt not kill or actually the word is murder,” because it is good and fun to go around murdering people. He didn’t say, “Thou shalt not steal,” because he wanted to rob us (no pun intended) of our fun because we enjoy taking things from others and having others steal our stuff. The Commandments were given to us for our physical, spiritual, and emotional well being.

      I had some friends in college who took me skiing for the first time. It was, at first, a terrifying experience. They took me to the rope tow and we went up once. They taught me how to “snow plow,” then they said, “Let’s go up the ski lift.” From that point on my goal was to stay alive. I can testify that God made no two snowflakes alike because I saw many of them up close. By the afternoon I was able to make it down the hill and was beginning to get bored with the beginner’s hill I was on. During the day going up the ski lift I had seen a few people going down to the right after they got off the lift instead of going down the main hill to the left. The way they went was through some trees.

      On the last run of the day I decided to go down this path to the right, even though the signs clearly said do not go here. Others had been doing it, so I thought it would be fun to try. I began to ski along with no one around. I thought, “This is great!” But then I began to pick up speed and I went over a hill and found myself on a black diamond hill. I didn’t know how to turn at the speed I was going. I looked up and saw a tree coming right at me. I decided to make myself crash, and I rolled right up against the tree and tore up my knee along with other sprains and aches.

      Why did I do something I knew I should not do? Why did I ignore the warning signs? Why did I ignore that voice that was in me telling me to stop? Stupidity, probably. But as I thought about this incident in my life and how I might relate it to what I want to say today, I realized that my natural tendency is to disobey commandments, rules. I, by nature, tend to want to do the things I know I shouldn’t and not do the things I know I should if it means gaining more fun or excitement.

      St. Paul was wrestling with many of these same questions. Listen to what he had to say from our lesson from his letter to the Romans, “The things I want to do, I don’t do, and the things I don’t want to do, I do.”

      When it comes to our behavior, the reason why we disobey God’s voice within us is because of our sinful human nature that is still inside us.

      Before we can begin to come to grips with this situation, we must ask the question, “How can I know what is right and what is wrong? How can I know what God expects of me?”

      If you talk to many secular people you will find that they believe in a God who really does not require much of them; one, who is not concerned with too many, if any rules, A God who only loves us and does not hate sin.

      The NY Times magazine a few years ago took a survey and determined that 96% of Americans believe in God. Of that percentage many believe in the God I just described.

Dostoevsky’s novel-The Brothers Karamazov – makes this remarkable statement, “Where there is no God, all is permitted.” May I suggest that where there is a belief in a God who makes no requirements on us, who has no commandments to follow, then virtually all is permitted? That is what we see today, sex with children, little concern for the property of others, pornography, abortion, divorce, promiscuity, massacres, terrorism, and on it goes. Without objective standards, may I say Divine standards, then who is to say what is right and what is wrong?

      Unless you have God given rules for how we are to behave, then you fall into a moral relativism in which no one has the right to tell another that what they are doing is wrong. Whatever I decide is right for me is right, who are you to try to tell me otherwise? Unless you have an absolute standard against which to measure behavior then what is keeping me from deciding that it is right for me to kill you or steal from you?

      Christianity maintains that if the values are not based on the absolute laws of God, then they have to come from fads and favorites. Today, for example, single motherhood by choice is idealized by some, but moving an owl from its nesting place to make way for construction is demonized by some of those same people.

   Some people may derive their values from laziness and as a result might not admit that something is wrong, because if they did they would have to give up that aspect of their comfortable life and do something about it.

      Some might determine their values from selfishness so that what they want is defined as always good.

   Some might determine their values from a personal desire to get away with anything under the protection of non-judgmentalism (it’s my life who are you to judge me?).

      If there is a God in heaven (and the evidence is pretty compelling that there is), and if it can be shown that this God has given us commandments to help us live the best life we can as individuals and with one another, then the only reason we wouldn’t want to submit our lives to this God and his commandments is because we really want to make our own rules.

      How about you? Do you want to follow the God whose values can inform your conscience, which influences your behavior; your behaviors determine the quality of your life, and the meaningfulness of our personal contributions to others and to God?

      As we look at the 10 Commandments in Exodus today we find the first four commandments have to do with our relationship with God, the last six talk of our relationship with one another.

      But how do we interpret the commandments?

      First, we must take them at face value. “Thou shalt have no other gods but me, thou shalt not steal, bear false witness, take God’s name in vain, etc. They mean what they say.

      But you say, “Oh yeah, what about the Sabbath?” This brings us to the second point of interpreting the commandments: You always interpret the Old Testament through the New Testament. Jesus said that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Paul says that we are to set aside a day each week to worship and rest, it matters not which one. The important thing is that we be convinced in our hearts about the concept of the Sabbath and apply that to a day in which we gather with other Christians to worship God and to rest.

      Some people often try to take the Old Testament and to use it to show us how out of touch with today’s morality the Bible and the Commandments are. They quote passages that say that homosexuals must be put to death; people working on the Sabbath must be put to death, women who have premarital sex must be put to death.

      “See,” they say, “we can’t interpret these literally so we just have to follow Jesus’ example of loving all people and accepting them they way they are.”

      Putting aside the fact that God was trying to protect his people from the spreading cancer of sin, and that God was demonstrating that sin leads to death, the rules of biblical interpretation remind us that we must interpret the Old Testament through the New Testament. The New Testament says that these behaviors are still wrong, but because Christ has paid the death penalty on the cross and because of the grace of Christ those who break these laws are no longer subject to the divine death penalty carried out by humans. These sins can be forgiven. That does not in any way do away with the law and the commandments and the consequences of continually choosing to disobey them. It does, at the same time, show how loving and forgiving God can be.

      We must acknowledge our sin in order to receive that forgiveness. Everyone loves to quote the story of the woman caught in adultery who was brought to Jesus. They are quick to point out that Jesus did not condemn her, but they neglect to point out the rest of the story. This woman who knew she was guilty expected Jesus to tell the Pharisees to stone her as was required by the Jewish Law. Instead, Jesus said, “if any of you is without sin, let him cast the first stone.” After her accusers went away, Jesus said, “Where are your accusers, has no one condemned you?” “No, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you, Jesus declared, “Go and sin no more. Go now and leave your life of sin.”

      Jesus, the Bible says, did not come to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. Have you sinned in your life? Have you broken any of the commandments? The apostle James says that if you break even one of the commandments once, it is as if you have broken them all from God’s perspective. The fact that we have broken even one of the commandments shows us that we have been separated from the Holy God, and we deserve condemnation and punishment.

      Thanks be to God he did not leave us in that state. He sent Jesus into the world to pay the price for our sins and to provide for us a way to have a relationship with the God who loves us so much.

      While the gift of forgiveness and eternal life is a free gift, it must be received. Have you ever acknowledged your sins before God, turned away from them, and asked Jesus to come into your life and give you this gift? If not, why not do so today?

      For those of us who have already made that decision, we have to acknowledge that we are not perfect and we continue to struggle to keep God’s commandments. We should not feel condemned about that, for as St. Paul reminds us, there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus.

      St. Paul himself, as we looked at earlier, had a difficult time obeying God’s commands all of the time. We see that reflected in our second lesson today. Paul did not say that the law and the commandments no longer apply to him since he is a Christian. He said he had trouble always doing the right thing.

      He did not try to justify his sinful behavior. He did not even dwell in the guilt of his failures. Rather, he realized that he was powerless in his own strength to overcome sin. If any of you are familiar with Alcoholics Anonymous you will know that they have discovered that they cannot overcome this addiction without the help of a higher power.

      In essence what Paul was saying is that rather than just giving up and giving in to sin, he would instead turn to the only hope he had to overcome the battle within him – “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Paul’s higher power is the only higher power that has any power to affect lasting change in us.

      Do you have a sin that you just can’t seem to get the victory over? Turn to Jesus each day, each hour, each moment and your chance of victory is greatly enhanced.

      Do you simply ignore the commandments thinking that since God is love then it really doesn’t matter? You have a wrong view of God. Turn to Jesus who said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.”

      Do you feel guilty in your life over your failures? Turn to Jesus who says to you, “I do not condemn you! I forgive you. Now go and leave your life of sin, and follow me.”

Let us pray. 

Lord, as the Psalm we read today reminds us, my prayer is this:

Your law is perfect and revives my soul. The testimony of You is sure and gives wisdom to the innocent. Your statutes are just and rejoice the heart; Your commandments are clear and give light to the eyes. The fear or reverence of You is clean and endures forever; Your judgments are true and righteous all together. Lord, may I desire Your commandments more than the things of this world; may they be sweeter than honey to my taste. By Your commandments I am enlightened and in keeping them there is great reward. Who can tell how often I offend You. Cleanse me from my secret faults and sins. Above all, keep me from presumptuous sins; let them not get dominion over me; then shall I be whole and sound and innocent of the great offense of putting my law ahead of Yours. Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer. AMEN!