“On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood
and shouted to the crowds, ‘Anyone who is thirsty may come to me!’” John 7:37
During yesterday’s
teaching a couple of points came up to clarify some things I have written about
lately. The first one is that a pilgrimage to Jerusalem for any of the Holy
festivals was only required if you lived within twenty miles of the Holy city. I
suppose this drives home the idea that the Roman census requiring Mary and
Joseph to make a ninety mile journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem was a terrible
hardship. God didn’t demand such
obedience from His people.
Now there’s an
interesting thought. Has God ever demanded
obedience?
(A long pause.)
God’s commands are
not God’s demands because He has allowed
the right to choose to remain in us. In saying that, there definitely are
consequences for our choices. No, it isn’t a bolt of lightning from Heaven striking
us dead when we go astray unless you lived during the time of the Old Testament.
(Smile.)
Now here’s something
to ponder: consequences aren’t necessarily
a bad thing. There can be good consequences.
Hmmm, this is awfully black and white thinking because, through Jesus, what
may be a poor decision or choice can be transformed into something good.
So why is the idea
of demands leaving such a bitter
taste in my mouth?
Demands are
anti-relational. Demands are the offspring of a hierarchy of power. “This is
the box I have made for you now you darn well better stay in it or there will
be hell to pay!” (The stories of my old
life but, no longer, praise God!)
Demands maintain
their choke-hold through fear.
On the other hand,
many demands are put in place because
of fear; the box builder’s fear of losing control or perhaps, the fear of not
living up to the box someone else built for them.
God wouldn't have had that type of fear...but mortal demands often usurp God's commands.
I’d never thought of
it that way before. It would seem I have found a little more grace to spread
around.
The religion of
society…a man’s role, a woman’s role; it varies according to the society we are
part of. In North America, many of these ideas are drawn from Scripture albeit
misunderstood or misinterpreted Scripture. What ended up sticking was anything
that created a hierarchy of power and domination. And there the devil is at his
best.
For me, one of the
saddest passages in the Bible is Exodus 20:19. “And they said to Moses, ‘You
speak to us and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we
will die!’” Then, because they didn’t hear God’s voice, they went ahead and
built a golden calf to worship. Hmmm…was this why they were taught to worship
God within the structure and rituals of offerings and purification?
God gave them the
religion they asked for all the while knowing how badly it would fail.
But He had a plan.
That plan was Jesus.
Time is against me
this morning. The last three hours have flown by. Many of these ponderings need
more pondering because I am not overly familiar with the Old Testament except
that God seemed to do an awful lot of smiting. The big question for this
morning is, “Why?”
Thank You, Lord,
that You will bring me into a place of understanding. Thank You, Lord, for the
gift of Your Son and Your Spirit. AMEN!
FYI: the water
libation ceremony was done every day during the festival of Sukkot, or Tents,
not just the one day as I had thought.
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