“Untangling The Law” (“Tangled #6”)

Point 1: Jesus came to complete God’s law with unconditional love – not complicate unnecessary legalism.

The point is set up by Dr. Doucet with a short history lesson about the Old Testament and the earnest attempt by ancient thinkers to expound on its precepts. The result was a list of 613 laws in the OT expanding to 800 pages of “Mishnah” constructed by scribal lawyers and culminating in another 2700 pages of rabbinic commentary called Talmud. Jesus calls his students to a “righteousness that exceeds that of the Pharisees”, a righteousness that is born from setting aside the love of law to live out the Law of Love. Pastor exhorts us to return to the beautiful simplicity of Jesus’ command saying, “LOVE (REVERE) GOD! LOVE (RESPECT) OTHERS!  All of the commandments, every sermon, every law should point to and reflect this ONE COMMAND!”

Point 2: The complexity of Jesus’ command is not found in its perplexity (How can I do this?)– but in the simplicity of its audacity (I can do this!)

Simplicity is not synonymous with easy! Living by the Law of Love is no walk through the park. While a complication of the Law serves well to distract us from the complexity of reality, the Law of Love accepts and addresses reality with real solutions. The Apostle Paul wrote,

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,

    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;

rather, he made himself nothing

    by taking the very nature of a servant,

    being made in human likeness.

And being found in appearance as a man,

    he humbled himself

    by becoming obedient to death—

        even death on a cross!” (Php. 2:5-7 NIV)

Jesus taught and lived by the Law of Love; a way of living sacrificially to the point of death! Simply audacious!

Point 3: If the Law is meant to define who we are by who we keep out – then it begs the question: Have we really ever let Jesus in?

Dr. Doucet tells us, “The LAW and its exponential rules and regulations and rituals and rites became a way to oppress and marginalize people into groups of— YOU’RE IN and YOU’RE OUT. This way of thinking continues to this day!” The dogmatic, transactional view of salvation so prevalent in the popular American church has reestablished the love of law as its standard for belonging. Pastor exclaims, “We have tangled up and missed the mark of what it means to love God and to follow Christ!  That is our greatest ‘sin’… Christians have historically taught that God was saving us from our sins. Maybe an even better way to say it is that Jesus was saving us through our sins. Christianity is not something to accept; it’s something to awaken to… Christ is always-already in you— now let that spirit live out of you!”