People are quick to tell us what we should and shouldn’t do. What’s cool. What’s hip. What’s in style. What we should like. Who we shouldn’t like. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc., help communicate these things to us, whether we want it or not. But truth be told, we want it.
The church and Christians are no different. They are quick to tell us what we are supposed to believe. What we should and shouldn’t do. Who should we support, like, believe, trust, tolerate, and accept. This includes what lifestyles are acceptable. They have opinions on a wide variety of topics which affect all of us in one way or another: divorce, pre-marital sex, sexual preferences, lifestyle choices, liberal/conservative political perspectives, tolerance, abortion, race, dating, and voting.
These things may be why some are drawn to The Tavern.
This conduct isn’t new. We, as Christians and as “the church,” have been defining and redefining Christianity and what it means to be a Christ-follower since Christ was here.
So what are we to do? How are we to act?
Fortunately, the early Christians, who dealt with similar issues, had Paul. The good news? So do we.
This month we discussed one of Paul's letters. This one to the Galatians. You know what they were dealing with? Circumcision. The early Christians, who were mostly Jews, believed that in order to signify your acceptance of Christ, Son of God, then you must be circumcised. As they were. Ouch. The Gentile Galatians took issue. Apparently, their disagreement wasn’t pretty.
Here is an excerpt from his letter to them:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things
there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23
If we have become a Christ-follower, then we are filled with the spirit. And we demonstrate these characteristics.
There is no law that if followed would result in anything other than these things.
Paul argues that the Gentile Galatians do not need to adhere to the tenets of the
Mosaic Law, particularly religious male circumcision, by contextualizing the role of
the law in light of the revelation of Christ.
How many of the “laws” that modern churches and self-described Christians vehemently thrust upon others are wholly inconsistent with these things? How many of them demonstrate characteristics inconsistent with these traits in making their arguments? Many of them are selectively plucking items out of the Mosaic Law just like those arguing with the Galatians were doing. How is this still happening?
Paul said something else in his letter to the Galatians which frightens many today: "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Galatians 3:28.
Now, I don’t think Paul meant that literally but was proving a point that we could all be reminded of today (perhaps with some updates) – there is neither Republican nor Democrat, conservative nor liberal, gay nor straight, married nor divorced, old nor young, fat nor thin, smoker nor non-smoker, fried nor gluten-free, for we are all one in Jesus.
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Additional readings: Galatians
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