If you thought that yesterday’s Scripture passage and meditation were daunting in their implication, just wait until you read today’s. It is one thing to submit to the usually distant pronouncements of government, but, to restrict our own rights and freedoms simply to accommodate others! Unheard of in our permissive, rights oriented, freedom obsessed Western world. And yet, Paul says that we should willing do this, given that Jesus did this--and more--for us! Yuck.

Having grown up on the Canadian prairies amid noise about discriminatory freight rates, unfair treatment from the federal government and the supposition that Confederation was actually ‘set up’ purposely to benefit central Canada, I have a natural and inbuilt hesitation about government. And the fact that I lived in central Alberta during the elder Trudeau era and its regressive oil patch policies doesn’t help a bit. And so, as you might guess, today’s passage from Romans is a somewhat difficult one for me. So, what you find is something of my ‘wrestling’ with it, my trying to come to terms with it. I hope you find it stimulating, and even helpful.

One of Charlie Brown’s characters once said, “I love the world, it’s just people that I can’t stand.’ And isn’t that true, at least with some people. But the catch is that it is with people, agreeable ones or not, that the Christian life is to be lived. And so the question becomes ‘how do we live with them?’ That is that question that today’s Scripture passage and meditation deal with. I hope you find them stimulating and helpful.

A pastor friend once said that when the word ‘therefore’ appears in the Scriptures, it is good to ask yourself what it is ‘there for.” In other words, what call to action is it making. In chapter 12 of Romans this word appears immediately in verse one, followed by a whole shopping list of suggested actions. Today’s passage only touches on a few of them, so it would probably be most enlightening to continue on and see what else is being suggested. This is just an idea, but perhaps a great one as we rapidly come upon the season of Lent and its time of self-examination.

The Biblical story of Jesus and the woman caught in adultery stokes all sorts of speculation over details that are never explained in the account. For instance, when Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dirt, just what was He writing? Some have suggested names, dates and places, which most surely would have stopped certain of the accusers in their tracks if they applied to them. (Seeing as God knows the secrets of our hearts, this might well have been the case.) And why is it that the older ones of her accusers left first? Was it because they’d had the time to reflect on their own lives and see where they’d fallen short--no longer filled with the bravado and carefree attitude of youth?

These are interesting matters of speculation, of which we will never know the answers in this life. But one thing we do know and this is it: God, in Christ Jesus, extends mercy and forgiveness to all sinners no matter who they are or what they have done--which includes all of us! So, let us accept that mercy and forgiveness--and live in it, now and always.

Here’s a question for all of us: what would your final or parting words be to a friend or loved one if you were parting, perhaps for good or for a long time? Today’s passage and meditation consist of some parting words from the author of the Letter to the Hebrews, and surely as such, they are worth pondering. But seeing as they also apply to us today, they are all the more worth studying--and applying.

The church season of Lent is soon upon us, which is a great time to examine our own individual lives and to especially look at our goals and priorities. Or, to use the title of today’s meditation, to pay attention to ‘our driving force.’ I don’t know about you, but I found this to be quite challenging, as I am naturally a servant type who is predisposed to meeting needs whenever or wherever they occur. And often I do this without even considering whether is what God wants or not. So, as I said, checking up on this is a bit bracing. Anyway, I will leave this to you and God.

Today’s passage put me in mind of a very simple question, namely, seeing as we know that Jesus is God and that His words and commands are from God, then why aren’t we more quick, more ready to obey Him? My answer would be that I don’t always like His commands--because they put me ‘out of my comfort’ zone, or because they’re inconvenient or difficult, or a myriad of other reasons. And sometimes I hope, rather in vain, that God will ‘change His mind’. Fat chance. Anyway, today we are reminded that it is best, and wise, to simply do as He says, and when and how He says it.

I guess that I am a dyed in the wool traditionalist, and an Anglican to boot. I can scarce ever remember a Sunday when I was not in church, not even when we were on holidays! Somehow, being there to worship God has always very, very important to me, even during those times during Covid when we were more restricted in terms of attendance and crowds. And this desire to attend was there even when the preacher was abyssal (as was often the case during my childhood) or the service boring. And, what I missed the most during some of the Covid lockdown was the ability to be together, to see each other in person rather than just on a computer screen. Zoom somehow just didn’t ‘cut it’ for me. And, of course, being in that special space, that place of worship hallowed by so many, was likewise something that I missed.

And so, I take great comfort, and great encouragement, that so many of our forebears in the faith also prized their places of worship and the services and rituals that took place there. I guess, if it was good enough for Mary and Joseph, and for Jesus, it certainly should be good enough for you and me.

Even though I loved running while in my youth, I was never very accomplished at it. For one thing, I was never as passionate or absolutely focused on winning as some of my colleagues were. For instance, some of them, while training, would wear weights or heavy cumbersome sweat pants or tops, simply to provide a sort of ‘resistance’--that is, to force them to work harder. And, of course, once those things were discarded, as on race day, they felt ‘light as a feather.’ I, for one, never went to that length. I somehow felt that I had enough of a resistance, inbuilt resistance you might say, already.

The author of the Letter to the Hebrews also speaks of ‘resistance’, but here it is a combination of chosen resistance, like sin, and unintentional resistance, like bad habits or worthless activities that fritter away our time and energy. Either way, he suggests discarding them in order to more effectively run our race, the race of life. And, in a very real sense, doing this is all the more meaningful as we approach the season of Lent.

How do we learn to trust God or have faith in God? It is a very good question, one that has been posed and answered by countless people over the years. The noted French philosopher Blaise Pascal described the process of finding and exercising faith as being like betting on a horse race. One does the necessary research on the horse and rider and their past record of performance, but then when you place your bed, you still don’t know for sure. It is an act of faith. The difference with God, he said, is if you bet on the ‘right horse’, that is, God, you have eternal life. And if you bet on God and God doesn’t exist, then you’ve lost nothing.

Another approach is that expressed in the book, Good God, It Works. Its author, Garth Lean, decided to try an experiment. He decided to ask God to direct his life, and to do so in a very definable, testable way. He asked God to ’speak to him’ (in his mind, of course) and direct him into to do something. Lean agreed beforehand that he would obey that direction without question or hesitation, trusting that it was really from God, and see what happened. Anyway, what Lean ‘heard’ from God seemed utterly ridiculous; nevertheless, he did what he was told, and the results were astounding. And, as he continued the experiment, the amazing results continued. This is an experiment that we can all do. (I can provide some more details on this if you wish.)

But, I have one other suggestion, which follows from what I have said in today’s meditation. We have an amazing record over the centuries of what happened when people trusted God--in the Scriptures, yes, but also all through history. And so, it is not a shot in the dark. There are all these people who have found God to be good, people indeed that are right around us, and so we can have confidence that trusting God is safe, that God is good and that it works. Thanks be to God.

One of the most influential Christian books of an earlier era was entitled, In His Steps, by Charles Sheldon. In it, a group of Christians pledged themselves to deliberately asking themselves, prior to making any decision or taking any action, ‘what would Jesus do?’ Or, put in other words, to try to be like Jesus in everything. This theme, this object, had quite a hold on me, at least for a while. Why just ‘for a while’? Because I realized that it is impossible. None of us if equipped with only our limited human wisdom and ability can ever be like Jesus. This is where I realized that we, all of us, need the indwelling Holy Spirit, the very Spirit of Jesus, to live within us and empower us. Only with Him, is this possible.

And here’s where today’s psalm comes in: Psalm 72, as a picture of the ideal king, is frankly quite impossible for all of us, and should we try to imitate this using only our own strength and intelligence we are bound to fail, and fail miserably. But here’s where the Holy Spirit comes in. He comes to equip us and empower us for this very thing, that is, to witness, to show forth Jesus in our lives! And so, we do stand a chance. Thanks be to God.

A brief glance at the incredible roll call of faith found in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews can seem quite overwhelming, quite impossible to match or imitate. And yet, its author’s purpose is not to overwhelm us but to encourage us. In fact, at the end of that chapter, and into the next, we are told that these ‘heroes of faith’ are indeed waiting for us and even cheering us on. Just think: Noah, Abraham and Sarah, and whole host of them sitting there in the stands--but now on their feet--chanting our names and cheering us on as we run our respective races and finally approach the finish line. They are saying, even if not in so many words, ‘We believe in you. You can do it, so press on.’ And indeed, that is what our God, our Saviour Jesus Christ, is saying as well. And so, we can take hope and press on no matter what.

In our western world there are two topics which tend to get a ‘lot of press’. They are ‘freedom’ and ‘privilege’. Freedom is extolled as being prized above all things, and privilege is demoted, given very bad press. And yet, in any discussion of the two, there is one element in common that is often left out, namely, responsibility. With freedom, there must necessarily lie some responsibility as to how that freedom is exercised and how that exercise of freedom impacts others. In other words, if our freedom interferes with the common good or with the rights of others, then it is quite appropriate that it be curtailed, whether personally or by legislative action. And with ‘privilege’, whether that privilege be upbringing, gender, language, ethnicity, education, wealth, or anything else, we also have a responsibility, namely to use it for the common good.

All of this takes us to our role as Christians in this world. In Christ Jesus, we have incredible privileges, but as with the other privileges these need to be used for others, to serve the common good, rather than just be ‘sat upon’ and used only for ourselves or a select few. That was a failing of ancient Israel, for which Jesus reproved them. I would hope that this same indictment cannot be said of any of us.

It really should not come as a surprise to us when we read today’s psalm and hear of God’s plan and desire to be embraced and worshipped by all the nations of the world--and by everyone in it. After all, did not Jesus command us to go into all the world and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19) and did not His vision of heaven include every tribe, race, language and people (see Revelation 14:6)? So, then, why are we so slow at times, so hesitant, so fumbling, in carrying out this endeavour? Did not Jesus command us to carry it out and--this is most important--give us His own Spirit of power so that we can do it? My prayer is that all of us, me included, can become more willing to step out in faith with this task during this new year. God has ordained it and empowered it, so surely He will also help us in it. Thanks be to God.

As we know well, Jesus did some extremely wonderful and amazing things during His short ministry on earth. What is perhaps even more amazing is that He said, “Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12). However, this hinges on a couple of things, firstly, that we discern what God is doing in our world and commit ourselves to working in accordance with this, and secondly, that we actively seek His will and direction, so that even the simplest and most ordinary things that we do will be done with His blessing and anointing. I, for one, sincerely believe that God wants to do great and incredible things in this world, and, believe it or not, wants to affect this through the efforts of ordinary people like you and I.