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Much Deeper Than the Body
by Linda Rex
February 12, 2023, 6th Sunday in Epiphany—One of the readings for my recent coursework at Grace Communion Seminary talks about the way in which God does who God is. What I mean by that is, who God is in his being is what he does in his actions. God is a Redeemer, and so he redeems us. God is Savior, and so he saves us. When Jesus says to his disciples, if you’ve seen me, you’ve seen the Father, he is saying that the love and grace of his Father was in that moment being expressed in the person and life of his Son Jesus. And it was fully expressed in Jesus’ self-offering on the cross.
The reason I am bringing this up is because of how the gospel reading for today, Matthew 5:21–37, resonates with this. Jesus pointed out that our human way of doing things just will not work in the economy of the Triune life or kingdom of God. Jesus calls us to go much deeper than just putting on an outer show of religiosity. He was “meddling”—telling people that going through the motions was not enough. The way we live and act needs to go much deeper than just the externals—it must involve the heart and soul of a person. And it has to do with our passions, desires, impulses, and motivations.
But there is even more going on here than just that. Who we are drives what we do. In this passage, we can see that Jesus is so much more than just the words he was speaking. In his life, death, and resurrection Jesus was in many ways all of these things in action. Who he was as God in human flesh was an expression of these very things in a real and tangible way as a human, fleshly person led by and filled with the Holy Spirit.
For example, when we think of God, we often think of a being who is mad at us for being such awful sinners, to the point that he had to kill his Son for us. But consider the way God in Christ really does approach our evil and sin, and our broken relationship with himself. He doesn’t despise us for our failure to measure up to our obligations to him and one another. Rather, he recognizes our inadequacy and lack of even desiring to do what is right at times. Because he knows this about us, he comes, takes on our human flesh, and forges within us a new away of being—giving us his own desire to do what is right and holy. And then he dies and rises, and sends the Spirit so we can live in right relationship with him now and forever.
Going further, consider how Jesus deals with the reality of our offenses against him. In his own self-offering, the Son of God set aside his need for revenge or self-gratification when we became his opponents, and instead, laid down his own life. He came to us in our human flesh, to live our life and die our death, for our salvation and redemption. We had something in our hearts against God, and Jesus came to us and made things right, reconciling us to God in himself and calling us to be reconciled in that same way to God and each other.
Notice how Jesus used hyperbole to express our need to get rid of those parts of ourselves which cause us to sin. Truth be told, he never meant us to actually physically cut off or remove these parts of our body. What he did demonstrate to us in his life and death was that he was willing to do for us what we could not do in this regard. None of us is capable of eliminating those parts of us that cause us to sin—which is why Jesus took our human flesh to the cross and allowed us to crucify it so that our human flesh would die once and for all to evil, sin, and death. And in the resurrection, Jesus gave our human flesh new life—a new way of being grounded within himself. As Paul wrote, we don’t look at people through the lens of their sinful human flesh any longer because in Christ they are new creations (2 Cor. 5:16-17).
Going on, even when Jesus is talking about the topic of divorce and adultery, he takes us into the realm of committed or covenant relationship. The religious leaders of his day had added and subtracted so much to the law that it was possible to divorce for any reason, and women were being left without anyone to care for them because of the selfish choices of the men who had give them a promise of fidelity and then had broken it.
When we look at the history of the ancient nation of Israel, God’s covenant people, we see that the prophets often spoke of this nation’s relationship with God as a marriage or covenant relationship. Even though this nation was repeatedly unfaithful to God, he was always faithful to her. The prophet Hosea, in a living parable, showed God’s willingness to go the extra mile by faithfully loving and caring for his unfaithful spouse. Jesus, in his person, was the fulfillment of this beautiful picture, coming to his people in God’s faithfulness to them, so that he could bring home to his Father his beloved bride, his covenant people, which in his life, death, resurrection, and the giving of the Spirit, were the newly forged, redeemed and restored body of Christ, the church.
And in this way, we see that God is what God does. He is a God of his word. When he says “yes”, that is what he means. And when he says “no”, he means no. When he said that he would crush the serpent’s head (Gen. 3:15), he did so, as God in human flesh in the person of Jesus Christ, dying on the cross for our salvation. When God said he would send the Suffering Servant Messiah to his people to redeem not only them, but the whole world—that is what he did. God has kept his word to us and will keep his word to us. He is trustworthy, faithful, and true.
This is why we can rest in the reality that God will finish what he has begun in us. In the New Testament reading, 1 Corinthians 3:1–9, the apostle Paul points out that there is a difference between living in the truth of what Christ has done in our place on our behalf or living in our unredeemed flesh. Are we walking as mere human beings, or are we walking as spiritual people, those who are filled with and led by God’s Spirit, Christ in us? Our belief isn’t what makes us different people. Cutting off parts of our body or trying to make radical changes to our behavior doesn’t change us. What is life-transforming is Christ—the indwelling presence of God by the Holy Spirit. We are God’s field, God’s building, and he is at work in us, as we respond to him in faith. And we participate in his work in this world as we are led by the Spirit to love and serve others as we are gifted and called by God. It is a comfort to know it is all up to him, not all up to us—we just get to be a part of what he is doing!
Thank you, Abba, for allowing us to be a part of what you are doing in this world. Thank you, Jesus, for giving yourself so freely to us and for including us in your own relationship with the Father in the Spirit. Grant us the grace to live and walk so that all that we do is a true expression of who we are in you, through Jesus our Lord and by your Spirit. Amen.
“And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? For when one says, ‘I am of Paul,’ and another, ‘I am of Apollos,’ are you not mere men? What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.” 1 Corinthians 3:1–9 NASB
[Printable copy: https://newhope4me.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/olitmuch-deeper-than-the-body.pdf ]
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Walking in Unity With God
By Linda Rex
May 8, 2022, 4th Sunday in EASTER—When we had our Community Café ministry running strong, I remember sitting at the table talking with some of our church neighbors. Around us, busily taking care of all of us, were the Martha’s of our congregation—those with the gifts of hospitality, service, and helping. How tangible was the expression of the love of God through their hands!
I believe this is the significance of the story in Acts 9:36–43 about the disciple named Tabitha (or Dorcas). Luke tells us that she was “abounding with deeds of kindness and charity which she continually did.” Apparently, she used to make clothing for people, providing a necessary service for those in her spiritual community. When she passed away, the loss was felt keenly—keenly enough that they call for Peter to immediately come.
Indeed, I think about those who are no longer with us who had this same gift of the Spirit of service and helping. It would be nice if they could have stayed awhile with us so we could continue to enjoy the blessing of their loving care. But this was not God’s best for us or them, and they have moved on.
What we can learn from them, though, is that we help to make Christ visible to others when we serve, help and care for others. These tangible expressions of God’s love enable people to not just hear about Jesus, but to feel and experience his love in a real way that can be life-changing. These expressions of God’s love testify to the truth of the good news of Jesus’ finished work. When we live out what we say we believe, then the gospel, or good news, begins to carry some weight. When we don’t live out what we believe, we dishonor and grieve the Spirit, and make all that we might say about Jesus appear to be false.
The apostle John told about a time when Jesus was walking in the temple during the Feast of Dedication, what we today call Hanukkah. The Jews there gathered around him, hoping to catch him saying or doing something they could use as an excuse to arrest him. They wanted him to plainly tell them that he was the expected Messiah. But Jesus knew their intentions were not honorable and that they did not have his best interests in mind.
Jesus reminded them that he had already clearly told them the truth about who he was. Then he said to them, “…the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me.” Jesus was saying that they should have known who he was by looking at the things he was doing. What he was doing—healing the sick, casting out demons, giving the blind sight and the deaf hearing—was all done in his Father’s name by the power of the Holy Spirit. No one else could do these things in the way he was doing them. His actions quite clearly showed who he was—the Son of the Father, the Anointed One.
Question: do our actions quite clearly show who we are—the adopted children of God? How well are we reflecting our Lord Jesus Christ? We may preach the gospel effectively with our words, but how are we doing with our actions?
This question can be quite intimidating for a pastor. I realize that I stand up each week and preach, telling people what I believe God wants us to hear and do. But it never ceases to amaze me how that very thing I preached on or planned to preach on becomes an object lesson for me personally. God doesn’t want us to just talk about Jesus and his ways. He wants everyone of us to live and walk at all times “in Christ”—so all of life is swept up into walking in the Spirit in such a way that when others look our way, they tangibly experience God’s love—Jesus Christ in us by the Spirit.
Every one of us has opportunities throughout the week to offer help, care, and service to others. When GCI talks about the Love Avenue, this is what is meant. We are each called and gifted by God to love others. God has shed his love abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Participating in the Love Avenue is what we all do, though some of us are more gifted by the Spirit for these specific types of ministries.
And those who are especially gifted in the area of helping, service, and hospitality, I encourage you to be sure to find ways to use your gifts to express God’s love. You are a blessing to this world and I am very grateful for each of you—you are the reason that we have truckdrivers, farmers, caregivers, nurses, cooks, and all of those who work in hospitality, medicine, and many other fields where having people who serve others is essential to our well-being. When you are busy and active using your gifts to serve others as to the Lord, not only are people blessed, but you become a vibrant, tangible expression of God’s love.
Some of us find serving others in this way to be challenging. For all of us, trusting in the Spirit is essential. The apostle Paul said that if we work, we work as if we are working for the Lord. All of life is lived “in Christ” now. Just as Jesus did what he did in his Father’s name, we do what we do now in Jesus’ name and for the Father’s glory. What Jesus did, he did motivated by God’s love, since he was filled with the Spirit. Paul says for us to let the Spirit fill us. And, knowing we are compelled by God’s love, we are to love one another—proving we are Christ’s disciples.
The reason Jesus did the works he did was that he lived in united with his Father in the Spirit. It is because Jesus and his Father were one in will and action that by the Spirit Jesus expressed love so powerfully and profoundly. The reason we do caring, helping, and serving things is because we are united with Christ by faith, therefore united with the Father in the Spirit. It is our unity with God through Christ in the Spirit that we receive the capacity and desire to love and serve others effectively—and God offers this to everyone. May the Lord fully express through each of us by his Spirit the love and grace of our God.
Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us people in our lives who are especially gifted to serve, help and care for others. Thank you for pouring your love into our hearts by your Spirit so each and every one of us can serve, help and care for those you place in our lives. Grant us the grace to love others even as you have loved us, through Jesus and by your Spirit. Amen.
“At that time the Feast of the Dedication [Hanukkah or Festival of Lights] took place at Jerusalem; it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. The Jews then gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, ‘How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.’ Jesus answered them, ‘I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me. But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.’ ” John 10:22–30 NASB
[Printable copy of this blog: https://newhope4me.files.wordpress.com/2022/04/walking-in-unity-with-god.pdf ]
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