This semester in Seminary, I have been
studying Old Testament Theology and History. I was excited for this course, and
also unsure what to expect. In many cases, it seems that the Old Testament is
difficult to know what to do with. (Exodus 21, the Canaanite Wars, Deuteronomy,
the Exile, the 10 Plagues, Abraham and Issac... just to name a few)
In combination with some previous courses I
have taken, this has become an area of much interest to me over the years. But
this year, somehow it has culminated in a newness, a freshness, that I did not
expect. This course has take on a less intellectual, and more personal
relevance for me. I don't want to suggest I had what for Wesley was considered
an “Aldersgate Moment”, [1] but by a
painstaking study of God’s faithfulness and holiness, upholding His covenant
with His people, regardless of how they turned from Him over and over, I am
humbled and overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude for the work of Christ to
reconcile humanity (myself included) to God.
This Advent season, anticipating the birth of
Jesus has taken on new life for me. This Christmas, I will certainly look
forward to seeing my children bursting with the excitement and joy of it all, but
inside I have a new, profound excitement to see and celebrate Jesus’ decision
to count us worth it, and enter our mess to restore us to him.
I don’t think I’m saying anything new in this
post, except to express a newness for me
as I come to terms with the failure of humanity to try to build a bridge to
God, and God’s completeness in coming to us in His Son to deal with it, permanently.
I can’t quite go so far as some such as C.S
Cowles, or Eric A Siebert[2] who, while
having a beautiful understanding of the character of Christ seem to feel that
if we see something in the Old Testament that doesn’t fit with the character of
Jesus, we must throw it out.[3] This
position makes me very uncomfortable as it puts human beings in the dangerous
position of judging what of the Bible is the
Word of God, and what is not. Often, based on what is popular in modern
society. I don't see, in the Gospels or the New Testament, any place where Jesus suggests that the Old Testament (What Jesus would himself know as the Scriptures) can be discarded.
Bruxy Cavey describes the Old Testament as
“The story of what didn’t work”.[4] This is a blunt and challenging statement to for many to swallow. But, he has Biblical backup. He is
basing his position on the word παλαιόω in Hebrews 8:13 This word translates to "obsolete" "By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear." I find Bruxy's point helpful, to understand that obsolete does not mean irrelevant. He continues “The Old
Testament endures as God’s way of reminding us that we don’t need more rules
and rituals; in fact, rules and rituals can often get in the way of what we
really need, which is God Himself.”[5] We need more of God.
Rules and rituals have their place. They can be rich, meaningful and helpful. Until they become so important to us that we value the rules and rituals over relationship. Both Testaments are filled with story after story of how this played out ad-nauseum within Israel.
Christmas itself for many of us, is a time
filled with ritual and tradition. One of
my personal favourites is: after everyone else has gone to sleep, and the house
is silent, turning off all of the lights except the Christmas Tree and simply sitting in the quiet dark, watching the lights change and reflecting on the peace and joy of the moment. For
me, these are among my favourite moments of the season. At the same time I have
to be careful to recognize these treasures for what they are: an arrow pointing
us to Jesus’ and his desire to give his life so we could be restored to Him.
This Christmas, as I have spent many hours
reflecting on the story of God and His love for human beings, how He held up
His part in the covenant, and kept His promises regardless of the unfaithful
and rebellious people He loves so much, I see in a new light just
how very much God truly loves each of us. Jesus, the one who holds the
authority and wisdom required to justly and righteously judge humanity and the
brokenness of our sin, judged us worthy of
forgiveness, mercy and grace. Jesus took his authority, and made his final
statement on the matter: We are worth it, his love is enough.
So, Jesus’ in his righteous judgement, loves
us and forgives us if we will believe in him.[6]
This was the plan from all of eternity.[7]
I don't’ know about you, but I often feel
hopeless and helpless to confront the brokenness and darkness of our world. If
you’ve been around the church for a long time, I haven’t written anything new
to you. My hope and prayer for all of us this year, is that somehow by His
Spirit we will experience something rich and new this season.
More than that, I pray that out of this, our
hearts will spill over. I pray that as they do, we will bless those in our
sphere of influence in powerful ways. May the light of Christ shine through all of us and may the darkness, so often present for many this time of year, flee
like the demons, into the pigs.[8]
[1] For a full account see: John Wesley and A. C. Outler, John Wesley (Cary: Oxford University Press, USA, 2014), 51-69.
[2] See Cowles’ Essay in C. S. Cowles et al., Show Them No Mercy: 4 Views on God and Canaanite
Genocide (Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2003), as well as: Eric A.
Seibert, Disturbing Divine Behaviour:
Troubling Old Testament Images of God (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2009)
[3] In fairness, these two theologians are far
more educated and well read than I. My summary of their position on this issue
is crude and overly-simplistic, but humbly represents my understanding of their
basic point.
[4] Bruxy Cavey, Reunion: The Good News of Jesus for Seekers,
Saints, and Sinners (Harrisonburg, VA: Herald Press, 2017), 6.
[5] Ibid.
[6] 1 John 1:9 NIV, Acts 3:19, Acts 20:21, Acts
11:18 for example
[7] Acts 3:18-19
[8] Mark 5:11-12, Luke 8:32-33
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