How to Inherit Eternal Life, Part 1

And a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" And He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?" And he answered, "Y OU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND; AND YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF." And He said to him, "You have answered correctly; DO THIS AND YOU WILL LIVE." (Luke 10:25-28 NASB)

We begin a new series today, this time on the topic of how to inherit eternal life. The opening salvo is given by a lawyer who wanted to test Jesus. To understand this passage, we need to understand to whom Jesus was speaking. The word translated as "lawyer" is nomikos and does not mean a person who helps with wills and lawsuits. This "lawyer" was a man who was an expert in Mosaic law. They had memorized the law and studied it to such a degree that they knew exactly what it said, every jot and tittle. Knowing the words of the law was not the same as knowing the heart of the law, as we shall soon see. 

I would like to believe that this lawyer, an expert in Jewish law, was there because He was truly interested in what Jesus had to say. Scripture tells us, however, that the reason this lawyer was asking Jesus a question had nothing to do with interest in eternal life. His sole reason for coming to Jesus was to trap Him. He was "putting Him to the test" in hopes that He could trick Jesus into saying something that would contradict the law (bringing him into direct conflict with the Jewish officials) or alienate the masses. 

He asked a question we all should ask. "What do we need to do in this life to have eternal life in the next?" The question was a good one. The motivation behind it was not. Perhaps the best way to start this series is by taking a look at our own motivation for approaching Jesus. Let's look not only at why we approach Jesus, but at why we are involved in the church at all. Are we simply interested in an intellectual exchange, a play with semantics? Are we interested in supporting our own agenda rather than exploring the ways and words of Jesus? Do we come to church simply for the social connections? Do we seek a kind of built-in family or community? Do we come seeking to know Jesus more intimately, serve Him more fully, follow Him more closely? 

Selah. Pause and consider.

For today, let's spend a few minutes considering our own motivation for coming to Christ, to the church. Are we, like the lawyer, there only to achieve our own purposes or do we come, humble and open, to our Savior? Let's be sure our motivation is one that pleases Christ and leads us toward that eternal life about which we will soon learn. 
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The link to last night's post, Ryan's Rooster Adventure, is here: leannahollis.blogspot.com/2015/01/ryans-rooster-adventure.html
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If you are weary in waiting for the answer to your prayer, here's something that can help. The Waiting: When the Answer to Your Prayer is Delayed and Your Hope is Gone, is available here. Also available in Tupelo at Joyful Creations and Park Place Salon.

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Rules versus Relationship (Luke 6:2)

But some of the Pharisees said, "Why do you do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?" (Luke 6:2 NASB)

The Pharisees were experts in the law. They not only knew the law, they interpreted the law, and they happily dispensed their interpretation of the law as law itself. In a way, it wasn't just God's Law, it was their Law, too, and they fiercely defended what they saw as their territory. 

The disciples were hungry and they grazed as they walked through the grain fields. Technically, it could be said that picking the handful or two of grain they ate was harvesting, and rubbing it between their hands to separate the wheat from the chaff was threshing, both of which were "work". How foolish it would be, though, for the Pharisees to complain about the disciples harvesting and threshing a few handfuls of grain in violation of the Sabbath when they were walking with The Lord of the Sabbath!

Jesus does not call us to a set of unbending rules but to a dynamic relationship with God Himself. That relationship (like the new wine from Luke 5) is one of change, growth, and steady maturity, not just a list of tasks to be accomplished. The disciples walked out that relationship for all the world to see. While the Pharisees were steadily checking off tasks on the "must-do" list and carefully avoiding the "do-nots", yet trying to sneak a few "do-nots" to the "can-do" list, in hopes of obtaining righteousness, the motley crew of disciples were laughing and eating with the One who WAS their Righteousness. 

It's easy to be a rule-checking Pharisee, especially when we are looking at someone else's actions! As we pray for our loved ones today, be sure to focus on their need for relationship, not on their need for another list to check and do. 

Pray first of all that we would live out our dynamic relationship with Christ in the same joyful way the disciples did, and that our loved ones would recognize the relationship as infinitely desirable. Pray that they will embrace a relationship with Jesus for themselves. 

The Scribes

The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, "Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?" (Luke 5:21 NASB)

These scribes were an interesting sort. Their profession completely involved the Scripture. They were the ones who painstakingly copied Scripture, and there were strict rules for the process. Special ink, special hides to write on, special procedure. No two letters could touch. If they did, the entire manuscript had to be recopied. The presence of errors requiring correction could invalidate the entire manuscript and necessitate that it be completely redone. The rules might seem nitpicking, but they were designed to assure the accuracy of the reproductions. We can count on those manuscripts that have survived to be true to the 

original. 

Because of their familiarity with the word of God, the scribes were often teachers in the synagogues and functioned as attorneys in questions of the law. Those nitpicking rules designed to protect the law became greatly expanded, and they turned the law from something intended to protect and help the people into a heavy burden that made life infinitely harder. The problem was a matter of perspective.  The scribes worked with Scripture on a daily basis. They knew the words with their heads, but not as well with their hearts. As a result, the law became perverted into an instrument of condemnation instead of a tool to draw people to God. 

The scribes were saying by their actions in expanding the law that they knew better than God. In making all those extra rules, they were putting themselves on an equal footing with God. He makes rules?  So can we!  In all that rule-making, they became so short-sighted and focused on compliance that they missed the One who came to free them from the law! 

It's easy to have the same spirit of condemnation, isn't it?  When we see the sin in the lives of those around us, it is all too easy to count their sin and compare it to our own. We usually come out pretty well in that kind of comparison, don't we?  What we sometimes forget is that Jesus came because of all Sin equally - ours as well as the sin of others. 

Today, as we begin to pray for and focus on our loved ones, let's avoid the list of sins they might have accumulated. If any sins are mentioned before The Lord, make it our own. Let's confess for ourselves and pray that our loved ones will be drawn to the Divine Relationdhip only Christ can Bring. When hearts are changed by the Spirit, behavior is sure to follow.