Connection part 1
I've heard it said, and I've even said it myself, "The ground is level at the cross." Which is to say, "...all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). Which is to say we're all in this together. Good and evil are outdated concepts that separate us instead of connecting us. Love is all about connection. It's about finding that common ground. Loving people--not IN SPITE of their differences and flaws--but BECAUSE of them. Celebrating the things that make us unique. Celebrating people for who they are instead of trying to force people to be someone they're not. That's what the Law did. It tried to put us all in a box. But we know the problem with the Law is that it demanded perfection without being able to produce it. It pointed out our sin without being able to do anything about it. That's why Colossians 2:14 tells us that Jesus was, "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross." The handwriting referes to the fact that God wrote the 10 Commandments with His own finger. But they were external rules. They were the standard, but not a standard we could meet. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. And all the Law could do was point that out. But God. Guys, Jesus didn't come to tell us what was wrong with us. He came to tell us what was RIGHT with us. He came to show us who we really are, by showing us who God really is. By shining the light of the world and revealing to us that we ARE the light of the world. He came to get rid of the religious box that we were trying to fit in. And He did that by nailing it to the cross. By cursing the fig tree because it couldn't produce any fruit. To get us out of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and show us that we are connected to the Tree of Life. He is the vine and we are the branches. We don't just eat from the Tree... we are PART of the Tree! And we're ALL part of it. Different branches, yes. Different parts of the body, yes. But it's all One body. One New Man. Jesus. He is all together lovely, and lovely all together. He is we, and we are He. In Him we live, and move, and have our being. And in us He lives, and moves, and has His being. So we ARE connected. By love. Which means we can all connect IN love. I don't have to get you to agree with me about anything in order to love you. I don't have to make you jump through hoops, or fit into MY box. Let me say it like this, "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give" (Matthew 10:8). Freely received... freely give. You didn't have to earn the gift of God. Don't make other people earn it from you. Stop building walls and start building bridges. Stop condemning people and start helping people. The deep calls out to the deep. The Jesus in me calls out to the Jesus in you. And that's where we find that point of connection!