10/28/16
The earliest Christians followed a Jewish tradition of pausing to pray, preferably together, first thing in the morning, about mid morning, at noon, about mid afternoon, and in the evening. “Just a Note” posts are brief observations made from Scripture readings not related to a lectionary. If I have one to post, it normally appears about 9:00 in the morning, at “the hour of prayer.”
Modern Western Christianity often thinks of Jesus as a profoundly inoffensive person. After all, as we read in John 5:45-47, he does not come to condemn anyone. So there’s no condemnation? Great! We can live however we want, and Jesus will be our forgiver. No problems there!
Then again, there is some condemnation. Moses is the one who condemns us. He wrote, under the inspiration of God, the very words which describe our sin and shame. Under divine inspiration he wrote of the need for a savior, one who would see God face to face, one who could make genuine and lasting atonement for our sins. Moses wrote of Jesus. Jesus himself does not condemn us because he has already done so through the words of Moses.
Regardless of the source, we stand condemned, guilty of sin, in need of a savior. Where do we turn? We need Jesus to escape condemnation.
If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.
The earliest Christians followed a Jewish tradition of pausing to pray, preferably together, first thing in the morning, about mid morning, at noon, about mid afternoon, and in the evening. “Just a Note” posts are brief observations made from Scripture readings not related to a lectionary. If I have one to post, it normally appears about 9:00 in the morning, at “the hour of prayer.”
Modern Western Christianity often thinks of Jesus as a profoundly inoffensive person. After all, as we read in John 5:45-47, he does not come to condemn anyone. So there’s no condemnation? Great! We can live however we want, and Jesus will be our forgiver. No problems there!
Then again, there is some condemnation. Moses is the one who condemns us. He wrote, under the inspiration of God, the very words which describe our sin and shame. Under divine inspiration he wrote of the need for a savior, one who would see God face to face, one who could make genuine and lasting atonement for our sins. Moses wrote of Jesus. Jesus himself does not condemn us because he has already done so through the words of Moses.
Regardless of the source, we stand condemned, guilty of sin, in need of a savior. Where do we turn? We need Jesus to escape condemnation.
If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.
RSS Feed