05-06-21

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
May 6, 2021
Scripture: Mark 12:28-31
One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?” Jesus answered, “The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Thought for the Day: So which comes first? Chicken or Egg or Omelette? So which comes first? Knowing God? Loving God? Loving neighbor? None of us were there when Jesus had this conversation with the scribe, but had the scribe asked which one is to come first, I can almost hear Jesus saying, “Yes!”

From a strict orthodox view, God was and is the first actor. To say it another way, nothing is possible without the imaginative initiative of God. Or as we say around Cypress Creek Christian Church, “…because God first loved us.” But do I first get to know God and then love God and then love neighbor? Or can I begin to love my neighbor after experiencing love from someone else, and then in time, encounter God as the Source of that love… and then fall in love with God? Or maybe it is a little like a circle where you simply jump in wherever you first make the connection, and then you move around to knowing God or loving God or loving neighbor, and then as you love your neighbor, you come to know more about God who is love which only increases your knowledge and love of God which just might grow your capacity to love your neighbor. Wow! That was a run-on sentence.

I have never been one to follow some strict step by step process for coming to the faith. This is because I have met many different people who are living amazing lives of faith, but their stories are very unique. And their journeys are very distinctive. Had someone forced them to follow the “right way” of doing things, they may never have made it to where they are now.

Prayer: Continue to keep us on this marvelous journey of faith, O Lord our God. Continue to encourage us toward a life that resembles you, while growing in a relationship through which we will be inspired to love as Jesus loved. Amen.

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