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Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law. Rom 3:21-25,28

We all have certain pivotal moments in our lives, that change the direction our lives are going, and change our viewpoints in life. There are pivotal moments like this in the Bible as well. One of those moments occurs today in Romans chapter 3. It has been said that this is possibly the single most important paragraph ever written. This summer we will be studying the book of Romans together, and we begin today by looking at this passage. The first important point is that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We all want to think that God grades on a curve. When we measure our own lives against others, it is hard to see where we fall. But the truth is, all of us have been separated from God by a great distance. The reason for this is that we have sin in our lives. Paul is saying to us that we need God's help. Then he goes on to say that Christianity is unique in the God solves the dilemma for us. Other faiths say that we are able to reach God. For instance, mysticism says that the human spirit can soar to God. Moralism says that we can be good enough for God, and legislate our way to God. Philosophy says we can think our way to God. But here in chapter 3, Paul says that God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, his son Jesus Christ. Though we can never reach God, God incarnate comes to be with us and comes for us. When he comes, it's not just Christmas and the baby in the manger that we celebrate. He came as a sacrifice for us. He was our propitiation, or perfect sacrifice. God sent Jesus to be with us, but not just to be with us -- but to be a sacrifice of atonement, and to die for us. This is not just a pagan sacrifice. Why did Jesus die? The pagans would say that we have a bad-natured God that must be appeased and placated. But that's not the picture of our God. God's nature is to abhor evil and deal with it. When Jesus comes and dies on the cross, he deals with evil through his sacrifice. Who makes the sacrifice? In pagan religion, the people make the sacrifice. Pagans would say that since we offended God somehow, it's up to us to make the sacrifice. That's not a correct picture of our God. We don't make the sacrifice; God does. The idea, purpose, the initiative, the action, the gift -- everything in the sacrifice comes from God. What's the nature of the sacrifice? In pagan worship, sacrifice was a kind of bribe. The people sacrificed food, goods or even other humans to their gods. But our God provides the sacrificial Lamb for us. God gave his son to die in our place. If we consider all of our own sins, and had to write just three of them down per day in a blank book, by the end of the year there would be more than a thousand written. By the end of a lifetime the entire book would be full, and it would be too much to carry. But somebody has to carry that, so our book is transferred from us to his Son whom he gave for us. Jesus through his atoning sacrifice carries the burden of our sin. And that's Christianity in a nutshell. We celebrate this every Sunday. There is no communion service that doesn't reflect back directly to this passage from Romans. There are many places in the Book of Common Prayer that directly speak to Jesus' atoning sacrifice. There is no burden that we carry that he won't carry for us. There's no wrong that we've ever done that he can't erase for us. In Jesus' atoning sacrifice, we are made one, first with God, and then with each other, and ultimately with ourselves.

Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith. If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation. For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us, as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations") in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become "the father of many nations," according to what was said, "So numerous shall your descendants be." Rom 4:13-18

Our series of teachings on the book of Romans continues today with Romans chapter 4. Today we start with the question: Does God begin with the law or with grace? Do we start at a place of rules and regulations, or a place of promise and hope? Which came first? It is much easier to think that the law came first. We tend to think that "old" means "negative," and "new" is "positive". But this is not really the way it works out. In verse 13 of chapter 4, we read that the promise did not come to Abraham through the law. Looking back at Genesis 15, we see that Abraham was at a place of desperation. He wanted an heir, and was crying out to God in frustration. He was experiencing a lonely and desperate time that we all experience at different times in our lives. At that moment, Abraham was trying to live by the law. He had been a good husband, he had cared for his flocks, and he did all that was required of him, and he wanted to know why God had left him childless. At that moment, and amazing thing happens: God says, "Look up at the heavens and count the stars-if indeed you can count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." God relates to us first not through law, but through the hope and promise of mercy. In Genesis 15:6 we read, "Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness." When we open the pages of the Bible, it is all about hope, grace and promise. It is not about rules, regulations and judgment. All of us, when we are needing or wanting something, tend to think that we deserve it because of all of the good things we have done. We drift towards the law because it is easier. Grace requires forgiveness. When someone lets us down, grace demands forgiveness. When we break someone's heart, grace demands that we forgive them. The law is easier because there is no sacrifice required. God's mercy requires Jesus' sacrifice. The challenge for us is to discover the principle that God has for us out of the law. Also, this changes the way we share our faith with others. Our faith is not about how you read a certain book or perform certain actions; it is about sharing the love and mercy of God. This also affects how we baptize infants in the Episcopal church. In the Old Testament, circumcision was the norm. In the New Testament, we have baptism. We celebrate God's grace and mercy instead of the law. Will you live a life of grace which frees you up, or live a life of fear which tears you down? The way of the law simply turns us into copies. The way of grace and freedom turn us into what God wants us to be.

Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person-though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. But more than that, we even boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. Rom 5:6-11

Two weeks ago, in Romans chapter 3, we talked about our need for God and that we all have fallen short. Last week, we looked at chapter 4, and wrestled with how we can approach this dilemma. Will we earn our way to heaven, or is God's grace sufficient? This week we wrestle with the question, does God love us? We all ask God this question sometimes. We all have times that we simply must ask God this question, because we all experience tremendous difficulties, challenges and tragedies from time to time that whisper to us, "God doesn't love you." Does God love us even when tragedy comes our way? In times like that, the weight of the evidence at hand suggests that the answer is "no". But Paul in Romans 5 says the answer is a resounding "yes"! We need to remember this lesson, because if we are not facing a particular struggle right now, there will come a time when we will. In verse 8, Paul says, "But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us." The essence of loving is giving. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16) Jesus "gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age". (Gal 1:4) The costliness of the gift is the measure of the degree of love. It indicates that the relationship has worth and value. Paul tells us, if you are ever to question God's love for us, look at the proof he gave us. He sent his Son, and allowed him to die for us. What God has done in the past makes all the difference for today. But if we are candid, there is still an aspect of our selves that tends to say, "I am forgiven, but still I struggle with sin." Our enemy still attacks us. Even though Christ has died, there is still a struggle that must be faced. We are already saved, but we are not yet delivered from indwelling sin. We will be saved from God's wrath; we are justified, just like the margin of a page is "right justified". Because Christ died, our lives are justified and straight with God. We are saved, but not yet! At that last moment of our lives, we will be saved. Paul says that God proves his love today, and we can be assured that we will be saved. When you ask yourself whether or not God loves you, you can answer with a resounding "yes" because of the cross. "Yes" becomes everything at that last moment of life, because it means we are saved. At the time that Paul wrote this passage, he was in Corinth, preparing to depart on his travels. He had a great sense of trepidation, because he knew that going to Jerusalem would be dangerous. Prophets tell him on the way that he will be in chains. Paul writes to people in Rome because Paul is facing similar challenges to what they were facing. Likewise, when we face challenges, we can come back to the same verse. "But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us." We can know that proof and that love.

But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died through the one man’s trespass, much more surely have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abounded for the many. And the free gift is not like the effect of the one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brings justification. If, because of the one man’s trespass, death exercised dominion through that one, much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. Therefore just as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all. For just as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.  Rom5:15-19

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For whoever has died is freed from sin. But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.  Rom 6:3-11

Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. Rom 7:21-8:6

What is the one doctrine that is unique to Christianity? It is not the incarnation, and not the resurrection. It's not the account of Jesus' return from the dead. C.S. Lewis, who had one of the keenest apologistic minds, said that it is only Christianity that comprehends grace. God always moves towards us with grace -- free of charge, with no strings attached. Buddhists have an 8-fold path that they must follow to attain enlightenment. Muslims have a strict code of law that must be followed. The Jewish people have the covenants. Only in Christianity does God's grace come first. The choice put before us is, will we live by the law, or will we live by the Spirit? We must live with a sense of the gift that God gives us, rather than the law. First of all, life in the Spirit means that we have been adopted. We are adopted by him through the Spirit. We are children of God. As we allow the Spirit to lead us, we are more reflective of who God is. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the law of sin and death. It is living in fear vs. living in freedom. In the Spirit there is freedom. Paul is saying that as we relate to Christ through the Spirit, and not through the law, and allow the Spirit to fill our lives, we will reflect that family heritage of Christ. The New Testament writers talk about us being adopted. People were adopted as adults in New Testament times. They were moved from a place of slavery to a place of freedom. They moved from having nothing to having joy, and would have everything that they needed. Life in the Spirit is lived from a perspective of knowing you are a child of God. You have been moved from slavery to sonship. Secondly, life in the Spirit means that we have intimacy with God. We can say, Abba, Father. When we believe, our spirit cries with urgency for intimacy with God. Through the Spirit we cry out for intimacy with God. Life in the Spirit means that God will draw you closer to himself. Prayer is a picture of this intimacy with God: when we call out to God through the Spirit, it is a holy moment. It is a marvelous picture of intimacy. Thirdly, life in the Spirit means assurance. The work of the Spirit is to touch our spirit and assuring us that we belong to God. Moments of assurance also come through prayer. Assurance comes through the Spirit when we are figuratively, or literally, on our knees. Going from chapter 7 to chapter 8 in Romans, we struggle with slavery vs. the freedom that the Spirit gives us. Will we come to a place where the Spirit testifies in us that assurance that we are his? The promise of Romans 8 is that we have been moved from a place of fear to a place of freedom. Finally, life in the Spirit gives us hope. We have a great and secure hope that heaven waits for us, and that the Spirit will raise us. John, when he was on Patmos, gives us a brief glimpse of what heaven will look like. He has an experience of seeing heaven. A messenger appears to him, saying "these are true words". John immediately fell down to worship him, but the messenger told him not to worship him, but to worship God. John is seeing someone who has been glorified, and his first instinct is to fall down and worship! This messenger's appearance would astonish anyone who saw it today. This is the hope of glory to come. We don't need something on the outside, like the law. We need the Spirit on the inside, which gives us a spirit of adoption, of intimacy with God, of assurance, and of hope. We only need to open our hearts to the Holy Spirit.

    

But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you. So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.  Rom 8:9-17

    

I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.  Rom 8:18-25

    

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.  What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.  Rom 8:26-34 

Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom 8:35-39

This week, we all watched in desperation the news reports of the group of miners who were hopelessly trapped below the surface in a mine shaft. As the minutes turned to hours and then to days, their spirits sank as they realized they might not be rescued. One of the miners reportedly asked the question, "I wonder if I will go to heaven?" It is a poignant question, and one that all of us sooner or later will ask ourselves. Paul in Romans 8 answers this question for us. We must first decide if we will live in our own strength, or if we will live in the freedom of God's Spirit. Once we've made this choice between the law and grace, the we can know God's assurance and hope. All of creation and all of us who believe wait in anticipation for the coming of the Lord. There's nothing stopping God's hope for us who believe. Today in our reading from Romans we ask five great last questions. Who is against us? The answer is "no one". Will he not graciously give us all things? Of course he will. Who will bring charge against those who believe? The answer again is "no one". Who is it that condemns us? No one. And the last unanswerable question is, who will separate us from the love of Christ? We all have hardships and troubles in our lives. We will all experience distress and trials of many kinds. Will some pressure from the world or persecution separate us from the love of Christ? Will a lack of food or clothing separate us? Our gospel lesson is from the Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus stresses the importance of not worrying about such things. Not one sparrow will fall without God noticing; how much more will he care for us? Then Paul goes on to quote Psalm 44. "For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted sheep to be slaughtered." Is this what believing is? It is a lament of a believer; when we believe, the road does get steeper. But we must remember that no challenge can separate us from Christ. We are more than conquerors, and more than overcomers. Any trial that we may experience only happens in the context of Romans 8. We do not accomplish victory over trials through our own strength, but by God's grace. Christ's suffering proves his love for us; our suffering proves that nothing will separate us from Christ. The challenges of life are not reason to doubt, but are evidence of his love for us. In the lives of our families and friends, this is continuously proved to be true. We have a sense that God will sustain us. Challenges come to each of us. Paul says, "I am convinced" that nothing will separate us. Not the harshness of death, nor the exuberance of life. Not angels who would bless us, nor rulers who control our destiny. Not even demons can separate us from Christ. Not the present, nor the future. Not any height or depth. No great experience of joy, nor tragedy of loss. If we picture the word Creator written on paper, and draw a line under it, all of creation would fall below that line. There is nothing that can reside above the line, save the Creator himself. No event, person, power or anything else can rob us of heaven. The love of God can rescue us. With the miners, rescue was never certain until the last miner was brought up our of the pit. But our rescue is sure and certain, even in the midst of any challenge we might face. At times like that, we should call upon our Father in heaven. Will I go to heaven? Paul says, I am convinced that nothing will ever separate us from God.

Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I glorify my ministry in order to make my own people jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead! for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. Just as you were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience, so they have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy. For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all. Rom 11:13-15,29-32

Have you ever seen someone making a terrible mistake, and you just know that they shouldn't be doing what they are doing? Do you remember a time when you desperately called out to God to save someone from making such a mistake? We have been studying the book of Romans this summer. In chapters 1 and 2, we learned that everyone has a sense of the presence of God. In chapter 3, we learned that everyone has fallen short. In chapter 4 we talked about how we can relate to God, and that God moves towards us first with love, not with law. In chapter 5, we were assured of God's love for us, because he sent his own Son to die for us. In chapters 6 and 7, Paul wrestled with the fact that we keep sinning, even though God loves us. In chapter 8 we asked, what will happen? Will we live by the law, or through the Spirit? At the end of that chapter, we were assured that nothing can separate us from the love of God. Now we come to what might be called a "parenthesis". In chapters 9, 10 and 11, Paul wonders what will happen to the Jewish people. Paul says that he has been praying for his fellow Jews. They have been sent the law, the prophets, and directions on how to worship. But Paul asks, Why have my prayers not been answered? Why don't the Jews recognize Jesus as the Messiah? Paul had a dramatic conversion, and by this point in his life, he had been praying for his fellow Jews for over 20 years. Yet still they were turning their backs. "I am an apostle to the Gentiles," Paul said, because the Jews had rejected Jesus. Not everyone will get to heaven, but the opportunity for heaven is there for everyone. As Paul writes his theology and offers his prayers, a great truth is revealed: the love of God is there for everyone. God gives each of us free will to choose for ourselves whether we will accept or reject his love. Do you believe you have free will? The Jews had everything; why did they turn their backs? We can live by law, and guilt and shame will forever burden us; or we can live in freedom. If you say you are a universalist, and believe everyone will go to heaven, then you don't believe in free will. If you believe everyone will go to heaven, then you are saying that God makes everyone go to heaven. The important lesson of Romans is that God doesn't make you do anything that you don't want to do. In considering and praying, Paul realizes that although we are completely free to choose, God is completely sovereign and in control. This is what is called on antimony. An antimony is two truths in physics that cancel each other out. If you look at the aerodynamic characteristics of a bumblebee, you would determine that it couldn't possibly fly. But yet it does. That's what God would teach us through Romans 9-11. You and I are absolutely free to accept or reject his love, but at the same time God is sovereign. God isn't finished with his people yet. There is a great sense of hope in this parenthesis. The essence of Romans is freedom. The ultimate example is when someone in our life is doing something that we can't stop. God in his mercy will not stop him either. That is the love that God has for us, the freedom that he wants each of us to experience. You shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?’ ‘Or who has given a gift to him, to receive a gift in return?’ For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen.  Romans 11:33-36

It's very difficult to go through life without a sense of remembrance for the things that have happened in our past.  Today, Paul comes to a place of doxology as he remembers all that God has done. Last week we talked about the antinomy (or paradox) found in Romans 9: We are free to either accept or reject God's love, but at the same time God is in control. Another antinomy that we find is that while God is completely merciful, he is also completely just. Paul grappled with these two truths all throughout Romans. God is merciful and loving, but still he is just when dealing with sin. Paul considers the impossibility of it all, and then launches into today's doxology. Paul is remembering all of who God is, and he comes to a place of praise due to all of the things that were written in previous chapters in Paul's theology. He is made complete in his praise. This sense of praise does not come easily to us in our English language. We especially lack a way of capturing the wonder of God, especially in our modern culture. For instance, we do not have an adequate word with which to translate the Italian word enamoramiento, which refers to when you are first falling in love with a person, when you just know that that person is the love of your life. As Paul has written his theology, he is in love with God. It is natural to give a moment of praise to God at this juncture. "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!" declares Paul. In other words, it seems that our God wants and desires a passionate love affair with each of us. Remember that God always moves towards us first with grace. When we enter into times of struggles, he wants to be there with us. 1 John 4:16 says, "So we have known and believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them." True love comes from God. This is the mystery that Paul has discovered. True love binds the lover, and looses the beloved. From a spiritual perspective, if we are bound to God, he makes the ultimate sacrifice for us. He leaves heaven, and dies for us. Ultimately it's because of his love for us that gives us the freedom to choose. We can be free from guilt and shame. For example, Christian marriage frees up more of the person God wants one to be, through binding to another. This is what ultimately happened to Paul; his heart was full of love for God, and it brings him to a new place. The last of the book of Romans takes us from theology to how we can live knowing these truths. A healthy relationship has a healthy aspect of caring. This must come from a reservoir of love, which is filled up by one's parents. This ability to bond with and love others is given to us by our parents. The second aspect of a healthy relationship is an aspect of friendship. Do you know that today God loves you and cares about you as a friend? This truth is not just for children, but is for adults as well. The third aspect of a healthy relationship is that of desire. In marriages, affection often runs through periods of hot and cold. But there is always a deep-seated desire to be with that other person. This is also true of spiritual relationships; God gives us a deep desire to sing with, worship with and pray with others who are special to us spiritually. The fourth aspect of a healthy relationship is that of commitment. Through thick or thin, our God will not give up on us. The fifth aspect that is seen in a healthy relationship is social networks. None of us can live in a vacuum. Our lives are meant to be lived together with others, not lived out in isolation.  As we consider the love of God, we can remember all of the aspects of our relationship with him through the years, and our relationships with others that he has put in our lives, and we can remember that God is love.

Rev. Liz Meade, Deacon    

I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect. For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness. Rom 12:1-8  

We as Americans were transformed a year ago this week. In today's passage, Paul talks about being transformed. He begins by saying, "Present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God." It is truly amazing that we might have something that is holy and acceptable to offer to God. Yet we are made in the image of God, and we are continually being pulled toward that inner sense of wanting to be with God and to develop a sense of communion with him. We talked last week about how God is bound to us in our baptism. The Holy Spirit, bound to us in our baptisms, nudges us each and every day, if we only take time to be quiet and listen to that still, small voice. Paul teaches us that God is here; that by ourselves we will always fall short; but also about antinomy- two ideas that tend to cancel each other out. We have a sovereign God, but we also have a God who allows us free will and free choice. The choice presented to us today in Paul's reading is whether or not we're going to present ourselves to God. He guarantees us that if we do, we will be transformed. How do we start that process, so that God can have the effect on us that he so wishes for us? And that we, in our deepest, darkest self, also want and hunger for ourselves? There are four things that we can do. The first is prayer. We must talk to God and acknowledge his presence – not when we are merely at church, but every hour and every minute, whether we be on the train, or in the kitchen peeling potatoes, or in the car taking our kids to college. We need that time to be able to acknowledge God. One way to acknowledge the presence of God is to mentally "take Jesus with you" wherever you go. The second way to prepare ourselves for this transformation is to present ourselves before the Lord in regular worship. God is asking us not to just recite the words by rote memory, but to actively participate in singing, and drinking from the cup, and intentionally praying for those whom God lays on our hearts. God wants us engaged actively so that we can be transformed. A third way to continue the transformation process is through study. By studying scripture, we can learn about God and what he wants for our lives. Today's Psalm is a perfect teaching resource. Ps 26:1: "I have lived with integrity; I have trusted the Lord." V2:"Test me Lord; examine my heart." V7:"Sing aloud a song of thanksgiving." V12:"I will bless the Lord." By studying scripture, we prepare for the transformation that God wants so desperately for us. The fourth thing that we can do as we are presenting ourselves – the diaconal aspect of what we are in Christ – is service. All the work we do – taking our kids to school, being the bread-winner for our family, washing dishes at home – can be offered intentionally to God as a holy sacrifice. Next week after the 10:30 service there will be an opportunity to have lunch with the leadership of various ministry teams here at St. Mark's, in order to learn about how each of us might fit into a ministry that God would have for us to do. Throughout the week, there are many different opportunities for prayer, worship, study and service. Paul continues with this "presenting of ourselves" by saying, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God." In our secular culture, we have a need for material proof on paper or on a computer screen. But Paul is saying, no – don't be conformed; be transformed. Don't go with the crowd; go with the transcendented. It's in bringing ourselves before the transcendent God that we ourselves can be transformed. Nothing in our lives can't be transformed by the power and mercy of Jesus Christ. God in his mercy knows what we need to affect a total transformation. This comes through setting our eyes on the things of God, not on human things. We are transformed by the renewing of our minds, as Paul says in the last passage of today's lesson. Our ways are not the Lord's ways. God's message is not about dogma or rigidity. It's about love, relationships, and transformation. As soon as we start to live by the law of rigidity, we become ensnared by it. We lose that free choice that God has given us. God's message is about leaving worldly things behind – wealth, status – let them go, Paul urges us. Make the choice to follow Godly things. It's a process and a journey that can begin right now. First, we present ourselves as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to the Lord; and secondly, we must guard against being stiff-necked and rigid people. When our hearts are softened, and our minds are open, the nudgings of the Holy Spirit, who is bound to us, can work in us and through us and can transform us into that which God desires us to be.

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Rom 12:9-21  

Rev. Dr. Mark Tusken    

Some judge one day to be better than another, while others judge all days to be alike. Let all be fully convinced in their own minds. Those who observe the day, observe it in honor of the Lord. Also those who eat, eat in honor of the Lord, since they give thanks to God; while those who abstain, abstain in honor of the Lord and give thanks to God. We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living. Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, ‘As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall give praise to God.’ So then, each of us will be accountable to God.  Rom 14:5-12

Today we finish up our series on Romans. Last week, we looked at a passage from Romans 12, and this week we are in Romans chapter 14. (We unfortunately skip Romans 13; I would encourage everyone to read this chapter on your own. This chapter is a good study concerning whether or not we should be pacifists in today's culture, and how we should deal with evil in the world today.) Romans 14 is a reminder that all of us are called to come to principles of right and wrong in our lives – our "ethic". Here are two hypothetical situations: Two different businessmen come to the Rector for a blessing on their businesses. The first one says he will support his family by repossessing cars. The second one says that he has invented a way to modify the tollway transponders such that when you go through a toll booth, money is added to your account, instead of subtracted, and he would like to start a business marketing these devices. The first businessman could of course receive a blessing, because he is only taking back what belongs to the bank. The second scenario naturally could not be blessed! When it comes to making decisions of right and wrong, there are areas that we all can agree on, but there will also be other areas of gray that are more difficult. Today's passage illustrate this. Some people, Jews, had always followed the commandment, "Keep the Sabbath day holy." In the early Christian community, there were many who believed it was their ethical and spiritual responsibility to hold to this law. But it's also a reality that from the very beginning, most of the Christian community began to worship instead on the first day of the week, Sunday. Why did they make the change? It is one of those dramatic proofs of the resurrection – on that first day of the week, when the disciples visited the tomb, it was empty, and ever after, Christians have worshipped on Sunday. The disciples made an ethical decision regarding when to worship. Genuine ethical decisions are hard, because it is difficult to find a black and white answer. Paul says, everybody ought to be fully convinced in their own mind. Paul was saying that there are times when we will have different views, and they both can be "right": the important principle is that each one should be fully convinced in his or her own mind as to what is right. So, the first principle of our ethic that Paul lays out for us is that we need to know in our own mind what is true. Paul continues on with another issue that was of great importance: what should be eaten. There was an abundance of meat available in those times that was already sacrificed to idols. Many believed that this food was therefore tainted. Other Christians argued that the idol sacrifice was completely meaningless, and therefore it didn't matter if Christians ate that meat. There was an ethical dilemma: Was it right or wrong to eat meat sacrificed to idols? Here is a truth about ethical dilemmas: what is a great challenge in one generation is a "no-brainer" for another. The great majority of Christians in our time worship on Sundays, although some people enjoy going to a Saturday evening service. The important principle is that we in some way honor God and the Sabbath by worshipping on a weekly basis. Paul is saying to us, when it comes to ethical decisions, be sure that you have thought it all the way through, and considered what God would have you do for your life. For some dilemmas, there may be a number of decisions, each of which could honor God in its own way. A second principle is that when we need to make an ethical decision, and there are two directions in which to go, the decision we make ought to have thanksgiving linked to it. Ask yourself, can I go this direction with thanksgiving and joy in my heart? But here is another question that we can ask ourselves: Is there an ethic where there is a clear right and a clear wrong? The answer is yes. Paul is not telling us that everyone is free to believe whatever they want. In your ethical decisions that you are confronted with, make sure that if it's a neutral decision, don't hold it against someone else. But there are some places where there is no retreat. What day you worship on, whether or not there are candles on the altar, and what you eat are not examples of this. But we as believers need a framework on which to base our decisions. There are three beacons that we can look to in order to triangulate in on a truth. When these three beacons align, you can know clearly that you are on a correct path. The first beacon is Scripture. We begin to make moral choices based on what the Bible says. In our example of the inventor who wants to market the tollbooth device, we can clearly say that this is wrong, because it is violating the scriptural principle of not stealing from others. There are certain spiritual realities that the scriptures clearly define that we can't go back from. Ask yourself, what does the Bible say about this? At times, though, the Scriptures are not completely clear to us on certain issues. A second beacon we can turn to is tradition. This is the weight of Christians thinking and praying through ethical issues down through time. First we look to the Bible, and if it's unclear, we can look to other Christians' ideas through history. It may be arrogant of us to think that we don't need to consider what other great Christian minds have considered down through time. Don't ever fall into the trap of thinking that what you know today is more complete than what someone knew and thought a thousand years ago. Our own culture today has seeped into our own life in a way that it never did in past ages. But there are other times when Scripture isn't clear on an issue, and tradition isn't able to direct us either. At that time, the third beacon that we need to look to is reason. Another way to describe reason is "spirit-filled and spirit-led wisdom." These three beacons can be guiding lights in our lives. Three points define a plane, in mathematical principles. Three legs are the steadiest base for a table. If you want a theology that won't fall or wobble, you need these three beacons that provide the balance: Scripture, tradition and reason. Paul has given us his theology in Romans, a theology of grace that leads to joy. He then suggested to us that out of this theology of grace, that we live lives of gratitude. Today we are challenged to ask ourselves, what is flexible, and what is right and wrong? Would you bless this or that?

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When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ‘Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’ He said to him, ‘”You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’  Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them this question: ‘What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?’ They said to him, ‘The son of David.’ He said to them, ‘How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying, “The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet’”? If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?’ No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.  Matt 22:34-46

The last few weeks, we have seen Jesus as he is in the midst of questions and challenges. Last week, we saw how the Herodians asked Jesus about money. Jesus says, "Who does the denarius belong to?" Then, the Sadducees were absorbed with trying to refute the possibility of life after death. Throughout the questioning and challenges, Jesus doesn't give an inch. He replied, "Have you not read what was said to you by God, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is God not of the dead, but of the living." (22:31,32) Today, the Pharisees ask about the law. Which law is the greatest? The Pharisees had ranked all of their laws, from least to most important. They had a law for every day of the year, and every part of the body. There is an aspect of Phariseeism that exists down to the present day. The Pharisees believed that you could control your life down to every last detail. Today, we see people trying to make money, lose weight, run their family, get fit, be a better manager, and to take on any number of other self-improvement projects. The Pharisees believed that there is a formula for God, and some of us today fall into the same trap. We might believe that if we do a certain thing, a certain problem will be fixed. Jesus needed to put a stop to the belief that you needed to be good enough in order to get to God. Jesus says, love God with all of your heart. Some of us might remember Deuteronomy 6:5 as the first Bible verse we ever learned: You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. It's no harder than anything else. It's not about a prescription for success; it's about knowing in your heart what God wants for you, and it starts with love. Love has outlasted every army that has marched in hate, fear or anger. It's about that early truth that we learned so long ago as kids. There are seven kinds of Pharisees, and only one was good. The Shoulder Pharisee is like one who wears his rank in an offensive way. He draws attention to himself, and gives in such a way that everyone can see. The Wait Awhile Pharisee always has a valid and rational excuse for doing good. He is someone who says he needs his money to take care of an ailing parent, for example, but then never ends up using the money for the good cause. The Bruised and Bleeding Pharisee never ventures far from home with his eyes open, because you never knew when you might come across something offensive to the eyes. The danger for this kind of Pharisee is that he is someone who misses part of God's beauty in the world, and is someone who never grapples with the subject of good and evil in the world. The Pestle and Mortar Pharisee always walks bent over, trying to be humble. He is always so caught up in such things as rigorous Bible Study and unfaltering church attendance. Do you know anyone that fits this category? The Ever-Reckoning Pharisee goes through life with scales and balances – I'll do this one bad thing, he says, but then I'll balance it with this other act of contrition. He is always asking, "Does it add up? Is it fair?"  We all know that life isn't always fair, but it is filled with gifts for us to enjoy, if we are willing to look for them. The Timid Pharisee is always fearful of divine retribution, wondering when God will finally "get" them.  But of course, this isn't the God that we know. Lastly, there is the God-Fearing Pharisee, whose motivation is love. They aren't good enough, but God's love is great enough. That day when Jesus silenced the crowd, some said, "Here is a Rabbi that gets it." That Bible verse is the essence of what it means to believe. Week in and week out, we've known that truth. Armies have marched and gone, business have come and gone, but love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might, this is the only thing we need.

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'Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.  Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, “Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.” Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” But the wise replied, “No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.” And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, “Lord, lord, open to us.” But he replied, “Truly I tell you, I do not know you.” Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.  Matt 25:1-13

This is a story about a sudden return. Five bridesmaids were ready; five were not. Five had oil; five did not. For the early listener of this parable, the lack of oil was the key to the story. Oil, or the olive tree, was always a sign of belief in stories like this. God has a vineyard, and his people are believers. The oil used in lamps was olive oil. Isaiah chapter 5 illustrates this analogy. Also, when Jesus refers to not being able to put new wine in old wineskins, the wine is a picture of God at work. When Jesus includes the element of a lamp or oil in a parable, he is talking of those who believe. In today's story, the setting is a wedding celebration. In those days such a celebration would last an entire week! It begins with the sudden arrival of the bridegroom to claim his bride. The bridesmaids must be ready, because the festivities begin with the arrival of the bridegroom. The wedding celebration was one of the greatest times in a young couple's life. It was a time when every wish and desire is met and every dream is fulfilled. Everyone was invited to participate in the celebration. But – it was on the terms of the host. Once the celebration started, it was too late if you weren't there. There are two great lessons from this story. The first is that we don't know the hour, so we should always be prepared. No one knows the day and the hour when God says that our time is done. It would in fact be presumptuous for us to say that we know! Each day is a precious gift, and one of our responsibilities is to determine how you and I can use this gift to the best advantage. Five were ready; five were not. But all had the opportunity to be ready. The second great lesson for us today is especially important for us in today's modern culture. The lesson is that we all need to be personally ready. It is easy for us today to become complacent. We can buy commodities any time we want. We don't ever have to think about being prepared. Most of us have plenty of food, clothing and household goods. Nothing is "too late" in our culture. Spiritually speaking, just as the five bridesmaids without oil asked for the others to give them some, some of those who are without God think that they can get enough "spirituality" from others. But we all have to be personally ready, and we can't depend on others to develop our own life with God. Some things that show we are personally living for God include character, purity, a fervor, love and passion for the truth, a sense of justice and a commitment to service. It's important to note that character can't be bought, purity can't be purchased and fervor cannot be arrived at late.  When the bridesmaids were found without oil, they couldn't get any more. No one could even buy oil at that time of night. If you are not living for God when your time comes, it will be too late. There will be no second chances. We need to ask ourselves, what should we have stored up in preparation? We need to allow the Holy Spirit to lead us into strength of character, a passion for the truth, and a pledge to purity. There will come a time when it is too late. When the Bridegroom comes, he will find those who are prepared. Let those people be us.

‘For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, “Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, “Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, “Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” But his master replied, “You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.' Matthew 25:14-15,19-29

Today we are looking at a story that reminds us that the present and the future are important. Life is not a dress rehearsal; it is the real thing. The story concerns three slaves that didn't have anything. But each of them had different abilities. None of us is the same; we are all unique. God has created us as individuals, each with our own set of talents and abilities. The master in the story was not concerned with these differing levels of abilities; he gives a different amount to each slave. A talent was a great deal of money at the time for a slave – this might have amounted to 15 years worth of work. The contemporary listeners of this story would have understood immediately the impact of this amount of money and what it would mean. The master doesn't give the slaves any instructions or guidelines for their use along the way, and each had the same responsibility. Remember, life is not a dress rehearsal. As it turns out, the one who had received 5 talents came forward with 5 more; and the one who was given 2 talents doubled the amount as well. The one who was given 1 talent chose to play it safe, and buried the talent in the ground. The rabbis would say that if you bury something in the ground, then you are no longer liable in the eyes of the law. This was the risk-free route for the slave. The master responded with, "Well done, good and trustworthy slave. I will put you in charge of an even bigger amount." Those who are given much, will be given more, but the careful one loses everything. The master took the talent from the careful one, and gave it to the one who was given the most. This might not seem "fair" to us – but life isn't always fair, is it? His excuse was that he knew what kind of man the master was; he knew the master to be harsh. He was looking out for his own self-interest. His cowardly, self-serving act is his excuse for his irresponsibility. Those willing to risk nothing actually end up losing everything. What does this parable mean for our own lives? Jesus said, feed my sheep, not fleece my sheep. What you put on your pledge card is only between you and God. Those who are willing to risk, to go the extra mile, to step out in faith, find themselves blessed in many ways. Conversely, those who are most self-serving go through life in a bad place. The pledge cards are not really for the treasurers, the accountants and the budget, but are really for the master. The amount doesn't matter. Remember, one had 5, another had 2, and one only had 1. It matters what you do with it.

If I had my Life to Live Over, attributed to Erma Bombeck

If I had my life to live over
I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.
I would have eaten the popcorn in the "good" living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.
I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.
I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.
I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.
I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.
I would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while watching life.
I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.
I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.
Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment realizing that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.
When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."
There would have been more "I love you's", but mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute, look at it and really see it ... live it ... and never give it back!

 Life is not a dress rehearsal… it is the real thing!

‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’  Matthew 25:31-46

We all have a tendency to go through life saying to ourselves, what is the minimum that I need to do to "pass the test"? The gospel for today tells us what God requires in our lives as a test of life. Last week we talked about being responsible stewards. This week we look at the great test at the close of time. There are three things that will ring true in our hearts if we look closely. The first is easy: the help that is needed, anyone can give. It's not about intelligence, our bank rolls, or our position in society. Which of us doesn't have a cup of cold water or a slice of bread to give? We would all gladly go to the hospital, the prison, or the homeless shelter in order to meet a need. Anyone can pass this test. The second test might be a little harder. Those of us who do have enough food, water, shelter, and clothing – can we give with an attitude free of ulterior motives? An uncalculating attitude is what is needed to pass this test. Those who pass this test only see the poor, the low in society, those who are in need. There is a certain aspect of unconcealed innocence about the ones who pass this test. Those who fail, however, have a certain aspect of diabolical innocence about them. Those who fail are looking for recognition. Those who pass only see the need. Those who fail would only meet the need if it benefited themselves in some way. Jesus tells us that every time we see a need that we think is too "beneath" us to fulfill, we miss a chance to see himself. If the first truth is that anyone can meet a need, and the second truth causes us to examine our motives, then the third truth tells us that when we meet a need while staying free of ulterior motives, we can know that Jesus is there. Those of us who are parents know that a quick way to our hearts is through serving our children. Likewise, if you want to please our heavenly Father, we need to serve his children. As you go through life, God will measure your motives. If you walk through life asking yourself what you can get out of life to benefit only yourself, then your life is in peril. If you have pure motives, you are touching the heart of God. We all have the resources and we are all capable of meeting the needs that are in the world, but we must have the purity of heart to see it. If you look out for others, then the throne room of God is indeed very close.