The great Church father Tertullian (155-240AD) is reputed as saying ‘just as Jesus was crucified between two thieves, so the gospel is ever crucified between two errors’. As we discussed last week, those errors are (i) legalism (attempting righteousness by works) and (ii) licence (claiming righteousness without works). According to Gal 5:1, both these errors are a yoke of slavery. Licence promises fulfilment (from things like sex, money or power), but never delivers. Legalism ensures we will never know if we’ve done enough.
So how do Christians avoid falling into these two errors? It is by remembering that Christianity is not a matter of rewards; it’s a matter of relationship. And the way to build a strong relationship is to build love and respect for the other person. Just as a contractor will be happy to go out of their way for a nice client, so too will Christians go out of their way to obey a God who has done everything for them. So what has God done for us?
In the parable of the lost sheep (Luke 15:1-7), the shepherd leaves the rest of his flock in danger as he goes looking for the one that strayed. You and I are the lost sheep in that parable, who don’t even want Jesus looking for us. When he called us, we said ‘leave me alone’. Yet knowing it was for our good, he dragged us into his kingdom kicking and screaming. This is how every single Christian is made; against our will, by a God who only wants to love and bless us.
Yet our love and respect for God shoots into overdrive when we realise (a) what it cost God to bring us into his kingdom, and (b) that he sought us out personally. So in order to grow our relationship with God this week, may I recommend we meditate on Is 41:1, which says ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine.’
