From our Pastor

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God’s Law - Not Hard to Understand,

Not Hard to Do

Deuteronomy 30:9-14, Mark 12:28-34, Romans 13:8-14                  July 22, 2007 

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          Have you noticed how some people are much more lucky than others?  “He gets all the luck.  Great job, wonderful family.  How did he get to be so lucky?  Why couldn’t I be so lucky?”  Successful people, though, realize luck has little to do with it.  Those who are successful worked for it.  They prepared themselves, and when opportunities arose, they were ready for it.  While there are a certain amount of things that happen by chance, there’s another element in how people fare in this world.  God blesses people.  In some ways God’s blessings are the same for all people.  God sends his rain on the just and the unjust the Bible tells us.  Yet as we hear from Deuteronomy 30, God makes a distinction about whether or not we will be blessed or cursed.  God will bless you abundantly “if you obey him and follow his commands and laws... and return to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”  (10) 

          God gives us a choice.  You can follow my commands and I’ll bless your socks off, or you can turn your back on God and receive curses.  The option is yours.  The choice is easy.  But how can we know for sure what’s the right thing to do?  Even if we can figure out the right thing to do, who would be able to do God’s commands?  God says, it’s really not hard.  “Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach.  It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?”  No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.”  (11-14)

          God’s commands are not to hard too understand.  They’re written in your hearts.  God has made it clear to you what is right and what is wrong.  It’s not hard to understand.  God’s commands are clear.  What makes it hard is that there are many voices around us telling us otherwise.  But God is clear.  His will is not hard to understand, if a person wants to understand.  For instance, we know that homosexuality is wrong.  Many voices in our society try to tell us that there is nothing wrong with two consenting adults doing whatever they want to do.  If you listen to those voices, it could be confusing.  If you listen to God, it’s obvious.  Homosexuality is an abomination.  God’s word is also clear that we are to love all people, including homosexuals.  Anyone who says it’s all right to hate these people, is not listening to God’s clear voice.  There are so many similar examples.  God is clear that abandoning your spouse is contrary to his command.  Yet people rationalize that divorce is legal.  A person thinks, “I should be happy.  Why shouldn’t I leave my spouse if it makes me happy?”  That thinking of course, is way off base.  Divorce turns out not to be the panacea it seemed.  Sex outside of marriage: God says no way.  He is clear.  It is not difficult to understand.  Abortion is wrong.  Pornography is wrong.  “But it doesn’t hurt anyone,” some will object.  That is wrong too.  Maybe it’s harder to recognize the consequences.  Pornography does hurt others. After a while the consequences become very obvious.  It is not hard to recognize God’s will.  It’s not hard to understand. 

          God even sums the whole set of his commands for us to make it perfectly clear.  He makes it so simple that we can understand.  Don’t you wish man’s laws were as simple as one or two simple rules?  I don’t know how many pages long the IRS tax codes are.  Who can understand them?  Give 10 accountants the very same information for filling out a tax return, and they come up with 10 different answers.  Who can understand the tax law?  But God says his commands are this simple.  It all boils down to love God for all you’re worth, love your neighbor as you love yourself. 

          Well, we complain it may be easy to understand, but not so easy to do.  God says this “is not too difficult for you.”  (Dt 30:11)  As a matter of fact, things become much more difficult when you don’t keep God’s commandments.  Because with disobedience comes curses.  It is obvious that great difficulties come when we disobey.  There are natural consequences to sin.  Some people think it’s easier to lie to get out of tough situations.  But when you do that, people don’t trust you and it’s harder, not easier to get along.  It’s not only possible to keep God’s law, it’s easier.  It’s the easier way to live. 

          Just do it.  Love God.  Love every single person.  But that’s hard.  How can I love a stranger, someone might ask.  Someone else replies, loving a stranger... that’s easy!  It’s much harder to love some of the people I know.  Some people I know are very easy to love.  They are the ones who are loving and caring themselves.  But how can I love a bad person?  How can I love a person who is obnoxious, or self-centered, or who has done terrible things?  How can I love such a person? 

          Well you know Jesus loves such a person.  He loved the worst of them.  From the cross Jesus says, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.  Jesus is loving the people who are killing him, and torturing him, and mocking and jeering at him.  He loves them.  What did they do wrong?  It’s simple.  They were not loving Jesus.  That’s God’s law.  Love everyone and love God first and foremost.  They are no worse than we are.  If you have a hard time loving someone, remember you’ve done just as bad as they have.  Every sin is not loving.  Every sin. 

          Jesus has also paid for every sin.  Listen to God’s word again in Deuteronomy 30:10.  God will bless you “if you obey the LORD your God and keep his commands  and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”  Return to the Lord.  Be blessed.

          It’s not too hard to understand.  You know God’s commands.  You know when you’ve broken God’s commands.  Return to the Lord.  Receive his forgiveness, his unbroken love for you.  Delight in his love.  And live in love.  Keep his commands.  It’s not too hard to do.  God says so.  God will help you, too.  His Holy Spirit will empower you.  And he will bless you.  Clearly, this is not only the best way to go, the most joyous way to go, but also the easiest.  Not curses.  Rather God’s great blessings. 

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