Good Morning Children of God!Here is a proverb to start your day: “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” Proverbs 16:3
And here is Wednesday’s Message:
Wednesday’s Message
July 29, 2020
In the Lord’s Prayer Jesus taught us to pray saying, “Lead us not into temptation.” When I meditate on that phrase, I tend to think through the seven deadly sins: pride, greed, jealousy, lust, anger, gluttony, and spiritual laziness. Asking God to lead us from these sins is tantamount to seeking help with the sin of selfishness.
At the heart of each of the deadly sins lies an egocentric life. When I behave as if the world revolves around me that is when: 1) I think I am better than others (PRIDE); 2) I think I need and deserve more of everything compared to others (GREED); 3) I covet what others have (JEALOUSY); 4) I get mad at my circumstances because I feel I am being shortchanged (ANGER); 5) I take what I want even when it is wrong and harmful to self and others (LUST); 6) I demand an excess in all things even as others go without (GLUTTONY); and 7) My mind is on earthly things rather than divine things (SPIRITUAL LAZINESS).
Jesus taught us to ask God for the blessing of not being led into temptation because selfishness destroys the quality of life, both of the person and of the community. It also acts as a stumbling block in one’s relationship with God.
I was struck by a piece in the July 27, 2020, edition of the New York Times by Opinion Columnist Paul Krugman. His article is entitled “The Cult of Selfishness is Killing America.” In Krugman’s opinion, within our country there is a line of thought “that greed is good, that we’re all better off when individuals engage in the untrammeled pursuit of self-interest.” He believes that the pandemic has shone a light on this national weakness. When asked to take certain precautions to protect the community during the coronavirus pandemic, some have expressed outrage “portrayed as love of freedom.” Krugman opines “What they call ‘freedom’ is actually absence of responsibility.”
Human beings have always fallen prey to the temptation to exercise freedom irresponsibly by putting self at the center of the universe and eating the forbidden fruit which brings death. Especially alarming, however, is when the sin is normalized. If Krugman is right, then the seven deadly sins are thriving in American culture and there is cause for concern.
It is an odd but not new thing to justify sin on the basis of freedom. “I value freedom therefore I can do whatever I want without regard for self, others, or the common good. You are not the boss of me.” People have practiced the art of irresponsibility while abusing freedom from the very beginning.
For Adam and Eve, freedom was the soil within which the seed of temptation took root and grew into action. Their action of disregard for God and disobedience of his word was an irresponsible use of the freedom God had given them.
The great King David of Israel, acted irresponsibly and abused his power and freedom in taking Bathsheba to be his own while at the same time setting up the death of her husband, Uriah. He did this because he could. In time, David recognized his sin as being both against God and human beings.
The point is that yes, we are blessed with freedoms, but those freedoms are to be used responsibly in a way that is beneficial to both self and the community. It does not honor God when freedom is used for selfish purposes alone; or as Krugman puts it, for “untrammeled pursuit of self-interest.” When we pray “Lead us not into temptation” we are asking God to help us to exercise our freedom responsibly.
Christians celebrate the spiritual freedom that Jesus won for us through his death on the cross. The sin resulting from the abuse of freedom has been canceled out by the Lord’s sacrifice. The death which is sin’s due has been overruled by the resurrection of God’s Son. We have been set free! “For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1) Do not use the freedom we have in Christ irresponsibly.
St. Paul puts the matter this way, “For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Galatians 5:13-14) Instead of saying to the world, “I am free and you are not the boss of me” try saying “how, in my freedom, may I serve you and help you?” Responsible use of freedom demands as much and it leads us not into temptation.
Sent with a prayer,
Pastor Bill