An Enduring Perspective

I first read the book from which the following quote was taken twenty-five years ago, and the impact on my faith continues to be immeasurable. Recent study has taken me back.

“Jesus did not simply eliminate the law of Moses as a futile manner of attempting to secure righteousness. (With the New Testament) He did away with the “law principle.” He did not substitute one written code for another. Instead of giving us a law, He gave us Himself. It is not by trust in deeds of law, but by faith in Him as a person that we secure and sustain a right relationship with the Father. Law has gone and faith has come.”
Death of the Custodian, by Carl Ketcherside.

"The law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a custodian.” Galatians 3:24-25

You require your 15 year-old son to be in the house by 10:00 pm on school nights, and by 12:00 pm on weekends, and you require that he tell you before he goes anywhere exactly who he will be with and where he is. When that son turns 18, graduates from High School, but still chooses to live in your house for a while – the relationships change. Those earlier rules are still VERY GOOD ideas, but now the PURPOSE behind the rules comes to bear more directly. You required that he come in early and tell you where he was and who he was with because you desired his safety and responsible behavior. Now, after 18, after High School, his safety and responsibility take the forefront - not the rules. He can still be safe and responsible even if he comes in later or doesn’t keep you informed of his company or location all the time. More of the responsibility is now his – and your role as a parent (or guardian) has changed.

Consider this: “All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful, but not all things build up.” I Corinthians 10:28. All things are lawful? Does the Bible really say that?!? Yes it does. Though there are many other passages for us to read and think about in order to understand that one, the basic analogy to consider is that you don’t relate to your 18 year-old the way you related to your 15 year-old.

And Everyone Was Finally Equal

Revisiting a previous theme with a twist. I’m developing an appreciation for Kurt Vonnegut’s writing lately. Yes, he sees religion through a Marxist lens (the opiate of the people) and his works are often set in a dystopian society (opposite of utopia - people are controlled and dehumanized by the government - pointedly indicting the American government most of the time), but his creative genius is especially entertaining and thought-provoking.

“The year was 2081, and everyone was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before god and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equality was due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th amendments to the Constitution, and the unceasing vigilance of agents of the united States Handicapper General.”
----- from “Harrison Bergeron” in Welcome to the Monkey House

Ah, I think, he’s mocking something – and I’m smiling already. (I DON'T smile at all of his mockery.) The previous theme I mentioned above was a blog word or two about a Christian perspective on Egalitarian and Meritocratic societies. The basic notion is that Jesus didn’t come to set us free from political and economic constraints, but from spiritual chains; so even though justice and mercy are highly valued in a Biblical worldview it’s OKAY if some people are more rich and privileged than others as long as … you can see the drift. (But it’s probably pretty important to fill in the rest of that sentence… as long as…)

Anyway, the short story quoted above hooked me. I’m enjoying Vonnegut and even brought home a video of Slaughterhouse Five from the library (to Jo’s chagrin ;=). He always brings a new view, a new frame of reference, to whatever the setting or plot of his writing. It’s remarkable, and enjoyable. Whether it’s a morbid tale about inhumane treatment of prisoners or a charming love story (yes, he writes those), he will always surprise us and open our eyes to seeing from a vantage point that we wouldn’t have thought to consider.