Law and Love

Matthew 18:15-20

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

In the wee hours of January 5th, 2011, Mark had a problem.  His daughter was about to go into labor, but he was still miles from the hospital.  Rushing to get to the hospital, Mark ran a red light.  He explained that the entire time he was driving, his daughter "Ashley kept saying, 'Dad, you have to get me there NOW...We didn't have much time."  Just 40 minutes after arriving in the hospital, Ashley gave birth to little Breanna in under 40 minutes.

A few weeks after bringing his granddaughter home, Mark received his own little gift-  a photo of his car going through the red light and a a hundred dollar fine.   Mark contested the red light citation given the circumstances. He typed out a brief letter explaining what happened and attached a copy of Breanna's hospital crib card -- "It's A Girl!" -- with the date and time of her arrival.

Much to his surprise, that didn't qualify as an acceptable excuse to the folks at the Photo Safety Division within the Cleveland Clerk of Courts Office. The hearing examiner determined that Mohn did not present "sufficient evidence of mitigating circumstances to overturn this ticket."

Now-  I’d like to see a show of hands, how many of you think he shouldn’t have to pay that ticket?

Of those with your hand up, is there anyone who is arguing that he didn’t actually break the law in running a red light?  Put your hand down if that is why you think he shouldn’t have to pay.

Ok, so, for those of you with your hand still up, can any one explain to me why?  After all, we have clear evidence on camera that he has broken a law.

(The congregation responded a couple of different ways, foremost that the impending birth took priority over the stop light)

So, in other words, we believe there are some circumstances where obeying, or enforcing, the letter of the law should take a back seat to a greater purpose.

We tend to be a culture in which the upholding of law and order is a critically important value.  And yet, there are times in which the majority of us feel that rigidly enforcing those laws in all circumstances would itself be a violation of justice.  Though a black and white mentality toward law and order might be clearer, it would not result in a system with considerably more cruelty and injustice.

In Paul’s letter to the church in Rome, he wrestles with the connection between the concepts of love and law.  Now, we often think of the law in terms of regulations and restrictions.  Prohibitions controlling our behavior.  This is certainly the central thrust behind the ten commandments.  9 of the 10 commandments are specifically about things that we ought not do (quick bonus points-  which is the exception?)

Love is generally not thought of in such a mechanical or restrictive way.  However, law and love are not necessarily in conflict either.  Paul indeed argues that the law can be summed up in the concept of “Love your neighbor as yourself.  Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.”  

So, does this mean love=law?  Clearly not.  We certainly wouldn’t consider the ticket given to Mark to be a “love note.”  So, there must be some delineation here.  Paul does not argue that upholding the law is the same as loving.  Instead, he is trying to get behind the law, trying to understand the purpose for the law.  Why were we given the law?  What is it’s ultimate purpose?

By declaring that Love is the fulfillment of the law, Paul is pointing to the law’s higher purpose.  It isn’t about the specific prohibitions, about dotting all the i’s and crossing all the ts in the Torah.  The law is supposed to bring about and provide a path toward a people who love one another. And, though he doesn’t state it explicitly here, that law is supposed to be an avenue toward bringing about a love of God also.

But, how does this work?  I mean, I am single, but I’m pretty sure the foundation of a loving relationship is not about rigorously adhering to a rule book.  “But honey, code 352.2 subparagraph b clearly delineates that I have fulfilled my obligation to you.”  No, the core of love is a mutuality contained within a relationship.  For love to exist, a relationship must be formed.

Thus, fulfilling the law is not about following each and every aspect of it.  Love is the fulfilling of the law-  it supersedes the letter of the law, and sometimes, even the spirit.  When they come into conflict, it is love- not law, that is supposed to win out.

What does this look like in concept?  When in doubt, its good to look to Jesus here.  On several occasions, Jesus gets into a conflict with the religious authorities.  He heals someone on the sabbath-  now wait, isn’t that one of the big ten?  Jesus says that clearly it is more important to tend to someone’s aching wounds then it is to remain in reverent prayer on the sabbath.  It is in the breaking of the restriction, even one of the big ten, when love is fulfilled.

But, wouldn’t this lead to anarchy?  I mean, the idea probably appeals to us in concept.  Sure, we want the entire world to be forgiving of ourselves.  But Dave, back there, I’m not so sure I want to be constantly forgiving him.  So, how bout, grace for me, law and order for thee!  Sound good?  

Often times, I think this is how we live it out.  We don’t give others the benefit of the doubt while we bristle when someone reacts negatively to our good intentions.  But, clearly, love does not mean breaking all the laws either.  If I were to steal from you with no other purpose than to turn a profit, I am not setting the foundation for a good relationship.

When faced with seeming conflicts between law and order and love, I think we are obliged to answer the following question-  Does upholding the law here lead to restored love with God?  Does it lead to restored love with neighbor?

Let’s test this out-  and I want to test it out in the arena that I think we struggle with the most as a culture and in our faith-  let’s test this out in the arena of sex.  In the Methodist church, in regards to sex we officially hold to an ethos of celibacy in singleness and fidelity in marriage.  Now, there are absolute good reasons to argue in favor of reserving sex for marriage.  We live in a culture of commodification where things and people are constantly used.  When we engage in sex outside of a committed, loving relationship like marriage, we run the risk of using the other person for our own gratification.  If after using the person, we discard them, we have certainly violated the core tenant of building a loving relationship with another person.  This is of course in addition to the very real problems of unintended pregnancy and the proliferation of STDs.

But, let’s use a very real example.  In our legal system, we link considerable benefits to marriage.  Foremost among them is pension and health care benefits that one may obtain through their spouse, even after they have passed away.  I know many widows and widowers have been placed in a scenario where they have lost their spouse but rely on that retirement check or that health plan as a source of sustainment.  If they fall in love and find a new life partner, they would be forced to choose from marrying their new partner and losing that which sustains them, or violating the principle of celibacy in singleness and fidelity in marriage.  Here, I believe the upholding of the letter of the law would destroy the opportunity for a loving relationship.  And thus, that loving relationship should take priority.

Now, what are the implications of this?  If we bless sex outside of marriage in this circumstance, are we abandoning the general principal?  No, but we are acknowledging that life is messy.  Law does a lot of good- but a black and white interpretation of it serves neither humanity nor our God.  

So, it is not more law that we seek, but more love.  In God’s divine wisdom- there is a remedy for this conflict- and it is grace.  At the core of who God is, that which is revealed in Jesus Christ, we find a teacher and a savior who earnestly desires a relationship with us.  Our creator loved us so much that we were given a law- a law designed to forge a loving relationship between our God and each other.  A creator who loved us so much that when our violations of the law was harming our relationship, choose to forgive rather than to prosecute us under a law.  A loving Savior who refused to let the law keep us from the ever more divine purpose of love.  Amen.

Delight in the law?

Psalm 112

Matthew 5:13-20

"Praise the Lord!
   Happy are those who fear the Lord,
   who greatly delight in his commandments."

Sometimes we Americans are perceived to be rebellious, but truth is we do kinda like the law.   While we may push the speed limit a bit, I would bet that most everyone hear has gone out of the way to try and obey the law this week.

We are a society that highly values law and order.  When is the last time you heard a politician say-  “Vote for me- I’m weak on crime!”

Thus, the scripture passage we read today from the sermon on the mount should make us especially happy.

¹⁷“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. ¹⁸For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. 

So, whereas last week, in the beatitudes, we experienced a very difficult message, one that always makes us strive to embrace such features as humility, peacemaking and a thirst for righteousness, we get an easy message today.  Just follow the law, right?

Let’s see-  “Thou shalt not kill.” .............Uh yea, I think I was ok with that today.

“Thou shall not bear false witness- ..........  There were a couple white lies in the last week, but all and all, I think I’m good here.

But, I guess these are the biggies here.  We know that the law, the Torah, contains far more than just the ten commandments.  Jesus does add in verse 19-

¹⁹Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Thus, maybe we ought to take a look at some of these other ones:

Leviticus 11:7-  The pig has a split hoof, divided in two, but doesn't chew the cud and so is unclean. You may not eat their meat nor touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.

For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.

Leviticus 25:44-46: "The male and female slaves which you have are to come from the surrounding nations; you are permitted to buy slaves from them.

For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.

Exodus 22:20- Anyone who sacrifices to a god other than God alone must be put to death. 

For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.

Deuteronomy 22:13-21 (excerpt)  If a man marries a woman, consumates the marriage and than turns on her saying that she was not a virgin, she is to be taken to the gate to be examined by the village elders.   if it turns out that the accusation is true, the men of the town are to take her to the door of her father's house and stone her to death.

  

For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.

Alright, now I’m lost here.  Could Jesus possibly be saying that we have to fulfill the law here?  I mean, these are some strange laws, even terrible laws here.  I mean, yes, I’d hate to give up pork.

But I’m supposed to be ok with buying slaves?

with killing those who worship another God?

with allowing a woman who was not a virgin to be killed?

What is going on here?  This doesn’t seem to be the Jesus I know.

In the last 150 years or so, I thought we had made tremendous progress as Christians.  We had thrown off the part of our faith the permitted, or even at times demanded, the ability to own slaves.  We’ve learned to get along with our brothers and sisters in other faith traditions-  we may not agree, but we certainly would scream out against situations like the Holocaust.  And, while we may argue that people should wait to engage in sex until they are married, I don’t think anyone wants to make this a capital offense.

So, what on earth, is Jesus getting at here?  Why all of this talk of fulfilling the law?  Are our moves toward greater equality really going to keep us away from the kingdom of heaven?

Now, wait a minute here Jesus-  I seem to recall some other story.  

Matthew 12:9-14

"He left that place and entered their synagogue; a man was there with a withered hand, and they asked him, ‘Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath?’ so that they might accuse him. He said to them, ‘Suppose one of you has only one sheep and it falls into a pit on the sabbath; will you not lay hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a human being than a sheep! So it is lawful to do good on the sabbath.’ Then he said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ He stretched it out, and it was restored, as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him."

You did it-  you broke one of the laws.  And its not even one of the least of these-  you broke sabbath.  That’s one of the ten!  So what, is Jesus excluded now to?

Well, it seems pretty unlikely that Jesus is going to exclude himself from the kingdom of heaven.  So, one more time I ask, what is going on here?

As usual, context would appear to be everything here.

I actually think its the first part of the passage that can provide the key to interpreting this.

So, lets work backwards.  What is so special about salt?

Is salt valuable in it of itself?  Can we survive just eating salt?  What does it do?

It enhances flavor! It rounds out flavor, and it makes everything seem to come together.   It is like this miracle substance that makes meat, vegetables, bakery, everything taste better.  And it does it, not so much by adding something new, but by calling attention to the best aspects of what it already there.

So, the point isn’t the salt, its in bringing out the flavors of what it is added to.

Let’s take the light.  Does light have value in it of itself, aside from solar power that is?

The value of light is in showing us something.  When it is dark, and we use a flashlight, we appreciate it because it helps to show us what is in front of us and what we are looking for.  The value is not in the light- it is in what it illumines for us.

So, salt and light.  Both are valuable, not for their intrinsic qualities- but for what it can bring out, what it can illumine, about that to which they are applied.  The salt and light are not the point.

And thus, we return to the law.  When Jesus talks about fulfilling the law, his point is not to say that the law itself is what is of value.  Even his rhetorical flourish about not one jot or tittle falling from the law, is to emphasize the importance of what that law is pointing to-  We know why salt and light exist, what they help.  What about the law, why was that brought about?

Remember, the law is part of the covenant that the Hebrew people entered into with God.  The point wasn’t to establish some arbitrary sets of laws, it wasn’t God’s way of making everyone live in fear.  The point of the law, the point of the covenant, was to bring the people into relationship with God.

So, when Jesus comes to say, I have come to fulfill the law, he is saying that he has come to bring us into a fuller and richer relationship with our God.  Jesus is trying to help to form us into that person that God had intended each one of us to be.  That is truly a precious, and not onerous, gift.

But, but, you say, what about all those laws that seemed unjust for us.  Are we to say they are valuable to?

Let’s remember, the point isn’t the law itself, its the relationship its supposed to bring about.  It isn’t about enacting some code, its about seeing justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever living stream.  When Jesus was confronted with the man who needed healing, he did not bow to the individual law- he lived into the spirit of God’s healing relationship and cared for the man in front of him.

Here’s the problem-  that’s messy.  I can understand why the Pharisees decided to try and be strict about the law instead-  it seems easier on the surface than trying to always figure out what is the bigger picture.  In this month in which the nation pays special attention to the history of our African American brothers and sisters- I think there is no more obvious example of this messy righteousness than that which was called forth by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his letter from the Birmingham jail.  He especially castigates those Christians who say that Martin should stop causing trouble.

To that- he responds- “We who engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of tension. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive...I submit that an individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust, and willingly accepts the penalty by staying in jail in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the very highest respect for the law.”

So this is how Jesus shows respect for the law- by pointing to its higher purpose-  by pointing to God and calling us to live into God’s kingdom.  It is in Jesus, and not the law, that we find our salvation.  This does not mean we dismiss the law- but that we ask ourselves the question- what is it that will truly bring me closer to God?  What does God's desire for justice call for on this issue?  It is only then, when we wrestle with these difficult question, that we can truly find the path into God’s kingdom.  Amen.