Descriptive, not prescriptive

This is a commentary on part of the lectionary for Sunday, September 3, 2006: Deuteronomy 4:1-9, Psalm 15, James 1:17-27, Mark 7:1-23

I am just noticing in the readings for this Sunday the language of law and proper behavior. On Tuesday, after I read the passage from Deut. 4, I flipped ahead a chapter and noticed another account of the 10 Commandments in Deut. 5. This week's reading also contains my favorite passage from James about being doers rather than hearers of the Word (1:22). This legal, behavioral code as embodied in these readings has seeped into fundamentalist sects of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, drawing clear lines of who is part of the group and who is not. I still cling to a theology of "I should" when I expect more from myself in a situation, and not allow myself the grace to grow into something more and learn from my mistakes.

It strikes me though that the legalistic, "you should" practices lack the "sweetness of Jesus" that friends of mine, as well as myself, are attracted to. I am drawn to the grace, kindness and shepherding guidance of Jesus. Yet, there are times I prefer a theology of "you should" when Jesus came to say otherwise, such as in Mark 7:1-23. Jesus emphasized that what is important is not the letter of the law, but the spirit of the law; not what is seen on the outside, but what motivates a person inside. Said another way, the codes of moral behavior in the Hebrew and Christian scriptures are not prescriptive behaviors one must follow to enter into the kin-dom of God. Rather, these behaviors are descriptive of how a life centered on the Spirit of God through Jesus is lived. In the kin-dom of God, God and God's love are the only God, people are treated with love and are equals, and everyone is provided with what they need.

Jesus knows it is not easy. After all, he became human. That is why we have been given grace as we towards a life described in the words of Deuteronomy, Psalms, Jams and the Gospels. As we mature in Godly living, being doers should not be an issue, because we will "be in" the Word of God.