Mtr Kelli Joyce

Dear friends in Christ,

Every so often I’ll hear or read someone saying that the “God of the Old Testament” was strict and unforgiving, but Jesus did away with those rules and introduced humanity to grace.

At first glance this might seem true, but it doesn’t stand up to a closer look. First, the “God of the Old Testament” is the same as the “God of the New Testament” - and that one unchanging God is the God who became incarnate in the person of Jesus of Nazareth.

But even more obviously, it doesn’t stand up if we take a look at Jesus’ own words. In today’s Gospel reading he reflects on a number of laws given by God, and on the ways they had been interpreted and understood over the centuries. And in every single case, he insists that his followers take the strictest interpretation possible. It’s not just “don’t have an affair,” it’s “don’t covet someone else’s spouse.” It’s not just “keep your word... if you made a vow,” it’s “keep your word, all the time, every time.”

These teachings aren’t given because Jesus wants to lay a heavier burden on us, but because finding endless loopholes to the ethical rules God gave us for our wellbeing is ultimately bad for us and others. Jesus wants us to live by the spirit of the law, not just the letter of it.

The words Jesus speaks in today’s Gospel are hard, but they aren’t meant to shame or condemn us - they’re meant to invite us into abundant life in community, where everyone is more concerned with loving their neighbor and doing right by them than they are with figuring out exactly how much selfishness they can get away with and still be in the clear with God. And that is, in fact, grace, and good news.

In peace,
Mtr. Kelli