Living in the Spirit
September 28, 2018
Scripture Reading: James 5:13-20
My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another, you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. –James 5:19-20
I am a fan of Father Brown the TV show on PBS. While a good murder mystery is entertaining, I am more impressed with his interactions with his fellow human beings. He accepts everyone where they are, just as they are and journeys with them as they strive to reach their full potential. He does hold people’s feet to the fire; they need to face the facts of what they are doing or have done whether it is related to the case at hand or not. He is quick to assure them that God is forgiving if they confess and repent although they still may face the consequences of their actions. In that case, he will be there with them fulfilling the charge to visit those in prison. It is rare but on occasion, he runs into what I would call pure evil and he mourns souls caught in evil’s tangles unwilling to ask God to extract them from its clenches.
The problem in following the guidance of the above scripture is that it places us in the predicament of assuming that truth as we perceive it is The Truth applicable to everyone. It takes only a few minutes in an ecumenical setting to discern that committed Christ followers differ on what The Truth is. Jesus solves this issue by prescribing how we are to act rather than creating rules for us to follow. We are to love, clean and simple and that means we journey with each other allowing the power of love to offer course correction if needed through our abiding presence and representations of God’s love.
Prayer: Lord, cleanse us of all judgment so we can be the conduit of your love others who feel estranged from you. Amen.