Jesus’ Ministry
February 28, 2019
Scripture Reading: 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2
Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. But their minds were hardened. Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the reading of the old covenant, that same veil is still there, since only in Christ is it set aside. Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds; but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit. –2 Corinthians 3:12-18
People of faith seem not to like loose ends. We like everything neatly framed and stored to make us comfortable. Jesus did not invest a lot of energy in assuring the comfort of people who lived within their designed frames of faith. Rather, he broke down barriers that held people of faith from fully grasping the width and depth of God’s love for all God’s creation. He threw away the veils that protected God’s people from experiencing God’s love and allowing it to enter their being and flow among one another until the entire world functioned within the freedom of a loving God.
Are we innately judgmental feeling the need to establish hierarchies of who is lovable and who is not? While God created us with the freewill to choose our behavior, God certainly fully equipped us to love all God’s children and accept them as we encounter them growing together with them in spirit and in truth. We cannot blame God for our bigotry; it derives from our choice of evil.
There is no question in my mind where Jesus stands when we caste people aside as unworthy. I do not think any of us wishes to be on the wrong side of God’s love.
Prayer: Lord, remove the veils we use that allows us to discriminate in faith against any of your children. Amen.