Unravelling complexity
"And now I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." John 13 : 33 - 34 (GNB) |
We humans love to complicate things. Throughout history we have gone to great lengths to find solutions to problems that do not exist, or that could have been solved much more simply.
Take the zero-gravity pen for writing in outer space as a great example. This is a product that took years to develop, costing a million dollars in the process. Yet this problem had already been solved with the humble pencil!
If we look back to the time our passage was written, the religious leaders of the day the Pharisees also loved complexity. They devised intricate rituals and structures designed to make having a relationship with God more difficult than it needed to be.
Ordinary people were prevented from having a direct relationship with God, and instead had to channel their requests and thanks through a hierarchy of priests and other religious officials. Even their places of worship were highly segregated based social status.
A lot of Jesus teaching, including our passage this week has been focused on simplifying our lives. Simplifying our interaction and relationship with God. Through Jesus death on the cross he was able to sweep away volumes of law and ritual and replace it with love. The hierarchy and separation which once existed is made obsolete through Jesus, who now makes it possible for everyone to have a direct relationship with God through him.
This week don't try and over complicate things. Dont let ritual, routine or history complicate what you do next. Keep it simple, just focus on the instruction that we are given, "love one another as God loves us". Have a great week.
This week's song is Air I Breath by Mat Kearney. |
Header image by: Svilen Milev via FreeImages