grace alone

My posting has been slow this week.  Not because I have nothing to say (as if) but rather because I have been busily working on some other stuff.

For the first time in 13 years (that makes me sound pretty old) I am taking a college course.  Thanks to the internet (do I need to thank Al Gore personally for that?) I am "back to school".  I have always loved school and this has proven to be the case once again.  Don't get me wrong though...this is tough.  I haven't written term papers for a lllloooonnnnggg time & it's wwwwaaaaaayyyyy harder than I remember it being.  And I'm only taking ONE class.  TWO measly credits.  Can't imagine the load I used to carry in the college years.  Of course, there wasn't much else going on in my life in the college years.  What's that saying?  "We went to class just to pass the time."

"So, what are you taking?" you might be asking (or not, but I'm going to tell you anyway)  I am taking Principles of Biblical Interpretation from Northwestern College (in St. Paul, MN).  It is EXCELLENT.  In fact, there is part of me that believes that anyone who claims that the Bible is true and relies on it as the basis of their faith, should read the book that is required for this course.  AMAZING!  The book?   A Basic Guide to Interpreting the Bible by Robert H. Stein.  Really, really good stuff.  Really.

The beginning is pretty dry, teaching about meaning and who gives a text it's meaning.  But now we're looking at the different types of "genres" in the Bible and how to understand what's being said in light of the style of writing.  Things like poetry and parables, narrative and prophecy, proverbs and laws.  It is incredibly interesting and enlightening.

Today I learned something that I never even considered - God gave the Law after he had entered into a covenantal relationship with the Israelites.  "The exodus (Exod. 20:3-17) preceded the giving of the law on Mount Sinai (Exod. 20:3-17!"  (page 195)  The Law was not given as a stipulation for entering into a relationship with God, it was given after the covenantal relationship was already established.  From page 188, the "stipulations are not conditions for enterning the covenant but for remaining true to it."

"So what?" you might be thinking.  Well, this is true today as well.  The laws are not required to be followed in order to enter the covenantal relationship with God.  We cannot keep the law to earn salvation.  We cannot even keep the law, once we are in relationship with God, to maintain that relationship.

One last quote:

"Even in our best moments we fail to keep the laws of God perfectly.  Thus, we must recognize that we need forgiveness and grace.  The law seeks to show us our need of God's grace.  If we stand outside a covenantal relationship with God, it drives us to repent and seek God's saving grace.  If we stand within that covenantal relationship, it shows us that time and time again we fail to keep the divine stipulations of the covenant and that we must confess our sins (1 John 1:9) and pray, 'Forgive us our debts' (Matt 6:12).  We enter into a covenantal relationship with God on the basis of grace alone, and that relationship is maintained on the basis of grace as well."

"well, yeah"  you might be thinking, as I was when I initially read this.  But do I live this?  Do I know with all that I am, that I am held in the hands of God, not by anything that I do or don't do, but simply by the grace of the one who holds me?  Do I live this?  And because of this amazingly ridiculous offer to be held by God, do I choose willingly to do my best to follow His rules, simply because I am overwhelmed by His grace?  Grace alone!