Dear friends in Christ,

          Here it is Labor Day already, the unofficial end of summer, a time when many people take a last-minute vacation.  I hope all who are here today will be blessed in their worship, and all who are not here will be blessed with a restful weekend.  Wherever we are, I encourage all to drive safely and obey the laws.

          You and I today live with laws.  Laws are necessary for an orderly society.  The only problem may come when the laws don't make sense.  We live today with too many laws, laws that go beyond governing communities, money, governments and businesses.  Laws become useless when they stick their noses into our homes and private lives.  We have so many laws that it's impossible to live a whole day without breaking some kind of law.

          Then there are some totally useless laws, ones made up years ago that are still on the books.  For example, in Florida, housewives are not allowed to break more than three dishes a day, and in Iowa it's illegal for a horse to eat a fire hydrant (wooden ones, I hope).  In New Jersey it is illegal to slurp soup in public, and in Vermont, everyone must take a bath every night.  In Los Angeles, infants are not allowed to dance in public, and in San Francisco it is against the law to wipe down your car with used underwear.  In Maryland, it is illegal to take a lion to the movies, and in Ohio no woman may appear in public if she is unshaven!  In New York it is illegal for men to go topless in public, and in Illinois it is illegal to give your pet a lighted cigar. Here in Colorado, it is illegal to ride a horse while under the influence, but it IS legal to cut the tags off pillows.  Some well-meaning legislator had them pass a law so we wouldn't feel guilty.

          In today's Gospel lesson, Jesus was being scrutinized by the religious powers that be.  They didn't like Him and decided to trap Him by His words.  Enemies are often that way - they wait and hope we will stumble, so they can attack.  Around the farm the chickens in the flock will pick on the weak ones - literally.  If a sickly chicken can't defend itself, the others feel duty bound to peck at it till it dies.  Scientists call this survival of the fittest, but people do it too.  What do journalists and 5th grade girls have in common?  If there is no news, then make some up.  If there is nothing to criticize in that classmate you don't like, then make something up.

          With Jesus, they were waiting to pounce on any careless word He said.  But finding none, they turned to criticizing His disciples.  "Why are they eating with unwashed hands?" the Pharisees asked.  (Now there's a law that deserves attention!  Unwashed hands may cause Avian Flu or maybe Mad Cow Disease.)  But Jesus had an advantage.  He already knew what they'd say before they said it.  So He threw their accusation right back at them.  "That's what I expect from you hypocrites!  You honor me with your lips, but your hearts are far away.  Your teachings are just man-made rules."  Some folks love to find fault.  They live by the letter of the law so they can use it against people.

          In general, laws are made to be kept.  Some say they're made to be broken, but try to tell that to a traffic cop who's just pulled you over.  Some laws may seem silly, but most are good and need to be kept.  Some of us here at Epiphany are going to be surprised in the coming months at what the law requires.  Some building laws will change how we can build.  Soon we'll be implementing a child safety policy that calls for background checks and some finger printing.  How's that going to feel?  Gone are the days when we knew everybody and could trust them just by their name.  Today we need to make sure.  Fortunately we have some bonafide investigators as members who will help with the process.  But it will seem strange when you've worked in the church all your life and still need to have your background checked.  It's to protect our children.

          Every law has two parts, its words and its intent, or spirit.  Judges are supposed to interpret the law by both, the actual words and the intent, but the spirit of the law goes beyond the words.  If a law is meant to protect, then protection is more important than the words.  Of course, there are judges and lawyers who will use words to get a case tossed out on a "technicality," and because of it, sometimes a criminal goes free.  We love to hate people who let the crooks back into society.

          Author Mark Twain once told the story of three men talking, a Russian, a Cuban and an American.  As they talked, the Russian took a swig from a new bottle of vodka and then threw the bottle out the window.  "We have more vodka in Russia than we can ever use," he said.  The Cuban lit up his Havana cigar, took a few puffs and threw it out the window.  "We have more cigars in Cuba than we can ever use," he said.  The American thought a moment, then went inside, and threw his lawyer out the window.

          Every law has two parts, its words and its intent.  Jesus taught this in Matthew 5:  "You have heard it said, 'You shall not commit murder.'  But I tell you, whoever hates his brother is a murderer."  And again, "You have also heard it said, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I tell you, if anyone even looks at another with lust, he has committed adultery in his heart." (Matthew 5:21,27)   Murder is more than wrongfully taking human life - it is failing to help others live.  Adultery is more than sleeping around - it is failing to remain chaste and pure.  Theft is more than taking what's not ours - it's failure to help others keep what's theirs.

          If that's the case - that even our thoughts and motives can be sinful, then how can we keep the Commandments?  Let me tell you a secret.  The commandments can't get us to heaven.  We'll never make it there by keeping the Law.  The Commandments are a good guide for living, but their main purpose is to show us we're sinful.

          There isn't a man or woman alive who has ever kept God's Law except Jesus.  Try as we might, You and I will never keep the Law.  St. Paul said, "The good I try to do, that I don't; the evil I try to avoid, that I do." (Romans 7:15)   That's the mistake of the Pharisees that angered Jesus so much.  They taught obedience was the way to heaven.  It was all up to you, they said.  Either you kept it all or you lost it all.  They especially liked telling this to the weak, the struggling and the poor.  The Pharisees taught them guilt and dependence.  They, of course, were exempt from that.  They were the good guys!  Jesus reserved His harshest words, not for prostitutes or murderers, but for hypocrites.

          We cannot live by the letter of the Law.  It will never get us to heaven.  God loves all people in Christ Jesus, even those who should have known better, the conceited, the self-righteous.  Jesus doesn't excuse ignorance or weakness, but He still is hardest on those who should know better.

          Jesus gave us two Great Commandments: "Love God above all, and love your neighbor as yourself." (Luke 10:27)   But the Pharisees had expanded those Ten into 613 laws - 365 negative ones and 248 positive ones.  The result was a heartless, cold brand of righteousness.  As a result, the Law kept the people chained.  New laws continually need to be invented for new situations, and people become accountable to people rather than to God.  Living by the letter of the Law creates a judgmental life, and a false sense of righteousness.  Living by the letter of the Law just creates a lot of hypocrites.

          So what's my point?  We should live by the spirit of the Law, not just the letter.  If a law is meant to help people, then let it help them.  If it is meant to protect, then let it protect.  And if a law condemns evil, don't try to excuse evil with exceptions.  Christ is our true salvation.  The Commandments show us our sin, but the Gospel shows us our Savior.  Living by the letter of the Law condemns us, but living by faith in Jesus Christ gives us life.  The Law is good, but the Gospel is far better, for we live by faith, not by perfection.  Thanks be to God that He deals with us according to His love, and not by whether or not we are perfect.  May we deal with each other the same, amen!

Copyright © 2006 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.