Law of God | January 28
For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. For He who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
James 2:10-13
Jesus, here we have Your half brother, James (same mother), clarifying that sin is sin and that there is no hierarchy of sin. Whether we have committed relatively small sins or grievous sins, we are all in the same place. We need Your forgiveness and cleansing and we need to show mercy to others as You have shown mercy to us. Jesus, James tells us, that we who have been born again now stand in the law of liberty, a position in which “mercy triumphs over judgment”. Yes, Jesus, we are cleansed but our renewal is constant and Your mercy is constant because we need forgiveness every day for every action and thought that disappoints You.
Father, You have taught us that “being saved” is a moment in time wherein we acknowledge Your grace, mercy and calling to us and when we proclaim our love of Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit that enables us to be led by You. We also know that You, Father, will judge we who are Christians, by our deeds. What we do after we are born again, matters. We will be forgiven for our imperfections but help us today to endeavor to be obedient and to increasingly mature in our faith.
Help us be like You Jesus. Our fleshly instincts must decrease but our willingness to serve You and be led by You must increase. It would be great to say “I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” and have it be truer for every tomorrow than it is today. In Your Holy name, we pray, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project
