Erasing the Lines

So today's sermon was quite thought provoking as usual. It created a buzz of thoughts in my head which I'm yet to sort out so I will start with the basics.

Definition of crossing the line:

1. to change from being acceptable to being unacceptable
2. to do something wrong

While one should think long and hard about crossing the line in legal, ethical, and moral situations, the crux of the sermon was the societal lines we create that are superficial in creation and application. These imaginary lines that keep us from interacting with others and "becoming" the person God wants us to be.

Jesus was a line crosser in lots of incidents because the lines were meaningless in the overall scheme of God's creation. In God's plan for the world there are no divisions.

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)
 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)    John 4 7-10

"At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them."  (Breaking the Sabbath)  Matthew 12:1

"At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them.  The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group  and said to Jesus,

“Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery.  In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. ⁷ When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” ⁸ Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there.  Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

“No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” John 8 1-30

I share with you the above examples not as a biblical scholar but simply as examples of times where Jesus looked beyond the "lines" and saw to the heart of the matter. It came to me as I was reading the verses about the adulterous woman that it would have been poetic if what Jesus was drawing in the dirt was a line.

The truth is we use lines to "define" our world. To help us categorize and line things up neatly. Yet in our human existence things rarely line up neatly. The person one thinks is religious and devote may end up being a person who has committed horrible crimes. While the homeless person with dirt beneath his nails may give his life to save another. God knows that lines are only on the surface. They do not dive into the heart of the matter. They do not define or touch people's souls. The are human constraints that often prevent us from deepening our relationship with God. In an earlier post I wrote about "would you recognize Jesus" . Would you?  What if he's behind one of those rigid lines that you refuse to erase?  In that case you may miss an opportunity to meet him face to face.

Let's be honest. Sometimes erasing that line or crossing it has consequences. You may lose people you think are your friends because you take a stand on something and interact with people they deem as "unacceptable". You may be thought of as "weird" or "out there" (been there, done that) You may risk exposing yourself to less than ideal circumstances. You even run the risk of being somewhat of a social outcast because of your willingness to erase the lines. It can be scary. So start small. Examine the lines you have drawn. I'll give you a bit of a petty example that came to mind for me.

I don't like talking to people or being around people that "toot their own horn" or think they are better than everyone else. We all know people like this. I don't mean sharing something we are proud of, celebrating a "win". I mean constant talk of self and glorifying all aspects of their life.  Seems like an "ok" line right?  In reality perhaps my resistance to erasing that line prevents me from seeing beyond that tendency (self bragging) to the fear, insecurities, and self loathing that may exist inside that person. In addition, it closes the door on them being able to experience someone who is not driven to "self promote".  See where I'm going? If I stay in my box and they in theirs, neither of us has an opportunity for growth.

 

Hugs to all of you. Think about the lines you draw in your life. Can you identify one that perhaps really isn't necessary? One where you can erase it and see what happens? Can you open your spirit and yourself up to people that might be considered "untouchables" like in Jesus's time? Can you see into their humanness and touch the heart of this person God has placed on earth?  In doing so you will find opportunities to grow in your spiritual journey and your soul will sing with joy.