Pressing on in "The Joy of Being Wrong" by James Alison - remember to look up the scripture that is quoted. Also (as I need to remind myself) today is the sixth month anniversary of my heart surgery - life is good - God is full of promise - my wife is the ultimate caretaker - friends are bountiful and a blessing.
This subversion of the original order of the world is brought out again in John 16, where Jesus tells the disciples, in the context of warning them about persecution and being killed, that he will send them the Defense Counsellor.
'And when he comes, he will convince the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more; concerning judgment because the ruler of this world is judged. (John 16:8-11)
It is exactly this of which we have been talking. The understanding made available after the resurrection of Jesus enables sin, righteousness, and judgment to be seen in an entirely different light. Sin is now recast in terms of Jesus. To believe in Jesus is to believe in the forgiveness of sins made available by the victim risen as forgiveness. Those who do not believe in Jesus remain in sin, because they remain in the mode of caster's out.
I think the description of being casters' out is biting. It is so easily applicable to me - maybe to you also? Casting out is an interesting image. Jesus would cast out demons. That is, he would cast out that which was contrary to the peaceable Reign of God - often this was a demon - or many demons. There would no longer be the power of division leading the way. Get out! There would no longer be the power that kills and maims and pushes out God's beloved. So Jesus, casts out those who are casters' out. What Jesus does when he casts out is that he makes the person whole. That is, he does not destroy them. He heals - he brings them home - he makes them a part of the community - he overcomes that which was an excuse to separate so that now there would be unity. This is the power given to all the followers of Jesus - in fact, this is the character of life we inherit as the children of God - this is our future - this is promise. So when Jesus is 'gone' he continues to be a part of character and action and self-sacrifice that will not tolerate the power of division.
Connection: I remember being a young Roman Catholic who was told to recount the 'sins' I had committed. Most of my 'list' was like a 'okay-it-has-been-two-weeks' how many times have I been less than what I could be. I had categories that were on the 'regular list' - disobeying parents - cheating - lying - stealing. Just enough to show the priest I was thinking about what is the good life and what is a broken life. Well, today I wonder about how we are to prayerfully go about recounting our day and how we participate in being caster's out. Then again, I think it is most helpful to catch ourselves in the act of being caster's out -as it is happening. That - is where the power of the Holy Spirit comes in. It is that tap on the heart - that inspired vision of what can be and who I truly am.
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