Provoke

‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds’, he also adds, ‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’ Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin. 

Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching. 

Hebrews 10: 16-18, 23-25

I love these passages. There is a lot of good stuff in these words! Here are a few things that I am thinking about:

•  "I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more." Let's keep this simple: If God does that for us, why can't we do that for each other? I am reminded of Joan Baez's song, "God is God." I'm not God, you're not God - God is God. So why do we keep judging others as if we were God? Why should I remember the sins of others - and who am I to keep account of them?

• "Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful." What do we hold fast to these days? There is always something new coming our way - and we let go of what is old and move on to the new. We have no rock, nothing to hold onto in this world. In addition to all that, our world, on some days looks quite grim. What kind of world will be left for our children and our children's children? But, God is the constant, God is our hope who we cling to. For me this is a good reminder that no matter how bleak things appear, that I can put my hope and trust in God. Where everything else in this world cannot be depended upon, God is the one in whom I can depend.

• "And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds...encouraging one another." When I was a child, my brothers and I would provoke each other incessantly. We weren't provoking one another to love! We were provoking each other to anger. Children do that kind of thing. You would think we would outgrow that.  But, now we are all only grown up children who allow the likes of Donald Trump and Glenn Beck to provoke us to be angry and fearful. Provoking with untruths. They are addressing our baser selves. It's not pretty. They provoke us in unhealthy ways, we provoke others - and the cycle continues. What if, what if we provoked others to love? Good deeds? What if we encouraged one another instead of hoping that the other fails?  How absolutely counter cultural this is!

On this holy Good Friday, may we remember, God, that in Jesus, you have forgiven our sins; that through Jesus, we can live in hope; and that with Jesus, we are called to provoke one another to love!

P.S. Here is Joan singing  "God is God." There are other versions on youtube. Check them all out to find your favorite version of this song!