10-08-2021, 07:52 AM
I mentioned this in a blog post, but it's worth reiteration here as a separate teaching: The Lord honors virtual or figurative measures of holiness.
The primary requirement of shalom (peace with God) is the Covenant of Christ. This Covenant does have a law component, but it's your convictions. We shape our understanding of our convictions by studying previous Law Covenants in the Bible. It rests on our convictions to recognize where the boundaries are in any given context. We aren't required to obey the stipulations of the Law so much as the moral imperatives behind those stipulations. Sometimes the best answer is the Old Testament stipulations, but not always. Then again, the Old Testament Law was flexible in the first place. But in general, we seek to please the Lord as a Person, from the heart, not simply a collection of principles in our heads.
Thus, few of us have a genuine covenant body to which we belong in the real world. This puts us in a tough spot. On the one hand, we know that the Covenant assumes boundaries drawn in face-to-face real-world encounters with others. We are supposed to form a covenant household of people with whom we spend as much of our daily lives as possible. Holiness is defined in part as communion in the flesh with other holy people. But that may not be possible just yet.
By faith we believe the Lord will change that in the future. It's how His Kingdom works. But in the meantime, how do we begin the task of claiming our divine heritage? We use what is available. We commune with each other online. Thus, it's not a real church, but it can function somewhat like a parish community. We long for the real thing, but God says He'll honor the virtual communion.
Granted, this does limit how much divine covering we have against the evil in our world. The distinction between us and the world is rooted in our hearts. That was true when Jesus first discussed what holiness meant. It works across the board. But we have to recognize that in the nitty-gritty of daily life, it weakens our hedge against Satan's authority. A genuine enclave of covenant people is a lot better protection than a virtual one. Still, God honors our desire to do it His way, and will help us along through our prayers for each other until somewhere down the road we start to draw others into a very literal fellowship.
The primary requirement of shalom (peace with God) is the Covenant of Christ. This Covenant does have a law component, but it's your convictions. We shape our understanding of our convictions by studying previous Law Covenants in the Bible. It rests on our convictions to recognize where the boundaries are in any given context. We aren't required to obey the stipulations of the Law so much as the moral imperatives behind those stipulations. Sometimes the best answer is the Old Testament stipulations, but not always. Then again, the Old Testament Law was flexible in the first place. But in general, we seek to please the Lord as a Person, from the heart, not simply a collection of principles in our heads.
Thus, few of us have a genuine covenant body to which we belong in the real world. This puts us in a tough spot. On the one hand, we know that the Covenant assumes boundaries drawn in face-to-face real-world encounters with others. We are supposed to form a covenant household of people with whom we spend as much of our daily lives as possible. Holiness is defined in part as communion in the flesh with other holy people. But that may not be possible just yet.
By faith we believe the Lord will change that in the future. It's how His Kingdom works. But in the meantime, how do we begin the task of claiming our divine heritage? We use what is available. We commune with each other online. Thus, it's not a real church, but it can function somewhat like a parish community. We long for the real thing, but God says He'll honor the virtual communion.
Granted, this does limit how much divine covering we have against the evil in our world. The distinction between us and the world is rooted in our hearts. That was true when Jesus first discussed what holiness meant. It works across the board. But we have to recognize that in the nitty-gritty of daily life, it weakens our hedge against Satan's authority. A genuine enclave of covenant people is a lot better protection than a virtual one. Still, God honors our desire to do it His way, and will help us along through our prayers for each other until somewhere down the road we start to draw others into a very literal fellowship.
