Newness

This past weekend, the Gate began weekly services. The group was small, but the technical aspects were good. Really no glitches, which was a first. And for that, we are thankful.
I am, however, more thankful for the fact that the bar is now cleaned on Sunday mornings instead of Monday mornings. Seriously, if you've never seen a bar bathroom after Saturday night and before the cleanup...well, just be glad you've been spared this.
Anyway... the theme of this semester is Hard Times and the New Humanity. It comes out of the obvious relevance of the hard times we are in, but it also points to the fact that the Christian faith has always grown and matured and often expanded when times are hard, or near insurmountable.
This week was the Great Commandment, and the key thing I noticed was that when asked for the greatest commandment, Jesus responds with not one, but two positive commandments. I hear commandment, and think, "Thou Shall NOT..." which is probably what the Pharisees thought, and so Jesus responds with (paraphrased), "Love God with all you have, and love others as yourself. Oh, and by the way, all the other commandments are nothing without these two." Essentially, if you get these two right, the others will begin to take shape in your life. Its not that the 'shall nots' are unimportant, its that they have no backbone without being motivated by love for God and others. If I don't kill you because its a rule,thats good. If I hold back from even being angry with you because my heart breaks for you, thats waaaaay better.
And Jesus is all about the better.