The Crux of the Matter

"Do not be overcome by evil, rather overcome evil with good."
So St. Paul tells the new church in Rome, right before he is about to sign off his famous letter to them. This Letter, an early part of the Christian scriptural canon, contains the crux, the very core of Christian theological proclamation: that God has formed a new relationship with humanity through the person and work of Jesus Christ, who saves us from our sins and brings complete healing. The way we understand what God has done and is doing in Christ is "by grace through faith." This Letter has been definitive for our understanding of the core of Christianity almost since the very beginning. In fact, some argue there would BE no Christian faith had not Paul of Tarsus, the Apostle who never met the earthly Jesus, only the Resurrected one, articulated so clearly the basic faith. Be that as it may, in the first part of the Letter, Paul sets forth the theology. In the second section, chapters 13-15, Paul gives a basic directive, dependent on that theology: it does no good unless Christian belief is part of Christian witness, part of the everyday lives of Christians. Christ lives through us; God saves through Christ; the world needs the example of Christ, lived-out through in small and practical ways by all who claim to be His disciples.
The preaching text this week is part of that section: 12:9-21. It is a beautiful part which begins with "Let love be genuine." And,it gets better from there:
"hate what is evil,
hold fast to what is good;
love one another with mutual affection;
outdo one another in showing honor.
Do not lag is zeal,
be ardent in spirit,
serve the lord.
Rejoice in hope,
be patient in suffering,
persevere in prayer.
Contribute to the needs of the saints;
extend hospitality to strangers.
Bless those who persecute you;
bless and do not curse them . . . . ."
There's so much more. You'll just have to read it. But the final verse is the most convicting to me: "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."
Our world is no different in many ways from Paul's world, the Greco-Roman world of 2,000 years ago. Evil abounds, and it is almost always pretty and enticing.
According to St. Paul, the only way to make Christ real and alive in the face of it is to live as Christ did, and as Christ commands us to do also.
That's the 'crux of the matter.'
Talk amongst yourselves and let me know if you agree.
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