Monday, May 18,2015

         Hebrews 6:1-12

         “…on their own they are once again crucifying the Son of God and are holding him up to contempt.”

           When I was a kid, growing up in a fundamentalist Christian church, I was afraid of becoming a “backslider,” one who returns to the mindset and habits of his pre-Christian days (even Wikipedia has an entry for “backslider”!) In my mind, I pictured the Christian life as an ascent up a steep mountain constantly surrounded by the danger of slipping down or even off a cliff.  What stands out to me now as I remember those days is the genuine fear I had as young person of “losing my salvation” and being rejected by God.

            Today’s reading from Hebrews most certainly points to a teaching like this. As Ken mentioned in his reflection from Saturday, this book was most likely written to members of the Jesus Movement who had Jewish roots and who were in danger of reverting back to their Jewish faith. The book alternates between Christological and ethical sections as the author attempts to strengthen this group of Jesus’ followers. 

            I can hear echoes of the mountain climb: “Let us go on toward perfection, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ…” (v 1), and the threat of falling off the edge: “For it is impossible to restore again to repentance those…who have fallen away, since on their own they are once again crucifying the Son of God and are holding him up to contempt.” (v. 6)

      As I grow in my faith, however, and come to understand the broad sweep of God’s story in Scripture, I realize that we can do nothing to earn or lose God’s unconditional love. There is no single incidence (like fatally falling off a cliff) that can separate us from God’s embrace. Fear, it seems to me, is never a healthy (or even effective) motivation. Only love can provide the impetus we need.

            And, yet, I keep coming back to v. 6 in my contemplation of this reading. While I don’t have to buy into the fear promoted in this passage, I do pause at the implication of these verses. When I make choices that run counter to God’s story in Christ, in that moment I am freely choosing the forces of death over the forces of life.  I am choosing the same forces of fear and violence that led to Jesus’ rejection and execution in his day, and lead, in big and small ways, to the innumerable rejections and deaths around me. 

            The choice is clear: are we like ground that soaks up the rain and produces good crop for a world in need, or do we produce thorns and thistles to the harm of those around us? (vs. 7-8)

- David Shumaker