Given by Rev. Madison Shockley December 27, 2020
Today’s reading is from Paul’s letter to the Galatians. It offers a different perspective to the virginal birth of Jesus. Jesus was born of a woman. This topic has caused trouble for many. Yet, you do not need to believe in a miraculous birth to be a Christian. All the disciples believed that Jesus was born of a woman. The disciples were competing with a notion that Jesus only seemed human. Paul believed in Divine adoption. Paul explained it this way. Jesus was born as we all were. Like a child or a slave, we are bound by rules (the law). Upon reaching adulthood or emancipation, we reach a higher level of being (freedom). This is God’s greatest gift to us. If Jesus can reach the Divine, then so can we. As adoptees, we are all equal. We are connected to the Divine by love. By using love as a guide, not rules, we are free. Conformity is the enemy of faith. Jesus sets us free to seek the Divine. Rules distort who we are. Love allows us to seek our faith with integrity. It allows us to see the gifts of other people. To follow God’s call we must be who we are both inside and out. Seek God in faith and love.
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