Be curious. Ask questions. 

This week’s gospel raises a lot of questions – about marriage, divorce, with whom we are in relationship, and how we live faithfully in those relationships.

Last week, Pastor Amy talked about the learning curve she had in seminary when she encountered “biblical exegesis,” the practice of interpreting a biblical text. She did not mention the correlated word: isogesis. If exegesis is interpreting a text, isogesis is reading into a text, applying our own biases, ideas and agendas to our interpretation of the text. As we believe Scripture is the word of God, our delicate task is to practice exegesis, not isogesis – to interpret God’s Word for us today rather than to read in what we wish God’s Word would say.

And refraining from imposing our own ideas and experiences and expectations on what we read in Scripture can be exceedingly hard – especially when we are presented with a passage as complicated as this week’s gospel. With that cautionary note – and the help of God – what do we have to learn from God’s Word this week?

The Pharisees ask whether it is lawful for a man to divorce his wife, but Jesus refuses to fall for their trap. Because Jesus did not come to spell out the letter of the law; Jesus came to fulfill the law. The law can’t save us from our sin, but Jesus can – and does.

We are created to be in relationship with God and one another. The Pharisees want to test Jesus. Jesus wants to teach us about how deeply God values relationship. When the Pharisees ask about the laws for divorce, Jesus points them back to the beginning of creation when God said that it is not good for human beings to be alone.

With his response to the Pharisees, Jesus turns our attention to what he came to do. Jesus came to restore us to right relationship with God and one another. This does not happen because we manage to adhere perfectly to the letter of the law – indeed that is impossible without God’s help. Our relationship with God and one another is restored through the Sacrament of baptism (that we had the joy of celebrating on Sunday as we welcomed Hazel Marcy to God’s family!). God’s love is poured out upon us in the waters of baptism. In the waters of baptism, we die to sin and are made alive together with Christ. We are filled with the Holy Spirit. That’s our only hope for ever loving God and one another as fully as God loves us.

We are created to be in relationship. We turn our backs on God and one another all the time – that’s sin. And still, God keeps showing up. God persists in drawing us into relationship through Jesus who is God’s love and presence incarnate. God persists in filling us with the Holy Spirit that gives us the wisdom and understanding, counsel and might, knowledge and joy to keep reaching out in love to one another.

We live and love by the grace of God. Thanks be to God.