It’s all about passion this week! The readings explore what it means to obey God’s law and to live a righteous life, and concludes that, if our faith is simply legalistic, outward observance, it is not authentic. Rather, it is about ensuring that our hearts are devoted to God, that we remain passionate in our commitment to Christ and to God’s Reign.
This week, the challenge is for us to live righteously and justly by following God’s law, living with humility and integrity and ensuring that we don’t focus on outward observance, but allow our hearts to be changed so that our service of God and others is a true, heartfelt response.
In the Song of Solomon, the lovers enjoy the beauty of Spring, which, for the young woman, is not unlike the beauty of her lover. In a similar way, Psalm 45 celebrates the king on his wedding day.
In James, those who hear the law but fail to live it out are compared to people who look at themselves in a mirror and then forget what they look like, but followers of Christ are called to put God’s law into practice. Finally, Jesus demonstrates that following the law is not about legalistic, outward observance, but is about being changed by the values and practices of God’s Reign so that our hearts are pure and connected with God.
Our faith is not just about what we do outwardly – it’s about having hearts set ablaze by the values and purposes of God’s Reign, such that we practice “true religion” which liberates and restores others – especially, as James says, the weakest and most vulnerable.
What might it mean for us to learn to celebrate our union with God as lovers do, and to follow Christ with passion as well as obedience, noticing and enjoying life (like the enjoyment of Spring) wherever we find it?