Jesus overturns the moneychangers' tables in the Temple courts and starts a stampede of sheep and cattle waiting to be bought with pure, image-less coins so that worshipers can sacrifice the unblemished animals as a worship offering to God. Before Jesus became OUR Temple, this was a sacrificial system that had been tarnished with corruption. Read Jesus' dramatic whip-dance in John 2: 13-22.
Although our sanctuary lobbies no longer have sheep and cattle milling around, I wonder which of our automatic-pilot rituals and prayers Jesus would overturn? Do we worship with our minds on other things instead of focusing on God and neighbor in our worship? The Ten Commandments in Exodus 20: 1-17 offer us a different way to dance as God's partner not only in worship, but in all of life. Rather than a list of "you shalt-nots" the Ten Commandments are the dance steps we learn in order to live into God's presence fully and freely.
Using a summary from Feasting on the Word, Year B, Vol 2, p 76, 78, by Craig Kocher, the life-giving possibilities of the Ten Commandments are: "No other gods before me" means money, sex, and power cannot dance as idols onto our altars. Instead of taking the Lord's name in vain, we honor, praise and give thanks to God for the gifts of the dance. When we keep sabbath we remember that all creation is a gift and our responsibility is to steward it wisely. When we honor our parents we remember that we stand on the shoulders of others because we are not independent or self made. When we say no to murder, we acknowledge that people bear God's image to and for us. When we refuse to lie, steal, or covet we build up community by speaking the truth of and to our neighbors.
When we dance freely with God and with our neighbor, we commit ourselves to the two greatest commandments: Love God with all our heart/mind/soul and love our neighbor as ourselves. God welcomes us to the dancefloor of our community.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Shelley
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