The women at Norfolk Garden are doing a bible study by Beth Moore on the book of James - Mercy Triumphs. We are taking it slow -- as we meet on Weds evenings from 7-8. The first week is the video presentation, then the next week we do Days 1-3 and the following week we finish Days 4-5 and any other extra material that we have time to cover. Last night was our culmination of the first lesson. In the three weeks it took to digest all of the preliminary work of getting to know James, the brother of Jesus, his role in the Jerusalem church, his Jewishness as a believer, it makes the words on the page come to life.
On my ride from Newport News to Norfolk last night Chuck Swindoll was discussing the debate in the early church about Gentiles and circumcision from Galatians. The last day of our study concerned a similar passage from Acts with the leaders of the Jerusalem church and Paul. As Judy spoke about the difficulty of the Gentiles and Jewish Christians uniting and the cultural chasm that needed to be crossed, the line from Dr. Swindoll, "Peter you have ham on your breath!" came to mind and was shared with the ladies. It is so easy to become a legalist and deny the work of grace. The Bible has many gray areas which can be interpreted in different ways based upon our conscience and the leading of the Holy Spirit. When we make our sanctification a matter of denial of self rather than the liberty of Christ we cheapen the Cross of Christ.
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