"The Word Of GOD Is Near You, On Your Lips And In Your Hearts."

Hi! and happy good first day of the week to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Monday:

THE GOOD NEWS (28 November 2016)

"My brothers and sisters, I wish with all my heart that the Jews be saved and I pray to GOD for them.  I can testify that they are zealous for GOD, but this is not the way.  They don't know GOD's way of righteousness and they try to achieve their own righteousness: this is why they did not enter GOD's way of righteousness.  For CHRIST is the aim of the Law and it is then that the believer reaches this righteousness.

Moses, indeed, speaks of becoming just through the Law; he writes:The one who obeys the Law will find life through it.  But the righteousness coming from the faith says instead: Do not say in your heart: Who will go up to heaven? [because in fact CHRIST came down from there] or who will go down to the world below? [because in fact CHRIST came up from among the dead].  True righteousness coming from faith also says: The word of GOD is near you, on your lips and in your hearts.  This is the message that we preach, and this is faith." - Romans 10:1-8

(Paul continues to develop the same theme of Israel's unbelief using the Jewish method of discussion of the time.  He distinguishes in the Bible various lines of thought.  Apparently a great number of Old Testament texts only speak of fidelity in keeping the commandments but other texts make more of the gratuity of GOD's gift.  This once more makes clear that there is not "one" religion of the Bible: it is not enough to read any text and take it literally [which is called "fundamentalism"].  The Bible gives us a series of testimonies where we recognize a path and a pedagogy from GOD.  Throughout the centuries and in different cultures, Jewish and then Greek, HE leads HIS people to the fullness of truth.

We have, perhaps, become used to a "progressive" view of history, rather as if all had to develop or "radiate" from what exists.  Yet JESUS has shown that times succeed one another but are not alike.  If there is progress, and in a sense that is evident, it happens through upheavals and changes of perspectives.

Even in the Church there have been turning points in the course of this century.  We must surely abandon the idea of a Church that, starting from western Christianity would by means of missions gradually extend to the rest of the world.  Paul points out a different perspective: the current of grace could desert zones it had previously enriched to make other lands fruitful.  He affirms that it is not caprice on GOD's part; for HIM it is a matter of bringing the whole of humanity to maturity and HE alone knows the way.  We note at the same time how he defends the privileged role of the Jewish people.  The same could be said of our ancient Christian bastions: their role, much less prominent, surely remains decisive, in as much as a remnant still remains faithful.)

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