In 2012 I was returning to Michigan from my hometown in Indiana having just officiated my first funeral. It was snowy and icy. My beloved 2003 Grand Am was a trustworthy car, but not exactly a truck. Katlyn and I stopped at an exit and I am embarrassed to say that between my driving and the slightly bald tires we slipped off the road, deep into the snow, completely bottoming out, and facing steeply downhill. So what do you do? Do you admit that you're stuck and ask for help, or try to get out on your own strength? I did everything I could to get out on my own, of course! I grabbed my little aluminum shovel out of the trunk and started digging away, denying that this was a hopeless endeavor. I needed to be rescued, someone needed to do for me what I could not do on my own. But like Pharaoh, I had a hard heart believing I could fix it on my own. But then my rescue came, in the form of an F-250 with a giant man in a big furry hat who spoke with a thick eastern European accent. “You are stuck, yes? We get you pulled out, yes?” He saw Katlyn in the passenger seat and with all compassion said, “Your woman can sit with my wife in the truck where it is warm until we get you pulled out, yes?” I'll never forget his accent or how he said “yes” at the end of every sentence. Where I had gone astray from right paths, he brought me back onto the road, towing me out of the snow, rescuing me from being stuck and setting me free. I had to cut the rope from the frame because the knots were too tight, but then I turned back to my rescuer. How do you thank someone that has done for you what you could not do for yourself? I was a student at the time without a ton of cash, but I reached into my wallet, found a $20 bill and tried to give it to my rescuer. He shook his head and said, “No, you cannot offer me money; you just have good day from now on, yes?” He spoke with such authority I knew there was no convincing my rescuer that I could repay him. So instead, I left the knots of the rope on the frame of my car, and for the next eight years that I still owned that vehicle those knots served as a reminder of what was done for me, so that my heart might be ready to help someone else when it was in my power. On a much larger scale, we have also been rescued, rescued by Jesus! The pattern of salvation is already established in Exodus with plagues, the passover, and then permission to live as God’s free people. Why did God rescue the Israelites from Egypt, from the land of slavery? Was it because they were doing a really good job of following the 10 Commandments? Absolutely not! They didn't even have the 10 Commandments yet! God is the Promise Maker and the Promise Keeper, which includes bringing the people back to the Promised Land. Plagues demonstrated the Lord’s power over Egypt and to Israel. Then Passover was the rescue of the Israelites to exit the land of slavery and escape to freedom. The Heidelberg Catechism, our reformation era teaching tool, is divided into three sections: Guilt, Grace, Gratitude or Sin, Salvation Service. The 10 Commandments are placed in the Gratitude/Service section. This is surprising to some, but it follows the line of the gospel. Romans 5:8 tells us, “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We do not earn our salvation, and this sets Christianity apart! Following the law and all of the good deeds we do, they don't earn us anything. They are the response to what God has already done for us! I hope this paints the 10 Commandments and the rest of the law in a different light for us. It's not a checklist to make God love us; it's an invitation and permission for how to build a community that would truly flourish if we lived into the grace we've been shown. God didn't say that we can't steal because being a kleptomaniac is the only fun in life. He did it so that we didn't have to carry keys around everywhere and live in fear of theft! God didn't say “no adultery” because he was trying to ruin our lives. God designed sex to be a gift that we can enjoy. But when boundaries are broken and adultery is committed, great harm and pain come as a result. God’s Law is intended for us to have all the enjoyment in life without the pain, fear, and loss. Where do you find yourself? Are you stuck in the snow, and trying to dig your way out? I mean this in terms of sin of course, but in both kinds of struggle we are helpless on our own. We need soft hearts to accept grace (as opposed to the stubborn, hard heart of Pharaoh), but then once we receive it how do we respond? If our response is to feel smug and deserving of what was done for us, we've missed the point altogether. We're not entitled to grace; we did not earn it. Nor do we receive grace but then ignore the invitation to gratitude, service, and permission. That would be to trade a transformative relationship with Christ for a transactional “get out of hell free” card. Do not hinder the Spirit’s work! Receive the permission to live in the freedom of Christ, and experience the Law as an invitation to respond to all that God has done for us! - Pastor Steven