HEAR the Word Wednesday-04.16.08
“Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Romans 5:18-21
Tuesday was April 15th. Tuesday was tax day.
I don’t necessarily enjoy taxes. In fact, they scare me a bit.
In a fit of rage (well not really rage, but maybe defiance) I decided to rebel against the government and rather than filing my taxes without thinking, I was going to educate myself a bit first. And being the resourceful person that I am, I went to dictionary.com and typed in the word “tax” so that I would be somewhat more informed…The first definition, obviously, was directed at the money that you and I pay to our government. The second definition, however brought some other thoughts to mind. This alternative definition describes the word “tax” as follows, “a burdensome charge, obligation, duty, or demand”.
Using these two definitions together we can understand “tax” to mean that we pay (in this case our government) taxes for the work they do for us and these taxes are “a burdensome charge, obligation, duty or demand” on us as humans.
I see some very real correlations to our relationship with Christ in these words. If anyone has earned the right to tax us, He has. Christ, in His death on the cross, completed the ultimate work of salvation. And for this, He has every right to demand a tax on our lives. And, I think, in some ways He does. But, rather than these taxes being a burden or an obligation or a demand, Christ lovingly asks not that we pay, but that we receive His mercy.
His tax is that of love seeking to set us free from the demands of the world, His tax is simply a life lived in worship to the One who saved us from an eternal obligation to evil, His tax is grace over death, and His tax is not one to fear, but to embrace!
Blessing and taxes to you,
Dirt
