This week, Stasi looks at Luke 8:28. The interpretation is, "Why are You interfering with me, Son of the Most High God?" But, the verse literally breaks down to, "What have You to do with me?" Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever been so decimated by guilt and shame over a negative emotion, thought, word or action that came from you, that you wondered....why would God want to have anything to do with me?
The Apostle Paul writes, in 2 Cor 6:17, For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God." We are temples of the Living God. Let that sink in for a moment. Just as God dwelt among His people in the Old Testament, God now tabernacles within you. He has taken up residence in you....where you go, you bring Jesus.
2 Cor 6:15 paints a somewhat more PG-13 rendition of this concept, "Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never!"
So, what do we do when we find our mind or body overcome with darkness? Our reflexive impulse is to hide, to recede further into darkness, where we are unexposed and unchallenged. This past week, I had a dentist appointment. I needed two fillings! If you know me, you know that I have a deadly fear of the dentist, especially the drill. I shared my anxiety with my dentist, and my desire to avoid the work. He replied, "Well, you can experience the minimal discomfort of the drill now, or you can endure the greater pain of a root canal and crown later, if the tooth goes untreated. I cannot tell you how many older women I see, who have no teeth left, in their older age." I had to give my decay to the dentist and let him remove every bit of it, before it caused destruction and even spread.
If you are currently in a bad relationship, which you know is causing you or others harm; If you are participating in a deceptive or unlawful business dealing; If you give your soul to addiction; If you give your time to idols (empty distractions from loving God and His children)...... don't bring Jesus into your sin. Bring your sin to Jesus.