new church life: september/october 2014
What makes us human is that we have been made free by the Lord to make
our own choices. We live with the promise: “The truth shall make you free.”
What we don’t always remember is what Jesus said to His followers immediately
prior to that: “If you continue in My way, then you are My disciples indeed; and
you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8: 31-32)
“If you continue in my way.” Here again the Lord is offering a choice –
to follow Him and thereby to know the truth that they might be free. That
is our choice also, but it is easy to confuse liberty and license. It can seem
counterintuitive that real freedom lies in knowing and honoring the truth –
not ignoring it and doing whatever we please. That may feel freeing, but real
freedom means living within God’s order and obeying the Ten Commandments.
Where order is, the Lord is present, but where order is not, the Lord is not present.
(New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine 279)
The most obvious example of knowing and obeying truth and living in
order are the rules of the road. When we drive on the proper side of the road,
stop at red lights, and observe speed limits, we are free to travel wherever we
want. If we ignore the rules we invite chaos. So it is with our lives.
We educate our children to provide them with the knowledge and values
to make good choices for their lives. With New Church education we take
it a step further. In October in Bryn Athyn we celebrate the granting of the
Charter to the Academy of the New Church in 1877 – and the continuing
commitment of New Church education throughout the Academy and General
Church schools. The mission of the Academy is to prepare students for lives of
use in this world and the next. We educate these young people in the light of
the Heavenly Doctrines so that they also may be comfortable and confident in
making wise spiritual choices that are guided by Divine truth and lead them
to heaven.
Among countless lessons in the Word are Moses trying to teach the
Children of Israel to make good choices – and to learn the right lessons
when they chose badly, such as when they turned away from God in favor of
Baal. Finally he put it to them: “I have set before you life and death, blessing
and cursing: therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live.”
(Deuteronomy 30:19)
These people knew the blessings the Lord provided, and had suffered the
“cursing” of their bad choices. Still they did not learn. And because we know
that even though the stories of the Word are cast in ancient times, everything
within it is really about our own lives, right now. We are the Children of Israel
and Moses’ challenge is constantly before us as well.
So is the conviction of Joshua, who succeeded Moses in leading the
Children of Israel into the Promised Land: “Choose for yourselves this day
394