The 1968 film Wild in the Streets was released to wild acclaim—among teenagers. Adults? Not so much. The plot: voting age lowered to 14, drug use legalized, and 20-year-old rock star Max Frost elected President.
What could go wrong?
Teen reaction: great soundtrack!
Adult reaction: anarchy!
For most of us, orderly is the way. We like order. We especially like law and order. We feel safer knowing the law is there to protect us from all the things that might do us harm. But when the Bible talks about “the law,” it means something altogether different.
That difference is what the apostle Paul was addressing in this week’s reading from the letter to the Romans. The first-century Jewish Christians reading that letter were struggling with just how much of their old life (and their old religion) they should bring forward into this new way. Before Jesus, “the law” was a huge part of their lives. It covered every aspect. When God gave the Law to Moses, its purpose was to help shape the children of Israel into a separate nation, to help them become utterly different from other people groups.
Devotion to those rules became how they measured their relationship with God. In their minds, it was what made them God’s chosen people. But over many generations, the Israelites kept adding law layers, making it increasingly difficult to actually follow.
This Romans passage—with statements like “the law brings wrath” and “where there is no law there is no transgression”—probably left them a bit unnerved. If you read the passage and find assurance that our faith is what connects us to God, excellent. It’s what Paul intended his readers to get from it.
Along these lines, in the Matthew passage, Jesus quotes the Hosea passage when He says: “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’" He was pointing away from the Law of Moses and toward a life lived by faith.
Lawlessness is a good thing in the spiritual sense—as long as we remember to grab hold of faith as we release our grip on “the law.” With faith, there is no need for it. In fact, it can actually get in our way of living by faith.
Letting go of “the law” does not have to lead to anarchy, in life or in our relationship with God and His people. Yes, it's a little scary. But take a deep breath—and let it go.
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PHOTO: Adobe Express filtered through Photoshop Express
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If you dare, listen to Max Frost and the Troopers herald revolution and anarchy in “The Shape of Things to Come” from the movie Wild in the Streets:
Roger Ebert reviews Wild in the Streets:
https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/wild-in-the-streets-1968
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Can you be with us Friday morning for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast? We're learning to do good as we peruse God's word, discuss it among ourselves, and continue replacing bad habits with good ones. Join us at 8:00 on Zoom* or at Our Breakfast Place for food, fellowship, and fun—all squeezed into an hour like no other.
Previous dietary restrictions no longer apply.
Blessings,
Steve
*Zoom link (Zoom allows you to mute the camera and the microphone if you don’t wish to be seen or heard.)
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89947678414
SCRIPTURES FOR SUNDAY AND THE COMING WEEK
Find them here:
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/texts/?y=17134&z=p&d=59
Print them here:
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/Ax_Proper5.pdf
Genesis 12:1-9
Psalm 33:1-12
Hosea 5:15-6:6
Psalm 50:7-15
Romans 4:13-25
Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26
Proper 5 (10) Second Sunday After Pentecost (June 7, 2026)
