The spirit of the law always trumps the letter of the law. When Jesus entered the world he experienced difficulty at every turn for following the true intent of God's law.
Our sinful nature likes simple answers. We want everything to be yes or no.
We do not want a call to wisdom. A call to judge rightly. A call to place others before ourselves.
That is why legalism delights in simple answers. Simple answers avoid responsibility because they allow for infinite outs.
This is the persons own fault so I have no need to intervene is the response of the sinful heart. Maybe it is true that something is a persons fault. And maybe we should not intervene, but maybe we should.
You see the bible does not allow us to so easily shirk our responsibility as legalism does. It calls us to view all things in light of the love for God and love for our neighbor.
What is ethical is placed in the higher light of true real love. In the face of real true love cliche easy answers are no longer possible.
That is why the biblical path of wisdom often falls out of fashion. Thinking and using discernment do not allow the easy shirking of the will of God that legalism provides.
As St. Augustine said: Love God and do what you please. If we truly love God we cannot go much wrong.
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