At the Risk of Being Nice
At the Risk of Being
Nice
"Be Kind"
was the slogan of the elementary school where my boys attended. What
does that mean? I think it was an attempt to address bullying, but I
wonder about it's effectiveness. At the other extreme are schools
that have "No Tolerance" as their motto. They are
fed up with drugs and weapons and will do anything and everything to
eradicate bad behavior. I'm not sure I have ever seen "Love"
used as the expression to which we should call everyone. The english
word for 'love' is so misunderstood that it would be twisted and
torqued to convey whatever we want it to. But that is the highest
calling to which we can attain if we understand it in its correct
context.
When asked the greatest
commandment, Jesus stated, "Love the Lord your God with all
your heart, soul, mind and strength. The second is like it in that
we should love our neighbors as ourselves. All the law hangs on these
two." This religion or
faith or belief system was brought to us through mystery, sacrifice
and love. It's a muscular philosophy without equal in our world
today. It's a creed that really works not just for one race or
single group of people, but for everyone.
Those
who call themselves 'evangelicals' are passionate about getting as
many people to believe this philosophy as possible, but along the
way, the desire for adherence has caused some of us to water down the
truth of the message in order to not to offend. In the Gospel of
Matthew Jesus is trying to describe to his friends what he must
experience as the Messiah in order to bring about salvation for them
and the rest of the world. He tells them that he must be rejected,
flogged and then killed. Well, this upsets his buddy Peter who says
to Jesus, "Never...we
can't let this happen to you."
Peter, in ignorance, didn't understand all that Jesus had to
accomplish; he was probably concerned primarily for his own needs and
was wrapped up in his limited worldview. Now, couldn't Jesus have
pulled him aside at that point and given him a better explanation?
Couldn't he have been 'kind'
and 'nice' and
reminded him in a gentle way that the mission of the Messiah is a
bigger job than he realizes.
Instead
Jesus says, “Get
behind
me,
Satan! “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely
human concerns.”
OUCH! Why
so harsh? The answer lies in looking at what's at stake. If Jesus
doesn't go through with the crucifixion, we will be stuck in what the
Bible calls sin. If Jesus doesn't die then he can't be resurrected
thus defeating death, therefore we cannot live beyond our physical
death, and we will be separated from God forever in a place called
Hell. The Apostle Paul said it best in 1 Corinthians 15:12-19
But
if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can
some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there
is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.
And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is
your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses
about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from
the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not
raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been
raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is
futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen
asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in
Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
Many
in the evangelical church today are guilty of the same mistake that
Peter made. I have heard many sermons preaching the love of God, but
eliminating the cross. I have heard that God accepts us as we are
(PERIOD). I have seen the silly juxtaposition of a message of the
love of God through Jesus Christ without an explanation of the
crucifixion, sacrifice, resurrection and then communion is
celebrated. HUH? Why do I need communion(the Lord's table), the
body of Christ broken for me and the blood of Christ shed for me if
God just loves me as I am? Come on...give the listener some credit
intellectually. This is a communion with no meaning. In essence,
it's deceitful. In our attempt to attract worshipers we have watered
the message down to something which makes absolutely no sense.
A
casual reading of the Bible will quickly illuminate the reader as to
the true purpose of the Gospel.
He
has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything
we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was
given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has
now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus,
who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light
through the gospel. And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and
an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am.
In
other words, following Jesus will cost you your life. Yes, salvation
is free as Paul says elsewhere, but to live your life as a disciple
will cost you everything. But Paul is saying, "IT'S WORTH IT"!
A
life in Christ redeems us from our past, gives us meaning in the
present and promises us a future with purpose and meaning.
Don't
we realize that people are looking for meaning in life? Meaning
doesn't come from being nice. And it certainly doesn't come from
only eliminating bad things like the "No tolerance" rule.
People are demanding a muscular faith. One that condemns evil,
accepts me with all my warts and wounds, but changes me from the
inside out. And you can't find a more muscular, comprehensive and
all-consuming faith than in Christianity.
The
problem is that its followers are not perfect and we do a lousy job
of representing our faith, but our Savior is perfect and if we can
attempt to point to Him, then maybe we will effectively invite a few
people into the truth of a saving faith in Jesus Christ. Oh, what
Good News it really is when we understand the Truth.
For
it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not
from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no
one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus
to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Ephesians
2:8-10
Comments
Post a Comment