“There is no problem with the wider culture that you cannot see in the spades in the Christian Church. The rot is in us, and not simply out there. And Christians are making a great mistake by turning everything into culture wars. It’s a much deeper crisis.”
― Os Guinness
Anytime a Christian tells you that ‘you’ve’ got a moral problem, that you’re the one who needs to change, that you’re wrong!, you can know that they themselves are NOT following the God they claim is their Lord.
Jesus was always calling his disciples to humility, to get the log out of their own eye, and worry much less about the speck in the others’ eye. It was the religious elite who judged everyone according to a human standard of the Law (613 rules), and Jesus condemned them for it, and by way of example, here’s Matthew 23:23 (NIVUK):
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices – mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practised the latter, without neglecting the former.”
Our Christian world is still so full of teachers of the law and Pharisees. And it will always be. These don’t have the Kingdom in their heart, but their own malevolence and schemes. They turn people away from the love of God. They are abjectly misled.
Jesus never condemned a person in their struggle, and he deliberately spent time with the marginalised, not just as their teacher, but as their friend. He overcame all the typical biases that we all struggle with, and only in his power can we overcome ours.
Jesus’ heart was for the lost, and that is each and every one of us, whether we’re ‘saved’ or not. We never stop needing him. That’s the point of faith.
The genuine person of faith in God is a person of peace, walking humbly with their God, knowing they’re no more special, capable for God, or learned spiritually than anyone else.
The real person of faith is a person of genuine constant spiritual reflection, continually turning back to God, able to empathise with their own struggles and others’ struggles constantly, and to attribute to those struggles good thoughts that lead to healthy responses.
The wisest of all insist on nothing and are truly at peace with life as it is, accepting that if God would change it, God will. The true sage demands nothing of nobody, but they’re an instrument of God’s will, so they never need to get upset if things don’t go their way.
Persons of peace are a delight to be around, for they are fertile soil around which to grow, because they themselves are intrinsically and most interested in how God is growing them personally—because they walk humbly with their God.
Be around people who are strongly motivated to look up to the God who would guide, direct, inspire, and admonish them. Be around people who have the heart to look within for evidence of error—not out of guilt or shame, but motivated and inspired to honour their Lord who they take seriously in following.
If we’re to strive for anything, it is to strive to be a person of peace, a gift of hope to all.
No comments:
Post a Comment