But in the midst of all the chaos, my dear friend Peggy made a point that I really latched on to, and it's actually the whole point I want to make with this post. This is just an excerpt, but here's what she said:
...religion could be the earthly method that tries to train men into beings who can discern the truth of God's reality even in the middle of a world like ours...So... uhh... Yeah.
Wow.
That is a particularly humbling statement for me, especially in light of the last few posts I've put up. I don't consider myself to be any great scholar or anything like that, but I definitely do put a lot of emphasis on theology and understanding scripture, understanding the Spirit, understanding God. And there's nothing wrong with a desire for understanding those things, so long as that understanding leads to a transformation of my life.
Too often I see people who get caught up in the minutiae of doctrinal issues, who take hard-line legalistic stances on things that Jesus obviously doesn't take the same stance on, who put so much focus on making sure they look like they're doing the right Christian thing.
Too often I meet people who are mired in tradition, who believe that their church is the church and there's no other way anyone could ever possibly please God, who believe that asking questions about the nature of our faith and our God is the most heinous, offensive, earth-shattering blasphemous act one can perform, when the Bible itself is chock full of great heroes of faith who question God, who aren't sure if God knows what He's doing, even in the midst of miracles being performed right in front of their very eyes - miracles that they themselves were taking part in!
Too often I have discussions with people who are too focused on the right thing in the wrong way. They're too focused on what the Bible says instead of what the Bible means. They're too focused on getting people to church instead of getting people to God. They're too focused on Christianity instead of focused on Christ.
By the way - all of those people? They're all named Aaron J. Rushton. I'm the guiltiest one in the world of all of everything I just listed. I get trapped in myself and my way of doing things. I question someone else's motives if they don't act exactly like me. I obsess over details of interpretation that really aren't even close to being "salvation issues," I get trapped up in thinking that I'm a terrible Christian for ever doubting or questioning God, and I spend a whole lot of time focused on making sure I'm checking off my list of "How to Be a Good Christian Today" instead of surrendering my will to the Father, accepting the presence of His Spirit, and simply living my life in singular dedication to loving God and loving others.
Which brings us back to what Peggy said:
...religion could be the earthly method that tries to train men into beings who can discern the truth of God's reality even in the middle of a world like ours...
What's the point of being a Christian? What's the motivation behind the message? Why bother in the first place?
Sometimes people emphasize the danger of an eternity in Hell as a motivator for taking up the Christian lifestyle. But that's like teaching a little kid not to start fights just because he's liable to get beat up.
Sometimes people turn to the message of Heaven, an eternal reward for a life of sacrifice and piety. But that's like teaching a little kid to be nice to his sister because he's going to get ice cream if he does.
There's not really anything wrong with either of those... But I don't think they're really good enough.
If the only reason a kid has for not starting a fight is so he can avoid pain, he isn't understanding that there's a better way of life: being a positive influence on the people you find surrounding you, showing patience, kindness, gentleness, understanding and love to everyone you come across.
If the only reason a kid is nice to his sister is so he can get the ice cream, he's not going to learn that good, long-lasting, honest relationships with other people are built on a genuine connection, a genuine desire to do the best possible and be the best possible for the other person's sake, sacrificing the desires of the self in the interest of others.
Don't get me wrong - Hell is real, and it is bad, and I don't want to go. Heaven is also real, and it is good, and I would very much rather be there than here.
But focusing solely on the reward or the punishment isn't going to inspire the change in the world that I believe God wants to see.
So what is the proper motivation? What will inspire that change in the world?
I believe that the ultimate goal of life, the ultimate goal of God's plan for humanity, the ultimate goal of the teachings and the sacrifice of Christ, is that we learn to be good.
- Matthew 22:34-40Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"
Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
- I John 4:7:21Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us.
We know that we live in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And He has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
The whole point of Christianity - as I see it - is not to eventually experience Heaven, or to eventually be wrapped up in the presence of God, or to eventually do anything. The point is to do something NOW. It's got to matter right here. It's got to change who you are now in order to affect where you go later.
The whole point is to reshape the entire world, one person at a time, to bring all of humanity into a perfect union with God, and therefore also with itself.
All the theology in the world is completely useless if it doesn't actually change lives or bring people closer to God. In the passage from Matthew I just quoted, Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is to love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind. Too many people focus so strongly one one aspect of those three that the other two are completely ignored. All heart with no soul or mind leads to an empty, superficial show of love for others without a genuine connection. All soul with no heart or mind gives us a vibrant worship experience that doesn't actually relate to anybody on a communal level. All mind but no heart or soul produces an environment where people become proud of their own righteousness, and especially proud of their own "understanding" of the Bible in a textual sense, able to quote passages at great length, but completely ignoring the message contained within. Straining out gnats but swallowing camels.
That last one - all mind, no heart or soul - is the trap I most often fall into. I want my "great theological understanding" to be enough of a devotion to God that I don't actually have to reach out to people or allow an emotional investment in worship, because hey, I'm a big tough guy and I'm not supposed to ever get all emotional. It is a constant battle for me to actually let down my defenses and be genuine with people. And, for the moment at least, it is a battle I lose far more often than I win.
(Please assume the " " around "great theological understanding" to be sarcastic finger-quotes, because I don't actually think for a moment, even on my most arrogant days, that I've really got ANYTHING figured out...)
I Peter opens up with an exhortation to the Christians reading it that our salvation has been in the works since the time of the prophets. God's plan for Christ on earth has been in motion since the beginning of time. But to what end?
Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."- I Peter 1:13-16
In all of it - in all of the redemption from our sins, in all of our reconciliation to God, in all of our love for Him and for each other, it all serves to bring us to one purpose, and that purpose is a life of holiness - and holiness is defined as the pinnacle of moral behavior. God has set up Christianity as a way for us to understand Him, know Him, and love Him, so that - through that understanding, knowledge and love - we would understand how to behave.
So... uhhh...
Be good.
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