Of Gods and Men

Something I notice in many people is how they deal with Christians. Can I be honest? Every time someone comes out with an accusation against Christians, I try to evaluate it for myself. Often you will find me admitting that a Christian made a blunder or that they acted just plain silly. I’m not scared to admit it, because Christianity isn’t about us. That contrast is the point of the gospel. Read Romans 5:8. Does it say “we worship God because He finally realized how great we were?” 

Not quite. 

To paraphrase, the verse says “while we were in the wrong, God said He would love us anyway.” While we were still out here making mistakes everywhere we could, God decided He would come die for us. It isn’t because of anything we are did, but because God’s love is like a cup that overflows: He just can’t help but love us. 

But enough mindless preaching! What does this have to do with my friends, and their conclusion that Christians are weird? What I am getting at is that instead of looking at people, we need to be praying, and reading the bible. They need an encounter with Jesus, aka the one that’s more than just another human being. I know it sounds corny, and I’m sure most have heard this sentiment a thousand times, but I still see people looking to people instead of God. I hear stories of the shortcomings of Christians all the time. But I don’t stay on that negative note, and throw the baby out with the bathwater. Instead, I try to turn things into a message of “and Jesus can forgive even them. Long live the King!” 

That contrast is the entire point of our faith. It isn’t something that we earn! The more I genuinely live out the word, the more I see myself falling short of who I should be. I see all the things I don’t want to give up, people I don’t want to forgive and every screw up that makes me marvel at how God could love me at all! I have more times that I know the right thing to do, but give into the wrong thing because it feels good (anyone who has ever been in traffic knows the temptation of anger.) But every day I am inspired by psalm 1, to be like the righteous who “is like a tree planted by streams of water, bearing fruit in its season.” 

The key to getting it right is to learn about the person of Jesus. To see His plan across the entirety of the good book, and to see His love and mercy for mankind. We are like a cracked mirror, warping the picture of what we were meant to reflect. But, believe me, I get it. It’s not easy to look up to God when your brain has been developed to associate His name with lots of bad things. I, personally, grew up associating God with sacrifice. God was the voice telling me “no video games on sunday,” and “to love me is to wear that itchy sweater for me.” I know, it all sounds silly, but we all have our associations. That’s why I believe it’s so important to grieve. When I had my revival of faith, I used to sit there and write down all the negative associations I had about God. I used those not as barriers, but as inspirations. I would write down a negative, and use the bible to argue that it was not true. Granted, sometimes I didn’t get my way, but God helped me find a middle ground (I still don’t wear the itchy sweaters, but I have found flannels look nice on every occasion.) 

My point is to learn to see the man-God contrast, and to bring healing to your understanding of God. Facing your pain is never easy, but it will drag you into the pits and keep you there if you let it. Like having surgery, it may not be fun, and recovery may leave you sore some days, but can you imagine if you lived your whole life without fixing your broken bones? Yikes!

My prayer for you is that you begin to pray into your healing. I can only tell you about what I have done, I can’t make you do likewise. I pray you begin to want it. To want Him. Only He can truly save. Only the King can correct your understanding of Him, and I believe He wants to. Why not give Him a try? He doesn’t bite. He just wants to be friends, and to give you a life worth living. 

Til next time

Long live the King!