Deceived by the Heart

Jeremiah 17:9 - The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?

I thought of this verse today when reading about the grand jury decision on the death of Michael Brown.  I read the testimony of officer Darren Wilson, and have seen the protests, both when Michael died, and now, after the decision not to prosecute officer Wilson.

The Michael Brown case is news because Michael was black and officer Wilson is white.  Reading officer Wilson’s testimony, there are elements that would tend to explain and even justify what he did (the grand jury saw this, as well), but, the one question that officer Wilson can’t answer with any certainty is: would the outcome have been the same if Michael Brown was white? 

Not to compare the two, but the accusations of rape against Bill Cosby are also in the news.  I couldn’t help but notice that most of the women that have come forward fit a certain pattern at the time of the alleged assault: late teens, and white.  Given what we have heard so far, what conclusion can we draw about Bill Cosby:  that he, a black man, sought out white teenaged girls to assault, that he was an “equal opportunity” predator, or that he is an innocent man that is a victim of false accusations?  Bill can provide an answer (at least to himself) that differentiates the first two from the last, but discerning between the first two (if he is guilty) would be much more difficult.

Racism is but one aspect of a wicked heart, and look what devastation it can cause.  And, if we examined our actions (especially our sinful ones), what other destructive motives would we find?  I believe this is what the Holy Spirit, through Jeremiah, was getting at. And, He gives us the answer in the very next verse:

Jeremiah 17:10 - I Jehovah search the heart, I try the reins, even to give to each man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.

Brittany, and Hope

I noted the passing of Brittany Maynard the other day.  Brittany is the lady that chose to end her life at 29, due to a diagnosis of brain cancer. She made headlines because of her choice, and the world tracked her as she made it through her bucket list on the way to a planned ending on November 1^st.

Brittany generated a lot of opinions on her choice, from euthanasia proponents to right-to-lifers, from atheists to religious.  But, all have to agree that she had the choice, and, since none of us have walked in her shoes, opinions largely only promote your own point of view. 

I, like most people, felt a great sadness when reading her story. What saddened me the most about her choice is that it indicated a loss of hope. 

Hope can come in more than one flavour.  In Brittany's case, the most immediate hope would be for a cure, maybe a long shot, but stranger things have happened.  Jim Kelly, former quarterback of the Buffalo Bills, has undergone an epic battle with the big C, and he was recently pronounced cancer-free.  This may not last, but I guarantee Jim’s pretty darn happy about it, and glad to be alive. 

The deeper hope troubled me more. Brittany’s choice indicates that she had no hope of something better after this life. This hope requires faith, and puts restrictions on our choices.

I’ve not faced what Brittany faced, but I know that any situation in life can be easier to face when you have that hope that stems from faith. On one level, it helps you to cope when you have that something in the future to look forward to.  And, as you progress through life and you reach each of those things you were looking forward, that one last thing to look forward is that your life will go on after you die.  This requires faith.  I hope Brittany had this, I can’t imagine how she faced that moment without it.

I’ve heard the terms “death with dignity” and “death on your own terms” in conjunction with Brittany’s death.  I don’t believe that death is, or can be, dignified.  I’ve heard of too many people that endure indignity (chemotherapy, hardship, humiliation, pain and torture) just to stay alive.  And, as far as death on your own terms, well, your birth wasn’t, so why would you expect that your death will be?

I’m glad Brittany got to do her “bucket list” before she died.  But, the hand that filled the bucket is now gone, and, like a bucket imprint of sand on the beach, it slowly washes away.  The world has moved on to another story, and the people that Brittany loved and that loved her are the only ones that remember.

Here’s what lasts:

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three (1 Corinthians 13:13)

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1)

Lent, and Giving Up

Lent is almost upon us.  Even if you are not in a religion that practices Lent, you probably know about it.  It’s that time when fish sandwiches suddenly appear and get promoted on fast food menus.  It’s that time when you are supposed to give up something.

I struggle with Lent.  I usually set myself up for failure by planning on giving up a lot of things, which gradually peeter out, usually within the first week.  I view it as the second chance at New Year’s resolutions (which, by the way, work probably as well as Lenten “give ups”).  Usually, my “giving up” ends with giving up on giving up J

It may help to take a step back and take another look at Lent.  Lent starts 40 days before Easter and is meant to be a time when we focus on the life of Jesus, particularly on His death and resurrection, and to bring home the fact that He did this for me.  The giving up comes in as we try to identify with the suffering of Christ, albeit in a meagre way.

It’s perfectly ok to give up chocolate, and potato chips, and TV for Lent, and good luck to you if you do.  But, if you make it through Lent unscathed, I’ll almost guarantee that a glut of chocolate and chips and TV will result on Easter Monday.  And, you’ll have come through Lent ok, but no closer to God.

I’d like to propose that this year, we all look at our lives and identify things that are keeping us from God. The obvious here is sin, but there may be other things (like social media, for example) that are not sinful, but may lead us down a path away from God.  These are the things, I believe, that we need to target and “give up”.

It’s been said that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit.  Lent has 40.  So, Lent offers us the chance, once a year, if we use it right, to change our lives for the better, and come out of it closer to God. 

Happy Lent.  Can’t wait to see the new you after Easter!

Love the Sinner, Hate YOUR Sin

I ran across this quote from Mark Lowry the other day on Facebook:

“Love the sinner, hate the sin? How about: Love the sinner, hate your own sin! I don’t have time to hate your sin. There are too many of you! Hating my sin is a full-time job….How about you hate your sin, I’ll hate my sin and let’s just love each other!”

Great quote.  It reminds me that I don’t hate my sin near enough (I tend to excuse, justify, dismiss) and that I hate everyone else’s too much (even when their sin is something I’m doing too). 

The problem with hating another’s sin is that it often leads to hating the sinner. It can also lead to a superiority complex that is contrary to who God wants us to be.  Jesus made it very clear in the Sermon on the Mount that sin is sin, there are no degrees, and no differences before God.  He saw no difference in the sins of Hitler and those of the apostle Paul (Paul even said, in 1 Timothy: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost” (verse 15)).

What’s the answer, then?  I think it may be in these lines from the Casting Crowns song, Love You With the Truth:

“When we love, we earn the right to speak the truth, when we speak truth, we show the world we truly love.”

The answer is there, love.  The answer always seems to be love.  But not my kind of love, God’s kind of love.  It is the answer that granted me salvation and adoption into the kingdom of God. It is the love of mercy, forgiveness, grace and healing.  It keeps me and sustains me and is the source of life.

None of this is easy. I find it “easier” to speak the truth, but almost impossible to do so in love.  The problem is that you can’t start with the truth, you have to start with love.  Hating the sin isn’t the starting point, it’s then too easy to stretch that to hating the sinner.  You have to start with love, real love, genuine love… God’s love.

We have met the enemy and he is Comfort

I lead a comfortable life.

I like comfort.  I could even say I dislike discomfort so much that I’d do anything to avoid it.  But, I am becoming more aware that a comfortable life leads to shackles.  For one thing, it seems that comfort becomes addictive; the more you have, the more you want.  You get to the point where the least bit of discomfort is the most awful thing you can imagine.  Anything that could be the least bit uncomfortable (like telling someone about Jesus) is out of the question. 

Probably worse of all, living a comfortable life leads to an unnatural fear of death. Our lives become so comfortable that we can’t imagine anything beyond that could be any better.  This is when comfort becomes a barrier that keeps us from Jesus.

I sometimes am lead into a weird impression of the early days of the Church and think that they had it so good… after all, their lives were so uncomfortable that it was “easy” for them to focus on Jesus, and life eternal.  How comfortable of me, thinking I have it so bad being so comfortable.

Comfort is not bad, but it makes things harder for a Titus 2 man.  A comfortable life leads to a familiarity with the world that we were never meant to have. And, a love of the world and our comfortable life makes us less excited about the prospect of Heaven, and the unspeakable wonder of being there.  Worse of all, we stop seeking Jesus and trying to be like Him, our motivation evaporates.  Is it any wonder that in the comfortable societies in the world, the culture of “living in the moment”, “he who dies with the most toys wins”, in short, selfish, man-centred idolatry is flourishing?

Paul offers this about heaven, in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4:

“I know a man in Christ fourteen years before (whether in the body, I do not know; or outside of the body, I do not know; God knows) such a one was caught up to the third Heaven.  And I know such a man (whether in the body, or outside of the body, I do not know; God knows), that he was caught up into Paradise and heard unspeakable words, which it is not allowed for a man to utter.”

And that’s third heaven, imagine seventh heaven!

Paul says that there is something beyond this comfortable life that is so wonderful, we haven’t even invented words that can describe it. The desire for that and for the One who lives there and died on a cross to make it possible needs to motivate our lives, not what we have here.  The desire for us to be with Him in heaven motivated Jesus to go to the cross, the apostles to go to horrific deaths, and so many Christians throughout the ages to endure so much.  It wasn’t because their lives were so terrible, it was because they knew, and sought, something better, someone better. We need to seek Him as well, and not seek comfort.

Heaven

What do you think of when you think of Heaven?  Yeah, me too.  I think of a place where every dream has come true, every worry has been erased, where everything I wanted out of life but never got, is.  I get to shed 30 years, 20 kilos and I get to eat my favourite foods and not get fat, see my deceased pets,  and see all those people that went before me that I miss so much.

But, it’s recently become apparent to me that I might have the wrong idea about Heaven.  Heaven is a place for spiritial beings, and to be there, I need a being guided by my spiritual self, not my carnal self. That calls into question the need to have everything I've ever wanted but didn't have on Earth.

Heaven is where God lives, and is a place absolutely drenched in His perfect love.  Perfect, selfless love, as demonstrated by Jesus on the cross.  And, Heaven is filled with angels and saints, beings that were created to and learned to love God as He should be loved, as He seeks to be loved, and to love others in that same way.

Jesus said there were two commandments and that everything else hangs on these: love God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love others as you love yourself.  Jesus made this clear because that’s what He is like, and that is what the place He lives is like.  And, if we are to go to Heaven, we must learn to do these two things, because that’s life in Heaven in a nutshell.  If we don’t want to do that here, why would we want to go to Heaven anyway?

It’s not that we suddenly change and these desires magically go away, it’s that when we truly grasp His love in the light of our salvation and what He did to secure it, seeing Fluffy and having a guilt-free burger and seeing Grandma again just won’t be as important.  It will be pleasant, joyous, to be sure, but it will be more the icing on the cake.  But, if the only reason you want to go to Heaven is to have all of your fleshly desires fulfilled continually, you really won’t like it once you get there.  You can't live on icing alone.

Heaven is where God lives and I get to be with Him forever. And, that’s enough for anyone.

Submission

If there is one Bible verse guaranteed to be disliked by at least 50% of the population it’s Ephesians 5:22 “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord”. Is Paul the biggest sexist of the first century?  Well, not really.  If you look just before this verse, at Ephesians 5:21, you find “submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.” So, guys, you’re not off the hook in this submission thing.

This would probably be a good point to talk about the word submission and what it means.  In military terms, to submit is to put yourself under the command of your superior officer. A private will do what his commander in the battle wants him to do, as battles are won with teamwork, and doing your own thing can get you and your whole platoon killed. In our daily lives, we submit to our superiors: bosses, coaches, traffic cops, even in checkout queues, because doing so brings order, and order is the cornerstone of civilization.

But, how does this work in marriage?  Does this imply a hierarchy within marriage, with the man as the leader?  And, if so, can a woman trust the man to be the “superior officer”?  Lack of understanding in the meaning and nature of submission within a marriage has caused enmity between man and woman and has reaped untold heartache through the ages.

Paul addresses the idea of submission as well as the nature of submission between married couples in the context of the Ephesian church.  The key to his explanation is in understanding what he means by submission. The best definition I’ve heard for submission in the context of Ephesians is “to come up from underneath to support”. With this meaning, it becomes easier to understand that submission is not the giving away of liberty or power, but rather something that naturally happens when you love someone. Indeed, if we go just a bit further in Ephesians 5, starting at verse 25, we read that the man must love his wife just as Jesus loves His church.  Ladies, if you think you got the raw deal by being told to submit, the man got the far harder job: look at what Jesus did to show He loves His church!

If a man loves his wife as he should, then the wife need not fear that submission will lead to her degradation or having to do something that is not in line with the will of God, for Jesus would not love His church in this way.

So, if submission means loving your husband/wife as you love yourself, then why did God make the distinction (woman: submit, man: love)? It has to do with the different natures and motivations of men and women. As He pronounces the curse on Adam and Eve for the disobedience of eating the forbidden fruit, God defines the post-fall characteristics of man and woman in Genesis 3:16 “To the woman he said "…Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you."”  In Ephesians 5:33, Paul further explains this, when,  in speaking to the man, he says:  “However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.” Btw: this distinction provides yet another scripture that defends marriage as being between a woman and a man.

Man’s basic need from woman is respect (to rule over). The woman submitting to the man fulfills this need.  Likewise, a woman wants to know she is loved (her desire for her husband), and man’s love for her fulfills this. Both get what they need by submitting one to the other, in the context of love.

Within the beauty of this formula is the secret principle that can heal any broken marriage.  All you need is for one to play the part ordained by God, and the nature of the other will draw them in. When a man feels respected, he is drawn into love for the woman, and when the woman feels loved, her respect for the man naturally flows.  But, if you are looking for someone to start the process, remember that Jesus first loved the church:  “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The man is given Jesus’s part in the equation, and the leadership role, for a reason.

This plan for marriages puts the focus on each of us to play our roles, and not worry about the other playing theirs. This negates the “blame game”; within this plan, there are no “irreconcilable differences”. We take our eyes off what the other one is doing and put them on Jesus, and following Him. 

Obedience to God brings marital harmony.  And it all starts with submission: one to another, and both to God.