Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Why?
Why are you a Christian?
No really, why?
Mark Daniels reflects that there are a lot of reason why people claim Christianity, but only one right reason
God loves us completely, fully, and individually, but He did not do this for us. He did what He did because His creation was flawed and He wanted it fixed, and that was the only way He could fix it like He wanted it. We were, in one sense, just part of a much bigger deal.
One of the many miracles of God is that unlike any of us, He can do something on a big picture level and track every detail, so in fact He knew He was saving each of us individually. But make no mistake, we are simply part of a much bigger deal.
Much of what it means to be a Christian is about finding our place in that much bigger deal. Have you ever though about it in those terms? It's not about what we want, it's about where we fit.
But the amazing thing - the truly amazing thing is that once we find where we fit, we will find we have what we want. Anything we think we want that is not complimenting where we fit is a false desire and once we find where we fit, the desire will fade away.
Which brings me to an interesting point. Most of us have been told at some point in our lives we will not get everything we want. We are reconciled to that. But have we sacrificed the desire itself?
Maybe that is where we need to start with God. Instead of "OK God, I know I will never get the Ferrari I want. I give that to you." How about we pray, "God take away my desire for a Ferrari? In fact God why not just take away all my desires, leave me only with a desire for you?"
Scary, I think.
But I think we will be surprised if we do this and we mean it.
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No really, why?
Mark Daniels reflects that there are a lot of reason why people claim Christianity, but only one right reason
Sometimes, Luther says, people followed Jesus for the wrong reasons. Rather than seeing Jesus' ministry as a sign that Jesus was the long-awaited Savior of the world, they saw Jesus as a means to getting what they wanted: a good meal, a chicken in every pot, and a Maserati in every garage. (Or the first-century Judean equivalent of a Maserati, anyway.)The right reason, Mark Says:
There's nothing wrong with a full belly, of course. Or with peaceful neighborhoods and nations. Or with health. Or a Maserati. Or any other good and happy thing that may bless us physically or psychologically.
But none of these things last forever, which is why Jesus goes on to tell the crowd, "Don't waste your energy striving for perishable food like that. Work for the food that sticks with you, food that nourishes your lasting life, food the Son of Man provides. He and what he does are guaranteed by God the Father to last" (John 6:27).
We follow Jesus to have a reconciled relationship with God, to submit to the reclamation project to which all followers of Jesus must surrender, the object of which is to turn us into truly human beings who live as truly human beings were meant to live, in love for God and love for neighbor.When such points are brought up, I often hear the rejoinder, "But Jesus died for MY sins!" Interesting how that emphasis works out, isn't it?
God loves us completely, fully, and individually, but He did not do this for us. He did what He did because His creation was flawed and He wanted it fixed, and that was the only way He could fix it like He wanted it. We were, in one sense, just part of a much bigger deal.
One of the many miracles of God is that unlike any of us, He can do something on a big picture level and track every detail, so in fact He knew He was saving each of us individually. But make no mistake, we are simply part of a much bigger deal.
Much of what it means to be a Christian is about finding our place in that much bigger deal. Have you ever though about it in those terms? It's not about what we want, it's about where we fit.
But the amazing thing - the truly amazing thing is that once we find where we fit, we will find we have what we want. Anything we think we want that is not complimenting where we fit is a false desire and once we find where we fit, the desire will fade away.
Which brings me to an interesting point. Most of us have been told at some point in our lives we will not get everything we want. We are reconciled to that. But have we sacrificed the desire itself?
Maybe that is where we need to start with God. Instead of "OK God, I know I will never get the Ferrari I want. I give that to you." How about we pray, "God take away my desire for a Ferrari? In fact God why not just take away all my desires, leave me only with a desire for you?"
Scary, I think.
But I think we will be surprised if we do this and we mean it.
Technorati Tags:desire, plan, place, humility
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