I have a deep, emotional side that few people often see...
Friday, November 13, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Love vs. Truth
I've had recurring debates with myself regarding truth vs. relationships. I don't think it's cut and dried that you should hold on to truth at the sacrifice of relationships, but I don't think it's right to justify enabling in order to keep friends. I don't think that's truly a healthy relationship. I believe that people need unconditional love. Only God can give pure unconditional love. We need to be vessels of that love, but I'm afraid that instead we strive to make our love imitate God's love and then everything comes out wrong. That's where legalism, manipulation, and even enabling is born - out of our good intentions gone wrong.
How do we channel God's unconditional love? I'm still working on that and I think that's the whole point of our lives on earth. Impatience with the process of even understanding it is useless. That said, here are some things I do know:
1. God loved us when we were still despicable sinners.
2. Christ gave up his life so that I wouldn't have to stay in sin.
3. Even though humanity is flawed, Jesus was/is never cynical about our condition. He has absolute confidence in his own power to transform us.
I think calling certain actions a "sin" splits hairs sometimes. The Bible talks about acts of righteousness and acts of sin. Let's take homosexuality, for example. Today in Christian circles there's a lot of controversy surrouding it. Even my beliefs have floundered lately in this regard because of so many respected preachers softening their stand and so many churches becoming "all-embracing". So, I went back to scripture to make up my own mind. I was surprised to find that newer "versions" of scripture weaken the powerful words I've read my whole life. I admit I haven't done a word study or comparative study. I just got out my NIV and read Romans 1 which, to me is the clearest:
24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
I wouldn't qualify "shameful lusts", "indecent acts", and "perversion" as acts of righteousness. I would definitely call these acts of sin. And so the chapter goes on to say along with other acts including gossip, greed, faithlessness, inventing evil and disobeying parents to name a few. I don't agree with Christians who ostracize homosexuals and then go gossip about them. You know? There'a whole list and I think all of us fall under some of it. We all need to admit our faults and recognize our own need of God's unconditional love and overwhelming grace. We all need it - not some more than others.
So how does this play out? I believe God created the world with boundaries and limits. So, what are the limits of friendship and truth? Like anything else in life, it's a fine balance.
I believe you should offer true friendship (read "unconditional love") to anyone who needs it whenever you can as prompted by the Holy Spirit. Those without the Spirit's guidance are pretty much just screwed, I'm afraid.
I also believe that you should stand up for truth (read "righteousness") whenever challenged.
A few weeks ago a 15-year-old girl that was gang-raped after her homecoming dance. No one did anything to stop it. Maybe they had a misguided sense of friendship and "acceptance". "I wouldn't want to tell them that they are wrong and then have them mad at me." No one stood up for what was right. 20 people stood by while several guys raped a drunk girl who couldn't defend herself. I'd say that was a definite challenge that went unanswered.
I'm not saying that we need to be "in your face" conservatives. I'm not saying we should love people to make them happy. I'm saying we should be vessels of God's love to people. The blessing to them is a side-effect, but the purpose is to glorify our Creator. Only He knows what's best for them. Only He has the power to transform them.
How do we channel God's unconditional love? I'm still working on that and I think that's the whole point of our lives on earth. Impatience with the process of even understanding it is useless. That said, here are some things I do know:
1. God loved us when we were still despicable sinners.
2. Christ gave up his life so that I wouldn't have to stay in sin.
3. Even though humanity is flawed, Jesus was/is never cynical about our condition. He has absolute confidence in his own power to transform us.
I think calling certain actions a "sin" splits hairs sometimes. The Bible talks about acts of righteousness and acts of sin. Let's take homosexuality, for example. Today in Christian circles there's a lot of controversy surrouding it. Even my beliefs have floundered lately in this regard because of so many respected preachers softening their stand and so many churches becoming "all-embracing". So, I went back to scripture to make up my own mind. I was surprised to find that newer "versions" of scripture weaken the powerful words I've read my whole life. I admit I haven't done a word study or comparative study. I just got out my NIV and read Romans 1 which, to me is the clearest:
24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
I wouldn't qualify "shameful lusts", "indecent acts", and "perversion" as acts of righteousness. I would definitely call these acts of sin. And so the chapter goes on to say along with other acts including gossip, greed, faithlessness, inventing evil and disobeying parents to name a few. I don't agree with Christians who ostracize homosexuals and then go gossip about them. You know? There'a whole list and I think all of us fall under some of it. We all need to admit our faults and recognize our own need of God's unconditional love and overwhelming grace. We all need it - not some more than others.
So how does this play out? I believe God created the world with boundaries and limits. So, what are the limits of friendship and truth? Like anything else in life, it's a fine balance.
I believe you should offer true friendship (read "unconditional love") to anyone who needs it whenever you can as prompted by the Holy Spirit. Those without the Spirit's guidance are pretty much just screwed, I'm afraid.
I also believe that you should stand up for truth (read "righteousness") whenever challenged.
A few weeks ago a 15-year-old girl that was gang-raped after her homecoming dance. No one did anything to stop it. Maybe they had a misguided sense of friendship and "acceptance". "I wouldn't want to tell them that they are wrong and then have them mad at me." No one stood up for what was right. 20 people stood by while several guys raped a drunk girl who couldn't defend herself. I'd say that was a definite challenge that went unanswered.
I'm not saying that we need to be "in your face" conservatives. I'm not saying we should love people to make them happy. I'm saying we should be vessels of God's love to people. The blessing to them is a side-effect, but the purpose is to glorify our Creator. Only He knows what's best for them. Only He has the power to transform them.
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