Day 230 - January 30 - Should I look elsewhere?

I want to take a few minutes to respond to something one of our fellow ConnorWatch family members posted this afternoon. I do this not to draw attention, but rather because it's a valid question.

The lady in question suggested that perhaps it's time for me to look elsewhere than God for my answers. She then raised a number of questions about why one person experiences suffering while another experiences prosperity. I thought her comments were significant enough to try and respond to, so here we are.

I"m a follower of Christ. I used to describe myself by saying "I've been going to church since nine months before I was born", but that's not a true definer of a follower of Christ. So what marks one as a Christian? Well, first and foremost, followers of Christ accept the Bible as the one and only, true, inspired word of God to men. So because a person accepts this as true, then we can read it to find out what God's message to us is.

What is that message? Well, it can be summed up in a few sentences - God loves us with an implacable, unstoppable love. Because of the sin of pride, which is the root of all the other sins, man's relationship with a holy God has been broken. In order to demonstrate His love toward man, God paid the price of that sin by dying His Ownself in the person of Jesus Christ, the death of God buying the life of every man who will accept that gift. In order to prove that He has the power and authority to forgive the sin and redeem the sinner, Jesus rose from the grave, now holding the keys to death and hell. He is orchestrating the day when all those who love Him will finally experience the relationship with Him that we were designed for, and will return to earth to claim His people.

If I accept the Bible as the true word of God Himself, then I must believe what it says. And that tells me that God offers this salvation, as we call it, freely to anyone who will take it by faith - this revolutionary idea that salvation is given rather than earned. Amazing, and it's the only story on the planet that tells us we don't have to earn our freedom from sin, because that freedom is being given to us for free.

There's only one problem - the acceptance of a gift requires you to decide you need to accept it. You see the movies and hear the stories all the time, of people who are offered something and refuse it because they "don't like charity" or some such excuse. You've probably done it yourself, when someone offered to pay for your dinner or brought you a bag of groceries, or something like it - "no, really, I appreciate the offer but we're fine, really". The reason people refuse free gifts is not from any noble motive, but rather because pride is at work - a tendency to believe "I'm better than that - I don't need help".

And that's why folks refuse to hear the incredible offer of Christ - they're too proud, and their pride prevents them from admitting they need help. So when followers of Christ start talking about confessing their sins and believing on Jesus, what they're really saying is that a person needs to set aside that original sin of pride and admit that they aren't able to live the holy life they desire to live without help, and that the only real help out there that can truly redeem you from your sin is in the person of Jesus Christ.

Once a person can do that, they find that the grace of God sets them free - free from the penalty of sin, free from the trappings of religion, free from every rule and regulation of the Law. And they enter into a relationship with a living person - Jesus Christ . That means a living and breathing relationship, not an institution or a set of rules. If you believe, or visit a church that believes, that being a Christian means following a set of rules, you haven't met the Christ that's portrayed in the Bible. End of story.

So, when I am asked if I should look elsewhere, I have to respond that there isn't really anywhere else to look. I've spent years and years getting to know the person who is Jesus, and I freely admit that I don't know Him very much at all, but each day I learn a bit more about Him. And one of these days I'm gonna look directly into His eyes as He tells me He loves me - really, really loves me - and I will finally know the person of God the way He intended, designed, and desires me to know Him.

Pretty cool, eh? Unfortunately, like Paul says, right now we see as through a darkened glass, and then we'll see Him face to face. Meaning we don't have the whole picture right now, but are called to follow by faith. And that's what I'm trying to do during this most difficult, disastrous, devastating, overwhelmingly desperate situation we're in. It's a challenge - many times I despair of my sanity, and folks who don't know Christ might say I'm insane for continuing. But the reality is that the only thing I've found to be really, truly, completely true by personal experience - the Bible - tells me that God loves me so much He chose to die so that He and I could spend eternity together.

And that doesn't make me a victim, it makes me priceless to Someone. And not because He's in charge, but because He loves me. And so, because in my own feeble way I'm trying to love Him back, I'm trying to obey Him. Not because of rules, but because of love, the same way my children do the things I ask of them. They don't obey me because I made a rule, or because they're afraid of the consequences - they obey because I love them and they love me. It's the same thing.

You know, I'm finally beginning to get a tiny glimpse at understanding the grief that Christ feels when His children refuse to admit their need of Him. It's not caused because of the consequences of these people's choices (and you can be sure He understands the consequences - He's been there and done that). Rather, He grieves because that choice represents a refusal to love the Eternal Lover - a defiant, fist-in-your-face refusal. No wonder He grieves.

So, reader, if you don't know Him as the One who loves your soul, you have never met Him. If you think religion is strict, you're right - so don't do it. Get a relationship with the Living God instead. He's real. He loves you. He really does carry you - even when you despair of your life.

Trust me, I know.

May the Hound of Heaven pursue you with His relentless love.

Eric

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