Is Love All You Need?

~Have You Noticed...?~

As I sit around thinking about random things all day, I find it surprising where my thoughts take me. The other day, for example, I was noticing how odd it was that people will use "Jesus Christ" as a swear, when they certainly don't believe in Him. It's odd because the term Christ literally means Messiah. Therefore, in the midst of their anger at whatever, they are acknowledging Jesus as Messiah.

This applies as well to using "oh my God" as a phrase. If you call out for God this way, there is an acknowledgment of possession in the phrase itself. So, despite the popularity of unbelief these days, everyone seems to call on God once in awhile.

I'm not saying everyone who says these things is always a believer either. I find it odd how much of our godless society still finds ways to acknowledge God in everyday speech.

I noticed a while back that the cross is our symbol in much of the world for memorial. Also, many funerals and memorial services will still read Psalm 23, regardless of the beliefs of the deceased or their family.

If someone is killed in a car accident, you see a cross on the highway. Our military memorials are filled with crosses marking the graves of our fallen soldiers. Whether we got together as a society and decided on this symbol or not, the fact remains that Christianity still permeates this country and others. People can try to suppress it as much as possible, but no one is going to go around to all the graves and highway memorials replacing crosses with "COEXIST" bumper stickers (exaggeration intended).

~Love, Love, Love~

With all this in mind, I began thinking about the current "love is all you need" view of the world, and much of Christianity. Somewhere along the line, we decided that Jesus was only love. We replaced God's uncomfortable (for us) attributes with the one attribute we deal with in society day to day. We all love family and friends and husbands and wives. Love is always a good thing to us, so why not pretend that is all God cares about.

I spoke previously about Jesus as a "hippie Jesus" who loves everyone too much to stand by Holy judgement. I am willing to bet a majority of Christians believe more in this Jesus than the Biblical one these days as well. If they won't admit it, a simple anonymous poll would likely skew this direction.

When considering God, we must consider all of His divine attributes, not just the ones with which we are comfortable. For Christians who come from pain and suffering, love and grace are often the attributes they need to know about initially. I understand this and would agree in part. But, as we progress in our walk with Christ, we need to acknowledge that God's love is not His only attribute that directly affects us. 

We wouldn't need God's love and grace if we were even slightly deserving on our own. As it is, humanity's sin is repugnant to a Holy and Just God. 

Holiness and Justice are the two aspects of God's character most foreign to many Christians these days, and most of the world in regards to its view of our God.

We can fathom a judge and jury handing out sentences to deserving criminals, but we cannot seem to fathom how our great Judge and Jury, God, can be the same. "How can a loving God send people to hell?" is a common sentiment. Without getting off track, bear in mind it is not God who "sends" us to Hell, but it is we who choose our eternal resting place. Our choices in life have bearing on that judgment.

~Holy, Holy, Holy~

God's holiness admittedly can be a sobering thought, even to a born-again, saved, spirit-filled Christian. To comprehend it is an acknowledgment that we don't have what it takes on our own to be acceptable to our creator. We have fallen so far, that without divine intervention (Christ and the cross), we are lost and forever separated. That separation becomes more worrisome when considering that the purpose of our creation was to be in fellowship with God. Pure, uninhibited fellowship. If what we are created for is not possible to achieve, then we lose our purpose. We gain the world's view that all is for nothing, and we must live while we can for tomorrow we die and return to nothing. It's a depressing view to say the least. 

It is also a view that eliminates known emotions and feelings like hope and anticipation. What is there to hope for if we cannot fulfill our created purpose? We seek ways of fulfilling ourselves, but the God-shaped hole (sorry for cliché) is not filled by worldly pursuits. I'm sure the richest people in the world would still admit they are lacking something, and they have all the resources to achieve and do anything they desire in theory.

~I Want Life My Way~

It was with these thoughts that I began to wonder how the world can be so good at promoting God's love, while still being totally unloving. My mom wrote a blog the other day about people being rude and things, and it made me realize that the majority of people promoting this "God is love," and "love is all you need," attitude are the same ones who scream at you for taking their parking spot. They are the same people who get angry in traffic, and wouldn't stop for two seconds to let someone in if their life depended on it.

The world will promote love, but at its heart is pure selfishness. We love our families and close friends, but many people could care less beyond that. 

Even as a Christian, I will admit now for the first time, that I truly don't care about others sometimes. It is sinful and I acknowledge that, but sometimes I just want to take care of me. I'm sure we all go there sometimes. Selfishness is not a God-given attitude, but a sinful product of a fallen world, where survival of the fittest is the promoted order of the day. 

People that I know who don't believe in God will call him loving all day, but how many of these people, will step out in every circumstance to show love to everyone? It's impossible on our own. There are days we are all selfish. 

Now, if God's holiness requires total coherence with God's commands for our lives; and God's command dictates loving our neighbor as our self, we are all short of the requirement (and that's just one). If then, God's judgment is based solely on God's commands, and our eternal situation is reliant on God's judgment, what do we think is going to happen? God, in pure holiness and with a better justice than we can even perceive, will rule justly according to His commands, which our selfish hearts failed to meet the demands of with 100% attainment. 

It sounds ridiculous in its difficulty. So now, we have God desiring to have his creation back to its intended purpose. A creation which fell through no fault of God, but by our own selfish desire. God, in His infinite foresight saw that for us to be reconciled, He would come to earth in human form, live perfectly, and be a blood sacrifice for the washing of humanity's sins. 

God took the form of Jesus the Christ, being at once fully God and fully man, fulfilled the law perfectly, and died as our sacrificial lamb, so that forgiveness of our inability to keep the law and God's commands would be righted once and for all. 

Now with this came a stipulation that we believe and trust this sacrifice. Within that really is emphasis on a reliance on this sacrifice as our only means of restoring right relationship with our creator. Jesus acts as mediator between God the Father and man, and defends us to the father, on the grounds of his blood and our trusting in it for salvation. 

So as simple as "love is all you need" mantra has become it is ultimately useless when giving an account of our life. We may have helped a stranger one time, or given sacrificially in some instances, but much more often, we are selfish (mentally and manifestly), and care more about our well-being than others. For the rare individual who seems truly selfless, remember that sin nature permeates us, and even the most outwardly selfless person, can have selfish desires and thoughts. 

"All You Need is Love," is a catchy Beatles tune, but ultimately meaningless in the context of our lives. We can love one another, and do good deeds all day, but our inherent selfishness will prevent reconciliation with God. Considering we were made to be with God, isn't it about time we stop focusing on ourselves, and step out towards what is required to reunite us with our Heavenly Father? 

The Mountain (A Short Story by Chris byers)

One day a group of men got together to discuss an expedition. The expedition would be to the great mountain in the middle of their city. It was believed amongst the citizens of the city, that at the top of this great mountain, resided the secret of eternal life.

The day finally arrived when the expedition was set to begin. Each man gathered his gear, and proceeded towards the foot of the mountain.

Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, the men’s attention was drawn towards a grouping of wooden signs. One sign read “wide and easy to navigate.”

A man in the group named Joshua, noticed off in the distance another sign. This sign was different than the other, and was set far enough apart from it to appear difficult to reach. Being filled with curiosity, the men traversed the rocky path to gain a closer view of the sign.

Finally, the men reached the small, barely noticeable sign. This sign read, “the narrow path which is the only way to the top.”

“Balderdash,” said the man called Hare, “why would the only true path be so far away from the other obvious ones?

“I agree with Hare,” chimed Sid, “it makes no sense, and I’m in no mood to traverse a difficult trail.”

“Don’t you see?” pleaded Joshua, “if this is the only path of its kind, doesn’t that intrigue you? Why would the path even be there, if it was not true in what it says?”

“Joshua, you can keep your narrow and difficult way, Hare and I will meet you at the top,” replied Sid.

With that, Sid and Hare departed back towards the broad path. Joshua was left alone, and began to wonder if he was making the right decision. The path ahead would be difficult, but something inside him, a kind of conviction of heart he couldn’t place, drew him forward to the narrow path.

After climbing for some time, Sid and Hare could see Joshua below them struggling with his path.

“At this rate, Joshua will never make it here,” Hare claimed, “How can he expect to find the secret to eternal life, when he can’t even keep pace with us?”

Joshua did not hear Hare’s words, but he was beginning to worry that his friends had been right. His body ached with each step towards the top. Yet, each time he was about to give up, something inside him pushed him forward.

About half way up the mountain, Hare and Sid stopped to eat and see about Joshua’s progress. In truth, they were more concerned about proving him wrong than the actual disposition of their friend.

“I can’t wait to get to the top,” said Hare, “then we can tell Joshua how foolish his choices were.”

“I know,” Sid agreed, “How could he have thought the difficult path was correct? After all, this path has been so simple to navigate, it has to be right!”

Sid and Hare finished eating when they saw Joshua off in the distance, finally gaining ground.

“Hey Joshua!,” they yelled across the chasm that separated them, “how is your ‘correct’ path?” they mocked.

Joshua paid no attention and stayed focused. He was determined that he was doing the right thing. Something felt right about this path.

Hare and Sid’s teases could still be heard as he continued to climb.

“Joshua, is your path so great that you think you’re better than us?” they chided, “why’d you choose the difficult path? Was it to prove something?”

Joshua wondered how they could perceive his path as anything but the correct way. He wasn’t thinking of it as exclusive. He simply felt something convicting him as to the correctness of this path.

Sid and Hare suddenly stopped. They had reached a fork in their own path. To the left, the sign said, “love is all you need,” and to the right the sign read, “the answer is within.”

“Well those don’t make much sense, do they, Hare?” Sid inquired.
“No, I suppose not,” he retorted, “but I have always felt that loving everyone around me was the only true way to be a good person, I think I’ll take the left path.”

“Well, Hare, I agree with your premise,” Sid stated, “But, I prefer to look within myself for peace that propels me to good works; I’ll take the right path.”

“So you’re saying your path is correct?” Hare added angrily. “You’re gonna be intolerant of my choice now too?! You’re just as bad as Joshua!”

“What about you?!,” Sid argued, “you are basically saying the same by choosing your way and ignoring mine!”

Joshua could see across the chasm and he no longer recognized his friends. Hare and Sid were bickering in a way he had not seen before. Something was changing within them.
Meanwhile, all Joshua felt was a sense of peace. He sensed all of his troubles being washed away. It was refreshing, and encouraged him as he pushed past the jagged rocks and branches that lined his path.

Hare chose love and went left, while Sid chose inner reflection to the right. Both paths were still broad and easy to navigate, so neither gave a second thought to his decision.

Hare thought to himself that he must have chosen correctly because his path was lined with the most beautiful flowers he had ever seen. A wealth of color flooded his vision as he progressed onward.

Sid was experiencing much of the same, and felt he must have chosen correctly. His path had a calming breeze that soothed the soul as he walked ever upward. He felt his mind emptying of all distracting thoughts.

Finally, the peak of the mountain was in sight. Joshua could feel his incline getting steeper and knew he’d need his advanced climbing gear soon. He stopped a moment to gather it.
Suddenly, he looked up and saw a being surrounded by light standing next to him. He was afraid and cowered against a rock.

“Do not be afraid,” the being stated calmly, “I am here to help.”

“What kind of help?” Joshua Inquired, “who..are you?”

“Joshua, there are many paths to the top of the mountain, but in your wisdom and faith you chose the path which seemed most difficult. It is this path which truly leads to eternal existence. I am here to give you strength for the rest of your journey.”

Joshua felt frozen in place. He had felt compelled to this path, but was unsure as to why. Now it seemed that there was a purpose in that choosing.

The being explained that many had taken the broad paths which eventually lead to destruction, not the top of the mountain. He explained how the world had placed the sign to the broad path in plain sight, offering an easy, comfortable path.

“The path to God,” the being began, “is only found through his Son. In your heart, you know of whom I speak. God has chosen you for the gift of life, and his Spirit convicts your heart even now showing that you are on the right path.”

“I believe,” stated Joshua, “but I’m not sure I can make it the rest of the way.”

“Truly, there will be difficulty,” the being cautioned, “but I will be with you.”

Joshua felt encouraged and began climbing the steep face of the mountain. He no longer saw the being, but felt his presence around him. A cold wind began to blow, and he nearly lost his footing multiple times.
Joshua was nearing the top when his hand reached out and hit a jagged edge. He ignored the pain in his hand and kept climbing.

Meanwhile, Hare and Sid’s paths had crossed again.

“So Hare, I see your path was the same as mine in the end,” Sid teased. “Maybe Love isn’t all you need.”

“Your inner reflection doesn’t seem to have made your path much better, Hare retorted.”

Hare and Sid could see the peak, and began progressing together towards the top, bickering the whole way.

Joshua pulled himself up over the top of the face, and found the most beautiful city, laid out before him. It’s streets were paved with gold, and a river ran down through the city, it’s source coming from a temple. There was a radiant light which made everything below the mountain seem to pale in comparison.

That’s when he noticed. From his vantage point, Joshua could see the broad path. His heart ached for Hare and Sid when he saw the gap that separated them from the mountain peak.

Hare and Sid must have realized the same thing because they saw Joshua high above them, and witnessed no conceivable way before them of reaching him.

“Joshua!” they yelled, “Help us to the top.”

“It is not  within my power to help,” Joshua replied, “I tried to warn you of your path, but you did not heed my warning.”

The landscape upon which Hare and Sid were standing began to change. The bright floral arrangements that lined the path, turned to thorns. The cool breeze became blistering heat in an instant.

“Joshua!” Hare Called, “we were wrong. Let us come taste from the water of the city’s river.”

“It is not mine to give,” Joshua replied, “ and there is a great chasm fixed between us, so that neither may cross over.”

Hare and Sid became angry and gnashed their teeth, tearing their clothes and throwing up dust from the ground.

A few moments passed and Joshua realized he could no longer see Hare and Sid. He turned to see the being from before.

“Welcome Home Joshua,” he said, “the narrow and difficult path leads to eternal life, while wide and broad is the path to destruction. You have been set apart by God for this gift, and convicted of the correct path.”

“What about Sid and Hare?” Joshua inquired of the being.

“Their decision and disbelief in the one true way, led only to destruction. Their path seemed correct at times, but ultimately ended in separation. Their arrogant beliefs which ignored the one truth path, have sealed their fate, and they are responsible for that decision.”

“I understand,” Joshua calmly stated.

“Come,” the being beckoned, “by faith you have believed, even without seeing, and it is counted unto you as righteousness.”

Joshua stepped forward, following the being to the temple at the center of the city, knowing that ahead lay overwhelming joy. He thanked God in his heart for choosing him.
“God, while I may not have been actively seeking you, in your mercy you chose me to be an example. I thank you, and accept your gift of eternal life.”

Joshua reached the entrance to the temple. The door opened, and he stepped inside.

It's the Most Uncomfortable Time of the Year

"Halloween’s another big holiday—Satanic holiday. Nobody’s bothered by that for some reason. You know, “fun for the kiddies”. (laughter) I mean, when I was going to “church” they always told me Satan’s the most evil one, the one you have to watch out for. “Watch out for Satan!” Then, once a year, the whole country goes, “Hey, let’s party with this guy.” (big laughs) It’s ridiculous. (laughter)"

-Drew Carrey from White House Correspondents Dinner Speech

October has become an awkward month for me. Admittedly, it never really ranked that high on my list of favorite months. My mom was ranking months the other day, and I think if I had to do that it might look like this:


December
-November-
July-
March

Those are based mostly on holiday/birthdays. December is a time for Christmas and family. November is my birthday month. July is our anniversary month and usually my longest Oklahoma vacation of the year, and March is Juliet’s birthday month.

As a child, October held the wonder of Halloween. As a child, I had no indication that celebrating such a holiday could have negative connotations. In the United States, it is basically a holiday for kids to get candy, sort that candy, trade that candy, and eat it. We dress up as our favorite cartoon characters and run around the neighborhood.

As a teenager, those prone to mischief use the holiday for less innocent minded activities, but still give no real thought to the inherent anti-religious sentiment of the holiday.

In college, girls use it as an excuse to dress in outfits not usually appropriate for public use. As a college guy, whatever costume gets those girls to notice (humorous, outrageous, etc...) is usually chosen in hopes of getting closer to those girls. An inherent problem here (and I never went out on Halloween in college except to Walmart once I think), is that guys who struggle with lustful thoughts, pornography, etc...can perceive otherwise modest women as complete objects on that night. Granted, the modest women likely aren’t dressing up like that anyway---but I’m sure it’s possible.

As an adult, usually we wait until having kids and then send them out to start the cycle again. It is probably the holiday you can most set your watch by as far as early promotion. Pumpkins and scarecrows and black cats and witch decorations pop up well before summer’s end.

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When I met Juliet, she had never celebrated Halloween. Her reasons were legitimate, but totally alien to a U.S. born guy who saw it as a candy holiday. As a kid, our parents don’t teach us of the implied anti-Christian attitude that permeates this time of year. The witch and wizard costumes promote a decidedly anti-Christian worldview, yet most kids (and even Christian adults) never give it a second thought.

In many ways our society has become so saturated with these types of traditions, that to question it seems ridiculous. This blog may finally be the one that sends me into debate territory because so many people (Christian included) see nothing wrong with the holiday.

I’ve noticed in the years of attending church, that many churches even use October 31st to hold some holiday haunted house or carnival. Whether scaring teens into not having abortions, or just dressing as ghosts for fun, we are sending a mixed message to the world.

I struggle this time of year because I know Juliet is right. She is 100% correct from a Christian standpoint. I was just so accustomed to the traditions, I never realized what kind of message we were really promoting.

Kids in witch costumes, teens causing mischief, college girls gone wild--is there any decency in the holiday?

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I was told that I need to stop “denying” Christianity when it comes to these practices with which we are so accustomed. When confronted with celebrating or not celebrating the answer should be decidedly against the holiday for Christians. We need not substitute our own versions. We need to cut the cord and move on.

The whole Christmas controversy about Christians adopting pagan holidays bugged me until I realized how much we as Christians have adopted these worldly holidays. I believe early Christians were simply looking for a way to celebrate Christ on a day that much of the world was worshipping pagan gods or whatever--so the Christmas thing I can understand.

Halloween is just too close to celebration of the world. We don’t separate it enough. We know a fall carnival with costumes is Halloween in disguise. At least the Easter Bunny can be shown to have nothing to do with Christians’ celebration of the resurrection--though the world likes to use that against us too.

I can’t tell other Christians how to celebrate or not celebrate traditions that at face value seem harmless. I will suggest though, that maybe it’s time we really take a step back and see how our witness might be damaged by these types of activities. With all the liberal Christianity around these days, I’m sure it is impossible to get even all the Christians on board. Maybe using October 31st to completely distance ourselves from costumes and candies is the first step.

I don’t see anything inherently wrong with dressing up as cartoon character, but why on that night? Do people not realize there is a huge anti-Christian sentiment among certain groups? Curses are said against us, and rites performed to hurt us on those nights. Satan truly gets control on October 31st.
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Juliet was uncomfortable at work the other day being asked to hang Halloween decorations as busy work. I was uncomfortable last year when we were told we could dress up for a costume contest. I resisted the urge to decorate/participate and no one cared. I think that’s the point. A simple, “I’m sorry, I don’t celebrate Halloween,” should suffice in most places. Certainly workplaces cannot force celebration of it, just as they can’t force Christmas to be acknowledged (unfortunately).

If we break down our perceived meanings of holidays, it’s sad that Christians know what Christmas should be about and ignore it readily. Halloween is blatantly obvious as a darker holiday and we embrace it with open arms and stomachs.

I heard a story last weekend of people burying the statue of some random Catholic saint (they have them for everything these days), and cringed a bit. I did not stand up against it though, and perhaps I should have. We can’t rely on magical remedies and idols to give us what we want. We trust in Jesus, not the patron saint of hamburgers or house-hunters or whatever.

Juliet and I will continue not celebrating Halloween. It’s still uncomfortable for me because I have fond childhood memories of trading candy with Andy. I know; however, that it’s time to start distancing myself from those worldly things that damage my witness. Perhaps I have others I’m not aware of yet. I will hopefully be guided towards eliminating those too.

We don’t have to go up on a hill and hide out waiting for the Rapture, but we should walk in Christ, not in the world’s values. It will probably never be comfortable. And maybe that’s why October, for me, is the most uncomfortable time of the year.