“Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you will get neither.” (CS Lewis)
“A person’s own folly leads to their ruin, yet their heart rages against the Lord.” (Proverbs 19:3)
These two quotes reflect a universal truth that applies to all of humanity; it’s woven into our instincts, as glorious spiritual beings who are created in God’s Image, yet critically flawed and shackled to this fallen world. It is said that about 70% of Americans “believe in God,” yet by a cursory glance at our social ills one could hardly believe it (and the stats aren’t any better for those who attend religious services, by the way). One of the culprits for this is that many believers don’t understand what holiness is. It’s one thing to believe that God exists out there somewhere, and that we can visit Him for favors in holy places with holy people; it’s quite another reality to actually agree with Him, love Him, and pursue Him in a holy relationship even though we’re far from perfect. This distinction is huge…it’s about the heart.
“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians; who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, and then walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.” (Brennan Manning)
This prophetic warning to God’s would-be followers were penned decades ago by a Franciscan priest, who lamented at the false witness that God’s people were offering to the watching world. I would argue that, although many circumstances have changed, the preoccupation of Christians with worldly pursuits continues to grossly outpace the truth and love which they purport to believe. Wouldn’t you think that those who call themselves by Christ’s Name would resemble Him?
This is what happens when religion swallows relationship with God…
…Church is seen as a location, rather than a people
…Spirituality is fractured into the Sacred and Profane, rather than the holistic pursuit of life’s fullness
…Jesus role in our lives is limited to “Savior,” rather than “Lord”
I think that the message of HOLINESS has been lost on recent generations of America’s Christians. I grew up in the 70’s and 80’s, in the decades that followed a cultural revolution of expression. Among other things, we were rebelling against the overly-strict & constrictive morality of older Christians…and the pendulum has swung to the opposite extreme, hasn’t it? Now, many would-be Jesus-followers are afraid to authentically identify with Him for fear that they’ll offend somebody…focusing on the ethereal arena of “beliefs”, rather than any type of commitment that would obligate them to walk against the strong currents of popular culture. So what we have is whole generations of people who are deeply conflicted about their faith. In their heart of hearts, believing the message about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; yet tied to their preferences and allegiances with the world around them to the extent that it doesn’t make much difference.
In His teaching about the seed of the Word of God, Jesus said “the seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature” (Luke 8:14).
I believe with all my heart that God can be trusted, that His promises & blessings are real and available to us today. Yet, unlike the free gift of salvation for Heaven after we die, the things that we want from Him in this life are tied to our relationship with Him. We must always remind ourselves that He is not there to make us happy. That is a lie. The truth is that He is the Master and we are the servants, and His fullness (love, joy, peace patience, etc.) is ours only when we fully acquiesce it to Him. This is called holiness. The Bible word for holiness literally means to be “set apart for sacred use.”
Our trouble is that we tend to want all the good stuff that God offers, but without the part where we set aside our self-determination. Sorry, that doesn’t work. But He works! Trust Him today!
“Taste and see that the Lord is good;blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.Fear the Lord, you his holy people,for those who fear him lack nothing.”(Psalm 34:8-9)
