Consonance

"Heaven will display far more variety than Hell."

For Whom We Were Made

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“Treading Paper,” Thrice If anything means anything,
there must be something meant for us to be,
a song that we were made to sing.
There must be so much more than we can see.

Why are we here? What is our purpose? Modern American culture might answer these questions with some form of the words “I don’t care” or “It doesn’t really matter.” We keep ourselves plugged-in and distracted 24/7. How can I be expected to ponder about the reasons for which I exist when I’ve got to be up for work in 4 hours, a plane to catch, one of four hundred TV shows I need to catch up on, or any one of around five million apps I can have in the palm of my hand, all begging for a few minutes of my time?

I think there’s a reason why every kid in the world asks their parents the age-old question “what is the meaning of life?” long before they hit puberty. I also think that there’s a reason why modern society is hell-bent on distracting us from answering that question. Humanity, it seems, (as I talked about way back in my first post) has been programmed at birth to wonder. As children, we stare at the stars in awe of our tiny existence, filled with desire to answer the question “why?” As adults, we desperately grab at any experience or item we can find to make ourselves feel big and important. We want, more than anything, for our lives to matter and, yet, in our fervent race to the top of Matter Mountain, we seem to weigh ourselves down with a trailer load of material that is almost-hilariously devoid of much meaning.

So, where’s the disconnect? What changes between adolescence and adulthood that causes us to shift our gaze? Could it be that society and culture, for all their positives, might be wholly unequipped to answer the questions we asked as children? I speculate that their vehement penchant for distraction is born from the inability to satisfy the most basic of human desires – the desire to feel like we matter.

Undoubtedly, should someone choose to break free from the distractions and seek meaning in their life, their journey will lead them to consider the possible existence of a Creator. I’ve talked before about how important I think it is that we not be content with not answering life’s big questions. I certainly can’t present the idea any better than C.S. Lewis did:

Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.

Following in that line of thinking, if one were to acknowledge the possible existence of God and decide to jump down the rabbit hole, what does that mean? For whom, or what purpose, were we made? Many would suggest that Christianity is chiefly about rules because, quite honestly, those of us who practice the faith wish it was about rules. We want an achievable list of practices that sum up our faith, and we want to feel like we are being “good Christians” by adhering to those rules.

In examining all I know about the Bible (which is, frankly, nowhere near enough) I’ve come to some contrary deductions. Nearly all of Jesus’ teachings are about how we are to relate to each other. B.C., most of the stories in the Old Testament are about how people treat each other, very often illustrations of how not to treat each other. When asked to sum up the faith, Jesus told us to love our neighbors. When he delivered the Great Commission, he commanded us to go and teach. During the Sermon on the Mount, he commanded us to be quietly charitable (not praising our own accomplishments), to stop judging others, and to treat them as we’d like to be treated. When He performed miracles, he healed people, fed people, and taught people.

The funny thing about loving, teaching, giving, feeding, healing, and judging, is that they all require engagement with other people. I know there is a degree to which the Bible, the nature of a Higher Power, faith, etc. are in-summarizable. They are, and will remain, too big for anyone to ever fully understand and relate to. But, sometimes, for reasons I’ll leave to God, we are given moments of clarity. When I look at everything I’ve discussed, I’m lead to one single conclusion:

We were made for God and for each other.

Don’t Follow Your Heart

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A few weeks ago, my roommate, Christen, and I went on a shopping adventure for our new apartment. We are so excited to have a new place to call home! On the day of said adventure, we went to 5 different stores (6 if you count 2 stops at Target) in just a few hours looking for furniture, decor, appliances, and everything else adults apparently need. As we wandered down the aisles, I couldn’t help but notice the number of wall accents and frames that say things like “follow your heart” or echo the famous Roxette song, “listen to your heart” in some form or fashion.

Of course, this type of vernacular is nothing new or surprising. Phrases and inspirational quotes similar to these are embedded in our cultural language. We hear them, we say them, maybe we even believe them. But, for whatever reason, this time, as I looked upon these lazy “words of encouragement,” I cringed. More and more, I understand how sinful my heart really is. To be very candid, no one should be following it or taking any sort of advice from it on its own accord. According to the Bible, God agrees, and He’s definitely not shy about warning us of the evil nature of our hearts. Take a look at some relevant Scripture.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Mark 7:21-23 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these things come from within, and they defile a person.

I’m pretty certain no one wants their life to be full of these things. Our hearts are far from trustworthy. These verses use some really strong, powerful words. Sometimes I tell myself I can skip over this part of the Bible because it’s not applicable to my life. I’m not a murderer. I’m not an adulterer or a thief. Sure, I’m a sinner, but I tell myself my sin doesn’t fall into the same category as most of the evil mentioned above. In hindsight, that’s only pride (a fruit of the heart of man) blinding me.

Jesus knew we would justify our sin this way, tainting God’s commands with our foolish legalism. We have such a tendency to compare ourselves to one another and focus on the “dos and don’ts” of religion, but God sees right through this fake measurement of righteousness we’ve created. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus clarifies the true meaning of the Law by revealing that the Father cares less about our actions, and more about the heart behind them.

It is written:

Matthew 5:21-22 You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.

Matthew 5:27-28 You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

So, there we have it. Each of our hearts are capable of both anger and murder, lust and adultery. No sin is greater than another, for anything sinful is outside of God’s will. It’s easy to read the Bible and shake our heads at the Pharisees and religious leaders of biblical times. But, with some perspective, it is clear that we are just like them. We believe we know better than God. We believe the lie that our heart could never in a million years lead us astray. My point is God is practically begging us to stop following our hearts and start following Him. Paul refers to our evil hearts as the source of “the desires of the flesh” and speaks to the struggle of relinquishing control to the Spirit in his letters.

Galatians 5:17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.

Romans 7:18-20 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

Evil is rooted deep inside of us. “Evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness” are not far away. Knowing this to be true, the concept of “following your heart” becomes a matter of eternity, for sin has separated us all from God. But we can rest in the good news of free salvation and redemption that is not dependent on anything we have or haven’t done, but solely on the finished work of Christ. Even in the midst of our wickedness, God longs for our “desperately sick” hearts. He relentlessly pursues them, and if we let Him, He will graciously restore them.

For more on this topic, here are some additional references …

It’s Not a Buffet

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buffet_croppedCheeseburgers, hotdogs, french fries, salad, pizza, fruit, pastries, cake, ice cream and so much more. As many of you know, I graduated from college last week, and my spectacular siblings took me on a celebratory cruise to the Bahamas! I don’t know about you, but when I think cruise, I think food.

I can proudly say that our vacation was filled with breakfast buffets, poolside BBQ, and gourmet dinners. The eating never stopped and the options were endless. And isn’t this so indicative of the society we live in? Who doesn’t love an opportunity to build your own or do it yourself? Think frozen yogurt, Pinterest, and NIKEiD. America encourages customization, personalization, and individuality in every respect. We celebrate the privilege of choices and feel entitled to always make our own decisions. These examples might seem trivial, but I would argue that this mentality has bled into ideals much more significant than á la carte dining and tailor-made shoes.

More and more, I see Christianity treated like a buffet of suggestions to choose from instead of a feast of truths to abide in. Scripture is picked apart and many times taken out of context. We say, “I like this, but I’m not so sure about that” and start to pull out what we want to hear from the Bible instead of genuinely examining it and delving into the hard, gritty stuff. We run away when it’s not easy or we create our own justifications for our not so Christ-like lives. The Bible clearly warns us of this in the New Testament.

2 Timothy 4:3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

We say things like, “well, God is love” and He absolutely is love, but He’s also more than love. For example, God is also an advocate of holiness and justice. Oftentimes, this makes us uncomfortable. Who wants to believe that their God flooded the earth or poured out his wrath in the form of deadly plagues? We so badly want the faith to be simply good, safe, watered-down, fluffy, and heart-warming. The reality is, Christianity is spiritually challenging. Belief in the God of the Bible requires a scandal, the Passion, and the cross.

One of my very favorite quotes from pastor and theologian, Tim Keller, says:

If your god never disagrees with you, you might just be worshiping an idealized version of yourself.

And one of my very favorite songs by Will Reagan & United Pursuit, “Take a Moment“, starts with these lyrics:

Take a moment to remember
Who God is and who I am

We are not meant to understand or even agree with everything our God is and says. That’s why it’s called faith. We must trust that the Lord knows best instead of fashioning our own versions of Him. So, I encourage us to read our Bibles without intimidation. Let’s stop fearing that our God is going to turn out to be someone we don’t want Him to be. Take another look at 2 Timothy and Proverbs for some assurance.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Proverbs 30:5-6 Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.

There is no need to add to, subtract from, or alter God’s word. The Bible is amazingly relevant to our lives now, in 21st century America. Every great story comes with its own trials and tribulations, especially the gospel. Let’s stop turning our backs because God’s not writing a fairytale and we are not the main characters.

Christus Resurrexit

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Easter. What does it mean? Depending on who you ask, I think you might get a pretty wide range of answers. For some, maybe it means a long weekend and time with the family. For others, maybe it means work. For some, it may lack meaning altogether. For another group, it means everything. I’m writing today to address the last two groups. Also, I’m going to be guilty of generalizing quite liberally and I’ve set my sights, for the most part, on my own generation of millennials.

I feel like I encounter a lot of folk who’s general outlook on life (philosophically, spiritually, etc.) is one of contentment. What I mean by that is that I see a general lack of interest in depth, exploration, affirmation, and curiosity. As a generation, we have grown up with immediate access to pretty much everything we need or desire. And rest assured – I’m right in there with “us”! I think, perhaps, this phenomenon (that’s largely unique to our generation) has led us to a place where we live with blinders on – barely staring at the path in front of us as we stroll through life – heads down, wholly consumed in our mobile devices. I worry that we’ve lost our sense of wonder. After all – even if we miscalculate a step or don’t see a pothole in the road ahead (due to our downward phone-directed gaze) – we don’t have very far to fall. Our fathers and fathers’ fathers have hooked us up with a pretty cushy gig.

Even in my most trying financial moments (experienced while trying to get my former IT startup off the ground) – choosing which bills to pay and which services I could live without for a few weeks – I’ve never gone hungry. I’ve never not had shelter, warmth, and companionship. Perhaps it shouldn’t surprise me that my mind rarely shifted its gaze upward – to the stars, to the unknown, or to the divine. If my needs have always been met, even when I’ve fallen the hardest, what reason do I have to turn my head, to ask questions, or to make corrections?

For those of us who identify as Christian, I think we have some head-turning and correcting to do. Easter should be, for the believer, the single most important representative holiday we have on the calendar. Christmas, despite the cultural phenomenon it has become, should take a seat in the co-pilot’s chair. Indeed, all religious leaders and figures were, at some point, born into the world. Very few claim to have been resurrected from the dead and fewer still claim to have done so in an act of sacrificial redemption for the sins of the world. I’m thinking there’s only one guy who claimed to do that.

For (quite literally) longer than I can remember, I’ve tried to follow “that guy.” Fairly recently, I took self-inventory and became a little more aware of how bad a job I was doing at just that. In an effort to make some corrections, I discovered the lectionary (basically just a calendar filled with daily readings) in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and have seen immediate life-improvements from daily reading. Just this week I read from two books that I’ve never touched, on my own accord, in 28 years of believing.

To my brothers in Christ – I’d like to issue a challenge. Take up a good Christian practice. We are all best at what we do often, and I wonder if, on the whole, we’re all better at zooming and scrolling on touch-screens that we are at being who we say we are – that is, the hands and feet of Jesus, who we claim rose from the dead, defeating death and sin until the end of ages.

It is written:

Mark 16:5 – 16:7 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’

To those of you who find Easter altogether meaningless, I’d issue a similar challenge. Take inventory of who you are. Question yourself, the universe, your friends, God. Lift your eyes up and stare into the sky. Be curious, explore, affirm, and don’t be content.

Temet nosce (know thyself).