“Conveniently Love, Don’t Love Conveniently”
Monday, March 21, 2005 †
“… if you have faith and never doubt… whatever
you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have
[true] faith” (Mathew 21:21-22).
How insulting would it be if someone told us they only loved and accepted bits and parts of us? Would that not break our hearts? Would that not make us enraged and maybe even say, “It’s either all of me or none of me?” Well then, if we could not bear to think of being at the receiving end of such a love ourselves, then how could we dare to offer this half-hearted love to our Lord?
When we say things like, ‘I believe in life, but I also believe in pro-choice. I believe in capital punishment if the guilty party is someone who has either hurt my family or taken another’s life, but I also believe that only God knows when its time for his sheep to follow him home. I believe that it is important to keep holy the Sabbath day, but when it conflicts with my weekend’s schedule then it’s no big deal if I talk to God on my own time. I believe that, “What God has joined together, let no man ever separate,” but if no one is happy, well then divorce is better for everyone involved. I believe that we should love our neighbors, but that commandment does not apply across races, cultures, and especially sexual orientation. And yes, I do believe and worship the Son of God, the Living Christ, the King above all kings, and the Christ our Savior…but I wealth, fame, and power are essential elements of my day to day life if I’m to climb the corporate ladder.’
Oh yes, the words can go on and on, and no end will be even close in sight. But if this is what we offer God, then we might have just stopped at the very first example instead of continuing to insult our Lord. For Christ does not only want a part of our hearts or a portion of our love, he requires and rightfully demands it all. After all, “It is not our love for God; it is God’s love for us in sending his Son to be the way to take away our sin,” (1John 4:10). How could we give God anything less than our unified love and forever commitment?
α†Ω
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