The Great 21st Century Myth

I've got a short, simple thought today!

On the heals of the Beatitudes in Matthew 5, Jesus describes his would be Jewish followers "You ARE the salt of the world... You ARE the light of the world." Being Salt and being Light is not something you do, Jesus describes it as something you ARE.

The great myth of the 21st Century American church is that we need more DOING! More activity. What our nation needs is not more events, but more people have honestly been transformed by the person of Jesus and ARE Salt and ARE Light. Not just in action, but at the level of BEING!!!

When we ARE Light, we automatically shine... when we ARE salt, our lives naturally represent it. When we ARE, we will DO!

Near-Sighted Theology

How we "SEE" God affects how we relate to God. If we view Him as this tyrant in heaven waiting to strike you down at the first bad thing you do, your view of him will be in fear or distance. If you view him as this jolly old man (grandpa figure) who is reclining and feasting in heaven, you may begin to relate to Him more like a Santa Clause, only approaching Him when life is difficult. Still others may view God as this cosmic force in the universe that can never be known or approached. How we "SEE" God makes all the difference.

Fortunately we don't have to come up with our own VIEW of who God is. Although we can't see Him with our eyes, He has revealed Himself through the Scripture. The Bible is God's revelation of Himself. Too often we create a near-sighted theology of God according to our immediate circumstances. If times are tough... then God is unfair or unjust. When times are good, we conclude God is good and giving. We "SEE" God only through our immediate lenses.

The Psalmist teaches us the balance of relating to God through the immediate circumstances along side the Eternal Nature of God. We read as the psalmist turns his frustration of the current into praise of God and His nature. Perhaps this is why he wrote..., "that your ways may be known on earth," (Psalm 67:2).

May the Lord make His Ways know to you through the Scriptures! He will not Disappoint!