The Corner 3
// June 22nd, 2010 // The Corner
Summer is here! I don’t know how you guys feel, but it’s been a little bit of an up and down year, and I’m glad for a break from the regular daily grind of the school year. I enjoyed teaching the adult class, but believe it or not I missed seeing you guys! You sure keep me on my toes.
Now to something a little bit serious.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it really means to be a Christian. What do mature believers look like? What shapes the way they think and speak? I definitely don’t have it all figured out, and probably never will, but I’ve come one conclusion - we usually make it way too hard. We worry so much about what we are supposed to do, or what we aren’t supposed to do. We worry about all the little details that cause so much grief in churches today – what kind of music we like, what clothes to wear, or what church is the “best†church. But in reality, it’s about one thing – Love. I hate to be simplistic, but sometimes it is just best if we do. Christ himself said that to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.†Then he went on to say “Love your neighbor as yourself.†That’s it. Love God, Love Others. He didn’t list laws and commands, or speak of having a daily quiet time, or going to CIY. He just says love. Everything hinges on this. We must Love God and we must Love others. The cool thing is this – when we Love God and Love others, the rest of those other things will take care of themselves. When we truly love God we follow his commands and spend time with Him. When we truly love others, we will naturally care for and sacrifice for all people, not just the people we like.
In the class I taught this spring we spent a lot of time studying God’s word, and the message it contained. Above all else was Love. No matter what God’s people did, he loved them. No matter what the people who didn’t follow God did, He loved them. Sure there were problems, and like any good father He disciplined those who didn’t follow, but no matter what He loved. Imagine what a world ruled by love would look like – no wars, no power struggles, no more food distribution problems, no more crime. That’s actually a little hard to imagine!
So what’s the lesson here? I guess it’s pretty simple. Love God, Love others. That’s really what being a Christian is about. Without love, it doesn’t matter what we say, or even what we do. Take some time today to treat somebody with love the way Christ would. Don’t judge, don’t make fun, just love. Thanks for reading.