Believers Only?

I asked a group of Christians how they would feel if they got to heaven and found Buddhists, Hindus, homosexuals and women who'd had abortions sitting around laughing with Jesus.

Silence.

I waited. I repeated the question.

"That would never happen because the Bible is clear that people like that won't be there."

"What if they were?", I pressed. "After all it's His heaven, He can let in whomever he wants. What if people whom you knew for a fact didn’t believe in Jesus made it to heaven just like you did? How would you feel?

Again, silence.

After I told them about another group to whom I had posed the same question, and that group's consensus was "Angry. Cheated.", this group began to open up a little.

What surfaced was a sentiment among "the faithful" that it would be unfair of God to allow others in who had not "played by the rules" by which they themselves had kept for years.

(reminded me of this story that Jesus told. Matthew 20:1-16)

Many people in Christianity feel they have been called to safeguard heaven from people whose actions don’t deserve it, and deep down want people to pay for their shortcomings. After all, "it’s only fair."

"Houston, we have a problem."

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(An excerpt from The Shack by William P. Young", p. 192)

Papa (God): "Honey, you asked me what Jesus accomplished on the cross; so now listen to me carefully; through his death and resurrection, I am now fully reconciled to the world."

Mack: "The whole world? You mean those who believe in you, right?"

Papa: "The whole world, Mack. All I am telling you is that reconciliation is a two-way street, and I have done my part, totally, completely, finally. It is not the nature of love to force a relationship but it is the nature of love to open the way."

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God is love. God loves everyone. God has unlimited patience with everyone, believers and unbelievers. His patience is an expression of His love.

He is loving and patient with all His children, even the one's who don't yet believe in Him.

He is hoping to win their heart. How do you know that someone who doesn't believe in God today will do so three months from now?

He is not loving and patient only to those who believe, but especially to those who don't... in hopes that they one day will.

Independent Choices

True love never forces.

Why does God allow bad things to happen? Does it seem cruel to you that God does not stop bad things from happening if he has the power to do so?

God is love. Love is kind. Love is never cruel. In the popular book The Shack, Papa (God) makes the following statement to Mac about this very subject:

"Nobody knows what horrors I have saved the world from 'cuz people can't see what never happened. All evil flows from independence, and independence is your choice. If I were to simply revoke all the choices of independence, the world as you know it would cease to exist and love would have no meaning.

This world is not a playground where I keep all my children free from evil. Evil is the chaos of this age that you brought to me, but it will not have the final say. Now it touches everyone that I love, those who follow me and those who don't.

If I take away the consequences of people's choices, I destroy the possibility of love. Love that is forced is no love at all. Every choice matters. You demand your independence, but then complain that I actually love you enough to give it to you."

God did not create evil, as some accuse Him of doing. Any evil you encounter in the world can be traced back to someone's selfish choice.

God's True Colors

God is love.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails…(1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

Since God is love, then God is patient, God is kind, God does not envy, God does not boast and is not proud. God is not rude and is not self-seeking. God is not easily angered and keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. God always protects, God always trusts, God always hopes, God always perseveres. God never fails.

God cannot NOT love... it is His very nature...He cannot be otherwise. Our society typically does not believe those things about love so we find it near impossible to believe those things about God, or that God is love.

Our culture says love is not patient. A young couple says that because they are in love they just can't wait. If you can't wait, then it's not love.

I know men and women who go from relationship to relationship with one unkind person after another. "Bad boys" often get the girl and "nice guys finish last". Kindness is not often popular in our society. If there's no kindness, then it's not love.

When I ask most couples whom I counsel who are preparing for marriage, "Why do you want to get married?" most of the reasons they give have to do with getting their own needs met--what's in it for them. Love is not self-seeking so if you're looking out for your own self-interests then it's not love.

Love keeps no record of wrongs. If you're keeping score, or use past infractions as ammunition when in the heat of an argument... then it's not love.

In a nation with a near 50% divorce rate among first-time marriages can we even make the claim that love always perseveres. Real love does. Always. If there is no perseverance then it's not love.

Because we see love as the opposite of what it really is we often see God as the opposite of who He really is. That distorted perception keeps so many people from trusting God. God loves you and wants you to love Him back. It's impossible to love someone you do not trust.

Seeing God in a Whole New Light

It's been quite a time, these past 40 days or so.... hmmmm. During that time this blog has been un-touched and I've been re-thinking so much of what I've believed and taught all of my adult life. It has been difficult to put into words at times, but one phrase that keeps popping up is "I feel like I've been lied to for 47 years."

Two big influencers of my thinking lately have been Brad Cummings and Wayne Jacobsen over at The God Journey. Wayne's site at Lifestream, especially his Transition teachings, have had a huge impact on my thinking.

Honestly, I've spent my whole life thinking God was angry at me and that I had to perform well in order to stay in His good graces. I knew I was forgiven, was in relationship with Him, and knew God loved me. But, honestly, that love has always felt conditional. God loved me as long as... as long as I was faithful, as long as I did good, as long as I didn't sin... the list felt endless at times. I was afraid of God, and felt like that's the way He wanted it.

It is true that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom", but it's the beginning of wisdom. "If you don't love God you should fear Him... it will keep you out of trouble. But once you know how much He loves you, you never need fear Him again."

I've come to love this passage of Holy Scripture (1 John 4:18): "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."