The Practice of Powerless Love

Some make the claim that our human empathy for others is the result of our evolution.  In fact, just yesterday someone I know excused evil by making the assertion that we are really nothing more than animals.  Of course I don't believe that.  I believe that mankind was created by God with a proper sense of right and wrong, good and evil and kindness and empathy.  With the Law of God written upon our hearts and His Love as the pattern for our own love, I do not wonder where humanity's basic ability to show compassion comes from.  But in spite of mankind's out workings of this basic compassion, there is a powerlessness about it, an insufficiency that is felt by everyone but understood by few.  It lacks eternal worth. 

I'll be honest, I don't have much hope for our world.  We are on a downward spiral that will not be interrupted by any sudden "evolution" of the hearts of men.  Now it's likely that if you are an Atheist reading this post you are thinking, "How sad.  What a negative perspective".  But if you are a Christian who knows what Jesus said about the end times you are likely nodding your head knowing that He said it would be as it was in the days of Noah.  

  

In the days of Noah,

" The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time." Genesis 6:5

It's been an interest of mine to search this verse out because I find it intriguing that the thoughts and inclinations of the human hearts were ONLY evil ALL the time.  That means that the love that the mothers and fathers had for their children and vice versa was considered evil.  That means that the love a man had for his wife was also considered evil.  And good works anyone at that time did, such as bringing someone a meal, having a kind encouraging word for someone who was grieving etc. was EVIL.  There were no good intentions, in spite of man's natural and basic motivation to love.  How can this be?  How could their love have been so powerless?  

I hope by the time you are done reading my words you will see that I'm not being cynical but that I am a believer in what Jesus said.  I believe we are getting closer and closer to the last days and one of the most convincing evidences to me is the increasing practice of powerless love, even by those in the Church.  

Powerless love is the poorest reflection of God's love there is.  What makes it powerless is man's tendency to deny God and leave Him out of it's practice.  In the same spirit Paul referred to the "form of godliness" of those who live in the end times.  

2 Timothy 3:1-5 says,

"…But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.  For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.…"

What makes a man's godliness worthless is the same thing that makes a man's love powerless.  When Christ is denied or left out of the equation our works are nothing more than worthless chaffe that will be burned away.  

Now don't get me wrong.  I am not faulting non-Christian people for their humanitarian efforts.  They are to be commended for at least responding to God's will in it's most basic form.  But the sad reality that I am addressing today is that many of those in the Church, who know God's love and power offer nothing more than the same basic love that the godless have to offer, because they are afraid or too timid to step out in faith and share the Truth of what they know.  Their encouragement to those who grieve or to those who grapple with sin or to those facing difficult challenges in life amounts to nothing more than powerless love simply because they refuse to couple their good works with the Truth of God's word and their confession of Faith.  They refuse to acknowledge God.   Christian artists, authors, missionaries, philanthropists, public figures, teachers...so many people likely intending to have a positive effect on those around them in reality, are deluding themselves.  Because of their denial or refusal to step out in faith and acknowledge Christ, their efforts are nothing more significant than the basic love the World has to offer, nothing more significant than wood, hay or straw.  And when God's revealing fire burns these powerless offerings of love away, there is nothing to show for all that wasted effort.  No souls saved, because they never combined their knowledge of the Truth with their good works and kind words.  

Love is not meant to be powerless.  It only becomes powerless (and evil) when Christ is denied and replaced with good humanitarian intentions.  The World is the only one resigned to such feeble offerings, not God's children.  Let your love be filled with the power of Christ.  Let your works, your counsel and your benevolence be rooted in Christ's love and say so.  Because it is Jesus that gives everything it's worth. 

Grading Yourself On A Curve

We've all most likely heard someone quote the verse, "Judge not lest ye be judged".  It's likely the most quoted verse in Christian scripture.  It's easy to see why this is so.  I mean, who really wants to subject themselves to the scrutiny of someone who might be less merciful than God Himself?  I would guess that not many of us would volunteer for that.  But you know, I have often said that if you love me you will not leave me to my sinful devices.  If you really love me, if I fall into temptation and succumb to it you will snatch me from the flames.  This is a biblical mindset.  But how many believers are willing to subject themselves to the scrutiny of others so as to be made accountable to them for their behavior?  

If you are a person who studies God's word you are probably familiar with the Apostle Paul and his ministry to the people of Corinth.  I'll be candid with you and just say it plainly, in my opinion the people of Corinth seem like a completely depraved and nasty people.  These guys were into things that to me seem so extremely vile that I can hardly believe they could call themselves Christians, but they did.  From adultery and debauchery to orgies and the like, these people (at least some of them) seemed so far given over to their sinful flesh that I often wonder at the fact that God spent so much time reaching out to them through the Apostle Paul, but He did.  

What my eyes and mind would cling to is the fact that at least I'm not a sinner "like those sinners".  And in the spirit of hypocrisy I would cling to some ill-perceived saving worth within myself when compared with these people.  But I would be wrong.  While it's true that I am not a sinner like these people were sinners, I was equally in need of a Savior, and I am still.  

My sinfulness and equal need of a Savior does not negate the fact that there was great evil being practiced in the church of Corinth, nor does it negate the fact that God was not pleased with it.  When Paul wrote to these people his words were full of judgment and warning, rebuking them for the sinful things they were into, and sending the clear message that those who do such things are to cease and desist, or suffer for not doing so.  From being cut off from the church, to succumbing to death, Paul makes clear that consequences would follow the unrepentant.  How would these people be cut off from the church without judgement?  Surely God didn't come down and mark each unrepentant individual so as to segregate them from the rest of the church.  No, these people were marked by their lifestyles....and they were judged within the church for it.  

Paul says in 2 Corinthians 13:5  "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith.  Test yourselves.  Or do you not realize this about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless indeed you fail to meet the test!"  Just before he said it, he warned that he was coming again and he was going to do some discipline in the church, complete with witnesses and judgment.   He even said, "I will not spare them" when speaking about those who were living sinfully while claiming to know God.  He meant business, and it was serious not just to him, but to the entire church.  God says, "Do not be deceived, God can not be mocked.  A man will reap what he sows".  Paul intended to come to Corinth and set up court in which brothers and sisters in the Lord would not only have to make a judgment about each other but actually witness to what they knew of each other and yield themselves to the scrutiny of the body of Christ as a whole.  And there were consequences attached to this hearing.  Paul, in challenging these people, told them to "examine yourselves" and "test yourselves" prior to his coming.  In order to take an examination or a test there must be facts and standards.  That means there is definitive criteria by which a person can KNOW if they are in the faith....and it most certainly includes an assessment of behavior, not just a confession of faith.  And those who are not walking according to the rules of faithful Godly behavior most certainly fail that test.  

Unfortunately, anyone who wants to can claim to be a Christian.  This is nothing new.  It happened in Corinth and it happens today.  It's the reason so many horrible things have been done in the name of Christ.   But unlike in the days of the early church there is no longer an expectation of accountability or a strict standard by which men and women are judged.  Instead, a large percentage of the body of Christ has bought into the "judge not" rhetoric and consequently the "test" is no longer administered on demand.  There is no fear of being turned out of the church or cut off from the rest of God's people.  There is no push to change behavior.   There is only the all inclusive call to "just have faith", and condemnation is believed to be averted!  The church began grading on a curve and the standard is zero judgment, zero mention of proper behavior or of condemnation (because that just isn't loving or pleasant and it makes people feel bad).  No, the test that is currently being used to "examine yourself to see if you are in the way" has one and only one criteria, "Claim you are good and it will be so".  But God says, "Woe to those who call evil good..."!   Of course, you know how that kind of test turns out for the church.  Every Tom, Dick and Harry, Sally, Jane and Sue is welcomed with open arms and open minds into the church, regardless of his or her lifestyle and this is how the culture of church has changed so much through history.  Unlike the church in Corinth, there often is no challenge to forsake sin.  No longer is sin an abomination, but rather, it is just a "poor choice" or a "struggle", nothing shameful.   It isn't unusual for sin to be considered just an "alternate lifestyle".  Adulterers, thieves, homosexuals, bisexuals, abusers, neglecters, the lazy and the indifferent....all are welcome without challenge and without judgment...all because there is ONE scripture to which the masses cling, "...judge not...".  

Unfortunately, for those who refuse to "examine" or "test" themselves truthfully according to God's standards, judgment is coming.  And though many believe they are free from damnation simply because they've learned to think well of themselves and cheer themselves on with encouraging scriptures about there being "no condemnation", it would be wise for the all tolerant masses to take seriously the command to examine themselves to see if they are in The Way.  I challenge you, like Paul, to search out what that test includes!  It's important, because when God said, "there is therefore now no condemnation" He was referring to those who are "in Christ" not those who live in sin!  Paul's letter should give men a clue that it isn't only a matter of laying claim to being a Christian.  Anyone can say they are a Christian.  But if you are someone who is living like the Corinthians lived, you should be afraid, because more severe than the judgment of men is the judgment of Christ Himself!  When you stand before God and make your futile claims to Christianity, He will not be swayed by your mere words or claims aligning yourself with Christ.  He will not grade you on a curve.  A man is either with God and living like it, or he is not with God and living in sin.  Examine yourselves to see if you are in The Way, both in body and mind.  And don't think that you will benefit from grading yourself on a curve.        

Easily Offended

There is so much to take in and consider when trying to understand love from God's perspective.  People have a natural form of love that comes with ease and at first consideration it might seem to be sufficient in regards to the command to "love your neighbor as yourself".  But in truth, the natural love or affection that comes without much effort to humans is never quite enough to satisfy the "as yourself" qualification of that command.  

For instance, it is easy to bring a hot dish over to a sick or grieving family, but it does not come easily to serve the same family to the full when their grief creates a physical need for an extended period of time.   The days following the death of a loved one might be filled with good food and well wishes, even a show of support with help in lawn care and other menial tasks of the like.  But indeed one or two months later when the initial shock of loss has passed, there surfaces a deeper more lasting form of grief and challenge that is often faced alone by a grieving family.  This is just one such instance where the easy natural love people have for one another proves to be insufficient to meet the mark of "loving your neighbor as yourself".  I'm convinced that the love spoken of in what Jesus called the second greatest command is something entirely beyond what comes naturally to man kind.  It is a deliberate, selfless, enduring kind of love that has only been demonstrated by God Himself.  Yet we are commanded to do it.

1 Corinthians 13 chisels away the likely misconceptions of love one might have, describing in great detail it's meaning according to God's desire.  It defines God's expectation of love so pointedly that I find myself in wonder at my inability to comprehend it and live it out, yet I cannot deny it.  I must confess that as a Christian woman of thirty plus years I grapple with loving my neighbor as myself quite often.  As the example I gave earlier shows, I believe I am not alone in this.  

Today, however, I want to focus on one aspect of love that seems like a no brainer to me, but apparently is quiet challenging to many people in the church, particularly women.  And when I say this, I am not pointing fingers at a specific church or situation in a church.  I am merely bringing up a matter that I've witnessed myself and that women have questioned me about on a number of occasions.

1 Corinthians 13:5 tells us that "love is not easily offended".  But I wonder how many of us have become "offended" in our church experiences.  I'm guessing that every single one of us is guilty of this failure.  And you know, the World is not ignorant about this either.  Believers have, on a number of occasions, given reason for the World to mock and scorn because we demonstrate a propensity to be offensive and to be easily offended.  

For example, we could name the stereo typical "Women's Ministry" dynamic that is so often scorned by unbelievers who have "tried doing the church thing".  You know the one I'm talking about.  Ladies gather, ladies talk, ladies try to organize something for any given ministry and one or two ladies assume the role of Bossy Bessie.  When Bossy Bessie rears her ugly head all hell breaks loose in the kitchen.  This kind of sinful, self serving, self exalting behavior makes people want to run from women's ministry.  It is offensive and people become offended and they pull away.  

If we take seriously the words of 1 Corinthians 13 then our behavior while we serve should reflect the kind of love God prefers.  Otherwise we are nothing but resounding gongs and clanging symbols and our service has no worth.  All too often I've heard women use the word, "hurt" to describe their response to the offensive behavior of "Bossy Bessies".  They respond with personal indignation to the sinful behavior of those who want to rule the roost in women's ministries becoming easily offended.  I'm guilty of this myself.  I must confess that I've done my fair share of avoiding serving at church functions because of Bossy Bessies.  But I've realized that head on love inspired confrontation of the sinful lording of others is best.  Any other response just lends itself to more sinfulness.  

Love is not easily offended.  God tells us this.  So if we respond to the sinfulness of others by "licking our wounds" and "feeling hurt" and all the other gossipy destructive responses that typically go hand in hand with being easily offended then we do not love.  We become just as guilty as Bossy Bessie who insists on having her own way.  To what end does this lead?  It leads to lack of unity and gives reason for the world to mock and criticize, depriving them of the witness of God's love between us, even causing others to stumble.  This is to our shame.  The only remedy is repentance all around.  And God will help us do it.  Love your neighbor as yourself is the second greatest command.  By paying attention to God's description of love we will be better equipped to keep this command more faithfully.   The state of being offensive and being easily offended will lose its grip on people's hearts, and believers will become the unified witness God desires them to be.