Love and Thunder

The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried. – G.K. Chesterton

Of the many challenges that knock on our door each day, one of the most complicated struggles will always be how we engage the people surrounding us. A problematic coworker, a complaining neighbor, an errant driver, a family member who is not as available as we wish, or even the person who takes issue with something we have done — Whether intentional or accidental, we are surrounded by communications and interactions that end up on a collision course with our plans for the day. Even when we are favored, popular, enjoying the center of attention, or charismatically engaging in good things, there will be envy, competition, overstatement, or obliviousness. To experience the world around us, to live in it each day, is ultimately an exercise in flexibility, self-awareness, thoughtfulness, and reaction to the myriads of things that will command our attention and the people we interact with along the way.

One of the unique parts of our time and place in this world is the metamodern ideals that influence our experience across the spectrum of cultural and social existence. The Western world of the 21st century is one of personal ideology. It is one where we are the architects of our mission, purpose, feelings, and words. It is a place where people articulate their perspective and leverage their power to its best outcome. The pervasiveness of self has an anchored influence on the ideals with which many people process their engagement with the world around them. And yet, in a world dominated by subjective perspective, the Faithful have an extra level of challenge as they seek to display Christ’s love, living out of that reality rather than a self-conceived personal truth.

For many Christian brothers and sisters, they walk a difficult line that vacillates between personal truth and Biblical truth. Every instinct from culture is to centralize perception on the individual and validate morality on the self. Around the turn of the millennium, ideology became a motivational tool for enlisting engagement. For more than 20 years, purpose has been the driving force behind every undertaking. From Simon Sinek’s “Start with Why” to Rick Warren’s “Purpose Driven Life,” we have been mustering ideology to accomplish our goals for more than a quarter of a century. Particularly in the Christian life, it has converted the fruits of following the Almighty to a series of personalized virtues we live by.

As a result, many have transformed their lives into a journey of realizing their personal vision rather than the unified experience of the world as it is. Individualism and tribalism have replaced unity and community. Add to that the ubiquitous level of knowledge the internet has given access to (and the questionable gatekeepers of truth), and you have a conflict multiplied by 8 billion personal perspectives, all vying for recognition, validation, acceptance, and viability. Ultimately, it has produced a “religious conviction” level of entitlement for principles that have little source outside of personal reason, self-promotion, and justification of purpose.

Is that the role of the Faithful in the 21st century? In a world of opinions, are we to stand in condemnation of others, whether they know the Almighty or not? There is an interesting crossroads where Christ commands us very differently than many of us are inclined. While we wish to critique, condemn, criticize, or correct, He called us to love. Love God, love our neighbor, and love our enemies. He called us to make disciples, encouraging each other all the more as ‘The Day” approaches. In a world of harsh accusations and subjective judgments, we are called to be salt and light rather than hammers and swords.

In a recent, very public interaction, we watched a Bishop call down thunder on someone. With an incredible amount of hubris, utilizing a personal worldview couched in religious piety, she used her position and platform to wag her finger at the President for the whole world to see. The Bishop sacrificed his dignity for her personal perspective. She used the guise of unity (stated as the convergence of dignity, honesty, and humility) and soft-toned condescension to build a moral high ground for judgment. She wasn’t honest; she belittled him for a fear that may never be realized. She didn’t do it in humility; she did it to humiliate him. She used her position in the Church to show the world that “loving your enemies” is not as important as putting them in their place.

In the grand scheme of things, I know that the Bishop is in the hands of the Almighty, and His Word will speak to justice more than I ever could. It is His job to mold her and make her, not mine. But I was more surprised at how many Christian voices saw hope and applauded her calling down thunder rather than engaging the assembly with love. Viciousness does not always come with loud noises, and injustice is not always wrought with weapons of war. There will always be people we disapprove of and disagree with, but the love of Christ compels us to love others (knowing the depths of our own failings and sins) rather than judge them and make a public spectacle of them for our moral satisfaction.

What we saw was a picture of Paul’s commentary to Timothy in those who live a form of godliness but deny its power. This is the echo of Chesterton’s accusation. Many people, in their own personal perspective and purpose, craft their own version of God to follow, with their own moral paradigm that informs their engagement with the world around them. It is a lot harder to leave the justification of our own perspective for the call to love others. It is harder to work toward His Kingdom than to build our own kingdom.

In an ideologically powered, personally-purposed world, more people are looking to emphatically live out of their own principled perspective rather than what the Almighty has put forward. And yet, the Kingdom of God does not call people to live their own metamodern reinterpretations of the Almighty’s commands. Far too many people are engaged in the ministry of criticism and correction, even though that is far from the ministry of reconciliation we were called to in Christ. That’s why His commission wasn’t to go into all the world and shame them for the ways they fall short. When we magnanimously disparage others for the sake of Christ, we do not shine His light to a dark world. We echo the conflict and chaos of 8 billion opinions of purpose put forth into the ether.

We were not saved to put our power and purpose on display. We were not made righteous before a holy God to judge those around us by our subjective standards. We were not called to architect cathedrals of personal ideology or self-righteous perspectives for others to live by. We are not evangelizing others to the influence of our own kingdom. The life of the Faithful is to pursue Christ and engage the world toward Him. The greatest of His commandments is to love God and love others. By this, the world will know that we are His disciples.

Think of his followers, the brothers James and John — Jesus’ disciples who wanted to call down thunder as punishment on others. These are the same two who wanted to be seated at His side as He ruled the universe from on high. And yet, through the transformation of the heart, John has been known to the ages as the disciple of love. That is the power of the Christian life. This is the Christian life left untried. It is especially difficult in a day and age where personal ideologies reign supreme. But in John, we see the power of the Almighty that took a self-righteous follower and renewed him to the place where love became the main message he shared. When he was in his nineties, going from church to church, history tells us that John would share this simple message:

“Little children, let us love one another.”

No longer was John interested in making sure people felt the thunder of the Almighty. He had lived long enough and endured enough hardship to understand that God’s economy of love was much more transformational than man’s legalistic application of condemnation. Every day, we are challenged to love those around us. Every interaction is an opportunity to fulfill the greatest of Jesus’ commandments. It is not our reinvention, perception, or revelation of how that plays out that leads others toward the Kingdom. It is not our purpose that we are fulfilling.

Think of the profound impact that impeded words of judgment used by the Bishop. Every President needs the Almighty, yet the moment of personal purpose superseded love. Years ago, another pastor sent an apology to his congregation for publicly praying for this man when he showed up on a Sunday morning asking for prayer. It wasn’t as public of a thundering, but the effects cut off the opportunity for God to use this man to speak truth to someone seeking the Almighty. Thunder was proudly displayed rather than love. I will bet that it was not as effective as love would have been.

How can we reach a world for the Almighty when our own ideologies supersede God’s love? How can we fulfill His purpose when we are busy chasing our own? What better impact could be made for a man seeking the prayers of the Faithful to have God use that to transform him? A time will come when the Just and Almighty God comes to judge man for their misdeeds. He has not charged us with that mission. He has not asked us to call down thunder on those who we disagree with, even when (especially when) it suits our purpose. He called us to love so emphatically that people would see it and know we are His people.

Clearly, this is not an easy lesson. It is a struggle for all of us. It is a battle that we all deal with in our lives. Sometimes, the stakes are higher when the conflict arises, and sometimes, they are far less significant. God has placed loving Him and loving others at the top of his commands for His people. It is difficult, but the only way to reach a dead and dying world for the Living Christ. As a friend of mine likes to say, “Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good or good people better; He came to make dead people alive!” That doesn’t come from thunder; it comes from love. That doesn’t come from the influence of our purpose; it comes from a transformation that only comes through Him.

With all of the commandments the Lord gives us, love tops the list. It transforms us from sons (and daughters) of thunder to little children who love. We live in a busy world with a myriad of daily interactions, and how we engage others will make an impact that bears fruit. Our choice is whether we will use our own wisdom, power, and perspective to engage them or lean on His understanding and love them. Let us not live a life of godliness that denies His power. Let us leave the thunder up to the Almighty and live with love.