February 12th, 2021 – In Which Soren Contemplates the Difficulty of Loving the Loveless
“Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
I will now arise,” says the Lord;
“I will place him in the safety for which he longs.” Psalm 12:5 (ESV)
For the most part, my struggles with faith have not been ones of intellect. I could not care less if God used evolution or sneezed creation into being. I was not there and if the details were that important, I am sure someone would have included a relevant footnote.
Instead, it is the emotional needs of faith that often leave me wondering.
There is so much waiting.
There is so much evil. There is so much evil that I have no idea where to even start in thinking about how to talk about it.
Jesus makes it clear throughout scripture that the poor matter, that those who take advantage of others will be punished, and that things will work out.
And I think part of why the Evangelical Church has become such a home for Q-Anon and white supremacy is the lack of spiritual discipline and putting faith into action. Christianity is not a culture; Christendom is not Christ.
I am still not entirely sure what Christian Music is, but I am fully aware that Jesus does not come in little packets that you stir in until you get the appropriate level of Christian.
There is no culture war. There are just the Jerry Fallwells and Pat Robertsons of the world who know how to target their money schemes people who live in fear or/and have mental illnesses.
The demands of the Christian faith are simple: Love God and Love people in the way that you love yourself if you don’t love yourself learn how to do that so you can be a functional human being. This kind of love is learned in a healthy community, so do your best to find one. When you gather to pray, talk about who needs help, and then go help them.
“Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.” – James 1:27 (NLT)
I want you to show love,
not offer sacrifices.
I want you to know me[
more than I want burnt offerings.
I do not have the time or stomach for hysterical people upset about Hollywood or people’s private lives. I am tired of hearing about how sinful and bad people are. If you think Jesus is impressed by how well you judge other people, trust me, you are in for a shock. None of us were drafted to sit in moral judgment of the other, especially over the petty garbage most people get fixated on.
If all this posturing and fake mortal outrage were applied to the evils of the world, there would be less war and hunger.
The uncomfortable truth is Jesus loves all of us, Donald Trump and Joe Biden. The only judge that matters is the one who created us and will hold us accountable for our time.
I have no idea how to love Donald Trump or Ted Cruz. I’m told to love and pray for my enemies and those two are fiends who would be happy to see people I love murdered due to orientations or gender or ethnicity.
There is a variety of ways to love and I’ll pray for those two but will never trust them or their disciples unless they are deprogrammed.
The people we chose to study under and follow defines who we are, what we believe, and the direction we are moving in.
Anything of substance requires work and sacrifice. The outside appearance and work are not all that matters, but a person’s fruit does give a good indication of it.
