clear

'Who wants to have a relationship with someone who is waiting for you to screw up?' I thought to my teen-age self, sitting on the back pew listening to the preacher. I remember learning about how Jesus loved us and died on the cross for our sins, when I was a kid in Sunday School. But, from my pre-adolescent years until my late twenties, I went home from church feeling like a steaming pile of dung most of the time. I have to take my part of the responsibility in some of that, too, as I was 'experimenting' with new things in life.  

But the misconception, that God has us all under His Holy microscope every nano-second, waiting to strike us with His "shepherd's rod" the second we stray, was plainly communicated, if not in so many words. Sometimes I got the feeling the preacher was trying to push me, manipulate me in some way to get me to think like him, to buy into his religious-y way. I felt the sinful part of me, I knew that well. And I was drawn toward God's love. But the 'Word' was coming from the mouth of a man not open to questions, concerns, not willing to listen and serve first, but rather who seemed highly interested in being served. To my thinking, that kind of 'holier-than-thou' behavior was incongruent with the God revealling Himself in John 3.16 and other parts of the Bible. 

Since, I have located that line between God's intolerance of sin and His magnificent love for fallen humanity. I understand His grace, which is His tolerance of the sin that may still trip me up daily, and His mercy, which is His commuting my just sentence to His Son, Jesus Christ. But I think of how many others may have just quit on God altogether because of misconceptions born from pulpits taking too much liberty and not excercising enough diligence. The religiosity I have so often witnessed from the pulpit paints God in this "turn or burn" light, like a sort of semi-benevolent dictator who made a way for you to escape hell, but it won't hurt His feelings if you don't believe; a sort of 'leave your brains at the door' religion.  

But the Bible that I read says that the passion of God's heart is that everyone come to the true knowledge of His love, acknowledging our own sin, and engaging in His "plan JC"-that is a renewed relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. How can they know unless they hear; how can they hear unless someone goes to them??? I think God meant for Christians to take His love and distribute it to those who need it (everyone). That will require determination, diligence, sensitivity, and patience, basically, work. I don't think God meant, "Build giant buildings with crosses on the front and if people don't come and hear what you got to say, they can go to hell..."

Perhaps Christians have some misconceptions of what God says. The more I read the Bible, the more it is clear to me that God's patience, mercy, and grace extends to those, the worst of us, who have given up on ourselves and given up on God ever reaching us. I used to think the more I knew about God, the more judmental and harsh I would become, because that is what was modeled before me, with some exception.

It was the 'exceptions' that kept me dabbling with the Bible and God. It made me wonder who were the posers, and who is really walking with God. And then I came across Psalm 24, which not only mirrored my question, but answered it.

3 Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah.

I do not see anything about station, caste, career choice, geneology, race, rank, creed, breed, or religion in this passage. We have to be honest with ourselves, then with God. Blessings only come from Him. Righteousness only comes from Him. Its simple, its clear. No one has clean hands or a pure heart. Everyone has lied, everyone has had their little idols. Jesus only told the members of that motley crew, "follow me." Jesus was the only one who could ascend the hill of the Lord, because He was the Lord, but also, because he was without sin (which comes first, the chicken or the egg?)... (I think it was the chicken). Jesus makes our hands clean, our hearts pure, etc. His righteousness is ours. We are seen as a new creation by God the Father. From there, life is learning to discover deeper levels of that love, and revealing it to those who need it (everyone). No building required. You are the building. Um, that is for another post.