Ever have one of those moments where you read, hear, or see someone doing something and you feel like patting yourself on the back? It's one of those instances where you feel good about yourself, because that doesn't describe you at all, at least not anymore, right? Yeah, totally had one of those moments today. In church. Of course, where else would a person feel like they are better than the rest of the people listening to the exact same teaching in the exact same building?
The preacher was using words like "hostile," ,
"And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds..." - Colossians 1:21
My response? "Oh, I have never even been there, and doubt I ever will be..." it was a type of deep hearted musing- the kind that is only discovered when you dare to explore the inner confined thought of your soul. But it was there nevertheless. It's like I accepted I was a sinner, accepted I was imperfect, but evil? I mean, that's kind of harsh... Isn't it? Ever been there?
We live in a culture of entitlement. Our initial response to our clothing, food, and shelter seems to be "it's not enough," and that mindset leads to the heart condition of coveting. Which, if you know your ten commandments, you know that you just stepped into the deep end of the wrong pool. But we have taken have these commandments and twisted them into socially accepted behaviors.
The media goes as far as to idolize the distorting of them to the point where we will drink gossip as though it is the oxygen to our very souls. We teach to coveteousness to children and it becomes the social norm because the adults in society are continually growing their children up in a materialistic world view under the heading, "dreams for my child's future." We lust, and are encouraged in that- even more than that we consider someone a prude if they haven't. We hate- Yankees, rednecks, beauty queens, jocks, geeks, gays, blacks, whites- we conditionally love only those who we desire to be loved by.
The culture that surrounds us on every side has allowed us to love our sin. Like a child loves his poop filled diaper as it oozes and surrounds him- the thoughts being, "Yeah, it may be stinky, but it's warm and it's mine!" Oh. Dear. ...It's a matter of the heart. God is after our hearts. The underlying cause behind people's actions is the heart of the person in question. Why Jesus compares hating someone to murdering them, or lusting after someone to committing adultery. If it happens in the heart, it is a sin. And a sin is a sin is a sin. And sin is evil. Therefore, at one point in time in this life we were each "doing evil deeds," with nothing keeping us from reproach.
We pursue the "happyness" instead of the joyfullness. I love what Matt Chandler said in his sermon that we watched this morning. He said this, "Happiness is impossibly fragile- touch it, and it's gone." And then he explained that, "Joy has extremely deep roots. It is immovable." Joy is not hindered by the things of this life. Joy is founded in Christ. But happiness exists in a moment, and as soon as it is, it is no longer.
Ready for the rest of the verse? Yeah, I was too.
"he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,
IF
indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven..."
- Colossians 22-23 (emphasis mine)
Amen.
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