I’ve
been doing a whole lot of pondering lately… (a truly dangerous affair)
I’ve
also been doing a whole lot of observing and people watching lately. And, yes
this has included not a little of observing of my own behavior.
I
won’t spend a lot of time beating around the bush like I sometimes do. Not this
time.
What
I’ve been paying especial attention to lately is this:
Rule following or
rule breaking. Obedience to laws or disobedience to laws. Observance of good
social behavior or ignoring good social behavior.
What
I’ve come down to is this. And, this is a general observation of where I see
our culture (at least here in the Western U.S.) going right now.
I
feel from my observations that we simply don’t have the capacity almost at all
to avoid rule breaking. We operate in a very self-serving way that says the
rules don’t apply to me. They only apply to everyone else.
Let
me explain what I mean. Hopefully in a simple manner
Please
let me preface this by saying too, that I am speaking primarily to those of us
who call ourselves followers of Christ.
Let’s
look at a scenario.
You’re
driving down a neighborhood street and a sign tells you that the speed limit is
25 miles per hour.
You
pull out of your driveway and turn into the lane outside your cul-de-sac. As
you head up the street, you catch up to a guy that in your opinion is driving
way too slow. (He’s following the neighborhood limit of 25 mph.) You grip the
wheel tighter and feel your impatience rising in your reddening face. You blurt
out a few choice names for the guy.
You
hit the main road outside your tract and whip by the sign stating 45 mph with a
grin, thinking that speed is surely too slow for this road and especially under
these perfect driving conditions. You chuckle at the “losers” that you pass for
being such pansies and wonder how they could drive like such grannies.
Feeling
familiar in the least?
How
about this scenario.
You
are at a local store and you’ve “happily” parted with your hard-earned cash in
exchange for a precious few groceries and supplies for the week. You go through
the checkout line and wish the person at the register a great evening. As you
unload your haul into your car, you pull out from the bottom rack of your cart
a few things that you now realize that the clerk absentmindedly neglected to
ring you up for when you were in the checkout line.
You
tell yourself: “Oh well, they always seem to mark the items I buy up regularly.
I’m a good customer and I spend a lot of my paychecks at this place. They owe
me. They won’t miss it. It’s like a bonus.”
Let’s
face it. Even if my scenarios don’t seem completely familiar, I’m sure you can
think of moments where you’ve been in similar circumstances.
My
question is this:
As
Christians. As followers of Christ. Is it important that we live lives of
integrity and righteousness at every moment? In every circumstance? When nobody
seems to be watching?
Are
there times where bending the rules is Ok? Are there times where because of
Christ’s once and for all sacrifice for our sins, we can let our behavior slide?
Now
these questions may seem really easy and pedestrian for you and I to answer. I
get it.
But,
I have to ask you (and I). If the answer is: “Of course.” We must always be on
our guard and we must always seek to be the best version of the person that God
has commanded us to be.
If
the previous statement is true, then why is it that we so often excuse
ourselves to disobey even the simplest of rules… i.e. – following traffic laws…
being honest and trustworthy… etc.?
You
see, the Bible tells us that God allows certain people (rulers, law enforcement
officers, bosses) to rule over us. They are His agents (willing or unwilling)
in providing us with some sort of order and laws that are supposed to govern
and direct our behaviors.
So
here is one of many questions that I have been pondering recently. I hope that
you may ponder it too.
If we are given a
law or a rule that in our following it, we are not sinning against God by
obeying it, then why is it that we justify our not obeying it?
You
see, I believe that many of us have bought into the World’s philosophy that “rules
are meant to be broken” “rules…, well they’re actually more of guidelines” “rules
are for the rest of them, not me”
We
have taken on this rebelliousness as if it is some badge of honor.
I
have to ask you (and I). How do we justify this when we consider that when
Jesus would heal someone, He is often heard telling them, “Go and sin no more.”
Are
we not called to personal holiness? Are we not supposed to take up our crosses
daily and follow Him into the World?
How
can others see Christ in us when they cannot see past what is often our obvious
reflection of the World’s values and ways?
What
is the difference between us and the World when we often act just like everyone
else?
What
transformations in our lives can we point to that separate us from the World
and its temptations and pitfalls?
Listen,
I have not written this to toot my own horn about my own holiness. I often find
myself at war with the sinful man that still dwells in this body. I understand
the temptations and pitfalls that this World places in our way daily to stumble
us and prevent us from shining a light into a dark World.
I
believe that we must demonstrate through how we live our lives both publicly
and privately how Christ can transform our lives from lost and selfish to people with direction and selflessness.
Serving others so that they can clearly see God’s love and transformative
power.
Some
of this at least, can show others what it means to be in the World, but not of
it.
I
hope this encourages you to just do a little introspection and self-examination.
I believe that in order for us to grow into the people that Christ has us in
mind to be, we must be willing to admit our faults and let God guide us into
empowerment through meaningful change.
Have
a blessed week!
