I was a very good child.
Granted, I had my moments, like when I got spankings in first grade (I think on a daily basis) for talking too much, and those times when I pitched a fit about not getting a toy at the dime store. But that was pretty much as bad as it got for the first several years.
Although there was that time when I accidentally (and it really, truly was not intentional) miscounted the amount of 1-cent bubble gum pieces I took to the counter at a small store near my home. When my mom and I arrived at our house, I got my gum out and recounted the pieces. I discovered that I had picked up 11 instead of 10! I proudly told my mother about it, and she promptly loaded me back into the car and returned to the store. (Side note: If it had been on purpose, I definitely would not have informed on myself!) When we arrived at the store, I had to tell the owner what I had done, and I either returned the extra piece of gum or gave him another penny – I don’t recall which one.
Sometime around the same age, I walked the aisle at church and said the words to a prayer as instructed by my pastor. I knew all the answers to all the questions I was asked … not that I remember, though. When I questioned her years later, my mother told me I did. What I remember is wanting to get into the water in the baptistry.
Do you know something else I don’t remember? I don’t recall a time when I didn’t love Jesus! Some of my earliest memories are from Sunday School – playing with clay and a magnifying glass, learning the song (with hand motions) to “Zacchaeus,” and singing “Jesus Loves Me.” I also cut a gap in my bangs because nobody ever told me not to do that …
There were also other more serious offenses that I committed as I grew up – some of which originated with sinful actions others committed against me that I was not capable of understanding. That is an entirely different topic for another day … maybe.
These days, I hear a lot of people say (or I read their posts on social media) that they love Jesus so much; or they will say that some other person (maybe a child or a romantic interest) loves Jesus so much. But quite often, the person that “loves Jesus so much” will consistently make choices that do not align with the very words Jesus spoke. It’s almost as if these folks have created a totally different Jesus from the One whose words are recorded for us in the Bible.
These people seem to have selective vision when they read the Bible and are only capable of seeing the words they like. Below are a few examples. (Note: I haven’t actually heard or seen people put the first one into words; it’s just the prevailing wind that seems to be floating around.)
- Matthew 5:11 – “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you.”
- Socially accepted meaning: If people say you are wrong or sinful because of your lifestyle or who you love or what you wear or where you go or anything else that you do, they are wrong and mean. You and your choices should be celebrated instead.
- The rest of Matthew 5:11 – “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account (emphasis mine).
- Actual meaning: When you stand for Jesus and are misrepresented or lied about because of it, realize that Jesus sees it, and He will bless you for honoring Him.
- John 8:10-11 – Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.”
- Socially accepted meaning: The religious leaders wanted to stone a woman caught in adultery for what they said was immoral based on the Old Testament law, but Jesus made them see that they were wrong, and then He told her He did not have a problem with her way of life.
- The rest of John 8:11 – And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more (emphasis mine).
- Actual meaning: Jesus said He did not condemn her … He would not condone her stoning. He was holy and righteous and had every right to, but He confronted the scribes and Pharisees instead. Why? It might have been because of His great compassion; maybe it was because He knew He was the only sinless person ever; or it could have been because He already knew that He Himself was going to pay the penalty for her sin … for all Whatever the reason, although He did not condemn her, He also did not leave it at that. He told the woman she was indeed a sinner and should turn away from her sin. (Notice also that He did not specify to turn away from adultery – probably because all humans have a sin nature, and we tend toward sin more than we tend toward righteousness. None of us are guilty of only a singular sin.)
And then there is the perennial favorite:
- Matthew 7:1 – “Judge not.”
- Socially accepted meaning: Don’t tell other people they are wrong or sinful; that just makes you wrong and sinful and hateful!
- The rest of Matthew 7:1-5 – “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.”
- Actual meaning: Don’t be judgmental to others and act like you have no sin. Repent of your own sin first, and then you will be able to clearly see how to help another person when your own sin is not clouding your view.
I think sometimes we humans love the thought of loving Jesus. I mean, if He is all-loving and all-accepting like society says, then why wouldn’t we love Him? However, the Bible also tells us this: We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). Within every human being is the capacity to love God simply because He has placed it within us. But it is in our obedience to His will that we truly express love for Him.
Jesus said it this way: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments (John 14:15).
There are a lot of things we can love, from chocolate ice cream to basketball to Star Wars. None of those things are awful on their own merits. But when we allow anything other than Jesus to be the driving force behind our lives, or we submit our lives to a thing or person other than Him, that is called idolatry. Loving someone or something is usually not a problem; it is in giving ourselves to that thing or person that we start to fashion our “golden images.”
And that is why saying we love Jesus is not enough. Submitting our lives to His command is the way we exhibit authentic love for Jesus. Anything less will disappear as quickly as a scoop of chocolate ice cream on a Mississippi summer day.
