God created us with needs.
Deliberately.
We are unable to meet all those needs alone.
We have to depend on God’s mercy, and share resources and
skills with other people.
He designed us to love, and to be addicted to his presence.
However, the fall made us self seeking and arrogant enough
to think we can do without him.
As a result we run around like ants hoarding what we have,
jealous of others and proud. And
unsatisfied.
Consequently, we seek satisfaction and answers in sex, chemicals,
work, money, power and entertainment.
We institute rules and laws to control others, then find
ways to manipulate them to our advantage.
This is vanity (futility).
All of the issues in our society stem from this.
Rage about guns, immigration, party politics, the stock
market, rights, health care, global warming, and gay marriage are all rooted in
our unfounded insecurity. We display our
fear by name calling, discrimination, dehumanizing, and oppression. However, God is very clear that high on his
priority list is to care for the oppressed.
The response of believers must be based on two simple
principles
1. God is God, deserving trust and worship because
he is strong enough, good enough and loving enough to deliver good for all of
us. What is that good? Not luxury, but becoming like him as designed.
2, Being assured our needs are met, we are free to
forgive, and love others, genuinely, practically, and sacrificially.
It’s hard.
It is also not optional.
If we are going to avoid hypocrisy, complacency and God’s wrath we have
to change.
Go love your church family, believers, strangers and the
different, just as God does. We may not
agree with them, but we must love them.
They need the gospel and a relationship with God. Fear and hate do not lead to them there.
