i'm discovering that morality is not apart of the love story i should have for Christ.
morality, in the modern church sense.
when did morality become a 5 point checklist -- don't drink, don't have sex before marriage, be a good person, go to church, love God? Donald Miller's Searching for God Knows What really got to me. i'm realizing more and more that love should not be contingent on doing good or being good. love, this agape love, that Jesus demonstrates over and over, the most poignant demonstration when He bore all on the cross, for us, for me, is so far beyond that the love that i perceive myself giving back daily to Christ.
Morality is not the means to the end. its not the standard code that we should live by. granted, i'm not saying toss out the ten commandments or live a carefree life cause morality is not necessary. i'm saying that living a moral life should be a by-product of our love for Christ. if Christ was the inventor, the mastermind, and we were a factory, then we would, should be producing products like honesty, integrity, generosity, devotion, joy, faith, morality...these would stem from the inspiration we receive from Christ's example and then implement them in our life. am i the only one who completely missed this extraordinary concept? even if i am the lone stranger in this new walk with Christ, i am all the better for it, for i think, just maybe for a second, understand what this love thing is about.
miller's chapter on morality is astounding. just a few highlights: "Lately, however I have been thinking of morality in less conceptual terns, less as a system of rules and regulations and more as a concept very beautiful and alive...The reason I have been feeling this way is not because morality gives us boundaries or because it helps us live clean lives, though morality does these things, but rather becausem in some mysterious way, morality pleases God...It made me wonder, then, if the idea of morality is just another ramification of the Fall...Can you imagine being a bride in a wedding, walking down the aisle toward your bridegroom, and during the procession, checking out the other groomsmen, wondering when you could sneak off to sleep with one of them, not taking the marriage to your groom seriously? Paul became furious... it makes sense to think of this as Paul's protecting the beauty and grandeur of a union with Christ. In this way, immorality is terrible because it is cheating on the Creator, who loves us and offers Himself as a Bridegroom for the bride. When I said I was looking for a reason for morality, this is what I meant. The motive is love, love of God and of my fellow man... The hijacking of the concept of morality began, of course, when we reduced Scripture to formula and a love story to theology, and finally morality to rules. It is a very different thing to break a rule that it is to cheat on a lover...when I run a stop sign, I am breaking a law against against a system of rules, but if I cheat on my wife, I have borken a rule against a person. The first is impersonal; the latter is intensely personal...A moral message, a message of us versus them...is not the methodology, not the sort of communication that came out of the mouth of Jesus or the mouths of any of His followers...morality becomes the glue that...builds intimacy with Christ."
my morality has stemmed from a system of rules, a desire to be the best Christian possible, the promise that living good will "stand out"...but honestly, none of that works. i find myself easily caving in "moral" ways if that's all it is..."breaking a God-rule." but, honestly, its not about that -- it's about the relationship behind the actions...and that, that's what i have been missing out on.
the beauty of this concept is that i do not have to worry about "making it" in the lifeboat. i don't have to worry about ever making the cut or trying to fit into an "acceptable" mold...no, instead i can confidently and adamantly live a life out of a love stemming from a deep, intimate, and real relationship. anyone need a PFD? cause, i'm ready to ditch this line of thinking and my spot in the lifeboat...and instead, simply live and love.
freedom, at last.
you aren't the first to live under the wrong kind of morality, and this probably won't be the last time God smacks you across the head with the depth of His grace. the beauty of it all, as you said, is it isn't about doing it's about being.
ReplyDeleteYES! When you said, "'I'm realizing more and more that love should not be contingent on doing good or being good," it sounds controversial, but the truth remains nonetheless in the church culture we are in. That's awesome :)
ReplyDeleteIn the words of someone else, "our goal is not to be more moral than everyone else. Hindus will be more moral than us, some Buddhists will certainly be more moral than us."
"The hijacking of the concept of morality began, of course, when we reduced Scripture to formula and a love story to theology, and finally morality to rules" Yes, whatever happened to passion driving things forward, I still can't believe I let myself personally go for so long without realizing this! No wonder Christianity never felt complete, or it feels lacking to most people! Unless our hearts, our passion, our wills and desires are engaged and united with Christ, then no wonder our society gets bored with Christianity, and even we do! It is amazing how the law of liberty in Christ Jesus is all over the New Testament, This post is AWESOME,..hope you are well :)