Two men.

Joe, is a lifelong criminal. He is sexually promiscuous, doesn’t take care of his family, cheats on his taxes……and on just about everything else, uses drugs……….and to top it off…….he parks in the handicapped parking spot.

Tom, is a dedicated husband and father, he coaches little league, does volunteer work, loves his family, pays his taxes…….and when he says something…….you can count on it.

On the way home from a drunken brawl, Joe crashes his car, killing the other driver. As he sits there bleeding to death himself, he has an epiphany, accepts Christ, repents, dies and spends eternity in paradise.

Tom is very busy…….doing good. He has never given God a second thought. He knows that he is a good man……..everyone says so………his life’s work speaks for itself. One day he drops dead from a heart attack…….and spends eternity in a place that is…….to be generous……not nice.

And that is just not fair.

I used to tell my sons, “where, in your contract, does it say that life will be fair?”……..because it doesn’t say anything of the sort.

Life is not fair.

This truth is undeniable………and yet we pursue it.

So…..what is “fair” anyway? Any 6 year old can explain it. The idea of fairness is deeply rooted in our hearts. The idea of fairness is universal. It must be important for us……..it must be important to God.

Fairness says that we will all be rewarded in exact proportion to the good we have done……..and that we will all be punished in exact proportion to the bad that we have done.

But, is universal fairness achievable?

I don’t have to tell you that fairness doesn’t exist in our temporal world. We see bad people thriving every day. We try to create fairness…………but unfairness is everywhere.

But, what about eternity?

Fairness is a good thing………but here’s the problem:

We are not promised fairness on the day we enter eternity. And this offends us. After a lifetime of trying to build a fair system on earth, we reach the gate to eternity and our concept of fairness is not the key issue. Just look at Joe and Tom.

The key metric in eternity is not fairness…….good vs. bad……….which, by the way, is a continuum with thousands of shades of gray. In eternity, the key metric is relationship……with God. And this metric is black and white. It is absolutely binary. You either have a relationship with God…….or you do not.

Some day God will say to you…….either:

“Well done, good and faithful servant!”

Or

“I don’t know you!”

You can pretty much divide humanity into two groups…….those who use good vs. bad to sort out the people and ideas around them………and those who use relationship, specifically love, to sort out the people and ideas around them.

To their credit, the first group is trying very hard to improve this temporal world…..with mixed success. The second group acknowledges a flawed world and looks to God and paradise to fix things…….somewhere down the road……meanwhile they are required to do only one thing…..love………love God……love man.

We are required to send love out into the world…….sometimes it comes back to us, often we never hear from it again, and sometimes it is repaid with evil.

And this too is unfair……based on the good vs. bad metric.

But, based on God’s metric……relationship……it is wildly sucessful…….in the long run. We love our neighbor. But, even if he returns evil for it……..we build our relationship with God.

I believe that a great many people reject God because the world is unfair, based on the good vs. bad metric. This metric is appealing because it is simple. We look at the good and bad around us, add it all up, and figure that we are pretty good……..at least we are better than the other guy. And, on our narrow spectrum of good vs. bad, that may very well be true. But, on God’s much broader spectrum of good vs. bad, we just don’t measure up. Our good simply is not up to God’s standard. It’s all a question of perspective.

The relationship metric, however, is equally simple. It is extremely generous. Relationship with God means eternity in paradise. And the best part………you actually are in charge…….you get to choose your eternity………no hubris here.

YOU CHOOSE YOUR ETERNITY.

In eternity, the relationship metric is the one that counts. So…….pursue good…….flee from bad…….these things are important……..but don’t get distracted. Relationship is what counts…….relationship with your creator.

My prayer……. is that you do not reject the relationship metric because you are angry about the obvious failure of the fairness metric. Because the fairness metric is phoney……a fantasy…….it has never been legitimate………it has never been real.

Good vs. Bad……..fairness…….. is not the key to what is ahead for you.

It is the relationship metric that will determine your future………your eternity.

The choice is yours.

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus, ESV

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind”

Jesus, ESV

And in the end……..the love you take………is equal to the love………You make.

John Lennon

If you compare Christians to secular humanists there are differences……..but not the ones that we often believe.

If you ask the average Christian what makes them different from the crowd, you might get some kind of statement about righteousness.

If you ask the average secular humanist what makes the Christian different, you will get replies that are all over the map………naive, judgemental, misled, superstitious, etc.

But , the truth is………that in terms of kindness, compassion, love, generosity, etc………the traits that we associate with being a “good person”, the average Christian and the average secular humanist…….really are not very different.

And yet, we butt heads constantly……..why?

It comes down to how we define right and wrong……..good and bad. The chasm between us is so very wide because it is based on a disagreement that is so fundamental.

We operate on fundamentally different moral codes.

Christianity………when done well…….uses the teaching of Jesus, as recorded in the Bible, as its moral code. This is a fairly rigid code of conduct. It doesn’t give the Christian very much “wiggle room”. The Bible even describes it as a “narrow gate”. In fact, it is likely that the average person who identifies as Christian violates this code every day. No wonder that we get called hypocrits. This code is summed up…….by Jesus……..Love God….Love man. And this is a surprisingly high bar……..considering human nature. Think about what you did yesterday. Did you give a dollar to the guy with the little cardboard sign on the exit ramp? Did you get angry at a politician? Did you mutter something unkind about a bad driver? The unfortunate truth is that human nature causes the average Christian to fail……..as a Christian…….every day. Human nature causes me to fail……as a Christian…….every day.

Secular humanism is largely based on science. It really does not have a rigidly defined moral code. It tends to rely on each person’s conscience……..that is……each individual’s idea of right and wrong. The first problem is that our society has millions of different moral codes in use at the same time…….a formula for conflict…….and we have the internet telling each of us that we are right……and that the other guy is an idiot. The second problem…….just as with Christianity…..is human nature. We are extremely gifted at figuring out why the thing that we really want to do……..is “right”. If you are a secular humanist, think about the ten things that you want the most……..write them down. Now go down the list and write “good” or “bad” beside each. They are probably all “good”. The result of human nature acting on secular humanism is that we find a way to define the things that we really want……..as good. The current term is “identify”. If you were born as a male and you feel better as a female, then you redefine yourself as a female……..you “identify” as a female……..and this is good.

So…….what it comes down to is this:

The difference between Christianity and secular humanism is far more basic than being good or bad. It is in how we define good and bad…….right and wrong. The Christian uses an external definition…..Jesus. The secular humanist uses an internal definition. The Christian fails to live up to his moral code……every day. Because of our failure, we need forgiveness. Because of my failure…….I need forgiveness……..every day. And, fortunately, Christianity provides it. For the secular humanist, there is no forgiveness. The secular humanist defines his way out of failure. If he really wants something…….he defines it as good…….or at least OK……….think abortion.

As a Christian, I know that I am flawed……bad…….and that I need redemption. The secular humanist does not have access to redemption. He must solve this internally……..either admit that he is bad and live with it……..or, more often, define his wayout of it. And I think that this must take a lot of work.

There is another side to this. The Christian fails every day……and, if we are being honest, we know it. We cannot be confident in our own nature. Our confidence comes from our creator. The secular humanist has essentially defined himself as “right”. He is confident…..in himself. He has no need for external redemption.

And that is why we fight.

“What I envy most about you Christians is your forgiveness. I have nobody to forgive me.”

Laski, a secular humanist

“We must obey God rather than men.”

Peter, ESV

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.

James, ESV

“you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Jesus, defining Christianity, ESV

Most Christians have never read the bible. At best they have a cursory understanding of a few verses. Many Christians believe and quote things that aren’t even in the bible. Many Christians accept only the parts of the Bible that agree with their politics.

“God helps those who help themselves”

Poor Richard’s Almanac……..not the Bible.

In all fairness, the Bible is a big and complicated book. It is intimidating…….especially the old testament. So…….I am going to take the liberty of simplifying it. We have the old testament and the new testament. They are very different…….so much so that they seem like two different religions. I used to think of the old testament as plan A…….which failed and the new testament as God trying something new…….plan B. The problem is that this implies that God screwed up. This is hard to reconcile with a God who is independent of time……..who sees both past and future.

What was God thinking?

The Old Testament

I’ll start by cooking the old testament down to its essence. It contains a lot of history……looking back. It contains a lot of prophesy…….looking forward. In terms of how we should live…….it contains detailed instructions…….mind numbingly detailed instructions. Rule after rule after rule. And it says, bluntly, in black and white, that we can’t live up to them. So…..in terms of living our lives………what is the old testament saying?

The Cliff notes version:

You walked away from me, your God, and you are not capable of making your way back.

This is a critical lesson for us today. We cannot solve the big problem. Fact is, we cannot even solve most of the little problems.

The New Testament

Our only purpose is relationship……..specifically, relationship with God, our creator. That is the reason why we were created………the only reason. And the old testament spends over 1,000 pages telling us that we can’t pull it off. This is disheartening to say the least. So what does the new testament add? I used to think that it was a continuation of the same story…..a patch…….plan B. But now I see it as a contrasting plan………an entirely different plan. In the old testament, God showed us a plan……..a plan that was futile………and he knew it. I believe that he set the old testament up as a stark contrast to prepare us for the new testament. He gave us a good long hard look at failure…….our failure…….so that we would appreciate the success that was coming……his success.

The Cliff notes version:

You can do this……..accept me…….love me……and I will bring you home…….to me…….where you have always belonged.

The old testament…………you can’t.

The new testament………..God can.

So……..let him.

“None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”

Paul, ESV

I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

Paul, ESV

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Paul, ESV

I find that I am watching Facebook less and less. There are so many political posts. What is alarming is that the posts from the left and those from the right are so different that it is impossible to reconcile them. It’s like listening to two of your children describe a fight. Each tells you the facts that make them look good and the other guy look bad. You wind up with two stories that are so different that they sound like different events.

This behavior is normal………..for children.

But, in our political conversation, we see adults doing it……..all day, every day. This is particularly destructive in the media.

What is going on here?

I think that the problem is that, as a society, we have starting asking the wrong questions. We focus on the question, “what do I want, what will make me happy?” We have come untethered from the idea of “truth”. I’ll go one step further……as a society, we reject the concept of absolute truth. We do this because the truth has a way of interfering with our attempts to get what we want. We pick through the facts. We pick through the truths. We latch on to the truths that tell us that what we want is good…….and we discard the rest……just like the child in the fight.

Al Gore said it well……..some truths are inconvenient.

I am deeply concerned for our society and for our nation. I don’t see how we can function, when the left and the right operate on different sets of facts……. on different sets of truths.

One side sees peaceful protests over police brutality.
One side sees criminals attacking our cities.

One side sees a woman’s freedom of self determination.
One side sees the killing of a child.

“Alternate truths”

So much for politics……..but, what about Christianity?

I sense that Christianity is falling out of favor in our society. I hope I’m wrong………but a see a lot of churches with a lot of empty seats and a few old people. I recently read a book, “The God Delusion”. In it the author went to great lengths to explain why he objects to God and to the Bible.

Narrow minded
Judgemental
Misogynist
Homophobic

This is just the tip of the iceberg.

To sum it up, he basically says that he cannot accept a God who disagrees with him…….a God who denies his appetites. And he presents a series of solid arguments as to why his position is valid and the Bible is not. So far so good…….for the author.

In a word, the author of “The God Delusion” tells us that he is wiser than the Bible. In essence, he says that he can do a better job of running the world than God.

The trouble is that he is making the same mistake that we make in our political conversation. He is asking the wrong questions.

He is asking, “Do I approve of God?”
He is asking, “Do I like what the Bible says?”
He is asking, “Do I agree with the Bible?”……or, perhaps more to the point…….. “Does the Bible agree with me?”

He should be asking, “Is it true?”

Because, if the Bible is true, if God is real, then the fact that he……or you…… doesn’t approve is irrelevant.

If the Bible is true, then the truths……..the rules…..the standards apply to us all……….and the consequences await us all.

These truths, rules, standards……..and consequences will be applied to all of us………. individually. The fact that the majority of Americans might agree with you will be meaningless. The fact that the media elites might support your position will be meaningless. The fact that Jim Acosta or Sean Hannity might agree with you will be meaningless.

“Is the Bible true?”

This is the most important question that you will face during your lifetime.

Listen to the scientists, listen to the philosophers, listen to the clerics………..then listen to your heart, because the truth is in there………..the truth was put there……..by your creator.

Love God, Love your neighbor.
You have an eternal spirit, a soul.
You are going somewhere…….after you die.
There is good in this world and it will be rewarded.
There is evil in this world and it will be punished.
God will make things right………in the end.

There is forgiveness and reconciliation and you can have it for a song.

These things are true.

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

John, NIV

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John, NIV

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

John, NIV

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

Paul, NIV

“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free .”

Jesus, NIV

A pretty open ended question.

Using only one noun, no qualifiers…….describe yourself.

Don’t think about it too hard…….don’t try to come up with the “correct” answer. Your first thought will be the most honest……and the most accurate. And in this exercise…….being honest with yourself is essential. What the other guy thinks……..what the other guy approves of……is meaningless.

This is an unusual exercise……..but it will tell you a great deal about yourself. On top of everything else, the answer will be correct……..because the answer will be how you define yourself……..and that is the only definition that really counts.

So…….fill in the blank.

I AM A ____________.

Liberal
Progressive
Conservative
Republican
Democrat
Heterosexual
Gay
Doctor
Teacher
Husband
Wife
Father

The list goes on……and on.

The answer will tell you where you spend more of your emotional energy than anywhere else. It will tell you what the most important thing in your life is. It will tell you where your heart is. And where your heart is…….will direct your destiny.

There is nothing more important in this world for you to know. Surprisingly……….most of us have never given it any thought.

There is one more entry to the list………Christian. I saved it for last because I didnt want to prejudice you………to give you my answer.

I believe that this is the most consequential of the choices. It is the most consequential…….because it reaches into every corner of your life. It shades every decision and action that you choose.

It is the most consequential……….because it is the only item on the list with eternal implications. If you answered “Conservative”……..Donald Trump is not going to save you. If you answered “Liberal”………Nancy Pelosi is not going to save you.

So…….what is a Christian……..how do you know?

A Christian:

Humbles himself………not before men…….but before his creator……..he puts God before self.

Acknowledges the reality of the living Trinity…..Father, Son, Spirit…….not simply as ideas…..but as living beings.

Follows the teaching of Jesus……love God…..love man.

Honors the crucifiction and accepts Jesus’s free, unearned, gift………..of paradise.

And there is one more thing……..a Christian is not ashamed of her faith.

That’s it.

So………if someone asks you……”What are you?”

Tell the truth.

“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

God, ESV

“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Jesus, ESV

“And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God”

Jesus, ESV