You probably suspected……… I’m out on a limb here.
The Bible is loaded with “rules”. They must be there for a reason. On first glance you might think that they tell us what God wants from us. Do this……. Don’t do that. They dictate goals for our behavior. We often get bogged down in these rules. In the church, we call this legalism. Christians are often criticized because of the rules we follow. Christians often beat others up over the rules. A lot of Christians are miserable because of their focus on the rules. And here is the bad news……..they make the people around them miserable too.
Lesson 1: obedience to the rules is not what God wants.
The rules are just the first complicated layer of an onion that, fortunately, gets simpler the more of it that we peel away.
Imagine a parent whose child is going away. The parent says to the child……in so many words…….. come, wrap your arms around me, and give me a long hard squeeze. This could even be an expectation…….a rule. But a squeeze is not what the parent wants. A hug? No, a hug is not what the parent wants.
What the parent wants is to tell the child that the child is loved……..and to be told that the love is returned. What the parent wants is relationship…….and not just any relationship……. the parent wants love……both given and received.
Parents have lots of daily rules. Brush your teeth, don’t cross the street, wash your hands. Same story here, the parent wants the child to be safe. But even that isn’t the final goal. The parent wants to spare the child pain.
Parents have lots of rules about dealing with others. Don’t cut in line, say please and thank you, don’t hit your sister. The goal of these rules is to create the habit of loving the people around you.
And finally………..what may be the deepest layer of the onion. God created you. He wired you up with a set of needs…….and these needs are universal. These universal needs are God’s fingerprint. They create a hunger in you that guides you to the place you need to be. By satisfying these needs, you will find happiness.
And there it is………God wants you to be happy. The rules, paradoxically, are not there to ruin your fun. They are the roadmap to your optimal destination. We should follow the rules, because they are useful. But, we need to keep our focus on our final goal, not on the rules that guide us there.
So……..what does God want?
Relationship, built on love……between you and him.
Relationship, built on love……between you and your fellow man.
Your happiness.
And that……….in my never humble opinion……..is what God wants.
If you have been sold some other brand of Christianity…….something full of rules, punishment, and guilt….. something just plain weird……..then you have been had.
love is the fulfillment of the law
Paul, NIV
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah, NIV
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Jesus, NIV