Dancing With God: What if...
You are a sinner. Your sin separates you from God. Your sin will cause you to go to hell after you die. Jesus is your savior. He died for your sins. If you acknowledge Jesus as your savior and live a good life, God will forgive your sins and you won't go to hell. Instead, after you die, you will spend eternity in heaven.
We've heard it all before. Its pretty standard stuff for evangelicals like me. But...
What if we got it all wrong?
I'm not asking: "What if we were wrong about everything?" I'm asking about whether we have taken things - good, right things - in the wrong way. There is a difference.
What if God is more than a judge who keeps a cosmic ledger that accounts for everyone's sin? What if Jesus is more than a guy who pays off a few debts to God so that the cosmic ledger will balance out for a narrow band of lucky souls?
What if God is inviting us to become part of something that is much greater than anything we ever imagined?
What if we're like a guy who bought a new computer, but who has never bothered to plug it into his cable modem? What if - even though we think it is really cool to sit around playing solitaire all day - we are completely unaware of the wonder and power that is right in front of us?
I know this may be hard to imagine, but what if the stakes are even higher than our own personal fates in eternity? What if everything - here and now, as well as then and there - depends on the way we hear the message of Jesus?
What if God isn't asking us to line up like soldiers, so that we can march off to follow orders? What if, instead, he is throwing huge, raucous party?
What if scripture isn't an instruction manual for morality, nor a set of cold design specifications for human life? What if nature is more than a proving ground for God's existence?
What if scripture and nature are more like music? What if, even now, they are playing a song for us? And what if, in the midst of the music, a divine voice is calling out to us, joyfully, hopefully, expectantly, eagerly:
"Come on! Dance with me!"
(More to come...)
Technorati Tags: dancing with God, divine dance, scripture, nature, the meaning of life
We've heard it all before. Its pretty standard stuff for evangelicals like me. But...
What if we got it all wrong?
I'm not asking: "What if we were wrong about everything?" I'm asking about whether we have taken things - good, right things - in the wrong way. There is a difference.
What if God is more than a judge who keeps a cosmic ledger that accounts for everyone's sin? What if Jesus is more than a guy who pays off a few debts to God so that the cosmic ledger will balance out for a narrow band of lucky souls?
What if God is inviting us to become part of something that is much greater than anything we ever imagined?
What if we're like a guy who bought a new computer, but who has never bothered to plug it into his cable modem? What if - even though we think it is really cool to sit around playing solitaire all day - we are completely unaware of the wonder and power that is right in front of us?
I know this may be hard to imagine, but what if the stakes are even higher than our own personal fates in eternity? What if everything - here and now, as well as then and there - depends on the way we hear the message of Jesus?
What if God isn't asking us to line up like soldiers, so that we can march off to follow orders? What if, instead, he is throwing huge, raucous party?
What if scripture isn't an instruction manual for morality, nor a set of cold design specifications for human life? What if nature is more than a proving ground for God's existence?
What if scripture and nature are more like music? What if, even now, they are playing a song for us? And what if, in the midst of the music, a divine voice is calling out to us, joyfully, hopefully, expectantly, eagerly:
"Come on! Dance with me!"
(More to come...)
Technorati Tags: dancing with God, divine dance, scripture, nature, the meaning of life
posted by Matt at Tuesday, March 14, 2006
2 Comments:
I look forward to the "more to come."
One of the most exciting things about my walk over the last few years, is discovering that my Christianity is as much (or more) about the present as it is about my personal future.
What if?
Thurm-
This is exactly what I want to explore in this series. I don't want to completely discount the rules and "eternal destiny" issues. I don't want to ignore the legal/accounting images that crop up here and there. But I do want to invite people to imagine that there is more - MUCH more - to what God is calling us to.
I want people to see that Christian spirituality isn't just sensible. It is also the most beautiful thing you can imagine.
Post a Comment
<< Home