Proverbs 6:16-19
"These six things doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an abomination unto him."
a proud look
a lying tongue
hands that shed innocent blood.
an heart that deviseth wicked imaginations
feet that be swift in running to mischief
a false witness that speaketh lies
He that soweth discord among brethren
Before I go any further, it is necessary to highlight "these six things " in Proverbs 6:16. Things is the key word. The verse is not saying that God hates people . It is saying that God hates behaviors, actions, and mindsets. In other words, sin, sinning, and sinfulness.
So, as you read the six (seven) things God hates. Remind yourself...
1.He does not hate the one looking down on people; he hates the act of haughtiness.
2. He does not hate the liar; he hates the lying.
3. He does not hate people who have abortions or kill children; he hates the shedding of innocent blood.
4.He does not hate people who follow evil's plan; he hates the wicked plans.
5. He does not hate rebels; he hates mischief.
6. He does not hate whose who are false prophets; he hates the lies that separate the lost from Biblical truth.
7. He does not hate instigators; he hates the diversity they cause.
God does not hate you, me, lukewarm Christians, atheists, or even Satanists. In fact, he loves everyone; but a perfect God cannot welcome sin into his kingdom. There must be a separation from sin and soul. That is why, out of love, he gave us way to separate our sins from us-that way is the truth and light. That way is Jesus.
Jesus modeled God's mercy and restoration. He did not remove the blind from His presence; he removed the blindness and restored their sight. He did not remove the leper from HIs presence; he removed their skin disorder and restored their place in society. He did not the sinner from His presence; he remove the sin by paying for it. He did not remove death from his mission; he removed the barrier between the sinner and God the father.
Even, before his own battle with death, Jesus mourned His friend, he allow himself to feel the pain death causes. Even though, he knew what was about to happen. After three days, Jesus removed death's grip on Lazarus and he restore his life by simply calling his name and instructing him to arise. Jesus stood for people; not against them. He pursued them in their sickness when others abandon them. Not to punish them, but to remove their sickness.
This part of my blog is for Christian especially FOR seasoned Christians. Like me, who grew up in church and rooted in the religion of Christianity. (even if you are not a Christian, you are welcome to keep reading)
God does not require the whole nation obedience to heal that nation; however, he requires His children to repent and turn back from the error of their ways before He will use them as his spokesmen (spokeswomen).
2 Chronicles 7:14
"If my people who belong to me will humbly pray, seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
But God only needs one. He is powerful enough that he can use "One" to save a nation. Ex. Moses, Gideon, Jonah, Elijah... But if we unity, He will use us to bring down the towers that Jezebel and Jericho have created to oppress and conquer this nation.
So, I must address the High Horse epidemic found in churches of yesterday and today. In hopes of bringing back restoration between God who I love and this nation that I love.
This blog is going to be tough. Uncomfortable even from the back pew point-of-view. Honestly, it is for me and I am writing it. I spend much time praying though it.
Here we go...
God gives mercy for people; not just good people
Jesus gave himself for everyone: not just those who follow the golden rule-
something Jesus reminds me of quite often especially when I am on social media.
To try to understand those truths, we must separate the people from their sin, so we can see the person that God loves. Yet, we can become so blinded by others' sins, that we see them as the problem that we must cure. We label them as heathens, drunks, sluts, home wreckers, addicts, etc. often turn our backs to them or separate ourselves from them.
ATTENTION CHRISTIANS: WHERE DID WE GO WRONG??
Perhaps, you and I need to go back to Proverb 6:17
-proud looks
"According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness and all that, are mere flea bites in comparison; it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind."
-C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity.
Christian pride-it has been a problem for centuries.
I am not talking about declaring our faith and being joyful for the amazing grace of Jesus. I am talking about climbing on the high horse and prancing around like we are better than others. We surround ourselves with other Christians and close ourselves inside the walls of that community.
(Before I upset you too much, I strongly believe plugging into time to build relationships with other Christians. It is vital for our spiritual health. I, also, believe in seeking a Christian-based community regularly for support, growth, and spiritual preservation. Both these help us to grow in our relationship with God.)
What I think we can miss, unconsciously, is that we are neglecting our part in God's Will. We turn our backs on friends to escape our past. Even in good intentions, we avoid places where there may "darkness". I understand that it is easier to be around by people who share the same beliefs and principles. Temptations are powerful. They are easier to try to avoid it (out of sight, out of mind). Plus, It is not comfortable to be mocked or laughed when you stand firm on your beliefs.
There are times when God asks us to separate ourselves especially when we are newborns in faith. We must pray and listen to His instructions. We must, also, consider that some people want others help and support, yet, they don’t want to put in the effort to change. That is where tough love comes in. God may be assigned you or I to bring someone out of the dark. Yes, darkness is very uncomfortable, But what price our others paying for our comforts?
I choose to believe, if God ask that of us, He will fill us with his light to help us navigate through the darkness; though we must learn to rely on Him even more in those situations.
Furthermore, we forget to climb down from those high horses and spend a mile with someone who wear a different part of shoes. Often, we can climb onto the saddle of Christianity placing ourselves on a pedestal high above others. We refuses to put ourselves in a situation that will cause our church gossip club to talk about us. Some of us even put more of a priority on our righteous reputation than on a God given calling that requires us to witness to our enemies. Ex. Jonah
Too often our blind religion transforms into blending a people with their sin. We see the pregnant girl who gets an abortion as a murderer instead of seeing her need for comfort and nurturing. We see the homeless man as a drug addict instead of seeing his need for worth and mercy. We see color instead of character. We see cult members instead of a culture. We see the person as the problem instead of seeing the poison that have struck his or her heart.
Sadly, too often, we, as Christians, turns on each other. We judge others in different styles of churches for there over the top laws or practices or for their lacks of strict laws. While Jesus wanted us to test prophets ability to follow Biblical truth. We even judge others members of our own church for not being devoted enough, faithful enough, volunteering enough in the church or judge them for acting too good. Religion sets the bar too high.
I do not understand all the dominations of Christianity. Honestly, it makes me sad because I can see how the devil has divided God's children by using a few small details and dramatizing them. We must keep in mind that the devil wants to create division especially amongst God's people because when they are unity God's presence shines bright. We must remember that with God there is no dominations. There are those who His son knows and those who His son does not. No more, no less.
Perhaps, living on the high place of God's glory of God for so long, we forgot the pits where we came from. We forget that Jesus met us there. He accepted us there, regardless, of where there was.
No place is too dark that His light cannot touch. His reach is infinite. His love is bottomless.
We, as Christians, have The Cure. It lives within us. All we have to do it activate it. (easier said than done, I know.)
We need to remind ourselves of the grace we received.
Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
What you and I would be are people who see from God's perspective. Since ,we are all God's children, perhaps we need to see through the eyes of Him as a parent- One who loves their children no matter what they do. To do gives us freedom from our sins and allows our mission to helping other discover that freedom as well.
Riding the High Horse can be dangerous. Pain lives in the pits, not on the ladders, in towers, or the clouds. Lonely people need to be seen. Someone who will notice them and stay when the world turns its back on them. Can we be the one who points them to Emmanuel (God is with us)?
As the C.S. Lewis quote suggest "Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind."
It is so true that pride leads to other sins. The high horse is a mustang- a free spirit. This horse is high maintenance. It cost the rider greatly to keep up the appearance he or she desires. The high horse's appetite is endless. It feeds on rotten apples without realizing it Its rider losses the power of his or her testimony trying to conceal temptations only to eat them up.
Ephesians 4:2 "Be completely humble and gentle: be patient, bearing with one another in love."
This horse has an anti-God state of mind. At its worst, it has a God complex. It takes control of the reins and led the rider into danger, destruction, division and sometimes into death. The Bible encourages Christians to practice humility, to admits he or she needs help, to serve others, and to take the risk of being vulnerable. These are impossible to practice if we remain on the High Horse and refuse to climb down to meet others.
I speak from experience when I say that God loves us enough to remove us from the High Horse, if we will not do it freely. Jonah-likeness (running from God's calling) lead to a whale. In this case, the High Horse is the ship that Jonah was using to get far away from Nineveh as he could. God has a way of showing us divine intervention. He will spook that horse as many times as it takes to get us where or keep us where he wants us. During our "learning season" He will keep us in the belly of a fish.
For me, those lessons hurt and for a long time I did not understand why God let me fall off the horse when he spooked it or even when he pulled me off of it. I just saw the dirt that covered me and the bruises I had from the experience. I was overwhelmed by the pain of pride and its sore bum that I fell on.
Today, I am learning better. Still, I try to get on the High Horse; yet there are times when I catch myself and don't continue. I cannot say that I understand why God does what he does in these situations. Nevertheless, I am confident that God has his reasons, even if I can not see them. Perhaps, the horse I was riding was about to jump off a cliff and God let me fall safely on solid ground. Perhaps, it was about to go into a battle that I wasn't ready for. Only God knows why. .
Growing in Christ is a life-time project. Pride can be powerful, but we can overcome its strength with God's help. We can also help God help us by focusing on being teachable and being willing to change our own behaviors. Let's meet others where they are and God focus on changing others' behaviors . Let us grow a humble spirit. It will keep us from riding the High Horse.
As Casting Crown song "Start Right Here" suggests- If we want see hearts set free, the tyrants removed, walls fall down, and our land healed, we must we must climb down from the saddle of pride's high horses, join other believers as a united church, cross our neighborhood streets, walk a mile in another's shoes, and show those around us the one who helped us escape the pit we came from.
For God is with us. Our weakness is where God's glory shines the brightest. We cannot see air, we know it exist because of what it touches and our dependence on it. Like so, Jesus is like the air and His disciples are who he touches. God is who we depend on. Our testimonies are full of proof of God's mercy and Jesus's grace. The problem is that we often conceal the rotten parts because we are ashamed, even though we all have some.
The hard truth is within those parts; but so it the beauty. It is those parts of our story that make our testimony powerful. What we fail to see or share is- we still struggle even as believers. The difference between the struggles we had before Christ and after is that we are now equipped with the power of the Holy Spirit. We are not alone; never will be again. We do not fight alone. Do not have to face our problems with our own strength. Thank God.
That truth is worth sharing. We can start right where we are, even if we are not where we want to be.
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