Jump Start # 896

Galatians 6:7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.

Our passage today reminds us of two eternal truths. First, there is a connection between behavior and consequences. This seems to be played down today. It is so obvious, yet it seems shocking for many. There is a growing segment that claims to love God yet they continue to regularly ignore God’s word and are bent on doing what they want to do. They seem to think that loving God is a trump card that covers every thing and any thing that they do. As long as they love God, what they do doesn’t matter. This definition and use of love is tainted and not Biblical. The Lord said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” Living like a sinner and dying like a saint doesn’t fly with God and is not a lesson one comes away with from a study of the Bible.

Second, God knows. There is no fooling God. He is not mocked. There is no getting one by God. We can live a life on the edge, using schemes, lies, and deceit to keep us out of trouble and doing only what we feel like doing, but God knows. He sees through all the smoke. He knows the heart. He isn’t caught off guard by slick words, fake promises, crocodile tears or lame excuses. God knows. He knows how serious you are about things. He knows how hard you are trying. He knows just how much you care. He knows. So playing church, playing Mr. Nice Guy, when you’re not, pretending to be what you are not, putting on a front—all these things, God sees through. He knows. Sitting in church services but using the time to text friends, play games on your phone or talk to those near by, all the while, not singing, not paying attention, not listening, not growing, not becoming—God knows. We are only hurting ourselves when we do that.  A fake faith doesn’t connect one to the Lord. It doesn’t get you through the storms of life. It’s useless.

So this reminds us that that we need to be honest with ourselves and with God. Genuineness and humbleness and faith is what God is interested in. He wants substance, not a performance. Real interest in spiritual matters. Real prayers that are more than repeating the same words over and over. Real joy. Real faith. Real commitment. Real love of His word. Real effort in His kingdom.

These thoughts are hard for some. We’ve mastered a way of making our selves look good. We do that to our parents, spouses, coaches, teachers and bosses. We know the right things to say. We know how the game works. Yet, God knows. He knows the truth.

Trying to keep an image of perfection does more harm than good. First, most realize that no one is perfect, other than God. It hurts our children. They feel that they must be perfect because their parents are perfect. No one can measure up to that level. They feel like failures when they don’t reach that standard. Parents are not perfect—as parents, or as humans. Being real means that parents will admit when they were mad, over reacting and apologize. If you want your children to be honest and real, then you must be the same.

This image hurts relationships in church as well. There are always some who are struggling. Their journey with God is hard. They want to do right but temptation seems to win most battles. When they come to worship and see others, who appear to be perfect and never have any doubts or struggles, this makes them feel like failures. This standard seems impossible to keep up with. This is the reason some drop out and never come back. They can’t be the perfect church member that they feel that they are expected to be. There are days when they don’t think about God. There are long periods of time when they don’t pray. Guilt always seems to hover over them. Like a roller coaster, their faith is up and then it is down. It’s those down periods when they really need help. It’s those down periods when they feel so inferior to everyone else. Elijah had some bad days. Queen Jezebel had issued a death warrant on him. He had exposed the prophets of Baal as frauds and led Israel to slaughtering a bunch of them. Jezebel was livid. She wanted Elijah dead. He ran. He hid in a cave. The Bible uses the expression, “He dwelled there.” Dwell carries the idea of staying. He was holed up in his cave. A cave of loneliness, discouragement, defeat and doubt. He would have died in that cave had God not spoken to him. God wasn’t through with Elijah. God need the prophet to do more things. Getting out of the cave was first on the list.

All of us, even the best among us, fight Satan. Our battles are different, but the struggles are the same. All of us, even the best among us, have bad days. All of us, even the best among us, need God’s mercy and forgiveness on a regular basis. All of us, even the best among us, need to worship, pray and study God’s word. All of us are in the same boat. The struggling Christian  needs to see that God loves him, wants him and can help him. The struggling Christian should not feel left out because of his struggles. He should not feel that he is a failure. His heart, his attitude, his spirit has a lot to do with all of this. If he is arrogant and indifferent, he will crash. If he is humble, genuine and seriously trying, he can find joy and peace.

Could it be that some do not return to the Lord and His people because they do not feel like they can ever succeed? Could it be all they see is perfection in others? It’s time to be honest and real with each other. It’s time to be helpful and take off the masks. It’s time to realize that we are all in this together and that we indeed need each other. It would help, like in an AA meeting, for us just to stand and admit, “Hi, I’m a sinner and I need Jesus.”

God is not mocked…be real. Be a Christian.

Roger