In the interests of integrity and full disclosure, I stole this post. The pastor of a church in Post Falls, ID, Aaron Couch, spoke at our church yesterday. Simple. Convicting. A hard message that prompted much meditation. Let’s focus on one.
Why do we “keep the rules” of Christianity? An earlier post explored how God’s rules benefit us—he best knows how we optimally function. Aaron hitchhiked on that—our behavior puts God on display. We “all reflect the Lord’s glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
So, what God do we reflect? As people look at how we reflect the one we claim to serve, what God do they see?
A wise or ignorant one? If we follow the rules, we show people that God knows the human condition best. If we don’t, we proclaim that we have more wisdom than he does. Hmmm.
A loving or distant one? If we love when it gets messy and painful, we demonstrate a God of love. If not, we suggest a theistic one, distant and removed from the lives of people.
A patient or impatient one? I nailed myself on this two weeks ago, with “My Non Resolution.” ‘Nuff said.
A fun or lemon-sucking one? What default facial expression do others see in you? A smile, a frown, or neutral? Would your demeanor draw them to God?
Do you see why this troubles me? Aaron took the issue of rules beyond how I personally benefit, and placed it on a larger stage. Too often, like the recent post, I give a pretty poor picture of the awesome, transcendent Creator of the Universe. I don’t particularly like that. I want people to like the human people I like, and that should be even truer toward God. Would they like the
God I portray? What do I nonverbally tell people about his character?
Kick Starting the Discussion
Do you buy the premise that we reflect God? What impact does it have on you? What positive attributes of God have people seen in you? What negative ones? Do you give a different view of God to different people in your world? Which ones, and why? How can you begin to reverse any negative views that you reflect of God?