Better Than Neutral

A mentality that really bothers me, whether in the Church or in the world, is that goodness is determined by what you don't do. The idea that "if you don't smoke, don't drink, don't watch this show or hang out with those people", then you are somehow made good. What bothers me about this is that the absence of all those things could quite possibly (and often does) result in a person who is still just as inconsequential as one who indulges in all of the above activities. To take an extreme example, a person in a coma would (by the above definition) be the perfect Christian. They wouldn't lie, swear, steal, drink or do anything considered inappropriate.

Call me crazy, but I think God has bigger plans for His people than this. I'm not saying that we should enjoy or encourage inappropriate behavior, because scripture calls us to a pure life. My point is that if a life is not filled with good things to replace the evil we abstain from, is God at all impressed with us?

We could compare it to eating cardboard. Cardboard has zero fat and zero cholesterol. In fact, we wouldn't even get any calories from it since humans don't have an enzyme capable of breaking it down. But no nutritionist in the world would recommend somebody eat cardboard. It lacks the nutrients we need to survive. Somebody who lived entirely on cardboard would die from malnutrition.

I am terrified of living as though I were cardboard. I could be like food claiming to have no unhealthy fats or cholesterol (sin and impurity), but where are the nutrients? Where are the good deeds that magnify that love of God overflowing from one's life? I may do no harm, but if I do no good either, I render myself useless.

When I look at the greatest warriors of God in the Bible—people like David or Paul—I don't see someone who is flawless. They weren't people who had spotless lives who were perfectly abstained from any sin. They messed up—sometimes horribly. Yet they offered their lives so fully to God and the glory of His Name that they were able to make an impact on the world that we still feel today. Despite their mistakes.

Again, I'm not implying that sin is okay or that we should shrug off the things we struggle with. I've just been thinking lately that perhaps the better method for overcoming sin isn't to focus on being neutral (stopping badness) but to actively pursue God and doing everything in our power to glorify Him. I am horrified at the idea of coming to the end of my life, having tried my best to keep myself from sin, only to have to explain to my King that all I have to show for my life was that I watched good wholesome TV and had clean fun on the weekends. Shouldn't God's people do more than that?

Just The Way You Are

For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. - Ephesians 2:10

All people, whether Jew or Gentile (like this passage is talking about), were created purposefully. The Greek for "handiwork" can also mean "work of art". This shows that we are beautifully and intentionally made. God prepared a goal and mission for each of us, the "good works", and created us specifically to do those things. Our strengths, weaknesses, our life history and our circumstances were all foreseen by God and taken into account when he formed us.

We can take comfort in hard times or in times of self-doubt, knowing that God has created us perfectly for the road we are to take. It is our call to dedicate ourselves to the good works God has prepared for us and to thank Him for the gifts He's given us to do those works.

It's also a call to love and respect others. When we tear down or criticize others, we insult God's handiwork. While people may still do things that require a loving rebuke, the person himself is treasured by God.