Saturday, October 6, 2007

Curse Our "Pride and Prejudice"

I can not believe what I am about to tell you, when you hear I’m sure you will no longer look at me the same and may never again view me as the dominating strong man that I know everyone sees when they look my direction. Through my youth my mother spooned fed us kids all sorts of novels. Novels that guys should not read. All I need to say is one name, Jane Austin. It gets worse, she also read books to us like The Secret Garden and Jane Eyre. While in youth Erin, Laura, and I sat on our parents King size bed and talk for hours and on several occasions Mom read to us from what ever book she had her nose in that time. She loves to read so it was no bother to her. Yet all of this may not shock you, but this will. I love Pride and Prejudice. The Proud Mr. Darcy, and the Prejudice Eliza Bennett beautifully carry out a battle of wits to prove to the other what they themselves subconsciously are. In the midst of the grave quarrel between the two destine lovers Mr. Darcy unveils his “folly” to the “pair of fine eyes” Elizabeth. He so boldly proclaims, “I find it hard to forgive the follies and vices of others or their offences against me. My good opinion once lost is lost forever.”

The sins pride and prejudice really go hand in hand. One cannot exist without the other. Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice displays this impulse perfectly through these two characters, not only does it take a strong hold on the perspective of life but it controls and twists lives. Not only those lives of the proud and of the prejudice, but everyone closely related to them. At some point a person’s iniquities spills over and impinges on those even most precious to them. Pride is a vast and complicated sin to defeat; no one can ever overcome its grasp, for me if I achieved flawless modesty I would discover myself boasting in my meekness. So to avoid the limitless complication in describing pride I want to focus on what Darcy said. “I find it hard to forgive the follies and vices of others or their offense against me. My good opinion once lost is lost forever.”

In the past two years I realized I share the same view as Darcy. I discovered after someone offended me I could not forgive them and held bitterness long after the offence took place. Once they (whoever that may be) did something to compromise my stature and ridicule me they no longer had any worth and disserved to get thrown out. This may seem worse; I sometimes looked for reasons to despise a person. I know this view leaves a distasteful reflection of my Christianity and for this reason I apologize to those I retaliated against with unrighteous anger and those who did not deserve it I beg for your mercy. This problem of mine derives from my pride that I need to swallow and look upon people with Love and not an arrogant demeanor. Even the great Mr. Darcy and the lovely Elizabeth Bennett could find a way to put their arrogant presuppositions aside and find an appeal in the other. Jesus said the greatest commandment is “Love your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength and the second is similar to the first. Love your Neighbor as yourself.” The later of these I am finding most difficult to accomplish. Curse our pride and prejudices.



Also, happy birthday Dad!

Monday, October 1, 2007

Simply Grace

“There is no one righteous, not even one;
There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
All have turned away; they have together become worthless;
There is no one who does good, not even one.”
(Romans 3:10b-12)

These verses scare me. Every time I read this section of Romans I get so depressed. I just can’t believe taking these words for their literal meaning, if I do then I am forced to impose it on myself and I love to think I am a good guy, a moral person, even a good Christian. I like to forget about this passage and go on living as if I fulfilled the meaning of perfection and have everyone look at me in aw. I am totally aware of the fact that I have fallen from God, and by doing so I deserve to die eternally. You know, this passage could even drive a person mad with anger and frustration because the resolution of it means that we could never come close to seeking God even when we believe otherwise. After countless hours of study, years of school, money, worship, and prayer I find that I still fail to seek God daily. Well let me go end my life now to finish my frustration. If any person opened the Bible to this page and read only these passages they would shut it thinking that Religion leads to a lost cause and therefore frivolous, I pray this never happens. In light of these harsh words, Paul points out that in my transgressions, because of my sins I disobeyed his law and deserve death in the gravest of meaning. Despite Paul’s tantalizing words I know he goes on to make a point of a deeper meaning and instead of depression my joy is made complete.

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,… but because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.”
(Ephesians 2:1,4)

This passage reassures me. Instead of the guilt and anger I find joy when I read this passage. Grace can be hard to explain. The preacher today at my church gave this analogy.

A high school biology professor started of his class a little different one day seeing that it was exam day. All the students sat in their seats and opened their books to the chapters of the examination. The professor began a quick review over the chapters before handing out the exam. All the students did great at answering the questions, all participated and it was every teacher’s dream of the perfect class. Yet as the review began to wind down the material he came to no one knew. All the students began to panic and race through worry in their anxious thoughts. A student raised his hand and asked, “We didn’t cover this in class how did we know to study for it?” The professor responded, “You were responsible for everything covered in the chapters.” The review ended and the professor began to pass out the exam, face down. He told everyone not to start until everyone received it and he gave the go ahead. When the professor acknowledge to start, every student flipped over the exam worrying about how awful they would do. To every student’s surprise their names were written at the top of each exam in read and every correct answer already circled. They looked at him puzzled, and he responded with this, “I had mercy on you and gave you grace, I took the exam for you because unlike you I knew all the answers so because of me everyone of you passed with a 100 percent.” The class was dismissed.

Yes, I know I deserve the worst, but in light of God’s mercy he acted by taking the test himself and he passed with flying colors. In his death, all of your sins and my sins have been forgiven and in his resurrection bestowed life to all who accepted his gift of forgiveness. Do not find anguish in the guilt of your transgressions; instead find all happiness. Make your joy complete in God’s grace because it is the gift no one deserves, but in God’s love delivered it to us through the cross. Amen.