Perhaps it may turn out a sang,
Perhaps turn out a sermon.

-- R. Burns Epistle to a Young Friend

Thursday, May 8, 2014

Working on the Inside



The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil.  Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. -- Proverbs 8:13


This might be why politics and religion do not always play well together.  Our Christian worldview is often going to conflict with what has become acceptable in society.  Politics is willing to adapt to changing mores and attitudes for the sake of power.  As much as I admire Robert E. Howard and Conan, and as much as I would like sometimes to crush our enemies, see them driven before us, and hear the lamentations of their women, it is contrary to the Spirit and borne of hubris. 

Hating evil begins at home for us.  For the secular minded and the humanist, it begins next door or across the street or with all of us bitter clingers out here in flyover country.  Mister Beam (no relation to Jim) is deeply disturbed by Mister Mote.  Because I fear the Lord, that is, because I respect Him and accept the superiority of His wisdom and understanding, I will reject self-righteous, self-satisfied arrogance and its fruit.  The only place I can be effective in doing that is in my own dark heart. 

Both the secular leftist and some social conservatives are seduced by the temptation to fix society.  I understand.  There are a myriad of things I would like to see change, but it only works from the inside out.    

3 comments:

Rick said...

I never prayed for my enemies until very recently. Nothing fancy, just tagged them on to the end of the list with everyone else.
You know, I felt silly. Which I think is the point. They're not my enemies. That's a name for an entirely different purpose. They're not out to get me. Anyway, put things I think in a bit different light. And not as difficult as I thought.

Rick said...

Considering someone as your enemy is a kind of trap for the two of you. It perpetuates and devolves. You continue to act and think in a certain way. If the other were your child, you wouldn't take it personally.

mushroom said...

That's a good way to look at it. Would this bother me if I really loved the person who did/said it? Would it bother me if I knew the person loved me, cared about, or even was completely indifferent toward me?

An enemy is someone to whom I attribute maliciousness toward me. I will interpret their actions a certain way because I assume they are trying to hurt me.