RU a Cliff Diver?
Being a believer, but not a seeker is like being a cliff diver who has never felt the need to learn how to swim! Self professed believers privately acknowledge that there is (probably) a creator, who is or was responsible for everything around us. They might also take a step toward Christianity by agreeing that a guy named Jesus of Nazareth lived, taught and preached about 2,000 years ago and he was unjustly crucified for what he taught. They may have heard of his birth in Bethlehem, at some point during the holiday season now known as Christmas. If as children, they attended any Sunday school or catechism classes, they might have learned how nearly all of Christ’s apostles were persecuted or executed for relating what their favorite teacher had taught them. Such non-seeking believers have somehow concluded that they have enough knowledge, effort, or faith to give them a reasonable shot at getting into heaven when they die. This popular conclusion, like so many other contemporary attitudes, can be credited to the Madison Avenue-like catch phrase, designed to remove all thinking from their decision making. “JUST BELIEVE!”
Nike: JUST DO IT, or post Tiger, FREE YOURSELF, KFC: Finger-Licken Good, BMW: The Ultimate Driving Machine, the list goes on and on. Spirituality is as far away from a cliche or any one of these grammatically inept sentences, as we are from the sun. Here’s what would likely happen to our anecdotal cliff diver. Standing proudly atop a cliff in a black speedo, with the stiff ocean breezes rippling the sun bleached hair, a salty mist on the lips, (pause) … momentary perfect posture, the knees bend deeply and launch the arms and body forward off the cliff, into the heavens, moving at break neck speed toward … OMG, a complete unknown … totally clue-less about where they’re headed with no thought given to when they arrive, a few seconds or perhaps a thousand years later! I’ve read that nearly every survivor of a suicide jump attempt, grasped their grave mistake immediately after their launch. I expect the same thing to happen to non-seeking lukewarm “believers,” if they are lucky enough to approach their personal end-of-times slowly. If God is an after thought in your life, or you’re a closet Christian, think about the time you’ll be crashing the biggest party ever as an uninvited or wanna-be guest who will most certainly be stopped at the door and questioned, now know this. The Host will be door guy, making all decisions about who gets in. There is only one name that you can drop that means anything. This door guy will be wearing an arctic white linen robe, probably adorned with a purple sash, and that very same name might be stitched in gold thread on that sash. If HE doesn’t know who you are, you’re going to hit the water hard, one deep salty gulp later thinking … (emphasis excluded) … what now?
JC Calkins with COMMON SENSE 4 UNCOMMON PEOPLE
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