The hole in humanity

We regularly miss the point. We make others miss the point.

The miss is subtle.

We admire another person’s faith, maybe how they treat others, how they lead others. We see the acts and equate that to love of God. The tendency is to look at the giving, the knowledge of the Bible, the attendance at church, the servant heart that is displayed and point to the person.

“He loves the Lord.”

“She has great faith.”

“Look at what he did.”

The point is not how much a person loves God, but the point is how much God loves the person.

The tendency is to point to the person versus the Savior.

“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭10‬ 

Not that we love God, but that He loves us.

The point is that He loves us. The Creator chose us. Jesus picked us out, made us a new being, and actively works in our life. He knows our past, present, and future. He overlooks the mess we are.

But, culture pushes us to miss the point. This has always been the case. Man desires glory. Naturally, we want our faith to be greater than others. We want our works to stand out. It is an innate desire. We crave glory.

We read the Bible daily. We give more. We serve constantly. We want our name on the building or the book or as the keynote speaker. Every time the doors of the church are open, we are there.

The desire for glory creates a comparison against other people.

This desire for glory creates a hole in humanity.

We look at others, and we have a gap, like Moses at the burning bush. We say, “I am not good enough. I don’t know the Bible like him. Look at how she is serving, what am I doing?”

Or, worse, we look at our works and the ego builds. We think things like, “I am in church constantly. My leadership is great. My sermon was incredible. Look at my name on the building. I have strong faith. Look at how many people are in my class, my church.”

The hole in humanity grows and grows. And, we perpetuate the hole in humanity with the way we live, teach, and act. Our heart is drawn to the worship of ourselves.

But, God’s knowledge of us is greater than our heart’s pull to glorify ourselves. He knows us. He understands. He forgives.

The only way to fill the hole in humanity is to recognize the love of God. Because of His grace, I do or I am. He is the only reason.

So, take a deep breath. Let His love for you be a pressure relief valve. He loves. He cares. He knows. He doesn’t compare. He knit you in the womb. He has your future planned. The mistake you made, it is okay. The gap you think you have is not a gap in His eyes.

It isn’t what you can do. It is what He did for you.

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13