Do you have a problem with God?
(Part 2 of 2)

If there is one central question that has driven me for most of my life, it has been, "what must I do to avoid God's wrath and anger and get Him to love me and bless me?" I truly believe that this is a fundamental question that drives many of us, at least those of us who profess a belief in God. From my standpoint, however, I thought that if I did all the right things, including following God's lead for my life and trying as much as possible to obey the precepts of the Bible, then not only would God love me and not send me to Hades (hell), but I would receive all the earned goodies (blessings) that come along with my efforts. It would take me a long time to realize that this is legalistic thinking, a way of thought that unfortunately is very common in most Christian circles. We say on one hand that the reality of our existence as God's children is all due to God's grace and the work of Jesus, but we negate this belief by the not-too-subtle implication that if you don't obey God (and the Biblical precepts) you are not only under a curse, but you will face God's wrath.

So my question is, if obeying God were indeed possible, and if self-righteousness could give us the benefits of being God's children, why in the world did Jesus come, why did He have to go through all that trouble to redeem us? This is the question that the Paul asks in Galatians 2:21 where he says, "I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die." (NLT) What is so ironic, however, is that if you listen to most Christian sermons, the implication is always that you must obey Biblical commands to earn God's blessings. It is no wonder we ignore the message of God's grace, we live under the illusion that obeying the Bible is actually possible.

What are we even preaching or trying to convince people to accept the message of the "Good news of the Gospel" if all we have to do is obey the Bible and do our part? And what is so Good about the "Gospel" is all it does is add an impossible burden - obeying Biblical law - to an already stressed and weary soul? Therein lies the problem: because if it were truly possible to obey the Bible, then the message of the Gospel would all be in vain. Besides, so many of us are hurting in ways that we cannot describe, that it is almost laughable that we even try to put on the mask to hide our real selves when we are struggling so deeply.

After going through the phase of feeling like it was not only my duty, but God's mandate to give it my best shot at obeying the Bible, I got to a point of complete and utter despair, especially in realizing that not only was my religious phase not leading me to a greater state of spiritual and mental freedom, but it was really making my more miserable because I was deceiving myself. I had two options, either relinquish my embrace of "Christianity" altogether, or embrace the Gospel in all of its true unadulterated wonder. Fortunately, I chose the latter.

Why religion is the breeding ground for lies.
I sincerely believe that it is practically impossible to be ultra-religious without being competent at lying or self-deception. My reasoning is simple: Keep in mind the definition of "religion" in part 1 of this essay. Religion purports to make us more moral human beings by doing good deeds, so it goes without saying that no one who is religious wants other people to see how imperfect they really are. This is why you may often hear the religious say, "well, I know no one is perfect", but when it comes to being honest about the degree of their imperfection, you run into a dead end. Self-righteousness, the twin sibling of religion, does not allow for authenticity, because the goal is always to "one-up" the other person with your performance. So we look at those who are marginalized in society (addicts, homosexuals, prostitutes, people with mental or developmental disabilities, the homeless, the poor etc.) and say stuff like "why can't they get their act together?" In these kinds of statements, we reject the humanity of those who are already suffering and place an added burden on them when what they need above all things is hope.

Religion, by its very nature is supposed to make you a better and more moral person if you adhere to its principles, so the notion that you would still have struggle in some areas is antithetical to its teaching, and so people lie about the real nature of their lives. This is why most religious testimonies go something like this, "when I was in the 'world', I used to drink, do drugs, smoke, go to clubs and be very promiscuous, but then I gave my life to Jesus and He took the desire for all these worldly things out of my system. I got married, stopped smoking, drinking and have seen my life turned around completely. Praise God!!" Anyone who knows anything about habits and/or addictions, however, knows that even though you may give something up cold turkey, it does not always work out where you wake up one morning and the cravings are completely gone. This is why humility is one of the hardest to maintain virtues, because pride is always looking at us around the corner whispering in our ears, "you have arrived"...

We often lie about our true spiritual state because it is assumed that to tell the truth would mean that this God-stuff is not really working. But the reality is that it is our refusal to completely accept the message of God's grace that makes us continue to lie in the spirit of self-righteousness.

Religion demands that we perform and be pseudo-perfect to be accepted, so we downplay our weaknesses and magnify our strength, while downplaying other people's strengths and magnifying their weaknesses; this is how self-righteousness works. It is not until we have the courage to be honest with ourselves that we can walk in humility with our brothers and sisters and love them without trying to one-up them. You see this amongst the Pharisees and Sadducees in the Bible during Jesus' day. They were experts and pointing out other people's flaws, while downplaying their own weaknesses. We also see this tactic in politics all the time, where here in the United States Democrats and Republicans are so busy demonizing the other side, they barely have any time to serve the American people.

From lies to Authenticity.
To love another person is to be able to accept their brokenness because we too can relate to that struggle. I am a broken vessel, and so are you. You have issues, and I do too. So what right do I have to judge you or your place in life, when I would not want you to judge me. As the Native American saying goes, "don't judge any man until you have walked two moons in his moccasins."

It may hurt to be authentic, but it is freeing, especially when you realize that no matter how painful the admission (to God) you are covered in His grace through Jesus. There are parts of my life that I would be too scared to admit to others, because they are too painful, or because the shame may be too great for me to bare. But ultimately, I know that God's love for me is not based on my performance and my self worth is not gauged by the fleeting values through which we often look at one another. It is freeing to know that we are eternally secure in Jesus based on His actions; this frees us and liberates us to love others and forgive them when they hurt us, because we too are fallible beings who have been eternally loved and forgiven.

Peace & Love,
Stephen Oladotun Akinduro

Recommended Reading: The Naked Gospel  ~ By Andrew Farley