Love: The Ultimate Public Display Of Religion

When and where I grew up (as well as in the family that raised me) public displays of religion were not necessarily encouraged.  Sure, we were expected to be seen walking into the church building every time the doors were opened, but things like wearing religious jewelry, taking a Bible to school or publicly praying over a meal were things we didn’t do.  I am sure that every family and each person had a reason for the choices that were made, but ours was based on the negative example of the Pharisees whose religion was more for show than for spirit.   As I fast-forward through the last five decades I have come to see “religious displays” in a more favorable light.  Today, when religious expressions seem to be based more on genuine faith than showiness, maybe it is time we start displaying our religious nature in public.  No, praying over a meal in a restaurant or reading the Bible in the breakroom is not necessarily a sign of deep spirituality, but it does tell our neighbors something about who we are.
A public display of religion may be one way to show our commitment to Christ, but it isn’t the only way.  Interestingly, when Jesus was teaching His disciples about a renewed focus on godliness He advocated one core characteristic – love.  The Apostle John, who was sitting in the same room when Jesus commanded, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35), would go on to write, “We love, because He first loved us. If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.  And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.” (I John 4:19-21).  There is absolutely nothing wrong in public demonstrations of our religion, but if we are going to be pleasing to God and visible to the world we have to show people that we love them.   Demonstrating love can appear to be a nebulous concept, but it really isn’t all that complex.  When we stop what we are doing to help someone in trouble, when we console the grieving, when we focus on the needs (and words) of those who are less fortunate, when we forgive, when we provide encouragement rather than criticism, when we pray for (and with) our community, when we hug a crying child or a mourning grandma we show love.  By donating funds to those impacted by tragedy, supporting those devastated by evil and providing hope to those who are depressed we “love one another”. 
The modern world needs to see our holiness – not through a spirit of arrogance but through a commitment to God.  Let’s stand out to the world by how we carry ourselves and in how we love one another.

Popular posts from this blog

At The Foot Of The Cross

I like a lot of the old classic hymns, but there is one that I struggle to sing – The Old Rugged Cross .  I understand that George Bennard’s masterpiece has an allure to a lot of people, but honestly, there are some phrases that get stuck in my mind and in my heart.  I find it hard to vocalize that “I love that old cross” or that I can see its “wondrous beauty”.  No, I don’t have any scriptural issues with the song, nor do I feel we should stop singing it – it’s just not one of my favorites. While I may struggle with Mr. Bennard’s description of the cross, I do appreciate the imagery of emotionally standing at the foot of the cross and being reminded of its lessons.   When I look at the cross, here are a few things I notice: 1).   My inability to be personally successful in life .   Everything I have and everything I hope for comes from Jesus.   Whether it is internal peace or external success, it all dependent upon His work in my life.   Yet, my greatest failure comes in my inab
Read more

Spiritual Computer Safety

When I took a computer class in college the highlight of the course was getting to actually see the computer – which was housed in a room by itself.  During the semester I also remember seeing a smaller piece of equipment (I think they called it a “personal computer” because of it its size), but  I didn’t pay too much attention to it because, after all, if it took a computer the size of a classroom to do simple accounting processes what could that dinky thing do?  That was circa 1980 ... it is incredible how things have changed! Often, when we discuss computers and spirituality, we tend to focus on pornography, but that’s not the direction I want to take this discussion.   Computers – complete with the development of the internet and the prevalence of social media – impact our mind and our spirit just about every day.   In light of this, I want to provide a few suggestions for keeping us spiritually safe in the modern technological world. 1.   Don’t take to heart everything we se
Read more

The Gospel Truth

During a recent Communion Service Scripture reading I was struck by a portion of John 19.  I am sure that I have read it scores of times, but this time it really got me to thinking.  When John recorded the events surrounding Jesus’ crucifixion he wrote, “ And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe.” (John 19:35).   In the midst of making some incredible claims about the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus John pauses to say, “believe me”!   As I got to thinking about the importance of this statement it reminded me that we all have to be honest with the gospel – not just John (whose words would transcend time) – but every one of us.   Even though we have the written Word available to us today, we must treat it with honesty and we must be transparently truthful when discussing it.   So, how do we make this happen? 1.   We must know what the Bible says (and doesn’t say) .    Truth begins w
Read more