Gimme Shelter

No, there's no relationship between that title and what I'm about to say write here. I'm just playing off your previous post's title, and I like the Rolling Stones song by that name. It is not necessarily my favorite Rolling Stones song ... which would be is not clear in my mind, but here are some of my more preferred:

• Sympathy for the Devil (Ironic, isn't it? I love the bass line.)
• Monkey Man
• You Can't Always Get What You Want
  

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I never took your opposition to Biblical Inerrancy personally. So don't worry about that. I was just struck by the apparent force of your disagreement with it. I wondered if there was a personal experience from the past that put such a cast on it.

Further, I'll be honest with you ... for the most part, I don't much care for the way most people carry the "Biblical Inerrancy" thing. That's not to say I disagree with the idea of the inerrancy of the Bible. Rather, I think most people get it wrong -- myself included, to my shame -- when they take on an arrogant tone. As if they have a share in the inerrancy.

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As I approach this week's further medical tests, I grow apprehensive about the possibility of it being really bad news. The odds are low, I know ... but what if? This has forced me to look at myself in the mirror, and do so critically. And what I see I do not like. I see a person who seeks out Christ only in times of trouble, yet pushes him aside in other times. I see a person who at times takes on an arrogant tone, boastful words and a puffed-out chest. In short, when it comes to loving Christ with all I have, I am a fraud; a miserable cheat who does so only on my terms.

That's why the cornerstones end ... I will not complete #'s 5 and 6.

The Lord does not want me to be an apologist. I am not well suited for that role. I will leave that to others who have a better handle on their pride. My pride is a slippery beast, ready to pop up at a moment's notice.

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A week ago today a man came to our church in Tucson and gave a little talk about a ministry of the local Salvation Army that serves to help rehabilitate adult men who have fallen into bad habits and destructive lifestyles -- drugs, alcohol, etc. One of the things about the Salvation Army I admire is they are not ashamed of Jesus Christ, and they weave the Gospel into the works they do for these. The man proceeded with his short talk, but his voice broke and he had trouble proceeding when he tried to speak of how these men -- completely broken men who know little of the love of their neighbors -- see the love of Christ and come to Him in humble gratitude.

I couldn't help but be moved myself by the tenderness in the speaker as he recounted this.

In my mind I see this as the human face of Christ I seek to find and emulate -- humble, grateful, gentle and kind. Not arrogant and boastful. Not false piety. Not sugary talk and showy gestures. Just the face of a man who has come to understand that at the foot of the cross none of us are better or worse than the other. At the feet of Christ we are all sinners beyond redemption, yet he loves us still and worked to give us a door through which to enter into Grace.

Grace and peace, brother.