I was talking with somebody (who might not want to be dragged into this) the other day about how God discourages us from engaging in certain things, but that sometimes we tend to focus on the "holiness" aspect of it, and disregard the more practical aspects (such as the consequences) of it.
I'm gonna use the Ten Commandments as my example. They're pretty highly regarded, and you can sound all holy when you quote them. My comments are below.
#1) Don't worship any other Gods but me.
Because not only will it not work, but it'll mess up your entire life and keep you from getting the good stuff God has in mind for you.
#2) Don't make your own little gods.
Because they don't work either, and as messed up as you are, how good a god could you make anyway? Plus you'll look stupid.
#3) Don't be abusing God's name.
God is a lot bigger than you think, man. Show some respect.
#4) Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.
Don't work yourself into the ground, man. Take a day off, spend some time with your family and friends, and remember who gave all of this to you, and remember to thank Him for it.
#5) Honor your father and your mother
Because they've done more for you then you'll ever know, and they're a lot bigger than you and can lay down the whuppin' if you get froggy.
#6) Don't murder people.
Because you destroy the lives of others and the lives of their families and friends, and a lot of times, the government will kill you back. Especially the Great State of Texas, which is my personal favorite.
OK - I added that last part in. But I do think that God loves Texas.
#7) Don't commit adultery.
It might lead to a divorce, which will end up with you moving up to a third-story apartment in August, and you'll lose all your money, and you'll end up in terrible debt and paying child support for a kid that you dearly love but won't get to see as often as you like. Conversely, you might also get yourself drilled.
#8) Don't steal.
Because it's not yours, and you might have to pay for it with a little jail time, or your hand, or, in the State of Texas, increased lead content in your blood stream.
#9) Don't lie.
Because eventually, nobody will believe you, even when you're telling the truth, and you won't have any credibility with the ones you love.
#10) You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, donkey, etc.
Because you might forget how cool your house and your donkey already are, and you'll just make yourself miserable.
That's my initial take on 'em, anyway. I think we tend to we tend to churchify it all to make us feel all holy, and we forget that God loves us enough to try to keep us from doing stupid things because they're just plain bad for us.
Anyway, that's it for today. You guys have good weekend.
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3 comments:
I don't know if this makes me weird (or normal), but when I'm being wrong headed, I'm the opposite.
I view the practical parts of His guidance/laws/exhortations too easily. "Well, God says do X. I should do X because I'm supposed to plus then God'll do Y."
Which (obviously) is dumb.
So, yeah. Instead of being on the holy side, I tend to default to a more selfish non-holy sort of thinking.
"What I should do, how this affects me, and more often than I like to admit, how I can benefit from this."
And then I'm in the same trap we talked about the other day, italics included on purpose. *q:=
Regardless of my way or your way you wrote about.. Phew. Jesus, save us from ourselves.
Hah - I do that, too.
Great minds think alike, albeit badly on occassion.
This is really interesting...maybe I should try to write out my take on the 10 Commandents...
personalized...
I love how you make me think!!!
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