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What is important is faith expressing itself in love. - Galatians 5:6b

Younger Christians like the Galatians foolishly think they need to practice more religious exercises when they come to Christ through faith. After all, as faith grows it begins itching to do something with this new spiritual life.

One popular teaching called “The Spiritual Disciplines” reinforce this fruitless religious exercise, and it often involves rigorous exercises leading (supposedly) to maturity, but it strays far from biblical wisdom. Paul is clear: “What is important is faith expressing itself in love.”

It surprises too many Christians to learn that spiritual maturity is summed up in one word: “love.” The “Love Ethic” is spread across the entire New Testament; it’s in so many passages, it’s impossible to list them here. But one thing is certain: spiritual growth—or holiness, as we also call it—means becoming someone who learns and lives God’s principles of love.

Good Versus Evil

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. - Romans 12:21

The verse above is often-quoted as a rule of behavior for Christians, but that’s a misunderstanding. First, it isn’t a rule, and second, it’s not merely a behavior, as if through clenched teeth you’re determined to be good no matter what. Growing up in a Christian home, I understood this and many other similar passages to mean if you’re good, you’ll be kept safe from evil. Or, if you’re tempted to do evil, then try and “overcome evil with good” by doing good things instead, which drives the evil temptations away.

Christians have so many silly interpretations of “good”, and they all share a common fault: a naive and shallow understanding of the world we live in and the Bible itself.

I discovered in the seventh grade how my naive “good behavior” ethic is great recipe for failure. I was surprised and almost terrified to discover so many evil kids with cruel intentions filling the school halls. I was always “such a nice boy” and that worked great until this point, when I discovered my niceness only aggravated and energized the taunts and cruelty of all those evil kids.

There’s so many Bible verses with the same message as Romans 12:21. It’s hard to reconcile these with the real world:

Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. - Romans 12:17

“But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, - Matthew 5:44

“But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. “If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.” - Matthew 5:39–42

“Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.” - Luke 6:30

All these passages I knew well from Sunday School, and they were utterly useless in seventh grade for me. The nicer I was, the more they picked on me! My entire framework was shattered! I finally decided halfway through the year to join them, because I sure couldn’t beat ‘em, and then I become a world-expert in “evil kid” behavior. The change shocked everyone. Almost overnight I was transformed from a model Christian kid into a juvenile delinquent hoodlum.

I wish somebody had taught me what I know now, but of course that’s always the regret of old age, isn’t it? What I know today is not very complicated: my Christian “faith” was shallow and it couldn’t handle the big, bad world of high school.

A Good Weakling

Today I know that all my “niceness” was only polite behavior my parents taught me, and what I classified as “evil kids” were actually kids just like me, but from different backgrounds I didn’t understand and therefore classified as evil. Truthfully, I was just as evil, but I didn’t realize it. Continue Reading »