Monday, January 17, 2011

Simple

Christianity is simple. The Bible is simple. Sometimes, we think it’s too simple, and try to add rules and complicate the gospel: you have to pray this way, you have to worship that way, you have to serve this way, etc. That’s what the Pharisees did, right? They took the simple word of God and added their own rules. What does it mean to rest on the Sabbath? Can you cook? How far can you walk? We often like to add our own rules and definitions to God’s word.

When Jesus was asked what the greatest command was, his answer was simple: Love God with your all heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. Simple right? You could take this one verse and lived by it for a year, and you could change a lot of lifes.

Simple doesn’t mean easy. ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ is simple, but it’s not easy. Being told ‘dig a ditch that’s 1’ wide, 1’ deep, and a mile long’ is simple. Is it easy? No. That’s the beauty of God’s word: It is simple, yet not easy.