Unveiling Before God and Men

Continued...

I introduced Mike to my friends and we stood and chatted for a few minutes while Mike continued to smoke and identified himself as a believer. Mike seemed to be carrying a load, but even in that he made his way across the street, humbled himself, and told us to keep doing what we’re doing. What about Mike’s smoking you might ask. Good question. What about Mike’s smoking?

Today I just happened to be reading Matthew 15 and there it was, Jesus being called out by the clean living Pharisees for breaking the tradition of the elders and allowing his disciples to eat without washing their hands. Those Pharisees who had the traditions of Israel locked up in their performance had seen an obvious failing to follow those traditions in Jesus and perhaps they equated that as being unholy, impure, and lacking a reverence for God.

Well Jesus showed God’s heart perfectly to them and us when He turned the tables on His accusers and showed them how they were transgressing the commandments of God in a roundabout way by not helping their parents who were in need and using God as their excuse because of their tradition. Then He told the crowd clearly that it isn’t important what goes into the mouth but what comes out of it.

It seems the Pharisees had gotten to a place of arrival in their own minds where they were able to harshly assess the weakness of others which would allow them to tie weak people down with their strength in human bondage and tradition. Jesus offended them with the truth of their self righteousness, and what’s encouraging too is how Jesus tempered His disciples by telling them to leave the Pharisees alone because the blind can only lead the blind, and both will fall into a pit. In other words God will ultimately take care of the justice.

So here’s some food for thought. Should we as believers in Jesus have a veil of self righteous judgement waiting to unload on people? We might not even think our attitudes are attitudes of self righteousness, but I think you and I ought to watch ourselves carefully. Church tradition clearly makes us think that smoking is sinful and dirty... period. And a lot of folks would argue that someone who smokes must not be saved, or at the very least they are way far away from God. I cannot say one way or the other what I think about smoking, because God’s word doesn’t. And before you get up in arms and begin to think of how God’s word says our bodies are living temples of the Holy Spirit... we need to watch ourselves and be honest.

How many times in the last week, month, or year have we overeaten? How many bags of potato chips and how many cans of soda pop have you or I consumed? Have we eaten more than we should? How many times have we put our love of money and stuff ahead of the Lord and people in need? How many times have slandered others behind their back or in our hearts? How many times have you or I indulged in sensuality, either with food or sex? You might love the food network and be married and think, “I eat healthy food and I’m not sleeping around, I’m good”. But making food more than sustenance and having sex in marriage which is not God glorifying is highly possible in our current culture, and God knows the whole truth about you and me. There is no hiding from Him.

Mike smokes still, and maybe Mike always will. Mike showed that he loved the gospel of Jesus Christ that day and I don’t think anyone should stand in his way with the Lord. More importantly than what I think, however is, what does the Lord want? Does He want us to put on a front of grace only to show people that the closer they get to the church the more superficial judgment and graceless rejection they will encounter? Or does He want us to patiently reiterate the truth, time and time again, of God’s word, of the gospel of Jesus Christ, while we are ourselves are changed and love others with the humility of people who actually behave like they believe they were saved by grace?

When my wife came to faith in Jesus Christ back on May 17, 2011, she had a number of addictions. Some fell away rapidly and others lingered. For the next two years, approximately, Cathy continued to smoke. By God’s grace I didn’t beat her up about smoking, like I did about some other things years earlier, or try to change her habit. I have enough changing that still needs to be done myself, and I saw her everyday praying, reading her Bible, and loving Jesus and her family in a real and brand new way. Then God did what only God can do, so that no one else could take credit.

We had an opportunity to join another ministry in 2013 and one of their outward criteria for new people was that neither they nor their spouse could be smokers. Upon hearing that Cathy was moved by love. Love for Jesus and love for me. She came to me and told me she was going to quit smoking. She had been a smoker for more than 25 years. And just like that, by God’s sovereign leading, Cathy quit smoking, for good.

Let’s remember that if we’re in Jesus Christ we’ve been bought by at high price by grace. Let’s remember that when we’re strong we are ugly and Pharisaical. But when we are weak, in Jesus, He is strong in us. He will change us in His time, according to His will, not according to our traditions. Jesus isn’t about man pleasing, He’s about the Father. How many smokers and wine drinkers will be in heaven? Well I think in reading the Bible I can’t rule people out based on those superficialities; I can’t rule anyone out. (I can only imagine how that statement might be interoperated; nonetheless, I can’t rule people out)
   
I know of a believer who thinks it’s the worst form of child abuse to allow your children to have junk food. Yet scripture says no food is unclean. Imagine getting tied down to that law? Countless people in the church think it’s sinful to drink alcohol in any way. Yet Jesus turned water into wine, not grape juice. Let’s not allow our human pride or traditions stand in the way of God’s truth and love to change each of us, one at a time, for His glory not our traditions. Who is the greatest in the kingdom? “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.” Luke 9: 48

God bless you and thanks for reading! Comments are welcome.