The simplicity of what we believe

In His wisdom, God made the Bible readable for the simple as well as the educated. And His message is simple too. The Apostle Paul experienced chagrin whenever a church he loved veered away from the simplicity God intended. He urged that we not “be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3, ESV). You and I could do worse than spend the day today meditating on the six words “sincere and pure devotion to Christ”:

So far in September we’ve seen two contrasting approaches to God and His Word. One concerns the pope’s annulment and abortion announcements. In the Byzantine labyrinth that Roman Catholicism has evolved into, with its 20 centuries of humanistic legal accretions to the simple Word of God, we find a situation in which marriages can be airbrushed away if one has enough money to pay specialist canon lawyers to use their fine-tooth combs to ferret out loophole technicalities in one’s undesirable nuptial.

At the other end of the spectrum we have Kim Davis, who evidently believes that even after several divorces God would have her if she repented. Davis also appears to believe that when the Spirit said through Peter and John, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge” (Acts 4:19, ESV), He means something clear and simple—that it is right to obey God and not man, whenever the two are at odds.

The Catholic Church is complicated. Kim Davis is not complicated. Jesus likes uncomplicated lovers:

“Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” (Mark 10:15, ESV).

Know what else is simple? The “Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience.” This is a manifesto written in 2009 that bears more than half a million signatures (including yours truly), to the effect that we will not go along with three toxic currents in American society: abortion and euthanasia, same-sex marriage, and government infringement on liberty. Here is a simple paragraph in the body of the Manhattan Declaration promising that we will resist in these areas when push comes to shove:

“We are Christians who have joined together across historic lines of ecclesiastical differences to affirm our right—and, more importantly, to embrace our obligation—to speak and act in defense of these truths. We pledge to each other, and to our fellow believers, that no power on earth, be it cultural or political, will intimidate us into silence or acquiescence. …Through the centuries, Christianity has taught that civil disobedience is not only permitted but sometimes required.”

The risen Christ rebuked a church in Sardis that was known for being lively and active and no doubt full of programs and gee-whiz theology. The problem is that it had slipped from a pure and simple devotion to Christ (Revelation 3:1-6).

The Christian life is not easy. But it is simple.