On Earth as it is in Heaven

This one could be a rant. Sorry in advance 😎

One of the primary reasons that I got some distance from the church in 2013 and beyond was because my values around justice and equity and inclusion did not feel like they aligned with the teachings of the church I was a part of. If you know me, I’m extremely driven by my values (justice being at the top of the list). If I don’t feel like justice is at the center of the spaces I am in, it ignites a fire in my soul.

From a young age, my understanding of the Gospel and Jesus’ teaching was very simple - love God, love your neighbor, and love yourself. It’s really pretty clear. There are a lot of parts of the Bible that never felt clear to me but that one always did. My experience of God as a kid and a young person was a God of unconditional, never-ending, perfect love. I always knew it was our calling to do the same on Earth. Do I always get it right? Absolutely not.

But you know what REALLY sets me off? People who go to church every Sunday and call themselves Christians and simultaneously carry hate in their hearts for other people. I just really don’t get it and it makes me sad. I’ve come to understand that usually, those types of reactions in the world are coming from some deep inner pain that hasn’t quite been worked out yet - so I don’t blame people for that, but it makes me sad. These words I’m using are going to sound pretty direct because that’s how I communicate but I also want you to know this is from a place of love and a deep desire to see healing in this world we live in. There is so much brokenness and pain today, and I think we are called to address that.

One of the primary reasons that I subscribe to the teachings of Jesus is because they are centered on loving people and bringing God’s love to humanity. If that weren’t the focus, I can promise you that this wouldn’t be the religion for me.

I don’t understand why we have created this version of Christianity in our society that is so focused on judgment, exclusion, and hate. If for no other reason, it is a really bad way to get others to want to follow Jesus. Who wants to be a part of a group or a church community that is more focused on hate and judgment than love? It doesn’t seem very appealing to me. It’s not surprising to me that people, and young people in particular are leaving the church in such massive numbers right now.

I really believe that we are called to be a people that bring love and goodness and acceptance and inclusion to the world. The way I picture Heaven is a place that is full of love and goodness and acceptance and inclusion. We will finally get to see each other as true sisters and brothers, without division or exclusion. I think we need to try to bring that energy to Earth too. There was definitely a time in my young adult life when I was way more judgmental and full of hate than I am now. I know enough now about my own sin, my own flaws, and my own imperfections that I should be the last person trying to cast judgment on someone else. In my opinion, what people choose to do with their lives is between them and Jesus. Who am I to try to tell people how to live their lives? What I want most for humanity is for people to be loved deeply, to know who they are, and to come to accept themselves for who they are. I really believe that journey is a personal one and it is going to look different for all of us. Let’s let people work that stuff out with God. I don’t need to try to be God on Earth, but I can show people the love of God on Earth. That’s my place. Any position I try to take on to cast judgment is not my place and I need to just step right out of the way.

We are never going to bring healing and justice and goodness and love to the world if we spend all of our time worrying about what everyone else is doing. It doesn’t matter if you’re Black, Latino, white, gay, queer, trans, straight, disabled, neurodivergent, an immigrant, etc. I’m gonna love you as best as I can. That’s my place as a follower of Christ. That’s the role I can play on Earth.

If you find yourself in a place of judgment, I pray and hope that you will use it as a moment to go inward, to examine those intentions and your own relationship to God, yourself, and others. To bring healing to the world, we need to spend some time with ourselves and understand our own biases, and tendencies toward judgment and figure out better ways to operate.

When I think about acceptance and love of other people, I can’t help but think of this scripture: “The religion scholars and Pharisees led in a woman who had been caught in an act of adultery. They stood her in plain sight of everyone and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught red-handed in the act of adultery. Moses, in the Law, gives orders to stone such persons. What do you say?” They were trying to trap him into saying something incriminating so they could bring charges against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger in the dirt. They kept at him, badgering him. He straightened up and said, “The sinless one among you, go first: Throw the stone.” - John 8:7 MSG

More love, less hate. On Earth as it is in Heaven.