Proved Wrong

12.22.11

John 14.30-31 30 I will not say much more to you, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold over me, 31 but he comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me. NIV

The world really doesn’t care because the world already knows how it’s to play out: it happens all the time. In anticipation of what Jesus was soon to do the world simply said, “Yeah, right!” The world’s attitude was, You are no different than all the rest – no one will do what you claim to be doing! Nobody loves God; they only ever love themselves!

Up to this point, the world seemingly had the upper hand: and there had been centuries of track record to prove it. Starting with Adam’s fall and Cain’s crime – oh yes, the world knew. But Jesus proved the world wrong: the entire world. Nobody ever loved God like Jesus did (does). And since Jesus, few have ever come close. But to this day, many are trying.

I will admit Satan is big, but he isn’t big enough. He can scare, he can threaten, he can deceive, he can trick, but he cannot take away what God has placed in those who believe. And he had no hold on Jesus. That’s massive! Satan make know our weak spots but he never knew Jesus’ because Jesus loved (loves) the Father. And our defense against the wiles of Satan is this: love for God and love for people. The denial of self is love for God and love for people. Satan bets against us because he thinks he’ll find a way to defeat love. But he can’t defeat God and he can’t defeat those who love God. He’ll try, but he can’t.

I know I mentioned Tim Tebow recently. Tim Tebow is a very outspoken Christian and a professional athlete. The world is betting against Tim Tebow because the world can’t stand Tebow’s love for Jesus. Nor can it take ours; the world can’t stand anyone loving Christ and submitting to Him. The more people come to know Jesus and fall truly, madly in love with Him, the more the world stands condemned but such love. The world wants all of us to fail because worldly logic believes that’s best: calling God a liar.

And by the ‘world’ I mean the system of the world with all its arrogance and political correctness; not the planet. The planet longs for the children of God to get it (see Romans 8). But the systems of men are slimy and they could care less because since Adam, men have always loved their systems more than they love God.

So, it appears to me that the key is love and the more we love the more seamless we become. And the fewer the seams the less the hold and the less the hold the more the world is called into account… and the more there are those in whom curiosity arises who ask, “Why are you like you are? What makes you different?” To love is to make the choice to turn one’s back on what the world deems as worthy. That may mean turning one’s back on things that appear very worthy and suffering the consequences of that turning. But to love God is to stand in opposition to what the world dictates and the world doesn’t like that. At all. Loving God and loving people means living in opposition to conventional wisdom knowing the world is, for now, better against you. And Jesus said that’s the point of our faith: that the world may learn that He loved (loves) the Father… thus, the teacher is taught, or more importantly: proved wrong.