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Are you living a divided life?

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Part of our human condition is that we live conflicted lives. We believe one thing but do another. We know the good we should do but we don’t do it. We know the wrong we shouldn’t do but we keep returning to it. We have faith that lives with doubt. We know the truth but we believe the lie. It’s a case of “On the one hand…but on the other hand…”

 

Jesus was once accused of preaching good while using the powers of evil to drive out demons. But his response in Luke 11 spoke truth: “Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined and a house divided against itself will fall.” Good and evil cannot love in harmony with each other.

 

It was a truth echoed in the Civil War, proclaiming that a nation divided against itself cannot stand. And it’s a current red and blue struggle to stand together as one nation under God today. It’s a truth that resonates within our individual hearts today when we ponder how to live our lives. We cannot have a bit of God and also be filled with his presence and power. We can’t live a life of fretful worry and at the same time experience the peace that surpasses all understanding. We can’t run with the world and stand with God, worshipping him one hour a week and worshipping our own lives the rest. We can’t hate our enemies and love God nor withhold forgiveness from others and ask God to forgive us. If our house is divided, our days will be constantly marked by cleaning up the debris from its falling. There is no victory in living in a divided house, only woe.

 

Jesus actually speaks six “woes” to people that considered themselves “religious.” And those woes fall upon us today if we live divided lives:

 

Woe to me if I think there is satisfaction in giving a tenth of my income (or less!) to God while neglecting justice and the love of God with regard to those who live in great need and suffering. (V 42) God owns it all and blesses us so we can bless others. Buy JOY to each who lives generously, who spends themselves on behalf of the hungry. (Isaiah 58:10)

 

Woe to me if I think so highly of myself that I “deserve” to be treated better than others. (43) but JOY to each who lives humbly before their great God. It’s when we’re humbled that we are drawn close to God and lifted up. A humble heart loves the God a proud heart cannot see.

 

Woe to me if I live mindlessly without purpose, like an “unmarked grave” that will not be remembered. (V44) But JOY to each who turn to God each day and ask, “What is your purposed agenda for my life today?” The entire purpose of our blessings – and our lives – is to advance the good news of the gospel of Jesus by speaking hope to the lost in practical expressions of love.

 

Woe to me if I demand that others live according to ritualistic and legalistic rules instead of actually helping them. (V46) But JOY to each who lives in the freedom of his grace and extends that same grace to others in his name.

 

Woe to me if I build monuments to God and men but don’t live according to his Word. (Vs 47-51) But JOY to each who live in obedience to the call to be set apart from the ways of the world.

 

Woe to me if I take away the key to truth from those around me, not even living according to it myself. (V 52) But JOY to each who share the truth and grace of Jesus, who let their faith express itself through his love.

 

Living a life that is divided against itself brings certain woe. But for every woe there is a joy ready to take its place. We have only ONE life to live. Live it well, with JOY.

 

Two Views

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Have you ever noticed how some people appear to be so blessed with good health, wealth, close friendships, good jobs, homes and more? (It is indeed a dangerous and slippery line of thinking so we won’t stay here long.) But really, do you ever think that and ask, “Why don’t I have MORE?” (As if more of the world would really make us happier.)

And have you ever had God suddenly flip the switch of your thinking to consider, “Why is it that MOST the world has so very little? And so very much pain, barely eking out a meager existence at best with no evident opportunity to escape the bonds of poverty and despair? And why do I have SO MUCH?” I am free to live in relative comfort even with Leukemia, receive good medical treatment and access to safe and affordable food and water and shelter, worshipping in freedom, while other Christians are persecuted and tortured, even to death. It certainly gives us pause for consideration about our complaining and a prompt to give thanks for our blessings – every single day!

But is it good enough to settle with, “There but the grace of God go I?” Are the words of Isaiah meaningful to us today? “And if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.” (Isaiah 58:10) And in chapter 61 (excerpts): the Lord has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor, to bestow upon them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, a garment of praise instead of despair. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from the darkness for the prisoners. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.”

Doesn’t that last image convey the message of a legacy based life? Whether we are focusing on the financially and physically poor of the world, or those around us who are bound up in their broken-heartedness, the image of our role in strengthening and encouraging others is a powerful one of real transformation. It speaks of our role in aligning with God to help others become oaks of righteousness, a planting for the display of God’s splendor!

What legacy do you want to leave? It is built in our day by day living and how we consider those around us and those around the world. Even if we think we have little, we have really so much to share and to pour into the legacy we leave. Live well today, friends.