Our Highest Potential

The Highest Potential is almost immeasurable. Not even the cold vastness of space has and will stop us. Of course we’ve had help in certain areas; whether they are divine and/or celestial. We have created a way to destroy our own planet. Should we ever master interplanetary space travel, we have the opportunity to destroy other planets also. A little closer to home, we have found ways to halt, cure, or even reverse almost every disease known to human kind. We have means – although very little interest – to explore the deepest depths of our oceans, and the highest peaks of our mountains. We have means to travel the expanse of our planet, through flight, in almost one whole day. We have created the internet; a way to communicate with anybody on this planet in seconds! Perhaps that is even our reverse Babel. That would mean the reversal of one of God’s most significant curses (seriously I don’t think that is the case, but it makes for a good argument).
But are any of these potential greatest achievements our highest potential? We also have the extremely efficient ability to kill. Regardless of serial killers, there is the military. Israel has the highest technical military in the world. China or perhaps North Korea has the largest Army in the world. And we as a country have the highest fire power of any army in the world. Killing has become an art form for us. Watching the History Channel is enough to convince anybody of these things. As a race, we have a long history of killing each other.
We have other means of killing each other besides war. We have poverty and disease. Many times these two elements are hand in hand; but not always. Common diseases like polio, hepatitis, small pox, and malaria have vaccines, but because of poverty, people die from them everyday. Poverty, and lack of education, and a lack of moral based highly financed institutions create environments where sexually transmitted diseases are rampant. More children in Africa are now dieing of HIV/AIDS than starvation. The main reason that is, is because they are being born with it. I heard on TV one time that 14 Children, on the continent of Africa are dieing every second. That is intense. Over a thousand children have died since I started righting this article ten minutes ago. Poverty, the abundance of HIV/AIDS, and untreated diseases such as polio and hepatitis could all be ended in around twenty years (according to Bono on the Oprah show). That is an intense thought. Not only in Africa could this happen, but world wide. Instead of using our armies to fight for democracy, or the spread of religion, we should be fighting regimes that halt and interfere with the end of poverty. I do have to admit, that war might be the solution, but it is not one that I advocate. Taking lives to save lives is hardly an answer, unless it is a permanent solution, I suppose.
I have had my thoughts of pacifistic-ness versus a biblical out look on war challenged. My thinking is how can you love an enemy by killing, interrogating, or imprisoning them? If you are supposed (biblically speaking) treat an enemy the way you would want yourself treated, then I suppose also that it would be gentle and righteously. However, in reading C.S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity, I have been highly influenced to think otherwise. His argument stands at this (I find it a little complicated): To love your enemy, you must love them as you would love yourself. If you love yourself as a Christian, then in respect to God, say, if you murdered someone, then you would want yourself judged guilty and take the biblical responsibility and have yourself punished to death (I am terribly sorry for the offensive run-on sentence). He says, “It is therefore, in my opinion, perfectly right for a Christian judge to sentence a man to death or a Christian soldier to kill an enemy…It is no good quoting ‘Thou shalt not kill.’ There are two Greek words: the Ordinary word to kill and the word to murder.” He goes on to say that Christ used the word murder in the three gospels that he talks about it. Lewis says that he has been told that there is the same distinction in Hebrew. He furthers his argument by saying that not all sexual intercourse is adultery, and that Jesus, when talking to soldiers, never once condemned them for being a soldier. Then Lewis says, “War is a dreadful thing, and I can respect an honest pacifist, thought I think he is entirely mistaken.” He furthers his argument, and it is a little back and forth, but I have such high respect for C.S. Lewis that I have to seriously consider his argument. He mentions that we should wish our enemy well, yet when in war, we should kill him.
Now that I write all this out, I see that his thinking is somewhat flawed. How can we love somebody, like we love ourselves, while killing them, if they are our enemy at war, and wish them well? How can we serve them while killing them? The only way we could kill, in consideration of Lewis’ argument, would have to be by considering our enemy evil. If he is evil, then he would deserve death. Granted, the bible does mention that we are by nature evil, and all deserving the wrath of God, sans Christ; but, that would be an extremely self-righteous thing. I suppose that if I am a “Christian” soldier, and they are not, then they are still in their unrighteousness, and at that point killing them would be the work of God.?! I really am still just as confused. Obviously I need to pray on this and continue to study the scripture.
Regardless, I think that our highest potential is that of the final Act of Christ as a man, and that is to take on the punishment of the sins of mankind, even though we don’t deserve it. Jesus was murdered for the sake of our essential need for the forgiveness of mankind, by God. We, by nature deserve what Jesus got, and even more so, the destruction of our souls. He did this for people who will not even in there lifetime ever react to what he did. This IS our highest potential; to die for the well being of people who hate us. This is to me, one of the dark secrets of Christianity that nobody wants to talk about. It doesn’t make rational sense if that is true, but yet, that is what Jesus did.
The bible mentions that this concept won’t make sense to the non-convert. It says that the person who doesn’t understand what Jesus really did will not understand what we should do for others. I believe that this is true. In fact, I don’t expect my own family to understand this concept, being that I am the only bible bases Christian in my immediate family (not my wife and child, but my brothers and parents).
To give ones life for someone is difficult. One time, I mentioned to my ultimately best friend, that I was being challenged by loving one of the Christian leaders in my life. In what I can see, his hypocrisy is rampant. However, I still feel that if the opportunity came that he could only live by my dieing, I would take that opportunity. I would die for the salvation of his soul. The challenge by my BFF was “If you can die for him, then you should be able to live for him.” That is where the ultimate challenge comes in. It is far easier to say that you’d take a bullet for someone, then to say that you will be devoted to them and their well being – much harder. When he said this, I felt challenged beyond what I have ever felt before. In fact, to confess, I still work hard and not judging this brother (in the Lord!).
So, what are we to do with this Highest Potential? First, we must work hard at fully understand the secret of the Cross of Christ. Then, we must examine our own lives’ and make the changes of heart that we must make; of course this can only be done through the study of scripture, prayer, and a willingness to please God. I think that unless we are never exposed to Christ, and I would say even then, we all are able to fulfill our Greatest Potential: the giving of our life for another.

I believe in offering up very specific prayers. The Father, in all his grace and mercy, has answered some very specific prayers this past year. Spring is coming, and winter is about to end. It is time once again that I offer up some very specific prayers, through Christ Jesus, to the Father – Creator of all reality. That is a deep concept to think about. I know that practically everybody on earth has their own concept of how this world came to be. I understand that. But what can totally blow a person’s mind is how God, the Master and Creator of all that IS, can answer the smallest, tiniest, humble little prayers of a nobody, in a small town in the middle of nowhere, who otherwise has nothing to offer mankind. It boggles the mind. In perspective, I am in a “humbled” position in life. I’m not a leader in anyway (other than my family), I live on disability, I don’t pay hardly any taxes (because I only make $2000 + of taxable income per year), I’m incredibly unhealthy (but much better than many), I have an average intelligence (compared to many; and struggle with my sanity through medication and therapy), and own very little possessions.

However, that being said, I have an amazingly loving family, and am RICH in relationships: my two brothers are amazing individuals; my best buddy in Chicago is a life long friend who I trust more than any other man; I have great friends who are never afraid to tell me the truth in Columbus, Michigan, Las Vegas, San Diego, and Phoenix; I have a wife that is the most amazing woman I have ever met (short of my mother of course, well, let’s just say it’s a tie); and my padawan learner (daughter) is the apple of my eye. That doesn’t include my relationship with churches as a whole. However, my greatest treasure is God Himself. I have no greater desire than to please God. I love God with all that I have and all that I am. If it doesn’t please God, I don’t want to do it. I would gladly surrender my own “will” and become a divine automaton for God. But that is not what HE wants. He wants me to choose Him. We are in His image, so some of the best reminders of who God is, can be ourselves, our own emotional needs. Although God is infinitely Greater than us, he is also the origin of our own ability to be jealous, joyful, angry, hopeful, indignant, zealous, filled with rage, and consumed with love. Most of these expressions of God are in the Jewish Bible, otherwise known as the Old Testament.

The best way to know God is through Jesus Christ. In fact, the only way to reconcile to God is through Jesus Christ. There is a line of rationality in the New Testament: Jesus is God; God is love; Jesus IS God’s expression of Love; Jesus is the Word of God; the Word of God is the bible. Ergo, the best way to get to know God is through the bible. There are other ways to get to know God, as described by the bible, but the surest way, is the Holy Scripture. “Faith comes from hearing the Word.” is a famous verse. The more we read, the more we obey, the more we partake, the more faith we have.

Faith is the goal of almost all mankind. We can put our faith in just about anything; if we don’t put it in God, then in Man, if not in Man, then in ourselves, and if not ourselves, then in something external (perhaps money?). Religion is one of the main COGS in the machine that is mankind. Faith is one of the most powerful forces in this world – along with sin, and love.

I don’t believe in blind faith. Few people actually partake in blind faith. There is almost always a reason that somebody will have faith in something; it can be experience, trust, history, knowledge, or love. Usually, it is a combination of the above mentioned. This leads me to my faith in God, through Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ Almighty. There is much to having faith in having one’s prayers answered. There must be a balance of not asking God to break His own rules, and, not asking God to indulge our sinful natures. Many times, I can feel that I ask too much, and have so much faith in my Father, that I’m afraid to ask. Sometimes I feel as though I might be taking advantage of my Holy Father, and in fact, curb my prayers. HE spoils me, so incredibly much. I have so much more than I have ever could ask for, and he continues to give to me. He shows me that he trusts me with things, that I don’t deserve His trust with: marriage, parenthood, money, possessions, influence, family, and what could there be more? All these things God has trust me with. In many area’s I have failed miserably. I know this, and am grateful that God hasn’t given me more to have. I see with my eyes the miseries that have more than what you can be trusted with comes with (poorly stated). In other words, having more than what you can handle brings misery, and it is all a matter of Trust. Corruption, temptation, over indulging, and extreme failure are the fruit of having more than what a person can handle. I am thankful that God has and only will give me what I can handle. I know this because I have extreme faith in God’s love for me individually as a person. Our personal relationship is so great, that I only experience small portions in life. I also know that soon, not knowing how soon, but soon all that I go through now is training ground for what is to come. I know in my heart that I am on the verge of accomplishing great things*. But I know that I must first show the Father that I can handle the little things. Because of this interaction that I have with the Father, my faith is the greatest gift God has given to me, and is my greatest quality as a person.

AT the end of winter last year (2006), I made a series of specific prayers concerning my family. God in His grace has answered each one of them. I am blown away by his attendance to my hopes. He humbles me in many great ways (to bad I am so prideful to start with). I don’t want to share what these prayers were, but I will if you ask me to. Recently, I asked God for a very specific gift, and he granted it. Amazing! This happens to me over and over again. Over and over my prayers are answered, and over and over I stand amazed.

Please don’t get me wrong. I internalize and struggle and am tormented with almost everything I do and am responsible for. Rarely am I at peace. Rarely am I contented with areas dealing with “The” Faith, and the Church here on earth. Rarely am I satisfied with how Christianity is portrayed in the media. Often I agonize over the state of reconciliation with my closest relationships. I am an extreme obsessive. I am an extreme sycophant. I am an extremely selfish person and an abuser of my relationships. I am commonly narcissistically inclined. I am opposite of my greatest Advocate. Yet, here I am…in the middle of nowhere, somebody that nobody has heard of, or heard from in a long time, and my prayers are being acknowledged by The most well known name in the world – Jesus Christ.

There is an interesting word that I have been contemplating, and that word is community. I think that the word community is the sum of the quintessential human experience. I know what you are saying – “Life cannot be summed up in one word!” That is true; however, community is what we experience from day one. Recently, they found a girl in the Philippines or Guam or somewhere that has spent the first nineteen years of her life living in the wild. She was found, or she found them, and they have been trying to integrate her within their community. Every photo I saw of her, she had a great big smile on her face. I’m sure there are times when she isn’t smiling, but I can help but think that there has been a deep need in this woman to find community most of her life. She is a rare exception to the human race. Even these Catholic/Orthodox /Tibetan /Buddhist monasteries have a semblance of community. We weren’t meant to be solitary. It is as basic as any other part of the grand design. Biblically speaking, God’s image wasn’t complete until he made both Man and Woman. Man/Woman is the complete image of God. That is why God made man, so that he could have companion. With the multimillions of multitudes that will be joining Christ Jesus in our new post Judgment life, we will with God, be “community”.

*Greatness with Christ can come in the most humble or unseen ways. True greatness is being born in a barn, raised in the country, being disresepected by the people that you want to help, and even hated by authorities. True greatness comes in giving ones life for those who least deserve it. Greatness in GOd's eyes is much different than greatness in ours!