It's amazing what people will do in the name of love.
For clarity, amazing is defined as "causing great surprise" by dictionary.com. So it is to say, I am surprised by people's actions when their reasoning is based on what they call love. Love. Are you kidding me? You don't know what Love is.
It is of the utmost impossibility to have a pure relationship with someone who has no relationship with Love. For how does one love the absence of Love? In answer I would have to imagine that one, in such circumstances, is not loving Love, but loving Desire, is loving "World", is loving "humanism." Love never called you to become sucked into the world that can not and will not love in return. Love called you to compassion, love called you to care, love called you to Love in the true sense of the word, but Love did not call you to infatuate.
My friend, how do you expect something to be removed when you have glued it to your hand?
I do not understand why we put ourselves into situations we can't handle. I do it to myself all the time. It's amazing how we can dig ourselves into trenches and then look to the sky, shrug, and say "well, God, this must be where you want me or I wouldn't be here!" No, no, no. We can never blame God for where our foolishness has taken us, whether it is a physical, relational, or spiritual place. Of course, that is not to say that God does not work all things for His own good purpose (Romans 8:28, Philippians 2:13); yet God never leads us intentionally where He knows we won't be able to resist temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Once we are made new in Christ, it is our duty to live a holy life as Christ. One of the hardest things is going to school knowing that you're different. Not to be spiritually egoistical, but those in Christ are held to a higher standard- when you begin at the top, everyone is watching for you to make that long fall to the bottom where they're all sitting. Temptation is constant.
But oh, the hardest thing: to be different to your Christian friends. Because you're all in Christ, aren't you? Surely you're all on the same spiritual page; you read the same book, you go to church, you make sure you don't curse and you try not to gossip, because isn't that what links you? Isn't it your Christ-like lifestyle that connects you? Uh, no. Anyone can stick their hand in the water, but it takes a true believer to fully submerge and forget what it's like to live off of oxygen. It's beyond frustrating how Christians tend to take their fellow believers faith for granted. It's like once you're saved, no one ever needs to spiritually challenge you again, because hey, you've got the golden ticket, and you can forget about the ride because you know your destination. How foolish! And unfortunately, ultimately dissatisfying.
I've been thinking about the story in the book of Acts where there is a demon-possessed man, and two disciples try to cast him out. They come into the man's house and say, "We cast you out in the name of Jesus!.... of whom Paul speaks (Acts 19:13)." I'm thinking, what the crap?! Why do you add "of whom Paul speaks"? You cannot, CANNOT live off of another persons relationship. The story goes on to say that the demon basically laughs in their face and says "Jesus I know, and Paul also, but who are you?" and beats them up and leaves them for dead.
Take away your church life. Take away your Christian friends. Take away your t-shirts with Bible verses, your tithe habits, your acts of service, everything. Where are you with God? In what "name" do you act? In the name of "love"? Sympathy? Self-confidence or insecurity? Pride, fear, desire, emotion, humanism, hurt, ignorance?
You can't know where you're going if you can't read the map.... but that's a whole other sermon for another night ;)
Peace.
