One of the worst Lust Control songs of all time was called "Victim of Revolution." Musically it was a farce, as I tried to rap. One of the silly lines was a spoof of Pink Floyd, where we said: "We don't need sex education / Hey, Preacher, Leave us kids alone!" While the subject matter was serious and it may have impacted some, it was probably the poor art that kept the song from communicating what it could. One of the things the band majored on was discussing sexuality and sexual sin from a biblical viewpoint. The passage of 1 Corinthians that I read today contains what sort of became the band's verse -- 1 Cor. 10:13
"No temptation has siezed you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He wil not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."
Many people will say, rightly so, that God's promises are golden. We can trust Him and His promises. Unfortunately, some people take this philosophy and try to twist it to mean that they can claim anything they want (even things that God probably doesn't want for them), and they will get it, for "God promised." But this verse is surely a promise that we can rely on. It has nothing to do with materialism (which is almost the perfect test to find out if something is really a promise from God or not...), but everything to do with walking through real life situations and temptations.
It's good to know that we are not unusual -- that temptations are common to man. This is one reason why 12-step groups can really be places of healing. There is power in knowing that someone else can relate to you, that someone else has been where you are. This builds our confidence and gives us support. Sometimes the idea of God and His promises can be so lofty that they seem out of reach. This is a great purpose that the body of Christ (us) can fulfill on earth. Sometimes people need that tangible friend to reach out and talk to in order to make it through a tough time. This must be why God's Son left us on earth instead of just taking us all to heaven immediately upon being born again... It must be His design that we can live as one big family.
A family doesn't let someone split and just carry on. Imagine a family sitting down for dinner and someone saying, "Where's Johnny?" And someone else just mentioning, "I don't know. He just left." The normal family isn't going to shrug its shoulders and say, "Oh well. I'll take his corn." No, life will not be the same until they find Johnny. And, if they lose him to death or something, their life is marred with grief. People matter.
I love the theme that Trans-Siberian Orchestra were conveying in a song that started with "Hark, The Herald Angels Sing, which was: "Every man is your brother; and every child is our own." We are family, and family is important. That kind of love can be given across family lines, across skin color lines, across rival school lines, across monetary lines, across religious lines.
Love is like magic. It heals things. It bonds things. It confronts and opens eyes and minds. It reconciles. It rejuvinates us. It is amazing.
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at December 21, 2005 08:59 AM