Life
adventurescga-blogs Jul 22, 2009 8:00 PM

Better Than Jesus

I've never had a beer. My church in Fairbanks used to serve wine for communion, so I've had a sip of wine a few times. It goes without saying that I'v...

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I've never had a beer. My church in Fairbanks used to serve wine for communion, so I've had a sip of wine a few times. It goes without saying that I've never had any hard liquor, although I guess I've just said it.

 
When I was younger, I made sure that everyone knew that I did NOT drink alcohol. Of course, I also didn't smoke or party. I had my list of unacceptable sins and, whether I wanted to admit it or not, looked down on those who committed them. Believe it or not, there are repercussions from this attitude that still linger in my life.
 
When I was 20 or so, I was invited to a graduation party. I refused to go because they were serving alcohol. I still know the people who invited me and they haven't forgotten how I slighted them. They aren't angry at me, but, about two years ago, when I asked if I had ever apologized for my attitude, they said "no." I didn't score points for my purity, I caused damage to our relationship because I put my image over all other concerns.
 
The irony (hypocrisy, really) was that, at the time, I was involved in some serious sin. Sin that had the potential to cause much more damage to my life than having a beer. And yeah, the effects of that sin are still with me.
 
But it was OK, because I was being better than Jesus.
 
Why is it not OK to have a beer, but it's OK to be a glutton? Why are homosexuals reviled but adulterers are ignored? Why is it OK to hate someone else's sin, but to sweep ours under the rug?
 
I'm kind of scared that if Jesus were living in the US today, we would be the Pharisees, standing on the outside of the crowd, wondering why this guy wasn't acting like us. Then he would say that we were whitewashed tombs; beautiful on the outside, but dead within.
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