A More Excellent Way

We all hate mass shootings. (That sounds strange to me at the outset. Like, we hate mass shootings, but one at a time is okay?) We know it's wrong. We know it's bad. We know we want to do something about it. We just can't agree on what. One group figures if you can eliminate guns entirely you can eliminate mass shootings entirely. Well, sure, but it won't eliminate mass killings. People do it with vehicles, knives, explosives (which, by the way, aren't legal) ... all sorts of things. And, let's face it, many of the mass shootings have been accomplished with illegal weapons. Stolen, illegally obtained, etc. Another group calls at least for curbing the availability. Limit access. Of course, it is patently obvious that someone with a 15-round magazine can shoot 15 people even if they don't have a 30-round magazine. In fact, a six-shooter alone is enough for a mass shooting. And it is illegal to shoot people. Better laws? Doesn't seem to me that this is the best way, that it addresses the real problem.

Genuine believers are upset by false teachers. We're upset by self-proclaimed Christians who teach lies. We're upset by self-proclaimed Christians who loudly and openly jettison the faith. "I've grown up. I've figured it out. I tried Christ. I know better now." We're upset by "Christians behaving badly." (I use "Christians" there generously.) You know, the pastor caught molesting young girls or the television Christian celebrity arrested for sex with a prostitute or the well-known Christian entertainer who admits to adultery after being outed for committing adultery. Hey, we're upset by the Crusades where "Christians" went to war to defend Jerusalem or church folk in the Middle Ages who went to war with each other. We're upset by other Christians who declare the love of Christ while refusing to love their neighbor. It reflects poorly on Christ. It gives Christians a bad name. So we want to find a solution. Some try to explain why the Crusades were a good thing or how that particular person doing that particularly bad thing was not a believer really or the like. Explain it away. Others try to push the church into being a kinder, gentler group. And still it's a problem.

We have questions about church. How do we make it better? How do we attract people? How do we grow? How do we worship? So we develop programs and organizations. We get better books and better structures and better buildings and, by all means, a better band. We come up with tricks and methods and campaigns and schemes (think "marketing") to get this thing rolling. Of course, everyone knows you can't be sure these "new and improved" things will work (truth be told, most don't), but we try them.

Perhaps you see a trend here. We see problems. We think of ways to fix them. (So far, so good.) But the trend here is that we're going about it wrong. Like Paul said, "I will show you a still more excellent way" (1 Cor 12:31).

First, note, he said "a still more excellent way" which means that these other things are not bad. They don't need to be abandoned. We should continue with ideas on controlling killing people. We should urge Christians to be Christian. We should pursue these types of remedies. By "a still more excellent way," I simply mean that these are good but not sufficient. Pursue them and more.

What more? What was Paul's "more excellent way"? Well, if you're following the text, that verse I quoted there is the last verse in the 12th chapter of Corinthians. I'm sure you know what comes next -- the 13th chapter. We all know what that chapter contains. Paul describes the significance and nature of love. Real love. Not the romantic thing. Certainly not the sexual thing. Not the "more than like" concept. This love is the love we receive from God. The love we receive from God to share with others. The love that should shape everything we do, think, and feel. All the good we do without love is useless (1 Cor 13:1-3). And the love we're talking about is huge (1 Cor 13:4-8). Not merely some warm feeling; really, really big. Love of God and love of others (Matt 22:37-39).

Now put that at the center of the shelf of issues and problems we face and see how it works. Mass shootings go away if love reigns. Christians act like Christ where love is the underlying purpose. Your ministry to fellow believers and to unbelievers changes its face when love is the motivating force. How can we get more people into our church? I'll tell you without fear of contradiction that a church functioning on love attracts far more than a church functioning on rules or programs or whatever. Believers acting out of love have a far better reputation and impact than believers acting out of duty.

It is undeniable that this kind of love is the answer. It is also undeniable that we can make that happen. We generally forget to pursue it ourselves. We certainly can't make our fellow believers do it. And what possibility is there that unbelievers will do it? (Hint: None. See 1 John 4:8.) So we must pursue it ourselves and we must do it by God's power and influence. We must pray for it -- for ourselves and for other believers. We must undergird everything with it and demonstrate it at every turn. Not that weak "I love you so I will encourage you to do the most foolish things you choose to do" love. Genuine love. Compassion that will even call on others to turn. But out of love, not rules or doctrines or self-righteousness. Rules and doctrines and righteousness (not self-righteousness) are all fine tools, but without love they are a loudly clanging cymbal. Look, if we are marked as Christ-followers by our love for one another (John 13:35), shouldn't we be known for our love for one another? If love is from God (1 John 4:7), shouldn't we be living examples of love? If God is love (1 John 4:8) -- God defines love -- shouldn't we be living reflections of that love?

That is Paul's "still more excellent way." I think it is far more effective than more laws or better rule enforcement or a much more upbeat church program or the like. But it is a supernatural thing. We should be seeking that treasure, and praying for that wonder, shouldn't we?