Not all smiles are created equal. Last night, I saw a Facebook meme in which a woman is smiling while holding a sign that says, "My abortion was fabulous. Thanks."
Sorry, I'm not buying it.
Although each of us is born a sinner, we are made in the image of God. It goes against the image of God for a person to enjoy murder. For that reason, I believe that people who appear to rejoice in their sin repeatedly are either "faking it" (their joy) or they have had their consciences deeply scarred.
In 1 Timothy 4:2, Paul describes this as follows:
Speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
When this type of spiritual scarring happens, it results from repeated acts of evil by the person him/herself or because evil has been repeatedly perpetrated upon a person, so that they see no other course of action but to "reproduce" what they have known. In many such cases, the desperate one is so deceived that he or she is totally out of touch with his or her pain. That is how deeply it is buried.
So, no, not all smiles are equal. Sometimes, a smile is an act of defiance, a deliberate attempt to camouflage the deepest agonies of the soul.
But, as long as there is physical life, there is hope.
There is grace greater than all my sin, your sin...anyone's sin, everyone's sin.
The blood of Jesus Christ can cleanse and restore even the vilest of sinners.
I don't know what all the crimes were, ascribed to the thief who hung beside Jesus on the cross. (Luke 23:40-43) The Bible does not elaborate. But, I do know that Jesus heard his dying plea and rescued his soul right there on the spot. Such is the grace and mercy of our Savior.
Christian, when you see things like that meme, does your heart break? Our hearts often hurt when we see a young child fighting cancer, or someone with a physical deformity, or even an animal about to be "put down". But, when we see someone with a sickness unto spiritual death, our reaction is often animosity or, worse, indifference.
"Oh, WE don't do that?!"
Really? Take a look:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1004775329542529&set=gm.1046566905388605&type=1&theater
Did you read the comments people had made? I wonder how many of them would call themselves Christians?
Imitation - - - Paul exhorted the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 11:1 to imitate him because he imitated Christ. And, that is God's scriptural command to us today, via the apostle Paul. The dictionary defines the word "imitate" as: to model oneself on, to copy, to echo.
What do you think Jesus' response would have been to this woman in the picture? Would He have called her names like, "killbilly" or "it"? Would He have said she made him "barf"? Would He have thanked her for killing her baby?
Those Facebook comments don't echo the truth of Jesus, His righteousness and His love, with that woman or others like her. Those comments reek of self-righteous hatred.
Do we really believe that what we say we believe is really real? Do we?
Do we have any INKLING of the extent of the love of Jesus?
Do we really believe that Jesus paid it ALL, that He can save "even the least of these"?
That was me - - - "the least of these". That was you too, if He has saved your soul.
And, He died for this woman in the picture, as well as billions more like her, with all their sin wounds, with all their pain, with all their fake smiles.
Do we really believe that what we say we believe is really real? Do we?
If we do, what are we going to do about it?
Are we going to imitate Christ, whose name we bear?
Lord God, when you say that your Word is alive, and powerful, and sharper than any double-edged sword, (Hebrews 4:12) I think that this is what you mean. Imitating my Savior, at all times....I don't do that. Your Word is so challenging, so convicting to me that it often feels like a scalpel cutting the rot out of my soul. Help me, Holy Spirit, please help me model my life after His. In Jesus' name, amen.
Additional Source:
https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=imitate%20definition
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