Feb 24 - "Simple Faith"

1 Corinthians 2:1-13
"When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you in lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God."
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Do you remember your earliest feelings about God or about Jesus? What were they?

When I think back, I remember some very early days in Sunday School with Mrs. Snyder, learning "Jesus Loves Me"...or the story of Noah and how God brought him, his family and a bunch of animals safely back to land after the flood. My feelings about God were uncomplicated. I knew that God was in heaven, He loved me and He sent His son Jesus to be in the world for awhile. When Jesus was on earth, He talked a lot, served bread and fishes and said "Let the children come to Me." He seemed like a nice guy. Later, Jesus died, but somehow came back to life and went to heaven to be with God again. It was simple.

Most of us start our lives with a faith that is uncomplicated. As we age and move through the world gaining "wisdom", our faith becomes more complex because of the pressure the world puts on that simple faith. The world says, "If God is so good, how can He let people die tragically and allow terrible things to happen?" The world says, "If Jesus was so powerful, why didn't He save himself from death?" The world says, "Why do we have to feel pain?" The world asks these questions of our faith in an unrelenting barrage of doubt. In response, our faith must become more complex in order to answer these questions; not only when they come from the outside, but when they come from our own minds.

As our lives progress, we can lose that simplicity of faith. What evidence do we have that all the things we believed so openly when we were young are really true? Many times, faith crumbles. It does not often happen in a giant fall, a single event, but rather as a constant wearing away. What was once a small stream of doubt weaving harmlessly through our consciousness, becomes over time, a Grand Canyon-like gulf, making us feel separate from God.

Does it have to happen this way? Do we have to lose that simplicity? Wasn't it better when we didn't know so much?

When our faith is less complicated, we have the ability to rest in the simple beauty of the love God has for us. We can marvel at Jesus' miracles. We cheer when Jesus enters Jerusalem, the crowds waving palms in adoration. We weep when the nails pierce His flesh and when he dies. We sing with joy when He rises from the dead.

So, let your faith be simple. Know that God is real and you are loved by Him. Know that He sent His Son to die, so that you will live forever. Know that when you show love, kindness, generosity, grace and forgiveness, you are in communion with God. It's simple.