Wrong Ways

Living Backwards

Christianity turns the world on its head.

The first shall be last. Blessed are the poor. Love your enemies. Turn the other cheek. And those are just a few of the statements of the Scriptures that go against what the world teaches. I mean, come on!

The first shall be first. The rich are the ones who are blessed. I love those who love me and hate those who hate me. If someone hits me, I’m gonna hit them back. That’s much better, isn’t it? I mean really, we all say those Christian quotes with gusto and passion, but don’t we all have a hard time living them out? It so much easier to say the first shall be last than to actually live it out.

But it is in those backwards statements that Christians start to live the lives that Jesus has in store for them. Only when we start to see others the way Jesus sees us, only when we start to treat others the way God treats us can we truly start to live the lives God has for us.

Basically we have to live backwards.

Take our prayers for example. I want to be a good Christian. I want to do amazing things for God. I want to love others, to reach others, to preach the good news and see people set free. (Hopefully every Christians wants these things)

So how do I go about seeing these things come to pass? I pray, right?

Well in a normal world, sure. I pray…God answers and I start to bear fruit in His Kingdom. Right?

Nope.

Since we know that Christianity turns the world upside down, let’s see what the Bible says. John 15:16 says, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go bear fruit-fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask for in my name.”

Did you catch it? It’s backwards. Go do things and then your prayers will be answered. Also notice that it all rests on Jesus too.

“You did not choose me, but I chose you…” Has nothing to do with you. Heck we ever sing songs that are Biblically incorrect.
“I Found Jesus” Catchy song, yes, Scripturally sound, nah.

“…and appointed you to go bear fruit…” God has given us each jobs to do. He appointed us. He designed us to do things. We are to go bear fruit.

What kind of fruit? “…fruit that will last.” Could be me, but fruit that lasts sounds like a good thing.

So, God has created us to go do good things…and then He will “give you whatever you ask for in my name.”

Go out. Do things. Bear fruit. Pray and God will give what you ask. It goes against how we think it would be, doesn’t it?

Pray. God will give you what you ask. Go out. Do things. Bear fruit. Yes, that’s much better and it makes for sense.

Since when does God make sense? (At least in the worldly sense)

It doesn’t make sense that the first shall be last. It doesn’t make sense that poor people are blessed. It doesn’t make sense that I should go do things first and then my prayers are to be answered, but there it is…in the Bible.

Which leaves us another, important question. How are we to “bear fruit.” What does that look like? I mean, we all want are prayers answered, so how are we to go about and bear fruit, the fruit that will last?

It’s a long trip from John 15:16. Look at John 15:17.

“Love each other.”

(And hey, there it is again…that backwards Bible thing. Love each other. Doesn’t the world teach us to love ourselves?)