Soft or harsh?

I watched a documentary on the life of Russ Taff a little while ago and was struck by many things.  In case you are not familiar with Russ, he was a popular Christian artist back in the 80's.  

I took a freeze frame from the documentary that I found fascinating.  Here it is above.

Russ struggled with many demons, one being alcoholism.  He was what some would call the Prodigal Son.

But Russ loved Jesus.  He had a heart for God.  You could feel it and hear it whenever he sang for the Lord.  Russ knew the real Jesus.  That happens when we come to the end of ourselves.  We finally meet the real Jesus.  And when we do, our lives are never the same.  We fall in love with the Lover of our souls, our Rescuer, our Friend.

Russ's behavior didn't make him a "bad" person.  It made him human.

We all struggle.  We all battle personal demons.  Some are more visible than others, that's all.

I posted this pic here because it is tremendously revealing.

If you had to "hang with" anyone here in the pic, who would you choose?  I would choose Russ.  I'm not sure if it because in comparison to the others standing beside him, he looks the softest.  I'm not sure if that is the best word to use here, but maybe you understand what I mean.

Some of the others in the pic seem a bit, well, harsh in their stance, their demeanor.    

Maybe you have run into some unyielding sorts in the church setting.  There are many wonderful, loving people in God's house.  But there are also many who may not remind you of Jesus at all.  We are to do as Jesus commands us.  He says that the tares will grow along with the wheat and that we are to leave the "sifting" to Him, as only He really knows anyone's heart.  

I believe in an ideal world, the church would be filled with free people.  By that I mean people free in themselves, free to love, free in the love of Christ.  If that were more the reality, I believe with all my heart that others would be beating down the church door to come in and become a Christ-follower.

People are drawn to love.  People (most, not all) are drawn to authentic lives.  People are drawn to freedom.

Russ had lived a rough life.  A life apart from God, trapped in sin, is always a rough life.  Oh it may start out fine, full of "fun" and "good times."  But eventually, sin does what it always does: destroys.  

The affects of sin can destroy health, relationships, a person's real purpose and identity, and even life itself.  People seek comfort in all sorts of ways.  And the devil is the expert deceiver in leading people astray by tempting to false sources of comfort and security.  

Thank God that Jesus is gracious, loving, forgiving, and stands at the ready to deliver us from our sins and demons, no matter what they are.  That's what He did for Russ.

Once you come to the end of yourself and realize your deepest need is for the Lord, there is a softness about you.  Keeping the rules, doing all the "right" things, is powerless to save us.  All it does is give a false sense of righteousness and leads to pride.  You may be able to detect it in the pic I posted here above.  

Pride is ugly.  It struts.  It holds its head up in a false sense of "righteousness."  It considers itself over and above others, over those whose sins are more blatant than their own.  

But what is worse than the sin of pride?  After all, it is the very sin that cast the devil and his minions out of God's Presence into the pit of hell.

Russ had been humbled.  Russ knew that he needed help, needed rescuing.  He knew he needed a Savior.  And Jesus is the only true one to fit the bill.

Jesus will judge sin in the end.  But when He walked this earth, He never condemned anyone but lovingly restored them.  Jesus had compassion on sinners because He knew what a death trap they were in.  And as Christ's followers, we are to have the same compassion.  If anything, the only strong words He had were for the Pharisees, those stuck in pride.  

When you are truly humbled from being in the Presence of Christ, you simply cannot possess any pride any more.  You see plainly things as they are.  You realize the truth in the words of the most famous hymn of all, "Amazing Grace," that indeed you are a wretch.  

We are all wretches apart from Christ.  As I said, it's just that some are wretches in more obvious ways.  

Do we all need to hit rock bottom, as Russ did, before we see the Light?  Maybe, maybe not.  All I know is that unless we are aware of our deep need of salvation, our deep need for rescuing from sin by Jesus, that we will go on delusionally thinking that we are "fine" in and of ourselves.

I encourage you to check out Russ's documentary.  It is rich with hope and offers a glimpse into a very real, broken-but-redeemed human being.  Here is the link to it: https://youtu.be/fpHdjcCfrSg?si=LsY9mBoE4DpaY-FD

Oh Lord.  I want to be a soft Christian, one that attracts others to You.  Remove all severity, pride, and the like far, far from us, O God.  For when You show us love and mercy, we are to give the same to others in compassion, grace, and love.  Thank You, O God, for being our Rescuer, our Deliverer, our way out of sin and wretchedness.  Oh let us be more like You, dear Jesus!  Amen.

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