Mr Nice Guy

What's so different about Christianity?

Why the fuss? Why does it matter? Who cares?

Aren't they just like us? Look, I'm a pretty decent guy. I haven't murdered anyone; I help out at community events; I take care of my mother. I don't drink; I don't smoke; I don't gamble. Isn't that what Jesus was all about? Everyone loving each other and treating each other with respect?

Isn't that all?

In a post-Christian world, in which the Judeo-Christian after-effects still permeate throughout its culture, it can sometimes feel hard for Christians to stand out from their non-Christian neighbours. It may be remarkable in mainland China to be an honest businessman that keeps firmly to the law, but it's pretty standard in Australia to do the right thing… otherwise you get caught! In Afghanistan, Christians may have to die for standing up for their faith, but no one's going to shoot you for following Jesus in England.

What does Christianity have to offer the Western ("Modern") World, apart from its Bible-based morality, which no one really wants any more anyway. We're "much too advanced" for the backward and ancient rules of the Bible, after all. How can a Christian be "different" enough to be noticed in this pluralistic post-Christian society?

The answer is - and always has been - Jesus. The Bible doesn't offer a way to improve life on Earth, because it says that God will do away with the current world to make way for a new, perfect, one! It doesn't offer Morality, contrary to public opinion; it states that no one is righteous enough before God and that Morality gets you nowhere! Sin isn't a negative bank account where if you pay enough good deeds you can get yourself out of debt; it's a terminal illness of the soul that has no cure apart from the blood of Jesus!

Jesus was never about turning us into "Mr Nice Guy". When He lived on earth, His main aim wasn't to make us all love each other and treat each other right. His Mission was to come to die, in our place, for our sins. His primary objective was to take the bullet for us, so that we may live on in the loving arms of our Father in Heaven.

So what's so different about a Christian? It's simple: Jesus. Our entire existence is viewed in light of Jesus. We live in, for, to, through Jesus. "To live is Christ, and to die is gain". Yes, maybe that would push some of us more towards a more "morally acceptable" life according to some people (Although many of us can testify to the fact that we probably stumble a lot more than we ought to!). We're not better people; we're SAVED people, and that only because Jesus was gracious enough to give us what we did not deserve.

A Christian is not defined by what he/she does, but by what has been done for him/her. We may not necessarily ACT differently (though we really should); but we ARE different.

We have been taken by Jesus, and that changes EVERYTHING.

Will my dog go to heaven?

And no, I am not implying that cats will definitely go to heaven whereas dogs might not :P

A friend posed a question to me about whether dogs would go to heaven or not. She loves her dog dearly, and finds the possibility that her dog would not go to heaven with her quite devastating. Many of us have dearly beloved furry (or not-so-furry) friends, and you often hear the naïve-sounding wish that they would be there in heaven waiting for us at the end of the day. And yet, nowhere in the Bible says that they would get to go to heaven! In fact, there is a thought among some that they won't.

This question has been sitting at the back of my mind for ages. But then, I heard a sermon from Mark Driscoll on Habakkuk 2, and the question was brought back to me. In a part of this sermon, Mark was talking on Habakkuk 2:17 where it says "The violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, as will the destruction of the beasts that terrified them, for the blood of man and violence to the earth, to cities and all who dwell in them." (The "violence done to Lebanon" is a reference to the deforestation that occurred in Lebanon because the cedars of Lebanon were prized greatly.) Mark's point in this section was that God cared very much about the rest of His creation too, not just the humans, and He will call humans to account for their treatment of the world that He had given them the responsibility to tend.

Of course, Habakkuk is not the only book of the Bible where God's concern for the rest of creation is shown. In Luke 6, it says, "Aren't five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight." Granted this passage is aimed at showing us how precious we are in God's sight; even so, the basis for this stems from the fact that even the sparrows are worthy of attention in His sight. In the book of Job from chapters 38 to 41, God declares His greatness to Job by showing how he provides for everything, even the animals.

So what can we gain from this? How will this help us address the question of whether our furry friends will come to heaven with us or not?

God is Sovereign, out-of-this-world, and His ways are beyond our full comprehension. It would be natural that we would not understand or know how things will pan out; He does not have to include us in His decision making.

However, remember this: God cares. He loves in a way that is beyond our imagination. His attention to detail is exquisite.  If we think we love our cats and dogs, He loves them in a way that is infinitely more perfect than we do. Not only that, He is the Creator, the Designer, of these creatures, and He knows what is best for them (and us).

While I do not know exactly how God will take care of our furry friends, one thing I do know is that God will take care of our furry friends. I do not know what He has in mind for them (whether it be heaven or oblivion), but I do know that He is a much more caring person than I am, and that He loves perfectly whereas I am merely human. I know that my cat and my dog is more precious in His sight than they are in my sight.

And I also know that I am much more precious in His sight than any other animal :)

So while I have no clue about whether dogs will go to heaven or not, I have faith in God's character, and I know He will do what is best for all. :)