When the London Times asked a number of writers for essays on “What’s Wrong with the World?” G. K. Chesterton sent in the shortest and most to-the-point reply: “Dear Sirs: I am. Sincerely yours, G. K. Chesterton.” Chesterton is right.
It takes an insightful, and humble man to admit such a thing. Human ego and pride faithfully fight tooth and nail to prevent us from admitting that there’s something wrong with us, that we’re guilty, or that we are the problem. While it hard enough to admit such, it is even more difficult to graciously, humbly, and lovingly point out the flaws in others.
As the President of Emmaus Biblical Seminary, my hardest job doing performance evaluations. Pointing out things that employees can do to improve makes me uncomfortable. While its the hardest job, it’s probably the best thing I could do for them. It’s an act of love. This act of love is modeled in the scriptures themselves.
Have you ever noticed that the Bible is very quick to point out that humans are what’s wrong with the world? There are 1189 chapters in the Bible, and it is in chapter 3, right at the beginning, where the point is made. Within the first ten pages of the Bible we learn that we are the problem. By the time we arrive at the second book of the Bible (Exodus), there is a whole nation of people needing saved. They need help.
Jesus’ own ministry reflects this. The first words out of Jesus’ mouth in Mark’s Gospel are, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15).
I love this feature of the Bible. I love that the Bible goes right for the heart of the matter. If you think about it, we often go through life knowing people our whole lives, but never really getting past a superficial level with them. We keep it light, polite, short, and sweet. It is taboo (especially today) to talk about the deeper things of life. Certain things are private and should be kept that way. In order to keep life moving forward nice and steady, we leave the unseen, well, unseen and untouched.
The whole situation is comparable to the proverbial iceberg. Only the top 5% is visible. The bulk of the iceberg is underwater, unseen in the darkness of depth, and untouched by light.
The Bible isn’t this way. The Bible goes right for the throat of the hard issues. The Bible knows no social taboos. For the Bible nothing is hidden. Like a true friend, the Bible says the hard things.
Can you humbly, graciously, and lovingly say the hard things? Can other correct you without putting you in a defensive posture? This is the litmus test of Christian maturity.