We cultivate that fog by minimizing our personal investment
of time and energy in the careful verification of redemptive truth. Rather, we choose to be quite satisfied with
the limited and second-hand information which the pastor or Sunday school
teacher offers – which they also typically got second-hand from someone else.
Listening to a lecture is just much quicker and easier, than
verifying for yourself, right? And,
since we’re not really that interested in delving too far into the matter,
anyway (for fear that we might discover more than we really want to) it works out very nicely to just go with that quick-and-easy,
second-hand approach.
So, here we are, the rank and file of the modern Church, largely
living blissfully unaware of the true intricacies of our faith and the
sophisticated expectations of our Creator.
And, in the seeming safety of this convenient fog of mind, we simply busy ourselves with whatever is our personal brand of “busy-ness.” And, without the burden of any significant divine
requirements upon our life, what else is there to do but focus on our own favored
fascinations while we wait for all of this to be over.
And, if we do occasionally suffer a twinge of “maybe I
should draw closer to God and delve deeper,” then we simply resort to the cure for all such heart pricks. We
merely reassure ourselves in the knowledge that most everyone around us is also
cloaking themselves in this same insulating fog of theological vagueness.
But, here’s the kicker.
When all of this is finally over, and we think to offer our ignorance to
God as a defense against any divine recriminations for our failure to invest at
the proper level, we will discover something.
In that final terrifying moment when we stand in that deadly serious space
between this life and eternity, it will be made very clear that the fog of ignorance
actually offers to us no refuge at all. And,
how could it? Since, in the Living
Christ, true enlightenment is readily available to every believer.
The great lie of our times is that redemption requires
essentially no significant investment on the part of the believer. In truth, redemption requires everything of
the believer. And, pulling the
theological covers over your head in an attempt to make that reality go away is
a huge mistake akin to mixing your metaphors.
You just should never, never do it.
