I like to think of myself as a bit of a ‘kooky’ believer. A little too edgy for Church. Zany! A bit of a rebel – and way too cool for that dogma stuff. Not for me the mainstream precepts. Get this – I listen to non-Christian bands. Doctrine? That’s ole’ school, man. Get with the beat, baggy. Doctrine’s for sad old has-beens.
Of course, this is nonsense. For starters, I’m as edgy as my Dad’s golf socks. It’s tempting to think I can straddle the divide between secular and religious – but as Jesus reminds me, I’m either for Him Or I’m for the world. And, like it or not, doctrine matters. We might not be at Bible college, but we’re already doing it. We’re thinking and acting out what we believe to be true about God, ourselves, the world and everything in it. That’s doctrine. That’s life.
So here’s an example: heaven. Or rather, the New Creation. That’s where we’re gonna be spending eternity, in our actual (redeemed) bodies, with Jesus. Et-er-nity. Long time. With JESUS! Isn’t that incredible? And exciting and more than a little mind-blowing? You would think so, wouldn’t you? And yet – I’ve spent longer worrying about the grocery shop or my hair colour than I have pondering this amazing future.
I’ve scoured the pages of Hello! more often than I have Scripture. When Jennifer Aniston asks me for love advice, I’m there. Ask me about eternity and er, not so much. I’ve a horrible feeling I know more about Brad Pitt than I do about Jesus. But I’m guaranteed to meet only one of them – and it ain’t Brad. Too cool for school? Drop-out, more like.