The last time hubby and I were at the grocery store we came across a Keto knock-off “Cinnamon Toast Crunch” cereal. I was intrigued. So, we got some to try.
You can see this cereal in today’s background photo.
After trying it, I wouldn’t call it awful … but I wouldn’t call it good either. There is a fake sweetener ingredient in the cereal which leaves a somewhat bitter aftertaste in your mouth. Even after washing the cereal down with a full cup of tea, and another full cup of water … the bitter aftertaste lingers. It isn’t pleasant. Twenty minutes later, there is still a lingering of the bitter fake-sweetness.
Now … cane sugar is real … and brown sugar is real … maple syrup and honey are real. These sweeteners are the real thing.
When it comes to our Christian life … people can tell the difference between fake and real.
I grew up in a strict stodgy religious system where everyone I knew (myself included, I am ashamed to say) judged everyone who was not a Christian. We judged them because they did not dress like we did. We judged them because they had different moral values and standards than we did. We judged them because they listened to different music than we did, etc. …
The dilemma with judging everyone who is not a Christian … is that the Bible clearly instructs Christians to “Go make disciples of every nation.” How can you convince people to become a Christian if you are always looking down on them and judging them??
It’s a dilemma!
The way around the dilemma is “fake-sweetness.” Deep down in your heart, you are still judging them for who they are and what they do … while on the outside you put on a good face and act like you care about them.
People can tell.
People can tell “fake-sweetness” … every bit as much as I could tell the fake-sweetness in the Keto knock-off cereal. And … religious “fake-sweetness” leaves a lingering bitter aftertaste in people’s soul! Every bit as much as the unpleasant bitter aftertaste of the fake-sweetened cereal!
Is the goal to convert people to “your version” of Christianity? … so that they start to dress “just like you” … and act “just like you” …. and behave “just like you”??
Is the goal to convert people to Christianity so that you can check a box off the “required” religious “to do” list … so you can prove to God that you’ve been a “good enough” Christian??
Or … is the goal to introduce people to the most amazing person ever! … Jesus!! … who loves them incredibly! … and forgives them! … and accepts them! … and offers them a fresh brand-new start in life!
What if the Keto knock-off cereal I picked up at the store had actually been amazing?!? What if the taste was delicious! … and what if the ingredients were so unbelievably healthy that I could immediately tell a difference in my health? What if I had more energy and stamina and mental clarity because of eating the cereal? What if I started to lose weight?
Then, for sure I would want more of that cereal!
For sure I would be so excited about the great health benefits and changes in my life that I would tell everyone! I would want the same great health benefits and changes for other people too!
This right here is what “real sweetness” looks like!
“Real sweetness” looks like a vibrant relationship with someone (Jesus!) who loves you very much … and whom you love very much too!! “Real sweetness” looks like loving Jesus so much that you can’t help but share Jesus with others! … so that they too can experience the great love Jesus offers!
And “real sweetness” doesn’t have to look like the exact same thing. “Real sweetness” can come in many different varieties … it can look like “cane sugar” … it can look like “brown sugar” … it can look like “maple syrup” … it can look like “honey.” Being a Christian does not mean we all have to look the exact same way, behave the exact same way, and have the exact same values and standards.
As followers of Jesus Christ, God has made us all different … and as Christians, our “real sweetness” comes in many different varieties … with different flavor nuances … for different purposes, in different “recipes.”
“Taste and see that the LORD is good.” – Psalm 34:8
