My first draft of Chapter 3 in Asphalt Jesus contained an excursus that was deemed by the editor to be too controversial to print. It was a reflection on how I would destroy God’s world if I were the devil and was inserted into my larger discussion of Affirmation 9 (“Christian love of self includes: Basing our lives on the faith that in Christ all things are made new and that we, and all people, are loved beyond our wildest imagination – for eternity.”). Ultimately, I think the editor showed wisdom in asking me to remove the excursus. However, for a smaller, more defined audience like readers of the Asphalt Jesus blog, I think it’s worth bringing out. If it rattles your cage, post a comment! I’m not asking you to agree with it. I just think it could provoke some interesting discussion, both here on the blog and in the small groups.
Here is the deleted excursus:
One day shortly after the radio interview with Bob Dutko in which some of his audience claimed I am everything short of the anti-Christ, I pondered as walked, “What if I really was seeking to eliminate every trace of the true path of Jesus from the face of the earth, how would I do it?”
I considered many possibilities. I could wage a war on Christians, for instance. Upon further reflection, though, I realized that persecution has historically made Christianity stronger, not weaker. In Roman times, hundreds if not thousands of new Christians would rise up in place of every Christian fed to the lions or burned at the stake.
“No, if anything, I’d want to make life easier for Christians. I’d want them to be persuaded that no threat exists whatsoever to the future of their faith. I’d convince them that rampant consumerism is not a threat, launching preemptive wars is not a threat, nor is merging the religion with government, nor workaholism, nor is lack of compassion for the poor, nor is any kind of prejudice against other races, genders, sexual orientations, and so on.
“What else would I do?” I asked. “Would I empower leagues of Satanists to rise up and take over?”
I realized that would be a lame threat. While black masses, pentagrams, and crucifying frogs upside down may seem attractive to some people, it’s really not a temptation to the masses. If I were to destroy Christianity, the effects would have to be pretty broad based.
I considered a number of other possibilities, each promising varying degrees of success in relation to varying amounts of energy expended. Then I hit upon it: an idea so powerful and promising that if I were truly the anti-Christ I’d gladly trade all the other plans and programs for just this one. The single thing I would do to ensure that the path of Jesus would eventually be erased from the earth – and probably all the other godly paths that may exist in the world along with it – would be to instill a simple idea in the mind of every person. The idea is this: “After you die, there is a good chance that if your God is not pleased with you, you will suffer extreme pain for all of eternity.” That’s it.
“But this idea is already out there,” you say? Hmmmm. So I’ve been scooped! In any case, you may wonder why I – and apparently someone long before me – would be content with instilling this one, simple thought in people’s consciousness? Consider the following list of theoretical implications that would unravel in its wake. You be the judge of how closely they match reality:
• People would panic, making every effort to eliminate all possibility that God would be angry with them. Since people could not prove the successfulness of their efforts, in their anxiety they would look for “sure fire” answers.
• They would therefore be attracted to certain leaders who would promise them salvation in exchange for obedience. Such leaders would wield unparalleled control over their followers.
• Naturally, the leaders themselves would need proof of their effectiveness – some sort of testimony that would assure people that if they followed they would be safe. Thus the leaders would claim to possess a written document containing God’s infallible words. Since the document would be of human origin, and thus flawed no matter how much true inspiration it contained, that book would be full of contradictions.
• The contradictions would increase people’s anxieties all the more, thus causing them to give up trying to interpret the rule book for themselves and to rely even more heavily on the interpretations of the leaders.
• Those leaders who display absolute certainty in their beliefs, with least nuance, who actively discourage questioning or doubt would become the most popular, thereby shutting down the minds and hearts of their followers still further.
• Naturally, since there would always remain at least a slight chance a person could be deemed unworthy no matter how hard people try to follow the rule book (and none would be able to follow it successfully, thus increasing anxiety), they would seek still other means to prove to themselves and to God that they are worthy. They would find scapegoats. They would find people who would serve to assure them of their own worthiness in contrast to these others.
• They would also turn upon and destroy those who they felt were decreasing their chances of being saved from damnation. Whole wars would erupt fueled by religious prejudice.
• Then things would get really interesting. Having assured themselves of their own salvation (or at least shutting the door and locking away any doubt deep in their consciousness) then the natural compassion would arise. After all, human beings are created in God’s image. They would wonder about their loved ones. Would they be found worthy? In an effort to “save” them, parents would manipulate and bully their own children and friends into faith. Many would disown their children or reject their friends if they did not come around, lest the “depravity” spread to others. Whole families split apart and long-time friendships would disintegrate.
• Then people would start wondering about those they’d never met or known. Would they escape eternal damnation? That’s when the proselytizing would begin, and the spreading of Christianity’s destruction to the ends of the earth.
• Little by little, every ounce of love and compassion within people would thus be transformed into fear, and if those Christians were good evangelists, that fear would eventually spread to every ear who had yet to hear about Jesus and his “love.”
And there I’d have it. Since fear is the opposite of love, and love is Jesus’ path, then with a single idea I would have wiped the path of Jesus off the face of the earth. And it would be an inside job!
Affirmation 9 moves in the exact opposite direction of this malevolent little idea. It assures people that all are loved by God for eternity – no matter who they are, no matter what they have done or failed to do, no matter what they believe or fail to believe. Fear is replaced with faith.
Some people object that if God loves everyone beyond their wildest imagination, then they will have no incentive to change. In point of fact, love has quite the opposite effect. If you have doubts, then try to find any honest expression of love – any truly loving relationship on earth – that does not provoke deep change in those involved in it, whether they initially believed they’d be changed or not. Personally, I became persuaded that God loves me this way twenty-five years ago and it completely changed the course of my life.
True love does not just affirm. It also convicts. But it does not just convict, either. It provokes a turning from that which is not loving. Indeed it is love that saves, not fear.
