14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (2 Corinthians 5:14-17 NIV)
It’s well known that a person’s perception of reality is often determined by that person’s point of view. This has been seen by honest, but contradictory reports of an accident from witnesses who viewed the accident from different vantage points. Of course, points of view are not simply geographic. Our points of view are shaped by our experiences, our environment, our culture, our politics, and our resultant biases. Further, I’m convinced that none of us see the world directly. We each create a view of the world that shapes our perception of the actual world. We try to fit events into our imagined world.
Is the war in the Middle East, a genocide perpetrated by Israel, or a just response of a nation attacked by terrorists? The lens through which we look at these events shape our perceptions. We wonder, how can anyone honestly disagree with us? Then, we can make a leap by concluding that those who disagree are either stupid or evil. In reality, while that assessment may be true, it is more likely that the difference is one of the lenses we have developed, through which we view events, than the character of those who differ from us.
The same thing can be said about our political partisan divide. Accusations abound from both sides of that divide, claiming those on the other side are morally reprehensible. People try to shame others by their accusatory question, “How could you, in good conscience, have voted as you did?!” Our lenses shape our judgments.
Yet, what about those of us in the community of the Messiah, Jesus? We, too, have our lenses. Our lenses are shaped by something more, and more profound, than the factors I mentioned above. We are to be shaped by the love of the Christ. Read Paul’s words again. “2 Corinthians 5:14 … Christ’s love compels us … 16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view” (NIV). That “awful” sister or brother who voted the “other way,” is loved by our Lord, and we are to both love and welcome that fellow-saint. Please read Romans 14!
Another passage that we should read is Galatians 3:26-28.
26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
Of course, Jews, including Paul, remained Jews. Sadly, most slaves remained slaves. Men and women did not become a uni-gender population. While fully equal, they did not become interchangeable. What they all became were brother and sisters in one family, united in our Messiah. In Christ, there are no Republicans, Democrats, or Independents, even though we may retain our party affiliations. We see each other through the lens of Jesus, and His love compels us to love!
We are new creations, and we see each other through the eyes of that new creation. When the Messiah returns, the new creation will fully be here. Do we really believe that our present party affiliation will matter then? It dares not divide us now!
Tim Kelley