The Internet is a great environment to have a lively discussion where two people can disagree on a topic and others can follow while they respectfully engage in debating their points of view. Those following conversations may, if warranted, offer their perspective on the topic. But the third party always makes sure to stay on topic.
And then I woke up and read a few comments on YouTube.
Ever since the average Joe gained a platform to speak through social media, anyone who produces content for the Internet has dealt with both intentional and unintentional trolls. In my life, this has rarely been truer than when I write or read articles on faith. It seems without fail there will be comments denigrating or outright attacking God, Jesus, or faith in general.
I’ll be honest, a few years ago it worked. Reading those comments sent me into a rage. Sometimes I would enter the argument but most times I would stare at a comment and tell myself how wrong the person was. I would think, “If I wanted to, I could really tell them something. They are just too ignorant to even know how wrong they are.”
Now when I read or hear comments calling faith a crutch or labeling the Bible a book of fairy tales, I have a very different response: pity.
However, it is not pity in the way most people think. I have simply realized the fullness of life, the renewed purpose, the everlasting assurance of knowing a relationship with Jesus is something missing from these commenters’ lives. My eyes have been opened to the reality of God and it impacts the way I see the world, driving me to pity those whose eyes are still blinded.
I pity them because we can both stand under the night sky and stare in awe at the heavens above us. We can both appreciate the beauty before us, the incomprehensible space above us, and the innumerable stars surrounding our small ball of dirt. We can both see the exact same thing, and the soul without Christ has no option but to let his awe stop on what he sees. My awe goes further and seeing the night sky causes me to worship the One who created it all with His hands.
I pity the life without Christ because we can both experience the birth of a firstborn child and the joy, pressure, happiness, and doubt it brings. We can both ask big questions and seek wisdom from different sources. But I can also pray, asking God for the things I know I need, and for Him to show me things I don’t even know about. I have the peace of knowing I am not the ultimate authority in the life of my children. There is One wiser than I who loves my children more than I can imagine. The soul absent of intimacy with God is alone, although he or she may not realize it or feel the need of anything outside of self. That belief in itself is something to pity because those who hold it do not know what is available to them.
I pity the soul absent a relationship with Christ because I tried for years to operate as though everything in my life depended on me, my ability, my work, my ideas. It was exhausting and failure was always before me. I know many without Christ who still live under this burden. To be honest, I know several believers who also struggle with this because they have not yet given that pride over to Him. There is such relief in understanding the world does not belong on my shoulders. It belongs on His because He is the only being strong enough to carry the weight. The rest of us will eventually crumble and fall.
Lastly, I pity the eyes still blinded to the truth about God not because they do not feel happiness; they certainly do. I do not pity them because they are unethical. Many atheists I have met are incredibly ethical and have high integrity. I do not pity them because they do not enjoy life. They absolutely have fun and love the life they lead.
I pity them because there is deeper joy, deeper happiness, deeper fulfillment found in Christ than without Him. This is not to say we follow Jesus to obtain these things, they are byproducts of a relationship with Him. But they are there; they are real. And I pity the life that has never experienced them.
When you, believer, enter the incredible realm of the Internet where not everyone stays on topic, where people write comments worded to get fiery responses, do not reply in anger. Simply understand those words represent a soul who has not experienced the deeper life only to be found in Christ.
To the unbeliever who may be reading this: First off, thank you for reading this far. This article is in no way an indictment against you. It is an observation that is true. Speak to a Christian in your life or email us at [email protected] and ask how our lives changed after having our eyes open to Jesus. Realize that no matter how we describe it, our words are nothing more than a pathetic attempt to describe the indescribable.
Image a person born and raised on a boat in the ocean. The only world he knows is water. He has become used to the rising and falling of the waves, the salty air, and the quick, brutal storms. Now imagine someone comes on the boat to tell this person about land. What point of reference does he have to begin describing it? How could he describe dirt, trees, mountains, or earthquakes? There is no correlation he could make with the man raised on a boat. All he could do is invite the man to take a trip to land with him. That is how a Christian should see a soul whose eyes have not seen the beauty of Jesus.
But even that falls short of the incredible experience of knowing Jesus. The best I can do is echo what Christians have been singing with joy for years, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now am found. Was blind, but now I see.”
