Meeting expectations of others in our life is a generic feature. We are expected to live up to the expectations of our friends, peer groups, society, workplace environment, which goes further to religious places too. Marion Woodman beautifully says, “Our parents expected a certain performance from us, and we tried to live up to their expectations. But when this happens, children learn to perform rather than be who they are, and the soul goes into hiding.”. Certain behavior and etiquettes are formed during the nurturing process but not necessarily it can impact the character. This can happen only with a change of heart without the need for disciplining or grooming.
People behave and perform based on their environment to the point of mastering their performances in situations. Sadly, this does not help the longing heart or the soul rather it harms them. One's best performance in life does not necessarily fill the void one feels. Jesus became the enemy of the religious leaders of His time because He called them out on their performances. Their fakeness was evident in all their discourses of the laws. They were boasting in their knowledge and adherence to 613 laws of Torah derived from the Old Testament but failed miserably in the matter of mercy and kindness.
The religious leaders were hard hearted deep within that Jesus’ gentleness, grace, mercy, compassion, and kindness became a threat to them. Jesus Christ was not performing to the religious system and culture of that time. He was the true Messiah who healed the blind man by birth, lepers, and a paralytic man suffering for 38 years. He acted out His true self towards these people. Jesus spoke about compassion and mercy by summing up all the laws in these two greatest commandments i.e. love the lord with all their heart, mind, soul and strength and love the neighbor as oneself. Jesus never prescribed a set of duties to follow and be identified under a religious banner. He was addressing the issues of the heart. He said in one of His discourses ‘blessed are those who are pure in heart for they shall see God.’. Your fake behavior or performance in the form of duties, rituals and obligations will not help you reach God. We worship God by making an image of God in different forms according to our imaginations and skill. God is not where you assign Him to be to keep Him under your control. The Bible says, He is spirit and whoever worships him should worship Him in spirit and in truth. The spirit of God is promised to abide in us and transform us. Stop wasting your time performing, come to the Savior and be transformed. You will be no more restless and lost. Remember, you are loved by God.
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