The strongest language in Scripture is reserved for the dull of heart. We have become, as T. S. Eliot warned, “hollow men.” And this world-weary nothingness is frightening. We are never closer to hell than when our hearts feel . . . nothing.
Temporal things can be gratifying, but a problem arises when we make earthly enjoyments our main pursuit. Not only will we lose our souls for having worshiped the creation rather than the Creator, but we will lose the true joy of the creation itself.
If we disregard God, all that’s left is the dissipation of gathering and collecting, and every “increased possession loads us with a new weariness” (John Ruskin). Living materialistically, we settle for the “barrenness of a busy life.”
Why don’t we choose to devote ourselves to God more wholeheartedly? We say we desire fellowship with Him, but perhaps we’re not willing to let go of the alternative. Trying to find a way to have both alternatives at once, our hearts are divided.
We won’t grow wise without seeking God, and we won’t seek God without humility and reverence. That is why the fear of the Lord is the “beginning” of wisdom. Pride corrupts the learning process, so if we wish to learn, we must humble ourselves.
It takes time for the consequences of our actions to show up, so the emptiness of work that disregards God isn’t always apparent right now. But in time, the failure of godless activity will become clear. The wise are willing to be warned about this.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23,24). Such honesty before God is painful, but without it, there is no growth toward God.
Nothing short of divine love can equip us to love others, for it is our security in God’s perfect love that makes it safe to love those who are not perfect. Without the God who ordained them, the laws of love would be difficult and dangerous indeed.
To seek God in truth, rather than pride and self-sufficiency, is to seek Him in reverence. It is God’s prerogative to set the terms of our relationship with Him, and that relationship will not be what we long for it to be until we let God be God.
By faith, we seek to please God because we love Him. Faith gives wings to love’s natural desire. Showing us not only that God can be pleased but how we may do so, faith gives true substance to love’s highest wish: the pleasure of our beloved God.
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