Crumbling Pedestals

"Don't make people into heroes, John. Heroes don't exist, and if they did I wouldn't be one of them."--Sherlock Holmes in BBC's Sherlock

We have a tendency to put people on pedestals, don't we?  Our favorite actor, singer, or even one of our friends can end up on a gleaming pedestal.  To our eyes, they can do no wrong; and if they ever do something we can't ignore, we justify them.  Sometimes we overlook serious problems along with their quirks.  We do this with celebrities all the time, but usually their actions don't directly affect us.  However, I've been through friendships in which I ignored red flags because I thought so highly of my friend that I didn't realize how deeply that friend would hurt me.

In Sherlock's comment, he is making a point that, no matter how much good a person does, no one is perfect and everyone will eventually disappoint.  We get caught up in the good things a person does--whether it is great generosity, visiting cancer patients, saving a life, or just being nice to us--and decide that this person must be next to perfect.  We see them through a lens that pretty much blocks out anything they do wrong.

This is not how we should view our fellow humans.  After all,

"There is no one who does good, not even one.” Romans 3:12b

Only God is totally good.  If we think that anyone else can do no wrong, we are essentially putting them on level with God.  This may seem a bit extreme, but Jesus clearly said,

“No one is good—except God alone." Mark 10:18b

We run into three major problems when we idolize people like that, especially when it comes to our friends.  First, as I've said, we put them on level with God.  Second, we can be disappointed when someone doesn't live up to our expectations or hurt when behavior we've ignored turns on us.  Third, when someone is on a pedestal, we can't reach out to them.  People who look perfect on the outside can be seriously struggling; but because they are standing in a spotlight, they feel like they can't open up and be vulnerable.

But, like most extremes, this one has a flip-side.  A popular idol that everyone thought could do no wrong falls into infamy pretty much every other week.  High-profile pastors, pop stars, billionaires, or anyone in the public eye can be in headlines for weeks after some "unforgivable" scandal.  But let's face it, the "exalted shall be humbled".  The higher the pedestal, the greater the fall.

So we have to be careful when walking the fine line between believing someone can do no wrong and believing someone can do no right.  We are all imperfect humans, and we can't see what is going on beneath the surface.  A "perfect" person still struggles with sin; someone we've labeled as hopeless can still be saved.

Oh wait...didn't Jesus already talk about this in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14)?

Only God knows what is in the heart.  What we can know is that no one is perfect--so we shouldn't expect people to be.  What we also know is that no one is beyond salvation--Jesus died to save all who trust in Him, no matter how "bad" or "unforgivable" they seem.  Not only that, but He loves those deemed unlovable...including us.  If He can love us, whether we are on a pedestal or in the ditch where one used to be, shouldn't we learn to love others? Not because they are perfect or because they aren't...but because He first loved us.

The Solid Word

"How do you spell [insert word]?" "Is [insert hopeful word] a real word?" "What does [insert word] even mean?"

If you've ever played Scrabble, Banana-grams, or pretty much any game involving words, someone is always asking how to spell certain words or coming up with words that don't exist.  It is clear that words have to have a specific standard of spelling and meaning (however arbitrary spelling rules may be) so that our society can communicate (and play Scrabble).  We can't all spell words differently or use them for different meanings or there will be total chaos just when someone texts you asking you to buy cereal.

There are people around today who will say that words are just sounds to which we attach meaning.  Supposedly, we can make words mean whatever we like.  Ironically, those people are using words to express that thought...

The point is, words are integral to our society's functioning because they allow us to communicate ideas.

So, if words are so powerful, we should use them carefully, right?  I mean, if you can just say a word like "snowman" and whoever you're talking to immediately imagines a figure made out of cold, wet snow with a top hat and carrot nose and possibly singing, you need to make sure you only say "snowman" when you want someone to think of a snowman.

But we use our words so carelessly, don't we?  Words like "love" and "hate" express intense emotional actions, and yet we use them to refer to movies, shampoos, and our opponents in a card game.  We live in a culture with a lot of exaggeration--everything is "the best", "the worst", "the biggest", or "epic".  We throw around "love", "hate", "awesome", and other intense words that really have no place in those contexts.

I'm not saying not to use those words casually.  I know it would be next to impossible to restrain ourselves to only using those extreme words in a few select contexts.  What I'm saying is that we often cheapen the meaning of words so much that we end up using harsher words that can hurt people.  We've established that words have meaning; therefore, if you tell someone that you hate them, they will get the impression that you wish they were dead or worse.  And while in playful contexts, we can usually get away with teasing our friends with extreme words by laughing and saying "just kidding", some times it gets carried away.  Whoever is talking may not mean to come across spitefully, but whoever he is talking to may get hurt anyway. 

There is a saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me."  Anyone who has been on the brunt end of teasing knows there is nothing farther from the truth.  Words can make your day, or they can devastate you.  We regulate all weapons that can hurt for a few weeks or even years, but the one weapon that can cut deeper than any bullet is the one we can't control (check out James 3). 

Words are powerful.  Use them carefully.  If you don't, you might end up saying something you don't mean, or saying it in a way you didn't intend.  We need to use our words to bring others up and show them the love of Christ, not tear each other down.

Despite the fickle and hurtful words in our world, there is one Word that we can always trust.  Christ is our Solid Word, upon which we can always set our hopes.  His Word is alive, and it will never fade away.