No, not your nice or not-so-nice skin.  I’m talking about things that are complex.  Because we’ve made them that way.  What should be basic, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself” becomes, “Pray when you wke up, during quiet time, before meals, before bed, before any trip in the car or anytime your kids leave the house, and throw in the shower and twenty minutes in the corner with your apron over your head.”  Oh, and, “wear an apron.”

It becomes a list of what must be done in order to show “fruit” of loving the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength.  I’ve seen lists made as “encouragement” for Godly women.

• Daily quiet time- should be a minimum of 20-30 minutes, include prayer, meditation, memorization, and in-depth study.
• Serving the church by  (insert “ministry” here)
• Bearing as many babies as one can pop out as fast as possible. 
• Holding fast to a strict definition of modesty.  (Don’t look Amish but don’t stray too far from it either.)
• Don’t develop interests outside the “home arts.”
• Listen to only ABC brand of music.  XYZ will damn you to the nether regions.
• Avoid everything that Pastor Righteous has deemed unsuitable for any truly godly person.

The lists go on.  None of these things are wrong.  No one would tell you that it is a sin to pray daily, to study and memorize the Word.  No one would tell you that erring on the side of caution in regards to modesty or music/entertainment is a bad thing.  I have nine children!   I am not anti-child, anti-large families, or pushing for a new and improved anti-abortifacient birth control!  However when the emphasis becomes on the method instead of the principle (are you sick of hearing me say that?) something is out of balance.  We’re making life more complex.

What ever happened to living for Jesus “a life that is pure”.  Isn’t that the point?  Since when is the point to define once and for all just how that “purity’ should be defined for every Christian on the planet?  While I don’t advocate relativism, I do recognize that some can eat meat offered to idols without offending their consciences OR the consciences of those around them while others must resist for any number of reasons.  Paul teaches this.  He is clear.  Some things can be done by some that can’t by others.

Why is the church further dividing over preferences?  John likes announcements before the service and Pete likes them after the closing prayer.  WHO CARES?  Jane likes to wear aprons around the house but Martha can’t stand them.  SO WHAT?  Martha can do just as much to serve her family without the apron as Jane can with it.  Both can  use their liberty to shirk their duty or to revel in it. 

We’re making the simple, complex.  These “complexions” mar the beauty of the two greatest commandments.  Love the Lor with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself.  What would happen to the church if people went to the Word.  Sought it for the decisions they make in their lives.  And when no direct commandment is made in some area, said to themselves, “What do I need to do to love the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind and strenghth and love my neighbor as myself in this situation?”

I go to the store to buy a dress.  The Bible doesn’t say specifically how long that dress must be.  It doesnt’ say if I can have shorter sleeves, no sleeves, long sleeves… it doesn’t mention necklines.  It tells me to be modest and not give my brethren (sisters AND brothers) occasion to stumble (for different reasons obviously!)  So I put on the dress I like best.  I look at it.  I ask myself, “Can I love the Lord with all my heart…  etc.”  I can.  The dress in no way offends me and therefore I can’t imagine it offending my Lord.  But wait!  I look again and try with critical eye, to see if I’m a stumbling block to a brother  (I am really trying hard not to laugh at the idea of causing a brother to stumble at my size!).  I bend over in front of a mirror.  My neck is safe.  I bend over at the waist.  My legs are covered.  I raise my arms, you can’t see through them.  I look at it for sheerness… nope, not a problem.  So why am I suddenly unsure?

Well, I think there could be two reasons.

1. Because there is something subtle about it that is unnecessarily sensual.  I might not be able to identify that but I can sense it.
2. Because I’ve spent so much time in the company of teaching that looks for reasons to find fault with things that I assume everything is offensive rather than recognize that some people are going to have a problem no matter what you wear so you work to serve the general brotherhood and you leave those with unreasonable problems to the Lord.

It works for everything.  Clothing, music choices, movies, entertainments of any kind, books, hobbies, educational choices, you name it, it works.  Will this glorify God?  Can I love Him in doing this?  Will I be ashamed of my behavior?  Will this show love and concern for my brothers in Christ or is this my own folly and self-gratification?

You know, there are some things I don’t talk about with some friends.  Books that I read that they don’t.  Movies that I like that they don’t.  Music that I enjoy that they don’t.  And the reverse is true.  They are fine with some things that I’m not.  They watch things I just can’t or won’t.  They make priorities of things that I am just not comfortable with.  And that’s fine.  We leave those things out of our relationships.  We defer to one another.  We show love.  I don’t expect them to dump their preferences and they don’t expect me to dump mine.  We both took them to the Word, prayed for wisdom and guidance, and while we will prefer one another when around one another, in private or with people who like our choices, we enjoy our Christian Liberty to be different.

Complexions.  Why do we create complexity out of the simplicity of the Word?