Indeed, I am a rebel.  Long have I battled against everyone else.  Regardless of the fight.  And you may find me to be obnoxious.  But, the truth is, without rebellion, there would be no Christian church.

Instead, the Son of God would have given in to His human nature, intent only on being a part of the system that had departed from its purpose for so long.  Something that had lost touch with the heart of God, instead sucking the life from His Commandments, leaving only a skeleton of what the Law was supposed to achieve.

I'll agree that I pick fights over things that are petty. I do it because I'm amused by how tightly you hold on to those things.  Or how desperately you want to fit with everyone else.  In the end, neither of us are perfect, nor typically "right."

Then, I consider this:

1 Thessalonians 5:21

The Message (MSG)

19-22 Don’t suppress the Spirit, and don’t stifle those who have a word from the Master. On the other hand, don’t be gullible. Check out everything, and keep only what’s good. Throw out anything tainted with evil.


I have no desire to proof text this passage to justify anything I do.  Simply to obey it.  And what I read is "Don't be complacent.  Continually seek to follow God, staying connected and refreshed, in constant communication with Him and study of His word."  As for the evil part, I don't think that only means anything demonic.  I'm pretty sure that selfish, instinctive actions fit, as well

In my journey to find my place in the Body of Christ, I've been a lot of places.  Physically and philosophically.  I'm not done, yet.  I have definitely learned that I won't settle, though.

I think a part of why this particular passage was so important is that, as in Genesis, anything that man touches quickly moves from Godly to human.  We convert the raw power of God into a weekly music set that quickly becomes devoid of that which made it special initially:  Pursuit and praise of God.  (Instead, focused on regaining an emotional response)  Sometimes, we stick desperately to our guns, proclaiming that everyone around us has fallen to the wayside.


I'll end my rant with this:


^24-26 Meanwhile, the boat was far out to sea when the wind came up against them and they were battered by the waves. At about four o’clock in the morning, Jesus came toward them walking on the water. They were scared out of their wits. “A ghost!” they said, crying out in terror.
²⁷ But Jesus was quick to comfort them. “Courage, it’s me. Don’t be afraid.”
²⁸ Peter, suddenly bold, said, “Master, if it’s really you, call me to come to you on the water.”
^29-30 He said, “Come ahead.”
Jumping out of the boat, Peter walked on the water to Jesus. But when he looked down at the waves churning beneath his feet, he lost his nerve and started to sink. He cried, “Master, save me!”



The cliche and true sermon from this passage is that Peter fell apart the moment he lowered his gaze and changed his focus.  Something I think most of us (All of us.  Let's be honest) struggle with for our entire lives. If you don't agree, Paul said it first.  (And even he was quoting someone older and wiser than him.  Romans 3:10)

So though some may find me to be rebellious, perhaps I'm a less pleasant part of the Body.  Or a large intestine.  Something designed to filter out all the crap.  The crap that we would otherwise accept as beneficial...while we slowly poisoned ourselves and died.

The end.  Peace.