The Blue Cadillac

Several years after we were married (in 1977), I got an itch for a new car. Not just any car mind you, but the fanciest hunk of metal on the car lot. I am not sure what possessed me but I had new car fever bad. For a man just out of college with two young children, my desire was disproportionate with my income. Yet there I was, faced with the dream of cruising down the streets of Nashville, Indiana in a new "sled".

And I knew exactly which sled. Touted as one of the largest cars ever built, I had fallen in love with a Cadillac Eldorado. It was light powder blue with a white leather interior, had a 454 engine, and a hood nearly as long as the rest of the car.  It was front-wheel-drive (very unusual in those days), had auto dimming headlights, rain sensing wipers, and the list goes on. I thought we-all would look very sharp driving down the road in it.

I am not sure what happens to a person that zeros in on a toy like that, but I can tell you the draw is powerful. I got to a point in my thinking that I couldn't imagine life without it. I dwelled on that car in my mind for many weeks.

For illustration sake, let's call the car "the world." We are called in 1 Peter 2 to live in the world, yet not be a part of it, to influence the world through our Christian principles and inheritance, yet not be tarnished by it. Yet the world tugs at our heart-strings and calls to us, wooing us to the pleasures it holds. And therein is the battle all Christians must face every day. Do we love the world, or do we love Jesus? How would you answer that question? Is the object of your affection found in the world, or is it the face of your Savior?

Things of the world aren't necessarily bad (though of course some are), yet it is when they sink into your heart like a flying arrow that you are in trouble. They pierce your heart with barbed hooks and are nearly impossible to pull out and still survive the experience. They mingle with your life blood and begin to pump through your body, flowing freely into the recesses of your heart and mind. And like any foreign body that invades, they change you. They squelch the fire of the Spirit and replace him with a counterfeit God designed to kill and destroy.

Like I was with my Cadillac, many of us are today; consumed, engaged, enamored, and duped into believing the world holds something better than the grace of God. It is a device of our wily enemy, a lie permeating us that is so subtle it becomes hard to recognize the truth. But there is an answer, a safeguard against such attacks. It is found in the person and pursuit of Jesus Christ. Paul speaks of it in Ephesians 6.

Ephesians 6:10-17
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

As Christians, we are warriors engaged in daily battle. Our protection and advance depend on how seriously and genuinely we put on the armor of God and know his Word. God has miraculously provided for us a hope and a future that makes the things of this world look like old rusty metal. And most importantly, he loves us, you and me, not because of our deeds, but simply because he chooses to. Praise be to the Author and Giver of Life.
Shannon

1John 2:15-17
15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. 16 For everything in the world?the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life?comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.