Speak Truth, Life & Love

**Warning: the following is an in-depth look into the heart and mind of D.M. Kurtz. Those easily offended would do well to tread carefully.**

That disclaimer is not a joke. If you’re easily offended, this isn’t the post for you. But then again, maybe that’s exactly what makes it the perfect article for you to read. In any case, I’m either about to destroy my reputation or raise it to new heights. No matter the result, I write all of this for Jesus, for my Father in heaven, for the God who carefully fashioned me and knows me better than any mortal ever could. I pray it brings Him glory and causes Him to look on me with joy.

I’m sick of the intolerance of our culture. Don’t applaud that statement; I’m far from finished, and I’d be shocked if I mean what you think I mean. I’m disgusted by the masses who claim to be tolerant, who voice their acceptance of all those who are different, who pretend to do it all for “love” when all the while people like me are shunned, called hypocritical, judged as intolerant hate-mongering lunatics.

By “people like me” I mean Christians, of course, and don’t misunderstand me or jump to any conclusions until you finish reading what I have to say. There are those out there who are truly hypocrites. Those who would preach love while shunning anyone they don’t like or with whom they disagree, who disregard the truth in secret while they commit adultery. These deserve harsh judgement in my estimation, for they are wolves in disguise who lead people away from the truth. I am not one of those, or I at least do my absolute best to be genuine.

So what am I getting at, then? Well, I’m disturbed by just how far down the rabbit hole our society has traveled. Tolerance is parroted to be akin to love, when the truth couldn’t be further away. The most loving person (who just so happened to be God at the same time) was perhaps the most intolerant person to walk the planet. I’m talking about Jesus Christ.

He was motivated by a deep love for mankind that superceded any potential selfish desire, such that even though He loved unconditionally, He consistently called sin exactly that: sin, and He commanded people to stop sinning (John 8:1-11). He called the Pharisees (religious leaders of Jesus’ time) “hypocrites” & “serpents” (Matthew 23), and He never failed to make a public mockery without any shame for causing such humiliation. He even angrily overturned the tables and destroyed the wares of businessmen in the synagogue (John 2:12-21), something for which he would most certainly be arrested for by our modern laws.

Yet Jesus is heralded still by many as a “great prophet”, a “man of peace” and “love”. How can this be? Either our culture has greatly twisted what love means, or Jesus was actually a demented nutbag who got his kicks from the humiliation and suffering of others. That’s an asinine statement, in case you were wondering. Jesus was and IS love. He set the ultimate example for love as sacrifice (John 15:13), and proved that He was far from hypocritical by laying down His own life on a Roman cross (Luke 23).

So if Jesus was intolerant but loving at the same time, why do we as a culture believe that intolerance is hateful? If any of you have children, I think that some at least would agree that were I as a parent to show complete tolerance to my daughters behavior, she would grow up to be an entitled brat that would be all but useless to society. Instead, I and my wife correct her when she is wrong. We do so gently, of course, with love, with clear explanation and Scripture. But we tell her when she is doing something wrong, and we clarify how she could make a better choice in the future.

But that somehow flies in the face of everything our culture seems to believe today. News flash: telling someone that we disagree is NOT hate, it’s love! Or at least it should be, though I know there are some out there who enjoy the pain they cause by pointing out someone else’s wrongdoing, and I am by no means condoning that psychotic behavior.

If I point out to you that something you do, say or believe is wrong (from my point of view), it is BECAUSE I love you. It’s because I have a deep seated need by the urging of the Holy Spirit within me to show you, for I fear for your eternal soul. I stand with God when I say that I truly do not wish for any to perish, but for all to join me in eternal life (2 Peter 3:9) when our days on earth have met their end, and I hope that you care enough about me to let me know when I am in the wrong.

There are things that simply cannot be overlooked. Items which I cannot look upon and say “you do you, boo” (I hate that phrase, by the way), because I sacrifice my own beliefs by remaining silent.

So here it is, the part of the article that will perhaps send anyone who reads it fleeing to social media to rip me a new one. We shall see. But this is what I believe, and if you are as tolerant as you claim, you will be at peace with accepting my words and leaving me be, whether you disagree or not. This… Is me.

I believe in God the Father. I believe He created everything. I believe in Jesus Christ. I believe that He came, He lived, He died, and He came back to life. I believe that sin is real and that without the grace and forgiveness of Jesus, it damns us to hell for eternity.

I believe that sexual sin of any kind is real, be it cheating on your spouse or sleeping with the same sex. I also believe that such sin is no worse or better than anything else, and NO, someone caught in sexual sin should not be put to death or shunned from society. I believe that anyone who preaches such things is a liar and a heretic. I simply believe that the sin itself exists, and that to ignore it for the sake of “tolerance” is not what Jesus would have done. I believe that we can be friends, in spite of sin, because that’s how Jesus operated. He befriended sinners, reached out to the lost and hurting (Matthew 9:9-13), and I am driven to do the same.

I believe that I am not any better than you. I struggle with lust, I’ve battled pornography, I fight anger every day. Sin is sin, wrong is wrong.

I believe that all sin should be confronted, because to ignore it only allows someone to travel further and further away from the God that loves them so deeply. I believe that Christians should be bold and unwavering but genuine and loving, speaking the truth always in spite of any social consequence.

I believe that most of our world is on a path to hell, and it breaks my heart. It truly does. It hurts to see so many who think they are good, but they do not follow Jesus, and so they are misguided, for I also believe that Jesus spoke the truth when He said that He is the only way to heaven (John 14:6) I believe that, if I remain silent, I am a hypocrite and so I must speak, despite what you may be feeling after reading these words.

I also believe that I am far from perfect, my words and beliefs are not infallible, and I welcome any discussion that comes from this article. Everything I hold as truth comes from the Bible, for I firmly believe that it indeed contains the very words of God, gifted to us for the betterment of our lives and the lives of those around us.

Most importantly, I believe that God loves you, you are precious, SO very cherished in His sight, and in spite of how crazy our world and lives can be, He wants the absolute best for you, even when that “best” just seems painful or cruel.

I believe, no matter the cost, that God is not dead. He is indeed alive, and He wants to welcome you into a loving embrace. He wants to bring freedom from any chains that hold you down. Despair, hurt, sin of all kinds; He can wipe it all away. My hope is in Him, and no matter what I suffer in this life, it always will be, until the very end.

Praise be to God.

Copyright © 2018 D.M. Kurtz