Humanity

Much like my blog about shyness, this post is most likely going to be full of my experience with things and generalized statements, often stated as fact. Don't let it fool you: this is just my blog, and my opinion. Feel free to try to change it if you dare. ;)

There's a phrase I've heard quite a lot. It's said by people - lost or found -, it's quoted from movies, and it's an idea that has permeated our thinking. It is this: Humanity is flawed. It's not often said that way, but that's the idea. Someone does wrong and we say, "Only human." I take issue with this for two reasons:

1. It makes is sound like humanity STARTED that way; like it's inseparable from mankind.
2. It removes personal accountability. It's not me; it's my whole species.

1. Now, I have to be careful because on the one hand, sin is now inherent within us, and it is demonstrated abundantly through our physical/mental/emotional - human - desires. BUT, sin is not part of humanity. We know this because before the Fall, Adam was perfect. We know this because Christ became a man. Sin is not necessary for humanity, nor humanity for sin. (Angels fell, too.) It's not humanity which makes us sin, even when the sin nature has become so embedded in our humanity - our wills, our emotions, our reasoning, etc.

We'll still be humans after we've been glorified, when we have new bodies and new hearts, when we're perfect. We're not going to turn into angels or something. We'll just be CLEAN humans.

2. It happened multiple times when I was working that people would talk about their problems, about someone who wronged them, or something they did to others, and it would get . . . shrugged off by using this excuse. "Oh, well. I'm just human." People have no idea what humanity is SUPPOSED to be, what it should mean, what it should look like. We're image-bearers of GOD! It's not "JUST human." God the Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords is human. Just human?

No, no. Not JUST human. I'm human - that means Christ came to save ME. He didn't become an angel and die to save them; He became a man. Humanity is not the problem. It's the sin nature. Don't blame what you do on your humanity; blame it on your sin; own it. And understand that while you will always be human, you can be free of the sin.

We've come to expect that sin will happen (that's just common sense), but then we move to accept it. There's no other option if we're not thinking properly. If HUMANITY is the problem, there is no hope for me EVER. I'm always going to be human. However, when humanity is not the problem, when it's simply the means by which we SEE the real malady, then we can understand, there's hope. I can be cured by the One Who became human and showed what humanity is supposed to look like, and one day will again.