24 From our youth shameful gods have consumed the fruits of our fathers' labor-- their flocks and herds, their sons and daughters. 25 Let us lie down in our shame, and let our disgrace cover us. We have sinned against the LORD our God, both we and our fathers; from our youth till this day we have not obeyed the LORD our God. (Jeremiah 3:24-25)
The animated movie Despicable Me features a super villain named Gru who is trying to establish himself as the greatest villain in the world. As he contends with an arch rival, Vector, who manages to outdo him in every conceivable way, Gru ends up as the caretaker for three orphaned girls. Over the course of the story, Gru's soft side is drawn out by the girls and he crosses over from being a terrible person bent on destruction to a good man who loves orphans. While entertaining, the gist of this movie serves to perpetuate a lie that shapes the way that people think about themselves. That lie is expressed in the attitude that there is good in everyone and in the belief that people will be good if we can find a way to get in touch with the good that is in them. The extent of the influence of the world in our thinking is underscored by many Christians who embrace this view. They object when this understanding of people is called a lie. But a lie it is.
We should readily see the ideas that people are basically good or that there is good in everyone as lies from the clear teaching of God's Word. Romans 3:12 sums it up very well, "All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." It's hard to maneuver around such strong language. If we are honest about what God's Word is saying, we must admit that there is no good in us. This is difficult, so we'd rather believe the lie.
It's strange, but not surprising, that we'd prefer the lie that we're basically good rather than the truth that we are "worthless." After all, it was a lie that got us into this mess. In the Garden, Satan enticed Eve with a lie. It appealed to her, so she accepted it as truth. When she did the good that was part of our human nature was completely destroyed — we lost it all. No good remained. This is the horrible condition that resulted from sin entering our world. Along with what was good in us, sin destroyed the shalom of the
world — the peace, harmony, and balance that existed between God and man and the Creation. With no good left — no good to be drawn out of us — we were in a hopeless situation and helpless to change it. We were utterly despicable. All we could do was "lie down in our shame" and "let our disgrace cover us."
But our disgrace and despair is not the end of the story. Although we had lost all of the good — all of the shalom — it was God's purpose to restore us. In His love He comes to those who understand that they have no good to offer Him and can do no good to appease Him. It is for those who have lost it all that Christ comes into the world to do it all. He leaves no room for any good in us, but makes room in us for His goodness. He brings love and forgiveness to those who acknowledge their shame and recognize their disgrace. He seeks out those who are helpless and hopeless to give them His power and a hope that will never disappoint. He turns away the "good" people and showers His grace on the despicable me's.
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