This summer as I develop both passion and skills for pastoral care, I have begun to reflect on what it means to be human. Hearing story after story of lives well lived, loved and occasionally disturbed has given me new insight into humanity. Of course, preparing for my Genesis Bible Study, the Scriptures have had a fair amount to say about humanity as well. But what really hit home was hearing this song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X43XF8247E
The song is titled “Human” by Christina Perri. I think I may have heard the song a while back, but when I heard it recently, it really hit me powerfully. The song exemplifies the tendency that I have found to ring true in myself: a cycle of pushing forward, met by the sudden crash when things don’t seem right, back to everything being right in the world. But I think the true power of this song hit in acknowledging that the real me, my humanity, is truest when I break down.
Christina Perri sings, “I can fake a smile. I can force a laugh. I can dance and play the part. If that’s what you ask. Give you all I am.” And while not every smile is fake or every laugh forced, as long as I see myself as perfectly fine, there will always be the heartbreaking reminder that “I’m only human, and I bleed when I fall down.” That’s not just a reality check. That’s reality!
Genesis 2 and 3 paint the first picture of humanity in the Bible. After a playful description of God creating us, Genesis 3 puts humanity in the active role. Unfortunately, the serpent, who was “more crafty than any other wild animal,” decided to show up. He promises the newly created humans that if they eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the ONE tree that God asked them not to eat from, they will be like God. So of course, wanting to be like God, they ate. But unlike God, when God shows up on the scene, they attempt to hide and be alone. After God gives up on hide and seek (come out come out wherever you are – Gen 3:9), the humans start blaming each other and making excuses. AKA – they faked it! Here they were, bleeding from falling down, and all they can do is try to cover it up. Reality check – that’s me!
But THAT’S NOT THE GOOD NEWS! The good news is what God does next. He teaches. Some call it a punishment, but I think that misses an important feature. Sure there is a punishment aspect to the teaching, but punishment does not have the last word. Mercy does. Directly after God punishes the man and woman, he removes them from the garden, NOT TO FURTHER PUNISH THEM, but in order to prevent them from eating from the tree of life (3:22). God doesn’t want them to live forever because God doesn’t want them to be in this broken state forever! Genesis 3 isn’t about the brokenness of humanity, it is about the faithfulness of God amidst the brokenness of the world.
Which begs the question, what do we do while we are in this broken state? As long as brokenness is rampant in the world, what shall we do? Allow Romans 7 to answer that question. “Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 7:25). Death and Brokenness will not have the last word for those who live in the joy of grace.
What about you? I’m tired of pretending I’m okay on my own, because Genesis shows that God never wanted us to be alone, not even after we screwed up. Because at the end of the day, “I’m only human, I can take so much, Until I’ve had enough!” But through the mercy of God shown in Jesus Christ, my deepest wound will be healed, and grace will renew me daily. Being human is not about being smart enough or good enough, it’s about being in a relationship with God.
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