In last week’s newsletter, we talked about pride and how it masks itself in our culture. We also talked about humility and how we should remain humble and give others the credit for the positives, and take responsibility—while not dwelling upon—the negatives.
However, this is impossible for us to do on our own, successfully for the long term, because pride is at the core of the spiritual disease that entered humanity at the beginning, and when stress enters the scene, all bets for maintaining good behavior are off.
Enter the Loop
The Loop is a concept I was inspired with while studying the Bible one morning a month or so ago. In the passage I was looking at in the Gospel of John, a verse stood out to me and it challenged me to look into what became the Loop idea.
Here’s the verse: John 5:41-42 — “Your approval means nothing to me, because I know you don’t have God’s love within you.”
Jesus never came to gain our approval. He did come to open a way for us to be saved from sin, but we were the ones who killed him (specifically humanity –> and the ones who He came to help specifically). This shows us something profound about Jesus’ love and character, but it also brings up another key to understanding God.
Jesus tells us that He came to ‘show’ us the Father (John 14:9). It is through Jesus’ life that we are able to see what God is like, and it is only by leaning on Jesus that we are able to truly succeed in life.
This starts a loop that shows us that Jesus points to the Father. What’s next? What does the Father offer?
Jesus tells us the answer: John 14:15-17 — “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.”
The loop continues because God gives the Holy Spirit. We also can see in this passage that the Holy Spirit’s role is to leads people into all truth.
However what is the Truth that the Holy Spirit leads people too? We find the answer in the next chapter of John, specifically in John 15:26 — “But I will send you the Advocate—the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me.”
So now we have a loop, starting from God the Father, giving the Holy Spirit, who points us to the truth about Jesus, who shows us the Father, before repeating in an upward positive spiral.
The Open Loop
Did you catch the unpredictable variable in the loop? Read the loop definition again and see if you catch it.
The unpredictable fourth piece in this loop is us—specifically humanity. The Holy Spirit leads us to Jesus, who shows us the Father. It is amazing in my mind that we have the opportunity to be included in this loop, that is, provided that we keep moving the loop forward and pointing others to Jesus.
We are able to do something the Holy Spirit cannot do well, and that is plant seeds in others who are otherwise unable to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice. The world does not know, understand, or pay any attention to the Holy Spirit. We can love others, and plant seeds that can change this.
This is our role, and we should always remember that we are never doing this on our own or through our own ability, but with the Holy Spirit’s power and guidance.
As soon as the focus shifts away from Jesus, pride begins to creep in, and we slowly drift away from the loop and connection with God. While the Holy Spirit can, He will prompt us to come back, but the further we get into the world, and society, the less likely we will be able to hear His voice.
This is one key danger with pride—it has the potential to steal our relationship from God before we realize what is happening.
What are your thoughts on the Loop idea? I’m sure I am not the only one who has thought of this? What do you think? Share your thoughts and enter the conversation below!
~Cam