"Real Pictures, Inaccurate Description"

A couple days ago I received an email forward featuring the "UNBELIEEEEEVABLE" heartwarming story of a great white shark who developed a loving friendship with a fisherman who once saved his life. Yeah right! A friend of mine who had received the same forward (probably from the same person) emailed me this insightful comment:

Did you get this?? I don’t know why they send me these things. I immediately go on snopes and email them the article saying it’s full o’ @#$! I never get a response from them on that though - funny how they’ll email the most outlandish story to everyone they know but refuse to acknowledge the true story…. Hmmm, better to live in fantasy land I guess!!

Just in case you're not acquainted with www.snopes.com, it is a website that investigates email forwards (and other urban legends) to determine whether or not they are true. Right at the top of each page you get a rating of "true", "false", "undetermined", "mixture of true and false", or (my favorite) "real pictures, inaccurate description" with the evidence laid out on the rest of the page. (turns out the shark story was an April Fools Day joke from some French source that someone translated and passed on as a true inspirational story about how we can get along with nature).

Anyway, I think my friend's observation is so true. Nobody wants to be told that the pretty lie that is making them feel good is, in fact, a lie...especially not if there's "photographic evidence." In fact, some people will become angry, or at least annoyed, if you tell them the truth ("thanks for ruining it for me!"). I mean, a shark leaping out of the water so its friend can pet it is so much nicer than a scientist reaching out and touching a shark that is leaping out of the water in an attempt to grab a chunk of bloody meat...too bad the pretty explanation of the picture isn't the true one.

This made me think of how many people treat the Bible. People have this wonderful, true, biblical picture that God is love/loving. However, they then come up with their own pretty ideas of how a loving God should act and completely ignore His holiness, righteousness, and justice. The result is often a "God of mush" (as one of my profs would say) who is just too kind and loving to punish anyone so people can really live however they want and believe whatever they want because he will forgive pretty much everyone (though he should smite the really bad people like Hitler or Osama Bin Laden).

Real picture, inaccurate description! God is love, but He is also holy and just. In love He has provided forgiveness through the death of His Son (John 3:14-17; 14:6), but in holiness and absolute justice He will punish those who thumb their nose at his offered forgiveness and try to do it their own way (John 3:18-19, 36). This description of the "picture" might annoy and anger people, but isn't offensive truth that can save your soul better than a pretty picture that is a lie?

(Oh, and please check snopes.com before sending when you feel the need to pass on any feel-good email forwards!)