Being a cynic is for the weak. It takes strength and courage to live at the intersection of hope and trust.
As a pastor, I have been privy to all sorts of conversations. And as often is the case, we end up talking about people. Not in the gossipy, “bible study prayer request for a friend in need” sense, where we divulge all of the rumors and insider knowledge that we have acquired about a person – who may really be in need, but probably doesn’t want all of their dirty laundry aired. I’m sure you know what I mean there. We end up talking about how people hurt others… betray, lie, insult. More often than not, the pain experienced is both legitimate and completely understandable. I’ve seen terrible wounds inflicted upon the hearts and souls of men and women – some times physical, other times emotional, always painful.
It’s easy to experience the damage that we can inflict upon each other and become cynical… believing that everyone is just motivated by their own self-interests, leaving us full of distrust of human sincerity or integrity. It makes perfect sense. How do you protect yourself from future hurt at the hands of those you trust? Simply stop trusting people. If you don’t place your trust in people, then those people can never betray that trust and bring you harm. This attitude is so prevalent in church circles that we’ve even given it a spiritual twist, a “Christianese” way of saying it all. We’ll talk about how you can’t place your trust in people, only God. That if you place your trust in people, they will let you down because they are immoral, ignorant, insecure, immature, etc. We’ll quote scripture to support our growing cynicism:
“Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save.” – Psalm 146.3.
“This is what the LORD says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD.” – Jeremiah 17:5.
I get the main idea, and I agree that people are often untrustworthy, full of insecurity and immorality. But I don’t think that means we don’t trust them. I don’t think it gives credence to being a cynic.
Simply put – we trust people because Jesus trusted people. Jesus surrounded himself with people, friends that He lived life with. It wasn’t by accident. Nothing Jesus did was by accident. He trusted people, and people crucified him. When He rose from the grave, fresh off of the betrayal, He still trusted people. Jesus refused to give up on the trustworthiness of humanity. Jesus invited us (people) into His Father’s mission (see Matthew 28:18-20) knowing all too well what lies in the human heart. Even today, He’s still trusting people. He’s still entrusting us with His message, with His Spirit.
Being a cynic is for the weak. It doesn’t take large doses of creativity and insight to discover the evil that lurks within. It’s not particularly courageous to live your life separated from friends because you fear they may turn on you. It doesn’t take strength to live in that kind of fear.
It does, however, take strength and courage to live at the intersection of hope and trust. To live, as Christ lived, with the reality that the same people you are trusting today may, in fact, be the mob that cries out for your crucifixion tomorrow. It takes audacity to stare fear in the face, and choose to trust anyway. It isn’t ignorant or naive to choose trust. It may be one of the most daring choices we can ever make.
Joshua Butcher 