Squirrel!

“But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ” (2 Cor 11:3)

Our minds are fickle things at times. We all know the line from the movie “Up!” when someone is distracted by something:

“Squirrel!!”

So it is with our minds – we can be dead set on keeping our minds focused on something, and the littlest thing can distract us from that goal. Sometimes I confess I want to be distracted. Suddenly rearranging my desktop seems so very important rather than start on the large project waiting for me. I know I’m not the only one.

In this verse Paul was writing about the simplicity of our devotion to Christ. Is he saying that it’s simple? No – Training our minds takes discipline and work. But what we are to be focused on is simple and pure – Christ and Christ alone. In Barnes commentary he writes that Paul was talking about having “simplicity of mind and heart; that childlike candor and docility; that freedom from all guile, dishonesty, and deception which so eminently characterized the Redeemer. Christ had a single aim; was free from all guile; was purely honest; never made use of any improper arts; never resorted to false appearances; and never deceived. His followers should in like manner be artless and guileless. There should be no mere cunning, no trick, no craft in advancing their purposes. There should be nothing but honesty and truth in all that they say.

Paul was afraid that they would lose this beautiful simplicity and artlessness of character and manner; and that they would insensibly be led to adopt the maxims of mere cunning, of policy, of expediency, of seductive arts which prevailed so much in the world – a danger which was imminent among the shrewd and cunning people of Greece; but which is confined to no time and no place.

Christians should be more guileless than even children are; as pure and free from trick, and from art and cunning as was the Redeemer himself.”

What he is NOT saying is that the Gospel needs to be simplified. “Give us the simple Gospel” has been the cry of people who have thought themselves to be evangelical when they were only lazy. While the center of the Gospel itself is indeed simple, God’s Word is deep, and when we study it’s depth, the simple concept of God’s love towards us become more and more evident. The more I study the bible the more I realize how much I don’t know. Yet the Gospel is so simple at it’s core that a child can understand it. Once we grasp the simplicity we are drawn like a moth to the light, to want to plumb the depths and learn all we can about this God who loves us so much that he set in place this world and all that is in it with one goal – to draw us nearer to Him, and in turn have us show the way to others that they would also be drawn to Him.

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DISCLAIMER: I read several sources, commentaries, devotionals, etc., when I study the bible. Some of what I write is heavily inspired by what I read, and some sections may not be all my own words. I try to distill and paraphrase but there are way too many great writers who know the depths of God’s Word more than I ever will. I try to give credit where possible, and I don’t want anyone to think that everything I write comes straight from my brain – it’s all inspired by God and others He has chosen to write through. I encourage you to look to those who have also studied and written about Scripture, while at the same time remembering they are only men, and the ONLY true standard is the Word of God – everything written by me or any other human MUST be measured against that standard.