Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I love irony and how God has a sense of humor about things. This is especially true as we hear the rich and famous say one thing and live another way. People in Hollywood are especially good at this as well as liberal professors on our college campuses.
I have two stories that drive home the point. Paul McCartney is a well-known environmental advocate. Back in 2005 the sponsor of his tour was Lexus because they make “environmentally responsible” cars. The tour was great for both and in 2008 they gave McCartney a $150,000 gas/electric hybrid. One problem: Lexus chartered a cargo plane to send the car from Japan, where it was built, to England where McCartney lived. The carbon emissions from that single flight equal 300 around-the-world trips in the car it carried. McCartney can never drive the car enough to make up for the pollution its delivery created. Ironic, isn’t it?
The other one involves a Princeton psychologist who argued that short, simple words make writers seem smarter than long words do. The ironic name of the study: “Consequences of Erudite Vernacular Utilized Irrespective of Necessity.”
Man has never needed much help to look foolish. Oh, how God must laugh at His creation and the funny things we do. God loves irony as well. A King riding on a donkey? A shepherd boy taking down a giant? A family of eight riding out a storm in a large watercraft with a number of animals? A man riding a chariot off to heaven? We love that God does things in ways we would not expect. He has done that in your life, hasn’t He? A Savior from sin? Yes. The just dying for the un-just? It happened. A perfect man giving His life for those far short of perfection? Check.
The irony of it all. The Lord of Life having a good laugh…and we smile.
In Christ,
Pastor