Day 171: Why I Agree With Markwell

At Northwestern, there are fliers, tshirts, chalking, and more all saying "I Agree With Markwell." This has caused quite a buzz around campus about who Markwell is, what he believes, and if I agree or disagree. Things exploded last Tuesday night when articles were published through student news groups, and people reacted with blog posts and comments. A lot of the online responses were negative or critical of the campaign. Even offline, people were talking. The residents that I live with in the dorm where I am an CA (aka RA) stayed up late into the night discussing the campaign and spirituality.

I'd like to take a moment to explain why I Agree With Markwell and if you are at Northwestern tomorrow (Thursday), invite you to our keynote event. Thanks for taking the time to read this and please feel free to comment below and share your opinions.

Firstly, I want to say that Matt Markwell is my buddy, pal, friend of mine. He's a real person that I go to school with who is studying engineering. We spent a summer together in Ocean City, New Jersey on a program with Cru. And since then, we've grown to be friends and I've seen a glimpse of how he cares for others. During that summer in OC, I remember venting about some of the other guys on the program who I was having an issue with and he listened intently and genuinely cared about what I was going through. I continued to see this care for others as we went out on the Jersey beach and met random people and got into conversations with them about their lives, passions, and spiritual beliefs. Because he internalized Jesus' teaching that we are created to be in relationship with God, he acted upon these beliefs by giving people a chance to experience that relationship.

But this campaign isn't about Markwell being this great dude.  In fact, neither Markwell, nor myself, nor anyone on this earth is perfect or good enough. I believe that humanity is broken and lost. Yes, lost. A controversial word. Jesus used it first when explaining his mission in coming to earth "to seek and save the lost." People were created to know God personally and experience his love and plan. But we have strayed from this path, choosing our selfish ways instead of his way, and therefore are lost. I think from looking at the world today, we can see evidence of this brokenness. We are born with a desire for good to be done in the world, a desire for world peace--just look at Miss America or Madonna at the Superbowl. But no matter how hard we try, we inevitably come up short. Every time. The news is filled with stories that make us sick to our stomachs, and if we look at our own lives, we wonder why we can't achieve perfection, even with our good intentions. I wonder if it were just about being "good enough" or "doing what you think is right for you," what would define that which is good versus bad and how would justice be determined if truth or goodness is relative. And if I left this post at that, it would be pretty depressing.

But God didn't leave it at that. He wrote himself into the story of humanity through the person of Jesus Christ. I urge you to look into the historicity of Jesus. He was a real dude. And he was more than just a moral teacher. Sure he said things like "turn the other cheek" (well actually, "turn to him also the other") and advocated for treating the poor and disenfranchised with dignity and love. But he also said things like "I am he [the coming Messiah]" and "whoever believes in him [the Son aka Jesus] shall not perish but have eternal life." These go beyond just being a moral teacher or revolutionary. These are big claims, and quite frankly if someone was saying things like this today, they could be classified as a lunatic (someone who is not God but cognitively believes this to be true), a liar (someone who knows it isn't true, but is claiming it to be true), or the real deal, the Lord (someone who is God). Jesus died, was buried, and rose from the grave as the substitution for our penalty we owe for rebellion from God. This is the way God chose to bridge the gulf that separates us from Him.

Jesus said this is the only way and that it is not enough to merely agree with this intellectually. It's an act of the will. An informed choice. You decide to place your trust in what he did and live your life yielded to Christ. I agree with Markwell that these things are true and a decision needs to be made. And I am a part of this campaign, because I think people need to talk about these things. Two of the most important things you can think about are "what's the purpose of this present life?" and "what is going to happen when I join the rest of humanity in the grave?" This campaign is aiming at starting that conversation on campus.

I'd love for you to join me in continuing the discussion. If you are on campus, please consider attending the keynote event tomorrow (Thursday) at 9pm in Fisk 217. Markwell himself will be sharing a bit about the heart behind the campaign. Agree? Disagree? Confused? It's open to everyone. If you're not in the area, feel free to check out the website: iagreewithmarkwell.com And thanks for sticking around and reading this. I hope you continue to think through these things and seek out answers.