Cheeses vs Jesus

Scott Emmons in “The Daily Rhyme” for today http://www.thedailyrhyme.com/ [which is actually now the weekly rhyme] entitles his rhyme, “It’s All Gouda.” The last line is, “My once pathetic life was changed/When I accepted cheeses.”

Scott likes to poke fun at religious types, and this is a clever little effort in that direction, playing off of religious phrases like “God is good all the time,” and “My life was changed when I accepted Jesus.”

I know that for Scott it’s just fun, with a tinge of unbeliverliness, but it gives me a chance to point up once again the difference between pleasure and joy, which is represented here by the difference between Cheeses and Jesus.

Nothing wrong with pleasure, says Jesus. Jesus reminds us that pleasure is good. Otherwise, why would we seek it? Those who do seek it and find it “have their reward,” he says.

But Cheeses, the spokesman for the world’s salvation, tells us that pleasure is enough; it can give meaning to life. Jesus knows there is something more.

Having money and what it can buy gives us pleasure, says Cheeses. Yes, but sharing, not just having, goes beyond pleasure to joy, says Jesus.

Having power, controlling others, be it financial or political or familial, can bring us pleasure, says Cheeses. Yes, says Jesus, but going beyond the pleasure of power to service brings us joy. [See the story of James and John wanting the best places in the Kingdom.]

Boozing and doping and wagering and porning and over-eating can give you the pleasure of getting out of your pathetic life, says Cheeses. Yes, but being the real you, the person God wants you to be, brings you joy, says Jesus.

Casual sex can give us pleasure, says Cheeses, [although it’s often surprisingly quite un-pleasurable], but only love brings us joy, says Jesus.

I like Cheeses and his cheeses. When I hang out only with him, though, it’s like stopping the meal after the appetizers. The entrée is where Jesus is. Don’t stop with just being cheesy. Go for the joy.