It was only a matter of time before I ran up against a demand for an apology, and a dressing down for my “tone”. Actually, this is the second time in blogdom, but it probably won’t be the last.
That said, since neither as a Christian nor as a thinking person will I acquiesce to demands that I be nice. Or as I term it “nicey-nice”. If you are going to hold opinions and post them on your blog which I determine as detrimental in the larger arena sometimes called the “cultural wars” then you are going to hear something from me ( should I come across it), and I will address it as I think it needs to be addressed: usually with a rather sharp instrument.
One of the things I believe Evangelical Christians are abysmally unaware of is the depth and extent of the hostility of their opposition. It surprises most of those who come into contact with it. And in blogdom, you will eventually come in contact with it, although not as quickly as on a message board forum,….or street witnessing.
And what happens when coming upon it? Usually an internal look for rational causes for it, but Evangelical Christians become quite hobbled in this by some of their dearest held myths “If only I am contrite enough, if only I state enough mea culpas, if only I smile and try to make everything right” it will somehow become ameliorated, somehow I will diffuse, excuse, and defuse it.
But they are not looking carefully enough at what is involved, what is being said, and who is saying it.
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry when a Christian will try to rationalize why they don’t oppose Officialized Gay Marriages and yet continue to tell the gay population their lifestyle is not accepted by God. Do you think that is winning you points? Do you think the political contingent of the gay community is going to thank you for your “openness”? of allowing that you think the secular government can change the definitions of marriage, but you will continue to consider them outlaws personally?
Wake up. And they should not thank you. You are trying to straddle the fence. They have a better hold on the reality of what you are saying than you do, they know that as long as you hold to a doctrine that does not fully embrace their actions, that you stand on the side of condemnation of them as a witness. And anyone who holds the cross condemns the sins of men. It condemns our sins, friends. It says we were worthy of that death by crucifixtion…. and all the laws we broke that set us against God condemned us.
We have no message if we don’t have the right message. There is nothing harder to live than the Christian life if it is not true. It accepts no man’s person, as good or righteous. And it beckons to all to come for the making of everything right. It places a powerful onus on us to accept and live according to it, and to have something more than anything else on earth can offer.
Did you read my ‘mood” post? Do you know that the obligation of accepting the free gift of Gods forgiveness means I have to face up to my own debtorship and freely forgive?
Do you have any idea how costly that is? How much it forces our struggle? It is not an easy ride, friends.
We can’t afford to molly-coddle the false, while we are needing to extend all possible tolerance to one another. That is our tension in this life, our place of balance. The rule by which we shall find ourselves judged.
I cannot respect nor apologize for lambasting those things which would size up the motivations of Christians on a plainly faulty theory. We have enough things to truly correct and to be contrite over. Things which we need to make right. Plenty…. so we don’t need the flagellations of false accusations or mistaken theories.
There comes a time when it is needed to cast down the high things that exalt themselves. This is done by applying the doctrines of the Church correctly and debating them in the proper context.
The idea of a Rapture is simply one portion of the doctrine that Christ will come a Second and Last time. It simply means that believers will join Christ eternally from that point. The doctrines of Tribulation are several and not held by all, not interpreted the same by all. The greatest number of Evangelicals are not politically motivated by their Tribulation view.
What has been motivating Christians throughout the nation is the erosion of religious rights, and the rise of the numbers of abortions- along with a moral stance concerning that. The call to exercise ones citizens rights has been a powerful motivator- it began with “The Moral Majority” which was a loose coalition of the politically conservative and those with religious concerns. That has since split into other camps, but for the religious it has become motivated by an idea that should the Coming of Jesus Christ yet delay, we ought to “occupy” our place in society with values of the Kingdom. We should raise our voice for that which we believe, and cast our votes accordingly.
It is no less than the opposition.
It certainly is not a temporal One Church foisting of government upon and obliterating all others.
Which is how we are increasingly painted.
It’s on that propaganda poster I want to write my own little graffitti from this blog.
And fair warning- I don’t care what it costs me in popularity or “respect”, because if you don’t respect me for telling the truth…as far as I am convinced of that truth, then don’t bother with offering me some maybe “respect” for my capitulation.
Tell me what points I am wrong on and why… and we can engage from there.
If you don’t consider that civilized, then outlaw me.
There was a time that Rome called upon its Barbarians. You take enough losses from your enemies and you end up in that place, even the Kingdom of God has the occasional Battleaxe for the right reasons, in the right way, and in the right arena of the mind. Martin Luther was not always right, he was sometimes rough, but there was a time he was needed for the job at hand. We all have our places and we have our differing styles. It is possible that I am wrong, but I don’t think I will be able to see that until I see more of my fellow Christians with backbone. Backbone and insight, and the ability to deliver both together. Until then, I am rough and hard worn from dealing with Christians who I believe ought to know better. They ought to and I shouldn’t need to say things, but there it is. You don’t like my identification with Luther? Then maybe there should be less laying wood at the fire of stake burnings and more torches to show the way.
That is the fire I respect, and the one I aspire to. Inspire me.
In struggling to overcome my own homosexual attractions, too often it seemed to me the Christian community demands that people change their behavior to be more like them. I am, so near as I can tell, called only to be more like Jesus. We’re not called to be straight; we’re called to be holy.
I understand, though, that in this endeavor God expects me to die to everything that I might worship apart of him… and as I strive to the best of my ability to be conformed to the imago dei, I can’t help but be changed.
It’s not about sex; it’s about knowing God, no? Yet in 34 years of Christian chaos, I’m still seeking a church home where the priority seems to be on knowing God rather than fixing my behavior so it merely looks as though I know him – and not so much for my benefit as for the benefit of those around me.
Frankly, no wonder the Church gets a bad rap. Sometimes it has it coming.
You’ve got it right,greg. You do. But it all comes down to this for all of us: to prove what’s right we have to live it, and be as consistant as we are able. We need to help each other do this, but we are each responsible for our own soul.
God multiply grace to us, and strengthen us in our inner man.
Go get ’em, Ilona! Great post! Christians DO make a serious mistake of underestimating the enemy and “going along to get along.” There’s a mass confusion out there between being loving and standing for the truth. We need wisdom to know which is right at the right time.
Theo- I believe that every man, no matter how far away or how blind, would melt all objections if faced with a true vision of God’s Love. It is the false ideas that give the intransigent barriers- that which would not budge even when faced with the physical presence of Christ.
I know my enemy when faced with ideas, but in real life I tend to have problems understanding the vehicle. Maybe it has to do with the Lord’s admonition that we behave in love towards the enemies and not that we should trust them. ?
Enemy is a powerful word. We misapply it in the church, oftentimes. Those who admit their weakness in sexual lusts aren’t enemies, but those who would cover all sorts of sin in sheeps clothing would be. Writing this, I see how important discernment gifts are, and 1Corinthians 13 to keep from making tragic mistakes in judgement.